On our 4 hour drive to our newest address, we were reflecting on our many moves. Almost too many to track.
- June 2002: East Lansing, MI to Highlands Ranch, CO (graduated college, engaged and off on our first adventure)
- January 2003: Highlands Ranch, CO to Parker, CO (our townhouse was being sold, so we moved about 5 miles away)
- November 2003: Parker, CO to Charlotte, MI (decided to move back home, so I could be around family while Herb pursued his dream to play professional football traveling all over the world!)
- December 2004: Charlotte, MI to Tampa, FL (a move together to Tampa - AFL & USF)
- June 2005: Tampa, FL to Charlotte, MI (returning to MI so Herb could finish his Kinesiology degree and embark on a new chapter in life - coaching)
- July 2007: Charlotte, MI to Saginaw, MI (first full-time coaching job)
- July 2009: Saginaw, MI to Saginaw, MI (2 bedroom condo to a 3 bedroom condo to accomodate our nephew moving up from FL)
- January 2011: Saginaw, MI to Storage Unit (a very stressful time of uncertainty while we explored our next move)
- July 2011: Storage Unit to Oxford, OH (a blessing & opportunity we had been praying for!)
So, that's 9 moves in 9 years of engagement + marriage! Wow, no wonder I hate packing/unpacking & loading/unloading. Life is for sure an adventure. They say everything you do has some fun in it - all you have to do is find it!
This move was my first time to Oxford. Herb warned me that the drive from Michigan was not a direct route, but I never envisioned SO many country roads with lots of turns, rolling hills and changes in speed limit. The whole time I was listening to Onstar direct us to our new address, I was thinking this must be a practical joke. There has got to be a better way to our destination. Nope. Four hours, lots of talk radio and some construction detours later we arrived to our new address.
(May I note that we have been completely spoiled with nearly new rental units in all of our previous moves.) Unfortunately, Herb did not get to tour our exact condo before signing the lease.
As a result, we were left with a unit in complete filth. The previous tenant did not clean - EVER. There were 5 walls painted a reddish orange that took 4 coats of paint to cover. Toilet seats needed to be replaced, even the washer was dirty! Oh, and I forgot to mention that the previous tenant left some things behind "that she thought we might like"! NO THANK YOU to the 6 plastic floor lamps held together with duct tape and the variety of other furnishings that filled the guest bedroom and many of the closets. Thanks to my hubbie he agreed to spend all day and night painting and deep cleaning before we unloaded our Uhaul. The next morning we tackled the Uhaul in 100 degree heat. The $10 appliance dolly we rented was worth every penny when it came to moving our 400lb TV! I'm probably being dramatic, but it is extremely heavy. After the unload were both drenched in sweat and completely exhausted, but continued working until 9:30pm that night unpacking and arranging our things.
We ventured out for a much needed FUN break/date. The movie theater is only 0.6 miles away. It is a small 4 screen theater right downtown. It is very "intimate", only about 30-40 seats for each screen. Herb commented that he felt like he was in someone's home theater! After a very funny movie (Horrible Bosses), we walked downtown for some ice cream at midnight. I enjoyed Blue Moo Cookie Dough and Herb had Paint Ball.
I'm looking forward to the next few weeks learning the lay of the land and experiencing new things, new places and new people. Here's to Oxford!
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