we're off!

Starting the big adventure today. I've never had movers come, so I'm pretty excited about that. It was still a lot of work, even without doing the packing. Nathan's just happy he doesn't have to pack all our books again. Today the movers pack, and we shift the family to a holiday apartment in the center. Tomorrow they load the truck, and Thursday we'll hand over the apartment keys and turn in Nathan's company car. His Passat was new when we arrived, 5 years ago, and it's definitely showing its age. It's been a great car for us, but certainly not Japanese :) "A lot of good cars are Japanese." Friday, it's off to the airport, very early. We fly through Amsterdam and are hoping that no volcanos erupt in the interim. At the same time we're doing all this, family members are letting in a cleaning crew and carpet cleaners at our new house. Thanks, Naomi, Tyler and Zach!

So Friday we'll move into a hotel and pick up our rental car. Saturday we'll move items from our storage unit, which is also in the Dallas area. Thanks to everyone who is going to help with that! I'm not really certain what's in storage at this point, but I know we'll have beds for everyone once we add one air mattress, a dining room table, and a bunch of books. While Nathan orchestrating the move, I'll be taking the kids shopping -- baby gates, pillows and sheets are on the menu. Followed closely by toilet paper. Sunday we go to church and also move into the house, ready or not. Monday we receive delivery of a refrigerator, washer and dryer, and guys come to hook up our internet. For the rest of the week, we'll be buying essential items, including cars and cell phones. We'll get library cards, eat Mexican food, and swim in the pool. We'll unpack all those mystery boxes. And we'll also be waking up at 4 am daily. Sounds like we'll be doing our shopping at a 24-hour Wal-Mart, doesn't it?

Yes, it sounds like a ton of work, but it will be so fun, too! I'm happy to have a bit of time to visit downtown Prague before we go, and I'm going to love the moving in on the other end. This is the first time I've moved anywhere and felt like it was a permanent move. No guarantees on the permanence, but we don't have a time limit. How nice to be able to shop for long-lived items, rather than disposable ones. Na shladenou!