what's up weekly. (I mean, monthly. I mean, Let's Talk about Moving Week.)

WHEW Y'ALL.  These last couple of weeks have been quite the ride, let me tell you.  And on top of it, we didn't have Wi-Fi hooked up at the new house until this past weekend, so I haven't been able to blog about it.  Even now, I don't have it in me to chronicle every last thing that has happened, so let me just bite off a chunk called "Moving Week."  Today I'll just cover August 26 through September 2.

The Friday night before Moving Kickoff Weekend, Todd got the kids one last round of Andy's Frozen Custard, a Como favorite.

The next day, my mom came down from Iowa to help me pack my kitchen.  To get the kids out from under foot, Todd took them on a walk.  I had already packed all the baby hats and the stroller with the visors, so Todd rigged up a makeshift sunshade out of a moving box for Ophelia.  She seemed to like it okay.

Monday was Laurelai's ninth birthday!!! We had gotten wings over the weekend as her chosen birthday dinner, and we packed up the Uhaul on her actual birthday.  Some may say her day was at risk of getting lost in the shuffle of moving, but I like to think of it more like she got a whole new house for her birthday.

Laurelai is just a pure ball of nuclear energy all packed down and squished to bursting in a tiny, stringy little body.  She radiates frequency.  But at the same time, she does things slowly and meticulously - which is why her handwriting is so good, and she is never at risk of getting distracted and burning something she's cooking. Whatever she's doing, she's All There.  She is extremely servant-hearted and kind.  She loves to help in the kitchen.  She has a very tender heart and conscience.  She is a hoarder because she doesn't want to hurt anything's feelings by throwing it away.  She is so silly and funny and pretty and wonderful, and the sun would not shine as bright without her.

On Monday night, on the way home from picking up the Uhaul, the alternator in the Kraken died.  Luckily we were close to home, and friends were close by that could come jump us to give us just enough 'oomph' to get all the way home, but it definitely added a complication to an already crazy week.  

Once we got home with the Uhaul, friends came and helped us load up, and they prayed over us.  Many of them were friends who also moved down to Columbia at the same time we did to help plant Anthem.  It was sweet and surreal to think through everything the last six years have held, and bittersweet to realize we would actually be leaving.  Columbia has really become our home over time - I was so resistant to loving it, but I have found myself very sad to leave.  I will deeply miss our friendships here, as well as all of the wonderful things I have come to love about this city - mostly my access to cheap incredible food, my Amish friendships, and our little church.  I will even miss our house, if you can believe that after all the bellyaching I did at the beginning!  All three of the little girls were born there, but Ophelia was literally born there. In that very living room.  So much joy and abundance was given to us in Columbia.

Anyway, I'm going to move on before I get too emotional.

Monday night, the kids watched a movie on the laptop before bed, and then had a slumber party in the boys' room one last time.

Tuesday morning some friends were set to arrive from Leavenworth to help us get all of our vehicles over there.  (We needed to move the Kraken, Goldie Honda and the Uhaul, but I still don't drive out of town so Todd was our only driver.  It felt like a, "You have a wolf, a donkey and a bale of hay to get across a river on the barge, but you can only take two at a time," kind of situation.)  Todd spent the morning calling around to different mechanics in town to figure out if any of them could get us in to look at the alternator that day (answer: no, the first place couldn't even look at the Kraken until Thursday).  But when our friends arrived, they knew how to fix what needed to be fixed, so they spent the morning helping us with that and loading a few last things on a trailer, and then we headed out.

While they worked on the van, the kids swung on the tree in the front yard, and the little girls played hide and seek in the garage lockers.  It was a sweet, joyful way to end our time there.

Remember when this front yard had a weird planter in the middle of it, and an oak tree and a random lantern and a bunch of overgrown bushes?  Now it has patchy grass, but it is still better than it was before we put our mark on it.

We built these lockers with a friend.

Goodbye, Shannon Place.  You were a good house to us.

That night, we didn't head all the way into Leavenworth but stayed the night with friends in the Kansas City area.  On Wednesday morning, we left early to make it to town for our final walk through.  We were set to close on our house at 10:00, and when we arrived at 9:30, the previous owner was still occupying it and much of her stuff was still in it.  The movers were there, but were standing around on a smoke break.  We were informed that she was pretty sure she'd be out by 1:00.  Um, what?  We have bought a lot of houses in our day, but nothing like this has ever happened to us before.

We were really frustrated, but there wasn't really anything we could do.  We drove around for a few hours, we got some lunch and went to a park, we drove past the house multiple times on the off-chance she would decide to leave before 1:00 (she didn't).  It was a rough spot in an already deeply exhausting week.  But, we did get good barbecue out of the deal and she did end up leaving eventually (which is more than what SHE could say about the sellers of her own new house - I guess when she arrived, her sellers did the same thing to her!  But she ended up calling the cops on them to get them to leave.  I'm not sure whether I admire her moxie or resent her hypocrisy.  Maybe both).

Where we stayed Tuesday night.  The Kraken looks tired but triumphant.  Try not to be dazzled by his sexy new alternator.

Sitting outside the Title company, eating donuts and killing time.

Stealthily taking photos of the gal's moving truck, still sitting in the driveway, mocking us.

Lunch.  My legs are the same color and approximate size as the truck.  The truck is less lumpy.

While I'm already annoyed as I relive the hours we spent driving aimlessly around town before landing here for lunch, I'm just going to go on another rant: Modern Playgrounds.  WHERE ARE THE TREES?  Why must everything be so blasted hot?  It's like the aesthetic they're going for when planning modern playgrounds is "Surface of the Sun."  Yes, we're sitting in the shade in this photo, but the second you venture out from the table to actually use the playground, the temperature rises like a million degrees, and the heat just radiates off the ground because there's no grass either.  Why did they not consult Paige Van Voorst before progressivizing playground design?  Why can't we just keep the old way of doing things - the old swings that would catch your hair in the chains, and the metal slides that would cook your thighs with the heat of molten lava should you ever dare to brave them, but also the TREES AND GRASS?  I miss the old playgrounds.  Okay, end rant.

We did finally get into the house, in case you were worried we didn't, and Todd went to get our Uhaul to start unloading.  Friends came by to help through the afternoon, and by about 5:30, everything was off the truck.

How we feel about our new house.

The moment of truth.

The next day, Todd, Atticus and Finneas drove BACK to Columbia with the truck to load up our storage units, and I worked on getting our kitchen totally unpacked.

It was a very full and crazy week, but we did it.  We made it through.  And there has been a lot more to share since then, so keep your eyes peeled for the next installment!  

And that, my friends, is how we expertly packed a truck and a week and a blog post full to bursting.

what's up weekly. (last post from our Como house.)

Well, one more week under our belts in the countdown to the move.  We spent the week putting some last remaining things in boxes, cleaning out the van, running errands, and filing paperwork.  Nothing was too frantic, but we kept busy.

The kids spent a lot of time playing outside, since the weather has finally cooled down a bit and most of their inside toys are packed up.

This week held a lot of "lasts."  I'm dealing with a lot of emotions as I process through our time here.  Moving to Columbia was hard fought all the way - between deciding to move, to actually getting settled and feeling like we knew what our purpose here was, I spent a lot of time feeling restless and untethered.  I don't think I could have foreseen then how sad I would feel now to leave.  But this is the longest I've lived anywhere in my adult life.  I have come to have good friends, and good local food, and a good church, and I will really miss them all.

On Saturday, we took our last weekly trip up to the Amish.  I will miss my cheap raw milk, and our amazing raw butter, and bulk foods, and fresh produce.  But I will also really miss the friendships I made up there - I have been making that trip almost every single week for the last six years.  I see them more than I see most people in my life.  My friend Irene and I have watched each other's kids grow up, gone through pregnancies at the same time, and traded gardening ideas and home remedies and recipes.  But it might shock you to learn that she doesn't have Marco Polo, so keeping in touch might prove more difficult than with my other friends.

High summer at Irene's.

The bulk store where I shop.

Irene's house.

We also made sure this week to take a walk through Shelter Gardens.  I think we'll go again tonight.

This little blondie has not been sleeping well this week and has given me a run for my money.  The lack of sleep probably isn't helping my ability to cope with change.

We had our last family popcorn party in this house.  We chose Princess Bride.

I got new glasses... that basically look just like the old glasses.  BUT with a couple notable differences: 1) these fit my face much better, and 2) they're much lighter weight, so they don't keep sliding down my nose.  When I bought my old ones a few years ago, I had all the kids in Walmart with me and they were having meltdowns, but I desperately needed to get some glasses ordered since the previous ones had been badly scratched, so I just ran into the vision center and grabbed the first pair of frames that looked similar to mine.  I didn't even try them on.  And they ended up being humongous (as you all already know).  I liked them, but they never fit right.  So I was glad to find these this week.  Ignore my makeupless face and my unstyled hair and the farmer's tan/burn and the twenty extra pounds I'm holding onto while breastfeeding... basically, only look at the glasses and not at any other part of this photo.  See?  Pretty cute when you selectively edit.

And the last big news of the week is that we managed to keep our chicken coop!  We had been pretty sure we would have to leave it behind, as it is big and wouldn't fit through the gate.  And even if it did, we weren't sure how we'd get it to Leavenworth with us, or where we'd put it right away.  But a friend and her husband were so incredible and offered to keep the coop at their place (they already have our chickens).  Her husband rounded up some help and brought his truck and trailer, and between Todd and the neighbors and the help Andrew brought, they were able to get it through/over the fence and loaded onto the trailer.  They'll keep it at their place until we're able to come back and get it.  (See? This is why I'm so sad to leave our friends behind.  They're great.)

And that was our week.  I am going to take the kids to their favorite playground this morning, and then spend the afternoon continuing to box things up.  I'm also hoping to get our little car cleaned out because it's in sorry shape and a friend is driving it back to Leavenworth for us next week, and I kind of don't want to look like the kind of person who would let their car get this dirty.  Not the most pressing thing in the world, but it would be nice to get accomplished.

Wish me luck.  When you hear from me next, we will be living in the new house!

what's up weekly. (we've seen some stuff, and we have the receipts to prove it.)

OKAY.  The last two weeks have been so full, so I'm just going to jump right in to the good stuff.

First of all, in case you were worried, I can assure you that the boys are still acting like their run-of-the-mill selves: lots of stop motion movie-making, lots of play battles.

The girls have been in the business of loving Scooter Boo to bits.

See what I mean?

We also have been jet setting lately: last week, we headed up to Iowa to stay with family and visit the Iowa State Fair!  Good gravy, do I love me some Fair.

The Fair was full of firsts: here we see many of the VVs having their first cotton candy, compliments of their Uncle Austin.

I think it was a hit.

This photo doesn't show much, but HOW OLD DOES PENELOPE LOOK? She is so pretty.

Here, we have our first hardboiled egg on a stick.  Why?  Because it was free, and it was protein, and because Penelope loves eggs.

Here, we see the first time I can remember this baby falling asleep in the Ergo.  And the first time wearing a cap.  And good gracious, it turns out I love Ergo-wearing sleeping babies in hats.  Who knew?

 

First time seeing the Butter Cow.

First time emerging from the bean tunnel.

First time talking to a plein air artist.  Zoom in and enjoy my face.

First time trying a corndog.  It was a hit.

Unfortunately, I also crossed a less exciting milestone: I twisted my ankle and fell while wearing Ophelia.  (It was far from the first time I've twisted my ankle - it's given me trouble since I sprained it when I was fourteen - but it was the first time I've fallen while wearing a baby.)  Thank goodness Ophelia wasn't hurt, but both my pride and my ankle were. 

My pride deflated, but my ankle inflated... and inflated... and inflated... this photo was taken five days after I fell and it still looks jiggly and fat.

Later that evening, we took the six biggest kids to a Skillet concert after the two littlest girls were in bed.  The kids love Skillet, and when we heard they'd be at the fair, we knew we had to go.  Todd got us great seats, and the kids had SO MUCH FUN.  It was so fun to look down the row and see them singing along.  It was funny to see them all enjoying live music in their own unique ways - Atticus was up singing and dancing, Finneas and Rocco just kind of sat and watched (Rocco sang along, but Finneas just kind of gaped), Laurelai sang with all the energy in her whole stringy little body, and Penelope liked holding Callista and dancing and singing.  And I am not typically one to love concerts (they make me tired!), but this one was so fun.  I'm really glad we went.

Blurry and after dark, but I think you can see the excitement, yes?

Atticus loved singing his heart out.

Then there were fireworks after the show!! This might have been the kids' first fireworks show.  The last one I can remember going to was before we had kids.

The rest of our time in Iowa was also well spent: Todd and I got to go out to eat for our anniversary though we got to the restaurant like half an hour before it closed, so we kind of scarfed it down and hustled home.  We visited my grandpa.  We spent some time at my sister's and got to see a cousin whom I haven't seen in years (he lives in Japan, so contrary to what you might think, our paths don't naturally cross all that often), and the kids played and played and played (and then bathed and bathed and bathed) at my mom's house.

We headed home last Saturday morning, and hit our Amish stops on the way down.  It made for a long day.  In the evening, we went over to the neighbors' for s'mores and hula-hooping.

And in other news, the girls are really growing up fast, like Penelope, who now works out and wore MY dress and MY shoes to church this week.

And Laurelai, who will be NINE in a week and who is such a big help around the house.

And Ophelia, who turned eight months old this past week!!

She's already old enough to cordially challenge you to a duel.  Ahhh, they grow up so fast.

She was coronated.  Time flies.

You tell me that's not the cutest baby in the world, and I'll tell you you're a dirty stinking liar.

Learning to crawl.

Starting Pilates.

In order to keep up with the kids' growth, our marriage decided it should also probably age, so we celebrated our fifteen-year anniversary.  We took the kids out to Shakespeare's Pizza.

Our couch (a wedding gift) also celebrated its fifteen-year anniversary/birthday in solidarity with us.  It looks tired.

And that was basically our week.  I did get more packing done, as we are less than two weeks away from L-Day ("Leavenworth," you guys; keep up).  We sent our chickens to stay with friends for a while, we wore matching outfits to church, and we loved being together, like usual.  That's a pretty good week, in my book.

Isn't our church the cutest little thing?

The chickens were very confused about traveling.  Especially that one being sat on by the other two.  Chickens aren't great at common courtesy, or ever really knowing what's going on.

Not pictured: 30% of us.

And that was the loooooooooooong story of our last two weeks!