Moving ..... Update

Well we signed for keys on St. Patricks Day to our new "temp" living arrangements. The movers came on the 18th & 19th and packed everything. The 20th they loaded up the truck in the am and unloaded the truck in the pm. I got home from work to a home full of boxes packed to the ceiling. Feeling a little overwhelmed I looked at JJ and said.... "Let's go get dinner, and then we will hash out a game plan." Well as I said in previous post we were going from 2 living rooms,1 loft, 4 bedrooms, 1 dining room and a eat in kitchen to .... 1 living room and 1 dining room, 3 bedrooms with a little extra storage. Previous to getting the keys were did not have any idea what to expect so it was hard to plan anything. When we were finally allowed to see the new house (may I add only after we signed for it) we decided to lay out a game plan. HOW AM I GOING TO FIT ALL THIS FURNITURE? Well.... I am sure happy I am creative! I was able to put two boys rooms full of stuff into 1 bedroom (yes that's right... they are sharing a room again) They have not had to do this since they were 3 and 5. Now 11 & 9, it's like a "hotel" room as Tanner would call it. I was also able to turn the dining room into a "formal" living room/dining room with some creative staging. I do have a "family room" now, which is where we will spend most of our time. Did I mention that I LOVE this kitchen? It has tons of storage with plenty of drawers, etc. I can actually put things away and not stack them 7 or 8 deep. So this new house definitely has it's pros and cons. You can tell they put a lot of thought into laying these out. 3 storage areas, a huge kitchen, a fluorescent light in the MBR closet. Now I can actually see my clothes, shoes & purses. HUGE back yard, 1/2 grass and 1/2 gravel. They installed sprinkler systems and they mow their grass. (Now Heather, I remember the day's you had to mow at Ft. Riley. I know your are say "WHAT" over that one.)

As of today, I have been very productive. Everything has been hung, organized and put in it's place except the office and garage. JJ is convinced that I would win a contest of who can put their home together the fastest. It took me less than 48 hours minus sleeping and a little shopping to put things together.... so collectively I put about 18 hours into it. I will try to snap some photos tomorrow night after football practice and post so I can get your thoughts. Now with football in full swing 4 days a week and a game on Saturday, the office will have to wait until Saturday afternoon. I will be curious to hear your thoughts on my creative tactics on how to make a 1800 sq foot house feel bigger than it actually is.

Stay tuned for pics....