We survived the move and are settling into our spacious new digs. Once the boxes are unpacked and removed we will have two rooms with no furniture. One, the dining room, will be the boys' play area for the foreseeable future. The kitchen is big enough for a table so we don't feel the need for dining room furniture right now. The other, alternately referred to as "the library" or "the den" will ultimately have a cozy reading chair or two. That room has a full wall of built-in book shelves, which pretty much sold John on this house. I love them too, but my biggest selling point was the walk-in closet in the master bedroom, which is actually larger than my childhood bedroom. (Those who have been to my parents house know that this is not saying much, but still...)

Speaking of size and things that could be described as "comically huge," this box came from the local music store, where a friend of ours works. He told John that they get boxes every day and send most of them to the compactor. We were able to snag a few great ones, including this, which our friend said he thought held three trumpets, possibly trombones. Anyway, it was huge--as wide as our oven and taller than the bottom drawer. Nothing heavy could go in it, but it was perfect for every piece of tupperware I own.

John and I took vacation for the whole week, which was definitely the right choice. We had lots to do in preparation for the big day on Thursday, and those morning hours while the boys went to daycare were vital. The other crucial factor in this successful venture was the two men who actually did the heavy lifting. Hooray for Two Men and A Truck--if this franchise is available in your area, I highly recommend it. The only glitch was due to my lack of planning. I thought everything would be off the truck by the time I had to leave for my class at 5:30 (oh, yeah...did I mention that my next MBA class started the night of our move?) We had left everything in our dresser drawers so when the time came to get ready for class and my dresser was still way back in the truck, I had to improvise. I found a bag of my maternity clothes and pulled out a skirt and t-shirt that were not too billowy. I'm sure no one else even noticed, but it felt very odd to me.

In this picture, Daniel is waiting with me for the movers to arrive. Edward spent the afternoon and overnight with Grandma and Grandpa, but with Daniel still tethered to me as his food source, it was easier to keep him with us. I picked him up from daycare around 12:30 and then came to the new house to wait. I had earlier brought some toys and his saucer so we'd have something to do and a safe place to put him. We also set up the portable crib so he could take an afternoon nap. Someday it will be funny to look at this picture and try to remember a time when the house was empty.

He is quite mobile now, not fully crawling on hands and knees, but getting where he wants to go and even starting to pull up a bit, as on this box. Among our first purchases for the new house will be at least one and probably two new baby gates because he'll soon be full steam ahead toward the stairs.

Over the weekend Edward got his hair cut for the fourth time in his two years and eight months of life. On the last bath before the move, John took this picture to demonstrate that Daniel might not be so shiny up top. He was taking it for the hair, but the goofy grin was definitely a bonus. This picture just cracks us up.