In a box....on the truck!

“Mom, where is my ____________?”  is a question I have heard numerous times in the last few months from the children.  “Mary, where is ____________?”  is a question I have heard several times from my handsome husband guy.  “Now where did I put __________?”  is a question I have asked myself here of late.  The answer to 95% of those questions is the same, “In a box…..on the truck.”  In fact, anymore they just join me as I answer, “In a box, on the truck!” J Those missing items are on the big moving truck loaded up Tuesday, January 15 of this year in Newburgh.  The same truck that is now stored somewhere here in the local area that we are unable to get into until unloading day sometime in the future.  Items I thought we would be able to do without since we were going to be moving into a new house at the end of February.   If only I had known our original plan wasn’t going to turn out as we thought, I would have most definitely packed a few more things for the little red cabin. 

The boxes...on the truck.

The little red cabin has somehow shrunk these last few weeks.  Door knobs have been falling off doors, the drain under the kitchen sink separated this past week and I found myself standing in a huge puddle of dirty dishwater I had just dumped down the drain, and the one bathroom has now become more difficult to share.   It’s getting harder to be positive about camping.  The little ones are bickering more.  While it is tempting to open up the backdoor and let them out in the gorgeous back yard here…I learned the hard way that was not such a good idea.  So I won’t be repeating that mistake lest we have the return of the mud monsters!

I was feeling so proud of myself.  That alone should have been a red flag, but it wasn’t.  They were bickering and fussing and it was such a nice day, so I bundled them up and sent them O – U – T, out!  I sat down to get some lesson planning and other administrative things done at the computer without interruption.  Ahhh!  All was quiet and I was making tremendous headway when all of a sudden the backdoor flies open, Sam thunders through the kitchen, continues on through the entry way, and into the living area on the main floor just as proud as can be.  His pink cheeks were glowing and his brown eyes snapping.  He was animated and full of the energy only a 4 year old can contain.  He stops right in front of me, holds up one leg, and says, “MOM, LOOK AT THIS!”  I was horrified.  From this point on, it was all in slow motion.

Note to self:  Self, this beautiful backyard gets muddy after the snow melts.

The bottom of his shoe was entirely caked with at least no less than 1/2 inch of mud.  He was like some mud monster you would see on Scooby Doo.  There was mud everywhere!  Mud on his face, coat, pants, and his shoes were hard to see beneath the filth.  There were globs of mud falling off his shoe as he stood there with it in midair.  Then in an instant we went back to real time, and I can now see past him.  I see the trail of muddy footprints from the back door to where he was now standing.  Clumps of mud in between those prints dotted here and there.  It was at this point something inside me snapped.  Sam was instructed in a not so calm and patient voice to return outside to the beauty of the day, and I had a little change of plans.  Instead of getting some work done at the computer, I got to clean up a bunch of mud inside the house, off the back porch, steps, patio, and three muddy children (shoes, muddy pants, and muddy coats).  That was perhaps the most stupid idea I’ve ever had because I didn’t think it through.  While yes, it was beautiful outside, the newly melted snow had made the yard very squishy. 

 

I did bring two boxes of toys for the little ones back from Newburgh to the rental house and immediately we opened one up.  I forgot about the other one.  I know that sounds silly, but there are still items we have here packed in boxes with lids open against the walls.  It is primitive I know, but we’re camping, remember?!  So it kind of blended in with the others.   I discovered this box not so long ago and we had a grand time opening it!  You’d have thought it was Christmas!  WOW!  Talk about peace and harmony and excited voices about what was inside new to play with.  I didn’t know Legos were such a big deal.  Never before had they been so enthusiastic about them in Newburgh.  Absence does make the heart grow fonder I guess.  The Legos hadn’t changed, but their attitudes about them had.   They were grateful.  I have a feeling it will be sensory overload once we unload the boxes on the big truck. 

 

We’re one week away from the one year mark of when it became very clear to us that moving to Illinois was most likely going to happen.  It marks the time when we began the process of preparing to put our home in Newburgh on the market.  A time when I began putting items in boxes for the first time, and storing them in the yard barn or garage.  I can’t believe it.  It’s been a very interesting year.   It’s been a year where we’ve had to rely on God like never before, and trust His plan for our family.

And the boxing began.

If I were to sum up this year in one word, it would be Simple.  We’ve learned about simplifying our life and getting back to basics, the core of what is needed instead of wanted.  We’ve discovered those things we once thought were needs are really wants and are appreciating those things now that we have gone without.  Things like having enough bathroom space to store your toiletries, hang your towels, and even just turn around.  Things like more than one bathroom, dishwashers, carpet, cabinet space, pantries, dressers, and an attached two car garage.  I’m even grateful for their toys and books.  You know, all the ones I used to get frustrated about cleaning up at the end of the day!   We’ve also learned to appreciate one another.  We’ve learned we are so incredibly blessed and don’t deserve all we’ve been gifted by our great and awesome God.  Please understand, I’m eagerly looking forward to the day the big truck comes and is unloaded, yet I’m even more grateful for the lessons we’ve learned this year.  Fortunately for us, those are things that will always be with us in our hearts and minds, and not packed in a box….on the truck! 

Shoe storage converted to toiletry storage.
50 gallon gray storage tote converted to dresser in background.
Camping at the Cabin.