The MOVE!!!!

We were definitely mistaken when we thought a move just 45 minutes away would be simpler than moving across the ocean...it was just as hard!  We didn't think we'd have a hard time getting housing on post (Vogelweh Air Force Base...about 10-15 min. from Leevi's work on Kleber Kaserne) it was just a matter of when.  The "when" was pretty bad timing since we got the keys for the new place right after Leevi left for his 3 week trip to the States.  We held off on movers coming until he returned (thankfully my brain didn't try to trick me into thinking I could do it alone!)  AND since Leevi was sick for 2 weeks and gone for one week prior to that, we didn't get hardly any pre-move prep work done.  (One wonderful blessing was that we ONLY had to clean the appliances in the old house since the post is closing!!!)  Once the kids and I got the keys, we made 5 trips with the van loaded to the max...I moved the kitchen, clothing, linens/toiletries and any other little things that I could find a place for in the new home (pantry items, garage storage things, etc.)  Even after doing all of that, we still had a ton left once the movers came.  And a BIG thank you goes out to Brandy and Stephanie for helping with the kids while I prepped!!!!!!

We settled for a 3 bdrm because the wait time was unclear for a 4 bdrm. The 3 bdrm (2100 sq ft) has enough perks that the 4 bdrm doesn't so it wasn't that big of a deal and there is only 200 sqft difference in the two.  When we heard that the house they offered us was on Hawaii Circle we took it as a sign that this is the house for us!!!!!

 

The front of the townhome...we L-O-V-E the rouladen window shades (one of my favorite German things!) They can be opened/closed from the inside (similar to how you'd open a blind) and they block out 100% of the light and help with heating/cooling.  

 

A view down the court...it's so nice to be off of the main roads

Backyard with plenty of room for the patio set, trampoline, and climber

Backyard view...

I just had to take a picture of another random backyard to show how lucky with got with ours!  We are in the older houses which I was a little bummed at first because we don't have the heated tile flooring but I can definitely deal with the radiators on the walls in trade for the privacy we have in our significantly larger backyard (the hedges have had many years to grow and our neighbors behind us are pretty far away in comparison)

We also lucked out with a park being at the end of our court.  There are quite a few parks on this post but not nearly as many as in Mannheim...we are slowly making our rounds!  :) 

Over the 3 weeks that I moved myself, I took a select amount of toys each week to keep the girls busy while I scrambled to get things organized!  

There is no way I could have gotten nearly half of the things done that I did without Big Sister Hailey!!!!!

I tried super hard not to abuse her help and we'd call it a day sometimes based on the Lukester!

Poor guy!  But it was cute because they called it his graduation cap!

The Dozier family came along one day and we packed their van along with mine for a double load!  We got 75% of the kitchen unpacked that day along with a lot done in the bedrooms! 

Moving is exhausting! 

Leevi returned from his 3 weeks in the States the SAME MORNING that the movers arrived!  He was sooooo jet lagged from hopping around FOUR different timezones and I'm so thankful that he didn't get sick again when he hit the ground running with this move! 

Where Luke had to nap over the two days!

The movers didn't show up until 1pm on the first day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I was getting pretty panicky because I had heard about 20 horror stories about all of the moves with Mannheim closing!  And they worked for 3 hours and called it a day!  They originally were supposed to pack and load one day and deliver and unload the next.  We had planned on staying in the new house after the first day of packing so we could just wake up and have them start unloading, so we had to adjust our plans. 

Loading day...last pictures at the Grant Circle house!

Once we reloaded my van in the morning, the kids and I took off to the new house to get out of the way.  Leevi called me around noon to let me know that they didn't have enough room in the truck and that another set of movers were on the way to load the rest and that the current set were on the way to the new house to deliver.  Leevi waiting around for 3 hours until the next set arrived and that load finally made it to the house at 7pm!  It made for a really long start to unpacking....

No move is complete without a box fort!

Watching the movers unload!

This move would have been so much worse if he were mobile!  Luke and Kai are probably at one of the best ages to move...Luke can be entertained with toys, but can't move yet and Kai is an old enough 3 yr old that she's not into everything, although I say that lightly because we caught her digging through a few boxes...I asked her what she was looking for and she replied, "I won't know until I see it!"  :) 



Thursday was our first full day in the new house to get crackin!  We tagged teamed with the kids as much as possible but really only one of us was working at a time...if we didn't have to make meals, eat, clean-up, on top of taking care and cleaning up after the kids we would have been done a lot faster!  :)  On Friday, we had to go back to Heidelberg to wrap up selling my old car (both of us had to go to registration...what a pain!) and then Monday Leevi had to start clearing from Heidelberg.  I was really impressed at how fast we worked with what little free time we had...I suppose after EIGHT moves in NINE years we could do it in our sleep...Leevi does all of the electronics, putting together and positioning of furniture, garage and anything outside, and heavy hangings and I do all of the putting away and organizing and hanging.  We make quite the team!  Our patience was really tested on this move and most people consider me to have a high level of patience with the kids, but Leevi's is just amazing!  I really had to follow his lead and remind myself that it'll get done when it gets done!  He definitely kept me grounded!  

Finding ways to keep entertained!!!!

We pounded out the unpacking late into the night...after we got the kids to bed, we could have some solid hours of organizing without interruptions!  We were basically done (except for the garage attic) after just a few days, but then were burnt out and the little final touches are still lingering.  Once the house was "live-able", I focused back on the kids when Leevi was back at work (along with the daily house chores that never disappear!)

We are enjoying the last fleeting moments of Summer before Hailey starts FIRST GRADE on the 27th!  I'll get around to taking pictures of the house and get that posted....eventually!    

The "Hailey/Kailee" stone we found when we were park hopping!