Moving In

When Matt left Redding to start his new job in Seattle, we didn't even have keys to our rental house yet. He stayed in a hotel near Amazon the first night, and had to have our real estate agent meet the landlord to get the keys and take care of move-in stuff while he was at work. Once he got into the house Monday night, it was just him and an air mattress here for a whole week. No dishes, no chair to sit in, no fridge full of food. If he wanted to sit somewhere other than the floor, he could choose the toilet or the car. He didn't even have internet access until Friday night, so he pretty much never wanted to be home. It was a dark, dark week for him.

I've never seen him so happy to see me than he was the next Sunday when he picked me up from the airport. He just kept sighing and laughing randomly, just full of love and joy and relief! He does not do well when he's alone, but I guess it's even worse coming home to a dark, cold, bare, smelly house.

I brought Adele with me and left Josh and Jude with my parents, thinking that the moving truck with all our belongings would arrive the next morning. To make a long story short, the truck didn't come. After some false promises that it would come the next day, then the next, then the next, we finally got to the bottom of the situation. Turns out the moving truck had broken down due to bad weather. Repairs didn't work, so the company had to get another truck to drive all the way out to South Dakota, where our stuff was stranded, and bring it back to us. On Wednesday, they finally told us what was going on, and that our truck would probably arrive the next Monday. Probably.

By that point, we were so frustrated and tired of living with no basic furniture or household necessities that we demanded they make it right. They ended up giving us money for every day they were late, and we used it to buy a real mattress, a folding table and two chairs, and some basic kitchen supplies. You wouldn't believe what a difference that made! 

It had been so hard to entertain Adele with NOTHING in the house all day except a dirty floor, a deflating air mattress, and a box from Costco. A soft, clean surface to play on (i.e. a mattress) was a gift straight from heaven! 

We tried to get out a lot during those few lonely days. We went out for groceries, took walks around our new neighborhood (which we quickly fell in love with), got a library card and a Washington driver's license, and found the amazing Kerry Park viewpoint less than a mile from our house. 

Didn't have a stroller, so this Bjorn is how we got around. 

My mom and Julia had planned to bring the boys up to Seattle by then, because Julia just had a few days left before the school semester started. Even though we didn't really have a house for them to help unpack, or real beds for them to sleep in, they came anyway to keep me sane and to bring some items that would make us more comfortable until our stuff came.

Saying goodbye to Grandpa after almost a month in Redding

 They were seriously life savers. We went out every day, explored our new city a little, and kept ourselves distracted for the few days until our truck arrived. I'll tell you about our adventures another day. 

When our stuff came and was all unloaded at once, it was very cramped in this funny old house. I was sure we would never find space for everything and we would have to get rid of most of it. But fortunately, it didn't take me too long to get things put away and make the house livable. Honestly, we were so grateful to have a couch to sit on that the boxes didn't even bother us at first!

Here's how the place is looking these days, after settling in a little. The fact that it's over 100 years old means there are plenty of quirks, squeaks, and charms! But as renters, we get the sweet deal of not being responsible for repairs and upkeep. We are really enjoying our new home, and consider ourselves lucky to have found a place with the space we need. 

That's where we park. There is no garage or carport, but plenty of street parking. All groceries and children must be hauled up and down these jagged steps. It's actually not so bad.

View from the sidewalk looking up at the house. The hills here are cray cray!

Here's the front door.

This house was originally built as a duplex, so there is a vestibule-type unheated entryway, with doors that separate the first and second floors. The bottom floor was one unit, and the second and third floor were another unit.

From the entry, you walk into this room through a door to Josh's left.

From the couch, you see this piano room/dining room area, with the kitchen and fridge room beyond. Our master bedroom and a detached bathroom are through that little doorway to the left, just past the shelves.

The bathrooms are basic, but each one has a shower, so we're set for lots of visitors

The kitchen is weird, with lots of open shelves, BUT there's a gas stove. It's actually luxurious compared to the kitchens in other rental houses. And this pantry room is ghetto, but I'm doing my best to get maximum use out of the space!

This is up the stairs on the second floor. I love how sunny it is up here. I even kind of love the hodge podge of old, comfy furniture.

If you go through that door above, you'll get to Adele's room, which used to be the upstairs kitchen (hence the sink). It's very messy, and very yellow, with funny pink curtains. You have to walk through her room to get to the laundry. 

The boys' room and the master are identical, with decent walk-in closets for such an old house. They each have this cute little window in the closet. From my room, I like to spy on the boys playing on the deck.

The second floor also has this weird orange sun room that is very cold, so I use it for odds and ends right now.

This is the third level. It's a guest room and bath right now (cribs present for twin baby visitors). The bed is blocking those awesome windows because they open super easily onto the roof and have no screens. It's a death trap for Jude.

Our backyard is great. There's some space for my own plants, and a great deck where the kids play. 

It's very different from our home in Midland, but it hasn't really bothered me. I miss my Midland shower, and kitchen, and pantry, and garage, but there are trade offs with every move. And to be honest, getting out of the snow has been so worth it. I didn't even realize how much I would enjoy that part, but I really, really do.