The job in Detroit is officially cancelled due to the city being in huge amounts of debt and the jail costs being multi-million dollars over budget. So, rather than head to Denver tomorrow morning Dale will be headed to Detroit for a few weeks to finalize all the details of the shut down. Our big adventure is postponed for a few weeks.
The new plan is for me to stay home for a couple of weeks, meet up with Dale somewhere in Ohio in a few weeks, and then head west.
All of our suitcases are packed. We cancelled our garbage service. The fridge is empty and . . .
Colorado is on hold.
Saturday, August 17, 2013
Friday, August 16, 2013
Only 2 days left!
Stressed out! This seems to be the overall emotion running through my home right now. We are finishing up everything and anything last minute around the house today while squeezing in seeing family. We are having lunch with my grandparents, Uncle Ed, and Aunt Pam before they head to Maryland tonight. I dread tomorrow. Tomorrow is the day the actual putting of clothes into the suitcase happens. I hate packing.
We are planning on having dinner with my family and Dale's family tomorrow evening as a final goodbye. I am full of mixed emotions. I'm excited and nervous and happy and sad all at the same time. It will be difficult to leave our families and friends, but the possibilities of so many exciting adventures make it a little easier to say goodbye.
We hope to be come home again for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I'll use that as a countdown on days of homesickness.
I'm off to finish up what seems to be the 100 projects we have left. Our travel plan is below:
Sunday
7am depart from Karthaus
We plan to drive 8-10 hours the first day and find a hotel for the night somewhere in Illinois.
Monday
8 or 9 or maybe 10 am depart from said place in Illinois
We plan to drive another 8-10 hours and find a hotel near Omaha.
Tuesday
Get up when we feel like it.
Do it again until we reach Brighton.
We are planning on having dinner with my family and Dale's family tomorrow evening as a final goodbye. I am full of mixed emotions. I'm excited and nervous and happy and sad all at the same time. It will be difficult to leave our families and friends, but the possibilities of so many exciting adventures make it a little easier to say goodbye.
We hope to be come home again for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I'll use that as a countdown on days of homesickness.
I'm off to finish up what seems to be the 100 projects we have left. Our travel plan is below:
Sunday
7am depart from Karthaus
We plan to drive 8-10 hours the first day and find a hotel for the night somewhere in Illinois.
Monday
8 or 9 or maybe 10 am depart from said place in Illinois
We plan to drive another 8-10 hours and find a hotel near Omaha.
Tuesday
Get up when we feel like it.
Do it again until we reach Brighton.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
I am starting to get super stressed as our departure time draws near. We will be leaving on Sunday to give ourselves an extra day to get there. Google Maps tells me it will take 1,599.3 miles to get there, about 23.5 hours.
Dale is coming home from Detroit tonight. I'm happy to have him here a day early to help finish everything up. Today's plan is to clean the kitchen, mow the grass, and get the oil changed in our car. Initially, we were going to be driving our car out. I found out this morning that Dale will be given a company truck to drive out, but that since I am going with him the company wants us to take our own car as well for grocery shopping, site seeing, etc. We are going to try to rent a trailer from Uhaul and tow our car so we don't both have to drive all those hours in two cars.
As far as the packing side of things go, I'm pretty behind. All of the clothes are clean and folded and stacked in piles around the spare room. I still have a lot of decisions to make about what to take and what to leave behind. On a positive note - as soon as I heard we would be taking two vehicles my mind began racing with all the things I could now take. My grandmother was quick to remind me that whatever I take out there has to come home in one car.
We got out hotel information this morning as well. We will be staying near the company headquarters in Brighton, CO for a few days or weeks when we first get there until they assign Dale to one of many ongoing jobs in the state. I hope we don't have to move every few weeks, although seeing a bunch of different parts of the state would be fun.
At least someone is ready! I brought the dog's cage we use for travel in from the back porch yesterday. I had an old pillow I put in the bottom and his favorite blanket. Scoobie spent the day napping in there and last night he wanted to sleep in there instead of coming to bed with me. Of course after an 8 hour drive of being forced to be in that cage I'm sure he won't enjoy it so much. It is funny how it seems like a fun thing until we actually have to use something.
I'm off to clean the kitchen, shower, and take the car for a last minute oil change. Here is a photo stolen from google images of Brighton, CO.
Dale is coming home from Detroit tonight. I'm happy to have him here a day early to help finish everything up. Today's plan is to clean the kitchen, mow the grass, and get the oil changed in our car. Initially, we were going to be driving our car out. I found out this morning that Dale will be given a company truck to drive out, but that since I am going with him the company wants us to take our own car as well for grocery shopping, site seeing, etc. We are going to try to rent a trailer from Uhaul and tow our car so we don't both have to drive all those hours in two cars.
As far as the packing side of things go, I'm pretty behind. All of the clothes are clean and folded and stacked in piles around the spare room. I still have a lot of decisions to make about what to take and what to leave behind. On a positive note - as soon as I heard we would be taking two vehicles my mind began racing with all the things I could now take. My grandmother was quick to remind me that whatever I take out there has to come home in one car.
We got out hotel information this morning as well. We will be staying near the company headquarters in Brighton, CO for a few days or weeks when we first get there until they assign Dale to one of many ongoing jobs in the state. I hope we don't have to move every few weeks, although seeing a bunch of different parts of the state would be fun.
At least someone is ready! I brought the dog's cage we use for travel in from the back porch yesterday. I had an old pillow I put in the bottom and his favorite blanket. Scoobie spent the day napping in there and last night he wanted to sleep in there instead of coming to bed with me. Of course after an 8 hour drive of being forced to be in that cage I'm sure he won't enjoy it so much. It is funny how it seems like a fun thing until we actually have to use something.
I'm off to clean the kitchen, shower, and take the car for a last minute oil change. Here is a photo stolen from google images of Brighton, CO.
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| Bromley Farm (one of 3 historical landmarks in Brighton) |
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Packing and Cleaning and Cleaning and Packing . . .
Dale left this morning to head to Detroit to finish up some things at that job before we head to Colorado. I am left to finish up everything here. Luckily, with lots of my family nearby we have people who can check in and stay at our house while we are gone.
I've found myself trying to prioritize what needs done the most before we leave. This involves me standing in a room and looking around and around then walking to the next in a daze. Perhaps I need to make a list!
Since we had an idea about this happening for a week or so now we worked hard to get all of our laundry washed and most of the outside ready for winter. I am left with lots of picking up, dusting, vacuuming, and putting away.
I have started to pile clothes in one of the spare rooms to begin the packing process. How many shirts do you need to pack for 2 years? There are also the weather differences. I'm a little nervous about harsh winters people always warn me about when they here "Denver." I find myself packing a lot of cold weather clothing. So maybe the better question is how many Columbia coats, sweat shirts, and pairs of boots do you need for at least 2 Colorado winters?
Meanwhile, Scoobie is upset that I threw away all of his half-chewed toys this morning in preparation for down-sizing for the trip. It may be a little pathetic that I must down-size the dog's stuff. Aunt Pam bought him lots of new toys to be packed with a few favorites. I couldn't imagine packing up for an actual child.
I'm off to check couch cushions for forgotten squeaky toys, find another pair of winter boots, and continue this never ending packing and cleaning.
I've found myself trying to prioritize what needs done the most before we leave. This involves me standing in a room and looking around and around then walking to the next in a daze. Perhaps I need to make a list!
Since we had an idea about this happening for a week or so now we worked hard to get all of our laundry washed and most of the outside ready for winter. I am left with lots of picking up, dusting, vacuuming, and putting away.
I have started to pile clothes in one of the spare rooms to begin the packing process. How many shirts do you need to pack for 2 years? There are also the weather differences. I'm a little nervous about harsh winters people always warn me about when they here "Denver." I find myself packing a lot of cold weather clothing. So maybe the better question is how many Columbia coats, sweat shirts, and pairs of boots do you need for at least 2 Colorado winters?
Meanwhile, Scoobie is upset that I threw away all of his half-chewed toys this morning in preparation for down-sizing for the trip. It may be a little pathetic that I must down-size the dog's stuff. Aunt Pam bought him lots of new toys to be packed with a few favorites. I couldn't imagine packing up for an actual child.
I'm off to check couch cushions for forgotten squeaky toys, find another pair of winter boots, and continue this never ending packing and cleaning.
Monday, August 12, 2013
How it all began...
My husband is a hero . . . saving the world - one less criminal at a time.
He builds prisons.
He began this work in the summer of 2011, just a few months before we got hitched. Luckily, for the first year or so he was working on a prison only 25 miles from home. Since then, he has been back and forth between Detroit (yuck!) and State College. With criminals running amok across the mountains of Colorado, he has been called to go West.
After many sleepless nights and going back and forth over pros and cons we have decided to accept the offer. Westward we go - 23 hours, 1500 and some odd miles to the Jefferson County Jail in Colorado.
We will be leaving by the 19th of August. So join us, as we pack up what we can fit, along with the dog and our winter boots and head out.
He builds prisons.
He began this work in the summer of 2011, just a few months before we got hitched. Luckily, for the first year or so he was working on a prison only 25 miles from home. Since then, he has been back and forth between Detroit (yuck!) and State College. With criminals running amok across the mountains of Colorado, he has been called to go West.
We will be leaving by the 19th of August. So join us, as we pack up what we can fit, along with the dog and our winter boots and head out.
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