Leaving Michigan

Our moving truck showed up an hour early and we were no where near ready. Luckily we had a friend offer to watch the kids so we could be more effective while we finished packing and loading the truck. Our helpers arrived at 10am, right on schedule. Let me say they were amazing, especially Justin T who rocked at using every last inch of out 12 feet of truck space. I don't think everything would have fit if it hadn't been for him. Also thanks to Dave H and his kids and Michael H for their help too! Unfortunately I don't have any truck pictures since I was too busy to think to get the camera out.

When we bought our house I went through with our video camera making a video of the house. We didn't have time to do that again so since we now have a digital camera (and we didn't 5 years ago or else I would have just taken pictures) I walked through taking pictures of our house.

Entry way:

Replaced the carpet with the natural slate tiles, changed the light fixture, put on the storm door, and added shelves to the closet.

Living room:
It's pretty much the same as when we moved in except the blinds and the ceiling fan.

Bathroom:
We completely redid the bathroom. We took out the vinyl floor and put in the tiles, painted the walls a very light blue, replaced the vanity, changed the light fixture (not shown), and added storage above the toilet and on the opposite wall (not shown).

Kitchen:




Added the extra base cabinet in the first picture, and all the appliances.

Backyard:



Removed the huge tree from the middle of the yard, planted grass (it was dirt), added the little swing set, an apple tree, and built the deck ourselves.

Kids' Rooms:




In both rooms we added the ceiling fans. We painted the red room for Nathan and the green room for Emily.

Our Room:
The only change we made in here was the ceiling fan.

Basement:





This was probably the biggest change. It was a big open room and a bathroom and we divided it into 3 rooms, a laundry and storage room, a work room, and a play room. In the bathroom we added the mirror and painted the wall. Everything in the basement was done by us as well.

The hallway wall by the kids' rooms:

This is where I would measure the kids. I did write down all the marks so we can transfer them to a new wall if (when) we buy a house again or to a removable height tracker.

A few other things we did were add glass block windows in the basement and put in central air. It was a great house, it was our house. And we both shed a few tears as we drove away for the last time. We've had an offer on our house, less than $100,000 that we paid for it (and we only paid $130,000). If the bank will accept it we really have no other choice at this point. It is sad to see it go for so little as we put so much hard work into it. It was our first house, the longest we had ever lived anywhere as a couple, we brought our babies home to this house, and so many memories were made there. It still brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it as I type.

We picked up the kids, tried to run one last errand which was a bust and then hit the road. Here are a few pics while still in Michigan:






I thought that last one was cute and funny at the same time. If you hadn't heard, Nathan was bit by a squirrel several months ago and we got the all clear since squirrels in our area weren't considered carriers for rabies but still thought it was funny as he was foaming at the mouth while he slept.


In the spring when we went to Indy our GPS took us on a little back country road to get from I-69 to I-94 on the way home. It took us out of time on that same road, so the pictures above were some views while driving on that road, some of our last moments in Michigan. Shortly after they were taken we were on I-69 headed toward the Indiana boarder.

Look for more posts of our drive across the country to come soon!