The first week of summer break was filled with packing and getting the house ready for the move. We went to see the movie "Smurfs" with Nolan and Haley, which was a nice reprieve from packing and cleaning. It was also our chance to celebrate their birthdays because we were going to miss their birthday party that weekend, as it fell at the same time as our Sand Dunes trip.
On June 1, we drove down to Alamosa, CO. We stayed at a hotel there that evening and met up with my mom, Brad, Dave, and Patricia, who had been in Glenwood Springs the previous week, and Tamma, Charlene, and Cassie. We had dinner at a yummy Mexican restaurant there, the name of which I can't remember. The next morning we drove about 35 minutes over to the Great Sand Dunes National Park. It was our first time going, and it completely blew my mind. I expected the sand dunes to be in the middle of a sandy desert, but it was like someone had dumped a giant pile of sand on some grassland right in front of the mountains. It was a strange yet beautiful landscape.
There was still snowmelt coming down from the mountains, so the kids got to play in the shallow water and the sandy beach.
The water was the perfect temperature and depth for the kids. No one needed life jackets. I had expected the water to be freezing since it was coming from the mountains, but flowing over the hot sand warmed the water so it was very comfortable to play in.
Emme made a friend, and they had fun playing in the water together.
After we got home from our Sand Dunes trip, we were down to the wire as far as getting ready to move. Sweet Jane was finding her toes and sucking on them a lot at the time, so I tried to catch that on camera but never quite managed to.
This picture reminds me a lot of Eli.
Jane started eating solid foods. She first had some single grain cereals, and then progressed to sweet potatoes, carrots, apples, etc.
That week, I had so much help with the kids as I packed up boxes and cleaned. Tina Harding took Eli to cub day camp every day and brought him home so that I didn't have to take time away from packing. Jessi, Kasey Jones, and Melanie Crookston had Benjy and Emme over for playdates. When it came time for packing up the truck, we had the missionaries, Kenneth Keany, Daven Lake, Eric Miller, Chadd Arakawa, Cameron Sagers, and Jim (bless him, I don't know his last name) come help load the truck. We could NOT have done it without their help. That was an incredibly stressful night (Thursday), and Justin and I were up until the wee hours of the morning packing more things into the truck and putting things aside to be donated that wouldn't fit. The next morning the city was supposed to come repave our street, so we were trying to have the truck packed up so we could park it on 93rd. The project manager came by and told us he had rescheduled the paving project so that we could continue with our move. That was such a tremendous blessing and just what we needed at that incredibly strained moment. Jon Stiles came over that morning and helped Justin unload the shed and took much of its contents over to his house to store, since our truck was maxed out at that point. And we had friends come by to help clean the house-- D.J. Jerkes, Jessi, Sarah Sagers, Silvina Hammond, and my sister Charlene-- as we feverishly worked to be out of there before the carpet cleaner came. When he did come over, we were still not done, so he did the basement first while we tied up loose ends upstairs. Melanie Crookston had brought us food that day and taken Benjy and Emme to play at her house so they wouldn't be bored and underfoot. Justin and I hugged each other and wept out of humility and gratitude that afternoon. The fact that we got everything done was a miracle, and we could not have done it without the small army of angels that were helping us every step of the way.
This is a picture of our home, 9247 Holland Street, as it looked when we left it. We have so many wonderful memories in this home and made so many good friends. It is sad to close this chapter of our lives, and to leave the home that both our girls came home to when they were born. We are so enriched by the time we spent here. We are looking forward to making many wonderful memories and friendships in our next home in Colorado Springs.
That evening we drove straight to my mom's house, since we were too late to go pick up the keys to our townhome. Justin found a place next door to his work for us to live in short term while we look for a home to purchase. It is not an ideal situation, but it will enable us to take the time we need to find the home that is right for our family. We were truly watched over and blessed in all aspects of our move. We are so grateful to Heavenly Father for helping us to get through this experience. I know we could not have done it without His help through the ministering angels He sent in the form of friends, family, and neighbors.
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