Off To Telluride to Help Amanda Move

18th - Amanda is arriving back into the country today and I am meeting her at the airport where we are travelling back to Colorado together.  We meet up and have about 1/2 an hour before our flight in which she shares with me all of her adventures in Ecuador the past 10 days.  It's crazy but she has been stung by a stingray one day, a jellyfish another day, and experienced an earthquake on still another day.  She has been blessed by a Shaman and arrived safely in Dallas.  WOW.  I don't have much to regale her with after that tale.

It's time to fly and when we land, it is in Durango and we have to drive to Telluride.  Ugh.  Late night for sure and when we get there, it's straight to bed and crash.



19th - It's up, cook, get boys off to school, then off to the dental office for Amanda to get some work done.  I just sit and work on a few hand projects in the lobby while waiting.  We break for brunch and then are off to check out the new house.  It's ready for her to move in so we make last minute arrangements for a moving company to come tomorrow if the projected blizzard is not too bad.

Here are some first glimpses of the new house.  It's really modern and I have to admit, I really like it.  I think it is going to be perfect for her and the boys.  Now we have oh so much work to do the rest of this week.  I'm tired just thinking about it.

We pick up the boys and head home to make dinner and start packing.  The trouble is that we are afraid to pack too much as we are not sure the movers will be able to get here tomorrow and if not, they are not available again until the end of the month.  Yes, fingers, toes, and everything else is crossed.

20th - I spend the entire morning watching to see if the plow is going to come and clear the driveway so that the movers will be able to get in.  YES, we have a ton of snow.  Amanda has gone to the office to work for awhile and we are basically on hold.  When she arrives back home, we have still not been plowed out so she takes a snow shovel out and about kills herself clearing the driveway.  Woohoo --- lucky for us, they are able to get in and when they arrive, we pack and fill boxes and totes as fast as we can while they handle the large pieces of furniture.  After about 3 hours, the truck is ready to go and NO, we don't have everything packed, but the big stuff is in and that's the important part.  The boys need to be picked up from school so I go with the movers to the new house while Amanda collects the boys.  By the time we have the truck unloaded at the new house, it's almost 7 and I'm beat.  Back to the old house we go.  No pictures today.  I wonder why.

21st - Amanda has to take kids to ski club and then stop in at work for awhile again today so I stay at the new house  to unpack as much as I can.  I get everything put away that we have brought so far and worked on Amanda's room and bathroom.  After she picks me up, we go up to the slope to see Ryan's second race and I opt to hang at the coffeeshop/bar as it is snowing so bad out that you can't even see the people on the mountain.  Crazy, but true.  In fact, the place I'm at is PACKED with skiers trying to wait out the storm.  Wow -- as soon as Ryan is finished, it's back to the old house to pack some more.  And that is the activity for the evening.  Pack, pack, and more pack.

22nd - In order to get her moved in, she needs some "stuff".  Telluride doesn't have much to offer in the way of shopping so we are off to Montrose for the morning.  We don't have a lot of time since Raef's birthday party is today thus, we will be on high zoom.   Caleb is along with us today while the boys ski and we barely have room for him in the car on the way back.  Yes, we power shopped.  A quick unload at the new house and then the empty totes and stuff go to the old house with us.  A quick clean up, grab the ice cream cakes we bought and let's get to Raef's party up at Mountain Village.

It's a great turn out and these boys can definitely put the pizza away.  I thought for sure that Amanda had bought way too much, but no.  It was ALL gone.

I love being around for these moments.  It's  so much fun to just watch the grands interact with their friends and temporarily not have a care in the world.

TWO Oreo ice cream cakes also vanish before our eyes and the pitchers of soda have been refilled a ton of times.  There is a definite sugar high going on here.

23rd - It's another no picture day.  We packed up the car again and I am spending the entire day at the new house, unpacking, setting up the television (so I can watch Seinfeld videos), and building furniture.  I have put together a set of shelves for the mudroom, a desk, a bed, and various other small items.  The internet arrives late in the afternoon and that certainly makes it a little better as I could not communicate without it.  My cell does not get a signal strong enough to call anyone so it's been rather quiet.  Text messages can be made and for those I have to step outside.  It's dang cold out there so I don't make that effort too often.  However, the internet changes all that.  Amanda and I stay at the new house for the first time.

24th -  Another load needs to be gotten at the old house and the morning provides some good karma.  Amanda and I are not sure we can get in the driveway as it is snowing like crazy again.  However, as we arrive, the driveway is being plowed out by a very nice man who wasn't even asked to do it.  Wow.  We pack up as much of the kitchen and the rest of the boys clothes before heading over to the house.

As we leave, the road heading in the direction we need is not plowed and we are barely getting through when out of the blue a plow appears and clears the road right in front of us.  Amazing.

She drops me at the house to make a run and pick up kids from school.  I am trying to take a very puffy, king-sized mattress pad and turn it into two twin ones.  It requires me to cut it in half and then pin the halves before stitching down the opening.  Not a terrible task, but without a table it becomes a bit challenging for sure.

The evening is spent with me building a shelving unit for the boys bedroom and Amanda putting her kitchen together.  We are now staying here for good.

25th -  It has finally stopped snowing and is simply gorgeous outside.

I had forgotten the slippers for Raef's party as they were here at the new house so I give them to him this morning.  This is the birthday that just keeps on going.

He loves them and they are just a wee bit big.  That's a good thing as they will last for awhile.  He just keeps saying, "You made these?".. Ah, Gammy's heart is happy.

After Amanda and the boys leave, the power goes out.  Yay.  I mean it DID stop snowing but it's not all that warm out.

I decide to work on the last two items that I need to put together but after almost stripping out a couple of screws, decide that my hands are just shot and sore.  That's it.  I'm pretty much done.  I curl up with a blanket in the chair and work on my stitchery project for awhile until the power returns.  Apparently it was a planned outage, but we didn't know.  I do the laundry and pack for my return trip tomorrow along with a nice, long, hot shower.  I really am done in.

When Amanda arrives home, it is at the same time as the delivery for her new side table in the dining room.  Once it is brought in, I am shocked at how big it is.  Oh my.  This really isn't going to work at all.  It takes up half the room.  Back it goes into the truck.  Yes, the movers love her right now.

We spend the evening putting the boys room together and they are now settled in too.  I feel okay leaving her tomorrow although she still has a mountain of work to do at the other house.  I know she can get it done.  I'm oh so tired and have a flight tomorrow.  Night.

26th -  Oh dang.  I am heading home today and it's hard to say good-bye to these three munchkins but it's only for a couple of months.  I will be back at the end of March for another week.

I wander the house a bit and take some pictures of the rooms now as they are starting to come together.  First Raef and Ryan's room.

Laundry and Caleb's room.

Upstairs hallway (where boys desk is), boys bathroom, and dining room

Amanda's Room

The start of the living room

and the kitchen

It's getting there.  Oh goodness, it's time to go.  The boys need to get to school and then we are off to Montrose.

Amanda and I pick up a new armoire for her room before I get dropped at the airport and head back to Dallas.  Whew.  She still has so much to do.  I feel for her.

When I arrive in Dallas, it's "hand around the airport" for me for a couple of hours as two other grands are flying in to spend the weekend with me.  Love my life --- grands everywhere.  See ya soon boys --- March will be here before we know it.