Finally - Mom Moves to Texas

I drove to Carlsbad on Monday, July 7. It's an eight hour drive, and I left early enough to arrive before dinnertime that evening. I was impressed at how much work Mom had done, over the past few weeks, in preparation for her move to Texas. But there was still lots to do. I tried to pace myself by packing and emptying one room per day. Some rooms took only half a day; others took almost an entire day.

We stored all of the furniture that was to be moved and boxes that were completely packed on one end of the living room. The guest bedroom became the garage sale room. Luckily we didn't actually have to hold a garage sale ourselves. The River Bend community, where Mom lived, holds community garage sales periodically, and we were told to leave everything in one place so it could be picked up and included in the next sale.

Although I worked hard, I can't say enough about the help we got from some of Mom's neighbors, especially Lynn and Sue. Those two ladies were over at Mom's house nearly every day, helping me empty cupboards, pack boxes and haul trash to the garage. Sue's husband, Charlie, brought his pickup truck over and hauled away all the big bags of trash that wouldn't fit in the garbage cans. (I say "cans" instead of "can" because all of the neighbors let us add to their trash cans on garbage collection day.) Sue almost single-handedly cleaned out the garage. Lynn offered to come back, after Mom and I left, and vacuum the entire house.

Mom with Lynn and John

Mom and Sue

And then there were the farewell meals. Lynn and her husband, John, invited us over for a wonderful home-cooked meal at their house. Sue and Charlie treated us to a very good meal at a classy restaurant, on Sunday afternoon. And one day, after finishing our lunch at a Chinese restaurant, Mom and I learned that someone had picked up our tab. The cashier said it was a random act of kindness by someone who wished to remain anonymous.

We also enjoyed lunch, one day, thanks to Mom's very special friends, Pat and Gloria. Mom has known them since they were all living in Anchorage, Alaska, many years ago. They have been so good to Mom over the last 14 years, while she lived next door to them. They have included her on road trips, shared holiday meals, and been almost like family. It was Gloria who threw a farewell party for Mom at church. This party took place the Sunday before I got to Carlsbad. Although I wasn't there, I did see pictures of all the dear people who showed up to send Mom off with hugs and good wishes.

Mom with Gloria and Pat

Mom also said her good-byes to the sweet lady who has done her hair, every week, for all these years. Her name is Lee, and, although Mom will have to find someone else to do her hair, here in Texas, she won't be able to replace Lee, who has become a good friend.

Mom with Lee

The night before the movers were to arrive we couldn't stay at Mom's house. Everything was packed and/or sold, so there was nowhere to sleep. Mom's friend, Ursula, who has a little guest house in back of her house, let us stay there. We had a perfectly comfortable night's sleep before the big moving day. Mom met Ursula way back in 2008, when she was in the hospital, after the fall that resulted in a broken pelvis. Ursula was recovering from some surgery, and the two of them went through physical therapy together in the hospital. Since then Ursula has become an amazing friend with a big heart.

Mom with Ursula

The movers came on Monday, July 14. They were finished loading the trailer by noon, so Mom and I locked up her house for the final time and drove as far as Sweetwater, Texas. That's pretty close to the half-way point between Carlsbad and Temple. We spent the night there in a hotel, and drove on to Temple the next morning. I think it was around two o'clock when we arrived home.

One of the movers - Diego. He was especially helpful and accommodating.

Mom stayed at our house Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights. Her belongings were delivered to Stoney Brook (her new home) on Wednesday. We unpacked just the essentials yesterday, and she will spend her first night there tonight. Sadly, there was a "glitch" in the apartment assignment. She was supposed to be moving into a one-bedroom (for now, until a one-bedroom-grande opens up - who knows when?), but at the last minute the previous tenant in the one-bedroom was delayed in moving out. So they put Mom into a two-bedroom, supposedly for only a few days, and will move her into the one-bedroom as soon as it is open. So we can't really say she's settled yet. But she has her bed and we set up her bathroom, got her TV hooked up to the cable, set up her computer with a new email address, and got her Keurig coffee maker ready to brew her morning cup of joe.

I hope her first night there goes well.