Back from the dead

We FINALLY have internet again, and I get to play the lovely game of catch-up because it has been an eternity since I’ve been able to blog. I hate catch-up. But SO many things have happened that I can’t let them go unrecorded. Prepare yourself for many long posts. Or don’t prepare yourself, and just don’t read it.
Let’s go way back to Friday, April 24th – 26th. I had been packing everything up and cleaning our apartment getting ready for the move. We spent Thursday night, and Friday night at my parent’s house so that I could continue to pack/clean everything without having to leave half of our stuff out to live there. It was very much appreciated. Kenny flew in from IL Friday night. He was supposed to arrive around 10 or 10:30, I can’t remember now because it’s been so long. But anyway, my dad and sister, Laura, said I could leave the kids with them so I didn’t have to wake them up and I could leave a bottle for Brynlee. I was scared to death getting to the Hobby Airport because there was a torrential downpour and it was crazy. I get to the airport and I’m late, but Kenny hasn’t called yet so I figured there must have been a plane delay because of the weather also. Delay? HA! He calls me a while later and says that his plane, and all others that were supposed to go to Hobby had been flown to Bush Int’l Airport and were waiting there taxing around. Apparently Hobby was flooded! They still hadn’t decided if they were going to let them all off there, or fly them all back eventually, but he would call me when he found anything out. I got off the phone and cried and prayed because I was stressing about having to have my family stay up late with Brynlee (there’s nothing I hate more than not taking care of my own ), not knowing how she would be with them or if she would scream all night (her colic makes her somewhat unpredictable) plus the weather was scaring me and it was late, etc. Anyways they eventually flew them all back and we made it home, slowly. We drove past many many cars that were just stranded in the road because the roads were flooded or just pulled off to the side waiting for hours for it to drain so they wouldn’t get stuck, etc. We were lucky to be in a tall Explorer so we could drive on the edges and not get stuck. We finally made it back and to bed a little before 2 a.m.

The next morning we got up around 6 and Kenny went straight over to our apartment to start loading the U-Haul that I had picked up with my dad the day before. He got ALL the boxes in by himself. A few hours later my dad and brother went over to help with some of the bigger things, and then he called a few guys from our ward there to help. We were SO grateful to have help and it went so much quicker. We left around 1 or 2 p.m. with Kenny driving the U-haul, and me driving the car with both children. Have I ever mentioned how much Brynlee hates the car seat? Because it’s quite amazing how much she hates it. With most children, people say to drive around for a while if you’re having a hard time putting them to sleep. But Brynlee does NOT sleep in the car, and she does NOT calm herself down. Without giving you any details (and because I would rather not relive that experience), suffice it to say that no baby should have to scream that much and no mother should have to listen to her baby scream and cry that much. But she did, and I did, and I suppose we made it through alive. It was definitely a learning experience. I learned how to nurse while driving (please don’t leave comments about how unsafe that is, I am fully aware), Tyler learned how to sleep through her screaming, and Brynlee learned how to be the most persistent and loud baby ever known to man. We ended up pulling over and sleeping at a hotel in Texarkana that night around 12 because we ALL needed some sleep. The kids were totally exhausted and so were we. The trip took more than double the time it should have, but we made it in 25 or 26 hours. And get this, we made it home and grabbed something to eat, then got BACK IN THE CAR and had to go pick up Kenny’s car at the airport in St. Louis which took another almost 2 hours. Are we not the worst parents in the world? I know, but we had to do it. We don’t know anybody here yet that would have helped or babysat, etc. so we had to do it all ourselves, and I guess we survived.


Our 17 foot U-haul stuffed to the brim with all of our crap. We even had to get rid of quite a lot that just didn't fit in the end. Like our vacuum, kitchen garbage can, a big white shelving thing, etc. sad, but it was a little late to go get a bigger one.

My view the entire way--the back of the U-haul. Oh so pretty.

This is our new house! More pictures to come later.

Ty taking a turn "driving" the "big daddy truck"

thank heaven for DVD players.