Here we are in Beverly, MA two weeks yesterday. We are so excited to be here and excited in anticiaption of the adventures to come. We moved here in the rain, POURING rain that is. My last day at Spurwink was Friday the 26th of September. I had my exit interview with Roy at the Saco office. I drove home in the pouring rain, crying and reviewing my last 3+ years. I miss the wonderful people at Spurwink and just like any relationship, there is a piece of me there. So back to moving. I arrived home to find Ben, my wonderful red headed brother by law, and his friend Kapan packing the U-haul in the rain. We got pizza and my dad, uncle Mike, and Rob, another terrific brother by law, arrived to help with the packing. On Saturday we had a wedding in Belfast, so the move was on Sunday. We packed up the last of the U haul, my car, Ben's truck, and the back of Rob's car as the rain came down. Because it rained we were blessed with the help of John, my dad's very best friend. We picked John up in Westbrook and continued on our way. My back seat had a kitty cage for Casanova & Shady along with a bunch of odds and ends that didn't find a home over the course of packing. The blessings continued with more help, when we met up with Robyn and Roger. (Ben's mother and boyfriend) in NH. Then we were on our way for the last 30+ miles to what we now call home. That's not all, my wonderful friend Melody and sister Tarsha arrived to help with unpacking. They did a great job unpacking my kitchen and finding a home for spices, pots and pans and longaberger pottery. We were so blessed with love & support. Growing up in my home we did everything FAST. One of the beautiful and frustrating differences between Ben & I is our approch to life. I didn't think to tell Ben that when the uhaul backed in and the unpacking began, rain or no rain that there would be one pace and one pace only until it was EMPTY! It's been the way of life for me, but not for everyone. Combine my dad with his brother, my uncle Mike, with Rob who is just a nice guy and will go with the flow, I mean after all he is married to my sister Trina. He better go with the flow. John was a nice balance to the two brothers but there is no stopping them. While they scurried to unpack the uhaul, Robyn was in the kitchen "getting together" our lunch and Roger was helping her, while putting doors back on hingers that were taken off, helping to put bed frames together and give a helping hand on the uhaul. The uhual, the contents of our home, was unpacked in record time, just over an hour and then uncle Mike insisted that the uhaul be returned to Salem right away. So off Ben, Rob & uncle Mike went to Salem. I entered the kitchen and my mother in law, who just had her hip replaced, had prepared this UNBELIEVABLE spread. Now Ben told me his mom offered to make lunch and reassured me that she couldn't outdo herself because she had just had her hip replaced. Well, she more than out did herself! She made an AMAZING meat lasagna, shrimp fettuccini, salad, sauted sauage, bread, pumkim bread, peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies, and more! We had a great visit, filling our bellies and chatting about Beverly, teasing my dad about peeing in the bushes off the highway. He called me in NH and asked if we wanted to stop in Kennebunk to use the restrooms. I notified him we had passed the rest stop and in fact we were in NH, that the uhaul with uncle Mike and John was ahead of us now. The rain had stopped, everyone made it to 356 Cabot St. and the uhaul was unpacked, our bellies were stuffed and it was time for the people from Maine to return home. Time to say goodbye to my dad. :( The tears just flowed and I said goodbye to my dad who has been so good to Ben and I, who we love and appreciate. For the first time, I said goodbye to my dad and into the comfort of my husbands arms. What a difference saying goodbye makes when you have someone to share the tears with. We packed up the remaining food and said goodbye to Robyn and Roger, grateful for the kindness, generousity and hospitality. Tarsha and Melody worked on the kitchen, Ben unpacked his office and I made sense of what would go where. With the kichen unpacked Melody left and Tarsha joined me and offered perspective on all the boxes. We made a ton of progress. By Tuesday night our home was unpacked for the most part, we had been to the commissary to replenish the fridge and freezer and to IKEA to buy a couch and 2 chairs and had it all set up. You guessed it........ It was the fastest settling in for Ben of his multiple moves.
Desserts @ our tasting
the chapel
