Living in the New

It happened.

Last Monday, I called in for our electrical final. Tuesday came and went, and the inspector never showed. He was slammed with work and didn't make it out to us. He was not scheduled to be in our county again until Thursday. If he failed us on Thursday, we would have to wait until the next Tuesday to have him back out for a re-inspection, which meant our hopes to move in over the weekend were looking dim. We tried not to be disappointed.

Wednesday, I picked the kids up from school, got the kids working on their homework, then wandered outside. There was a truck in the drive that wasn't ours. The inspector had come! I went out to the house where I found him poking around upstairs. He explained he had run out of work in a neighboring county and decided he might as well get a few things knocked out over in ours. Besides, he knew we had been waiting for a long time. After a few more anxious moments on my parts, he passed us.

Thursday and Friday, I worked feverishly, finishing the floor in the mud room. My mom came over and helped clean out the fridge, getting it ready for Chris to move when he got home. By Friday evening, with the help of our neighbors, we had all the major appliances cleaned up and moved over.

Seeing the table and chairs ready for us to eat breakfast in the new house the next morning made me happier than I can tell you.

Speaking of happy, instead of the used, scuffed up kitchen sink we had available, we splurged and bought a new sink and faucet to go with the countertops Terry finished and helped us install. I didn't realize how much I would enjoy this fancy, new faucet. I almost (almost) look forward to washing dishes.

 In the meantime, back in the trailer, there is a colossal mess. Nobody wants to go in there. For the past few weeks, the smell of death was added to the stink of moldy wood, so the relief we felt when we could finally move into the new house was greater than ever. I am sure when we tear the place down, we will find the bones of an animal or two tucked away in the insulation under the floor somewhere.

But every day, I have been braving the trailer, sifting through the chaos, throwing away whatever I can, setting aside things to give away or sell, then bringing over bit by bit the things we decide to keep.

The kitchen is slowly taking shape. Although none of the doors and drawer faces are painted, and there are shelves and an island I need to build, I am making do with what I have. I almost like the look of the unfinished drawers, but I doubt Chris would let me leave then this way long term.

In the evenings, we all settle into the beds in our clean, new rooms, breathe deep of the fresh air, and drift off to sleep, happy.