Sep
2020

Back to school, back to packing.

I start back to school this week. And I am in class with all the besties I wanted!

He said

As we said last week, normally this week would have seen us getting Emelia back to school, but with the push back of a week it afforded us 3 days at the trailer starting with my birthday last Monday. The next two days were perfectly slow and allowed for the right mix of unwinding with our camp family, the Sherwood’s. I even got to maintain my bike streak all three days despite the weather not being the best. We celebrated Olivia’s birthday Wednesday (as she is my birthday neighbour) by heading in to Bayfield to do a little shopping and looking around. And with Danielle starting her new job this week, the one hour commute from the trailer afforded her the luxury of going back and forth each day.

Thursday morning we were back in town and very quickly the focus shifted from relaxing to the work week and working in as much time as we could getting over to Mom & Dad’s to help them pack up their house in preparation for their move to assisted living this week. Danielle has really been the lion’s share of contribution for our family but I was able to make it over after work a couple of times before today which had the both of us there to help out. It has been a daunting task to say the least to pack up the almost 30 years of memories that have accumulated in that house. And harder when you consider how hard the downsizing is when you’re letting go of things that meant something to you.

The last three days at their house have been really productive—Shawn, Matthew and Danielle have really done a lot to get them in a much better place. Do we feel like they’re ready for the move Wednesday morning? Awww–heeeellllll-noooo But at least there has been some progress made towards there. Once we have them in the residence I feel like there will be a collective, yet reserved, sigh of relief as they quarantine for 14 days. We’ll do our best to empty out the house and get it ready for sale. But, I think I speak for the entire family when I say when this is all said and done and they are settled and the house sold, we will all be more than elated.

Emelia through the Mommy Network of Ryerson was tipped off to some great news via her Mummy when one of the parents was able to do some sleuthing and found out that she got the teacher that she really wanted – and, more importantly – she was in class with her best friends, the twins (Anna & Grace) and her other friend Evelyn. All the kids are feeling a little anxious over what this year might feel like with all the extra guidelines with COVID, having this news was a big chunk of ease for Emelia and made her happier about what school might look like this year.

And lastly, amidst all the other chaos of this week, Danielle started her life of post in-home daycare work and began a new job! It’s been an adjustment to us all for sure as we’re all (Emelia especially) used to her being around. But, it was also great for her to find something that takes her work life out of the house and makes our home back to her place of solace. She really enjoys this job and the people that she works with, which was so great as she’s been her own company for almost thirteen years. I was so happy for her to have something she can really believe in, and to be able to find that in these different times.

She said

This week was a blend of family time, relaxation, stressful changes, lots of work and big adjustments. All in one week.

We started the week at the trailer still with John for a few days along with our friends the Sherwoods. The girls got to spend a few more days together before we had to head back to our soon to be reality. We got to spend one more quiet night around the fire before we had to pack up for our last longer stretch at the trailer for the season. The rest of the trips going forward will only be the occasional weekend here and there until we pack things up for the season just after Halloween. The trailer has been a mental godsend for our entire family in these times.

This week was a big adjustment for our little family. For the first time in Emelia’s life I am working outside the house. I have worked her entire life but always at home, this week started my post work at home life. I started my position as a teaching assistant at Montessori. It has been the perfect next step for me, the staff is so amazing, the kids are great and it is close to home so I can be home quickly at the end of the day. The only big downside of this job is the hours as in I do not get enough. I am really hoping I will be able to get more hours to cover my classroom. I am in the Casa classroom which is little ones who are 3-6 years old. I am loving teaching this age, the whole program is amazing and I am loving it. Now we hope it is enough to support us financially more soon.

With work starting along with the driving back and forth to the trailer for the first few days I was pretty tired by the end of Thursday but we had so much more work to do. The shift had been back to Helen and Doug’s place. Before we headed up to the trailer I had been there a lot but I wanted to get over to do more of our share of the packing again. I have been there in the evenings the end of the week and all weekend. We got a ton done but with the moving day hanging over our heads we know there is still a lot more to do. The movers arrive Tuesday morning to pack the rest of the house and to move all the furniture and boxes we have been packing for weeks. There is so much to move, we hope it will all fit as Helen and Doug are moving from a large 4 bedroom/3 bathroom bungalow to a small 850 square foot 2 bedroom/2 bath apartment. We will find out in a few weeks if more purging needs to be done at the residence once the unpacking is done but until then we pack what they want, sort items to the family, donate what we can and throw away the rest. We have made countless trips to goodwill and bags and bags have gone to the curb.

As Wednesday ends we will walk into a mainly empty house, 30 years of family memories all packed up. That house has been the home of all our family gatherings, all the best memories most of our lives and it is going to be strange not to walk through that door seeing everyone. This is the best change that is so needed, Helen and Doug will love their next chapter and we will all be happy to know they are going somewhere safe that they can enjoy their golden years.

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