Vernon Volumes text

Vernon Volumes text

Monday, June 25, 2012

Moving Day and weekend


Friday was the day that we've been looking forwards to and dreading for almost a year. Andrea and I couldn't sleep and were awake around 5:30am. I got up and moved some of our valuables and breakables to the new house in the first load in our SUV and then we got things opened up for contractors and went back to the rental to wait for the movers. At 8:00am the real craziness began. The movers arrived and we started to load up the truck. There were three of them and although we'd packed almost everything in to boxes, there was still a lot of work to do. We had to break down beds, take apart TV's, pack dressers, etc. We hoped to get everything in one truck load, but after a few hours of loading we realized it would be too tight and we headed over to the new house for our first trip.


At the house, it was crazy. We had LOTS of people in the house all at once doing all kinds of things. It was hard just to get the driveway clear so the truck could park.

Here's a list of the people in the house while we were unloading:
  • 5 Painters that we hired to paint
  • 2 Painters that worked for the builder, touching up paint spots
  • 1 Drywall contractor fixing drywall issues
  • 2 Electricians we hired installing ceiling fans and light fixtures
  • Delivery men for our nightstands
  • Internet service technician installing our internet connection
  • 2 Insulation contractors to blow additional insulation in to the attic - they ran a tube up through Paige's room to the attic access in the hallway
  • 2 Delivery men to unload and deliver refrigerator
It was really chaotic too because we realized the painters in the Master Bedroom were in the way for everything that needed to go in the Master Bedroom and closets. All the furniture and clothes ended up in the office. The office furniture was scheduled to come the next day, so we temporarily filled the office full of odds and ends.


The movers unpacked the truck, we made a second trip to the rental, cleared it out and moved the rest of the stuff. They unloaded that truck and were done with everything around 3:00pm. The rest of the day we unpacked stuff, moved furniture, broke down boxes, put together furniture, cleaned, organized, and ran around like crazy. We had nervous/frantic energy the entire day that was completely used up. We didn't settle down or stop until 11pm. It was a 17 hour day of non-stop action, activity, and hard work. By the end of the day we'd gotten an incredible amount done, but still had SO much to do.

Chloe posed next to some of the many boxes that we stuck in the family room before disposing of them.

On Saturday, the madness continued. DirecTV came out to install our TV service, Woodchucks came with our office furniture, Haverty's delivered the Family room couch sectional, chair and ottoman. We spent another LONG day unpacking, unboxing and organizing.

On Sunday we continued to work. We were exhausted, but needed to get the house ready and safe for the children since Grandpa and Grandma were bringing them up in the afternoon. We put together bedrooms and tidied things up as best we could and thankfully the house was in reasonable shape when the kids arrived.

Monday was another exciting day. Tropical Storm Debby came through and saturated the entire area. Of course, it was pouring rain in the morning as I moved the boxes and bags to the curb for the trash people. I counted over 25 bags of trash and a stack of broken down boxes that was came up past my belly button. I started the whole ordeal with a poncho on, however halfway through I was sweating like crazy and realized I could choose to either be drenched in sweat or in rainwater. Andrea took a picture of me when I finally finished.

The rest of Monday, we had the painters back out to finish up the Family room and Master bedroom as well as Connor's room. The Dining room furniture was delivered along with all kinds of decorations and we continued to work on getting everything together. By the end of Monday, the Master bedroom is finally complete with furniture and some decor and the rest of the house is much closer to being done.

The electricians also finished on the final fan. They got all of them in but the one in the Family room on Friday. They didn't have a ladder that was tall enough for the high ceiling in the Family room when they came out originally so they had to come back for a special trip just to put it in. They had to go WAY up to put this fan together, this fan alone made it very worthwhile to us to hire out the job. We're pretty sure it's 22 feet up!



Tuesday, we've got the stair carpet scheduled as well as our custom wall unit and console table and more decorations and furniture to put together. It's Monday night now and we're starting to see some light at the end of our move-in-tunnel.

Empty house, ready for the big move

After our final walkthrough Thursday June 21st, we went through and took some pictures of the house empty. I'm writing this on Monday morning June 25th and it's amazing how much has already changed.

The Kitchen



The Family Room



The Master Bedroom windows


Master Bath


 Dining Room





Getting ready to move


Late in the week, especially after the kids went to Daytona Beach with Grandpa and Grandma, we really started packing. Andrea and I ended up boxing almost everything in the house ourselves prior to the movers arriving on Friday. It was a lot of work, but it definitely helped get everything ready for the big day. It was a small house, but by the time we moved, it was packed full of stuff! Connor gave a final walkthrough/tour before we left. I'll put the video online some time.

Grandma and Grandpa with kids in Daytona


This past weekend was our big final move in to our new house. We knew the kids would love to help, but we also knew they'd be better off just about anywhere else than underfoot. Grandma and Grandpa Vernon are currently living nearby in Daytona Beach while their house is being built and this weekend they were very awesome about taking the kids. On Thursday night, after Grandpa and Grandma met with their inspector and builder at their neighborhood, they came by our rental house and took the kids back to Daytona Beach.

They did an amazing job planning out all kinds of activities and adventures for the children. On Friday, they took the kids to the Alligator farm and spent the day looking at the gators and playing at the "Kid Zone. After the Alligator farm, they went to the beach and swam. They even convinced Paige to go down in to the ocean water, which was something she's always been to scared to do with Mommy and Daddy.


On Saturday, they all went to a museum where they saw all kinds of art, bones, and hands on exhibits. There was a play area there and the kids had a great time again. Another busy day!






On Sunday, they all went to a nearby park and played until around noon.



Thanks again to Grandpa and Grandma for being such great Grandparents and spending the weekend with the kids. They had all kinds of neat things planned and had a very fun-filled agenda for the children. Connor and Paige both enjoyed their time in Daytona Beach and it was cute to hear Paige calling Grandpa "Hop-Pa". I could tell Connor was used to starting sentences with "Grandma" and "Grandpa" and he started one sentence with "Grandma, I mean Grandpa, I mean Daddy....".

We're looking forwards to their house getting done soon! We love you guys!

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Final Exterior House pictures


The exterior of our house is finished! This past week the painters finished the touch-up work on the outside and it's complete.

We're scheduled to close on the house this Thursday (June 21st) and we're going to be moving in the next day if everything goes as planned. The inside of the house is mostly done, and we did our walkthrough this last week on Thursday (June 14th). There are a bunch of minor things that need to be done: changing some lightbulbs, fixing a smoke detector, some undercabinet lighting, paint touchups, a light fixture, etc. None of it should prevent us from closing and at this point, even if it's not 100% complete, on our closing day we're planning to move in.

We are so excited lately we can't sleep! Hard to believe all the planning and work is coming together soon. It was around July 4th last year that we decided to move to Florida for sure and we've been in a state of transition ever since. We can't wait to settle in and unpack and relax. Lots of work ahead still, but we're so darn close.

Grandma Alice and Grandpa Rick move down


We are very excited that Grandma Alice and Grandpa Rick have moved down to Florida! The last time they were down, they bought a lot and a floor plan very near to the house we're building. They put their house on the market shortly after and they sold it very quickly. Last Friday, June 8th, they started their drive down and on Saturday they arrived in Daytona Beach. 


For now, they're staying in the Daytona Beach condo and we've gotten together a few times with them. They will only be here for a few weeks before they go on a long European trip.

Their new house isn't really started yet, but it is planned to be done by the beginning of August. We hope everything goes smoothly for them and we're thrilled to have family nearby. Looking forwards to their new adventures this year!

Father's Day



This Sunday we went to Uno's in Daytona Beach to meet up with Grandpa Rick and Grandma Alice to celebrate Father's Day. It was delicious as ever and we had a great visit together. We didn't get to stay long since we're packing up for our big move, but it was nice to see them and visit for a while at lunch.

Connor and Paige were good at lunch and both wished me a happy Father's Day today.

This morning, with Mommy's help, Connor put together a cute message for me on his MagnaDoodle.



We don't want to leave out Grandma Alice! We also were celebrating Mother's Day for her since we didn't get to see her for Mother's Day.



Our 8th wedding anniversary!


This Monday will be our 8th wedding anniversary and we went out on Saturday to "Cap's on the Water" to celebrate. The restaurant was very nice, the view was beautiful and the food was so-so. Lots of seafood, almost nothing else at all. I had to order an appetizer otherwise the only thing on the menu for me was a burger. Andrea got a bunch of shrimp, and it looked like there was a lot of fresh seafood on the menu. It would be a neat place to take company that's in the mood for seafood, but we probably won't be going again any time soon by ourselves.



Happy anniversary!!!

Connor's ISR Swimming Lessons


Connor has been working with Ms Michelle again lately on his float. A few times this summer when he's been swimming he hasn't been doing well with floating and it's probably because he's been trying to touch the bottom with his feet. Ms Michelle had a few sessions with Connor and it seems to have clicked lately. His float's been better than ever. It's also been nice because she has been doing lessons in our new neighborhood and although we're not moving in until next week we've been taking Connor there, which is much closer.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Paige and the alphabet song

Paige has been watching DVDs in the car for a while and recently she loves the Leapfrog Letter Factory. Connor enjoyed that DVD too and it was better at teaching him his letters and sounds than school. We knew Paige liked the DVD and the other day we started to sing the song with her and were blown away that she knew all the letters!

I got a video of her doing the letter sounds and she does all of them, although at one point she starts fiddling with the strap for her chair and isn't talking towards the camera.
Paige also is pretty darn good at counting, although she was tired of videos after the letter song and we haven't gotten that on video yet.

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Neighborhood Summer Kickoff Party

The neighborhood where we're building our house had a carnival this weekend and we all went and had some fun. There were lots of activities and a lot of them were geared for families and kids, so it was perfect for Connor and Paige. 

There were a bunch of big blow up play areas and Connor really loved the slide and especially the obstacle course.
We've been watching a lot of Ninja Warrior together, so Connor called it the Ninja Warrior Obstacle course and must have gone through it fifty times.




There was a much smaller blow up house for little kids and Paige played in it quite a bit.


Paige rode in the little Ferris Wheel. It was a little disconcerting that they were caged like wild animals, but it was probably safe that way for Sissy.




Sissy's favorite part was definitely the train. It was a big hit and there was a pretty long line at first, but towards the end there was no wait. Paige rode it three times and would have ridden it more, but it started raining.