Wait For It

Posted on March 23, 2012 by Kim

We’re packing our bags, again! Thankfully we decided to keep everything in boxes so the move into our new home should be a cake walk compared to the last one. Can I say this will be our last move…let’s hope so. But, we’ll need to play the waiting game a little longer before we get to smell the fresh paint. Waiting for the “next move” seems to be our lives as of recently, but I guess it’s all part of the master plan.

I’ll admit getting to this point has required patience. First it was finding renters for the Florida home, then the right house here, and now all we can do is hope that the closing process goes smoothly, by waiting. But we’re experts at it by now and good things have come from it. The renters we got ended up being from Wisconsin also (coincidental!?!), and the right house has indeed finally come along.

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A Snowy Playground

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Kim

When I woke up and realized it was snowing, I grabbed my camera and this is the first photo I took of the snow flakes.

Following up from my last post about moving, I will announce that we made the trek north and arrived safely! Besides the 25-hour continuous drive, car-egging incident, wildfire set-back and two other major traffic jams that forced us to u-turn in a grassy median, it all went swimmingly. And I have to give a huge thanks to my parents who helped us drive the moving truck cross-country. The whole do-it-yourself moving method is more work and headache, but by us packing everything and using the help of friends loading up the truck, we sure saved a lot of money and probably will have some pretty lasting memories to say the least.

Currently we’re settled in a farm house (yes, on an actual farm!) until we find and purchase our permanent address. So the months ahead will be just as exciting as the last couple. We’ve only chosen a handful of boxes to unpack along with our clothes, to avoid any unnecessary packing–we’ve had our fill. As for friends and family, it has been exciting to be able to make plans and see them without purchasing a plane ticket. Small things you might take for granted seem so wonderfully convenient, like being able to drive our very own car to a restaurant instead of borrowing someone else’s while in town.

One piece of the puzzle that was missing was the snow. I, a lover of snow, looked forward to catching the tail-end of winter (for Wisconsinites that’s kind of a joke) and getting to “play in the snow” a little before spring set in. But, with the mild winter the Midwest has been having, I began to think that maybe we wouldn’t be seeing much aside from a few flurries. And then I went to sleep the other night saying to my husband just before I shut my eyes, “Why won’t it just snow?”

And I woke up to this, a beautiful invitation to play in the snow…

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Will it all fit?

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Kim

I’ve moved past the overwhelming point now that over half the house is packed and entered the very doubtful the moving truck is going to be big enough stage. With Bailey’s old room filling up, I had to start putting boxes in our guest room, which really didn’t worry me until I started to think about all of the furniture plus…the attic. Last weekend we began taking down everything we had stored up there over the last three years (because Florida homes don’t have basements) and I think I forgot about how much stuff we owned that we never use.

Packing day 5:

Packing day 7:

We’ve already started getting the tape measure out trying to guesstimate if everything will fit, but I guess there’s no sense in worrying because there’s not much we can do–we’ve already rented the largest truck! As it stands now, the garage is a disaster area where cars no longer belong; photos will be coming soon. The living room is increasingly becoming the place where odd and breakable items are to be placed until we get moving blankets. Great spot too since this is where B goes tearing through with her tennis ball.

And one surprising find was my one and only Cabbage Patch Kids doll. I don’t know how it made it to Florida, but there she was all wrapped up, clothes a little faded and her plasticky face a little dingy (I did find her other shoe though). Some more good memories uncovered.

Proceed to Pack (kimhopfphotography.com)
Hints and Tips for Packing Your Moving Truck (apartmentguide.com)

Proceed to Pack

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Kim

Packing makes all of this a little more real. We’ve started boxing up the house a little at a time to make the task of moving our lives across the country a little less daunting. Up to this point we’ve only been talking about the move which sure seemed like fun when I described it optimistically all those times. But fitting it all in a truck is another story. And all I can think about lately is where I’m going to find more boxes and I’m tempted to steal my neighbors junk mail just so I have more packing paper.

Because I need a strategy for everything, I’ve decided I’ll move from one room to the next clearing out each and probably save the kitchen for last. The kitchen frightens me with all that heavy, breakable and not to mention expensive stuff behind those cupboard doors. I’m putting the oddly shaped items in our dining room for now because frankly, I don’t know just how to move them yet. Some stuff just wasn’t meant to be moved I think.

Once we’ve got a box full and taped shut, we put it in Bailey’s old room (not sure she approves). And speaking of approval, one thing we did discover over Christmas is that Bailey loves snow. Phew!

Packing: Day 1

(A modest three boxes completed. Baby steps.)

Packing: Day 2

Today I found Bailey’s old blanket in an unused dresser drawer that she used to sleep on as a puppy, too. And if you’ve kept up with B’s blog posts (such as Old Friends Die Hard), then you know that her “puppy love” occasionally turned into the need to annihilate. It was mildly shredded and mangled when I found it, so I thought why not let her do the honors of finishing it off. I set it down for her to smell, and her tail went wagging immediately with joy. She remembered her old friend. B would never tear up a good blanket of ours, but this one she knew was hers. I quick snapped a photo because I knew this would be the last time she saw it, and it made me think about how this move will be sentimental for everyone involved- even B.

Who knows what will turn up next.

Leaving a Mark

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Kim

As I watched the sun come up the other morning, I couldn’t help but wonder who else might enjoy this very view in this very spot down the road. And, when would be the last time I’d watch this Florida sunrise come up? Could be sooner than I think as we prepare to make our journey back up north towards the land of four seasons, fresh water, snowy holidays and familiar faces.

It’s strange to think I’ll be moving once again across the country, because it seems only days ago I packed up my diploma and moved south in search of love and a new career. That also meant sandy beaches, palm trees, 12 months of sun and city nightlife. And ever since then it’s been one great memory after another with lessons learned along the way. Sometimes you wonder if you’ll miss a place with all the excitement of moving onto something new, but I’m not going to kid myself. There’s a lot of favorite places, past times and people who will soon be over a thousand miles away. But friendships have been made, and those won’t disappear.

As I was driving home today I heard the song, “Tattoos on this Town,” and thought about how fitting it was in the wake of such a big change. Sure, you can think of one part of your life as being “over” or “in the past,” but I can’t help but recognize that impressions have been made on the lives we touch, and not only have we made our mark, but the last few years have made their mark on me, shaping who I am now.

I think about all of the photographs I’ve taken over the last five years and can’t deny I’ll have to explain to my kids one day as they click through them, “why, oh why, did I leave Florida?” I guess I’ll have to think of a good answer when the time comes that they’ll understand, but I know one thing for sure, is that I made the most of my time here and I wouldn’t change a thing. I also think I got a little closer to knowing what I really want out of this life, although, I realize I probably really won’t know what I want until I’m 40.

One thing I do know is that the point is not always to get to where you need to be, but to enjoy the “getting there.” If I can remember that over the next year, I think I’ll be in pretty good shape.

Kim Hopf Photography

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