The Final Leg and Life in Florida

On Sunday afternoon in Houston, while enjoying the day with Wes and Jennifer, Brad decided to check his work schedule and discovered he needed to be at work on move-in day. Yikes! That put a bit of a wrench in our plans to "take our time" through the journey. To be honest, I think we were both ready to get to Florida anyway. We stayed in Houston through Monday to get our car fixed (and of course FINALLY get in a few hours of watching the Avengers save the world) and left early Tuesday morning to complete our journey.

Tuesday was a long day, and we decided to see how far we could get. The sooner we hit Orlando, the sooner our truck would be empty. I finally took a turn at the wheel to give Brad a break and to help pass the time. I actually love driving on road trips, but a trailer with a missing right blinker made me a bit nervous. I managed surprisingly well, even navigating a bit of local traffic near Pensacola.  I had to smile as we sat down to eat at Arby's and realized there was Christian Rock playing over the speakers. Yep! We were in the South. Walter was also incredible excited to finally be in Florida. We had to capture the moment as we crossed the border.

Tired and only slightly grumpy (mostly after trying to park the car), we decided to call it a night in Tallahassee. We grabbed as few necessities as possible, checked in, and fell into our beds thinking we might just sleep until noon. Not so. Brad and I both found ourselves wide awake at 4:15am. Whether it was the excitement of finishing the drive, or the worry our car with all our earthly possessions had been towed (we parked in the Outback Steakhouse parking lot because there were no spaces for a truck and trailer at the hotel), I'm still not sure. But by about 5am we decided we might as well get up and get the day started. Once we got on the road the lack of sleep caught up to me and I decided to lay my head back and close my eyes for a few moments. I hadn't slept in the car the whole drive and didn't figure this would be any different, but apparently I was asleep enough to not even notice Brad snagged a picture of me "enjoying the drive". 

We were "home" in Orlando by 11:30am Wednesday morning ready to get the keys to our condo and start unpacking. Mom and Ken Cottle arrived shortly after and the mass unpacking commenced! It took several days to start to feel like we lived in a "home", not just a war zone, but we're finally settled. The fridge and pantry are stocked (mostly), the furniture is all in place (other than baby room and an ugly recliner we need to get rid of), and all that's left is to add a few more pictures to the walls. Phew! Mom, Ken, and Dad Cottle (who arrived on Thursday evening) were an incredible help, and we couldn't have done it without them. Mom spent hours hanging and folding clothes to fill up our closet, and Dad and Ken put lots of furniture together. Ken was even (mostly) patient through several trips to Target and IKEA. Thanks to Suzanne, Hannah, and Grant who brought us food, and Dougie who helped unpack, move couches, and also fed us pizza. We have amazing friends and family. 

On the front end of things we definitely couldn't have packed in record time without the Bentleys, the Klcs, and Mom and Dad Randall. Dad's Tetris skills are pretty incredible, and we didn't even have to fill up space in the Expedition to get it all loaded. 

Here are a few pictures of the finished product. I am especially excited about the giant cabinet that holds our TV. Thanks to the challenge from Ken that I couldn't find anything to work, and a sleepless night, I decided to scour Craigslist and found something I've been wanting for a very long time! It's a bit shabby chic and just perfect!! We also scored a free couch from Uncle Jeff that goes well in the house, along with lots of free food (thanks Jeff!!).

The Office 

Living/Dining/Kitchen

Bedroom (with a lovely bed donated by David Randall. We seriously scored in the furniture department)

At least once a day I still find myself surprised that we're actually here. I've also discovered that we live in a really beautiful place! I know that sounds silly, since I've lived here before, but living on the southwest side of Orlando is a very different experience, and almost everyday I discover new things I love about it. We have a ward I already know I will love, we are close enough to see the Disney fireworks (although we have to walk to the front of our complex), and we are surrounded by beautiful lakes, homes, and greenery. I miss Utah, I miss my family and friends there, but I know we are where we need to be, and it feels good to start getting settled.