Planning an International Move & Other Stresses

It happened. My wedding and engagement rings don’t fit anymore. I take my rings off at night, and this morning, I was absent-mindedly putting them on when I realized I had to force them on my finger. They were stuck. I spent a few panic-stricken seconds pulling them off before vowing not to try that again until after Monkey arrives. I have considered wearing them on a necklace, but since they aren’t soldered together, I’m not sure I want to do that. As a substitute today, I am wearing the necklace John gave me on our wedding day, and I might stick with that.

What I really wanted to write about today was not the state of my swollen appendages, but rather the complicated and at times stressful process of moving overseas. I know I have mentioned this before, but not only are we going through an international move, but we are having our first baby, both going through a career change, and are leaving the military community. All of this will happen within 6 weeks time. By the end of this, we will probably have a tip or two to share with the world about how to (or how not to) coordinate such a move.

Before we start this process, we organized and created a game plan/to do list. The list is broken down by time frame. Tomorrow we conclude the 91-120 days out period. That means on Friday there will only be 90 days remaining until we move to Texas. Holy. Cow.

So far, we have accomplished quite a bit. John took Friday and Monday off in order to help get us a bit more situated. We began the process of pre-packing, which entails packing and organizing things that we want to prep for the movers. For example, we did not want the movers to have to pack up all our little knick knacks, so we’ve packed those away. We brought all our books into one room for them. We have removed everything from the walls (except our jumbo clock, which will come down the day before the movers arrived), and John filled the holes on Monday. I also took the liberty of packing my own bras and panties. I don’t wear my pre-pregnancy ones anymore, and I don’t want the movers digging through my unmentionables. Talk about awkward.

This weekend, I hope to get my purses and shoes packed. Being 8.5 months pregnant has its advantages, i.e. I only wear a small number of flat shoes. Therefore, most of my shoes can be sent and I won’t miss them. I also won’t need all of my purses, because I hear that the baby’s diaper bag will basically become my purse. I will hold back a purse for myself, but I certainly don’t need the 5-8 I have for all different occasions.

We also just got Béni a new kennel to meet IATA regulations. It’s slightly larger than his old kennel, and we were sad to see that one go, but he hasn’t missed a beat in getting adjusted to his new “house.” In fact, I think he might prefer it over his old one. Hopefully it will provide a comfortable place for him to be during the flight!

For anyone who is interested, here’s our 91-120 day out task list:

• Review and copy medical and dental records. Get a certified true copy of each. (J&S)
• Schedule separation physical examination (J)
• Schedule VA physical (J)
• Get Sarah’s new passport/new SOFA card
• Pay wine taxes (J&S)
• Check with airline re: Beni’s travel and get kennel guidelines
• Arrange for housing pre-inspection and obtain termination information
• Return reserve paperwork (J)

Tonight I won’t be doing any packing prep, though (phew). I have two sweet friends who are taking me out for a birthday dessert while John is out working the lights for an Army chorus gig. I’m looking forward to our girls’ night out!