I left my heart in Atlanta

Okay, not my whole heart, but pieces of my heart. Pieces of my heart that felt they had been scooped out with a spoon (quoted from Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves). I'm putting on my big girl panties today, and posting some photos from Laura and Jordan's move to Atlanta. This is a form of closure for me . . . a necessary step in my grieving process if you will. If you're looking for more interesting reading today then skip this post, and I highly recommend from the list of blogs, that I follow, "Romney and Interracial Marriage" in Mormon Midrashim. In your face, Bret Hatch! But I digress. Back to the move.

Morning of December 24th . . . Walkers and Hales loading up the Budget moving truck. Jordan's dad, John, is an expert mover. Stacks up boxes and furniture into small spaces with Tetris-like accuracy!

This picture still squeezes my heart. Laura had never been away from me for more than a few weeks at a time in her life. It was surreal, for me, that she was moving so far away.
Movers and shakers.
Uncle Clark, Lucy, Grandma Walker and Aunt Jenny.
Early in the morning after Christmas Day. Ironically, in the British Commonwealth countries (such as Canada where I am from), this is referred to as Boxing Day. Yeah, well, we were all boxed up and ready to go. Lucy was secured in her car seat with her teddy bear neck pillow, her Dumbo stuffed toy and a movie, already playing on the screen in front of her. She was tucked in warmly with her "I spy" quilt that her Grandma Walker made for her.
For most of the trip, Laura and I rode together in their mini-van while Brent and Jordan drove the moving truck, towing their smaller car. Sometimes we changed it up.
99 percent of the time, Lucy was a cheerful little traveler . . . watched movies, read books, ate snacks, snoozed and opened little gifts that a family friend, Caroline Christensen, had sent with us. Laura had also wrapped several little things that she periodically let Lucy open.

This sippy cup was an integral part of the "keep Lucy happy" plan.
The view that Laura and I had for most of the three days that we traveled to Atlanta.
Entering the Marietta area where Laura and Jordan were moving. Lucy was getting bored and wanted to read a book but it was dark and we didn't want to turn on the dome light in the van. I gave Lucy my headlamp and it worked quite nicely. We pulled into Aaron and Haley's home (just around the corner from where Laura and Jord were moving in) and were welcomed with a delicious dinner, and lots of love and hugs. It was wonderful to be there. Wish I had taken some photos at dinner.

The next few days are a kind of a blur. We had so much help and support from Aaron and Haley, Janel and Derek and other family members. Everything from taping and painting, unloading the truck, unpacking the kitchen, running errands, helping Lucy to feel more comfortable, fixing food, showing us where things were (Costco, Home Depot, etc.). We can't thank you all enough.

The day after New Year's Day, Brent had to fly back home to go back to work. I stayed on until January 14th to continue to help the kids settle in. Jordan had to fly to Washington, D.C. for training for his new job. Laura and I did some more painting and putting things away. We also ...
watched this movie several times a day,
checked out the Atlanta zoo with Aaron, Haley and their kids,

visited a cute little resort type town (can't remember the name) about 45 minutes from Laura and Jordan's place,
ate lots of grilled cheese sandwiches and apples,
visited the Atlanta aquarium (fantastic),
went to a kids play place with lots of big, bouncy things to play on,
made several trips to . . .
this place,
assembled various pieces if furniture (well, Laura did anyway),
read lots of books (how I miss reading with Lucy),
got a start on cleaning up the yard,

another photo taken at the aquarium,
took a couple of trips to Target, where I got these great "flowers" for just a buck apiece. Lucy loved them. The above photo was taken just a few minutes before we drove to the airport so that I could catch my flight home.
Last photo, taken together, before I left my darlings in Marietta. I managed to summon up a smile but I certainly didn't feel like it. Am I getting used to the distance between us? Yes, I'd say I'm adjusting pretty well. Do I miss Laura, Jordan and Lucy like crazy? Absolutely. Is my heart squeezing and are the tears starting to fall as I'm typing this? Afraid so. Does separation, from loved ones, SUCK ROCKS? Oh yeah. Til next time.