So Many Thank yous...

Our last few days in BC were kind of hectic with packing and cleaning and saying our goodbyes to family and friends but we managed to get everything packed and in the moving truck... including the hot tub :) 

I must say that craning the hot tub over the neighbours house was a little nerve racking but the crane held up and we managed to get it into the moving truck.

We were very thankful that we were able to find a truck that the hot tub would fit in and almost had to leave it in BC. We hired a moving company to move it for us but on the day he was to show up to pick it up he said his truck was full and couldn't move it. Needless to say we were scrambling to find alternate arrangements. 

Luckily we found Universal Truck Rentals and we were able to cancel the UHaul (they had no trucks with door openings wide enough to fit it in). They had a Diesel truck that happened to have an opening just big enough to slide in the hot tub and gave us a discounted truck that was bigger so he could get it back East (apparently more people move to BC from Ontario then head back to Ontario from BC). 

We expected to have lots of room left over in the truck but it's amazing just how much stuff we still brought even though we sold off twice as much as we are bringing in the last few months! It's incredible how much stuff accumulates and how fast. We thinned out sooo much but still managed to fill this huge truck and the trailer we towed behind it!

Finally everything was packed up, the house was all cleaned (A HUGE thank you to Ania for spending all day cleaning all the bathrooms and the kitchen...We owe you!And thanks to my mom for taking Sierra for the night so we could finish packing) Then it was time to load ourselves in the truck and say goodbye to our home.

Luckily our dear friend Jay flew out to help us drive across to Ontario. Believe it or not I have never pulled the trailer...I'm scared of having to back up (yes Ian did drive all 30,000km's we drove on our trip last summer!). The plan...was for us to rush so Jay could be back for work in 5 days! So we quickly threw the last few items into the truck and headed out.

I am extremely thankful Jay did come because the next morning Ian woke up and was very sick and we were only parked at a roadside stop just past Kelowna.

The girls had been sick before leaving and were still sickish too so our drive was anything but fun and I had to drive for the first time as we didn't have time to sit around.

 And would you believe it...two days later I was sicker then I have ever been in my life! I managed to drive from Kelowna to Winnipeg before getting sick and forcing Ian to drive again. He wasn't 100% but he made it to Sioux Saint Marie.

Jay had to leave us in Sioux Saint Marie and fly home to work and we had to sit in a truck stop while I recuperated. If Jay hadn't flown out to help then we probably would have been in Calgary still! After 2 nights  we had to move again because we needed to unload the truck and get it back. We loaded the girls into the moving truck with Ian so I could have complete silence to concentrate on driving. Whewww that was tricky but we arrived safe and sound! A HUGE thank you to Mark and Jeff for helping to unload the truck and to Ed, Keith, Matt and Alex for helping to unload the hot tub! (See the trend here of why this post was titled so many Thank yous... We have called on so many friends to help us with this move and we are very grateful for all their help)

Our next little hicup happened almost immediately. We couldn't park the trailer where we originally hoped so we scrambled to find an RV park that was open. Apparently no parks in Ontario open until May. Luckily the storage facility where our belongings are in storage had one space left we could rent until a local park opened. It was nothing more then a parking space along their driveway but it was a blessing to have as we waited for the camping season to open.

We spent Easter here...

Luckily the Easter Bunny found us and he brought wonderful nature bags and real binoculars for the girls. He also brought geode eggs the girls had fun cracking open.

Even though we were parked on the side of the road we were thankful for the hill beside us.

Sierra studies her snail she found

Remember curling dandelion stems as a child? They picked the stems
 too short but we managed to get a few curls.

The girls cousin Charlie came for a sleep over and had a great time on that little hill.

Sierra found an egg on a branch of a fir tree. It must have
been pushed out of the nest after it didn't hatch.

 The girls got out the bird book and tried to figure out what type of bird it was...we think it was a Starling's egg.

They also discovered how fragile eggs can be...

Charlie searching for clues

Charlie and Sierra doing some investigative work
under the tree where the egg was found.

 Then they caught a butterfly...

And if that wasn't fun enough...they also spotted a wild turkey on that hill...

So next time you see a little hill don't take it for granted. Be thankful for all it has to offer if you take the time to look :) It provided us with lots of fun rolling down it and also housed many dandelions and creatures to entertain the girls when we weren't out exploring Barrie and it's great parks or swimming at the fabulous pool here.

Many thanks to all of you who helped in so many ways with our move...we are truly grateful and appreciate everything you have done. Now we head off to our RV park to see what adventure lays waiting to be found.