When you have one move that goes so smoothly that you’re willing to move again - in the same year - it is Murphy's Law to have the next move, with the same group of movers, go so poorly that you never want to move again (just before you move into a rental knowing that you are to move again soon).

The packers were supposed to arrive on Thursday between 8 and 10 am. We waited and waited and waited. At 2 pm the schedulers called to tell us that they weren't coming. But NOT TO WORRY, they wouldn't need more than a full day and they would be at our house Friday morning between 8 and 9:30. Oh, and we would receive a gift worth $50 on the other end for our trouble. What time did the packers arrive on Friday? Noon. And they brought large gifts of mud and dog feces for the newly cleaned carpets and a large scratch for the hardwood floors. What time was it agreed that they would be done? "No later than 5 pm, these are professionals!" What time did they leave? Close to midnight. That left Matthew and Steven behind for their journey and our cleaning lady having to be sent home after her drive into the city because the messing up was still in progress. (There was also a lot of calling and trying to contact the moving agency Thursday and Friday and a lot of lying on their end and not calling back which was maddening but that doesn't make particularly interesting subject matter.)

On the other end...

After waiting in The Longest Line in Human History to check in, Hava and Simon found themselves checking in their two large bags; one weighed 49 pounds, the other 51. If a bag weighs more than 50 lbs. there is a $25 charge. Luckily we had brought a small duffle bag just in case this was a problem. So this is how Simon's ear infection medicine was separated from the rest of the luggage. What awaited us in baggage claim on the other end? Simon's ear infection medicine arrived (thank goodness) but NOTHING ELSE. So we filled out forms and went to the store with a sleepy Simon and bought a good number of supplies. There were other rough parts of the trip too -- the ticket people forgot to give Simon a boarding pass so Hava was stopped in security and had to run back through the terminal (with 33 lb. Simon) to get a pass and then run back to security and then run to the gate only they went down the wrong path and ended up in the B's instead of the A's. By the time Hava and Simon arrived at the gate, the plane was about to board. So they boarded a 4 hour flight at lunch/nap time without any lunch or drink.

Luckily, the first part of our story does have a happy ending. The plane had cans of water. Hava brought enough snacks to feed an army of miniature soldiers; Simon was very very good on the plane (although he asked the plane to "Go down now please! Go back home! Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!" part way through the flight). He rubbed his neck under his ear a little but otherwise seemed to feel no pain. Simon did eventually go to sleep - at midnight Central time and only after Hava tried for three hours. Our bags did eventually get delivered to Hava's parents house in the middle of the night. And Hava got up to bring in the bags only to set off the REALLY LOUD security system and wake up everyone in the Sacramento area – everyone except Simon.

Matthew and Steven left Chicago just before midnight and stayed at a hotel outside the city limits to avoid this morning’s traffic. Today they visited with friends in Urbana, drove through St. Louis, and, at last check, were on their way to Southern Missouri or maybe even Oklahoma to spend the night.