Wednesday, May 25, 2011

PCS'ing to Germany (Part 2/Preparing for the Packers)...

The next thing on the list was setting up our packing date! When moving oversees, we were told you need to plan your packing date a couple of months before you actually leave. It takes a while to get your things shipped (on a BOAT) over there so the sooner the better. That's why I decided to go to Ft. Rucker with John this summer. I don't want to sit here in this empty house. And we can make it like a little summer vacation for Aidan. The beach is 1 hour down the road and we have several friends there that we can visit with. You are allowed 2 shipments... one for everything... and then a second one closer to when you leave for the small things that you kept to live on. They suggested not to ship computers or electronics in the second shipment because there is more chance it can get damaged. I'm assuming the second shipment gets over there faster, but is handled with less care.

We have accumulated a lot of crap over the course of our 12 year marriage. In preparation for the movers, we listed and sold several things on craigslist. We are only allowed something like 13000 lbs. So a bunch of stuff had to go. I have learned a huge lesson from selling on Craigslist. You will NEVER get what you paid for it... and in most cases... not even as much as it's worth. We took a huge hit on our four wheelers. Huge meaning several thousand dollars. I loved my little pink four wheeler. But those things depreciate in value very quickly! I almost wish we'd just put them in storage so we would have them when we got back to the states. But I think we've outgrown that phase in our lives. Maybe we'll get Harley's when we get back instead!!

After selling most of the junk and unneeded "big" items, John set up our packing appointment. He had to do this through the online AKO system. Be forewarned... the online setup is a pain in the A**. I'm not sure why... but he was frustrated with it and so were a couple of our friends. I'm glad I didn't partake in that task ;)! He planned for a date of June 7th! OK... I have a few more weeks to prepare myself right? NOT! The packing coordinator came out to assess and give us an idea of what will happen. He then informed us that the packers would be here on June 2nd, 3rd, and 6th. Yes my friends... 3 days of packing and one day of pickup! And that is next week! Slight panic attack. I have not done anything I wanted to do before they come out. I wanted to go through the drawers and closets to get rid of "more" trash, set aside things that we need to keep with us, pack the suitcases that we'll be living out of for the next 2 months, and hide my spices. Haha! Guess my weekend is looking busy! Here we go.......................................................

No comments:

Post a Comment