Purging and packing

Lots has been happening in the seven (!) weeks since our last post. Mostly purging. And packing. And purging. And more packing. It’s amazing how much stuff a family can accumulate in 15 years of living in one place!

Cecelia and I went through a whole bunch of her books as a first step, and dropped a bunch of them off at a couple of the Free Little Libraries around town.

She’s been a champ as we have started going through clothes, toys, and everything else, deciding what goes on the boat (not much!), what goes into storage (some things), and what we should donate to other kids (a lot). It’s a roller coaster of emotions at times, but we’re slowly making progress.

Meanwhile, Patrick has been finishing up some projects in our woodshop/basement so he can pack up allllll the tools. He was a bit dismayed to find out his rolling toolboxes need to be emptied for the move to storage. I can’t even imagine how heavy they are. Not to mention the C&C machine, drill press, miter saw and cart, planer…

I have been spending a lot of time going through closets and cabinets to thin things out and pack things up, using what used to be our guest room as a staging area(we sold all the furniture in it in April to clear it out). We have been able to donate many bags of clothing, shoes, bedding, and other items to a group helping Ukrainian refugees in Jersey City.

Lots of things have made their way onto our curb out front as well–we are lucky to live somewhere where scavenging for discarded belongings on sidewalks is super common! And thankfully, boxes and bins of packed items ready to go to the boat or to storage are starting to emerge from the chaos.

Patrick and I visited Oestara last week to do some boat work, and we’re headed back to her this weekend for more of the same. Fingers crossed the rig is in when we get there, and we can take her for a sail to test out all the new electronics!