A Long Farewell

3 ½ weeks is a long time to take to leave. I’m sure that although our family and friends will miss while we are away on our Adventure, they were probably quite pleased for the leaving to be over.

It started at school with a most unusual assembly.

 
Willow’s Faux Formal was a much more exciting affair the following Saturday night.

Next it was a goodbye from church and the girl’s baptisms with many more farewells – at such an emotional time – the tears flowed freely as the holidays were beginning and it really was the last time to see some dear friends for a while. We were so blessed to have some of our NZ family come and share the day so we could have some time with them again face to face instead of face to book before the big move.

Handing over my messy classroom to the new teacher was a mixed blessing then saying farewell to 3 skip loads, stuff whisked off to garage sales and a kerbside pick up was a relief because it just didn’t have to be packed or wrapped. The wooden pods were driven off with all our household possessions to a warehouse somewhere for safe keeping until our return.

Petal’s mates spent an evening together imbibing huge quantities of sugar and watching movies. Good friends are the hardest to leave behind.

20 cartons, M’s bike and the girl’s guitars were carried away to be shipped to the UK and Pete’s Ute was borrowed to take the plant boxes and dinner sets over to Finch Pl to await our return.

The hardest was saying goodbye to Lala and Bunty as they were rehomed and taking Sharna and Charlie’s belongings to Nana who has kindly adopted them. The bearded dragon is in a friend’s lounge. The willy-wagtails and fairy-wrens couldn’t care less as long as the bugs keep dying in our pool.

Our last Sabbath saw another farewell, a wonderful lunch with the Wanderers and a very disappointing rugby game shared with our precious Freshwater cousies. On Sunday night the kids had their last Rowan Atkinson fan club meeting with a pack of close friends re-watching Beans, Adders and skits. Meanwhile the adults went out and left them to order their own pizza while we went to an Italian restaurant which was a great last supper with our mates.

An intrepid crew of cleaners and gardeners whooshed through the house fare-welling the last of the grubbiness of moving and finally a big white truck pulled up in front of our house and other people’s things filled the space we have called home for 8 yrs.

At the airport a rowdy get together of friends and family made our final curtain call feel like a party and kept the tear ducts all but checked.

Two days with the Cousies half way to the UK was a great way to celebrate a closeness that doesn't fade with distance.

48 degrees around the Waterpark.

It took us a long time to leave but we have finally arrived and are so lucky to have the Vicarage at Watford open for us as we transit from Heathrow to Cambridge.

Taking Lulu and Chester for a walk.

Cheers to the blessing of friends and family. Life is pretty wonderful with their care and affection always there.