Aloha!
YAY! Things are moving quickly and we'll be leaving Minnesota in a few weeks. This past Monday our vehicle was picked up, loaded on a trailer and making its way to Los Angeles to be put on a ship heading towards Hawaii. It takes about 4 weeks total for the car shipping process. My husband and I have been a "one car" family since 2016 but a no car family living in the suburbs isn't exactly ideal. We lived in downtown Minneapolis where we could walk everywhere we needed and we both worked from home so there was absolutely no need to spend money on a 2nd vehicle when our 1st vehicle hardly saw 20 miles a week...plus heated garage parking (which is a requirement in Minneapolis) was $200/month! We will still be working from home in Hawaii, however, in the future we will both have to attend in person meetings and visit our clients so we may have to break down and get a 2nd vehicle eventually.....I'm thinking a fun, little convertible but my husband is thinking a scooter or motorcycle...we'll see who wins. :)
In addition to our vehicle leaving Minnesota our container of household goods also FINALLY left storage and is making its way to the coast. We will get confirmation this upcoming week on the actual timing of loading onto the ship and once it sets sail we'll know when it will arrive on-island! We have been living "out of a suitcase" in a temporary space (our amazing friends let us stay in their carriage house which is super adorable for the past 6 months) in the western suburbs of Minneapolis. We have had an amazing 6 months and will miss our friends and their kids when we leave. I have a feeling that when we start unpacking we will realize we have a lot of "things" that we realize we do not need...we've survived 6 months with minimal clothes, shoes and things in general...maybe this is the start of minimalist living? I'll let you know sometime in the future how than pans out.
This past Friday evening our friends surprised us with a little drive by farewell party. It was a little chilly but perfect, socially distanced hour with our closest friends. We were able to have a few glasses of wine, talk and air hug goodbye. Our friends gifted us with some amazing things to always remind us of home in Minnesota. This was the perfect curated gift and here is where you can find these items from amazing local businesses:
Walker Art Center - pint glass and snow globe
Prince - puzzle
Northmade Co - MPLS cherry t-shirt
Hewing Hotel - coffee mug (this is the venue where we got married!)
Above Lake Minnetonka - coffee table book - our temporary home these last 6 months
Patina - Somebody in Minnesota Loves You playing cards, MN cookie cutter and coasters
On initial thought I am personally excited to 1) sleep in our own Sleep Number bed
2) hug my Peloton bike (and actually take some classes - here's a $100 discount code if you have been thinking about getting your own Peloton bike/tread - Y2DRYX), 3) bake some cookies with my beloved KitchenAid mixer and be able to spend more time outdoors....Minnesota in winter is hard mentally and really freaking cold and during a pandemic we've found ourselves not leaving the house for days...which is not good for anyone.
Mahalo for following along on our journey!
Cheers!