Friday, May 25, 2007

The Rocket in Tampa and moving lessons

Me at 34 weeks pregnant... 6 weeks to go!!
Ty and I at a baseball game
Roger Clemens in Tampa
The Rocket in perfect form

Ty and I have been attending lots of baseball games lately. Roger Clemens was in town playing for the minor league Tampa Yankees (the Yankees A ball club). We got awesome tickets for $5 a piece pretty much right by home plate! Ty spent most of Roger's 4 innings heckling him for selling out and moving to the Yankees from the Astros. I gotta say... for $15 million over 6 months, I'd probably do the same thing! How come social workers don't get an opportunity to make that kind of money??? Anyway, despite the fact that we are saddened the Rocket is no longer playing for our beloved Astros, it was great to see this baseball legend in what could be his last year.




In other news... our stuff from Austin FINALLY arrived and we are getting settled into our new house in Tampa! Yea!! Moving has been such a hassle and the moving company did not help make it any easier. We have learned many lessons from this experience. The company packed up our belongings in Austin, unpacked them in a warehouse in Dallas, then spent 2 weeks stringing us along - promising us unfulfilled delivery dates before reloading our stuff on a semi! When our things finally did show up, the movers were pressuring us to sign paperwork stating our belongings were all in good condition, when we hadn't had time to inspect everything yet. For the most part our stuff was in good condition... nothing those furniture markers can't touch up. A few of our glass pieces were broken... but nothing sentimental.




Here are a few of our moving lessons learned:


1) Hire a company who will come to your house and give you an estimate after looking at your furniture. Don't hire a company who has an online checklist of furniture. (We did the online version... but when they got to our house to pack they started saying our furniture was too big so counted as two or three pieces of furniture, instead of the one piece option listed on the website). Then our quoted price went up significantly.


2) In the contract with the moving company, state a delivery date. For every day they are late, make sure there is a penalty they will pay.


3) Make sure the movers mark any unpacked objects on the inventory list. We had a really nice ladder that wouldn't fit in a box. They conveniently didn't write it on the inventory list and somehow it didn't make it to Tampa! The same with our dolly.


4) Make sure you have plenty of help on delivery day. Have one person take the inventory sheet and check off the objects as they come off of the truck. Have someone else inspect all furniture, and open up any boxes with glass in them to see if anything broke. Maybe a third person to direct the movers to the proper rooms with your furniture and boxes.

6 comments:

Andrea W. said...

It has been YEARS since I have had to deal with moving, and even then it was only across town! Great tips about moving. Reading your blog makes me too stressed to consider moving any time soon. I am glad you and Ty can finally settle in... especially before the baby arrives! Hope you are feeling well.

Anonymous said...

Great moving tips, Charis. I've never personally used a company to move, but I think we might want to use one next time, now that we actually have a fully-furnished abode.

You look like you were at Legend's Field there, (minor-league give-away) and I simply love that stadium. I've been there once and would love to go there all the time for those prices. You can't beat the atmosphere and proximity for that price anywhere else with such a high-caliber team.

We'll have to go to a USF football game in the fall if you're interested. I can get us student discounts.

Unknown said...

Your moving company sounds like a nightmare! Luckily we used a company that came to our house and gave us an estimate. It seems like it would take so much more work to unload your stuff off of the truck into a storage unit then load it back on. Nonetheless, I am glad that you finally got all of your stuff! Post some pictures of the house when you get all your stuff organized. By the way, you are such a cute pregnant girl!

Beth Purcell said...

Charis:

It sounds like you guys are enjoying it there. Please do post some pics of your place- and we want to see some nursery pics too!

I miss you!

Beth Purcell

Cara said...

You are such a cute pregnant lady! Sorry for the moving woes. If I ever move any where other than across town, I will consult you:)

The Houston's said...

You look great pregnant!! Enjoy your last few weeks!