Preparations for Hawaii are falling into place so far.
One: The first thing I did was write a fabulous ad for a “Room Wanted” on Craigslist. He got quite a few responses. Most seemed to be from single women. Now, I suspect they figured he was a safe bet: married, professional, etc., and I don’t think they had any nefarious plans for him. If they had, they would have charged him nothing. But still.
I was glad the choice he had came up: a townhouse in Hawaii Kai. Sitting vacant, the landlord wanted to lease it to someone until it gets a permanent tenant. Yay! It’s on the side of the island where we want to be, the “Windward Side” I think it’s called.
Two: I joined a Mom’s Meetup Group there. I’m not sure that they have many activities, but they do meet once a month for a storytime.
Three: I found out that my MIL’s cousin’s son and wife, who are more or less our age, are moving there in July.
Four: I got in contact with extremely gracious and helpful Oahu author Patricia Wood, who not only wrote the novel LOTTERY, but was also in the Army, lives on a 48 foot boat in Hawaii, jumps horses, taught public school, and much more. In short, Patricia was a font of knowledge about the island, where we should live, public schools, and people.
Five: I found cheap, lightly used boxes from a guy who buys them off of movers. Small but helpful.
Six: 
Seven: The big moving sale is tomorrow. My MIL is helping us a lot. She got us a rather huge amount of change at the bank and is watching our youngest today so we can get ready. I’m scared, though. People have been telling me about horror stories: garage salers who tried to push their way in, who arrive at six, who are annoying. I’ll be ready with clubs. My hubby will have to be the security.
Eight: I get to spend a glorious, kid-free day with my husband. Sure, it’ll be spend hauling out debris, but I take what I can get.
MARGARET DILLOWAY 