And here are a couple of pics.

and the way it used to look

Like HGTV says, remove personal looking items for staging, which is different than decorating for living in a home.
You might not be able to see it, but there is a label with a cardinal on it, which was found in the walls of the house when DH worked on it years ago. It was the label and a cedar shingle for the siding company. So I put it out on display too. We will end up putting together a notebook with pockets containing all the owner manuals for appliances and the heating system etc. Learned that on HGTV too. :)

This sounds like a tremendous undertaking. What are PODS? I have to look that up. Good luck on the move - refresh my memory - you are moving back down south?

I hate packing, but luckily, you know how to do it right. Dh is like that too. He used to deliver furniture and it couldn't have one scratch on it when delivered.

I think your shelves look nice that way, and will let buyers see the shelves better too.

Don't wear yourself out ML. Sounds like you are going to get into shape with this packing.

Schoolhouse, a PODS is a container for packing up your stuff and either shipping it, or storing it in your yard or an off site storage facility. Great for staging a house, or maybe removing furnishings for a remodel or recovery from a disaster.

They come in several sizes, with the smaller size being 8 x 8 x 7 long. The 8 x 8 x 12 long is available for local use only, not shipping over the road. So the one we have is 8 x 8 x 16 long. I guess I could park a car in it, but some things are VERBOTTEN like cars, hazardous materials, airplanes, other vehicles. Nothing which is propelled by FUEL is allowed. So no snowblowers or chain saws that have been USED.

I figure I'll be totally packed to the gills by early Thursday morning, if the weather holds. Most of the stuff I want to take back is either sitting inside the PODS, since I anticipated it would rain tomorrow, or it is staged inside the garage near the door.

All, that is, except my BIG ROCKS. I am serious about those rocks. Should I have room at all, in they go. I'll pick out some nice flat ones to snitch from the rock walls that DH built, plus two hefty small boulders (nice shapes) if I can roll them onto the dolly w/o dislocating my shoulders or wrenching my back. With those rocks, I'll be the envy of every gardener on my side of town!!! Rocks are really expensive to buy, and this is my chance to get a few choice rocks for just the hauling!

ML sounds like you have the packing down pat. We did the same with the stock truck when we moved to Idaho. That pup was packed so tight it did not need tying down. LOL Things packed under dressers between legs. There was no space left at all. My only thought is flat glass such as pictures travel better on edge rather than flat. Same with dishes. Same with glasses packed upside down on their edges rather than flat in a box. When possible. I know how in the end you do what you can to get the stuff in.

I do not envy you one bit. Take care of you and watch that Blood Sugar.

ML- Wow! That's a lot of packing. I'm so glad you're getting ready to go south for the winter. I think you've had enough snow, for one year :)

Those shelves look beautiful. It really does make a difference, when you can focus on the architecture and not 'the stuff'. Great idea about the manuals, too.

I posted a picture of the PODS after I filled it up, and will show it here. The driver will be here this afternoon between 3:30 and 6:30 to take it away. And then tonight we will be up up and away around 3 am. Get up at 2, then gone by 3. I warm up the car, load the parrots behind my driver seat and strap their carriers in with the seat belt, then plop the dogs in on the other side of the back seat, so they can cuddle down in the down comforter which covers the entire back seat and cargo area, on top of my ice chest and suitcases. Then they can roam a little bit, and we can take them out for a walk by lifting the top portion of the Explorer's back hatch. I have harnesses on them already, to make it easier to pick them up and deposit them back in the car. My DH is gathering his items for the "navigator" seat, like the atlas, the flashlight, the Kindle, his glasses, and easily accessible behind his seat will be the cooler with caffeinated drinks. And my diabetic snacks.
On my side, I have the charger for my cell phone and the GPS, in a new thingy which can charge TWO 12 volt cig lighter things, and TWO USB port chargers too. All by sticking in ONE of my 12 volt outlets. It fits in a cup holder, low profile, and I put it in the one on the back side of the center console, so both of us can still keep a drink in the front cup holders. I have my Bluetooth earpiece charged and ready to fit on my ear. My sun shades are clipped to the sunvisor. My medications are in the console. My sweater is draped across my seatback so the parrots cannot chew holes in it, my down "Nanook of the North" long coat is on a hanger behind my seat, so it will insulate the parrots from the cold air next to the window. And it will not interfere with my vision anywhere on the road behind me.

Supposedly it will be raining for most of Tuesday, so when we stop in Wytheville VA, about 950 miles distant from here, around 4 or 5 pm, we can sleep and rise to a morning with little chance of rain. I expect to leave the motel in Wytheville around 4 am, and that will put us in Chattanooga at rush hour, sad to say, but I don't think DH will be willing to rise any earlier than that.

I personally love to go places in the dead of night, in the wee hours to be boogy-ing through busy cities when only a few cars are on the road, there is something so intimate about it. All quiet and sleepy and me wide awake and alone in the world. Except, of course, for my sleeping passengers. I do some of my best thinking at these times.

So when I finish this, I am unplugging my computer and stowing it in a safe place in the car. I hope to be able to connect again, from Mobile AL, by WEDNESDAY NIGHT. Take care, friends, and have two great days. I hope your weather is beautiful and exactly like you wish it to be.

Bon voyage! Drive safely! But when you see this, you'll already be on the road and probably in Alabama. Will be checking later in the week to see if you are online and made it safely.

ML Thinking about you. Hoping you made it safely homer and all fur and feathered children did well too. Get some rest. Just wanted you to know you were on my mind.

Chris

Well, I've been home since Wednesday afternoon. I drove all the way, half the trip spread to each day. We left Tuesday morning about 3:30 am.

But at some point the last week up there, I hurt my left hand, the palm and the back of it, feels like I broke it. There is a big lump in the middle of the palm which I can feel, and then the knuckles are swollen round, I had to remove my rings, the fingers are not able to open all the way or to grasp anything. I could drive because I laid the fingers over the wheel, and I took Advil. I have not had a chance to make a doc appt, which will have to wait until Monday.

I am lefthanded and it is really aggravating to be unable to do my things. I worked in the garden today, but could only use the right hand to swing my little digger. Trying to finish up a red cement block pathway around the Teahouse. And add a small pad for a bistro table and 2 wrought iron chairs.

Heck, I cannot even take the caps off my medications. I'll be asking them to give me the easy off lids next time.

The PODS will arrive about Dec 1, and we'll have until the 12th to unload it. My housesitter buddy will come help us do the unloading. My poor Teahouse will have to be trashed for this winter, sad to say. But that is why we had it worked on before the kitchen.

Well, DH is cooking tonight, and he said 6 minutes before dinner. Time to take my insulin. Boy is it good to be back in Alabama.

Just found your post! Glad you made it safely, but what's up with the hand? Did you maybe get bit by some bug? And right away jumping into yard work. Don't over do.

My hand is really hurting, and I've found the doctor that I need to go see about it.

Today I had to get my DH help me move the bigger flower pots into the Teahouse out of the weather.

And guess what? I was out back looking at some of my flowers, and I saw this big lavender flower petal on the ground beside my clump of bananas. So I looked up into the clump, and on the very tallest plant was.....a long stalk with the purpley/lavendery flower on the end, and about 8 small perfectly formed banana fruits at the top of the stalk. So before it totally freezes, I'm cutting the stalk off and placing it in a paper bag for it to finish ripening. Oh joy!!! We have ONE banana plant in a pot, which I planned to keep alive over the winter. Only the plants with stems two years old or more can bear fruit, and I did not think any would live long enough. We used to have warm winters, but the previous two years have been exceptionally cold for our zone 8B. Like two weeks below freezing? Man, that is not NORMAL!

My PODS is arriving on Dec 1, and I won't be able to unload it for the most part. But we'll have some help looking to pick up spending money for the holidays, and that will be just fine with me.

My Christmas shopping is done. It is being shipped from the seller direct to the recipients. Almost time to chat about Christmas during our Tuesday Teatime......goodnight all.

So glad you are home ML. Sorry about your hand. I hope it heals for you fast. No idea what happened? I know when we are working hard we tend to over look pains until they have done some damage. I know our last move was hard on my hands.

Welcome back. I am sure you are glad to be home again.

Ah, tomorrow, which is Thursday, is the day that truth will out. We'll see just how good I was at packing, because in the morning sometime between 8:30 and 11:30, my PODS will arrive.

No heavy unpacking for this gal. I had two doctor appts today, and one was with the orthopedist. X-rays showed no broken bones in my hand, but he said I'd damaged the tendons and needed some therapy 3 times a week for the next three weeks. I had the option of some "good drugs" or just 3 ibuprofen 3 times a day, and that latter was my choice.

The 32" TV and my beloved original painting by an artist friend was the last two things I packed, between mattresses at the very door of the PODS. That, and all my hosta, I cannot wait to see.

Stay tuned, because later in the day I'll post a photo of what the inside of my PODS looks like after enduring a long road trip of 1500 miles (maybe more if they had routing issues), and I hope everything is where I put it.

Anyone want to put money on the chances of no breakage?
:) Just kidding.