Moving to Hubbard

Posted in Eternal Love | 4 comments

Early in August, Frank, Mark, and I loaded into our car then headed to La Pryor from Hico, Texas.

Knowing that it was going to be a very long trip with lots of packing to do when we got to La Pryor, Frank and I decided to ask my parents to keep our two and a half-year-old son, Scotty.

Frank, Mark, and I would drive the five to six-hour trip to La Pryor, and then while I packed up our things for moving, the guys would go to Uvalde to rent a U-Haul truck to move our priceless possessions.

We arrived in La Pryor a little past noon, ate lunch at the small restaurant in town, then the guys dropped me off at the house and headed towards Uvalde.  While in Uvalde, the guys planned to rent a U-haul truck, but they were also going to pick up empty boxes from the large grocery store for us to pack our stuff in.

Of course, it was a hot August day, and the house was quite warm inside. We had left the house closed up tightly while we were gone. I opened all of the windows then got busy emptying cabinets in the kitchen, then wrapped all breakables with old newspapers that we brought from my Grandmother’s home in Hico then placed wrapped things on the kitchen table and kitchen counter.

Once, they returned to the house, Frank and Mark got busy taking the beds apart and loading them on to the U-Haul truck. I packed the boxes with all of our dishes, other breakables, sheets, towels, etc. The stereo played loudly in the living with some reel to reel recordings of music by CCR (Creedence Clearwater Revival), and we all sang along while trying to work as swiftly as we could to get everything packed.

Occasionally, we all took a break to drink water because of the heat, but we were determined to get everything loaded into the U-Haul before dark so we could start the long 305-mile trip back to Hubbard, Texas.  Hours passed, then the last item was placed on to the U-Haul.  We were all filthy, sweaty, and exhausted when we finished.  Although we accomplished what we sat out to do by getting everything loaded on to the truck, we did not achieve it before dark.

We all went through the house quickly closing and locking the windows, locking the back door, then departed the house through the front door.  I remember watching Frank close then lock the front door, and a sense of sadness filled my heart.  It seemed like every memory of what we had done in this little white frame home flooded my mind.  We had taken an old run-down farmhouse which had sat empty for many years and turned it into a beautiful, loving home.

Frank looked into my eyes and saw the tears forming, came to me smiling then said, “Lou, guess what? I love you. We are on a new adventure, and I can’t wait to move into our new home.  We are going to make it wonderful.  How about we get on the road. You know we can even tune our radios to the same stations, so we know we are all singing to the same songs.  Do you want to take a pet wood spider with you?”

Of course, Frank knew what I was thinking and what to say to get my thoughts moving in a different direction, plus make me laugh.  I took his hand, and we walked to the car and truck then we all headed out on the road towards Hubbard, Texas.  We did not have air conditioning in the car or truck, and although it was dark, it was still hot. Frank was leading the way with Mark and me in the car when he decided to pull over at a restaurant at a truck stop. We all got out of the vehicles, went inside, and ordered something to eat.

While we sat there devouring our food and drinking lots of cold sweet tea, Frank decided that we were going to get a motel room to spend the night in San Antonio.  It was very late at night, and we were all dirty, sweaty and exhausted, so Mark and I thought it was a great idea.  While Frank paid for our meals,  I made a phone call to my folks to let them know that we were stopping to spend the night and would meet them in Hubbard the next day.  About midnight, we pulled into a motel on the other side of San Antonio.  It was not a five-star hotel, but it was clean and had a shower.  I am quite sure that the shower I took that night stands out as one of the best showers I have ever had.  Once we were all clean, we crashed for the night.

Bright and early the next morning, I was awakened by my sweet husband bringing in coffee and donuts.  Frank was an early riser, and it did not matter what time he went to bed, he was always up by four o’clock in the morning, and he was amazingly chipper, too. We all had coffee and donuts, and then we loaded back up into the vehicles to get back on the road to Hubbard.  Other than stopping to put gasoline in the U-Haul and car, taking a potty break, and getting something cool to drink, we did not stop along the way again until we arrived in Hubbard, Texas.

When we pulled into Hubbard around two o’clock in the afternoon, and soon my folks arrived with Scotty.  Scotty was very excited to see Frank and me, and we were excited to see him.  Everyone helped us unload the U-Haul, place the furniture, and helped set up the beds.   Although hours passed, it did not seem to take long until the new house felt like home.  Frank and I decided to treat my folks and brother to a hot supper at a little restaurant in town then they all bid us farewell and headed back to Hico.

The house, Frank and I had rented in Hubbard was antique and unique.  The ceilings in the home were sixteen feet high from the floors.  At one place in the house, there was a closet with a full six-foot door above another closet with a full door too, and with a step ladder, we actually put something up there, but I am still not sure if we remembered to get it when we moved.  Maybe someday, I will go back and see, but mainly I would love to see inside the home where we once lived.

Layout of House

The layout of the inside of our first home in Hubbard, Tx.

The entry hall went straight through the home from the front door to the back door, and the other rooms had doorways off of this hall. We only had one bathroom, but it was huge. The bedrooms were all extra-large, and one of them had antique furniture in it that we were allowed to use. We had a living room, dining room, laundry room, den, and a big ole kitchen. At some point in time, the wall between the kitchen and den came down, and a long tall bar built there which could comfortably seat four people on tall bar stools.  The kitchen had something very new to me, a pullout teetering flour bin which was tin lined and it was unbelievable.  Although I never put loose flour into it,  I showed it to everyone who came to visit.

Frank, Scotty, and I had made a new move to a new town, and we were ready to have new adventures in Hubbard. Since it was the first night in our new home, we would all cuddle together in one bed, laugh, giggle, say our prayers thanking God for our blessings, and be there close for each other just in case any of us got lost in the big house that night.

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4 Comments

  1. Wow! That was quite the house and quite the move. As you were talking about the heat, I was feeling it as it is very hot here today. Have you got any photos of the inside of the house?

    • I do, but mostly outside and will share as stories are written.
      It was a Beautiful home.
      Thank you for your comment. I really appreciate it.
      God Bless You,
      Love,
      Nancy

  2. Is it just me or does a moving van unload a lot faster than it fills up? LOL….. this one brings back memories of the days when air conditioned vehicles were reserved for the ‘well to do’… car too hot? Roll down the windows and open the vents!

    • No, it’s not just you. Uploading a van requires skilled placement of stuff stacked right. Downloading just requires tossing boxes out to someone, but not my boxes marked “Do Not Toss or Drop” Lol
      We really never had an air-conditioned car until we bought a new pickup in 1977 and even then we drove around with the windows down thinking the air-conditionerate the gas up.
      Thank you for commenting, Kim.
      God Bless You,
      Your Partner in Crime,
      Nancy

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