Moving into my new apartment was one of the biggest hassles of my life! I felt like everything was going wrong and was taking twice as long as it should. On Thursday I finally moved into my new unfurnished apartment--a week and half after my original move in date. The next day I happily went to IKEA to buy a dresser and thus create a home for all the bags of clothes laying on my floor. I knew exactly what I wanted...I've been wanting this dresser for years.
As I walked determinedly down the isle of furniture models at IKEA, I spotted the dresser I was looking for...but wait, there were only black and brown ones. I wanted a white one! I asked a very nice man in a yellow shirt if they still had any white ones. He told me which isle to look at, and eventually after 5 minutes of searching I found where the white dressers were hiding.
There was only ONE left.
Thank goodness!!! I was so grateful I came when I did. As I hurriedly went in search of a bigger cart I was half terrified that someone else would snag my dresser before I came back. I did not want to live with my clothes all over the floor any longer than I had to. No worries, it was still there. However...putting two heavy 5'x2' boxes on a cart with wheels by myself was kind of ridiculous. I wish I had a movie of it, and we could all have a good laugh.
After getting home, I realized I would definitely need the help of some big strong guys to carry the two boxes up to my apartment. Unfortunately, I just moved in and don't know any guys yet in the nearby area. I decided to wait till the next day.
Luckily my roommate's family was here the next morning (which at first was frustrating because they were noisy and I was trying to sleep...but it turned out to be a blessing). Her dad and brother were super nice and moved it up for me. What are the odds that they would be there exactly on the day that I needed them???
But wait, mission not accomplished yet. When I opened the box, one of the major pieces had two big cracks in it. Dang it. I knew it was the last one they had in stock and I didn't want to wait for the next shipment.
Upon closer examination I realized that the crack wouldn't be seen on the outside of the dresser and it probably wasn't a huge problem. However, I was kinda bugged that I had paid full price for a damaged item, so I made a phone call and decided to take it in.
It just so happened that I was going to Salt Lake that day anyways. In fact the exit I had to take for my appointment was the same exit as IKEA, so I literally didn't waste any gas by taking my damaged part in! (Heavenly Father really takes care of me). When I went into the store they were totally out of stock on the piece I needed. This ended up being a huge blessing, because then they had to give me a discount instead of replacing the part.
I was hoping for $50 bucks back...or even $20. I ended up getting $106 back!!! I was so happy! The lady helping me was super apologetic that they didn't have the piece I needed....I thought to myself, "Are you kidding me? I would WAY rather have a dresser with a crack that no one can see and save $100."
I ended up leaving with a smile and feeling very loved and blessed. It was a blessing that there was only one left (even though it stressed me out), because otherwise they would have replaced it instead of giving me a discount. It was also a blessing that my roommate's family was staying over (even though I was irritated at first), because it would have been a big hassle to find someone else to carry it up for me. It was also a huge blessing that I was already driving to Salt Lake that day and didn't have to spend any extra time or gas money. Most importantly, that piece could have easily been cracked anywhere, but it was conveniently cracked in an invisible and totally non-functional location.
So you see? When life is really frustrating and things don't seem to be working out, there are often many blessings that are hidden along the way. Sometimes Heavenly Father has to take away something good in order to give us something better :)
This last picture is just for fun...I decided that assembling IKEA furniture is like LEGOS for adults! haha
