Patio Furniture Pick Up

Mr. Sister and I finally found a comfortable and affordable patio furniture set. Where did we find it you ask? Costco, of all places! 

As many of you know, Costco is a "cash and carry" warehouse of sorts. In other words, they don't deliver. How are we going to bring it home?

Cousin Gail to the rescue! Her hubby drives a pickup so they traded cars for the day. We drove to Costco to pick up the furniture ourselves. Upon arrival we grabbed a couple of flat bed hand carts and headed towards the patio furniture section.

Boy, those boxes are a lot BIGGER than I remember! And HEAVY, too. We should have asked for help. Being a couple of stubborn middle aged women we resolved that we can do this ourselves! Now, how to proceed?

Gail had worked a short stint at FedEx. She was familiar with all of the proper loading/unloading techniques. Out of necessity, she took the lead and began maneuvering the top box (of 3) onto our cart. I, unfortunately, have never worked for a shipping company. I am not familiar with proper loading/unloading techniques. I was stupid enough to stand under the box. My thought

being that I could try and "catch" it to ease its fall. OUCH! The box caught me in my temple on the way down, knocking my glasses clear off my head! I was more shocked than hurt! I will, however, be courting a scratch and a small bruise for a few days. I did mention that I was stupid, didn't I? Good. 

After much maneuvering, shimmying and shifting, we (meaning Gail) managed to get all 3 boxes loaded onto our carts. Time to pay!

Another ouch! Furniture is expensive! The store manager then tried to sell me an "executive membership" since I was making a large purchase! Uh, no thanks, I just want my furniture, please.

So we have the furniture. We have a strap. We have bungee cords. Even with a pick up truck, there was no way we could fit all the furniture in one trip. With the help of a couple of young, strapping Costco employees, the box containing the sofa and trunk were loaded successfully.

Two round trips later my complete patio furniture set is home! Albeit in boxes and in the garage. Hopefully, this evening, Mr. Sister and I can break them free from their cardboard confines. I will update with photos when that momentous event occurs. Meanwhile, here is a sneak preview:

Oh, and many thanks to my wonderful cousin Gail! 

 Thanks Cuz! I couln't have done this without you!

I enjoyed our time together!