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We are back from Ireland and have moved into our new home! We've been very busy unpacking and settling in, but I'm happy to say, we are all accounted for. Yes, The Husband; Manny; two "fishies" and I successfully moved into our new home. One couch and one box spring were not so successful. It was a tiresome move with some tears (mine); cries (Manny) and plenty of cursing (everyone).
But I'll cut to the chase, I know everyone wants to hear about Manny and how he handled the move. He was a champ! The vet gave Manny Acepromazine to help Manny get through the hour drive and subsequent move. It worked! Manny cried a little bit when we first put him the dreaded cat carrier, but once in the car he surprisingly settled in for the ride. His calm demeanor obviously had a lot to do with the tranquilizer, but it was a relief that he didn't spend the car ride meowing in feigned agony.
When we arrived in the new place, we put Manny in a spare bedroom that we were going to keep closed during the entire move. We set him up with his water and food bowls; the litter box; and his beloved fish towel and blankets that we kept in his hideout (under the bed) at our old place. He snuggled into the blankets and napped. He was pretty much out of it for the rest of the day. A couple of times when I checked up on him, I saw that he had wrapped all the blankets around himself. He looked like a lil pig in the blanket.
Towards midnight, the Acepromazine wore off and he started to meow to be let out of the room. I was nervous about letting him out but didn't want him to spend his first night crying. When we let him out we brought him into our room, hoping that we could confine him in there until morning. He was completely fine with that. I think he just wanted him Mom (and Dad). He sniffed around our room for a bit and once he was finished jumped onto the mattress and purred away.
The next day we let Manny explore and he had a busy schedule of sniffing boxes and inspecting the furniture. When he wasn't sniffing around, he was busy trying to wedge himself under my dresser. It's amazing how he is able to flatten himself out and squeeze himself into the smallest of places. It's like he unhinges all his bones and just slides right in. I am so glad he had a collar on because it allowed me to find him when he hid amidst the boxes.
We have a second floor in our new place and Manny has been completely intrigued with the stairs. At first he just stood at the top looking at me like "you have got to be kidding me, where is the nearest elevator?". But his curiosity got the better of himself and he gingerly walked down sideways to visit the downstairs. Now, about three weeks later, he runs up and down the stairs like he's running a marathon. He's back to jumping up on the couch to watch TV, although he prefers to stay upstairs for the time being. He still goes to his hideout, and The Husband and I joke that he's busy redecorating down there. He's been eating and purring - two signs that give me great comfort. It basically let's me know that he's doing ok and is pretty content with his surroundings.
I'm sure there will be more Manny adventures headed our way and we'll be back to share them with you soon. Excuse me while I figure out what's in box no. one hundred and fifty five. 
