In Part 2 of Kathryn’s move, let me tell you about the apartment… and the actual moving-in part.

So.

How many adults do you think it takes to move a recently graduated young lady, with not that much stuff, into a Manhattan apartment?

Apparently, for Kathryn, the answer is six.

Everyone in the immediate family, plus Steve’s longtime friend, Joe Goddu.

You might remember Joe from a previous newsletter — another artistic soul (like Addison) and extremely handy with tools.

Joe lives in Manhattan and, in classic Joe fashion, biked down from the Upper West Side to East 29th Street to help us.

Casual.

And honestly? Good thing we had that many people.

First: the apartment.

None of us had seen it.

Not even Kathryn.

(Yes, this gave me mild heart palpitations.)

But we were so pleasantly surprised.

It’s on the second floor of a multi-story walk-up, thank God for that.

High ceilings.

Tall windows facing the street.

Brick walls throughout.

A surprisingly spacious living room (by Manhattan standards), a sweet, efficient little kitchen (no dishwasher, but a combo washer/dryer unit, which feels like winning the lottery), and two bedrooms that also face the street.

Really cute. Really charming. Really New York.

Kathryn didn’t have much furniture, but she had enough pieces that required assembly to keep all of us busy.

We each took on roles — very much a “take your turn” situation with limited tools, limited space, and rising levels of patience.

Joe (with Steve assisting) handled mounting the TV.

William, with my help, built the bookshelves, nightstand, and installed the sconces.

(I’ll let you guess who the builder in the family is.)

Stephen floated wherever he was needed, helping Kathryn unpack and hauling heavy things in and out like a champ.

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It all ran surprisingly smoothly. Kathryn settled in beautifully and was absolutely ecstatic about her new apartment.

We also met her roommate, another NYU student getting a masters in Nursing, and quickly realized the girls are going to get along just fine.

Turns out Chelsea is just as fastidious and borderline-OCD organized as Kathryn.

A match made in shared label-makers and neatly folded drawers.

We didn’t stay overnight, but we’re already planning a visit around March.

Joe has offered for us to stay at his place, which will give us a chance to revisit some of our old Manhattan haunting grounds.

When I step back and look at the day, I didn’t miss living in Manhattan myself.

It very much feels like been there, done that.

But Kathryn’s neighborhood?

It reminded me of the Manhattan of my younger days, unchanged in all the right ways.

Not too far from the Village, close to her classes in Midtown, and full of character.

Some places don’t need to change to be perfect.

Oh, and according to Kathryn, the firehouse practically next door is apparently filled with hot, young firefighters.

So.

There’s that.

My only regret … I forgot to take a group photo of us before we left .. dang.