We’ve had a few weeks to settle in and explore the neighborhood…

With jet lag, the first week was really rough. We were up the first night at 1am, and were the first to arrive at the cafe for breakfast at 7am.  Even though it was breakfast time, we were ready for naps already. Each night provided a little longer sleep and finally we made it until 5:30-6am about a week later. What made the week more difficult was that we were dragging the exhausted, jet lagged kids to stores because we had to get a few essentials while Brent had a few days off work. Even though we got to the stores as they opened in the morning, the kids were well past needing a nap (and me too!). Trust me, it was the last thing that I wanted to do, but we needed groceries, cleaning supplies, a couch, electronics etc. Here we are off to our first morning breakfast at sunrise….

On my birthday (2 days after we arrived), we had the joy of going to Ikea and the equivalent of Best buy to get a dryer, vacuum, toaster, etc. It was so NOT fun. I begged Brent to just go home, but we decided that we better just finish. I did demand an air mattress to sleep on as the small camping pad was not cutting it for the 39 year old body! {We were really tired of the relocation process so didn’t get temporary furniture put in our house until ours arrived, so that’s why we were camping!} This is how we spent the first few nights…

The next thing we managed through was Brent traveling back to the US for 8 days for work. We were already on our own just a week after we arrived. That made for another long week since it rained almost the entire week. When it wasn’t raining, we would just take walks around the neighborhood and check out the parks. Most nights were cuddled in bed by 6pm watching movies! I figured I better keep it low key so I made it through the week. We did manage to catch a double rainbow (not the best picture), but we could see almost the entire thing. I couldn’t get it all in the picture because it was so close. Every time we are on that street now, Greyson wants to see a rainbow.

The kids have been busy exploring the house. They’ve found empty cupboards to be good hiding places. And Greyson has been trying to find every way possible to escape being inside. I’ve found him outside three times without me knowing. Thankfully the entire property is fenced/gated.

Over the last two weeks, it’s gotten a bit busier. Our household goods finally arrived!! It took around 7 weeks for us to get our shipment. When the items left NJ, I thought it was so nice not to have all the “stuff”. Well, by the end, I was practically annoying the relocation agent by asking when she would estimate that our things would arrive and be cleared through customs. When they did arrive, I scheduled it for a day that Brent couldn’t even be home. I didn’t care how I would manage, but I just wanted my bed! I was afraid that Greyson may try to escape, so I figured that worse case was that I’d just put him in the backpack carrier when they had the doors open. Fortunately, he and Isla stayed occupied, and it all worked out just fine. Isla was thrilled to be reunited with her dolls and toys! I’ve never seen them play so much with their toys. I was not thrilled that they broke our antique floor lamp that we got in Paris. Why can’t they break the Ikea junk?!

When the days are a little nicer, we’ve been walking to the beach which is about 20 minutes away. Since it’s winter here, we can only throw seashells. Greyson, though, has already managed to get caught by a wave. He wasn’t too happy with wet pants, so we put his fleece on like pants until we got home. Fortunately winter days here aren’t too cold!