We're In!

On Thursday morning at 8:30 we all strapped on a back pack and grabbed either a rolling suitcase, one of Grace's hands, or the stroller loaded down with luggage.  If you were JD you were just a human pack mule like usual.

We walked in our own little "Yes, yes, we have a lot of kids, and no we aren't from here" parade across town to our new home, plenty of people staring along the way.

Sidenote: People here seem to think 3 kids is a huge amount of offspring. Today a cab driver balked at my revelation of having 3 kids and said I was "too young" for that.  I said "well I'm 35" and he said again that I was "too young for 3 kids."  

This photo is one I took of a woman leisurely strolling by flowers and cafe patrons sipping their coffees.  

This was not us.

We were a sweaty production and our walk was quite the opposite of hers.

Really the walk went quite well.  We just had a lot of crap.  And kids... if you're British, I suppose.

After we got our many keys and walked through the house with the letting agent (leasing agent), the kids and I settled in while JD went back to the rental flat and had a taxi pick up him and the rest of our bags.  

After a 3 weeks of hotels and streets, having our own grass was enticing.

When JD got back to the house and our bags were pushed, pulled, and lugged up three fights of stairs, we were all just ready to collapse a bit, glad to just be IN our new home.  Grace had fallen asleep on the floor of another room, tired from the many hours of sleep she's lost since arriving.
One mattress had been delivered and it happened to be the double.
Sidenote: I thought Queen Size existed in the UK but I was wrong.  It's Single, Double, or King.

So, the four of us used folded towels that had just delivered and had a little rest on our thinner-than-expected foam mattress we ordered on Amazon. You have to be flexible if you want an adventure like this, and sometimes that means sharing a thin mattress with three other people and being happy to have it!

The chimney near the center of the photo is for our house.  I wanted to show you to see how close we are to the playground, which the kids love.  There are also lots of trees making for a nice shaded area with sidewalks and benches.  "The Grove" as it's called, is encircled by homes and there are usually people walking dogs and sitting on blankets while children play.  It really couldn't be more family-friendly or convenient for us.

 I took a cheap taxi to Sainsbury's, a real supermarket today, and also the UK version of a Lowe's called HomeBase.  I had a cart from each store and when the driver picked me up he made a fuss about how much I had bought.  He just could not understand how I could need so much.
Um, it was only two carts and I'm setting up a household! If I hadn't gotten so overwhelmed at the grocery store, I would've had much more!

I made a real dinner tonight and everything! (tacos and nachos-- things we won't find often here in restaurants)

So yes, we are thrilled to be in our house that is gradually becoming a home. 

The grocery store didn't have everything we wanted but it did have chocolate.

At least I know we have common priorities.  This just might work out. :)