What better way to get settled than by getting all of our things! We were really ready to move into our new house and make it a home.
We checked out of the hotel early morning on January 3rd and drove to the house. I headed out to Walmart for cleaning supplies and other goodies, and Greg stayed at the house to welcome the movers. They arrived a little before 9 a.m. and were finished about 2 p.m. They were terrific! Put the furniture together, unpacked kitchen boxes, and more. Speaking of kitchen, I think our only moving "casualty" was found in the kitchen...about 12 bottles of uncorked wine. Boo hoo hoo. Apparently, Greg and I were both crazy the day we read the email about being allowed to ship wine. "Yes, technically you are allowed to ship wine, but it will not be climate controlled, so ship at your own risk." Oops! Silly fine print. :) Other than the tears shed as we poured a serious amount of wine down the drain, everything else seemed to have made the move just fine. Now the unpacking begins...
We spent just a little time unpacking after the movers left, because we got word that our car was here already and available to be picked up. Hurray! So, we jumped in the rental car and drove to the place where our car was being held. But...no one mentioned that we would need to go to the Customs office to sign for the car first before we could come to this location to actually pick up the car. Not too big of a deal, except that it was too late in the day now to make it to the Customs office and back. Grrrr. So, we made good use of our "out and about" time anyways and signed up for cable and internet, which will be installed in one week. We had an easy pasta dinner, still with no table as we had bought one from IKEA that we still needed to put together. :) But, we did have our beds all set up, and it felt AMAZING to be sleeping in them again!!
We were up bright and early the next morning to go sign for Wagamama at Customs and then to pick her up. Yay!! We turned in the rental car and then headed back home for more unpacking. We did build the dining table and chairs, so we enjoyed a proper meal that night. :)
We did more unpacking over the weekend and went to church on Sunday, January 6th at First Alliance Church in southeast Calgary. Correction, Greg and Ben went to church; I think Nathalie was still adjusting and not interested in putting on coat or shoes.
We spent the next few weeks getting all the necessary documents in order to "complete" our move. We applied for our drivers licenses and health care cards. We secured tenant insurance and car insurance. We got an inspection on the car, so that we could then receive our registration and Alberta plates. Wow, we are officially feeling Canadian now! (Check out how dirty poor Wagamama is. We realized we need to add a new line item to our budget for weekly car washes.)
Ben started his second semester of kindergarten at Westgate School on Tuesday, January 8th when all of the other children were coming back from holiday break. He was excited to meet his new teacher and classmates. I took him to school that morning to help him find his classroom, meet Senorita Sanchez, and settle in before the other students arrived. From now on, he will ride the bus to and from school, which he loves. It was a small change going back to morning school after being in afternoon kindergarten in Streamwood, but I think it is a better fit for him and our family routine. I had to laugh when we got in the car to head to school...Ben asked why he was going to school "at night"? It's not nighttime sweetie, it's just dark (I mean DARK!) here in the mornings until 8:30 a.m. :) It gets dark at night around 4:30 p.m., so for now, our days are short.
January 10th was "TV" day...we would finally be back in the land of the 'connected' with cable and internet being hooked up. It also snowed that day, a lot! We learned some things about Canada...they don't really plow streets. Maybe the really major roads, but certainly nothing that I drive on. Thank heavens for the snow tires we purchased back in December...they are awesome! However, I found the lack of plowing to be a safety issue for the kiddos. I tell them to stay on the sidewalk as we walk to the bus stop, but they can't tell where the sidewalk ends and the road begins. Another little snow tidbit in Calgary...windshields are not covered under standard car insurance because the city uses gravel to "salt" the roads, and therefore windshield chips and cracks are somewhat "normal". You are welcome to purchase additional insurance to have your windshield covered, but for our VW, it would be about the same amount of money to simply pay out of pocket for a new windshield. Who knew?!
After a few weeks of settling in, I think we finally have boxes unpacked, pictures hung, clothes and toys put away. It's not 100% finished, but you'll get the idea. Here is a "tour" of our new home...
Entryway...upstairs to bedrooms, downstairs to basement. Main level has living room, dining room, kitchen, office space, and small bathroom with laundry.
Upstairs level has Nathalie's room, Ben's room, guest bathroom, master bedroom and bath. Bitty Baby's bed is making an appearance because it was a Christmas gift from GreeMa and PeePaw that finally got put together. Nathalie adores putting her baby to bed, singing lullabies, and telling them to close their eyes and rest. (Wonder where she got that?)
Basement with small bathroom. Also has a furnace room/storage area where Greg has set up his bike. And, not to worry...that green couch pulls out to a bed, so there is plenty of room for guests!! We welcome visitors anytime, although depending how you like cold and snow, you may want to wait a few months...
Hope you enjoyed the tour, and again, the invite is open to see it in person! Come one, come all!
