Ok People, I'm Slacking Again... Ready, Set, Relocate!

What can I say? My dedication to blogging is officially waning. But here I am in London with few friends, lots of newness in my life, and not a lot of people to talk to. So maybe this move will be just the motivation I need to reconnect with my computer techie side. We'll see...

The last month and a half has been an adventure to say the least. We closed on our wonderful little house in Connecticut at the beginning of August, and it is ours no more. :( Kind of sad to shut that chapter of our lives. Then we were off for a whirl wind tour of extended 'familydom.' We had a great week in Atlanta visiting friends and going to the mountains with my parents. Their home in Clarksville is very relaxing and the kids just LOVED the pool. Chris Jr. discovered his inner fish and by the end of the visit Josephine was swimming under water.

Then it was off for our final two weeks in the U.S. in central New York. All I can say is that my in-laws deserve some kind of award for putting up with me for so long. I mean, as most of you already know, I am an official pain in the ass, and after three weeks of living out of a suitcase it really showed. We did have a great time at the lake, and I got some good skiing pics of the cousins and Chris.

We finally headed back to CT for one last doctor's visit to check on the baby and then our one-way flight to London at the end of August. The flight and the week to follow were quite a challenge for the entire family. The kids were good on the plane, apart from Chris Jr. spilling my cup of coffee on a lovely older gentleman before the plane even took off. Needless to say, they moved him to First Class within minutes, and we had an extra seat all to ourselves.

The jet lag was a challenge for us all. Josephine and Chris seemed to adjust the fastest, while Chris Jr. and I languished around for days getting up late and not sleeping at night when we were supposed to. Oh well, we've all settled into regular sleep now. Our furniture arrived at almost the same time we did, which made the three weeks of homelessness seem almost worth it! Particularly since I have heard some not so lucky stories from other expats here about waiting weeks and weeks for their shipments to arrive.

Here are some BEFORE pics:

Here we are partially AFTER (we've yet to hang up pics, but that's coming this weekend):

Generally things are going well. As of today we have our bank account sorted out, FINALLY. And all the utilities are on. I think Josephine is enjoying school, and Chris and I are going to her class back to school night this evening, so I may have more details to report after talking with her teachers. I will say that she seems to be adjusting well, and only mentions missing CT occasionally. She spent an hour and 45 minutes at her first UK 'football' practice on Sunday, and she did surprisingly well, considering that many of the other kids have been playing since they were 3 years old!

Chris Jr. is also doing well. The real test will be when Shaobai leaves this weekend. She came with us and has been here every step of the way helping with the move. I have been so lucky and blessed to have her here. Running all these errands without having to drag the kids has been a tremendous help. We will all miss her so much, but she promises to call and maybe even come back for a visit with her husband next year.

As for my husband, he is doing well and continues to run the 5+ miles to work each morning. His suits seem to be holding up well in this crazy Australian commuter backpack garment bag that he bought and wears when he runs, and he's not as sore this week as last week. Personally, I think he's nuts, but he's made a pledge to not ride the tube to work, regardless of weather or exhaustion. At this rate, he'll be back in Death Race shape in no time!! :)

Sending you all lots of love! Keep in touch!