Revolving Accommodations

When we arrived in London we knew that we'd be in a hotel for a bit before our rental was ready.  Our relocation person emailed us on Tuesday right when the movers arrived to let us know the rental would not be ready for Monday, November 18.  Apparently the owner had difficulty getting the gas supply lines inspected as required by some rule.  That pushed our move in date to Friday, November 29 at the earliest.  There was really nothing we could do about it if we wanted this specific property.  The relocation person immediately sent us some rental apartments so we did not have to spend weeks in a hotel.  

Originally Matt made a reservation at the Hilton London Metropole weeks in advance knowing we needed some accommodations before our original move in date.  We stayed in a standard hotel room with two queen beds.  Apparently it was difficult to find a hotel in London that had two double beds.  I suppose many hotels are smaller, boutique variety and can only sustain one bed (a la NYC?).  The Metropole is just down Praed Street from another Hilton we stayed at with Oldest Kiddo last winter break.  The Edgware Road Underground stop was two blocks across the street.  We were thrilled to know Pret A Manger & Starbucks were across the street.  It was a great starting point for our daily touring of London:

Trafalgar (Tra Fall Ger) Square

Buckingham Palace & The Changing of the Guard

Tower of London

Youngest Kiddo marching like the guard

Hardy's Sweetshop - a tiny but cute shop near St. Paul's Cathedral with loads of hard candies in jugs behind the counter & softer sweets under the glass.  If you come to visit and really want a Pop Tart you can pick up a box for £4.99 (approx $8.00).  

By the time Monday rolled around, I was done with staying in a hotel.  It is not ideal trying to put kids to bed when the adults are not ready to sleep.  Sitting in the dark while the kids claim to not be tired, need a tissue, or any other excuse is exhausting.  By the way as soon as Youngest Kiddo wound down and actually put his head on the pillow, he was lights out.

We checked out on Wednesday morning and traversed our way across town to the corporate apartment for the next 10ish days.  One bonus of this apartment is that Matt's office is approximately a 2 minute walk away.  That's great for dinner time, he calls when he knows he's leaving in 30 minutes and then we eat at a kid-friendly time.  When he went to work while we stayed at the Metropole, his commute was over 45 minutes.  Now it's just as fast as his feet can take him.  

This is quite a lovely place inside and out.  Outside, it's right on the thick of the city on High Holborn.  We have immediate access to daily needs outside our door: an Underground station, grocery shops, drug stores, plus many coffee shops & pubs.  


Inside, it will fit our needs much better than a hotel room.  The kitchen is fully stocked with dishes, utensils, and a few small appliances.  We bought a Nespresso machine a few days ago, so that will find a nice spot on the counter.  The dishwasher is just to the left of the oven and the combination washer/dryer is the very far left cabinet in the photo below.

The fridge comes up to my neck and the microwave is on top.  The freezer is separate, and it even came with ice cube trays!

  

The main living area is opposite from where I stood in the pictures above.

We have two bathrooms.  This one is for the kids.

Matt and I were relieved that we have our own bedroom.  After being in the hotel for several days, we could not wait to shut the door!

The kids share the second bedroom.  We will see how long the peace lasts, but for now it is happy days.  

The best part? A patio!  I can't wait to spend time out there with the kiddos so they can run in circles.  There is also a fully-functioning construction crane across the street; that's kid gold in our house. 

We will call this home until we get the signed lease agreement for our new place.

The End of US & Beginning of UK

The final days in our town were quite a blur.  

Monday

• wrapped up selling household items via Facebook & Craigslist
• continued to purge through papers and finish laundry
• shopped for a carry on bag that will fit my laptop & other travel necessities
• dodged a few snowflakes
• finished the sale of both cars back to the dealer
• ran final errands

Tuesday

• the movers arrived 15 minutes early
• answered "Ma'am, what would you like me to do with this," for most of the day
• tried to stay ahead of the movers to pack what we need in the suitcase before it went into the sea freight boxes 
• neighbors visited to say good bye and we gave them food from our pantry as a going away gift

Wednesday

• Matt woke up with a wicked sinus headache and a heck of a time breathing because of all the dust kicked up during packing.
• figured out that I didn't stay far enough ahead of the movers when Oldest Kiddo only had Ugg boots to wear.  The gym shoes were packed somewhere in her room.
• the movers arrived 15 minutes early again
• dropped the kids off for their last day of school
• presigned the closing documents with our attorney
• Matt decided we were staying at a hotel because his headache and breathing problems went away the second he walked outside.
• checked into the hotel to find that Matt scored an awesome upgrade.  Too bad we showed up at 8:00PM to leave at 7:30AM

Thursday

• returned to the house before 8:00
• the movers arrived immediately after
• the container truck arrived immediately after that
• the men played a huge game of Tetris with our belongings
• they finished loading the truck by 11:30
• we finished cleaning, packed last minute items, and cried in the living room
• drove to Rockford for the last time to see Matt's mom and drop off the last bits from the house 
• drive to the airport

Thursday night/Friday morning

• Youngest Kiddo sat in the cockpit before take off
• flew all night while trying to sleep while keeping Youngest Kiddo from rolling off his seat to the floor

Friday

• arrived at Heathrow and got into the hired car to take us and our mass amounts of luggage to the hotel near Paddington Station
• had the driver pull over so Youngest Kiddo can use the loo at the first cafe he can find
• had the driver pull over yet again because Oldest Kiddo thought she was about to puke in the car.  Thank the heavens that she did not.
• found some lunch
• rested (possibly napped) at the hotel while the kids were on lack of sleep overload
• had dinner at 5:00
• passed out asleep at 7:30 (that would be 1:00 in the afternoon for you friends in the Midwest)

Saturday

• all slept until 2AM and then passed back out until 9AM
• made it to breakfast just in time
• took Youngest Kiddo on his first Underground ride
• rectified the missing gym shoe issue at Oxford Circus
• purchased our beloved coffee machine
• as of 6:30PM (London time on Saturday) we are feeling good

Good Bye 407

The 407

Homestead

La casa

Our cottage

Matt and I moved into our home in May 2001.  It was our first house, and it was the perfect house for us.  A traditional 1950's ranch with some value-added benefits.  It came with a finished basement, a 3-season room, and an updated kitchen.  Many events, happy and sad, happened here.  Thankfully many more happy than sad.  Check out these photos circa 2001

We were just babies when we bought this place.  Married barely a year and ready to start life as adults.  It had way more room than we needed but over the years that changed.

We brought our two kids home here; they know no other house or neighborhood or neighbors.  We have the unofficial neighborhood watch neighbor; he knows what's going on and keeps an eye on everything for us.  We are surrounded by families with young children.  Everyone is close in age and easily play together.

We learned a lot about life.  Life's successes and frustrations, budgeting for the big things, summer nights on the patio with friends, and quiet nights at home with a movie taught us the pros and cons of being an adult.

We painted rooms together and soon determined that was not a good idea.  It's a miracle we are both still alive and will never do that together again.  In fact, it was a beautiful thing to call Pete the Painter and have him take care of it.  We learned a lot along the way.

We embarked upon many projects at The 407

- extending the patio for more livable space

- returned the house back to its original 3 bedroom glory from the 2 bedroom it was at the time of purchase

- refinished the existing and added additional hardwood floors in the living room & bedrooms

- raised two great kids

- made life-long memories with family & friends

I'd totally buy my house again.  Especially with pictures like this.



We cried when the house was empty and every noise echoed.

Going through all of the hoops for an international move reminded us that home is really where you are with the ones you love, whether or not they are related to you.  We are so excited to make a new home in England with our current loved ones and the ones we are yet to meet.  

The Last ......

....trip to Target.  I am not sure of one place where I can shop in England to get shampoo, a patio set, some socks, and 75 other things I didn't know I needed.  Maybe that's a blessing for the pocketbook.  On our last trip we bought Mint M&Ms, socks for Youngest Kiddo, hair elastics, and a few loofahs.

I used to work at this Target :)

....lunch at Beef-a-Roo.  This is a Big Bad Rockford thing but completely worth the drive for cheddar fries.  The Andes mint at the end isn't half bad either.

....trip in our cars.  The dealer bought our cars from us, and we drove a rental for the last few days.  We even took a spin through the dealer's lot a mid-week to see if they were still there.  We think my car was in the service bay being checked out.  The next owners will love them just as much as us.  

....day at school for the kids.  They love school (despite the look on Youngest Kiddo's face), and we hope their love for learning crosses the ocean with them.  Their teachers shared touching and emotional stories about how much they enjoy working with our kids.  Hearing those things assured us that we have two great kids.

....dinner party with friends.  We had the sleep over of all sleepovers with six kids and six adults.  I never thought I could fit twelve people in The 407, but it was a piece of cake.  Lots of laughs and a lot of tears.  

....visits with family.  There were a lot of tears and never enough hugs.  It feels like we've been leaving for a long time as we said good bye to some of our family members and friends over a week ago.  We were blessed to say good byes to neighbors over the last few days.

....load of laundry - oh never mind, that will never happen, but I had to do one more load before the washer & dryer situation gets dicey.  

....hot dogs at Portillo's.  Youngest Kiddo requested this last stop.  We are not sure if anything in England will match their Vienna Beef hot dogs.  We'll just add Portillo's to the must do list when we visit home.

....trip to Goodwill.  The move has made us realize what we really need in life.  We sure accumulated some unnecessary things over the years.  At least those things will go to someone who can use them.

....photo of us at The 407.  We have a photo somewhere of Matt and I in this spot on the day we moved in taken by my college roommate.  Of course that was before digital cameras so it's an actual photo.  Good bye house, be good to the new owners.  

Heading Out

Our bags are packed, the house is packed, and we're just waiting for our flight.

Can you find Oldest Kiddo's chair?

We'll see you when we get settled into some sort of accommodations.  As of tonight, we are still not sure if we got the house we want.  Lots of meditation breathing to come!

Stay tuned!

Finally wrapping up a career

Back in September I wrote about wrapping up my teaching career, at least when I thought my career was finished.  However, I had a little more to go.    

I started this school year with my principal knowing that I was not going to be there long.  How long was still up for discussion, but she was hoping until winter break.  Well that was just a bit too long.  Once the house sold and things started moving, it was clear that one of us needed to stop working.  My principal was not looking forward to my leave of absence letter, but the day had come.  Friday, October 18 was to be my last day.  That left me only about three weeks left of work.

Before I left I made sure that I spent some extra time with my students.  I really like this group of 5th graders.  They are really down to Earth kids and are at the age where you can have a decent conversation with them.  I thought the best way was to have lunch with them.  Before I could finish my sentence to ask if they wanted to have lunch with me one day, they all screamed YES!

We had a lovely lunch together.  One of my students gave me a very thoughtful gift.....

She hoped I would find a way to spend them in England.  That's not a problem, sweetheart.  In the last few days I reminisced about the things I will miss about my job; these are just two of the kiddos I'll miss.  My classroom was in a different spot this year, but since I had just a few students it was just cozy enough.  

On my last day, I hoped to sneak out the door with just a few good-byes.  Saying good-bye is tricky.  I will probably not see most of these people ever again.  What do you say?  Well, have a nice life?  It's just an awkward situation.  Well that was not to be.  

My wonderful assistant for the last twelve years worked to get some staff together to bring in treats for my last day.  I was completely shocked to see the outpouring of support before the school day started.  It was a nice way to wrap up my career.    

Getting A Visa

I don't mean a credit card.

In order for our family to move to the UK for an extended period of time, we all need Visas.  Simply put, a Visa is an addition to your passport that gives you permission to stay in a specific country for an extended amount of time.  

There are several types of Visas that depend upon the reason for your extended stay.  Typically the reason is for work purposes.  There is also a type of visa for people who throw all caution to the wind and say, "Hey, I have a crazy idea.  Let's move to a foreign country and see if we can find a job when we get there." We have learned that the latter is no longer an option for people.  

Matt's work had to sponsor him before we could apply for our Visas.  Then Matt's work began.  He used the UK Border Agency's website to fill out the applications.  He had to submit a separate application for each family member.  The application process included answering questions about our background & history.  Additionally we had to submit many months of bank statements to prove that we have a certain amount of liquid money so that we would not become a drain on the UK welfare system.  

As he paid $800 for each Visa and printed the application, he also scheduled a Biometrics (fingerprinting) appointment for three of us.  Thankfully Youngest Kiddo was not required due to his age.  At the time Matt filled out the applications was an interesting time for our US government.  The different parties were arguing about stupid things and threatened to shut the government down on the upcoming Tuesday.  The biometrics needed to be completed by our government before sending our papers into the UK Consulate in NYC.  If the government shut down, we'd have no chance to get fingerprinted.

After each application was printed Matt could choose the date for biometrics.  He had plenty of times to choose on Monday.  He had plenty of times to choose a time on Monday for me.  By the time he finished Oldest Kiddo's application, the biometrics day changed to Thursday.

That would be Thursday, as in two days after the government shut down.  That's just one more bump in the path of our transition to the UK.

We decided to take a risk on Monday and take her with us.  We drove out to the western suburbs to an unassuming strip mall to the U.S. Immigration & Citizenship Services (USICS) office.  No surprise that pictures were not allowed inside, but if you've ever been to the DMV it's not much different.

I was going to be apologetic to the person at the desk and give the story about how we had appointments today and Youngest Kiddo was not 'til Thursday.  Was there any way they could help us out and see her today?  I think we brought the total number of people in the place to ten, so they weren't busy.

Matt told me to not say a word and play dumb.  He handed the person at the desk all three of our papers and she happily scanned them and gave us a number.  Fantastic!  The fingerprinting was painless and quick.

No government shut down can stop us.  

Selling the House Part 3

Read Part 1 & Part 2 before you start the final installment of the Selling the House Trilogy!

The sign is in the yard and the appliances are new and shiny.  The photographer took fantastic shots of our house on Monday afternoon.  The photos were online by dinner time Monday night.  

Then the fun began.

Over the next six days we had fourteen scheduled showings of our house.  Many were scheduled the day of so the house needed to be showing ready each morning.  I knew this was part of the process, but it's a pain in the arse.

The prep for the showings began the night before:   

• The meals prepared on the shiny new appliances entailed something that didn't splatter or leave a lingering smell
• The appliances were wiped down to remove fingerprints
• The dishwasher was run, whether or not it was full
• Sweep the floors
• Clean up the toys
• Run a load of laundry
• Burn the pretty smelling candle to mask any dinner smells

The mornings were the most fun.  In addition to the get ready for school routine we had to:

• Make the beds
• Raise the blinds
• Wipe down the bathroom fixtures
• Clean up the toys
• Rearrange the "staged' fruit on the table
• Adjust the "staged" flowers on the "eat in kitchen" table
• Throw all dirty laundry into the washing machine for later
• Cross your fingers while walking out the door

The most interesting part of showing your house is that you have to keep yourself occupied while you house is occupied by strangers.  I didn't mind the showings during the day as I was usually at work or could stay at work until the showing time was over.  The evening showings were the hardest because I still had to do the night routine of dinner, homework, and baths.  That was really tricky with 6:00 & 7:00 showings.  

The great news is that we only had to endure one week of showings because we received an offer on the house Saturday morning!  With some easy negotiations we quickly had a deal.  Happily we're passing our house along to a young couple that is just starting their lives together.  

Change that to SOLD!!!!