What a long week

What a long week it's been and it's not even Friday yet. Both good and bad things are happening all at once. We're looking into one week of vacation at the end of May and I am starting to think that we'll all be desperately needing it.

Chris is back and we're all very happy about it. We're proceeding to work on his immigration application. We went to the local police station for an interview, then to the main headquarters downtown. Turns out that we're still missing another document. OK, we figure we'll go get that taken care of. They explain that the application will be approved within a week. Terrific, we thought. Almost done. Not quite though. Then they say that Chris would need to go to the Croatian embassy in the US to get the stamp in the passport. Now we get to go visit a number of bureaucratic offices to see if we can get it in writing for Chris to receive the stamp here. We figured that we could overnight the passport to Washington as the last resort but that does get pricey when sending half way across the world. This is certainly nothing insurmountable but is annoying, stressful and very time consuming. I was hoping that we could get this so we can make him the local ID and the local driver's license right away so he could drive. It would be helpful if I didn't have to do all of the driving. Now we have to keep waiting to get those important documents. Anyhow, it'll be done but just can't be simple. Never is.

The condo has entered the final and very exciting (for us anyway) phase of construction. The tile is finally being installed this week under my close supervision. I am getting very tired of loooooong conversations with the builder, changes, discussions why something will or won't work... The complex layout bathroom will be done by tomorrow sometime. That'll be a relief. The good news is that it all looks really nice and I think we made good choices. The upstairs bathroom in particular as it looks unusual in layout and color choices. It'll be very slick and I look forward to it. All of the electrical isn't completed though and there's been errors. I'm just ready for them to complete it already. The hardwood floors (standard method of construction here) are set to go in Monday and that will take several days to be done.

Once we actually get the key, we still have a good bit of work to do in addition to moving. Getting kitchen cabinets, for example. That's considered furniture here and doesn't come with the house. Then we need to buy fridge, washer, dryer... and let's not forget a small round stairwell to connect the two floors. We also need to take all of the documents to have the ownership legalized, then we have to take care of all of the utilities and the hefty property tax. It's a lot more complicated to do that then in the US. Our motivation will be very high though after living for 7-8 months with my parents so I think we'll get it done as quickly as it is humanly possible.

As of today, following construction items are still on the "to be completed" list: finalize tile, hardwood floors, landscaping, tile on main stairwell and basement storage, electrical, attaching the radiators, installing tub/toilet/sink. Sounds like much but it really isn't. These are finishing things and most of this is already done in other units (there are 9 units all together). Ours is always being done last. They must like us a whole bunch. :)

We've started the loan process and the situation isn't going smoothly either. Paperwork missing or incorrect. Things we got to figure out... My sister is having to get involved as a cosigner because I have a foreign employer so they can't take that income into account for the loan. Crazy things, I tell you.

All in all, things are actually going well. I know that it may not sound like it but it will all resolve soon. If not, you'll find me happy and content at some looney house around here. :) Next 4-8 weeks will just be absolutely crazy and after that I expect things to start quieting down. Mybe we can have a peaceful summer then. Even though absolutely nothing is going smoothly (does it ever?), it is getting done nevertheless. We're putting in the extra effort to get to the goal. Wow, we're ready for a break.

The wait is over

Chris returned to us today. The long three month wait that seemed to last forever is finally over. The funny thing is that as soon as he walked in, it felt like he never left. Everything just fell back in place. Mia just kept saying"I'm so happy" even before we went to the airport. I officially got kicked out of kids' bedroom tonight. Mia declared twice that daddy will be putting her to bed. I am going to have to figure out what to do with my new found freedom. :) So far so good. Tomorrow it's business as usual. Kids to daycare, Chris and I to work. He started freelancing as well. Now if we could just get that condo to be finished...

Shopping experience

Shopping here is quite different from what you might face in the US. Today, I took the kids to a beautiful new playroom in a large shopping center. They were excited to go play. I was excited to see a friend I haven't seen in years and to meet her 3 year old son for the first time. She gave me directions and it all seemed rather simple. In the morning, however, it started raining and I hoped that the rain wouldn't make it harder to find the place. We found it OK but couldn't find parking. Every time I visit one of many brand new shopping centers, I get newly amazed at the poor exterior planning. Interiors are beautiful and mostly well executed. But getting to the shops and dealing with parking is the hardest thing.

The shops are varied, plentiful and well stocked unlike how it was when I was growing up. In the past couple of years, especially, selection of quality goods and services has significantly expanded. Chris and I will soon be buying kitchen appliances and such and I'll tell you, the selection here far surpasses what I've seen in the US. Selections for appliances, tile, kitchens... It is beautifully designed. Like walking onto a Home and Garden TV show. Welcome to the shopping paradise to all of you who have cash. I'll talk more about that some other time.

We couldn't find parking. The parking was poorly designed in a comb shape. That means that cars had to back out if they mistakenly thought there was an open parking spot and there were none. There was no other way to turn around. The access roads were poor. It was hard to get there and hard to get out. The cars lined up behind each other in a hurry, signage was poor. I managed to get around the building and proceeded towards the residential area and parked there. It took us about 30 minutes to accomplish this. Parking so far also means that, had we bought groceries or large items, it would have been quite a trick to get them to the car.

The playroom was great though. Believe it or not, we've been to a couple of playrooms here that don't even come close to anything they have in Birmingham. These places are several times the size of Pump It Up (for those of you that know what I am talking about), are indoors and have terrific equipment. It's kid heaven by all means. Exterior playgrounds though aren't nearly as nice as vandalism quickly deteriorates new playgrounds. Design of outdoor playgrounds also leaves a lot to wish for regarding kid safety. It's like a polar opposite to the indoor ones.

We had a great time and once kids looked like they're about to fall over (takes about two hours of continuous running to accomplish that), we were ready to leave. I took them to McDonald's on the way back and they loved it. Good little Americans. They ate up all of their french fries (or American potatoes as it says at Paris airport fast food places) and sat around the house exhausted for the rest of the afternoon. It makes bed time a lot easier this way.

Forgot to mention another interesting shopping tidbit... If you go grocery shopping here, you have to either bring your own bags or you pay for the ones you take. How about that! They don't give you 10 bags for 10 items like they do at WalMart. Here you think twice about how many bags you get because you're paying for them. It's a nice way of reducing waste. This is the case for grocery stores only. Other stores give bags. Probably because the amount purchased is usually considerably smaller than when it comes to groceries.

Brrrrrr

True to the forecast and one day before the first official day of spring, we woke to snow flurries. The flurries soon turned into large clumps of snow. It was beautiful to see, not so fun to drive in. Three hours later it stopped and melted by the afternoon. I hear that it will still be cold tomorrow. Hopefully, it won't last. Then, we can put up our winter jackets. Again.

Snow

I've just read that snow has been forecast for Monday. They say that the temperatures will drop sharply and precipitation will turn into snow. I've already put up the winter jackets because we were wearing short sleeves today. Strange weather patterns continue in what promises to be a very memorable year.

Our weekend alone

What an interesting weekend it was. We had great plans. The weather has been absolutely beautiful lately. Warm and sunny. Trees are starting to bloom. Spring is in the air. My parents left town for 10 days. My sister went out of town on business and her kids spent the weekend with their dad. It was me and the kids and it sounded like the perfect time to just relax and enjoy each other. I was planning to catch up with some friends I haven’t seen in years. As always, things didn’t quite work out as planned.

On Thursday night Ivor started running a fever that persisted into Friday morning. Fortunately, just days before I finally managed to get kids’ health insurance taken care of so we didn’t have to worry about that. Turns out that Ivor got Scarlet fever. That just didn’t sound so good but the doctor didn’t seem overly concerned. She gave me antibiotics for Ivor and, as a preventative measure, for the other three children in the household as well. I was also told that Ivor needs to stay home for at least 10 days. Since I work from home, kids staying at home always spells trouble. On top of everything, I had to give both kids medicine every 8 hours, meaning that I would have to wake them during the night. Both of them! Little kids aren’t very happy when someone wakes them at night. Especially if that little kid’s name is Mia.

Next two days were quite interesting. Ivor did OK during the day but nights were a little different. He threw up that first night. Then he couldn’t settle down to sleep, moaning all night and talking in his sleep (at least I think that he was asleep). Second night he did the same but not as much. So, our weekend was rather uneventful and spent at home trying to get better. Ivor has recovered so much that he’s literally bouncing off the walls and is giggling and running around like crazy. He’s very pleased with himself because he gets to stay at home while Mia doesn’t. He also spends his day pestering me for the internet connection so he could play games online. He just can’t quite grasp why I would need it and what that means that I need it for work. Now I am looking forward to him going back to daycare so I can resume some kind of a normal schedule.

The evils of exercise

Now, can you believe that we've moved six months ago. We've managed to organize the move, pack everything, cancel ALL of our accounts, forward mail... Wow, what an achievement. No, wait; there's one thing that's left. GYM MEMBERSHIP! Can't get it cancelled. Can you believe the blood suckers. I submitted everything necessary in September. When they tell you that you can cancel the contract in case you move, they're lying through their teeth. To make it worse, the annual contract renewal is up so you'd figure that I could cancel it based on that. Not even that! Still automatically renewed and they've sent the bills. You've got to be kidding me. This is sufficient for someone to go postal. Have you ever seen that episode of Friends where Chandler pays for his gym membership for years because he can't get it cancelled? Yep, probably based on a true story. This is why we all get fat, because we're afraid to sign up at any of these places.

Macho man

In Chris' absence someone had to take over as the man of the house. Ivor decided to step up to the plate. He asked to have tattoos put on his chest and then asked for a button-down shirt so he could show them off. When I asked if I could take a picture, he proudly showed off as you can plainly see. He put on the meanest, toughest face he could muster.
Mia wasn't going to be outdone so she asked for a tattoo as well but she put hers on her tummy.

Better late than never

Here are the pictures from our one and only snow day, January 25th. Considering that the temperatures reached sixty degrees today, I think I am way overdue on posting these. Ivor is still upset with me because he didn't get the snow I have promised him when we first talked about our move. Perhaps next year will be snowier.

In the meantime, Spring has arrived. Trees are starting to bloom and temperatures are steadily going up.

Still alive

No, I haven't forgotten about the blog. February has been quite intense work-wise so I've simply not had time. Plus, kids and I have been sick most of the time so I really didn't feel like doing more than I needed to. I'll try to do better in March. :)

Fun things are ahead. We will have potentially three visits from US in the next 3 months which is terrific. We sincerely hope to have a home by then, of course. We are also considering a little pre-season beach vacation in the middle of May. We'll see what we can manage to get done.