Progress

Here we are in our new kitchen which is moments away from being completely unpacked and organized. Baby steps. Oliver has been a huge help, alerting us to all the goings on outside his new windows. I think he preferred his previous view from the third floor but he is willing to trade that for the frequent trips to the "backyard" to play fetch..sans leash (shudder). So far so good. He is being a very good listener.

An organized house is within our grasp at this stage and our spirits are high. Vampire Weekend is dancing along on the cd player in the living room and I can hear the whir of Stephen's drill and he starts to put the art on the walls. We debated about whether to sleep beneath the owl or the polar bear and landed on the polar bear as he is slightly injured and will feel less self conscious in the bedroom. The owl is coming in for a landing over the computer desk in the living room.

Stephen is so amazing at making a new place feel like home. He made a few simple alterations to the light fixture in the "dining room" and voila we were able to hang out old green light that we had at the other place. He also went out and got a tiny under cabinet light to put over the sink.. we both hate overhead lighting so these things make us feel good inside and more mentally stable. We are both very dependant on our surroundings for mental stability. Thus the last week has been pretty rough and has seen us spending an unhealthy amount of time in the bathroom, as it was the only room in the house clean and fully put together.

We keep being blown away by the number of people, friends new and old, who want to hang out and visit with us. These new relationships seem to come so easily as, oddly enough, everyone around us is in the same boat - young, married, expecting in the late summer or fall. It's sort of crazy how many of these new friends are having babies around the same time that we are. It's just as awesome hanging with those that are not expecting..overall it's just amazing to have so many arms reaching out..helping us not feel trapped.. helping us feel good about our decision to move here.

Still doesn't feel real though. I watch the Today Show in the morning and and the NBC evening news at night. When they show shots of the city it doesn't feel far away. I feel like I could hop on the train at any moment and go do a little shopping downtown. Sometimes I try to remind myself that I am not there, I am here... but it doesn't work. The city is more a part of me than I thought and I think I like that my mind has tricked itself into believing that I have just moved to another borough.