Settling In

Dan is adjusting to life with cats, and the cats absolutely adore Dan. :)

Dan made it home safe and sound Friday night. We found a new Italian restaurant that was fabulous - very European style - extremely tiny, doubled as a grocery store, a constantly changing menu, and fabulous food.

Saturday we spent the day shopping for householdy stuff. We got a new bathroom set for the upstairs bath, paint to repaint the office, and a bunch of misc stuff. We also looked at furniture - specifically a new couch and some easy chairs.

I know I put a moratorium on household remodeling, painting, carpeting, etc, until after the first of the year, but we have decided to switch the guest room and the office around. The current guest room is a little larger, and we could use the extra space. Plus, it has a much better view and more sunlight. Since I spend so much time there, it makes sense. The downside it, the room is pink. And before we move the office, it makes sense to paint. It will be a bright squashy/yellow color, with accents of "spicy orange." I think it will look awesome.

We also had some of Dan's friends over for movies last night. I had a great time, and I think our guests did too. Dan made homemade pizza in various flavors and we had a great wine from Snoqualmie valley.

Until later...

The View

The weather here the past few days has been unbelievable. Sunny, 70s and not a cloud in the sky. Amazing weather that everyone was out enjoying - even Mt. Rainier.

This is the view from my house. Pretty amazing, isn't it? Makes the grey days worth getting through just to get days like this.

Dan's been in NYC all week, but it hasn't been too bad without him. Yesterday I went to "Conversations" at Revolutions Coffee House. Kai has been going for some time and told me about it. It was a lot of fun. Just folks sitting around talking over coffee and scones. Very relaxed, very comfortable. Kai said there weren't as many there as normal because it was such a gorgeous day/evening - many were outside doing things. But I still met a few people, and later took Kai home and hung out at her place with her and her roommate. It was nice to have some "girl time." :)

All is well on the western front.

Daily Life

Last night was the first night I cooked and we had a meal together, in our house, with no one else there. It was nice. We took the dogs for a walk in the rain before hand, and afterwards cleaned the house a bit then settled in to play with electronics.

I now have a desktop!! I don't have access to our house network yet, but Dan's working on it. I think I have successfully managed to turn on the TV as well as record and watch something on Tivo twice now, so I'm pretty sure I got that down.

The dogs are still a little cranky with each other - Otis and Turtle got into it again today. They'll figure it out eventually. The cats of course, adjusted just fine. Grayson owns the place, and Bailey adores Dan. I think Bailey loves the kitty play room Dan created for her. It's filled with electronics, blinking lights and warm places to sleep. :)

No rain today, or at least no rain in Seattle-speak, but it is really, really, REALLY windy.

Beginning to Calm Down

We're down to the final house guest. Michael left Sunday afternoon, and his mom left today. I'd say it feels quiet, but dad and Dan are installing a new microwave in the kitchen and the drills are quite noisy.

Michael was a tremendous help to us here. He went so far above the call of friendship. Besides the drive here, he helped move and ultimately unpack all (ok - most) of the boxes. (There may be a few that still need to be unpacked). He also was a great emotional help in keeping things feeling "normal" for me. It was a great way to transition to a new life without feeling completely lost. He had fun too - I'm pretty sure he can find his way around Seattle much better than I can. He took my car out every day and went exploring and doing whatever struck his fancy.

On last Wednesday Michael's mom and my dad both arrived. Michael and his mom stayed in a hotel, then took the ferry to Victoria, Canada. They stayed at a B&B there and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Dad has been helping with more unpacking, and making the place work for me. You know - having hooks on the doors, hanging organizer racks, little things that make a house feel more functional. The big job tonight is installing the over-the-stove microwave Dan bought. Counter space is at premium, so this seemed like a good solution.

Dad heads home early tomorrow morning, so then things will hopefully calm down and I'll have 2 minutes to think and return phone calls and emails.

This Is Why I Moved

This has to be one of the most beautiful places to live.

This is at Snoqualmie Falls - just shy of 30 minutes south of Seattle. I can't wait to start exploring more.

(oh - and Dan might have played a small part too :)

Crazy - But Good

Just a quick update to let you all know I'm still alive. Things here are really good, although a bit chaotic right now.

Michael's still here, and his mom and my dad arrived today. I'm still trying to settle into a routine with the work-from-home thing. We've been dealing with boxes, and have made remarkable progress. We're down to the "oh crap-where do we put this" boxes now :)

More soon - I promise!

Almost There!!

We are within a few hours of Seattle!! We stopped last night in Ellensburg so we could drive through the Cascade Mountains in the morning - and see them.

Everything is going fine. Except for a blown tire in BFE Wyoming, we've had no problems. The animals are doing great - better than I would have expected.

Back to breakfast - we hit the road in a few minutes. I'll post more in the next few days as things settle down. Love you all!