Things are coming along nicely for our upcoming move! We've signed a 9-month lease
for a furnished condo in downtown Vancouver, after which time we'll hopefully be buying
one of our own (but probably not in downtown :-). It looks great - right in the middle of
everything, and includes free laundry, which is super exciting. Even if there is no
dishwasher. But I can live with that trade-off.
We also booked our one-way flight for August 31, including a ticket for Tiger. We're flying
WestJet, so he gets to come in the cabin with us and be under the seat in front of me -
that makes me feel soooo much better. I was so worried about him the whole time the last
time he flew, but this time I'll be able to see him and he'll be able to see me, so it will be
much less nerve-wracking. Of course, I really hope he doesn't meow incessantly and drive
the other passengers crazy, but I don't think he will. Usually when he's freaked out by a
situation, he's very quiet, so I don't imagine we'll hear a peep out of him.
I've also applied for a job that I think sounds really interesting - it's just an 8-month
contract, but it would be good experience. It starts on August 15 though, which I wouldn't
be able to do, but I figured I'd apply anyway, and if it becomes an issue, hopefully we can
work something out.
This past week I went for dinner with Peggy one night, and then with Zorana and Ana the
next. It was great to spend more time with them. We're trying to organize one last girls'
night before I take off to the other side of the country.
On the weekend, Todd and I went to see the new Batman movie ('cause I love Batman, as
you may recall). It was really good, although without some of the funnier moments that I
enjoyed in Batman Begins. I still love Christian Bale in the role, but I felt like there wasn't
enough of him in the movie! More Batman needed! :-)
I also finally finished watching this season of Ugly Betty, and I just have to say the writers
are evil. Who did she go with?? It'll probably end up being that she just went somewhere by
herself.
My ear infection is still sticking around, and has actually started to hurt more again in the
past few days. As a result I've had very little sleep, but am hoping it won't last too much
longer.
That's about it for now! This Friday there's going to be a FREE East Village Opera Company
concert at the Harbourfront Centre, which is very exciting, so we'll be there for that.
Otherwise, just more packing and organizing in the cards for this week.
Pictures of our place in Vancouver are below!
Okay, nearly a month to catch up on - including some fairly big news. I'll start with that
news, and then move on to the other stuff I've been up to.
So it is official - we are moving to Vancouver! We've given notice at our current apartment,
and are just working out the details on a place in Vancouver, to move in on September 1.
So this adds a bit of urgency to the furniture-selling and packing. :-) But although there
is some stress, with all the stuff to think about, mostly I am just really excited to be
moving on and getting to know a new city. I've lived in Toronto for 7 years, which is the
longest I have ever lived anywhere (by quite a margin), and although it's a great city, I am
ready to try someplace new. Especially after getting back from London, I just feel that I've
"done" Toronto. And Vancouver is a place that both Todd and I would like to spend more
time in, so it should be a lot of fun.
We're going to be renting a furnished apartment for the first little while that we are there
(possibly up to 1 year), and then finally buying a place after that. Neither of us have a job
there yet, but we think it will be easier to job hunt once we are actually there. I figure, I
moved to Toronto without a job, and had one in 8 days, and I moved to London without a
job, and got one in 3 weeks, so I'm not going to worry about that too much.
One of the benefits of living in Vancouver will be that we will both be much closer to our
families! I just got back from a 10-day trip to Alberta, where I got to spend lots of time
with all my family, and especially my three adorable nephews, and it made me realize that
I want to be around more to get to know them as they grow up.
I flew in on Canada Day, which also happens to be Alex's birthday, so they were having a
party for him. He got tons of presents, and made a huge mess of himself with his cake, so
it was a typical 1st birthday party. :-) The next day, Mom and I drove to Provost to spend a
couple of days there. I finally got to see her house with all the renovations - it looks
amazing!! We then went to Edmonton to visit with Shanda, Mike, Caleb and Ethan. I had
lots of fun playing with Caleb. After a few days, including a great BBQ with some of the
Hilkers, Mom and I headed back to Calgary, where she was going to spend a few weeks
babysitting Alex. I was there for four days, and it was really nice to get to spend a lot
more time with him.
The only mar on the trip was that I developed a really bad ear infection the day after
arriving, and it bothered me for the whole trip. It's actually still bothering me a bit, but
isn't too bad - I was really worried the flight back was going to aggravate it, but it doesn't
seem to have.
So now that I'm back, we are focusing on getting ourselves prepared for the move. Mom is
going to come out to Toronto for one last visit in August, and she and I will do a quick trip
to Montreal as well. But otherwise, it's going to be a pretty quiet summer.
Here are a few pictures of the boys!
Caleb
Alex giving Ethan a kiss
Ethan
Alex