Preparations for the Big Move

Many people have been asking "What does your next two weeks of living in the UK look like? It has actually been a whirlwind this entire month [of May].  A few updates, and things that I have been doing.

• Update on Jobs: I can officially say that a couple weeks ago I accepted a first grade position back in my school district (not the same elementary school).  I am so excited for this new opportunity!
• Packing: Yowza, this one is a pain!  As you know, the assessment company came a few weeks back to see how much stuff we had accumulated.  Now, we have decided to ship all of the items back when Jeff leaves at the end of July.  So, to make things easier on him as he will have enough loose ends to tie up when he leaves (closing bank, canceling cable, etc.) I have started filling our second bedroom with stuff that will be shipped back to the states.  It's going well so far.
  
  
• Friends: I have a couple more friends I'd like to see before heading back.  We  have planned a few lunches, tea/coffees breaks, and dinners with close friends before heading out next week.  Looking forward to seeing them before flying out. 
  
• Sorting:  We have been selling a lot of our UK-plug appliances and things we do not want to take back home.  I have been going through things the last several months, and look forward to giving lots of things away in the next week.  It is hard to believe how much you accumulate over time, especially because we don't have a lot over here to begin with.  We get a lot of the stuff from other Americans that leave...so needless to say I have a crazy amount of cleaning supplies. We live so much simpler.  But still---lots of junk.
  
  
• Cars:  A few of you have been asking about cars. No news there, as we are just going to have to do all that once we are there in person.  Pretty pumped to get a vehicle though! 
• Welcome Home Celebrations: I know many of you are asking "When can we get together?", and I thank you all for being patient with us as we are not sure what to expect when we get back.  Things may all fall into place nicely, and we may have tons of time on our hands.  We're not sure what to expect until we experience it.  We can't wait to see you all, so we promise we'll see each and every one of you as soon as we possibly can. Lots of hugs to give out!! 

That is pretty much it for updates and what my next couple of weeks will look like.  It sure will be busy, and I am still trying to soak up as much as I can.  Real world is about to come, whether I am ready for it or not.

On to the next adventure...

Flat.....Check!

I feel comfortable posting now that we have a house (or flat) to live in while living in the UK. With the help of our relocation advisor, we found a two bed, two bath place in Nottingham. We had some great choices, but this one was close to the city center (downtown)...a 2 minute walk which will be wonderful. It is fully furnished, which is great. Great view of the park from our living room window. We will post pictures once we get over there!!

We have done a lot of packing both for storage and for the movers. The house is starting to look sad and bare. The movers come on Monday. Girl Problem #35: which clothes do I bring? :)

Man at Work

Least Jeff is getting things done around here. I don't know how he has all this energy. He is always good about making sure things like this get done...maybe a little too early for me. Such a go getter!

This storage unit is going to be full!

Packing

As you can tell, Mackey is loving all the extra "toys" around our house to play in. He has been jumping in, hitting, and eating each one. Lucky us!
We have started putting things in storage. It is hard deciding what we should and shouldn't take.I think we're making some progress, so that's all that matters for now.

Keep crossing your fingers that someone will rent our current house while we're away in the UK.