Expat Wife | here i am

I’m excited for tomorrow and anxious too. The Movers are coming to take our personal belongings on a boat to Holland. Our stuff should arrive sometime before the end of August, I hope!!

They are taking our minivan which hasn’t been thoroughly cleaned since we bought it in 2003 before our 3rd kid was born. They scrubbed it and shined it, waxed it and washed it, and dusted and dried it until it was all nice and shiny looking. I was hoping as they were rubbing it, it would magically turn into an SUV like rubbing a magic geenie, but no luck – it’s still a minivan!

It has been such an experience trying to pack up our house in just a few days and to separate what we need for a year or two or three, what we need for the next two months, and what we don’t ever need anymore. We dropped over several bags of stuff to the Goodwill, gave away some of our favorite toys to our neighbor friends, donated the nearly new stuff to the PEO Nearly New Thrift Shop and threw away bags and bags of stuff. It felt kind of cathartic and chaotic and liberating. It makes me not want stuff yet I’m sort of a hoarder and like the comforts that stuff gives until the stuff is too much. Does that make sense?

I love going to Julie’s house because she’s the complete opposite of me and her house is like a clean hotel room – nicely put together with a few accents here and there and no scattered stuff everywhere. I love that feeling and want to be more like her when I grow up! Or maybe when I get to Holland!! 😉

While I was packing all day, a couple friends dropped in and got to see the pretty mess. Michele came by with her kids for 10 minutes and dropped off a thoughtful birthday present – I can’t wait to enjoy my new books and a cup of coffee in my new cup when I get to Holland. Thank you! Marcia came by too, soon after to drop off my Stella & Dot tote that I left at her house and to bring some cupcakes for the kids ( I told her I qualify as a kid and dug right into the chocolate one with chocolate frosting!! thanks!!) April came by with some Frito Lay bean dip that I asked her to pick up from Safeway to save me a trip. Thank you! And while she was here for 7 minutes, I rushed around cleaning up after the kids baked cookies for Saturday and picking up as much as possible before my BFF arrived with her kids from Texas!!

When Stacey finally arrived and we started to chat – she looked at me and laughed, saying I was either going to start laughing like crazy or crying because that’s what I do when I’m over tired. I was able to hold my own and we enjoyed CQ’s favorite bean dip and chips before heading over to my favorite restaurant – Thai Basil in Sunnyvale.

Laughing at themselves, taking Selfies!

Today was a filled day… I think I’ll be relieved and ready for a glass of wine by the end of the day tomorrow. It should feel good to have “all” the clutter out of my house and have a little reprieve before the next wave of tasks begins.

Nite….

At my Stella & Dot Trunk Show on Thursday, I met a woman who is an Expat from Canada and an Expat Consultant. How lucky was I? I joined Stella & Dot to meet new friends and now Marian and I are meeting for coffee next week. Lucky me!

After the party, she emailed me a list of moving companies, books, and websites to check out. Today I downloaded the book, A Broad Abroad – and have been reading it all day on my Kindle, while at the boys soccer and baseball games! It’s always nice to learn from others who have been there, done that, and I’ve already gotten so many great tips from the author. They say that a successful expat experience depends on the wife’s happiness and independence. So far, so good.

A highlight of my day was choosing to stay home with the kids tonight to cook and bake together. Since J isn’t playing sports this season due to her broken elbow, we decided baking could be her sport. So the boys had to come and watch her play, just like she came and watched them all day. She’s into fondant and baking cakes. The boys are having fun with her too, as active observers, cheering her on. They’re now anxiously waiting to bite in after the decorating is done. Much better than playdoh!