We Made It...One Week and Counting!

We made it to Philly!!

The move went great, and it was pretty smooth despite a moving truck with leaking oil. Many thanks to everyone who helped us. We could not have done it without you! Well, maybe we could have, but it would have taken us weeks and cost us what is left of our sanity!

One week after the move, we are getting settled into our apartment and new surroundings. The apartment is really nice. It has newly refinished hardwood floors and the cleanest bathroom we have ever moved into (I had to clean the others with bleach and a toothbrush!). The neighborhood we are in is lovely, with lots of big shade trees, lots of green grass for Abby to run around in, and a playground pretty much right outside our door. Our neighbor is even the same age as Abby. I caught him looking for her through our mail slot over the weekend. So cute! We still have some boxes to unpack, but we're getting there.

Brian started back to work only about a day after the move. He says he is really enjoying his new/old job, and that it is like he never left. Even though he is gone for a long day (6:30-5!), he has been coming home happy and significantly less stressed than he was for the past 6 months or so at the other job. Yay! As for me, the days home with Abby are LONG, but we are getting used to it. I don't think I have ever looked forward to weekends so much, and this past one was just lovely. I think we are all going to appreciate our time together more now that we have less of it.

Abby has had a bit of a rough time with the move. She was very irritable and weepy last week especially, but every day seems to be better. One of her friends (and mine!), Emma, lives less than a mile away from us, and Abby has already been having much fun playing with her. Even though Abby still asks for her N.W. friends (which totally breaks my heart), she is starting to ask about Emma now, too. I am glad to see her making new friends already.

We seem to be fitting back into the lifestyle here quickly as well. We are getting used to driving like maniacs and sitting in traffic (and at stop signs...I forgot how many 4-way stops were here...like every block!). I have hit all the stores we are now close to again, which is probably not a terribly good thing for our finances! It has been strange to run into people we know but haven't seen in a long time while we're out and about. It's happened more than once already! We have enjoyed cheesesteaks and hoagies already, and we are even heading "down the shore" (Philly lingo for going to the beach, generally in NJ) in a few weeks.

On the very exciting front, we have started talking to a mortgage lender and we are going to hopefully start looking at houses soon! As of 6 months ago, we didn't know how or when we would have the opportunity to purchase a house, something we have both hoped to be able to do. Now, we find ourselves unexpectedly blessed with the finances to do so, and it is almost hard to believe. We are very much hoping to find a house by the end of November, when our lease is up here. We will definitely be hoping and praying for the right house and the right timing!

So, that is the word from Philly. I'll be getting back to posting pictures soon. Stay tuned!