A brighter day

Today was a lot better. Thanks to everyone for your support. I totally didn't expect that, and it made me feel a lot lighter about the whole experience of moving house.

It rained all day, which made moving stuff a little tricky. But we still got a fair bit done. First thing this morning we headed off to meet and collect our puppy. So that was a nice start to the day. I must say, as excited as I was about meeting him, I was really anxious about how I'd manage keeping an eye on him, toilet training him, keeping him safe from Chels, watching Chelsea, feeding Chelsea, feeding puppy, helping organise boxes to be moved, organising having two of my brothers around helping move things and fix the house up a bit along with a bit of last minute packing... but I did it! I am so proud of myself. And we didn't have one puppy toileting accident!

We've called him Oliver. And he's a real sweetheart. He was one of the more placid of the puppies from his litter, and had spent the day just following us around, and playing with Chels. He loves following her like a shadow and trying to grab hold of her nappy. She thinks it's hilarious, and they both come running to my lap and launch themselves onto it in a pile of baby-puppy giggles!

He's currently sleeping in his little puppy carrier with his padded bed squished inside so its nice and cozy. He actually goes in there willingly too which is awesome. I wasn't sure if he'd like it. Lets hope we have a good night with him now!

A little disillusioned...

So today we got the keys to our new place.

At the moment we live in a little 2 bedroom villa in a complex of 13 other villas. We have a tiny little backyard. A scrappy garden, blinds that are falling apart, a kitchen that needs a good scrub and a bath tub that sinks down when you stand in it. Not to mention the termite damage in the roof and skirting board in our bedroom...

But it has almost brand new good quality carpet that we put in about 18months ago, reverse cycle aircon, ceiling fans, a good size garage and clean walls!

This afternoon, after Mark got home from work, we loaded up some boxes in our cars and took a drive to the new place to check it out. We'd only seen it twice. Once at the open house. Again a few days later, just before we put the offer in. And it had been fully furnished. It seemed so tidy and neat.

Now that it is empty - EVERY mark, scratch, dint, and grubby spot stands out like a sore thumb. The carpet is OLD, and grubby as hell! The railing near the door is wobbly, the cupboard doors feel like they're about to come off when you open them, some of the switches are a bit loose, the backyard has a very distinct smell of wet dog, there are old (and new) dog poo's over the yard, the patio light actually lights up the garden - not the patio, there is no aircon, no ceiling fans, the garage is tiny and is actually the laundry as well...

I suppose I'm just a bit annoyed that the owners sold it to us like that. And hid the grubbiness and damage behind furniture. I know our place isn't perfect, but we're in the process of fixing all damage and getting professional cleaners in BEFORE we even put our place on the market. And it will be sold empty so there is nothing to hide.

I know this doesn't have anything to do with bears. But I really felt the need to vent. Mark is currently at the new place with a 24hr hire carpet cleaning machine he picked up from the local supermarket, attempting to make the place a little more sanitary. I just feel like we shouldn't have had to do that. We definitely shouldn't have had to pick up their dog's crap either! I just feel like we've downgraded instead of upgrading. Which wouldn't be so bad if that was what we'd set out to do... but it wasn't. So it has come as a bit of a nasty surprise...


And that's my vent! On a slightly happier note, we pick up our new Beagle cross Cavalier puppy tomorrow. Maybe he will add a happier spin to this whole transition period!

bear mags anyone?

We're moving shortly, and we have a LOT of stuff that doesn't need to move with us. Some of which are bear books, magazines and related items.

I have a couple of photos on my facebook page if you're interested. As I slowly pack more and more STUFF, I'm sure I'll find more and more things that we never use as well... so watch this space! ;)