Shipment arrivals!

Paul found out a couple of weeks ago that our CR-V had arrived in country! We were very surprised that it arrived so soon -- the estimated delivery date wasn't until the first week of March, and the person at Scott AFB in Illinois (who helped us schedule our move) had been very negative about the process. He told us that a new company had the government contract for shipping cars, and that there had been nothing but bad reports. He even gave us a complaint form about the company when he gave us the information about car shipment! ("You may need this.") Talk about lowering our expectations! The car had travelled from St Louis to Houston to Southampton, England to Mildenhall AFB here. And it took less time than our "expedited" baggage shipment!! 

We drove up to Mildenhall to pick the car up on Feb 13th. It looked great! Only a couple of scratches that we noticed. I was nervous to drive it on the "wrong" side of the road, but actually it felt MUCH more comfortable to me than driving our right-hand drive Accord. I felt really good, especially with highway driving -- I think because I know my car's dimensions, it hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be. The toughest part is parking lots, especially reversing out of spaces as there is rarely enough room. It typically turns into a 5 or 7 point turn and is a bit stressful. I am also feeling more comfortable navigating roundabouts and the "give-way" points (yielding spots) in towns. I've been very happy to have a car to get around with -- no more feeling stranded. Now we just need to get the adjustments done to it -- headlights tilted, fog lights and turn signals adjusted -- and get it registered to get British license plates. 

The car pick-up center was within a Mini dealership (?) -- Charlotte enjoyed sitting on the mini Mini.

When it rains, it pours! [This time, in a good way.] We also found out, after Paul had to contact the Transportation Management Office a few times, that our Unaccompanied Baggage (the "expedited" shipment) was essentially lost for awhile at a base back in the States. I really don't know how this happens. Theoretically, they were supposed to place the shipment on an airplane to send it over around the same time we flew over to England back on January 4th. Next it takes a couple of weeks to clear customs, and then it's available for delivery. So whenever it got to New Jersey (?), it sounds like it sat in a warehouse until we asked for its whereabouts 6 weeks later. Oh! Oops! Now it's coming! 

Grr. So it ended up being delivered on Feb 18th -- the best part was having new toys for Charlotte to play with! We had also packed some towels, pillows, clothing, and kitchen supplies (bare minimum) which would have been helpful if we'd received it earlier. As it were, we had already borrowed the same things from friends and the "Airman Readiness Center" on base, so it wasn't too important anymore. I think if we are asked for advice in the future, I would recommend people not worry about sending anything in an Unaccompanied Baggage shipment. I spent a lot of brain power back in December considering what we would need "early" in our move -- making lists, piles, organizing -- for no real reason. Oh well. It only got here 5 days before our Household Goods arrived!

Hooray for a new book to read! The same 12 books had been getting old for both mama & toddler.

A truly wonderful turn of events happened when we found out my mom was coming to visit us for the last week of February! Not only was it great to see her and spend time with her, but she ended up being here at the same time as our household goods (HHG) shipment arrived. She was a huge help with unpacking and entertaining Charlotte while the movers were here and afterwards. Since we live at the end of a cul-de-sac, we let our neighbors know ahead of time that a large truck would be arriving on Monday the 23rd and would likely be blocking the driveway. They arrived around 8:30 am and were done by around 11 or 11:30. Paul was taking lots of information down as they brought in all the boxes, making sure it all arrived. As far as we can tell, it all arrived with minimal damage!

Charlotte started whining and asking to nap around 9:45 am. It was tough to find a spot to let her sleep, but I ended up pulling a chair into the laundry room and rocking her there. We both got warm and she fell asleep for about 35 minutes. My arm fell asleep too ;) It was enough sleep to take the edge off at least.

Sleeping in the laundry room

My rubber ducks arrived!

And my ottoman... with ball pit balls inside. She was able to climb in and out, but luckily can't lift the lid by herself yet.

It has been so nice to gradually unpack all our "stuff" -- we are proud to have lived for 7 weeks with minimal clothing and other items, but it is nice to feel more settled. The kitchen is almost fully organized, just needs to have cabinet locks applied to keep little hands out! I already bought them, just have to install them. I was able to do a little baking and cooking this week which was so nice to do with all my normal supplies -- no more measuring liquids using a baby bottle :) I also have somewhat organized our bedroom and Charlotte's bedroom. Otherwise, there are still plenty of boxes to unpack, but we will get there in time. We were glad to hear the moving company will come to pick up the boxes/paper when we're ready for them to do so.