Small Things

Since moving in, it’s sometimes been the small things that get me excited about our new place!

When we first got here Saturday afternoon, we brought in what we had fit into our little Honda Civic. (Really, it’s amazing how much can fit into a small sedan!) We had many of our clothes and other personal items, but really didn’t have any furniture. Even though Dale’s parents are bringing some pieces to us, there were other things that just wouldn’t fit easily into their minivan, either. So, we have been sleeping on an air mattress, and had no chairs, tables, or anything.

Our first stop for more than basic groceries was Target on Monday, where we got a lot of the things we needed—such as garbage cans. I was SOOOOOOOO tired of having a bag on the kitchen floor with garbage in it, since it didn’t really feel contained—once I got the garbage can (and another for recycling) put in there, it felt much cleaner! We also got things that we didn’t want to bother bringing, like some cleaning tools and supplies. Another thing we got was an inexpensive Sunbeam microwave. We didn’t realize until we got here that we hadn’t thought to bring one, and really it wouldn’t fit anyway! Having had a microwave my entire life, I depend on them for many many things—such as reheating—so I was glad to get one!

Then, Tuesday, we went to Ikea. It was a bit of a drive—about an hour and a half or so—so it’s not something we’ll do often (if ever again!), but we’re glad we went. First we had lunch, then went and did some shopping. They didn’t have the desk we wanted (they were sold out because everybody else wanted it, too), but we got a lot of the things we wanted and needed! We ended up with: a LACK side table in “birch effect,” a LACK coffee table (same color), a VIKA AMMON table top and 4 VIKA CURRY legs (all white), a MALM 6-drawer dresser (birch veneer), and two TERJE folding chairs in Beech. Because Ikea stuff is all packed in pieces in as small of containers as possible, we were able to fit it into our car (with the back seat folded down) fairly easily. I was so excited to have a kitchen table and chairs again! I was really getting tired of having to sit on the floor all the time! Later, we’ll get the desk and have it delivered. We put most of the pieces together yesterday, but left the dresser for this morning because it was the most complex of all our purchases. Now, we have our clothes out of the suitcase—another big step!

We also found a mattress yesterday at “Mattress Discounters.” The salesman who helped us was very nice and honest, and very helpful when we told him we were on a budget. We found one that will work well, as well as being a good price, and it should be delivered sometime Thursday. I’m so excited! It’s really annoying sleeping on an air mattress with a slow leak! You go to sleep on a mattress, and wake up on the floor!

When the mattress gets here tomorrow, and after the in-laws bring our furniture, we’ll be almost done settling in! I’m hoping that they’ll also help us bring up the couch our landlord said we could borrow, so we have yet another place to sit!

Something fun we did yesterday was go to the Farmers’ Market that’s held every Tuesday from three to eight. We got some yummy juicy strawberries, some beautifully ripe peaches, and a head of delicious romaine lettuce. Our mouths were watering the entire time, everything looked and smelled so good! (Luckily there were some samples, which helped to keep us from drooling too much!) There were also some food booths there, which we’ve decided we’re going to have to get something to eat from sometime!

Hopefully, I’ll be able to update my blog more often soon. We still don’t have the Internet yet, but are working on it. That will just be one more thing to get excited over!