Moved In!!

Last week (Sunday through Wednesday to be specific) we went to a nice hotel by the beach for a team retreat!  We had meetings from about 9 am to 5 pm and then had fun getting to know each other better.  We had some great and some difficult conversations.  It was a fruitful time.  We also has some wonderful informal hangouts!  Wednesday we went to an ancient city about 2 hours south of where we live.  It was quite interesting.  We ate good food and bought some souvenirs.  Micah enjoyed reading all of the detailed facts and ancient tombstones.  

We moved into our apartment Thursday.  It has been non-stop hard work.  I clean and organize and clean and organize.  It still looks like a tornado blew through.  It is fun finding places for our things.  I picked out Lydia's bedding and matching odds and ins.  She has a plastic lamp made for kids.  It is shatter proof!  I also picked out bedding for the other two beds.  What a treat to pick out the colors I want!.  I got duvet covers because they can travel with me.  It just so happens we moved in right before Chinese New Year.  Everything, I mean Everything closes for Chinese New Year.  Not for a day or a day and a half.  They close for 5 to 10 days.  That means we will have to wait until February to get internet, cable, some repairs needed, a microwave, dryer, etc.  It's kinda nice that everything will have to wait.  It will be nice to relax and move slowly.  We have to try out our new pool!  

Lydia can now climb onto the couch and climb down.  I am very relieved.  It is hard for us all when she falls and gets hurt.  I am also looking for rugs to scatter around the house to cushion the hard floors.   

We are looking at a car we inquired about last week on Monday.  We are borrowing a friend's right now.  Chinese New Year also means traffic will be down.  I plan to wonder around and try to get a feel for where everything is.  We have been walking a lot.  There are three huge shopping centers within walking distance.  Traffic is so bad that it saves a lot of time to walk.  There are wonderful places to eat so close and so cheap!  

We have had our ups and downs with the stress of moving to a new place.  We are starting to see the difficulties arise.  Today seemed to be one of those days.  After a morning and afternoon of things not going as anticipated, we found our borrowed car with a flat tire.  All Micah and I could say was "BIG SIGH".  It wasn't funny until an hour after the flat tire was repaired.  We laughed and said this is one of those days that you cannot possibly acknowledge all of the little mishaps.  Love is covering all of our ill responses and wrong and selfish actions and words.  It is so wonderful to be loved and forgiven.