Operation Tubetop

Well, just under 3 weeks until the big move. On Wednesday our new kitchen is being installed and yes, I will be there because if the Husband is in charge, the kitchen might end up being built in the bedroom, for, you know, convenience. This week will be another crazy week of planning. Tomorrow we have a meeting with the daycare to see if we can all agree that the Kid attend only half days and therefore they can keep him until September until a new spot opens up. Apparently the psychologist already discussed this with them last week and they seemed ok with the suggestion and yet, the Husband did not tell me this until Saturday afternoon. That was fun. Anyway, on Wednesday, as I mentioned, the kitchen will be installed and a large Ikea order will be delivered. I will spend the day watching men put in counters while I glue more tiny mirrors to canvas. I was going to do that this weekend but all of our crap in the new apartment is under plastic sheets due to the new windows being install

This past week I have been starting work at 7:30. I be exhausted. Even though I am an early riser, starting work at 7:30 is a little rough. The plus side is that I have been able to clock out earlier and do things like shopping, go to a doctor appointment and glue shit to other shit. So yesterday I had some time to kill before having to be home so I decided to use a gift certificate I got from a friend at the Krazy Komolka Fabric Store. It's actually just called Komolka. And yes, I am not the only one who thinks of Karla Homolka every.single.time. I have kind of stopped going to Krazy Komolka. They were great years ago in that sad sick way that they were the only fabric store in Vienna ( You need me Tova! You're nothing without me and my jacquard! ). Their prices are always high but they were convenient when you just had to have hot pink jersey! However, in the past couple of years, I have been buying my fabric from my hole-in-the-wall, cheapy shop close to our current place,

So, nothing much has changed since I last wrote about the Kid and the hunt for the new daycare. The only thing I can report is that the Kid forgives incredibly quickly and apparently is a bit of a riot at the daycare when he is not having a meltdown. On Tuesday we finally went to the ear doctor that a few people had raved about and they were completely correct in their raving. The guy is good. His practice overlooks the Opera and the snob in me immediately did a happy dance. Our appointment was at 5 but we had to wait about 15 minutes which was manageable. The Kid discovered curtains and hid behind them. Every other minute he would open them and yell "TA DA!" and that was a proud moment for this blossoming stage mom. And quite possibly the awesomest part, was the autographed picture of Pavarotti on the wall. Booyah! Anyway, when we were called in, the Kid wanted.none.of.that and we had to bring him in physically. He saw the equipment and went a little mental. The Husband

Alright, we are getting closer and closer to the big move. While we may only be moving a couple of kilometers away, it feels like a journey of epic epic proportions. Maybe it feels that way because I see this move as not only a physical re-location, but as an emotional one as well. As I mentioned the other week, I currently feel like we are putting pieces of a puzzle together and that hopefully soon, we will see the whole picture. Today we have the ear doctor appointment and earlier today, the child psychologist from the diagnosis centre visited the Kid's daycare to talk. Hopefully she has been able to talk them into extending our deadline in May and most importantly, give them tips on how to handle him. Fingers crossed. Nervously awaiting the outcome. Last night, da movers, thanks to a great recommendation from a friend, showed up to assess our crap to see how much it would cost to move said crap to the new location. I also requested paintings and mirrors to be hung and our new

So, as promised, here is the dress I "made" for the ball last month. There aren't any pictures of me in it because that was the day we had looked at our apartment and I was hopped up on real estate and stress-ate and felt gross. But here is a picture of it on my tailor's doll. It was super super comfortable and I think I will wear it around the apartment; the new apartment because I am soon to be the lady of the manor. Just a quick reminder of the before: And then the after: What I did was create a v-neck and a slit and then hand sewed (is that right?) gold trim everywhere. I really liked how it turned out and the Spanx paired with it was an awesome idea. Once we are moved in and I am no longer obsessing about carpets and mirrored frames, I will look into buying all sorts of trim and updating my clothes. I feel like this is a simple and affordable way to add pizzazz. Wow, with words like pizzazz I might as well join a Bingo team. And there you have it. My Pi

The weekend was relaxing and nice and I threw out a ton of a crap and wondered if I might be a hoarder. SO MUCH STUFF! UGH! Anyway, on Saturday I took an early morning walk with my friend, then after, the Husband, the Kid and I headed to the new place to take some more measurements and since it was absolutely gorgeous out, we tried out our new playground right in the park outside our front door. Bliss. Absolute bliss. The Husband and I sat on a bench and the Kid tried to play with the one thing that was cordoned off due to repairs. I commend his spirit. Looking around the park, I realized that this ain't no normal park. Oh no, this is a fancy park. Moms are dressed up and kids wear Lacoste. Well, challenge accepted. I felt like a schlub in my plaid shirt and yoga pants and Uggs - my go-to weekend wear for moving and crafting - and cursed myself for assuming this playground would be like the playground we currently live near. There be a lot of mommies in thongs and Adidas. Culture

Before I start talking about lights, let me just let y'all know that I learned some important lessons yesterday: (a) Always always double check who you are sending your texts to. Accidentally texted the Husband not my friend that I was picking up another mirror after work. I didn't tell him because I knew his head would explode. And since I was buying off a stranger on the Internet and didn't tell the Husband about my whereabouts, I left an address and name with a friend (safety first) in case I was to be brutally murdered. The Husband is not amused. (b) Men named Bernhard don't always have to be 60 year old men. They in fact can be fairly attractive men in their early 30s selling a mirror. (c) While I can carry a full length 5 kilo mirror, I cannot carry a 10 kilo awkwardly shaped mirror. The more you know. Anyway, on to more apartment interior design. Step by step the place is coming together much to my surprise. There are so many little details to think abo

Well, yesterday was our meeting with the district rep. to find the Kid an integration kindergarten. It was an odd meeting but I was extremely proud of the Kid for not freaking out in the small room we sat in. It seems that there will not be a spot for us at a specialty daycare until at least September which sent me into quiet Greek widow mode. It is definitely going to be a struggle to find a solution but I am just going to have to put my faith in the universe and let it make it so or else I will lose my ever loving mind and turn into a pile of ash, a pile of frustration, a pile of rage. At this point, chandelier and mirror purchasing is the only thing keeping me above water emotionally. Stay tuned to what solution we come up with soon. In the meantime, let's talk interior decorating. Yay! So, I ordered another chandelier yesterday and my credit card screamed "WHY GOD?! WHY?!?" and I also did a little online shopping for Ikea basics. Yes, a coat rack is a total basic.

Comfy shoes? Check. Stretchy pants for ultimate bending and retrieving? Check. Elbow pads and war paint? Check. Yup, it is another Saturday at Ikea. But this trip will be a little less stressful because a) the big purchases are out of the way and b) I am not going with the Husband but with a friend instead. This trip is more about getting the extras that the Husband would not even consider a neccessary purchase and so ergo, an awesome shopping trip for me. I have spent countless hours online and in my head planning room layouts and colour schemes and I have compiled lists upon lists of what we still need to buy. So, today I am buying the following: Fake lambskin carpet in white (totally practical) Blinds for the kitchen because the sun shines in there in the afternoon and I will go up in smoke like a bird on a powerline (according to the Husband, this happened a lot in Nairobi where he grew up) A kitchen table (small and light so this T-Rex can carry it) A super large dayquilt

Life right now seems like a big puzzle. Like we are sorting out the pieces and each time we add a piece, the picture gets a little bit clearer. I am also big believer in signs and recently, there have been a lot. My mom bought me a Tiffany's key chain back in January (when a new apartment wasn't even in the cards) as a birthday present and I think it is pretty amazing that just a few short weeks later, we signed a lease. Now, let's rewind to last November. The Daycare started kvetching again about the Kid's behaviour and after one bad morning drop-off, I went online and started searching for a new daycare. Up popped the Montessori and the rest was "history" (you can read what happened there in past posts. Cough). But, in a way, that was a blessing in disguise because the location of the new daycare is just around the corner from our new place. I didn't know that area very well until we started the integration period but every morning I would think to mys

So, once again, the apartment layout has changed. We have switched room assignments like co-eds at Spring Break - boom! Originally one room was going to be our room, then another room the living room and then the Kid's room was going to be split into two so I could finally have my Carrie Bradshaw walk-in closet on a Roseanne Connor budget - boom! I am on fire today. Anyway, after talking to my mother yesterday, she suggested a suggestion and the Husband overheard and he was all like, "yup, I agree with your mother" and I eventually conceded and now the Husband is smug as smug can be. He may have won the battle, but he hasn't won the war. So now we have made the largest room our bedroom and we will not be building a wall but instead we will be purchasing screens so that I can have my poor man's walk-in closet. I went back to the apartment yesterday afternoon to come to terms with the re-arrangement. I think it will work. I came home and said to the Husband that w

It has been such a busy week! So much planning and setting up of appointments and trying not to kill the Husband everytime he says anything. What's a girl to do? This girl drinks. There is a lot in the next few weeks that we have to complete. We still have to meet up with the district rep. to help find us a specialty kindergarten. Start ergo therapy. We have to get the Kid's ears checked (we went on Friday and were informed it would be at least 90 minutes until we would get to see the doctor and I laughed and I laughed and had visions of the Kid holding the waiting room hostage so we left). But there is another place up my sleeve so hopefully in the next week we can get an appointment. Then the Husband and I have to register ourselves in our new district. It is an Austrian rule that when you move to a new place, you have to get a "Meldezettel". Since we are now moving to the 4th, I expect my Meldezettel to be covered in glitter and unicorns. We also have to register

So yesterday I went for my super expensive facial that had won awards and apparently produced awesome results. I had a gift certificate from friends for my birthday so I used that to help subsidize the 120 euro price tag. Now, when I made the appointment, we didn't have an apartment on the horizon. We now have to save so these types of facials will be a once a year event, because, you know, cost. I showed up at 12:20 for my 12:30 appointment and dreamt about our new apartment. Then just after 12:30, I was approached by a 12 year old gymnast who introduced herself and then led me upstairs. Usually when I get a normal facial, I am brought to the room on the right that has a fancy schmancy chair that tilts but this time, I was sent to the zen-like massage room. The woman told me to take my top off and I kicked myself that I wore my grungy hot pink sports bra. I didn't realize this facial involved a little cleavage. She instructed me to lie down on the massage table and asked m