Let's Go RVing (or maybe just window shopping)

One thing Wade and I had discussed was that since our family was going from a combined 3 jobs down to 1 job, we should have time do some things we wouldn't normally be able to do.  The RV show seemed to fit into that category.  All 3 of us had fun checking out all the RVs.  Wade decided exactly what he wanted...he wants one with a gooseneck so he could also get a new truck to pull it, a shower tall enough for him, exterior door to the bathroom, and exterior sink/grill area.  Now we just need to win the lottery so we will have the money to buy it and also be able quit our jobs so we would have time to use it.  Ethan was excited to go to the "Barbie Show"  and it didn't disappoint.  He had a blast going in and out of the RVs.  He also enjoyed a monster truck bouncy house, Lightning McQueen, Tow Mater, and a balloon artist (a very impressive artist).

 

Oh My!

Last night Wade's boss invited us to a silent auction for his son's hockey team.  Their daughter babysat for Ethan again (this time we put Ethan to bed before we left so it went a little smoother).  We had a fun evening with some of Wade's coworkers, bidding on the auction items and we even won a couple small things.  Although we didn't have much interest in the raffles for signed hockey jersey's or hockey tickets, the huge "liquor basket" did catch our eye.  We purchased $20 worth of raffle tickets and then proceeded to tell everyone how we had an empty liquor cabinet since we didn't want to deal with bringing what we had across the border.  Wade saw them drawing in the corner and watched the guy calling the cell number.  He was holding his phone waiting for it to ring and it did!  The basket ended up having 13 bottles of wine, 1 large bottle of wine, 2 bottles of champagne, and a bottle each of rum, vodka, gin, and sambuca.  Needless to say our liquor cabinet is no longer empty and we better find some friends to invite over because Wade and I don't need to drink all this ourselves.

Book Worm

Along with all of his stuffed animals, Ethan has decided he wants lots of books in his big bed.  I love when he shows interest in books so I have a hard time telling him no.  His afternoon naps have been longer than normal so I wondered if he might be reading some more after I leave the room.  One day, I went back up to check on him and this is what I found.

Ice! Ice! Ice!

We decided to check out the Ice on Whyte Festival here in Edmonton this weekend.  We went on Saturday which was the 2nd day of a 3 day ice sculpting contest.  It was hard to visualize most of the sculptures but it was fun to watch the sculptors at work. 

They did have a few finished sculptures that weren't part of the competition.

 They also had several ice slides which Ethan thought was pretty fun.  We didn't know what to expect and didn't dress Ethan appropriate so he only got to go down a few times before he started to shiver and we had to stop him. 

New Toys

Ethan had a whole suitcase of toys to play with before our stuff arrived and I tried to include several of his Christmas presents (mostly small things).   He was so excited to pull all his toys out of the boxes and play with them while I've been unpacking and I was able to convince him to set the new toys aside for later.  With most boxes unpacked, this week we finally started to get out a few of the new toys and boy has he been having fun.

The Truck Arrives!!

We were so excited to finally see the truck arrive with all of our stuff.  Wade meet the truck and driver at customs to complete some paperwork first thing in the morning.  Once customs cleared our things, the truck driver went and picked up help at their warehouse and then finally arrived at our house.

Of course it snowed the entire time they were unloading the truck but the temps were at least decent and right around freezing all day.  A little over 3 hours later, the house was full of boxes and the truck was gone.  We started unpacking in Ethan's room, and setup his "big boy bed".  He insisted on putting all of his stuffed animals on the bed with him.  He has been doing great sleeping in the bed.

 The first thing Ethan said the next morning was "Open Boxes".  He remembered a couple of the boxes that we told him were labeled "toys" the day before and of course wanted to start with those.  I meant to take a few photos of all the boxes but forgot so I'll try to remember on the next move.  It's been a busy week of unpacking boxes and everything seems to be fitting into the new house well. It's funny how sometimes the little things can be so exciting, like cooking a meal and eating it at the table, sitting on the couch, or having a closet full of clothes to pick from. 

The weather was really nice all week with temps even up to 40F one day so Ethan and I did take a little break from unpacking to go and play in the backyard.  As expected, he wasn't to adventurous but he did have fun.  We painted the snow a little bit but his favorite part was having me make snowballs so he could throw them into my footprints or as he would say "throw balls in holes".

Saturday night was the annual Engineered Air banquet here in Edmonton.  Wade's boss volunteered his teenage daughter to babysit for us.  She had no babysitting experience but did okay until bedtime.  Ethan got a little scared and then refused to go to sleep so we had to call it an early night about 9:30.

We also made a trip to IKEA this weekend to pick up a desk since we left Wade's large antique desk back in Kansas.  Wade swore he would never set foot into an IKEA again after our trip last year in Denver (it was very busy and past Ethan's nap time so it was a disaster).  He even suggested IKEA since he knew it would probably be the best place to find a desk for the next 3 years.  I'm looking forward to going back again on my own to look at some of the smaller things.  

A New Car

We are officially back to a 2 car household (well if you count Wade's other vehicles we've never been a 2 car household but you know what I mean).  We signed the lease paperwork and picked up our new 2013 Honda CR-V on Saturday. 

 I would have to admit, I didn't have much input in the decision but I'm okay with it.  It is kind of ironic that I wanted to buy a CR-V six years ago and after Wade talked me into driving an Accord, I changed my mind.  It wasn't Wade's first choice in color, but it's even the same color as my Accord.  I'm also sure Wade will point out at some time that we have now bought two cars together and I didn't drive either of them before we bought them.

The other big news is we have heard from the movers and we are meeting the truck at customs on Monday morning at 7:30am.  After customs releases our things, the truck will come unload at the house.  We have been counting down the days till we get our things.  The air mattress and borrowed bag chairs are getting old not to mention the prepared food.

Wade was able to get a ride to work a couple days this week so Ethan and I could have the car.  Shopping still seems to be a bit of a chore...finding which stores carry the brands we like and have decent prices.  Ethan and I checked out a small portion of the West Edmonton Mall.  I think Ethan was a little disappointed that we didn't find cars or horses to ride like there was at Oak Park Mall when he went with Grandma Carol and Grandpa Charlie a couple weeks ago but there was still lots to look at and see.  

We were very excited to get our first utility bill in the mail on Friday!  Yes, I know that sounds odd but it meant we were able to apply for our health insurance cards and get our Alberta driver's licenses.  Both of these along with the car tag had to be done at a Registry Services Location (no DMV here).  These locations are privatized and then their computers interface to the government.  We also needed proof of residence to get library cards so Ethan and I need to make a trip to the library now.    

The weather did turn colder later going into the weekend.  We have had four days with the highs being in the single digits.  The lows have been around -20C (-5F) or lower.  Monday and Tuesday are suppose to be above freezing though so we might have to take a break from unpacking to enjoy the weather.