Unpacking has been chugging along. We moved in to our house last Friday, and my first priority was getting the kids rooms set up for them, which was pretty easy to do (except for not having the hardware to Mr. B’s bed…good thing he likes camping, as he slept on his mattress on the floor). The kids now have this ginormous playroom, which they gladly enjoyed TRASHING on Friday as their aunt tried to get things out of boxes. It took me over six hours last Sunday to get this
to look like this:
They have been warned, I will slap a lock on that door faster than Linsay Lohan will end up back in jail if the room ends up like this again. So far they’ve done a great job of keeping it fairly clean, and I’m grateful that it does have a door I can close.
In the middle of all the packing, the kids were itching to get outside to play and meet some kids. There’s a no-fence policy here in Dublin. It’s kind of nice that when you look outside you see wide open space. At the same time, there are no real boundaries between the yards. A neighbor told us that the kids will stop short of the property line and talk to each other as if there’s an invisible fence there, which I think is a very funny image. But I think it also means that if you like your neighbors, it can potentially expand your yard space, so, BONUS!
Mr. B is a happy, social kid. He loves talking to complete strangers, everyone is a friend. I love this about him, I love how open and sharing he is with other kids his age, wanting to show them the book he has or get them to play with him. I don’t ever want him to lose that.
However, the kids we’ve meet here so far are, I don’t know…shy? Sour? Stand-offish? You’ll say hello to them and ask them what their name is, and they’ll murmur it, then just stare at you. Mr. B or I will ask them questions and they won’t really answer. What is that? It feels like we’re on a Manhattan subway, for goodness sake!
Mr. B had seemed to hit it off with a neighborhood kid a year older than him (who for the sake of anonymity shall be called Kid). The night before our moving truck arrived, Mr. B started chatting with this kid (at first B was asking questions and this kid was just staring at him, then they found the common ground that is LEGO’s and Star Wars and became friendly) and they took off playing on the swing set together. It appeared to be going well. As we were walking back in to the house, Mr. B said to me “I asked that kid if he would be my friend, and he said Yes!” and I smiled and thought, “wow, that was easy!” The next day when our stuff arrived, Kid’s mom was gracious enough to let our kids play in her backyard with her kids. Kid is a little rough around the edges, but he’s also a year older. Kid has a sister that’s Miss P’s age, so all four of them were running around our yards, and it felt like kid heaven.
The next morning Mr. B wanted to play with Kid, but we never saw him outside and had other stuff to do. That night, at pillow talk time with Daddy, Mr. B told Jon that Kid had hit him the day before when B wouldn’t get off this scooter right away (while it was moving), and then said some other mean things to him. B was a bit sad that his immediate friend wasn’t as nice as he hoped. And then, he said the cutest/saddest thing to Jon. Mr. B suggested that he put up signs around the neighborhood asking if someone nice would be his friend.
God, it broke my heart. However, we’ve only been here a week. Things will happen. I’ve been having conversations with B about how this is hard for Mommy and Daddy as well. We’d all like to make friends, but it might take time.
The next day, we splurged and joined a gym. Y’all, this gym is AWE-SOME! Not only does it have a ton of cardio machines, about 80 classes a week ranging from yoga to hip-hop, but it also has a child care center for the kids, a fantastic indoor leisure pool, and an equally fantastic outdoor pool with two huge water slides. A perfect way to spend the summer. Miss P is too little, but Mr. B had to do a swim test if he wanted to go down the slide. 25 meters. Without touching the sides or the bottom. I wasn’t sure how good of a swimmer he was, to be honest. But he DID IT! The first half of the pool I felt confident about, but as he crossed the halfway mark and was still going strong, I got excited. P and I ran down to the end and cheered for him, yelling and jumping up and down as he finally reached the side.
The look on his face after he got out? Priceless. Puffed up with pride. And that moment right there washed away the stress of the past couple of days. I wish I could bottle that moment up and keep it forever.
So jealous of that playroom! Although I’m sure cleaning it must be a nightmare! Good luck with the new neighborhood and enjoy the gym!!
Moving can be hard but in time you’ll all settle in. The play room looks great. I think the gyms pool looks amazing. Have fun! And here’s to Mr. B finding an awesome friend who likes Lego and Star Wars and is kind too!
I still miss Columbus even though we moved away in 2001.
When we moved to NC, we invited all the kids to our house for a water balloon fight. I think kids sometimes need something in common, like those LEGO’s, to know how to connect with each other. It’s amazing what one planned activity, and maybe some popsicles, can do for relationships
Say hi to the okapi and red pandas for me when you visit the zoo!!!
Organization skills are always a big challenge for kids, especially when they go from one toy to another. But so glad that your kiddo is adjusting little by little to his new environment. It takes time to assimilate to new things, especially when you’re young. Best of luck in your new home
Gina… I wish it was as easy for us adults to make friends as our little ones do! Wouldn’t life be so grand? Congratulations on your move. Your neighborhood sounds fabulous! Love no fences. I saw this back east in the Boston area many years ago and quite frankly, I thought it looked beautiful. Here’s to Mr B making many new “nice” friends! Blessings to you and yours!
The playroom looks amazing! I can’t seem to get my kids to keep theirs clean. The gym sounds awesome! What a great way to relieve the stress of unpacking. Best of luck as you settle into your new neighborhood.
What a great sized play room! What took you six hours would’ve taken me six DAYS!
That is an amazing sized play room!!!! Good job on the organization!! I’m not too much of a stickler right now since we will be moving again in just under a year ourselves. Great post and great writing!!
Found you through a search for other mom bloggers via Bloggy Moms! I hope you can follow me back, takeitlikeamommy.blogspot.com
Mommy’s Juice – So far they’ve kept if fairly clean, but I anticipate days where I want to lock the door.
Cheryl – I’m sure he’ll find a good friend soon. And school’s just around the corner too.
FTPAB – I absolutely LOVE the idea of inviting everyone over for a water balloon fight! Perfect for summer…
Barbara – Thanks for the lucky wishes! Organization is pretty tricky, but I hope that by creating Zones in the playroom, it might make things easier. I feel a Label Maker might be in order…
Carla – many thanks! This transition is hard, and I know how lonely it can feel. I hope that as time passes, we’ll feel more comfortable.
Marisa – The gym has been a godsend! When in doubt, we head to the pool.
Cynthia – Man, it sure FELT like six days!
Jessica – Thank you! Off to follow you know…Thanks for stopping by!
Me too! My family and I are just starting to unpack our things from our hired removals service in Perth. We moved into our new place about two weeks ago. Good luck on your new home! It looks very nice.
Congrats on your move, Jeanne! Hope you’re settling in?
I hope you can keep that swimming excitement forever!
My son’s never had problems making friends at school. Then this summer we put him in a program that had different aged kids. One kid bullied him.
The teachers, watchers, whatever did nothing. I was highly annoyed! I came to this inner struggle, Do I push him to stand up for himself?, or Do I take him out of the program and never have him go back? I ended up doing a little of both. He didn’t go as much and we talked to him about how to deal with bullies when he did go. I’m on my own kids about not being bullies. They are very well liked in school. I just never imagined they’d be bullied.
Alissa – I think your approach of combining the two is a good one. I think our kids need to learn how to stick up for themselves (and be able to ask for help), but teachers and administration also need to be aware and vigilant of bullies. I do worry about B. He’s a very social, easy-going kid, loves to laugh. But he’s very small. VERY small. And he aims to please, doesn’t like to make a stink. I hope this doesn’t bite him on the butt during the school year.