is definitely not how we have been through our blog lately. We’ve been preoccupied with getting settled into our new home. When we feel a little more settled and less embarrassed about boxes and just ‘stuff’ laying around, we may give you a tour.
When we first found out we would be moving to London, Emma gave us a list of her requirements:
- Must be new
- Nice neighborhood
- Kids on block my age
- Near school
- Near church
- Near gymnastics (for Caleb)
Let’s take those one by one and see how we did.
Must be new: This request must stem from our previous home in New Jersey that was so poorly insulated that in the winter we had to wear gloves and jackets just to empty the dishwasher (until we fixed that problem ourselves). No, we don’t live in a new house now and it is quite cold inside still, but maybe we’re just used to it as we haven’t heard any complaints yet.
Nice neighborhood: We live in a nice town outside of London. Colin Firth lives here for goodness sakes! Granted, we have been in this house for 3 weeks and only one neighbor has introduced themselves to us. But, it’s a short walk to the doctor’s office, the dentist, the train, and the bus to get to the tube. It is also close to a major road so we can get places quickly if we HAVE to drive (remember, we are steering on the opposite side of the car and on the opposite side of the road).
Kids on block my age: We have heard a number of kids coming and going. Although, from what we’ve been told, all of them go to different schools so not many know each other. Perhaps more friends on the block will be made as the weather warms up and we venture out more. There is a large park between our house and the Thames River that will be enjoyed in the warmer seasons, I’m sure.
Near school: There is a school down the block and around the corner from us, but, much to Emma’s dismay, we decided we want to continue homeschooling. She is holding out for private school next year. We’ll see what happens – but it wouldn’t be close to our house.
Near church: Well, we didn’t even come close with this one. We are on the edge of the ward’s boundaries (again). It’s a 20 minute drive into the city for church (if we could ever find parking) or, as we have been doing, 40/45 minute ride in by walking/bus/tube/walking. With 9:00 a.m. church, we definitely feel we leave the house while the rest of the town is sleeping.
Near gymnastics: Compared to our New Jersey gym route, I think we are closer. We can make it to the gym without any traffic in 15 minutes. With traffic, give it a good half an hour. Give us some more time to get familiar with the route, with all it’s roundabouts, and we may shave some more minutes off.
So, let’s see – I don’t think we did a great job meeting all the requirements but Emma hasn’t complained about anything other than not meeting our neighbors. She is our social butterfly of the family. Apparently she spent the first few days anxiously awaiting knocks on the door from neighbors who wanted to welcome us to the neighborhood with open arms. The one time that happened, she didn’t hear the door, but still got one of the cupcakes they brought over. Days on end, while the rest of us were unpacking boxes, where was Emma? Sitting on the window seat in her room trying to catch our neighbors outside to wave to them. I’m surprised none of them knocked on the door just to see if we were keeping someone locked upstairs in the attic.
Today we had a knock on the door. It was the postman making a package delivery to our next door neighbors who weren’t home. Would we mind holding on to the package for them until they arrived home? We’d be happy to. As soon as the postman left, Emma jumped up and down, “It’s fate!! Now, they HAVE to come knock on our door!” It looks like we will be social with our neighbors after all . . . .
as well as being more social through our blog.
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