Today was filled with more cleaning/moving/throwing stuff away/selling/whatever. We went out to lunch, but my dad was so focused on working, he decided to stay behind. We were sad that he didn’t join us. After lunch, my mom and I went running around getting stuff for her to take back and also some stuff from the hardware store. Michael took the other car and went home to help my dad. We emptied out more rooms, and our house has kind of an echo now! I was also busy calling people, making appointments, arranging yardwork and what not. The landscaper guy came over and I made a deal with him that he dropped his price a bit and I gave him our wheelbarrow and ladder, as well as some gardening tools. Works great for us since we’re trying to get rid of that stuff anyways. They are going to come Saturday. We still have to deal with the wood possibly rotting on the eve of the roof. We have so much going on at the same time, people coming by to buy stuff, contractors coming by to do some work, landscaping, etc. Shaun came over late this evening and took more stuff home (thank goodness). I’ve tried to get her to take more stuff but she doesn’t want to fill her house with junk and I don’t blame her. After she left, we got a burst of energy and we did some small irritating stuff like replace light bulbs, empty this one DVD shelf that irritated my mom, replaced the moulding on the front door area, etc. My dad cracked me up because when he was replacing the light bulb on the patio outside, he basically took apart the whole thing and said that there was no way one person could change that bulb. I told him all he had to do was unscrew the top, he didn’t believe me so I had to go and show him. But it was all in pieces so we were outside in the cold trying to hold up these glass panes and it kept falling apart. I couldn’t stop laughing! Michael and I enjoyed having them here, they were such a big help with getting the house ready and with babysitting. I think the boys will miss my mom and all her “japaneseness”.

So all day today we worked on the house. Me and my dad finished up the decks, it looks really great! Whenever Michael came home, we went out and ran some errands, returning things and getting things we need. We went to the post office, bellevue square (and I got Michael hooked on the World Wrapps potstickers), our friend’s house in Sammamish to drop off the AC, and then to Home Depot. Home Depot really sucked, at some point, Michael said “sometimes stores are just too big”. We walked back and forth through that store like 3 times trying to find things. We were supposed to pick up some fiberglass corrugated roofing but they didn’t have it. Also, we needed to get a board cut and the guy was just so rude. He got all stressed out because there were so many people waiting and then people were calling for him on the phone and he yelled at them because he was so busy. Geez, relax, man!

In Munich news, I was very excited today because we were getting close to getting this awesome apartment in Lehel. I have started a conversation with the current tenents and so I got in touch with the realtor person. I was disappointed to learn that we will have to pay him 2 months rent in commission - about $3k euros! We also would have to put down 3 months rent + pay the first month’s rent, so we would need 6 months rent up front. Wow wee. I found out that this is pretty common in Munich! Anyways, we filled out the paperwork and faxed it back to the realtor. Late tonight we got the bad news that the owner has a hard and fast rule that he wants the actual renters to do the walk through. We can’t have anyone represent us. I think it’s more like THEY want to see US and make sure we’re ok. I can’t blame them. I was soooooooo bummed. Because it looked like this was a certainty and just the perfect place for us. There is a miniscule possibility that it will still be available when Michael goes there in October, but I doubt it. Lehel is one of the most desireable places to live. Oh well, c’est la vie!

I slept all morning again. Boy, I am getting spoiled with all this babysitting! :) In the afternoon, Shaun and Scott came over for lunch. Our house is messier than when we started, but there was a lot of categorizing going on - throw away? keep? donate? sell? But we’re making progress. Slowly but surely! In the afternoon, Michael and I worked on the back deck, staining the railings. That is the hardest part. Michael did his so quickly, but mine was done “right”! :) My dad did a great job with sanding the deck, it is looking really good. I don’t believe the front deck was ever done while we lived here, and it looks almost new now! Of course, we did replace some stairs and the entrance area boards. I can finally relax that this is getting done!

Since we annouced that we are leaving, many people are coming out of the woodwork to get pictures done! So in addition to getting our house in order, I have to make sure everyone gets their pictures done! I don’t *have* to I guess, I just want to. Most of them are friends, so I won’t be making much money. I pretty much slept all morning since I’ve been having such weird sleeping hours. Luckily Michael or my mom takes care of the boys and I just have to feed them. This afternoon, I went to take pictures of our friend’s baby, David. I think he is probably the youngest baby I’ve photographed, around 3 weeks. I don’t think our babies were that young! He was pretty cooperative, but there was a lot of feeding and shhhh-shing going on. Towards the end, we got a lot of good ones, with his head in Ori’s hands. Those came out the best! I think they were really happy with the pictures. I spent the afternoon prepping and uploading the pictures. In the evening, Shaun and Scott came over and we went to dinner at Izumi. The boys did really well, mostly smiling and making lots of noise.

Today my dad was busily sanding the deck, it is looking really good. In the afternoon, our neighbor, Kelly, stopped by. She has lived next to us 3 years, but for some reason, we just never met. I have gone there a couple of times to drop off their mail that I get sometimes, but other than that, we haven’t really spoken. She was really nice and was interested to know how much we’re going to sell our house. We don’t know yet (we’re anxious to find out ourselves). Her husband, Byron, built a treehouse for their kids (they have 3) and I had no idea how high tech it was. It even has electricity and heating!!! It’s like a real little house, complete with a TV and VCR! We’ll have to go over and check it out! Anyways, the reason for their visit was that they are cutting down the maple tree and wanted to make sure it was ok with us. Of course! That tree makes sooooo much trash every year, we were glad to see it go. Our back yard will get a little more light as well.

Elijah started to make a really funny face the last few days. He sucks his lips/corners of his mouth in so he looks like an old person with no teeth. It is so cute that you can’t help but smile! He’s such a sweet boy, I can’t stand it!

Today I had to go into work to talk to my boss about what needs to be done before I leave. My dad was busily cleaning our deck and my mom babysat (FREE!) the boys. It was nice to see people and everyone was surprised that we are leaving MS, and even more surprised that we are leaving the country! At work, I had to move offices, so I spent a lot of time lugging the computer from one place to another, breaking it down, putting it back up. At least it wasn’t a “full office” move, it was just my machine. Right when I left the office, my old office mate, Nick, immediately rearranged his office! I felt kind of bad, since he could have done this much sooner if I wasn’t so lazy. I met with my boss and as expected, I was pretty much done with everything, just a few minor things needed to be completed. Before I left, I made sure to visit with Tim (my old boss) and Ori (friend that recently had a baby). When I came home, I was greeted with two crying babies, since my mom didn’t put them down for a nap. Poor things! They were also hungry too. We fed them and then put them down, Elijah fell asleep within seconds. My dad made dinner for all of us, what a treat! The menu was meat, meat, meat! :) The evening was the same as the last two - slept at 9pm, got up at 12am, pumped at 3am, stayed up super late. We’ve been trying to get to a movie in the evenings, but it’s either at dinner time or at 10pm, which is too late!

Michael went to work early since he had to work on reviews. I think this is the latest he’s been in doing them! He managed to get 2 of the 4 done. Shaun dropped off my parents at around 11, right when I put the boys down for their morning nap. I tried to keep them up but they got really fussy. After their nap, we fed them and then went out to get the usual - POG, Starbucks, and whatever food they need. I also had to run some errands like go to the UPS store and also fax documents to Germany. I was really surprised at how expensive it was. $6 for the first page and $3.50 each additional. I would’ve just emailed the stuff over, but I guess I didn’t want the possibility of our passports/birth certificates somehow getting lost in the internet world. Call me paranoid. Anyhoo, we got all that done and had a nice dinner and Michael showed them all his pictures from Munich and talked all about his trip. We got many phone calls too, which was weird. First, our friend in London, Christos, called. And then Michael’s parents called.

Michael found a really great blog called Mini-Microsoft, and it talks about the culture there and why it is so bad. It isn’t really bashing, it’s more like here’s what’s wrong with the company and here are some suggestions to fix it. I hope someone there is listening. Kudos to the person writing it, it is really spot on!

It was tough getting through this day, mainly because I was exhausted getting through the weekend by myself. It’s hard when babies are sick because you can’t get daycare for them when you need it! I basically waited and waited until 7:45pm, and then went to pick up Michael at the airport. My parents also flew in today, but they were more than an hour after Michael and he was exhausted from all the travelling. While waiting for him, I played peekaboo with the boys and had them cracking up. They loved it! They didn’t like it this much before. I found out that I was waiting at the wrong place when Michael walked up to us! He was a sight for sore eyes, I was so happy he was home! We stayed up late telling each other how the weekend was, but it was mostly Michael telling me about Munich and how great it is. He even managed to give a personal slide show in his exhausted state.

Well, I got up super early this morning (well, 8am) to find out how the whole interview went. I thought I would get a phone call, but instead got an email that said that they offered him the job! He really liked the company, people, and Munich. I think it is for sure that we’re moving to Munich. The pay is ok, not that great, but good enough. Aachen is in the far back of our minds and he does have until Friday to give them an answer, but I think he’s already decided. I waited and waited and waited all day for Michael to call and talk about it, but he never did. Finally at around 2pm (11pm their time), he calls and tells me that he’s there with Mat (a friend of ours who lives in Garmisch). Mat went to Munich when he heard that Michael was there, but because Michael didn’t know Mat was coming, he walked around the city, went to dinner, was very leisurely with his evening. In the meantime, Mat was waiting around, I think for 3 hours! He finally decides to leave, and lo and behold, Michael shows up. They immediately went for a beer! Having Mat there is really nice, he is a doctor and can give us references to good doctors, especially a cardiologist for Elijah. Then I finally, finally get to hear the news and stories from Michael until he is too tired to talk!

So, nothing too much is happening with me. All the action is in Germany! Michael informed me that instead of sleeping the day away, he took a bike tour of Munich. He went all around the city and learned all kinds of neat facts and about historical sites. Of course, he had to drink a big beer (1L?). He really likes the city, and can’t wait to go to his interview! Could this be our future home???

Today Bob and Mardi came over and brought Red Mill burgers. I had a grand idea of Bob helping me take pictures of the boys, but by the time they arrived and we finished eating, the boys were very fussy and ready for their nap. I was able to get a couple of good ones, but I think I will have to do a redo. It was fun talking with Bob and Mardi though. I finally gave him these cigars that I bought for him when we went to London last YEAR. They are probably bad, but I wanted to give it to him anyway. I also found our car registration sticker, can’t believe it was in that bag all this time!