Life, partially settled

Sharing popcorn on our one deck chair

We made it to Monday!  It is a strange Monday, though... in some respects, it is the beginning of a new life, and a new routine, but in others, everything still feels very liminal and unsettled.  Clark has left for his first full day at his new job, Juniper got hustled onto the school bus for week two of EFISK (early french immersion senior kindergarten), and Linden and I have yet to figure out how best to hold down the fort on our end of things.  In the interest of a shower and a quick blog update, he is currently upstairs watching the Gruffalo, but soon we will be choosing our adventure.  My guess is that it will involve at least a quick bike ride (Linden has been wanting to go biking all day everyday), and then maybe I'll take him with me for a a bit of play room time while I hit the gym.   At some point soon, we will need to find at least some part-time care for Linden - for both our sakes.  I need to get rolling on the last stage of thesis writing, and Linden clearly needs some social interaction (many of his bike rides are in search of his "new school" - I think he figures that if he looks hard enough, he'll stumble across a brand new child centre).

A fun climbing tree on a beautiful woods trail hike

So far, life in the 'burbs is turning out better than I expected.  Being so very close to all of our neighbours is a bit of a challenge (especially considering we have a next door neighbour who is an avid astral photographer, and therefore often stays up very late, and considers 9 am an "early" time to be hearing the kids in the morning), but there are so many trails and little playgrounds around here that it is extremely easy to explore and head out on little adventures.  This weekend, in particular, was gorgeous and sunny, and perfect for some biking and hiking and hanging out int he back yard.  We could get used to that!

The woods around here even have fairy apartment complexes!

Exploring the marshy board walk

 As for the new house - the main floor is quite usable now, as are the kids' rooms.  Our room, and the basement, however, are a different story.  Once we truly get everything in its place, I think we will be quite happy and comfortable here.  My office is VERY close to being functional as well, and I think it will be an excellent spot to get some work done (at least that is what I keep telling myself).

Juniper had a bit of a rocky first day at school (I think, in large part, because she felt like she couldn't understand much of what was going on), but by day two, things looked much brighter.  She has made some friends, is settling into the routine, and is just generally starting to feel a bit more comfortable, I think.  Linden has, as you can see in the picture below,  co-opted the strip of garden by the side of the deck for his digging needs.  This means that Juniper and I might need to alter our gardening plans, but a "big hole" was, after all, Linden's one request, so I cannot, in good faith, deny him this space.

Construction zone

And with that, Linden and I are off to start our day.  See you next week!