Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
A roof over our heads...
We have agreed to take an apartment. It is a 4 bedroom "ground floor" (up one flight) and it includes and oven and a stove. We need to see if we can get the fridge, washer and dryer included as well.
Huge balcony, suitable for a succah. The only catch is that you need to go through the bathroom (literally only a room with a bathtub as the toilet and sink are in the room next door) in order to get to it. Either that or through the master bedroom.
155 square metres (roughly 1670 square feet) but I am not sure if that includes the balcony or not. 2 washrooms (an en suite and that other weirdo one mentioned above). The kitchen looks like it has pretty good storage, and the living room dining room is a nice size. Includes 2 clothing closets (for some reason on the whole Israeli apartments do not include storage!).
It is less than a 5min walk from the bus stop and a grocery store and down the other way a small plaza with pizza and some other stuff. Only one step into the building and then an elevator or one flight up. Includes central air and heating units, covered parking (not that we have a car) and a safe room.
The bedrooms are fairly small... most are about the size of Channah's room here, but the master is a little bigger. It can handle 2 twin beds and some sort of closet. The dressers may need to go in another room though... another "see when we get there" sort of thing.
Ok, so I am sure you are sick of reading, so here are some pictures. Note, none of the "stuff" is ours.
Two different views of the kitchen. Looks like there is quite a bit of storage in there. You can not see the 2nd sink on the right hand side of the second picture. Room for a table, but we will likely just put the leather unit we have in our kitchen now in there.
Next is a picture of the living room and dining room area as seen from the front door. Not quite sure how we are going to set the room up, but as we are not going to have a tv it will not be nearly as hard. I am thinking of putting the couch against the half wall on the right (by the kitchen) and the book cases where the china cabinet is. The dining room would then be on the near side of the picture (near the front door). I have not figured out the chairs and ottomans yet. I guess I can't do it all ahead of time.
Here is a really rough view of the overall layout. There is a nook for coats right by the front door. Ignore the sizes of the rooms as they were not drawn to scale, and the whole image was just to give me an idea of the layout.
I will post the others when they come in (and obviously pictures with our stuff once we move in).
Huge balcony, suitable for a succah. The only catch is that you need to go through the bathroom (literally only a room with a bathtub as the toilet and sink are in the room next door) in order to get to it. Either that or through the master bedroom.
155 square metres (roughly 1670 square feet) but I am not sure if that includes the balcony or not. 2 washrooms (an en suite and that other weirdo one mentioned above). The kitchen looks like it has pretty good storage, and the living room dining room is a nice size. Includes 2 clothing closets (for some reason on the whole Israeli apartments do not include storage!).
It is less than a 5min walk from the bus stop and a grocery store and down the other way a small plaza with pizza and some other stuff. Only one step into the building and then an elevator or one flight up. Includes central air and heating units, covered parking (not that we have a car) and a safe room.
The bedrooms are fairly small... most are about the size of Channah's room here, but the master is a little bigger. It can handle 2 twin beds and some sort of closet. The dressers may need to go in another room though... another "see when we get there" sort of thing.
Ok, so I am sure you are sick of reading, so here are some pictures. Note, none of the "stuff" is ours.
Two different views of the kitchen. Looks like there is quite a bit of storage in there. You can not see the 2nd sink on the right hand side of the second picture. Room for a table, but we will likely just put the leather unit we have in our kitchen now in there.
Next is a picture of the living room and dining room area as seen from the front door. Not quite sure how we are going to set the room up, but as we are not going to have a tv it will not be nearly as hard. I am thinking of putting the couch against the half wall on the right (by the kitchen) and the book cases where the china cabinet is. The dining room would then be on the near side of the picture (near the front door). I have not figured out the chairs and ottomans yet. I guess I can't do it all ahead of time.
Here is a really rough view of the overall layout. There is a nook for coats right by the front door. Ignore the sizes of the rooms as they were not drawn to scale, and the whole image was just to give me an idea of the layout.
I will post the others when they come in (and obviously pictures with our stuff once we move in).
Coming along I guess
Most of the toys she will not use for the next two weeks are now boxed and ready to go.
About 80% of the books are done. Our clothing is mostly pared down to what we actually want to take. My studio stuff is about 60% done (still have a few pieces I need to finish up in the next couple of days so I can not just pack it all in).
My place looks like a tornado ran through it. It does not feel like we are making any progress at all. I am not sure how we have thrown out or given away over 30 bags and boxes of stuff and still have more than we know what to do with. This is just bonkers. Ape. Insane. Cookoo. Nutso. Crazy. Absurd. Bananas. Loony. Inane. Dotty. 1 card short of a full deck.
Anyone want to come help? Chances are you get free stuff.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Only Simchas
It's official. We have an onlysimchas posting :)
Seriously though,
Nefesh B'Nefesh has come through... we are really going! We leave from Toronto On August 13th.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Just for reference sake...
Just for reference sake, this map has labeled roughly where we are looking. It also has a few other places so you can figure out locations etc without having to search too hard. I am pretty sure you can click to enlarge.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Prep Update
For when we get there
- Shipper chosen
- apartment hunt is on (found out I have a cousin who is a real estate agent! Not only is she an agent, but she has worked with a number of our friends).
- job hunt is on
- made first contact with 2 jeweler supply houses
- started looking into medical stuff for in Israel
- packed all loose beads and most of the findings. Most of the tools are packed and sorted into a small plastic drawer unit that is coming
- final approval by the aliya centre
- bought "plane toys"
- cleaned out the garage
- sold the dining room set
- sold a bunch of book cases
- mostly pared down our wardrobes to what we want to bring (bagged and given away a mass quantity of clothing)
- left a load of furniture at the curb (most is already gone!)
- pack (duh)
- clean out storage closet and under the stairs
- laundry mountain (Although it is way smaller than it was)
- buy the air mattresses we want to bring with us
- but a new laptop and a computer monitor for watching stuff on
- get my laptop repaired (it is going in again tomorrow)
- finish packing my studio stuff
- get sold furniture out of here
- pick up our Visas and ticket vouchers
- buy hockey bags to pack in
Monday, July 21, 2008
Stuff for sale - So far
Please note. This will remain the top post on this blog for a while. There are new entries below this one!
Please feel free to make an offer on anything you find interesting! Most reasonable offers will not be refused. Some items not available for pickup until closer to the move (air conditioners, tv, phone, etc)
Stuff in grey is either gone or has requests pending
Please feel free to make an offer on anything you find interesting! Most reasonable offers will not be refused. Some items not available for pickup until closer to the move (air conditioners, tv, phone, etc)
Stuff in grey is either gone or has requests pending
- SOLD Oak china Cabinet, buffet and hutch. Brass trim. Medium brown. Good condition. Glass doores and shelves. L & JL
- SOLD Oak dining room table, honey coloured. Sort of art deco. L & JL
- 27" RCA tube tv, with tv stand on wheels, JVC VCR and APEX DVD player. All pieces are in good working condition and have remote controls.
- Succah 1) B&HS, 2) C & RS, 3) MS
- white ikea book cases. 3- 6' and 1- 5 foot MS
- microwave - great working condition, no turntable
- milchek blender
- SOLD magic bullet - N & A D
- 2 air conditioners. less than 5 years old. great working condition L&EK ?
- milchik sandwhich maker PS
- milchik toaster
- loads of toys
- loads of clothes
- wood dresser with attached bookcase. 3 drawers, 3 shelves. About 4.5 feet wide. good condition. MS
- trashy romance novels and some sci-fi thrown in for good measure
- king size down duvet. with cover. almost never used (it was way to warm for me!) and kept in an airtight bag.
- 1 dremel-style motor with flex shaft and stand
- 1 rock tumbler
- 1 electric drill - PS
- SOLD bread machine (works well)
- SOLD art supplies including glue gun, loads of scrapbooking stuff, kids art stuff, self healing cutting mat, glues, paints, canvases and canvas boards A & RP
- games and puzzles
- loads of tapes and cds
- wigs, hats and tichels 1) D & KG
- candles
- outerwear including both mens and women's coats, hats, gloves and scarves
- little tykes green ride in car G & MG
- Uniden phone system with 3 phones, 3 charging stations. You only need one jack and the others just need an outlet. Speaker-phone on all 3 handsets. Call display.
- small mail desk
- hockey cards
- signed hockey jersey (Jonny Bauer, Ron Ellis and two others)
- stuffed animals
- 2 floor lamps (need shades, but the bases and posts and really nice)
- printer/scanner/copier works well, software downloadeable from hp site
- flower vases
- serving dishes and bowls
- glass topped coffee table
- crock pot
- hot water urn PS
- lots of plastic kitchen stuff -bowls, cups, mixing bowls, etc.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Family is family is family
Truth be told I am terrified to be going. Now I have an amazing support network where I know if I need something I can call my mom or my bubbie and there will be (mostly) no questions asked. We will have the help we need whether it is a babysitter or a ride to wherever.
We are pretty much giving all that up. As bonkers as they can make us some of the time, I am going to miss them whole heartedly. Giving up the regular contact with our families is the biggest doubt that we have. I am terrified and sad. I get homesick going away for the weekend! I miss my mom when they go on vacation. What the heck am I thinking only seeing them maybe once a year and who knows even for how long.
We do have some cousins in Israel who, although we have met a couple of times, we would likely not be able to pick out of a crowd. When they found out from other family that we are coming they sent us the sweetest email offering whatever help they could, and as well offering to come meet us at the airport for the "ceremony" so we will not be alone.
I cried.
I am so scared and sad over leaving my support network here that it was just so nice to realize that I am going to have something there as well... even if they are not as "close" as those I am leaving behind.
We are pretty much giving all that up. As bonkers as they can make us some of the time, I am going to miss them whole heartedly. Giving up the regular contact with our families is the biggest doubt that we have. I am terrified and sad. I get homesick going away for the weekend! I miss my mom when they go on vacation. What the heck am I thinking only seeing them maybe once a year and who knows even for how long.
We do have some cousins in Israel who, although we have met a couple of times, we would likely not be able to pick out of a crowd. When they found out from other family that we are coming they sent us the sweetest email offering whatever help they could, and as well offering to come meet us at the airport for the "ceremony" so we will not be alone.
I cried.
I am so scared and sad over leaving my support network here that it was just so nice to realize that I am going to have something there as well... even if they are not as "close" as those I am leaving behind.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Practicing my Hebrew
I have discovered a new way to work on my Hebrew. I have joined a flicker community for Israeli Etsy artist. I have discovered that learning to type in Hebrew might be the hardest part of this whole thing, but I am comprehending a lot of what is written, and, with the help of an online dictionary for all the "stuff" words I do not have yet I am actually trying to write back.
I am wondering if I coudl find a sports related sort of community for Jay, but I do not think his Hebrew is good enoguh to comprehend and attempt to write back. I will see what he thinks.
I am wondering if I coudl find a sports related sort of community for Jay, but I do not think his Hebrew is good enoguh to comprehend and attempt to write back. I will see what he thinks.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Stuff we plan to bring (need to still pare this down)
Stuff in grey is potentially on the chopping block
Channah's bed
3 dressers
living room couch
overstuffed chair and ottoman
recliner and ottoman
workbench
studio drawers
piano ($500!!! to ship not including the room it actually takes up!)
5 bookshelves - black
green leather dining room arm chair
my desk chair
2 night tables
queen mattress and box spring
Books
Stuff
Clothing (want to pare down by at least 50%)
Toys (want to pare down by at least 50%)
Linens and towels (want to pare down vast majority)
Kitchen stuff including pots and pans and dishes (need to pare down by 50%)
leather unit in th kitchen
white unit from my parents
coffee table
Channah's bed
3 dressers
living room couch
overstuffed chair and ottoman
recliner and ottoman
workbench
studio drawers
piano ($500!!! to ship not including the room it actually takes up!)
5 bookshelves - black
green leather dining room arm chair
my desk chair
2 night tables
queen mattress and box spring
Books
Stuff
Clothing (want to pare down by at least 50%)
Toys (want to pare down by at least 50%)
Linens and towels (want to pare down vast majority)
Kitchen stuff including pots and pans and dishes (need to pare down by 50%)
leather unit in th kitchen
white unit from my parents
coffee table
Yay!
It looks like we found someone who is interested in putting some stuff on the lift to the tune of roughly $1000.
Yay!
Anyone else?
Yay!
Anyone else?
I'm wigging out!
A bunch of sheitles/wigs.
Ranging from sort of a strawberry blond mid-back length curly one to a short dark brown step cut and everything in between. Mid neck medium brown straight fall. Allegria light medium brown, incredibly comfortable (well, for a wig anyway). One light brown Gaby good for letting a kid play dress up (Seriously worn out). Seriously, I have a bunch of them. Some are human and can be dyed. Some are cheap and fun to wear.
If anyone is local and wants to come take a look, a few of them are really nice and expensive, and I jsut do nto wear them anymore. I am keeping one and the rest can go.
Ranging from sort of a strawberry blond mid-back length curly one to a short dark brown step cut and everything in between. Mid neck medium brown straight fall. Allegria light medium brown, incredibly comfortable (well, for a wig anyway). One light brown Gaby good for letting a kid play dress up (Seriously worn out). Seriously, I have a bunch of them. Some are human and can be dyed. Some are cheap and fun to wear.
If anyone is local and wants to come take a look, a few of them are really nice and expensive, and I jsut do nto wear them anymore. I am keeping one and the rest can go.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Nora Roberts Books
SOLD!
$1 a book or trade for any books I am interested in that I have not read.
I am sure I will come across more but this is what I have found on my first pass.
Night Shift/Night Shadow
Night shield
Birthright
Time and Again
Heart of the Sea
Dance upon the Air
Midnight Bayou
The MacGreggors - Daniel and Ian
The MacGreggors - Alan and Grant
The MacGreggor Brides
Genuine Lies
Blood Brothers
The Hollow
Heaven and Earth
Tears of the Moon
Going Home
Mysterious
Chesapeake Blue
The Stanislasky Sisters
Carolina Moon
Carnal Innocence
The Reef
The Villa
$1 a book or trade for any books I am interested in that I have not read.
I am sure I will come across more but this is what I have found on my first pass.
Night Shift/Night Shadow
Night shield
Birthright
Time and Again
Heart of the Sea
Dance upon the Air
Midnight Bayou
The MacGreggors - Daniel and Ian
The MacGreggors - Alan and Grant
The MacGreggor Brides
Genuine Lies
Blood Brothers
The Hollow
Heaven and Earth
Tears of the Moon
Going Home
Mysterious
Chesapeake Blue
The Stanislasky Sisters
Carolina Moon
Carnal Innocence
The Reef
The Villa
Scrapbooking stuff enough to get you started and keep you busy for a long time!
SOLD
I have one of those plastic 4 drawer unites filled to the brim with kids a & C stuff and scrapbooking stuff, as well as a box on top with about 200 sheets of 12 x 12 paper. There is about $200 (many unopened on various themes/fonts) worth of stickers alone.
There are also scrapbooking markers, a rotary cutter, some templates and stencils, a couple of punches, a number of spools of ribbon, a swivel knife and cutting mat, a paper holder, sparkle glue, sculpting ribbon, red paper clips, kids "bangy" glue, velum paper, adhesive velum paper, a new role of adhesive still in the package, sizzors, glitter, and a drawer half full of gift bags that just happened to be stored in the same place. Oh, also a mini glue gun (have not found the glue yet but when I do it goes in) construction paper, and probably a whole lot more.
I am hoping to sell the whole thing as a lot (including the drawers on wheels so no need to find place to put it all!), but am more than willing to consider separating it if need be. All reasonable offers considered!
Please let me know if you are interested in any/all of it and want to come take a look.
I have one of those plastic 4 drawer unites filled to the brim with kids a & C stuff and scrapbooking stuff, as well as a box on top with about 200 sheets of 12 x 12 paper. There is about $200 (many unopened on various themes/fonts) worth of stickers alone.
There are also scrapbooking markers, a rotary cutter, some templates and stencils, a couple of punches, a number of spools of ribbon, a swivel knife and cutting mat, a paper holder, sparkle glue, sculpting ribbon, red paper clips, kids "bangy" glue, velum paper, adhesive velum paper, a new role of adhesive still in the package, sizzors, glitter, and a drawer half full of gift bags that just happened to be stored in the same place. Oh, also a mini glue gun (have not found the glue yet but when I do it goes in) construction paper, and probably a whole lot more.
I am hoping to sell the whole thing as a lot (including the drawers on wheels so no need to find place to put it all!), but am more than willing to consider separating it if need be. All reasonable offers considered!
Please let me know if you are interested in any/all of it and want to come take a look.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)