Laundry

In England, they have these machines that sounds perfectly amazing in theory.  In actuality, they're terrible.

It's a washing machine and dryer in one.

Fortunately, once we're in our long-term home, we'll have a normal washing machine and dryer (separately), but for now I have to deal with this combination machine.

It has about 25% the capacity of our American machines, takes about four hours to run, and everything comes out damp.  This means that I have to hang everything to dry, adding another few hours to the time before anything can be folded and put away.  I can't keep up with everything and I'm so glad this isn't going to be our permanent situation.

It boggles my mind how this type of machine has become so common.  Everyone I've talked to knows they are terrible and yet they are a fixture in so many British kitchens. (The fact that it's in the kitchen is another annoyance, but it is what it is.) And people keep buying them.  I just haven't figured out why they continue to be made, and people continue to purchase them.  In fact, I came across an article (click here) just the other day about this that's worth a read.

Off to do more laundry!

First Impressions

1. There is no Target or Walmart nearby to pick up my favorite brand of (whatever).  I need to scope out my shopping options.

2. I am keenly aware that I'm the one with the foreign accent.  I was very conscious of it when I was yelling to my kids at the playground and when ordering our dinner at the restaurant.  Maybe this will get easier over time, as I become more comfortable with the different phrases and slang that I'm not familiar with yet (despite my regular viewing of British TV shows).

3. I have SO much to learn.  Guys.  I can identify an American quarter just by how it feels in my fingers.  I couldn't even tell you what color/metal British coins are.  Nor have I memorized all the traffic signs (which are severely lacking in words most of the time).  And I didn't recognize several menu items at dinner tonight- my North American upbringing didn't prepare me for ordering food at an Italian English restaurant!

4.  People are kind.  Several members of our new American community have stepped up to help us and give great advice as we've been working on our move. Many people in our new church congregation took the time to introduce themselves and made us feel so welcome.

5. I have no idea what I'm doing.  I really think I did just about everything I could do to prepare for being here, but there's only so much you can do get ready to move to a country you've never even been to. We spent a lot of time preparing our belongings for shipment but now we're here and I am realizing that I haven't spent nearly as much time going over the paperwork we need to complete for our moving expenses, planning what I'll do with the kids while Aaron is at work, and just generally what happens next.

6.  There are a lot of cultural differences, but there are also a lot of similarities.  We can do this, and it's going to be great!