Little Helper

That is how I found her one morning. I had been busy in our "old apartment" and she was waiting for me to load the car.

Do Not Enter

Painting...

And since it is summer and it is vacation time for every one else I took her to a pony farm:

 

Guess who walked behind the tiny pony, the girl leading pony and daughter? For one whole hour? In a muddy forest? 

Mice

With most of her possessions packed, daughter is getting inventive: "Swings" for her mice. Thankfully she picked a wall that hasn't been painted yet. 

 

Couch gone, beds gone...

Then, there are people who thrive amidst chaos. If they haven't already caused it.

Simplify

Sign by "Ox Pond Press", Webster, NH

I bought this sign in a museum shop somewhere in New England just before our last move. It was one of the first things I unpacked and hung in the kitchen, right above the sink, so I would be reminded of it on a daily basis. I was under the impression that I was doing fairly good - minimizing my possessions, trying to concentrate on the important things in life and not getting distracted by the little stuff. Yeah. Right. Looking at all the boxes that will move with us, I just realized that I can start all over again.

Moving II

Our apartment is a mess. There are boxes and piles of books everywhere. Some pieces of furniture are already sold or given away. The others will be soon. For my sanity I need to have order and a system around me. My job, and especially husband's job make our lives unpredictable and chaotic often enough, living in this mess turns me into a miserable person. 

I remember when we moved into this flat. We had been looking for months and months for a place to live and had found absolutely nothing. I guess it is hard to find a nice place in any larger city especially if you need something for a family. But here, people just shook their heads when I told them we NEEDED to stay somewhere! At one point husband was so frustrated that he wrote a note with the title "HELP" and our wishes for an apartment. He also offered a high amount of Euros for the rent. Husband and son pinned copies of the note on every single tree in our city. And trust me, there are lots of trees here. 

 

Not one single person called to offer us a place.

But a week later we got a phone call from a friend telling us to read the newspaper. A journalist had seen one of our copies and had written an article about how impossible it is for families to find a decent place in cities like ours. He quoted our note and commented on the high amount of rent we were willing to pay.

Still, no one called to offer us a place.

A week later, purely by chance, we found this place on the internet. I remember begging the real estate agent to pleeeeeeease rent it out to us. Nik was cute and charming and husband was perfect and oh, thank you, thank you...they let us rent it! (They had a whole selection process down with a lot of forms we had to fill out and an interview.) 

  

And now it is time to leave again. I hope the new renters will like it here as much as we did.

Tenants Wanted

Daughter wants a bird. She formed a bird's nest, collected food (redcurrants) and put the whole construction up in a bush. Now she is waiting for a tired mother bird to fly by, see the lovely home, see that even food is provided and lay her eggs in Bella's nest. 

Our apartment is also looking for new tenants. Soon people will walk around "our" rooms, picture their own furniture in them and check out the balcony with its unbelievable view. I dread it. We have been very happy here and even so I am glad to move on, a lot of memories are tied to this place. But, while I have no choice but let strangers walk around our home, I will not offer food!

Moving

Well, it looks like we are moving. It is an apartment, just around the corner but very different from what we live in now. For one, it is smaller, a lot smaller and it is under the roof. But it also has a beautiful view, we love the neighborhood and it fits to us! It is a very cosy, cute loft! In which our furniture won't fit... the good news is that I get to pick new stuff!!! We have 3 months to get ready, but I have already found the perfect couch! (The day I was walking around Cologne, wishing I could attend the Bon Jovi concert, I came upon the most perfect store...) And finally, I have a good reason to drive to Munich and check out "the Livingroom". I could have some tea and scones first, some homemade cucumber salad next and then shop! I will probably have to rent a van.