So, I spent almost the entire day yesterday catching up on ironing. Half of our clothing + a dozen space bags + being in a crate for 3 months = equals a ton of laundry and ironing. Yuck, yuck, yuck!
So, one of the boxes that I was most looking forward to getting into was my box full of American toiletries and medicines. I know... I know, that you can get all of this stuff in Australia; but it is loads more expensive here and I want a bit more time with all of my favourite brands before I start my foray into finding replacements here. There is just something about Bath and Body Works Kitchen Lemon hand soap that makes me think of summer days in my kitchen in Kentucky. It's nice to have a link back there sometimes.
Plus, I already had most of this stuff stocked in our house and it would have been a huge waste of money to just get rid of it (see how well my justification is working). I also brought my handy-dandy Ikea organizers with me that I had been using to keep all of this stuff sorted. I swear, Ikea does organization better than anywhere else I have found - and to me, being organized is just about the greatest thing in my life! So you see, there are separate compartments that are a variety of sizes so that I can put all of the stomach remedies together, all of the dental stuff together, all of the Bath and Body Work stuff together and so on....
I had a moment of questioning my own sanity while I was unpacking my kitchen stuff... I kept coming across packet after packet of kitchen utensils and I started wondering why on earth I thought I needed all of this! Really, it wasn't all that bad once I got it sorted into categories and separate drawers; but still, after having used 3 utensils for the last three months, I am starting to see that maybe I have too much in my life. Having very little changes your mindset on how much you really actually need in your life. I did buy a bunch of measuring cups at Ikea before we left that I didn't exactly need; but I really only bought them because they listed both the metric and the empirical measurements on them. I figured that was something that would come in handy once I start settling into my kitchen a bit more.
We are almost done setting up the second bedroom/my office. I have a mattress and bedding ready and waiting for the bed frame to get put together. It's sort-of complicated and Joe was the one who took it apart and labeled everything so I don't actually trust myself to put it together without him. I know I would end up with a leftover (very crucial) piece and then our first house guests would end up on the floor the first time they tried to crawl into bed. We weren't able to set up my black desk as the hardware was somehow lost during unpacking; but Joe took one of the desk legs to the hardware store on Friday, pulled another Rock Star McGuyver and had it set up within 15 minutes of getting home from work.... what a nice man I married!
It's very exciting to have a desk on which to put my laptop and really type. I think it makes me want to post longer blog entries (if these last two are any indication) when I sitting comfortably to write instead of sitting on the bed with the laptop balanced precariously on my knees. Plus, I got to stack up all of my books in piles around me - I am trying to decide which of them I am going to read or re-read and in which order.
The wardrobe in our bedroom is quite small so I have been using the wardrobe in the second bedroom to store my clothes until we can get a large freestanding one from Ikea to put in the master and share. I unpacked all my jewelry after my desk was set-up and I ran into such a dilemma - what to do with all my dangly earrings? Necessity is so the mother of invention/innovation... I used an old necklace of mine that I really didn't care about any more and I created my own little earring holder. Ha ha!! Victory again! I must say, as much as I miss my giant fabric-backed, picture frame earring holder thingy that I made back in the States -I think this turned out much nicer and is much more tidy and neat.
So, one of the boxes that I was most looking forward to getting into was my box full of American toiletries and medicines. I know... I know, that you can get all of this stuff in Australia; but it is loads more expensive here and I want a bit more time with all of my favourite brands before I start my foray into finding replacements here. There is just something about Bath and Body Works Kitchen Lemon hand soap that makes me think of summer days in my kitchen in Kentucky. It's nice to have a link back there sometimes. 
Plus, I already had most of this stuff stocked in our house and it would have been a huge waste of money to just get rid of it (see how well my justification is working). I also brought my handy-dandy Ikea organizers with me that I had been using to keep all of this stuff sorted. I swear, Ikea does organization better than anywhere else I have found - and to me, being organized is just about the greatest thing in my life! So you see, there are separate compartments that are a variety of sizes so that I can put all of the stomach remedies together, all of the dental stuff together, all of the Bath and Body Work stuff together and so on.... 
I tried putting the organizers into the hall closet side by side like this (as they were back in our old house) but the closet was just a bit too shallow. I was really disappointed; because I was trying to conserve as much space as possible. I ended up having to put them in sideways; but I used the odd spaces left over for storage of my dryer sheets and Yankee Candles. Plus, I had to have a whole shelf alone for my fluffy white towels! I am happy to have them; but I am dreading the first time I need to wash and dry them.
I think I can only fit 2 of the towels at a time in the washer and I think they will take a couple hours in the dryer to reach their desired fluffiness. Yikes! ( I am trying not to think of our energy bill for this quarter) Really, by the time I was through stocking everything in my little closet, it ended up looking like my little American convenience store. Perhaps I could put an ad out in the Mosman Daily and let the other ex-pats shop in the closet? I could probably make a fair profit on all this treasure. Just kidding... this stuff is all mine!!
I had a moment of questioning my own sanity while I was unpacking my kitchen stuff... I kept coming across packet after packet of kitchen utensils and I started wondering why on earth I thought I needed all of this! Really, it wasn't all that bad once I got it sorted into categories and separate drawers; but still, after having used 3 utensils for the last three months, I am starting to see that maybe I have too much in my life. Having very little changes your mindset on how much you really actually need in your life. I did buy a bunch of measuring cups at Ikea before we left that I didn't exactly need; but I really only bought them because they listed both the metric and the empirical measurements on them. I figured that was something that would come in handy once I start settling into my kitchen a bit more.
We are almost done setting up the second bedroom/my office. I have a mattress and bedding ready and waiting for the bed frame to get put together. It's sort-of complicated and Joe was the one who took it apart and labeled everything so I don't actually trust myself to put it together without him. I know I would end up with a leftover (very crucial) piece and then our first house guests would end up on the floor the first time they tried to crawl into bed. We weren't able to set up my black desk as the hardware was somehow lost during unpacking; but Joe took one of the desk legs to the hardware store on Friday, pulled another Rock Star McGuyver and had it set up within 15 minutes of getting home from work.... what a nice man I married!
I have two travel books that I am deep into right now - one is about a couple from Britain that moved to Verona, Italy (I love reading about the Italians) and one is about a mother and her children who moved from Sydney to the south of France to run several small inns. The second one isn't all that well written to be honest; but it is still very interesting to read for all of the Sydney references. She lived on the North Shore like we do and she references streets/landmarks etc. that are now in my neighborhood. Reading the book has been bringing me another layer of realism to the fact that I really actually live here now.
The wardrobe in our bedroom is quite small so I have been using the wardrobe in the second bedroom to store my clothes until we can get a large freestanding one from Ikea to put in the master and share. I unpacked all my jewelry after my desk was set-up and I ran into such a dilemma - what to do with all my dangly earrings? Necessity is so the mother of invention/innovation... I used an old necklace of mine that I really didn't care about any more and I created my own little earring holder. Ha ha!! Victory again! I must say, as much as I miss my giant fabric-backed, picture frame earring holder thingy that I made back in the States -I think this turned out much nicer and is much more tidy and neat.OK, I'm off to get more done; but I leave you with one last photo...
My first truly yummy, homemade with my own espresso machine, flat white...
Posts
Looking good! You will be all settled in no time! :) I definitely think you brought too many utensils!!! But, so did I, so I can't judge.
As for the towels, in a couple weeks it will be warm enough that you can wash them, hang them up and they'll be 99% dry in a few hours. Then you just throw 'em in the dryer for 15 minutes to fluff and you are done! :)
Happy days hey??!! I am loving starting to get organised! :)
Mimi, seeing all those toiletries makes me so excited for you, and also kind of jealous, because my stuff still isn't very well organized! ; )
julie
@ Val - the saddest part of all that is that I threw away half my utensils before I left... I thought I was paring down my life so much and now I am overwhelmed at the excess now that I have it again. So weird...
I seriously need to go to Ikea and get a drying rack. I pre-dry sweaters/jeans/anything thick right now; but I've just been laying them on top of the dryer... I need a better system.
@ Sarah - I can't wait till you get your crate! Do you have any idea yet of when it will be delivered?
@ Julie - I'm even more jealous of you lovey(organised or not)... You can eat yummy American food whenever you want! :D
I just love having a peek inside somebody's home, with all their bits and pieces! (I had to be careful when I was a Home Carer, not to poke my nose in too many cupboards!) The kitchen drawer with your utensils is probably much the same for most of us who like to cook. I have two drawers full of stuff that Ken is always asking "Do you really need all this?" To which I reply "Do you really need all that shit down in the garage?" LOL LOL.
I noticed Dove Soap - sorry - Beauty Bar! in your stash. I remember when it wasn't available here, and when I had an American friend come over here for a holiday, one of my neighbours G. who is American, asked me to ask my friend if she would bring some Dove. She did, and G. was so happy! I was curious about it, so I tried some, and I was hooked too! But I waited until it came on sale here.
@ Gina - It didn't end up being too many untensils once I got them all sorted out and in their places :) Realistically I don't NEED all of them; but I certainly like having them! I do love the Dove beauty bars (lol); but I am a body wash girl at heart - There is a store in the States called Bath and Body Works that does soaps and lotions that I am pretty obsessed with. I love their Kitchen Lemon hand soap - Yum!
Glad you enjoying the little glimpses into our little place! I am enjoying getting it set-up!