New Beginings ( did I spell that correctly?)

Well its May and I am sitting in our family house in glorious sunny England ( the garden is bone dry as it has been past 2 months really) and thinking I had better jot down closure to Japan, the interim Chicago stint, this temporary Uk situation and the impending move to NYC.

I guess the daijshin on the Friday followed by our lucky planned exodus on the Tuesday was all lucky timing really even though we really did not want to leave Japan when we did.

Cliff being back from his NYC job interview and in the house when the big one actually struck was very lucky as it was actually rather scary. I had scarily thought after all the shocks we had the month leading up to " Ooooooh we are due the big one, maybe its not a bad thing we are leaving japan after all..".

C thought after the initial 60 seconds turned into increasingly scary minutes and things fell down and smashed ( for some reason I grabbed the TV )and couldn't let go until Cliff shouted at me to pick up Satsuki sleeping in the other room and get the bugger out. Picked up a crying Lesely with pants half down she was on the loo and a sobbing Viv and barking Bella on the way. It really went on for long long time and the Singapore embassy people were outside too so we stood in the cold with no shoes and coats for at least 2 hours. Luckily Natalie pulled up in her big SUV and we sat with her for a while outside away from power cables. She said she had been on omotesando crossing with the kids luckily sleeping in the car and reckoned it was something out of Armageddon movie the whole of Tokyo pouring out from high rise buildings screaming and trying to take pictures of things at the same time.

C even now doesn't much like sleeping alone and saw the news a few days ago which was showing the Spanish quake and started getting fretful all over again. May take a while me thinks. Just getting to Narita even with confirmed tickets out was a shit show as some of the highways were closed and the Nartia express was not working. Luckily we had a taxi booked a month in advance. The airport was crazy though and we had the cat 8 bags and quarnteen checks.. The worst bit was the panic buying of food and drink. Seriously got pissed off everytime I popped down to the shops to find NO BLOODY BREAD ANYWHERE. One man in the 7 Eleven infront of me bought the entire stock of melon pan and onigiris. Anyways. 12 hours later and we found ourselves in chicago in a furnised 2 bed on the lack front. Welcome to the USA yes i got my greencard so now lumbered with US taxes. Nice location but the weather was still minus with snow in late April WTF?. How how how do people survive those winters? We had a heated pool in the basement and that was the only thing keeping me from not topping myself. Oh and Lexie and Macey lovely neighbours and the Japanese ladies that brought round tons of toys, sharp knives and the real deal bags of rice.

Was all a bit stressful us trying to work out what road to take. In the end after much backward and forwarding Cliff took early retirement option ( he could as he had 15 years service and hence could keep lifetime flight benefits). He was offered another job in Marketing with United on return but was treated so poorly and with oil prices rising and the merger not of equals I think he would have rather eaten his own feces then stayed I kid not. Luckily already had 2 other jobs on the table just needed to work out which one to take Berlin or NYC? Well it to date is NYC but after starting there a few weeks ago after I insisted he dropped us into the UK for the interim as I refused to do "600 square meters with kitchenette" and no stuff all on the boat, with 2 small children.

With grandad the Gruffalow for now and the girls are loving England in the summertime. Berkshire does have loads of parks and stuff for kids. Even got her into Pre K and she is doing a fantastic ballet class at southill park arts center.

Grandad wants to sell the family home and downsize as reckons it "too bloody much" for him. I don't want him to as selfishly we want to come back to the Uk and stay and in a 2 bedroom flat that would be hard. He is set on the idea though so may have a tough time convincing him likewise. I did explain that he wont be able to comfortably stay with us in NYC as we will be poor and live maybe n one bedroom with den if we are lucky. He might be coming round after that talk we shall see. He doesn't need the money that's for sure he never puts the bloody lighting and heating on anyway. I think he is fantasising about spending the whole time with us in NYC. Maybe that picture needs a bit more explaining... Then again after the stroke maybe downsizing now while he is fit and healthy and we can sort the entire lifetime of stuff is not such a silly move hum.

I am exhausted another crazy day tomorrow. Cant belive in 2 weeks time my plumpster turns 1!!!! Where did that time go??? She is so so sweet and funny. This week we have had 4 new words already I really cant believe it. Today it was a clear Shoooooes as she handed them to Charlize. She also loves to say poo poo when she has done one in her nappy and randomly to make charlize laugh. Also does baby and trys to poke the dollys eyes out and to grandad yesterday when he brought her blankie in to her a clear "blankie" which again had C in stitches. Yes we have another blankie boo situation...

C is seriously eloquent these days but she and Grandad are doing my nut in arguing all the time. I told them I had enough today really enough. She was then all worried about me being upset and tried to "just calm down mama everything will be alright if you just take a big breathe and have a cup of lemon and ginger tea". Ok Charlize.

She is writing her name now, not so good at getting it in a straight line but numbers and letters and sight words she is now really getting into she is really wanting to read alone. I just feel guilty as I have not read anything to Satsuki and find it hard to make time for C with the two f them full throttle. I think I need a job. Well I know I need to find one anyway if we want to survive NYC and I am no exggageration we will be very very poor in our new country. Stay tuned..