well, we're here

So it's 10 here but our inner clocks have not adjusted (AT. ALL.) so instead of going to bed I thought I'd write a bit here. It's also FREEZING in our apartment, like, really freezing. The heating seems to be by radiators, which is fine, but we've turned them all up and nothing is happening. So I don't know if they haven't turned them on for the winter yet, or what...will ask tomorrow, but in the meantime we are cold as death. This is due in very large part to the fact that we haven't retrieved most of our luggage from Heathrow yet. We very quickly realized (before even leaving Saskatoon airport, I think) that we were definitely not going to be able to get it all from the airport to our apartment in a single trip. Seriously, we could barely manage with the carry-on luggage that we had. So we left our big bags with left luggage at Heathrow (you pay like ten bucks a day and they hold it for you there), intending to go back later today, but then that didn't end up happening. Mostly because we were all so tired. SO. Travis and Jocelyn are going to retrieve them first thing tomorrow morning, but in the meantime we don't have any changes of clothes. We were also going to buy sheets and blankets today. This, also, did not end up happening. There is apparently a shuttle bus that leaves from a tube station and goes to IKEA several times daily, and so we are going to try to catch that tomorrow. But in the meantime we are in a cold apartment with no blankets. LAME. Oh well. At least (and this is what I really would have freaked about in any case) I think Em will be warm enough because we happened to have along two of his baby blankets. One of which he puked all over very vigorously on the plane ride, to the extent that I had bundled it into a plastic bag to wash before he used it again--but in the face of Cold Apartments, Day-Old Puke just doesn't carry quite the same threat level. So I guess he will be semi-warm but smelly for tonight.

Anyway. Clearly, this is the matter dominating my mind at the moment, BUT I will try to give a quick picture of the whole day. The flight over from Vancouver was kind of stressful, but that was probably inevitable given all the factors. Emrys had gotten sick the night before we left, as some of you know already--a pretty high fever and general listlessness and crying. But he was noticeably better during the layover in Vancouver and by yesterday/today (stupid time zones) his fever has been pretty much gone entirely. He's still congested but I'm hoping that will pass on its own. Anyway, the point is that he was very fussy on the way over--not screaming very much, just fitful and moving around all the time and fussing. I suspect it was partly being still sick and partly having sat around all day in Vancouver so not really being tired out at all. Anyways, it was a VERY long flight, punctuated by the afore-mentioned episode when he threw up a massive amount of gunk all over Travis. Wah wah.

Anyway. We got in about 10 am local time this morning (about 3 am back in SK) and got checked in to our place here by about 3. What else we've done today: got a wireless router, got the internet mostly working in the apartment, bought some groceries, and rode the tube with Emrys crying his eyes out (this last was awful and totally my fault for not bringing food along with us when we went out walking--I thought we'd only be gone a few minutes, we weren't, he got hungry).

Once we get our luggage tomorrow I will try to post some pictures of the place. It is actually not as small as I had expected. The furniture is pretty ugly and there is a weird amount of it (like, we really do not need two dressers plus two wardrobes, plus two beds in the same room (!)), but overall it is fine. It has two armchairs but no couch, which kind of sucks, but I don't know if it's worth it for us to buy a couch for the year that we will be here. Oh, and it's at the top of 77 steps. Can I tell you, I will be one fit lady by the end of this year. Every time I get to the top, I can feel the burn. RIDICULOUS.

OK, more tomorrow. Going to crawl into bed and attempt to generate heat, now.

p.s. Mom, do not worry about the baby, he is totally warm enough and sleeping like a rock at the moment. It is just your daughter who will freeze her patootie off. :)