Home Sweet Home

After a week of packing, moving, unpacking and cleaning, we are finally all settled in our new home! We started packing last friday and were moved into our new place by Monday. Although I like to brag that by Wednesday night we were basically fully functional with everything cleaned [ahem, scrubbed] and 'normal' [not a bizzillion boxes half open with stuff exploding out of them and strewn haphazardly across the floor] in every room we need to use (kitchen, our bedroom & bathroom, the living room), it wasn't until last night that I finally sorted through the last box of 'junk' [you know, all that random stuff that accumulates in drawers that you actually have to deal with when you move, unless you just want to stuff it all back into other drawers in your new home - which I did not want to do] and it wasn't until today that we finally got shower curtains hung and made the last guest bed. [um, how did you like that for the world's longest run-on sentence? you might not believe me but I did actually 'fix' it and tried to make it shorter *shrug* sorry, hope you're still with me]

But anyways, with all that being said, we are ready to give you a tour - via photos - of our new home, which we pretty much happen to LOVE.

This is our living room. The two red couches, wood furniture, TV, and even plants came with the apartment. (Rented apartments in this country usually come fully furnished.) That's right, your eyes do not deceive you, that IS a huge flatscreen TV - whoo hoo! I absolutely love the way this entire apartment has been furnished and decorated, from the darling wood furniture to the light fixtures...it feels like a real home.

This is a partial view of the living room, with our bedroom door on the left. To the right are two spare bedrooms, with a bathroom in between. You can see the bathroom door in this picture.

This is our bedroom, complete with a king bed, walk-in closet and a bathroom with a bathtub! Closets (much less walk-in closets) and bathrooms with counter space, cabinets, and especially bathtubs are a rare find in this country. Our first night in our new home, Bryan took a shower and afterward said "I felt like I was in America for a moment while I was taking a shower." Last night I took a bubble bath (thanks Kelly for the yummy smelling Pink Grapefruit bubble bath!) and I felt like I was on vacation - in my own home! The king bed also adds to the feeling of being on vacation, especially since Bryan couldn't lie down with his legs fully extended on the queen bed we got from IKEA when we got here and have been sleeping on for the past year and a half (I guess IKEA beds go by Swedish sizes and the queen beds are shorter than queens in the US). The only sad thing is that the sheets we got from our wedding registry (one of the few things we actually registered for since we knew we would be moving overseas) are queen size and we can't use them on the king bed - but that is a small price to pay for the luxury of a spacious bed and Bryan being able to stretch out his legs.

Above: One of the guest bedrooms which will also double as an office. Right: The other guest bedroom where we will hang dry our laundry.

Left: The guest bathroom, which has the washing machine in it. Note it's a shoilet (SHOwer-tOILET) - the more typical bathroom setup here - when you shower, the water just gets all over the floor and toilet because there's no separation between the shower and the rest of the bathroom. Below: The view from our bedroom door. As reference, the living room is to the right; down the hallway and to the left is the dining room which is connected to the kitchen; at the far end of the hallway is the front door.

Below: Isn't the dining room lovely? The fridge (right corner) is much bigger than the fridge in our last place :) I especially love the light fixture and wood cabinet. The door on the right leads into the kitchen - it has TONS of counter space and cabinets for storage AND a window - also a rare find in this country.

If you can't tell, we absolutely adore our new home and are so grateful to be given this amazing gift from a Father above who does so much more than we can ask for or even imagine. When we first moved here 1.5 years ago, I was amazed at the home He provided at that point, and couldn't imagine anything better - and yet He has, even down to the furniture, the light fixtures, and they way the bathroom and kitchen have been modeled. It just amazes me how He knows me so well that He can provide down to the tiniest details of what brings delight to my heart. Thank You so much for giving us a place I feel I can truly call home, a place to find sanctuary and rest in the midst of a country and culture that can so many times feel so jarring and foreign.