Life as an Ottawan - week 1

I am pretty confident in saying that week 1 as a resident of Ottawa is officially a success.  I've:

• had 3 job interviews;
• created a bedroom;
• set up the dining room;
• shopped at Ikea;
• got a free military gym membership at the YMCA;
• spent 6 glorious days with my husband hanging out in our first home together (a sort-of Honeymoon - just a year too late);  and to finish it off
• made several lovely dinners in my kitchen.  

Although, the apartment isn't quite as amazing as Kensington Palace, in fact, it is quite possibly one of the smallest kitchen's I've ever seen :(,  but at least it's a kitchen, and I can make my own food - that alone makes me happy.  The bathroom is now our "project" - it needs some serious caulking work, happily though, after my marathon cleaning session, I can now barefoot it on the floor.  My bedroom is the one awesome - no work needed room - we bought ourselves a lovely fancy tempurpedic bed and with it decked out in my flannel sheets and down comforter, we sleep like babies!  SO amazing... and warm!

We still have to get a couch and a tv - might not happen for a while though, neither one of us has a proper full time job yet, and really, the internet can function as a tv for a while.  Besides, isn't your first apartment suppose to be near empty?

The area where Pete found our place is quite awesome.  We have a Tim Hortons, Italian grocery store, BMO, Shopper's Drug Mart and MacDonald's across the street.... so far, the grocery store has been a god-sent, especially when the roads are awful and we can just pop across the street for dinner.  In the summer it will be even better - Moody's Bay is nearby and the canal has lovely running paths.

I was chatting with my mom the other day and she reminded me of a time, 9 years ago when I was living in Montreal and visited Ottawa.  She recalled that I told her " I LOVE Ottawa, I want to live there".  This prompted me to recall a plan that KQ and I had, once upon a time in University - we planned on moving to Ottawa to find government jobs.  That then led me to think of the visits to Ottawa over the years.... when I visited Pete for the first time in Aug of 2008, and the many many times we've returned to visit, to get engaged, to get married (one year ago on Sunday!), and finally move here for good.  Almost 10 years in the making - wow!

And now for some pictures of my best day in Ottawa...