I am shocked by the efficiency of bureaucracy. In one short morning, Mark and I managed to exchange our licences, get him a Social Insurance Number, change my name on mine, and apply for OHIP for all three of us. Each time we were greeted by a full waiting room, and each time we seemed to jump to the head of the queue. Ooh, sorry, I mean line-up. Must start speaking Canadian again.

I have environmental guilt as we rented a small SUV (Ford Escape) and we are enjoying it. Not too big, but high up on the road, and room for baby and dog. Mark has his heart set on a used Volvo so we are going to go looking at some in the next few days. He’s also already been to an insurance broker who is conveniently a British expat who appreciated the effort Mark put in to get evidence of insurance coverage and no-claims in the UK. Car insurance IS more expensive here, no denying it, but at least we aren’t now going to start with something completely unaffordable. And it will get cheaper with time (assuming nothing out of sorts happens).

Mark had his interview – more like an informal chat about where he can fit in to the company. But still good prospects and a good connection made. I think if we can just be a little patient, it’s going to be fruitful and he will get to work for who he wants to.

I’ve managed to already get back into Days of Our Lives, General Hospital and the Young and the Restless. Which is exactly why I need to get a job and get out of the house!!

Hey, I am feeling popular. Thanks for all the well wishes people.

Hail, hail, the gang’s all here.

Dog and cat and Mark arrived in one piece last night, despite a 2 hour flight delay. They are beginning to forgive us the trauma and are starting to settle in fairly well. Neither of them are into their new food, however! The cat is missing the sachets of fishy and ducky feasts that he’s used to, and for some reason Piper is not into Canadian kibble. Treat bones are fine though.

We’ve not done a lot – I am sort of consumed by stress and lack of sleep, and Mark is jet lagged. He did, however, manage to get to the bank to sort his account out (he’d opened one from the UK), and bought a large rug to protect carpet from animals in our new basement apartment. Not that you can call my parents’ bottom floor something derogatory like a basement – it’s got more floor space and light (it’s a walk-out basement) than the house we just left.

We’re going to rent a car for a week tomorrow and just run as many errands as possible – like exchanging licences before we get car insurance, getting his social insurance number, applying for OHIP, and hopefully buying a car (or at least shopping for one).

And Tuesday, Mark has an informal interview with his major employer of choice whom I won’t name in case they trawl the web for blog mentions – because we both really want it to go well! Because a small informal chat because they are impressed with his CV/resume could determine a lot about our lives for the next while…

My parents invited my brother and his girlfriend over for dinner tonight, and we had a Thanksgiving-esque dinner with turkey and trimmings. And for dessert, a Presidents’ Choice pumpkin cream pie which was EXCELLENT. Mmm I need more. And another errand to run is to join the local newly opened leisure centre to work off that cream pie.

And then on his first full day in Canada. It’s a cool and sunny autumn day. We discovered a cool little park that we had all to ourselves up the street from my parents’ house near a Catholic school.

He was great on the plane after all, thank god. And after the nightmare of the last time I went through Gatwick and on Air Transat on my own, EVERYONE was so fantastic. The woman in Security who held him when I unfolded the pushchair, the very apologetic security guy who made me taste everything I had brought for him (baby Tylenol is nasty and is so not grape flavoured!), the wonderful Air Transat staff who ensured once I upgraded to Club Class that I also had a free seat beside me and who flirted continuously with him on the airplane (nothing makes him happier than strangers smiling and playing peek a boo). And the passengers who did the same, once they relaxed and realised he wasn’t going to scream the entire flight. (I relaxed too once I realised the same thing) He ate asparagus and biscotti on the plane – nice.

And there are toys! New fun toys! And everything else new to explore. Gotta go shopping when Grandma comes home from work – lots of things that this family needs to get started.

You wouldn’t believe it. That was the best flight EVER. I have discovered how the other side lives. I upgraded to Club Class and I may never be able to travel with the cattle again. I got real dishes, glasses and cutlery. I had good, posh food (the teriyaki pork was delicious – yes airline food was DELICIOUS). I had the most leg room of anyone in the aircraft (sitting at the bulkhead) and Oliver got his own seat as no one wanted to sit beside us (I mean, come on, I upgraded and paid a lot of money and I have to sit beside a freakin’ baby?!?!). It didn’t matter. I could see people getting annoyed when we took off and he flipped out a bit and screamed because he hadn’t had a morning nap. But then he charmed the pants off of everyone once he woke up and everyone relaxed. I could have gotten completely drunk for free. But I am a responsible travelling parent so of course I didn’t get to.

The reason I upgraded on Mark’s suggestion was that I actually had twice the baggage limit of the cattle. So by upgrading, I only paid a little more than I would have paid for my baggage. In the scheme of things, not that much money.

So here we are in Oshawa, feeling like we are on vacation. But this time, we don’t leave, and the rest of the family joins us on Friday. Which is when the new life really begins…

I’ve spent the morning getting quotes for our 3 months without OHIP (Ontario public health coverage), making coffee, entertaining the kid, and organising stuff. I’ve been awake and feeling refreshed since 4am. I couldn’t stay up past 8pm last night and 8 hours of blissful uninterrupted sleep was wonderful and needed (haven’t been sleeping much lately due to stress and terrible bed we were sleeping in after we shipped our good one).

Going to take Oliver for a walk later and discover the neighbourhood. And it’s really freezing here! Unseasonably cold whereas it’s been unseasonably warm in the UK. Will need to bundle us up.

A portrait of the boy on his last day in the UK (well, until we come back and visit):

And we’re having a good time. Not.

Yesterday, after a very restless nights’ sleep (which meant we had one too listening to it on the baby monitor), he woke up with an upper tooth trying to poke through resulting in the most sensitive mouth I have ever seen, an angry red face, and a fever. It’s not cut yet and it’s still bothering him.

Today, after launching himself off my leg and into the carpet, he then launched himself missile-style off our bed and into a dustbin. Resulting in his first big scrape.

And I know that I didn’t need to buy him proper measured shoes yet but they are cool and I felt like spending money on him (ebay cash) and they are made for cruising and hopefully will fit for 6-8 weeks.

RIP the Jolly Jumper. It was going to come in my suitcase (critical item for everyone’s happiness) but we realised recently that he’s used it so much (almost every day for 6 months) and managed to twist the rope up while using it that it’s starting to wear out. Oh well. Must find other things to entertain him (like the millions of toys waiting for him in Canada that my mother has bought him).

Wish us a nice (good, peaceful, decent, survivable, non-insanity inducing) flight.

What I should be doing:

• Walking around the house with rubbish bags collecting garbage (basically, everything that is left barring some furniture)
• Finishing the nightmare packing (trying to live out of suitcases for the next 2 or 3 months until our shipped goods arrive and we manage to find things in the boxes – I’m not even trying to keep within Air Transat limits of 23 kilos, I’m actively trying to heave as much stuff in as possible to 2 pieces of baggage and just pay for the excess which will be massive)
• Cleaning

What I am doing:

• Blogging
• Drinking coffee
• Watching This Morning
• Eating Cadbury Fruit and Nut

(okay, I might have gotten a few things done this morning other than that)

We spent the weekend having quality time with Mark’s family. We took Mark’s mum and stepdad out for a posh lunch (read: overpriced and pretentious, we’ve had better for less) here to say thanks for all they have done for us. Sunday was a roast lunch as Mark’s aunts’ house where we hung out with the cousins and Katie and Oliver played and I forgot my camera again. We’ve got dinner again at his mum’s tonight – we were going to have a take out anyway as it’s more and more difficult to cook with less and less in the kitchen.

So this is it – wish us a decent journey. It’s all I can ask for, decent. I’m going to overdose on Bach Rescue Remedy before the flight hoping that I don’t end up in tears again due to Oliver screaming etc. And Mark and the animals come on Friday – he might have more hassle at the airport but at least he gets to watch the inflight entertainment!

So I think we’re beginning to process what we’ll miss when we go (that’s my excuse, anyway, for the reasoning behind 2 giant bars of Fruit and Nut in my pantry to nibble away at – yes you can get it in Canada but my parents say it’s not the same). There’s quite a few things that I already miss as a result of living where we do and not really getting into London anymore – the views from the 36 bus from Victoria up to the Harrow Road, the groove I got into when I realised I was part of the flowing commute on the Underground and no longer a tourist standing in the wrong place. Although this morning, with the sun shining on the fields, and a stag deer standing staring at us on the other side of the fence, I kind of liked the countryside today.

But I’ve thought of a few other things I’ll miss too…

• cheap paperback books
• chocolate box villages
• the constant sense of history around you in most places (not Milton Keynes, that’s for sure) – old houses, castles, churches, estates, ruins, etc. Victorian buildings, Georgian buildings, etc.
• so much choice of cheap clothes shopping – especially the disposable (e.g. Primark, New Look, supermarkets, etc.)
• the constant barrage of chefs and cooks on television
• cheap and easy access to mainland Europe (‘let’s go to France for the weekend’ ‘Okay’)
• crazy tabloids and magazines fostering a celebrity news addiction (waaaah I just bought my last Heat) — also the freebies that come with magazines and newspapers (DVDs! CDs! Shoes! etc.)
• Eastenders (it’s like years behind in Canada)
• how people really care, for the most part, about where their food comes from (this is a result of scares like BSE) and how consumer demand has changed supermarkets even in the short time I have lived here
• the temperate climate (I like that it’s not too hot or too cold) and how there’s tropical plants growing outside (still amazes me)
• panel game shoes that aren’t actually competitions but are just excuses for British comics to get on tv and be funny (’cause they are) – e.g. Have I Got News For You, Mock the Week, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Qi, etc.

What I won’t miss:

• intolerance of different kinds of people freely expressed in many media outlets and by many average British citizens (you know what though – in Canada I think people are the same, but they don’t speak out about it so much and not in the media)
• large gatherings of football fans (too much testosterone in one place) – match day for West Ham near my first house here used to scare the hell out of me
• aggressive drivers and certain driving situations (e.g. Hangar Lane Gyratory on the North Circular – when Mark drives through it I have to close my eyes and hold my breath)
• instant coffee everywhere!
• too much lamb and duck on menus (just me being picky)
• the rain? no, guess what, it doesn’t actually rain that much here

I’m sure there’s going to be more and we just haven’t thought of it yet.

Everyone here has been asking if I am excited about going, but I think I’ve been too caught up in the stress of making sure everything is going to plan so far. Also, I’ve said this before, but I am leaving the place I have made my home just like Mark is. Obviously I’m not as deeply ingrained as he is, but a lot has happened since I have moved here and it’s almost as big a change for me. Of course I am really happy to be with my friends and family, but I share the upheaval, feeling of risk, and stress of not knowing what is ahead.

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He’s getting VERY very good at cruising. And pulling himself up. And moving from sitting to crawling position (but without crawling) and back to sitting again. In fact he can’t sit still. How the hell I am going to deal with this squirmy child trapped on a tin can hurtling across the Atlantic for 8 hours?!?!

help…

In recent weeks, I have developed an unhealthy addiction to Pocoyo. Which of course is completely intellectual children’s television as Stephen Fry narrates it and everyone knows he is a huge genius. Thankfully I have just discovered it is shown in Canada on a channel called Treehouse which I will pay extra for if necessary. As I really like Pocoyo! (Luckily Oliver does too).

We’ve been subjecting him to excessive amounts of television for his age as we were kind of all living in one room for a few days there while the belongings we were shipping were being piled up around the house. And the one room had a few toys on the bed and a telly to watch. Luckily things are a bit more normal now, before the big change next week (you know, new house, new country, etc.).

I also really like Charlie and Lola, it cracks me up. So hopefully I can find that over there too.

Oliver, on the other hand, has 2 favourites that I HATE. He will stop eating, crane his head around me and furniture while sitting in the high chair, and smile at…

The damn adverts for Sheila’s Wheels (thank god we are leaving the country and I don’t have to hear it again for a long time)

The damn adverts for Dolmio pasta (ha ha! no more of those after Tuesday!!)