Progress on Multiple Fronts

I wish I were such a person that after a day like today, I could sit on my breezy balcony with my computer on my lap and write an interesting story. Something with a good introduction, that ties into the conclusion. Something with good word choice, and a general arc to the story.

But I'm not. I've got so much whirling through my head right now that I'm dropping important things left and right. So, lets get right to brass tacks. Progress is happening in our household and its happening quite quickly.

Security Clearance
After a few back and forths with Kelly - a Human Resources gal for the State Department who we know much better than we would like - Dave has submitted his application for Security Clearance. He expects to hear from a local interviewer in about a month. At that time, he'll have to hand over basic information on all of his foreign friends. But otherwise, we've done the work for that piece. And now we sit and wait. Our best guess it that security clearance will take 6-9 months, putting Dave on the list in about March.

Medical Clearance
Dave and I saw the doctor this morning. He has seen plenty of government forms and took the entire bureaucratic nonsense in good, serious stride. As tremendously organized folks, we had our blood work, urinalysis, gynecologic and chest x-rays done last week. So the doctor had a full file before him when his little red hammer hit our knees. As it turns out, by the way, Dave has no reflexes at all, and my legs swing like a goats hind legs - POW! - when you hit them right.

He handed us photocopies of all of our lab work, and he filled out our forms to near completion. Results from the G6PD blood test have yet to return. This is a rare test for an enzyme disorder which causes patients to react to certain medications. Good to know, I suppose. We should receive those results tomorrow afternoon, check the little black box, and then send off for medical clearance for Dave and I. Dave's is the most important, as his MUST be received within 30 days of his offer letter (July 22). If not received, his candidacy is terminated. These government folks are serious. The girls and mine can be slower, although preferably not much.

The girls saw a pediatrician on Monday morning, and that was a barrel of monkeys for all of us. The doctor was quite good, and also familiar with American government's wily ways of tricking form-filler-outers into saying the wrong thing. As they needed less lab work, we did all of their fluids - as well as TB tests for the entire family - that morning. That means that our 2-year-old and our 3 (and a half)-year-old both peed in cups, had TB pumped under their skin through a needle, and donated two small vials of blood. L-- was none too pleased, and spent the better part of the morning in a state of panic. S-- could not have cared less, the worst of her complaining being Can I get down now? after they had worked for a few minutes to speed her slow-flowing blood.

They returned today to pick up the completed forms, and learn that no one has tuberculosis. Honestly, I'm not convinced that they checked the girls TB spots - I think they just looked at one of the many bug bites on their arms. But I'll take what I've got. As the nurse and I gave their forms one last look, I noticed that the doctor had missed their immunization records. She took them into his office, where he signed off for reviewing them and demanded that S-- have 2 more shots to make her up to date. So we ended our otherwise uneventful after at the doctor with two simultaneous shots into S--'s legs and suckers all around.

Because of the shot drama, I forgot to pick up photocopies of their lab work. But as the G6PD has yet to be received, I don't suppose I dropped the ball further than it can be easily retrieved.

Housing
We just completed negotiations on our new home. We gain access 2 weeks from tomorrow, losing access to this place 3 weeks from now. I'm beginning to feel a bit nostalgic about this place, and Dave and I both wish we didn't have to move. We have very good space, 4 playgrounds within our complex, our favorite local restaurant within walking distance, and this amazing breeze on our 10th floor balcony. All this will be hard to leave.

But the trade-offs are good. We will move into a lanehouse directly across the street from the girls' school. It could not possibly take us longer than 10 minutes to go door to door. The house was beautifully renovated, with color on the walls, wood details on the stairs, and amazing original windows in every room. The natural light is fantastic, and even includes a skylight bigger than I have ever seen situated right above the couch. The kitchen windows look out onto a small garden in the front, lined with trees and essentially private. The kitchen, dining room and living room are all open to each other - one of our favorite parts of the house. The rest of the rooms are pretty crummy - the girls room is bright and cheerful, but small. That's okay, as they'll play in the great room. The second bedroom downstairs is located right off of the kitchen, and must be a storage room. The kitchen has only a few cabinets not filled up with washing machines, dishwashers and water dispensers, and so we will keep many of our dishes, as well as our luggage, Christmas tree and books, in this storage room. Up the stairs to the master bedroom - very small, but filled with natural light. The only other thing on the 2nd floor is a wood deck, and what a wood deck it is. This deck is the largest room in the house. The railings are covered in flower boxes and half is fully shaded by a large tree. We expect to spend plenty of time up there - as soon as we invest in mosquito coils and citronella candles. I'm nervous about the lack of storage, about living on the 1st floor without any serious security system, about the bugs in an old house, and about sleeping an entire floor away from my children. But I'm excited about living somewhere so lovely, even if for only a few months.

and School
Amid all of this craziness, the girls begin school next week. Their school has a lovely orientation week, where the young kids (3 and under) begin in a Mommy-and-me style on Monday morning. She and I'll go to school from 9-11, meet the teachers and the other kids, and generally play for a few hours. We'll do the same on Tuesday morning, although maybe I'll run home for 30 minutes or so in the middle. This so she can adjust to having me leave her and return. Then Thursday, L-- gets to start too. Again, I'll stay all day. Then Friday, I should have an hour or so to myself. I'm doing my best to balance the fun of the last week of summer with the chaos of organizing a move and submitting all of this insane paperwork. The girls seem happy and excited about school, so at least I'm not doing anything to dissuade them.