Bits

Sorry, there doesn't seem to be time for proper posts these days, so bullets will have to do:

• Rajiv has learned to clap his hands. Now if we clap, most of the times he claps back. I know it's a basic skill, but mommy is amazed!
  
  Rajiv ha imparato a battere le mani, dopo vari mesi passati a cercare di insegnarglielo. Adesso se uno di noi batte le mani lui ci imita felice.
  
  
• We think he might be getting some words, apart from "mamamama". Yesterday we noticed he was saying "bukbukbuk" while holding a book and his babysitter Kristen confirmed that she also heard suspicious "b" sounds in presence of books. So it seems that little one is starting with English. What a disappointment... I mean, great!
  
  Il piccolino sta iniziando a dire qualche pezzetto di parola. In particolare ci sembra che stia cercando di dire "book" ("libro"). Vai Rajiv!
  
  
• By the way, Rajiv is happy with the new babysitter and so are we. She helps us out for a few hours three times a week and will stay with us until the first week of August. After that we have a very promising home daycare lined up, with a lady called Sally who was recommended to us by our neighbours.
  
  Rajiv ha subito fatto amicizia con la nuova babysitter Kristen. Lei ci dara' una mano fino alla prima settimana di Agosto e poi Rajiv iniziera' pian piano ad andare ad un nuovo nido che promette molto bene. Speriamo!
  
  
• In the meantime the work on the house goes on. We painted our bedroom, a major effort that involved working late at night while little one slept and camping in the living room for about a week to avoid the fumes. The color turned out to be quite different from what we expected, but we like it (and even if we didn't we would repaint).
  
  Next big project: dishwasher installation. We managed to remove the old one yesterday night. Now all we have to do is remove the small dead mouse from behind the cabinet and install the new dishwasher. That should be fun...
  
  Intanto il lavoro nella casa nuova procede. Abbiamo ridipinto la notra camera da letto - dormendo nel soggiorno per una settimana - e adesso ci prendiamo una meritata pausa dalla pittura. La prossima impresa invece e' installare la lavastoviglie. Ieri sera abbiamo rimosso quella vecchia e domani da bravi idraulici tenteremo di installare quella nuova. Le risate...
  

Woo - hoooo !!!

Yesterday we handed over the keys of the flat. No more going there every day to pick up "the few small things it was not worth asking the movers to take"... No more sorting through infinite junk and finding ways to fit it all in the car! From today on we can focus entirely on the new place.

Now, however, Appu is with the new babysitter, Kristen, and we are in the office trying to work. So enough with blogging and let's try to get something done!

House renovation

Ecco le prime foto dei lavori in casa, scusate il ritardo. Le prime foto sono del pavimento del soggiorno e della sala da pranzo. Era molto rovinato e molto scuro. La settimana scorsa e' stato rimesso a posto (come anche il pavimento delle camere da letto al piano superiore) ed e' venuto benissimo. Abbiamo scelto di lasciaro del colore naturale, cosi' adesso e' molto piu' chiaro e luminoso. Appena riesco vi mostro le foto del lavoro finito.

Here are the first pictures of the house renovation, from lest week. More as soon as I find my camera...

The first two photos show the sanding of the hardwood floor in the living room and dining room. The floor, was scratched and looked terrible. It had also been stained a dark color, which we didn't like and the quarter rounds were missing so the perimeter of the room looked completely unfinished. We chose to keep the natural color of the wood, which turned out to be oak and the result is quite nice. The bedrooms received the same treatment, but the wood was damaged by water in a few spots, so the result is not as nice, although still better than before.





Le altre due foto invece mostrano le scale di accesso al seminterrato. Come molti di voi gia' sanno, qui abbiamo svolto la nostra principale opera di fai-da-te finora. Abbiamo tolto l'orrenda tappezzeria nera a fiorellini e abbiamo comiciato a mettere una carta da parati bianca con con vari ghirigori in rilievo che imitano un muro grezzo. Nele foto vedete il muro giallino che viene lentamente coperto, un riquadro ala volta, dalla carta bianca.

The other two pictures show the stairs that lead to the basement. This was our main do-it-yourself project so far. We removed some horrible black wallpaper and we substituted it with white textured wallpaper that imitates the texture of a plastered wall. In the pictures you can see the yellowish wall being covered by sheets of white wallpaper. Unfortunately we abandoned the work to focus our energies on the move, but we hope to get back to it and finish in a few days.

Not very thrilling pictures, sorry. More soon (?).

Over!

At 10:30 PM the move is done (!!!) and we are relaxing at the office with free sodas - for the parents - and free screaming - for Rajiv. From tonight we have a new home, even though right now the chaos is a bit discouraging. Now showers and sleep, goodnight!

Ce l'abbiamo fatta, abbiamo traslocato! La casa al momenta sembra un magazzino, ma c'e' un letto che aspetta e al resto penseremo domani. Buonanotte!

Domani...

.. si trasloca! E ora devo scappare perche' arriva il camion dell'Ikea, a dopo...

Tomorrow we are moving to the new house! Some of you have asked to see pictures and I promise to take care of that soon. Now I have to run though, because the delivery from Ikea could be any time now...