The last few weeks have passed so fast, that I am realizing that there are many of you out there wondering how we are doing? I have not been sharing a lot on Facebook or keeping up with emails.

Moving is a process. Moving while your oldest starts school for the first time is a huge process. So instead of calling, emailing, IMing and sky writing to you all, I figured a blog post would suffice.

Overall, we are a happy bunch making our way through the start of this new chapter. At this point, my biggest complaint is finding time to shower.

So here are the Top 10 questions that have been asked lately from you.

1. Where did you move?

We moved to a three bedroom apartment near High Park. A few months ago, we would have never considered renting again, but a lot has changed our mind. While it seems odd to not own, we are loving the new place. There is so much space, the area is amazing and we have met almost all of our neighbours. Short of a little music thumping from below, and a little racoon humping in the trees out back, we have little to complain about. We live close to both Keele and Dundas West subway station. We can easily walk to High Park, Bloor West Village and the super cool Roncesvalle. There is an ally behind the house where all the street kids play and we have our own driveway!

2. How is Harry liking school?

He is LOVING it. We are just finishing up Week 2 and things are great. He likes his teacher, his class and has a new friend that actually lives next door. He is even eating the lunches we pack each day. Harry has been ready for school for a long time, so we are happy he is getting to soak up all the new stuff finally. I walk him to and from school each day (for the time being) and both boys enjoy that. There is a fall fair coming up and as parents, we could not be happier with how it turned out.

3. When is Michael going back to work?

Hey I am looking. I have been looking pretty hard for about three weeks or so. There is a lot out there and had some good interest. Again, I feel I am in a good spot to be picky. But the moving into the new place has moved the timeline up a bit. I am not that worried and it will be great when we are all out of the house during the day. I think Charlie is going to have the hardest time. He is a little hooked on his days home with dad.

4. What else is new?

Well we got new brakes on the car, ordered a new dishwasher for our place, cleaned up the back yard, found our new grocery store and of course figured out yet another daily routine. Harry’s birthday is next week and Charlie’s is in three weeks. Katie and I are going to Chicago at the end of the month for a long weekend (just us!).  I have been mostly unpacking, organizing and product managing a few things around the house like Rogers moving our modem and other apartment fix ups.

5. What happens when Michael goes back to work?

Well we are doing our best to keep a few daycares on the hook, so when it happens there will be spots to grab. We will need before and after school care for Harry and all day care for Charlie. Ideally they will be at the same place to make it easier. This part of the city is pretty competitive for spots, so wish us luck. It’s not even a matter of cost anymore, it is about finding a place. I am sure it will all come together, I just need to get the job first.

6. Do you miss the Danforth?

I do. It was a nice way to spend the summer. Staying at Katie’s parents place certainly helped us out a lot. I miss walking up and down the Danforth. I miss the Meat Dept. and I miss walking over to Withrow Park. The good new is with Katie’s parents there, we have a reason to go back a lot. So we have the best of both worlds at this point. I also miss the Greenwood Smokehouse.

7. Does Katie like her job?

The answer is yes. She once again feels challenged, stressed and appreciated and those are all good things. She is certainly busy, but that makes work fun right? The hours allow her to help in the morning and get home well before dinner. She seems to be making some good friends and getting right into this big city fundraising thing. I am not sure how it is going to go when I am back to work and we are both exhausted and still have to do a little thing called parenting. Besides, she better like it, it is the whole reason we are here in the first place ha ha.

8. How is Charlie?

The kid is a ham. He is not even two yet and he acts and looks like a three-year old. He is almost talking and has no problem running and never falling over. He loves playing in the ally with the big kids and at this rate will be riding a bike by Thanksgiving. We really want to get him back into daycare. His love of food is changing to mega-picky and that is not cool. He is building up his personality and spending way too much time tormenting his older brother. But he does enjoy the one-on-one time with me when Harry is at school. We go for walks, car rides, shopping and try to keep TV to a minimum. It is hard now though as it is right there when you walk in the house. He also has figured out how to turn it on, although I think Harry showed him.

9. Do we miss Halifax?

Very much so. But that being said, we love being back here. Toronto feels like home and is an amazing city to raise kids. I never saw it before, but there is so much to do and so many places to go. I can’t speak for Katie but I miss the ocean and the historic feel that the city had. I miss the friends we made and I miss going over a bridge to work. We will be back for a visit one day. I mean we need to show the boys where they came from right?

10. When can we get together?

Oh man, that is a hard one. The days are going by so fast. We now live close to many of our friends and it is still hard to try to see them. I am sure it will get easier once we are settled and summer plans are over. So if you want to do something, send us a message and we will work something out.