Our First Week in Madrid

Our first week in Madrid is coming to a close. Brendan started his new position on Monday...he'll have to write an update on that...but things are pretty busy for him since he is transitioning from one position in his company to another. We are still in a temporary apartment (see video in previous post) and it is very small! Charlotte's Pack n Play is set up in the dining room/kitchen area...not an ideal living situation.

We went apartment hunting with a relocation company last Friday and looked at numerous apartments. Thankfully, we found more than one that would work for us, so we'll be moving into our permanent apartment in Madrid towards the end of February. We found a place that is fully furnished so moving & settling in should be pretty easy. It is in a great area of town...Brendan will be able to walk to work (about a 15 min walk) and their are numerous small stores and park areas nearby. What sold me on the place was the tea and chocolate shop next door! Although Brendan told me not to spoil myself there!

Charlotte has finally gotten back to her normal sleep schedule - yeah! She's actually sleeping longer at night, but I think that might be because we have blackout shutters on our windows so none of us know when it is morning and time to wake up! She's seemed to go through some changes since we've been here - we think partly because we've moved and she's in a new location/culture/etc but also because she's probably going through a growth spurt. She struggles with taking naps during the day - she did this before but now thinks she needs to be in someone's arms in order to sleep. :( While I love cuddling with my girl, I don't want her to make it a habit plus it makes it difficult to get anything else done. This is getting better though...as I type this she is taking a nap in her Pack N Play! Another big change has been her baby chatter. Brendan mentioned earlier this week that he didn't think she was "talking" as much, then out of nowhere on Wednesday she started babbling like we'd never heard her do before. Brendan did an "interview" with her that we'll get posted over the weekend.

Charlotte and I have found a few mercados (grocery stores) and have done some exploring so that I can figure out what I can cook here. I've used my Spanish/English dictionary to figure out what some items are...and I think I'll just steer clear of some items! It has been interesting to figure out how to use household appliances in another language - and measuring system.

We found a good Mexican restaurant - surprising, I know - but I am kinda struggling with the different times that people eat here. Lunch is around 2pm, then tapas after work around 6-7ish, and dinner is not until around 9 or 10pm. Obviously this doesn't mean that we have to eat that late, but the frustration is that many restaurants close during our normal dinner hours (5-8pm). We are slowly finding places that are open during this time. Just another cultural change we'll adjust to.