Week 3: Cohabitation

This has become one of my favorite topics to share with you here in this space because I feel like my life has really changed since Dan agreed to live with me and began the move in process.

I've been getting a little flack about how I've called this series "cohabitation" - so I checked out the official definition and think we are closer to "living together in an intimate relationship" than "to dwell with one another, as different species of animals". I'm always happy to clarify!

We are beginning to see so much progress toward un-boxing his possessions and rearranging mine to make everything fit. We don't yet have complete access or ability to walk around the garage which is fine because it's too cold but we are planning to make great strides this weekend with hopes of inviting friends over to see the place on Superbowl Sunday. Countdown: 9 days.

First of all I think you'll get a kick out of this Bed Cartography that I spotted while browsing the internet this week - this is completely what Dan says that I do. While I'm a little embarrassed, I'm happy that it at least shows how much I enjoy being close to my sweetheart while I sleep and also how much I think sharing = caring.

It's been frigid here in Portland and I'm so thankful that Dan is from Chicago and knows his way around an ice frost covered car. I'm the person that will sit in my car and sacrifice being late to allow the defrost setting in the car to work magic. Dan prefers a hands-on approach and not only volunteers to do the scraping but he also upgraded to a better scraper and some anti-freeze spray for the next time we see these conditions.

No cold is too cold for the two of us and our ice cream habit though. We took the time over the weekend to sort bottles and cans to take into get our 5 cents per accepted container and walked away with almost a cool seven dollars. He volunteered to cash in the reward and assured me that he'd return with something that was worth our time spent in the claustrophobic can-smacking room. I have to agree - and he even had some loose change to spare! #NotCleanEating

We are even evolving with our communication skills regarding household chores! He started the laundry and while I was making dinner and I realized I could no longer hear the whirl of the washing machine in the garage. I put on 3 sweatshirts and risked getting frostbite to go swap the clothes into the dryer and even cleaned out the lint trap while I was at it. Is it just me or do boys not know about lint traps?

This weekend we made big strides in getting the "Beat Lab 2.0" set up for his entertainment pleasure. I never realized how much work went into setting up the audio/visuals for the man room but apparently 7 speakers requires 14+ separate cords and next time if we ever leave this setup will need a level and a tape measure because just eyeballing it is apparently an acquired skill. He's happily in here most of his evenings and encourages me to spend as much time as I need to write posts for the next day. It gives him more time to play!

In typical fashion we've been cooking up a storm even on nights where we didn't make it home until 9pm Why, intramurals, why? The new interchangeable plate grill I got us him for Christmas from the Sharper Image has really came through in some tough times and we're happy to have a fast acting grill for meats, panini's and hopefully pancakes this weekend!

^ Eaten while watching this week's Biggest Loser^

Another major project that we both worked on this past weekend and I still have more to get after this weekend was purging and donating gently used clothing to Brooke local middle school students as a base for the beginning of a wonderful clothing closet. It felt so good to get rid of things that were taking up space in my home and set them aside for others who will get great wear out of them. Even after packing up two boxes each we feel that we still have more than anyone really needs - we're especially sensitive to the amount of "stuff" after moving so much of it. Time to clear more space for pieces I truly love and continue to define my style even further.

We even stopped into the local pet store to see what Betta fish were there, but got sidetracked by oh-so-friendly Jackson who's taken a particular liking to my Dan. What is it about him that cause the ladies animals of all species to swoon?

And that commute I was worried about Dan hating? He's found ways to cope via use of his Slingbox app to watch local Chicago sports + ESPN coverage. We both have enjoyed our passenger time more than our driver time. That should change once we start to see more daylight on our commute!

I'm still pinching myself about how happy I am over this new step forward in our lives. I'm a lucky lady.

<3 JE

Week 2: Cohabitation

Week two of welcoming Dan into my home has been full of laughter, loud music, delicious meals and endless smiles.

Sunday was the big move with the U-haul and I think it was a very successful day with the help of his former roommate and two of their amazing friends. The boys stuck to the heavy lifting and navigating while I broke out the harsh cleaning chemicals and got to scrubbing down the old kitchen to prepare it for the move out. With some huge help from Mom, Dad and Bailey last night there's only a few minor touches remaining + some serious organization this weekend and I can happily announce that my wonderful boyfriend is 100% SE material.

Arguably the most exciting part of Dan's week was getting the cable switched over to the package with HD channels, DVR and high(er) speed internet. It came with a price though - he ended up being on the phone with Comcast help support for 4+ hours before he finally was able to talk to a very nice, patient, thorough and helpful agent who was able to resolve apparently the most obscure error that there is.

I learned that he's much more patient than I give him credit for. I also learned that if one of us needs to call comcast it should always be him!

While Dan was getting the cable and internet set up, I found this awesome cassette and started dancing around the room to Bust A Bucket. I don't think he found this an entertaining as I did while he was on the phone unplugging and re-plugging cords but it sure was a blast.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5pGfakssHc&w=420&h=315]

Plus! All of that moving his things and moving my body got me a recent high Fuel count!

We also had the chance to stop into IKEA over the weekend so I finally got the duvet to fit my self-gifted West Elm Organic Chevron Duvet Cover and gave Dan a tutorial on the only way to get the duvet properly in there. Of course you have to crawl in and really match up all of the corners, so he thought it would be a funny photo opportunity...

The food that we've been cooking together has been out of this world! He previously lived in a 3-story town home with a roommate who also had a girlfriend and the kitchen was unfortunately on the main level where they would also sit down to relax and watch TV. I don't know if Dan felt the same, but I always felt nervous about clanking around pots and pans, spending too much time in their space (even though it wasn't private space per-say) and being a nuisance. Now though - our kitchen is all for us and only us! We know if a dish wasn't put away it was one of us and we have a better communication schedule about whether the dishes in the dishwasher are clean or dirty! Some food favorites have been:

^ Quinoa, eggs, mushrooms, broccoli, sriracha and assorted lowfat cheeses scramble^

^Red potatoes, veggie medley and grilled chicken hearty meal^

^Dinner with mom at Laughing Planet - the Cuban Bowl!^

^Waiting for Take-Out at Tom Yum Thai post 5 mile run^

I am really looking forward to some loud music and focused cleaning by the both of us this weekend to get his belongings unboxed and everything in its place. Thanks to everyone for being so supportive of our move together!

<3 JE

Week 1: Cohabitation

Everyone has been asking me how the first week of Dan's big move has been going. I won't lie - I'm really enjoying the addition of my best friend into my living space.

He is slowly moving carload by carload into his new bedroom and simultaneously realizing how much he forgot that he owns while we find ways to integrate what I have and has been sufficient for me + what he has and where we can substitute.

I instantly recognize that in the past week I'm better about waking up on time and getting ready with more of a jump in my step so that I don't make us late in the morning. I don't hit the snooze nearly as many times but I still find it comforting to set a few six alarms to make sure that I don't snooze till noon... because it happened once upon a time.

I enjoy sharing the East side, grocery shopping for two, having our 'how was your day' conversations on the ride home instead of over dinner, leaving sticky note messages for him on the bathroom mirror, thinking about how we will decorate once he's all moved in and calling this house a home.

He enjoys a Subway within walking distance, a 24 hour Safeway he can see from his window, Texas sized sushi (with a wait) and making me the happiest girl by sharing his time with me.

A few questions I've been fielding:

• Are we getting in silly stress-related fights? Not at all! I feel that we are both on our best behavior and presenting our no-worry attitudes.


• Are we sharing house responsibilities? We've both loaded/unloaded dishes, done loads of laundry - we even have Saturday plans to sort through some recycling since it starts to pile up in this house! Maybe a chore calendar is in the works?


• How much does he hate the commute? It's too early to call. Poor weather, cold & dark mornings and adjusting to an earlier schedule are all things that can make anyone a little grumpy. I can admit that I'm looking forward to when we get a little more light in the day so that the route is more scenic. April/May...!


• Can he cook? Yes, he can cook and he enjoys cooking - sometimes though I can find him suggesting cereal for dinner!


• Are you driving together? We have been carpooling and it seems to be working out great so far! I don't miss the lack of a car and it has forced me to plan ahead better so that I don't have the choice to leave work for a bite to eat. 

And it sounds like he’s been getting some of the same questions!

I think his biggest worry is not being able to watch all of his channels and that his DVR recordings are piling up with nobody to watch them. Maybe that's some time we can set aside this weekend during the rest of the packing.

The big furniture move begins at 8am Sunday morning where I will try to be as helpful as I can, which may mean just staying out of the way and making sure that the boys are fed and surfaces are getting cleaned.

Dan said my duties are “supervising and looking pretty”. Got my movin’ day outfit planned!

<3 JE