Apartment Maintenance Issues and Real Life

Last night was rough, and apartment maintenance issues and real life made sure I knew it.

I slept on my daughter’s twin mattress on the floor in the four year old’s room again, and I am officially too old for that. The second I laid down with her, she was out cold. I was not. My back, my hips, and my entire body were painfully aware that floor level sleep is not for me anymore.

Apartment Maintenance Issues and the Toilet Surprise

We found our first major problem Sunday night, and it was not subtle.

When the teenager flushed the main bathroom toilet, water came pouring out of the tank like someone turned on a sink. Not a drip. Not a slow leak. Straight up pouring. Since it was Sunday evening, we shut off the water to that toilet and told everyone to use the bathroom in our bedroom.

First thing this morning, I am reaching out to the landlord about these apartment maintenance issues. He seemed like a decent guy when we met him, so I am hoping this is a quick fix. Still, it is a little unsettling when your first week in a new place comes with a repair that serious. It is also a little off-putting to have to contact your landlord the first few days you’re in a new place to fix something. We don’t want him to think we nitpick every little thing.

Unpacking Progress

Even with the toilet situation, we got a lot done yesterday.

Most of the boxes in the living room are fully unpacked now. I connected the two couch pieces together and laid out the blankets we are using as makeshift covers, and it finally looks like a living room instead of a storage unit.

We also have some storage baskets tucked under the coffee table, which makes things feel less cluttered. And I love that coffee table. It is such a 90s throwback, one of those tables where the top lifts up and pulls toward the couch, with storage underneath. Since we still do not have dining chairs and our dining table is not put together, that table has been saving us. Eating meals is so much easier when the table comes to you.

Getting the Kitchen Working

I organized the kitchen a little more and it is starting to feel more functional, which I desperately needed.

We got some small shelving that I decided to use as a spice rack, and I set up the appliances like the coffee maker, the air fryer, and the actual fryer I got for Christmas. I am genuinely excited to try that fryer. I know it sounds silly, but little things like that help me feel like we are building a normal life again.

Somewhere in the middle of all of this chaos, I realized I am not just unpacking boxes. I am rebuilding routines.

The Toddler Room Is Done

The toddler’s room is finally finished.

Her carpet is down, her toys are organized, her clothes are put away, and her room actually looks like a kid’s room instead of a pile of stuff we dragged in. Our clothes are mostly hanging up in our bedroom closets now or folded on the shelves, which feels like a miracle after living out of bags for so long.

Of course, the toddler sleep situation is still a mess. New place means new struggles, and she is still awake as I am writing this.

Life Without Internet

It has been surprisingly weird not having internet.

I have not been on my computer at all since we moved in, and I did not realize how much we depend on being connected until it was gone. Right now I have two TVs running off my phone’s hotspot so the toddler can watch something at night and so we can watch grown up TV in the living room that is not Bluey or Paw Patrol.

Our internet box is supposed to be delivered tomorrow, and I cannot wait. I want to get off this mobile hotspot, and I want my computer back. I miss being able to sit down and just exist for a minute.

The TV at Bedtime Problem

Honestly, the TV in the kids’ rooms annoys me, especially for the toddler.

Back in 2022, when she and I went down to South Carolina for a month. When we came back to Ohio, we lived somewhere that she did not have a TV in her room; she got used to going to bed without a TV. When her dad and I moved back in together, he brought the bedtime TV habit back. Now it feels impossible to get her to sleep without it, and I hate that we are back here again.

That is going on the list of things we will work on once the dust settles or maybe I’ll just pick my battles, not sure yet.

Goodwill, Walmart, and the Help We Needed

Yesterday afternoon, his mom called and offered to take me out to get essentials. Plates, cups, bowls, little trash cans for the bathrooms, and other basics we still did not have. She picked up me and the toddler and we went to Goodwill and then Walmart.

We grabbed bath towels too, which we needed badly.

I tried to keep everything cheap because she already helped us cover the part of the security deposit we could not cover ourselves. I hate needing help, even when I am grateful for it. But I am learned that sometimes accepting help is part of surviving.

Tonight, Round Two

The toddler is still awake as I finish this, so it looks like I will be back on that twin mattress again tonight. On the floor. With a kid who sleeps like a tornado and kicks like she is training for the Olympics.

Between bruises from toddler feet and these apartment maintenance issues and real life changes, this week is not exactly peaceful yet.

But we are here. We are unpacking. We are getting it together.

And even when it is messy, I would rather be dealing with the issues in our own space than be stuck where we were before.

Question:

What is the most annoying “welcome home” problem you have ever dealt with when moving into a new place?