Expats become hoarders!!!

My girlfriend, Robin, used the hashtag #expatsarehoarders the other day and it is SO TRUE!!! We hoard lots and lots of goodies from the US that we cannot get in the Poland, that we long for all year long! :) Kidding - not all of the items were 100% needed - some were silly purchases, some I probably could find here in Poland (with a lot of searching), and some are just splurges - but it was so much easier to bring from US and fill some of our cravings while were are at our home away from home!

I had a lot of people ask me what we packed when I posted this pic of Andy with our SEVEN checked suitcases! So without further ado, here are so more details into our crazy expat hoarding life!

Let's back up to Spring 2017! As we knew we were coming back, I started ordering a couple things here and there that I knew we wanted to bring back to Poland with us AND some items that we would need during the summer during our 8 week stay that we planned to keep in the US (floaties for the kids, special toiletries, etc.).  This is what we arrived to at my parents house!

We arrived with FOUR suitcases originally and when Andy went back to Poland, he brought two suitcases filled to the brim with goodies - mostly items from our nutritional company - but also some medicines for the kids, hair spray for Reese's curls, some English books (this was before I discovered Book Depository), and powdered mac and cheese cheese! We sacrificed a lot of space for our yummy nutrition, but happily so because when you have the best of the best and you cannot get it in Poland (yet!), we make room for it!

This was one of his suitcases!
Top of the line protein shakes and kids' vitamins!

A new type of luggage we traveled with this trip was JetKids! These amazing contraptions not only allowed us to ditch the stroller in the airports, but also gave us a "bed" for the kids on the airplane.  If you have little ones and do a lot of traveling, they are a must for easy travel!

Now back to the goodies that we brought back to Poland with us! We traveled back to Poland with SEVEN checked bags and SIX carry ons and managed to fit all of it in our little/big Opel Zafira!!! It was amazing!

I held four carry ons plus groceries in the front seat with me!

Spreading out the luggage - ready to unpack!

Wowsa! Our unpacking scene!

And then when you have all items put away and realize you forgot a suitcase - sigh!

Every single bag of ours had a HEAVY tag on it! Ha!

One suitcase was all books! A lot of the books were purchased from Once Upon a Child for our English Montessori.  If you are looking for educational books, a used bookstore/child store is the place to go! They are usually in great condition and range in cost from $1 - $2.50.  We also brought back some fun books for our collection and some fun Usbourne purchases - again, before we found out about the online Book Depository.  We will probably never do this again, but it was fun to gift these books to our Montessori for the kids to enjoy!

This was a small carry on suitcase, but due to its weight, we checked it.

Books for our family!

The two piles on the right were for our Montessori.

We loaded up on a couple food items as well! We would have loaded up on some other items such as chili powder (the powder here is too spicy for me), cream of tartar (used with my yummy Snickerdoodle recipe), chocolate chips, etc., but we still had plenty left in our pantry from our original shipment and/or visitor deliveries. :)  Remember - we are now hoarders!!! To be honest, I originally thought we would have brought back more food items, but I am happy with what we brought back.

I have a couple friends with food blogs and after seeing them post about
some of their favs for the last nine months, I had to try these out! 

Press n Seal, kitchen scrubbers, dryer sheets, snack containers, silicone covers for bowls (to eliminate the
need for as much Press n Seal), blender balls for our shakes, Oxi Clean, Annie's fruit snacks, cookie scoop, fruit slicer (yellow item at the bottom), fruit and veggie covers, tuna (for tuna noodle casserole - YUM!) and green chilies.

More Isa goodies!

And lots and lots of shake canisters and protein bars! 

While in the US, I also determined the nursery theme - travel and adventure! These were just a couple goodies that we plan to incorporate into the nursery - many projects to come! :) I sure love Home Goods and Hobby Lobby!!!

Clothing items!!! We can fill most of our clothing item needs here in Poland, but there are a couple items that we just couldn't do without.  Not pictured below are some summer items that I ordered for the kids before we arrived, that they wore during the 8 weeks that we were there.  Andy and I both left summer clothing items behind at my parents for next summer, but unfortunately we cannot do that with the kids as they most likely will be wearing a different size next year.  AND I also got a fair share of clothing for myself at the Nordstrom's Anniversary sale! :)

Birthday shirt, shoes that fit the kids' wide feet, Carter's undershirts for B,
and princess nightgowns for Reese!

A couple pregnancy items and post pregnancy items for me! And a fun pair of shoes!

I also got a couple fun items for the baby - a new diaper bag backpack, swaddles, a carseat cover, a playmat, Wubba Nubs (of course) and items used for the gender reveal! 

We also brought back a lot of medications and toiletries that we cannot find in Poland OR that we can find a substitute for in Poland, but cannot read any of the ingredients, so we feel more comfortable using products that we have used and trust.

Our kids have sensitive skin and I have heard so many great reviews for this Tubby Todd line! 

Kids' items!

Some makeup items for me! I am trying out a new line of makeup - Maskcara!
I am loving it so far!

I also purchased a couple toy items for upcoming birthdays and Christmas that the kids expressed interest in.  For all of these, I double checked UK and Germany Amazon to see if I could get them and it was a lot cheaper for me to bring from the US.

Bath toys, watches, card holders, little army mean, Maui's hook and
items for Reese's Our Generation doll!

And electronics!!! I took advantage of the Amazon Prime Day sale and got an Echo and two Echo dots! I also got an iPhone 7 for the improved camera quality.  I take most of our pics with my phone and would love for the resolution and quality to be better than it was with my iPhone 6.  We also both got FitBit Charge 2s and wireless earbuds (Andy's Apple wireless earbuds are not pictured).

And the some random, silly purchases - items for our fairy garden, dry erase markers (steal of a deal on Prime Day...and a bit impulsive), Table Topics for couples, travel organizing bags, Scotch tape, Stretch Magic plastic string for kids' bracelets, Nerd jelly beans (how did I not bring back five more bags), no show Nike socks, door handles for the playhouse (we seriously could not find these in Poland), elastic workout bands, and two sleep masks. 

Phew!!! That was a lot of items! We will definitely handle things a bit different next summer when we come back, but I am beyond thankful that this purchasing phase is over.  It takes a crazy amount of time and effort to plan out purchases, research costs, foreshadow for potential future needs (especially with a baby coming), figure out what will fit and then actually pack it all! And then when it doesn't all fit, prioritizing what we should bring back and what we can leave until next summer.  My heart rate is already increasing just thinking about all of this again! 

A big thank you to our families and friends who helped receive packages this past Spring, then lugged said items to my parents' house, AND for those that provided items for us to use this summer during our stay (car seats, bikes and toys).  We greatly appreciate your help!!! Much love!

Now onto the summer summary post(s)! Such an incredible summer!!! Stay tuned!