Welcome to blog “Gshwankelkamp,” launching just two days before we (Jeff and Allison) jet off on our two-year German adventure with two canines in tow … well, technically cargo. And here we sit in the Residence Inn, just a mile from our old apartment, with bellies full of free chicken wings and iceburg lettuce salads.

After two 2 a.m. nights, we’ve cleared the apartment. Well, almost. Our movers have taken all they can, and now we’re left with the miscellaneous crap that you don’t really want to pack, but you don’t particularly want to take with you — with a heavy emphasis in the grocery department. Several half-eaten boxes of girl-scout cookies (we have those in the hotel already, not to worry), a Costco-size container of pre-washed spinach, and not a utensil to eat it with.

We’ve also got the random pile of shiz that still needs organizing — dozens of mismatched socks, hundreds of pens, lots of papers, and the clothes we kept adding to the “we can stuff that into one of our checked bags” pile.

So we’re off to attend to what remains of the apartment. Hopefully we’ll make it back for another disappointing episode of Grey’s Anatomy. Jeff’s favorite.

More to come.

—Allison