Holy expensive.

So today I went out in search of a cheap, expandable baby gate not for the baby but for the dogs. They don't jump over gates and for the first couple of weeks after the delivery - I don't want the dogs in the bedroom because then they'll think they can dominate the baby like a puppy.
I only have one set of doors to the bedroom from the kitchen and there isn't a door from the bedroom to the hallway/living room (see "Virtual Tour" video).
We had looked before in the grocery stores and they didn't sell them unfortunately - and the baby store we went to today sold them at a wonderful price of 63 Euros. (1 Euro = approx. $1.50 CDN - but we don't convert anymore since we'll be living here for 3-4 years)
The 63 Euros gate was white, wooden and the dogs could've probably nudged it over easily. The more expensive ones - were approximately 79E and if you needed more length (which we did) - then you had to pay extra for the longer attachment. Per attachment was approximately 15-25E a piece!!
Needless to say - I didn't go with a gate.
I saw a play pen on sale for just under 40E and figured it was the right length and when the baby was rolling around - it'd be handy to have if I was doing dishes etc. So now we have a play pen set up and we tested it on our dogs by blocking a door way and they cannot get past it. They won't try to jump over it or jump in it - they just merely sit there crying or walking back and forth trying to find a crack they can wedge in between.

Onto other things - I had seen an ad on Tori for an electric kettle and I emailed the fellow 1/2 hour after he wrote me (it was for 7E - couldn't find a better deal) - and once I got home I checked my email to see that I was "too late" apparently. WHAT A JERK. I am very upset about not getting the kettle - as kettles here are ridiculously expensive. Electric ones go for at least 50E and I haven't seen any stove-top ones to be honest.

On the flip side - I now have a few rugs to decorate the flat some more, a rocking chair and a stand on loan from some friends. The dogs love the rug - so maybe I'll be able to knit on the couch without having to sprawl my legs over/under/sideways on my dogs. We shall see.

Tonight's menu is reindeer stew over mashed potatos- hopefully I can cook it right!!