Death House, I wish!

My friend commented that the last time she moved they called it the death house, because they would rather die than have to move again. Well, after this move, I feel the same way. The only problem is that I know that we are only here for 13 months. Arrhg! This move has been one of the worst (and I have had many). Maybe it is because we finally have nice furniture to try to move. The fact that we moved to the furnished place and left our stuff for 7 months didn't make it any easier.

We couldn't go down for the move, so Tami and Jared were kind enough to drive over to meet the movers, but they couldn't stay the whole time. The movers came in a huge 18 wheeler that didn't fit in the driveway, so they "shuttled it" (rented a U-haul to load at the house and then reload into their truck). A pain? Yes. But the worse was yet to come. They only loaded half our stuff! The day before they were supposed to arrive, the company called and said they didn't have room for the garage items, they were going to load them the same day they were delivering our 1st load. No big deal, just the garage stuff. Except it was the garage stuff AND our piano, two couches, dresser, computer desk, TV, TV stand, and leather chair. That means all we have been shuttling our 19 inch TV up and down the stairs to watch in the family room during the day and our bedroom at night. Sitting on the floor because we had no couch. So, Tami and Jared drove over again to clean after the 2nd load and (surprise!), they had still missed our TV, a little recliner in our bedroom and all Peter's saws. And there were little toys, books and clothes scattered all over the house. The moving company is still trying to find someone to take the last load (no explanation why they didn't finish or why they left the door wide open with the air blasting). We are required to hold renters insurance (who wouldn't want it anyway) and liability and the day I went to sign the papers, State Farm gave me a "never-mind-we-can't-insure-because-of-the-home's- location." I had to scramble to find someplace the would insure me and it cost 50% more than State Farm's initial quote. The 1st lady we rented from thinks we should pay her another month's rent (she thinks the lease ended in May even though it was June). It took 12 hours to clean the old place after we left (this included moving all the furniture and beds to mop and sweep under- 10 beds and at least as many huge rugs and dressers). This was on Kirsti's birthday and the day before Father's Day. Couple that with the phone company managing to take an extra week to turn on the phone and internet, made for a stressful move. Did I mention Peter's only days off those two weeks were the day we cleaned for 12 hours and Father's Day?

Now the up side-

• My NC neighbor was kind enough to notice the door and turned down the air and shut it for us (if you see this, thanks April!)
• Our 2nd load came yesterday and we have most of our things.
• To make up for the missing TV, we bought a 50 inch plasma
• I finished unpacking all the boxes from the first load!
• I wasn't tempted to play on the computer or watch TV- that is how I got everything unloaded
• When I got super stressed, all I had to do was walk outside and sit by the ocean for a minute :)

So with the kids finally out of school and being nearly settled in the new place, I am ready to get back into a routine. This week I hope to catch up on some missing posts. Expect posts on the last day of school, Kirsti's birthday, Father's Day, and my projected summer routine and projects. Summer has begun!

We're back!

If it seems as though we fell off the face of the earth for a while, it is because, technologically speaking, we did. Due to AT&T typoing the date to reconnect or phone twice, we didn't get our phone (and thus DSL) till yesterday. I can't take too long to post, it is the kids first day of summer and they are dying to take some turns online (I am not the only one to go through withdrawals!) Anyway, we are at the new house (with only half our furniture, but that is another story all together) and yesterday I finished unpacking the last box. Now I just have to put it all away! I always try to be done in a week and I am counting from the last day we were in the old house (which gives me until Saturday night). So I will be busy for the next couple of days. Then things should get back into a routine.

I am such a Sucker

So with the move and everything, I have A LOT to do everyday. Which is why I told Kirsti I couldn't come on her field trip. This morning, she begged again. And I told her, "No." I explained I had to go grocery shopping. I explained that the beach costs money to get enter. I explained that I had to switch the phone and Directv to the new house. I explained all our belongings have to be moved to the new house and this house must be cleaned with just a few days left. I explained why I was too busy to chaperone her field trip. After I dropped her off, I started thinking. Does it matter if I do the shopping in the morning? Am I really too cheap to pay the $5 entrance fee? The beach they were going to is only 3 houses away from our home. How long goes it really take to make a few phone calls? Is it fair that I went to Ethan's field trip and skip hers? And then the kicker; her bus drives by the same time I am getting the kids ready to walk out the door. As Matthew waved madly at the bus and I could see her waving inside, I decided. I threw the boys into the stroller and headed for the pedestrian entrance. To my frugal joy, the gates were open but they weren't yet collecting the entrance fee. And the look on Kirsti's face was priceless when she saw us walk up the boardwalk. They played at the beach, the water area, and had ice cream cones and we were done by 12:30.

And now for the rest of the day- it was hot so I sat down to cool off and write my shopping list. I also swapped my boys' sandy, ice creamed clothes for clean ones. By the time I was done and headed out it was 1. I got 1/2 way to the store and stopped at McD for some lunch. While sitting in the drive through, I went to grab my wallet only to realize I had taken it out and left it in my camera case for the field trip. I had enough cash for dollar sandwiches, but not enough time to go home for the wallet and still go shopping. Now it is 1:30 and I spend the extra hour cleaning (aka taking a nap). Pick up the kids, kiss Peter good bye (still on nights), make the needed phone calls, and start cleaning out the 3rd floor. Remember, it is 90 degrees and this house has no air. The good news is I must have lost 5 pounds in sweat. I finished completely cleaning out the top floor with just enough time to run our belongings from that floor to the new house, load it into the right rooms, grab dinner (McD's twice in a day), and get to cub scouts on time (aka 20 minutes late). I enjoyed sitting in the air conditioned church for that hour. Now we are home. Now all I have to face is completely cleaning the house tonight and shopping and cleaning out the 2nd floor tomorrow (no biggie, right?). Isn't moving fun (and the look on Kirsti's face was STILL worth it)?

A long week

So this has been a very eventful week. Not only was there the usual housecleaning, errands, and running after kids; but also lots of fun with moving and end of school year stuff.

Joseph had his final playgroup. We had gone a lot before our trip to North Carolina, but hadn't been back since. Out of the blue, Joseph asked if we could go to his playgroup this week. When I looked into it, I found out it was the last one before summer! I even took Ethan (who was home sick and forced to sit on the couch the whole time)

We got the keys to the new place. The owners did a walk through and showed us how the heat worked and all the little quirks of the house. There are so many light switches in the house, I pulled out my label maker and labeled them all! So far I have brought over 3 suburban loads of stuff over to the house.

My car died. I got in to run errands Tuesday and the engine wouldn't turn over. Luckily, my friend Heidi was kind enough to drive over and help me jump start it. I had never actually jump started a car before, but thanks to Google and my owner's manual, I was able to get the cables on right and nothing exploded. After looking back, I don't think it had been driven since the Wednesday before and I had every cigarette outlet hooked up with some kind of electronic charger. I must have drained the life right out of the battery.

I forgot to mention this before, but we were home sick last Sunday (2 throwup-ers). That helps explain why the suburban hadn't been driven. Also, Peter was able to drive the kids to school on his way out every morning and I had been walking with the little ones to pick them up after school. I guess trying to exercise and conserve gas has some drawbacks!

Peter was able to chaperone Elise's field trip to 6 flags on Thursday. It made his schedule a little more difficult (aka 6 night shifts in a row including the night of the field trip). He surprised me, though, and had gotten a friend to take the Thursday shift so he could go to pack meeting with us (and not be forced to stay awake an entire 24 hours). Pack meeting was a lot of fun. They did some track and field events and Ryan placed in several categories! I raced Peter on hurdles. I tripped on the 1st one and spent the race laughing on the ground. That's right, he won (even though I made him carry Joseph and Matthew to "make it fair").

Peter called me while Elise and her friend were on a ride. When I asked him how he wanted to handle his sleeping schedule for the week, he told me he had switched out that night's shift. "Why didn't you tell me before?" I asked with relief. "I wanted to surprise you." The funny thing is, this is our idea of a romantic surprise. A "you don't have to drag all the kids to pack meeting alone or worry about them being to loud in the afternoon while I'm trying to squeeze in a pre-work nap" surprise. It was better than flowers!

Saturday was Peter's work picnic. Peter woke up early (12:30- remember he is on nights this week) and we went to this dinosaur park place. They had a water area that was a lot of fun and everyone ended up with a sunburn (even though we used sunblock!)

Thanks a bunch to Tami and Jared, they drove over to the house in NC to be there when the movers showed up Saturday. Hopefully by this weekend, all our belongings will be in Connecticut! Turns out , moving is stressful, even 12 hours away. Maybe next week I will be up for sharing the whole ordeal they went through for us. Tami and Kim (and their hubbies) have been immeasurable help to us while waiting to sell our house. Thanks guys!

Today was regular Peter-not-there stress. I only had two sunbeams today and (for the 1st time) they were both singing and participating. That is a huge hurdle! Hopefully, it wasn't a fluke! Anyway, next week promises to be equally busy with field days, field trips, school musicals, moving, and whatever else happens to come our way. Better go to bed and start out refreshed!

Hello House

Well, the lease has been signed, the utilities called, the movers scheduled and we should be in our new home by next week. Pretty exciting? The moment we walked through the door, Peter and I both knew this was the right place. For the next 13 months, this will be our home:

Withdrawals?

As most of you know, I am a creature of habit. Deeply, deeply, ingrained habit. After a lot of work, I was able to kick the worst of my to-do habits (i.e. writing something on after I finished it just so I could cross it off) and schedule regiments (having 6 kids made that more than difficult). In fact I don't always use a to-do list and keep to a loosely held schedule that I write down some weeks and just follow others.

Even though I don't always write it down anymore, and don't schedule my days down to the quarter hour anymore, I still hold to pretty strong routines. From the order I clean the house to the way I fold the laundry it is always done the same. And there is one routine that is as deeply ingrained as initials cut into a tree: when I do my shopping. For the last 12 years, I have always shopped on Mondays. Sure, I may skip a Monday holiday or happen to be sick, but I bet I could count those exceptions on my hands (maybe I would have to borrow a few toes, too!). In fact, last summer I brought all 6 kids with me (instead of waiting for a time when Peter was home and could help out).

Well, starting last week (Monday holiday, remember?) I have decided to throw caution to the wind and change my routine. One whole day. That's right, I am going to try to move my shopping day to the less busy, better stocked Tuesday. That way I can do my housecleaning Monday and shopping Tuesday and have two cleaner house days. The problem? I think I am in withdrawals. I feel jittery. Not myself. Things just feel out of sorts. From Peter asking me to pick something up when I went out to making sure the kids didn't finish off the food this weekend because it has to last one more day, it feels off-kilter. But I am determined. My to-do list today includes mopping and scrubbing, not grocery lists and bagging. How long will it take to erase a 12 year schedule? I guess I am about to find out!

How we celebrated

If you saw yesterday's post, you realize it was a sort of holiday here. So how did we celebrate?

• Matthew threw up his breakfast and had to be bathed;


• Joseph tried to cut watermelon by himself and sliced his thumb (4 stitches);
• Matthew decided to wash his own hair and I found him walking down the hall, rubbing shampoo into his dry hair (it took forever to rinse it out and that could count as his 2nd bath- sink shower- of the day);


• I came in the bathroom and found that Matthew had taken off his diaper, climbed in the tub, pooped, climbed out, picked up his diaper and came downstairs (this is my supposition anyway since he had come down from his nap several hours before carrying his diaper and I can't figure out where it came from otherwise)- note this is a 3rd bath - waterless this time - of the day;


• I had to gather the garbage so I didn't forget garbage day like last week (which means it was overflowing);


• I gathered the laundry (one of those weeks where laundry didn't get sorted and put away before the next laundry day)
• I made a new brownie recipe and it was delicious!

A perfect celebration of what it means to be a mother. Of course for every trial a mother has, there is always a blessing (if only you look):

• Matthew was feeling sick all day (more fever and lethargy than stomachy). He took several naps, which left me time to get complete my cleaning to-do list. When he was awake, he didn't fuss, just climbed on my lap and cuddled. That left me time to finish the book I was reading (for which there wouldn't have been time otherwise). It was a very peaceful feeling to sit and rock my baby.


• When Joseph cut himself, Peter was able to come home immediately and stitch him up. While I sat (forcibly held) him on my lap, Peter expertly and swiftly numbed and stitched, and Joe and I talked about how this was Daddy's job: to help those that are hurt. It actually turned into a nice discussion of our gratitude for Daddy. As I held his head away from Peter's working and his unhurt hand down, stroking his cheek to keep him calm, he fell asleep in my lap.
• I caught Matthew with the shampoo right after it happened and before the shampoo dried and/or spread throughout the house.


• The garbage actually fit in the garbage can. This is near miraculous since we fill it up every week and this was two weeks worth!


• Gathering laundry only took one trip up and down the stairs (another near miraculous event!)


• There was nothing good about the poop in the tub, just nastiness. I guess it was good it somehow only stayed in the easy-to-clean tub instead of being stepped in and smudged all over the floors?
• We are trying to lose weight, so making a new brownie recipe works against our goal. Wait. Is that a blessing? Guess I got mixed up on this one, the blessing was at the top and the trial down below!

So my day of celebration was some of the best and worse of what being a mom is all about!

Celebration

Today is a day of great celebration.

I know everyone is pulling out their decorations and firing up the grill. What is this day, you ask? Surely you are going to celebrate. It is 15 weeks before Matthew turns 2! Surely you all know what this means. I cannot be the only one counting down the days. Going to bed giddy and excited like it was Christmas Eve. What, you DON'T know what that means? I can't believe no one remembered:

Today is the LONGEST period of time, since my marriage 12 years ago, that I have gone without being pregnant!

1 3/4 years ~ 20 1/2 months ~ 89 weeks ~ 626 days.

I love all my children and have looked forward to them being here, but I hate every second of being pregnant. That is why today is such a happy one for me. So put on your party hats and come be happy for me today!

Poor Unfortunate Soul

Poor Ethan always reacts strongly to poisons. When he got bit by fire ants a couple years ago, the sores didn't begin to heal for a month. (They crawled down his soccer socks before he noticed it so his legs were practically eaten alive). Well somehow he got into posion oak or some other plant during our trip to the park last week and the rash is still coming to the surface. He looks so greatly disformed, Peter broke down and got him some steroid medication to help stop itching (and therefore scratching) the rash. This picture was on memorial day, today (the 1st day of the steroids) it is starting to go down a little! Poor guy, always gets huge reactions from stuff like this. They were all playing by the lake and he is the only mutant.

Happy Memorial Day!

We had a great memorial day. It was finally warm enough to wear shorts and enjoy Ritas. We had two BBQ's. The first one was with our realestate agent that got us the rental we're in now and the one we are signing for. She is engaged to one of the hospital management that Peter works with regularly. While there, we met the people who own the house we're leasing and they were very nice. To quote them, "we only had 5 kids." Only? Anyway, looks like we're moving in the first week in June! The second BBQ was at a friend's from church. The kids were running a little wild by then, but it was a lot of fun. Having brought my camera to both places, I took no photos (but I did get some of us playing with sparklers before bed time).

You know it has been a good day when your baby looks like Matthew by the end of the day (you should have seen his feet)!