Well, now that the rain has finally excused itself, I am like a kid at Christmas looking forward to the pool and sun, sun, sun.No sun = depressed spirits around here, so I’m definitely not the only one.
We are going to Chicago at the end of the week, and everyone is so excited about it.Long weekend away, a new city … what’s not to love?Please let me know if you’re a Chicago expert, and tell us what we MUST see while we are there.
I’ve got another recession challenge coming your way.Matt and I had a night out at Dee Felice’s Café the other night, and since I was getting dressed up I was sure to put together another $20 outfit.Otherwise, who knows when I would get around to it.
Julia made a delicious Coconut cake this weekend, complete with a complicated icing.It involved cream of tartar and egg whites … need I say more?It actually didn’t turn out so well at first, so Matt jumped in and helped her make her mistake into a totally different kind of frosting.The results were wonderful, and she is quite proud of herself. (And so was Matt, who is quite the cook when he does it.)Ahhh … I love having older kids in the house!
Last night was THE fireworks party of our subdivision.Apparently this happens annually.Lots of money, lots of grown up little boys getting their kicks (including my hubby), and lots of new faces.We met a few nice people who are our neighbors, some who were not (relatives of the party-throwers), and everyone dutifully gave their unoriginal but still amusing reaction to the fact that we have SEVEN KIDS!!!!(Raise your eyebrows, drop your jaw, and step back … there, now you’ve got it down.)
My new bookshelves are still not up.I may tackle them today, and then I’ll put up some photos.Organized office = peace of mind.
Well, today we reenter the world of house hunting. We have been informed that the owners of this house want to put it on the market, and if they do not sell it they will move into it. We've known the part about them wanting to sell, but since they are going to price it HIGHER than they did last year, we figured we could take our time. Hmm ... guess not. He took a job here.
So at 4:30 we are going to look at a house down the street that is identical. Yes, I've given up on my dream of the 5 acres, for now. Five acres can't be easy to sell, so I don't want to make the mistake of buying it until we are at our final destination. Whether that will be here or in the Carolinas remains to be seen.
The house down the street is IDENTICAL to this one, except for some paint colors and the stove is in a different place. So we know it's big enough, we know and like the location, and so far no annoying kids to contend with. Yet. I know God will let us know the right move. He always does. He has always taken such good care of me. :-)
It's pathetic that I blog so little these days. I'm just so busy, and not really efficient at my time management. Being on a schedule would probably help me so much, but it's absolutely painful for my personality.
Here are some things I AM getting done:
School
Wonderful, healthy meals
House cleaning.
That's almost literally all I'm doing these days. I gotta live a little!
So tomorrow night I'm going out. In fact, I'll be out all day -- it's the Nutcracker with my big girls in the AM, then lunch then ... guess what? We are supposed to close on our house!!! I know, I know, I've said that before. I'll update you tomorrow.
After this weekend, it's a new start for me. I'm going to get myself on a better schedule, and try to say a few words to you now and again. It's not that I don't blog, it's just that it never makes it past my brain ... but I'm working on that.
Over the course of the next few days I will post some of the 120 photos I took at the park yesterday, both because there are too many for one post and because I will need something easy to post as I frantically search for a place to live. WE SOLD OUR HOUSE! But first about the park ...
We had a VERY last minute showing yesterday (pat us on the back for getting it together in very little time), so we headed to the park with our school books in tow. We ate a fast-food picnic, played, and did our school work on the most perfect day of the year. I took along my camera and experimented, with some fairly good results. This, of course, is not hard to imagine when you know how photogenic my kids are. But I am also quite proud of a few of my nature shots. Who knew, including me, that I had an interest in photography? It was such fun for me.
And now for the house news: Pat me on the back for forcing my family (kids in tears, husband in disbelief) to show the house in an hour and a half. Usually we get more notice than that; and keep in mind that life was not exactly normal around here due to the widespread power outtages that still persist. BUT ... get it ready we did, and within a couple of hours we had an offer. We've since countered and agreed on terms, and are still in a state of shock that we have to be out by November first.
Are you wondering why I've now made an announcement twice that we've sold our house? Well, the first contract is contingent upon the sale of their house, which is priced too high. Their contract was a beautiful thing: it did not cause our house to go "pending", in which case no one would take a second look at our place. The other great thing about it was that it was "sudden death" -- it required no notice to them if we accepted another offer. So we are in business with these new folks. Their only contingency is a contract that they are not "officially" out of due to a failed inspection (mere paperwork). Their house is sold, and they are impatient. Two houses they've tried to buy have failed an inspection, so they are ready to go. This also explains the expectation of moving in at closing.
Our heads are spinning, and we don't know what we are doing. Nothing out there seems to have all that we're looking for (3000 square feet or more, 5 acres, not UGLY, not out in the middle of nowhere ...) We might be forced to rent an executive home for a few months so that we are not pressured to "settle" simply because we're out of time. This is a good problem to have ... I'm not complaining. As I've said from the beginning, God will show us the way!
Want to know what's out there to rent for a family of seven? Much ... in a market like this.
And now for my beautiful family ...
Indian boy.
Mia the peanut.
Cute boys in cool tones.
Elena
Noelle in cool tones.
I know. She looks like Julie Z. I hear it all the time. :-)
Seriously, I can't believe your still even checking this blog. it's been nearly 3 weeks since I've posted and it only seems like a few hours. Time is flying by because I'm immersed up to my eyeballs in all things moving and school and potty training. Finishing school, that is. And not actually moving but trying to, that is. And gearing up for potty training, not actually starting the training, but it's crowding my brainspace.
Once we start living at the pool to avoid messing up the house, I'll have a harder time blogging but I've got a plan. You see, my philosophy goes this way: if i had a laptop, then i could blog EVERYWHERE and ... and therefore I need a laptop. Because you guys are THAT important.
But since I won't be getting a laptop, I'm just going to have to try to be a little more determined about regular updates. What good is it having a blog if I'm not going to keep it up a little better? I'll have to carve out a little time in between searching for new homes to say hello to my blog buddies.
First I'll start by giving myself a little accountability partner (that's you). I'll be posting photos of the rooms that I photograph to put on the MLS, and I need a little deadline. How about by Monday? Done.
Well, I think it’s only fair to tell you what has been going on around here during my silence …
I’ve lost my mind.
It’s a sad thing to most people, I know, but seriously I’m having a very good time while I’m (temporarily) insane.You see it all started with horseback riding lessons last fall.Horse fever hit very hard around here.And I thought it would pass …
And then springtime came, and two more kid had caught it.Now on a weekly basis we truck on down to the Carriage House Farms and Riverwind Stables to get our fix.
Now I’ve caught it.Well, it’s a different strain.I didn’t catch the I’ve-got-to-be-around-horses-every-second-of-the-day strain.I’ve caught the I-want-my-kids-to-have-and-be-around-horses-because-it’s-a-great-learning-opportunity strain. I blame it on my homeschooling sickness. My husband thinks I’m certifiable, and so I probably am.I mean, have you ever met a person who invites more work into her life than I?
Today there were kittens on the farm.Mia thought she had died and gone to Heaven. (Love that girl!) I can’t help it; when I was a little girl I used to own a Momma cat who had kittens, and when I look at the love and devotion on her face, I KNOW how she’s feeling.And I know that it will not fade; she simply will either learn to feed it or learn to starve it through lack of contact.
Did I mention that my husband thinks I’m certifiable?Yes, that corporate VP of Sales, who detests anything country or animal, probably also wonders what he has done to deserve to be married to this lunatic that wants to now own a family farm.
Yes I did say that.JUST A SMALL FARM, SWEETIE!I’m talking two horses, a few kittens, and maybe just a few chickens.Yes, I said chickens.Now don’t hold me to that, but who can resist these cute chicken coops?And free, fresh, organic eggs?And constant entertainment for the upcoming kiddos?
We’ll see what happens.He’s a stubborn man, but I happen to have him right where I want him (most of the time).The other day I was having second thoughts on the whole horse, mud, poop, stalls, winter thing, so I may chicken out (ha ha) before we ever get there.And did I mention that houses on farms kinda suck?Yeah, that’s not going to be easy for any of us to swallow – moving down just to get the land.But we could always renovate or build …
So that’s what is preoccupying my lately.There are a few other things, but there’s not enough big news in the other departments to warrant a whole post.Yet.Stay tuned.
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