Not Sold Yet

So the closing that was supposed to happen today is NOT happening due to a paperwork snafu on the buyer's end. The buyer's loan is approved, but all the paperwork for the down payment program has not been completed, so it looks like we'll be closing next week instead. Found out last night that this was a possibility, found out at 1:45 today that it was reality. Gee, I am so glad we emptied the house, got our cats to their foster homes and worked like dogs earlier than we actually needed to. Grrrr. I'm trying not to stress too much about it all. Our realtor doesn't seem concerned and I trust him (but you can keep the prayers coming anyhow)

Our first night at Grandma and Grandpa H's went really well. I got most of the kids clothes unpacked and put away, as well as enough of my stuff so I could find things and effectively get ready for work this morning. Well, mostly effectively. I did something horrible to my back when I reached for the shampoo in the shower this morning and now I can barely move. Sitting is fine, but trying to walk to maneuver stairs literally brings tears to my eyes. I'm not sure I'll be able to help clean at the old house (I love typing that) tomorrow, but I hate leaving it all to Duane.

Anyhow, back to this morning. Wesley is completely sold on our move to Grandma's neighborhood. He's so much closer to school and his friends now - we even ran into one of his classmates at Target last night. When he and I walked out of the house to go to school, Wesley looked around, smiled and said, "I can't believe we get to live in this neighborhood!" My thoughts exactly! 

He and I are both loving the new drive to school too. It takes almost no time to get from Grandma's (and also the new house) to the school - barely one ear-splittingly annoying Kidz Bop song worth of a drive. Wesley actually did a double take when we pulled up in front of the school. "We're here already?"

Ryan seems to be settling in a bit as well. He loves sharing a room (but no longer sharing a bed) with Wesley and has already figured out exactly where his stuffed animals should sit during the day and where his piggy bank should go. I think he feels better with some of his stuff around him.

I think I'll feel better after the closing and we're offically, totally and completely sold.

Bye House

The boys said goodbye to our house today. Wesley did fine with it, but Ryan had a bit of a rough morning. I started to walk out of the bedroom while Ryan was getting dressed and he flipped out, "No! You have to stay! Don't leave!" Um...okay... Then Ryan had a second melt down when we couldn't find his stuffed cat, Elvis. And there were more tears when I had to tell him that Sanders was going to live at the vet until we get to the new house and then he'll come home to us. "But I love him!"

He had a bit of a rough morning at school too. I know I he'll settle down, but its a big adjustment for him. Heck, it's a big adjustment for us all. But we'll get there.

Nearing the Next Adventure

We are just about moved out of our current house. Most of the furniture is gone, the dishes are packed and the pantry is empty. We'll finish the odds and ends and move the rest of the furniture on Saturday. It's really happening!

I feel kind of bittersweet about leaving our house. Not that I don't want to move, I've wanted to move since Wesley was born, but this has been a great house for us. The happiest 8 years of my life have been spent here. The boys were babies here. There are a lot of good memories. I know we'll make new ones, but this will always be our first house.

Our cats are moving to their temporary homes too, and although its necessary, I'm battling quite a bit of guilt about it. I'm worried they'll feel abandoned and that they'll think we don't love them anymore. I'm already worried about Gus and how he's adapting tonight. Sadie and Sanders go tomorrow and chances are good I'll shed a few tears. Especially about Sanders. Even though he'll be close by and I can go see him every day, I'm going to miss him so much. He's been with me through several moves. He slept next to me every night when my first marriage fell apart and gave me kitty kisses when I cried. He's my first boy.

People keep asking me if I'm worried about moving back in with my parents for a little over a month. I'm not. We all get along really well and spend a ton of time together anyhow. I do kind of giggle about my poor stepdad though. I lived at home until I got married the first time, moved back home when that marriage fell apart and stayed until Duane and I got married. Now I'm back again - this time with my hubby and kids. And when we move out this time, we're literally moving around the corner! Good thing we love each other! :-)

I may not get back to the blog for a couple of days. Hang in there with me, ok?

Still Feeling Thankful

You may have noticed that I haven't posted anything in a few days. It's been extra busy around here. Wesley was sick for several days prior to Thanksgiving, then we had the holiday itself, and now the first step of our move is upon us.

Despite all the craziness, this year has really brought home how much I have to be thankful for.

- for my boys. Parenting is so hard sometimes, especially when their world is being torn upside down, but Wesley and Ryan light up my world and my heart. They drive me crazy and make me laugh.

- for my amazing husband who keeps me afloat.

- for our house finally selling. I had nearly given up hope that we'd be able to move into a better neighborhood, but it's actually happening.

- for Cheryl, who helped my family out when we needed it most and for not letting distance get in the way of friendship. 25 years of friendship and counting!

- for Judy, whose patience and love helped turn a seven-year-old's day around.

- for the abundance of food our family prepared and sent home with us so we don't have to cook this week.

- for Mom W., who spent the day with the boys during the first day of moving craziness and for her prayers and patience in all things.

- for Doug, and Rick & Sasha for fostering Gus and Sadie while we are between houses.

- for Kirk and Ray for helping move four truckloads of stuff in 35 degree weather during the OSU/Michigan game.

- for Susan, for keeping the house going that evening and giving me a shoulder to lean on.

- for my parents, without whom we honestly wouldn't be able to move.

- for Craig and Pam, for storing stuff, climbing in our attic and being amazing friends and offering incredible support.

- for Monica, who is the best, most understanding supervisor and makes my job a joy.

And here's the incredible part: This list barely scratches the surface of people I am thankful to have in my life. It doesn't include my other family and friends who have offered help, a hug, a kind word when I needed it and abundant prayers. It doesn't include the coworkers who make work fun and a place of acceptance and smiles.

Life really is good - just a little crazy right now.

I can't promise regular posts this week (obviously) as we get into full moving mode. We have to out of our current house in a week, and while we've done a lot, there's still a lot to do. We are planning to be in Grandma and Grandpa's by about Thursday, we close on the sale of our current house on Friday and plan to spend Saturday cleaning so the new owner can just move right in.

Such an exciting time is approaching, and even though I'm sure I'll be tempted to pull my haircut several times, I am so thankful.

Bubble Boy

I know I have mentioned before that Duane and I tend to shelter the boys. We really monitor their television and friends. I know it can't last, but I want them to stay kids for as long as possible. Sometimes it becomes very apparent how sheltered and lucky our children are.

A couple of weeks ago Wesley asked why, if Grandpa P. is my dad and Grandma H. is my mom, don't they live together. I explained that when Uncle Kirk and I were little, Grandpa P. and Grandma H. were married, but that they got divorced. Wesley accepted that answer, but a heartbeat later he said, "What's divorced?"

I decided to keep it simple and told him that it's when you were married to someone, but you aren't anymore. He was fine with that answer, but it made me wonder how he'll react when he discovers my little skeleton in the closet (ie my first marriage.)

I had a similar moment of realizing how sheltered and lucky my kids are tonight. Wesley and I are watching "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" as I type this. We were watching the scene where Charlie gives part of his first pay to Grandpa Joe so he can by tobacco. "What's tobacco?" Wesley asked me.

"It's what is inside cigarettes," I told him.

Once again, I was equally happy and perplexed when he asked, "What's a cigarette?" And it occurs to me, he doesn't know anyone who smokes.

Living in a bubble? Maybe. But I don't know that it's a bad thing.

Scratch That

The boys received a couple of pre-Christmas gifts from their Uncle Doug the other night. Wesley is now the proud owner of a new Hulk t-shirt and a very cool Crayola art kit. Ryan received a toy gun that shoots foam balls and he has barely put it down since opening it. Sounds great, right?

Well, it was great. For about 12 hours. That's how long it took for Ryan to want what Wesley had.

In Wesley's defense, he tried be kind. He pulled out the big shoe box FULL of crayons and markers that he has been referring to as his "art box" for weeks. Wesley selected a black marker and wrote "For Ryan" across the top. "Here Ryan," Wesley said. "You can have all of these and you can keep them forever."

Ryan looked at the box, looked at his brother and selected his own black marker. He crossed out the words "For Ryan" and (with a little from Daddy on the spelling) wrote "For Sale" across the top of the box.

Guess we know how he feels about Wesley's art box hand me downs.

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did not tell my sick child that if he ran past the bathroom and vomited in the laundry room one more time, he'd be cleaning it up himself no matter how sick he was.

I did not allow both my children to put their pajamas on at 1:30 in the afternoon so we could snuggle on the couch and watch a movie together.

I did not rush through a storytime I was doing at a preschool just so I could be finished with my program and out of the building before the school had a scheduled fire drill.

I know I didn't go downstairs and wake my husband (who was sleeping couch) and ask him to come upstairs and clean up vomit on the bathroom floor because I was too grossed out to do it myself.

You Know You Are Getting Ready to Move When

• You can't find anything in your house because it's been packed away somewhere.
• Something as simple as filling out an emergency contact information form at work becomes incredibly complex because you don't know which address to put down - the one you will be living in for less than two more weeks, the address you will be living at for 36 days, or the address of the house that will be your property on Dec. 10th, but that you aren't able to live in until January 5th.
• Your kids keep asking if it's time to go live at Grandma and Grandpa's yet.
• Your meals consist of things you dig out of the freezer, leftovers, or odds and ends from the cupboards that you are trying to clean out.
• You have decided that your kids are going to have to share a bed for a week and might end up in sleeping bags on the floor so you can get their beds moved into storage.
• Your friends are avoiding your phone calls/texts/emails for fear you will ask for help with moving (just kidding on this one)
• You have accepted the fact that you are going to eat off paper plates and with plastic utensils for about a week so you can get the dishes packed.
• The computer starts acting up just enough that you wonder if it's worth trying to fix before moving it to storage.
• Your cats become extremely affectionate in hopes you take them with you when you move (and the accompanying guilt you feel that two of them will be in foster homes for 36 days)
• You refuse to think about Christmas shopping until you are in your temporary address because you don't want to have to pack and move gifts too.
• Your blog posts become sporadic and rambling.

This is a Day Off?

I was off work today, which turned out to be a blessing since Wesley is still sick. Of course, a bigger blessing is the fact that my mom came down to our house to sit with the sicky while I took Ryan to preschool and did some errands.

This is what my "day off" looked like

• dropped Ryan off at preschool
• took cat to vet to be hydrated
• went out to our church to pick up our Sunday school lesson plans
• stopped at a craft store to pick up something for work
• stopped at another store to pick up something I use in my morning coffee
• took the now yowling cat home
• went back to preschool to pick up Ryan
• stopped to grab a sandwich
• arrived home to discover Wesley had vomited again, but was doing okay
• made lunch for Ryan
• scarfed down my sandwich
• packed 5 or 6 boxes for the move
• did some laundry
• looked up a checklist of everyone we need to contact about the move and change of address

And doesn't even take us to 4:00!

No wonder my days off leave me exhausted. I can't wait for everything to be packed up and for us to be in our temporary quarters. Oh, who am I trying to kid? Can we just fast forward to January 5th?

Dear Universe,

When I said I wanted to stay home and play on Pinterest all day, I didn't mean for Wesley to start vomiting at school and for me to have to be home with a sick kid all afternoon.

Oh, but that whole thing about our buyer's loan being approved, which means our appraisal went fine. That's cool.

I'm Looking for a Book...

...that's what patrons say at the library all the time - especially kids. Of course, then the kids make you play 20 questions to figure out which book they want. But that's okay, it's actually a really fun part of the job.

If I think that's fun, you can imagine how happy I was when Wesley asked me "Does the library have any harder books? Because I can read the word ostrich and I can spell elephant without any help, so I think I'm ready for a harder book."

Mommy the Librarian to the rescue! We're going to get started on Flat Stanley and an easy reader version of Bunnicula. Oh, there are so many books I want to share with him! It's music to a librarian mommy's ears.

Star Wars Angry Birds - Sort Of

Wesley and Ryan are currently obsessed with Star Wars Angry Birds. Being a huge Star Wars fan and a big Angry Birds fan myself, I am more than okay by this development. What I am not okay with is how the boys are butchering the names of Star Wars characters and places.

• CP3PO instead of C-3PO. That one drives me nuts. Really, does it need an extra letter.
• Dark Vader instead of Darth Vader. I can kind of understand that one.
• Tat-toon-nia (phonetic spelling) instead of Tatooine
• The the Obi-Wan bird doesn't use the Force, according to my kids he shoots force field bombs.

Now, they haven't seen the movies all the way through, but that's not for my lack of trying. I think it's time for a serious cram session.

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did not pick a recipe for dinner, buy all the ingredients at the store in advance, and pack the cookbook away in a box for moving before actually making the dish. That would have been crazy.

I did not borrow money from my kids piggybank so I could drive thru and get a breakfast sandwich some place because I could not face another english muffin.

I did not eat mass amounts of cookie dough in the late afternoon and then decide that it could also count as dinner.

A New Day

Nineteen days until we close on our current house. Nineteen days. Nineteen days. That's going to have to be my mantra for the next couple of weeks.

I've heard it said that moving is one of the most stressful things a marriage can go through. For the most part things have gone pretty smoothly for us - mostly because Duane is the most calm and steady person I know. I do the freaking out while he stays calm and talks me out of my tree. It works for us.

But even the most calm and steady person can't be that way all the time. Especially not when the boxes are piling up all over the house, and we still haven't heard about the appraisal and the things we need to fix before the house is sold aren't going as smoothly as would be nice and we are both working full time and still trying to be there for each other and keep things at least a little bit normal for the kids. That's a recipe for the perfect storm. The set up for a fight over stupid stuff where we both yell and I end up sobbing and a general basket case, convinced I am a horrible wife and mother (not from anything Duane said, but from my own insecurities.)

But today is a new day. Duane never holds a grudge. I feel more human. We are optimistic about the repairs wrapping up today. We have friends who are going to store a bunch of the boxes that are overtaking our entry way and kitchen so that maybe I'll no longer feel we are being buried alive by our stuff. I have a worship service to look forward to this morning that I am sure will inspire and reinvigorate me. I have the support and love of my wonderful family and friends. As Pete the Cat would say "It's all good." I just need to remind myself of that sometimes.

And in nineteen days we'll move into Grandma and Grandpa's. The packing will be done. The repairs will be done. We'll settle into a new routine - and in twenty days I'll start to stress about Christmas ;-)

This Might Actually Be Happening!

It occured to me today that other than a somewhat cryptic post last Thursday, I haven't really said anything about the house hunt in awhile. Of course, if you talk to me at all or follow me on Facebook, you know that the house is just about the only thing on my mind these days. I guess I've been afraid to talk about it too much. I'm so excited about it, but I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop and for something to go terribly wrong. Part of being a bit a of a pessimist I guess.

Our current house is still set to close on November 30th. Duane and my stepdad have been working on a few things that need fixed prior to the sale, and my dad is helping out with some others. We still haven't heard back about our appraisal, but we are just acting like everything will be fine and this sale will go through without a hitch.

Duane and I spend most evenings going through boxes of stuff and deciding what to keep, what to give to the school yard sale, and what to just pitch. I stress every single day that we won't be ready to move, but Duane is the calm to my crazy and assures me that we will be fine.

So we close on Nov. 30 and have to be out by Dec. 2nd. At that point we are moving into my mom and stepdad's house with one of our three cats. I still don't know where the other two are going, but we're working on that. Our plan is to only take some clothes and a few very special toys for the boys and put everything else in storage. On December 10th we are scheduled to close on our new house - the kicker is that we can't take possesion of it until January 5th (long story).  So we'll spend the entire month of December at Grandma and Grandpa's.

That's not a bad thing at all. For one, we all get along really well and we spend a ton of time there anyhow. Also, the house we are purchasing is literally around the corner from my mom and stepdad in their subdivision. That's going to make moving a breeze!

Wanna see what the new place looks like?

I know I'm biased, but isn't it awesome! And look! A two-car attached garage! I repeat those words to myself every morning that I'm scraping my car windows in the cold.  The house is a three level split. The living room, dining room and kitchen are on the main level. The upper level has three bedrooms and a full bath. The lower level has a fantastic family room, a half bath and the laundry room. There's a partial basement (that is still a good size) and the backyard is partially fenced.

Duane and I are meeting with the mortgage company on Monday to sign more paperwork and like I mentioned, packing has consumed our life, but in 57 days we can walk into our new home and it will all be worth it. Remind me of that when I freak out, okay?

No Big Surprises

Today was our parent teacher conference with Ryan's preschool teachers. I'm not really sure what I was expecting going into it. We haven't had the notes home and phone calls about behavior like we did during Wesley's first few months of preschool, but we were not deluding ourselves that he's a little angel at school either. I mean, have you met Ryan?

The conference started off pretty well. We got to see some of his work and were told that he does have a little group of friends that he plays with, which had been one of out concerns. Ryan's teachers told us that he can work and play by himself well and he can follow directions, but...

You knew there was a "but" didn't you?

Apparently our youngest son can be very stubborn at school. If he doesn't want to do something - such as the required large motor skill evaluation - he just will not do it. And nothing will change his mind. No big surprise there I guess. I mean, we are talking about the child who once sat at the dinner table for three hours until bedtime rather than take a single bite of his dinner. So yeah, we know he is stubborn.

We were also asked to work with Ryan on controlling and properly expressing his emotions at school. You can read that as "He needs to learn not to throw a fit when things don't go exactly as he wants." Again, not really a surprise since he tries to pull that at home too.

I wasn't exactly disappointed by the conference, but...okay maybe I was. And I don't know why I am. It wasn't all bad and Ryan has only been in school a couple of months. I think he's doing better socially than Wesley was at this age, but its hard to hear you child is the one throwing a fit when he can't get his jacket on or sit in the spot he wants.

I guess if I get too down about it, I can reassure myself by remembering that Wesley would lay on the floor and moan and wipe spit on his classmates when he was 4 and now, in first grade, his teacher says he's a good role model. If we can get through that, I think we can get through stubbornness and a few fits.

Little Politician and Good Citizen

PTA meetings can be so interesting. Take tonight's meeting for instance. Tonight I learned that on Monday Wesley made campaign fliers for President Obama and was passing them out to parents at pick up.

Well, we always said we thought he'd be a preacher or a politician. Maybe he'll just on the fund raising end.

On a different note, we got Wesley's report card today. His grades were good, which we are very happy about, but the thing that makes me happiest is something his teacher wrote. "Wesley is a very well mannered young man and is a good role model for his peers." That's better than any grade.

Election Day

I am not a person who talks politics all the time. In fact, I generally avoid talking politics although my close friends and family all know my political leanings. I don't think I've ever discussed politics around the boys, but I do take then with me when I go vote.

Last night I told Wesley that we'd have to leave the house a little bit early today so I could go vote.

"What are you voting for?" Wesley asked.

"I'm going to go vote for president," I told him. "It's the day I get to say if I want Barak Obama to keep being president, or if I think the president should be a man named Mitt Romney."

A look of horror passed over Wesley's face. "You have to vote for President Obama! Mitt Romney is bad!"

"Where did you hear that?" I laughed.

"From some other kids at school. We already voted for president and I voted for Obama."

I assured Wesley that I knew who I would be voting for. And I'm glad my seven year old is exercising his unofficial right to vote (in a pretend school election.)

Daylight Savings Strikes Again

As an adult, I love the whole "fall back" part of daylight savings. I love that "extra" hour to work on things, sleep, and I love that it is lighter when I have to take the kids to school.

"Falling back" with kids is a whole different ballgame though. Saturday night we kept the boys up late so they would sleep until a normal time Sunday morning. It worked and yesterday went very smoothly.

Then this morning hit. At 6:30 I heard Ryan yelling from upstairs, "Mom! Are you ever going to come wake me up!?"

Fifteen minutes later, Wesley came thundering down the stairs. "Did I miss breakfast? I'm starving!"

And daylight savings strikes again.

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

We did not go on a marathon house hunting mission in the dark and rain, find a house, bid on it, lose it and get it back in the course of 72 hours.

I have not been through so much emotional stress and so many mood swings that I have considered changing my name to Dr. Jekyll.

I did not go to a restaurant and order a coney with no onions, but with a side of onion rings.

I have not tried to banish any and all thoughts of Christmas saying  "I'll think about it after we close on the houses" even though that would leave us two weeks to do everything.

Saturday Stuff

It's not even 6:00 and it's already been a very full Saturday. I got up around 7:30 this morning and spent several hours cleaning out shelves and cupboards and doing some packing. My step-dad came down to our place and he and Duane worked on some repairs in the attic. Then my mom came down, we all had lunch together, and Mom and I took the boys to COSI for a break.

Extremely cool LEGO dragon

Wesley in the castle

Wesley loved this create a story area

After checking out the LEGO exhibit, we headed upstairs to the remodeled Kidspace. Wesley couldn't wait to see the new big kids area and he was perfectly happy playing in there while Ryan explored the rest of the Kidspace. Ryan's favorite part is still the water table. He managed to get his shirt completely soaked.

Attempted to blow dry his shirt

 

 Grandma and I gave up on trying to dry  Ryan's shirt and decided to just take it off and let him wear his jacket. He was fine with that.

Ryan in the cubbyhole window. He now wants one in our new house to sleep in

Wesley in the human hamster wheel

Of course, one of my kids had to find a way to embarrass me in public. We were in line for the submarine in the Ocean exhibit, when Ryan turned to the mom in front of us, announced, "I'm not wearing a shirt!" and unzipped his jacket to show off his little four-year-old chest and belly.

She laughed as my face turned red and I said, "That doesn't bode well for his future does it?"

She laughed even harder when I said, "Well, at least he's wearing underpants!"

Please Don't Let That Be His Talent

Mommy: Ryan, why did you change your shirt again?

Ryan: I peed on it.

Mommy: You peed on your shirt and not your pants? I don't understand how you could do that.

Ryan: Well, I was very sneaky.

Preschool Cutie

Got Ryan's preschool picture today. I know I'm biased, but I think he's adorable!

Today in a Nutshell

6:00 AM - a sweet little four year old crawled into bed with me.

6:04 AM - the cat that was in the bed sneezed on the sweet little four year old, causing said four year old to exclaim, "Ew! The cat spit on me!"

7:34 AM - overhear my two children playing superheroes in the family room. Oldest child informs youngest child, "We have to have the same powers because we're brothers."

10:00 AM - Duane calls me at work to tell me that the sellers of the house we bid on Tuesday have decided not to sell their house because their kids can't help them move (the sellers are 92 and 86 respectively)

10:01 AM - I burst into tears at work

10:02 AM - 3:59 PM - I am convinced we are going to live in a box under a bridge

4:00 PM - Receive a text telling me the sellers have agreed to an alternate offer we made and we can take possession of the new house on January 5th.

6:00 PM - Go out for cheap Mexican food to celebrate the fact that we won't have to live in a box under a bridge.

6:45 PM - Exiting the restaurant, Ryan sees something and says, "That's as pretty as pancakes on a baby."

7:40 PM - Devour a big ol' piece of pumpkin caramel torte

7:58 PM - bedtime - goof off and enjoy the feeling of much reduced stress.