Summer, where'd you go?

Where has the summer gone??? {Or as Bailey would ask, Summer, where ah you?}

I feel like I blinked and August is almost half over. I wanted way more pool days, trips to the park, and afternoons filled with no obligations.

Somewhere in the painting and moving frenzy, I feel like we lost a lot of time. And now that the haze has started to clear (ie: I no longer feel overwhelmed just walking into my own house), it feels like autumn out already! Don't get me wrong - I love nights sleeping with the windows open and the a/c off, but I am not ready to put away the tank tops and flip-flops just yet.

I realize I haven't taken many pictures of our day-to-day happenings like I usually do. I need to get back into that snap-happy habit again. Here are a few from the past weeks.

Helping Mom make cookies

{clearly the hair and outfit were done independently this day...}

Checking out the sidewalk chalk - a surprise in the mail from Grandma Cathy

Bailey and the only way she will let me put her hair up: prize-winning shih-tzu style



Swinging in the new backyard

We have been enjoying the backyard. A lot. We have become those people with toys scattered everywhere, but I am okay with it. Our porch swing from our old house has been hung and we have already sat outside and listened to the rain. (My favorite.)


Tonight I am excited for a night out.
Aunt Justy volunteered to watch the girls for us.
And while most would think it is out of the generosity of her heart or because she misses the little rug rats who broke into her room and tucked teddy bears into her bed at night, I know the truth: she wants an excuse to eat hot dogs and nasty boxed mac-n-cheese! {And watch Disney movies.}
Thanks Justy!

Move complete

We're done. After a couple trailer loads of crap and another trip down to our old house, everything is under one roof.

Thank God for my family that helped us move. Again. 

My parents, along with Catrina, Justy, and my (always-helpful) cousin Matt helped us haul everything over to the house all day Sunday.
Hands-down the best attribute of my family is that they are willing to work for food {and maybe a case of beer once the work is done}.
We are a pretty low-key group. No one was getting bossy about how to load up the furniture or getting whiny about all the work there was to do. We took frequent breaks to sit and eat  - because that is what we do best. There were very few casualities; just a cracked vase and a shattered casserole dish. All in all, not bad.

I spent a good 5 hours yesterday working on the kitchen - by myself - with both Bailey and Avery plastered in front of the TV watching Barney, Sesame Street, Arthur, Clifford and whatever else PBS had to offer. {Don't hate. DVR is made for days like these!}

It was overwhelming. I had to move box after box to even be able to move about the house normally, so eventually boxes made their way to the correct room - even if I just left them there. I shouldn't be surprised, but man, do we have a lot of cooking stuff... Our new kitchen is by no means small, but there is no way everything is going to fit. So as you can imagine, our basement is full of things I didn't feel like dealing with at that exact moment. And probably not even within the next month.

But today, my wonderful mama came to help out. We worked solid from 11 - 6:30 with only a small ten minute break to feed the girls some lunch. It's amazing how much more motivated I was with someone there forcing me to pick a project to work on. It's almost like my brain couldn't decide where to start because there was just  so much. 

We were able to finish off quite a few rooms: the main bathroom, the spare bedroom, the girls' room, the nursery (Avery's room for the next few months), and the breezeway/den room. My mom was even a champ and attacked the garage. {We actually have walking room now! Imagine!} Boxes were everywhere and it didn't help much that Jared returned from a massive trip to Walmart with even more things for us to unpack and organize. But slowly, and with some last minute help from Justy, we started crossing things off the long to-do list. It feels so much better to quickly locate your toothpaste and know that you won't stub your toe trying to climb through your closet for some underwear at night.

Overall I just feel very happy.

Even in the clutter of the mid-move, I feel content.
I am excited for normal.
For days when I can sit out on the shaded patio and watch the girls play together in the backyard. For nights when both Jared and I can just relax and not worry about the next task of hanging curtains or installing new doorknobs. But despite those feelings of I-really-should-be-doing-[insert task]-right-this-second that plague me, I am already enjoying our new space and looking forward to all the days ahead.

Life is good.

It's Moving Day!

Hooray!

It has finally arrived - the day in which we will {again} pack up all our stuff and haul it elsewhere. Thankfully this time "elsewhere" is about 5 blocks away.

So I am sure over the next few days I will be M.I.A., busily trying to locate important items that were thrown in random boxes and organizing our new house.

Wish us luck!

babies in boxes

Boxes were the "it" toy this morning.

And after they eventually tired of repeatedly loading and unloading all their stuffed animals and various other toys,

they loaded themselves.

Bun-Bun had to get in on the box-sitting action, too.

Motivation

I could use a big zap of energy lately.

There are all these things that need to be done. Cabinets to be emptied, boxes to be packed, other boxes to be unpacked, cabinets to be filled... You get the picture.  Along with the other normal everyday things like cooking food and laundry. All of which I have no desire to complete.

Not sure if it is the summer heat or just being pregnant in general but I have zero motivation lately. I know I have things to accomplish and I really do want to accomplish them, but it is soooo hard to get off the couch in the morning. I am going to go ahead and blame it on the tiny fetus. With both of my previous pregnancies, I never felt this fatigued - especially in the 2nd trimester when you are supposed to get this wonderful energy surge.  Yeah right.

It probably has a lot to do with the fact that my bedtime hasn't been very regular. It seems the only time I have for myself is from 10 - midnight. So if I want to upload pictures or post on the blog or read a book, I have to wait till the kids are asleep. And I usually wait until Jared has left for work too.

And the Olympics isn't helping much either. Because seriously, who wants to go to bed early when they could be watching Michael Phelps win his record-setting 19th Olympic medal or the U.S. women's gymnastic team take the gold?! Definitely no one at this house. And when I finally decide, oh yes - I will finally go to bed, Bob Costas has to go and tease the next final event coming up and then I am sucked in yet again! Darn you, Olympic fever!

Despite my lack of gumption lately, things have been getting done. The house is now entirely painted (we're talking approximately 10 rooms, complete with upper and lower trim) with the exception of a couple of doors. {We ran out of trim paint and Jared's give-a-damn is officially busted right now anyway.} With every trip across town to our new house, we load up the back of the Pilot and take a few non-essentials over. The phone/Internet and Dish got installed today (after 2+ hours of phone time due to them both screwing things up - ugh, how I hate automated voice prompts!) and work is almost finished on the repairs to the backyard patio roof/overhang thingy.

All that is left is to actually move. But with all that we have already hauled, we mainly just have the big things left - beds, dressers, dining room table... My goal is to be all moved in by Tuesday. Jared has Sunday through Tuesday off so we should have ample time to actually set things up and get organized.
Believe me, I am more than ready at this point!
Let's get this thing done!

Sold

As of today we officially have a new home.

It's going to take some a lot of paint, tons of carpet cleaning solution, and even more time, but we are going to make it our own.

We are anxious to get started and then get moved in. It feels good to know we can {finally} settle in and not worry about moving or packing another box for a long, long time.

All moved in

First of all - moving sucks.
It just does. No one likes it.

But on the other more positive side, my family is awesome. Not only did my parents, Taylor, and Justina come down to help load everything into my dad's large trailer, but my Grandma Joyce and Grandpa Ronnie drove their truck down as well. All of them, along with Jared of course, packed and loaded and unloaded the day away. I wish I had some pictures to document the event (my posts need more visuals to liven them up) but I don't.

I also don't have any pictures to show the disaster that was the kitchen at our new home. We soon discovered that we now have about 3 times what any normal family should have of things like Rotel and shredded coconut and garlic powder. We definitely have a "Mormon pantry" as we affectionately call it, and when combined with the items from Justy's cabinets, it is just a sight to behold.

My mom took on the task of organizing box after box of canned goods into the basement pantry. {She soon regretted that decision.} Just when she thought there couldn't be any more food, we would carry down another box of beans. or bag of pasta. or jar of mayo. It was almost comical.

My mom's work of art. Or at least one part of it. Anyone coming over for dinner? I think we might have just enough food to whip something up...Maybe...

It seems like most of the important stuff made the trip. The shelf of bottles and pumping supplies did not get packed, so we are working with one bottle and nipple right now. Also the huge (and very, very cheap) Costco jar of formula I use to make Avery's baby cereal did not find its way here. So I had to suck it up and go buy a container that is about one-sixth of the size (for the same price!) at a local grocery store. That hurt.

We also forgot other miscellaneous things we had planned on bringing. There was no room for our poor plants, so they got left behind. All the cooking pots too. Oops. And some lawn chairs that would have been handy these last few days. But we are doing okay without them right now.

Slowly we are opening up the last boxes and finding drawers to file away the remaining items. Some shelves and pictures still need hung, but overall our space is starting to feel more like home.

Poor Gary. That cat has no idea of the torture she is in for. {And yes, Gary is a "she." Justy named her - that is your first clue.}

The bane of my existence. the kitchen sink. No dishwasher exists in this house. From now on, I will be spending way too much one-on-one time with this sorry excuse for a faucet.

We're all still working on carving out our own little spaces. A place to run and hide away for a while. Or in my case, go to sleep at the end of what feels like a long, long day.



My side of the bed.

Bailey's world  {notice how the boots are always close at hand?}

Avery is at home wherever her thumb is. Luckily for us, it travels quite well.

After only two days, the girls seem to be back on a somewhat normal schedule. I was worried about them sharing a room, but both girls went right to sleep the first night. Last night was a different story. Bailey put on her boots and was jumping and running around the room. From downstairs I could hear her footsteps moving across the floor and Avery just laughing and laughing. That is Bailey - our little entertainer.

When I checked on them later, Bailey was fast asleep in her bed, boots still on her feet.

It doesn't get much cuter than that.

Justy passed! Justy passed! Party time! Excellent!

Whew!
It's been busy.

We have officially begun to take over Justy's house. And I am pretty sure as the boxes made their way in, Justy's sanity started to make its way for the exit.  {Which she denies of course.}

Justy, you sweet girl, you.

It was a long day Friday. 

Jared spent his last day at work. I think it was more bittersweet than he thought it would be. Many of the residents have come to love him and wanted to give him cards and candy and hugs to let him know he will be missed. There was a nice food day, which - let's get real - is how you truly show appreciation in the nursing field. It sounds like his coworkers had fun giving him a fond farewell also. Since Jared is taking a prison nursing job, messages like "Don't drop the soap!" made their way in SensiCare butt cream onto his car windows.

In other family news, Justy passed her massage therapy boards yesterday.

Congrats baby sister!!

She can now begin the work on her room she will be operating within a chiropractor's office. And on a side note, I can't wait to start doing her laundry in exchange for free massages.

Tonight we are celebrating her graduation with a party - small-town style of course.  Aka baked beans are on the menu.  But hey, as long as there is cake, I am a happy lady.

As always, the day here has been random and funny, at least as long as my dad is talking. Our conversations have ranged from testosterone cream to how boring Catrina's blog would be if she had one ("I woke up, I taught school, I came home, I petted my cat, I watched tv, I went to bed"). And as loaded down as the fridge is with adult beverages, tonight should prove to be thoroughly entertaining as well.

I am going a little stir-crazy here.

As most of you know, I like to be in control of things and to be "in charge." {I am sure all of my sisters just thought that was the understatement of the century.} It pains me to not be able to "supervise" the cleaning and junk decluttering of our future floor in my sister's house. I really want to be there so I can envision where things are going to go and how I will be organizing it all.

So it is a little hard to know we are going to be moving in like 2 1/2 weeks and essentially be doing nothing about it right now. Honestly, we shouldn't have all that much to move in the first place. But believe me, I do know what we are moving because I have made some very nice, very detailed lists. [I am definitely a list-makin' kind of gal.] But even the list didn't make me feel better. Most things we are taking are essential to our daily lives: clothing, beds, etc. And since Jared's family is coming to visit this weekend, I don't really want the house to look void of any homey touch by packing up our photos and decorations.

So here I am writing a (boring) blog post instead.

Regardless of all those reasons to wait, I just feel like I should be packing things. I need to be labeling a box or something! This afternoon the girls and I are going to go on a walk and visit the park. And then I will swing by and pick up a bunch of boxes the local businesses have been holding for me. And then I can pack up a box of photo albums. Maybe that will quench my organizational thirst - for a little while at least.

Moving On Up.... to northwest Iowa

So my last post was titled "March Madness" ...  Yeah, that was a little premature.

And as I hinted about, we are indeed packing boxes. Jared accepted the position that he interviewed for a few short days ago. So now we are moving.

Ughhh....

Not so much ughhh at the thought of being moved, but ughhh at the moving itself. I dislike moving, as I am assuming most (normal) people do. All that packing and lifting and hauling and loading. Then doing it all in reverse to unpack all that crap.

I put in my three weeks notice on Friday. It was kinda weird. Everyone was really understanding and happy for us to be moving on in life. It was just weird because of the fact that The Med Center has become a little home in itself, a place where I see familiar faces in the hallways and a place where I feel comfortable (once I stopped being lost constantly). I will miss it. I made a lot of friends and have lots of great memories {and stories -  hello, I worked on 5West!}.

But we are excited for the weeks to come. We're moving in with my youngest sister Justy, who has a house with an upstairs for us to take over occupy. We will have our own bathroom and bedrooms up there, so there might be some semblance of normalcy for Justina.  We picked out some paint colors and will be painting over the black-and-white 70s era psychedelic wallpaper in every room. {Please, Jesus, let that paint provide adequate coverage...} There are huge walk-in closets in every bedroom, so we will have plenty of space.

The downside is that our house is still on the market. {Want to buy a house??!} Hopefully this spring we will see some serious activity. Two couples are actively interested and have told our realtor they want to buy it, but they are needing to sell their houses too.

Same. old. story.

So right now we are still stuck. The bright side of living with my sister is that we can leave our house  furnished - with the exception of two bedrooms. We will be taking what we need and boxing up a lot of other things. Everything will look clean, organized, and in its proper place. There won't be any more last minute scrambles to try and make the house perfect for a showing (while both children simultaneously undo all I just did). Our wonderful neighbors even offered to mow the lawn for us! Bless them.

Things are seeming to fall into place pretty easily. I like it when that happens. It makes you feel like you made the right choice and takes away some of the stress that comes with change.

So if you're a praying person, I would appreciate a nice prayer that we can keep our sanity during these next three weeks. March 30th is moving day, and it will be here before we know it.