Absentia

Hello there. How're things? My how time flies when one stops posting regularly. I see my last visit was back in April.. right before the SIX MONTHS OF DOOM commenced. Misfortune. Calamity. Ruin. Okay - maybe not ruin, but there was a threat of litigation at one point, which is bad enough.

It all starting with this grand idea we had to buy a larger home - our dream home - that just happened to come on the market one fateful day last March. We had toyed with the idea of upgrading our square footage for a while, but had a lot of pretty extreme qualifiers: existing neighborhood; pool - without sacrificing a backyard; fireplace; time machine and tree that grows money (ha - just kidding on that last one - everyone knows those time machine homes NEVER go on the market). Yet suddenly one day, there it was, in all its colonial glory.

So we tour it, make an offer, make a second offer and sign a contract on it all in less than 48 hours. We thought, "Gee! That was easy!" Clearly that home was MEANT for us and the good housing karma will continue to bless us as we put our beloved first home on the market. It is in a desirable area with great schools and one of the largest lots on that street - score! We'll be flooded with offers! We'll be beating them back sticks! So - we went on the market that second weekend in April all cocky and confident that we had listed da bomb house at the very beginning of the hottest time of the year market wise.

*crickets*

As it turns out - we did actually have a ton of "activity" (real estate agent term for "lookee loos") - averaging one or two showings every day or so - insane activity, or as our seller's agent liked to say "the record for the most amount of activity without an offer". Hmmm.. can you please put that on a statue or plaque for my new, colonial mantle please?

I will not (and cannot, due to my post traumatic stress disorder from the experience) go into details, but I will tell you that it took four, yes FOUR offers - as in formal contracts that buyers ultimately canceled - and almost seven months, before we got a buyer that stuck. The housing market tanking did not help matters. Nor did the expensive plumbing issue discovered during an inspection. Closing on that house was definitely a happy day, but I personally felt so beat-down and wrung out by the experience, it was ultimately anti-climactic.

People. I truly believe that level of stress will ultimately kill you if you have to endure it long-term. It is not good for your health (more on that below). It is not good for your marriage. It is not good for your job (Hello? Focus?). I ended up suffering from viral meningitis for six weeks during this nightmare, as well as a pretty significant depression. Chad was impacted in much the same way (minus the meningitis), but had to put up with me in addition, so that just tells you what HE endured.

We learned a lot. We grew together (and apart at times). I think we have ended up in a grateful place. I know I have. During that trying time, I turned inward and shut a lot of things out of my life. It was necessary - I had no bandwidth for anything but just getting through the day and hoping for a better tomorrow. Recent events like serious illnesses among friends and family, the future of our nation and of course getting older, have made me want to live more openly. To share more, love more and be more - for my family, my friends and myself. I hope this little blog will be part of that process.

Hey DIY'ers

We're doing a lot of projects around the house lately and have recently moved onto painting. I've been baffled trying to figure out exactly how much paint I need for each project/room. Every manufacturer has a standard square foot coverage area, usually found on the back of the can, but if aren't standing in the paint aisle of Home Depot, how do you plan? I really hate having leftover paint around (environmental issues, storage issues, etc.) but at the same time, want to make sure I have enough of the same batch for the entire project (matching issues, etc.).

Enter the handy paint calculator.

And you have to just love the host site name, right?

MEMORANDUM:

From: Pissy Pregnant Me
To: Neurotic Parents Attending Sesame Street Live Last Weekend
Re: Conduct

I witnessed a fair amount of rude and obnoxious behavior that has no place in TODDLER RELATED group events as the one referenced above. As a public service, I would like to provide you with some guidance for any similar events in the future.

1. Don't try to be sneaky and STEAL better seats just because they appear empty. Someone will invariable show up, you'll have to move during the performance, thereby disturbing everyone else around you. Give me a break - you're holding a 16 month old on your lap to see a fuzzy red monster that your tot can barely focus on. This isn't a U2 concert where you rush the stage, you boob.
2. At intermission when your kid is screaming for show-related schwag, just BUY HIM SOMETHING, please? Those of us around you don't want to hear your well-intentioned though misplaced attempts to teach your child fiscal responsibility. Sure the prices are outrageous. Yes, your child will ditch the item the minute you get home but you bought the show tickets and you signed up for this. Own it. Souvenirs are part of the gig and it is not the time to rationalize with a child who is having a seizure because you won't buy him an Elmo balloon.
3. When ascending the 8,000 steps up from floor level to the main concourse, please be vigilant of those behind you and any bottlenecking you may be causing. Your insistence on letting your 13 month old "walk" up the steps him/herself holding your fingers is not even close to "cute" in that element. The person behind you might be carrying a 40 lb child of their own. And they might be eight months pregnant. And they might be seeing stars from the physical exertion of both. Be a little more courteous please.
4. Don't cut in line in front of me at the souvenir stand then insult my intelligence further by acting like you've been there all along and that I wouldn't notice. Take your Blackberry-headset-talking, Coach-purse-wearing, Westlake-dinner-plans-making self to the back of the line where the rest of us started. Also? My kid could so totally beat up your kid. See item 3 - 40lbs, remember.

Christmas Eve Requirements

Follow the photo link.

Priorities

We had a hectic day Saturday, what with fighting the sea of humanity at Ikea and all (separate post - another time) so we called in Chinese for dinner on the way home. Chad dropped us off first then dashed back out to pick up dinner. We needed milk too, so he was going to hit the quickie-mart across from the Chinese place for that.

He made it home with dinner still hot - and he did stop by the quickie-mart, but instead of milk he had a six pack of Abita Turbodog and a lottery ticket.

Forgot the milk.

Milk vs. liquor and gambling? No contest there I guess.