The Roof Over My Head

Okay, I have avoided writing this post and am only doing it b/c I'm getting questions daily and want to let everyone know what's going on with our house, the new house, and the entire moving extravaganza.

In a word, craziness is going on -- craziness, I tell you! I'm going to try to make this very short as it is a Friday night, I am surrounded by half-packed boxes, and am trying to enjoy a nice glass of merlot and a bit of procrastination.

Many moons ago, we started looking for a house. We made an offer on one that Greg loved, but I never felt good about it so we ended up pulling out of it. We made an offer on another one--the PERFECT one mind you, and watched it get snatched right out from under us. There were tears, and still are occasionally, I'm not gonna lie. Then we made an offer on a third house. The offer went through, and we were slung into an option period that would prove to end us if it didn't make us stronger.

The house we are buying is a great house if you remove almost everything in it. It's dirty, it hasn't been updated in 12 years, and it needs a new roof. However, the foundation is good, the floorplan is great, and the neighborhood is perfect. Furthermore, the backyard opens up to a huge greenbelt with rolling hills (okay like 2 hills), trees galore, a nature preserve, and a walking trail. The house has amazing potential so we decided to take a chance.

So we've already closed on our current house and are leasing it back until next Thursday when we have already arranged and paid for movers to move us out. But move where, you say? We aren't sure. The seller of the new house found out that his house needs a new roof in order for us to get approved for the loan. He didn't want to replace the roof and pretty much asked my realtor if she and I would split the cost. Seriously. He didn't want to fix anything that the inspector found because he thinks his house is perfect just as it is. Dirt, grime, and all. Seriously. I feel a little bad for the guy b/c a new roof is a lot of money, but he's got to sell the house, and we are one of very few people willing to put the money into it that is required to make it look good! He finally has agreed to replace it b/c his insurance company wrote him a check to do so. However, he was about a week late in scheduling the roofers. Here's the timeline:

-Roofers started today and said they'd be finished by next week "sometime."
-The roof has to be 100% completed and the invoice sent to the mortgage company at least 24 hours before closing.
-We have to close on Wednesday morning in order for the funds to clear so we can have keys and move in Thursday.
-We have to move in on Thursday b/c the new people are moving into our current house that night.
-We are leaving for vacation Saturday morning for a week.

If the roof doesn't get done by Monday afternoon or early Tuesday morning, we will not be able to close on time to move in. If it doesn't get finished by Wednesday, there is a good chance we won't close next week at all, will be living on the streets (just kidding, with family) and will have to look at postponing it for 2 weeks or not going on our vacation.

In short, pray for sunshine this weekend and efficient roofers!

It's as I said to Greg, whether or not we get into the new house by the time we are kicked out of this house completely rests on the shoulders of the roofing company, and in the hands of the Lord! Shingle well, my friends.

Firsts

So you all know that the last several weeks and months have been frantic for us as far as selling our house, looking for a new house, having the perfect house snatched away from us, starting new jobs, etc. However, I realized as I was copying pictures onto my computer that a lot of great things happened during this time, too. It's funny how we can be consumed by the craziness of our lives, and then when we step back we see that we almost missed out on some milestones. So although we've been on our "last nerve" with the house hunting, here are a few "firsts" I want to stop and appreciate:


First family trip to the zoo!


Noah's first bloody nose inflicted (accidentally) by a cousin with a rogue basketball.


First time Noah stuffed all 67 of his matchbox cars in his shirt for sheer amusement.


Two "firsts" here: Lauren sitting up and playing steadily for the first time, and both my kids sitting together quietly and playing for the first time.


Lauren's first time in a bathing suit and, subsequently, her first time in a pool.


First time my kids got to meet their second-cousins (visiting from NC).

So the moral for today's post is to stop getting caught up in the frenzy so you can stop and notice what's around you!

A Girl's Best Friend

So diamonds are not Lauren's best friend yet. Delicious treats are. She hates vegetables and loves fruit, but apparently her sweet tooth doesn't end there...

Rice cereal for breakfast? No thanks. I'll take some of these pancakes, thank you. Hmmmm, can't...quite...reach...


What are you looking at? Help a sister out!


Ha ha! Turn away from me for two minutes in Walmart and my go-go-gadget hands will reach whatever sweets are within arms' length! For today? Chocolate chips! With a little gumming and some fancy finger work, these bags are so easy to rip open...


Please don't take them from me, mom, please don't. They're so tasty and feel super good all melted under my chin, in my armpits, and smashed in the carseat under my butt...oooh, I think I feel one melting between a leg roll!

Eight Years Later

Greg and I went to a wedding last night. At one point in the evening I was watching him out on that dance floor and I remember thinking that after eight crazy fun years, he can still make me smile like a ridiculous school girl.



Here's to saying Yes!

PC > Mac

For those of you unfamiliar with mathematics signage, the above title means quite simply that my PC was much better than this new Mac computer when it comes to loading and managing photos and photo folders. No, Mac can't even call them "folders", but must give them names like "events" -- annoying. You seriously can't just plug in the ole camera, download photos, and click 'n drag them to various folders. Noooooo. If anyone out there -- anyone -- knows how to use iPhoto and would be willing to walk me through it, please email me. If you know me and know my phone number, please call as I have new and precious pictures of my kiddos I'd love to post in my blog!

Since I can't do that right now, however, I can go ahead and tell you that in the last week we have sold our house and Greg got a new job. This house closes in 30 days, which means that we have approximately 2-3 days to choose a house and buy it so that we can close around the same time and have somewhere to live when the new folks show up here with their belongings! It's a good problem to have, and we are sifting through several options that we're excited about, so here's to hoping we find "the one" at some point this weekend!

Learning Patience

Thank you all for your patience with me. No, I haven't forgotten about all my blogging friends, and I am almost back into the swing of things.

I have been side-tracked in the past 3 weeks with the following shenanigans: we put the house on the market, then found the perfect house and watched it get purchased by someone else; I got sick...twice; I had to nurse my son back to health from double ear infections; I got my nose pierced, Greg went out of town; I hosted my cousin in town; we traveled to Fayetteville twice to see Rachel, Jared, and my sweet nephew Judah; and we had to deal with some stressful job happenings for both me and Greg. Oh, and two violent storms wreaked havoc in our neighborhood and snapped one of our trees off at the base of the trunk, half of our neighbor's roof shingles blew into our front yard, and another neighbor's enormous tree snapped and fell down into our front yard. AND I'm going on a 4 day retreat next week. All while we are trying to sell our house.

I am almost on the mend right now, but am pretty convinced I have strep throat and am hyped up on tons of pain medication and decongestants (FYI- never pierce your nose when you are congested and have a cold as the snot sticks to the post inside your nose and you can't blow anything out. Other than that though, I love it).

I will come up with something very soon that is interesting and worthy of posting.

In the mean time, my sister, Rachel, has posted some great pictures of our trips up there if you are interested. We had a blast with them two weekends in a row!

Chicago!

So the very cool ministry I am working for right now had been telling us for a couple of weeks that we were going somewhere overnight. We knew no details. Visions of paintball, organized teambuilding exercises, and sleeping in tents filled my head as those are the typical group activities one comes to expect on a surprise employee outing.

Then two days before we were to leave, we received an email detailing that we would be flying somewhere, that we had to pack for weather ranging from 30-50 degrees, and that we had to bring one "fun" outfit for an evening out. We all became so curious and so excited to find out where we were headed!

At 5am last Wednesday morning, we met up in the church parking lot and were given a few clues: "This city almost burned completely to the ground in 1861" and that "This city is known for it's hot-aired politicians" among them. Chicago! We were then told that we would be flying that morning to the Windy City, spending the day shopping on Magnificent Mile and eating the deep dish pizza pies the town is famous for, and that we all had tickets to see the Broadway performance of Wicked that night! After little to no sleep all around (pretty much b/c almost all of us have infants and toddlers) none of us felt tired anymore. We were so excited!

Here are a few of the highlights:

Walking around the streets of Chicago.


Very cool sign reminiscent of old movies.


Me in front of this odd kidney-shaped reflective ball statue thingy with the city scape in the background.


John Hancock building.


Giordano's Pizza where we indulged in 3 inches of stuffed pizza topping goodness. I completely understand why the locals call them "pies."


Right outside the theatre.


If you haven't heard of this book or show, I highly recommend it. I'll never watch or think of The Wizard of Oz the same again! In a word, it truly was amazing.


Since we have family in Chicago, I grew up visiting there but always went to peoples' houses. This is the first time I truly had the opportunity to spend an entire trip (albeit roughly 30 hours) just taking in downtown and indulging in some of the coolest things it has to offer. All in all, this "teambuilding exercise" sure beat the heck out of a campfire and the Human Knot game!

Wedding of the Year

What an awesome weekend! For those who don't know, I got to be the matron of honor at my friend Alicia's amazing wedding in Austin. Since I haven't seen her in awhile (she lives in Chicago) I decided to fly there on Thursday night sans Greg so she and I could spend some quality time catching up. We had a blast! We did SO much: made signs for parking, stuffed gift bags, wrapped bridal party gifts, got take-out, ran errands, and even got to go to the mall for some cinnamon pretzel sticks and new clothes. I also got to see the couple practice their first dance which turned out to be so good--I couldn't believe they choreographed it themselves.

I was so nervous initially about leaving the kids with my in-laws for 3 nights (I had never left Lauren overnight before), however, the kids did great and I was comfortable the whole time. Yes, I called like 4 times a day, but overall I knew they would be well taken care of and quite spoiled with their grandparents!

Here are lots of pictures to document the occasion. Enjoy!

Alicia and me at the rehearsal. She looked like she walked out of a magazine the whole weekend.


Greg and me at the rehearsal.


Alicia got us these ultra soft, plush robes with our names embroidered on them as bridal party gifts. I love it, and since my previous robe has been way overused and is covered with makeup smears on the insides of both sleeves... I'm pretty excited. Anyway, great gift idea!


I love this dress. I swear I'm not being vain; I wanted a shot of the dress and one of my new (very) short haircut...

The first dance. I wish I had taken video; it really was so good!

Cuttin' the rug. No, I'm not pregnant--bad swing in the dress. :)

Me and Greg at the reception after partaking in cocktails and appetizers, a full buffet, personalized cupcakes and cookies, and two kinds of cake. Mmmmm.

The beautiful and happy couple. Congratulations!

Don't you want to get married all over again?

Bend It Like Beckham

We took Lauren to her first MLS game last night, and what a game it was! It was a charity match between FC Dallas and the LA Galaxy, and we got to see my favorite player-- Landon Donovan (whose actual home jersey I am wearing). Guess who else made his Dallas debut at last night's game? That's right: the one and only David Beckham. I've never seen the stadium packed out for a soccer game before, and have never seen so many camera flashes in my life. He's hot on TV and in magazines, and yes, he's quite the eye-candy in person...especially from 100 feet away.

Lauren was focused and intense. Good thing since she only has two years until she will start playing...


Beckham (#23) and Donovan (#10). If I've ever wanted to be sandwiched between two people...


Side view of Landon, who is looking at and chatting casually with his new good friend and teammate David.


One can only wonder if Posh and The TomKat were in attendance? I failed to look around; my eyes were pretty much glued to the field.

Like Brother, Like Sister...

Other than noticing that we apparently don't buy any new toys around here, notice how freakishly similar my kids look. It's getting to the point where every picture I take of Lauren, I can distinctly remember having a replica of the same photo except with Noah at that age!

Noah at 3mos:


Lauren at 3 mos:


In other news, Lauren's backpack just arrived! It's been on backorder at PB for several months, but I'm so excited to finally have it. I've never been a "diaper bag" kind of gal, so this is especially exciting for me... Noah has already fully examined it, and determined that he still likes his better because he can identify all the letters.

How 'Bout That Weather?

Monday night, March 3rd, we were letting Kona out in the backyard before turning in for the night, and we were met with something strange. Yes, a white, powdery substance was falling from the sky! It was cold, it was damp, alas -- it was snow! Though I've seen it before (from growing up in the midwest and from visiting Colorado), it is a novelty rarely experienced in the Dallas/Ft. Worth metroplex. True to Dallas form, by late afternoon the next day it was 55 degrees and sunny, and there was no evidence that would prove snow had ever graced us with it's flurries of winter wonder. But I have my proof...

Poor Noah. He was obsessed with playing in the snow for as long as it was on the ground (about 4 hours before melting) but his hands were so cold! He doesn't own any mittens because he's never needed them before. I finally put socks on his hands, but of course they just got soggy and wet.

Kona turned into some kind of demon dog, tearing around the backyard all morning.

Notice the sock on his hand? Don't ever say I can't adapt to a situation...

It was fun while it lasted.

Resolution #1...

So sorry I've been out of the blogging loop the last week or so. Remember my New Years' Resolutions? One of them was to get into a new job situation that would allow for more flexibility to pick up my kids earlier from homecare, be home with them a little more, but still use my degree and work part time.

A couple of weeks ago, a part time position fell into my lap. It's as a part time area director for a ministry organization Greg and I use to volunteer for, and the best part is that the work is primarily from home. I struggled with the decision because I have a Master's Degree in Occupational Therapy and don't want to neglect that; I'm not ready to give up on that field! However, after much prayer and consideration, Greg and I decided that during these early years while the kids are so young and impressionable, I'd like to be home with them more and I can therefore sacrifice a little to do so. The ministry is a great opportunity, is very flexible, and I can always return to health care in a couple of years.

God answered my prayers! When I talked to my boss at the therapy clinic and told her of my intentions to leave so I can work part time and be home more with my kids, she pretty much wouldn't let me quit. She asked that since the clinic has been getting so busy lately, would I be interested in working PRN with patients and doing some marketing to doctors each week. She said that if I could do maybe 5 hours/week, she'd pay he a pretty nice hourly rate--good for the clinic to keep business up, good for me to stay in patient care, and good for my wallet. I never expected her to offer this, and the best thing is that the marketing part would be on my own time.

I'm going to keep the kids in homecare but decrease their time there from three 10-hour days down to two 6 or 7 hour days.

Things keep getting better, too. The ministry gave me a brand new laptop, a printer/scanner/fax/copier machine, and $500 towards setting up a comfy home office (can be used for a desk, a chair, paint, decor, picture frames, whatever!), and additional money each month for office expenses such as printer cartridges, paper, a daytimer, WiFi at Starbucks, etc. Furthermore, I get a "Starbucks" allowance so I can hold meetings with my teams there each week.

Also, the graduate school here asked me to teach again this Fall for their weekend casting and splinting course. It's only 6 or 7 Sunday afternoons all semester, so the kids can be with Greg and I can stay even more in the healthcare realm.

One of my parents' favorite hymns was always Great is Thy Faithfulness. I've definitely seen it this week!

One of those days

The day started out fine; Noah slept until about 7, then crawled in bed with me and cuddled for 15 minutes before watching a few cartoons (all the while I am still sleeping, FYI). Then Lauren got up and everyone ate, played, etc. Normal "day-off" stuff.

Then Noah climbed on his stool and pulled all the fridge magnets off, along with any photos they may have been holding up.

Then he ate a yellow crayon.

Then he took a drink of a travel-sized bottle of shampoo.

Then he pulled all the floss out of the little container. By the way, do you realize how much floss is in that little teensy container? It's actually uncanny.

The Lauren pooped through her outfit and spit up on my bare arm.

Then Greg called and said he had to work late--like 3 hours late.

Furthermore, Kona developed a sore on her back (I think it's from a fence splinter) and she kept licking and messing with it all day so I had to put an Elizabethan collar on her. Noah thought that was hilarious and kept chasing after her b/c he liked when she'd run into furniture. I had to monitor that situation for the better part of the afternoon.

It's amazing I'm showered. Here's to tomorrow... :)

The Grand Finale

You must go check out this post, and read about the end to my friend's 30th Birthday. Although we went to Cheryl's birthday party (my favorite part was that she wore a tiara--wish I'd thought of that on my 30th), we apparently left before the exciting finale. Hilarious and so wrong at the same time...

Just One Question...

If I just gave birth to Lauren like yesterday, how is it she is old enough to support herself in a Johnny Jump-up and laugh about it?

Consistency, please!

Okay, so Saturday night Lauren slept 8 hours. Sunday night she slept 8 1/2 hours. Monday night was a record 11 hours! She's been sleeping until about 8:30am too, so I've been able to get things done in the morning before putting on the "mom" hat. Woo-hoo! Greg and I were happy and rested, and looking forward to more full nights of sleep as our little 3-month old appeared to be sleeping through the night regularly.

Last night she woke up at 3am and 5am , then at 7am for the day. Huh? We did nothing differently, so what the heck? Does she not know that she is the easy child and is therefore not supposed to do such things? The high-maintenance stuff is reserved for Noah.

So just as the bags under my eyes finally disappeared, they resurfaced. I'm hooked up to a caffeine IV and am open to suggestions...

I Love to Tell The Story

Ten years ago today my mom died, peacefully in rest, after a 13 month battle with Leukemia. She was around every single day for twenty years--teaching us, playing with us, reading to us, cooking for us, carting us around, passing on age-old traditions to us, disciplining us (yes, even I required the occasional whooping), and generally taking care of our every need with all the grace (and the occasional meltdowns) expected of a mother of 4. Through it all, her faith in the Lord was evident, unwavering, and contagious.

Ten years have passed, ten full years that have included a college degree, a graduate degree, a wedding, several big vacations, a career decision, 7 moves, a purchased home, a son, a daughter, and much more. My mom's legacy is still on so many areas of the lives of those who knew her. I got her name (Sue is my middle name), her blond hair, her wide cheekbones, her organizational skills, her plethora of moles, and her love of casseroles.

Since there's no way to adequately sum up a life like hers, I will limit this by sharing just a memory. She loved music, especially singing. She knew she didn't have a solo voice, but she nonetheless loved to sing harmony in the church choir, and truly appreciated the old "hymns of the faith." At her funeral, somewhere in the neighborhood of 800 people triumphantly sang Crown Him With Many Crowns. My dad, who was also battling Leukemia at the same time, had gotten a day-pass from the hospital to attend the funeral; he was bald and had to wear a face mask. He ripped his mask off and stood up (it was a scene I don't think many have forgotten), and he led the congregation in the 2nd verse:

Crown him the Lord of life, triumphant o'er the grave!
Who rose victorious from the strife for those he came to save.
His glories now we sing, who died and reigns on high.
He died, eternal life to bring, and lives that death may die.

It was an awesome song, absolutely, and she would have joined in loudly. Her favorite hymn was a little more unassuming, a little less well-known, and a bit more personal, however.

I love to tell the story of unseen things above,
of Jesus and his glory, of Jesus and his love...
And when, in scenes of glory, I sing the new, new song,
'twill be the old, old story that I have loved so long.

My mom would have enjoyed being part of these last ten years, and she'd most definitely be proud. But if you ask me if I think she's been watching me all this time? Heck no. She's singing in the heavenly choir, and her eyes are on Jesus.

My New Nephew!

My sister, Rachel, had her baby boy this afternoon! Judah Allen was born at 12:43pm, was 7lbs and 5oz, and was 20 1/4 inches long. He has dark brown hair with the teensiest bit of curl, and he's just gorgeous. I will post pictures soon!

Cold-Day Recipe

Start with:

Semi-Homemade Hearty Chicken Noodle Soup (in the Crockpot, of course!)
1. 4 cans of Campbells Healthy Request Chunky Chicken and Noodle Soup
2. 1/2 pkg extra wide egg noodles, cooked and drained
3. 1/2 cup each of chopped carrots, onion, and celery
4. Garlic salt and cracked pepper

Sautee carrots, onion, and celery in butter or olive oil until softened. Add all ingredients to crockpot and cook on low for a couple of hours.

BEST if served:
-With Hot Rolls and honey
-As a late lunch/early dinner
-On your day off
-With a husband home from work for MLK, Jr. Day
-With a blazing fire going in the fireplace
-On a dreary, 36-degree day in Texas

Enjoy!!

Birthday Gifts for the 30+ Crowd - updated

I've updated this post for those of you who have already visited it; see the new pictures below.

Happy Birthday to my older sister, Jenn, and her cute short hair that I fully copied. I purchased a toaster for her birthday--yes I did. And she will be super excited because she requested it and I picked out a really pretty stainless steal one. At what point in our lives do we get excited about receiving countertop appliances for our birthdays? Who am I kidding, I think I would cry tears of joy if Greg ever got me the toaster oven I've been hinting at for the last 3 years.

Have a wonderful day, dear sister, and a wonderful morning tomorrow as I know you will be eating scrumptious Eggo waffles toasted to perfection. I'm glad I could have something to do with that.

Yes, she loved the toaster. My little white 8-year-old piece of crap toaster with one broken leg that makes the whole thing wobble awkwardly when sitting on a counter seems all the crappier now.

Jenn, me, and Rachel. Two of us are natural blondes, not that you'd be able to tell what with the line of dark roots all the way across...

My adorable nephew, Brice, after testing and approving the birthday cupcakes...