May 2012 - NYC with Johnsons

So, back in May, the Johnsons were living in Norwalk, CT. And it wasn't such a great stint for them. In fact, it was REALLY rough. One day, Dave and I were instant messaging and I could tell he was feeling pretty stressed, so we hatched a plan.

The plan involved our two families meeting halfway for dinner and us bringing back Dave and the boys for a couple of days for some R&R. They took us up on the offer in about 1.8 seconds and packed their bags at an alarmingly fast rate.

We met in Bethlehem, PA for DELICIOUS Indian food (we really love eating food with the Johnsons - it's an experience EVERY time) and sent Christie on her way without enough cash for the toll -- who would've thought the George Washington Bridge would be 12 bucks?!? Banner moment.

While they were here, we rested, talked lots, and ate well. We also went to a minor league baseball game (with fireworks!) at the same place we'd attended together the year before. It's an annual tradition we have with our homeschool group - there is definitely more playing than baseball watching, but it's always sooooo relaxed and fun.

Me and My Honey

Good Friends

Mark and Dave

Fireworks. Ooh . . .

Aaah.

The next day, our family together with Dave and his boys went to CT to meet up with Christie, who had been working and sleeping after her shifts. And then we . . .

Went to the train station . . .  (Stamford, CT)

And boarded the train. 

Me and Christie looking so sweet!

 We sat across from these clowns.

 And across from these four.

We had a GREAT time on the ride there.

We can talk and laugh and talk and laugh and talk . . . 

FOR HOURS.

We got to Grand Central Station . . .

 and took a family picture.

We stepped outside and used our street smarts to avoid getting taken for a ride by the first hot dog vendor we saw. You see, he wanted to charge us $3/hot dog. There were 8 of us and he saw "tourist" written all over us. Well, we're not new to New York (Johnsons were, but they're from Arkansas, so they have street cred, yo), so we knew better than that. Mark walked to the next hot dog vendor down the street and then walked toward us waving us to go to that guy. The first guy suddenly remembered that his hot dogs were $2 (just like the second vendor!). It's a New York Miracle!

 I love this picture - it is so Folson.

Damn, we miss these guys when they're not around.

 We walked a few blocks to the Empire State Building so we could climb to the top. Only this time, all of our previous NYC experience was not enough to save us from the vultures who awaited unsuspecting Empire State Building visitors that day. We were greeted by official-looking people (they had lanyards!) who explained to us how they could personally lead us to the top, help us avoid the lines by getting us to the front of the line, AND this all included a ride on a simulator that would show us scenes from the whole city. Sounds great, right? Wrong.

 Here we are at the first stop. Our personal escort offered to take a picture of us all here. See that statue behind us? It's not the actual Statue of Liberty. This is where we all began thinking, "Wait a minute, something doesn't seem right here. I think we've been had."

 Here we are at our next stop in front of the NYC skyline! Another group picture, but that backdrop? Also not real. This is where we reflect on the guide's comment during his introductory speech when he said, "We're not allowed to take tips, so when I get you to the front of the line, if you wouldn't mind hiding it inside your palm as you shake my hand, I'd appreciate it." Yeah, we were more than a little slow on this one.

Oh! Oh! Here we are in Central Park! Nooooooo, you sillies! That's not actually Central Park. That's painted on the wall! I know! It totally looks real, right? Yeah, see in this picture, we're now pissed. Dave is on the phone calling up the Empire State Building to verify the line wait time. Sure enough, it was significantly shorter than what our huckster escort had told us. And. AND. We were now waiting in an even longer line ourselves for that stupid simulator ride. Oh, and while I was riding it? 1979 called and said they wanted their ride back. I tried to be mindful and in the moment, taking in the herky-jerky views of the city on the rickety, old screen, but I couldn't help wondering if the ride was going to fall apart, nor could I stop thinking about what a fool I'd been to buy this guy's speech and hand over our credit card in agreement. Not one of our smarter moments.

 I should point out, however, that we did get to meet King Kong and I don't think that would've happened if we'd gone the normal route instead of this vastly-superior "Skyride" route. Idiots.

I do want to add that even though they cheated us out of our money, lied to us, tricked us, led us on a winding, bizarre, painted journey, and made it all take longer than it would've had we gone the normal route (one of the selling points for us on this one was the time-saving advantage of bypassing the long line - we didn't realize that it meant bypassing it by going into an even longer one - grrrr), the joke's on them, because they didn't know who they were messing with. 

My father-in-law says I'm an activist. Whatever I am, you better believe that while I didn't let this experience affect my day (I may have been duped, but I knew enough to not let it ruin my good time!), we did do our research the next day. The Internet is FILLED with complaints about this company. We called our credit card company when we got home and they investigated it and refunded us all of our money as part of their inherent fraud protection program. We are SO happy about that. So, technically, we got to go to the top of the Empire State Building for free. We even told our credit card company that we originally had intended to pay to go to the top and were still willing to pay that amount and they told us not to worry about it. Weeha! Take THAT, Skyride Swindlers!

 So, here we are at the top - me and my girl!

My Sweetie and my boy!

 The view. See that building being erected straight ahead?

That's the Freedom Tower rising up from Ground Zero

where the Twin Towers used to be.

 Johnsons

 Us

 Love this picture of the kids

 All of us at the top of the Empire State Building

 Kissing in the lobby, because, well, why not?

 Cute kids!

Now that I'm done ranting, I'd like to direct you to Dave's post that has a one-sentence-fragment mention of being swindled while I have carried on and on and on here. So uncharacteristic of Dave.

Okay, so from there, we went across the street to some tourist shops that sell tchotchkes and trinkets . . . 

 . . . and made the kids do this.

Then, we all took cabs Amazing Race-style down to John's Pizzeria in Greenwich Village where we were seated right away and carved our names in a seat.

"Folsons!"

Eating at John's

Well fed and setting out to explore the village at night - THAT was an adventure!

Next stop was soooooooo cool - we went to the apartment building where every one of the Friends lived at one time or another. "I'll be there for you!!!!!!!" We were GIDDY about being there together. We 4 adults are BIG Friends fans and super nerdy about quoting it all the time, so this was a real "Friends" Thrill on many levels.

"OMG! We're in front of the 'Friends' building! We're totally geeking out on this!"

The neighborhood/area is gorgeous there.

Such a cool vibe in Greenwich Village.

We also took a little walk down to the theater where Joey does all his plays, because we're geeky like that. Yeah, I pretty much love us.

And then! What trip to Greenwich Village is complete without a stop at Magnolia's Bakery? We don't even like cake and yet we LOVE these cupcakes!! We all got some deliciousness and then ate them across the street at a little park in the village.

I totally stole this picture from Dave's blog (though you really should go over there and read his version of this day, just for kicks). Our taxi drivers were INSANE and we went RIGHT past each other right near Madison Square Garden. I didn't get my camera out quickly enough to get a picture of the Johnsons in their cab, but they got this one of us - so cool:

So, this is us on our way to Times Square at night - which really is the best way to enjoy Times Square. There's nothing quite like it. It's SO bright - you have to experience it to believe it.

 I love this picture of our two families!

 More kissing, because, well, why not?

 This is a relatively new Times Square money-making gimmick. I don't remember these guys on any of our past visits to the Big Apple. People dress up as Elmo, the Statue of Liberty, Power Rangers, etc. and you get all excited, so they stop to take a picture with you, and then charge you. Tourists, beware! (But especially beware of those Skyride Jerks!!)

Tourist Trap #479 - I could've totally done without this, but the kids had heard about the indoor Ferris Wheel and really wanted to check it out. They're in the M&M car. Well, 3 of them. Thing 2 was not interested. He and I share an aversion to Ferris Wheels in general.

 Cool, but very gimmicky. Times Square itself is so much cooler than this.

 Walking back to the Train Station

So, we got home EXHAUSTED but happy with our good, full day in the city. It was wonderful to share it together! We are so on the same page and so comfortable hanging out all together that everything is an adventure and fun, particularly when it comes to food and eating out.

The next day the men made us a delicious Mother's Day brunch and we hung out until our family headed back to PA to get back to the grind. These get togethers do the soul good. We heart our friends.

Stacy and Christie - Happy Mother's Day!

(Dave's photo bombing this one).

Happy Birthday, Thing 1!

For those of you paying attention at all, you know that Thing 1's birthday was a while ago. Like, it was in April. I wrote the post in August. This is November. Can you tell I'm behind? I just thought I'd better get this post up before she turns 13. Yes, ladies and gentlemen. She is 12. I can hardly believe it myself.

Good morning from a fantastic dog.

As with any birthday in our house, it started with breakfast in bed. Eggs in circle toast with hot chocolate. That fluff ball in the foreground is Scout, hoping there will be toast and egg left for her.

For some reason birthdays this year seem to be plagued by illness. I took Thing 1 to the local coffee house to pick up her chocolate shake, panini, and popcorn.

Present time!

Hey, it's Thing 2! He wasn't feeling well on that day, but he was a good sport and tried to go along with the festivities.

Thing 1 and her "cake"--chocolate peanut butter cookies

The girls eating dinner--Portuguese chicken and rice

* * * * * * * * * *

As you probably know by now, our birthday parties are well-planned, themed affairs. This year Thing 1 wanted to do a roller skating party with a bunch of her friends. She had an absolute blast!

Look at me! I'm 12!

So many great friends!

Mommy's friends were all there, too! Yes, the Johnsons came from CT and Kellie brought her nieces from NJ, just for the party. Amy came from the next county over--her effort was still greatly appreciated! ;)

Hold still! We need more pictures!

And another one . . .

Getting ready for the relay race

More staged, spontaneous pictures

Two Things we love!

There were lots of supportive parents there.

Thing 1 really wanted the Reese's ice cream cake from Friendly's. Thank you for picking such an awesome cake! There was also a Thin Mint ice cream cake--thank you again!

We made these poor kids wait for their ice cream just so we could get these pictures. 

They all survived.

Kellie's nieces Braylynn and Brietta hung out at our house for a while before heading back to NJ. It was fun to get some extra time for our well-traveled guests.

Another year has passed and our sweet daughter is still as wonderful as ever. Happy Birthday (seven months after the fact). We love you!

More Random Thoughts - Grumpy Edition

I am so ADD that I text myself random thoughts.

And since I'm so easily distracted, some of these are going to be old.

------------------------------

I love watching Taylor Swift interviews.

She is hilarious and super smart and geeky and talented and fun.

Such a fascinating person.

------------------------------

Katie Couric and Kelly Ripa 

are the most self-centered, annoying talk show hosts EVER.

I hate when they interview my favorites, 

because they make it all about themselves 

instead of interviewing this fabulous guest. 

Hmph.

------------------------------

Ever feel totally overloaded by information? 

I read this today:

  http://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/25-everyday-things-you-never-knew-had-names 

 Cool, right? 

I promptly forgot all 25 words. 

------------------------------

Sometimes I think Thing 2 is a visionary genius

and Thing 1 is a writing genius.

But I might be biased.

Maybe.

Either way, I love that I get to hang out with them daily!

------------------------------

Sometimes I feel like Sheldon in that scene where he says, 

"Maintaining five friendships promises to be a Herculean task. 

So, I’m going to have to let one of you go."

(I wish I could find the clip to that).

------------------------------

NYT has an opinion piece called "The Busy Trap" 

It is a great article. 

I am guilty of what he says even though I totally agree with his opinion on it. 

------------------------------

Stupid smartphones.

------------------------------

Don't forget that the kids post on their "revue" blog now and then.

Links at side ------->

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Thing 2 has discovered that he loves sashimi.

I am convinced that we spend 10X more on food for our kids

than we would if we did the traditional mac-n-cheese thing,

but I don't care.

Mac-n-cheese is gross

 and I love that our kids eat so many different kinds of foods.

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I'm a online news junkie, 

(which is a problem when things like the Olympics happen before we see them).

-------------------------------

We've started watching "The Voice."

So far? Best singing competition on TV, in my opinion.

And I'm not just saying that because Adam Levine is one of the judges.

Really, I'm not.

Promise.

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 There is a trend happening.

More and more kids are opting out of going to college.

I loved college and we value education greatly.

I tend to think college (for education's sake more than for marketability)

is a great idea.

But I don't think it's for everyone.

And I see how hard it is for grads nowadays.

What do you say to young people who wonder?

I don't think it's the same answer for all.

--------------------------------

I hate when blogs auto play music when the page loads.

So annoying. 

It's like, "HERE. YOU WILL LISTEN TO MY MUSIC!"

You should have to opt-in if you care to listen.

Not opt-out once you're bombarded.

--------------------------------

Thing 2: "Mommy, are you ever going to be in the Olympics?"

Me: "Um, probably not."

Thing 2: "Well, if you did, I'd go and cheer for you."

Now, I know he really wants to go to London, 

 but I think the Proctor and Gamble "Thank you, Mom" commercials 

are getting to him. :P 

  (Said on 8/7/2012)

-------------------------------

Read "Are You My Mother" (graphic novel) 

and "Fun Home" (graphic novel) 

and Chopsticks (multi-media story). 

All very good and unique. 

Especially loved Alison Bechdel's books.

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Sometimes, among friends, it feels like I haven't had a conversation in a while 

that didn't involve the other person having their phone in their face 

for at least SOME part of it. 

Blech. 

Dislike this new social paradigm.

--------------------------------

August 27th:

School started today for the county. 

We had a fun D&D group over to play,

played outside in the beautiful sunshine,

played Minecraft,

read books, etc.

I love homeschooling SO much.

August 30th:

Just got back from the park. 

It's 81 degrees and sunny. 

School kids are in school adjacent to the park. 

We read books outside today 

and then met 7 friends 

and played Hunger Games and word games 

in the park. 

I love homeschooling

Little secret about home schoolers?

We love when school kids go back to school.

It feels like we reclaim the world 

(well, the playground anyway).

Not that we mind sharing, but it's nice to get it to ourselves, too.

------------------------------------

First it was Webkinz.

Then Wizard 101.

Now? Minecraft!

------------------------------------

I hear what some of my friends do to be involved with their kids' schools.

No way is that less work than homeschooling.

------------------------------------

I've missed blogging,

especially during this political season.

I love SNL during election seasons, too.

I've had so many thoughts to share,

but some are outdated now.

I did see this article

and wanted to comment that I think the author is spot on

when she says that Romney is seeking to distract attention

from questions he won't answer.

I've got so much more to say than that 

(Binders full of women?? Women must get home to cook dinner?? 

Big Bird?? Single mothers as scapegoats?? 5-point plan with no specifics?? 

Threatening to repeal the VERY same successful healthcare system 

he instituted in MA that he brags about all the time??
47%??

Neither of his states (MI, MA) even being contested 

because they're voting Obama??), 

but that will suffice for now.

---------------------------------

What is with this new trend of asking people for donations 

when we shop, eat out, etc.?

It is really ANNOYING.

I have no problem donating to charitable causes,

but when I go out to eat, that's not the time.

---------------------------------

People letting me down? That really sucks.

----------------------------------

Hey Amazing Race, 

Met your new teams. 

We don't need pretty. We need interesting. 

Reference those we've cheered over time - Kentucky Boys, etc. 

We loved them because of who they are, not how they look. 

(Admittedly wrote that before the show started).

LOVE that show.

----------------------------------

 Read Jonathan Tropper's This is Where I Leave You

and Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

I liked them both.

First one was a fun, beach read. 

Not the greatest literary work ever, 

but funny characters and dialogue. Fun read!

Second one was a very edgy coming-of-age story

(wow, "young adult" novels have WAY more in them today 

than when we were kids!).

The overall tone and story was excellent.

It's entirely written in letters 

and I had to keep reading to find out what was up with Charlie.

I thought it had a great pay off. 

It was not what I expected at all.

Beautiful, touching story.

-----------------------------------

Okay, some of these thoughts are from, like, 3 months ago.

I suck at keeping up on things.

Writing prompt!

I can't resist these. I love them! I am about 3 months behind on my SIL's blog and I'm sitting here trying to catch up before NaNoWriMo and I just got to a post full of writing prompts. So, here I go . . .

I love it when... we hang out together as a family in a laid-back fashion.

I can't sleep when... I'm all worked up.

I have a phobia of... germs. I'm an obsessive hand washer. I was not like this before having kids.

I wish i had... hmmmm. I'll quote Sinead O'Connor here and say, "I do not want what I have not got." 

I always smile when... our dog greets us. She is the BEST dog and I love love love her.

I need... hmmmm, I don't like this phrase. I do know that I respond well to love and nurturing.

I want... a game room. That is seriously my #1 dream house request - a game room with a ping pong table, pool table, tables for games and puzzles, etc.

I think strawberries are... a good fruit.

I think most people think i am... cleaner and more organized than I truly am.

I think I am... a loving person.

My husband thinks I am... the best woman for him. He's glad he's married to me and not to anyone else. I'm glad, too. 

My kids think I am... very supportive of them and their interests and their learning.

I used to wear... purple leg warmers. It was the 80s. I'm not the only one.

I wish I knew how to cook... good Portuguese pasteis (little savory pastries that you buy at cafés there - codfish was one of my favorites).

I wish I didn't... get so easily distracted. I get in my own way so often. (To Emily, who wrote "like fast food," I highly recommend watching "Supersize Me" followed by "Food, Inc." You'll quickly be repulsed by it).

I'm glad I... have the courage to make big decisions that help me live an authentic life.

The last movie i saw in the theater was... "Hope Springs" on a double date with the Johnsons. 

It was... hysterically funny and it was so much fun to go on a double date.

The last movie I saw on TV was... "Sleepless in Seattle" as a family during Hurricane Sandy.

It was... a fun flick, though I like "You've Got Mail" even better.

If I had a month off from everything I would... I can't even imagine that, but I guess I'd write, eat, and watch a lot of TV.

Today I... hung out in my jammies, post hurricane, and worked on getting caught up on emails in preparation for NaNoWriMo.

Yesterday I... played games, watched TV, wrote emails, read news, and watched the weather online near obsessively.

I like... when I find a blog post of writing prompts.

Your turn! Thank you, Emily!

This is getting scary . . .

 . . . and a little exciting. When I was a kid and we'd lose power, I used to love sitting around playing games and reading books by lantern light.

But yeah, the news is creepy.

Thanks so much to all our friends and family for the concerned texts, calls, and emails.

Here's how things are around here:

Gray.
Rainy.
Windy.
Stores are clearing out of items.
Schools are closed.
Colleges and Universities are closed.
Several businesses are closed.
Restaurants are closed.
Everything seems to be canceling.
Emergency emails and calls are being sent from local counties, insurance agencies, etc.
Halloween's looking dreary (poor kids).
Our dog is VERY on edge.
Cold.
Stormy.
WINDY.
We've got the tub/buckets of water filled in case the water gets turned off.
We've got flashlights and camping lamps and lots of batteries.
We've got everything charged (phones, laptops, cameras, DSes, iPods, etc.).
We've got piles of blankets and sheets in case the power goes out (in which case we'll all sleep in the living room together - no back up heat source, so we'll cuddle up!).
Our cars are filled with gas.
WINDY.
Our clinic patients' appointments are all canceled today and likely tomorrow.
We've got lots of emergency information about numbers, local shelters, etc.
We've got piles of books and games for if the power goes out (that's the fun part!).
We've got lots of non-perishable foods so we can eat.
We have several gallons of water so we can drink.
We're stocked with food in general, toilet paper, supplies, etc.
House is clean.
Laundry is done.
Everyone is showered and dressed and ready.
WINDY.
The Doppler Radar is FREAKY to look at.
Kids are a bit nervous/a bit excited.
We've brought in anything from outside that could become airborne. 
We've tied down our patio furniture.
Mother Nature is a powerful force. 
We are together and safe and prepared.
We're a bit nervous, yes, but hopeful that all will be well.
This is crazy!
Love to all and thanks for the positive thoughts coming our way.
Hope it all keeps Sandy calm, placated, and away!!

Big Storm Coming!

Hey All,

(And by "all," I mean anyone who might even look at our poor, neglected blog anymore).

We have been SWAMPED. So so swamped. Things are good - we have full, happy lives. Thing is, we want to blog about it and share with you (again, you being whoever might be even reading this or thinking, "Wait, sushi and pizza . . . I used to read this . . . whose blog is this again?").

That being said, here are two facts:

1. NaNoWriMo is coming up and that usually means A LOT of writing and very little blogging. However! Mark and I are trying something out where, in addition to our novel writing, we also post blogs daily throughout November. See? We care that much. Or we're crazy. I'm going to go ahead and bet on the latter. But yeah, I'm going to post this for some kind of accountability factor for ourselves from you, our readers (or no readers depending on if anyone actually sees this. It's kind of like that tree in the forest, only instead of a tree, it's a post and instead of a forest, it's the blogosphere).

2. There is a monster storm coming our way. I saw the projected path and the storm is pretty much supposed to come squarely to our town. So, today we're stocking up on supplies, bringing in things from outside, and tying down patio furniture. I so hope we don't lose electricity. We've recently stocked our extra freezer with half a hog's worth of locally grown pork meat. Also? We have no back up heat source and that, more than a loss of electricity, Fuh-REAKS me out.

So, hopefully starting in a few days, you'll be getting 1-2 posts from us a day for the entire month of November. That is our hope anyway. You know, assuming we have electricity and sanity. Well, electricity anyway. Our sanity has long been questionable.

Haiku Wednesday

No time for blogging
Or reading, writing, or chores;
Busy but happy.

--Stacy



Anything I want.
The topic is too broad to
Write meaningful stuff.

--Mark

Haiku Wednesday - School

Every Wednesday, our family will post haikus about various themes. For this week's theme, I get two, because the start of the school year is both stressful (organizing our homeschool group) and exciting (learning as a family) for me:

Flaky people suck.
Mean, spiteful people suck more.
Avoid the poison.

A hunger to learn
Desires to do, touch, read, make;
Thinking and growing!
--Stacy

Thing 1 and Thing 2
Write at our coffee table;
Always diligent!
--Mark

A LOT of Random Thoughts

I've had this post open for days. I had been working on it and wanted to post it. It's not even finished. So, I'm going to go ahead and just post it, but also add this link to an old post:

My Family Tree is a Wreath

  My aunt Noemia ("Daguinha") died the day before yesterday.

So, I have been re-reading that post and looking at pictures.

Don't much feel like finishing this current post, so will just post what I had so far.

 (Check out random thought #9 - remember, that was all written before my aunt died).

Please, if you feel inclined to comment, go ahead and comment on the regular random thoughts, too.

I'd welcome a bit of normalcy.

I totally stole this right-alignment-for-random-thoughts-posts idea,

from my SIL, because she's cool that way.

-------------------

Looking for good beach reads - here's the short list so far:

This is Where I Leave You by Jonathan Tropper

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Miss Peregrine's School for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Gone Girl by Gillian Flyn

Any other suggestions?

------------------

Our car got egged the other day.

-----------------

I am interrupted a lot, all day long.

I decided to count interruptions during one day. 

I only made it 44 minutes before I stopped.

 I counted from 8:30 to 9:14 and I'd had 14.

About 5 every 15 minutes, 1 every 3 minutes.

Not one of those was a phone call. Thankfully.

Who's got time??

-----------------

So behind on all I'd like to blog . . . 

------------------

It's a relief to me when my friends' houses aren't immaculately, museum-like clean.

Then it's so EASY to have those friends over without feeling 

like I should go on some kind of manic cleaning frenzy beforehand.

I like a clean house and all of our friends say we keep a clean, neat house,

 but house keeping is, admittedly, not my #1 priority

(I'd rather have a somewhat clean house and have fun with my family

than have a spotless house and pass up fun stuff).

Not that the two are mutually exclusive . . .

------------------

Also, most of my friends are women in their 30s, 40s, and 50s

who rarely wear make up and couldn't care less about designer clothing.

That's not to say we don't like to look nice,

but we don't hurt ourselves (or our wallets) trying,

and we're all comfortable with one another,

make up or not.

I love that and feel lucky to have such easy-going friends.

------------------

I read that The Hunger Games trilogy 

has outsold all the Harry Potter books combined.

My reaction?

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!

I think it's the result of people seeking
some kind of good-read "replacement" 

after the Harry Potter series ended.

Because though they're good books, The Hunger Games  

is NOT anywhere near as good as Harry Potter.

-------------------

I feel way too young to be dealing with sandwich generation stuff.

Byproduct of being born to older parents, I guess.

Procreators, beware.

-------------------

I'm an idealist, but I think I'm becoming jaded.

People always say, "Money talks,"

but I've always held out hope that honesty and values matter more.

Apparently, money DOES talk.

And loudly.

We've been seriously contemplating expanding our business

(it's been 5 years since we opened),

and there were some wonderful downtown opportunities available.

Mark called no less than 10 times, twice to higher management 

(to complain about not getting called back).

They knew nothing of our situation, but basically told us that 

 each of the 4 properties were already just about sold,

because those that are buying them 

are offering more than the asking price

and already have total cash in hand.

Who can compete with that?

Bleh. So discouraging. :(

----------------------

Thing 1 recently outgrew her clothes . . . again!

We all hate shopping, but she needed new jeans.

This is where my slight hoarding problem comes in handy.

I pulled out an old pair of my skinny jeans,

AND THEY FIT HER.

Yes, my 12 year old is wearing jeans I wore when I was 30.
She's getting so tall!

Every time I see her in those jeans,

it pretty much blows my mind.

Kids get so big so fast. Bittersweet.

----------------------

 I am loving Malcolm in the Middle.

It's a funny show.

I think it's made even funnier
because we know a family just like them.

-----------------------

A friend of ours recently introduced us to this site:

http://dog-shaming.com/

We have spent a lot of time on it, laughing hysterically.

I don't think I would have found it funny 

before getting a dog ourselves.

We love our Scout!

-----------------------

I think it's funny that people who don't vaccinate 

want their kids to wash their hands before dinner.

Not making any kind of statement.

Just think it's funny.

-----------------------

We found a beach house rental for an AMAZING deal.

SO excited!

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We humans are rarely satisfied.

Heat in the winter, A/C in the summer . . .

I think there is about a 3-degree range where we feel comfortable;

(I'd say mine is 75-78).

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I Don't Have ADD, but . . .

I can relate.

(The rollover text didn't seem to come with the cartoon. Here it is: 20 balloons float away while I'm permanently tying one to a tree to deal with it for good. Unfortunately, that one balloon was "land a rocket on the moon in Kerbal Space Program." Not sure what my permanent balloon is, but it should probably be "Shoot 20 balloons with a dart gun to eliminate all traces of distractions and things to do.")

I only posted twice in August?

Go figure. Also? I'm ridiculously behind on other people's blogs, too. Also? Emails. Also? Dishes and general house keep-uppery.

Why? Well there are several reasons.

1. We started out the month with 4 straight days of house guests (8 of them). In that time, we went to Hershey Park, Hershey Park's water park, and the Renaissance Faire (Thing 2 is a BIG fan of the shire). We were all worn out after that.

2. That was followed immediately with 4 straight days of birthday parties. As a note, we had about 21 different birthday celebrations in and around the month of August. Yes, many of those included parties. No, I'm not kidding.

3. We had more house guests (4 this time) for yet another 3 days. It was filled with lots of eating and laughing and was generally wonderful and went way too fast.

4. Lots of little things - watching meteor showers, being sick, supporting our friends who are local musicians, yet another visit to Hershey Park with local friends, coordinating some fun birthday surprises, lunch out with friends, property taxes, lots of cleaning and cooking, getting together with friends, visits with extended "family" (Mark's brother Scott's wife Lindsay's brother and his family moved to the area and even though we're not related, we like to think of the kids as cousins - well, their grandparents visited and wanted to see us. It was a short, but really fun and nice visit), summer ice cream party at the tae kwon do studio, car repairs, swimming at the pool, lots of Minecraft, lots of word games and park visits with friends, beach trip planning, business stuff, and more.

5. We were lucky enough to wrap up the month with a lovely blue moon "letting go" celebration, hosted by our friend at her house/farm - it was such an interesting and eclectic group of people. We all wrote down things in our lives (burdens, doubts, trauma, fears, people, events, etc.) that we would like to release and burned our papers in a backyard fire -- letting go of the energy associated with them and making room for new, positive experiences. SUCH a neat visual and ritual. And we all felt better afterward.

6. Extreme weather. This summer has been, well, extreme meteorologically-speaking. It has either been really hot, really dry, or really stormy. Of course it's always been one or more of those things anytime we've decided to host something at our house, hoping to keep people and fun outdoors. :/

7. Being a mom is more than a full-time job. I wouldn't trade it for anything. I love it. You work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; you get no vacations, no sick days and certainly no personal days; overtime is mandatory; and you do not receive a paycheck. Sounds crazy. Thing is? Best. Job. Ever. But yeah, I have never felt busier in my life.

I saw a great comment someplace that talked about how being a stay-at-home mom (SAHM) is a grueling and exhausting job. The commenter went on to say that of course she's grateful for it, loves it, and wouldn't want to do anything else. But, she said, that doesn't mean she can't say it's exhausting. "If I were to hear Heart surgeons and Rocket scientists say their jobs were exhausting, I wouldn't think they're complaining or dislike their jobs. Neither should anyone read a SAHM's expression of it being tough work as complaining. It is what it is. I just think it shows people's ignorance when they assume that if you're a SAHM, you're not "working." Bah! You work from sun up to bedtime without breaks and without pay and then come talk to me." Great point!

Well, that's it for now. I'll do a random thoughts post soon and hopefully get caught up on reading the blogs I follow soon, too. Also? I hope to do some regular blog posts with pictures and things soon.