MOVED!

Well, you knew we moved... but I mean, I've moved my blog.

It's HERE now. :)

CARPAL DIEM

I've been cleaning, painting and packing for a solid week, and I'm exhausted! Michael is working, so I'm doing the majority of it, since I'm the one who's home. I don't mind it, really. It's exciting to think of setting up in a whole new place, starting fresh and over, in a sense.

But my hands are seriously protesting. I've had carpal tunnel for a long time--since I was in my late 20's. It usually doesn't bother me, except at night once in a while. I wake up, often, with my hands and fingers numb. They go to pins and needles, and then it fades. Ten minutes at the most.

But with all the work I've been doing in the past week, my hands are killing me!  I wake up in the middle of the night with pain all the way down to my elbows, sometimes to my shoulders, and the numbness almost never goes away now. I'm hoping when this whole packing/unpacking phase is over, it will fade again, back to the way it was. I can hope, right?

I know it's just another sign I'm getting old. And really starting to feel it. *sigh* I can't set and keep the pace I used to, that's for sure! The last time we moved, I was 8 months pregnant, and I was in less pain than I am now! Kind of sad. This whole having physical reminders of how old I'm getting is really quite depressing, sometimes.

It makes me stop and take stock. What have I done with my life? What am I doing? Is it worthy of pursuing? It may be silly, but one of the movies that really influenced me when I was younger was Dead Poet's Society. I just keep thinking of that quote:

"They're not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they're destined for great things, just like many of you, their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because, you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen, you hear it? - - Carpe - - hear it? - - Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary."

Seize the day. Make your life extraordinary. How have I made my life? For the most part, it's been pretty ordinary, when I look back on it. Painfully so, at times. What legacy is there to leave? I've made more mistakes than I could count, failed more than I've succeeded. But I've learned along the way, and with every mistake, I learn more every day, in the midst of the pain and the reminder that time is passing me by.

There's nothing more I can do, aside from hoping the universe gives me the time I need to learn what I'm meant to. And those pins and needles I keep feeling--at least they're a reminder that I'm alive.

There's still time, then.

Carpal Diem!

YOUNG CARTOONS

Michael and I have been exposing the kids to the Looney Tunes, the cartoons we grew up with. While Spongebob can be amusing, and Foster's Imaginary Friends tickles me sometimes, I feel a sense of loss about "real cartoons" for kids. The pace was slower, the humor simpler (if, at times, racist and sexist) and the animation (the part Michael pays attention to) more interesting.

Today, they were watching an older Bugs Bunny cartoon. Dmitri looked at Bugs Bunny, frowning, and said, "That isn't really Bugs... is it?"

Zoe considered the question for a moment, and then replied, "Yes, it is. He was just younger, then."

LOL!

I guess this is Bugs all grown up?

ZOOM!

We were supposed to be packing and cleaning yesterday, but my sister called and said, "The Blue Angels will be flying right over our house--close enough to see the sun gleaming off their helmets! Wanna come over?"

ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

What a totally amazing experience! The kids loved it, although they got hot and decided to go inside and play in the air conditioning after a few fly-bys. The adults, though, we stood outside waiting for the rumble of thunder in the distance that meant an F-16 was on the way. Then one of us would spot it off in the distance, and we would try to gauge whether or not it was heading our way...

The sheer power of one of those planes zooming overhead is incredible! Toward the end, all six of them flew in formation directly above, so close together their wings almost touched, and so close to us, it looked like they were grazing the roof of the house as they appeared overhead!

Then my brother-in-law fed us ribs and fresh corn for dinner and we settled in for an evening of family catching-up and debate. It was such a nice break from the craziness of getting ready to move--a break I didn't even realize I needed until I took it!

HOME SWEET HOME!

Here it is... our new house!

It's a tri-level in Wales, MI, on 6 acres.

Nice kitchen, with hardwood floors, appliances included... 

And a FIREPLACE! YAY!

One full bathroom with double sinks...

Three bedrooms... Zoe loves the pink one!

The master bedroom...

Dmitri wants the blue one--of course!

It has another half bath, too!

Hardwood floors in the dining room, leading down to the great room...

Back of the house...

Dining area...

And a new front door!

Ahhhh... home sweet home!  We're moving the first weekend in August... so I'm off to pack...

WEE MEE

My "Wee Mee"... totally me, isn't it? Girlie drink and all!

BOOK MOOCH

I am in love with Book Mooch. I have tons and tons of books I no longer need or want, and this is the perfect place to get rid of them while getting books back that I DO want to read!

So far, I've given away 32 books, and I've received the following:

The Liars' Club
Ellen Foster (Oprah's Book Club)
The Torn Skirt
Cold Mountain
The Perfect Storm
Fat Girl: A True Story
The Manny
My Sister's Keeper: A Novel
The Devil Wears Prada: Movie Tie-In
The Girl Next Door
The Kite Runner
Man Named Dave, A: A Story of Triumph and Forgiveness: A Story of Triumph and Forgiveness
The Lost Boy: A Foster Child's Search for the Love of a Family
Brown Paper School book: Math for Smarty Pants (Brown Paper School Book)
100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed (Black Cat Series)
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
A Child Called "It": One Child's Courage to Survive
A Million Little Pieces
Lucky: A Memoir
Middlesex: A Novel

I am SET for summer reading!

Anyone who wants to mooch a book from me (I've got almost 300 on the list!) just go HERE.

HAPPY FEET!

AMC Theaters are having FREE kids movies every Wednesday this summer, and I took the kids to see Happy Feet today. We hadn't seen it yet, which was exciting--nice to see something on the big screen for free that wasn't a repeat! The movie itself was long, and dragged in places, but it was fun, and I really liked the teaching and message. Zoe said, on the way home, "We learned a lot about penguins today, Mom!" LOL It also had a solid environmental message I appreciated, too.

Next week is July 4th, so they're not doing movies, but the week after that, it's Ice Age II. Woo hoo!

HAPPY FUN BOX!

We buy kids all these toys, and yet... they play with the boxes! I remember as a kid, we had the most fun with big boxes, like for refrigerators and stoves. We made forts out of them--they were houses, spaceships, boats, you name it! And then, when they were too ragged and beat up to play in and stay together anymore, we used them to roll down hills!

Zoe and Dmitri call it the "Happy Fun Box!"

Hey, Mom, you found us!

Dmitri climbing into the "Happy Fun Box."

Peek a boo!

Look at us, Mom!

They played in the box ALL DAY!

Can't we SLEEP in the "Happy Fun Box?" Pleaaaasssse, Mom!?

GRILLING

DO OSTRICHS EAT PANCAKES

We're watching PBS, where there's a man doing something called an "ostrich dance."

Suddenly, Dmitri asks: Mom, do ostrichs eat pancakes?

Hm.  I wonder?

Ya think?

But if you give an ostrich a pancake, he's probably going to want a glass of milk to go with it.......

MY HERO!

So we had an adventure today... the dryer has been acting up for a few weeks, not drying clothes very well. It has heat, but not very much and takes 3-4 times of full cycles for clothes to dry.

Well, I stepped into the shower today, and BRRRR! No hot water! It wasn't freezing (not as freezing as the cold) but it definitely wasn't WARM! So after shivering through, I called M., who called to make sure the gas bill was paid. It was, thankfully... so what was the problem, then? The pilot light was on--I checked.

The gas company said they would send someone out--within the hour. That we should go outside, and not touch any light switches. EEK!

So we hung out until the Consumers Energy guy showed up, and he waved his little gas detector around, and said nothing was wrong and we needed to call a contractor to figure out why our appliances weren't working correctly.

*sigh*

Like we can afford a contractor right now?

At least the house wasn't going to blow up...

So M went down to look the water heater, and after fiddling with it for a while--we had hot water! WOO HOO!

MY HERO!

Still need to fix the dryer... but at least I don't have to take a cold shower tomorrow!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

M and I rarely get each other "big" gifts, but since I won a writing contest that awarded me $400 in Amazon gift certificates, I thought I'd get him something really big this year for Father's Day. It was really the deal I couldn't turn down. A stainless steel grill, normally 799.99 marked down to 299.99!

And after Michael undercooked pork chops and hamburgers on the one we have (which we've had since 1999!) since it needs a new heating element, I thought it would be the PERFECT Father's Day gift!

I was right.

I think he was surprised, don't you!?

And more than a little happy!?

Here's the grill he was drooling over...

Unfortunately, HIS was still in the box! But his parents got him a dolly (which he was almost just as thrilled about!) and he loaded the 177 pound box into the van! We had to leave our van seat at his parent's house... He didn't seem to have a problem with that, though! If it was going to be a choice between the new grill or the van seat--the new grill wins by a long shot! 

Bath Time

It won't be much longer that they'll take baths like this together...

Mommy, put in LOTS of bubbles, they said...

Dmitri loves being "Bubble Boy!"

And Zoe pretends she has "Bubble Lace" all over!

Look at that devious smile! He's up to something...

There he goes!

Ahhhh, relaxing...

They'll be too big soon to do this anymore... but I'll have the pictures later to show their prom dates!

THE SECRET OF THE BLUE BOX

I save the blue box for rainy days--literally or figuratively. For days when the kids are bored bored bored with everything else. All the toys have been played with, all the movies watched, everything seems dull and lifeless...

That's when I pull out the blue box!

There's nothing like re-discovering toys you forgot you had!

It can be pretty darned exciting!

Old puzzles seem new!

Even your sister's toys are cool!

See, Mom, isn't she pretty!?

Of course, your sister has to get in on the act, too... (Even the dog! He's chewing on a puzzle piece! )

The Blue Box is simply magic...

Look how well they're sharing!

Cooperating!

At least, until the next rainy day comes along...