My Pathetic Doberman...

...may snap at other people's kids, pee on the floor, and bark at every damn thing that goes by our house......but she also will share her meals with the baby without complaining. What a good dog!

Our ladybugs have started pupating, so they won't be able to come to Twin Firs with us for the weekend. But that is okay. We bought 1500 adults to release into our organic fruit orchard!

Adventures in Moving: Part 1

We begin our Adventures in Moving Series with the Uhaul and a trip south for the weekend...

We rented a fourteen foot Uhaul last Thursday! M didn't think we could fill one with just our clutter. I said, "Bring the truck. I will fill it." And we did. To the top! With just the junk that was in the garage and under the stairs. Scary. M should get the credit for clearing out all the stuff we had stored in the garage. The fun part was getting it down the driveway at Twin Firs. I couldn't believe it fit. I thought for sure we would have to carry each box down the driveway, one by one.

And for my dear friends who have been requesting orange carpet pictures... Here you go! Our new home has a ton of potential. One just has to look past the ugly carpet and mess. This is the lower living room. S is down there doing something... Its way messier then it normally is since we have been moving things around and painting the ceiling.This picture is to the left of the lower living room. It is a little reading nook and IJ and E are playing some secret club house game.This is the dining room, with pea green carpet. We will be putting pergo in here and painting the green on the cupboards. To the left is a sliding glass door that leads to our new garden.And this is the upper living room, with our piles of stuff that needs a new home. Behind the piles is a great fire place with stadium seating. To the right is the front door. On the back side of the brick is a hallway with real stone floors.

With all the moving and unpacking and painting etc. M did not get to mow the pasture like he normally does this time of year:So the grass is as high as an elephant's eye! Or at least taller than the kids! And what would a trip to Twin Firs be without a barbeque!Two kinds of trout and alligator tail! Grandad was entertaining a guest this weekend: L's beau! He came down to meet the great patriarch of our family and to help out with some drywall work. He has received the blessing of the Great Grandaddy Bear and has been approved of by all.

Let He Who Is Without Sin...

This morning we replaced the hood fan that has been broken since we moved in. What a pain! The wood was so hard and the screws so short that it took two of us to hold the fan up. Unfortunately for me, M had used the oven earlier and it was still venting hot air right where I had to lean. So, we ended up having to prop the fan with a cooler, the dog food, and two books. My older daughters, who know M so well, will laugh at the following... when M was done with the project, he proudly put his tools away. In his tool box. So he could find them while working on the next project. Because everyone who knows him knows that he never puts his tools away. Ever. And that is why he had to buy a whole new set of tools yesterday. Because he left all of his tools at Twin Firs over the weekend.

And can anyone guess where he is, right this second? At the hardware store! Because we need some more supplies for the next project for the day: the toilet! Yes, we have no toilet right now. A simple change of the wax ring is now a big huge project.

We are keeping the kids busy with our new unit of study: ladybugs! IJ thinks he is too old for ladybugs, but his work is going to be a little more difficult than coloring and cutting (E) or making a ladybug clock (S).Mr. Smarty Pants had to label the parts of a ladybug with no help. And draw lines following cardinal directions to show a ladybug's path through a garden. That's what he gets for thinking he knows everything!

So, M is sloppy with his tools, IJ thinks he knows everything. What about me? I packed my projects. I have a LOT of projects. Can you see My Pathetic Doberman next to the Leaning Tower of Yarn? The cardboard also holds yarn. And fabric. And other fun stuff that I will get to some time. And thats not all! I have scrapbook supplies too! And paints! And the orange bar is also full of beading, cross stitching, etc...

Seventh Heaven

IJ is seven years old! We've tried to teach the kids that birthdays are for spending time with friends and not about getting presents. I've done a few birthday parties in the past, but when I do, I feel like I'm feeding the insane cycle of greed and want and waste... So instead of a party, we had a hike with the Cub Scouts and all their siblings and two of IJ's closest friends. I wish I brought my camera, but for some reason I never do. But I know my dear friend did, so as soon as she emails some pics to me I will post them (hint, hint). Afterwards, one friend came over for strawberry shortcake and ice cream. Now, this one friend has three brothers that came with him, so we had a total of eight kids at the table! What fun!
And then Dad came home bearing surprise presents! IJ got a new bike (he has been the same small bike since he turned four) and a new watch! We got to hear, "Its 3:38. Okay, now its 3:39," or a variation of that for the rest of the evening. So, for a kid who lives with a weird family who doesn't like to focus on presents, he got a lot of great things from his friends and family. He pronounced this birthday the BEST he has EVER had!

Soccer Mom

Okay, friends, its confession time. Yes, I'm confessing something personal online on a blog, which is so silly. But I don't have anything else to write about today.

I'm a soccer mom.

But not one of those who drives around town in a minivan. Oh nevermind. I do that. Okay, I don't holler at the kids while they're playing, "Pass the ball! Defend your goal!" Oh darn. I did that today too. Okay, I've got one! I don't bring orange slices and water bottles! Hah! See? I'm not a Soccer Mom! In the stereotypical sense at least...

I played soccer when I was young. And I hated running and I was scared of the aggressive players. I always played defense because that meant I didn't have to run all over the field. I could do cartwheels or pick flowers while the rest of my team ran all over the field. And when those aggressive girls came charging down the field to make a goal...I would kick the ball as hard as I could in any direction just so they would get away from me. I didn't like the aggressive girls crashing into me and kicking my legs instead of the ball. I didn't like the way they elbowed me so they could get the ball.

Today, when it was time for the parents to go out on the field and scrimmage with the kids, IJ begged me to come out and play with him. I really didn't want to go. For two weeks I used F as my excuse to not play. Last week I had the wrong shoes. Today IJ made sure I was wearing the right shoes before we left the house. I don't want to teach my kids to be poor sports or lazy or bad attitudes, so I acted cheerful when it was time to play.

But then I had to run. And my body does not at all work the way it used to! I may have had good shoes on, but I definitely needed support in others! So I claimed the postion of Goalie. No running. Hah! I really enjoyed playing with the kids. Until the kids-who-don't-like-running wanted to play goalie. And I didn't want to give my spot up and run. But I had to, especially when they said something about sharing and playing fair. So I played defense again.

And then SHE came. The aggressive girl who wanted to make a goal. The kind that kicks your legs (on accident) and elbows you! The one that is so focused on playing and winning that she just doesn't notice the rest of the kids are scared of her. I was scared of her. I felt like I was 9 years old again (we are to the confession part now). And then...... I kicked the ball as hard as I could down the field.... and realized that I am way taller than she is, I weigh far more than she does, and I'm way older than she is.... and I wasn't scared! I had fun! I decided that she was a good player and needed to develop skills playing against me that she wouldn't have a chance to develop playing little kids (who were playing rock-paper-scissors instead of soccer). I really enjoyed blocking her goals. And when I whispered to her, "Watch my goalie. He always throws the ball to that adult over there. Intercept it next time." and she did and she looked over at me and grinned.... well then. That was the best soccer mom moment I have ever had!

Moving and Moving Fast!

Here it is, only Thursday, and we are on the fast track to getting out of here! We had a Real Estate Agent come over this afternoon to help us decide what to focus on as far as fixing up goes. He is the same guy that helped us buy this house, so we were pleased when he noticed how much nicer we've made the place. M, my OCD husband, is in his gotta-get-things-done mode and is DRIVING ME INSANE. He is taking a van load of our possessions to Twin Firs TODAY and I will be without a vehicle all weekend. IJ has to miss soccer unless someone can come over tomorrow to watch the kids that I can't fit into our commuter car. Next week our septic system will be inspected and we will continue to get rid of stuff (why didn't we get rid of it a long time ago?) and clean, clean, clean. I feel sorry for my kids because they won't be allowed to play the way they are used to playing. And their schoolwork will be terribly neglected. Which is fine by me!

Moving!

Our dream is quickly becoming reality! We are moving to Twin Firs! The next few weeks are going to be quite hectic while we scramble to sell our house, etc. The kids are excited because now they can have all the pets they want, but IJ is slowly realizing that he will be leaving his friends and Taekwondo and Cub Scouts. Every once in awhile I see the tears well up, but he tries to hide it. We will also have to deal with the combining of two households and getting rid of all our duplicates, junk, and mementos from the past. Anyone want to buy a house?

Mother's Day

We spent our Mother's Day at Twin Firs. We try to take a family picture every year, but last year we had a newborn that wasn't nursing well and the camera had no batteries when we got to the beach. This year we are missing a few kids. But that is what happens when your kids grow up. Sigh...

We don't do a lot of money-based gifts around here. Just think of it: our anniversary, Christmas, birthday, Mother's Day... why that's FOUR holidays my darling would have to think of a meaningful gift to buy me! And four gifts I would have to think of for him. That's a lot of pressure. So we like to focus on acts of kindness. Sunday morning, my dearest husband made me breakfast, of course. But my favorite gesture was when he carried my ugly (but much-loved) rocking chair out into the front yard. Not only is this chair ugly (orange plaid from the 70's) but it is also HEAVY. And I love it. M labored under the unsightly mass just so I could knit and watch him work in our new garden. Now that is a Mother's Day present worth bragging about!

And... We are going to learn about WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON WITH M'S JOB TODAY!

In 90 minutes we will know our fate. The suspense is killing us!

Diaper Fun: Again

Normally I would post this on my other blog. The one I reserve for things only my older sister would be interested in. But I'm very proud of my achievements this weekend (all sewing related), soooo (or is it sew?) I'm going to show off a bit.

I was given a pair of old pajamas from a dear friend of mine because she knows that I love to make things out of recycled things. First, I cut the pants in half and hemmed the rough edges: Then I folded it in half vertically and folded the sides in: And then I pinned it on my baby: This is such a cool diaper because there is elastic at the waist! Which I never put in myself because it takes too long. And its Tommy Hilfiger! Watch out Huggies, here comes the Tommy Diaper by moi!

Sisters

I now understand why moms like to dress up their daughters in matching clothes and take pictures. And now that I've done it once, I want to do it again and again!