vacation all I ever wanted
It killed me for most of the summer to not talk about our vacation here! Now that it’s over I finally can! I didn’t ever mention it because I felt weird about too many people knowing I was leaving the house for 10 days. We’ve had a lot of break-ins in our town and I didn’t want us being away to be too obvious.
Sooooo, we went to Florida, on the hottest week of the year. Yep.
I really don’t like heat, but I got over myself and had 10 days of fabulous! We tried to do fun things every morning and spend the afternoons in the pool, (at least, Josh and I did, while Damon worked.) Only one day out of the whole trip was too thunderstormy to swim. As long as I can get in the water I’m happy. ;)
We went because Damon has a new job, where he will mostly be working from home, but one week a month he will be in the office in, you guessed it, Florida. Josh and I got a chance to tag along to St. Petersburg this time since we had a free place to stay and school hasn’t started here yet.
Okay, I’ve bored you enough with the words, here is our trip in pictures! (For all three of you that actually want to see them!)
Man, those pelicans stunk!
The beach!!
St. Pete Beach was absolutely gorgeous. Next time we go, we’re spending more time there.
We don’t have trees like this in New Hampshire!
An armadillo made out of junk car parts? This is one of Josh’s favorite pics!
We should have seen an alligator right here, but it was even too hot for them. Ugh, the sweat.
After Damon’s work week was over we left St. Pete and spent a few days in Orlando.
The Lego store…need I say more?
Damon had some issues taking pics with his iphone. And he used to be a photographer??! Hee. Okay, it was just a liiiittle bit sunny out, and he couldn’t see what he was shooting. Also, the only day I didn’t wear black. Ahem. Did I mention the sweat?
The best part of the day at Magic Kingdom. Seriously. Minnie air kissed me on the cheek. So ridiculously cute.
Kennedy Space Center was my favorite day. There was lots of air conditioning…
We can’t pass up an opportunity for a Vulcan hand sign. Ever.
And really, what is a vacation without one of these?
ps. I have to give a shout out to my MIL and her husband for staying in the house part of the time and doing tons of chores for us! And another to my friend’s daughter “C” for checking in on my cat the rest of the time! Thank you!
Filed Under life, photos, the boy Tagged Florida, life, photos, vacation
downsizing
Did anyone else read this article in the NY Times last week about getting rid of all of your stuff and living with very few belongings? I’m just so intrigued by this. I’ve been feeling the weight of my “things” for a long time now. I’ve started to take steps to declutter, but I think there’s a whole mindset to living simply that I would like to explore.
Recently, in preparation for that horrible yard sale, I went through 10 big plastic bins that have been stored in our basement for all of the time we’ve lived here. We literally moved them from one storage area in our last house to another storage area in this one. (And really, they were in the one before that too, they were just in cardboard then.) It was such a waste of space! (And money to move it!) It was almost all junk.
Only about one bin worth went to the yard sale, one bin was worth keeping, and the rest went into the trash. That’s so depressing, and yet it was an incredible feeling to free myself of those things. Seriously.
I’ve decided I’m taking the next year purge to myself of some more of the stuff I don’t really need. I also have too many things I’ve kept for sentimental reasons, but don’t have any use for. At what point do you rid yourself of those things? Life isn’t about what you own, is it? I don’t think I would ever go as far as the woman in the article did, but I know I need to downsize my belongings, and my life.
parched
Every day I pull up the weather and scan the radar for a hint of green. A sign, any sign of some rain in the forecast. Nope, not today. Even the rare thunderstorms in the area have bypassed our patch of dust. So every day I go out and and fill up my watering can and try to keep my few potted veggies alive. I’ve given up on most everything else.
The grass is so crunchy you can’t walk on it barefoot for fear of puncturing your skin. The daylilies barely bloomed and I don’t think the hydrangea will at all. The black-eyed-susans actually look depressed! Despite being desert plants the hens-and-chicks are limp and the stonecrop are shriveling. Even the tall maples that get their water from deep underground are wilted and the leaves are already yellowing. We won’t have much pretty fall foliage here this year.
I planted an expensive Japanese Maple right before the drought started. Ugh. It’s still alive but hasn’t grown at all. I can only hope I’ve watered it enough to establish good roots before winter. The jury is definitely still out on my poor brown Magnolia too. I had transplanted forsythia, from the backyard to the front, but they are now dessicated twigs. I’ll probably have to plant new ones all over again next spring, darn it!
In all of June we had only two inches of rain, and in July, barely one. At least four each would have been normal.
We’ll see what August brings, more of the same 90+ degree days or a just little bit of relief? Sheesh. This is New Hampshire, if I wanted it this hot and dry I would live in Nevada or Arizona!
ps. And just because I’m one of those people that always has to look on the darn bright side of everything, here are two silver linings: there are almost no mosquitoes when normally we are inundated, and I don’t have to mow the freaking lawn.
never again!
So. The yard sale sucked in oh so many ways. Someone please kick me if I ever say I’m having a yard sale again!
It was so humid in the morning that I had to take my glasses off while we were pulling all the junk out of the garage because they kept fogging up. And then there was the sweat. I don’t like to sweat!!
I had hopes of decent traffic when people started showing up at 7:30 to shop. Except the early birds only wanted old albums. ~grumble grumble~ I don’t have any records and I wouldn’t sell them to you if I did. Harrumph.
Do you know how boring a yard sale is when no one shows up? Okay, not no one, but almost. Ugh.
Damon had nothing to do so he played with the panorama feature on his iphone. It’s weirdly accurate and yet not at all. Um, our driveway is supposed to be a straight line?
Then he cleaned the garage. Now that’s bored!
Josh was trooper. He manned his toy table until 1pm when he finally gave up and went inside to watch tv. I couldn’t blame him, I desperately wanted to go inside too, sit in front of the air conditioner, and freeze my face off!
In the end, I made $38, Josh made $21, and we still have massive piles of stuff in the garage. I refuse to bring any of it back in the house lest it never leave again. I took some things to the transfer station to the area people can pick over for free, a bag of clothes went into a Salvation Army bin, a box of books are ready for the used bookstore, and the rest of it will be donated to my favorite charity yard sale in September.
I’m close to selling a dining room table on craigslist today, which is what we should have done with everything in the first place. ~sigh~
Yard sales are so not worth the effort. Lesson learned.
most days
My days are virtually the same, hour-by-hour, sitting at my desk, searching for photos, making lunches, begging telling Josh to play outside, cleaning up cat puke, and avoiding anything resembling housework. Thankfully, most days are punctuated with little bits of humor, like watching Wipeout. I know, I know, it’s all kinds of wrong, but I can’t help it. :) And, yes, I let Josh watch it too…
Anyway, I wanted to show you a few things I typically see around here on any given day.
Look closely at the top of the photo. Yes, there is an extra cat in the picture. George is often found sleeping with toys piled on top of him.
I know I’m not the only mother in the world whose kid has extra sensory perception regarding the phone. Right? As soon as it rings, or even if I silently start to dial - he’s in the room. Talking to me. Or giving me hand gestures. Anything to get my attention. Or to listen in. Every single time! This photo? If I had saved them all I would have hundreds just like it:
Have you ever been to Passive Aggressive Notes? Well, I could have had a whole website of “I’m On The Phone Notes” if I had just planned ahead.
Lately we’ve been on a kill the clutter kick and we’ve decided to have a yard sale. A whole lot of crap is now piled in the garage:
And that’s not even all of it. Every day I put a little more in the pile, now named the Monster that Ate the Garage. We need to have that yard sale soon!
And last, but not least, is an older photo I found, taken by my husband that perfectly illustrates most of my days:
A cat that thinks he’s a person sitting on a Garfield book with Legos and crap all over the place. If a corner of a computer and a coffee cup were in the photo it would be perfect. :)
Filed Under family, humor, life, the boy, the cat Tagged life, photos, the boy, the cat
milestones
Today is my 15th wedding anniversary! Fifteen years. I can’t quite wrap my brain around that. It went by much quicker than it sounds. We still like each other. And we both still have all of our hair and teeth. I consider that a success. ;)
This is actually one of the only anniversaries we’ve had that both of us remembered it ahead of time. Usually at least one of us, and on occasion both of us, have forgotten it. One year we got an anniversary card in the mail from my MIL and we both went: huh, our anniversary must be coming up. Except it was that day and we didn’t figure it out until the next day. Duh.
I think anniversaries aren’t that big of a deal to us, because really, it’s every day that’s important, and we both know it.
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This weekend is also my 20th High School Reunion. Yikes! Now that makes me feel old.
We’re having it at a HoJos. No, really.
This is the first time I’ve been able to go to a class reunion. Funny thing, our 5th reunion was the same day I got married. I remember thinking at the time what a great excuse that was not to have to go! For our 10th and 15th I was living in Virginia and couldn’t travel back for them. So I literally haven’t seen most of these people in 20 years.
Other than their Facebook profile pics I have no idea what to expect. And we all know FB pics lie. They’re all photoshopped to make everyone look younger and skinnier than they really are. Except mine. Of course.
party on
Okay, I have officially lost my mind.
So we’re having a birthday party for Josh this weekend. AT MY HOUSE. His birthday happens to fall on Saturday this year so naturally that seemed appropriate for a full out party. I am so dumb.
Last year Damon was out of town on Josh’s birthday and we did very little for it. Josh was so mad at us! It seemed (even to me) like every kid in his class last year had a huge party and he was the only one who didn’t. He was so upset he actually told all of his friends he was having one and they were all invited. Uh, no. And oy. Yes, I made him go back to school and tell them the truth.
We started planning this one shortly after that little incident. This party is a year in the making. So it should be well planned yes? Heh.
So yeah. Anyway, we invited every kid in his class. It seemed like the right thing to do at the time.
We also invited a few of his close friends from his class last year, as well as a few close friends that have kids around the same age and live nearby.
And almost everyone has said yes.
Not that I wanted anyone to say no!! I really like everyone we’ve invited, but still…
Put it this way; I’ve made 28 goodie bags so far. Twenty-eight. And I’m afraid we’re going to run out.
help!!
A couple of things are going in my favor.
- I thought in advance to ask one of my friends with older kids if they can help monster kid-wrangle, and at least one if not all three are going to actually do it. And yes, Nicole, I am paying them whether you like it or not. pffft.
- Most of the parents are planning to stay. I’ve bribed them with adult friendly food. (Pulled pork!)
- Josh doesn’t want any typical party games. It’s a Lego party, and we’re going to just play Legos!
- The weather is supposed to be gorgeous. Partly cloudy and 71 degrees. 71 degrees! In March! In NEW HAMPSHIRE! We can throw the kids play outside!!
Even so, I’m still a little scared. And clearly, insane. And I hope I didn’t just jinx myself and it’s going pour buckets on Saturday instead.
Dear Josh, you’d better enjoy your party, because I’m never doing this again. Love, Mom.
Sigh. Maybe.
At least getting ready for the party has kept me too frantic to have time to think about the fact that my baby is turning 7. ::weeping::
Filed Under family, humor, life, the boy Tagged birthday, crazy, life, the boy
snuggles
Most evenings we let Josh have one tv show before bed. Usually he has a snack and plays Legos while he watches, but once in awhile I have the pleasure of cuddles instead. Tonight was one of those rare nights, and I don’t ever take them for granted. Damon has been out of town for a few days, and Josh needed some mommy time.
Josh cozied up to me on the couch, and then George snuggled up to him. Sigh.
Josh loves his cat, and George loves his boy.
My foot fell asleep but I didn’t move an inch. There was no way I was going to be the one to disturb them!
Filed Under life, photos, the boy, the cat Tagged life, photos, the boy, the cat
Walk MS
I have this amazing friend. Let’s call her “Amy.” Okay, that’s her real name, but whatever. ;)
She is one of those people you see everywhere, usually volunteering for something. She serves on boards and committees, helping out at school, at church, throughout the town. She always delivers the prettiest cookies for the bake sale, and makes a homemade meal for her family every night. She accomplishes more in one day than any other 5 women I know put together.
She the kind of woman you might look at and want to hate because how does she do it all? She makes the rest of us look bad!! But you can’t hate her, because she so darn nice. She will do anything for you, for any one of her circle of friends and family, and most especially for her kids. You have to love her, just because she is Amy.
She is strong, and beautiful, and funny, and always smiling. And she has Multiple Sclerosis.
Since this is MS Awareness Week, it’s a perfect time to let you all know I am participating in Walk MS on April 18 with Amy and the rest of her team and we would really appreciate your support. It’s super easy to donate online. If you want to donate but aren’t comfortable doing it online, send me an email (catnip35@gmail.com) and we’ll work it out.
If you have any questions about Walk MS check their FAQ page.
xo
Annette
snippets
I’m going to tell you one little fact that speaks volumes about my life right now; I just *now* (as in this morning) took the Christmas lights down off of my front porch.
~ahem~
Of course, the 5 strings of lights are now wadded up in a ball on my kitchen table and I hope to do something about that before the week day is over. That something will probably be be to stuff the whole thing in a Target bag and throw it in the garage to deal with next November! (At which time I will curse at myself, and go buy new ones.)
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I’m sitting at my desk surrounded by paperwork, books, and Legos. I can’t move from my chair for the amount of work hanging over my head. And when I have a moment to stand up and stretch I step on Bionicles and bruise the poor soles of my feet. Sheesh. I’m on a tight deadline with one rush project, and have two more looming. Work is good to have, but well, yeah. Their vacation was not my vacation. I cannot tell you how glad I am that our so-called vacation is over!
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On Tuesdays I volunteer at the school library. Mostly I put away books, hundreds of pounds of books. I’m also the checkout girl, making sure they’ve brought back their overdue books before they get another, that sort of thing. Sometimes they ask me to help them find just the perfect book. And once I got to read to a first grade class. (They even listened!)
Some of the fourth graders laugh at me because I’m terrible with names. They try to make me guess who they are. I see the same kids over and over, every Tuesday, bright, smiling faces of kids who want to be in the library, who clearly love to read, who get as many books as they can every week. I love it there, even if their names escape me, their happiness doesn’t.
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Today is Tuesday! I get to ignore the pings of emails, silence the ringer on my cell, and forget about the Christmas lights on my kitchen table. I get to go to the library.