What I Want...ed

I had my heart set on moving this year.  I was all geared up to paint and spruce and stage my home this spring so we could put our house on the market.  And then our sewer backed up....twice in one week.  We had a guy run a camera through our sewer line only to find out that our sewer line has long since disintegrated and the raw sewage from our house has been flowing into our front yard for who knows how many years.  We got bid after bid for the repair.  $12,000.  I couldn't even wrap my head around it.  And Steve was strung out over it.  Forget moving.  How are we even going to afford to fix the poop-surrounded house we live in?!?

We called one more plumber.  And this guy was a talker.  His son wanted to go into the fire service and he asked Steve (who was wearing his dept. hat) tons of questions about it.  And Steve is a super nice guy.  And I can't think of any other reason why, so I'm going to assume this plumber gave us the nice guy discount.  $6300.  Thank you, plumber. 

Oh, and I had just finished our taxes.  Because I didn't work as much last year, but we didn't think to adjust our withholding we are getting a larger return than usual.  $6200.  Thank you, God.

And I'm so grateful.  And yet, disappointed.  Getting over not moving has been hard.  I had spent so much time being excited about the next step for our family that I glossed over the getting there.  So many things will have to come together before we can move. The number one hurdle; selling our house in this market.  Steve, for one, is relieved.  One more year to check off a rather large project list and sock away some more money.  I'm all keyed up with no place to go. I wish I could rest in waiting.

Quote of the Day

Miss Erin gave Addie some new dress up clothes today. She insisted on wearing the Sleeping Beauty dress to Target this afternoon. Not a battle I cared to engage in today. Addie twirled down the aisles in her lovely gown, drawing as much attention as she could.
The kids started to get kind of crabby at the checkout and both pouted when they were told that they couldn't get gum. We headed to the elevator and Addie pushed the "down" button. Daniel walked up behind her and pushed the button again...
Addie: Daniel! Don't do dat! Humph!
She pouted, gave him a small push, crossed her arms and turned her back to him.
Daniel, in disgust: Addie, you're such a princess.

Entourage

This is a picture of Addie's Entourage. Pictured left to right: Nathan's Cow, Baby Bunny (ears only visible,) Emma, Baby Kitty, Sherry, Mia (sometimes called Kelly), and Russel (who is a girl.) These critters take a starring role in most activities and make-believe. The cats come with us everywhere. They read books with us, meow bedtime songs and eat bowls of "cat" food that Lindy is always stealing. Lindy is getting fatter and fatter.

Emma is from Aunt Desi. Addie likes to put on a tank top so she can carry Emma around like she's in a Baby Bjorn.

Yesterday the cats took a nap and we made play-doh cakes. Addie was the baker. She made cupcakes to order, and kept calling me, "Miss." This girl makes me laugh.

Nathan: Month Six

Nater Tater is awesome. He smiles ALL THE TIME. Except when I try to take his picture. He's rolling all over the place, chewing on anything he can get his hands on and laughing at random things like lights and people who are eating. Last check he's 28.5 inches long and 18 lbs, 6 oz.

Happy Valentine's Day

Steve and I are anti-Valentine's Day. It seems forced and silly. But I had to post this picture. The house that Steve grew up in is currently on the market. If anyone wants to give us $50,000 so we can actually afford to buy it, we'd move in tomorrow. It's an awesome house.
But the very best part is this deck. It's quiet and looks out into the woods and it's where Steve and I started a friendship that led to a pretty incredible marriage.

Christmas in Hindsight - Part 3

We started Christmas Day at home. Gifts, birthday coffee cake and pj's. Daniel read a story he illustrated that was based on the Christmas Story. This story focused mainly on the angel; a side effect of his recent fame in the school Christmas Pageant.

Around lunch time we headed out to Aunt Sara's for some time with the Hahn/Henson clan. I was talking and eating too much to take pictures. This was a Christmas of firsts. Nathan's first Christmas ever, Blake & Austin's first Christmas shared between 2 homes, and our first Christmas with Sherry and Rachael. Daniel and Addie had the usual blast playing with their cousins.

Later that afternoon, Aunt Sara and Daddy took the kids out to make snow angels and go sledding.The next day we had another Christmas celebration with Gram's family, but my camera never made it out of the diaper bag. That night was fun, too, but it's when I hit my limit for people and especially presents. I'm certainly grateful for how much my family loves our kids. But 4+ days of Christmas makes this claustrophobic introvert want to go Alexander Supertramp.

Christmas in Hindsight - Part 2

Christmas Eve gifted us with a beautiful snowfall. It was a perfect, magical, heavy snow that clung to the trees and made the whole city quiet.

Christmas Eve night we headed to Great Grandma's for dinner and cookies with Paw-Paw's family. 17 people crammed into Great Grandma's little apartment is rather claustrophobic. Add to that a large collection of fragile knick knacks, a food-stealing dog, neighbors who cannot tolerate noise, and a new cousin due this spring and one could see why I am campaigning for a change of venue for next year.

Given the circumstances, the kids all did great. Lots of fun with cousins, TONS of gifts from Santa and of course, Great Grandma's famous Christmas Cookie spread.

Gram helping out with Nathan.

Paw-Paw keeping the kids entertained before dinner. I love this picture for so many reasons.

The whole Schoeneberg/Barken Family, minus Peter who was at work. Our first Christmas without Great Grandpa. He was still there in conversations about his wood carvings and his favorite cookies. He would have loved the hustle and bustle of all of us together.