What's new? Nothing.

So, I am hitting a mid-life crisis. I was hoping this move would let us break free from the same-old same-old: shake things up and try new things. Didn’t work out that way. Same type neighborhood, same type of schools, same type of people, and exactly the same stores as in our old town. That’s not bad, and I do feel blessed we can provide a great lifestyle for our family. But, some days, I wonder if we missed our big chance to become adventurers.

With that in mind, my husband and I vowed to start with small changes. We would NOT eat at a chain restaurant tonight (I said it was a small change). I promised to try something different, so we headed to an Indian restaurant spotted earlier. Turns out, it was not open yet – in fact there was not even any drywall up.

Try again.

I see a Mexican restaurant calling itself a Cancun experience. We make our way inside, and I am feeling excited about this single, symbolic gesture. Oops. It wasn’t Cancun, it was Cajun. And, everything they served had seafood. I hate seafood with a passion! Our grand experiment ended with probably the only cheeseburger served in there tonight.

OK. I’ll do something exciting tomorrow. Maybe. After my eye doctor appointment to get bifocals. (Sigh) Middle age indeed.

3rd time's the charm

Starting over in a new house can be a real pain in the butt. We are adding ceiling fans, wiring speakers, hanging curtains and, occasionally, unpacking a box.

Why is it that every project big or small takes three trips to Lowe’s? Not two, not four, but three. Every single time. Wrong size screws. Shelf cut to wrong size. Wrong mounting bracket. Curtain color looks horrible…

But, when it’s all done, I know I’ll be bored. So, I’ll start yet another project that won’t go as planned and will require three trips to the store. Go figure.

Boxes verses having fun

The kids are at their Grandma’s house for a week. The plan is that I will be able to finally get us all settled into the new house. However…

I think the thing that will unstress my husband and me the most is to spend lots of time together. We finally saw Star Trek last night (loved it!). We’ll have a few rounds of golf later this week.

And, we’ll talk. Without the kids interrupting. For the first time in a year, we won’t be having to talk about his job search, selling our house or buying a new house.

A few boxes will get unpacked, but more importantly we’ll celebrate making it through this past year. How relaxing!

Do you really want to change?

There is an Einstein quote I keep coming across lately, “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

That’s pretty deep if you think about it.

Being organized to advocate for your child

We registered the kids in their new schools this week. So, how can I help the schools get to know my children? This is extremely important because one of my children has several disabilities.

A long time ago, I started a notebook with all the report cards, neuropsychology assessments, medical testing, and a list of all the specialists for this child. There are notes from the IEP meetings as well as each year’s IEP. There are even work samples. These things are arranged by type into sections and then by date. Any special education educator can quickly look through this to get an overview of my child.

I made this notebook just so I could keep up with all the paperwork. But, it has been an extra blessing during this move as we get new doctors and start a new school. I have a way to quickly access the information they need. We can also reflect back to look for progress or patterns of continued problems.

Anything that reduces the amount of loose paper is always a great thing!

Moving (again and again and again and again)

The Traveling Wilburys’ song, “Cool Dry Place” is stuck in my mind. Just read the words at face value.

One year after learning my husband was losing his job, we are nearing our final move. The kids and I rented an apartment in our old town so they could finish the school year with their friends, but it made things crazy. For two days in March, we actually had stuff spread across two apartments and two houses in two towns.

Next week, we will all finally be living together full time in our new house. Looking back, I can definitely say it was worth the hassle and expense. But, I am really sick of boxes – packing, moving, unpacking, repeat.


I am calling this the year of the box.

Ode to selling a house...

I had planned to recount the horror of reaching closing on our old house and regale you with tales of how unstressed I was through the whole thing. But in reality, I was a basket case at least once a day. Nachos were the only thing that saved me. After too many things to recount (like the buyer’s money going to the wrong bank or my husband breaking the disposal!) we finally were able to close.

But, instead of detailing the entire blow by blow (and getting worked up again), I decided to write a sort-of multi-stanza haiku type poem to prove how Zen like I am now.

Winter: offer. Done? No.
Inspect. Irrational demands.
Buyers ignore contract.

Spring: Where’s their money?
Do we move out? Will we close?
Do we sign on new place?

Where will we sleep tonight?
Last minute: even more demands.
Stuff on pods, minivans.

More demands from buyer.
But, where will we sleep tonight?
5 pm! All is a go!

Finish moving out.
Baseball, dinner, homework, showers.
Sleep well in new place.