One Year--Done and Not Done

How absolutely crazy that it has been one year since we moved into our new house.  What a whirlwind!  Where did the time go?  I can hardly believe how many things I did and how many things I did NOT! 


NOT DONE . . .
Watching TV
Painting the upstairs
Fencing the yard (and a bazillion other household improvements)
Potty training Luke--but at least he will do his business occasionally (when adequately bribed with the treats from the potty basket)
Learning to knit
Running


DONE . . .
Enjoyed dinner with many new friends
Walked to the park--the best time is during baseball games, when we get hot dogs for dinner
Taken walks around the block--sometimes unaccompanied by anyone over three-hence the fence
Painted the entire downstairs--oh, it makes me so happy and feels so much more ME
Flooded the laundry room (went through all three levels of the house)
Flooded the basement twice
Replaced the water heater (see above)
Shovelled a ton of snow
Played water games with the neighbor kids--Luke loves that powerwash setting, thus Eric and friends must use the sled as a shield
Served in the church
Explored the library and storytime at The Purple Cow
Began and ended Eric's first year back at school since 1st grade
Crocheted
Sold lots of hand-sewn items at Karen's boutique
Read books as a family
Groomed Mr. Darcy
Helped a dear friend through the death of her mother
Served a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner
Acquired some lovely treasures from DI and yard sales
Re-landscaped the front yard
Learned a lot about patience, meekness and obedience
Tried to adjust to the heartache of missing having my Lizzie here all the time
Rejoiced that my Lizzie was so strong, capable and independent
Gained weight
Lost weight
Gained weight . . . hmmmm
Put braces on Eric's teeth
Had braces taken off Eric's teeth
Had surgery on Eric's mouth
Became a County Delegate and participated at the County Convention
Spoke in church
Wrote in a journal--this is BIG for me
Loved my little family
Adored my husband
Reaffirmed that my life is full, abundant and blessed

Timeline of a Star-Aligning Whirlwind

Since my last entry forever ago some stuff has kinda, sorta happened--

WE MOVED!!

March 2009 Dejunking every room, closet and storage space in the house/garage
Having a yard sale--where money and goods were both stolen (won't be doing that again!) New kitchen sink/faucet, cabinets, countertops and appliances
New bathroom sink/faucet, cabinets, and countertops
Touching up every wall/trim in the house
Tiling the entry downstairs
Taking much of our furniture to a storage unit
Replacing the roof
Changing light fixtures and doorknobs
Planting our square foot garden
Replacing all of the windows
Repairing the leaky porch and replacing drywall
Repairing sprinkler heads
Cleaning the INSIDE of the furnace --and a seemingly bazillion other small and tedious tasks to prepare our house for sale
Exercising every morning
Homeschooling Eric
Interviewing several realtor folks, and after meeting a really crazy liberal woman (deemed "butterfly lady"who offended my very core), we were blessed to find a perfect match for us. (Bill Wegener with ReMax is a masterful negotiator and Dave Ramsey preferred provider!)
April 10, 2009
House Listing

April 23, 2009

Full price offer on house

April 27, 2009

Eric's 10th birthday. I can't believe my little guy is TEN!

We have a rather silly tradition that I started with Lizzie--the Decorating Elf visits and decorates the dining room with confetti, balloons, banners, streamers, gifts, and the special red plate. Sadly, it is widely known who the "Elf" is!

April 29, 2009

Party for Eric at Classic Fun Center. Remind me not to throw a party by myself which requires me to order pizza, serve cake, and keep pre-pubescent boys safe while at the same time keep a very busy two year old from flinging himself in front of speeding skaters or off of high bouncy slides that I am not agile enough to climb without my feet flying in the air. Very embarrassing and SWEATY!

April 23-May 1, 2009

Make four trips to Tooele with our realtor (each requiring about 5 hours) to look at dozens of houses only to feel overwhelmed and uncertain about what to buy. Attend church two Sundays in order to visit wards of houses where we might be interested in buying. Spend lots of time praying, fretting and lying awake with worry about all this house or that, which neighborhood, are there kids, does it have the space we need, can I cope with this broken thing or that ugly thing? Make a fifth trip to Tooele with Shannon to spend 3 hours in a foreclosure measuring and getting estimates on needed repairs and then finally deciding that even the incredible price wouldn't change the fact that killer dogs lived next door and Cletis and Brandeen lived over the back fence! (No kidding, you should have seen the water barrels, broken down cars and old mattresses littering the whole back yard. Reminds me of the joke: If you have one home that is mobile and fifteen cars that ain't, you might be a redneck!)

May 3, 2009

Make a ridiculously low offer on a house with twice the acreage and twice the square footage as our current house--plus we would no longer have to "dibs" the potty!

May 4, 2009

Ridiculously low offer accepted on the Tooele house--no counter! And the house is vacant which means NO LIVING WITH MY PARENTS and moving twice!! (Can you say, stars are beginning to align?)May 6-9, 2009
Trip to Disneyland!!

Eric at the Mad Hatter--being TEN!!!

May 15, 2009 Inspection of the Tooele house. Roof needs replaced shingles and repaired board in the attic. Some other items require repair. Ask owners for money--they reduce the price another $6,500 for needed repairs. WE ARE GOING TO MAKE MONEY ON THIS DEAL!! (Can you say, stars are nearly aligned?)

May 17, 2009

Teach Sharing Time in Primary for the last time--I will miss those folks! Be released in Sacrament Meeting

May 18, 2009

Sell my piano--hope you enjoy it Steph!!

May 20, 2009

Closing on both houses

May 22, 2009

Moving day. A big thank you goes out to Thayn and Court for their help!! Also, thanks to Steph for watching Luke most of the day! And to Shannon's brothers who saved us, especially on the Tooele end. When I said good-bye to Lizzie I cried so hard. I know that what she is doing by staying and living with Dave's folks is the right thing for her--and a great opportunity to launch out on her own. I know that! But it also hit me like a ton of bricks on an already emotional day that things will never quite be the same. We have turned a corner to begin anew--fresh (and a bit frightening) for both of us. I am excited and happy for her. My new nest has an empty spot, though. I know that we will be forever close, but I will miss not having her with me every day. Ugh!! Change!

Here is where I determined the stars to be perfectly aligned. The neighbors across the street came over while we were still moving with a plate of Rice Krispie squares. They have two sons, so much like Eric and the same age. On the east of us, two boys about Eric's age. I looked up while talking with the parents to see Eric doing just as I dreamed--playing, talking and laughing with these four boys. By the time they left, Eric had a note from one of them that said, "Eric is awesome!" And I KNEW that we were in the right place.

We were so exhausted that Shannon slept in the basement on the extra sofa, Eric in a sleeping bag in the hallway upstairs (because his room was too full of stuff to even walk into it), and I slept on the living room sofa in my clothes squished in between two other sofas. Luke was the only one who spent the night in his bed in his bedroom! And so begins the saga of our new lives in our new home! How blessed I feel to be led here!

99 Things

I got this off of someone's blog and thought it would be fun. You just highlight all of the things that you haven't done in your life.
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child (How about been adopted?)
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon (only a half)
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise (Disney)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (in Holland)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language (Can you believe Ob?)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted (For the Deseret News Athlete of the Month)
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling (in Hawaii)
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching.
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy (His name is Gagloo:)
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial (And had a car hit and run while there.)
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper (And on the news, radio and magazines)
85. Read the entire Bible (What about the Book of Mormon?)
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit (What about a murder trial?)
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Wow! This makes me realize what a full life I have led. I have said many times that if someone told me what I would experience in this life I would have never believed them. And I am only 42!

Failure and Success

Yesterday I ran the half marathon I had promised myself I would complete this year. It was such a crazy, emotional experience. I had actually run thirteen miles on the treadmill several weeks ago so I knew that I could make the distance. But what a catastrophe! I went out WAY too fast (it was a really steep hill), felt horrible after only the first three miles, and spent the next ten struggling with self-defeating thoughts. I feel so mentally weak--not to mention physically! My pacing was horrible, and my time was embarrassing! But through it all I learned some things . . .
Don't start out too fast!! (You know, that 'don't run faster than you have strength thing'.)
Run with a friend! (If I could have been more distracted from the discomfort I would have fared better, I think.)
Enjoy the beautiful scenery!! (Wow, it was gorgeous!)
Focus on my blessings!
Enjoy your friends! (Cathy Davis took me down, let me stay in her house, and bought me meals. We talked, laughed and cried a lot!!)
Run shorter races! (I really do not find the long stuff enjoyable, or addicting, like so many other people. I really enjoy the shorter faster stuff. I suppose I really am a sprinter, huh?)
Take more Gu--at least three for a half-marathon!

The night before I wrote a list of who I would run for each mile. It goes like this . . .
1. Shannon
2. Luke
3. Past, Present, Future
4. Kay
5. Lanette
6. My talents
7. My blessings
8. Cathy
9. Eric
10. Lizzie
11. Larry
12. LeeAnn
13. The Savior

I suppose it can be said that I did it! Maybe it was meant to be a humbling experience for me. Yet another one to let me know that I really am as a grain of sand.