Home Sweet Homes

We had our offer accepted on a completely different house. Wednesday I sent my parents out to see a house about 4 blocks from their house. It's a little rancher with a big yard, a separate building for an office and even a hot tub (that leaks). Our offer was a go by Friday afternoon. So now I'm buying a house and I'm sort of freaked out by it all. You know how you have ideas and then the reality is sort of scary? I hope this whole idea of spending summers in Idaho works out...Yeah. But anyway, we're excited about it. I'm looking forward to seeing it! Yes, I bought a house I haven't seen. I'm making plans to go up to Idaho for the inspection.
The kids are doing fine. We're spending lots of time in the backyard playing in the dirt piles and generally hanging out. The weather has been beautiful. It's really too bad that I'm so utterly miserable with allergies. I have to go do the shots this fall I think. I don't want to waste another gorgeous spring. All the kids are finishing up their refresher swim lessons so we'll be able to swim this summer. I'm really wishing that our pool is heated. Maybe next year.
The big news of the day is that Kenna has joined the potty crowd. She went on the potty twice this morning. Due to taking off her diaper and running naked through the house.
Laney is swearing lately and part of me wants to laugh, part of me is horrified. Especially because I know exactly where each little phrase originates and I can't blame her father for all of them. Griffin is going to be 2 soon and you can certainly tell. He's been throwing the occasional hissy fit. Most of the time he's a sweet bean though.

I hate buying houses

I'm liking the paint...and you can see it so well now that the house is naked and treeless. I'm feeling peevish this afternoon because, as somewhat suspected, the realtor selling the house we want to buy was ignoring us as long as possible so that he could fish for additional offers. I'm not inclined to change our offer and I now have a number at the bank so that I can call and complain about him. What a jerk. So who knows if we will end up with this house or not. The good part is that I'm not emotionally tied to the house, so it's still just a transaction to me. The downside is that we're getting closer to summer and I'd like to have things resolved.

Home Improvement?

We are experiencing a whirlwind of spending activity. Somehow I managed to schedule a house painting, a landscaping tree removal and pruning, and a patio removal all into the same week. We removed the enormous tree in front of our house and I'm not sure that it was the best idea. It's so bare and bright out there now. Sadness. However, I will not get a call in August that monsoon has caused our enormous mesquite to crash over into our house. And I will not be picking up the 7 thousand pods it drops in August (by hand because you can't rake or blow them effectively). So there you go. So long shade tree. On the other hand, removing the tree means that you can see the house now and it will have a brand new spankin' paint job by the end of the week. We're living inside the masked window bubble right now and I hear them spraying, but have no idea how it looks. And I'm afraid to open a door and get sprayed. So a big suprise waits at the end of the day.
We also put in an offer on a house in Idaho this week and that has added to the chaos. It's a little strange to be buying a house that I've never seen, but hopefully all will go well.
We had a really nice Easter. Went to church with Olive and Don at St. Pius across town, then we had everyone over for dinner at our house. The lamb was good, but a little too done for my taste. The coconut cake was AWESOME. A nice time was had by all.

Bunny Butt Cupcakes

Yes, that's right. Bunny butts. I made cupcakes with a little white icing in the center and then piped green grass around it, then I placed mini marshmallows covered in nonpareils and flattened marshmallows with pieces of cut jelly beans on them for feet. So the overall effect is the business end of the bunny going down the bunny hole in the grass. My camera battery is done and the cupcakes are history, so visualize it in your head.
We had a very successful play date at the park today. Hunted easter eggs and ate treats, played in the sand, etc. It was particularly fun because we had three dads in attendance today. Eric had the day off (weird. who gets good friday anymore?), Curtis is home while Earlee takes care of their new baby and Tony is staying at home while Talia is in school until he goes back to Iraq. Because he is a "military security contractor" or some bs title when he's working. We know it as "mercenary". He guards people and convoys in Iraq. So basically, he's a stay at home dad and then he goes to work and shoots people. Which seems sort of funny (except for the shooting people part). Kids had a blast and I ran in to a nanny who we've met various places.
Audrey is super super nice and the kids she watches are really cute--just a bit younger than mine. We've met casually several times. She thinks my name is Lisa. When I realized that is what she thought, she'd called me Lisa a couple of times and then I felt bad about correcting her. So there you are. I have her email address, so I'm thinking of sending her an email to invite her to a playdate and hoping she'll figure out the name thing without my pointing it out. I just feel weird about it. I just personally have a major nerosis about names and am always afraid I'm going to get it wrong (because I do. All the time. I have a really really hard time remembering people and names). I hate to tell others that they are. My own personal brand of crazy.
Two posts. One day. April is a new month.

Where did March Go?

So I seem to have completely skipped March blogging. What can I say? We spent the first two weeks of March in Idaho for Grandma's funeral. It was great to see Amanda and her family and Josh, even though it was a sad way to do it. The night of Grandma's funeral we all really had a party and there were a lot of puking men the next day. Which makes you wonder, doesn't it? Either the girls were more moderate in their consumption (hello motherhood) or we just hold our drink better (hello motherhood ha ha). While in Idaho we started our house search in earnest and missed out on two great potentials. I was all set to buy one and was waiting for Charles to get back from Colorado to show it to him and they accepted an offer. We're looking in the hottest part of the market I guess--homes that are affordable to first time buyers. Right now we're waiting to hear about a how that went into foreclosure on Mom's street. It would be great, but only if we can get it for our price range. It's large and has a big lot but otherwise doesn't have a tremendous amount to recommend it. It's got potential. Crossing fingers.
Back in Tucson, I've been working on refinancing our house, getting financing for a second house, getting our house painted, hiring landscapers to prune and remove trees, going to the rheumatologist, and our general life living stuff like school and playgroups. We're going to cook Easter dinner this weekend so I have lots to do there. I also made bunny butt cupcakes last night for playgroup and I'll post about them tomorrow. I think my camera needs to be charged. I should go do that now so that I'm ready for playgroup picts. My kids are fiends for the egg hunt.

Rain Rain Go Away

Ok. I'm done with the rain thing. I don't think it has ever rained this much since I've lived here. It's like being in Idaho--with the same temperatures. Last week we had a couple days at 70 and then pfft. back to 50 and pouding rain.
We were all a little stir crazy by the end of the day today so we played run from the ticklemonster (I walk around threatening to tickle and they run screaming around and around the house) and then we played "Dinosaur and Bobcat" (a perennial, though inexplicable favorite), then we played some hide and seek. I just bust up laughing every time we play hide and seek because Laney is the worst hider in the world. I say "ready or not" and she says "I'm here mom!"
The twins are both talking (Kenna with more success than G) more and more. Trying out lots of new words every day. Kenna is working on her panting kitty impression. Griffin loves to play a puppy. Yesterday Laney threw a toy for him and he crawled over to fetch it, picked it up in his mouth, and then he ran away with it. He's got the most realistic puppy impression ever.
We went visiting yesterday. First to Olive and Don's and then to Debbie's. The girls like Prince but Griffin thought he was definitely not good. Not good at all. They all had fun and ate about a pound of animal crackers. Debbie and David were working on their backyard. They are in the process of putting in a pool. Angelica was getting her senior picts done.
I guess the big news is that we're working on house hunting in Idaho. Hopefully we'll be able to buy a second home up there some time this spring. We've decided to sacrifice buying a different home here and buy a second there instead. We'll just have to make do in this one. I'm excited about the prospect of having our own house up there. The first round of home tours didn't go very well, but Dad is going to go look at another one tomorrow.

Feb's Got the Bad Ju Ju

February needs to be over now because it obviously has bad ju ju. We've been beset by illness the whole month and I'm sick of sickness. Mom and Dad were here last week and we had a good time in between being sick (and the rain!). We managed to get strep throat, ear infections, food poisoning in the 11 days that they were here.
Kenna is still a little sick and I'm a bit concerned. Today she seemed like she was pulling out of the funk though so hopefully she's on the mend. She bit Griffin twice and I'm not sure she's bitten him once all week.
Dad went home and had a stroke. I got the call at 1:30 in the morning. He felt it coming on and took aspirin though so that helped. Quit smoking Dad. Please!!
I went to the dr the day that they flew out because I've been having a lot of pain in my feet (and pain in my knees, hands, wrists and hips). Got the call back today that I have rheumatoid arthritis. I was sort of wigged out about the prospect earlier in the week after I came home and looked it up. Turns out that it is the number 1 cause of people being on permanent disability. neat, huh? I've decided that I'm going to buy a piano. I've put off buying one for a long long time since I didn't really have a place for it, but you know, who knows what time will bring now and if I want to play I need to get on it now.
Oh yeah, I also got the questionaire from my high school reunion. What have I been doing the last 20 years? What did I do in high school? I have no idea.
Onward. God hates a coward.