From “AAAAAA” to “ahhhhhh”

We started school today and it was, um, shall we say, a less than ideal start to the school year. The printer I got second-hand to print school assignments off the girls’ PC is out of ink and this week Craig gave me the go-ahead to get a better printer with a copier function after [...]

Remember the Old “This is Your Brain on Drugs” Campaign?

I’ve got a new version. This is my brain. This is my brain in a Shop Vac. Any questions?
There are pros and cons to every decision we make, right? In our old house we had a summertime issue with cockroaches in the basement. Say it with me, “Ewwwwwwwwww.” They never breeched the threshold to the [...]

How to Casualize a Formal Dining Room Very Fast

When my parents came up a couple of weeks ago, they brought us the fruits of some of their own auctioning endeavors. Among these finds, a piece of what I like to call Furniture for Grown Ups. It’s a real china cabinet, only if you look closely you will see that we’re only a one [...]

Going Once, Going Twice…

…SOLD! To the sucker in back who’s obviously never been to an auction before!
The week before we moved, we took a little overnight trip to the farm. We needed to get away from the chaos and we had a dog to deliver, so it was a great excuse to get out of here. When I [...]

Educational Freak Out

It’s time for one around here. It is August 1, after all, and if he can do it, so can I. July was a joke (oh, where did you go?) and here it is, the month of all things for prepping and planning. Only how in the world am I supposed to do any prepping [...]

Kids in Transition

Appeal from M9 and C7 last night:
C7: Mom, do you think you could please do some laundry tomorrow?
M9: Yes, we’re totally out of socks. I’ll even help you, Mom.
Looks like real life needs to resume around here and fast.

One of Life’s Great Mysteries

Why is it that a company devoted to the skill and art of communication through both telephones and internet has one of the world’s worst websites and nobody on call to answer the phones when you need them? I don’t get it. I just don’t get it.

We’re Back

We’ve actually been online for a couple of days, but I figured everyone is tired of me talking about moving and packing and now moving and unpacking. Basically we’re all tired and edgy. Okay, I’m tired and edgy. I can be honest.
I signed up for a Classical Conversations parent practicum for this week some time [...]

Going Dark

Today is the big day. I called AT&T yesterday about getting our services switched to the new house. They proved to be very efficient about turning our service OFF at our current house, and predictably inefficient about getting things turned back on at the new.
I have no idea when I’ll be able to sneak back [...]

Let’s Talk Phones

When we left Colorado, we also left the days of cell phone usage behind. Up to that point, Craig had a cell phone (which he hated) because his work required and paid for it. We’re officially the last people on the planet to make the jump to cell phones, and even now we might not [...]

Wherein I Officially Lose It

The other day, Craig asked me about something I’d asked him to ask me about. I, of course, not having done what I had asked him to ask me about, almost began to cry. He looked at me sympathetically, then at our house in shambles boxes, and said, “Well, it’s not like you haven’t been doing anything [...]

Update

Craig just posted an update on where we are with the move: the scoop.

LOST

When I get really tired, I not only lose my judgment, but also my memory. For example, pizza is not something you would normally consider to be a healthy meal choice to serve, but rather a treat to be had on occasion. Right?
On Sunday night I made pizza for the family because I had everything [...]

Have You Missed Me?

You don’t have to answer that. But I’ll tell you what I’ve been up to anyway. In a word: boxes.
These boxes:

These:

These:

These:

These:

These:

And oh yes, these:

How about that packing pixie there? She’s a darn good book packer, that one. It’s nice to have kids old enough to be of useful help this time. And sometimes they want [...]

Our Remember Not To Forget Project

I’m going to let you in on a little secret: I hate fundraising. I always have. We’ve lived on the generous support of others for most of our days, continually balancing the tension between being very grateful and feeling very guilty. If you have ever raised support for a season of time – be it [...]