Exciting Weekend

A week shy of listing, we looked at houses today. I had seen them before and had 4 to show Paul that I thought we should consider. Two were in Gunbarrel (nixed by Paul - we are tired of driving) and two in Boulder. While both houses in Boulder were great, the smaller of the two (3 bedroom rather than 4) backs to open space, has amazing views, and is our favorite. The other one is great too, but it is a corner lot and doesn't have as much privacy, but much more space. In either case, it feels good to have "an area" to look - it is so early in the season that even if these fall through before we sell our home there will be more. We are busy fixing little things this weekend (light switches, boing-oing-oings (door stoppers? what is the name for these things?), nail hole filling and the like. Good stuff. The carpet comes on Monday.

Ted received an in-school suspension on Thursday and Friday. He and a 3rd grade friend were peeking in the girls' bathroom through the window (right outside at pick up - in full view of everyone, teachers, parents - obviously they didn't realize they were doing anything wrong.) It was a big deal and very traumatic for him, but as Horizons always does, they handled it well. They met with the principal, talked a lot about why it was such a big invasion of privacy, got their suspension, and spent their recesses doing community service for the school. Phew.

The boys have spent many hours making stop motion Lego films lately. I'll have to have Paul help me take their "slideshow" and turn it into a movie so I can post it. Some of them are hysterical. I love the creativity and the working together. Plus they don't need my help with it. Perhaps we have future Peter Jackson in the family - have you seen District 9? Really good.

Another fun winter race

I received 3 separate emails regarding this morning's race. All proceeds, including photos if ordered, will go directly to Haiti. I've never done this race before as it is a rather famous "elite" race for runners prepping for the cross country spring races. But I emailed my two new runner enthusiasts (is there anything more fun than brand new runners? I love the enthusiasm, the trepidation, and the glowing pride of finishing that only new runners have, before PRs come into play...) and we ran it together. Slowly. But it was a great run on a very blustery cold day with a lovely brunch afterwards (I had oatmeal - mmm - and I think I started feeling the tips of my fingers again).

Today begins what I like to call my birthday week. Today was the race and brunch. Tomorrow I'm meeting up with an old friend and going to a girl's night. Tuesday (the actual day) Paul and I will have my birthday sushi lunch and we'll pick up an ice cream cake to celebrate with the kids at night. Wednesday I'm having brunch with a friend at The Kitchen. Thursday and Friday should be free from birthday festivities, and the painting will be done, so we will be taking that time to box up anything that is left in the house that we don't need and prepping the basement to serve as "the lego room" and storage facility for things like pictures, extra large giraffes (*ahem*) and the boxes that have been packed. What a week! No subbing on the agenda this week, but I'm on for the following week, so I plan to help myself out by doing my octuple batch of GF pancakes (yes, octuple is a word - I had to check too) and a loaf of bread for the week. We have plenty of leftovers for dinners this week so I'm not even going to think about it til Thursday, which will probably be a crock pot chili, since I have beans I need to use up.

Have a wonderful week, everyone!

it's coming along!

It's been another busy yet productive week. I subbed two days this week (which always throws my routine) but the house is "detail-cleaned", the painter has done the trim upstairs and will return Monday/Tuesday to finish the trim and paint the downstairs. The carpet will be installed on Feb. 1 and we will be ready to list on Feb. 9. The house is moving along and looking good. Simple things like new drip pans on the stove and an actual futon cover on the futon (!) make a world of difference. We meet with the mortgage guy next Thursday, so we can be pre-approved and ready to go. It's crazy how quickly things start moving once we set our minds to it!

In home news, it is a challenge to try to maintain order amidst the chaos of workers coming and going. The kids are a bit snippy, which I'm sure is stress. I know I'm snippy too!

We ran out of dishwasher powder tonight, and rather than dash to Safeway for a box, I did a quick google search on "homemade dishwasher powder." So easy! So cheap! 2 cups borax mixed with 1 cup baking soda with white vinegar in the rinse compartment. We'll see how clean things get, but I like this almost as much as my simple soap nuts, and general cleaning with vinegar or baking soda. (Did I mention, thanks to my short hair, that I now shampoo with baking soda and rinse with apple cider vinegar? Laugh if you will, but it's dirt cheap, natural, and my hair, short though it is, feel soft and silky!)

Our meals are still coming from the pantry, freezer and basement "root cellar." So far, so good on that end. I shared a list of our most common "go-to meals" on my other blog. Those foods and squash soups are pretty much standards around here these days, and it's really fun (in a nerdy sort of way) to only go to the grocery store to buy (local of course!) apples and cheese.

The majority of "stuff" has either been donated or packed away. The kids each have an under-the-bed box with their "must haves" and the superfluous kitchen and family room things are also boxed. This weekend we will pack the pictures and move the Lego table and Paul's computer/desk to the basement. A quick switch of family room/living room furniture will pretty much be it and we will be ready for the final touches. Wow.

Ted has started on the Magic Treehouse series. He thinks it is easier than Horrible Harry because "they don't do that annoying hyphen thing all the time," which I can see would get old. He is reading 2-3 chapters a night and doing 15 minutes of multiplication homework on the computer (kids and computers these days! even the homework is on the computer!) He is officially off his ILP and "no longer eligible" for services. Hee. Love it.

*Update* Everything in the dishwasher was as clean if not more clean. Seventh Generation? Buh-bye.

Reflections

Well, it's been a busy week! What has most amazed me about this week is the additional hours I have gained in the day! Without checking email, Facebook, and my 20+ blogroll (a lot of times during the day), I found an extra half hour in the morning, which made our hectic mornings much more calm and pleasant. I've packed up almost all that needs to be packed (prior to showing the house) and it's all downstairs (in free boxes I picked up off Craigslist). I've interviewed and have quotes for the detail cleaning, re-carpeting and painting. I have pages of notes from the complimentary stager that works with my realtor. I have a plan of action. If all goes well, we should be ready to list by February 15, if not sooner. I am in a good place right now, emotionally, and will probably take another email vacation next week, just to keep the momentum going. It is nice to gain a few hours in each day while still getting to bed by 10pm!

In kid news, Ted is reading the Horrible Harry series (assigned by his reading teacher at school) and will move into Magic Treehouse in March. He is reading at an end-of-year 2nd grade level now - technically ahead of where he is supposed to be. The reality is, though, that he will need support through the end of the year and during the summer, but should be good to go on his own in 3rd grade! We are beyond proud of him. He is undeniably dyslexic, switching letters constantly. But he has learned to (so quickly!) know if the word is right or wrong and make the correct choice and move on. Words like "exhausted," "gasped," and "trembled" are no problem now, even when hyphenated (this really threw him for a while.) He has worked so hard and we are so proud of him. Now, to start worrying about Sam. :-)

Sam has moved from his art obsession back into Legos. The Lego table is going to live in the basement while we are showing the house, and Sam has a grand plan to sleep down there in a sleeping bag. He cannot bear to even think about not being near his beloved toys at all times. So cute. He is also growing; he eats an entire pizza, a whole apple and a gigantic pepper at a time, washing it all down with 16+ ounces of soymilk. He is a maniac.

Mae has discovered that burritos make for a peaceful and happy way to start the day. She's been happy as a clam all week and even lets me clean and rotate her earrings without fussing anymore. She helped me box up her room, carefully choosing what should be boxed and what should go into the "under the bed box." She is also suddenly into tights - something I've been waiting for! We are having lots of fun choosing cute outfits each day (so much thanks go to our friends the Halperins for their wonderful hand-me-downs!)

Paul is so patiently going along with all that needs doing, including the downsizing of his home office (he will work at his Boulder office while the house is on the market) and the necessary furniture moving. We are both enjoying our 45 minute Lost fix. We are in the middle of Season 3 and very confused; I think that is the point. We love it!

Ole is recovering beautifully. While he is still confined to the family room, he no longer needs his "no lick collar" and can go on 25 minute walks (on leash) 2-3 times per day. He is completely off his pain pills and only seems gimpy when he's been sitting too long. He no longer needs the crate and can sleep on his favorite couch all night again. Life is good!

Thanks to all of you who have telephoned me this week, allowing my electronic vacation to happen. I appreciate it!

an e-mail vacation

Is turning off my email a vacation or a stay-cation? Hmm. For one week, beginning Monday morning, my email will be off. This means that an 'out-of-the-office' type of message will be sent to anyone who emails me. The emails will be deleted, not read. My hope is that my friends and family will call me at home or simply wait til next week to email. I feel that I am too distracted by the computer when I am at home, and I plan to be home a lot next week, prepping our house to get it on the market by Feb. 15. Much cleaning needs to happen, as well as more de-cluttering (though I'm pretty good with that) and some storage in the crawl space. I simply don't have the time to constantly be checking email, Facebook updates and my blogroll. I love these things and enjoy them immensely, but I need to focus. I think this will help.

It's a little weird - I'm so connected to everybody through the internet that I hope people won't be offended if I don't "like" their status or reply to a quiz. It's only one week, and I hope I will be refreshed and ready to sit back with my chai and catch up with the world when I return.

See you next week!

Back into the swing

With the kids back in school yesterday, I mapped out my schedule for the semester too. Lots to do. Workouts, homemade meals, laundry, cleaning the house in preparation for listing it (someday soon! I hope!), subbing at Horizons and all the schlepping! Oh, it will be lovely next year when all 3 kiddos are at the same school at the same times.

So, back to my pre-holiday Winter Maintenance program. It's really just my normal program but with reduced mileage/times. It will start getting intense in May. Til then, I can chill. Mondays, Wednesdays & Saturdays I spin. There is a great spin class at FAC on Saturday mornings that I love. I scored a $20 spin bike yesterday at the consignment store and spun for 40 minutes today, to the Season 8 Biggest Loser Finale. I know the streets are dry, but I'm chicken and won't ride alone yet.

Tuesdays, Thursdays & Sundays I run. Tue/Thu are easier short runs where I work on pacing while Sunday is just long and slow. I love long runs. I'll only go for an hour for a few months, til the program ramps up in the spring.

Swimming is tough. There are 2 great classes at FAC on Tue/Thu evenings. It's just very difficult to make them with Ted's TKD schedule. There is also a Thu am swim class with Andie, but that is too late since I have to get the kids to school. So I'm in a quandary. Til I figure it out, I swim 30 minutes on Tues/Thu after my run. It's boring but it works. I'm just not ready for Masters yet, or at least not at FAC. I might watch one in the early spring and see if I can survive in the slow lane.

Anyway, that's the schedule and it should work well. I'm looking forward to this season. Last year I was so scared of the very idea of a triathlon that I spooked myself a lot. But this year I know what's in store and I know that I enjoy it!

Now, how about some more pumpkin pie? :-)

*Update* Paul wanted me to add that we have been doing Jillian's 30 Day Shred since late December. I'm not sure but I'd guess we're somewhere into Week 3. I have some great definition in my arms and am enjoying the challenge of following Nat as best I can. So I guess I can tack on those 20 minutes of insanity to my daily exercise log. Yes, definitely more pie.