I may have to move.

Going into the weekend, my biggest concern was finishing all the decorations and being able to see my floors again. Who knew the weekend would end with our bonus room barricaded like Fort Knox?!

Friday was a long day. I made Thanksgiving dinner for our little family a day after the real deal. For some reason, Brandon’s family doesn’t always have turkey for Thanksgiving. Some years, they serve ham. (WTH?!) This was one of those years. You know by now, I’m something of a traditionalist, and I’m raising two people who also develop magazine-like pictures in their heads for what a holiday should and shouldn’t be. So, as soon as we got home Thursday evening, my spare turkey was out of the freezer and into a cold water bath.

I cooked most of the morning on Friday. I timed everything terribly and the kitchen was a disaster. We sat down to eat and Meredith said, “That’s it?! My teacher said my belly would stick out after eating Thanksgiving. This won’t make my belly poof out.” I refrained from wringing her neck and noticed all she actually ate was cranberry sauce.

Once I got the kitchen cleaned, Meredith and I were upstairs watching an episode of Jon & Kate Plus 8. I was enjoying the serenity of a clean bonus room. It’s rarely orderly. The kids have the majority of their toys there and it’s usually an eyesore. Every once in awhile, I loose it and start tossing out broken toys, gum wrappers, and errant Legos. Yesterday happened to be one of those days. I scrubbed the place down top to bottom. So, after a long day of decorating, cooking, and cleaning, it was great to plop down on the couch in the clean bonus room!

Meredith was in the bathroom, when I thought I saw something. I hoped I had a floater in my eye, and willed myself to ignore it. 30 seconds later, my firmly attached retinas confirmed my fear…a little mouse stuck its face out from under the other end of our couch. (I’m itching typing this…and shuddering!) I screamed and ran outside to tell Brandon, who was on a 26 foot ladder hanging lights. He had the nerve to tell me I should be upstairs in the bonus room making sure the mouse didn’t go anywhere. Surely he was kidding.

Here’s a little back story: Our house sits in the middle of two empty lots. When we built, basements were being dug as fast as the excavators could get here. Now, I don’t expect to be baking welcome cookies for the next five years. Anyway, we’re in a fairly rural area, (I know some of you are laughing at that statement.) we have empty lots on both sides of us, and it’s cold…so mice find their way into our garage every once in awhile. Evidently, with the prolonged opening of the doors yesterday while Brandon and Alex hung lights, one thought he smelled turkey and came in for a look see.

When Brandon came inside, he and Alex turned our bonus room into a real life version of Mouse Trap. They had tubs turned sideways, baby gates set up, and a huge piece of drywall propped up by my vacuum cleaner. I took one look at the mess and left to buy mousetraps. I bought both glue boards and traditional. Brandon tried everything to catch the mouse and two hours later, I got brave enough to go in and check on him.

Brandon was sitting on a stool watching that darn mouse go from one trap to the other nibbling peanut butter. I don’t know how he managed to do it, but he licked four traps clean without so much as a single snap. We left the barricade, closed doors, sealed openings and went to bed. We still don’t have our mouse and I’m living in fear of seeing it again. To top it off, Brandon has to leave tomorrow morning for work. Sunday departures are rare and of all weeks!

As soon as Meredith wakes up from her nap, we’re off to buy poison. If the mouse doesn’t eat it, and I see it again, I might.

Update! I am happy to report we CAUGHT the mouse. Here's hoping he was alone!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Not only am I thankful that Tinkerbell cooperated and landed in Meredith’s hands, I am thankful this picture turned out at all. 20 seconds earlier, Meredith was unwilling to pose for any pictures. She was getting blotchy and refused to look at the camera, much less smile. The sweet Disney woman taking the picture turned Merdi’s mood around on a dime when she asked her to hold out her hands and she would see if she could get Tinkerbell to land. It was like someone flipped a switch. Hands out. Big smile. Posing just as she was asked.

The woman snapped the picture and put a special pin in Merdi’s hand. She was so thrilled with the pin, she didn’t realize she missed Tinkerbell’s landing all together.

I had an idea Tinkerbell would make an appearance in the finished product, and I was so thankful to the woman for taking the time to fix a picture for us. Instead of screaming and blotchy, we have posed and slightly dorky, but Meredith thinks it’s “the best famiwy picsha evah!”

In the current economy and with friends and family facing health crisis and other sadness, I’m making more of an effort to count my blessings even if they are as small as a picture of a fun family memory. I’m trying to focus on what we do have. I’m complaining less about living in Indiana and rejoicing more for the life we’ve built here. Brandon has a great job, we have a wonderful home to live in, cars to drive and plenty of food to eat. Most of all we have dear friends who are much more like family. I’m keenly aware that with our economy on very shaky ground, I can’t afford to take any of this for granted. So, for now I’m thankful for what we have today.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone reading! I’m thankful for an outlet for my neurosis about the sorry state of the world, making it to soccer on time, and laundry. Thank you for checking in!

Thankful the steam cleaner stayed in the closet.

The one thing I don’t miss about having a baby in our house is sudden wake-up cries in the middle of the night. Saturday morning around 5:00 a.m. ---which I realize is no where near the middle of the night, but still it was startling—Alex called out in the voice he saves for illness. I shot out of bed like a light assuming I was in for an hour of cleaning.

I was partially right. The poor little guy did get sick, but made it to the bathroom. I think that’s a first in our house and I was half-way compelled to write it in his baby book. I would have to keep a baby book for that to actually happen. So, after a glass of water, teeth brushing, and sanitizing of the bathroom, we all went back to bed. All was well for the rest of the weekend, but Alex’s appetite was a quarter of what it is normally. He opted to stay home from school today because he’s worried about “rumbling” in his stomach. I can’t say I blame him considering I can hear it from a foot away. Something tells me he’ll be fine by tomorrow, because tomorrow is the Thanksgiving party at school. Let’s hope he doesn’t go only to watch his mother be carted away for a snack violation.

We spent our entire weekend decorating for Christmas. Five of the trees are up, and we’re arguing over the sixth. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to say our sunroom is at capacity with a play kitchen, two shelving units full of toys, and a playhouse. Brandon doesn’t agree and wants to add a tree into the mix. So far I’m winning, but I’m sure my first solo trip to the grocery store will cost me my lead.

Brandon is working from home this week instead of fighting Thanksgiving fliers. The kids are completely confused and I’m going to have to keep the house orderly all week. We’ll see how this goes.

I’m not looking forward to grocery shopping today. The week of Thanksgiving is always brutal. I swear some people don’t shop for food all year until this week. The same crowd waits for a forecasted snow to buy bread, milk, and eggs.

Meredith and I are off to ballet, tap, and Hobby Lobby. I promised her we could change her tree ribbon to pink. She came unhinged over the suggestion of red and white. I also have library books to return and I need to stop by Kinko’s to enlarge a turkey for tomorrow’s rousing game of Pin the Turkey on the Feather. If I don’t loose my patience it will be a miracle.

Uh oh, here’s a bad sign. I just called the attendance line at school and it was busy…four times in a row. Either everyone left for vacation early and is calling in to say their children are “sick” or Alex picked up a little something extra at the Thanksgiving feast last Friday.

“Listen up, people, I’m goin’ rogue!”

If you talked to me about this time last year, it was probably a less-than-pleasant conversation laced with complaints about school parties. I was the Head Room Mom for our school for eight weeks. I buckled under the “stress” and quit. Seriously, it was ugly. I know that sounds ridiculous, but trust me, people mean business when it comes to celebrating holidays at school. I had no idea what I was getting into.

If you went to elementary school with me or at any time during the 80’s, you probably remember wearing your Halloween costume to school, loading up on cupcakes and drinking orange drink donated by Prairie Farms, which contained 0% fruit juice. For those of you whose kids aren't yet in school, don’t expect to see anything resembling what we knew as a party when you volunteer to serve as room mom.

See, I’ve been waiting to be a room mom since my mom laughed when I asked her to be mine. My mom has her strengths, but working in a classroom full of children isn’t one of them. Being a room mom was one of the objectives listed on my stay-at-home mom resume. I couldn’t wait. Like a moron, I jumped in feet first last year and thought I could run the whole show. How hard could it be?! I worked in HR for crying out loud, I’m used to dealing with tantrums.

Little did I know, parents take these parties very seriously and our principal takes his job even more seriously. Unfortunately for both groups, they have different goals. The parents want to throw their kids’ classrooms a P-A-R-T-Y with Cupcakes, and Games, and a Take Home Craft. Our principal wants to ensure everyone is treated with complete equality and that translates into no one having any fun. Each classroom must play the same game, make the same 25 cent craft, and eat the same peanut-free, nutrionally-sound snack. We don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.

I don’t agree with creating some environment where all things are completely equal anymore than I like the idea of spreading the wealth, but in a sense that’s what I’m trying to do. Some of these kids are probably having a rough year. A school party may be one of their few chances for fun and joy this time of year. Our principal is so concerned about one kid getting more than the other that he prevents any of the kids from experiencing holiday fun. Welcome to the new world order.

Last year, I did adhere to the mandate I was given. I was a newbie and didn’t want to rock the boat. Our sweet kindergarten teacher was also new and I didn’t want her to get benched for going along with my shenanigans. Plus, I was tired after spending days on end fielding calls and e-mails trying to explain why Mrs. Johnson couldn’t bring in her Rudolph Rocks! CD for the Christmas limbo. I caved and went with the lame games. The kids ate their snack and then asked when we were having cupcakes…or when the party was even starting for that matter.

This year I have a new found sense of bravado and a teacher who looks like a pixie, but isn’t afraid of a bear. We discussed the Fall party and made plans. It’s a “Fall Party” instead of a Halloween party. They purposely moved our Fall Break this year to fall on Halloween so we didn’t have anyone show up to school dressed as a killer bee. We decided we’d stick with the games chosen for us, but we are bending the rules and I’m bringing frosting-covered goodness. Power to the little people!

Under the Pile and Dreaming

Today as I was sending e-mails giving instructions to other parent volunteers about what we can and cannot do and bring to the Thanksgiving party at school, I noticed this headline on Yahoo: “Lean Cuisine recalls thousands of meals after plastic found in dinners.” I knew there was a reason I’d been avoiding the dozen or so I have in the freezer and opting for a turkey sandwich with cheese and chips instead.

This has been kind of a weird week. Every once in awhile I feel like I have so much to do that I start to paralyze myself with panic. Instead of getting stuff done, I just sort of sit and stare at it. I’m at that point. I need to get out a pad of paper and start making lists and then I’ll feel much better. I just need to find a pad first. It’s probably under all the clothes stacked on my island that need to be put away. I did get some of the laundry put away today. At least that’s something.

My friend Sally called this morning and wanted to know if Meredith and I would like some company. I told her I had to stay home and stay focused on homemaking. Meredith was all for a visit from Sally and her daughter Stella, until I pointed out the current state of her room. She said, “Oh, no problem mom, I’ll just put my arms out like this (arms out to the side in a threatening pose) if anyone tries to come up to my room.” I explained to Meredith that wasn’t what a gracious hostess did, and she said, “You know what, let’s just see if they want to grab a taco? That way I don’t hafta clean my room.” So, that’s what we did. I still need to clean her room.

Alex came home from school with a new math workbook, and quietly did page after page from the book, until I picked up the phone to call Sara. Sara doesn’t yet have children and may never want to if she continues to listen to mine bicker like animals while I’m on the phone with her. When Alex took the lid off this evening, he really let loose and I’m very much looking forward to bedtime. It’s always fun to do homework and sound out words when he’s in a mood. Wait a minute, maybe my anxiety-riddled mood is affecting him??? This blog is much cheaper than therapy.

The bright spot in my day was the arrival of our Christmas cards. I have to say how much I love Shutterfly.com. I work with a professional lab that does a tremendous job with my prints, but I don’t have the ability (or focus) to upload a template and create a card with them. I find it much easier just to drop something into Shutterfly. I am a woman of the people! I ordered them Sunday and viola they arrived today via UPS. Rolly was more than happy to let me know they were here. I am thrilled with the way they turned out. Now if I can just get them addressed, stamped, and mailed before Christmas…

Weekend Notes

I need two more days of weekend and I’ll be fine.

Friday night, we had a game night with some friends. My friend Renee and I had lunch and decided we needed to get together with our husbands and do something fun. Because I’m old and socially lame, fun to me means a game night. Jill and Scott are usually up for a game night and Jill knows Renee because they both work here. I used to work there and Renee was my boss. Now I work for Meredith and Alex. Anyway, they’re all fun people and we knew it would work. It did and we had a great time. It was a little tough to get moving Saturday morning, but I managed. I just felt really old.

Saturday morning, I went over to Jill’s in an effort to get a good shot for their Christmas card. Jill’s girls are four and just over a year old. We begged, bribed, and broke a sweat, and I think Jill has at least two to choose from. I don't think this made the cut, but it's my pick.

That afternoon, I went to Annie’s house for a well-timed spa party. We exfoliated, moisturized, and ate. I bought some cream that will hopefully be a cure for my scary winter feet. Sorry, but I’ve warned you before… I’m a disclosure.

Saturday evening, Brandon and I made the kids watch A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. I told Kelly we watched it and she told me her kids just weren’t that into Charlie Brown. Neither are ours, we just don’t give them a choice because WE are into Charlie Brown. We’re great parents.

Sunday we had a really lazy day. Jill can confirm, as she stopped by around 1:00 and I was still in my pajamas. While in my pajamas, I dressed the kids in their Christmas outfits and snapped a few pictures for our Christmas card. It is really hard to avoid fake smiles in our house and it was freezing outside. Don't they look natural and warm?! This screams "perfect Nordic Christmas."

The early start of the Colts game threw us for a loop. I showered very quickly during the start of the third quarter and felt like a human. After that incredible game, we ignored the flurries and went out for ice cream. Alex moved up a level in reading recently, and I promised him ice cream. In addition to forcing my likes on my children, I also reward with food. I should write a parenting book.

When we got home, I was finishing dinner and Alex and Brandon disappeared for awhile. They like to hang out in our junk-riddled basement and hit golf balls, paint models, and work out their Christmas light display ideas. I didn’t think too much of it, until Alex called me down to show me something he’d learned. I’m always leery.

To my shock, I found Alex sitting up straight in a chair playing a little coronet. In fact, it was the coronet on which Brandon learned to play. Alex had perfect posture and was actually holding STILL. Brandon was in the chair next to him with his trumpet and they were playing a little song. Alex was behind a beat or two as he needed to watch Brandon’s fingers on the valves, but he was doing it!

I know it sounds really corny, but I got a little choked up. For one, Alex never sits still to do anything for more than 3.7 seconds. He also doesn’t like to take direction, particularly from Brandon. So, it was really neat to see them connect over something that once was such a big part of Brandon’s life. Just for added dorkiness on my part, the first time I saw Brandon he was carrying the same plaid trumpet case that was flipped open on the table yesterday.

Alex chattered away about the trumpet throughout dinner and was genuinely excited about it, which rarely happens. Normally, you can’t get him to admit he likes anything. Except sushi. He’ll tell anyone willing to listen how much he likes sushi, mostly for the shock factor, I’m sure. The minute Alex came home from school today, he went down tot the basement to practice trumpet. It may or may not last, but it’s such a relief to know he can sit still…if he wants to.

Soggy week

Most of the leaves are gone from our trees. It’s grey, cloudy, drizzly, and starting to get colder. It might not be the most scenic time of year, but something about it is cozy. It makes me want to cook beef stew, and chili, and soup. Still I’m surprised when I put on my fat pants and they’re feeling a little snug.

Alex had a half day from school on Tuesday, so we went to see Madagascar 2. The first one is better, but I’ll sit through anything if you give me a bucket of popcorn. On the way to the theater, Alex said, “This is the best. We all have comfy clothes on, it’s raining, AND we have our popcorn bucket.” We’re definitely related.

Wednesday, Meredith and I stayed in all day. Seriously. I never once backed the car out of the garage. It might not sound like a big deal, but I get stir crazy pretty easily. I had several loads of laundry to do and no where pressing to be. I didn’t even shower until after lunch and Meredith elected to stay in her jammies all day. I let her. The only other time she asked to do that, she was really sick. I know I’m sick if I’m not hungry. I know Merdi’s sick if she doesn’t want to accessorize.

After I dropped off Meredith at school on Thursday, Annie and I went to Costco to scope out the Christmas present scene. Alex really wants a Nintendo DS, and I really don’t want him to have one. I’m sure I’ll cave, but the thought of his face glued to that screen drives me crazy.

Annie and I skipped the hotdog line at Costco and decided to go out for soup. We were too far from Panera and decided to go for Thai completely spur of the moment. It was a great change of pace. I really enjoyed talking with Annie without having to referee a fight between my kids. It’s very rare that both of us are completely kid-free!

The kids and I had my friend Megan and her daughter Catey over for dinner last night. Megan’s birthday is Monday, so we celebrated a little early. I ran out of time to make cupcakes, and decided to just stop at the grocery and pick up some. To make a long story short, they had a really cute cupcake cake that looked like flowers, with bees…wait, here’s a picture:

It's a terrible picture, with really bad white balance, but at least you can visualize what I'm rambling about.
It was way more than we needed, but it was a “Manager’s Special,” i.e., it’s going to expire relatively soon and they needed to sell it. After the bakery lady assured me it was perfectly fresh, I bought it. Of course Meredith couldn’t keep it to herself that we had birthday cupcakes for Megan. Alex couldn’t help himself from yelling out, “Yeah, it was an AWESOME deal! Five bucks! Not bad, huh?!” Alex may very well be the male version of me. Except, with a much larger brain.

The Accidental Recyler

I’m not a person who solidly believes in man-made global warming. I won’t argue that we don’t necessarily take the greatest care of our planet. I don’t disagree that we should take steps to protect earth, as it is currently our only place to live. I just don’t buy into the theory that there is some huge climate change occurring as a direct result from SUVs idling in the carpool lane. Anyone ever hear of the Ice Age? It’s part of global history that our planet goes through heating and cooling stages. Thankfully, we now have climate controlled homes and don’t have to resort to wearing mammoth pelts. All of this to say, I have become an avid recycler, unintentionally.

When we lived in our last house, we paid for recycling for years without me realizing it. Brandon stuck the bins in the attic, and never told me it was part of our garbage service. Now, I wasn’t in a rush to recycle, but if I’m paying for something I’m going to use it. Recently, our city switched garbage companies and when they dropped off our enormous can/cart, they also dropped off a 96 gallon recycling bin. I thought it would be a great place to store all the balls that roll out of our garage every time one of the doors is opened.

Alex saw the new bin and said, “Hey Mom, at school we talked about the rainforest. And I think we’re supposed to recycle to save the rainforest.” A bit misguided, but I couldn’t argue with Alex over recycling when the city was making it so convenient. I read the information and it turned out I didn’t have to sort the recyclables and they accepted a lot of the junk I normally toss. I’m not even required to rinse the jars/cans/milk jugs, but I do because I want to be liked. Even by the recycling people who don't have time to notice my efforts.

It’s recycling for the lazy and apathetic.

Once I got started I couldn’t stop. I’m boarder-line obsessive about recycling. I will jerk the sale ads away from Brandon just to put them in the bin. I know what type of plastic specific bottles are made from and whether or not they can be recycled. My daily routine includes flipping over empties to see if they have a “1” or a “2”. Sometimes “5” looks like “2” and I realize my eyes are getting bad. I worry because I don’t want to buck the system. Some neighbors are annoyed because apparently the old company accepted “5s” and “7s” and it makes them very mad that the new company doesn’t. I don’t know, but I do know the company only picks up the recycling every other week and lately we’ve had more recyclables than garbage.

Prior to our trash compactor I insisted on installing, Brandon dumping our lawn clippings on the empty lot next door, and my neurotic recycling habit, we needed two large carts for all our garbage. The garbage man even left us a nasty-gram. Twice. Now, most of the time our main garbage been in ¾ empty. I’m not naïve enough to believe all the stuff I put in the recycling bin is made into stationery and purses, but it gets me off the hook with Alex.

After all the complaining about unpacking last week, I set myself up for more. This trip was planned the minute Baby Maria made her appearance on October 19th. Maria and her family live about 20 minutes north of my hometown. Whenever we head “home,” we always over-schedule ourselves and we never leave on time. This weekend was no different.

We left a full hour and a half later than I initially planned. I have no idea why. So, we got to Jill C.’s house an hour or so after I told her to expect us. It’s as though we run on island time. At any rate, Jill forgave us and even let me scoop her sweet, sleeping, pink bundle of a baby out of her bassinet. It’s not that I forget what newborns smell like, it’s just that I forget how positively intoxicating the scent of baby powder is. It’s dangerous.

Maria is precious! While she looks a great deal like her brothers, Maria has these dainty little features that unmistakably scream GIRL! Her hands…Her tiny little fingers. Meredith could not get enough of Maria’s delicate hands.
Meredith was very excited to hold Baby Maria. I was a little surprised because Alex is very much our resident Baby Whisperer. Meredith usually peeks at the baby, comments on his/her outfit, and runs off to play with the older siblings. Before we even left our house, Meredith asked if I thought Jill might let her hold Maria. Jill obliged and Meredith did great. Of course, Jill and I were secretly cradling Maria’s head, but Meredith either didn’t notice or was too proud to care.

Alex loves to play in Jill’s sprawling yard with her boys Giuseppe and Frank. It was cold, but the boys didn’t seem to notice. When they came inside they were all wearing safety goggles, carrying plastic rifles, and bragging about knocking down wasps nests. Evidently, Jill’s husband Gaspare sprayed wasps’ nests months ago, but the boys felt it was their duty to take care of the abandoned homes. This all went on largely unsupervised as Jill and I were taking pictures of Maria and Brandon and Gaspare were at their restaurant making pizzas. (Gaspare’s and Jill’s restaurant, not Brandon’s. He doesn’t have a restaurant. At least not that I know of. Maybe that’s what he does all week.)

After gorging ourselves, we left Jill’s and went to Olney to visit my grandparents. That’s usually a fairly short visit. We sit with them and talk until we can’t hear ourselves over the din of my children arguing and then we excuse ourselves. It’s always good to see them and they’re always reminded how glad they are their four are grown.

Because we were so far behind in schedule, we got to Jennifer’s house later than we planned. I think Caroline had about given up on us. That little cutie came running to the door and immediately jumped up to give me a hug. I don’t get to see Caroline anywhere near enough, and she never seems to need time to warm up to us. Oh, I could kiss her adorable cheeks all day! Caroline’s little brother Reese and I made a deal last time I saw him that he wouldn’t grow. He didn’t hold up his end of the bargain. We couldn’t believe what a big boy Reese is. He’s eating cereal and scooting all over the place. He is so cute and it’s so funny to watch him in constant motion. I remember another little chubby cheeked boy who was always in a perpetual state of movement. In fact, now he’s a tall, skinny boy who still cannot remain motionless. Ever.

After all our Olney visiting, we headed an hour south to my grandma Roger’s. Bless her soul, she expected us two hours earlier…at least I called, and she was dying for us to get there. We had dinner and my aunt stopped by for a little bit. The kids played with many of the same toys I played with as a kid and then finally fell into bed. Alex and Meredith share a bed at Nana’s and the last time there was a quarrel, Meredith was bitten by Alex, and there were tears all around. This time, they were too tired to fight for space and were asleep the minute I tucked them into bed.

We drove home yesterday in time for the Colts game. Thankfully, they made it worth the drive! Now, I’m unpacking, doing laundry, and getting read for ballet. The cycle continues.

I hate suitcases.

It feels redundant to say, “It’s been a busy week.” When has it not been a busy week? Does anyone have a week that isn’t busy anymore? Even my grandma has an insane schedule with trips to the “beauty shop,” lunch with friends, and activities with her joy group, which is basically a youth group for seasoned citizens. Wouldn’t it be great to have a week without a to-do list?

I always have a hard time getting caught up with laundry after we’ve been away. It takes me days to unpack suitcases. Brandon is usually done within an hour of arriving home. I drag out the process until it’s painful. My goal for yesterday was simply to get the suitcases out of the kitchen. I like to reach for the stars. I really need three, uninterrupted days to restore order. I’m also a dreamer.

If I had to do laundry, unpack, change sheets, clean bathrooms, clean floors, and dust without any distractions, I would implode. I had three photo shoots this week, and I’m eternally grateful for the escape!

Sunday morning, I met two families at the park in an effort to get Christmas card pictures taken while central Indiana still has fall leaves on the trees. It was a nice break from unpacking and storing all the shorts for winter.

This is my friend Emersyn, who is every bit as sweet as she looks. She's such a peaceful, calm little soul.

And this is the family of Penny Pickles Art fame. What a fun bunch! I'll have more to share of them next week.

Wednesday was such a great day, that my friend Dawn and I decided we would take the kids to the park after school. Then I remembered I owed Dawn a photo session. So, we dressed up her kids and headed back to the same park. I brought along Christmas card-worthy clothes for Alex and Meredith too. It quickly became apparent that a park and their friends weren’t going to make for two kids willing to sit in front of the camera, especially mine. We may try again today. Or, I may send out Snoopy Christmas cards from Hallmark.

As I’m sure I’ve mentioned, Joe and Annie used to live two doors down from us. Our kids are very close in age and have literally grown up together. I’m overjoyed that their family is growing by one person and they’re going to bring the baby home to their new house in our neighborhood. I can’t wait to have them back as neighbors!

Since the unpacking is nearly finished and the laundry is becoming more of a manageable beast, we’re leaving again tomorrow. We’re going on a tour of Southern Illinois. The first stop is to meet Baby Maria! I couldn’t be more excited. Check back Monday for a blog full of pictures. After that, it’s onto Olney to see Caroline, Reese, and my grandparents. I also might have to pick up a few treats for my squirrel loving friend, Annie. From Olney, we’ll drive an hour south to visit my other grandma. She’s making homemade vegetable soup and I can already taste it. I have my fingers crossed that she’s made extra for my freezer. That I don’t mind unpacking.

We’ll head home Sunday so Brandon can pack for the week ahead and I can spend the week ahead unpacking.

I will survive!

It’s a good thing we have unlimited long-distance service. I have a crook in my neck from holding the phone to my shoulder with my cheek while doing dishes, folding laundry, tying shoes…People want to talk about the election. I’ve decided to take the approach that I won’t waste time worrying about things I can’t control. I’m most definitely in a funk, but I’m not planning a move or making Kool-Aid.

In order to offset some of my jitters, my sweet friend Annie invited us over for pizza and returns last night. We watched a few of the early returns come in and we left in time to get all those too young to vote tucked into bed. It was pretty easy to be distracted and remember what is truly important to me, when I was watching this little cutie splash around the bathtub.

Then again, maybe that’s part of the reason I am so disappointed in the election results. As a good (and obviously brilliant) friend said last night, our kids may not get to enjoy the same kind of lives we lived.

Wait, I vowed not to worry about things I can’t control, did I not?!

I’m so far behind on housework; it’s as scary as a Democrat majority. I still have suitcases in my kitchen and they must be moved today. I’ve also got loads of photos to edit from three weekend shoots. Poor Meredith is becoming far too familiar with PBS Kids. Clearly, I don’t have time to be sitting on my can in front of the computer, but I wanted to assure everyone I haven’t headed for the hills! Hey, after all I still have My Man Mitch.

Wake me when it's over!

I don't ever remember being this gravely concerned over an election. I look back and laugh at how I FLIPPED OUT over Bill Clinton's election. In fact, Jennifer reminded me last night, that although I was too young to vote, I called her house and made mention of my plan to move to Canada. Little did I know...

John McCain isn't a quitter...

I don't know if you can read this gentleman's sign or not, but it says, "John McCain NEVER QUITS." I know his sign might insight eye rolling out of my two, maybe three Obama supporting friends. I'm sure there are a lot of leftists who think, "No kidding, he never quits. Give it up already!"

I saw this picture, and subsequently borrowed it from McCain Blogette.com. It's a site Megan McCain keeps journaling her life on the trail in support of her dad. As any daughter would be, she is so dedicated and proud. What struck me about this photo is both the age of the gentleman holding the sign and his buddy standing in the left of the frame. These guys aren't newbies to the political game, who know little about a candiate other than, "He's just so articulate, and makes such motivating speeches." These are probably guys who have been around the block. It wouldn't surprise me if they've served our country in the same capacity John McCain has. They know tenacity, determination, and honor. They know McCain is the epitome of all three.

John McCain doesn't quit.

That wasn't a vacation.

Wow! I haven’t posted anything in a really long time. Normally, when this happens, people e-mail me and ask if I’m okay. No one did this time, so either no one is reading this anymore or everyone knew it was October. And if it’s October, the Webbers are in Disney.

We left on the 24th and just got home yesterday, the 1st of November. We had a good time and PERFECT weather. I mean perfect. Blue skies, zero humidity, and even a chill in the air at times. I kept checking the local news to make sure we were in Florida. Some people head to Florida for the heat. Not me. I really don’t like to be hot…or hungry, but we’ve discussed this before.

The second day we were there, we met up with our friends, the Hindmans. Karen and Dave used to live here, but moved to Florida several years ago. We wind up seeing them at least once a year during our visit, and they come to Indiana in the summer if we’re lucky. We went to Epcot and for the first time in years, our families were able to ride most of the rides together. Everyone met the height requirement! It’s the little things.
Every other year we’ve made the trip, we’ve built in little excursions outside of the Disney parks here and there. It didn’t happen this year. I didn’t need my usual break from the heat and the kids are old enough to stay awake for evening excursions to the parks. We were finally able to “Eat to the Beat,” at Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival. We’re always there for the festival and they advertise some faded band from the 70’s under the guise that you can “Eat to the Beat.” Brandon talks about this non-stop every time we go. We’ve done it, now hopefully he’ll stop speaking in rhyme. The kids were wound like eight-day clocks after a mid-day three hour nap, so this is them taking Brandon’s suggestion literally…



We had breakfast with Pooh (again…I’ve memorized the buffet), and lunch with the Princesses (again…I still don’t like Norwegian food). Meredith did ask me if Tigger was just a man in a suit. I asked her where she got that idea and she explained that Tigger lives in The Hundred Acre Wood, not Florida. I tried to stop her from growing up and thinking on her own and said, “Well, maybe he vacations here, just like us.” “Oh,” Meredith said, “You think he hops a flight just like us? I think it would freak me out to fly next to Tigger.” Me too, Merdi. Me too.

We took the kids Trick or Treating at Downtown Disney along with the rest of Central Florida’s residents and every vacationing European. The Europeans. I forgot to mention the Europeans! I mean no offense, but I don’t think I have any European readers anyway. The parks are LOADED with Europeans. The weak dollar is great for their travels to America. I find it funny that America is supposedly struggling with Her image abroad, yet these folks don’t seem at all hesitant to hop the pond and visit a significant piece of Americana. The great thing about the Europeans…for the most part, no matter what I wore on any given day, I looked much more put together than half the people there. Our family looked like a toothpaste commercial comparatively.
Believe it or not, I think we may have finally gotten our fill of Walt Disney World, at least for the next few years. Maybe that’s part of the reason we did spend our entire vacation in the parks. Normally, we’ve pretty much known we’d be back the following year, but this year it felt like we’re due for a change of pace. Alex let us know by writing a note: “Next year, I wint two go two Maxico.”