Movin' right along, footloose and fancy free . . .

A few things that I struggle with:

1. Long-distance road trips. (I'm always afraid I'll die.)
2. Long-distance road trips without my kids. (I'm always afraid I'll leave them motherless.)
3. Long-distance road trips alone. (All of the above, but I'll be asleep at the wheel when it happens.)

You guessed it: A solo trip to Utah was in order, something I had NEVER EVER done, and I was pretty sure I was going to die alone somewhere in Nevada. (Who said anything about being rational?)

So sure, in fact, that I cleaned my ENTIRE house and took my family out to dinner the night before I left.

Some snippets from dinner:
Kids: WOW! What is that flashy buzzy pager thingy?
Kids: Um, are we supposed to follow that guy?
Kids: What? We can CHOOSE our food off of this BIG paper folder gizmo?

And, as is generally the case with these YONF-ish things, I LOVED that drive! The sweeping vistas! The uninterrupted thoughts! The conference talks! The belting-out of my geeky playlists! The record-time pit stops!

I don't know when I've ever spent 13 hours totally alone, but it was a treat. I had NO idea how much I would enjoy it. (That sounds like an ego gone wrong, but you get what I mean, right?)

Two brownie points to anyone who can tell me where this picture was taken (Put your hand down, K2, I know you know!):

So I got to spend a delightful week with these two beauties . . .

. . . and their lovely, amazing mother. She makes mothering newborns and toddlers look like a BREEZE! It's also possible that a sweet little 2yo had her "Aunt Meena" wrapped around her finger from the moment I arrived. (I miss you guys!)

I took advantage of one quiet night to go meet some friends. This was also a little scary for me, because I had never met any of them in real life before! Not scary in a they-could-be-mass-murderers sort of way (although I suppose they could have been, being internet friends and all), but in a don't-be-a-goofus-don't-be-a-goofus (name that movie) sort of way.

Lucky for me, not one of these ladies was homicidal, and they were all every bit as lovely in real life as online. It was such a fun night out enjoying good food, excellent company, and many funny stories.

And THEN I got to drive my big sister and my little brother all over SLC, which was like a very fun mini family reunion on wheels. In fact, over the course of my trip, I got to see four of my siblings, which makes for a pretty good week in and of itself.

Did I ever mention that I'm no good at ending posts?

Eight Ways to Stay Busy

This . . .

. . . is me getting ready to run TWO MILES NONSTOP. This is BIG stuff. (No really, I'm in the picture. You can see my shoulder somewhere near those cute, cute girls in pink.)

And this . . .

. . . is a very excited group of girls on a quick and fun little road trip. We were invited to a sneak preview of "Wicked," which will be coming this direction next year. (I'm submitting a group order. Email me if you want in.) The t-shirts say "defy gravity" on the back. Get it?


This here . . .
. . . was decorated by me! BIG thanks to K2 and KW for the awesome fondant class!


This . . .
. . . is NOT a hyperactive hamster going crazy in her food dish, but that's what I thought the sound was as the glass slowly cracked into a bizillion pieces after a weed whacker kicked up a rogue rock.



Now THIS . . .
. . . is just one little example of how much we LOVE our newest neighbors!

One of my favorite conversations since moving day:
My 14yo: Hey mom, does E really need to knock when she comes over? Can't she just walk in?
Me: Well, E, I certainly wouldn't mind, but you might see someone in their underwear.
E: Oh, yeah, um . . .
Me: You know, it would teach them a good lesson, but it would be at your expense.
E: Yeah. No. I'm good.

And just so you know, if coming home late at night and finding this . . .
. . . waiting for you doesn't melt your heart into a puddle, I don't know what will.

And finally, this . . .
. . . was the kids' April 1st after-school snack. (Caramel/Tootsie roll bacon, white chocolate/reeces pieces eggs, and frosting/whopper/jam/cinnamon roll spaghetti.) (April Fools! You're headed for a diabetic coma!) I promise the "spaghetti sauce" looked much more like strawberry jam in real life, and much less like a blood clot. Gross.

Love/Hate Relationship

Now that I am in the middle of “the move” I have learned I have such a love/hate relationship with moving. Let me break it down for you:

Love:
Getting rid of stuff

Decluttering

Packing with some dear friends (I’ve learned some great things!)

Emptying and discarding contents of boxes that haven’t been touched for 6 years!

I had to call to change phone/Internet/satellite and was able to shop around and save $48 a month!

Found 3 missing library books that hat hit the either I find them today or go pay for them point!

Completely organizing the garage before we move in!

Hanging out with the kids while we work

Hate:
Finding mouse droppings

The constant switch of thoughts-I’ve done so much to I’ve got so much more to do

The thoughts that this will never end and we will never be in our new house.
How moving for us is really just one more thing to add to our busy lives. I still have a million things to do and must add packing and moving to my to-do list.
Now that I'm moving and have cleared out my garage, I can finally park my car in there. Why couldn't I have done this years ago?


I'm also grateful that moving has given me the distraction of the realization I have two dear and great friends (and their husbands and kids) that are moving either out of the city or out of the state. If I stop to think about it long enough it is downright depressing. These are those kinds of friends that come along once in a life time and can never be replaced. One dear friends daughter bore her testimony on Sunday and it brought tears to my eyes that while I've got to meet this incredible girl and her family I won't get her hugs at church anymore or see her on a regular basis. So I am grateful I've kept myself busy so I don't have to think about it.

Three cheers to "the move." I'm starting to see the end in sight!

Yeah, yeah, I know I said I was going to do this six months ago.

You're so surprised, aren't you?

I finally pulled all the boxes of clothing out of the kids' closet, and bagged up everything that everyone has outgrown.

I did it with a knot in my stomach and a little lump in my throat, but I'm glad it's done, and I've already found new homes for all of it.


This, by the way, is the best system I've come up with for storing clothes for the next kid in line. And I've tried MANY systems.

I donated it to a *local charity

After 10 minutes of navigating exasperating phone menus and holding:

Customer Service Representative: Thank you for calling Virgin Mobile. What is your Virgin Mobile number?

Me: No, I don't have one.

CSR: What?

Me: I ordered a phone from you over 7 weeks ago. The order didn't go through, and I called a few days later and canceled it, but I received a phone in the mail three days ago, and I'd like to return it to you.

CSR: So, do you need an address to send it to?

Me: Well, normally, you would give me an RMA number.

CSR: A what?

Me: Usually, in a case like this, you'll email me a UPS label with a Return Merchandise Authorization Number on it.

CSR: Do you have an account number?

Me: No, I don't have an account with you. Would you like an order number?

CSR: Yes. (repeats order number back) Please hold while I research this.

10 minutes later:

CSR: I apologize for the wait. Our system is slow. Can you continue to hold?

Me: Yes, but while I was waiting I checked with Paypal, and the payment never went through, so you were never paid for this phone.

CSR: You didn't pay for it?

Me: The payment I authorized was never completed by Virgin Mobile and has now expired.

CSR: Please hold.

10 minutes later:

CSR: Ok, you can return the phone, but because you've had it longer than 30 days, you cannot receive a refund.

Me: ?

Me: I received the phone three days ago, but I don't need a refund, because it was never paid for. I just need to know if you want it back.

CSR: It wasn't paid for?

Me: No.

CSR: How can I help you?

Me: I think it will just be easier if I keep the phone. Is that ok with you?

CSR: Um . . . yes. Can I help you with anything else?

Me: No, thank you.



*Children's Advocacy Center - I really hope this is a favor to them, and not a headache waiting to happen.

Oh the barnyard is busy in a regular tizzy*

*Hey J-Dub, have you seen "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers?" If not, I nominate it for the next movie night!

Is the hill always this green? Or is this a result of last fall's fire?

Whew. Spring is here! I don't feel particularly miserable in the winter, but spring arrives each year like a breath of fresh air to my soul. Every year I ask my kids if it was this colorful last spring. (And every year they roll their eyes at me.)

Spring break, however, has brought a nasty little virus into our home. This is not a big deal; we never leave town for spring break, so no harm done. Except that I've been a little delirious the last 24 hours, and my typical wake of chaos has widened and intensified. (You know, things like forgetting to cancel piano lessons, promising to make phone calls and forgetting 2 seconds later . . . just the usual, but worse.)

I've been home alone enjoying peace and quiet this afternoon. Half an hour ago, I heard footsteps coming up my walk, and someone opened and shut the front door. There was zero response to my timid, "Hello? Hello?" I'll admit I was just a little freaked out, and wondering if I was willing to use my laptop as a weapon (I'm not), and then wondering how hard I could throw a bottle of Ibuprofen at a scary intruder (It's a Costco bottle. I could do some damage).

And then a cute curly blond head peeked around the corner, piano books in hand.

Oops.

Forgot to cancel that one, too. So embarrassing.

Also, BIG thanks to KB2, who came to the rescue when it hit me that I was supposed to be feeding two missionaries tonight. (Mrs. S is laughing at me right now. Why can I never get around to feeding those guys dinner?)

You know what we're REALLY excited about around here? New neighbors! We're counting the days until Yonf and company take up residence around the corner! My 11-year-old figured out yesterday that if she climbs our backyard tree, she can see the bedroom window-to-be of Yonf's 11-year-old. We feel so lucky!

My apologies to those who have already heard me go on and on about this, but I am in looooooove with my new financial software, YNAB (stands for "You Need a Budget"). I've been eyeballing it for a couple of years, after seeing it recommended highly by separate and unrelated sources. I finally bit the bullet last fall and bought it, and it paid for itself within the first month I used it. The biggest difference between YNAB and, say, Quicken, is that in YNAB, you have to decide where your money is going BEFORE you spend it, instead of assigning it to categories AFTER it's been spent. It did take a while to learn the software, but it's been worth every minute. (If you've ever listened to Dave Ramsey, it works on the same Zero-Based Budget idea - give every single dollar a job.) I've been tracking our progress towards our financial goals in a spreadsheet for years now, and the difference since we bought YNAB is indisputable.

Not that I'm excited about it or anything.

Anything you all are excited about?

Good mother.....bad mother.....you decide

So today, being a good mother, I took my 13 year old to get a haircut. She had asked for one yesterday and I was quick to deliver. Good mother.


Let me tell you a bit about my 13 year old. Or at least our newest struggle. She is the oldest child of parents that didn't really have the Internet in their lives until college. So we were never taught about inappropriate material until we were older. We are learning along with her the problems that can occur when a kid decides to look up something simple on the Internet and comes across something completely inappropriate. The newest rule in the house (about 5 months old) is no Internet at friends houses. The rule was adapted after we learned our 11 year old took some quizzes on facebook that I didn't think were appropriate. So that is our rule. Not too bad. Right? So that is me being a good mother.


Last weekend, the 13 year old was at a sleepover and got online while most of the other girls were sleeping. I found out and disciplined her. I explained that the rule was no Internet at friends houses. Again, I was being a good protective mother right?


Bad mother came out today when I realized how I missed the boat on this one big time! While driving to the hair appointment she asked me if I had ever been to a website (she gave me the address) about fundamentalist LDS. She said her and a friend (a member) went to this website at the library to learn more about it. I figured out then and there that she heard me when I said don't go online at friends houses, but she had no idea why I said not to do it! I was shocked she went online at the school library to learn about it when she should have asked us about it. She doesn't understand some of the dangers of going onto websites that could question her faith or she might come across images that once in her mind she could never erase. We had a nice chat about the exact dangers. It goes back to the infamous story quoted at our recent ward conference about the child told not to go to the corner but does go to the corner and after she is talked to by her mother, the child asks, "What's a corner?" We are just entering the teenage years, I just pray at the end I will be looked back on as the good mother.

I did what any good mother would do and what my sister-in-law swears cures all ills, I bought her a drink at sonic. And her hair looks great!