Week before the move...

March 13

A day that will live in infamy! Not really, but it was a particularly good day. 

Corey, Davida, Amber, Karry, Grant, Annalyn, Melanie, Kendal, Me

Kendal and I met a good lot of friends for coffee in the morning after dropping Logan off at school. I promised Kendal we could just snuggled under Care Bear blankets until it was time to get Logan again. 

A much needed and impromptu wine and playdate with Susan, Nick and Mia after school.






I think they were having a Cake Pop decorating competition or something.. 3yr olds and technology! (well Mia is 4)

To top off my most excellent day, My super awesome amazing sweet hubby brought me wine and chocolate for no good reason. Life is still pretty good!

March 15

This is the day we got the keys to our new house! Logan got so skip school for the day and Loopy took 1/2 day. 

Both kids were super excited to go up and down the stairs for HOURS! 

It took Kendal a while to trust us that she would not fall through the floor or bars on the loft. she army crawled around upstairs for a long time. 

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Looking into the living/dining room from upstairs 

View from the dining room

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Our master bath...

We went to Flippers for pizza
(which I HIGHLY recommend!)

Kendal asked for McDonald's since she hates pizza. We most certainly did walk in with a happy meal for the 3yr old. No Shame. She also wore that shirt to bed the night before. Yup. Sometimes parenting is about picking battles, people.

We had a little sleep over at the new place. And we quickly learned we are ALL allergic to something in the house. Upon closer inspection I realized it was likely the dust. I called the landlord and let him know the ducts need to be cleaned and headed out for a LOT of cleaning supplies. I scrubbed baseboards, blinds, and walls for hours to take off a couple layers of grime. Made a mental note to call a cleaning crew for the following week before we move in.

March 13

Second week of March means Bike Week in Daytona Beach. It is simply not in my nature to pass the festivities without stopping. Loopy had taken Kendal home earlier so I convinced Logan we HAD to go see the bikes. He was all about it.

Someday I'll own a bike and he said he'll have a little side car. We went on a hunt for a bike with a sidecar so he could show me what he has in mind.

We also stopped to see our friends at the Steak n Tater booth. That man there makes LEGENDARY steak. There is no way to describe it. Just go eat it. He also has a restaurant in South Bend, IN that I really need to go try. 

Sean's birthday party/ sleepover was that night so we hurried home, wrapped the present and packed up some bags to head out again. I made some balloon animals, scarfed some cake and left Logan with is buddies.

Loopy was at his brothers house making music. 

Me and Kendal went to help ''Grubbsie'' get a new car. (YAY!!)

March 17

We had another important birthday party in Daytona the next day. We were all pretty whooped so Kendal stayed home with Daddy while me and Logan headed to Nick's party. Logan was so tired that he slept in the car all the way there. Logan was a little crabby....

until the game cards got passed around.

GIANT Fruit Ninja, Plinko (won 100 tickets) and Laser Tag. It doesn't get much better than that for a group of 6 and 7 year olds!!

My big plans of sitting on my butt and blogging or lounging in the hot tub were smashed by the realization that we were down to 6 days until the move. I made Loopy join me in purging the attic. 

We found some good ole stuff! like this fantastic set of Poloroids of him and his BFF from high school. 

And his certificate of completion from his Co-op job in high school. That would be the job he recently walked away from after 17 years. Time flies and we move forward!

Speaking of which, Loopy's department had a deployment this weekend and he didn't get ONE phone call. Nobody needed him to hold their hand. He was able to enjoy a weekend with us uninterrupted! They had TWO WEEKS of testing and a no creeper feature rule. It was a moment of sanity if you will.. They told him to take 1/2 day on Friday because they knew we were getting the new keys. Told him to take all the time he needs to settle in. AND that is not even a back handed offer and he won't have to pay for it later. Life.Is.Good.

March 18

Today's todo list: (I hate lists)

Get cleaning quotes for the new house

Pray Logan gets into a decent school (won't find out til Wed)

Drop vacuum off to be repaired in Daytona 

Lunch with Shannon

Fold 5 loads of laundry

Pack rest of kids' stuff

Fill some nail holes

Pack my closets

we'll see how much I get accomplished. I should start with changing out of my pj's.

What I actually got accomplished: 

Vacuum at the repair shop

Lunch was a success(ish) 

Dishes done

Toy room EMPTY

Set up an event for goodbye party at HighJackers on Friday

5 more boxes packed

No call backs from cleaning services  

Going to save myself hours of work and replace the blinds there. Landlord said he might split the cost, better than nothin' I guess. 

Effectively avoided 5 loads of laundry

Here's a picture of the drive through smokes and liquor store in Daytona! Keepin' it classy on Mason Ave.

I was hoping to finish out this post until the end of the week but my computer won't let me edit pictures anymore and the preview button isn't working. I guess that means its time to call it a night. 

We'll get caught up soon, right? Yeah. Right. 

Kid-isms from the last month

Obviously I am about a month behind on updates, kid-isms, and parenting anomalies  SO, in no particular order....

Crazy. Just Crazy.

My children will commandeer and destroy boxes as fast as I can make them. They turn into rocket ships, boats, and hovercraft the second they are put in the house. When I say packing, sorting, and purging makes my kids crazy, I am not kidding. They have lost their ever-loving minds 

For example, this is what Kendal looked like when I brought boxes in to pack her books and stuffed animals. Whoa.

Caution!

Yesterday Logan dusted some stuff for me as we were boxing it up. This means the wood floor where he was working is REALLY slippery. Kendal keeps falling down on it. She just came and said "man! I got issues with this mom. You gotta do something"

Other peoples' kids

"Ethan, go stand by that Lego Knight! Yeah just like that. Wait, NO!"

Its ok Ethan I never know what to do with my hands for pictures either. LEGO man is startled by your solution to this age old problem.









These are the social networking conversations I get to look forward to? Awesome.
Kenzie: "They're the rings that go in my nose, but it'd look good in your ear!"
Seriously? WTF?

Spelling lessons

Logan: When we get home from dinner can we have some C.A.K.E.?
Loopy: Bacon?
c.a.k.e. spells BACON (around here anyway)

What an adorable crazy person you have!

When Kendal sneezes and no one is around she says "Bless you, little me."

"She's so cute" you say... well she just headbutted Loopy's computer monitor because Dora kept asking the same question over and over. Her cuteness appears to be bi-polar.

again..

So Kendal just jumped on Logan and smacked him across the face for no reason.
WTH 3yr old?

Win

Today Kendal proved that she IS paying attention. She started to say random words and tell me what letter they start with and what sound they make. Until now she has been acting like the concept of English is beyond comprehension.

Fail

Today Logan proved that he is a distracted, ridiculous 6 yr old by pretending he couldn't find him mouth at dinner, forgot where his bedroom was located, and how to turn left to avoid doorjams. You can't win em all I suppose.

More violence

When Kendal says "You need a huuuuug?" say no. She is imitating Bear Hugger from the Punchout game Logan and Loopy have been playing. She also has a good left hook. Ouch.

Sharing isn't always ok

Got up this morning and threw on Loopy's Ren and Stimpy shirt to take Logan to school. Kendal told me its DAD'S shirt and I need to take it off before he finds out. She got pretty persistent and tried to take it off me. She finally got up to get me a different shirt, standing there with her hands on her hips until I changed. Loopy came in and told her its ok, he'll share. She told him there are some things we just DON'T share.

Later that night Loopy noticed this....

I've got some red sweats, you've got some black sweats, 

then we switch it up, we've got Christmas/ Kwanza sweats!

The video I'm referring to is in that post... somewhere, watch it, its awesome.

Breakfast and lunch dates Galore!

Breakfast with the ladies at the Beanery

(Me, Kendal, Claire, Brenda)

Lunch with Luci and Misty at Olive Garden

Lunch with Marty, I think Kendal is a little much for him!








Lunch and a walk with Adriana

Mexican food and Cake Pops with Carol Ann

Breakfast with my girl and Davida at Starbucks 

Playdates!

Kendal and Mia

Nick and James Dean

Kendal and her SUPER best friend Carol Ann

My friends are awesome because they got me a cheesecake. They are even more awesome for posting this picture on facebook. I have no shame so I'll put it here.

Logan and Raven (Nissa's Dog)













Kendal and Tatum

There are MANY MORE but we need to move on

More moving crazies!

These kids are running like crazy wild animals through the house. Kendal just ran in the house.. to hand Loopy the scissors in her hand then hid under this box that she emptied on the floor

Logan thought it was a great idea so he emptied this laundry basket for me so he could hit under it. 

Stress.

I am incredibly grumpy. I am having NO fracking patience for electrics that aren't working, 3yr olds melting down for no reason, 6yr olds questioning authority, and just general afternoon aggravation. I would like to take a nap or get drunk.

Here are some cute things my kids said that day to keep me from completely losing my shit.

Kendal: The tv has letters! I'll spell them out for you. P.H.I.L.I.P.S. That spells TV!!

Logan (in whiny speak): Moooom, I need some Tylenol NOOooow!
Me: Ok, why?
Logan: When I have to go to the bathroooom my head hurrrts
Me: Well that's just weird.
Logan: I knoooww, but its only in he afternooooon.

Then they played nicely outside for a couple hours and hugged a lot.

Father/Son bonding

The boys went to a race together. 

Me and Kendal stayed home

It was cold. 

I hate NASCAR

Kendal-ism

Grandpa: I'm coming over for your birthday!!

Kendal: Can I be 17 next? 

Me: No. No you can't.

Logan-Logic

Me and Logan just had a rather serious discussion about what to do if you come across someone in a desert and their brains have fallen out of their head. I recommended 911. He pointed out there is no phones in the desert and cell service would suck. I told him there is really nothing you can do for that person. He asked if he should try to put the brain back IN and wonders what that would feel like. He just walked away like like this is something to ponder for a while.

Ode a hero

Dr. Suess day for Logan's class. He is thing 10.

Some days I don't like having a 3yr old.

I am not sure what the hell is going on with this kid. Kendal is like an angry cat who pees on stuff when you are packing to go on vacation. Seriously. She peed on the newly steam cleaned carpet and living room floor. Those are just the puddles I have found! She is refusing to eat anything but chips and gummies. She picked out expensive ass vegan chicken nuggets at Publix and refused to eat a single bite. Its just been a rough day. Oh, and I cleaned up for the landlord to show the house. Turned around and she had emptied a box I just got done packing.. you know the one with ALL the puzzles, 50 foamy blocks and other messy stuff that take a long time to put away.

Redemption 

Today I liked having a 3yr old again. She was SO good while I was outside all day for the garage sale. She enjoyed having the house to herself. Watching Netflix, eating cereal out of the box, pantsless while playing with her elephants. She came out a couple times to play with Melanie and take toys from Amber. Here's hoping the Survivors Moving Sale is profitable again tomorrow! *note to self, wear sunscreen. 

Today's garage sale tally.

30 cars up and down the street before 9am

1 guy took a plastic bottle out of the recycle bin to relieve himself. (thankfully he left in his truck first)

1 crazy cat woman who rang by door bell all morning and was mad that my friends weren't here to open early. And also upset that I didn't know whether or not they are bringing a cat tree.

1 guy with a fanny pack that wore out his welcome about an hour before he left. 

2 people offering $1 for EVERYTHING

1 missing piece of crappy costume jewelry

$60 made

3 pretty sunburned 'Survivors

Kool-aid stand is open

Issues

Kendal: Lets listen to the "No" song (they might be giants)

Me: Ok, (accidently put on "robot parade" which skips)

Kendal: Oh man, not this one Mom. It has some issues

Poor Pluto

Logan is dressed as an astronaut watching the Neil Degrasse documentary on Pluto. I freakin' love Colbert and John Stewart's take on the subject. Here's a video from you tube. There are many and they are awesome.

Put on yer biker costume!

Headed out for steak n taters! Bike week with Chris and Beth is my favorite. Excited to go riding.

Like having a college kid...

When Logan has to pee in the middle of the night its like watching a really drunk guy who can't find the bathroom. His eyes look wide and alert but you can just tell he has NO idea why he is in the living room. He gets defensive when you direct him to the restroom and he might need assistance when he gets there.

Shopping with elephants

Finding fun

As an added bonus, Mom gets a free energy drink. Monster for the win.

Unreasonable.

I found myself having a heated argument with Kendal about whether or not pigs have trunks. I say snout but she thinks I made the word up. She isn't budging on this and has put her bug eyed, long snouted pig in the elephant lineup for the day. It is a 'stress pig' that has eyes that pop out when you squeeze him. She won't let me squeeze it because it hurts him. (Thanks Carol) 

Done.

So. tired. This is after she fell off the couch and got back up still snoring away. 

We need a break!

Every day for the last 2 months we've had a list of things to accomplish. Even if its stuff stuff like visiting with friends for coffee, lunch, or a walk. We are BOTH worn out from days of packing and cleaning and sorting and garage sailing and more packing and playing and organizing and coordinating. Next week I think we are gonna try to take some time off from the whirlwind of play dates and coffee breaks. I know its our last week but that means crunch time! 

I'm not holding my breath though. We like adventures!! 

I Hate Lists

To Do Lists Suck.

They suck worse when you CAN'T do the stuff you need to do. It sucks when, in order to stay organized, they are required. Loopy is laughing at me because I have now added two list type apps to my Nook. Everything in my head looks like a list at this point. I hate lists.

Today's tasks: 

Logan to school. This was frustrating because:

• His eyes are too tired to open
•  He doesn't feel like it
• I forgot I had to change out of my pajamas to meet up for breakfast with friends. 
• Logan has decided he simply isn't going to school today. *too bad kid, I'll carry your screaming self to the car

Breakfast with friends. I was looking forward to this for a week. I NEVER get to hang out with these two beautiful ladies. It was moderately frustrating because:

•  Kendal asked to go home every 3 minutes
• She was mad because I didn't bring enough Lucky charms.(she only eats the marshmallows)
• She is on another poop strike and refuses to dookie in a public restroom (or REALLY doesn't like to) 

 Pack some stuff. This did not happen because:

• Kendal passed out on the couch and I decided my time was best spent on the phone scheduling utilities. 
• I really really also wanted to be taking a nap

Call moving company and ask when our appointment was for today.

•  I deleted that part of my list on accident. 
• Shut it. I'm new to this.

Figure out what's up with Pennysaver's website and get an ad in for the garage sale on Friday 

• Deadline of noon.
• Today

Find out how to get Logan enrolled in the new school. 

• This got REALLY freaking complicated. 
• More on that later.

Logistics of moving

Our lease starts at the new place on the 15th. This complicated stuff just a little because we don't want the power/water/internet in our name before then and the current tenants hadn't turned off their service yet. The landlord needs them on in the interim. I had to just be patient for a week. I am not good at waiting when I want something accomplished. (Especially now that I have a list) Now that mess is sorted out and I am currently on hold with the electric company. Yes, RIGHT now. I was just telling Misty (who is impatiently waiting for a new blog post) that I really want a salad but as soon as I finish preparing it and take a huge bite, the next available representative will available to take my call.

1 hour later....

Electric

Our electric is set to be turned as of the 15th. Even though it will be in my landlords name up until the 14th I have to pay $505 for a deposit because it's "new service". Wait, WHAT!?! Yup.

"Would you like to pay that now for a convenience fee of $4.95? If you choose not to do that at this time please remember to call on the 14th and pay it at that time or your electric won't be connected on your chosen date." 

Oh for the love. Sure, whatever.

Internet/Cable

I set up AT&T U-Verse for our cable and internet. The super helpful person I was automatically connected with after Progress Energy recommend it over Brighthouse for a savings of $30 a month and faster internet yadda yadda yadda. Now keep in mind this was originally supposed to be Loopy's department. I know nothing about internet speed and all that. But he was busy and I wanted to surprise him with my mad organizational skillz.
If you have known me for any amount of time you know that AT&T is my nemesis. When the helpful woman (who is probably making a commission off that call) said they will look up my past history with AT&T I laughed and said good luck to you. Here is a brief overview of our history together

• This one time they 'forgot' that I have long distance included in my plan (wait, don't they ALL have that) and charged me $1/min for every call I made outside my town as well as 50 cents a text. My bill was over $1500 that month and took 2 months to correct. 
• Once, they actually 'misplaced this phone number in cyberspace' Their words, not mine. 
• They refused to take off roadside assistance and eventually put me into a class action suit and sent me $100 or so last year to make up for $1.02 per month for 8yrs.
• I dropped an average of 15 calls per day.
• There were NO bars of reception in Palm Coast for a very long time.

ANYWAY. I pushed aside my disdain and agreed to a one year contract. Mostly to impress Loopy with my mad savvy money saving skillz.
This rash decision resulted in spousal frustration and I told him its his job to cancel if he wants, I'm out.

Water/sewer

I contacted our current water department and asked them to send a letter of referral saying that we pay our bill on time every month. This will avoid a deposit for water/sewer at the new place. For the record, we have not always paid our water bill on time. This city is pretty well known for emailing you the water bill shortly after it was due. The guy sent me my letter anyway. Thank you helpful guy! The Lake Mary water department needs that delivered or faxed with the application for service. Also, now on Loopy's to do list. I tried.

Garage Sale

Moving right along! I have been trying for weeks to get into my Pennysaver account online. I am locked out and they can't send me an email with a new password because there are multiple accounts on that email. Oops! I called the local number and this REALLY nice and also helpful woman was able to pull it up by phone number, edit and help write my ad, and get it in by the deadline. YAY! Garage sale is back on for this weekend.

Schools

All over the country (as far as I'm aware) when you have school age kids in public school, you are zoned for a certain area and that is just the school you are to attend. Not in THIS area, NO! Someone decided to mess with the way things work and have a "cluster" of schools in a zone. From the looks of things I get to rate the 5 schools in our "cluster" according to my preference but it doesn't matter because they are going to place him according to availability and cultural diversity anyway. That seems screwy to me and I'd like to have more control over where my kid goes to school..  I'd hate for him to ride the bus for an hour passed 3 great schools to end up in a bad neighborhood in a school rated 4 out of 10. This is now on Loopy list of things to investigate because it is not something I can comprehend over the phone. I'll keep you posted on that fiasco.

Moving company

Crap, I forgot to call and find out when he's coming.. oops. He'll show up eventually right? And he did right about the time I sat down to eat my huge salad 4 hours later. I just carried it around and ate while I gave him the tour. 

ITS ALL WORTH IT!

I told Loopy I would move across the country and live in a box if that's what it takes to get out of here. Any crap I deal with in the next couple weeks is a cake walk compared to the crap we've dealt with over the last few years. I'm ready to go. Whatever it takes. 

Normal blog post coming later this week. I hope.