A day of hellos and goodbyes...

I feel like I don't even know where to start...today has so, so much going on.

Today was Andrew's last day of kindergarten - I couldn't be more excited for him, proud of him and happy for him. He loves school and his friends and is really getting big. So, goodbye to kindergarten and hello to first grade.

We are moving out of the hotel today. Not into our house, but into the Two Harbors "farm" until we close on our house. We will take the final load of our things to Two Harbors tonight and check out of the hotel (after 3 months) in the morning. Goodbye hotel and hello Two Harbors.

We leave on our trip for Monaco tomorrow morning too. We will be driving to Hutchinson to bring the kids to Greg's parents' house and then we will be flying out of Minneapolis. We'll be back on the 6th. Goodbye Duluth and hello Hutchinson and Monaco.

Last but not least, I won't have internet access (at least not at the house) while in Two Harbors. I think I will take Greg's laptop and find a place in town where they have wireless and get on at least once a week or so...at least I hope that will work out. I don't know how I will fare without unlimited access to the outside world! Goodbye internet and maybe sanity and hello to living like it's the 80's (there is no satellite either).

Like I said, a day of hellos and goodbyes!!!

I can't believe how cute this was...

We are in the process of moving out of the hotel and up to Two Harbors (where Greg's brother and his wife own the house and property that Greg's parents used to live in - now used for a fun weekend getaway home) until we close on our house - don't even get me started! Anyway...on our way back from dropping off a load of our things, we had a large deer cross the road in front of us. A few seconds later, the tiniest, little baby deer crossed the road. I asked Greg how old it was and he said it couldn't have been older that a few days. It was only about knee height on me - I didn't even know that newborn deer were that small. It still had pretty wobbly legs and kept falling down - it was still so new at walking that we could have gone over to it and picked it up before it could have run away. We got out of the car and got the boys out too. We were probably only about 5 feet from it (the poor little thing was getting really scared even though we were being very quiet - it was crouched down in the grass) and then it made a little jump ahead and crouched some more. It finally decided that we were too close and made a run for the woods. It was seriously one of the cutest things I have ever seen. It made me want to cry. I know the pictures don't do it justice, but I thought you could at least see how tiny this precious little deer was. I know it might sound a little strange, but I kind of felt lighter after seeing it...it really was so precious.

The first (fuzzy) picture is of the deer crouching in the grass, the second gives you a size perspective since the boys are in it and the third is the poor, little thing running away...

Park Point

There is a great park at the end of a small peninsula (4 miles long) with Lake Superior on one side and the bay on the other. There is a nice play ground with a huge boat to play on - much bigger than any other one I have seen - and they also have the breakwater set up on both sides of the boat (Andrew thought they made a good running track). This is a place Greg where went when he was little, but he said he doesn't remember the boat until he was able to ride his motorcycle out there himself. The kids all loved playing there and it is really beautiful since you are right on the lake. Here are some pictures - you'll notice that Ava has once again found something interesting to do while the boys are playing - she is collecting trash (and we are trying to get her not to consume it)!

It's project time!!

As you all know - I love a good project! It just does something for me...it's pretty much a guaranteed happiness to work on and complete a project.

On Wednesday I was at Amy's house with Lindsey and Leanne for a play date and all of a sudden we were in the middle of a project! Amy's mother-in-law gave her a picnic table that was literally a pain in the butt (Leanne sat down on it and got 2 splinters within about 10 seconds). Amy was talking about potentially refinishing it some time this summer and how much work it would be and maybe it would just be easier to...and that's all it took for me to get the fever. I rallied the ladies (honestly they were all pretty excited about a spontaneous project too) and we went off to Home Depot to get the paper for the sander and outdoor primer and paint. We decided to go for a fun, summery look and we all thought it turned out really cute. Amy is going to find an umbrella and when her mother-in-law comes into town this weekend she is wondering if she will recognize it and if she does, if she will want it back! It took us about 25 hours (divided by 4 that isn't too bad). It was a fun way to spend Wednesday afternoon and Thursday and it definitely delivered the "happiness factor" once completed!!

The school carnival

Tonight was Andrew's school's carnival. I would have to say that it isn't my favorite way to spend an evening. The kids were having fun, but it was so crazy. The weather wasn't totally cooperating - there were little bursts of rain (although we did see a very large and beautiful rainbow at one point). When it would start raining, the inside games were extremely crowded and when the weather cleared up a bit the lines outside for the bouncy things were really long. It was just one of those nights where you couldn't really escape a long line. The kids don't seem to care one bit that they keep winning Cracker Jack-esque toys from Oriental Trading Company and waiting in 15 minute lines...I guess that's what really matters.

Ava is obviously too young to care about any games, but she was thrilled to try to put rocks in her mouth - I'm sure that is really good for her. Makes her tough, right?

All in all it was a fun night with the kids and Andrew got to see lots of his friends - and everyone knows I have a real soft spot for hanging out with friends!

Ava's first pigtails

Okay, so I know this isn't really earth shattering news, but Ava looked so cute that I couldn't help but post the pictures of her first pigtails. I could eat her up!

I miss my TIVO

On Mother's Day my kids (Ava and Andrew) were quickly (like 5 seconds) featured on a news story about Mother's Day. Greg and I stayed up and watched the 10:00 news, but we obviously sent Andrew to bed. The clip is really, really cute and we would love to show Andrew. He is so anxious to see the little segment and I am so sad to not have TIVO!

I called the t.v. station and asked if I could get a copy or if it would be posted on the web somewhere (some stories are posted), but they could only refer me to a 3rd party vendor. The company they reffered me to records the news and then sells DVDs of the section you want. So, I called them. When they called me back I found out that it would cost $50 to get the 5 second clip! Now I know I have spent money on things that other people wouldn't have, but really? It sure seems like a lot of money to spend so that Andrew can see himself give me a kiss - I mean couldn't he just give me a kiss while we stand in front of a mirror?

I called the station back today and got the email address of the woman who produced the segment. Someone in the news room told me that it would be my only other option. So I emailed her! We'll see if she responds and if I can get the clip without shelling out $50. The whole time though, all I can think is I miss my TIVO.

The amazing mind

I don't remember either of the boys doing what Ava did this morning - at least not anywhere near as early as she did it. I am amazed at her little mind.

For Ava's first birthday we bought her a shopping cart with groceries in it. It has a few pieces of plastic fruit, but for the most part, the groceries consist of little empty boxes with pretend labels on them. Ava has loved taking all of the boxes out and putting them back into the cart, has loved crushing the boxes and turning them into trash, and has even loved chewing the boxes and making them a little snack. However, today she played pretend with the box. She came over to me with an opened box and put her little pincher fingers in and picked up a "pretend" piece of food and fed it to me. Then she fed one to herself. She picked up the food and fed it to us for over 10 minutes. Every time she gave me a piece of her pretend food, she smiled when I "ate" it and shook her head "yes". When she ate, she chewed her food and smiled.

I know that is such a simple thing - that only a mother would ever want to blog about - but, I was amazed that she knew how to pretend. It was so cute to me. I would have to say that it was one of the most enjoyable snacks I have had in a long time.

Am I in the right place?

Today we went to Andrew's spring concert at school. They did a really nice job of giving just enough time to each grade and mixing it up a bit with some really funny songs. I was beaming from ear to ear watching Andrew sing his, "mister sun, sun, mister golden sun, please shine down on me" complete with all the hand motions. It was too cute.

The last group to sing were the 5th graders - the oldest of the school. When they came out, they all stood on stage with their heads looking down at the ground so you couldn't see their faces and then one girl came forward to a microphone. In a deep, monotone voice she said, (this is a paraphrase, but you'll get the picture) Earth - burning and hot, plants - dying, people - mummified, the sun - destroying everything...this is a world with no ozone...Then they sang this completely depressing song about the world dying as we use our hairspray.

I actually started to laugh out loud when the poor 5th grader was giving the "people mummified" speech. I had to wonder if I had accidentally walked into a radical underground "save the earth" meeting. Greg and I spent the entire 3 minutes looking at each other and giggling as the mood changed from a cute, upbeat spring concert to a somber "the earth is well on its way to dying" sing along. I felt like I was in a Saturday Night Live skit and all of the kids were little "Debbie downers". It was a little strange, but quite amusing to me. So, forgive the gruesome earth picture - the 5th graders made me do it.

We are happy with baby steps

We have a signed contract on 2502!!! We met with the seller's agent today and signed a contract that has a clause about the roof. As soon as the roofer and insurance company can finish their process, we can close. They have it written in the contract as a May 30th close date, but we all know that won't happen. Hopefully we can close in mid June.

We are going to go to Home Depot tonight and celebrate by looking at paint colors, countertops and cabinets. Let the redecorating games begin!!

We obviously know that we still have some waiting to do and that this whole roof thing may still take a while, but at least we know that the house is ours as long as we are willing to wait.

The promised picture of "The Stalker House"

I'm beginning to feel like...

You guessed it...a broken record. I was talking to my parents tonight and was relaying the day's real estate adventures and said, "Maybe tomorrow". Those are my broken record words.

We went through the "stalker" house today and it is a really nice place. It doesn't have a very good play space, but other than that, we really liked it. It is nice by any standards and we certainly wouldn't want to count it out. However...the great however...we still like 2502 the best. When we got home we tried to "pros and cons" the different houses, but in all reality it is still 2502 that comes up as our favorite - we just don't know if we are ever going to get it!

So, once again we decided to take things into our own hands. Forget the protocol. Greg called the listing agent today (bypassing our agent) and talked to her about our questions. We now have a meeting scheduled for tomorrow at 1:00 with one of the sellers, the agent and the lawyer handling the estate. Our agent is out of town, so we will be going in with just us! We are really excited to finally get to meet face to face and hopefully get our questions answered and hopefully walk out with a signed contract. Leaving me once again with the record playing over and over again, "Maybe tomorrow".

Just an update...

The people called back, the people called back (I am saying that just like 'the sky is falling, the sky is falling)!!! We are going to see the "stalker house" tomorrow at 1:00. I am well aware that we may walk into the house and immediately know we don't want it, but...but...but...there is a chance that we will. If the outside of the house is any indication of the inside condition, it will at least be very clean and in very good taste...at the very least, we will take a picture and post it so you can see why I made Greg go knock.

Wish us luck. Cross your fingers. Say a prayer. Throw salt over your shoulder (I actually don't even know what that's for). And send good vibes our way!

Ohhh, it would make for the best story...

Tonight Greg and I met with a builder - just to cover all of our bases. He said he thought we could be in a new house by Christmas...someone hit me over the head with a frying pan (Jonna - that's for you). He told us about a house that his company built and said there was even a chance that they may be selling soon. He gave us the address and told us to drive out and see it. We did. Since we are at this stage in the process, we were bold and I even knocked on the door to see if I could talk to the owner. She was very nice and said she loved the builder, but gave no indication of the chance of selling - and trust me - I gave her every baited opportunity.

On the way back to the hotel we drove through some neighborhoods that we haven't been through much and saw some really great houses. For those of you in Utah, it looked a lot like Daybreak - only these really are the houses from the early 1900's. We found a house that was really beautiful and sat outside looking at it for a while. I was trying to convince Greg to be bold and knock on the door - just in case they wanted to sell it. He tried to ignore me, but that is easier said than done. I would have to admit that since there was no sign in the yard, he had a good argument...

After a little more begging, Greg knocked on the door and talked with the owner. When he got back to the car, he had the "look" in his eyes. The people are putting their house on the market in the next week or two. I am still in a little bit of shock. Greg gave them his card and hopefully they will call us when (or before) it lists. We are really anxious to see the inside since we loved the outside enough to stalk them.

If it all worked out, it would make for the best story...

The end of an era

Yesterday after I picked up Andrew from school I was talking to Greg on the phone and we were trying to decide the househunting plan for the night. I told him that the boys were being really good and I thought I was going to get them a "s-h-a-k-e". As soon as I finished spelling the word, Andrew started yelling, "yeah, yeah, shake, shake". I couldn't believe it. Greg and I were laughing so hard - the spelling era is over! I guess I should be grateful that I was spelling shake...this mom has been known to spell some less "kid friendly" words...not anymore!