Moving Day!

I am moving, my blog, that is. We have come to no immediate conclusion about the house.
Please update links, etc. See you there!

My Kind of Town

Oooh, lookit me. Standing near some giant mirrored blob in Chicago. It's amazing, sometimes, what passes for art these days. The Art Institute was much better. We were there all day (just me and T). I got to see all the Impressionists I wanted. A nice abstract Japanese painting of a cat. The Chagall. I recommend that one doesn't spend the entire day there. There is so much to see and even trying to cram it all into one day doesn't quite do everything justice. Plus, you become really really sore afterwards. Which makes it hard to eat dinner since you'd have to walk to a restaurant.
T and I spent 4 days in Chicago. We found an awesome deal for the Hard Rock Hotel on Michigan that we couldn't pass up. Plus, when we checked in, they upgraded us to a king suite! It was very nice. Views of the river were from 2 vantages, being the room was in a corner of the building. Only two other rooms on that floor. Sheets were oh so soft and David Bowie graced the walls by the bed and the bathroom.
It was nice. The weather was pretty good, not too hot, not too cold. The hotel was close for walking and taking the subway. We became adept at using the RedLine and I convinced T to take the El on the way back from the Sears Tower (over-rated). We visited ChinaTown after a WhiteSox game. We caught a Blue Man Group show on the north side. Perused the Lincoln Park Zoo one afternoon. Chilled at some nice restaurants. Visited a nice little shop across the street for snacks and some wine.
That was the beginning of May. I get exhausted talking about it! We were glad to get back home to the kids, but still thankful for our time away, alone. Maybe next time, it will be a beach resort. I need to relax on my next vacation!

Smile Like You Mean It

Today is a good day. I don't think I've yelled once. That's a pretty nice feeling. SE got dressed all by himself, without me having to tell him to. SM has been so cooperative about diapers and sitting in the cart at the store. I actually remembered what I needed to get at the store. I got it all inside the house and put away. The boys played nicely. They even shared a snack and some milk in the car.
Why can't all days be like this? I would feel so much better.

Living in a Bubble

Can I live in an apartment? That was the question posed to me today.
Sure, I can live in an apartment. No problem!
I'm pretty sure I can stuff all our things into a 2 bedroom (with a den!) apartment. I know there's no basement, no upstairs and no backyard. But it so helps that the clubhouse has an exercise room with and attached play area where you can watch your kids through and big window whilst exercising. All the more reason to get off your ass, when you know the kids will be occupied. Also, a pool. And a little playground. And it's out in the boonies, so not a lot of traffic.
It is our plan to sell our wonderful house and live in an apartment for 1-2 years, the later part of which to build a house in. The extra money from the house sale will pay off our credit card debts and expenses for the apartment will be hundreds less than the house (with the added bonus of an attached 2-car garage).
I've already gotten berated by someone who thinks renting is throwing money away. Who, by the way, is renting. So whatever. But think: if the extra money from the equity we have and the higher price than what we paid will completely erase our debt, how is that not a good thing? We will also be able to save more money since we will not be spending so much on fixing up the house so it looks nice, because, let's face it, the house is pretty old (75 years) and things need to be fixed.
We will also be in a position to freely build a house and move into it without having to worry about a bridge loan or whether or not someone wants to buy our house at that time. We will have time to be choosy about where and what we build.
I also hear the school district is quite nice.
I will miss our house, but everything I love will be coming with me, so in time, I won't miss it anymore.

Solemn Vow

I swear that I will not cut my hair again! Really. Don't you believe me? C'mon, I swear. I swear! I just know that my hair will be beautiful if and when it gets past my shoulders. I meant WHEN! There is no "IF". Because I swore. Remember? Up there, a couple of sentences ago.

What I've been up to:

1. I was inspired to make some aprons. So I found a pattern and made 2. I have plans to make a 3rd with some gorgeous red Japanese fabric with flowers outlined in gold.
2. I got a pattern for children's coloring bags. It's cute. They have handles and little pockets on the outside for each fat crayon. I know, crayons in and out of little pockets, disaster! But! BUT! It's all cotton and of course, you get the washable crayons and you can just throw the whole thing in the wash. I made two with the sock monkey fabric I got the other weekend.
3. I went a little tiny bit crazy (or bipolar, if you've seen that magazine ad) and bought another blanket for our bed. Hey, it was 22$! Matlasse! And pretty blue! Also, 400 thread count sheets for 29$. That's for the whole set, people! So very soft. And two big feathery pillows with blue stitching on them. That whole thing inspired me to make a pillow out of some fabric that I have that I do not know what the heck to do with that happens to match the aforementioned blanket and pillows. The pattern is in a book my mother-in-law gave me for my birthday. It's almost done, I think I'll finish it when I get home tonight. Pictures to follow.
4. I don't have a 4, but I like the way it looks.

Again, to reiterate: I will not cut my hair!! I'm staging and intervention, on myself!

I will have to hide all scissors when I get home.

Meme-land

Found this over at Mrs. Kennedy's.

Find your own pose!

I seriously do not know why it's called the Colon, but I think it is pretty accurate.

Things that go Vvrroooommmm

I do not know when a boy's fascination with cars begins. It could start just after they are born: we cart them around to all places in the car. It could start when they start learning words: cars are everywhere and many different colors making them an easy teaching tool (red, yellow, slow, fast, big, small). When my dad played with SE when he was a lot younger, he wondered how he knew which was the front of the car, for they always had to go down the ramp forward. I dont' know, I don't think I had taught him that. What I do know: the boy loves his cars.

Ever since the fascination started, everyone else contributes to it. Cars for Christmas, birthdays, Easter, whatever. The one in the picture he got from my brother Joe's "mommy"(girlfriend). We speculate that SE calls her "his mommy" because all the women we get together with regularly are with men, and usually married with kids, making them and mommy and a daddy. Though I cannot tell you why he doesn't call my sister's boyfriend "her daddy". (It could be because he's know him longer, but what do I know).

Another thing I know, is that I love my two little boys.