First Fall in a while

We have made it to October!!  Finally!!! I am glad Jim is having a great time in Boston, but this single parenting gig is getting old!!  I really appreciate everyone who has helped me out with getting the kids where they need to be.  Aunt Kaki even pulled a short session on a Sunday that I needed to be in two places at once.  She was on a half marathon training run and decided to run over to watch the girls while I took Ben to one of his soccer games.  This was a lifesaver ... Thanks Kaki!!

Wesley has been on diligent squirrel watch pretty much since we installed the dog door.  It just never gets old for him.  

We even put one of his beds in front of the kitchen door leading out to the deck so he can watch while resting.  Oscar also enjoys that bed but I think just to make Wesley uncomfortable - ha ha ha. Don't let this photo fool you into thinking Oscar has finally accepted Wesley into the family.  He hasn't.  

First weekend is a long weekend so we are heading up to Boston to see Jim.  It is a family weekend so we also get to catch up with the Morris Family.  We haven't seen them since Jamestown!  Wow!  The kids have grown so much!  We also managed to see Nicholas Fahy.  He is extended family through Aunt Lindley's husband.  He took the kids on a much better tour of Harvard than the one we got I am sure.  

We also saw Cousin Patty, McLaren and Abby.  They joined us at the Boston Museum of Fine Art.  Not sure how much of the museum the kids enjoyed but the adults really liked it.  Lucy even got to see her "boyfriend" Alexander Hamilton.  That girl is OBSESSED with him. 

It was a quick visit with Jim but totally worth it!  Somehow I had talked Nanny and Gigi into coming up for a few days to visit and they arrived a few hours after we returned from Boston.  Gigi has been out of school since Hurricane Florence hit in early September with little hope of returning -- I told her she may as well get some sight seeing done since the schools are still closed!  They both wanted to check out the National Portrait Gallery and hit a couple of the monuments.  No Problem!

Unfortunately, I could only talk them into staying a few days.  So once again we find ourselves alone.  No time to worry about it though.  Lots and lots of things going on.  I finally remembered to bring a camera to a soccer game to get some action shots.  Both Ben and Lilly's teams are doing really well.  The same can not be said for Lucy's team.  But it isn't for lack of effort on her part.  She is single handily keeping her team from being shut out of many of their games.  I am also playing on an over 40 league and my team too is not doing great.  The difference between me and Lucy is I don't care that my team has lost every game.  At my age, it is all about just getting out there.  Buck up Lucy, there is always next season!

The Sunday before Jim comes home found Ben and I doing a Scavenger Hunt style hike with his Cub Scout Troop in DC.  We started up by the National Zoo and ended up down by the White House.  It was really interesting!  I hope he answered all the clues correctly!  Apparently you can't get the patch if you don't answer at least 80% of the clues correctly.  

As previously mentioned, this is our first real fall in several years.  I have to say, when the leaves are still on the tree they are beautiful!  It is when they fall off the tree and end up on my lawn that I become less enamored of them.  I am pretty much over raking.  Apparently I still have at least a month to go before that happens.  So I will appreciate the beauty and TRY to grumble less about the raking.

YAY!  Jim is home!!  Finally!!!  I know it was only two months (Lord knows we have done longer stints) but having to navigate the newness of the area coupled with the extra-curricular activities made it seem longer.  Oh well ... moving on!  The Marine Corps Marathon finish line is super close to the house.  I had several friends from Yuma running it and I really wanted to check it out.  Jim was on board but only Ben could be talked into riding bikes down to the War Memorial.  It was a hard NO from the girls.  Unfortunately I wasn't able to track any of the runners once I got closer to the race course and therefore didn't see any of my friends cross the line.  Bummer.  The MCM app let me down.  BIG TIME!  They really need to work on the notifications.  I was getting alerts HOURS after the event was over that my runners were close to the finish.  Real timely.  I hope they get it figured out before next year, Jim says he is running it!   

Later that afternoon we decided to take the Metro over to check out the National Archives and see the Declaration of Independence.  Jim was dismayed that I had not taken the kids over to do any of the museums while he was gone.  I told him that we had hit several in early June and I was basically just trying to keep all the balls in the air and really didn't have time to mess with it.  He wasn't really impressed with my excuse.  Oh well, if we had done any, we would just have to do them again with him.  So really I just saved us some time.  We also swung by the Capitol to get a few pictures.  

The following Friday Aunt Kaki scored the kids a chance to go trick or treating at the Eisenhower Executive Building!  Wow!!  What a fantastic opportunity!!  The theme of the event was "Greetings from America the Great" or something to that effect.  Lilly decided she wanted to be the Statue of Liberty pretty much right off the bat.  I should have made Lucy dress up as the Statue of Freedom which sits atop the US Capitol building but didn't think of that until after the fact.  Bummer.  Instead she got to go as Smokey the Bear!  Everyone knew who the girls were, Ben on the other hand was a bit more obscure.  I decided to stick with the Forest idea and have him go as Woodsy the Owl.  Unfortunately people thought he was Peter Pan.  Everyone that is except the National Park Office.  They knew who he was!  I mean why would Peter Pan be hanging out with Smokey and Lady Liberty?  There were tons of kids that didn't follow the theme, (LAME) but everyone got a tour and some candy.  Win!!  

Jim and I went to check out the Running Man exhibit across the street from the EEOB.  It was interesting but not something I think I would go out of my way to attend.  We also walked around the White House for a bit playing tourist.  Not a bad way to end a Friday.

It is Halloween Eve and we are busy with last minute prep.  The kids wanted to carve their pumpkins and I begged them to make it simple this year.  Last year was a debacle that I didn't care to repeat.  Thankfully it went off without too much trouble and even less participation from me!

Halloween 2018 people!!  This year we have a Dark Voyager (whatever the heck that is), the 13th Doctor Who and Thing 1.  Lilly's friend down the street was Thing 2.  I tried to get someone to go as the Cat in the Hat but no such luck.  The girls went out together while Ben hooked up with a friend down the street.  This is the first year neither Jim nor I tagged along.  We ended up at the neighbor's chili contest.  It was kind of nice!  I am not sure why the country can't just make Halloween the last Saturday of the month.  Having it during the week just makes it hard.  Let's put it to a vote!

Tomorrow is November 1st.  I am driving to NC to check out our rental property and try to get ready for new tenants. Of course I am also going to hang out with my family and help them in any way I can.  The Marina had some damage and I feel really badly that I haven't been home since the storm.  So Jim will get a small taste of what it has been like for me.  I am sure he will do fine.  I am even helping him out by bringing Wesley with me.  One less body he has to feed ... but know he will miss old Wes!  

Longest Summer Break finally ends

Ever since we moved into this house - the bamboo in the back yard has been growing (and growing and growing).  I have been researching how to destroy it.  I seriously hate it.  Ugh!  Our landlord told us that we would need to cut it back twice a year.  If we only did it twice a year you wouldn't even be able to see the sky!  Lucky for me I have a great yard guy and his young assistant.  

Labor Day Weekend finds us traveling to Richmond to go to a family wedding!  The kids are super excited to hang with the cousins while we go celebrate with James and Amanda! 

Unfortunately it was a quick over night trip.  Had to get back home to get ready for the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!!  Yes!! We survived the longest summer break EVER! Everyone was eager for school to start.  Nervous, but eager.  

Of course there is always good with the bad right?  Jim got selected to do an advanced leadership class at Harvard for two months starting on the Monday after Labor Day.  So it seems that I am the only one not going back to school.  Before he left we needed to get in some FFF (for those of you that don't know that stands for Forced Family Fun).  First up is a bike ride to the Jefferson Memorial.  Maybe not the best time of year for this - still SUPER hot/humid.  But beggars can't be choosers... the kids were NOT as excited about this adventure in the beginning.  This is pretty standard operating procedure.  By the end of it however, they were actually smiling.  Shhh, don't tell them I told you .   

We also squeezed in a baseball game!  Jim's sister and her husband had invited us to join them at a Capital's game.  Unfortunately, the game got rained out but we were able to get a bit of the experience in nonetheless.  Can't wait for next time!!.  I really want to hit a DC United game and maybe a Redskins or Wizard's game (depending on who they are playing).  Still bummed we never made it to a Heat game while we were in Miami.

Next day finds us at the airport dropping Daddy off.  We all know he will do outstanding!  We have plans to visit Boston the first weekend in October.  See you in a month!

The rest of the month will be spent doing school, soccer, scouts (for Ben) and we will even try our luck with meal planning - AGAIN.  Hopefully this time it will stick.

We have had an interesting turn of events since moving to VA.  Oscar has decided to come out of my room and join us the shared living space!!  Speaking of sharing.  He has also decided that Wesley needs to share his bed in the kitchen.  

We had to put Wesley's bed in the kitchen in front of the door so he could keep an eye on the squirrels.  His obsession with the furry things has reached new levels of insanity.  Throw in a couple of chipmunks just to really keep things interesting.  

Pretty slow month otherwise.  I am sure that will change in October!  

When will this summer end?

Well, well -- look who finally showed up for the party!

I was not super excited to get a red car, but I must admit it is growing on me.  Although it still takes me a minute or two to spot it in the parking lot.  It is the same make of our last car, but it feels bigger.  Quite a bit bigger.  The kids are unhappy there is no DVD player.  Personally I feel this is no big deal since they mostly watch stuff on their own devices.  By far the best thing about it is the back up camera.  I have a google eye view which means I might just learn how to parallel park!!

OK, so we are seriously into the unpacking phase.  Which means we have quite a few boxes.  I have taken to rearranging the "pod" just about every other day.  Taking stuff out, changing my mind, putting it back.  It is a vicious circle.  For all you non-mover you may not realize just how many boxes it takes to move a family of hoarders, but it A LOT!! After going through and selecting only the best of the best boxes to keep, I turn the others over to the children for their "box houses."  Over the years my participation has decreased and the layouts have become more elaborate.  I have told them about using outboard engine boxes and how you could have a two story house back in the day.  They don't believe me, but it is true!  Hopefully they will still want to make box houses in the next move...

One of the "perks" of moving around so much is you can always count on the movers to break or lose something.  More then likely, many many somethings which will necessitate a trip to IKEA if you are lucky enough to live close to one.  I know I should be investing in quality furniture but I can't.  If I paid a lot of money for the furniture that is sometimes delivered in pieces that can not be repaired or without hard ward to be even put back together I think I would cry harder then I already do.  Back to IKEA.  The girls were in need of beds since the old ones were no longer serviceable.  They also needed a dresser each.  Ben is also in need of a bed and dresser upgrade, but we are going to see if we can make his current situation work a big longer.  Jim had another BRILLIANT idea - who knew he was so creative - We are not going to get internet or cable until the majority of the house was in place.  This is what happens when you combine older children and no internet - they put their own furniture together!!! SCORE!!

This guy is unhappy because he thinks we have forgotten his birthday.  Well not his birthday, but his adoption day.  No way Wesley!  We haven't forgotten.  Good to have you around these last 3 years.  But you need to learn some patience.  

He is such goofball 

We were to busy riding bikes to the FAIR!!  I had forgotten that the east coast does fairs in the fall of the year.  Personally I think it is still too hot to contemplate the fair, but no body asked me.  We Jim decided to rent some bikes and make the children get some exercise.  It was a LONG ride to the fair - UPHILL.  We promised them a snow cone, rides and the girls wanted henna tattoos.  What we got as a bonus was a piglet race! I was hoping to see some baby goats race too but we didn't have time.  Back to the house!  Jim had invited guest over for dinner.  That is another way to make sure you unpack pretty quickly.  Invite people over.  YIKES!

The next day Ben, Wesley and I walked down to the Starbucks (1/2 mile away) and picked up a puppuccino for the sweet boy.   He was super excited!! 

One of the ongoing debates here in the house is why this poor gnome on the back deck is chained.  Is he under house arrest, does he have a tendency to wander and get lost or perhaps it is to keep him from harm?  Past tenants have assured us he has been chained on the deck for his own safety  I am already planning how we can incorporate him into our holiday decorations!! We call him the "tethered gnome."

We have to say goodbye to our pod.  Thank you pod.  You were a life saver!  I thoroughly enjoyed watching it get removed too.  That guy was in and out in about 10 minutes.  Crazy!

Another thing we had to say good bye too was our queen size mattress and box springs.  I searched for 3 weeks to find it a new home.  Sigh, that did not work out for us.  With the pod gone it was now homeless.  Bye Bye!

Just so you don't think it has been all work work work here in VA.  Our neighbor had two extra tickets to the Orioles/Yankees game and the boys decided to head on over to watch!  

We also have been attending a Methodist Church just down the street and volunteered to help them make 10,000 meals.  These people had it down to pretty much a science.  It feels good to help but even better to expose the children to community service.

August is winding down pretty quick.  We have gone back to school shopping and toured the Middle school. Not much left to due except GO TO SCHOOL!!  When will this summer end?  Kids have been out of school since June 1st!!  I am dying.  

One thing that has taken our minds off of the fact that we are tired of looking at each other - a baby bird fell out of its nest.  Not sure what kind it is.  The parents are tiny and hopping mad.  We found a nest, put it back in the nest which completely crumbed to dust.  Great.  OK, plan B.  I find another nest in my fern and put the baby in a plastic basket with some newsprint paper and hang it from a tree.  Seems to be working.  We can see birds flying back and forth and see the baby.  Hopefully he will get the rest of his feathers in pretty quickly and fly out

T-minus 7 days and counting until school starts.  Time for a hair cut.  Ben in particular needs it BAD!!  That is one of the hard things when you move - figuring out where to go to get your hair cut. Lucky for us there is one just down the street.  Doesn't everyone look great!?

I am going to leave you with this little nugget.  Saw it on one of my runs with Wesley.  Someone takes their sledding serious.  Can't wait for snow!