the challenge

as we drove in to our garage several weeks ago i commented to the hubsters that i needed to finish clearing out the garage and buy some more bins. he commented that 12 should be enough. i looked at him and he looked at me (it's one of those moments that can only accurately be portrayed on some sitcom). i said "12 bins for the whole house?"  "uh, well, why? you think you can do 12 bins for the whole house?"
it was one of those conversations where we weren't quite understanding where the other person is coming from, but in the end to me it sounded more like a challenge. So i have taken it!
what things do you think you can do without?
i am freecycling like crazy. giving away stuff that hasn't been touched or used in months or years. we gave away our 6 year old christmas tree in favor of doing a fresh one next year that does not require storing. the kids' papers have been put in binders and toys have been junked or trunked.
it's a very liberating feeling to rid yourself of unneeded things. i don't think the children agree, but again i am the meanest mom in the world.

so12 bins full of non-essentials here we come!
(pretty sure that a move of furniture plus 12 bins is much easier to sell friends on helping)

so........

that is what all my life has been. "mayhem and foolishness". perhaps you have read my posts on our impending move. well it happened. we made our 11th move in 14 years. can i say that i am so done moving. i hate moving. i did not get sick this time like i did during our move 2 years ago (that was beyond horrendous ) and i do believe we are pretty much pros at this by now, as are our friends who have helped us during the last 2 moves (faulkner & evans). i can say with pretty strong assurance that this will not be our last move. i can also say that i will put my foot down next time and say i will hire a moving company. i hate moving.

me.....fail....

i claim insanity for the lack of posts. trust me, you'll be seeing a flurry of posts. the insanity cause my homelesness, moving, children and yadda yadda, yadda.

sigh....

it's been a typical virginia spring. 90 degree weather followed by 45 degree weather followed by 50 degree weather with rain. typical
btw - as i'm typing this baby e is rubbing my head and playing with my hair. he's a gem
anyway back to my topic. so this morning in the 50 degree weather with rain i began the task of packing. i will remind you that we will need to be out of this house by the ends of the month, and i have not "packed" a single box. i rented a storage unit and took over the first load. the weather combined with another move has got me down about this move. i am in complete denial about it, or maybe i have just done this so much that i just don't even bat an eye anymore. sad. so right now my version of packing is taking everything that has been in rubbermaid containers for the past several year and stacking them in the garage. this will be our 12th move in 14 years of marriage. yeah, pretty sure i know what i'm doing. sigh....

what was your worst or favorite move?

we knew it was coming.......eventually

we've sort of been up in the air with our housing situation recently. well we got the answer in the form of an email from our landlord. in short she is not selling, to us or anybody, but is instead fixing the house up a little to move back in.
we have to be out by june 1st.
i know. school doesn't even get out until june 21st, and could there be a busier time! all things will be fine, it's just having that final date is now daunting. we are pretty sure where we are moving too, but that too has some "situations" attached.

needless to say we are very much looking forward to having our own house!!!

our housing view

in 2005 hubby and i searched and searched for a house to buy. it was chaos. we bid and bid and had escalation clauses on houses that we never "won". the house above is a house hubby and i looked at and decided not to bid on because there had been several visits already and a bidding war was imminent. the 2 level 3 bedroom townhouse was listed for $250,000 and sold for $315,000. if you click below you will see the listing and it's current list price:

housing slump or predatory lending?

the lord's been very good to us!

love me and leave me

i have a problem. all my friends move away.
no, seriously! let me explain.
i have lots of friends, but i rarely have those to cry with, shop with and swap with. you know the kind that you can just drop kids off at with short/no notice. the kind who is willing to call you at 2:00am just to cry to you.
i have had less than a handful of these girlfriends during that past 15 years. making these friends is hard. i NEED this kind of friend.
this week i found out that another is moving. of the handful of girlfriends like this that i've had over 15 years only 1 still lives within driving distance. this week i learned that i'm losing another one. sigh. todd even mentioned that i should make friends with someone we don't like just to get them to move.
on the funny side wiki has a whole article dedicated to how to say goodbye to a friend. (13 year old girls' must use wiki a lot!)
enjoy......

How to Say Goodbye to Your Best Friend That Is Moving
Saying goodbye to a friend is not an easy thing to do. This article will help you say it and say it right.

1. As soon as you find out he or she is moving, let it sink in. Think about it...they're going to be gone. Gone. From then on, spend every moment you can with them, do things that your friend likes to do even if you don't.
2. Do not blame his or her parents/spouse. Maybe that friend's dad/spouse got a better job, or maybe they just need to go.
3.Cry as often as you like, holding it in isn't going to help.
4.Make a goodbye card for your friend. Include that he or she was and still is your Best Friend Forever (BFF).
5.Create a special present for her/him to remember you. It can be a photo album of pictures of you two, a poem you wrote for him/her,or what ever you think of that would mean a lot to your BFF.
6.Write to them, call them, email them, IM them, all of that once your friend moves... you do not want to lose touch with that friend!
7.Make new friends, but keep the old.
8.Be sure to tell your friend that you will love them forever. If you two were really attached, then it may be best that you tell her/him that you'll call them everyday (depending on your level of attachment)or every other day, every weekend, and so on.
9.You can even write a letter to make him/her special(Do not settle for printed copy).Mention the moments you shared etc.Make them realize the void in your life after them.

Tips: Tell them that you'll love him/her forever.
Don't stop being Best Friends, and don't lose contact.
Depending on level of attachment and other friends, don't switch to a new best friend.