The crazy month of December!

This month is half over and it has flown by. Our 7 year anniversary was on the 7th, Aidan's birthday is the 17th, and my mom and stepdad have bdays during December was well. With homeschooling, Christmas shopping, basketball practice and games, and family events, I am wondering where this month has gone! My sister told me to update my blog, and I must admit I have let it slide. It seems that every moment of every day is filled with something.

So, let's see... my little baby is turning 6 years old tomorrow! We had a Star Wars birthday party for him. I spent a good portion of that Friday morning constructing a lightsaber cake. He loved it! I guess those 2 cake decorating classes were worth it, to make my little man happy. :)

His cousins, Kaitlyn and Ryan, and his best friend, Nathan, slept over. It was chaotic having 5 kids in the house, but fun! They stayed up until midnight with Joel, watching...Star Wars, of course! Here is a pic of them, camped out in the playroom.

The next day, after a fun morning of playing in the house, we met up with my dad and stepmom at the roller rink. We all went roller skating- even little Preston!

So, there is only a few days until Christmas. I have now spent too much time updating thisblog. :) I have Christmas wrapping to do, candy to make, and kids to teach. Ahhh!

Taking Facebook too far

Lately I have been thinking about how much I hate Facebook. What? HATE Facebook? But, you think to yourself, you are ON Facebook! Yes, yes- I am. I don't hate Facebook per se... I hate the people who seem to make their lives exist entirely on Facebook.

Lets call them... The Facebook Freaks.

I see the updates- I know when you are buying a purple virtual cow to live on your virtual farm, I see how often you have won a bejeweled game (and I note that you have been on facebook all day playing this to get the highest score), I have received your virtual hugs, kisses, and even your virtual martini. If you want to buy me a drink, please make it something I can enjoy!

This facebook freak also supports every cause- lets save the rainforests, reduce toxic waste, lets save the whole freakin planet from our computer! If you would just join me in my plight by clicking a button, we can save the world! Woooo!!!

Why do these people live entirely online? When did living on facebook become acceptable socially? Will these people get married online? Post their vows on their walls?

I would apologize to the person whom this offends, but frankly if you are offended- well, just send me a virtual butt kicking. I can take it.

Sigh

Joel and I talked a lot last night and we can't agree on the Brady house plan. He brought up the point that adding a sunroom to the plan was expensive and wasn't serving the purpose well. I want the sunroom for our informal dining area, as the house only has a formal one and we have 2 sets. He made the point that we have to walk through the living room with food every day to get there. Could get messy and impractical.

He wants to just eat at the bar in the kitchen, but my answer is no way! I am home all day, every day, and we eat every meal at our breakfast table unless it is a special time or we have company. I would be willing to use the formal one for dinner, but to eat at a bar otherwise? For years? I don't know if I can do that.

So, we are still looking. Getting the house ready if we can agree on another house plan in the neighborhood. I made progress yesterday in my organization at least!

One more concern- we will be moving to Mebane schools and they are good. Joel thinks he should go there, I see him flourishing with homeschooling. Sigh.

There's no place like home!

Isn't it amazing how you look at your house differently when you think about selling it? Joel and I talked yesterday about putting our house on the market in 30 days. 30 days?!? I am excited but nervous. It is hard enough to keep the house semi-clean during the day, but there are things to be done. Closets to get and KEEP organized, paint touches, carpets to clean, windows to wash, pantry to organize, clutter to get rid of. When you live in your home every day you look past the pile of shoes in the garage, the finger prints on the fridge, the toys toys toys.

So, I have to get this house ready and keep the boys from destroying my progress. Notice how I am hiding on here instead of tackling it head on. Well, I better go start trying!

House Hunting

This Halloween, we took Harry Potter and Hedwig to trick-or-treat with a Ninja and the Bride of Darkness. The cousins had fun walking, getting treats, and even getting a scare from one woman who took Halloween very seriously in her horrifying mask. It was nice spending the holiday together.

--------------------------

We spent the rest of our weekend looking for a house. This has been an ongoing process/fight as we hope to move closer to our family. We live in the middle of nowhere, otherwise known as McLeansville. So, we are hoping to move back to Mebane, which is a short 20 minute drive from our family and a 5 minute drive from my mom's office, the library, the park, and more. We found the house that I am hoping to buy! It is in Governor's Green, a DR Horton community. It has good schools, if Aidan goes to public they are good. The house is a Brady- here is the floorplan.

The room titled guest suite will become a tv room/playroom for the boys. We will also have one extra room not seen on the plan- off of the family room back door would be a sunroom around the size of the dining room. The bedrooms upstairs are huge and the loft will be perfect for 2 desks for the boys. So, I am sold on the house- we just need to convince Joel!

The PERFECT Blog

Have you ever noticed as you peruse blogs that everyone seems to have the most perfect life? Especially when I stumble upon a homeschooling blog of a devout Christian..."Oh, I have 10 kids and we are just loving every minute of it!" "I got up at 4 today and baked muffins, gathered eggs from our chickens, washed the floors, worked out for an hour and prayed in my Bible" "Joe Jr. has written his own encyclopedia and he's only 7!" OK, that was a bit much, but HONESTLY. This is what you will find and it is a bit depressing. Why? Because it isn't reality. If it is, let me know- I must be a terrible mom.

My alarm is my children, crawling all over me begging for breakfast at 7 AM while I try to hide under my pillow. Breakfast is often a bowl of cereal, and those floors...well, I wouldn't eat off of them if I were you. Of course, my kids do- 5 second rule and all that- and I bet that those blogging moms would be appalled. I try and hit the gym 3 times a week but most weeks I drag myself there once and hope that it is enough. Life isn't anything like a blog. Life is full of frustration, worrying that you are doing everything wrong and praying that your children turn out OK. Blogs can be so superficial- you let the world think you are doing OK. You don't tell them about your problems, you create this guise of perfection. I am guilty as well. I surely don't want to air my dirty laundry for the rare person who stumbles upon this blog by mistake; however, I hope to be honest.

Whats the deal with Star Wars?

As one of two girls, I never watched Star Wars growing up. I saw it once on a date in middle school and I cannot for the life of me tell you what it is about.

I can name 5 or 6 characters, but do not see what all of the fuss is about. Sorta like the Beatles. All you need is love...all you need is love...all you need is love, love- or is it that all you need is someone else to write your lyrics for you?

With that said, I am now a mother of 2 boys who gravitate towards weapons with a passion. When my older son was building with some tube shaped blocks a couple of weeks ago, I pleaded that he make something constructive- not a weapon. I said, "No guns, no swords, no knives." Down to the kitchen I go... soon I hear the yell of my younger son darting down the stairs followed by his brother who has made...an AX. Yep, an ax, which of course he was swinging at his brother. Granted, it was plastic but it was rather forbidding looking.

Today, my older son decides he wants to become a droid (apparently a S.W. character). He taped paper around his arms, legs, and chest and was shooting people with a rolled up sheet of paper. He then proceeded to tell me about the different movies, the toys he wanted from the movies, and would not stop talking. So what did I do? I turned on Star Wars. :)
Here I am, enjoying a rare moment of quiet as my baby naps and my older child becomes more obsessed.