Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Two Things to Cheer About

1st..
My house is officially for sale! Sign went in the yard yesterday at 5:30 p.m.

2nd and more importantly..
I ran an entire mile today without stopping one time! That's okay, I'll say it again. I RAN AN ENTIRE MILE TODAY WITHOUT STOPPING ONE TIME! And it only took me 15 minutes! I'll admit I was on the treadmill. Yes, the one with the T.V. and me and Bret Favre were running like maniacs, "WE'RE NUMBER ONE!" He had his third consecutive game throwing over three hundred yards, and I ran a mile. We may be old, but we still got game.* I think we both were looking for the oxygen tank when we were done.

We got our house plan back on Friday. You know, the one from the custom builder, that we've been waiting for three weeks for? And? Not good. Not that it was not good, but we made the mistake of taking the plan from a $500K house he had built. We thought we were going to lose the study and about $300K but unfortunately it didn't work out that way. By the time he cut enough from the plan, we didn't like it anymore. Disappointed would be an understatement. But Monday came, we got back on the horse and took him these two plans. Charlie meets with him tonight to see What UP?

More to come....

*(Although I ran a mile, I was unable to bring down the undefeated Le Tit Out of Bounce. ILLEGAL USE oMY FOOT has slipped to sixth in the standings.)

Thursday, October 25, 2007

GASP...huhhh...huhh...

I (gasp) just jogged (huuhhh) from the elementary school to my street corner.

gasp... huhhh...huhhh

Because I couldn't make it the three extra houses to my driveway.

gasp...

If you see a group of women running in a parking lot today say around 9:15, honk, roll down your window, find the girl that is second to dead last, and holler "RUN FOREST RUN!!!"

I could use a little encouragement.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

And now it's time for another installment of

"Moving. A Turtle's Story."

I can't believe it's been another week since last I updated...

The deck has been primered. The Armoire has been moved. Another five boxes to storage. The exterior guys got here yesterday and spent the day repairing bad spots around the house. Today they come back to finish up repairs, caulk and then power wash. Tomorrow paint. Quiver Tan at Sherwin Williams, in case you're bored enough to look it up. The stucco will be Wool Skein. My wood for the floor repair in the den is on back order and won't be in until Nov. 2nd.

THPPPPPPPPPPPPTTT!!!

The truth is, when Charlie got home last Thursday night, all I wanted to do was goof off. I'm tired of working. Maybe I'm just tired. Friday we went to Perry's Steak House for lunch. It was my first time to go (can you believe I've been here for 5 years and I haven't ever been?!) and it was so nice. It was so nice and I chose the wrong desert, so we're going again this Friday. I need a do-over on the desert. He made it seem like the deserts were just okay, so I got the Chocolate Ameretto Tart and he had the Nutty Di'Angelo. I ate half of mine and half of his. And I wanted another one of his. Saturday Melee' had a ballgame and then on Sunday we went out to eat at Pappasito's. So needless to say, output is low and my weight is high.

Actually I had a great workout Friday, another appointment on Monday and I went to "boot camp" yesterday, so I'm feeling justified. It was my first boot camp and I realized I've been working out for about nine months now and I'm out of shape! HOW THE HELL DOES THAT HAPPEN?! I can't run. We had to run from one end of the parking lot and back and I had to walk once and when I got back I was suckin wind! Charlie said, "Well, you're stronger than those other girls." and I said "Well I better be, because I'm gonna have to be able to knock your ass out, because I sure as hell can't out run you!" It SUCKS! So, I'm on a mission. I'm gonna learn how to run. I'm going this week to get some real running shoes and I'm gonna make a plan. (Does anybody have a plan? Ken? Justin? A little help here!) And I'm not going to run on the treadmill. I'm gonna actually go outside and run on the ground and everything. For more than two minutes at a time. Dammit. (I sound determined don't I.) I'll start next week. (No! Seriously. I mean it.) I have boot camp again tomorrow. Can you say shin splints? And then an appointment on Friday. Right before I go back for the Nutty Di' Angelo.

And by the way, Charlie's team beat my team in Fantasy Football. By Four points.
But this week, I'm going to do what NO ONE ELSE IN THE LEAGUE HAS BEEN ABLE TO DO! I'm taking down the undefeated Le Tit Out of Bounce.
You heard it here first.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

More of the Same

Well it's been a week and then some and you would think I was done. But I'm not.

Last week Charlie came home Wednesday night, as I talked him into coming home for the appointment with the realtor. I love my realtor, but it only takes a couple of hours with one to decide that you are a schlub who should have really done a hell of a lot more to your house in the five years that you've been there, than you actually have! But at the end of the two hours she thought we could ask more money for the house than we thought, so we were pumped about that. My fix it list got added on to and I've got to move a gigantic armoire out of John's room. Unless I can move it to the top of the landing on the stairwell, I'm gonna need four really big football players to move the dang thing. After spending an entire day in the front yard, plus the 15 bags of mulch, she thought I needed a lot more color in the beds. I've planted 8 flats of pansies and petunias and have 10 more to go. (I have gigantic flower beds.) The countertops have their final clear glaze as of this morning and are drying as we speak. I wish I could show you a picture (but my camera's broken) because they look fabulous! Now I'm waiting on an estimate for having some woodwork done on the outside of the house w/ paint. I spent 5 hours powerwashing on Thursday while Charlie fixed all the loose boards on the back deck and got it ready to paint. We've ordered a box of hardwood flooring to repair two small boards in the den and I've got touch up painting to do to the formal dining, bar entry hall and I'm going to paint the front porch.

Oh, and you should know it's raining.

I left Saturday morning with John to go to a family reunion in the Dallas area and my Dad's 70th birthday was Friday, so we went to eat brisket and wish him a happy birthday. Charlie came up with the rest of the kids, after he had power washed the deck and returned it to Home Depot. Sunday morning we made a run out to look at the land we're looking at to build a custom house. Still no plan from the builder. And then we took a really quick run through the Highland Home on the way back to my Dad's to watch the Dallas Cowboy's loose lose.
And to add insult to injury, I have dropped to number four in my Fantasy Football league. right behind Charlie.

Sorry no humor. I'm all out of it.

Monday, October 08, 2007

Sunday

Sunday was less productive than yesterday. I woke up on the wrong side of the bed with Charlie's impending departure to Dallas on the horizon. I went to Wally World and shopped for groceries by myself in peace. Then we....

Loaded the trailer of motorcycles and added the game chairs out of the playroom, along with my first six boxes (OMG! DID I ONLY PACK SIX BOXES? IT FELT LIKE FIFTY!) and took them over to storage.

Charlie replaced the two rotted outside plugs with new GFI plugs. He finished installing the powder room faucet. I continued to pack more boxes. I got the playroom totally finished and the tables and chairs got put back together. One room complete. Only 11 more to go. I completely packed the Littles room and took out two small dressers and a doll house (off to storage). Got Melee's room completely packed and in good shape. (For those keeping score, that's 3 rooms down, 9 more to go.) I spent the better part of the day avoiding John's room. He's a bigger pack rat than I am and his room gives me the hives. And seeing as how I still have TWO GIGANTIC zits on my face, I can't afford hives. We loaded up a round table with four chairs, the dressers, the piano, the dollhouse and a few more boxes and headed back to storage. Charlie finished taking down all the vines and scraping the back of the house. I tried to put the kids to work powerwashing the sidewalk and after a curse-filled twenty minutes, realized that the hand-me-down powerwasher was officially broken. *&%$#!

We wound down to a snails pace sometime in the evening and I put the littles in the tub and sent Charlie back to the storage facility with a load of amplifiers and a couple more boxes. He came home and textured the ceiling and put my light back up over the dining room table. Sunday's final box count, around fifteen.

The carpet cleaner called this morning and I have a 2:00 appointment today. I still need to call someone about some wood replacement on the outside of the house and we have a call pending to a countertop refinisher. I have a box of books to take to the used book store, dry cleaning to drop off, an appointment with my trainer. I have to paint the ceiling, sand and paint around the microwave, sand and paint around the upstairs bathroom light fixtures, take out four more hefty bags full of trash, put 3 more boxes in the garage and four bags of clothes to give away.

All that, and as of this morning, I'm the ED Low Scorer of the week in my Fantasy Football League! I still have a chance seeing as how I have 3 players to go in tonight's game, but what are the odds ILLEGAL USEoMY FOOT can raise my score from 23 to over 100 to catch Intentional Pounding?

GO COWBOYS!!!

Saturday, October 06, 2007

List of Things We Did Today...

Woke up too early. (Because neither of us are able to stay asleep. And he had help of the alcoholic beverage variety.)

Went to Sonic for breakfast burritos. (Because I weigh 188 pounds. (Forty pounds down, baby!)That's why.)

Came home and waited for my hung over hubby to help me make a list of things for him to do. (I promise I'm a model of patience and virtue!)

Called in my brother Krull for reinforcements. (He's handy AND he has a truck)

Went to Home Depot and purchased all the odds and ends to do the jobs. (Plus 15 bags of mulch.)

Came home, got out my shiny new Echo weed eater, mowed down what was left of the weeds that I had not been able to take care of on Thursday, when I spent the entire day in the front yard cleaning out my flower beds and edging the lawn. (Melee' mowed for me.)

Helped my brother mulch the three flower beds in the front yard. (And by help, I mean I unloaded the last three bags of mulch out of the back of the truck.)

Meanwhile Charlie started installing three new toilet seats and two new light fixtures for the upstairs bathrooms. (If only the toilets themselves were clean.)

I cleaned out the closet under the stairs while they trimmed out the space around the microwave that we installed...how many months ago? (I found the case of CD's that Charlie was certain someone had stolen.)

Charlie fixed the bedside light fixture that had come down due to some swinging toddler mishap about six months ago. (Found a few candy wrappers under the bed. I have no idea where those came from.)

Glued dowel rods into two legs off of the kiddy furniture that we bought Peach for Christmas, that evidently the kids use to train lions with or something.

Charlie repaired the cable outlet that had been yanked out of the wall in the playroom by Ace. (Why did I have kids again?)

He has (for the most part) installed a new faucet in the powder room bath downstairs.

While he was doing all that I think I packed two boxes from the closet and one box of games. (I do my best work when someone is babysitting me.)

Made Charlie go pickup Chinese food. (Because anxiety and worry burn a lot of calories. And so does moving boxes of crap that I can't beleive I'm taking with me.)

And now I'm sitting here writing this down for you guys while Charlie is outside on the top of a 20 foot extension ladder scraping vines off the back of the house. (I hope he doesn't walk in before I finish.)

Well, I better go. I've got to go upstairs and pace around alot, looking at every item I own and wondering "Should I throw this away or pack it?" With Chase on one of my shoulders saying "Embrace the throw-away!" and me on the other, whining "But what if I neeeed it?"

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Really BIG news!

Guess who was the Viagra High Scorer of the Week? AGAIN? That would be me.

NO! I'm talkin about Fantasy Football you gutter rats!

Well we have BIG news at the house of Chaos. Charlie got a promotion that means we will be moving from Houston to the Dallas Area. He starts next Monday. Yes, we're blessed, I'm stressed and I confess the house is a mess! I had my garage sale last week. GadZOOKS, I hate garage sales! "NO LADY, I WON'T TAKE LESS THAN 50 CENTS! GOSH!" (Never mind that she can fish it out of my trash can today for free.) I sounded like Napoleon Dynamite all day long. "You mean you sold that desk for $10 and you're gonna deliver it to her house for free?" "CUZ I'M AN IDOT, GOSH!" And my friend Chase entertained the neighborhood by modeling my size 42 double D bra around on top of her clothes. I had it in a sack of stuff to throw away in the garage and she fished it out and provided the comic relief we needed in order to sit sweating in the sun schlepping our junk a nickel at a time.

After two Kamikaze trips to Dallas over the last two weekends, we have narrowed our choices to a Highland Home, you can see the floorplan here and here, oh and it has an optional media room and bath upstairs. It would be in a traditional neighborhood with a postage stamp sized yard, but across the street from the park and pool. And our other choice is closer to my Mom with a custom builder and we haven't really gotten a plan together from him, but it would have an acre of land. So big house/little yard/city living or big yard/little house/country living. It really doesn't sound like a tough choice when you put it like that, but we're used to big yards and we both come from country living. But the custom guy has got to come up with something quick because I'm ready to start building something!

Charlie and I are meeting at U-haul today, to pick up boxes so I can start packing closets and things and we've got to go get some storage to put away some of the excess furniture. I'm hoping to pack up equal parts boxes and trash. I've got my realtor called, a floor guy called, a lawn service guy called, I still lack a carpet cleaner and someone to fix a couple of spots on the outside of the house. I have a zit on my face the size of Mount Olympus from nerves, and I can't keep my train of thought without being derailed with thoughts of wood floors, countertop options, stone exterior options and all the fun stuff about buying a new house.