Home Stretch of the Move!

Moving is a B*$^$). I hate the process and I am thankful that we wont have to do it for a VERY long time. First, you never realize how much crap you hold on to- until you try to move it! We were no exception. I was having a hard time getting rid of the "sentimental stuff" all of last week, but by Thursday night we had ran out of boxes and packing tape and we were dumping anything that had not been packed in our trash bins. It's almost comical to see how much ones perception can change in just a matter of days. Luckily that part is done.

Brandon and my parents left Friday morning. Today they are somewhere in Iowa (which is about half way there). They drove about 13 hours they first day, 12 the second and today they are hoping to make to Cleaveland, OH, which is another 11 hours out. Lets just say I owe my parents (and Brandon) big time!

I have been staying at my parents house until we fly out on Tuesday. The kids thought it was fun the first night, but by now, the novelty has wore off and they are ready to go home. Although to my surprise neither one of them really understands that we dont have a home we can go to. I did expect this reaction from Jackson who is only 18 months old, but I now feel like we under estimated our moving talks with Issy. Oops!

Yesterday, I spent a couple of hours at the "old house" taking the trash out, and today I am going back for a full on deep cleaning. It's on the Market right now, and all I can say is that I hope it sells fast.

Freezer Paper: Moving Bags

I made these moving bags for the kids with some Freezer paper. I made the stencils out of one of Issy's favorite Dr. Seuse book. I made a croc for Jackson and a dog for Issy. As it turns out I wont be needed them for the move, but I am planning on using it for other things such as library, beach trips etc.

Just in case you were wondering what I was going to fill them with here is a few things I had already purchased:

• sun glasses
• chap stick
• MP3 CD's
• DS game
• Movie
• snacks
• coloring books
• soap bubbles, etc.

Bear World

Before we found out that we were moving, we had planned on a vacation to Yellowstone Bear World in Southern Idaho. My Mother in Law was able to join us on this trip which was really wonderful for all of us. The park was laid out so that we are able to drive through the area where the bears are kept and see them running around. The older bears seem to be more used to the cars, but the younger ones are little bit more daring.



For the record, this is OUR car. I was on the passanger side with Jackson on my lap. Yikes!





During our trip, we were able to watch the keepers feed the baby bears. These little guys were born in January ( appx. 4 months old). They were adorable and super playful.




The petting Zoo had a lot of different animals. This deer was one of Issy's favorite animals, but all of the animals there were really friendly. It was so fun.

If you are ever in the southern Idaho area, this is definatly a place to start. Your kids will love it.

Daddy to the Rescue

So...up until this afternoon our plan was to drive to Boston the day after Issy got out of school for the year. I was going to drive our truck, the kids would ride with me. Brandon would drive the Uhaul and tow my car with our dog Sandy. Our families thought we were nuts....it was a long drive to begin with, then add the stress of two kids, the dog, stops, hotels....They are right. It is nuts, but what choice do we have?

This afternoon out of no where my parents came over and offered to help drive our truck out there for me. I guess since I told my parents the news, he has been worrying about us and has not been able to sleep and would rather drive there himself. I didnt even know what to say. This is a HUGE relief, and this would mean that I would be able to fly with the kids instead of having to drive cross-country. I have awesome parents!

One thing that I learned today is that it doesnt matter how old I get, my Dad will always been there to save the day. I am so, so thankful.


There is still lots more to think about, but for now, I have a date with Travelocity.com.

Bird Feeder

Aparently we have a bird's nest right out side our porch. I have been hearing the baby birds for a couple of weeks, so this afternoon we decided to finally make a home made bird feeder. The girls dug up pine cones, peanut butter and bird seed. The project was super easy, a little messy and a lot of fun.

It’s happening fast.

I put in my two week notice today, which means there is NO turning back now! I was sweating bullets all morning, but my Boss is a kind man, and I feel like he was genuinely happy for me…for us! I have worked my butt off for him for the past 2 ½ years, so it makes me feel good that I will be leaving on a good note.

On Sunday we posted half of our furniture on Craigslist, and luckily most of it has already sold. We figured it would be easier to sell as much as we can, than it will be to cart things we don’t love cross-country. We decided that Brandon is going to drive the moving truck and I would drive the truck all the way there. This is actually scary for me. I am just as nervous about how the kids are going to feel and act, as I am about myself come day 3. Eeeek!

Anyway, tomorrow my goal is to make a special moving bag for each of the kids, and then start stuffing it with new toys, movies or little games for the long drive. I am also going to make a few new CDs for Brandon and I and start planning healthy portable snacks so we do not have to go through a drive thru for all of our meals…Gross!

Again, if you have any tips or advice please email me. I want to be as prepared as I can possibly can be, but my head is still spinning and there is still SO MUCH MORE to think about.

Good night!

Mother's Day 2010

First of all Happy Mother’s Day to all of you lovely ladies out there! I hope you all got pampered and spoiled just a little bit extra today. I got to sleep in late, when I woke up I was smothered in hugs and kisses from my kids. I can’t think of a better way to start the day. I love being a Mom and thank my lucky stars for having the sweetest kids in the whole world.

Mom, I love you- you are incredible! Sisters, I am so, so proud of just how amazing you both are with your little ones. I just loved that we were able to celebrate this special day together. I had so much fun hanging out, specially watching all of our kids playing together. Being together seriously made my day just a little bit extra special. Thank You!

***

On a side note Brandon and I have decided that he should accept the job offer with Avidyne. This means that we have roughly 3 1/2 weeks to pack up the life we have created here in Idaho and MOVE cross country. ( insert scream - AHHHH! )

Its hard to think about much else at the moment, so its something that we have been discussing with our families a lot this weekend. Both sides of our families are extreemly supportive, and they seem to be really happy for us, which definatly makes us feel much, much better about this decision.

The only thing is that our schedule is extreemly tight, we do feel a little crazy for trying to pull it off, and yes already the stress is setting in, but we are beyond excited.

So far this is what we know: Brandon's start date is June 7th, which means tomorrow I turn in my resignation. Issy's last day of school is May 27th so our plan is to hit the road on May 28th.

Tips anyone?

It’s happening

Brandon has been in Boston this week. I am extremely jealous, but really do miss him like crazy. I kept thinking how much I take him for granted and kept cursing myself when I had to take care of all of those “little things” he normally does to help make my day run more smoothly. Right now I am running on fumes, so it will be really nice to have him back tomorrow.
The reason why Brandon is in Boston is because he is out there interviewing with Avidyne. A while ago I posted that I had some big news coming up and I didn’t really want to share the news just in case they didn’t pan out. Well they didn’t, or at least not exactly how we thought they would.
About 3 months ago Brandon started putting applications in for different avionic jobs all over the US. L-3 contacted him with a job in Mansfield, OH basically doing the same type of work he did in the Air Force. He was really excited about it, we started making plans and then we were told to wait. So we waited. And waited and waited. Apparently L-3 was reviewing applications, but had not officially received the military contract. In the mean time, the applications continued.
Out of the blue, Brandon got an email from Avidyne. He had a phone interview on Friday and about an hour later they called him back and asked him to fly out to Boston for an interview this week. He flew out on the 3rd and has been training since Tuesday.
On Friday night, L-3 called Brandon to say the contract was signed and they want to hire him ASAP. Go figure right?
Today was Brandon’s last day in Boston and at the end of the day he was offered the job with Avidyne. He didn’t officially accept the position, but he seems really excited about it. I can’t wait for him to get back so that we can talk about EVERYTHING, inlcuding the L-3 job in Ohio.

More information to follow…


(Jax was "helping" Daddy pack for his trip, but he was so sad...No, actually he was only sad becuse I posed him in the suit case :~) )

An Expo made for Issy!

We took the kids to a Pet Expo this weekend...Talk about two happy kids being 100 percent in their element. Dogs were everywhere, people were talking about dogs, selling things for dogs and even a pet show. We were in Issy's heaven!

As it turns out, our little Jax is also an animal lover, I dont know if the love runs as deeply as it does for Issy, but he had a good time. Jax loved a friendly, but solid bulldog and the turtles. I tell ya, he is all boy!

Painting this Weekend

I decided to paint the master bedroom this weekend. I love the idea of painting, and I can hardly wait for the end results, but I always forget how much work it ends up being.

It only took $25 for a gal of paint, four hours for the labor, and two coats of paint...but my room went from ugly poo brown to a cool, Zen pale blue.

Much,much better!

Can you guess what Issy wants for Xmas?

Her two front teeth. Yes, both front teeth are gone, she pulled one about a month ago, and today she pulled the second. Poor thing, the one that she pulled out today was sooo crooked. I hated it. This time she didnt cry at all, and didnt whine so Brandon and I decided to treat her with her favorite, a Oreo Cookie Dairy Queen Blizzard. Yum!
The Tooth Fairy is sure to be good to her tonight, she earned it!