so incredibly thankful that this is not in my yard!
Showing posts with label suburbia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label suburbia. Show all posts
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
we're all mad here...
on tuesday evening we had seven 7ish girls over for kylinn's "mad hatter tea" themed birthday party. the girls (plus one brother to entertain kylinn's brother) all had a wonderful time. the decor was awesome and the girls loved dining in their private tent- a major perk to having an event planner for a mother. tegan sported a teenage mutant ninja turtle costume for the occasion.
thank you to those who came and celebrated with us.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
it's the final countdown
my neighbors are moving.
and every time i talk about it, someone seems to get defensive, like that it shouldn't bother me as much as it does. i'm glad that they have better opportunities, but i'm still sad. and the fact that both sides are moving simultaneously is devestating. in may, i found out that the kananens were moving to a farm about 25 minutes north. two weeks later, the paweleks got their confirmation that they were moving to north carolina. during that same period, we also found out that gm was devestatingly and definately closing the family chevrolet dealership. i also turned 30- an event that was completly burried with the crap going on. to say that i cried the entire month of june is an understatement. i feel like i aged 10 years during that period. i kept saying, "God, please not one more thing!" and the next day, something else would happen. prayers are still unanswered. i can't figure out why except that it's just not our time.
but i'm tired of hearing the defensive. i don't need to "make other friends" i have a playgroup of 150 moms. i'm not short on friends. i don't need to "remember that we weren't friends to begin with" we moved here with nothing in common except new opportunities in building a new community. we became friends. these are the people that helped watch over my kids, help with all of our home projects, and had keys to my house when i was on vacation. next month, my children who talk about their children all day long- will be alone. instead of playing "right next door" i'll have to walk them down the block. my sons two "best friends" (his words) that are his age are both gone simultaneously. my daughter loses four. all in one week. she can't stop crying. i'm dreading moving day for her.
next month i lose my security. both bill & jeremy were home during the day. i knew that anything that i ever needed, that they would be right there to help me with. bill helped me deal with the endless contractors in my house, he helped me break into my house once in the winter when baby ky & i were locked out. jeremy would watch my kids while i ran up to the mailbox. we went swimming & bike riding with the family many times. he even came over for margaritas with my playgroup. i went out and bought some new floor lamps, with lighting timers so it isn't dark when i come home anymore. we're concidering fencing in our yard since i don't know who will live in their houses. i've thought about getting a dog, and i don't even like dogs. i just don't want to be alone. my mom is bringing over a climber (something that i swore i'd never have in my yard) so that my kids have something to do during the transition. i've had to put my organic lawn on hold temporarily, though, since there have been a lot of weeds. i'll get back to that when the neighborhood becomes more stable. right now, it hasn't been so bad to "let go" because both sets of neighbors haven been so busy packing that i've seen very little of them this summer. i'm trying to step back.
so this is it. a dream deferred. it's certainly not our time to move, and the truth is, that i don't want to. despite the negativity i hear, i honestly feel that it's just them trying to justify their moves and make themselves feel better about leaving. i'm not taking it personally. i love my neighborhood. i love my neighbors (they're just a little further down the road now) and i love, love, love my house. so, when i heard they were moving, i decided to up my house pride. i put in a victory garden. i painted my kitchen cabinets. i had my carpets cleaned. i made a checklist of things to get done before our halloween party, and more than half of it is done. i can't wait to repaint the trim and the balcony. we're powerwashing the house. i love my house and i'm still very glad that we moved here. i don't regret that. and secretly, i can't wait to decorate for halloween since there will be two new families that will have no idea that it is coming.
and now i finally have to face the week that i've been dreading all summer. the kananens are out on friday (the night of our first block party) and the paweleks are leaving next week. and i think i'm finally okay with it. i'm not a farmer and vow to never live on a dirt road with well-water ever again, as much as i'm not a southener and probably could not survive without snow, chilly mornings and crisp autumn leaves. and the curtain closes on my first neighborhood friends. it's the end of a good five year stretch. i'm happy to have met them, and i hope to always stay in contact with them, because through the tears, i truly do with them all the best of luck. i just can't say it right now.
goodbye and goodluck.
and every time i talk about it, someone seems to get defensive, like that it shouldn't bother me as much as it does. i'm glad that they have better opportunities, but i'm still sad. and the fact that both sides are moving simultaneously is devestating. in may, i found out that the kananens were moving to a farm about 25 minutes north. two weeks later, the paweleks got their confirmation that they were moving to north carolina. during that same period, we also found out that gm was devestatingly and definately closing the family chevrolet dealership. i also turned 30- an event that was completly burried with the crap going on. to say that i cried the entire month of june is an understatement. i feel like i aged 10 years during that period. i kept saying, "God, please not one more thing!" and the next day, something else would happen. prayers are still unanswered. i can't figure out why except that it's just not our time.
but i'm tired of hearing the defensive. i don't need to "make other friends" i have a playgroup of 150 moms. i'm not short on friends. i don't need to "remember that we weren't friends to begin with" we moved here with nothing in common except new opportunities in building a new community. we became friends. these are the people that helped watch over my kids, help with all of our home projects, and had keys to my house when i was on vacation. next month, my children who talk about their children all day long- will be alone. instead of playing "right next door" i'll have to walk them down the block. my sons two "best friends" (his words) that are his age are both gone simultaneously. my daughter loses four. all in one week. she can't stop crying. i'm dreading moving day for her.
next month i lose my security. both bill & jeremy were home during the day. i knew that anything that i ever needed, that they would be right there to help me with. bill helped me deal with the endless contractors in my house, he helped me break into my house once in the winter when baby ky & i were locked out. jeremy would watch my kids while i ran up to the mailbox. we went swimming & bike riding with the family many times. he even came over for margaritas with my playgroup. i went out and bought some new floor lamps, with lighting timers so it isn't dark when i come home anymore. we're concidering fencing in our yard since i don't know who will live in their houses. i've thought about getting a dog, and i don't even like dogs. i just don't want to be alone. my mom is bringing over a climber (something that i swore i'd never have in my yard) so that my kids have something to do during the transition. i've had to put my organic lawn on hold temporarily, though, since there have been a lot of weeds. i'll get back to that when the neighborhood becomes more stable. right now, it hasn't been so bad to "let go" because both sets of neighbors haven been so busy packing that i've seen very little of them this summer. i'm trying to step back.
so this is it. a dream deferred. it's certainly not our time to move, and the truth is, that i don't want to. despite the negativity i hear, i honestly feel that it's just them trying to justify their moves and make themselves feel better about leaving. i'm not taking it personally. i love my neighborhood. i love my neighbors (they're just a little further down the road now) and i love, love, love my house. so, when i heard they were moving, i decided to up my house pride. i put in a victory garden. i painted my kitchen cabinets. i had my carpets cleaned. i made a checklist of things to get done before our halloween party, and more than half of it is done. i can't wait to repaint the trim and the balcony. we're powerwashing the house. i love my house and i'm still very glad that we moved here. i don't regret that. and secretly, i can't wait to decorate for halloween since there will be two new families that will have no idea that it is coming.
and now i finally have to face the week that i've been dreading all summer. the kananens are out on friday (the night of our first block party) and the paweleks are leaving next week. and i think i'm finally okay with it. i'm not a farmer and vow to never live on a dirt road with well-water ever again, as much as i'm not a southener and probably could not survive without snow, chilly mornings and crisp autumn leaves. and the curtain closes on my first neighborhood friends. it's the end of a good five year stretch. i'm happy to have met them, and i hope to always stay in contact with them, because through the tears, i truly do with them all the best of luck. i just can't say it right now.
goodbye and goodluck.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
the problem with toile
I just realized that I hate my office curtains, which is unfortunate, because I really liked them until I realized that the images remind me of a Civil War cemetery in Beaufort, SC. That's kind of morbid.
The problem, you see, lay not in the fabric as a whole, but in two particular scenes, which happen to be side-by-side. The fabric is full of Victorian-era families and couples gallivanting through various park-like areas. Two couples stop by some monuments- one with a great urn on the top, the other much akin to any other war memorial. That would be the part that bugs me. Several years ago, I was in South Carolina (a state that I've never held much of an interest in) which apparently affected my love of toile. Read on.
Somehow, we ended up strolling through the old cemetary in Beaufort and while reading monuments of Civil War Veterans, we suddenly were under attack from vampire mosquitos the size of small children with a penchant for the blood of my scantily-clad back. (note to self: do not wear tank tops in SC) Contrary to popular belief, dead people, stinging insects and extreme heat are not my idea of fun. I still like most of the curtains. I think I'll just make them into roman shades and cover up the corpses with a pleat. It's very challenging to be a housewife.Stay tuned.
Friday, June 05, 2009
To quote my neighbor...
From Aimee:
Yesterday my lovely city issued an emergency water ban until further notice. This means no watering grass, flowers, gardens, washing cars, or swimming pools this summer. Are you serious? So my lawn we have worked so hard at to get in good shape is now going to burn??? Does New Haven really need help loosing home values with something like this? Houses are already going for HALF of what we paid 6 years ago. Do I understand that some people in the village are having water pressure issues? Yes. Has this been going on for 6 years and yet city council has failed to do ANYTHING about it? Yes. Mike Barnet, I understand you have a job to do and accept you have to make unpopular decisions. Who am I mad at? The Village. The Village of New Haven has let internal political turmoil dominate the landscape and only rarely addressing true issues of importance. We have pushed the water system to its breaking point and now we are forced to make quick decisions to rectify the situation. Guess what, I don't care. I'm sorry if the Village doens't want to feel pressured into making a decision, but guess what, you have brought it on yourself. Fix the system and allow watering again. This is now VERY personal. Click here to see the story.
Friday, March 27, 2009
call her green for the children who've made her
each week, i have one real goal- to create less waste.
i've always been a bit of an environmentalist, but i never really had an actual perspective on waste until i moved out to my current home. you see, we unknowingly built our home less than five miles from a landfill which accepts more than 40 tons of garbage from canada every single day in addition to our own county's trash. five years ago, the landfill was scarcely visable above the treeline. today, it towers overhead resembling a mountain at a ski resort. though it is extrememly well-managed, there is nothing glamerous about this north face.
so five years ago, i decided that if we had to live near a landfill, in a community that does not offer curbside recycling, that we were going to have to do our part to ensure that not everything ends up in that landfill. we started recycling what we could- bottles, of course, but also papers are taken to a collection box that help raise funds for our public schools, we bought a composter and put everything that can go in, turned, and then put back into our soil and enrich our little postage stamp parcel of earth which was raised and groomed from nothing- brought back from the dead which now hosts a collection of kingdoms and phylums which would make any biologist smile.
and then theres still that issue of general garbage- what to do with it, and where to put it. i'd love to one day own a trash compactor, but this home & funds do not allow for such a novelty. instead i compact anything that can be compacted. water bottles (though fewer & fewer these days) and milk jugs are crushed and re-capped before they go in. loose items are put into other containers (peanut butter jars, etc) to try to save space. each week, my one goal is to only have to put out one can of trash for our family of four, and our two cats. it can't always be done, as the occasional project will leave us with a mountain of trash.
but more often than not, i put out our one can of trash.
and that makes me proud.
because it could easily be two cans. or more.
and because i know that my children will have one less bag of trash to deal with in their lifetime.
i'll leave you with a little jack johnson on this sunny friday. (because who doesn't love a little jack johnson on a sunny friday!)
i've always been a bit of an environmentalist, but i never really had an actual perspective on waste until i moved out to my current home. you see, we unknowingly built our home less than five miles from a landfill which accepts more than 40 tons of garbage from canada every single day in addition to our own county's trash. five years ago, the landfill was scarcely visable above the treeline. today, it towers overhead resembling a mountain at a ski resort. though it is extrememly well-managed, there is nothing glamerous about this north face.
so five years ago, i decided that if we had to live near a landfill, in a community that does not offer curbside recycling, that we were going to have to do our part to ensure that not everything ends up in that landfill. we started recycling what we could- bottles, of course, but also papers are taken to a collection box that help raise funds for our public schools, we bought a composter and put everything that can go in, turned, and then put back into our soil and enrich our little postage stamp parcel of earth which was raised and groomed from nothing- brought back from the dead which now hosts a collection of kingdoms and phylums which would make any biologist smile.
and then theres still that issue of general garbage- what to do with it, and where to put it. i'd love to one day own a trash compactor, but this home & funds do not allow for such a novelty. instead i compact anything that can be compacted. water bottles (though fewer & fewer these days) and milk jugs are crushed and re-capped before they go in. loose items are put into other containers (peanut butter jars, etc) to try to save space. each week, my one goal is to only have to put out one can of trash for our family of four, and our two cats. it can't always be done, as the occasional project will leave us with a mountain of trash.
but more often than not, i put out our one can of trash.
and that makes me proud.
because it could easily be two cans. or more.
and because i know that my children will have one less bag of trash to deal with in their lifetime.
i'll leave you with a little jack johnson on this sunny friday. (because who doesn't love a little jack johnson on a sunny friday!)
Three it's a magic number
Yes it is, it's a magic number
Because two times three is six
And three times six is eighteen
And the eighteenth letter in the alphabet is R
We've got three R's we're going to talk about today
We've got to learn to
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
If you're going to the market to buy some juice
You've got to bring your own bags and you learn to reduce your waste
And if your brother or your sister's got some cool clothes
You could try them on before you buy some more of those
Reuse, we've got to learn to reuse
And if the first two R's don't work out
And if you've got to make some trash
Don't throw it out
Recycle, we've got to learn to recycle,
We've got to learn to
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Yes it is, it's a magic number
Because two times three is six
And three times six is eighteen
And the eighteenth letter in the alphabet is R
We've got three R's we're going to talk about today
We've got to learn to
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
If you're going to the market to buy some juice
You've got to bring your own bags and you learn to reduce your waste
And if your brother or your sister's got some cool clothes
You could try them on before you buy some more of those
Reuse, we've got to learn to reuse
And if the first two R's don't work out
And if you've got to make some trash
Don't throw it out
Recycle, we've got to learn to recycle,
We've got to learn to
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Thursday, June 12, 2008
out of the stone-age, let's backdate.
woah dude. that was some heavy schizz...
i totally forgot to make a 15 month appointment for my darling son. i always leave the pediatrician appointment prior yelling, "i'll call to set up the next appointment" with a child screaming and hanging off of each ankle. so whatever, i realize that i needed to set ky's 4th appointment and tegan's 18 month, so i did, but never thought about a 15 month until i saw my nephew's checkup report. (oops, maybe i am not supposed to link to them because they're kind of secret) so i'm reading this, thinking "was i supposed to do a 15 month? (my head has been in a fog for the past four years) and then i call the doctor, verify that the immunization records will be fine and just stick with our 18 month appointment in july. my life is busy. i probably would not have gone to a 15 month appointment anyway.
had a sweet 29th birthday partay. sir hubs-a-lot had reservations to pf changs at seven, and had arranged for my mom to watch the kids for the evening. after a bit of shopping, we finally wandered over to the restaurant only to find my wonderful neighbors, mike & amy perzanowski, and elizabeth and suzy (& todd, too!) from my mom's group waiting for me. we had an awesome time in the midst of the storm. after dinner, suzy's friends "moose" and an australian guy named kris came up and helped us put away the night at bar louie. what can i say? i love martinis. suzy took a thousand pictures which have recently been added to my flickr.
saturday was a wedding celebration for adam's cousin michelle and her husband, felix. they eloped back in february down in texas where they live. it was a friggin' hot day, but nice to see the whole family. tegan had a rockin' time with his cousin (okay, second cousin) ej. they look like siblings, it's so crazy. but the boys are five months apart and it always seems that my kids best friends are all five months apart. five is the magic number.
sunday, we were so lazy and finally went to do some shopping at the flower factory (adam's new favorite store) and dinner at red robin. as we were driving home, we noticed a green/yellow cloud encroaching. we were able to stay just ahead of it, and the rain and huge bolts of lightning started as we were running into the house. as i literally had one foot in the door, the power went out, and we spent nearly 50 hours without power. thankfully, bill & kristen hooked up our sump pump and fridge to their generator so all hell did not break loose. it's amazing how much worse it is to lose power when you have a well and no water and are deep in the woods. to live in surburbia, losing power is not so bad. we had consistent clean, hot water and survived mighty well. it was kind of like camping. and i like camping.
monday it was 1000 degrees and we had no power.
tuesday was 900 degrees and we had no power.
yesterday, i did wash, vacuumed my crumb-haven and went to target.
ahh, life is good.
i totally forgot to make a 15 month appointment for my darling son. i always leave the pediatrician appointment prior yelling, "i'll call to set up the next appointment" with a child screaming and hanging off of each ankle. so whatever, i realize that i needed to set ky's 4th appointment and tegan's 18 month, so i did, but never thought about a 15 month until i saw my nephew's checkup report. (oops, maybe i am not supposed to link to them because they're kind of secret) so i'm reading this, thinking "was i supposed to do a 15 month? (my head has been in a fog for the past four years) and then i call the doctor, verify that the immunization records will be fine and just stick with our 18 month appointment in july. my life is busy. i probably would not have gone to a 15 month appointment anyway.
had a sweet 29th birthday partay. sir hubs-a-lot had reservations to pf changs at seven, and had arranged for my mom to watch the kids for the evening. after a bit of shopping, we finally wandered over to the restaurant only to find my wonderful neighbors, mike & amy perzanowski, and elizabeth and suzy (& todd, too!) from my mom's group waiting for me. we had an awesome time in the midst of the storm. after dinner, suzy's friends "moose" and an australian guy named kris came up and helped us put away the night at bar louie. what can i say? i love martinis. suzy took a thousand pictures which have recently been added to my flickr.
saturday was a wedding celebration for adam's cousin michelle and her husband, felix. they eloped back in february down in texas where they live. it was a friggin' hot day, but nice to see the whole family. tegan had a rockin' time with his cousin (okay, second cousin) ej. they look like siblings, it's so crazy. but the boys are five months apart and it always seems that my kids best friends are all five months apart. five is the magic number.
sunday, we were so lazy and finally went to do some shopping at the flower factory (adam's new favorite store) and dinner at red robin. as we were driving home, we noticed a green/yellow cloud encroaching. we were able to stay just ahead of it, and the rain and huge bolts of lightning started as we were running into the house. as i literally had one foot in the door, the power went out, and we spent nearly 50 hours without power. thankfully, bill & kristen hooked up our sump pump and fridge to their generator so all hell did not break loose. it's amazing how much worse it is to lose power when you have a well and no water and are deep in the woods. to live in surburbia, losing power is not so bad. we had consistent clean, hot water and survived mighty well. it was kind of like camping. and i like camping.
monday it was 1000 degrees and we had no power.
tuesday was 900 degrees and we had no power.
yesterday, i did wash, vacuumed my crumb-haven and went to target.
ahh, life is good.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
and yet another stowaway
the bunny has a summer home over at jeremy's, but apparently continues to lunch at my house still. i had to yell at girl patrol the other day because after witnessing the glitter mob running through my yard screaming and wielding sticks, i realized that they were chasing my bunny.
so, what now? oh yes. a pair of mourning doves has decided to nest in my hanging strawberry basket on the deck. they had already moved in by the time we got back from camping but there were no eggs yet. of course, hanging a few feet above a deck full of fun toddler activity would be an excellent place to nest. in my frigging strawberries, no less. and i must say, there's nothing like organic strawberries covered by bird ass. and it's not like they even made a nest- they just sit on the dirt! i went out to buy a new hanging basket to entice a move, but in the meantime, the mama laid two little eggs in my berries. the dad takes the all day shift and the mom does all night. there is always a stupid bird on the eggs.
yesterday, i did some gardening and watering of my patio plants. of course, the bird sat there. i can get about four inches from it and tap the planter and it still won't move. it is, however, terrified of the camera. so yesterday, adam basically pushes the bird out. it was the dad, and he was furious. so he goes and gets the mom and they both sat on the garage yelling and mourning and the dad was whipping his head back and forth to threaten adam. so what? apparently, that was the last straw because the bastard started dive-bombing us. now, i am afraid of horses, but i am beyond terrified of birds. so , we quickly jumped back inside, and the birds happily resumed their 24-hour egg sitting schedule.
ughhhh. four more weeks.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
bring on da noise, bring on da funk.
this year my daughter was inducted into the junior estrogen society. a secret membership with special privileges to hang out daily with the neighborhood girls. this little girl club consists of eight girls between the ages of three and eight years old who have the ability to destroy a playroom in under a minute. my daughter is the youngest. i fear for her safety. not physically, but mentally- from a world i have been hiding her from- of bratz dolls and hannah montana and high school musical.
imagine if you will; a fearless swarm of bees, covered in pink glitter and squealing like tires on hot concrete. now multiply that by several thousand decibels and you may possibly understand the volume that such a group may create. unlike boys, the girls are cautious, careful and precise, but they are also cunning, self-centered and catty. they rapidly change leadership positions as others fall prey to the worship of the extremely temporary queen bee, while the former queen sheds a few tears, chucks a barbie and assumes their new position in line with the others. in fact, they bare a strong resemblance to a pack of little drag queens parading about the sidewalk preaching about their cause du jour.
thankfully, one of the poor mothers of another member just put up a climber in their yard. girl club has temporarily moved their meetings from our playhouse to their climber. my yard is quiet and glitter-free.
i have, however, been thinking of a way to stop the screaming and endless tattling. i believe it's called hormone replacement therapy, though i don't believe that i'm legally allowed to administer it to other people's children. i'm looking into alternative therapy.
today, while working away on the computer, i was suddenly startled by shrieks of laughter and overwhelmed by the smell of cheap fruity lotion. i looked up to see the entire girl club entering my kitchen. "no, no, no" i yelled. "you cannot come in- tegan is sleeping!" the reigning queen of the moment says, "mrs. vanover, just two kids can come in at one time then." "no." i repeat myself, this time with my stern teacher voice. "no children may come in. it is a nice day. play outside."
thankfully, i have survived yet another advancement by the estromilitia. i do not feel that i can hold myself very long though. they are sure to infiltrate soon.
imagine if you will; a fearless swarm of bees, covered in pink glitter and squealing like tires on hot concrete. now multiply that by several thousand decibels and you may possibly understand the volume that such a group may create. unlike boys, the girls are cautious, careful and precise, but they are also cunning, self-centered and catty. they rapidly change leadership positions as others fall prey to the worship of the extremely temporary queen bee, while the former queen sheds a few tears, chucks a barbie and assumes their new position in line with the others. in fact, they bare a strong resemblance to a pack of little drag queens parading about the sidewalk preaching about their cause du jour.
thankfully, one of the poor mothers of another member just put up a climber in their yard. girl club has temporarily moved their meetings from our playhouse to their climber. my yard is quiet and glitter-free.
i have, however, been thinking of a way to stop the screaming and endless tattling. i believe it's called hormone replacement therapy, though i don't believe that i'm legally allowed to administer it to other people's children. i'm looking into alternative therapy.
today, while working away on the computer, i was suddenly startled by shrieks of laughter and overwhelmed by the smell of cheap fruity lotion. i looked up to see the entire girl club entering my kitchen. "no, no, no" i yelled. "you cannot come in- tegan is sleeping!" the reigning queen of the moment says, "mrs. vanover, just two kids can come in at one time then." "no." i repeat myself, this time with my stern teacher voice. "no children may come in. it is a nice day. play outside."
thankfully, i have survived yet another advancement by the estromilitia. i do not feel that i can hold myself very long though. they are sure to infiltrate soon.
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