Never A Good Time

Yesterday while he was at the hospital my father had a heart attack. I have been going back and forth today between trying to calm down because he's fine (they put in a stint and he might be able to go home tomorrow!) and getting upset all over again because he won't alway be fine.

I've been trying to figure out all day if there is a good age for your dad to get sick. Will I be this upset at 35? 40? 45? Will I ever be independent enough that the news will not be upsetting?

Nope. There will never be a good time.

Sweet Nothings, Cunningham Style

The previous owner of the house we hope to get (still waiting on the bank) obviously had a Cricut machine. There are little sayings all over the house, from the formal sitting room to the den to the living room, to the kitchen, to the pantry, to the bedrooms . . .we have not checked the attic yet.

The first time that we looked at the house, we felt so bad for the previous owners. Perhaps the husband lost his job or their mortgage payment was too high and they had to cut their loses? In the living room, above the fireplace, it says "I Could Live Like This Forever" and we felt bad that they had lost their dream and we were trying to jump on a great deal.

But then we found out that they had gotten divorced and he was living with his fiance in Arizona and she was living with her boyfriend in California.

In the bedroom, above where the bed should be, it reads "Always Kiss Me Goodnight". Now, this is a popular saying found in many couples' bedrooms and kids' bedrooms alike.

But, it does not really fit Garry & me. So we've wondered what we should put up in its place.

Perhaps: "You're Taking Over Too Much of the Bed. Scoot Over!"

How 'bout: "Hey, Stop Hogging The Blanket"

Or my personal favorite: "If You Don't Stop Snoring, I Swear I'll Suffocate You With My Pillow"

Any others?

Dashed Hopes

Don't worry, my dashed hopes have nothing to do with the houses that we have offers on. We still have not heard anything back. But maybe next week.

Nope, today I am talking about yogurt.

My kids love the little containers of yogurt, particularly the Twix flavors. I have noticed that under the lid I have seen (over and over again -- they really like yogurt) the words "Please Try Again."

And so I knew that they were having a contest of some sort and dreamed about the day I lifted another lid and found out that I was a winner! Woohoo! Maybe we could win $100,000 (see, that's not too greedy) and wow, things would be great.

I finally took a moment to check out the box to see how much I could win. My hopes were high until I read that each winning lid could be worth $5.

"Well, hell."

(Excuse the language, but I said it.)

"I have $5 in my wallet! I don't need Twix!"

Are economic conditions so bad that we are down to winning only $5?

In Defense of Cheesy

On Sunday we had a lesson based upon Elder Bednar's talk about expressing love to our families.

The teacher gave the example of her nephew who, on his voice mail, closes by saying "...and if this is Jane (not sure on the name), please know that I love you and I never want you to forget that."

Now how cute is that?

I talked to Garry about it, and though I did not expect him to adopt the practice, I did not expect him to laugh out loud and accuse the guy of being "gay". He's not gay, in fact, it appears that he is the very opposite of gay.

What do you think? Is it cheesy or a great idea? Or both?

Shopping, Always Shopping

House Hunt Update: On December 31st we put a bid on a house. We found out about a week later that they were going with another bid (someone was willing to pay cash) and then about four days after that we found out that they were putting our bid through because the cash guy was not returning phone calls. That was January 9th. Since January 9th we have been waiting to see if the bank would accept our offer. There were two mortgages on the home. The second mortgage has signed off and now the first mortgage is considering our offer. And considering. And considering.

We've heard nightmare stories about short sales where the bank takes months and we would like to have a house, and so we have decided to put another offer on a different house in the same neighborhood. But this one has three mortgages (sigh). The good news is that it's cheaper, but 1000 square feet smaller and the fence is not finished and neither is the basement, so it should be cheaper!

This is something I think about nearly every minute of everyday. So I guess it should not surprise me that at night I dream about looking at houses, too! I always wake up frustrated -- can't I dream about something fun! Maybe in a few more weeks.

Grandparents Overload

When we lived in Maryland family coming to visit was a very big deal. It only happened a few times a year and was very exciting for us and our kids.

Since we've been in Utah, Garry's Mom has come out to visit, we've seen my parents twice, and we've had Garry's grandparents over to eat three times. The kids still get really excited to see their grandparents but are confused as to who exactly is going to be coming over. They are in grandparent overload! So many!

What a blessing for them to be near family, but it has gone to Molly's head. Since she is loved on so much by people who think she is the greatest and cutest, she now walks into my sister's house with a little attitude. "My peeps, I am here! Love me!"

Dazzle Dogs!

Today I took Emma and Chloe (my niece) to the library to watch a dog show called Dazzle Dogs! It was a 30 minute show with three dogs who could dance and do great tricks. Emma almost got clobbered by a wayward frisbee, but the girls had a great time. I asked them which part they liked the best and they said "All of it!"

Sorry about the grainy photo -- it was from my cell phone.

Cousin Bonding

Emma really misses her friends, but luckily she has a built-in friend right down the street. The cousins gets together several times a week and the past few Friday nights we've had Chloe over for pizza and a movie! Here we are, relaxing and enjoying G-Force. (Which, by the way, seemed more geared for older kids).

Good Times, Better Times

On Saturday we went to a basketball game at BYU to enjoy "Dollar Days". Each ticket was only $1. Granted, we were at the tippy, tippy top of the Marriott center, but that meant that we had something to lean back on in the uncomfortable bleachers. My sister Cindy came with us and it was wonderful to have three adults with three kids. Garry and I were not outnumbered!

Emma is a true-blue fan. She especially liked watching the Cougarettes dance. (Sigh). In 14 years will she be down there on that floor?

Before we went to the basketball game, we went to PF Changs for lunch. We were in Orem surrounded by college kids. At one table was a cute couple. I am not sure if he had ever been there before. His date ordered the Cashew Chicken but he ordered a bowl of soup. She left her hand casually on the table, sending clear signals to him that they could hold hands. But, he was probably too stressed about the bill and was missing her signals.

Ah, college days, college stresses. Good times. But these are better times.

A Visit To Temple Square

During the holiday break we went to Temple Square with my niece, Chloe. We still had not received our household goods from storage, and so we went without hats and gloves and blankets -- brrrr!!!! When I lived in DC I really struggled with the humid cold winters. I 'remembered' more moderate winters out West where the cold did not seep into you. So it was a cruel discovery that West winters are COLD! Look how cold Macey looks! It was cold. But, it was beautiful, and we had a great parking spot! (Is that a sign that I was back East too long when free parking spots can make the outing?)

We took Molly out to snuggle her and keep her warm. Macey never saw an open stroller that she did not like. The 'tree' behind us was made completely out of lights -- it was beautiful!

We stopped and saw the nativity. The girls enjoyed watching the little program while Molly wondered what in the world we were doing outside!

Where Did My Sick Days Go?

The last few days I have woken up with lower back and leg pain. Today the pain was especially bad. It was hard to get out of bed and get going. I realized that a few years ago I would have called in sick at work, snuggled up with a blanket, and watched Lifetime on TV all day long (sad, but true).

A hard part of being a Mom is no more sick days. Luckily my sister lives down the street and so I dropped off the girls and went to see Avatar with Garry. No more sick days, but I love having family down the street!

What I Love

Moving is hard. The entire process has been difficult for everyone, and it's not even done! We have submitted an offer on a house to a bank and hope that it will be accepted soon. Then we will move (again) in a few more weeks.

We've had some problems with the apartment, and the girls miss their schools. I've complained about all of these things, and so today I thought I would focus on what I have loved about this move.

(1) My Closet. I have my own walk-in closet. Garry has his own, but it is smaller and not a walk in. It's lovely and large. I'm a fan.

(2) My Bathtub. It's a large soak tub. It's not jetted, but it's lovely. And since we are the first people in this apartment, I do not have to worry about nasty germs. Lovely.

(3) Neighborhood. We are so close to EVERYTHING! In Maryland I had to drive 8 miles to get anywhere. Everything was 15-20 minutes away. I have a Super Wal-Mart five minutes away. I have a Super Target two miles away. My sister is 5 minutes away. Garry's work is 20 minutes away. My other sister is 35 minutes away. My parents are 3 1/2 hours away. Woohoo! I have a Barnes & Noble two miles away. I just need a drive-thru Starbucks. Though I have gone out everyday this week, I have only used 1/4 of a tank of gas. Amazing.

(4) Fun! Since family is close by, we have had a lot of fun together. Dinners, nights out, trips to the movies. It's been great!

I miss my Maryland friends. I miss my girls' teachers; they were great! I hope to get in our house soon, get a little more settled, and enjoy more of this domestic bliss.

The Curse Continues

Last night I was snug in my bed. It was four in the morning, and I had been blissfully asleep. All of the sudden Garry asks me, "What is that noise?" I took a second and listened for 'the noise' and there it was. BEEP BEEP BEEP. Pause. BEEP BEEP BEEP. Pause. You get the idea.

Garry got up to investigate, thinking that maybe it was a car alarm. He looked outside and saw people in the parking lot with the police. Now, I cannot even tell you how cold it must have been outside. Oh, those poor people! But there the other tenants of Luxury Apartment Building M stood because the fire alarm had gone off in their building.

The curse continues, and it's very selfish of me to be grateful that it hit across the parking lot last night.

What Came Next. . .

At the close of yesterday's blog post, I mentioned that I was nervous to see what happened next. What happened next (about 60 minutes later) is that the microwave blew up. That was unfortunate. It spontaneously tried to start cooking, and, being empty, exploded.

We're all together. We're all strong. We're all healthy. And so I think these things are the price I have to pay for domestic bliss.

The Luxury We Deserve

Until we find/move into a house, we are staying at the San Marino Luxury Apartments in South Jordan, Utah. I am not trying to brag by putting in "luxury" -- it is part of the official title. Their slogan: "The luxury YOU deserve". And here's how luxury has been working out for us.

We've been here eight days. First, we live in a first floor apartment that is wheel chair friendly. That means that all the cabinets/storage under the kitchen sink and bathroom sinks is gone to ensure space for wheelchairs. Think about everything you have under your kitchen and bathroom sinks. Now go find a new place to store it.

Our kitchen sink is low and not deep. Again, wheel chair friendly. It holds about five dishes.

We had to call maintenance to have the dishwasher fixed as no water was getting in. I thought it was awfully quiet ;)

We had to call maintenance to fix our brand new garbage disposal. They forgot to plug it in before closing up the cabinet.

The light in our laundry room is ultra-powerful and blows the fuse at least once a day. They cannot fix it. It's a "fire code thing". The good news is that I have gotten really good at finding that fuse in the dark!

Our water heater sprung a leak and leaked out all over our entry way.

Our bathroom sprung a leak and leaked all over the bathroom and master closet. The carpet has been pulled up and the flooring in the bathroom is warped around the sink and toilet.

The fan over the kitchen stove was never installed. That's a bummer.

The sad thing is that we are paying more for this "luxury" apartment than we did for our townhome.

Eight days. I'm nervous to see what is going to happen next.

Happy Birthday, Garry!

Happy Birthday, Garry! He was really sad that this year his birthday was going to be on a Sunday. What kind of fun can you have on a Sunday? So this year he had a birthday weekend with Rodizio Grill on Friday night, Fuddruckers on Saturday afternoon and the Gramps came over on Sunday night, homemade soup and cheesecake in hand. I think he had a great weekend!

The Search Goes On

In November we put an offer in on a house in South Jordan. We found out about some damage inside the house and lowered our offer. The bank asked for a much higher sum, which we rejected, and then they foreclosed. It will go on the market as bank owned but we do not know how much they will want then.

In December I lost my heart to a house on Lizzi. It had a great living room and a bonus room where I could store toys and toys and toys. The people who had previously been noncommital on the house found out we looked at it and put up some hard money to close the deal fast.

In January we put an offer on a house on Via Esperanza. It means hope in Spanish ;) I tried to not get excited at all about this house but secretly had my fingers crossed. Someone came in and offered to pay CASH for the home, and the realtor chose that offer. Yesterday I tried to take it in stride but today I cried and cried.

Better luck with the next one.