September 2009 Mosaic

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September was an incredibly stressful month! But we also got lots of stuff done, and some fun stuff in there as well. Three-fourths done with Project 365.


Cleo is our box-a-holic kitty. She tried really hard to pack herself off to Texas or North Carolina.


Naturally, once we decided to put the house on the market, things got wild. Most of Atlanta tried to flood, and DH and I freaked out when we heard this earth-shaking thud late one night. He was convinced something hit the house, but I thought it was something hitting the ground. Thankfully, I was right; this giant limb fell out of our neighbor's tree and landed in his yard, somehow missing his deck.


Playing the Wii is so tiring! LOL


To get ready to put the house on the market and move, we've been doing all sorts of cleaning up and cleaning out. I emptied 5 out of 6 of the drawers in this dresser. They are now full of things I am more likely to wear instead of clothes from high school.


And last but not least, a photo of what will be our new home, unless something strange happens at the last minute to cause things to fall through. We are very excited! We close at the end of next month.

2009-09-30

.... and after. The new vinyl is in. That is not something I ever care to go through again. How do people tolerate actual real construction work on their house?! Just the vinyl nearly drove me mad.

2009-09-29

We're having the vinyl floors replaced tomorrow. Before....

2009-09-28

This is what grown-up homework looks like. I am so tired of house paperwork!

2009-09-27

For some reason, this is the only photo I took today. I was trying to get a good shot of the granite in the new house for my brother. Probably not what I personally would have chosen, but it's fine, and it's real granite, so who am I to complain.

2009-09-26

We saw Walking with Dinosaurs today. It was really amazing!

2009-09-25

I have never seen a bird this large around our house, but this one landed on the deck rail, right outside the window where I work. Beautiful! Anyone know what kind of bird he is? I would imagine some type of hawk or falcon, but I don't know.

2009-09-24

Hee-hee, look what showed up on my doorstep today!

2009-09-23

My work sentinal, making sure I am staying on task so that we can afford that new house. That's right, we got it!

2009-09-22

Stressing about the house offer. We've hardly slept for days (obviously). But it will all be worth it if we get the house, right?

2009-09-21

All the rain of the past week or so, and especially yesterday and today, will likely cause flooding before today is over. I have never seen *this* much standing water in our back yard (no danger to the house).

2009-09-20

We were at our real estate agent's office putting together an official offer on a house. We gave Luke some paper and a pen and let him draw while we were signing papers. A few minutes later, he wanted me to look at his drawing, and my mouth fell open when I saw this! My keys were sitting near by, and he decided all on his own to copy my keychain.

2009-09-19

My wonderful husband, pouring over the "good faith estimate" as we try to decide whether or not to put an offer on a house for sale.

2009-09-18

Luke's advent Christmas wreathe of boxes (that we fill with candy or small toys), hiding behind the TV stand, patiently waiting for December. It won't be long now.

2009-09-17

When on earth did he get tall enough to ring the bell all by himself?!!

2009-09-16

Luke was so funny this morning! In prepping the house to be put up for sale, we decided to dig out the other sofa pillow from whatever closet it was buried in. I guess we packed it away long enough ago that Luke did not remember that we had two. He was completely stunned when he came downstairs this morning. His mouth quite literally fell open, and he shouted excitedly, "Mommy, look, there's TWO of them!" LOL

2009-09-15

The yes, maybe, and no piles of try-on jeans at JCPenney. Having a 4-year-old try on jeans is and exceedingly painful experience.

2009-09-14

This is the foam paint brush that I accidentally walked out of the store holding, and the receipt showing that I did indeed go back inside and pay for it.

2009-09-13

His "thumb knight," which was completely his idea. And all I could think when I saw it was "one, two, three, four; I declare thumb war!" LOL

2009-09-12

Trying to match paint is a pain! How many different shades of off-white can there possibly be? (Don't answer that.)

2009-09-11

I don't remember when these were purchased or even when they were made, I just know that Dad bought one for me and one for Jacob several years ago. J and I went on a school trip together to NYC back in 1994, and at the time, I was very upset that it was so windy that they closed the observation deck of Empire State Building and we had to change our plans. We went to the observation deck at the towers instead, and I am now so grateful we did.

2009-09-10

Twitter is like a magic genie. I tweeted that I didn't want to have to cold call realtors, and a realtor I do not know and have never met offered to find me a referral from her company to someone in our area. It was rather amazing.

2009-09-09

My birthday loot! Also purchased, but missing from the photo because they are pre-orders are An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon and Heat Wave by Richard Castle (tie-in novel to the ABC television show Castle).

2009-09-08

He is so *very* close to putting it all together and being able to both write and read. He did this drawing and "caption" spontaneously, with no help from us (beyond providing the paper). I know it's just letters and not words, and I know his penmanship is as bad as my brother's (love ya!), but still, I was quite impressed.

2009-09-07

I think this is only the second "fort" he has ever built (I know!). Don't ask me about the shoes; I have no idea what they're for. I took several photos of it, trying to catch him peeking out from under the blanket, but this is the only shot that actually managed to show his face as more than a blur.

2009-09-06

A few years ago, I bought a basketball-ish size glass fishbowl looking thing and a pillar candle for the center of it. It reminds me of the hurricane my grandmother used to keep on her kitchen table. I try to keep the bottom of it full of something roughly seasonal, though I admit that I am not so great at keeping them changing. These stars have been in there since July, but I thought they were okay to keep in there for most of the summer. I liked the way the light sparked off the holographic surfaces.

2009-09-05

Playing Candy Land with Daddy. We've tried him on various board games in the past, but he just was not interested until the last few weeks. This game is definitely too easy for him (as opposed to something a little more challenging, like Chutes and Ladders), but I think it is good for him to practice learning and following the rules.

2009-09-04

My parents will be here this coming weekend. In honor of my father's birthday yesterday, I am making his favorite dessert: Banana Pudding (with *real* Nilla wafers only, please). As I was slicing the bananas and admiring how even the slices were, I had a very distinct memory wash over me. I clearly recall being awed by my mother's ability to get her banana slices so even. Even as a teenager, mine were all wonky and weird. I asked her how she did it, and she told me that once I got a little older and had had a little more practice, mine would be even, too. They're still not perfect, but they are much improved. Thanks, Mom!

2009-09-03

I was on the phone with my father, wishing him a happy birthday, when I heard a blood-curdling scream come from upstairs. I wasn't even sure it had come from inside the house until I heard it again. Luke was getting changed for bed, forgot one of the upper drawers on his chest of drawers was open, bent over to pick up something, and caught his face on the way back up. It did not actively bleed, but I'm sure it hurt greatly. Guess what tomorrow (Sept 4) is? School pictures! Of course. So cliche! LOL

2009-09-02

This amused all of us greatly when we spotted it in the parking lot at the mall this evening. Transform and roll out!

2009-09-01

"Sing with the spirit, and with the mind also." 1 Corinthians 14:15. It is amazing what sorts of treasures you can unearth when you clean your closet of most vestiges of 15-year-old clothing. This is the symbol of the music camp I attended every summer from 1991-1995. In 1995, we toured Germany after our week of camp was over, my only trip ever to Europe, and one of only 2 trips outside the USA in my life. We all wore navy blazers with these patches. I still have the blazer, too, but I removed the patch right after we got back (in case I needed the blazer for something else). This patch was still pinned to the pocket, right where I left it nearly 14 years ago. It is now in my treasure drawer.