I'm selling my house, moving in with my Mom and buying a motorhome!
It has only taken me nearly 5 years to make up my mind, but I have finally done it. I know what I want to do. Since my divorce I have jumped back and forth so many times about whether to sell or stay. Or would it be wiser to just keep it and rent it out? Then should I buy a house closer to my Mom, or move in with her? Then again, maybe I should chuck it all, and join the freakin' circus.
My indecision has been weighing on me for so long, and I have felt as though I have been in limbo because of it. Therefore, it is a great sense of relief to finally have made up mind.
As with most big decisions, I believe I have made this one harder just by making it too complicated. Then harder even still because of my control issues and maybe even possibly because I am afflicted with the "cake syndrome" (wanting it and eating too). Anyway, I have made my final decision by asking myself what two things are MOST important to me right now. The answer:
#1 Living in Town (which is where my Mom lives, ty goes to school, etc.)
#2 Being financially able to do things with Ty as her grows up.
So, I sell my house, put the equity into savings until I can find something in/near town to buy. I'll move in with my Mom until I find that perfect little place. And in the meantime, I'll buy a motorhome for Ty & I to travel in. Weekend trips camping close by and vacation trips further away. The motorhome will work as an escape as well, because we all know that once you've lived on your own it's hard to live with someone else. Fortunately, my Mom's house is over twice as big as my house, so we can cohab without actually having to coexist. Much anyway. :-)
I think it is a perfect idea. Now, I know what your thinking. Your thinking that I am allowing my overly positive attitude to cloud my judgement, aannnnd, you might be right. But what you don't know is that I have realized (or finally accepted) is that I can stay where I am at, at we will make it. Barely. But if I do this move; if I sacrifice a little bit, then I will be in a position to give Ty so much more. Not just material things, but memories.
I can't remember but a handful of the toys I had or the clothes that I wore while I was growing up, but I remember every little weekend trip my parents took us on. I often daydream about the places we visited and the things that we saw. Now, those memories are all that I have left of my Dad.
Noone is promised tomorrow. You never know when you will have to leave your children behind. I was twenty when I lost my Dad. Not a baby, but no where near grown up. I didn't inherit a trust fund or a family business, but he left behind plenty of memories. I want to give my son that same gift. A gift that can never be spent, or lost or taken away. Whenever it's my time to leave this world, I want to know that I left behind more for Ty than toys he will outgrow or a gaming station that will be outdated in a few short months.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
The Crazy Things Boys Will Do for Girls
Ty: Mom, I have to tell you something about K******.
Me: What is it? Is she not your girlfriend anymore?
Ty: How did you know?
Me: I'm just super smart. I mean what else could you have to tell me about her. Your 5.
Ty: Oh, OK.
Me: So why is she not your girlfriend anymore?
Ty: Weeellll, you see there is this other girl.
Me: OK cool, who is it?
Ty: Well, she's from Sunday school and her name starts with an A.
Me: (Panicked) Dude, you know she is your cousin, right? AND she's like 10. She can't be your girlfriend.
Ty: (Exasperated) I know she is is my cousin, but listen. She said that there are too many girls, and not enough boys in her class. SOOOOO, I'm gonna do her a favor, and I'm gonna secretly capture all the girls and lock them in a cave, so she can have all the boys.
Me: OK, but why do you want her to have her all of the boys, if your her boyfriend? I don't get it.
Ty: (rolling his eyes) She is my cousin mom.
Me: Yes....
Ty: (still looking at me like I'm missing the whole point) soooo, she can't be my girlfriend
Me: (just a complete look of confusion)
Ty: (huffs) all the other girls will be in the cave!
Me: OOOOH!
I'm really not sure who's raising who.
Me: What is it? Is she not your girlfriend anymore?
Ty: How did you know?
Me: I'm just super smart. I mean what else could you have to tell me about her. Your 5.
Ty: Oh, OK.
Me: So why is she not your girlfriend anymore?
Ty: Weeellll, you see there is this other girl.
Me: OK cool, who is it?
Ty: Well, she's from Sunday school and her name starts with an A.
Me: (Panicked) Dude, you know she is your cousin, right? AND she's like 10. She can't be your girlfriend.
Ty: (Exasperated) I know she is is my cousin, but listen. She said that there are too many girls, and not enough boys in her class. SOOOOO, I'm gonna do her a favor, and I'm gonna secretly capture all the girls and lock them in a cave, so she can have all the boys.
Me: OK, but why do you want her to have her all of the boys, if your her boyfriend? I don't get it.
Ty: (rolling his eyes) She is my cousin mom.
Me: Yes....
Ty: (still looking at me like I'm missing the whole point) soooo, she can't be my girlfriend
Me: (just a complete look of confusion)
Ty: (huffs) all the other girls will be in the cave!
Me: OOOOH!
I'm really not sure who's raising who.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
10 Reasons I Love My Small Town....
#10 The commute time is awesome. I reside smack dab between two small towns. The one where I work and the other where my son goes to school. It takes me approximately 35 minutes to travel from my house to town number one, drop my son, off, and then backtrack to town number two for work. (I lived and worked outside of D.C. for over two years, and that was hell.)
#9 I know the people. I like knowing who is in contact with my son. Out of the 24 children in his class, I know over half of the parents fairly well. The class teacher's aide was a close friend to my Dad when they were in high school. The school secretary as well as one of the custodians, worked with my mother for years. The principal is an old family acquaintance. I have known his karate instructor since I was 14. His Sunday school teachers were my Sunday school teachers. etc, etc.
#8 It's cheaper. I order two x-large multi-topping pizzas for dinner one evening. Less than 16 Bucks. Delivered.
#7 People still help People. I had a flat tire a few months ago and three different people stopped to see if I needed help. One was a woman.
#6 I can actually see the stars at night.
#5 Crime is negligible. The cat burglar I thought I heard on the front porch was actually the horses loose again.
#4 I can be friendly. Have you ever smiled at strangers while walking down a street in New England? Bet you'll only do it once.
#3 You can't get lost. With only 3 stoplights in town, directions are a cinch.
#2 Neighbors are Neighborly. I'm sure my neighbors hate to see me coming. They're thinking, "Geez, what can she possibly need now?" but for people who don't live near me and my ______ (fill in blank with dead battery, low tire, can I borrow your phone because I can't find mine) problems; they will gladly loan you a cup of sugar AND remember to ask how that pie turned out.
#1 Camp in my backyard. If I really want to be away from it all I'll just drive 5 minutes to my uncle's farm.
All of these things. These beautiful, wonderful things. I will repeat over and over again. They will be my mantra. As I drive 35 miles one way to restock Ty's school lunch supplies tonight.
Small town grocery shopping sucks.
#9 I know the people. I like knowing who is in contact with my son. Out of the 24 children in his class, I know over half of the parents fairly well. The class teacher's aide was a close friend to my Dad when they were in high school. The school secretary as well as one of the custodians, worked with my mother for years. The principal is an old family acquaintance. I have known his karate instructor since I was 14. His Sunday school teachers were my Sunday school teachers. etc, etc.
#8 It's cheaper. I order two x-large multi-topping pizzas for dinner one evening. Less than 16 Bucks. Delivered.
#7 People still help People. I had a flat tire a few months ago and three different people stopped to see if I needed help. One was a woman.
#6 I can actually see the stars at night.
#5 Crime is negligible. The cat burglar I thought I heard on the front porch was actually the horses loose again.
#4 I can be friendly. Have you ever smiled at strangers while walking down a street in New England? Bet you'll only do it once.
#3 You can't get lost. With only 3 stoplights in town, directions are a cinch.
#2 Neighbors are Neighborly. I'm sure my neighbors hate to see me coming. They're thinking, "Geez, what can she possibly need now?" but for people who don't live near me and my ______ (fill in blank with dead battery, low tire, can I borrow your phone because I can't find mine) problems; they will gladly loan you a cup of sugar AND remember to ask how that pie turned out.
#1 Camp in my backyard. If I really want to be away from it all I'll just drive 5 minutes to my uncle's farm.
All of these things. These beautiful, wonderful things. I will repeat over and over again. They will be my mantra. As I drive 35 miles one way to restock Ty's school lunch supplies tonight.
Small town grocery shopping sucks.
Sunday, March 6, 2011
The Fried Pickle Phenomenon
I admit it. I am a Screamer.
You know exactly what it is that I am talking about. You’ve all witnessed the tail-end of some poor mother’s wits as she yells insensibly at her children. In public. Yes, that is me. At least it easily could be.
I have always acted as though I believed the louder I yelled something the better it was understood. Kind of makes you wonder if I missed my calling to be an athletic coach or a drill sargeant, doesn’t it? Anyway, when Ty was about 9 months old, I lost all sensibility and yelled at the top of my lungs because he would cry every time I took two steps away from him. Now I realize that is what babies do, but I was a mess emotionally. The thing is, it was the look on his beautiful face that made me want to change. The look I saw on his face was one of fear. I didn’t want my baby to be afraid on me. I wasn’t someone to be afraid of. I loved him and would always protect him.
It was then that I realized how much louder our actions speak than our words. It was then that I promised myself that I would work hard NOT to scream or yell.
Like all bad habits this one has been difficult to break. I have had to change my strategy many, many times to find something that works. Just to change it again, when that quits working. I have had to have a lot of talks with Ty to explain why when we are both tired, things sometimes get ugly. We’ve talked about what things always seem to get us into trouble.
So, recently I have employed a new warning strategy. A warning strategy is similar to the count of 3 principle. The child knows that if the parent reaches the number three then all hell breaks loose. Right? It should anyway.
One of my pet peeves is having to repeat myself. Ty is essentially the best staller I have ever encountered. (other than my sister, but I think she is more obnoxiously slow than stalling) So to keep him from getting us both sidetracked or distracted, I find myself repeating myself, then ultimately loosing my temper.
So I told Ty that I wanted us to both come up with a code word. I explained to him that this code word was for me to use to warn him that I was on the brink of loosing it.
I asked him if he had any suggestions for what this code word should be. I told him that it should be something that we would not commonly say but something that neither of us would forget. He studied for a moment then he smiled and said he knew a perfect code word. “Fried Pickles.”
I told him that sounded great and that anytime he heard me say “Fried Pickles” that I was on the edge of loosing it and that he should proceed very cautiously. He said he understood and we shook hands to seal the deal.
That was several weeks ago, and this evening is this first time I’ve had need to use our new code word. He is always tired on Sunday afternoons. I guess two hours at church is more than he can handle. Sometimes I wonder what they do to wear these kids down so much. Anyway, I was trying to get his clothes laid out for school and get his lunch packed and he was having a meltdown over the wii remote not working correctly. I told him I would check it out as soon as I finished what I was doing.
Evidently, it wasn’t what he wanted to hear . So he was shedding big croc tears, and screaming etc, etc. So as the situation continued to escalate, I could feel how short fused I was. So I immediately picked him up, sat him on my lap and as sternly and firmly as possible I looked him in the eye and said “Fried Pickles”.
Then I completely lost it. Not like usual though. I laughed so hard I STILL think I scared him. Seriously, the next time you are on the verge of loosing your temper with your kids. Look them dead in the eye and say “Fried Pickles”. It may be just me, but I don’t think I can say that without loosing some of my steam.
I wonder what would happen if I said it three times real fast.
You know exactly what it is that I am talking about. You’ve all witnessed the tail-end of some poor mother’s wits as she yells insensibly at her children. In public. Yes, that is me. At least it easily could be.
I have always acted as though I believed the louder I yelled something the better it was understood. Kind of makes you wonder if I missed my calling to be an athletic coach or a drill sargeant, doesn’t it? Anyway, when Ty was about 9 months old, I lost all sensibility and yelled at the top of my lungs because he would cry every time I took two steps away from him. Now I realize that is what babies do, but I was a mess emotionally. The thing is, it was the look on his beautiful face that made me want to change. The look I saw on his face was one of fear. I didn’t want my baby to be afraid on me. I wasn’t someone to be afraid of. I loved him and would always protect him.
It was then that I realized how much louder our actions speak than our words. It was then that I promised myself that I would work hard NOT to scream or yell.
Like all bad habits this one has been difficult to break. I have had to change my strategy many, many times to find something that works. Just to change it again, when that quits working. I have had to have a lot of talks with Ty to explain why when we are both tired, things sometimes get ugly. We’ve talked about what things always seem to get us into trouble.
So, recently I have employed a new warning strategy. A warning strategy is similar to the count of 3 principle. The child knows that if the parent reaches the number three then all hell breaks loose. Right? It should anyway.
One of my pet peeves is having to repeat myself. Ty is essentially the best staller I have ever encountered. (other than my sister, but I think she is more obnoxiously slow than stalling) So to keep him from getting us both sidetracked or distracted, I find myself repeating myself, then ultimately loosing my temper.
So I told Ty that I wanted us to both come up with a code word. I explained to him that this code word was for me to use to warn him that I was on the brink of loosing it.
I asked him if he had any suggestions for what this code word should be. I told him that it should be something that we would not commonly say but something that neither of us would forget. He studied for a moment then he smiled and said he knew a perfect code word. “Fried Pickles.”
I told him that sounded great and that anytime he heard me say “Fried Pickles” that I was on the edge of loosing it and that he should proceed very cautiously. He said he understood and we shook hands to seal the deal.
That was several weeks ago, and this evening is this first time I’ve had need to use our new code word. He is always tired on Sunday afternoons. I guess two hours at church is more than he can handle. Sometimes I wonder what they do to wear these kids down so much. Anyway, I was trying to get his clothes laid out for school and get his lunch packed and he was having a meltdown over the wii remote not working correctly. I told him I would check it out as soon as I finished what I was doing.
Evidently, it wasn’t what he wanted to hear . So he was shedding big croc tears, and screaming etc, etc. So as the situation continued to escalate, I could feel how short fused I was. So I immediately picked him up, sat him on my lap and as sternly and firmly as possible I looked him in the eye and said “Fried Pickles”.
Then I completely lost it. Not like usual though. I laughed so hard I STILL think I scared him. Seriously, the next time you are on the verge of loosing your temper with your kids. Look them dead in the eye and say “Fried Pickles”. It may be just me, but I don’t think I can say that without loosing some of my steam.
I wonder what would happen if I said it three times real fast.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Eco Friendly Weed Control
I have just wasted an entire day of my life. I completely vegged out on my couch through 4 entire movies. During which I have been totally solo. No one around. It has been awesome.
Don't get me wrong, I miss Ty terribly when he is gone. Even as I write this I am longing for him and his never ending stream of questions. Sonnie Mae has also gone MIA today, and it always seems wrong when she is not around. (I would say her Mom thinks the same thing about her always being here, lol) But this lazy day has been glorious.
Now I'm all jacked up on Mountain Dew and can't go to sleep. So I am beginning to stew on all of the things that I should've or could've done today. Of course I realize there is no use crying over spilled milk. It's just what I do.
In an effort to stop obsessing over the undone housekeeping, here I am writing to you all.
While some may say that I am jumping the gun a little this year, I can't help it. I'm soooo over winter right now. The other evening it was warm enough to make a walk around inspection of the house. During this excursion I saw my daffodils poking up through the ground. I swear it was like a burden was lifted from my shoulders. Seriously. A layer of the winter doldrums just peeled off and floated away. I wish all of my problems could be so easily solved by little yellow blooming flowers.
Just like housekeeping and laundry, weed control is a never ending battle. Every spring I start out gung-ho. I am bound and determined to keep my flower beds and lawn perfectly groomed. I pull those stray weeds fully out by their roots. I mulch. I water and I fertilize. Then I go on vacation.
I'm not sure what really goes on during those 5 or 6 days I'm gone, but when I return my beautiful well -groomed landscape looks shabby and abandoned. It's so disheartening that I struggle through the remainder of the season just doing what has to be done.
Anyway, to get back on topic, I want to share with you my recipe for a non-toxic weed killer. you can use this in your flower beds if you are very careful to ONLY apply it to the obnoxious weed you are trying to rid yourself of. I'm not that careful so I just pull the weeds in my flower beds, but I do use this in areas I don't want anything to grow.
What you need:
Gallon of Apple Cider Vinegar
26 oz. box of Salt
2 Gallon Garden Sprayer
Directions:
Mix both ingredients until salt is dissolved. Pour mixture into garden sprayer. Completely saturate either the ground or the plant itself.
Repeat this process daily until weeds are eradicated.
Just some Info:
Applying on hot sunny days allows the plants to soak the solution up more quickly.
Spraying the plant directly, destroys its protective coating. The plant then dries out all the way to the root. Unfortunately, the root itself is very hardy unless treated several times it will usually survive. Thus in time the weed will re-emerge, and will need to be retreated.
Saturating the ground around the plant lowers the soils ph to a point that it can no longer survive.
Household vinegar, such as apple cider vinegar, contains about 5% acetic acid. The USDA says that for better weed control a stronger acidic content is recommended. You can purchase horticultural vinegar, which contains 20% acetic acid, online. I prefer to stick with the household vinegar because I know it's safe and effective for my needs.
Salt and vinegar can be corrosive or damaging to other surfaces as well. Please use care when applying near concrete or concrete products as the salt will damage these surfaces.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this blog post is made up entirely of my own experiences and opinions. I can assure you that I am not a scientist, a botanist or any other formally educated person who has studied the effects of vinegar and/or salt on plants or any other living or nonliving thing. This information has been shared based solely on my own personal use of salt and vinegar while defending my home against unwanted plants. I cannot promise or guarantee that even if the information within this article is followed precisely as stated that it will have the same effect on your weeds. I can only confirm that this solution has performed well for me. It may not kill or control your weeds. It may not even wilt them.
Don't get me wrong, I miss Ty terribly when he is gone. Even as I write this I am longing for him and his never ending stream of questions. Sonnie Mae has also gone MIA today, and it always seems wrong when she is not around. (I would say her Mom thinks the same thing about her always being here, lol) But this lazy day has been glorious.
Now I'm all jacked up on Mountain Dew and can't go to sleep. So I am beginning to stew on all of the things that I should've or could've done today. Of course I realize there is no use crying over spilled milk. It's just what I do.
In an effort to stop obsessing over the undone housekeeping, here I am writing to you all.
While some may say that I am jumping the gun a little this year, I can't help it. I'm soooo over winter right now. The other evening it was warm enough to make a walk around inspection of the house. During this excursion I saw my daffodils poking up through the ground. I swear it was like a burden was lifted from my shoulders. Seriously. A layer of the winter doldrums just peeled off and floated away. I wish all of my problems could be so easily solved by little yellow blooming flowers.
Just like housekeeping and laundry, weed control is a never ending battle. Every spring I start out gung-ho. I am bound and determined to keep my flower beds and lawn perfectly groomed. I pull those stray weeds fully out by their roots. I mulch. I water and I fertilize. Then I go on vacation.
I'm not sure what really goes on during those 5 or 6 days I'm gone, but when I return my beautiful well -groomed landscape looks shabby and abandoned. It's so disheartening that I struggle through the remainder of the season just doing what has to be done.
Anyway, to get back on topic, I want to share with you my recipe for a non-toxic weed killer. you can use this in your flower beds if you are very careful to ONLY apply it to the obnoxious weed you are trying to rid yourself of. I'm not that careful so I just pull the weeds in my flower beds, but I do use this in areas I don't want anything to grow.
What you need:
Gallon of Apple Cider Vinegar
26 oz. box of Salt
2 Gallon Garden Sprayer
Directions:
Mix both ingredients until salt is dissolved. Pour mixture into garden sprayer. Completely saturate either the ground or the plant itself.
Repeat this process daily until weeds are eradicated.
Just some Info:
Applying on hot sunny days allows the plants to soak the solution up more quickly.
Spraying the plant directly, destroys its protective coating. The plant then dries out all the way to the root. Unfortunately, the root itself is very hardy unless treated several times it will usually survive. Thus in time the weed will re-emerge, and will need to be retreated.
Saturating the ground around the plant lowers the soils ph to a point that it can no longer survive.
Household vinegar, such as apple cider vinegar, contains about 5% acetic acid. The USDA says that for better weed control a stronger acidic content is recommended. You can purchase horticultural vinegar, which contains 20% acetic acid, online. I prefer to stick with the household vinegar because I know it's safe and effective for my needs.
Salt and vinegar can be corrosive or damaging to other surfaces as well. Please use care when applying near concrete or concrete products as the salt will damage these surfaces.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this blog post is made up entirely of my own experiences and opinions. I can assure you that I am not a scientist, a botanist or any other formally educated person who has studied the effects of vinegar and/or salt on plants or any other living or nonliving thing. This information has been shared based solely on my own personal use of salt and vinegar while defending my home against unwanted plants. I cannot promise or guarantee that even if the information within this article is followed precisely as stated that it will have the same effect on your weeds. I can only confirm that this solution has performed well for me. It may not kill or control your weeds. It may not even wilt them.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Can you Repeat that Jon?......
.....just in case someone missed it.
Like everything else, I have a lot of political opinions. Mostly I refrain from posting from my public soapbox. But, today I have to share this.
Love it! Thanks Mr. Stewart!
Like everything else, I have a lot of political opinions. Mostly I refrain from posting from my public soapbox. But, today I have to share this.
Love it! Thanks Mr. Stewart!
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