Self-imposed Rules

I started writing this blog almost 2 years ago. Originally I started doing it as a way for my family and friends to keep up with what is going on with us and all that the kids do. It quickly became more than that because I've discovered it's a great way to chronicle the kids' lives and I think it will make a great keepsake for them someday (if I ever get around to having it printed and bound into a book). It has also been incredibly therapeutic at times to write about what is on my mind. In general, I've really enjoyed writing this blog and I'm glad I started it.

But I do have a few self-imposed rules about what I'll write.

• I won't write anything that I wouldn't be willing to repeat to any family, friend or stranger. If I'm not willing to have it on the 5 o'clock news, I won't write it.
• I won't write about personal things that are going on in the lives of my family and friends unless they give me permission. Everything I write on here has to do with me, my thoughts, my opinions, and my immediate family only.
• I won't post pictures of other people's kids without their permission. I generally don't post pictures of anyone outside of me, Link, and the kids but every now and then I will if the person is okay with it.
• I won't talk badly about other people unless I've already expressed it to them directly - or am willing to express it to them directly.
• I don't talk about other people's kids except, occasionally, in passing. I would never write anything rude about another person's kid although, to be honest, that limits a lot of what I could write about.
• I won't vent about an issue - political, social, or otherwise - unless it's one that I'm willing to debate with anyone who wants to talk to me about it.
• And I don't talk about my middle sister because I honestly believe her jackass husband would likely sue me if I did. That was the first - and last - time I'll even come remotely close to mentioning her.

And that's it. I don't regret that the principal found out about my blog. I don't regret that obviously some parent out there has way too much time on their hands and wants to stir up trouble by sending the link to the principal. I'm more than willing to stand by what I write and I'm comfortable with what I'm willing to make public so I think I'm doing just fine.

I'm nothing if not honest

Yesterday morning I wrote a post about my meeting with the school principal. It was honest - brutally so - but nothing I wouldn't say directly to her face. When we met last month I told her that I thought she was doing a terrible job and that if it was up to me she wouldn't have a job next year. I also listed for her, by month, everything I thought she had done poorly since she started the job. I've never hidden my feelings from her.

But apparently some parent - who probably doesn't know me well and doesn't realize that I have said all this to her face - sent the principal a link to my blog. When I got up this morning there was an email from the principal that read: "Interesting blog....silly me.....I honestly believed you wanted to work together. I apologize for wasting your time."

Silly lady.

I won't cut and paste the entire email exchange that followed but here are the high points of what I told her:

• I never say anything here on the blog that I wouldn't say directly to the person I'm writing about.
• I've already told her that I think she has done a terrible job.
• I also said that I thought the meeting did go well until the end.
• I told her that I never said I didn't want to work with her, only that I wasn't going to let her steam roll over me like she did in October when she wanted stuff from the PTO.
• Finally, I told her that she can either continue to follow me on my blog or wait for whichever parent sent her the link to keep her updated. Or she could call me.

She wrote me back saying that she hadn't done it deliberately and it was an honest question as a result of me telling her Hannah was reading at a 3rd grade level in kindergarten.

It may have been. Who knows?

So I wrote back and told her that if that was the case I apologize but given her history over the past school year, she could probably see why I would be suspicious of her actions. I also told her that I can still work with someone I don't like and that I will probably continue not to trust her until she has earned that trust. I told her that I had given her the benefit of the doubt in the fact that I assumed some parent emailed her the link and not that she was Googling me. Then I asked when she wanted to get together for the meeting to show she was serious about working on a differentiated/gifted program for the school.

To which she sent - in my opinion, and only my opinion - a somewhat snotty (but obviously frustrated) response and ignored the request for a serious meeting about the topic.

So, to the parent that obviously reads this blog and sent her the link, feel free to let her know that I still don't like her, I still think she has done a bad job to date, and that I will still work with her on both improving school/parent communication and a differentiated/gifted program if she's serious about working on them as well.

Oh wait, I already told her all that myself.

I thought most boys wanted to grow up to be a fireman?

Jake: Mommy, why don't grown ups like it when you want to be a villain?

If she only knew what she unleashed.....

Yesterday morning I met with the school principal. I have not made it a secret - most of all from her - that I think she has done a terrible job this year. This is only her first year at our school but man, this lady stinks as a principal. Last month the two of us got into it because she thought I didn't have enough respect for her and her position and I thought she was a sucky principal who works for the taxpayers and therefore should answer to the taxpayers.

It was a delightful conversation.

Anyhoo, since that "pull no punches" meeting she has actually been bending over backwards to get on my good side. One of the things I think she has failed miserably at this year is communication with the parents. She had the school go cold turkey switching over to paperless communication with the parents without having a good, effective paperless system in place and she wasn't willing to explore any other options or compromises. It was a nightmare. She knew that was a subject that I felt strongly about so she's been soliciting my opinions on how to make it better.

Yesterday was the meeting about communication and it was a very good meeting. We talked about different ideas of how we could improve the communication between the parents and the school while still staying with a paperless system. For the first time I thought I was going to walk out of a meeting with her without wanting to find the nearest bucket of tar and pail of feathers. (Yes, that's how much I dislike this woman.)

But then, five minutes before the end of that meeting, she hit me with a whammy.

My weak spot.

Hannah's intelligence.

She's a sneaky one. At the very last minute, knowing I had to leave at exactly 8:30 a.m. to make it to a doctor's appointment in Franklin, she threw out this little tidbit.

Mrs. S: "So, this is off topic but I wanted to get your thoughts on how the school is doing providing for kids who may be more advanced or need to be challenged more."

WTF?

That has been an issue of mine since Hannah was in kindergarten! The school spends millions of dollars each year - by state mandate - on the Special Education program but doesn't spend a single dime on a talented and gifted program. The previous principal would barely even let teachers break the kids into reading groups for those that are more advanced then others because it wasn't politically correct anymore to label kids as "average, advanced, or needs extra assistance".

So basically this principal was dangling my greatest dream for school change right in front of me. I think she had done a little extra research on me - not to mention I told her in our last contentious meeting how I felt about the SpEd funding - and decided to throw out that little tidbit to appease me. To make me think she's "on my side". But what she doesn't know about me is that once you give me an inch, I'll take a mile and a half!

She threw out that little nugget at the last minute so my response was:

Me: "We definitely don't have time for this now but I'd love to get together for another discussion soon. The short answer is: horrible. The school does a horrible job for those students. And here are a list of other parents that feel the same way. We'll be in touch for a meeting."

I think that surprised her so she started back-pedaling a little and said that it would be a great goal for us to work through next year in order to get something implemented the following year.

Me: "That's great but it won't help Hannah any. Now that you're open to this idea let's get a committee together this spring and summer to have something in place by the fall."

The look of fear in her eyes was priceless.

She obviously still doesn't know me very well.

Who really needs a kitchen? We all know that I don't

As we're finalizing all the numbers for our garage/apartment project it's looking like we'll be able to do everything but put in the kitchen cabinets, counter tops, and appliances. Well, actually we could probably afford the appliances but not the cabinets and counter tops. Oh yeah, or furniture.

But this post isn't about furniture. It's about the kitchen. You know, that room I don't use.

Basically what this all means is that the apartment will be functioning as a place for guests to sleep and shower - if we solve that pesky lack of furniture problem - but our guests won't be able to show their undying love and gratitude for the wonderful place we built them by cooking us a 4-course meal.

Damn.

I REALLY hate doing laundry

Years ago, when Lincoln and I lived in our 3rd floor condo, I promised him that if he did the laundry there I would always do the laundry once we moved into our house.

Obviously I lied.

I hate doing laundry. I don't mind the easy loads like towels and underwear but I really hate the loads where, you know, you have to hang stuff up. That sucks.

Well all day today Lincoln has been slaving away outside. He has either been running errands picking up supplies for the garage or he has been mowing the lawn and cleaning up outside for the Derby party next weekend. So that left me to do this week's laundry. It was the least I could do considering that between loads, while he was outside, I was watching Chelsea Lately and drinking wine.

But then he was done.

And we were all inside.

And the buzzer for the laundry went off upstairs.

Me: Honey, I need you to take over the laundry now.

Link: Why?

Me: BECAUSE I HATE DOING LAUNDRY!

And so he did.

Which is why our marriage works so damn well.

Like mother, like daughter, like son....much to the frustration of Lincoln

This morning I was sorting the laundry and found a pair of Jake's pants that had one leg inside out and one leg right side out. I'll admit, I burst out laughing. Obviously my undressing skills are a dominant gene.

Rocking the pink hair

Last week when we got back from our trip Hannah's school was doing one of those theme weeks where each day the kids dressed up in a certain way - i.e. pajama day, crazy hat day, etc. - and last Friday was Crazy Hair Day.

I think she pulled it off.

Talk about lazy

Me: Hey Jake, do you want a juice box in your lunch today?

Jake: No. They won't help me open it.

Me: What? The teacher won't help you?

Jake: Not unless you raise your hand when they say "raise your hand if you need help".

Like mother, like daughter - courtesy of Rachel

My best friend Rachel has been in my life since before I was born. My mom started watching her when she was pregnant with me and she continued watching her right up until elementary school. Rachel and I spent hours and hours playing and one of our favorite things to play was "restaurant". We had two aprons - one yellow and one green - that were just our size. They had a spot for a pen and a note pad on the chest and across the skirt of the apron were dozens of slots that were just perfect for crayons.

A few years ago Rachel had a replica of the apron made for me as a gift. Okay, the gift may have actually been for Hannah but it was also a gift for me since it was a nod to our childhood. Over the years Hannah has played with it when she is playing dress-up around the house but the other day Hannah was packing to go to a sleepover at her best friend's house and she asked me if she could take the apron with her. My first thought was that I didn't want it to leave this house because I was worried it would get lost or ruined but then it occurred to me, Hannah is having the same fun with that apron and her best friend as I did when I was a little girl.

I think that is so cool, and the fact that Rachel gave me such an opportunity to share something with my daughter that meant so much to me as a child, is why she is still my best friend 32 years later (and counting).

Was it fate? Or just the lure of free cocktails?

Last night I was invited to a grand "re-opening" of a bar owned by people that my boss is partnered with in other ventures. (Did you follow that?) Anyway, they graciously invited me to the re-opening of one of their Boston bars that had been closed - coincidentally due to a Christmas Day flood - and had just re-opened last month. The event was from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. so I figured I'd swing by after work since I don't often take them up on their invitations and I was starting to feel they might think I was ungrateful. It was also free food and cocktails at a really nice Boston bar and who would pass that up?

I knew Lincoln wouldn't want to come into the city - and get a babysitter - for a quick cocktail party so I asked my friend Tracy to join me but she couldn't make it either. I also tried to get Kegan to join me but he was working on his new project so it was just me. I figured I'd probably run into some people from the office but even if I didn't I'm pretty okay with just hanging by myself. I figured I'd grab a drink, say "hi" and "thanks for inviting me" to my boss's partners, and then be out the door.

It took me an hour to get from Cambridge into Boston. First of all it was rush hour, then there was an accident, then there was the Red Sox traffic, and finally, one of the roads I needed to go down was still closed from the Boston Marathon tents the day before. At many points throughout that hour I kept thinking I'd just bail on the whole thing but I had said I'd be there so I wanted to at least put in an appearance.

I finally got there at 7 p.m. and walked into the bar. The first person I spotted was a lawyer that my boss works with that I have met a number of times. I walked over to him and said hello and he introduced me to the man that he was speaking to.

Here is where fate comes in. Cue the beam of heavenly light and the choir of angels. It was that kind of moment.

I have always been very interested in travel. I think it's important that kids start doing it as young as possible and that every kid should study abroad while they're in college. I think high school kids should go on spring break trips to France and England and Italy and oh, just about anywhere really. I did an internship with a travel agency when I was in college and I've told Lincoln - and our financial planner - that when Hannah gets into high school my dream is to be able to develop an international travel component with the school district. A big dream but I'm happy to admit to having it.

Anyhoo....that's what this guy does!!! For a living! This guy, Peter, owns a company that does group trips for high school and college kids. I want to work for this man! I want to BE this man! He travels around the world and his job is to basically be a professional tourist so that he can put together these fantastic trips for these groups. I now know how people who grew up worshiping the music industry get tongue tied and act like groupies around my boss. That is how I felt around this man. I wanted to beg him to let me work for free. I wanted to call my boss and say "I quit. I'm going to work for Peter!" I wanted to give him my entire life history and philosophy on travel and why I think every child should have the opportunity to explore the world. I wanted to hand him my resume and say "Please, please, please hire me!"

But I didn't. I played it cool.

The exciting part is, for all I know, last night could be the pivotal life changing moment that will eventually take me down the path I want to go. I have no plans to leave my job right now. As much as I hate the corporate culture here I absolutely love working for my boss and we have a great relationship developed over the past seven and a half years but, if Peter called tomorrow and said his assistant was leaving, I just might have to pack up my office and head on out.

I hope to keep in contact with Peter. I have no official plans to beg him for a job just yet but hopefully in another five or ten years I'll have the opportunity to start out on that goal that I wrote down in our "dream book" for the financial planner.

Last night might have been a life changing moment and all because I was tempted by free food and cocktails.

I prefer to believe it was fate.

Sleepy boy, drugged boy

Jake developed a nasty rash on his arms while we were on vacation. His arms were itching really badly so we were putting Benedryl cream on his arms and, after one particularly bad afternoon, gave him Benedryl liquid to help him. Clearly I wasn't thinking things through when I had Lincoln give him the Benedryl - which makes you sleepy - right before headed down to dinner. Jake started off the dinner quite perky but as you can see, quickly went down hill. He climbed into my lap while waiting for dinner to arrive, got woken up in an attempt to get him to eat his dinner, and then crashed for good. I swear to God he was actually sleeping when he ate his pizza.

Do you think he was trying to tell us it was time to go?

Leo always tries to leave the house with us. Most days when we leave it means he gets to go up to Diane's doggie daycare, which he loves, but even on the other days it just means he's not being left alone. Either way, if we leave, he wants to leave. This was taken on Easter morning when we were packing up to head over to Bob and Gail's for lunch. He clearly didn't want to be left behind.

"If they mean to have a war, let it begin here."

This morning Lincoln and I took the kids to the Battle of Lexington re-enactment. Or, to be more precise, I should say that I dragged Lincoln and the kids out of bed at 4:45 a.m. to attend the Battle of Lexington re-enactment. I was, however, nice enough to get us a hotel room in Lexington the night before so that I didn't have to drag them out of bed at 4:00 a.m. See, aren't I considerate?

Anyhoo.....

After a very rough night of Jake tossing and turning and talking in his sleep and waking us all up constantly, I hopped out of bed when the alarm went off at 4:45 a.m. and quickly got everyone up. We layered up the kids (and ourselves) in warm clothes since it was only about forty degrees out. Luckily I had mentioned to my boss that we were going to the re-enactment today because he has been there before and suggested we take a ladder. I thought he was crazy at first but luckily I listened to him and had Lincoln toss his ladder in the back of my car. There had to have been at least a thousand people gathered around the Lexington Common this morning. In the area where we were, up on a ladder towards the back, there were probably 20 rows of people in front of us. Kids were up in trees, ladders were everywhere, one family even had a small scaffolding unit, it was crazy.

Right at 5:45 a.m. the Master of Ceremonies gave a little background in regards to the Battle of Lexington and what we were about to see. He explained that a handful of the Minutemen were waiting on the Common and the rest were in Buckman's Tavern. Scouts would ride down the road to see where the British Regulars were and report back and that is where the re-enactment would start. A man on horseback rides to the tavern and tells them the Regulars are a half mile away. The rest of the Minutemen come out of the tavern and the colonists gather on the Common. Paul Revere and another man come running out of Buckman's Tavern carrying a chest full of papers belonging to John Hancock and Sam Adams. The papers, if found by the British, would have been enough to convict Hancock and Adams of treason. The two men run across the Common and hide the trunk. The Minutemen stand there, roughly grouped together in a couple of lines, and you can see some of them sort of start backing away in nervousness and fear as you hear the drums coming towards the Common.

This is what blew me away. I've studied American History for many years and have a college degree to prove it. I've watched documentaries and read books but there is nothing like this to make you really feel history. To watch this little ragtag bunch of people gathered together on a cold New England morning at dawn, and to watch them listening to the drums knowing that what was - at the time - the most powerful army in the entire world marching their way was incredible. What they must have been thinking is too insane to even contemplate!

Our view of the approaching army was blocked by a huge pine tree but you could certainly hear them coming. Once they were all on the Common and lined up it was impressive. The two "armies" - and I use that term lightly in regards to the colonists - were not very far apart and the British Regulars made for an incredibly impressive sight with their bright uniforms and perfect line formations. When, at the call of their General, they all pulled out their bayonets and attached them to their guns, I'll admit it definitely would have made me want to turn and run. Imagine a handful of farmers and townspeople preparing to stare down the King's Army with their hunting rifles and they're just watching this wall of well trained soldiers advancing. I shudder just thinking about it. I've always respected the colonists who fought for our country's freedom but today it meant that much more. These guys didn't know what was going to happen. They didn't know if the rest of the people would continue to fight or if this was a one time deal. They didn't know anything but the fact that they were facing down A FREAKING ARMY with squirrel hunting guns.

Around the edges of the Common, along the crowd, you also see the occasional women and children who were hovering around to watch their menfolk fight. As the British army gathers their men back into formation after the battle, and then march off playing Yankee Doodle Dandy on their fife and drum, the women and children come out to gather the wounded and dead.

Just amazing.

I'm sure this morning didn't have the same impact on Lincoln and the kids as it did on me but I'm so glad that they were willing to share it with me. It truly was an unbelievable experience.

He better not get this wrong on his SATs.

Earlier this week when we were going through security at the Las Vegas airport the kids got asked a few questions by TSA.  Typically no one even bothers to ask them anything but occasionally they'll get asked their names, and even more rarely, they'll get asked their age.  The lady at the Las Vegas airport was totally different.  She asked Hannah her first and last name, her age, where we were traveling to, and who she was traveling with.  Hannah even answered "Denver" as our destination because she knew that was the destination on the first boarding pass that we were showing the TSA agent.

Jake was a different story.  The funny thing is he started panicking even before she started asking him questions.  When he heard the lady ask Hannah her last name he turned to me and said "Mommy!  I don't know my last name!!!"   I said, "of course you do."

TSA: What's your name?

Jake: Jacob.

TSA: And how old are you Jacob?

Jake: 5.

TSA: Do you know your last name?

Jake: No.

Me: What?  Of course you do?  What is your full name?

Jake: Jacob Daniel.

Me: Jacob Daniel what?

Jake: I don't know.

Me: What is Grandma Gail's last name?

Jake: I don't know.

Me: Is it Snow?

Jake: Yes.

TSA: Okay, where are you going today?

Jake: Massachusetts.

TSA: Wow, that's a big word for such a little guy.

Me (looking at Jake with disbelief):  You can remember Massachusetts but you can't remember Snow?

There is no way I could have ever kept him in there that long

Jake told me tonight on the way to dinner that he is very upset with me.  Apparently he thinks that he and Hannah started out in my belly at the same time and that I chose to keep him in there longer and to let her out earlier so that she could be the oldest.

It's just like Christmas Eve today

Tomorrow morning is Patriot's Day here in Massachusetts which means it's the day that the re-enactment of the Battle of Lexington takes place. This year it falls on the actual anniversary of the battle which took place on April 19, 1775. I have always wanted to attend the re-enactment but in the 11 years that I've lived here I've yet to do it. It starts at dawn and it always just seemed impractical to drive all the way into Lexington in order to attend the re-enactment. This year it makes sense though since Hannah is studying the American Revolution in 3rd grade. I got us a hotel room in Lexington and we'll be up bright and early tomorrow morning to attend.

As a history major whose favorite period in American history is the American Revolution, this is like Christmas Eve to me. I am SO excited for tomorrow. It feels like Christmas Eve except instead of waking up to really excited kids I'm sure I'll wake up to cranky, tired, and - most likely - very cold kids while we're standing out on the Common waiting for it to begin. But that's okay. I'm not going to let them ruin this from me. I'm way too excited.

Interior pictures of the garage apartment

Living Room:

Looking at the kitchen from the bedroom area:

Looking at the kitchen from the living room area:

Bedroom:

Bathroom/Closet:

Home Sweet Home

Last night we got home from our trip out to see Mom and Dad. It was a long day that started at 3:45 a.m. Pacific time (courtesy of Jake) and ended at midnight Eastern time. The kids were fantastic on both flights and they really impressed me, once again, with how well they travel.

When we got home we were excited to see how much had been done on the new garage. It was dark so we didn't get to explore too much until this morning. Below are some before and after pictures.

A much needed vacation

For the past few days we've been visiting my parents in Nevada (and Arizona and California). We flew out on Saturday and got down to the resort that we're staying at between Laughlin, NV and Fort Mohave, AZ at about 7:30 p.m. We had a nice dinner with Mom and Dad that night and then crashed hard as our bodies were three hours ahead of local time.

Jake and Hannah had us up bright and early at 3:45 a.m. the next morning and no one could get back to sleep. I let the kids watch a movie on my laptop while Lincoln tried to get some more sleep and I read my book. At a more reasonable hour we got dressed and headed out to pick up pastries before going to Mom and Dad's for breakfast. After breakfast, at 9:30, I looked at my watch and could have sworn it had to have been noon. I felt like I had been up forever. Since it obviously wasn't noon yet Lincoln and I headed into Mom and Dad's room to take a nap and Mom took the kids to play down in the Colorado River.

After Lincoln and I took a nap the whole gang - minus my 96-year old grandmother who lives with my parents - headed down to Pirate Cove. Mom and Dad had heard about this place and checked it out before we came and the way they made it sound I thought it was a theme restaurant for kids. Instead it's more of a theme restaurant for adults. The waitresses are very scantily clad and the bar on the beach is blaring music. It turns out it's a little mini-resort on the river and you can rent cabins, go boating, etc. We ate in the restaurant and I think I had the single most wonderful sandwich of my entire life. It was that good.

Once we finished lunch we headed up to the resort where we are staying and hung out at the pool for a few hours. It was warm but incredibly windy but that didn't both the kids any. After swimming we got dressed and headed out to dinner in one of the casino resorts. Jake fell asleep at dinner so he ended up back in the hotel room with Grandpa after dinner while Mom, Lincoln, and I went to see a movie in the theater at the casino. We checked Hannah into "Kids Quest" which is a supervised play area that she refers to as "a cross between Chuck E. Cheese and McDonald's Playland". She absolutely loved it there and Mom, Link, and I picked her up on the way back from the movies.

Monday morning the kids got up at a far more reasonable hour than the day before but it appeared it was going to be a somewhat icky day with on and off rain showers. After we went down to breakfast Mom and I headed out to do some shopping while Lincoln took the kids to see a movie. After the movies he took them to the pool between rain storms before dropping them both off at Kids Quest - at their request - while Mom and I headed to their rental house in Needles, CA to do a little laundry. Lincoln, meanwhile, proceeded to lose a whopping $2 at penny poker.

Once we picked the kids up at Kids Quest we headed out to meet Grandpa for dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Ft. Mohave. After dinner Grandma watched the kids up in the room while Dad, Link, and I went down to gamble. We didn't stay down there long as neither of us are big gamblers.

This morning was a beautiful, clear day without too much heat. After breakfast we headed over to check out the new house that Mom and Dad are buying in Ft. Mohave. Once we were done there Mom, Link, the kids and I headed up to Davis Dam and then out to lunch. Dad is still working days so he's only hanging out with us in the evenings. After lunch we headed back to the hotel and hung at the pool for a few hours before picking up Grandma B (my grandmother) and going out to dinner for Dad's birthday which is on Thursday. After dinner we went back to Mom and Dad's rental house and opened presents and had cake for Dad's birthday.

And now it's time to head home tomorrow. I have a bunch of pictures that I want to post in the next few days but the internet connection in this hotel is too slow to upload them now.

It has been an incredibly wonderful vacation and I really wish we didn't have to go home tomorrow although I am very excited to see how much has been done on the garage in our absence. With all the craziness of the past few months I have to say, this is just what I needed.

A Whole New World

This morning we stopped at the bakery on the way to Mom and Dad's house to pick up breakfast. It was a very yummy bakery inside a moderately upscale grocery store in Kingman, AZ not far from the resort and not too far from Mom and Dad's. As we were checking out at the register we had a very nice - and quite long - conversation with the cashier. As we were walking away Hannah commented on what a nice man he had been.

Me: Well Hannah, you forget that outside of New England people are actually nice to strangers.

Link: Weird, huh?

Where do I even begin?

Well, we're in Nevada. That's where we ended up. But the day has been one interesting turn after another today.

This morning we left on our vacation to go and visit Mom and Dad. When people ask where we're going on vacation it's sort of hard to answer because we're flying in and out of Las Vegas but staying in Laughlin, NV, visiting Mom and Dad in Needles, CA, and checking out their new house in Ft. Mojave, AZ. And yes, all those things (except Vegas) are within 15 minutes of each other.

We got everything packed up and were out the door on time this morning. We dropped Leo off at Lincoln's brother and sister-in-law's and headed into the city. I had put enough time into our schedule to swing by my office in Cambridge and pick up my iPod which I had forgotten on Friday afternoon. We made excellent time and after we stopped by the office we did a swing through the Dunkin' Donuts drive-thru and then through the drive-thru ATM at the bank, all of which is within about 2 blocks of the office. As we were headed to the airport, completely on schedule, Jake threw up. It's not unusual for Jake to get sick if he doesn't have enough food in his stomach before we either drive or get on a plane, but this time Lincoln got up extra early to make him a big breakfast AND our flight wasn't until 10 a.m. I figured we'd be all set. Well, I figured wrong. Jake threw up not far from my office. Once we got him settled, cleaned up, and changed into new clothes, we turned around and headed back to my office to wash up. By the time we left there we were about 20 minutes behind schedule.

There is a parking lot not too far from the airport that if you pre-pay in advance, it's a fairly good deal. We were already late heading over there so it certainly didn't help that the road leading to the parking lot was closed. We had to take a VERY long detour and didn't get to the parking lot until 9 a.m. Our flight was scheduled to leave at 10:01 a.m. and we were still a fairly decent ride away from the airport before you even figured in the detour. The parking lot shuttle was parked right by where we put the car but Jake was busy puking again (this time in a tupperware container we had swiped from my office) while the poor guy loaded up our suitcases and the other shuttle passengers watched, in what I can only imagine, was horror.

We finally got to the airport and I told Lincoln and the kids to head through security while I checked our bag. The woman who was working the Baggage Drop Desk at United is very lucky she wasn't the victim of airport rage today. I have never met a less competent idiot in my life.

I got our bag and Jake's car seat checked and headed to security. When I joined the end of the line I saw Lincoln, Hannah, and Jake heading through the metal detectors up ahead. I, of course, got stuck behind a family traveling with a 10-month old for the first time who had no idea how to go through airport security with a stroller. Luckily they let me jump in front of them and I quickly ran down to our gate where the flight was already boarding.

I called Lincoln to see where they were - and if they had already boarded the plane - only to find out HE HAD ACCIDENTALLY GONE BACK OUT THROUGH SECURITY!!!! Yes, he had to get BACK in line with both kids and all of our carry on bags, including my laptop, and go back through security a second time. By the time they finally got through security AGAIN we had to make a mad dash through the airport in order to get to our gate.

The day got better as we went along. Jake made it through both flights without throwing up again. We made it through our 3 hour layover in Denver without going to crazy. And we made it to the resort in time to have dinner with Mom and Dad before the kids dropped dead from exhaustion.

And so begins our vacation...........

Keeping the hospital on stand by

Jake is our little daredevil. Three years ago he jumped down six stairs, fell back and split his open, and required 2 staples in the back of his head. While we were in the emergency room he was negotiating with us to go home and try it again from one less step. Oh boy.

This morning it was raining and Jake had his umbrella out. We were walking down our long driveway because our cars have been parked at the bottom to accommodate the contractors and Jake was playing with his umbrella and jumping up into the air.

Jake: This umbrella is a lousy parachute.

Me: Umm, yes. That's why you should never get it in your head to try and jump off the roof using an umbrella as a parachute.

Jake: Right, I'll need a real parachute for that.

Oh God help us.........

Another year done

The yearbook is done and shipped off to the publisher. What a better experience this year than last year!

Yearbook

I just finished the final draft of the 2009-2010 yearbook. What a great feeling. Tomorrow it goes to the school for final approval and then I can get it shipped off to the publisher before heading out on vacation. What a relief.

Between that and the garage it has been a crazy week.

Day 3 - Roof trusses and window prep

Day 2 - 2nd floor

The window on the left is the kitchen window above the sink, the next two are the living room windows facing the rocks and the two on the right are two of the three windows on the front of the apartment.

Looking at the door to the apartment (facing the back yard). The bigger of the two windows is the one above the kitchen sink.

Looking out the kitchen window.

Looking out the Living Room windows (view from where the couch will be).

View out of the front of the apartment.

View from the back yard. Door is on the left (obviously) and the bathroom window is on the right.

Such an exciting day

End of day one

8 years in the making