I was talking to a friend recently and she commented how she couldn't wait for 2013 to be over because it sucked. Just a lot of commotion and not enough joy. And that is exactly how I feel. It seems when I reflect at the end of the year I always think of the bad things and how I want the next year to be better. Which I guess is sort of human nature?
I was super duper looking forward to selling our house this year that we had been in for 9 years. And WE DID IT! Do you know what happens when you sell a house that you have been in for any length of time? You have to pack. And there is so much packing that in order to do it properly you should take your time and think about it and sort things and be practical and get rid of things. Since Workaholic and I are champion procrastinators, you just know that didn't happen. Packing up a 4100 sq. ft. house into boxes sucked. Especially since the house was empty when we moved in and it was FAR from empty when we moved out. Workaholic wasn't (isn't) quite as willing to part with certain things like I was (am).
For example, all the furniture we inherited or took in as hand-me-downs so we could fill our big new house? He wants to keep. Or not just give away. I say, "Let's become Craigslist's best client." Bedroom furniture, office furniture, living room furniture, rugs, toys, bedding sets, and more I would be happy to part with in a big fun bonfire. I know it sounds stupid, but I'd rather not have a matching bedroom set of dressers that I don't like than have mismatched pieces of furniture that I do. AND, as it turns out, Workaholic and I have quite the different taste in...well, everything.
As a result, the story-and-a-half much smaller house that we bought has things in it that I really like. And a basement full of crap that I don't. Don't get me wrong, there are also things down there that I like. Kitchen gadgets that don't fit in our new cabinets, kid's clothing, Christmas decorations, Halloween costumes, fine china, and toys that I swear we'll bring out and the girls will play with them. Then there are other things...like Workaholic's dozen boxes of paperwork on I-have-no-idea-what, boxes of wires that belong to electronics that don't exist anymore, and OH-EM-GEE THE EMPTY BOXES. We have at least 20 LARGE cardboard boxes that are piled into a corner. This does NOT include that pile of broken down cardboard boxes that are in the same corner. There are also random assorted piles of wood and tools and sawhorses and electronics that actually DO work. And let's not even talk about the boxes (that I packed) of meticulously packed toys that were no longer played with that were unceremoniously ripped open and the contents tossed all over the basement. I walk down there and it is so overwhelming I just turn around and go back up the stairs.
Common sense and a host of hoarders experts would say that you take the big project and break it down into small projects and tackle them one at a time. A while ago I found out I have this lovely personality flaw trait called the "all or nothing". Which means if I don't think I can do it immediately and do it perfectly, then why even attempt to do it at all? I've been this way as long as I can remember and I have no idea how I graduated from college. With a somewhat decent GPA. Almost the only time I can get any type of large project done is when Workaholic is there pushing me. His unending energy and relentless desire to get everything done (and done perfectly) makes it almost impossible to just sit around. Not to say that I work as hard or as long as he does, but at least I do put in some time and energy and amazeballs, I get shit done!!
Our new home has very few decorations hung up and the Christmas decorations are half-assed at their best. And were mostly done over last weekend. I'm not a decorator at heart and I definitely cannot imagine what an entire room should look like based on one piece of furniture. I'd hire an interior decorator but HOLY SHIT THEY ARE EXPENSIVE. Their hourly rate doesn't sound bad, until you have them put in a few hours at your house and a few more shopping and all of the sudden you are looking at a couple paychecks worth of services.
Anyway, so that is where we live. The house we moved out of was perfectly decorated because I hired someone to make it look perfect for the real estate listing, and the new house is a scattered physical rendition of my brain.
The house that we were in and that we are in now is only a part of why I am looking forward to 2014. In between houses we decided to live in the cottage in Michigan for the summer. I commuted an hour-and-a half to work twice a week, while Suky and the girls spent the summer on the lake. And Workaholic came up on the weekends. Let me repeat that...Workaholic came up on the weekends. So during the week I got little sleep because of the commute and the working and the fact that my daughters didn't like sleeping in their own room or going to bed at a decent hour or not waking in the middle of the night to come in and crawl in bed with me which then woke me up. On the weekends family and friends were there and FUN ENSUED. (It really did.) Then they went home and I drove to work and finally caved and let the girls sleep with me all the time just so I could get more than 2 hours of sleep at a time. Even with Suky there, the stress level was at an all time high. She missed her friends and working out at her gym, the girls and I missed Workaholic more than we ever thought possible, and then there was a host of other things happening that added to the fun. As much as I was looking forward to living at the lake for the summer, I honestly can say that it will never happen again unless I have a) a drastic personality shift, b) a promise of 8 uninterrupted hours of sleep every night, and 3) an exponential increase in energy. So...when pigs fly. (insert smiley face here)
2014 is going to be an awesome year for a multitude of reasons. We are "settled" into our new house. Which is smaller and much more manageable. We WILL get the basement cleaned up and out. The house that my father-in-law and brother-in-law and husband are building will be finished by Memorial Day. (It better be.) I will continue to work on my all-or-nothing personality and therefore hopefully will be able to more fully enjoy every moment. Good or bad. Stressful or not.
I'm not really into making New Year's resolutions because they are crap and I never keep them. (See aforementioned personality flaw.) And I am not making them this year. This year is going to be a continued resolve of the things that I have worked on in the past. I may have fallen off the bandwagon, but damn if I'm letting it go on without me.
GO 2014!!!
And MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Over the past month or so, I’ve been just exhausted. I am not really sure of the reason for this, probably the same things that doctors tell you…not enough sleep, eating unhealthy, etc. I really think little of it has to do with Samantha, as she is usually still asleep in the morning when I leave for work, and in the evening, we hang out before Workaholic showers with her and we put her to bed. Her bedtime routine isn’t excruciating or tiring, it’s really quite simple. Bath, food, swaddle, bed. And she usually goes right down. It has just been more and more difficult for me to get out of bed, and even worse, through the day.
Our weekends have been full of fun and family, and this past weekend was one of the first of the summer where we had no planned events, and could just sit down and relax. (So what did we do?? Instead of lazing around, we went out to dinner on Saturday and on Sunday went to the St. Joe art fair) After the fair, we finally went out for a boat ride with Uncle Tony. We took his dog and the Fonz…other than that, it was just me and Workaholic and Samantha.
Being out on the lake when there were few other boats, as most of everyone had already gone back to the “real world”, was just awesome. It is the life. Captain Tony cruises at the perfect putt-putting speed, we enjoyed a couple of Bud Lights, and the sun shone brightly overhead. The dogs settled down and even Samantha was just chillin’ in the back corner, happily chewing on her sunglasses. The only thing you can hear is the hum of the motor, and possibly whatever CD is in the player. The wind always dies down around 5 o’clock Sunday evening, and the gentle breeze was just enough to blow your hair around a little bit. The night ended too quickly, as we too needed to head back to the real world. But when you hear me talk about wanting to go to the lake, that’s what I’m talking about. Sometimes a boat ride is all I need.
Whew…what a weekend! First I took off work early to run down to Indy to watch my cousins play in the Class A state championship baseball game. (On the way there, I had thought that I would pump, as I am still breastfeeding. And then I realize that I don’t have batteries, so we stop and get some. And then I realize I don’t have the battery pack. Thanks to my sis for having an adapter in her car…I made it into the game just as some girl was singing the national anthem-whew!) (I also have a picture of me and my 3 sisters taken as the tornado sirens were going off at the stadium, but I'll have to upload it this weekend, Ieft the cord for my camera at the lake)
Check out the Lafayette news clip on the game and my cousin Emily here. And here is the Sun Commercial account of the game. Unfortunately, my alma mater was just too much for my family’s team, but it was an incredible, inspiring run. It was hot as hell, I am very thankful to my mom for keeping Samantha while I went to the game. My plan to wait until the thunderstorms got east of I-65 FAILED MISERABLY and we drove straight into a good one on the way back to Lafayette. Oh well…thank goodness for good windshield wiper blades and the lines on the road. Good thing the guy who drew them wasn’t drunk!
Saturday I headed to the lake…and drove through 4 construction zones to get there. That is just ridiculous. It was hot and humid and I drank too much draft beer at our friend’s wedding reception. Good times, Sam was a good partier. We are training her well.
After going to bed at 2 in the morning, I was awakened a couple hours later to hear my in-law’s chocolate lab Buster having a seizure. All I have to say is that it is a damn good thing that people and dogs have no memory when they have seizures. Because they would be traumatized ten times more than the people who have to watch it. The horrible thing about Buster’s seizures (you mean besides the violent shaking?) is that they last so. damn. long. I would guess that this one was about 20 minutes. Usually anything over 5 minutes is BAD. So this was very bad. Unfortunately he loses all bodily functions when this happens too.
So Buster gets all stiff and shaky, and Workaholic has no idea what is going on. He actually got up and went to the bathroom before realizing what I meant when I said, “Buster is having a seizure.” And then he sits there trying to calm him, as if that is possible, by putting his head right next to Buster’s wide open mouth with pointy, thrashing teeth. Yeah…that didn’t make me nervous or anything. Poor guy takes a few hours to get back any sort of semblance of himself after one of these episodes. Fortunately, he only has 2 or 3 a year. Also fortunately, my MIL was kind enough to take Samantha in the morning so I could get a few more hours of sleep. I just cannot function on 3 hours.
Sunday was a bit more relaxing; I slept in and lay out on the pier for most of the late afternoon. Samantha took a good long nap and I chilled in the water with the dogs. Everyone else went for a boat ride, but I am happy with my decision to avoid the rocking boat in favor of the stable pier. Because a hangover and a rocky boat do not make for a happy Gail. Any-hoo...moral of the story is...I am exhausted, proud of the family, and looking forward to next weekend!
