We're Moving!

Before anyone gets excited, we're only moving a block and a half. Why, you ask, would anyone in her right might do such a thing? Several reasons, actually:

• Gorgeous apartment (if a little smaller)
• Cheap rent
• Back yard
• Central air

I recently got hired to take over my friend Konnichiwa's job as manager of several rental properties. (See previous post for more info on 'Nich.) They're moving to South Carolina for grad school, and I've long loved their place, so I applied for the job.

Our apartment is the biggest unit of a 5-plex, plus there's a triplex and a house around the corner. The owner is also thinking about buying the complex of studio apartments on the corner in the next couple years, which would increase our salary--and our workload.

The apartment is two story, with two large bedrooms and the bathroom upstairs. Downstairs is a large living/dining area with lots of light, and the kitchen and laundry. The kitchen opens onto the back yard, with a big shade tree and a lawn to play on and a little bit of space for a garden. Hardwood floors in the living/dining/entry, and did I mention lots of light? Yeah. Big windows. South-facing. And a lawn in front to play on.

We'll lose the ample storage space we enjoy with our two back rooms, but the closets in the new place are big, and maybe we can get creative with food storage in Atticus's room. We also have to trade our nice big washer and dryer for a smaller, stackable set, but since we currently have to run our dryer through four cycles to get one load dry, we'll probably still come out ahead. (I suspect there's a bird's nest in the pipes somewhere.)

If all goes as planned, we'll stay in the new place until we buy a house in a few years. Rent isn't free, but it shouldn't be more than $250/month. (We could choose a smaller/cheaper apartment for free, but we wanted the nice one.) With the savings in rent I'd like to get a second car and save for a house.

The biggest downside, though, is that we actually have to move. I'm really not looking forward to that part, especially since we'll be doing it the end of May/first of June, right when James is finishing the semester and I'm getting ready to go on vacation for a week. Considering I made James move last time during finals week, he may never let me talk him into moving again.

Wish us luck. We'll need it.

Birfday Party!!

Atticus turns three on Monday, and we had his birthday party today. This was his first "friend party," and he's been sooooo excited about it. We even practiced blowing out candles earlier this week. The party was pirate themed, and the idea was to have the kids dress up like pirates, but no one wanted to. Oh well. They still had fun. We had it at the church to give them more room to run around, which I think was their favorite part.

Around the table (counterclockwise from Atticus): Atticus, Abby, Ella, Aubrey, Alex, Mia, Henry, Cardon

In the back (left to right): Baby Ethan, Konnichiwa, and Dennis (Mia's family); Aubrey (Cardon's mom); Patricia (Alex's mom)

Aubrey and Patricia are my gym buddies, and Konnichiwa watches Atticus twice a week when I go to work. I watch Abby's little sister, Shannon (not pictured), each Friday. I was really happy that my brother Mike was able to come with his three kids. Henry is just a couple months younger than Atticus, and they have a good time together.

Mia finally got into the whole pirate thing. I don't think it lasted long....

Opening presents was an adventure, because Atticus wanted to stop and play with each toy as he opened it. But we kept him on task, and it worked out that there were enough toys for all the kids to play, and Atticus didn't mind sharing. He got lots of cool stuff, but his favorites are these two trucks from his aunts Erin and Heather. They make noise. And they're in bed with him right now.

Atticus had a great time, and it really wasn't that hard to put the party together. We'll have to do it again next year. :)

Shatner Love

I'm listening to this album after a long hiatus, and it's just pure genius. From the shockingly vulnerable "What Have You Done?" to the goofy "I Can't Get Behind That" and the honesty of "Real," it's just an amazing album. A friend couldn't get past the fact that it's Captain Kirk, which is a shame, because it goes so far beyond that. I love this part from the end of the title track:

"Has been" implies failure - not so

"Has been" is history

"Has been" . . . was

"Has been" . . . might again

Recent Photos of a Cute Kid

I know I haven't blogged about Atticus in a while, so I thought I'd make up for it with a few random photos. I love love love the above photo. The look of concentration, the the hat riding up his head in a very cool way, the ears, the bangs. And we're at the Blue Plate Diner, which is always a good idea.

In these next photos we're at the Discovery Gateway children's museum. We bought a pass, which has been a great investment for us, and not really all that expensive. Look how carefully he's "sawing" this block:

And success! I don't know exactly what he's excited about, but I was thrilled to capture this moment of glee.

This last one is another favorite. I peeked in on him during his nap one day and found his hands up by his chin like this:

I just had to sneak back in with the camera and capture his sweetness.

He's growing so fast, developing his intellect and personality faster than I can keep up.

A small gripe

You know, some things just rub me the wrong way. Like people putting the Word of Wisdom label on their own personal brand of nutrition. For example, in college I found a book called The Word of Wisdom Diet, which banned meat, salt, and sugar. The recipes were pretty good (Dad's response to one recipe for stuffed peppers: "It would be better with meat and salt"), but I don't think the Word of Wisdom prohibits those things.

Then the other day I came across a new blog called Word of Widsom Living. It's nicely designed, and the photographs are lovely. Their ideas are pretty straightforward and nutritionally sound: eat more whole grain, limit sugar and fried foods, etc. But still it irks me. I mean, the Word of Wisdom doesn't say anything about sugar or fried foods. Would we be better off avoiding those things? Sure. But that's not the commandment.

I have a testimony of the Word of Wisdom, and I admit that I don't follow the guidelines as well as I would like to. But apart from a few specific prohibitions, the guidelines are broad, and for good reason. I believe that it's up to each of us decide for ourselves what the commandment means in our lives. In Relief Society once a woman made the comment that she had some health problems, and through much prayer and study, she understood what the WoW meant for her. She didn't specify details, and I was tempted to go ask, but then I realized that what fits her needs may not be what I need.

So there's my soapbox for the day: your diet/lifestyle program/nutritional guidelines may have much merit, but please don't call it the Word of Wisdom.

Thanks.

Plans, not goals

I've always struggled with New Year's resolutions. I make a list of things I SHOULD do, like study the scriptures for 30 minutes a day and exercise 6 days a week and lose 20 pounds. I get so overwhelmed by these goals that I have little faith in acheiving and essentially give up before I start.

So this year is different. I made a list of PLANS. Things I WANT to do. Like go rock climbing, and be able to do at least one "real" push-up. (I do need some help defining that "real" push-up, though. Does my chest have to touch the floor? That feels like going too far, but maybe that's just because I still can't get a 90 degree angle in my elbows in my push-ups. Lara, what do you say?)

Because fitness isn't just for fitness's sake. I want to be healthy so that I can do all these active things I want to do. Hiking's on the list, too, as well as the 5K "Dirty Dash," which is a foot race through mud and obstacles on the Olympic cross-country skiing course. Doesn't that sound a lot more fun than "go to the gym 3 times a week"? I think so.

I also want to try new things and learn new skills, so I'm planning to knit a Fair Isle sweater and try some new quilting techniques and start drawing the tree outside our house. (I love that tree. I've wanted to draw it since we moved in, but I'm convinced I can't draw. As Van Gogh said, "If a voice inside says 'you cannot paint,' by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." This year I'm going to try to silence that voice.) I also bought a pattern for a vintage-style dress I want to make. There's an online sew-along I'm going to try to follow, and maybe I'll have the dress in time for my birthday. Mom, I'm going to need your help on this one...

Oh, and I want to try at least one new food each month. This month it was Chinese broccoli (in case you were wondering what that was, Erin). Lots of greens, crunchy stems, and very small florettes. A little bitter raw, but quite tasty cooked. I love our Asian market. A lot of the stuff there scares me, but I can branch out with the greens. They seem a safe enough place to start.

I've also developed a plan to build our long-term food storage. I have quarterly goals, and I've already filled out the order forms for the dry-pack cannery for the next three months. I plan to go once a month, and the budget is $70 per month. All of the storage items are things we already use, like beans and rice and wheat, so I expect to rotate through them and not just stick them in a corner for 30 years. Of course, as soon as I get it all bought and packed away, we'll probably move and have to lug it across town or across the country. But at least they're in cases, not super heavy buckets. And maybe our new place will have a basement to put it in....

We also have some trips planned, and we bought a pass to the children's museum and plan to go at least once a month. Atticus loves that place, even though he got whacked in the nose with a hula hoop almost as soon as we walked in last week. (He still had a good time, and the scab came off today, so all is well.)

I've written down all these plans and made a checklist and I'm putting it next to the calendar, where I'll see it several times a day. Of course, all plans are subject to change and revision. I'll reevaluate in six months. Or sooner, if I get pregnant or something. We'll see.

Merry Christmas!

Atticus wasn't sure what to think of Santa when he met him in person, but it didn't take him long to figure out what Santa was supposed to do: bring toys. Last week we heard "I do Santa toys" almost nonstop. When I said Santa only comes on Christmas, it changed to "I do Kiss-muss" nonstop. Ah, the joys of childhood. :)

And Santa didn't disappoint. He brought Atticus train tracks and 10 engines from the Thomas series to put on them. I have a video of him pulling each one of the the box and saying their names, but I've had trouble uploading video for some reason.

He's been entranced all morning, only occasionally taking a break to play with another toy or eat. He wouldn't even pause long enough to look up for a photo. I'd say, "Look at me, Atty!" and I'd hear "No lookamee, no tanks." This was the closest I got:

I'd say this Christmas was a hit.

James and I are having fun watching him play. Oh, and shooting birds at pigs in glass houses in the "Angry Birds" game for iPad and iPod. Man, that's addictive.

I hope all your Christmas wishes came true.