Tremors

Yesterday afternoon was gorgeous. Bug had morning bowling and we stopped for lunch at Lukulos Pizza with our new neighbors and friends, the Gormans. Chris and Carol's two boys both bowl, Jacob and Michael on the same team, then Collin is on a younger team. The boys all bowled well, despite Bug's insistence that he did horrible (he thinks he does everything horrible and I don't know how to get him over that...) But the pizza was really good and the prices unbelievable--the three of us ate two medium two topping pizzas, and with two drinks the total was ten dollars! We'll definitely be going back there, especially considering it's parked right next to the bowling alley. No more McDonalds for after bowling lunches! (Can I get an Amen and a Hallelujah??!!)

The morning's drizzle had finally dried up and the sun was shining glorious late autumn warmth and splendor over New Bedford, so we decided to head out to a pumpkin patch and possibly do a little exploring while the weather was being so cooperative. We found Silverbrook Farm in Acushnet, though didn't stay when we saw they wanted $36 for admission to their corn maze and hay rides...That's more than a little ridiculous for a pumpkin patch in my opinion. Off we went, enjoying the beautiful leaves and quaint scenic Acushnet. We stopped at the Acushnet Creamery for some ice cream and three small cones cost us the same as we paid for lunch earlier, but it really was good ice cream!

After our sweet creamery break we carried on into Fairhaven for a bit of shopping at two of my favorite stores up here: Euro at Phoenix and the Sea Witch. Euro has so much to look at, it's a little overwhelming--everything from postcards and souvenir-ish type items, to all things nautical and sea themed for decorating, kitchen gadgets, jewelry, even clothes, bags, shoes and boots, and a fair sized toy room as well. After dawdling a while in there, we crossed the street to the Sea Witch, which (which witch) is a more gifty, collectible kind of place with all sorts of lovely, beautiful little things. We lingered on the sidewalk, looking at all their Halloween decorations and a few costumes they had hung out for sale.

Just as we started inside my arm began to twitch. I'd felt pressure building in my head and neck as we were wandering through Euro but hoped it would simply pass. Bill had to lead me out of the store as I stood and shook on the sidewalk in the middle of Fairhaven, waiting for the tremor to end. It's embarrassing and humiliating standing there helpless while passersby are talking about you. I know they meant well, offering to call for help or give us a ride back to our car, but I felt like I'd rather die than be this human spectacle, shaking uncontrollably for all to see. The tremor was one of the worst I've had since my surgery in February and another milder one followed it in the car on the way home. They've been coming in waves like that for the past month or so. I don't know which is worse, being a public spectacle or the thought that the doctors have no idea what's wrong or how to make it stop.

Today should be fairly quiet. Cindy (Bill's sister) asked Ashlee to stay with Mom and Dad for the day so she can head up to Boston to spend some time with her two sons, Paul and Ryan, Paul's girlfriend, Bridget, and their baby, sweet little Gabey. We'll likely head over and hang out with Ash, maybe have a little cookout later and enjoy some time on the pond (Cindy lives on Sassaquin Pond and it's so serene and beautiful--I'll have to post a few pics later on.) For now, it's about time to leash up Tucker and pound out a few miles around the plan for a good morning run. I've printed out the week's zendala template and have to do my Idea Journal page yet. It's a good day for some artistic and family adventures...and we still need pumpkins!!

Catching Up

So we've passed our first week here, but this will be our first 'full week' for a normal(-ish) routine and the To Do List overflows...Mondays are always my main cleaning day of the week and added to that today are a couple phone calls: Comcast to fix our phone issues-we can receive calls from cell phones but not land lines, though curiously telemarketers can still get through...just not anyone we actually want to talk to...How the heck does that happen?? And also the doctors our neighbors recommended to see if they're accepting new patients and to hopefully get Bug an appointment scheduled for his physical for school. This practice has an impressive line up that includes several specialists, including a neurology department, so definitely praying we can be seen there!

Arting projects are piling up. Two weeks worth of zendalas are still looking at me, along with last week's Diva challenge and this week's should be posted later this morning. I've at least got my weekly Idea Journal page drawn in and ready for coloring, but I need to get some breakfast in me and a quick workout done, then hopefully I can get back to finishing that later this afternoon. And then I have my Walls Notebook to play with yet!! Ideas are brimming and I'm jotting them down as they come...just need to find the time to play!!

Christmas shopping and planning is also in full gear. I managed to create my ten week break down list and am starting to scratch things off. I even finally found my address book so I can do my Christmas card list and start getting those addressed and ready for mailing! Yay! Though I still need to get Bug's Halloween costume together and make sure I have enough candy for trick-or-treaters....

I'm hoping to get a better feel for how the weeks will flow now that company's gone home and hubster and kidster are back at work and school. We managed to get the majority of the week's grocery shopping done yesterday morning (yeah, no church yet...one thing at a time...) so that's a big help to freeing up a chunk of time for me. I just don't like shopping on Sundays (or with the rest of the family since we end up spending more when everyone's there wanting this, that, and the other....I DO have a list I'm working with, people!!) It'll all come together...I'm just such a huge routine freak and find comfort and peace in the regular day-to-day things most other people find boring, I think...Well, I never claimed to be like anybody else...

Pictures?? I'm getting there...I'm also forgetting there...haha...my poor brain is swimming in too many different directions!! Trying to remember to breathe and relish the reality of where we are and that we're finally all together again. Life is good--really, really good.

Saturday 9: Ain't No Other Man

1) Do you believe there's only one person (and there ain't no other) for you? Or do you think we can truly love several partners over the course of our lives? Certainly we can love more than one partner throughout our lives, but I also believe in soul mates and I married mine =0)

2) Do you have this, or any other, Christina song on your iPod/mp3 player? No

3) Christina Aguilera won a Grammy for her performance of this song. What do you deserve an award for? And who would you thank in your acceptance speech? Patient endurance this year (well, for the most part...) I would thank God, Missy, Jenn, and Diane for helping me hold it together!

4) Christina Aguilera has her own brand of perfume. Do you have a fragrance or scent you regularly wear? I LOVE Marc Jacob's Lola

 

5) Do you have any allergies? Seasonal allergies and mold. Something in wine makes me break out in hives.

6) There's an older lady who proclaims during a TV commercial, "I will give up beer, bread, wine or soda but I won't give up Life Alert!" No, we're not going to debate her diet. Instead the question is: What are some of the staples that are always on your grocery list? Coffee, Oikos greek yogurt (key lime!!), peanut butter, and now Portuguese bolos--like a sweet bread english muffin kind of...Hooked!!

7) What's your favorite sitcom of all time? Big Bang Theory!!

8) When it comes to your socks, do you prefer solids, stripes or prints? Stripes, crazy colored stripes!

9) At what age do you consider a person "middle aged?" And when do they transition to "old?" 45, which officially makes me middle aged (and now I officially hate Saturday 9 for making me feel old...thanks Bud--not!!) Transition to old...75--ish??
 

I'm Listing...

Moving and buying a new home is a list-aholic's dream. Stick that on top of upcoming holidays and I'm list-delirious! And I've only started thinking about some of the lists that need to be made! My weekly cleaning list has expanded exponentially with getting each specific room in order. Then there's the 'Dream List' of things we want to do around the house-decorating, changing, planting, painting, etc...I have floating in my head a miscellaneous list of details that need immediate attention: finding a doctor (Bug needs a physical for school), locating my address book so I can work on my Christmas card list, researching fall festivals and other groovy activities to do around the area (seal watching season begins next month!! Yeah, that's right--seals!!! Whale season begins in spring--aaahhh!!) I just, well, re-started my Christmas list. I had some notes jotted here and there but finally put together my ten week shopping/planning/baking countdown list. Ten weeks, people!! I'm ready! I usually start Christmas planning earlier but waiting to move put a postponement on that party, so it's time to kick things in gear and get going!

I'm still unpacking--Bill's clothes and Bug's 'stuff'...Everything else is put away. I need to set up the exercise room downstairs. It's gettin' a little chilly out there in the mornings...won't be long before I'll be back on the treadmill and I'll need my Harry dvd's ready to go! I pulled out some of my Zentangle goodies yesterday afternoon but didn't get much done...I think my brain is still running on overload. But, it'll come. Things are slowly settling down and we're getting back to our regular routines. We've officially been here a week!

Bug gets out of school early today. Fridays they're done at 1:30 which means I need to pay attention to the clock so I make it to the bus stop on time! They won't let the kids off the bus unless there's a parent or family member there to meet them, and if there isn't anyone the kids have to go back to school and wait for someone to come pick them up. Crazy, but I like the idea that they're not letting kids go home to an empty house.

And tonight is Date Night!! Ash is coming over to stay with Bug while Bill and I get to go out on an actual Date! I think we're going to Davy's Locker for dinner downtown, then a little stroll on the beach (bundled up--it's gonna be chilly tonight!!) Tomorrow Bug starts bowling again and Sunday we're heading to a pumpkin patch in Acushnet. Looking like a great weekend ahead!!

One quick pic this morning--Loki on his new gym in the office...he's a happy boy!

I know I need to finish pics of the house and, believe it or not, the leaves are just starting to change here! Driving up, the prettiest leaves were in Wilkes Barre. I was really suprised how green everything was when we got here! But now it's starting to color up--so pretty!! More pics soon...I promise (just means ya'll have to keep checking back--haha!)

Happy Weekend everybody!!

We are Here! We are Here! We are Here!

Haha--little Horton hearing a Who...but, yes, we are HERE!!! We pulled out of Butler Thursday morning-Bill with Michael, Ruby and Tucker, then me with Mom, Sweet Pea, and all the birds, both vehicles crammed to the hilt with first day boxes and last minute 'I can't leave THAT!!' but I left all my plants sitting on the couch and loveseat by the curb because there just wasn't room--*sob*!! But, there really isn't anywhere here to put plants right now, so...I suppose it was just as well.

The ride was...interesting. Thank goodness for Ativan. Not a note of music for ten hours. Sweet Pea did much better than I thought she would--thank goodness for doggie downers. She cried a little but slept most of the way. And the parakeets were the only ones we heard from of the birds, little twitters and chirps here and there, and the others were quiet the whole time. I am not a highway driver--or passenger, apparently, and held a death grip to the door handle pretty much the entire time. I knew I would be glad to see New Bedford, but I must've flown out of that van as soon as we pulled in the driveway! I am NOT doing that ride ever again...

We got here just around five, and seriously, we weren't even out of the car ten minutes and there were a handful of kids riding by on bikes eyeing Michael, so Bill walked him a few houses up to where most of them were hanging out, gave a brief introduction, and the kid was in like flint. Let's see, there's Dominic, Jacob, Colin, Stephen, Jimmy, Shawn, and Kendra--that's the main crew. I believe there are more in the plan--which is HUGE! I could run for a good hour and not hit the same road twice, or a main road, either. It's awesome! All the kids are on bikes or scooters and every car that goes through here drives slow knowing the kids are all out and about. One of the kids, Jacob, will be on Michael's bowling team--perfect! He is busting a gut happy to have friends to play with every day and we hardly saw hide nor hair of him the entire weekend, including the Columbus Day holiday on Monday since there was no school and all the kids were making the neighborhood rounds.

Sitting on our front step: Jimmy in blue, Dominic on the right, and this little guy down on the left is cute as a button but drove me about out of my mind wanting to come in and see the dogs, poked a lovely hole in the screen door, let Tucker and Ruby out the front door one time...and just. wouldn't. go. AWAY!!! Ashlee threatened to drag him home if he didn't stop nagging to come in...Oh my....

We finally made it to Horseneck Beach Saturday night before we went to dinner. We're twenty minutes from the ocean, less if you hit the beach downtown (which is actually Buzzard's Bay, I believe) and that's ten minutes away--a block from Ashlee's house. She can see the water from her front yard--love it!!! Michael was delirious walking up to the beach, so excited and the wind blowing his hair-and the sand-every which direction. But...breathtaking, seeing those waves rolling in and the beach stretching out as far as the eye could see. Some people were flying kites a little way down from us, and a couple were actually surfing. I rolled up my jeans, slipped off my flip flops and waded out into the surf...yeah, I cried. It's so beautiful and I can't believe we actually get to live here!! Bill and Bug went on a seashell search while I soaked in the salt air and snapped a few shots of the sunset. Heaven...

I went completely OCD and unpacked the entire downstairs over the weekend. I couldn't stop until every box was emptied, broken down, and piled in the garage. I was hoping to get the bedrooms unpacked upstairs Monday or Tuesday, but that didn't happen. Ash and I went shopping Monday (this could be a dangerous combination...) I had to run Bug back downtown to the school's administration office before he could be admitted into school yesterday morning and the cable guy was here most of the morning hooking up the TV's, DVR's, the phone and internet. Then I was having a hanger shortage crisis after tackling the eight load mountain in the basement, so we had to run around and find hangers, which entailed lunch and a stop at the pet store just to 'check it out'--haha! Oh the birds they have!!! But I can tackle the upstairs today since Bill is back off to work and Bug will take the bus to school. I do need to run to Walmart and the grocery store (thank goodness for the GPS because I have no idea where anything is even though Bill and Ashlee keep trying to tell me how to get around. Brain not absorbing, too much overload right now...) I have lists upon lists to create other lists of lists...Now if I could just manage to check a few things OFF those lists...all in time...all in time...

So, if you've managed to hang in there all the way to here--a few quick pics of the house:

Our House (is a very, very fine house!)

Livingroom

Diningroom (the pink curtains gotta go...)

Kitchen, Tucker making dinner??

This is my nook on the other side of the kitchen--the whole room is huge! Also where I'll be arting until we can get the Loft going...

We have a Mr. Ed door! And Tucker loves to neb. Pea laying in the sunshine coming in from the patio doors...

I decorated a little for Halloween and will take pics of the upstairs and yard after I unpack and remember to do so...(good luck with that--hahaha!) But, it's time for some breakfast and a shower before the guys have to get up and moving for the day so I can scoot after the bus swings by for Bug and buds...Things to do folks!! Have a great, uh....Wednesday, right?? Halfway to the weekend!! Yay!!