We closed on the house this past Wednesday and moved our bed over and slept at the new house. We don’t have Internet access yet so that’s why I am barely online. Today, I am back at the condo packing a few things and running some laundry through. Tomorrow will be the big move day.
It feels great to have so much space! The girls can actually run around and use up their energy before bedtime. 
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The walk through was two hours long! Husband and I were so hungry afterward that we headed to Garbanzo Mediterranean Grill for lunch. It’s our favorite healthy place to eat. Anyway, I am amazed at how knowledgeable and skilled the construction manager is (he managed the building of all the houses in our neighborhood and continues to!). He is also very professional and nice. During the time our house was going up, there were also about 20 other houses going up that he managed. Every time we dropped by the neighborhood, he was there doing something with the other houses and sometimes with ours. There were always people working on each of the houses. You would think there’d be lots of chaos but it was actually very organized…and still is.
During the walk through, the construction manager took us throughout the house (both interior and exterior) going over everything in details. We put blue tape where paint chipped, wood chipped, where window’s cracked, hardwood cracked, etc. We also were shown where the water pipes, gas pipes, vents, and electrical wires were. And, so much more! I never knew how much there was to know about a house. I was also very shocked at how many outlets we have. I don’t know if I can really handle being a home owner. I never knew we had to change the vent filters once every month! All my life, I’ve only known to change them about once a year or so. And, all the water, gas, and electrical shut offs were just crazy. I don’t think I’ll remember which one’s which and which direction to turn the knobs. Oh…and cleaning solutions and sealing products…I didn’t know there were so many different kinds for different things such as the silicon window sealants, cocking for walls and sinks, metal cleaners, window cleaners (Windex is not recommended), fireplace cleaners, and others. I wrote down about 10 different cleaning products! We close on the house next week and the areas we marked should be all patched up and fixed before then. The construction manager wants us to do one more walk through the day of closing just to make sure we see the patched/fixed areas. We forgot to take the camera so I don’t have any photos to share.
I keep returning to Kelly Clarkson’s version of “Up to the Mountain”. It is such a powerful song. It makes me think of my parents and how they made it to Thailand just after the Vietnam War to the refugee camp before their sponsorship to the United States (U.S.). Then, once in the U.S., they worked hard making barely anything to feed and roof their kids. They didn’t know English but they did their best. It also makes me think about my life growing up, and then, life with my husband and kids during our hardest times.
Lyrics (written by Patty Griffin):
I went up to the mountain
Because you asked me to
Up over the clouds
To where the sky was blue
I could see all around me
Everywhere
I could see all around me
EverywhereSometimes I feel like
I’ve never been nothing but tired
And I’ll be walking
Till the day I expire
See sometimes I lay down
Lord, no more can I do
But then I go on again
Because you asked me toSome days I look down
Afraid, afraid I will fall
And though the sun shines
I see nothing at all
But I hear your sweet voice
Come and then go
Come and then go
Lord, telling me softly
You love me so
Here’s Kelly Clarkson singing this song. It is so worth listening to. She makes it so passionate and powerful. It makes me teary every time I listen to it.
♥
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Photo Courtesy of CNN.com (Click on image to enter CNN.com)
The first and last time I heard of Haiti was in high school in a Travel & Tourism class I took. When I heard about the 7.0 earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12th, I was shocked. I didn’t realize how terrible things were until I saw the photos on T.V. As I continued to watch the news, I just couldn’t believe how terrible things were. My heart goes out to the Haitians and to all the children, especially those whom are now orphans. Last night I asked my husband if we could adopt an orphan. I think that would be amazing. I get teary-eyed just thinking about it. Husband doesn’t think that would be such a great idea though and I understand. We are not ready to bring on any more kids into our family at this time but this doesn’t mean we won’t ever.
This morning, I mentioned to husband that we should donate money to help the Haitians and guess what he said? He already donated at his work yesterday.
I want to remind anyone who is reading my blog that my trivial complaints about life will never compare to my compassion for the people who are dealing with the earthquake or any crisis around the world.
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I had a conversation with my sister yesterday and I mentioned something from the Oprah show and my sister said, “You’re becoming like those stay-at-home moms watching Oprah. Soon, you’ll go to PTO meetings, volunteer at Kida’s school, taking her to soccer practice.” and she kind of giggled about it like it was looked down upon. In her eyes, I was becoming someone who watches Oprah everyday. Someone who runs around the house chasing after babies, changing diapers, feeding, taking the kids to soccer practice, PTO meetings, cooking, cleaning the dishes, doing the laundry. Someone who has dinner all set and ready for the husband.
How funny. I mentioned watching Oprah and suddenly I am one of those stay-at-home moms as defined above. In defense I mentioned that I don’t watch Oprah every day. If the show is interesting, yes. If not, no. I watch Ellen more. But, I watch AC360 on CNN, HLN, Nancy Grace, and other shows on CNN with my husband (because we debate and share opinions about current events) just about every night. Her response to my defense was, “Give it 5 years and you’ll do all those things.” I just said, “It’s never going to happen. I’m not like that.” And, not because I refuse or don’t want to. I’ve tried but that’s just not me and I’m not going to pretend just to get into the “group”.
So, what is a stay-at-home/soccer mom defined as? Is there a definition? I searched Google and found this definition for a stay-at-home mom:
“Some women choose to become stay-at-home mothers because they simply find the work satisfying. Others do so because it is easier, less expensive, or more convenient than hiring a babysitter or a nanny
. Other families have enough income from one parent that the other does not have to work, and instead chooses to stay home with the children.” Ref: ehow.com
and this definition for a soccer mom:
“The phrase soccer mom generally refers to a married middle-class woman who lives in the suburbs and has school age children. She is sometimes portrayed in the media as busy or overburdened and driving a minivan. She is also portrayed as putting the interests of her family, and most importantly her children, ahead of her own.” Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org
I admit, I am a stay-at-home mom and very proud of it for the most part. I don’t work outside of the house and I chose to stay home to care for my two children because financially, I can. As for being a soccer mom. NO. I am not and will never be. The word soccer makes me cringe. BIG TIME. I am also not over burdened. In fact, I have enough time to do whatever I want to do.
The house work is shared equally between husband and I. Most times, it’s a mess and but it gets cleaned and that’s just how it is with kids. We also share caring for our girls equally. Although, husband does tend to do a lot more but he wants to.
I also don’t drive a mini van but it’s because my Camry does the job.
I don’t have anything against the stereotype stay-at-home moms or those soccer moms. But, there are other moms out there who don’t fit the stereotype. I would trade staying home to work outside the home again. I’d like to work not because I want the money. I’m just made to be outside the home. I struggle with being home every day, all day. I even struggle with taking the girls to the park or even to the pool for a swim. The thing is I’m home because I can stay home and most importantly, I don’t trust anyone else to watch my girls except me and maybe a few others.
I don’t try to be someone else. I am just letting my heart decide and it’s decided that the well being of my family tromps everything else…aside from my well being and personal growth.
So, what would one call someone like me? A typical stay-at-home mom? SURE. Why not. If going to PTO meetings, volunteering, taking my girls to swimming lesson, guitar lessons, and voice lessons makes me one then so be it. As far as watching Oprah goes. During high school and undergrad school, I watched her a lot more than I do today. It’s too bad that my sister is making Oprah out to be something stay-at-home moms watch. I never thought of Oprah that way.
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These might be the last photos I’ll be sharing of the interior. Everything is in. They just need a good cleanup. The only thing left is the last few finishes on the floor. While we were at the house yesterday they were doing the touch up paint. It was also the day husband’s friend closed on their house! They are probably moving in as I type.
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Husband’s co-worker, is having her first little one and her twin sister has invited us to their baby shower. I am so excited for her! I remember last Spring she asked me if I had that “ready for a baby” feeling and if I was prepared for it before having my two. I told her, I didn’t and wasn’t and that I really didn’t have anything planned. I had two accidents that I was willing to accept. Now of course, I (and husband as well) avoid accidents in that area at all costs.
There are quite a few people in my realm that have had a baby or are going to have one. Besides husband’s co-worker, who is due in May, our sales lady for our new house had twin boys last September and a few weeks ago, a friend of mine had a baby shower. She’s due in April with a girl. Then, our neighbor at our new house is due in June. Our current neighbor will be adopting a baby after trying for awhile without success. All these babies/pregnancies make me want one but I only say that because babies are so adorable. I’m not anxious to do anymore diaper changing, bottle/breast feeding, waking up in the middle of the night to cries, or anymore baby stuff. But, I still think babies are the cutest!!!
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We wanted to go inside the house today but the sales lady said that the carpet guys were putting in the second floor carpet so we were told to return tomorrow for a pre-walk thru. We drove to check out the exterior paint and I was just ecstatic seeing the finished product! My favorite was seeing the red door. I was afraid the color was going to be more brownish but it looks fabulous just the way it is. Husband was able to sneak in and take some shots of the first floor. The counter tops are laminate now (as shown in photo below). We will be putting in an upgrade later . We are now waiting for the gas stove, dual ovens, fridge, microwave, and door knobs which should be coming in soon. We didn’t put in the back splash in the kitchen because husband will put it in himself after we move in (he used to lay tiles back in the days).
While we were talking to the sales lady, she told us that there was a family who originally wanted to build a smaller house but they didn’t have the model they were interested in so instead, they showed our house because of the similarities in the layout. When the family saw our house, they were in awe. They wanted our exact house. They really liked the hickory floor and kitchen cabinets. I was thrilled to hear that!
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So much has happened with the building of the home. Doors, tiles in the master bath (tub and shower) and upstairs bath, counter tops, AC, and lights are in. The interior has been painted and railings stained. The tumbled marble has been laid around the fireplace (note: I said cobblestones when I first mentioned the stones around the fireplace but that is incorrect). Earlier today, we noticed that the exterior stones were done, the exterior painting started, and the floors finish was being worked on.
Speaking of homes, a close friend of mine also bought a house. She actually moved into her house today! I’m very excited and happy for her.
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Lately, as you can tell, I have been completely obsessed with scrapbooking. I have not started dreaming and eating it yet so that’s good!! But, I have been thinking about templates, ideas, themes, colors, embellishments, tools, and such almost every minute of every day! So, because of my frenzy with scrapbooking, I found another challenge that I will be submitting a layout to. The challenge is on Sketchy Thursdays by Diana’s blog and and it is based on templates.
Here is the template from Sketchy Thursdays. If you click on the image, it will also take you to the site.
And here is my layout. To view larger, click on images.
When I first looked at the challenge template, I wanted to create a layout with splatters just as it shows on the template. I had no idea how to go about it such as what was used (ink, colored water, paint, etc) and how to get it to splatter. I just couldn’t imagine throwing paint on a 12×12 cardstock. There would be a big mess to clean up. So, I did some researching and found out that a computer keyboard dust off (the cans with the straw that blows air out) was the tool. I also found that the appropriate (I think) ink/paint was the alcohol based kind but I didn’t have any so in place, I tried it with my acrylic paints and they worked!!! The problem with the acrylic paints is that they are thick so they don’t splatter as much and they take longer to dry but I was fine with that because as the page was drying, I was working on the other pieces.
These are the items I used for the layout: The Paper Studio 12×12 in Texture-Royal Blue. The Paper Studio 12×12 in Vintage Blue Snowflakes (I used this paper for the circle at the top left of the layout and for the bar just below the zigzag ribbon), The Paper Studio ribbon, Stampabilities Pigment ink pads in black and baby blue, snowflake stamps, Anita’s All Purpose Acrylic paint in black, and Crafts, Etc. Brush Pens (mentioned here as ‘paint markers’) that I used to doodle around the edges.
A couple of days ago, I bought this Cuttlebug machine. I’ve been eyeing this for sometime but the price was just too much for me to afford (around $80 and up). While looking around at Provo Craft’s website (the creator of this cute machine), I found out that the stores that sell this machine sometimes will sell it at a discount so I decided to check a few of the craft stores I shop at and to my luck, Michael’s was having a 50% off on all Cuttlebug items !!! So, I got myself a machine and love it! I also got some extra dies too!
About this machine. It is a manual machine so there is nothing to be plugged in or downloaded. On one side is a handle in which you turn to feed the dies and embossings through. This machine is tiny, about the size of a small toaster. In the previous post (with the layout for the pink, blue, and brown challenge), I used this machine to cut the flowers. This was a really good investment and will definitely help me out with many future craft projects.
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I finally got the template I created scrapped! The colors for this layout was from Scrap A Little’s January challenge. Here is what it looks like (click on images to see details):
Kida loves to journal. She’s very creative in her journaling using photos, colors, and different fonts in each entry. I used a few lines from Natasha Bedingfield’s “Unwritten” song as a dedication to her.
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