Other than that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?

We have successfully completed phase one of our journey.  The part where we go from the home of the Big U to my in-laws house in Virginia.  The trip was not without incident.

It was snowing when our friend picked us up on Friday morning.  Fortunately he has a big SUV. We crammed it full of luggage and piled in.  Princess O was weeping, big surprise.  It’s what she does. 

Both kids have been getting very nervous.  Tom gave them a pep talk after dinner the other night.  He talked about how nervous we all were before we went to Sydney.  He asked Her Royal Highness if she remembered how nervous and upset she was then.  She said yes.  Tom asked if she remembered what happened after we arrived in Sydney, and she responded, “I threw up in the throw up bag”.   This is true, but not really the answer we were looking for.

 

So, our friend picks us up and we go slip-sliding down the highway to the airport.  I am using all my powers of concentration in the back seat to prevent an accident.  Unfortunately I must have slipped for a second because the next thing I knew we were bumping into a car that had slid in front of us.  No injuries and no major damage though so we all agreed to go on our merry way before somebody else ran into us from behind.

We get to the airport and through security with plenty of time to spare, only to discover our plane is late and getting steadily later.  But, at least we had a plane.  They cancelled the flight to Chicago that left before ours.  So we still had a chance.  We waited, and waited, and waited some more. 

Finally they start making announcements that the flight is over-weight since they have to carry extra fuel, and they need 9 volunteers to give up their seats.  I was half sure they were going to kick us and our four heavy heavy suitcases off the plane.

 

We arrived in Chicago 15 minutes after our plane to Virginia took off.  On the plus side, that meant we had time for lunch.  It was 3:30 so we decided it was too late to be lunch and too early to be dinner.  We were undecided, however, on whether to call this meal dunch or linner.  Whatever it was, we ate it as slowly as we could, but we still had about 4 hours to kill.  Tom took the kids on a lap of the airport while I camped out with all the luggage.  After that we just kept wandering around, and let them play with their Nintendo’s.  Thank goodness for those things.  Worth every penny.

We finally landed in Virginia at about midnight.  I thought we had successfully managed to have a puke free flight.  We were on the ground, we were at the gate, and then Princess O threw up.  Fortunately I managed to have the barf bag ready in time.  It was just the perfect ending to a perfect day. 

Tom’s parents very kindly picked us up and we made the hour drive to their house.  We arrived at about 1 am and collapsed into bed.  The kids were such troopers.  Two different complete strangers stopped me to tell me how great they were in the airport.  I was so proud.

So we’re here, and I spent most of today trying to remember where I packed everything.  We forgot my memory stick for the computer and disposable razors.  I’m sure that list will grow over the next couple of days. 

And here’s hoping we have all our bad luck out of the way and the rest of the trip will be smooth sailing. 

Packing and still more packing

Clearly, I was optimistic thinking I could get everything into two suitcases. 

 I have packed and unpacked and packed again.  I had originally packed all the clothes in one bag, and all the stuff (books etc) in another bag.  But, I was talking to M today and she was saying that it is very common for them to lose bags in Rome.  So I decided it might be better to split the clothes between the two bags so if we lose a suitcase, we don’t lose everything.  Also, Big Orange (the giant orange duffel bag) was over weight.

 Of course, in order to do that I had to repack all the space bags.  Originally I had all the pants in one bag and so on, but I repacked them all and mixed it up a bit more.  We will end up taking a third bag though.  I still haven’t packed any toys or any of my knitting stuff.  The good news is, I think the third bag will be really light.

Today I ran a few errands.  Returned one DVD and got another one, bought socks for both children, went to Borders, and went to Target a second time.  I also did some laundry, worked on packing, and finished putting away the Christmas decorations.  So, you know, a quiet day.

I still need to have the kids pack their backpacks, and decide what toys they want to take.  What very few toys they want to take.  I have already packed Princess O’s giant stuffed horse.  OK, it isn’t actually giant, but it is larger than your average stuffed animal and she carries it with her everywhere she goes.  So, obviously it had to come with us.  And I have absolutely no idea what the C-man is going to decide he needs to take.  His little mind works in mysterious ways.

So what do I have to do tomorrow?

• Strip all the beds and wash the sheets
• Wash the towels
• Wash the clothes the children are wearing once they go to bed
• Throw away all the open food in the fridge and the cabinets
• Clean the fishbowl
• Take the fish to the neighbor’s
• Call my sister, several times (like I need to put that on the to-do list)
• Pick out DVDs to take with us

Tomorrow will be a very interesting day.  I am really not looking forward to it.

Merry Christmas

That’s it.  That’s all I’ve got.  The presents are wrapped, the turkey is defrosting, and the children are asleep.  It is, as we say, the calm before the storm.  I hope all of you are happy, healthy, and spending the day with people you love.  Merry Christmas.  Ho Ho Ho 

All Hail the Space Bags

Sweet merciful heavens I have actually started packing.  What a mess.  There is stuff all over the bedroom in little and not so little piles.  I think I may have been optimistic thinking I can get all this stuff in two suitcases. We shall see, we shall see. 

 I suspect shoes are going to be a problem.  I am still trying to find a way to get my cool boots into the bag.  I could wear them but I really don’t want to.  They’re lace-ups and it would be a nightmare to get them on and off at airport security.  Plus I need walking shoes (two pair), flats to wear with my skirt, heels, and sandals.  Both of the children have two pairs of shoes plus sandals too.  It seems like a lot, but I would rather be prepared, and avoid having to buy anything under duress.

 I had the kids pick out their clothes today.  It took them about five minutes.  Rotten kids.  I have been thinking about what to take for months.  They barely thought about it at all. 

 Each kid is taking:

•  5 pairs of pants
• 4 long sleeved shirts
• 3 short-sleeved shirts
• 1 fleece hoodie
• 1 pair of shorts
• 1 nice outfit
• 1 pair of pajamas

 I am taking:

•  4 pairs of pants
• 2 cardigans
• 4 long sleeved shirts
• 4 short-sleeved shirts
• 1 nice dress, suitable for formal occasions
• 1 pair of pajama pants & a sweatshirt

 I’ve managed to squish most of that into 4 space bags.  Those things are amazing.  I’m sure the clothes will be a wrinkled mess when we get there, but I don’t really care.  I put the space bags into our big orange duffel bag, and it is only about one quarter full.  Wow.  And I still have one space bag left!  I think I will try to get the kids lightweight jackets and hoodies into that one.

 We also need socks and underwear of course.   I have to pack the hats and gloves and ball caps too.  There is still a lot to get in there.  For example, books and toys and school supplies.  I want to try to get a couple of board games in if I can too, and some DVD’s.  It all depends how much room we have.  Maybe I need to get more space bags.  I suppose the danger there is packing the bag so full it is over the weight limit.  However, I think that is pretty unlikely since the weight limit is 50 pounds, and I won’t be able to lift the suitcase if it weighs more than that. 

 I think I will try to divide that stuff into three piles.  Those piles shall be called:

•  Mission Critical
• Non-Essentials
• Luxury items

 Things like school supplies are mission critical.  Board games are luxury items.  I’m not exactly sure what falls in between.  I guess I will know once I make the piles.

 But in the meantime, tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and I really don’t want to think about this right now.  I am taking the next 48 hours off.

Oh, and Merry Christmas everybody. 

 

 

 

Gift-Wrap Angst

I wrapped a bunch of presents today.  I am the worst gift-wrapper ever.  It’s true.  

I seem to lack some vital skill set you need to be good at this.  For example, I lack a good sense of spatial relations, so I always cut the paper either too big or not big enough.  I also don’t seem to be able to cut straight.  I try to compensate for this by buying the paper with the grid lines on the back but even then I have trouble.  I used to have trouble with the tape too, but I got one of those scotch tape holders you wear around your wrist.  It dispenses tape in easy to handle pre-cut strips.  Finding the refills for it is a challenge, but it’s worth it.  The only downside is I often forget about it and walk around for large parts of the day wearing my tape dispenser.  Not a good look.  

I think I am the Charlie Brown of gift-wrapping.  No matter how hard I try, or how much effort I put into it, the end result is always a little bit sorry looking.  This is very frustrating to my inner Martha.

 It’s Christmas time.  The voice of the inner Martha is strong at this time of year.  I do my best to ignore her, but she’s there.  You know what I’m talking about, the little bit of Martha Stewart in all of us. You know she probably hand printed her own wrapping paper with hand carved wood blocks on paper she made herself out of organic whatever it is you make paper out of.  And you also know that you could make equally fabulous stuff if you had the staff she has.  It is, of course, ridiculous to make these comparisons, but I seem to be powerless to stop it.  It’s very annoying.  

There just always seems to be a bit of an anti-climax when all the gifts are wrapped.  I spend so much time thinking about what to get, then so much time shopping.  Then so much time remembering where I hid everything.  And then once they are all wrapped the pile always seems so diminished somehow.  I am not sure why, but it happens to me every year.  I’m used to it, but it is still frustrating.

 Anyway, it’s done.  That’s one more thing to cross off the list.   

We leave for Rome in 9 days.  Sweet Cracker Sandwiches.  I will never be ready.

My Crazy Day

Lest you thought I was exaggerating yesterday when I said I had a 1,000-mile a week planned, here is my day today:  

At nine this morning I was in the C-Man’s classroom, helping them with their winter party craft.  They made snowmen out of tube sox stuffed with popcorn.  They were very cute.   

After the party I came home, made a couple of phone calls and pulled out all the presents that still need to be wrapped (that would be all of them).  I spent a couple hours wrapping, and dealing with gift-wrap angst.  (See my next post).  I got all the gifts from the Fat Man wrapped, and spent some time artfully arranging them under the tree to make sure everything looked ok.  Once that was done I put all that stuff back in hiding, and wrapped a few more presents.  I still have about half a dozen to go.  Three for Tom, one for my mom, and two for me.  Yes, I know it is unusual to wrap your own presents, but since I bought them for myself anyway, I didn’t see the harm. One of my presents is my new laptop.  I am already using that, but I thought I would wrap up the empty box and put it under the tree just for fun.

 So I finished wrapping with about an hour to spare before school got out.  I went downstairs to check on some laundry.  When I opened the dryer I realized that all my white t-shirts have been attacked by some dryer gremlin that left green gunk on them.  Ick.  I examined them closely and realized they were beyond saving.  Now I need some new, not gunked up t-shirts.   

Off to the mall I went. I was on a mission for t-shirts, jeans and a belt for Tom and a birthday present for my dad.  I was thinking I had at least an hour to shop when I realized I had forgotten my camera.  I always take the children’s pictures with their teachers on the last day of school.  I made a mental note to run home and get it before I went to school.  

I got to the mall walked past Jimmy Johns and realized I had not eaten anything all day.  So I decided I must have a tuna salad sub immediately.  I wolfed that down, and ran to Penney’s.  I found everything on my list, except the birthday present. I made one more stop then headed home to pick up the camera, arriving at school with minutes to spare.  Whew!  

Princess O was sobbing when I picked her up because she had lost her hat.  I promised I would knit her a new one.  Today.  So we collect the boys and head off to Hobby Lobby, with Her Royal Highness, the C-man and his friend B in tow.  I get the yarn and we all come home.  Of course, as the Princess unpacks her backpack we find the hat.  Grrr. 

 After I get everybody settled with a snack I went into the office to try to clean it up.  This is another one of those things I really must do more often.  One full garbage bag and four swiffer cloths later, I declared victory.  Then I celebrated by downloading some software that will let you put videos from youtube onto your ipod.  Cool.

Tomorrow I will have to return my new white t-shirts because they don’t fit, and the yarn I don’t need since we found the hat.  I also have to go to the grocery store, drop the Princess’s violin off at the music store, and go to the library.  I also have to have the children help me wrap Tom’s presents.  I’m sure I will have all the help I can stand.  

I’m tired now.  I’m not doing anything else tonight.  I might  watch an old F1 race just to relax.  Perhaps Suzuka ‘06, or Brazil ‘05. Both excellent choices.

Baby Steps Forward but Seatbelts Should Still be Firmly Fastened.

I cleaned out the refrigerator today.  OMG, I have got to do that more often.  That was disgusting.  Although, on the plus side, if it starts out really bad, it looks that much better when you are through.  I threw out a bunch of stuff.  Condiments, cheese of undetermined age, empty Ziploc bags (and what were they doing in there anyway?).  I also made a half-hearted attempt to clean out the cabinets, but gave it up as a bad job.  I will work on that again next week.  I want to try to use some more of it up first.

 Dinners around here are going to start getting interesting. 

 I also did some of the grocery shopping for Christmas.  I finally decided to just have turkey for dinner on Christmas night.  I really wanted to do something amazing, like a standing rib roast, but those are really expensive, and I didn’t want to spend $100 on just the main course.  Besides, the Princess likes turkey, so that will make her happy.  And, if you make turkey the rest of the meal just kind of falls into place.  Turkey, gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberries and some kind of vegetable.  It doesn’t really require any creative effort on my part.  That’s a good thing these days since the creative part of my brain seems to be on holiday somewhere.  Or maybe it left for Rome early, it’s hard to tell.  I just hope it comes back.  Soon.  

I still have to decide what to have for dinner on Christmas Eve, but I have a couple days to mull that over.  I will go back to the grocery store on Thursday, and then hopefully, I won’t have to go back again before we leave. Wouldn’t that be a dream come true? Actually, I like grocery shopping, but when it gets this close to the holidays, its not so much fun.  Retail therapy in general is not so much fun these days.  Too many people in the stores.

So, what’s left to do?  I have to clean out the office, wrap the presents, bake some more cookies, clean up the playroom and the kids’ rooms, make some phone calls, cancel the papers…and about a million other things. 

 I can only do one thing at a time though.  And I think I definitely made some forward progress today.

Fasten Your Seat Belts

 T-minus 13 days and counting.  Holy crap!  That’s less than 2 weeks.

Weather in Rome:  46 and partly cloudy

25 and snowy here 

 Success!  S and B will baby-sit Firepower while we are gone.  I will confirm the details tonight when we go over there for dinner.  Then the C-Man is spending the night.  This means he will be even more unpleasant tomorrow than usual.  And lately, that’s saying something.   

I can tell he’s getting nervous about the trip.  Not because he tells me he’s nervous, but because he is so irritable and unpleasant to be around lately.  I try to remind myself that he doesn’t have the same coping mechanisms adults do.  He can’t bake (like I do), or spend hours fooling around on the internet (like I do), or go out for a good round of retail therapy.  All he can do is be grumpy.  Of course, he can also play with his Nintendo or play computer games, but he’s only allowed to do that for 30 minutes a day.  Why only 30 minutes a day?   Because I am so mean.

 Meanwhile, Princess O is super clingy and carries Acorn, her stuffed horse with her everywhere she goes, so I know she is getting nervous too.  She is handling it slightly better than the C-man, but not by much.  On the other hand, she has been really helpful lately.  Clearing the table, offering to help in the kitchen, and getting me Cokes.  It is very sweet, even though I know she is just playing good cop to the C-man’s bad cop.

 Me, I am completely paralyzed by anxiety.  I know I should be doing something, but I cannot for the life of me figure out what that something might be.  I am pretty sure this isn’t it though.

 Today we have been invited to 2 Christmas parties and dinner next door.  Both children have also been invited to birthday parties this afternoon.  So, you know, it will be a nice quiet day at home.  Oy.   I’m actually really looking forward to it all, but it’s too bad it all fell on the same day.

 Next week is the last week of school.  I have quite a bit I still need to accomplish before the kids are home for good.  I need to:

• Get some power adapters
• Wrap all the Christmas presents
• Bake more Christmas cookies
• Make more chocolate pretzels
• Start packing
• Figure out what to have for Christmas dinner
• Go grocery shopping
• Have a nervous breakdown

 Monday I have to take Princess O to the orthopedist in Des Moines for one last follow up on her busted elbow.  She broke it back in January, and it was a doozy.  We’ve been checking in with him every few months ever since.  She seems like she’s back to 100% to me now, so hopefully we can finally put all of it behind us.  This will take up most of the morning, and then I will go grocery shopping after I take her to school.  Hopefully there will still be time after that to get some power adapters.  Then I can wrap and bake on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

So next week is shaping up to be a thousand mile an hour week.  Wish me luck. 

Fish Foster Care

T-Minus 17 day and counting

Weather in Rome:  Light rain and 54 degrees

Weather here:  Snow, sleet and freezing rain.  25 degrees

Viva Italia!  

I am finally starting to feel like I’m ready to go to Rome.  OK, not really but I think I at least know what I still need to do.  Here is a partial list: 

•  Get all the toys up off the playroom floor and into waterproof toy boxes of some kind.  (the basement–home of the playroom- sometimes gets wet)
• Have the neighbors boys come over and show them how to use the snowblower
• Cancel the newspapers, netflix and all the magazines
• Make sure the house sitter has all the information he needs
• Find someone to take care of the C-man’s fish

 That will be the tricky thing.  It’s hard to find good fish foster care.  I am hoping that the fish can go live with our neighbors.  The C-man’s best friend lives next door, so I am hoping he will agree to look after Firepower (and yes, that is the fish’s real name).  I will have to ask his mom, my friend S.  I’m sure B would agree, but I am equally sure that if B is as contientious about looking after the fish as the C-man, S will be doing all the work.   

Foruntately this fish seems to have a tremendous will to live.  Over-feed him, starve him for a few days it doesn’t seem to make any difference to Firepower.  And I can’t even remember the last time I changed the water in his bowl.  Poor fish.  He’s probably looking forward to a break from my sub-standard care. 

 Well, I will have to ask S when she comes over to watch Project Runway on Wednesday.   Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Now We Know Where Alonso is Going

He is going back to Renault.  That is the team he was with from 2002-2006.  One year as a test driver and four with a race seat.  Oh, I’m so happy.   I was really starting to get nervous.  I was even trying to decide who to root for if Alonso took a year off.  I never could make up my mind about that one, and now I don’t have to.  Because Alonso signed a big fat contract at Renault.  Here is the news from ITV.

 The only downside is his teammate will be Nelson Piquet jr., not Heikki Kovalainen.  I sincerely hope Nelson jr. doesn’t give Alonso the trouble Hamilton gave him.  But Flavio Briatore seems like he can handle Alonso and his moods pretty well.  Plus, rumor has it Alonso has an option year for 2009.  If Flavio wants to keep Alonso out of the bright red Ferrari car, he will have to keep Alonso very, very happy.  I don’t think Nelson will be any trouble.  He sure has been shooting his mouth off though.  I wonder if he can cash the checks his mouth has been writing (Oh, how I hope I don’t end up eating those words).

 So, it looks like Kovalainen could be the odd man out.  Actually, I think he will go to McLaren.  I expect there will be an announcement from them before too much longer.  Poor Heikki.  I wouldn’t actually wish that ride on any driver.  Their car is still under FIA scrutiny, they may start the season with negative points in both the driver and constructor’s championships, or they may be excluded from 2008.  We won’t know anything about that until mid-February, just about four weeks before the season begins.  Not a good situation.  Plus whoever goes to McLaren is destined to be the #2 driver behind Hamilton in practice if not in words.

But never mind all that.  The important thing is Alonso has a ride next year.  Yippee.