I'm buying the "For Sale" sign today.

I cannot believe it has been over four months since we decided to put our house on the market, to move to a smaller town. We had planned on doing a little work to the house, getting it extra clean, then putting a sign in the yard on May 1st. It is now September 10, and still no sign. How easy it is to forget that cleaning and updating a house with children in it is akin to nailing jello to a wall. The baby is grumpy. Or he wants to play under te kitchen sink, or remove everything from the cupboards. The 3-year-old prefers her toys on the floor. Or she knocks the baby down, causing the aforementioned grumpiness.

It is easy to beat myself up over it all. There was a house that dh and I both really liked, and the price was right. But someone else had just written an offer on it. So back to the home search. And back to the "readying for sale" that we have been doing, albeit half-assed, for nearly five months.

The house still isn't as perfect as I'd like it, but I'm buying the "For Sale by Owner" sign today anyway. If not now, it will probably never get done.

Do you ever wake up feeling gloomy?

I do. And I did this morning. it doesn't help that it is gloomy outside today. And it's going to be hot again this afternoon anyway. But my mood won't keep me from needing to shower, get the kids dressed, go to several stores, and then still manage to work on the basement some more. And it's all so hard with the kids. If Nigel doesn't cry when I walk away, then Nora makes sure that he's crying by the time I get back. She loves so much to play with him, but I think he's sick of being her rag doll.

Nigel's birthday is tomorrow. I cannot believe he is a year already. It really feels like just yesterday that he was so tiny and so helpless. But now he walking, talking a little, and climbing on anything that isn't behind a gate. And people are coming over tomorrow to celebrate. I hate hosting parties. I suck at it. But it's obviously not kosher to just ignore a 1st birthday, so a party we will have. I am thankful that the common areas of the house are pretty clean, so there's no mad-dash to tidy up before people come over.

And gas prices keep going up. DH works 45 miles away. The pay raise he got 4 months ago when he came to the new company is completely eaten up by higher benefits and gas prices.

I could get all philosophical and start counting my blessings, which are many, but I am not going to. Not just yet. I feel like wallowing im my funk for a few more hours. Then I'll go about my day with a grin (or grimace) on my face.

Healthy Egad! You're 29% sociopathic!

Good job! You're within the normal range for the typical human being. As far as sociopathy goes, at least. You might still be clinically depressed, schizophrenic, borderline, obsessive-compulsive or have AIDS. I didn't make tests for those, though. I should mention now that this test is inherently flawed, due to the fact that someone who was a true sociopath or psychopath would not be telling the truth on an online test.

My test tracked 1 variable How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 5% on sociopathy

Link: The Are You A Sociopath? Test written by oolongy on OkCupid Free Online Dating

Arrrgh, what kind of Pirate am I?

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Readying a house for sale

We're attempting to get our house up for sale so we can move somewhere a little quieter and more family-friendly. I have watched all the "get top dollar for your house" shows, and they usually raise the homes' values by several thousand dollars, with a little paint, some imagination and a weekend. This should be easy, right?

Wrong.

First of all, I have two small children. Anyone who has small children can imagine what that does to one's organizational and packing skills.

Second, I have too much stuff. I have 6 identical Corningware casserole dishes. I've had them since our wedding. They are all in my kitchen cupboards. Have I ever needed 6 casserole dishes at once? No. I also have four large boxes of candles and candle holders leftover from my failed attempt at a fahhbulous career selling Partylite. Most of them do not match my home. Yet, I have been providing them room and board for 3 years. And then there's the growing stack of "ebay" items. I could make a mint if I could just get organized enough to try to sell these things. Maybe next week...

Lastly, those shows don't show you the twenty people and the storage unit that are the real heroes of the whole process. If I had even two or three people packing, wrapping, and carting away all my "extra" unsightly possessions, I could have it done in a weekend too.

But I have 2 dining tables in my half-primed dining room, 8 boxes of books (and 2 empty bookcases) piled in my bedroom, and a spare room full of outgrown children's clothing. Do you thing TLC would send over a few beefy guys and a U-haul to make my house look pretty?

Housecleaning gripe #44

Why on earth does my husband rearrange the dishes in the dishwasher? I may not be a dishwasher "expert" like he is, but I have put the dishes in there like I want them. There is a method to my madness. And even if there weren't, the man works 60 hours a week -- he doesn't really have the time to worry about than where I put the dirty bowls.

That is all.

I'm not normal -- but that's not a surprise.

You Are 40% Normal (Somewhat Normal)

While some of your behavior is quite normal... Other things you do are downright strange You've got a little of your freak going on But you mostly keep your weirdness to yourself

How Normal Are You?

In my next life, I hope I am wealthy enough to hire someone to do all my grocery shopping for me. I've been buying groceries for over 10 years now, and I am still no good at it. First, I forget to write things on the list when I use them up. Oh sure, I think to myself, "Robin, you just used the last of the butter; you should put that on the list." Do I? No. I eat my toast, then get involved with something else more interesting than a grocery list.

Then, I have to write a list just before leaving for the store. I have paper, I have pen, I have no idea what I used up yesterday that I meant to write down. I make a mad dash around the kitchen, scribbling the list on the back of an envelope with a green crayon.

Finally, I stroll through the store with my bascart with 3 round wheels, and one rock that vaguely resembles a wheel. I buy lots of produce, a few canned goods, milk, eggs, bread and salsa. I pay for my items, and proudly take my booty home. Surely I have gotten enough food to last an entire week.

After putting it all away, I begin to prepare supper. Oops, we are out of rice, so no stirfry. We have 2 tortillas left, cannot make burritos. I could make spaghetti sauce again, but it would have to be served on elbow macaroni. So I write pasta, rice, and tortillas on the list and serve tuna sandwiches with a side of carrot sticks for dinner.

I just used the last of the Miracle Whip. Remind me to write that on the list after dinner...

Smart kids

Today I heard another mama telling me about how her child can spell her own name. I hear it a lot: a 24-month-old who can count to 25, a three-year-old who reads books. I'm happy for them, I really am. But I also wonder why my kids aren't geniuses? Every time I hear another "smart kid" story, I feel a twinge that is something between envy and guilt. I'm a pretty smart cookie, if I do say so myself. so it must not be inferior genes. Am I not spending enough time reading to them? Too much TV? Maybe I ate too many french fries while I was pregnant.

I'm not sure that I would want my child to be a genius anyway. I don't think that genius = fulfilled in any way. It certainly can cause problems -- I was pretty smart as a kid and fought the stigma of being "the smart kid" all through school. I'd rather be happy than smart, If I had to choose.

I am successful at not envying others' possessions. I don't envy supermodels' bodies. But I am thrown into a funk every time I hear that someone else's kid is ahead of her age. I love my children. I think they are just the sweetest, most fun kids on the block. Nora is beautiful, and can boogie to music like no one else. Nigel has a smile that will absolutely light up a room. So why on earth am I comparing them to others? Please, if you notice me comparing my child to anyone else, feel free to bonk me on the head.

Still here

We celebrated Nora's birthday this week, so much of it was spent shopping and cleaning for the party. Not much time to write.

But I promise to come up with some witty thoughts soon.

Happy February 1st

So apparently, we are all supposed to start working out today, so that we'll be in shape for bikini season. Somehow I think that this deadline will come and go with nary a situp from me. I wonder what the deadline is if I choose to go with a one-piece swimsuit this summer instead...

I awoke this morning, well before daylight, the entire family huddled under the blankets in our bed. I thought "it's a tad chilly in here." I went back to sleep, sure that I was just imagining a chill in the room. I awoke again at 6:30, sure that something was wrong with the furnace. So I traipse downstairs to the thermostat to see if I could figure out what was wrong. I had the dreaded dollar signs in my eyes, the ones that appear just before a budget-busting check is written to a repairman. I looked at the thermostat, and realized that it was set at 52 degrees. Nora had apparently decided that 68 was too warm, and made some adjustments unbeknownst to me.

The furnace ran for more than an hour.

My very first entry. And I'm stumped. I cannot believe I already have writer's block, although I think one needs to have succesfully written something before true writers block can set in.

I'll try again later after lunch.

-R