The house...we are hoping to get.

Still haven't heard a response to our offer yet (i'm pretty impatient) but we went to the open house yesterday to get a second look at the house, take pictures and kinda check and see if lots of people were looking...turns out we were the only ones at that point! :)

  I get so ahead of myself and sucked into a ridiculous focus on things we need to do, or want to do, or have to do...any kind of plans we make, I am easily obsessed with details. Even in my blogs, you will notice, I am very long-winded. Can't help it. Which is funny because I am not much of a talker. Rarely call anyone on my phone but for quick conversation or specific questions. Guess that might be because I kinda wanted to be a writer after learning how to write an actual good essay and being encouraged by one of my favorite teachers Mrs. Perry at the prestigious Adirondack Community College when we lived in Saratoga NY. Now, if I could only write songs..

    Well, back to my point of getting ahead of myself, after looking at pictures of the house, I made little "blueprints" for what I would like the house to look like in my "Paint" program. I even matched some colors to Behr paint shades. And we live pretty close to an IKEA (which = awesome cool stuff that's cheap) so I picked out a few things we might get. We have some furniture, but not enough to fill a 2600 sq ft big ole Texan house.

  Here is a quick video of the area surrounding the house--I like driving through Humble/Atascocita:

And the house:

This pic is funny...I was looking at the window from the master bath...wanted to see how big the yard was on this side...it's shaped wierd almost wrapped around the house--pretty big lot. Have to get blinds for this window though..you can see right into the bath from the neighbors windows!

Lucas and Olivia had a blast running through the house--I think they liked it--and I am not as nervouse about these stairs because they can't fall very far...not like the VA house--one long steep narrow spill onto hard floor!

And here's what I sorta imagine the house will look like when we fix it up. We will gradually do more and fix up the yard (its a big back yard but lots of trees---it's sort of a hexagon shaped back yard, we hope to fence off a quarter of it for a dog run).  The only rooms I haven't "imagined" yet are the little room off the game room with the glass french doors---I think it'll be my "music room" lol, and then the downstairs half bath needs to be updated...all the other rooms I have animated:

 We looked at flooring today and decided on a dark laminate wood hard floors all throughout the downstairs, which includes the living rm, kitchen, nook, dining (which will be used as a study), master bed and bath, and downstairs half bath. Most the furniture we already have, if you recognize my drawings lol. The TV will go up above the fireplace. We might get some ikea shelves for either side of fireplace to hide all the TV cables etc.

 This is the front formal dining room--I have no use for a formal dining room right now, so we are making it an office/study. The black stuff on the wall was my lame attempt at this wall decal I wanna get:

 This is the master..not sold on all the lime green...trying to make the room look bigger...again my lame drawing on wall was supposed to be this:

 For the upstairs, which includes gameroom, 3 rooms, and full bath, we decided on a cream colored carpet. Not sure if I will paint the sloped ceiling since it's textured..what do you think? And the decal:

 The upstairs full bath..I don't like that it divided the toilet and tub from the sinks...makes it harder to clean and cramped when I have to bathe the babies..We will probably just unhinge that door. And after looking at it, there probably isn't enough head room for that shelf. We may or may not put the laminate wood in this bath too...not sure. (I put a lot of detail into these sinks huh? lol)

 The "guest" room. I like this room best because of the bay window with a seat. Also, I didn't initially realize how big the walkin closet is--even has a window! Again unsure about painting the sloped textured ceilings..i just feel like it makes the room seem smaller without paint on that part...any advice?

And the kids room...bright huh? Well, I wanted it to be fun for them to play in and inviting.If you ever shop at Ikea, you'll recognize some of the furniture haha. Oh and the decal is pretty cute:

John and I aren't sure about the colors yet, but we will have to look at some swatches. Man I thought I had a rough time painting that 1600 sq ft house in VA one color...can't imagine how hard it will be to paint this one...we have a while to do it, but John has to be home to watch the kids!

I never really decorated our home back in VA...and the experiments with the paints in NY didn't end well. But I think my ideas will work better in this home...hopefully I've developed some sort of style...I'm pretty plain. And cheap.

  Anyway, any advice on color schemes or painting or how to make rooms seem bigger, or distract from textured ceilings are welcomed...I'm not very experienced!

Thanksgiving

John worked of course, but the babies and I were invited to Tina's to celebrate Thanksgiving and it was delicious. I was grateful that I didn't have to cook all that food in my small kitchen, but I did make cranberry bread (that turned out a little too dry) and a lower fat pumpkin pie with graham cracker crust. Tina was cooking all morning and afternoon, and she made everything imaginable :) And it was so good, we took lots of leftovers!

   The kids ate a little but were too preoccupied with fighting over Noah's toys. I forgot to bring my camera, but I did get this picture of the leftovers she gave us--yum!:

 I kinda tend to forget/ ignore holiday celebrations when John works, especially since the babies are too young to really know. So it was nice to still feel like a normal American who stuffs themselves on holidays. John's work did cater t-day meals for them though, so don't feel too bad lol.  Since John is almost working every single day next month, we are celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve morning so he can see the kids get their presents before going to work on Christmas. I haven't bought presents for Christmas for years...we bought each other stuff our first year of marriage 7 yrs ago, and were always going through some transition/ordeal in Decembers, so we kinda stopped. This year ironically, we are buying a house, but it's actually going to be saving money so I got to buy some toys for the kids...it's SO FUN! and even funner to wrap them! wish I could show you, but the babies might see the blog lol. This is why you have kids!!! The excitement of getting them to understand the Santa Claus concept is so fun--and Lucas is just about at the right age to get it. But when you think about the stockings and tree etc, it is a pretty wierd idea to explain to a toddler. But it helps that I threaten that Santa isn't bring him toys if he's mean to Olivia or whines all day. It works sometimes. Pretty soon we'll be going to the mall to see Santa---Lucas cried the first year, then smiled the second, Olivia screamed the first year, so let's hope she doesn't this time. But I've noticed she is scared of men at first, so I predict it will be another screaming photo...oh well, still cute.
  Here we are putting up decor:

Lucas was drawing "Christmas trees" :)

This is our little fake tree. Next year we'll have a big enough living room to get a real one...thats real big!

The babies loved the lights, and I connected them to some color ones in their room to softly light their room as they go to sleep---it was a great idea because since it connected to these, the babies don't have access to the plug!

Dollar store is great for holidays!

I was looking for a Christmas calendar to countdown the days, but couldn't find one, so I got my dollar store crafts to make one! I also got the cutest wrapping paper there, with the classic xmas movie characters. Here's my make-shift Xmas countdown board. I hope it will help the babies understand when Christmas is. We picked out these stockings at the dollar store too. :)

I think I am finally becoming a "woman"...I started accruing Xmas decor. I mean like little Christmas picture frames, ornaments and knick knacks. It's pretty fun. I hope to do up the house big next Xmas. I love this ornament cousin Ken & Linda bought us last year--personalized is so much better!

Here's the babies dancing to Christmas music--we're really getting into the spirit this year:

A Recap Before The Trip

We were supposed to be leaving for our HOGO-game-night-trip-semi-annual-reunion-extravaganza tonight, but too many things made us post-pone til tomorrow. I will recap them for you all now. Okay? Alright. Let's go...lots of rambling and way too much detail--the yooj. (usual) And lots of GROSS imagery that those with weak stomach's shouldn't read...

Yesterday, John was able to get off early so I could go to the dentist--which worked out because he and the babies took a much needed nap while I went. The xrays show all of my wisdom teeth are impacted, and he said I should've had them taken out when I was 18. Anyway, he said since I haven't had a lot of dental work (only a few small cavities that didn't require novacane), he would refer me to an oral surgeon after our trip because I will need to be totally put under to have all 4 taken out..scary.
   But he also said the majority of my pain is caused by a bad sinus infection, since your sinuses overlap the roots of your teeth. He prescribed a painkiller and a super antibiotic (only 5 days long) called a "Z-pack". I filled them and took them at home after eating some yogurt and chips. Then we took the dogs to the "Sea Dog Inn" in the nearby League City to board for our trip...Now, I am not an animal lover. In fact since I became a mom, unless I am eating them, most animals have become unnecessary nuissances. But leaving them at that kennel, watching them sadly watch me leave, really bothered me. I trust the family that owns it to take care of them, and they have nice yards to play in, but I know my dogs are totally confused about when/if we are coming back. John laughed because all I do is complain about their messes/neuroses, and now he's ready to go on vacation and not worry about them. Tables turned lol.

    Next we decided to have dinner at Red Lobster. I love their grilled tilapia, broccoli and mashed potatoes. And of course their lobster artichoke dip....But I looked at the babies, who were still sniffly like me. I decided I would take them to the doctor the next day (today) before our trip to get antibiotics too if necessary. Then I felt this wierd sick feeling of impending doom...like my mind knew I was in for some pain in the near future. So I had to cut John off on his 'endless shrimp' spree, and we went home. I felt worse. John watched the babies while I tried to take a hot bath. But I got so sick on the toilet, and violently vomiting in our trash bin for an hour. It was horrid pain, and the smell and sight of broccoli and crab in my face made me even sicker. I prayed so hard! It wasn't just nausea, it was like someone kicked me in my upper stomach, between my ribs..repeatedly. I locked the door because I didn't want John to see me like that...he's seen it all, but he's not the best sympathizer when it comes to pain....and I seem to have a lot of pain lol.

    Anyway, I eventually felt good enough to clean myself up and the trash bin...and take something for nausea...and throw out that damn z-pack. I was wondering why the pharmacists were looking at me kinda funny and whispering how to take it...I looked it up after my episode and saw that its typically used to treat STD infections! yuck. I have had allergic reactions to certain antibiotics like cipro (found that out during the kidney stone removal) and now I know never to take this one again either. There are lots of sites online that talk of bad side effects/liver damage/intolerance for the drug, with my symptoms. It's a potent antibiotic that kills good bacteria in your stomach too...no more.

  John went to work for the full day today. I felt better in the morning. Our family dr wasn't available today so I was able to get the babies into a pediatrician--whose office was FULL of sick snotty kids. Hope we didn't catch another cold. The babies behaved alright, and the doctor saw trapped fluid in both babies' ears. She prescribed antibiotics and a decongestant for them and she called it in to my local CVS. Then I had an appointment with a regular doctor to get me a different less potent antibiotic downstairs. I sat in the waiting room for an hour waiting to be seen. The babies drank all their juice, ate all their snacks, kicked each other in the face.. Thats when the CVS called to tell me Olivia isn't on my insurance...I told them I'd deal with it later, I didn't want to miss hearing my name called to go in to see the dr..Finally was seen and prescribed amoxicillin.

    Left the office tired and irritated, both kids whining at my feet (didn't have stroller). Olivia's diaper broke, although the band was still attached (generic target brand....ugh)and she tripped and scraped her knee. I could feel my blood pressure rising!
 
   Went to the CVS, gave them my medco card and they saw that Olivia was on there. They didn't fill it since I hadn't called so we waited and came back later. Then they told me the decongestant isn't covered by my insurance. I just got both our antibiotics and asked where Lucas' was---evidently they sent his Rx to a different CVS..so I had to come back in another half hour.

    Then we ate lunch, I gave the babies a dose of their medicine and they took a much needed nap. Conveniently we had a severe thunderstorm during this time when we were home  and not out! The thunder was so strong it continually set off car alarms in our lot. I did laundry and cleaned everything so that we could come home to a clean house after our trip instead of messes everywhere. Then I felt bad for the dogs, so when we went back out to get Lucas' Rx, I picked up some dog treats and toys and took the dogs their crate to sleep in. The girl that works there let the dogs out while I came which was best...didn't want them to see me leave them again :( at least they're together...I put their crate in there (they like to sleep in it together) with blankets toys and left the treats with the girl so she can give them one everyday. I also added extra "buddy play time" for an extra $5 a day. I hope they enjoy it. I never thought I cared about them so much lol. She says they are fine and wagging tails and that they won't hesitate to call etc. Made me feel better.

    Then, we heard from our realtor. We have been working with him (davidthelocator.com) for a little while looking at houses north of here, where insurance is lower since it's not typically in hurricane paths. We really like the family-friendly areas that are all masterplanned. It's early to be looking, but we want to find a nice one before this lease is up, with all the things we want to keep this family happy at least for the next few years, and then turn it into another rental ideally. Anyway, even though we were hoping to close in february or march, we found a nice home in a great area, for a RIDICULOUS price, since the seller's work for a major company that offers relocation assistance, they just want to get rid of the home! SO, the main reason we are waiting to leave for our trip is because we are going to see the house tomorrow morning--our realtor says if we don't mind possibly closing before the end of the year, we should look now because it won't last at that price. There's some aesthetic upgrades that will need to be done, but it's a great house. My only problem with Texas homes, is that they typically have the master suite downstairs...which was a deal breaker for me, because I don't feel right being on a separate floor from the babies..but I think I may have to compromise on that.
Some quick details on the house: ~2600 sq ft for the house, ~10,000 sq ft lot on a cul de sac, built in 2001. Price? $129k. That's texas. sheesh.

   So IN A NUTSHELL haha, that's the update. We will be seeing the house in the AM, and leaving for our 18 hr trip lol. I wanted to get all this out and documented (this is like my journal...that I share with you few special people who read it) before our trip, because I won't be blogging til we get back.
    Can't wait to play all our games Jim & Shawna! TEAM HODGE! lol. I say we start with "Cities & Knights" then "Puerto Rico" then "Stone Age" then "Acquire." And then John can pick the next one because he's gonna lose them all jk :)
  So excited to get all 4 kids together again--they've all grown so much it will be so cool to see them interact as kids, not babies. Kansas City here we come!

Here's a cute video of my olivia singing Spongebob's "On the Road!":

Going to the dentist...

After suffering all weekend, I was able to score an appt with a dentist this afternoon...unfortunately I have to take the babies since John is working...and we leave for our trip tomorrow...so i am assuming they will just send me off with painkillers and antibiotics (I think my sinus infection is related to the impacted tooth). But whenever I do have the surgery, I hope my drugs are as strong as this girls' :

Sick

I haven't been on the blog for a while so I thought I would update it with some cute stuff. The latest cute thing the babies do, is when we are in the car going somewhere and a good song comes on (which, if you know me, you know that pretty much ALL the songs I listen to are good lol) they both claim it:

"LALA'S SONG!"

"NO! WOOCUS SONG!"

Back and forth til I say "MOMMY'S SONG!" And they both get mad at me, then I say "okay it's everyone's song--we all like it!"

There are certain songs they fight over--have to make a note of which ones they claim and which ones they don't. That'd be a fun experiment!

Well, we are still battling the cold we got on Halloween...their's is pretty much done, but mine is still bad. I think I may have developed a sinus infection since my snots green and my face hurts. To add to that, friday night my jaw started aching and I figured it out...my wisdom teeth are finally causing me bad pain. Before I got pregnant I had xray's done and they told me I needed to have them all taken out since they are growing horizontally into my other teeth...but I didn't want to pay to have them out, and then I got pregnant twice etc...so my right side of my mouth aches and I have been using my painkillers from my kidney stone stash. I haven't seen a dentist in Texas yet, and we are going on our trip to Kansas City to visit our game night friends for a week on tuesday, so I probably won't be seen until after thanksgiving...hope the pain subsides.

  And here are some cute pictures of the babies--Olivia and Lucas stopped wanting to eat their bananas in the morning so I stopped slicing them up, and instead broke them in half...worked! The now eat all of their bananas--here's Olivia's method:

And then they made our little trunk into a firetruck. Olivia loves to yell out "Fireman Lala!"

And this is funny..Olivia never was as interested in movies or TV as Lucas was even at 6 months. But ever since we have switched our cable provider and don't have Nick Jr, we have been watching Sprout channel, which has a cute show called "Caillou". For some reason Olivia LOVES it. She always dances in a circle like this in the intro, and never fails to say "That's Me!" right on time. She also sang some Christmas song on ABC family and was in tune the other day--she's gonna be a singer :)

Doesn't this just make you melt!?