Getting a Grip

So... seems like a few 'big' things are behind us yet again (where does the time go?!?)...

Julia and Colin have successfully started another school year (They love school.  I am SOO lucky for that.).  I've transitioned into my new position and am not feeling like I'm in a *new* position every day (I still look around every once in awhile and wonder if I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing, but so far no one has told me otherwise so I must be okay).  Joe has gone to a canyoneering rendezvous, had a great time, and come home healthy (cross our fingers and knock on wood).  We're wrapping up another summer season....

And fall is around the corner.  Although the weather here sure doesn't show us that fall is arriving (you still melt the moment that you leave your air conditioned car to enter your air conditioned workplace) it is.  And with it all that fall brings... cooler temperatures, comfort foods (chili and stew and all the wonderful stuff that we enjoy during the fall), holidays (first Halloween, then J's birthday, Thanksgiving, C's birthday, Christmas..... hold on to your hats folks, it might be a bumpy ride!)  And of course, the possibility of putting our house on the market during this time... (And no, no decisions made.  Trust me, I'll let you all know... you'll be sick of hearing the regular updates I'm sure!)  Normally all of this would have me brimming with joy and excitement.  This is my favorite part of the year- my favorite holidays- my favorite weather- my favorite foods- my favorite clothes (it's so much easier to hide a couple of extra pounds in a sweater and a pair of blue jeans!) .....

But for some reason, I'm just dragging myself along right now.  Maybe it is the weather- we've had a hot, long summer that isn't showing any signs of letting up- or maybe it's something else.  I just can't put my finger on it.  I find myself waking up on the wrong side of the bed more than the right one these days... I seem more tired than usual... quick to jump to anger and conclusions (especially when it comes to e-mail... tread lightly my friends)....  I thought that maybe focusing on what is just ahead might shake my mood, but all it did was seem to make the dark mood a little darker.

I need to (as this post lovingly suggests) get a grip.  So many wonderful things happening in my life and around me.... I am truthfully the luckiest girl and I just don't have anything that I should be this grumpy about.  :)  So, I'm vowing to find the right side of the bed this week, to take a moment to savor all that I have, and to find the joy in each (soon to be fall) day. 

Night all.
C

Irrationality....

11 months ago Joe took a trip to a canyoneering rendezvous in Zion National Park.  He came home and less than a week later was hospitalized.  And had surgery.  And lost a rib.  (yeah, yeah, you all know this story right?)

Since then, he's done great.  He's fully recovered, is off the blood thinners, has a full release from his doctor to what ever he wants to in terms of physical activity, and has gone canyoneering several times.  Let me edit that last statement- has gone for several one day canyoneering trips.

See... he hasn't gone on a long weekend (translation:  cram as much technical canyoneering as I can into the shortest time I can) of canyoneering since... well.... since... yeah.  Then.

I know he's fine.  I know he is with a good friend and will do great.  I know he is healed, that the likelihood of a recurrence is small, and that he will have an awesome time.  My head knows ALL OF THAT STUFF.

But my heart (that total irrational part of me) is worried.  And stressed.  And I know I'm not gonna feel better until his rear end is out of the canyon on Sunday afternoon and in the car on his way back to me (oh, come on, let's be real... I'll stress about him driving all that way when he is tired too... I'll feel better when he is home!)

So... think good thoughts everybody- okay?  Positive energy surrounding Joe.  Prayers for God to watch over him and everyone else who is in the canyons with him this weekend.  Think blood flowing freely throughout his body with no constricted places..... (and, I guess you could all hope that he was having a good time and enjoying himself too.....)

Thanks my friends.  I appreciate it.  (and if you see me losing it on Facebook, somebody buy me some chocolate or something okay??)

Night all-
C

PS  Joe is in Ouray, CO right now.  He'll be going to Zion next month.  Basically on the anniversary of the 'event'.  So, yeah, maybe we should start planning now for how I'm gonna cope with that one!!

Taking Chances

Several years ago I wrote a note "25 Random Things About Me"  (if this makes you curious... you can read the whole thing here- trust me it really isn't that exciting...).  It took me a LONG time to write this document, and I've actually reflected on it several times since writing it (I've actually done #22, still fully endorse #5, #6, and #7, #24 is still on hold and I am working really hard on being more okay with #25). 

Tonight I want to talk about #12 though...

I think Joe and I have often chosen the path in life that is safe, 

rather than the path in life that was right when it comes to jobs, school, etc.

I think Joe and I have always been 'safe'.  We've always taken the safe route, the conservative route, the 'for sure' route.  And right now, for once, we are talking about doing something that maybe isn't as safe, isn't as comfortable, and isn't a 'for sure' thing....

If you have been following my Twitter or Facebook feed during the past few weeks, you know that Joe and I have been meeting with a Realtor and talking about the possibility of relocating.  Several of you have asked why we would like to relocate or what we are looking for in a new house.  Truthfully, I would love to keep our current house!  It is perfect for us.  We remodeled the kitchen and it is exactly what I want (well... except that it could use a little larger pantry and a few more cabinets, but really, it's mostly what I want...)  I've also figured out in the last few weeks that there are things that I will be so sad to leave... we've measured our kids growth against our lemon tree and our fountain for years!  However, we live approximately 30 minutes from where I work and where the kids go to school.  With Julia now in 4th grade, we are at a crossroads.  We will need to either transition her to a school near our house so she can make some friends before middle school OR we need to relocate near where her friends are, and have her go to middle school in Kyrene.  I have gotten so used to the kids being in the Kyrene system and having them close to where I work, I can't imagine moving Julia across town for school.  It is also really hard for our kids to have relationships with other kids outside of school... just a birthday party can mean up to an hour in the car going to and from....  And so we've decided to investigate the possibility of relocating into the Kyrene area.

This isn't a safe thing.  The real estate market is bad right now.  We still owe a sizable amount on our current home- and it isn't clear if we can make enough to cover all the fees, costs, commissions and walk away with a positive balance.  We need to make some small repairs to our house as well- and that will be additional money.

The upside is that houses are at an all time low.  We could get into the neighborhood that we want for the least amount of money- and get a fairly nice house in return.  We will likely need to dig into our savings, our safety net, to make a down payment on the new house. 

We have some time.  2 years until Julia goes to middle school.  But who has the crystal ball that would tell us if the housing market will stay the same or get worse (we already know that it will likely not get better).  Should we wait, hoping it will get better, and we can walk away with a little more?  Or should we move forward, knowing that it is possible that in 6 months it will not be financially feasible AT ALL?

These are hard decisions, hard conversations... especially for the 'safe' folks.  We want what is right for our family, but we are trying to balance the financial end with things that are less tangible like schools and friends and commutes.  What is it worth to us to relocate?  Is it worth part of our savings- our safety net?  Is it worth the financial risk?  What if we make the wrong decision?  Is now the time?  (and am I HORRIBLY LAZY for thinking that it is almost fall... when we have birthdays and Christmas and everything else and I really don't want to have to keep my house spotless for the 90-120 days it will probably take to sell our house?)

Wow... what started as an 'what about' conversation between Joe and I when we were at the Salty Senorita early this summer has suddenly turned into what could be a life altering decision....

What are your thoughts?  Have you ever taken a risk like this?  I'd love to hear your thinking... post a comment, please!!
C

PS  I do want you all to know that Joe and I have a Realtor that we have a great deal of trust in.  We have been talking to him for a few weeks, met with him tonight, and he is a great fit for us.  He is factual and kind and willing to wait it out with us.  We are going to see a financial adviser next week.  That will hopefully put more perspective on the entire situation and provide us with more answers about just how much of a risk we may be taking.... (just wanted you all to know that we are still being 'safe' even if we are thinking about making a decision that isn't our normal style....)

Another Year Has Begun....

The 2010-2011 school year has officially begun!

There are lots of traditions tied to the back to school season in our house (seriously, what isn't a huge tradition for us?  I swear I can turn just about anything into a tradition...)  Anyway, the kids always spend the last week before school starts hanging out with Nana and Papa.  And, this week always includes a shopping trip.  And, since Miss Julia was in preschool, Nana and Papa have always bought her a '1st day of school dress'. (note the word dress here, it will become important in a minute) 

So... as traditions go, Nana and Papa took the munchies shopping this week.  Colin dreaded the shopping (okay, so something has happened in the last few months that suddenly I have a BOY! B-O-Y, boy and he hates all things shopping or anything that could possibly in any way be thought of as girly.  He has also mastered farting with his hands and burping loudly.) but Julia was kinda excited.  I wasn't on the trip, so I only know what happened second hand, but rumor is that Miss Julia and Nana had a great deal of fun picking out and trying on, and Papa got stuck trying to keep Colin happy.  Julia came home with three (count them THREE) new tops, a pair of pants, and nooooo dress.  (Sigh.  She is growing up.)  Colin came home with two new shirts that he basically could have cared less about.  (Sigh.  He is growing up.)  The only downside was that Miss Julia and I decided that none of her current shoes would work with her new beautiful outfits (and this deserves a whole post or something of its own, but let's just say that I'm not signing up to take that girl shoe shopping again anytime soon!)

With the Nana and Papa shopping trip over, and Miss Julia with new shoes, we were ready for Meet the Teacher Night.  Mr. Furedy had pick up duty from Nana and Papa's house as I was already at the school pitching in to help get everything ready (I am really blessed this year that one of the programs I work with has been housed at the school where my children attend.  This makes nights like Meet the Teacher much easier because I can be there both professionally and as a mom without a ton of guilt.)  Mr. Furedy and the kiddos arrived right on time... and they were so excited.  Both of the kids were thrilled to find out who their teachers were (although Colin was a little upset when he found out that I've known who his teacher is for most of the summer and I didn't tell him!  Ooops....).

Julia will be spending her 4th grade year with Miss Umina  
(who is getting married in June... for those of you who are following this teacher saga- her 2nd grade teacher had twins, her 3rd grade teacher got married, and now her 4th grade teacher is getting married too... I'm starting to think that Julia is a good luck charm for her teachers!) 

She will also return to GR with Ms. Munsinger.
(these two are like peas in a pod... look how they are even color coordinated!) 

Colin will be spending his 2nd grade year with Mrs. Corbett.
(I think this is the cutest picture of the two of them....)

And, as always, once Meet the Teacher was over, we had dinner out.  Just one more tradition.

The weekend between Meet the Teacher and school starting was great.  Joe took Julia to a canyoneering class.  Colin went to karate.  We all went over to Nana and Papa's house to celebrate Nana's birthday with swimming, pizza and brownies (sugar free for the Nana of course!).  We spent Sunday cleaning, organizing, doing laundry and some last minute shopping (Julia's teacher requested a betta fish as a class pet, so we got the pleasure of picking him out!).

Monday morning dawned bright and early and the kids were very excited.  Here they are in the traditional, in front of the fountain poses...

Miss Julia Furedy- 9 years old- 4th grade
(BREAKING tradition by NOT wearing the same outfit on the first day as she did at Meet the Teacher- we decided those pants would just be toooo hot!)

Mr. Colin Furedy- 7 years old- 2nd grade
(Keeping the tradition of the same outfit, not that he really cared in the least....)

They are both growing and changing so fast.... I think this is really going to be a year of change for both of them.  Here's to a great one!  (and pray, please pray for their teachers!)