The boys (and girl) are back in town!

We finally have our animals back! It has been a monumental task to try to move our pets from Memphis to Little Rock to Sterling, but finally the task has been accomplished. It couldn't have happened without my fantastic grandparents who animal-sat (and only got a little attached...) for two months. I don't know what we would do without you! Unfortunately, J was pretty miffed about the timing of the entire situation. Since we had them driven from AR to VA, we pretty much had to follow the schedule of the drivers. J was headed back to Memphis to work with his replacement for the week and left on Wednesday morning (if you can call it that; the sun didn't rise for four hours after we left the house...). Well, the way the drivers had scheduled it, our pets were supposed to arrive either late Wednesday or Thursday morning. The fantastic ladies that run Precious Pets Transport (shameless plug, right? Definitely use them if you need to move your pets cross country!) drove through the night and had my lovelies here by 11:00 pm Wednesday night. I don't know if they were loving it as much as I was because they were still trying to get their bearings, while I was trying to love and kiss them, possibly to death. Well, bearings were established, mostly, and all I can say is that it is so nice to have my babies help fill up this gargantuan house. Now to settle in for the 18" of snow that we are supposed to get...

What a week!

So, for those of you who haven't heard, we are officially home owners! We no longer have to have a P.O. Box for mail because we officially have an address: 2 McCarty Court, Potomac Falls, VA 20165! Send all the mail you want as long as you don't expect us to pay for anything (that means you, Honda!)

Along with all of the fun that comes with moving into a new home comes the fun of redecorating the home to your particular tastes, and we have wasted NO time in commencing with the tremendous undertaking of simply peeling wall paper and painting this three story behemoth. Let's see how this has all gone down:

Day 1: Ten minutes after mover arrive, snow begins to fall and doesn't quit for over 12 hours. I was so glad that there were other people having to get wet and cold to put my crap where I told them to. Much to my dismay (yet a blessing in disguise), they did not unpack and remove all of the boxes.

Day 2: Commence unpacking. I knew that we had a lot of crap, but HOLY COW! I didn't realize just how jammed into that little condo we really were. Our kitchen is still completely overloaded, but at least we have a pantry and an attic and a garage. Storage space has become my new favorite thing!

Day 3: I finished unpacking all of my boxes. Everything on the top two floors was in its place, even if its surroundings were unfinished. What a tremendous feeling of accomplishment to know that I had only been in my house two nights and I had unpacked everything that I could.

Day 4: I decided that it was time to start scrapping some of the horrible wall paper. I completely cleared out the dining room of all of the disgusting border, and removed half of the horrific stuff from the kitchen. I also decided that it was time to start some baking. J was really excited to have some homemade chocolate chip cookies and spaghetti sauce when he came home.

Day 5: Crunch time. Movers were bringing J's new Christmas present tomorrow, the movers are picking up empty boxes tomorrow, and his man cave was still littered with stuff. I unpacked everything in his area, put it away, cleaned up, and moved on to the much more monumental task of peeling the rest of the wall paper upstairs. I finished the kitchen, cleared out two bedrooms upstairs, and demolished our bathroom while removing the nasty decor (nothing major! I mean, who can't put up a shower curtain she knocked down?). By this point, I am exhausted, but my work is not done.

Day 6: I finish clearing out our bedroom from the border that threw up on our walls and venture to the man cave to start clearing out all of the horrendous wall coverings. Amidst all of my soak and scrape activities, I take delivery of the Christmas present as well as practically hug while jumping the men from the moving company who have come to remove our boxes. I think this must be a record! Only five nights in our house and we are completely box free! It doesn't matter that it wasn't tons and tons and tons of stuff, right?

Day 7: I finally finish the mammoth task of de-wall papering the basement. Thank god the stuff was not on EVERY wall and that it was not put up well. I don't know what I would have done if it were superglued to every single stinkin' surface. Well, after I had scraped all of the nasty stuff down, I notice that there is a dark spot on the drywall... Little did J know that I had such a surprise for him when he came home! We decided that what happened was someone had put something wet near the wall and the drywall ate it up. We punched out all of the wet stuff and the insulation and trim were dry. Thank God for small miracles (and small holes!)

Day 8: We venture to the OTHER side of Lowe's. You know, the side with the lumber and drywall and masonry stuff, well away from the light bulbs and grills. We actually purchased something from that side and patched the big hole that we put in our wall. You can't even tell it's there unless we tell you where to look or unless you've built a house before. After we spackle our brains out, we start taping off the basement to start the massive undertaking of painting the man cave. Taping took FOREVER! Guess how long it took to prime the next day...

Day 9: I spent the entire day priming the man cave while J finished up the patch job. I have never primed so much in my life. I didn't really realize just how big our basement actually is until I started priming. I quickly remembered the fact that J once told me that "our condo could fit in the basement." HOLY CRAP! I hate painting now, but unfortunately I still have the rest of the house to do. Think it's too late to try to hire professionals and pay them in baked goods?

Day 10: I finished priming the behemoth and started with the actual painting. I got half of the basement painted, but the best part is... it needs TWO coats! Woo hoo! I guess I can't complain about being bored for the rest of the year (2010, not 2009...). I was actually really pleased with the color. I think it looks so much better than in did this time last week. But I am so tired.... I'm glad I don't have kids, or twins. I don't think I'd make it.

So, after 10 nights of sleeping in our new house, we are practically wall paper free, but there is plenty of painting left to do for those of you that are ready for trip to DC. We will be more than happy to put you up, but we do charge by the painted square foot! Soon, I will be happily resting in Alabama with my in-laws, celebrating the best time of the entire year. What a much needed break that will be. I'll try to do better about updating more often, but it's a pain to scrape all of the dried paint off my hands before I touch the computer. Much love!

E

Merry Christmas to ALL!

What an incredible night! I can't believe how lucky we were to have won the lottery and attend the National Christmas Tree Lighting. I have never seen something so amazing. Let the holiday season begin!

Once we waited in the obligatory line for at least an hour, we were able to run through the lawn of the White House and find seats directly next to the HUGE Christmas tree. J was so sweet, asking "Do you want to move in to seats a little more in the center of section?" I was like, "HECK, NO! We are right freakin' next to the NATIONAL CHRISTMAS TREE!" So we sat on the outskirts of the seated section, directly in the gale-force, icy blasts of wind (not really, it was like 48 degrees, but it felt arctic). It was incredible to see the monstrosity of the tree. I think next year J may be out of luck because I think I want one just like it. After another hour of sitting in the near frigid temperatures behind the behemoth of a person who decided she needed to stand up to talk to the person who was sitting next to her, the festivities began. The "President's Own" Marine Corps Band playing an incredible array of festive songs, which of course I sang along with, despite dirty looks from my husband and others. To our great surprise, Randy Jackson (sup, dawg!) was hosting the event for the television audience, and we were mere yards from his back and the television cameras. I don't know we will be visible in the broadcast, but we were close enough that J could have hit him with a football (he even claims he could do it left handed...) The first performer of the evening was Jordin Sparks, from American Idol. She did a great job and was very high energy, but was unfortunately shown up by her predecessor. Sheryl Crow did a fantastic job, especially since she dedicated her performance to all of our dedicated troops fighting for our nation over seas. After the beautiful performances, several people gave some speeches about how this National Tree lighting was monumental for this reason and that reason. Then, President Obama gave his speech. Now, regardless of your particular political affiliation, it was very impressive to be about 100 yards from our nation's President and hear him in person address the audience. I was impressed, but not for the last time of the evening! Next came the countdown to the lighting. When President Obama pressed the button to light all 57 trees, it was breathtaking. After all of the tree were lit, I stopped paying attention to everyone else on stage. I was oogling a tree, and it was awesome! Once I was able to divert my attention away from the tree, I realized that I was being read to. Michelle Obama read "The Night Before Christmas" to several children on the stage, and I felt like I was six years old again. I couldn't believe I was hearing one of my favorite stories being read to me by the first lady. After she so eloquently read the timeless tale, Celtic Woman performed Carol of the Bells, another of my favorite holiday traditions. I was in awe!

Despite my near frozen toes (apparently socks would have been a good idea, regardless of the rest of my stylish attire), it was an incredible night. I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to share in such a special, time honored tradition by a simple luck-of-the-draw. It was a wonderful way to start this beloved holiday season, especially with my wonderful husband by my side. If you would like to watch this incredible event, tune in to you local public television station beginning December 4, or log onto www.thenationaltree.org and watch the event online. It is definitely worth the time! Amidst all of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, despite the many economic shortfalls that we are all facing, this special celebration is a great way to begin preparing yourself for the true meaning behind this time of year: peace within yourself, peace within your relationships, and giving of yourself and what you have to those around you. Merry Christmas!

E

Have a Holly Jolly Weekend

Let the fun times begin! I can't believe that it's really been six weeks since we initially came up to Virginia to find ourselves somewhere to put down roots. Now here it is, only two more days before closing! But, before that big milestone, we must cross a few other bridges. Tonight we have our final walk through of our beautiful home. I can't wait, because this is the first time since J and I put in our offer that we have been back together. I am also excited because we are going when it is dark outside. Why would that make a rats behind of difference, you ask? CHRISTMAS LIGHTS!!!! I can't wait to see what our new neighborhood looks like as people are decorating their homes for the Christmas season. As exciting as this is, still not the coolest thing between today and closing. Tomorrow, J get to take a half day of work (lucky him, I know) because we are going to the NATIONAL CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING! I cannot wait. It's going to be incredible. Sheryl Crow, Jordin Sparks, and Celtic Woman are all scheduled to perform, and then the 57 Christmas trees on the property of the White House will be lit. I am beside myself because there is nothing I love more than Christmas. After we experience this wonderful holiday festivity, we get to close on our house at 10am on Friday morning. I am ready to be in our house and out of this blasted hotel room! I will spend part of my day cleaning up around the house and trying to prepare everything for the movers to show up on Saturday. Yet, before this most excellent step in our moving process, we are to attend J's company Christmas party. Nothing like being able to wear the same dress twice, especially in one week. It's going to be incredible. Again, there is nothing I love more than Christmas!

Then comes Saturday morning! No more nights in the Extended stay, no more trips around the mall parking lot, no more paying to do my laundry in the crappy, floody washing machines. Hopefully, we can get everything situated in our house without complication. I have never been so ready for one weekend since nine months ago! ;)

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and PEACE OUT Extended Stay!

E