How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

Again, I am in love. A few weeks ago it was LimeWire.com I haven't given up on them, oh no no no, but I'm on a different love kick now. IKEA. I have been here in San Diego about 1 month now and I think we've been to that store 4 times. I feel blissfully happy the moment I walk in the door. The smells, the sights, the sound of ABBA playing in the background...heaven. I sing the entire time I am there. The kids play. We are all (well, most of us, probably not Steve in all honesty) happy. Some people were canvassing our neighborhood three or four days ago, dropping off brand new IKEA catalogs. I read mine cover to cover the first night I had it. I turned corners of pages. We had our yard sale on Saturday and sold about $300 of junk. At the last minute, I grabbed up the bench that we had inside our door...if I could sell this, I could convince hubby to buy me the LEKSVIK shoe rack...it is a bench to sit on and it also has cubby holes for **8** pairs of adult shoes.
Think of it, no more shoes just kicked off and thrown everywhere at the front door! (For those of you who don't know, we take our shoes off at the door...a custom we picked up in Iceland and really enjoy as it keeps the carpet cleaner longer) Well, we did manage to sell that bench for $40...better than I even imagined it would go for! Next on the list is the FUSION kitchen table.
It is very interesting and very comfortable. I can picture the kids sitting around it doing homework while I cook...or me sitting around it with a girlfriend or two and sharing coffee while we chat. I love it! I am utterly addicted to the IKEA way of life. I might have to get a job to support my habit!

What is that thing?!?!

We had a bit of an interesting time Sunday afternoon. While swimming in our pool, Steven said to me "Put your goggles on and come look at this." Of course, I asked a hundred questions before I would go look..."What is it? Is it a dead bird? Is it going to freak me out? I don't trust you." Turns out, we had a crawfish (crayfish, whatever!) in our pool!!! Steve helped Delaney scoop it out and all of the kids got a kick out of looking at it. It has some really beautiful orange spots on it's big claw. After a little while, we put it in the tank with Abbie (our red ear slider turtle) where it seems to be living happily now. I spoke to Alfred, the pool guy, about it on Monday to find out if it is a common occurance, you know, to get in your pool and be swimming with a crawdad. He said he has never heard of such a thing. We have no idea where it came from since there are no streams or creeks (or "cricks", for some of you) around here. Very weird.

Our zucchini plants are going to town and growing fast. Too many flowers to count! I'm psyched. We have 2 sweet bell peppers forming (isn't it amazing how fruits and veggies grow right out of the flowers?!) and Delaney picked one ripe tomato tonight and there is another one that will be ready in a day or two. I love having a vegetable garden almost more than a flower garden because there is so much reward for the labor.

Today was soooo much cooler. By 20 degrees! I think the high was 78 and there was a beautiful cool breeze blowing all day. It was overcast and a bit misty now and then. Perfect! I took the kids to a new park which is near Delaney's new school. They had a blast and we stayed over an hour and a half. Then we came home, had lunch, swam, and took naps. Well, as always, some of us took naps, mainly Delaney did not so Mama did not!

I started doing yoga again last night. I got half-way through the session when my friend Merna called. I met her when I moved to FL her hubby is also military...she has b/g twins who are 6 now. She moved out here to CA when my babies were only 4 or 5 months old. It was so nice to talk to her again, I really missed her positive energy in my life. She lives almost an hour away (north) from us so I don't think I'll be able to visit her every week but we are going to go up next week for her kids' birthday party. It is nice to know there is a friend kind of close by. I've felt very isolated this week.

I'm trying to find a playgroup for the twins. I found a place today called "Murphy Canyon Youth Center" so I'm going to be calling over there tomorrow to see what kind of programs they have going on. It is a military building and sponsored by MWR. Very close to home for us. Yay!

It's hot!

The thermometer inside our house has finally gone over 100F. The past week or so, temps have been warm but bearable and we haven't felt the need to complain much. Today, we finally reached our breaking point and installed an air conditioning window unit. It was offered by our neighbors, they said they couldn't fit it into their windows. Steven has found a way to make it fit in ours! We put it in the play room...not that we spend much time in there but because it seemed like the best location for containing the cool air. Also, it is a room that we all can use and we all can sleep in if need be. The kids really hate being stuck in there but maybe this will change their minds?!

I think almost all of our boxes have finally been opened. Yesterday, we sorted through sweaters and winter items. We know it gets cool here so we don't want to get rid of too much. Besides the fact that we are only here for 1 year and then will head somewhere...and who knows where! We hate the thought of having to buy new again if we get back to the east coast.

Today I went through my closet. I bet I got rid of 20% of it...I had done a pretty good look-through when we lived in FL. Today I was able to let go of most of the clothes I bought during grad school. Can you believe I've been dragging all of that around since 1993??? No more guilt. It's time for it to go!

We are off tonight to Target. The boy has fallen out of his bed twice now so we MUST find a safety rail for him. I guess those odds aren't too terrible...twice in, what, three or four weeks? I put a pillow on the floor to cushion him in case he did fall and he did again last night. He is so active when he sleeps. Sometimes when I look in at him, his head is at the foot of the bed or he is completely sideways. He is still so little and much smaller than his sisters. He is trying very hard to swim right now, I bet he is dreaming about swimming at night and that is why he moves so much!

Steve starts classes full-time on Monday. He thought he would be having 1 class that would last from 9-12. At the last orientation session on Friday, the professors pulled out a second syllabus and said "And now, for your second class..." so he will attending school Monday through Friday from 9-5. Bummer for me as I will have to juggle getting Delaney to and from school with the babies every day. Her school goes from 8:30 until 2:30, I think. 2:30 is probably the WORST time of day for me to have to pick her up since the twins nap from 2-4:30 or 5. Ugh. I am planning on talking to the teacher to see what goes on after lunchtime...if it is just lunch/nap/playtime, I will go get her around 1 or 1:30. Hopefully they do all of the curriculum in the mornings!

It's been pretty quiet around here this week. Well, we did visit IKEA Thursday. I don't know how I survived without that place for the last 3 years. OMG, the kids have the best time when we go there! Delaney checked into the kids play room while we shopped. The babies played upstairs in the kids department on the slide and the chairs/toys because they are too little to go into the play room. After about an hour, we went back to get Delaney and then we all had lunch together in their little cafe. Even the eatery has a play area for the kids. For less than $20, we can all eat AND be happy! Imagine that. I know Delaney would be happy if we went there every day. I get to walk around and dream. Steve and I have different tastes for decorating so I'll probably never get the furniture I want from there, but who knows what will happen when we get out of the Navy in 10 years!

That's about all for now. Maybe I'll actually have something interesting to post tomorrow.

I'm sooo in love!

www.limewire.com THANK YOU, HEIDI!!! We have finally found a few "spare" moments to upload songs into our new MP3 players. I'm so in love with Limewire and my Creative player! Steve has re-created one of my long-lost favorite cassette tapes...well, I guess it wasn't really long lost because I have hung onto it all of these years (I received it from my dad for Christmas in 1982 - the year I got my first "Walkman" knock off) even though it stopped playing about 18 years ago. The cassette is by K-Tel and called "The Beat"...all new wave music of the early 80's...A Flock of Seagulls, Thompson Twins, Go Go's and more. I also downloaded Sophie Ellis-Bexter's "Murder on the Dance Floor" tonight and will soon be after a few other songs as soon as the kids are in bed. WOW. I'm jazzed!

Monday, we went up to Miramar, the Marine Corps base and did some shopping. Originally we were going for a plunger and groceries at the commissary. We ended up with a few plants for in our backyard and had lunch there as well. We got 3 tomato plants, a small flat of zucchini, 2 sweet bell pepper plants, and some different purple flowering plants to mix in with all of the orange going on out there. I will upload some photos in a few days. I know I keep saying that!!!

Today we didn't do much really. Steve and William went to get haircuts. The girls and I walked the dog around the block...they really like to do that here! We saw Luna in the sky at 9:30 in the morning and they were all excited about that. Later, we had lunch and swam a bit. Steve and I worked in Delaney's room cleaning up the big mess the babies had made over the past few days and just organizing it in general. There is a shelf that runs the length of her room and I'm afraid of heights so I needed him to get up there and put all of her cuddlies up. By doing that, we were able to empty a crush bin and now she can use that for laundry instead of all of those animals.

Steve goes tomorrow for his first day at the school. It's not really classes but his introduction to the ROTC unit that will supervise him (for lack of a better word) and do all of the administrative stuff while he is here in San Diego going to school.

Guess I should close for now. William is at my feet and bugging me. I need to get the kids in bed.

Bronx Pizza

After another HOT day and more unpacking and swimming, we decided to go out for dinner. Donnie (Steve's cousin) told us about a NY-style pizzeria called "Bronx Pizza" in downtown San Diego. Talk about perfect timing...we pulled up and not only was there a spot right outside the front door but there was also a table just inside waiting for us. The pizza was pretty good and the place was packed. Tinna and Delaney complained the whole way there that they "don't like pizza" but they ate their fair share and had fun doing it. The pizza joint is in the Hillcrest area of the city and is known for it's trendy restaurants and gay bars. We had fun people watching. The really fat (sorry, but it's true) oriental cowgirl was probably the highlight of the evening. Her stomach was hanging out of what appeared to be a half-shirt and she had a very fancy belt around her bare middle. Very strange indeed. I prayed under my breath that Delaney would not say "Mommy, she's FAT" like she has done in the past. Lucky for me, my prayers were answered and she kept her mouth shut. (She also can tell you that men who sport mullet cuts are "rednecks". OOPS!!!)

It's now 11pm Pacific time. Steve has been working on our new ceiling fan for close to two hours. Did I say this house has NO AC?!?! The temps have been over 90 in here for the past week. We have been around to almost all of the local stores and no one has any window "box" fans in stock. Apparently 85+ is a heat wave or something...at least that is what I heard on the radio a few days ago. We are hoping the new ceiling fan will help move the air around a bit better. I have been sleeping pretty well at night and William actually wakes up crying around 1 or 2am because he is too cold. Delaney has a new comforter from IKEA and she has been sleeping under it every night so I don't think the heat bothers her much either. That or she **really** loves the comforter...which might be the case as the cover has primary colored numbers all over it. I really thought she would go for the girly prince/princess cover but she was certain numbers were for her. Good girl! Maybe she'll be smarter in math than her mother is.

I still have not yet finished Njal's Saga...when I find it in this house again, that is what I'm going to be reading. Last week (pre-household goods delivery) I read the Second Summer of the Sisterhood which is the second book in the "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" series. It was great and shocking. Has anyone else read it? I can't wait to get my hands on the third one.

Let's see...it is nice to have our DISH back. I watched

The Family Stone and Nanny McPhee this week. I was not disappointed in either movie. We thought Delaney would like Nanny McPhee as she likes Mary Poppins and kept asking to see this one but she walked out after 45 minutes of it...I think it is still a bit over her head.

I think that's all of my ramblings for tonight. Perhaps Steven has all of the screws off the bed and I can get some kip now.

Hello from Box Mountain!

This will be a quick post, basically to say hello to everyone out there. I'm missing my friends and family terribly these days. Steve was away in NY for most of last week so it's just been me and the kids and the boxes. I did get out with the kids one day to go to a nearby park and then to Wal-Mart for some shopping. Yesterday, we went to the local grocery store. When I got home, I had a flat tire, sooooo, it's a good thing hubby is home now! LOL!

I'm still struggling under the box mountains here. I swear the loading men sprinkled magic dust on the boxes so when one was unpacked, it would multiply into a new box. We will be having one hell of a yard sale, that is certain!

It's been so long since I've been able to post OR email. We signed up with AT&T "SBC Yahoo!" DSL service. Ugh. It seems like nothing but problems so far. We are hoping to get it cleared up soon. I was without service altogether while Steven was gone and now that he is back, this DSL line is slower than dial-up! It is very frustrating to sit here for 3 or 4 minutes while a page loads or eventually times out. Sheesh. It takes me back to the days of true modem dial-up on my 386 and the l-a-g I'd experience while chatting on the Cleveland Freenet. I'm showing my age, eh?

Need to sign off for now and get the day started. Maybe we'll have the house under control by the end of next week and actually get out to experience some of San Diego. I felt suicidal (yes, seriously) two days ago with all of the mess and the kids stringing toys from one end of the house to the other and being out here all alone. It just seems like it will never come together for us but maybe now that Steve is back home it will be easier?

Gold shag and partridges

I haven't had much of a chance to sit and write lately, we've been a bit busy keeping the kids entertained and scouting out the area for stores and such. The movers came yesterday...I won't really even go into that since I'm very annoyed...part of our large shipment is missing and the entire "overflow" shipment is AWOL as well. Who knows if it will ever show up. We are surrounded by box mountains. I have already started the "Yard Sale" boxes and am chucking as much as I can stand to part with.

Some of you might be wondering about our house. It is very non-descript from the outside. White, small, boxy, typical California, built in the 60's I am guessing. It looks teeny tiny from the outside. Inside, it is pretty spacious, certainly will be good enough for a year. There is no AC so we rely on fans to keep us cool. Today it was in the 90's and our house is at least that hot. It cools off enough for sleeping at night but daytime is miserable. Lucky for us, there seem to be steady breezes that blow outdoors so we spend as much time as we can out on the patio or in the pool.

That's the outside. Now, let's talk about the INSIDE. Seriously, the carpet must have been installed in 1975 or earlier. A few of the rooms have ugly dark brown mottled looking stuff (the "office" carpet even has a big iron burn in it!) but the best is the gold shag in the living room. Looking at the sliding glass doors, you can see 3 partridge stickers just like the partridge symbol from, yes, you guessed it, the 1970's hit TV show "The Partridge Family"!!!

Tomorrow our RAV will be delivered and the DISH person will come and give us back our TV channels again. Yay! EastEnders next Sunday night!

Oh! I almost forgot...the twins are both out of cribs now. They slept in their big boy and big girl beds last night for the first time. They did pretty well. William woke up cold in the middle of the night and then Tinna woke up screaming bloody murder around 5 am because William climbed into her bed and scared her, I guess. No one got out and tried to run around the house. I was really surprised that they stayed in bed from the get-go. Thank G-d!!! I was dreading this change but thankfully they are handling it pretty well so far. Oh yes, also, we've had some success with the little potty today, too. Tinna made some poop and William some pee and all were pleased to do the "potty dance" and flush the toilet. Simple pleasures.

You'll be able to find me here all week unpacking boxes and screaming at the kids. They really cannot help themselves right now. There are chances for naughtiness everywhere they look. I'll try to post again in a few days if I can get some peace and quiet.

San Diego, California

I didn’t post Saturday night at the hotel because our free “high speed internet connection” was so slow that I lost patience with it. I’m writing this now from San Diego. I forgot to say in my post two days ago that we visited The Great Divide / Continental Divide on Friday. There isn’t much about it that is spectacular, only that when rain falls, it is the place on the continent where the rain to the west eventually ends up in the Pacific Ocean and the rain that falls to the east ends up in the Atlantic Ocean. Neat to see and it was a pretty view.

We DID go to the Grand Canyon yesterday (Saturday). The minute we pulled into our parking spot and prepared ourselves for a short walk, the rain came pouring down! What timing. We walked to a look-out to see the view. It was pretty impressive, even in the rain. The kids got cold, it was definitely jacket temps and they had on sleeveless clothes…so we went into a little gift shop/eatery and had a nosh. We stayed in the park about 2 hours in total…it rained on and off. The canyon was truly awesome in every meaning of the word…it is a sight that should not be missed. The minute we left the park, the rain stopped and it was beautiful again! Go figure.

Driving out of Grand Canyon, we started calling to find a hotel along Route 40. We were hoping to make it to Kingman, AZ…get there early, sleep, and get back on the road. Unfortunately, there were no hotels in Kingman with vacancies. Hmmm. We ended up backtracking a bit and heading down I-17 to Phoenix, AZ. There was nothing special about Phoenix except it was much hotter than up north. The heat was almost unbearable, to be exact. Why people live there, we couldn’t tell…maybe the winters are so nice that it makes up for the heat???

Today we were on the road and heading out of Phoenix around 8:30 am. We saw lots of desert, cacti, and sand. We even were close enough while driving along I-8 that we could see Mexico! We drove through border patrol but they didn’t stop us. No excitement there. There were lots of mountains once we started really getting into California. Everything here in San Diego is on a hill of some sort. I think I’ll be nervous the entire time I live here and I’ll bet my emergency brake will be worn out, too!

We got to our “new” house around 3:15 or so this afternoon (Pacific Time). We unloaded the U-Haul and Odyssey while the kids ran around screaming “Can we swim yet???” I called Liz to let her know we got here safely. William was pushing buttons on the dishwasher and I was trying to smack his hands and turn it off when I started smelling something hot. I thought it was the dishwasher but as I sniffed, it didn’t get stronger there. I checked back in the new playroom area because there is a defunct heater in the hall way…it wasn’t that. At the same time I’m telling Liz “Something smells like it is burning”, I hear Steven come in the kitchen door and say “What’s burning?” We are both panicking by this time and I say to Liz, “Have to go.” And hang up on her. Steven and I realized at the same time that one of the kids had turned on the stove (knobs are on the front and not on top like our last one) and the boxes on top were smoldering. OH SHIT!!!! He threw the boxes down and I started screaming “That one’s on fire” and some sparks or something landed on the top of my foot while we were trying to get the thing put out. Just what we need in our new home. Everyone was safe, my foot will heal (there are a few blisters but I’ll survive). This is actually our third flirtation with fire in a new home. Hopefully it’s our last. How could we have been so stupid?! It made us realize that this house doesn’t have any smoke detectors so we made a trip to Wal-Mart tonight to get some. How can a house in 2006 not have any smoke detectors??? We feel very lucky that we caught it when we did. I’m still a bit shaken about it but everything is off the stove now and tomorrow will find us trying to find items to kid proof the kitchen.

I was very happy to have INDIAN curry for dinner tonight. I can’t believe we have more than 1 Indian restaurant within a 3 mild radius of our house. It is cheaper here than it was in Tampa, too, so that is good already!

Well, it is late here and the kids have been waking up early so I’m going to close this for now. We have no internet connection yet. If you are reading this, it is because one of us has made a trip to Starbuck’s to get coffee and upload/check email. Hopefully it won’t be too terribly long before we have a connection at home. I think we will get hot water tomorrow…everything is gas out here so we have to wait for it to be turned on.