I'm writing this from Ivy Cottage.

This 1930's-era house is now connected to the Internetz.  How cool is that?  The phone company installed phone and DSL yesterday, and Toby brought over one of our computers from home to make sure it was all functional.  So, before we had beds or anything else here, we had a computer hooked to the internet, sitting on the floor in the corner of the library.
Last night Toby and I moved over our bed and the big kids' bed, the couches, and the fridge.  What I call "the necessities of life."  Is the house finished enough that having our stuff here won't complicate things?  Probably not.  However, I'm hoping the psychological boost that comes from taking that big step and sleeping here will pay off.  Mostly, I'm just impatient.

More Progress.

This is Toby painting our living room.  It dried a bit darker, but no less eye-searing.  I do love it.  You can also see the red dining room a bit to the right.
 
Meet my new favorite chair.  She will be in the library, I think.  We're making slow progress on the house, what with church jobs, trying not to neglect the kids, still making a living, and so forth. I'm hoping we'll begin moving this weekend.  Fingers crossed.

Gratuitous cute little girl picture.

My new button-down shirt.  I have issues with bust/waist ratio and finding a shirt that flatters both.  This genius shirt has knit side panels and works for all my mismatched parts.  I actually don't even mind this picture.

Post Name or Something.

We are slowly making progress toward moving into our new house. We're down to finishing a few things in each room, and then time to pack up our belongings and go.
Vea has graciously traded tomorrow's Hen Day to me, so we can all work together to make it so.

Last week, I was tired and worn out and kind of resented the time-suck the Ivy House has become. We have decided it's neat enough and sturdy enough to live in indefinitely, so we're trying hard to finish things before moving. We've learned the very long and hard way that it's much harder to work on any home improvement projects while occupying said home.

Some projects have dragged on past funny. I'm talking to YOU, sanding the wood floors. Some projects have popped up unexpectedly, like hanging new sheetrock on the dining room and bedroom ceilings. Mostly, it's just lots of work and not enough time. I spend a lot of time half-handedly trying to accomplish something while Loch hangs from my hip.

Today, I walked around the house and fell in love with the place again. The setting is lovely, in a little cup of a valley with a nice mix of run-down fields and trees. All the leaves are coming out, and when the sun warms up, everything smells green and wonderful. I inherited two lilac bushes, and roses, and four fruit trees of some kind. Out behind the tumble-down shed, there are wild blackberry bushes with tiny nubs of green berries already growing.

Toby and I used to discuss our ideal "dream property." Our wish list included rolling hills, big trees, a few acres for kids to run, seclusion, location near both sets of parents. We have everything we wanted, and more. I must remember that, when I get impatient. This will be a great place for us all to play and grow up.

Did I mention that Sunday,the kids spent HOURS outside playing? How awesome is that?

Family Time.

My aunt and uncle from Florida were visiting Missouri the past week. We have a tradition that the whole family celebrates Easter when they come to visit. This year, we were only one week after the rest of the country. We all had a great time and ate lots of delicious food together, as is also our tradition.
The last night we were all together, my mom brought out some old pictures for us all to look through. I found some awesome ones of Toby and me when we were dating. We were both so hot back in the day...
Anyway, before we left for the night, Mom wanted us all to have what she called 'a singing." Now, my family is generally musical. My mother and sister have beautiful alto and soprano voices, respectively. I don't really sing much. The whole idea made me squirm a bit, and I considered leaving earlier to miss out.
My family was raised in the now-defunct Newtonia Methodist Church. It's where my Grandma and PaPa took their young family, and it's where Mom and Laural and I attended until I left for college. Lots of us have joined other faiths since: I'm Mormon, and we have Baptist, Church of Christ, and Christian Science members in the family.
Mom passed out a stack of hymnals that she was given when the old church shut down. We had about thee different versions, so finding each song was a challenge. We started to sing...I blushed a bit, and looked at the floor. It was tentative at first, but these were songs we all had known from infancy. I didn't even need to look at the words.
Those songs...I was a little girl, and sitting next to Grandma and PaPa again. Grandma would draw us little pictures to keep us entertained in church. She always drew jack-o-lanterns and cats, because that's what she knew how to draw. Grandma had a beautiful voice, and I loved to hear her sing at church and at home while she worked.
Since joining another church, I don't hear the songs from my childhood all that often. I'm so glad I stayed and participated. It was unexpectedly beautiful and nostalgic. Thanks, Mom.

Setting My Sights on the Improbable: To Do This Week.

Business

Take pictures of skirts & list.

Take fabric pictures & list.

Call Cheeptrims.

877-289-8745

Cut black ECTR bodices.

Paisley Pirate Coat Replacement

Bustle Vixen

Purple WC

Check Ready-Made orders.

Make 3-5 RTS bodices every day & list.

Family

Mo Taxes

Send Bills on Dresser

Make week plan & menu plan.

Buy Groceries.

Pack up books.

Fill 1 Walmart bag per day with Crosslines stuff.

Primary Meeting Wed.

New House

Install mailbox.

Finish painting Dining Room.

Finish Staining & Polyurethane floors.

Bedroom Ceiling

Close Bedroom Doorways

Patch & Paint paneling.

Replace bathroom wall(s)

Tape, texture & paint bathroom.

Paint & install vanity, counter, & faucets.

Paint Laundry room.

Paint kids' room.

Close door between kids' room & kitchen.

Pull carpet in kids' room.

Mouseproof kitchen cabinets.

Texture Living Room.

Paint Living Room.

Install door to garage.

Update.

We did sign the papers and now own the Ivy House.  I'm thinking of naming it Ivy Cottage, by the way.  I've always wanted to name a home, like in my favorite books:  Green Gables, Pemberley, Maplehurst, Thornhill, Northanger Abbey....
We've been hard at work, for most of the hours of the last several days.  We tore out some shag carpet so ugly that even I felt not a shred of remorse.  Toby rented a floor sander from Lowe's and spent hours pushing it around the floors.  The floors will be stained a lovely auburn, and be coated in polyurethane for easy cleaning.  We'll have wood floors in the living room, library (not so fancy, just the far end of the living room), dining room, and master bedroom.

Last week we let the kids help us paint the playroom.  It is a medium teal, the color of Thomas.  Can you guess who picked it?  We had the little kids strip down to underwear and let them go. Some of the paint even ended up on the walls....