Cliff Notes

Just to let you know that we haven't fallen off the planet, here is the cliff notes version of our last few weeks.

Towards the end of August I started my new job as an internal auditor for Lowe's (home improvement, not the grocery store chain). Adam accepted a job with Penske (truck leasing, not racing), and his last day at Clemson will be Thursday. He'll be entering the management trainee program and he's pretty excited about it.

Last Monday the movers came and packed up our house. Adam stayed there for the rest of the week with the boys and dogs. Henry slept in his pack 'n play, and John Dickson camped out in his bedroom in his tent that Nana gave him for Christmas a couple of years ago (um, yes, he is old enough to say "a few years ago" - tear). Adam has been sleeping in his sleeping bag on John Dickson's floor and trying to share John Dickson's pillow after John Dickson falls asleep. You see, I left for NC last Sunday night (I stayed in Huntersville with Leslie, we are moving to Cornelius, I work in Mooresville, and Adam will work in South Charlotte). Knowing I'd have a pillow at Leslie's, I set my pillow in the "do not pack" pile so that Adam wouldn't forget to put his aside in the morning. However, Adam did forget to set his aside, along with John Dickson's, and so John Dickson has been sleeping on my heavenly pillow. Anyhoo, we finally got moved in on Friday, and despite my best efforts to unpack everything that day, I seem to have underestimated the task. We left the next morning to go back to Piedmont, and met my parents who took the boys for the weekend, and spent the rest of the weekend painting and cleaning. I brought them back and this week it's my turn to be outnumbered by the boys. Fortunately we have beds and a kitchen this time. I can't wait for Adam to get here on Friday. So far the boys have been great, and I'm not worried about them... but the empty boxes and trash piles are, well, piling up, and it's driving me INSANE!!!!! Call me paranoid, but I'm not about to leave the boys alone to haul it out to the dumpster. And I'm sure as heck not going to haul them out with me. (Side note, within less than 24 hours, we managed to make an enemy. A grumpy lady downstairs who yelled at our movers for propping the door to our building open (she suggested they pile it all on the steps and carry it at one time...an entire condo...) because she "has rights." The next morning I took the boys downstairs to take them to meet my parents, and she apparently came out of her apartment and came to the door of the building, holding it open and staring me down all the way to the car. Adam came up behind her, and she turned and said "another busy day I see..." and went back in to her grumpy quarters. Perhaps the first person ever not to like my kids. Interesting. Our house goes on the market next week, and when that sells, we'll start looking for a house.

Adam brought the boys over on Friday to eat lunch, and John Dickson marched right up to one of the movers and said "I have a bicycle." He asked him to repeat it and John Dickson said "I have a big big big helmet and a bicycle." So John Dickson has been telling everyone that we are going to live "in Uncle Jason's house." I thought he understood but was just not communicating it correctly. Apparently he was communicating exactly what he thought, because as he came up the stairs to check out the new digs, he said "I wonder if Maggie is going to be up here." And the conversation went like this:

"No, Maggie is at Erin and Jason's house."
"But this IS Erin and Jason's house."
"No, Erin and Jason don't live here."
"But, but, Ella lives here!"
"No, Ella lives at her house..."

And then a little while later:

"So... what kind of dogs we gonna get?"

Poor poor Boo and Ellie. They put up with so much, and apparently they are quite easily replaceable. They'll move with Adam this weekend. Ellie is staycationing with Midas (and Ashley and Jeff) this week and having a blast, I'm sure. I think little man was quite confused by no Maggie, no Bear and no Ellie. Surely we must be getting new dogs...

When we finally got upstairs and I was giving John Dickson the tour, I told him which room was his, to which his very concerned response was, "but... but... but where is my bed?!?!?!?"

So that's the latest around here. Just one more trip back to Piedmont this weekend to touch up the paint on the inside and finish the scrub down. And then, we collapse.