MY BOGGY BLOG: find your way through the murk

A House Full of Boys, Again

Hey, I'm back! I know it's been awhile. Things have been so chaotic around here with the big remodel project we undertook this spring. We got lots of unfinished projects done, and the biggie was the new bathroom in the attic (ah, to have a 2 bathroom house!) and the finishing of our bedroom area up there, too. We'd been living for a decade with no window trim or floor up there, so it always looked quite shabby. Now it has the trim, fresh painted walls and carpet. It's all very nice now that it is done (only finished a week ago), and I'm sure I don't need to go into the gory details of how much it throws a house into turmoil to have people stomping through all day, pounding and sawing. Needless to say, not a lot of writing got done!

And we've also been preparing for our trip to Germany. We have been lucky enough to arrange a month-long stay where we are trading houses with a family in Germany. We've never done a trip of this magnitude before, and of course, when you know people are going to be staying in your house, you want it to look its best. So lots and lots of stuff to do to get ready. It's been stressing me out. This really hits me in My Issues. I'm trying to step back and not freak out, keep it in perspective, but it's not easy.

And our twins turn 15 during our trip, so they wanted to get their birthday parties in before we leave the country. So in addition to getting ready for this trip, we are throwing 3 parties-- the boy party (tonight), the girl party (tomorrow), and the party with the family (next week). Luckily, at this age, the kids just entertain themselves and we are just here to provide food and clean up the mess. So not too much work.

Tonight is the house full of boys, playing video games, and DD has joined right in. Everyone in this family plays Halo now except me, and with the X boxes, they can link together and play in teams. They will probably be up most of the night.

But I did manage to have some fun myself tonight-- I talked DD into going downtown with me to the Aquatennial Block Party, a free event where you can roam the blocked-off streets and listen to live music. I haven't gone to this since DH and I were very young, before kids, and I worked downtown. Tonight, one of the 3 stages had the band Semisonic playing. They are a local band that had some national success with the song "Closing Time" in the 90s, and they never officially broke up, but they haven't played together in three years. I have their CDs and I like their music a lot, so I wanted to get the chance to see them. DD was reluctant, but I couldn't think of anybody else to go with, so I cajoled her into going. We rode the train downtown, walked over and sat in the grass and listened to the music. DD had a book with her so she could sit and read if she was bored. It was a gorgeous night with a clear sky and a breeze was cooliing down the 90 degree day. DD acually told me she had a great time and really enjoyed herself. So great--- I got what I wanted and she was happy too!

I can't believe it's almost 1 a.m. now! I don't plan on staying up all night with the boys, but I'm strangely not tired!

Posted by sapphire at July 15, 2006 12:35 AM