good morning!!!

Because if you don't selfie, it didn't happen. The Parade of Homes was everything we thought it would be. Opulent, fancy, expensive, lovely, breathtaking, and just wow.


We had too much fun. There are booties to put on at each house entrance, to keep the floors clean. That was a work-out for me, putting those on and taking them off. :)


This house had a little room for kids! There was a small barn style sliding door, leading to a cozy room, lights in the ceiling, and toys and a rug...they had to duck to get in, but could stand in there, super cozy, and I would get in there myself and read a book.




A luxury shower!


(a huge closet!)


Not too shabby, eh?

I was pretty done after touring them all, up and down the stairs on my owie knee. But it was really fun. Some of the houses are already sold, but some still available, if you want to shell out $600,000. We agreed that if we had that kind of money, we would still live out in the country. I said that even if I had $50,000, or 5,000, to put into our existing house, I would be fine. But then we agreed that we love our house and we're fine anyway. The excess in those houses, and it's so unreal, so staged. One house had a baby's room, and there was this giant bird cage replica for books and toys, and I thought if a crawling baby ever pulled herself up on that thing...ugh.

Anyway, it was great fun. We went to a huge Home Goods store first, but only found some new sheets for Cam, and a bag of popcorn for me. Don't get me wrong, we found LOTS of things, but not that we wanted to shell out big money for. We are looking for a mirror for the girls new room, but we are willing to look for a while because we're not paying fifty or a hundred bucks. I'm really hoping thrift store, because I like painting the frames. They should make a reality home improvement show, for real people, with REAL budgets. Some of those shows, seriously? Six thousand dollars for a sofa. right.

Anyway. We stopped at the grocery store on the way home for milk and apple cider and salad fixings for the girls lunches, as well as bananas cheese sticks and ice cream and and and. When you have small children in the house, you NEED bananas.

Home...spaghetti, spaghetti squash, (mmm), sauce and meatballs.

Camille and I spent an hour and a half of quality time, cleaning up the room they've moved out of, so that Jonathan can get it ready to move in to. Push-pin tacks and hair ponies and socks and books, Barbie shoes and water bottles and and and. Wow. But, we're going through every single bin and bag, making sure they move only what they really really want to keep. Their room did not look THIS messy, I don't know where all this stuff came from.

It's almost done, then Jonathan can spackle, then sand, then wipe down the walls, paint, then rip up the carpet, then we'll put new laminate boards in, to look like wood.

Time and energy, more precious than gold, wish I had more of both.

Anne will be here soon, and Lydia soon after. Mali, Lyd's mama, is interviewing for a different job. Working night shifts, then day shifts, then back to nights, it's killing her. With a small child, when she works nights, it's hard to sleep during the days and she gets exhausted, plus she has way too many patients, the hospital she works for just stretches the nurses to breaking point. So she is considering a doctor's office or something different.

So today will be filled with little girls' spats about important little toys, and washing little hands and faces after banana snacks, and reading stories and making sure they don't open the drawer and get a glue stick to use for lip gloss. Lydia will be here for two nights.

So off I go to make sure this place is baby-proofed enough...