House Update

The doves are back, happily nesting on our front porch. Neither Chris nor I had the heart to keep chasing them away. I haven't actually looked, but I think Mama Dove has a few eggs she's sitting on. I haven't seen her leave the nest in over a week.

The house has been on the market for almost three months now. We have steadily dropped the price to what we originally felt we could sell it for, and now, with the price and the end of the tax credit looming, we've had a flurry of showings. It has been an emotional roller-coaster ride, and we are ready for it to be over. We've both come to the conclusion that we don't really care if we get every single penny possible out of the house and really hope that whoever buys the place will love it and feel incredibly blessed by it.

Last night, we got home around 7:15 and were about to settle back in and get the kids ready for bed, when some potential buyers showed up late. Chris acted the salesman, taking them through the house. They asked why we were moving, and he was able to assure them that we loved our house and neighbors, but were just looking for a different way of life in the country. They asked if the plumbing and electrical was updated, and he was able to show them. When he pointed out the box we installed on the front porch could handle a ceiling fan, they noticed Mama Dove. Who knows if they actually liked the place, but it felt good to know that at least some lookers knew the details.

After two evenings of showings and an open house coming up Sunday, I hope we get a break tonight.

A collborative poem

There once was a girl named Twinkle.
She had a pony named Winkle.
One day they went for a ride.
Along the trail they did find
A rabbit who's color was white
And its eyes were blue so bright.
They took her home
To their crystal dome
Where the pony and rabbit did fight.

-By Finley, Joe, and Me

Superheroes

This morning, Finley and Joe decided to be superheros. Joe wanted me to call him Spiderman, and Finley was Wonder Woman.

In the van on the way to take Finley to her classes, Finley started telling me about a bad dream she had last night. When she was finished, Joe offered to crawl in bed with her when it got dark. "Fin, I can go in the dream with you if you are scared," he said.

This is the stuff that superheroes are truly made of.

Sunday Bike Ride

Sunday, we loaded up the bikes into the back of the truck and drove to Shelby Bottoms Greenway for a bike ride.

Finley and Joe did really well on the ~5 mile round trip to the bridge that spans the river and connects Shelby to Two Rivers. Finley only complained about getting tired a few times, and Joe only wanted to rest once.

Z rode in the bike trailer enjoying the scenery and napping.

Bicycle Progress

It didn't take long for Finley to follow in Joe's bicycle path and ditch the training wheels. Just two weeks after Joe ditched his training wheels and one week after I made Finley cry while trying to force her to ride without hers...(I know... I'm a horrible mother. Why couldn't I just let her take things at her own pace?) ...she did it all on her own.



What made me even more proud was the way Joe was encouraging Fin. He let Fin ride his bike so that she could practice riding without the training wheels, then when she managed to pedal across the driveway, I heard him cheering her on: "There you go, Fin!"

Approaching Two

This morning, Z was sitting in her high chair after finishing her cereal, practicing saying 'No'.

I think she's trying to get a head start on being two.

What am I in for?

Z loves the whoopie cushion. To see a little video of the fun, click here. Watching this makes me laugh harder than I have in a long time. I don't know why, exactly.