Some of you may have been expecting this, and others will be shocked. We decided to sell our house and move to Ocala, where Bob recently moved his office. It's still an hour and 40 minute drive from home, which is too much time on the road. If he tries to get home for dinner, then he can't get in enough time in the office and ends up having to work a day during the weekend. We were only still living here because I didn't want to leave my friends and I love our house and location. However, we went to visit his new office a couple months ago, and I realized just how long a drive he has every day. And it is a really beautiful area. I used to wonder why people would live in FL and not near the ocean. But Ocala is horse country. There are tons of horse ranches (as well as other farms). The town is actually quite big, has a mall, and all the shops I usually shop at, but has a small town feel. I came to the realization that if we didn't move now, we would have to some day because Bob can't keep up that commute forever, and we'd get to see so much more of him if we lived closer to the office.
So, after a couple of weeks of my de-cluttering the house and getting ready to show, we put it on the market last Friday. We had two showings on Sunday and a showing Monday. Our agent called and said we had an offer, so Monday night we met with her and actually had two offers. At first, they both offered our asking price (because they knew someone else was putting in an offer). But then one called back and raised it $5000, so that made the decision easy. I was so shocked that we got offers so quickly, and for our asking price. We got the confirmation this morning that they agreed to a few minor adjustments we made to the contract. So, we are supposed to close Sept 23rd.
We have not yet started looking at houses in Ocala. We have a couple on the list we want to see, and our agent is looking for some more that meet our criteria. I have strict criteria after living where we have been. And we aren't in a rush (Bob might think differently since he's the one with the commute) since my parents have agreed to let us stay in the house they bought around the corner from us until we find something we'll be happy in.
I had said after we moved here that I wasn't ever doing that it again. It is so much work to not only move, but to find new doctors and so on. But I feel that God has sent us a message that this is the right decision by having our house on contract so quickly.
I'm so thankful that I'm not currently teaching two sections of the course I teach for Kaplan. I was actually assigned two, with one being on reserve in case they needed the extra section. But I just started the term last week and have only the one section, and with the fewest number of students so far (only 21, whereas last term, I had 32). So, that will make it easier for me to pack and get my work done. It will also help that the boys will be in school. Glenn starts next Tuesday and Alexander starts the Monday of the following week. Both are so excited!
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Glenn's Glasses
We picked up Glenn's glasses today. He's so handsome and looks so much older. He doesn't like wearing them when he's looking distance, but he hasn't worn them long enough to get used to them. When he was wearing them around the house, he would put them on top of his head like he does with sun glasses when they were bothering his vision seeing distance. I had to put a stop to that because I was afraid he was going to need them adjusted constantly if he continued to that all the time.
He was reading a book tonight and he said he could read so much better and was so excited. He had problems focusing on his work at school last year, and I'm hoping a lot of it had to do with his eyes getting tired of trying to focus. But time will tell. Here he is modeling his new glasses:
He was reading a book tonight and he said he could read so much better and was so excited. He had problems focusing on his work at school last year, and I'm hoping a lot of it had to do with his eyes getting tired of trying to focus. But time will tell. Here he is modeling his new glasses:
Friday, July 22, 2011
More Summer Fun
Alexander got some fun gifts for his birthday (thank you everyone)! He got some new track from two of his aunts for his Thomas (and the like) trains. He can now get the track to go most of the length of the house:
He also got soccer goals, so the boys tried it out. Of course Alexander doesn't understand the rules, so when we had just one ball, and Glenn got to it first, Alexander just took Glenn down. So, for the meantime, we used two balls. But we have signed him up for U4 soccer this fall (they play games and a 16 minute game with not too many rules). That should be funny to watch.
We spent the last week in Orlando. Bob's parents got a condo for the week, and we stayed with them and Bob's Uncle Jack. We had a lot of fun! We spent a lot of time at the pool (especially Alexander, who has become quite the little fish). We went to Downtown Disney one day. First stop was the Lego store. I got the boys to stay still long enough for this picture with Buzz from Toy Story:
We must have passed this next sculpture of Buzz and Woody at least four times, and every time we did, it was like the first time Alexander saw it. He would shout out, "Buzz and Woody!"
As we were leaving, Glenn wanted a picture in front of the waterfall and dinosaur behind the T-Rex restaurant:
For Poppy's Father's Day/Birthday present, the boys got him a Melissa & Doug bird house that they were supposed to help put together with Poppy, and then he brought it home. But I didn't realize it used real screws-a hurricane can't take this bird house apart!!! But they handed things to him and Alexander helped him screw it together:
Then Glenn painted the bird house with Poppy's direction:
Alexander had to add his colorful touches, too:
We made use of our one day passes that last the year (for FL residents) to Busch Gardens in Tampa yet again! We went with Bob's parents, Bob's Uncle Jack, and my parents. Bob and I got to go on some big people rides while the grandparents watched the boys. Alexander finally took a picture with Big Bird (AKA Yellow Baby- the stuffed animal version that he sleeps with) all by himself:
We saw some animals:
We also went in the tree tops in a crazy maze like play scape. I think I was too tall, but we still had fun:
Of course we HAD to go on the train around the park. It really is relaxing! Oh, and they all persuaded me to buy the hat:
It was HOT!!!
We got some ice cream:
We had a wonderful dinner overlooking the Busch Gardens Savannah. We could see many of the animals from our table.
We brought the boys back to the Sesame Street on Safari area one last time, and this was their last ditch effort at having fun before we had to leave:
The boys and I got a chance to see our friends again that recently moved to just north of Tampa:
I love this one:
Bob's parents and uncle came home to our house last night for one last night with us and left this morning.
The boys and I had a busy day of appointments today. Alexander had his first full dental cleaning this morning. I was nervous, thinking he wouldn't let them touch him. But he was perfect. He did exactly what he was supposed to do. Here he is after his cleaning, waiting for the dentist to come in, watching Cars:
I was so proud of him, and Glenn said over and over how well Alexander was doing and how proud he was of him. So, the hygienist gave Glenn a token for the toy tower, too, for being such a supportive brother.
Then Glenn was off to the ophthalmologist this afternoon. He has to have his eyes checked every year to make sure he doesn't have any tumors on his optic nerves (which is a slight possibility due to his NF1, but gets lower and lower risk every year). His eyes are very healthy, however he needs glasses. I noticed he had trouble reading the letters at the beginning of the exam, and I didn't know if it was because he couldn't see them or because he wasn't really paying attention. But they have that automatic machine that checks your prescription, and sure enough, it's changed quite a bit. It's nothing like my prescription, but he does need glasses for school and doing his homework, although he can wear them all the time if he chooses. So, we are on the hunt for glasses. At first he said he didn't want to wear glasses. But once I mentioned that his friend Sarah wears them, he was excited.
Alexander was happy to be sleeping in his own bed tonight:
And Glenn couldn't fall asleep because he had been sleeping with someone for the past week. So, he asked to go sleep with Alexander even though he was already asleep:
He also got soccer goals, so the boys tried it out. Of course Alexander doesn't understand the rules, so when we had just one ball, and Glenn got to it first, Alexander just took Glenn down. So, for the meantime, we used two balls. But we have signed him up for U4 soccer this fall (they play games and a 16 minute game with not too many rules). That should be funny to watch.
We spent the last week in Orlando. Bob's parents got a condo for the week, and we stayed with them and Bob's Uncle Jack. We had a lot of fun! We spent a lot of time at the pool (especially Alexander, who has become quite the little fish). We went to Downtown Disney one day. First stop was the Lego store. I got the boys to stay still long enough for this picture with Buzz from Toy Story:
We must have passed this next sculpture of Buzz and Woody at least four times, and every time we did, it was like the first time Alexander saw it. He would shout out, "Buzz and Woody!"
As we were leaving, Glenn wanted a picture in front of the waterfall and dinosaur behind the T-Rex restaurant:
For Poppy's Father's Day/Birthday present, the boys got him a Melissa & Doug bird house that they were supposed to help put together with Poppy, and then he brought it home. But I didn't realize it used real screws-a hurricane can't take this bird house apart!!! But they handed things to him and Alexander helped him screw it together:
Then Glenn painted the bird house with Poppy's direction:
Alexander had to add his colorful touches, too:
We made use of our one day passes that last the year (for FL residents) to Busch Gardens in Tampa yet again! We went with Bob's parents, Bob's Uncle Jack, and my parents. Bob and I got to go on some big people rides while the grandparents watched the boys. Alexander finally took a picture with Big Bird (AKA Yellow Baby- the stuffed animal version that he sleeps with) all by himself:
We saw some animals:
We also went in the tree tops in a crazy maze like play scape. I think I was too tall, but we still had fun:
Of course we HAD to go on the train around the park. It really is relaxing! Oh, and they all persuaded me to buy the hat:
It was HOT!!!
We got some ice cream:
We had a wonderful dinner overlooking the Busch Gardens Savannah. We could see many of the animals from our table.
We brought the boys back to the Sesame Street on Safari area one last time, and this was their last ditch effort at having fun before we had to leave:
The boys and I got a chance to see our friends again that recently moved to just north of Tampa:
I love this one:
Bob's parents and uncle came home to our house last night for one last night with us and left this morning.
The boys and I had a busy day of appointments today. Alexander had his first full dental cleaning this morning. I was nervous, thinking he wouldn't let them touch him. But he was perfect. He did exactly what he was supposed to do. Here he is after his cleaning, waiting for the dentist to come in, watching Cars:
I was so proud of him, and Glenn said over and over how well Alexander was doing and how proud he was of him. So, the hygienist gave Glenn a token for the toy tower, too, for being such a supportive brother.
Then Glenn was off to the ophthalmologist this afternoon. He has to have his eyes checked every year to make sure he doesn't have any tumors on his optic nerves (which is a slight possibility due to his NF1, but gets lower and lower risk every year). His eyes are very healthy, however he needs glasses. I noticed he had trouble reading the letters at the beginning of the exam, and I didn't know if it was because he couldn't see them or because he wasn't really paying attention. But they have that automatic machine that checks your prescription, and sure enough, it's changed quite a bit. It's nothing like my prescription, but he does need glasses for school and doing his homework, although he can wear them all the time if he chooses. So, we are on the hunt for glasses. At first he said he didn't want to wear glasses. But once I mentioned that his friend Sarah wears them, he was excited.
Alexander was happy to be sleeping in his own bed tonight:
And Glenn couldn't fall asleep because he had been sleeping with someone for the past week. So, he asked to go sleep with Alexander even though he was already asleep:
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Alexander's 3rd Birthday
Alexander had a wonderful third birthday. Here's the Toy Story Choo-Choo cake he wanted me to make:
Alexander wanted to wear his birthday crown as soon as he woke up:
I had decorated the walls with Toy Story characters, which added to the party atmosphere. Then I put them in his room after his birthday party.
Here, he's waiting for Daddy to get out of bed so he could open his presents from us:
Opening his Toy Story Woody doll:
About 45 minutes before his party, I noticed something wrong with his cake:
I was so upset! When I went to get him from time out, I asked him why he was in time out. He said, "because I ate the wheels!" Bob had to go to Publix and quickly get a cake.
Here are our party guests (notice Glenn's tough guy pose):
We played some games. I showed them pictures of the Toy Story characters, and they had to find them on the walls of the house. They played Shrek bowling (because that's what we had), and got Toy Story tattoos:
We borrowed a couple of pools from our friends and set up the bounce house, and they had a lot of fun, until it started pouring rain. But they got a good amount of time outside:
After everyone got changed, we had lunch:
We played a bit and then it was time for cake:
And then it was time for presents:
After the party, we went to a little boutique toy store. Alexander was so tired, he fell asleep on the way there. He woke up quickly once he saw where we were. Glenn and Alexander played with toys and each got a toy. The owner even gave him a train set for his birthday. Then we went to a cupcakery (a bakery that only makes cupcakes). They were delicious. They played with Alexander's new toys all over the house (so much for the clean house from the party). Then we went to Alexander's favorite restaurant, Chick-fil-A. For you northerners who don't know what Chick-fil-A is, they only serve chicken and they have an indoor play area that is sound proofed, but with glass, so the parents can see their children, but not hear them. Nice! :) On Saturday (the day after his birthday), we went to see Cars 2. That's the first movie in a theater that Alexander has sat through. He wasn't sure at first, sitting with his hands over his ears. But then he grew to love it. We brought his sleep friends to cuddle, which I think helped.
So, it was a wonderful birthday. He and Glenn are loving all these new toys and games to play with.
Alexander wanted to wear his birthday crown as soon as he woke up:
I had decorated the walls with Toy Story characters, which added to the party atmosphere. Then I put them in his room after his birthday party.
Here, he's waiting for Daddy to get out of bed so he could open his presents from us:
Opening his Toy Story Woody doll:
About 45 minutes before his party, I noticed something wrong with his cake:
I was so upset! When I went to get him from time out, I asked him why he was in time out. He said, "because I ate the wheels!" Bob had to go to Publix and quickly get a cake.
Here are our party guests (notice Glenn's tough guy pose):
We played some games. I showed them pictures of the Toy Story characters, and they had to find them on the walls of the house. They played Shrek bowling (because that's what we had), and got Toy Story tattoos:
We borrowed a couple of pools from our friends and set up the bounce house, and they had a lot of fun, until it started pouring rain. But they got a good amount of time outside:
After everyone got changed, we had lunch:
We played a bit and then it was time for cake:
And then it was time for presents:
After the party, we went to a little boutique toy store. Alexander was so tired, he fell asleep on the way there. He woke up quickly once he saw where we were. Glenn and Alexander played with toys and each got a toy. The owner even gave him a train set for his birthday. Then we went to a cupcakery (a bakery that only makes cupcakes). They were delicious. They played with Alexander's new toys all over the house (so much for the clean house from the party). Then we went to Alexander's favorite restaurant, Chick-fil-A. For you northerners who don't know what Chick-fil-A is, they only serve chicken and they have an indoor play area that is sound proofed, but with glass, so the parents can see their children, but not hear them. Nice! :) On Saturday (the day after his birthday), we went to see Cars 2. That's the first movie in a theater that Alexander has sat through. He wasn't sure at first, sitting with his hands over his ears. But then he grew to love it. We brought his sleep friends to cuddle, which I think helped.
So, it was a wonderful birthday. He and Glenn are loving all these new toys and games to play with.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Alexander's Potty Train
I have been potty training Alexander because he was ready and because he needs to be to go to preschool in the fall. He was doing pretty well for a long time, but still having one accident a day. So, I told him if he was dry for 7 days in a row, he would get his Geotrax train he's been wanting. It has a train station, tunnel and hill. He called it his "potty train" every time I congratulated him on staying dry. Well, he did it and the set came in the mail today. He has been playing it for a very long time!
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