Good Stuff and Not So Good Stuff

Good Stuff

I haven't been posting lately as it seems there really hasn't been anything exciting happening. But I'm all good with that. I like that my life is fairly measured and predicatable. It's been very soothing to have the same routine over the past few weeks - especially since June could very well be a contender for the busiest month of our lives. So in the mornings, off go Chris and I to our respective places of employment, we put in our time and then I head to get shots (love my allergy shots) or exercise and ususally get home within 10-20 minutes of each other. We fix dinner together, relax, spend some time talking and just spend the evening together. It's been very nice, very calming and restful. Our weekends are spent taking care of housework and chores, running errands and doing any shopping we need to - again restful, relaxing, soothing.

But all that changes, albeit temporarily, tonight. Tonight, and this weekend, we shall attempt yet another round of babysitting/temporary parenthood. Our friends' Brian and Sharon are once again trusting the care of their young one to us. This time Brian and Sharon are headed to Eastern Iowa for a Truth Conference - all about absolute and world truth and what it means to Christians today. And we shall be here at home with 19-month old Noah in all his glory. We stopped by Brian and Sharon's last night for a healthy dinner of salad and got the low down on what all we need to do to keep Noah healthy, safe and happy. We came home with a stroller, huge basket of his food, a bag of videos/CDs/books, pedialyte, Dr's info, and a swing we can hang on our swing set. We have yet to get the little guy himself! I'll pick him up this afternoon at the baby sitter's house along with his carseat, clothes, diapers and sippy cups for the weekend, additional toys and more food that she has. Whew!

We are very excited to have him all weekend - and that Brian and Sharon trust us! I think Chris and I are both a little nervous though too. The last 2 times we've had Noah overnight, he hasn't done well on the sleeping front so we're already resigned to two fairly sleepless nights. Tonight we're hoping to wear him out! We're heading to a friend's house for a cookout and games and we're hoping that Noah will be ready for bed by the time we get home. Tomorrow is supposed to be nice so we're planning on spending most of the day outside - and Noah loves being outside. Mommy and Daddy will be back late Saturday night but we're planning on waiting until Sunday morning at church to give him back. So hopefully it'll be a fun and educational weekend for us!

Not So Good Stuff

Since Chris' renters/friends are moving out at the end of May, we did a bunch of checking and decided that our best course of action right now is to sell the house. We got a hold of a great realtor back in Michigan and she was full of energy and ready to sell the place for us. Because of conflicts with his renters/friend's schedules however, she hasn't been able to get into the house. Until this week. And it wasn't good.

When Chris called me after talking to her, his first comment was that Cindy (our realtor) sounded like she was trying not to cry. Yep, it was that bad. And these are supposed to be his FRIENDS???? According to Cindy, the one roommate had been smoking in his bedroom (it was obvious by the smell) - this guy knows that this is the one major thing that Chris did NOT want him to do. Along with that, the house was a pit - and they had known for a couple of days that she was coming to look at the house. Oh, and another thing - there was food ROTTING into the carpet! Hello! I was sick - I still feel sick. I am so hurt and so angry with Chris' so called friends. How could they treat him this way? Granted, they still have 7 days to get out of the house and get everything cleaned up but these guys are not the most stellar as is. I feel like they totally took advantage of Chris' friendship and trust. And I have to say - I LOVE my sister-in-law Carrie. She told Chris last night that she didn't think he should be friends with them anymore - and I totally agree. But my amazing husband is handling the whole situation with grace. He says that he will see how the house looks when we get there. If it's not OK, then he will call them and give them a chance to make it right - ie, cleaning it more, painting, paying for things. And if that fails, then he will deal with it. I love this man.

Cindy was very discouraged by the condition of the interior. But Chris and I are holding onto hope that we can make some minor changes and repairs and it'll work. God-willing, the house will sell quickly and we can be done. But we'll see what He has planned. For now we just continue to trust that we're doing what He wants.

So just a few hours and I get to go pick up Noah and then we'll head home to meet Chris and go from there to our cookout. I'm looking forward to my friend Cherie's homemade potato salad and a grilled burger! Yum!

Hope you all have a great weekend!