1. Mowing the lawn*
2. Cleaning up after PT
3. Taking out the garbage
4. Washing dishes
5. Doing laundry
Come home soon......we need you!
*I did mow the lawn today for the first and last time.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Things I don't like doing....
1. Mowing the lawn*
2. Cleaning up after PT
3. Taking out the garbage
4. Washing dishes
5. Doing laundry
Come home soon......we need you!
*I did mow the lawn today for the first and last time.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
A Little Haus History....
Steve has been asking me what I am doing to celebrate the long 4th of July weekend. I had little to say because I spent a large portion of the weekend finding homes for the new items we received at our wedding showers, unpacking the stuff we have been storing upstairs and prepping for a garage sale. I know sounds pretty exciting....
But wait - haven't you already had other garage sales this year? Yes, that's correct we are on to the final sale - #3 in 2006. We have had a total of 7 garage sales in the last 4 years and donated many items to Goodwill, Amvets, and of course the Naperville garbage and recycling.
I have mentioned previously that the house has been in the family for 90 years....and it is starting to feel as though we have 90 years worth of stuff. I thought it would be appropriate to explain how this all came to be and whose stuff we are sorting through. I am missing many details, which we are hoping to piece together as we rehab the house, but here is what I have.
In 1916, Elizabeth (Houser) Hein and her husband Emil Hein moved into 108 North with their 2nd son Ernest A. Hein and his wife Elizabeth (Thiel) Hein. These are my great, great grandparents and my great grandparents. The house at the time was a 2 flat with the younger Heins living upstairs. My grandfather Ernest R. Hein was born in 1918. The upstairs has a kitchen, dining room, living room, master bedroom and bathroom. It also has a very small room which until recently I assumed was a closet. It was my grandpa's bedroom.
In a one year span (Oct 1935 - Aug 1936) - Elizabeth Houser Hein, Emil and Ernest A. Hein all passed. This left my grandfather who was 17 at the time as the man of the house with his mother. When he married my grandmother, Rose Koretke, in October 1946, they continued to live in the downstairs apartment and raised 2 daughers (my mom and aunt).
When my great grandmother Elizabeth passed in 1979 (I was 1), time stopped in the upstairs apartment. I can remember going upstairs as a child and playing with my cousin. He had a train set up there and I remember all of the rooms set up as if someone still lived there.
Over the next 20+ years, my grandmother used that space as extra storage. Very little of my great grandmothers things were gone through or removed.
The summer before my sophomore year of high school (1993), there was a fire in the downstairs kitchen. Although it was late at night ( I belive around 2am) both of my grandparents were awake and made it safely out of the house. The kitchen was completely remodeled and there was smoke damage on the first floor. The fire fighters said that the space between the kitchen ceiling and the upstairs floor (the master bedroom) saved them from more fire damage.
In June of 1998, my grandmother passed away after battling pancreatic cancer. She was under hospice care for the last few weeks and was able to stay in a hospital bed at the house.
My grandfather was very ademant about remaining in the house that he was born in. He did so until December of 2002. It is easy to see how tied to this house he was given the history of his family and all of the memories he had from raising his own children there as well.
It has been quite an interesting journey as we sort through all of the items that have been stored and used at the house. On more than a few occasions we have struggled to determine what a particular item was, why anyone wanted it or how it ended up never getting used (still in original packaging, unfinished craft projects and many clothes still with the tags on).
I am really excited to see what the next phase holds for this house as we continue to sort through its history and return it to a single-family home.
So - Steve that's what I have been up to the last few days (oh and a little shopping).
But wait - haven't you already had other garage sales this year? Yes, that's correct we are on to the final sale - #3 in 2006. We have had a total of 7 garage sales in the last 4 years and donated many items to Goodwill, Amvets, and of course the Naperville garbage and recycling.
I have mentioned previously that the house has been in the family for 90 years....and it is starting to feel as though we have 90 years worth of stuff. I thought it would be appropriate to explain how this all came to be and whose stuff we are sorting through. I am missing many details, which we are hoping to piece together as we rehab the house, but here is what I have.
In 1916, Elizabeth (Houser) Hein and her husband Emil Hein moved into 108 North with their 2nd son Ernest A. Hein and his wife Elizabeth (Thiel) Hein. These are my great, great grandparents and my great grandparents. The house at the time was a 2 flat with the younger Heins living upstairs. My grandfather Ernest R. Hein was born in 1918. The upstairs has a kitchen, dining room, living room, master bedroom and bathroom. It also has a very small room which until recently I assumed was a closet. It was my grandpa's bedroom.
In a one year span (Oct 1935 - Aug 1936) - Elizabeth Houser Hein, Emil and Ernest A. Hein all passed. This left my grandfather who was 17 at the time as the man of the house with his mother. When he married my grandmother, Rose Koretke, in October 1946, they continued to live in the downstairs apartment and raised 2 daughers (my mom and aunt).
When my great grandmother Elizabeth passed in 1979 (I was 1), time stopped in the upstairs apartment. I can remember going upstairs as a child and playing with my cousin. He had a train set up there and I remember all of the rooms set up as if someone still lived there.
Over the next 20+ years, my grandmother used that space as extra storage. Very little of my great grandmothers things were gone through or removed.
The summer before my sophomore year of high school (1993), there was a fire in the downstairs kitchen. Although it was late at night ( I belive around 2am) both of my grandparents were awake and made it safely out of the house. The kitchen was completely remodeled and there was smoke damage on the first floor. The fire fighters said that the space between the kitchen ceiling and the upstairs floor (the master bedroom) saved them from more fire damage.
In June of 1998, my grandmother passed away after battling pancreatic cancer. She was under hospice care for the last few weeks and was able to stay in a hospital bed at the house.
My grandfather was very ademant about remaining in the house that he was born in. He did so until December of 2002. It is easy to see how tied to this house he was given the history of his family and all of the memories he had from raising his own children there as well.
It has been quite an interesting journey as we sort through all of the items that have been stored and used at the house. On more than a few occasions we have struggled to determine what a particular item was, why anyone wanted it or how it ended up never getting used (still in original packaging, unfinished craft projects and many clothes still with the tags on).
I am really excited to see what the next phase holds for this house as we continue to sort through its history and return it to a single-family home.
So - Steve that's what I have been up to the last few days (oh and a little shopping).
Friday, June 30, 2006
Celebrating Germany in Naperville?
I swear I am not making this up.
Last night the Naperville Municipal Band's concert theme was "Celebrating Our German Heritage". I kid you not.
Steve's niece, Nicole, is in town this week from Iowa. So I decided to invite her out to Naperville for the concert to celebrate our German roots and Steve's trip.
PorTillo even broke out the lederhosen for the occasion. Ok - so that part I made up, because if he had lederhosen we would surely have a picture of him wearing them.
Nicole and I had a great time as the weather was just perfect. After a few songs, I realized hmm perhaps a band concert is not as exciting for an almost 6th grader as one would have thought. I think she was grateful to be relaxing and resting her feet after a long day at the Brookfield Zoo. We ended up chatting through most of the concert and eating the most chocolatey of brownies. It was good to get some visiting in with my one and only jr. bridesmaid.
Almost forgot - we also made a stop at Sts. Peter and Paul Church (where Steve and I will tie the knot in 43 days). I wanted Nicole to get a chance to see the long aisle we will both be walking down that day.
On that note, I guess I should get back to some of those wedding details.
Auf Wiedersehen.
Last night the Naperville Municipal Band's concert theme was "Celebrating Our German Heritage". I kid you not.
Steve's niece, Nicole, is in town this week from Iowa. So I decided to invite her out to Naperville for the concert to celebrate our German roots and Steve's trip.
PorTillo even broke out the lederhosen for the occasion. Ok - so that part I made up, because if he had lederhosen we would surely have a picture of him wearing them.
Nicole and I had a great time as the weather was just perfect. After a few songs, I realized hmm perhaps a band concert is not as exciting for an almost 6th grader as one would have thought. I think she was grateful to be relaxing and resting her feet after a long day at the Brookfield Zoo. We ended up chatting through most of the concert and eating the most chocolatey of brownies. It was good to get some visiting in with my one and only jr. bridesmaid.
Almost forgot - we also made a stop at Sts. Peter and Paul Church (where Steve and I will tie the knot in 43 days). I wanted Nicole to get a chance to see the long aisle we will both be walking down that day.
On that note, I guess I should get back to some of those wedding details.
Auf Wiedersehen.
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Wetter aktuell
It looks like Steve is going to have better weather over there then is predicted in Chicago.
Break out the calculators - these temps are in Celsius.
Which means in Berlin it is?
Anyone, Anyone? Bueller?
23 Celisus = 73.4 Farenheit
This is as of 3pm Berlin time - which is 8am here. I believe. Too many conversions.
*WeatherChannel.com also has this info - but the picture won't copy. So I managed to navigate a website in German to find this picture. Click here to link to the site.
23 Celisus = 73.4 Farenheit
This is as of 3pm Berlin time - which is 8am here. I believe. Too many conversions.
*WeatherChannel.com also has this info - but the picture won't copy. So I managed to navigate a website in German to find this picture. Click here to link to the site.
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Master of the House
Even with his eyes half closed - the iron paw of PorTillo reigns!
When Steve is gone on camping trips, PorTillo is allowed to sleep with me in the bed as my protector. This is a big treat for him since he is not allowed in the bedroom at all under normal conditions, because of his ability to get under the bed in places I cannot reach.
So far, he is good once he is in the bed and doesn't use it as an opportunity to steal my socks and hide. Just in case I have taken to putting his Illini leash on him when he sleeps.
The past few nights I have found myself staying up later to organize things around the house and tidy up. PorTillo usually cashes out on the couch as this is when Steve would normally lay and watch tv with him.
In light of not getting that "snuggle time" on the couch, PorTillo has decided to set 10:30 as our new bedtime, because he starts whining at me (similar to the nagging I do when I want Steve to come to bed) until I go to bed. I was confused at first and thought perhaps he needed to go outside one last time - nope that wasn't it. His little tail wagged when I put the orange leash on him and walked towards the bedroom.
Last night, I put him up on the bed while I continued to get ready - brushing my teeth and such. He patiently sat there as if to say, I couldn't possibly fall asleep until you tuck me in under the covers. He stayed under the covers this morning until I gave a few raspberries to his belly (stole a page from the Lippoldthaus style of parenting). Hmmm - who is the owner in this relationship? He has so got me under his paw......
All I can say is, "Dog - you are in for a rude awakening when Big Head comes home!"
Monday, June 26, 2006
Remnants of the night out...
Hmm, since when did I develop a freckle in my ear?
Oh wait - that's purple glitter....
I wonder where that came from?
*Editor's note: In Steve's absence, I have NOT taken to talking to myself. This was all in my head. Although, PorTillo is a great conversationalist.
Oh wait - that's purple glitter....
I wonder where that came from?
*Editor's note: In Steve's absence, I have NOT taken to talking to myself. This was all in my head. Although, PorTillo is a great conversationalist.
WOW - What a finish!
The game came down to a last penalty kick!
I can't imagine the excitement/disppointment that is all around Steve as they depart from the stadium.
As disappointed I am about not being able to shout "Go Socceroos!", I think that an upset over Italy would have created major havoc in the stadium. Just my sense - we will have to wait for the man to chime in with his experience.
I guess I better turn off ESPN 360 and get some work done.
I hope that quenched Steve's thirst to see a World Cup game - 500 euros ($650) is a lot of money and I am sure it will only go up as the competition goes on.
I can't imagine the excitement/disppointment that is all around Steve as they depart from the stadium.
As disappointed I am about not being able to shout "Go Socceroos!", I think that an upset over Italy would have created major havoc in the stadium. Just my sense - we will have to wait for the man to chime in with his experience.
I guess I better turn off ESPN 360 and get some work done.
I hope that quenched Steve's thirst to see a World Cup game - 500 euros ($650) is a lot of money and I am sure it will only go up as the competition goes on.
Game On!
Italy vs Australia (the socceroos !?!) starts in about 35 minutes.
To follow the game that Steve is at go to:
http://www.worldcupblog.org/world-cup-2006/liveblog-australia-vs-italy.html
As you will see, I am choosing not to predict the winner of the game on the comment section of this site. Instead I am hoping for Steve to be safe.
I will be cheering for the socceroos, because really it would be so much fun to yell!
-Soccer Mom in Training
To follow the game that Steve is at go to:
http://www.worldcupblog.org/world-cup-2006/liveblog-australia-vs-italy.html
As you will see, I am choosing not to predict the winner of the game on the comment section of this site. Instead I am hoping for Steve to be safe.
I will be cheering for the socceroos, because really it would be so much fun to yell!
-Soccer Mom in Training
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Steve's Plan
This may be better info for Steve's Germany site, but here is the email he sent me with the tentative cities he is planning to be in:
This is a tentative plan for Germany
The cities listed are where I will be sleeping that night.
Friday July 23 – Frankfurt (due to time change I will be on the plane for Thursday night)
Sat.24 – Frankfurt
Sun.25 – Frank (maybe Nuremburg)
Mon.26 – Kaiserslautern
Tue.27 – Hanover
Wed.28 – Berlin
Thu.29 – Berlin
Fri.30 – Berlin
Sat.1 – Frank
Sun.2 – Hamburg
Mon.3 – Munich
Tue.4 – Munich
Wed.5 – Munich
Thu.6 – Berlin
Fri.7 – Berlin
Sat.8 – Berlin
Sun.9 – Berlin
Mon.10 – Frank*
Tue.11 – Home*
VERY Subject to change.
*I know this will change as Steve's plane ticket for home is on Monday the 10th not Tuesday the 11th - we looked at it before he left*
This is a tentative plan for Germany
The cities listed are where I will be sleeping that night.
Friday July 23 – Frankfurt (due to time change I will be on the plane for Thursday night)
Sat.24 – Frankfurt
Sun.25 – Frank (maybe Nuremburg)
Mon.26 – Kaiserslautern
Tue.27 – Hanover
Wed.28 – Berlin
Thu.29 – Berlin
Fri.30 – Berlin
Sat.1 – Frank
Sun.2 – Hamburg
Mon.3 – Munich
Tue.4 – Munich
Wed.5 – Munich
Thu.6 – Berlin
Fri.7 – Berlin
Sat.8 – Berlin
Sun.9 – Berlin
Mon.10 – Frank*
Tue.11 – Home*
VERY Subject to change.
*I know this will change as Steve's plane ticket for home is on Monday the 10th not Tuesday the 11th - we looked at it before he left*
Girls Gone Wild - Part Deux
Brevity has never been my strong point - hence the 2 part post.
We all danced the night away to mostly 80s music. This is the 3rd bachlorette party I have attended at the Hangge Uppe and it is known for dancing and bachlorette parties.
Since I was last there - I noticed an increase in the number of "creepy old men" (read mostly over 40, unattractive and with mostly a stalker like expression). There were again many other bachlorette parties - but no other bride could match the interesting decorations I was wearing.
In fact - early in the evening, one bride's group used me as an example as "see it could be worse - we didn't do this to you". The girls were great though - no pressuring when I nursed a beer at the bar (most of my drinking was done on the porch at our house) and neglected to participate in any of the $2 shots. At about 10/10:30 I realized the alcohol was just making me sleepy - so I cut myself off and turned my attention to dancing on the stage and taking pictures with non-weirdo men.
Pictures would really help here and I will look to my girls to add in comments to shed more light into the evening's highlights:
One guy told my sister he wanted to take a picture with me and decided I was a perfect candidate for being put up on his shoulders. I fought back pretty hard and lost that battle. I can only assume that the look on my face captured the shock I was in.
Deanna - my dear friend from hs, started the evening refusing to dance because she was wearing a short skirt and managed to end the evening on the stage showing me her pole dancing moves (she also was bought a drink for her efforts).
Kate (aka Hot Momma) proved the childbirth has not slowed her down and was able to show off some of her belly dancing techniques.
Nothing could have been cuter than Jill and I dancing together in what Tony (Jill's husband) refers to as the Moylan girls moves - I guess we not only look alike but we also dance alike?
I am sure I missed something - but that is all I can remember. When I can get the pictures downloaded from my mom's camera, I will post the evidence.
Finally, a hearfelt apology to my future husband. I text messaged you early in the evening in the hopes that you would write back. My signal was not strong enough and the message never made it through. Somewhere in the evening, that detail slipped my mind. So in the cab back to Rachael's place, I was bemoaning the fact that you never wrote me back (nevermind the fact that it was very early morning your time). Sorry - I was just missing you and knew that you would appreciate knowing I was out and celebrating!
We all danced the night away to mostly 80s music. This is the 3rd bachlorette party I have attended at the Hangge Uppe and it is known for dancing and bachlorette parties.
Since I was last there - I noticed an increase in the number of "creepy old men" (read mostly over 40, unattractive and with mostly a stalker like expression). There were again many other bachlorette parties - but no other bride could match the interesting decorations I was wearing.
In fact - early in the evening, one bride's group used me as an example as "see it could be worse - we didn't do this to you". The girls were great though - no pressuring when I nursed a beer at the bar (most of my drinking was done on the porch at our house) and neglected to participate in any of the $2 shots. At about 10/10:30 I realized the alcohol was just making me sleepy - so I cut myself off and turned my attention to dancing on the stage and taking pictures with non-weirdo men.
Pictures would really help here and I will look to my girls to add in comments to shed more light into the evening's highlights:
One guy told my sister he wanted to take a picture with me and decided I was a perfect candidate for being put up on his shoulders. I fought back pretty hard and lost that battle. I can only assume that the look on my face captured the shock I was in.
Deanna - my dear friend from hs, started the evening refusing to dance because she was wearing a short skirt and managed to end the evening on the stage showing me her pole dancing moves (she also was bought a drink for her efforts).
Kate (aka Hot Momma) proved the childbirth has not slowed her down and was able to show off some of her belly dancing techniques.
Nothing could have been cuter than Jill and I dancing together in what Tony (Jill's husband) refers to as the Moylan girls moves - I guess we not only look alike but we also dance alike?
I am sure I missed something - but that is all I can remember. When I can get the pictures downloaded from my mom's camera, I will post the evidence.
Finally, a hearfelt apology to my future husband. I text messaged you early in the evening in the hopes that you would write back. My signal was not strong enough and the message never made it through. Somewhere in the evening, that detail slipped my mind. So in the cab back to Rachael's place, I was bemoaning the fact that you never wrote me back (nevermind the fact that it was very early morning your time). Sorry - I was just missing you and knew that you would appreciate knowing I was out and celebrating!
Girls Gone Wild - Part 1
The weekend started off great! Amy my bridesmaid a friend from UofI came in late Friday night. She was nice enough to allow extra time to finish the 4 loads of laundry (in the new washing machine and dryer) and running around trying to make the house more presentable. We also exchanged Xmas/Birthday presents. I love my new tee shirts - a custom made shirt that has a picture of a dachshund and says low rider and a Sixteen Candles "I Love Jake Ryan".
Saturday morning Amy and I ran errands with Portillo (breakfast, cleaners, farmer's market, Kohl's and Target). Our dog sitter (Amber from the cleaners) picked Portillo up for the night and we were on our way to wedding shower #2 at my parent's house.
My mom, Aunt, sister and Amy did an excellent job pulling everything together. The shower went off a hitch. In addition to showering Steve and I with love and gifts, I was touched by so many of their kind words that I was unable to read many of the cards (waterworks would have ensued). Jill (MOH and my favorite/only sister) had us all in stitches as she read back to the group the notes she had taken during the shower of things I had said when opening presents.
Taken out of context, things like "Ohhh, George Foreman" does sound pretty funny.
After the very tasteful shower, me and the girls headed for 108 North for pizza and drinks on the porch. Needless to say the churchgoers across the street did not appreciate the "very classy" and anatomically correct drink straws we were using (lucky they didn't see the plates from Lover's Lane).
Jill was able to get me to drink by asking me questions she had asked Steve and I had to match his answers. I think given Steve's propensity to embellish his answers I was going to have a difficult time with many of them. We then headed into the city to my friend Rachael's new place - it is goregous! She is getting married this October to another former PwCer in Indianapolis. We cabbed it to the Hangge-Uppe near Rush and Division.
Stay tuned for pics and what happens next!
Saturday morning Amy and I ran errands with Portillo (breakfast, cleaners, farmer's market, Kohl's and Target). Our dog sitter (Amber from the cleaners) picked Portillo up for the night and we were on our way to wedding shower #2 at my parent's house.
My mom, Aunt, sister and Amy did an excellent job pulling everything together. The shower went off a hitch. In addition to showering Steve and I with love and gifts, I was touched by so many of their kind words that I was unable to read many of the cards (waterworks would have ensued). Jill (MOH and my favorite/only sister) had us all in stitches as she read back to the group the notes she had taken during the shower of things I had said when opening presents.
Taken out of context, things like "Ohhh, George Foreman" does sound pretty funny.
After the very tasteful shower, me and the girls headed for 108 North for pizza and drinks on the porch. Needless to say the churchgoers across the street did not appreciate the "very classy" and anatomically correct drink straws we were using (lucky they didn't see the plates from Lover's Lane).
Jill was able to get me to drink by asking me questions she had asked Steve and I had to match his answers. I think given Steve's propensity to embellish his answers I was going to have a difficult time with many of them. We then headed into the city to my friend Rachael's new place - it is goregous! She is getting married this October to another former PwCer in Indianapolis. We cabbed it to the Hangge-Uppe near Rush and Division.
Stay tuned for pics and what happens next!
Friday, June 23, 2006
Scooped!
At 7:05 pm last night, Steve text messaged to say they had boarded the plane.
"We are boarded and i have a window. There is a fussing baby in the seat in front of me - oh boy..."
Before he left, I had given my professional traveller's opinion on why window seats are preferrable for early morning or long flights where you want to sleep. The blanket makes a great pillow against the window and no fears of drooling on anyone other than yourself.
At 5:30 this morning I received a text message saying that they had made it and all is good.
Portillo convinced me to sleep a little longer and I thought for sure I would be the first to break the news that they had successfully made it.
No such luck - Der General scooped me already! He's at least one beer and a McDonald's down.
True American that he is - in the days prior to his travels, he went out of his way to have American fast food - a Big Mac from McDs and Chipoltle (who can pass up free burritos from the LaGrange Pet Parade).
As a side note - Portillo seems to be picking up that something is different. He's somewhat used to me being gone for business trips, but the big headed play toy that lives with us is always here :)
"We are boarded and i have a window. There is a fussing baby in the seat in front of me - oh boy..."
Before he left, I had given my professional traveller's opinion on why window seats are preferrable for early morning or long flights where you want to sleep. The blanket makes a great pillow against the window and no fears of drooling on anyone other than yourself.
At 5:30 this morning I received a text message saying that they had made it and all is good.
Portillo convinced me to sleep a little longer and I thought for sure I would be the first to break the news that they had successfully made it.
No such luck - Der General scooped me already! He's at least one beer and a McDonald's down.
True American that he is - in the days prior to his travels, he went out of his way to have American fast food - a Big Mac from McDs and Chipoltle (who can pass up free burritos from the LaGrange Pet Parade).
As a side note - Portillo seems to be picking up that something is different. He's somewhat used to me being gone for business trips, but the big headed play toy that lives with us is always here :)
Thursday, June 22, 2006
A Different Approach to Packing
I live by lists - especially when I am packing to go on a trip. Steve also lives by lists - his just aren't nearly as detailed as mine.
For the past month, I have been nagging him to create a list of what he is bringing to Germany for the World Cup. I wasn't sure I was going to be in town in the days before he left - so I knew I would feel better if I had some sort of evidence that he was getting ready.
I found out last week that I would be here - but I asked that over the weekend he have all his stuff together so we weren't running around the day before looking for stuff (note: the foreshadowing). I even had the ladies at his work on my side to bug him about "Are you packed, yet?"
Somewhere in the midst of my nagging over the course of the last month, I inquired as to the location of both Steve's passport and his plane ticket. Given the moving we did, I wanted to be sure he had adequate time to locate both. To which he replied,
"Yes, I have my passport right here and I know where my tickets are."
Evidence would have been key here.
So last night at 11pm (less than 24 hours prior to departure), we are tearing apart the office looking for Steve's plane tickets. He became convinced that he had them upstairs in with other misc stuff. Since the electrical is cloth wiring upstairs, we do not turn on the lights upstairs for any period of time and have no lamps up there at all. So at 11:45 he was fishing through boxes with a flashlight in about 90 degree heat.
I was sorting through the piles of papers and trying not to lose my mind. At 11:50 when it seemed Steve was ready to "give up for the night" and find it in the morning, I asked him if it could possibly be in one of the binders he has on the bookshelf.
AHA - we had found it! I cermoniously shook his head to indicate how crazy he was making me and went off to bed.
I made the final trip to walgreens last night for the calling card, asprin and a travel toothbrush kit. I laid out all of the items he had strewn around the house for his trip. I woke him up this morning to have him start packing (many hours before he is actually headed to the airport). I even have a list of the final things he needs to get.
I think I have done all that I can!
For the past month, I have been nagging him to create a list of what he is bringing to Germany for the World Cup. I wasn't sure I was going to be in town in the days before he left - so I knew I would feel better if I had some sort of evidence that he was getting ready.
I found out last week that I would be here - but I asked that over the weekend he have all his stuff together so we weren't running around the day before looking for stuff (note: the foreshadowing). I even had the ladies at his work on my side to bug him about "Are you packed, yet?"
Somewhere in the midst of my nagging over the course of the last month, I inquired as to the location of both Steve's passport and his plane ticket. Given the moving we did, I wanted to be sure he had adequate time to locate both. To which he replied,
"Yes, I have my passport right here and I know where my tickets are."
Evidence would have been key here.
So last night at 11pm (less than 24 hours prior to departure), we are tearing apart the office looking for Steve's plane tickets. He became convinced that he had them upstairs in with other misc stuff. Since the electrical is cloth wiring upstairs, we do not turn on the lights upstairs for any period of time and have no lamps up there at all. So at 11:45 he was fishing through boxes with a flashlight in about 90 degree heat.
I was sorting through the piles of papers and trying not to lose my mind. At 11:50 when it seemed Steve was ready to "give up for the night" and find it in the morning, I asked him if it could possibly be in one of the binders he has on the bookshelf.
AHA - we had found it! I cermoniously shook his head to indicate how crazy he was making me and went off to bed.
I made the final trip to walgreens last night for the calling card, asprin and a travel toothbrush kit. I laid out all of the items he had strewn around the house for his trip. I woke him up this morning to have him start packing (many hours before he is actually headed to the airport). I even have a list of the final things he needs to get.
I think I have done all that I can!
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Der General
As many of you know, my lovely fiance (Steve) is headed for the homeland to watch the World Cup. He has decided to grace the world with a blog, which will chronicle his journeys during the 2.5 weeks.
Yes, that's correct. He is leaving me less than 2 months before our wedding to watch soccer and I think he plans to have a few beers as well.
A little background - Steve and I first started dating in December of 2002. From the very beginning he talked about going to the World Cup in 2006 and his love for soccer. He took me to Chicago Fire games and I must admit I had a good time. Not a good enough time to actually follow the game or watch it on tv - but as a person of competitive nature I could enjoy the sport. I also learned to enjoy the side bets that he and Dan would make at the games. Which corner would the next corner kick be from? How long will the person stay down on the ground? Who will score the next goal? Who will get the next yellow card?
I have never really picked up on the rules of soccer - but was able to follow the dollar bets game. In fact, when we went to a Bulls game a few years back - we were able to bring dollar bets into that game. Will Scottie Pippen foul or get a rebound first? I know we are so wild.
So back to soccer. In dating Steve, you learn to accept certain things. He likes to talk and he enjoys making things up or exaggerating. Going to the World Cup in 2006 in Germany was very clearly not an exaggeration nor was it negotiable from the very beginning. Which was fine for me - as 2006 seemed like a very far off time. Sidenote: He originally wanted to be there for the whole 5 weeks - but good sense and practicality not to mention $$ kept the trip shorter.
When we started to seriously discuss the possibility of marriage, I pushed for 2005 to avoid any potential conflicts with the World Cup. Steve pushed for 2007. We settled on 2006. An additional consideration was the timing of his annullment from the Catholic Church, which took almost an entire year. In the end, I realized that marriage and life require alot of compromise.
I am getting a wedding before 2007, but am going to be fianceless for a few weeks prior to the nuptials. *Note: We were originally looking at October 06 dates - but the Church and reception hall availability was better in August.
In the end, I know that I am not "letting him go" to Germany. He is going and we just happen to be planning a wedding around that time. He has been pretty good at getting his stuff taken care of before he leaves - so really do I want him around for my shoe shopping expeditions?
I realize to most Germany+ Selling Townhouse + Moving into a Very Old House + WEDDING = Crazy - but really it fits Steve and I just fine. Unfortunately or fortunately (depending on how you look at it), we are both "pressure players". We work so much better under stress.
Given that logic - I am thinking everthing should go off without a hitch!
If you did not catch my link to Steve's blog hidden in this post - here it is:
http://dergeneral.blogspot.com/
Please note - all of his pictures will be taken on the cheapest digital camera I could find ($50 at K-Mart)!
Yes, that's correct. He is leaving me less than 2 months before our wedding to watch soccer and I think he plans to have a few beers as well.
A little background - Steve and I first started dating in December of 2002. From the very beginning he talked about going to the World Cup in 2006 and his love for soccer. He took me to Chicago Fire games and I must admit I had a good time. Not a good enough time to actually follow the game or watch it on tv - but as a person of competitive nature I could enjoy the sport. I also learned to enjoy the side bets that he and Dan would make at the games. Which corner would the next corner kick be from? How long will the person stay down on the ground? Who will score the next goal? Who will get the next yellow card?
I have never really picked up on the rules of soccer - but was able to follow the dollar bets game. In fact, when we went to a Bulls game a few years back - we were able to bring dollar bets into that game. Will Scottie Pippen foul or get a rebound first? I know we are so wild.
So back to soccer. In dating Steve, you learn to accept certain things. He likes to talk and he enjoys making things up or exaggerating. Going to the World Cup in 2006 in Germany was very clearly not an exaggeration nor was it negotiable from the very beginning. Which was fine for me - as 2006 seemed like a very far off time. Sidenote: He originally wanted to be there for the whole 5 weeks - but good sense and practicality not to mention $$ kept the trip shorter.
When we started to seriously discuss the possibility of marriage, I pushed for 2005 to avoid any potential conflicts with the World Cup. Steve pushed for 2007. We settled on 2006. An additional consideration was the timing of his annullment from the Catholic Church, which took almost an entire year. In the end, I realized that marriage and life require alot of compromise.
I am getting a wedding before 2007, but am going to be fianceless for a few weeks prior to the nuptials. *Note: We were originally looking at October 06 dates - but the Church and reception hall availability was better in August.
In the end, I know that I am not "letting him go" to Germany. He is going and we just happen to be planning a wedding around that time. He has been pretty good at getting his stuff taken care of before he leaves - so really do I want him around for my shoe shopping expeditions?
I realize to most Germany+ Selling Townhouse + Moving into a Very Old House + WEDDING = Crazy - but really it fits Steve and I just fine. Unfortunately or fortunately (depending on how you look at it), we are both "pressure players". We work so much better under stress.
Given that logic - I am thinking everthing should go off without a hitch!
If you did not catch my link to Steve's blog hidden in this post - here it is:
http://dergeneral.blogspot.com/
Please note - all of his pictures will be taken on the cheapest digital camera I could find ($50 at K-Mart)!
When it rains, it pours!
I had my first Wedding Shower this past weekend with Steve's family. It really was a showering of love and support. Fortunately, I was able to spend a good portion of Sunday figuring out where all of our gifts were going to find a home. Right now everything has a spot - but as I re-organized I remembered that I have at least a few boxes of housewares that were packed in advance of showing the townhouse. These remain unpacked and will need to find a new home eventually. We also have 2 more showers - 1 with my family/friends and a "not a couples shower" with the MPU (Mobile Party Unit/Mobile Parenting Unit).
When I registered, I tired to be on the conservative side for a few reasons - we already have a few things from our townhouse and I was sure there were some items at 108 that I would inherit. What I failed to account for was a very small kitchen. I had planned on storing some of the bigger/non-daily use items upstairs in the kitchen's built-in cabinets. I was able to bring a piece in from the garage which will need to be repainted and have shelves put in. It was my mom and aunt's armoire where they stored their clothes. Pictures to come when it is all finished!
It is crazy to think that I feel like I am already "out of space" in a house that is way bigger than our townhouse. I think it will just take time to find a home for everything.
When I registered, I tired to be on the conservative side for a few reasons - we already have a few things from our townhouse and I was sure there were some items at 108 that I would inherit. What I failed to account for was a very small kitchen. I had planned on storing some of the bigger/non-daily use items upstairs in the kitchen's built-in cabinets. I was able to bring a piece in from the garage which will need to be repainted and have shelves put in. It was my mom and aunt's armoire where they stored their clothes. Pictures to come when it is all finished!
It is crazy to think that I feel like I am already "out of space" in a house that is way bigger than our townhouse. I think it will just take time to find a home for everything.
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Tuesday, June 06, 2006
The "Real" 108 North
We are in!
As of May 19th (when the big furniture made it's trek from Aurora to Naperville), we became residents of 108 North. Disregard the fact that today is 6-6-06 and we still have stuff at the townhouse.
Let's recap -
A few posts ago, I marvelled at the fact that April flew by. I should have taken this as a sign of how the month of May would go. The first few weeks were all about packing and checking a few things off the wedding to do list. On Memorial weekend, we had a garage sale to help my mom and aunt get rid of the many treasures that have been stored at 108 for many years. I will admit that a few did not make it to the sales floor (ie. the CandyLand that mom and aunt played, Dallas the board game which I took for a co-worker, and my first stuffed animal "Cookie" the dog who I couldn't part with).
In the midst of selling, the girls (Kate, Jeanne and Deanna) stopped by for our first Wedding Rehearsal (they are our vocalists at the wedding). This gave us all a chance to ooh and ahh over Kate and BJ's first-born, Zoe (for pictures please visit www.lippoldthaus.com), who was an angel and did not make a peep as her mom bounced her and sang. "Uncle" Steve, however, had to be restrained from kidnapping the poor child as he pushed her stroller up and down the sidewalk. To quote Steve, "It's like kettle drums in my ears" - referencing his sudden desire to have babies NOW. [No worries - not in the plan for a while :) ]
Post-singing rehearsal, the gang headed to downtown Naperville for lunch at Quigleys. It was a great way to spend the day and I am so glad that the girls are willing to sing at the wedding.
After the long Memorial Day weekend, I headed back to beautiful Texas for my second week in a row. Needless to say, unpacking, organizing and moving the rest of our stuff has been a low priority.
This past weekend was the annual LaGrange Pet Parade where Steve, PorTillo and I got to hang out with the Grosskopf/Schmit and friends clan. It was gorgeous weather and we all enjoyed getting to see many of the cousins before some of them depart for Montana and the land of Cheese. PorTillo provided clean-up assistance as he ate every chip and cracker that hit the ground (and a brownie).
Somehow in the last week I was able to squeeze in addressing wedding invitations, which will be completed tonight. If I was forward-thinking and had a digital camera, I would include a picture of the invite here. Just going to have wait for it to come in the mail - sorry.
It is only appropriate that I acknowledge today's date as 6-6-06, since we were engaged on 5-5-05 and a few people recommended this for our wedding date. As a true sign of coincidence, I noticed that it is also 66 days until our wedding today, which only confirms my suspicisions.
It will surely be hot on my wedding day in August!
more pics of the house.........................
Monday, May 15, 2006
Stirring things up.....
I guess I am starting to get the hang of this blogging thing - as you can see the townhouse pictures made it up. Although I did get an email from Steve saying Townhouse Pictures?. My intent was to include them in some of the posts that I wrote when we were showing the house - but I didn't really work out for me. So for now they are just out there.
In other blogging news....I had an epiphany this morning on the train. It takes a very solid/sturdy person to put yourself out there in blog format for the world to read and comment on. I am relatively new to reading other people's blogs. I got hooked on Kate's website LippoldtHaus.com when they first were constructing their new house and was captivated by all of the pregnancy updates over the last year.
Kate's site also introduced me to dooce.com - which every once in a while I get caught up on their adventures. But really that's about it.
What I have come to realize is that it is possible to use this format as your opinion board. For example, Kate has commented on a few controversial articles, commercials that annoy her and comments people make to pregnant women. Dooce.com became famous because the author was fired from her job for the comments she made about co-workers and her job.
In sucking all of this in, I find myself treading lightly on things. If I truly feel passionate about a topic (which I am sure some day I will find time to think about things outside of my own sphere), I think it is reasonable to comment. In light of Dooce, I have elected to not comment on my job, co-workers, etc. As many "funny" thoughts as I have in my head - it is just not worth putting them out there.
What I am left with - is lots of thoughts around how things in my life situations, family and friends make me feel. It's great to write about how proud I was of my brother-in-law yesterday, who became a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. It's not so acceptable to write about being annoyed with your mom (no mom this was just an example and Happy Mother's Day BTW!). Unless you are willing to suffer the consequences.
So you walk a fine line. The things that consume 90% of my brain on most days are not blogable (is that even a word?). Plus at this point the 2 people who actually read this (Steve and Kate) are not the ones I am worried about hurting/offending. But what if - Steve or I run for political office? Or other family does read this? Or I write something that people other than my own family and friends care to read about (suddenly feeling very exposed to the world).
I guess what I have discovered is that this format can be what you make of it - which is why I am sure in time I will read many other blogs that are more controversial, interesting or dare I say "truthful" than what I write about how I am feeling/doing, etc. The one key difference I see between my situation and the other blogs I have read - is that these women are mothers or where on their way to motherhood (Kate please note - I did read your blog pre-conception - just not as often!)
I know I think PorTillo is the most interesting and wonderful dog in the world - but as previously stated - not exciting enough to blog about all of the time. Kids on the other hand - are a totally different story. Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Friends and Neighbors do want to read about how new parents are adjusting, gross/funny poop stories, and those moments of "can you believe he/she said/did that?"
Perhaps I will look back on this format and note that life was more interesting post-kids. My fellow bloggers comments seem to support that!
In other blogging news....I had an epiphany this morning on the train. It takes a very solid/sturdy person to put yourself out there in blog format for the world to read and comment on. I am relatively new to reading other people's blogs. I got hooked on Kate's website LippoldtHaus.com when they first were constructing their new house and was captivated by all of the pregnancy updates over the last year.
Kate's site also introduced me to dooce.com - which every once in a while I get caught up on their adventures. But really that's about it.
What I have come to realize is that it is possible to use this format as your opinion board. For example, Kate has commented on a few controversial articles, commercials that annoy her and comments people make to pregnant women. Dooce.com became famous because the author was fired from her job for the comments she made about co-workers and her job.
In sucking all of this in, I find myself treading lightly on things. If I truly feel passionate about a topic (which I am sure some day I will find time to think about things outside of my own sphere), I think it is reasonable to comment. In light of Dooce, I have elected to not comment on my job, co-workers, etc. As many "funny" thoughts as I have in my head - it is just not worth putting them out there.
What I am left with - is lots of thoughts around how things in my life situations, family and friends make me feel. It's great to write about how proud I was of my brother-in-law yesterday, who became a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. It's not so acceptable to write about being annoyed with your mom (no mom this was just an example and Happy Mother's Day BTW!). Unless you are willing to suffer the consequences.
So you walk a fine line. The things that consume 90% of my brain on most days are not blogable (is that even a word?). Plus at this point the 2 people who actually read this (Steve and Kate) are not the ones I am worried about hurting/offending. But what if - Steve or I run for political office? Or other family does read this? Or I write something that people other than my own family and friends care to read about (suddenly feeling very exposed to the world).
I guess what I have discovered is that this format can be what you make of it - which is why I am sure in time I will read many other blogs that are more controversial, interesting or dare I say "truthful" than what I write about how I am feeling/doing, etc. The one key difference I see between my situation and the other blogs I have read - is that these women are mothers or where on their way to motherhood (Kate please note - I did read your blog pre-conception - just not as often!)
I know I think PorTillo is the most interesting and wonderful dog in the world - but as previously stated - not exciting enough to blog about all of the time. Kids on the other hand - are a totally different story. Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Friends and Neighbors do want to read about how new parents are adjusting, gross/funny poop stories, and those moments of "can you believe he/she said/did that?"
Perhaps I will look back on this format and note that life was more interesting post-kids. My fellow bloggers comments seem to support that!
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
It's May, already ?
A few months ago, a bride-to-be started a blog about her upcoming adventures. She was non-chalant about how much lay ahead for her and seemed almost excited for the challenge.
Under every cool, calm and collected bride lies a beast named "bridezilla". As much as I, er I mean the very put-together bride-to-be, seems to "have it all together", there comes a point when you are just ready to chuck it all out the window and elope.
This morning - I had the feeling of how did I let everything spiral out of control? Granted the wedding is not tomorrow, nor is it even next week - but suddenly it feels as though I am so far behind that I will need to spend every waking moment doing wedding stuff, moving or cleaning 108. But perhaps it is not far from the truth.......
The "plan" was to get through the selling the house stuff in order to then focus again on the wedding planning. I had a few days off work for the beginning of this month - so I figured May 1st would be the day it all came together. I could get the info for the rehearsal, email stuff for the showers, stop by the florist one more time, and about a hundred other little things that keep piling up. Unfortunately, May1st came and went without so much a load of laundry done as I used my day off to lay on the couch and sleep because I wasn't feeling well.
Obviously, I needed the rest and I am glad I was at home and not at work - but it put me behind. That Thursday I ended up working instead of staying home and Friday's garage sale preparation took up a whole day. Saturday was the garage sale and Sunday was rip up the carpet day.
Nine days into the month and I have very little to show for it. Steve has been feeling under the weather the last few days - so I can only delegate so much to him. So today has been catch up day - with each phone call, email and to do scratched off my list I feel a little better. I know just as any sane person does that it will all get done and Steve has given full rights to be in uber-bitch mode the last few days - I just didn't want to be this stressed about any of it.
So, I have learned my lesson - wedding planning needs to be almost a daily to do and cannot be put on the back burner for too long. Thank goodness I have family and friends that will listen to me as a morph in and out of a bridezilla like phase.
Under every cool, calm and collected bride lies a beast named "bridezilla". As much as I, er I mean the very put-together bride-to-be, seems to "have it all together", there comes a point when you are just ready to chuck it all out the window and elope.
This morning - I had the feeling of how did I let everything spiral out of control? Granted the wedding is not tomorrow, nor is it even next week - but suddenly it feels as though I am so far behind that I will need to spend every waking moment doing wedding stuff, moving or cleaning 108. But perhaps it is not far from the truth.......
The "plan" was to get through the selling the house stuff in order to then focus again on the wedding planning. I had a few days off work for the beginning of this month - so I figured May 1st would be the day it all came together. I could get the info for the rehearsal, email stuff for the showers, stop by the florist one more time, and about a hundred other little things that keep piling up. Unfortunately, May1st came and went without so much a load of laundry done as I used my day off to lay on the couch and sleep because I wasn't feeling well.
Obviously, I needed the rest and I am glad I was at home and not at work - but it put me behind. That Thursday I ended up working instead of staying home and Friday's garage sale preparation took up a whole day. Saturday was the garage sale and Sunday was rip up the carpet day.
Nine days into the month and I have very little to show for it. Steve has been feeling under the weather the last few days - so I can only delegate so much to him. So today has been catch up day - with each phone call, email and to do scratched off my list I feel a little better. I know just as any sane person does that it will all get done and Steve has given full rights to be in uber-bitch mode the last few days - I just didn't want to be this stressed about any of it.
So, I have learned my lesson - wedding planning needs to be almost a daily to do and cannot be put on the back burner for too long. Thank goodness I have family and friends that will listen to me as a morph in and out of a bridezilla like phase.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
