There's No Place Like Home...

We made it. Finally.

The movers came, packed, loaded, and took all of our junk (of which we still have way too much) off to Pennsylvania. Dr. B loaded Wonda the Honda on Friday morning, and drove all the way to State College while I helped the movers finish everything, cleaned our house, and got ready to stay at a dear friends' that night. Rowan was an angel, until I locked the door. Then all the bad luck that seemed to cruise right past us during the move came crashing in.

As we were loading the (now screaming) baby into the car, (near as we can figure) some yoho came by and stole my bag.

Not the one with the computer or the one with the Ipod.

They took the one with all my makeup, toiletries, hair dryer, glasses, contact lenses, prescriptions, dirty laundry and my favorite capri pants. Plus Rowan's cute new outfit from her second cousin Angie. Everything I needed for the next few days. Check that, months. They even got my toenail clippers and eyebrow plucking things.

Argh!

We went back and scoured the area, but it was nowhere to be found. So, Target was hit and even just replacing a small portion of those items was quite a hit to the pocketbook.

Rowan had a fussy night, and I had insomnia. (Sigh.) Our friends were angels, helping us, feeding me and putting up with a screaming baby and a frustrated mommy who didn't even have shampoo to shower away the icky moving grit.

But, Saturday morning dawned, and the inlaws came to pick us up.

Then we tried to fit all our stuff we did have in their Jimmy.

Whoa.

Maybe it was a good thing I didn't have that bag. (Note to self: buy smaller suitcase. With that, Lucy's crate, and Rowan's car seat, there wasn't much space.)

So, I breathed shallowly on the way up to Minneapolis. We stopped for dinner at another good friend's house. It was wonderful.

Driving into Fargo at 12:30, trying to wake up for fear that my contact lenses would need to be surgically removed from my eyes, I heard a WHAM!!! from the backseat.

We hit a deer. Came out of nowhere, and took out the headlights and rammed the front real good.

We drove slowly on the side of the road, flashers blinking and a state patroller following us into the next town, where most of the lights were out for some unexplained reason. Found the first hotel with lights on, and got a room. There were no cribs left, so Rowan slept with me, and Lucy slept right next to me on the floor. The next morning, we had breakfast, rented another SUV (which my inlaws are presently driving back to Fargo because they wouldn't let us return it up here), and came home.

It felt so good to walk through those doors.

So now we're here, with spotty cell phone reception (call me at Jean and Dick's if you can't get me), comfy couches, air conditioning, and Harry Potter.

And the all-important swing that Great Aunt B. let Rowan borrow. Thank you, B! That's a lifesaver, that is.

So now? Time to rest and relax and do nothing. (Except the cooking and cleaning--Cinderellie owes her in-laws, BIG TIME.)

Primp

Pre-Baby:

Plan outfit carefully, with appropriate undergarments. Iron as needed.
Shower, shave, shampoo, condition, cleanse with some lovely-smelling shower gel, pumice feet.
Paint toenails, with base coat, two coats of color (Berry Berry Broadway is my favorite), top coat.
Paint fingernails, with base coat, two coats of color (more understated than toes, Sheer Sugarplum is my top choice), top coat.
Apply anti-perspirant, body lotion, perfume.
Carefully apply makeup, including foundation, concealer, blush, eyeshadow (two types), eyeliner, eyebrow pencil, mascara (lashes appropriately curled, of course).
Dry and style hair, using several hair care products for that touseled look.
Choose jewelry, scarves and shoes to compliment outfit.
Don appropriate outerwear for the weather.
Apply a final coat of lipstick and/or gloss, checking teeth to make sure there are no stray lipstick marks.


Post-Baby:

"Honey?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you see the poop stain on my shirt?"*



*Yes, I really did ask this just before leaving the house.


***NOTE: The movers have packed the house, Dr. B is leaving this morning for PA, and my job is to clean the place while avoiding a baby meltdown when they load the truck. Dr. B will be taking the cable box, remote, and router thingee back to the cable company on his way out of town, so I will be wireless-less for a few days. Please be patient, and I'll post comments as soon as I can! My in-laws are coming to get us tomorrow, and we'll be back in the land of Ice and Snow, Tornadoes and 109 degree heat by late Saturday night.

Kabillion

We bought a home, found temporary housing for Dr. B, planned a 6-week stay in ND for me, the girl and the pup, and now are in the midst of a kabillion things that we have to do to prepare. We have movers coming to pack and haul everything, but that doesn't change the fact that things are a disorganized mess, and the house is in serious need of cleaning (yeah, like that's going to happen!) We're selling surplus items on Craig's List, hoping to see friends before leaving, and trying to ignore the fact that we're leaving the town we love so much (though from our week in SC,PA, we are pretty sure we're going to love it there, too.)

So posts may be infrequent for a bit, and I'm not sure when I'll get pictures up on Flickr (working on it!), but I do have to share this one with you.

Our lives may be caught in a whirlwind right now, but we do have the most beautiful little girl in the whole wide world. Don't you agree?

PS: She wore a hat for a few days, which made some of the hair in the front of her head rub off. She kind of looks like Ed Asner, but it's growing back. And her eyelashes are getting really long, so it kind of makes up for the baldie-mullet look.

House

This week, we're spending some time in our future hometown, State College, PA. It's a charming college town, nestled in the Allegheny Mountain Range of the Appalachian Mountains, and is full of students and people who really, really like Penn State. (And we thought Bucky Fever was bad...) Cute shops and restaurants are everywhere, the mountain views are amazing, and there are lots of neat little towns in the area to explore.

We went house hunting, found a townhouse, made an offer, and signed the papers, so we are officially homeowners in debt up to our eyeballs.

But it's cute. Not a lot of storage, but completely updated and redone throughout, so I never have to set foot in Home Depot. (Phew!)

Only problem is that it's not available when we need it, so we are planning a trip for me, the girl and the dog back to ND to visit family in August, and Dr. B will come alone for a while and live somewhere (still working on that.)

Scary, but exciting. I think we're going to like it here. More details soon...

Warning

Rowan in her cute Baby Gap top, originally uploaded by MrsBinParis.

Rowan was up today at 5 AM. After nursing, changing her clothes and sheets (she either wet everywhere or just got really, really sweaty while sleeping), and rocking her for a while, Dr. B took over and let me go back to bed before putting her back down around 7.

She slept until 11 AM.

I awoke at 10, ate breakfast, drank coffee, read my email, made the bed, cleaned the bathroom, showered, got dressed, combed my hair, brushed my teeth, put in my contacts and even moisturized before she woke up.

I think this means we're in for it tonight. Beware.

And if you hear wailing off in the distance? It's her.

Or me.

(Just close your windows tight.)