(By Lazlo) Well, the move is looming. I always knew it would happen like this -- that it would seem so far away for months and years, and then suddenly be just around the corner -- but it's still surprising. When Baby and I first moved to Pasadena, we talked about how sad it would be to leave, even though we didn't know at the time what we'd be so sad to leave. We just knew that the place our first child was born would hold a lot of memories for us, for the rest of our lives. We didn't know, of course, that we would have two kids here, and we certainly didn't know that we'd make so many great friends.
As I may have mentioned before, COL RHOMBUS (now aka EL CABALLO) done went and moved to Scotland, and I've been video chatting with him via Skype. I like Skype. If you don't live in Austin, and you like Baby and me, you should get Skype (or iChat AV) and video chat with us. I didn't think I would like it, but it's much better than a phone call, especially since Wren can interact better over video. I'm looking at you, MR. BODDY.
In recent news, everybody's sick. It started with a great birthday party Wren went to last weekend, we think. She picked something up and gave it to Jane, and then to Baby, and I'll probably be sick by tomorrow. Unfortunately, I have very little sick time left over from Jane's birth -- and I have a ton of stuff to do at work -- so I'll be toughing it out, my coworkers' health be damned. That's what they get for breathing my air, I guess. Actually, I'll make sure to always exhale into a plastic bag.
Also, we are borrowing a cat to take care of our mouse problem. Though Moogs (a man cat) has only caught one confirmed mouse (which subsequently escaped his maw), he seems to have scared the others off. Wren pretty much torments him every waking hour, but he's a good sport.
What I'll miss in LA, other than the obvious things like all our friends:
- Our church. There's a Mennonite church in Austin we're going to give a healthy try, but I've heard mixed reports. The good and bad reports were from the same person, though, so I'm not sure what to make of that.
- Public transportation. LA may not be New York or Chicago, but the MTA is better than Capital Metro. There are three buses I can take to work.
- Our housemates Dave and Dave.
- Proximity to lots of good camping and beaches that we haven't taken advantage of nearly enough. Although camping in California is different, in that there are probably more people at the average campsite than in many people's workplaces.
- Dozens of other things I'll probably mention later.
Both children asleep!
Things I should be using this brief precious time to accomplish:
start a load of diapers
wash the dishes
feed Ramona
work on any of the gazillion craft projects piled up on my desk
call the landlord to hassle him about the mouse invasion (3 more sightings this morning!)
put away the last load of laundry
schedule an optometrist appointment
Does any of that sound like fun? No? Blogging is maybe only slightly up the scale from hassling the landlord or feeding the dog, but since I'm car-less, netflix-less and babysitter-less, I'll take it.
I'm going to keep going with things I like, since yesterday worked so well, and there are plenty of other things I like. Such as:
Looking to brighten up a wall? Books, Check 'em Out! Or maybe this is more your style.
Our weekend plans will probably involve these guys. I'm so glad it's finally open! If anyone in town wants to tag along we've still got guest passes.
You've probably already seen this
I'm wondering if I should propose this at our next PMC meeting . We are a peace church after all.
Bossy's family archives.
Interesting, if you're thinking about buying a house someday.
And to end on a cute note, if you haven't already seen this...
the question ... and the answer.
Not much is happening in our house this morning. We woke up late and so Lazlo took the car to work. Wren and I are going to the PMC Bible study later (Mennonite ladies talking about Leviticus, or if God has been merciful, perhaps we'll have moved further through the lectionary...maybe even past Numbers?... I can hope).
(Right now Wren is singing to herself. The snippet "my best friend, my very best friend" from the Tim and Eric Kittycat episode. I'm pretty sure this would get us arrested if it happened in front of Melissa Rhoderick).
We're in denial about how soon we will probably be leaving LA, so I haven't even begun packing. I get a headache when I think about it, which means I have a headache alot, or actually that might be the two year old. Anyway, in the spirit of positivity and turning around my mood on this gray day, I thought I would share some things that I like.
I like this chair. Sadly it has not been in stock at Ikea in four months, and you can't order it online. So I guess they don't like selling it. Wren must be content with her booster seat which no longer fits on any chair in our house. It doesn't strap down, so every time she climbs up into it we get to stand around anxiously in "spotters ready" position but not actually TOUCH it because " NOOOOOOOOOO! I dood it MYSELF!"
Moving on, I like this blog. I've been reading Catherine Newman since Sarah Roden gave me her book when I was pregnant with Wren. Sometimes, when she's describing things I've felt but never been able to articulate, I feel like her long lost soul mate. If you like her you can find her older journals on the Babycenter site.
I like this group on flickr. It's fun to see how other people put together spaces for their kids.
I like this blog. It's inspiration to be a better mom, more involved in the process with Wren, not paying attention to her for a minute while mentally tapping my foot until I can get back to whatever lame thing I was doing (like reading that blog. Hm...) Anyway, she's present with her kids, most of the time seemingly without losing her mind, and she also manages to create some truly beautiful things.
Speaking of creating, the Fall (ish) weather is making me pull out my super neglected knitting stuff, and I'm really liking this pattern. Mittens have always terrified me, what with the decreasing and the picking up stitches and pretty much everything about them that's not exactly like making a scarf or hat. But these are topless, they're knit in quick chunky yarn... I may give them a try. I'm about 3 inches into my 57th attempt at a sock on dpns, so maybe this is the year I really learn to knit. Who knows...
For pure time wasting, I like this site.
Another shout out to my esteemed sister-in-law, I like everything I've ever made from this magazine, and you can find a lot of the recipes on the site. Since most of the recipes are for 4-6, you can ask the Dudes how they like them too. Hurray for Martha!
And finally, if anyone is still there, these are the quilts I love right now, and this might not technically be a quilt, since one side is knitted, but it's three layers, with batting, so I think it counts.
