Sunday, April 12, 2009

Family Update Volume IX

So, I have a real live update this week!

First, we had a tornado Friday night. We'd had thunder, lightning and wind all evening, and then a tornado watch. And then a tornado warning.

Around 10 pm we heard what sounded like a train coming up our street. Then the power flickered wildly and went out. Then the tornado siren went off. We don't have an interior room. Our closets are all itty bitty. So, we just went to bed and hoped we wouldn't wake up in Oz. The power came back on around 5 am. When we ventured out on Saturday, we saw that a giant tree had crushed a truck and the mobile home it was parked in front of. Apparently other trailers in the area had been picked up and flipped over. There were a lot of trees, branches and other debris all over the roads. Luckily, nothing happened to our house or yard. We had a few large branches come down, but the boys' bikes didn't even get blown over.




After lunch on Saturday we had an Easter egg hunt at a park with the rest of the Fat Frumpy Five and their families. Then we had a barbecue. The storms had all blown out of town and we had beautiful weather. The kids wore shorts and sandals. I, as usual, forgot my camera. I'm sure if you visit Tina's blog in the near future she'll have some posted.

In other news, Ben turns 10 on Monday. When did I get old enough to have a kid in the double digits?

In even bigger news, we are moving!!! We're only going about a mile down the road (the boys won't even have to change schools), but it will be a vast improvement.

Currently we live on the edge of the slums. Our immediate neighborhood is O.K. It's mainly retired people living in the same brick bungalows they built back in 1970. But about a block away the area starts to get seedy. It's not so much that it's dangerous--it's just poverty stricken. Basically, street after street of people living in squalor.

Also, the house we're currently in is probably about 1200 square feet. The landlady said 1500, but I seriously doubt it. And it's old. They did do some renovations, but they did them haphazardly. Our kitchen counter is not attached to anything. They left smears of brown grout on the white ceramic tile so my kitchen floor looks filthy. The toilets hate us (especially Will). Oh, and when they replaced the kitchen cabinets, they failed to put up any insulation. The backs of the cabinets are the outer wall of the house. So, heat and air conditioning gets very, very expensive. We regularly had electric bills of $400 last summer. This is what happens when you rent a place sight unseen.

Anyway, the house we're moving to is 1900 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 2 car garage, privacy fenced large yard, gas fire place, new appliances, granite counters, tray ceilings, walk in closets (great for future tornadoes), soaking tub in the master, an actual laundry room... Just an all around great house in a really nice neighborhood (Pepper Hill, for you locals). And all for only $130 a month more than we're paying for our current crap hole. May 1st can't come soon enough.

And finally, I'm officially down 68 pounds since my surgery January 14th, 98 pounds since mid September. Oddly, I feel fatter than ever. I know, ridiculous.


88 days, 68 pounds



11 comments:

  1. We weren't sure at all at the time that it was a Tornado siren. Sounded just like a Police car, (or like the very first part of a Basra, Iraq rocket attack siren, if you're familiar with those..)

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  2. congrats on the move. and don't feel bad. i bought a $750,000 (yes i typed that right) house sight unseen.

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  3. What do divorce and tornadoes have in common in Oklahoma?


    Either way, somebody's losing a trailer.

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  4. Harmony--

    Two words: Padded bra.

    Also, the fact that my stomach doesn't stick out further than them anymore helps give the illusion that there's something there. Really, though, they're just empty foam cups.

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  5. You are so right about the stomach to boob ratio. Now that I'm not pregnant, my boobs look so much better. (They also filled with milk, so that's nice, until it all goes away) Point? You look great! Even Cheyenne said so (you've officially turned him MORE girly than he was.)

    Hooray for a new house! Everyone down there is moving around, huh? Totally jealous of all the room, and the tub! I wish I could get more than 815 square feet, but hey, foreign country. Quick Q tho: what's a tray ceiling?

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  6. Crystal,

    Tray ceiling pic: http://bdluxuryhomes.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/81dr.jpg

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  7. brandi

    i forgot to tell you at church today, but you look great! being thinner really brings out your bright blue eyes. i don't know why, but it does...

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  8. Hear Hear Sylwia!
    The first thing I thought when I saw you at church was how cute you were and how you look so good in a dress. A Dress! Not a skirt, which is 100% of my church wardrobe, because I cannot find dresses that look good on me! Seriously, no matter how much you weigh you ALWAYS look beautiful!

    I can't wait to see your new house! I'm super excited!

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  9. gotta agree with everyone -you look awesome!

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  10. One of us has to make a trip, I want to see the new you in person.

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  11. Your hair is cute, too. Boobs bigger. Is that a 38.87 c-cup bra instead of surgery? :)

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Be nice or I'll punch you in the taco.

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