Country Living #countryliving #moving #unpacking

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Erika

So we moved to a giant house in a tiny little village, right near a small retirement/golf resort town in North Carolina.

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The move itself was kind of hellish: Apparently, the moving company and I didn’t adequately communicate about the amount of crap important household items we have, and it took the movers 12 hours to load and unload everything. It rained the entire time they were unloading.

Also, they couldn’t fit everything in their truckS (!!!) so the next day My Chemical Romance had to rent a uhaul and return to our old house, then come back. He paid some Craigslist people to help him load up and I wish we had done that from the beginning, because the movers were so awful.

Moral of the story: have a moving company come to your house and give you a quote before promising they can do a job for a low price :X

But we live in paradise now. On a golf course! On almost two acres!

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Unlike in Cary, our neighbors are all older, retired folks. But I think they’ll get a kick out of a young family in the ‘hood.

One neighbor brought us homemade oatmeal raisin cookies. Another neighbor helped unload the 125 gal fish tank. And another neighbor brought us a case of Kleenex.

Um…? It is kind of pollen-y here.

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This was in the garage.

The family who owns the house left us lots of furniture and other items, like a weed wacker and kitchen chairs and plenty of extra light bulbs.

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The house is so big. I love it! I seriously feel like I’m living in a castle. I still have to figure out my hacks — the house is a little quirky, like it doesn’t have a garbage disposal and the kitchen pantry is small. But I think we’ll love it here.

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Especially when I get done unpacking!

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What I’ll miss about Cary #cary #moving

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Erika

My kids have had amazing neighborhood friends here.

The Informant’s first bff was our next door neighbor. They met the day we moved in, and were inseparable until she moved away.

Then, into the same house moved yet another girl about the same age! How lucky is that?!?! And a boy a little older than Animal and Mineral! And teenaged siblings who babysat regularly!

And a mom who helped me pack up this house AND took me to the hospital for two of my kidney surgeries. I’ve never had better neighbors.

Directly behind us was a boy about the same age as Animal and Mineral, who had a sister the same age as My Masterpiece. The two little girls together were adorable!

On that same street was another boy, a couple years older than Animal and Mineral, who I adored because he was polite and helpful.

I have told my kids that my first priority (after unpacking) is finding friends for all of us. Our new house is on two acres, so their new friends may not be quite as close by distance. But I recognize how important having good friends is, so we’ll make an effort.

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Moving to the Country #movingtothecountry #countryliving

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Erika

Things change fast. It seems like yesterday, I lived in San Diego and Animal and Mineral looked like this

20130319-013948.jpgexcept there were two of them and SD never gets cold enough for jackets and hats!

And now we’re moving to a country estate in North Carolina and they look like this

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It happened fast. I was browsing zillow, a real estate site, looking for rental houses anywhere but here, and I came across a really amazing house in the country, over an hour from here (but closer to My Chemical Romance’s work). Also, it was huge, and on land.

I called the rental agent immediately, we saw it the next day and I could not say no. Because, huge. And because, downstairs master bedroom. And because, moving an hour away, I will no longer have to wear this in public

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Though getting paid to dance on an intersection isn’t a bad gig!

We’re moving next month. I despair of leaving my proximity to Whole Foods Trader Joe’s everywhere, but I’m excited for this new adventure.

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I had a party. Then I moved on.

Posted on August 27, 2012 by Erika

Last week or the week before, I felt so awful. I received an invitation

To Erika:

You are cordially invited! Please join me for a pity party celebrating a year of living in Raleigh by feeling very sad about the following: white people only, mosquitos and no friends (except for the mosquitos). We will be crying uncontrollably about the unfairness of life and praying to a god or goddess or really any deity that might listen, for an opportunity to GTFO.

Sincerely,
Erika

I really was in a funk, and the mosquitos really did arrive in droves. But then I felt better, although still quite itchy.

Nothing really happened to change things. My Chemical Romance started working weird, long hours at work with the ever-present threat of being on third-shift hanging over his head for the next month. I actually don’t mind that, because I can do some errands during the day while he’s home.

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I attended a book club in which we discussed 50 Shades of Grey and I drank a bunch of Sangria and ate gluten for the evening.

I quit the gym. No extra time.

I got my new, permanent work schedule, which is mostly evening and weekend hours.

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One of my homeschool co-ops fell apart, but I’m not sad about it. Most of the families from last year decided not to come back, and it would have been a lot of work for me to teach a bunch of 5-7yos about Egypt anyway.

We’re still doing a bunch of other extracurriculars.

Maybe I’m happy that it’s finally cooled down enough to go outside? Maybe I’m realizing that although I wish it were different here, sociologically, I love my neighborhood — especially my proximity to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s — and I enjoy walking with the kids to the grocery store, to the park or to the vet — not because I’m so into exercise, but because everything is so close to our house? Maybe I recognize that I am really lucky because while I need to work part-time, I actually like my retail job? Or that My Chemical Romance’s company is committed to staying made in the USA, and he won’t get outsourced?

Whatever it is, I feel better.

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A few high class problems

Posted on June 26, 2012 by Erika

1. I keep losing RX. After I broke my foot, the ER gave me a RX for perco*cet and then the orthopedist gave me a RX for more. I was thinking, SCORE. I will never need to do another illegal drug again in my life — I’ll just do the ones that are legally prescribed to me. And also, for reals, my foot and ankle does hurt a lot, so I’m not just doing this to get high. (Also, My Chemical Romance has a slight problem with doing illegal things, other than speeding, turning right on red, printing things from work, keeping library kindle books on his device after they’re expired and a few other illegal things that he’s totally okay with.) I digress. So, I had a RX for approximately 80 pills and I didn’t fill them because I figured I’d do it when I had a chance — and then before the chance came, I noticed they had vanished from my purse. $@&%*^$@#!@!!!!!!!! Now I get to call the doc and explain that I’m not a junkie, I’m just a space cadet mom.

Can I just get some of the blue ones? Kthnxbai (Flickr: RambergMedialImages)

1.5 This happened about a month ago with Mineral’s ADHD medication, except I couldn’t get another RX for a few days, because his doctor is only in the office on Thursdays and I lost it on a Saturday. That was a fun few days of Mineral sans ADHD medication. That’s something I’ll never do again, I can guarantee it! (I’ll just do it with my own pills.)

2. My vacuum cleaner is broken. It’s a Riccar, which sucks way more than your vacuum cleaner does. It’s awesome on both carpet and (fake) hardwood. It’s made in the USA. And it’s a bagged vacuum, which means that when I empty it, dust particles don’t fly everywhere (thus negating any vacuuming that has been done). Luckily because it’s a Riccar and they stand by their products, I can probably find a way to get it fixed or replaced. But I only feel the need to vacuum once in a while, and I want to strike while the dust bunnies are hot!

One of these vacuums does not work (Flickr: Living in Monrovia)

3. We are looking for a new place to live in August. My Chemical Romance works in a small town that’s fairly inaccesible unless you live in the small town. We do not live in the small town. I have absolutely no desire to live in the small town. It’s small. And not in a cute small-town way, in more a sad lonely empty small town. (Kind of like the last few towns My Chemical Romance has worked in. Something about chemicals speaks to small dumpy towns, whether in this country or Mexico.) Because it’s inaccessible, we live in Raleigh, right off a highway that he takes for 35 miles til he’s at work. But it’s so far north of the town! We would both like his commute a bit shorter (without moving to small town) and also, living here is much more expensive. We’re paying more to rent our house here that’s small and has no backyard than to own our house in Charlotte that’s over 2000sf and on 1/3 of an acre. Yet we can’t buy — I don’t think Raleigh is our last stop. Anyway, we’re looking in a town that’s is affectionately referred to as Fvckway-V@gina. Yes. Yes. But no. No. We went and looked a few houses there yesterday, and I’ve decided the best course of action is simply to cut our food bill by not eating and stay in our expensive house.

But I need a place to see MAGIC MIKE! (Flickr: Nomadic Lass)

These are Tuesday ramblings.

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It’s like I’m a celebrity. Except without any of the perks.

Posted on September 1, 2011 by Erika

Right now I’m fighting off either strep throat or mono, so here are my recent thoughts on this move, which may or may not be affected by my illness:

I’M LIKE A CELEBRITY.

I unabashedly love celebrity gossip. Love it. I skim all the websites and blogs daily. When I can, I listen to TMZ live on the radio, although I find Harvey Levin really obnoxious. He’s so self-important.

Here’s how I’m like a celebrity – take Beyonce, for instance. I see a lot of pictures of her on various vacations with Jay-Z, in exotic locations, on a yacht or a beach, rocking a bikini. When Beyonce goes on tour, or goes into the studio, or makes a movie, she has to leave her home, her friends, her family, and go to work for a few months. Probably somewhere new, where she doesn’t know anyone — although everyone she meets is nice and helpful (this has been my experience here). She probably has her husband with her, and she probably uses her iPad or whatever to keep in touch with everyone, but she’s alone in a new place.

That’s me.

To keep myself sane, I’m trying to imagine that this is a temporary interruption of my real life, and that as soon as this situation is over, I’ll be back home. It might not be true, it might not be healthy, but it keeps me from curling up into a ball and crying 24/7 because it seems like the best part of my adult life is over and I’ll never get it back again and I didn’t appreciate it enough and UGH HERE I GO CRYING AGAIN.

I totally bet Beyonce feels this way.

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Things I have done since I moved

Posted on August 29, 2011 by Erika
  • Cried every day. Usually it’s every morning, for a few minutes, when I wake up and see the boxes in my room and think of my Jugs.
  • Thought, “… however, I do really enjoy this house.” Seriously, I **really** like this house. I like how it’s made (sturdy), I like the floors (fake hardwood), I like how all the bedrooms are upstairs, and I like the lack-of east- and west-facing windows.
  • Attended some homeschool group-wide activities. There’s a large, active homeschool umbrella group here and I’ve been to some events. I’ve met some moms.
  • Cursed the fact that I’m totally STARTING OVER with making friends. People here don’t know that they like me yet. When I lived in Charlotte, I used to joke that I offered “mercy invites” to lunch with women at La Leche League or My Chemical Romance’s friends’ wives — women who looked like they could use a friend. And now, of course, I am the mercy invitee. Seriously, I nearly wept with joy when a lovely homeschool mom invited me to eat lunch with her at a picnic. I could feel a panic attack beginning when I went through the lunch line and realized I’d have to sit alone (alone = with “just” my five kids).
  • Annoyed the hell out of My Chemical Romance. I chalk it up to the stress of moving. I alternate between morose and hyperactively insisting that I WANT TO PARK MY CAR IN THE GARAGE RIGHT NOW, SO CLEAR OUT ALL THESE FREAKIN’ BOXES! NOW! RIGHT NOW! ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!?!?!?
  • Found several Harris Teeters. Ah, yes, I’m still in North Carolina. There’s a HT on every third block, I tell you.
  • Panicked about the hurricane — I’m a lot closer to the coast here — and then found it was nothing more than a wind-and-rain storm.
  • Got a library card. Watch out, evil library witches! Your newest least-favorite-patron-ever has arrived!
  • Gawked at the library hours: They’re open EVERY DAY. Every single day. In Charlotte, the library budget was cut every third week, to the point where my closest local library was open four days per week, for a total of 32 hours.
  • Went to Costco and brought up their stock level by re-stocking my house.

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In which we moved and I cried.

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Erika

Honestly, I didn’t cry at first. I really didn’t. I was actually kind of excited — a new place means, to me, new adventures, and I love a good adventure. Also, I make friends everywhere I go. Now that I’m an adult, I know that about myself: everyone likes me. (Unless they don’t, in which case they’re assholes anyway.) My default behavior for meeting someone new is excited and friendly, and most people respond pretty well to that. Too well in fact (see my blog about the woman who told me all about the dead bloodied rat in her freezer, all the while I smiled and nodded and thought, “Wow, this is going to make a great blog someday.”)

My Chemical Romance proffered his resignation on a Monday; he accepted a position on a Wednesday, and we moved a week later. The movers were slower than the prophet who is “allegedly” returning. They packed up a box. They took a break and smoked a few cigarettes. They packed up another box. They went to McDonald’s. They packed another box. I was unimpressed.

I cried when we ate our last meal in Charlotte (Firehouse Subs, delicious!) with Little Miss Popular and Nice-Nice, and as I drove away I sobbed. I sobbed for about an hour, then snarfled and sniffled for another hour, then we arrived in our city and checked into a hotel and I tossed and turned for a few hours and then we went to our new house.

We’re renting a house that we had only seen on the internet. Although it looked fine on the ‘net, and it’s actually a great house for my family. No carpet to stain. Made in the ’80s so it’s pretty sturdy, compared to our last house (which we still own and hope to rent out). Most of the living area is downstairs, and it’s very open, which I like a LOT better. But it’s 200sf smaller than our old house and the garage is much tinier, and therefore it’s covered in boxes. I want to park in the garage, and My Chemical Romance has promised me that by September 1, I’ll be in the garage. I think he’s being very optimistic.

This move is stressful on all of us. I held it together nicely on the first day — in which our FABULOUS new neighbor was unbelievably kind and made us dinner and happens to have a girl the same age as The Informant and a baby the same age as Porcelain. I could not have planned it better. Also, the lots here are the size of postage stamps, so she’s like 6 small steps away. Perfect.

Saturday, I tried to rally and unpack a little. My Chemical romance was helpful. We re-arranged things a little bit. My FABULOUS new neighbor helped me organize my room. We unpacked a little. I went to Trader Joe’s and spend My Chemical Romance’s future first paycheck on enough food for a while. I felt okay.

Sunday was the day things fell apart. Nice-Nice and Mary F. Poppins drove up to see me and when I saw them I started to lose my mind. I was so happy to see them and yet so sad because I now live so far away from them. I actually felt physically ill; my body was aching and I thought I might be getting the flu. They stepped in and unpacked and organized and FOLDED LAUNDRY (find me another mom of five young children who folds laundry, because I don’t believe it) and talked to me and nursed Porcelain and brought me my placenta from the freezer of my house (we forgot to pack all the contents of the fridge and freezer, like geniuses). And I cried. I cried and cried. Then, we were leaving to go out to dinner, I realized I’d left about 300 ounces of frozen breastmilk in my car for 24 hours and it had all thawed, I totally lost my mind.

I ended up sobbing hysterically on the floor of my kitchen, while Nice-Nice fed me klonopin. God bless Klonopin.

to be continued…

Filed under: Daily Life, family, friends | Tagged: , , | 2 Comments »

The Almighty Cinco de Mommy: Willing Us to Move

Posted on August 13, 2011 by Erika

Several months ago, after yet another run-in with the busybody neighborhood queen, I said to My Chemical Romance, “I just want to MOVE!”

Recently, I blogged on “things I hate about my house.”

And then, this week, My Chemical Romance accepted an offer for a job three hours away.

All of this proves one thing: Clearly, I am god. I have willed this to happen. All because I really enjoyed a particular Mexican restaurant the first time I visited the city.

For the record, REALLY good steak tacos.

We’re being relocated through a professional company, which theoretically means everything is taken care of, but I’ve done this before — it’s a huge pain and I need to do a LOT to get us ready.

Today I turned in a rental application for a house I’ve never seen before. Yes, that’s right, I’m going on faith — faith in the almighty ME AND MY TASTE IN HOUSES (close to Trader Joe’s, north/south facing, and a larger-than-my-current one kitchen). I’ve never moved this way before (although I did meet, marry and move cross country with My Chemical Romance in less than three months, but that involved my parents hiring a private investigator to vet him. This is just like, “Well, I guess that sounds like a nice street name… I’ve always wanted a pink kitchen…” I’ll take pictures when I actually get there.)

I’m not 100% sure when we’re moving, but I do know that My Chemical Romance’s first day of his new job is a week from Monday, so we have a lot do in a very short amount of time. I will will myself to get it done. I will will my local friends to help!

Filed under: Daily Life, family | Tagged: , , | 4 Comments »

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