Words of the day

I wonder if McCain will distribute M stickers. I would love that. Besides the obvious money, moron, malicious and other fun M words, I would be able to point out to people that McCain is just an upside down W.

Home Ownership Imminent

Finally, finally, finally...

We have a contract. Our counter offer has been accepted. We are closing in one month!

I used to feel slightly panicked at the thought of my student loans. Let me just say that a 400 thousand dollar obligation is not even panic, it is surreal. It's almost as if this imaginary money is just a funny way to say that I can paint my walls (without getting in trouble) and knock down a wall if I feel like it, or replace the bathtub if it's not luxurious enough. I never cared about throwing money away on rent because I really feel that it all evened out. In the early years, we didn't have the money to replace the furnace if it went out. Just in these last few months, I have become fed-up with apartment life. The noise, the temporary feeling, the shared hot water that can scorch or freeze you without any warning, the little things that you can't change- like closet doors on runners that don't work.

Our new sub-urban utopia has a wood burning fireplace, 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2 kitchens, a sun porch, a shed, pergo floors, beautiful moldings, and a gas stove! It was like someone built the house just for us.

In other news, I purchased a worm bin from happy d ranch and 2 pounds of red wigglers. Adam thinks that I am totally crazy. We feed the worms junk mail, dryer lint, and kitchen scraps. In return, we are going to have some fabulous compost for the garden in the spring. I think it is an important lesson to teach Jules about recycling and being mindful of waste. She is really into it, she even named her favorite worm, Jessica (miraculously she finds Jessica every time we open the bin....)

My Eyes Are OPEN

This week was phase II of house hunting week. We didn't find a house, but we discovered how disgusting people can be.

Friday:

We found a split level that needed some work, in our price range (no more than 400K) in what seemed to be an older, transitioning neighborhood. People were building Starter Castles all over the place. There is a finite amount of land inside the beltway so people buy cheap houses from the 1940's, tear them down and build their dream house on top. It's happening in our own neighborhood. All this time we have just assumed that that is was a positive sign of gentrification.

No so, we realized...not so.

Instead, most of these McMansion's are facades, disguising the dirty secret of the metro area. This week, while house hunting, we discovered the inside world of the illegal boarding house.

Newsflash: the 10 cars parked on the street are not friends visiting or the kids coming home from college...

I always wondered where all of the day laborers and KFC workers live. Let's face it, you can't afford to rent a place around here on fast food wages. And what apartment complex is going to let you and 25 of your friends move in to a one bedroom apartment?

I am shocked and saddened.

The living conditions are unsafe. The landlords block off exits to keep inspectors out or to create more rooms, literally trapping people in. Some of the older homes that have been renovated to accommodate such circumstances only have 1 bathroom.

We saw one place where they must have converted the garage into some kind of housing with indoor/outdoor carpet. When Adam opened the door, we were hit with a wall of the most concentrated urine smell I have ever encountered (and I thought a football weekend ride in the Beaver Hill elevator was bad!) It sucked because the house was awesome, but needed a lot of work. The urine lodge was kind of a deal breaker.

In this place (photo on left), we found a secret room with just a sink and a fireplace. It was only accessible from a hidden door in the back yard. Funny, because it looked like it was going to be "the one" from the outside. It had a little brick path winding through the backyard and a cute wood gate on the side. The walls had some maroon paint slopped on them to cover up what I assume was gang graffiti. I thought someone was going to jump out and shoot us at any second- in what appears to be a quiet suburban neighborhood.

In another home, we literally stepped over men sleeping on the floor while looking around. So, now with our eyes open we are wondering how far outside the beltway is far enough. I am so happy that I am winning the powerball this weekend! That way we won't have to worry about living next to a boarding house.

Pumpkins and Apples

The city folk ventured out to the country for some drive up apple picking. It was one of the few times that our "crossover" would be tested on rugged terrain. We waited in an endless procession of other city dwellers to receive our plastic bag and instructions. Where do we park? Pull right up next to the trees. Adam got a big kick out of that. It seemed like it would be hard to create a wholesome, authentic apple picking experience while parallel parking between Porsche SUV's, but we soon forgot reality and began searching for the best apples.

Human nature is funny. We don't eat apples very often, but the urgency and greed soon overcame us and our bag filled up with delicious, fresh apples. Now that we have these super fresh apples, I am more inclined to eat them.

After the obligatory bathroom emergency (Jules drank a bottle of water on the way to the farm), we picked up some raw honey, handed over $10 ($5 for the apples and $5 for the honey) and headed over to the pick your own pumpkin patch.


The woman handed us a steak knife and Jules cut her pumpkin from the vine. It amazed me that a mere 49 miles away there are still farms and open land. It was a fantastic little getaway for under $20.

The Nomadic Life of Birds and Humans

We woke up early this morning. We wanted to be first in line, to beat the rush. The small farm that supplies us with fresh, grass fed, speckled brown eggs at the farmers market put out the turkey list today. We all know about Adam's obsession with the Thanksgiving turkey, so it was only a matter of time before we embraced being D.I.O.K's and bought a fresh, heritage bird. I have to admit, I felt like our deposit was a death sentence for one unsuspecting bird. I don't know if it is better to buy free range, grass fed poultry. I almost think that the poor conditions in Butterball cages make turkeys welcome their fate. Yet our bird is happily romping around in the open. In any case, there was no line. We realized that people don't wake up as early as we did to pay $80 for a 18 pound turkey. We were first on the list and we got first pick at the produce.

Our little karate kid is testing for her next belt at the end of the month! We were watching her through the observation window and we saw her take down a 10 year old kid that was twice her size. It was really impressive.

Adam is officially a full time employee. I am up for a promotion (which will pay almost as much as his position). So things are fantastic.

We are starting to look for houses. We are going to buy a house in May when our lease is up. It is time to grow some roots. The nomadic life has come to an end.

And here we go

I have successfully made it through Jules' first week of school! She marched in to her class Tuesday morning. She wears a uniform.It takes a lot of the stress out of our new morning routine.

She is very excited to be a bona fide "big kid". I was not so sure. How could I release my baby into the world? Will she find her class? Will she understand the routine? Can she recite the pledge of allegiance? Yes. She has done all of those things and more. We even received her first fund raising packet. They don't waste any time! Her teachers are fantastic. The school is amazing. She is so happy there. She is the SMALLEST child in the entire school. It must be because her birthday is in August. The other kids take care of our little blonde sprite, like she is a baby doll. They help her in the lunch line since she can't see over the rail. She told me, "I don't even know what the ladies are putting on my tray."

My biggest mistake as a parent was dropping her off at the kiss and ride on the second day. She wasn't prepared and cried as the volunteer escorted her into the school and we drove away. Other than that, it has been a smooth transition.

In other news, we spent a lovely week with the Smith's in South Carolina. Our condos were 100 feet away from the ocean. I felt like we were there for a month! Camille and I went to the Hibiscus Spa for a day of pampering. It was fabulous! Cucumber water, infinity pool, cabana boys, pure child free bliss. The men chartered a boat and went shark fishing, they caught 10 sharks! We are already planning next years vacation.

Adam received a verbal offer of employment. Soon we won't have to worry about putting money aside for taxes.

Fun things I like to tell telemarketers

The student loan consolidation people keep calling me. I have started to tell them that I won the lottery. They don't seem to have a page in their script for this one. Silence...silence...well congratulations?

Very fun, you should try it.

Still rocking an rolling in DC. The cherry trees are blooming. I am discovering allergies that I never had before. I do love it here. The diversity, the free museums, the life! I am not looking for a greener pasture yet! Jules is starting school in September. We can't keep moving around on her if she is in school so, we may be here for quite some time.

Adam is a completely different man these days. He is relaxed and fun again. He is dressing so much better. He bought THREE pairs of shoes! I am not kidding. And they are cool shoes, not his basic black "I'll wear them until they get my feet wet when I step in a puddle" variety either.

We are moving soon, but to our own apartment. Our sub-let ends next month and we are renting an apartment closer to work. We really should buy a townhouse or condo for the tax break but it is still hard for us to fathom buying something that is a half of a MILLION (meel-yon) dollars. It is just too crazy to me. That is the reality here. It isn't pretty.