Finally someone recognizes my contributions to the world around me and gives me the appropriate title. A big thank you to Elizabeth for crowning me, and I promise to carry the title (and wear the crown) well and with dignity.

And I know I can promise this, because I have experience!! Yes, the rodeo queen years. Marmot still has hysterical fits of laughter when he sees these pictures, but all I have to do is bring out his yearbook, and….well, let’s just say that plaid flannel isn’t attractive on anyone.

So the queen thing- I did this for years. I had sequins, big hair, and oh the rhinestones. I did a lot of practice public speaking, answering  See the difference between this kind of queen stuff and Miss America, its just that we do everything they do, but on a horse!

Thank you for stopping by to pay your royal respects….leave me a comment, I’d love to come visit your blog and make new friends!

Alright alright ALRIGHT! I’m posting one with a crown….lol

**Update** The seller’s realtor called our realtor, offering a lower price and the March closing date. It kills me, but we can’t do it! So we countered back with the higher price but sticking to the (already a compromise) April closing date. I don’t think it will bring about resolution, but at least we know we’ve done everything we can to close the deal!

The we-didn’t-want-your-old-house-anyway, taking-our-earnest-money-and-going-home attitude won out…the sellers countered back with their preferred closing date (not fine, would cost us three months of rent), the contingency about getting a purchase agreement on their new house in the next week (ok, fine) and a new contingency about them being able to carry the deal through closing for the new house (not fine). Too many not fines.

Ok, Marmot didn’t love the house quite that much. I’m still in love with the house, but we honestly don’t have the three thousand dollars (in addition to the $10k in down payment and earnest money) to spend on the rent that would make the closing date ok. Its just not ok! We tried to meet in the middle with the closing date, but no luck.

So I’m pouting. We’re still debating about going back in two weeks with a lower offer and their closing date. And I don’t know, selling a kidney for the rent money?

And a few more….

I have literally been gagging. This show makes me retch. And I’m a nurse, so you know what it takes for me to have to work at suppressing the gag reflex? A lot. (And just so you know, smiling suppresses the gag reflex. A really handy little tip for debriding an infected wound or cleaning the fridge.)

So anyway, we’re sitting and watching the show Hoarders, and there was one about a woman hoarding expired and rotting food. OMG. Microbiology background here, I was grinning (see the above tip) and trying not to think about the petri dish that is that woman’s house. And also making mental notes about taking more stuff to Goodwill. Like my entire basement.

(So I have to admit that I’m an anti-hoarder and a cleanfreak/germaphobe- everything is either useful and has its place, sentimental and stored, or gone. And I don’t think that much is sentimental. I’m a little freakish about it, which is why the show Hoarders sucks me in! Keep that in mind as you read on.)

But anyway, we’re watching the show and at one point Marmot leans back, and says well I think we’re okay Honey, you’ve got hoarding tendencies but we’re alright.

WTF?

And yes, that’s a direct quote from me.

Upon hearing that I demanded to know where in the hell he got that idea sweetly asked him to please elaborate on why he would think that.

He tells me I’m a packrat, and that my (home) office is messy and I really need to get a handle on it, throw more stuff away.  Huh. As if the three bags of Goodwill that he hauled to the truck two days ago didn’t register.

Furthermore, this is coming from the man who has the Man Room which features a sushi-making kit, along with clothes that he hasn’t worn since high school, deer antlers, and a reindeer costume from the 3rd grade.

Hoarding ‘tendencies’, seriously. I rest my case.

Well, we did it. We took the plunge. We made an offer on the house last night. I had to pee three times during the signing of the paperwork, and had a little hand trembling. I also forgot how to spell my name towards the end. How many e’s in my name? I forget.

And apologies for TMI, but I am still in the throes of a GI upset that can only rival taking my nursing boards. And Marmot may be drunk for a few days. Signing up to spend the next 30 years paying off a massive amount of money can wreak havoc on your GI system, and your liquor cabinet.

And now we wait, with bated breath, for the seller’s response.

I’m pretty sure they’ll counter, I don’t expect immediate acceptance. We did put our best foot forward though and didn’t lowball them, but we have the closing date in May so who knows. Alll I can hope for is that they won’t tell us to get lost and take our nasty offer with us.

Meanwhile, martini anyone??

So the other night I watched Knocked Up, which is one of my favorite movies (love Katherine Heigl, she’s so sweet and girl-next-door) and saw the birth scene through new eyes! I realized how much of what I thought I knew about childbirth was based on TV. And I can’t believe I just admitted that to the blogosphere! But since really digging into the options available and making decisions about what I hope to have in a birth, I’ve realized how much my thoughts have changed. Now for years I’ve watched A Baby Story, 18 Kids and Counting, Knocked Up, Four Christmases, and all manner of birth-related productions that present childbirth in one light or another. And I was a rapt student. Thanks to Hollywood and popular culture, here is what I had ’learned’.

Natural Birth: The choice of masochists, women who don’t shave their armpits and have children named Moon Flower, and optimistic first-time mothers who don’t know any better. The first-time mothers will see the optimism wear thin once labor really gets rolling (when its too late for an epidural) and have to endure labor screaming and writhing. The women who are lucky enough to get an epidural in time are so relieved to have escaped the horrors of natural birth. Those who claim to have had a pleasant birth through water birth, hypnobirth, or orgasmic birth are lying. These are also the people who may do weird things with the placenta.

Don’t miss the 100th Post Celebration Philosophy First Snow giveaway!!

I’ve never quite understoold the term half-baked, but I think it means not quite done, or incomplete, or something less than normal.

Today feels half-baked. I know the day has only started, but I can’t seem to finish a thought, or a cup of coffee, or a blog post! So here are my half-baked thoughts for the day…

*The House. Well, we went through it for the third, bringing my DOD (Dear Old Dad) as a preliminary housing inspector. I’m glad we did. He zeroed in on some issues like no fans (thus some peeling paint) in the bathrooms, original 1950′s wiring and breaker box, and the fact that there are step-offs between every room in the entire house. How did we not see that? Realtor Man is going to do an in-depth market analysis to see where it stands, and we’re going to do some estimating on how much repairs would cost. We’ll re-convene tomorrow and go from there! I guess you could call it proceeding cautiously, but either way I’m pretty sure I have an ulcer.

*Nellie’s Dryer Balls. I mentioned these in the Obligatory New Year’s Resolutions and I’ve now had a few weeks of trialing them. And I’m thrilled! The clothes come out so so soft, but without the slightly waxy feeling that the Bounce bar or sheets left. Marmot says he thinks the clothes come out of the dryer less wrinkled. The only negative is that they occasionally end up down a pant leg, which means you have to dig and find it to toss back into the dryer. Totally workable issue. The cheapest I’ve found them for was $12.33 on Amazon, which isn’t a bad deal at all when you figure how much you can spend on chemically-dryer sheets! (link).

*Note: Christmas is over. Unless its fake (therefore still green) please kindly remove the Christmas wreath from the front of your van. Thanks.

*I’m considering selling the contents of my Top Secret Baby Tote. Why? Because its about $500 worth of stuff in there, stuff I don’t need (and won’t need for awhile) and I feel guilty holding onto it when its $500 I could put towards debt reduction and getting ready to buy a house. Would love your input on that.

Hope you’re having a great Monday!

Don’t miss the 100th Post Celebration Philosophy First Snow giveaway!!

We’re going to look at The House of Dreams today, for the third time. God, we are those people that sellers hate! But we’re serious, and if all goes well we’re going to make the offer tonight.

Don’t miss the 100th Post Celebration Philosophy First Snow giveaway!!

I can’t wait for this. I know she’s having twins, and she’s skinny so the movement is probably more obvious than anything I’ll ever see- but wow.

(Video from YouTube, bosoxbill)

The first installment of the Friday book list….a tour through what books are in my mountain of a To-Read stack, and favorites on my ever-growing bookshelves!

The Perfect Baby Handbook: A Guide for Excessively Motivated Parents (link)
Now this book is hilarious. Completely makes fun of parents who are out to be perfect parents, and has hilarious illustrations. Love it!

Husband Coached Childbirth, AKA, the Bradley Method (link)
I’m intrigued by the concept of a natural birth, and got this book to check things out, expecting to be a little freaked out after reading. But the book was encouraging! I was really impressed, and will definitely have this on my radar when I do get pregnant.

And Baby Makes Three: The Six-Step Plan for Preserving Marital Intimacy and Rekindling Romance After Baby Arrives (link)
I haven’t started this book yet, but its on the top of my To-Read pile. I have a friend who always says they’ll have kids when they hear of someone out there who says having a baby is good for their marriage, finances, everything. And honestly, I don’t blame them. You hear about people growing apart when they have kids, their marriage taking a hit and that is a big fear of mine about having a baby. This book was recommended for me and the quick perusal was promising, I can’t wait to start reading!

Happy at Work, Happy at Home: The Girl’s Guide to Being a Working Mom (link)
My other fear about managing after baby is born! I have an awesome career, and I really don’t want to stop working after we have a baby- can I balance my life as Mom and life as employee? I worry about that transition, and I’ve been told this book is some good encouragement and offers skills for the balancing act. Can’t wait!

Expecting Money: the Essential Financial Plan for New and Growing Families (link)
This just delves into an issue we hear a lot about (kids are expensive!) but don’t always have great advice for. This book is impressively concise about all financial aspects of having a baby and so far (I’m only about halfway through) its been very informational, lots of things to think about as we get ready.

Baby Lists: What to Do and What to Get to Prepare for Baby (link)
Anal Annie’s dream! Seriously, this book covers everything you could possibly need to consider when getting ready for a baby. I love being over-prepared and this book will absolutely help me accomplish that!

You didn’t think I’d only have five pregnancy-related books on my bookshelves did you?? You’re right there’s more than that. There will be more pregnancy-conception related books coming in future Friday Book Lists!

What do you think of these books? What is your favorite pregnancy-related book?