Bullet point update or Lazy mom attempts a blog entry

• It's summer!!! 

• Praise GOD!!!

• We just put our nice above ground pool up this week and the kids are loving it. Since we fenced off a good part of the grassy area along with the pool, I am now able to sit under the cool canopy of our nice pine trees while I read and watch the littles.

• I just realized I really cannot use the term "the littles" when speaking of my 3 kiddos anymore. But I will choose denial and use it anyhow. Sniff.

• We've been busy with trying to prepare our home to sell and looking at what's out there for us. 

• Reality is that where we are is better than all that we've seen. Our town happens to be the most financially depressed town in the area, so in trying to move primarily so that we can be closer to church, family and friends, we haven't seen a home that meets our criteria yet (and we've looked at a lot). Our main necessities are a large backyard, workable and fairly updated kitchen (though workable is more important with 3 growing children), and a safe and quiet location (i.e. not next to the freeway or railroad tracks). Fairly low criteria, we think. We are even open to looking at old homes in areas that we really don't want to live in, and still, we're not finding anything workable. It's pretty grim, especially when wanting to find something we will be in for a long time (10 to 20 years or more).  

• I don't think novels can be written in bullet form, can they?

• We're considering staying until the short sales and REOs aren't in such overabundance and the market begins to rebound, particularly in our town. That is probably a minimum of 2-3 years based on the information and projections of our real estate agents.

• Sigh.

• Regroup.

• We're considering re-financing our home and using some of the money for very needed updating (HVAC, roof, tile or laminate flooring in main areas, outside paint, re-landscaping problem areas, and other home needs/wants).  It's an exciting prospect, especially since we really do love our home and neighborhood, quirks and all.

• It's summer!!!

• Praise GOD!!!

• All 3 kids begin swimming lessons at a swim school the first week of July. I'm praying that Hannah and Emma especially become completely water safe and that Ian will learn quickly. Swim lessons are crazy expensive, and I'm tired of countless summers having unqualified teens at the local community center barely teaching them how to tread water. But I'm not bitter about it.

• Sigh.

• Jeff and I just went on a trip to wine country. We loved it. But I think I already told you that. See last post.

• July is our quasi-summer school month. I schedule in nature study, science, composer and art study, literature, practical skill work like typing, sewing, cooking and baking, and lots and lots of physical education (i.e. playing outside and swimming).

• I am not motivated to plan for 7th, 4th and Kindergarten next year. I'm fairly ready, minus about 70% of our materials (books, notebooks, paper etc). So basically I'm not at all prepared. Which I'm OK with.

• Thanks for reading my completely disoriented, disjointed and discombobulated post.

• It is a good analogy of my current mental state.

• Why does everything always come back to that?

• At least I'm a full circle kind of gal.

• Gotta run. Not sure where the kids went.

• Speaking of missing children and minivans (did I fail to mention we have one?), my dear friend shared this with me this week: Where my kids at? Enjoy.

• OK I'm totally kidding about not knowing where my kids are. But you knew that.

• Sigh.