Writer's Workshop: June

A photo that best represents June.

We moved this month. Packed up the whole kit and caboodle and moved to another town entirely, not just across town. We moved 150 miles north, but at least we get to stay in the same state. It wasn't exactly our choice, work said to keep your jobs, you move. So we moved.  I think I would have been far more on board with the whole thing if we had made the decision on our own, but we were given no other real option. Neither of us wanted to move to Houston or Oklahoma, so here we are.
Our new house is much larger than our old one was. Our stuff seems to have expanded kind of like those little tablets you add to water. I miss our little house.  We lived there for almost 21 years. It was home. This larger house is going to take some getting used to.
I still have boxes and bins in the garage that need to be unpacked, but not as many as there were, I am whittling away at the stack.We still have pictures to hang to make the house more our own.  And then there are the bigger changes we will be making to improve the house.  A new master bath, an updated kitchen, change the trim in most of the house.  Finish up the creation of Bruiser's bedroom.

We have a huge backyard.  Big enough to run our four wheelers around in. The back yard has had no real attention for going on 10 years.  Parts of it are quite over grown. We are contemplating having some one come and trim things up (or beat back the bushes) so we have a place to start.  We have never had a yard like this.  Our old yard was postage stamp sized and so easy to take care of. This one takes a bit more work.
So that was our June.  Completely taken over by the Great Move of 2018.

Hodgepodge Wednesday Free

 

1. Security or freedom? Can you have both? Explain.
If you feel secure then you can be free to be yourself. I think you can have both.

2. If you could visit any historical American site what would it be? Why?
I would go visit the Smithsonian Museums in DC.  I have always loved history, I got my first degree in History.  I didn't get to do much with it but I would have loved to be a museum curator or work in an archive.

3. Free as a bird, free reign, be free of, free enterprise, free trip, walk away scot free, free for all...which 'free' phrase can best be applied to your life in recent days or weeks? Explain.
This is a tough one.  Free reign comes closest. I have free reign to create dinner menus, decorate the house, read any book I feel like, and just a bit of free reign at work as to projects I do, as long as I do what needs to be done around those projects.

4. Something in your fridge that's red? Something in your house that's white? Something in your view that's blue?
Red: cherries, raspberries and grapes.
White: all the trim in our new house is white.  It isn't my favorite, but we get the fun of changing the trim to something more our taste.
Blue: The couple painting Nick and I did, Nick's side of the painting is a blue night with the moon.

5. July 27th is National New Jersey Day. Have you ever visited The Garden State? If so where did you go? Are there diners where you live? Have you tried Taylor Pork Roll? Do you like to play Monopoly? Salt water taffy-yay or nay? How do you feel about shopping at the mall? Springsteen, Sinatra, or Bon Jovi-you have to pick one.

Raise your hand if you know why these add-on questions are appropriate on National NJ Day.

I have visited the Garden State, but I was 12 and on my way to visit my aunt in New York City.
We do have a Diner, Johnny J's, great burgers and shakes. No on the Pork Roll. Not a fan of Monopoly. Love Salt water taffy. I like the mall, but the ones around here are fading. I am a die hard Bon Jovi fan.  Bruiser is a big fan too.
 
6. Insert your own random thought here.
So we are moved into the new house.  The unpacking is ongoing. But we have had a bit of fun.  Four wheelers in the back yard.  A bit of time downtown. 

Just Randoms

It's Tuesday, so let's random up the joint. Here are some of the random thoughts that are floating through my brain:

•  I just love random mystery bruises that seem to show up all the time on my legs.  I look down in the shower and go hey, where did that come from?  On the other hand, I will bang into something and think that will leave a mark and nothing. 
• I also have a migraine.  Those are just lovely too. It's going to be a long week.
• Coming up with summer chores for the boys is a challenge. They are home during the day and we really want them to not spend every moment playing video games and getting screen time. So we assign outside stuff, walking the dog, going to the park, go outside to read.  Outdoor chores like pine cone pick up, water trees and such are also common. They have also been unpacking stuff for their rooms.

• Summer dinners have become a bit more lax as far as timing and side dishes.  We are eating a lot of veggies and I am trying to get more fruit into everyone. Dinner s are a lot lighter for summer. we are also a bit busier here in our new city.  Lots of things to do and places to go.

• I got invited to join a book club.  I'm not usually much of a book club reader.  I tend to avoid popular fiction, but it will be a way to get out and meet new people.  I'm going to try it.

• The other big news we have is we are taking the boys to Florida in July to Disney World. Bruiser has never been and he needs to experience the mouse. We are all looking forward to going on vacation.  This will also be Bruiser's first plane flight. 

So there you have it, just some random for a Tuesday. Have a great week!

Still here

So, I am still alive. Things with the blog sort of got shoved to the back burner with moving and all that entailed.  We are now just about moved in, well most of our stuff is here in Casper.  I still have boxes, bins and bags to unpack.
The kitchen is mostly done and the bathrooms are unpacked as well.  My clothes are about 75% unpacked. The boys' rooms are just about unpacked.  They have a game room pretty well set up for them to hang out in.
We planted some aspen trees this weekend. It's a sort of memorial for my mother and Nick's great aunt who have both passed away in the last few years. The trees are small, but hopefully we will make them happy so they grow quickly.

With this move, I am a bit lost as to a support group. I don't have friends here, there are potential acquaintances, but no friends and I am feeling just a bit isolated. Nick has been dealing with his own issues as far as this move is concerned.  He is trying to be strong, but his needs are so different from mine.  Extrovert vs. introvert.  Nick is a classic extrovert, I am such an introvert.  It's hard to reconcile these different approaches, but hopefully we will be able to muddle through.