Where to begin…

Wow. There’s some serious dust in here.

I don’t even know where to begin…

The biggest news (not in any order of importance) is we’ve moved and I’m pregnant.

Yep. I’m expecting boy number three next month, six years after being “done.” The idea of another child still takes my breath away and not just because my lung capacity is currently compromised.

Eric finished his Radiology residency (and passed the final hurdle — his oral boards!) in June and we’ve moved from Little Rock to Anchorage, Alaska. We arrived in Anchorage mid July and are seeing how the other half lives in a 1200 sq. ft. apartment while our home in Eagle River is being built. The best part is that we’re no longer in Little Rock. The worst part was the move — the worst in our long history of moving. Worse than all our overseas moves combined, simply becuase the packing company in Little Rock was completely incompetent. The company sent packers that were green (first day on the job) and had no supervision other than a slightly hysterical pregnant woman. We divided the house into “apartment” and “storage” and when they delivered the apartment crates, there was a random mess of both apartment and storage in each crate. We have a headboard and footboard but no side rails for our bed. No bed linens for that matter either. Got the TV cords, but no TV. No clothes or kitchen items, whatsoever. We won’t see our storage shipment until probably December, so you can imagine how p-i-s-s-e-d I was. Okay, still am.

And that might be all I can handle writing tonight.

Life is good.

Grant is mesmerized by the cement truck outside our front windows. (They are beginning to pour the foundation on the house next door.) He hasn’t moved in 20 minutes.

As soon as we got here I caught a virus and now I have to admit I was more stressed out than I thought. I had to think really hard whether I had already taken some cold medicine this morning.

So much has happened the last few weeks–I haven’t the energy to remember or write about the details. The house is wonderful. Closing was a breeze and aside from a few little minor things, like the staggering cost of everything adding up, we feel like we’ve done ourselves right. The paint crew is coming this week to transform the putty color walls. Our household goods should be getting here by the end of the month. The boys are thrilled with open space to run around in. I have my gas stove and garbage disposal. Eric is enjoying his freedom from the clinic. His blood pressure is down and he has time to watch the NBA playoffs. All in all, life is good.

Wish us luck.

So, this is it. Our last full day in this house. Tomorrow we pack the suitcases and next Wednesday we’re on a plane. I am amazed at how calm I feel. I must be in complete denial.

It’s hard to predict when I’ll have a chance to get online again, so don’t expect much to be happening here and don’t be surprised if I can’t reply to email until after the end of the month.

Wish us luck.

Cows are cool.

Great, two weeks before I leave the weather turns gorgeous and there’s a herd of milk cows in my backyard. I’m not suposed to have last minute regret about leaving Germany.

It’s okay. Keep thinking about the central air conditioning and the garbage disposal you’ll have when you get back to the States . . .

Empty house.

My laptop is sitting on a borrowed chest of drawers and I’m using the matching nightstand as a chair. It’s strangely reminiscent of my younger days. I spent most of the morning cleaning. I thought it would be easier to keep house now that it’s empty, but I was mistaken. My knees are getting a beating since I no longer have a mop. There’s nowhere for the dust to hide and the white tile (minus carpets) shows everything. I feel like I’m walking around in a big bathroom. White ceilings, white walls, white floors. I used to be a fan of white, but I think I’m going to try some color in the new house.

I’ll let you guess which one, but one of our sons has begun a daily ritual of getting naked and refusing to put his clothing back on. The other son (after watching Disney’s Ice Age) has a new fascination with butt jokes. I’m not sure whether to laugh or council him in manners. It must be a guy thing.