Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Please tell me there IS a Project Fairy?

It's turning out that all these things we've been hearing for years from our family and friends are kinda turning out...well, kinda true. I guess ya just really don't "get it" until you live it. Like this one: We just can't seem to make protracted solid (um, like any...) progress with our "projects" with two extremely active 19 month olds with a speciality of un-doing what we just do! :). Like big-time yard work and big-time house projects. We moved house before we went to China (brand-new house/new neighborhood/bare-ish looking lot, white walls...everything needs so.much.work...). We have all these cool grandiose ideas about fixing-up our yard and spiffing-up our rooms.,.and we just can't really get to it. And thinking up a design for our huge almost-acre lot that looks like an overgrown soccer field (with lots-o-dippy divet things that are oh-so-trip-able)...much less implementing it? Bwah ha ha!! Not a chance.
Our list:
(1) Design the landscaping....um, can't do it....so we had to hire someone (good move on our part...the plan is awesome!! )
(2) Actually do the landscaping...um, so so can't do it....so just hired a crew (thx Reggie and crew!....please please, Reg, come sooner than later...can't you just fit us in NOW?)
(3) Design a screen porch and patio....ditto on (1). Oh and hot tub (for me) and fire-pit thing (for Ed...guy thing/guy thing)
(4) Build the screen porch....we're still in denial here...yes, Ed is an incredible phenom carpenter and a real handy-dandy manly-man and could do all of it by himself but then we'd never see him all summer(s) long....so....I bet (hope) it's a ditto on the crew-people on #2 approach....
(5) Turn the study room space into a playroom....ugh, but then we need to get playroom things...well, we DO have a lot of toy-things but don't I need a really cute theme or something? I mean, what side of the room should the chalkboard go and what about the toy box? What colors? Where's the bookshelf go? (I need to ditto on #1 here.....)
(6) Turn the guest room we don't use into the study b/c it's smaller space....um, then what about the bed? Sell it? Keep it? Put it in the attic?
(7) Turn the "Cindy Room" that was supposed to be "Just-For-Cindy-And-Her-Library-Where-N0-One-Else-Is-Allowed-Unless-Cindy-Deigns-To-Give-Them-Egress" into the guest room/den with a pull-out couch...(oh my...it takes us a long.time.to.select.furniture....)
(8) Put back-splash in the kitchen (Ok, come-on, surely we can manage that, right....???Like on a rainy Sunday afternoon whilst they are napping...) I mean, honestly, how long would that take? Does it matter than we've never tiled before? Can ya just wing it or let the Lowe's guy tell you how to do it while you have 2 squiggly/squirming toddlers in the cart?
(9) I'm stopping here because it's too much to go into double-digits. I'll end with where we normally end.....Just stop everything and go to the playground and play with the girls before they get too big....and hope the Project Fairy shows up and just gets it done for us.....
(10) Oh, yeah, and while we're watching the girls run around, we also sit back and drink a nice bottle of wine and talk about how good everything will look when it's all done....

We spent the day outside yesterday trying to get to our yard projects but mostly playing outside (ok, Ed did outline some "islands" for the landscapers...we girls did the playing....)

Our Aussie, Buddy, is so awesome with the girls. They can basically jump on top of him, roll all over him, and he just takes it all. I actually think Buddy helps me keep an eye on them....the sweet doggie that he is....
Oh, yeah, didn't I start off this post blathering about yard-work galore...well, here are some pics of our yard. Come back and visit in a few months and see what Reggie's landscaping crew has done for us.....! :)
Take Care/Have Fun!!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Cindy and Ed,

WOW! I'm so very happy for you both. Seeing pictures of you and the girls is so wonderful. It brought me a smile and some tears of happiness too. I know what a journey this has been and how happy you are. I know that you are going to have such a wonderful time and you are/will be incredible parents. You are all so lucky to have each other.

So much has happened for all of us since Diane and I met you in Munich. It's coming on 5 years, but it seems like yesterday. I hope we can get together soon... all the best... Love,

Mark and Diane Mintzer

PS... pictures of Zoey Kate are linked in on the Global Patient Network website.

insanemommy said...

Cindy,

Hire it all out if you can!! ha ha. We managed to do everything before we brought the grrrr-remlins home. I'm laughing though because my girls do the exact same thing. I fold the clothes and they follow behind me unfolding everything and tossing all over the room.

Rony

Paulette said...

Hi Cindy,

Mark Mintzer has been telling me about you and your family and today he gave me a link to your blog, it’s great and I would like to put a link up on my blog. Mark saved my life 19 months ago and helped me make a decision to have ADR. Once on the other side I decided to look into adoption. I am now 9 months into the wait of a lifetime. 6/28/06-LID. I would love to get in contact with you. Just to know that you were able to adopt/2 gives me so much comfort that I will make it though the final review.

God Bless you all

Paulette
http://letteski.blogspot.com

Maureen said...

Congratulations & hello - your daughters are so cute!!!your blog is great and I'm happy to know that I shouldn't feel bad for not planning projects since they wont get done anyway once my daughter comes. I'm a friend of Lloyd Cunningham (who isn't) and he shared your blog with me since I'm in the process of adopting from China - it's wonderful to see the end of the road with the successful bringing home of your daughters - best of luck and all the happiness.

insanemommy said...

Cindy, where did you find those adorable bikes?? Very cute.

crazylady said...

I keep reading the "Cindys area: quarantine, back off and step away slowly" room and I am tinkering a plan in my teeny head for somewhere like that at our place.
Renos with twins? Who told you that was possible?. LOL funny. Just ask me, Dirk or Rony. Not happenin' my dear. Just like with dinner, make a call and have it (crew) "brought in".
Tootles,
Senja