Christmas Joy

Well, between last night at the Grandparents and this morning at home, the girls had a lot of joy. Nothing says Christmas quite like ripping wrapping paper open and seeing what is inside. All in all, the girls were very happy with their presents. The best was having Carli totally convinced that she was not getting the Steve Madden boots that she has been desperately wanting. Every day she talks about these boots and I told her under no uncertain terms was she getting the boots because they were too expensive. I told her that "maybe" she would get them for her birthday.

After all the presents were opened, I mentioned to Carli that I was unsure if I was dreaming when Santa told me last night to have her look in the kitchen. Carli ran to the kitchen and when she opened the box, I cannot put into words her reaction. It was the best!

Pearl is taking it all in and happily playing with her new toys.

Cartwheels

Carli is obsessed with cartwheels and has finally mastered the move.

Mt. Fuji

Eric is in Beijing and Tokyo this week. He sent this picture with Mt. Fuji in the background. I guess it is unusual to see the mountain so clearly but it is a super clear day.

Carli wins Drawing Contest

Carli won "Judges Favorite" in Edible Portland's Kids Drawing Contest. The prize...ice cream! Carli was thrilled since ice cream is something she asks for daily.

Her submission was "Breakfast for Dinner" and included pancakes, watermelon, grapes and a cupcake for dessert.

All moved in

Well it took two days but we are all moved in. We even have the pictures up on the walls. It definitely feels like home already. Carli and Pearl are so excited with their new home and especially their own rooms!

I am so glad the move is over. I am still overseeing the repairs on our old place but we definitely are on the other side...here's to enjoying the holidays now.

Update

So far, $2300 that insurance will not pay for so in the last six months we have spent $15K to get this house sold. A contractor is coming over this morning to give us a bid on the repairs. Also, the buyer is coming over to see the damages. She is also asking for some repairs so I will have to see if the insurance is willing to repair more than what they said they would repair yesterday.

When does it end?

Movin' ahead

The water mitigation team estimated that we had about 300 gallons of water in our basement. Once the water was sucked out, it was very easy to see where the water tank was leaking. We spent $1300 on a new water tank and it was installed yesterday. Today, the repair crew pulled off the moldings and cut into the drywall and removed the wet areas. Also, wet insulation was removed. The carpet that we just installed a few months ago, de-laminated with the water damage so is considered not usable. The rest of day will be spent letting things dry out. Tomorrow brings more repairs.

Keep your fingers crossed that this does not freak out our buyer. We don't want her to pull out of the deal. The basement will be as good or better than before. She certainly will have a better water heater and new carpet!

Pure Bad Luck

One week before we are supposed to close on the sale of our house and we woke up to a flooded basement. It seems the water heater decided to run berserk! Waiting for the plumber and water mitigation crew but new carpet is soaked, furniture is wet and packed boxes ruined.

Sewer Work

I will never believe a realtor again. His famous last words about my sewer replacement were "you won't even know they were there!" Judging from these pictures, I am very aware that they were replacing the sewer line. I will be so glad to have all this house stuff done so that we can move!

Carli's School Picture

Carli's school picture came back today. I must say, I did a good job on the hair! She is so photogenic.

Halloween 2010

It was all about the candy! But there was lots of Halloween spirit on the mean streets of Irvington, too. Almost every house was decked out in Halloween garb and the candy was flowing freely. One house even had a free coffee and water stand! The girls had a great time and we have candy for months, provided I can control Carli's portions. And as a further indicator of the joy, last night in Pearl's crib I kept hearing her whisper "Trick or treat", "Trick or treat", "Trick or treat".

Soccer Picture

Here's Carli's soccer picture. She scored a goal on Saturday, which was her second goal of the season. Carli is enjoying soccer and sometimes is super "on it" but other times fussing with her hair is more important. I guess as long as she is having fun and learning something, it is worthwhile.

Video of Shanghai

Here's a short video of area of Shanghai called the Bund. It shows a great view of the city and its architecture. Eric is on his way home!

The Great Wall

I am not bitter or anything but as I was standing in the rain yesterday watching Carli's soccer game, Eric was scaling the GREAT WALL! It is only 90 minutes from Beijing and apparently "incredible". Eric really has gotten to see lots of the world during his work travel and just once I would love to tag along...oh well...

Eric is Asia...again....

Eric is on another one of his epic Asia trips...four cities in 10 days. One day in Tokyo, six days in Seoul, three days in Bejing and one day in Shanghai. Of course, I am very jealous that he is going to all the places I would love to visit! While I lead my glamorous life of getting Carli to school, taking her to soccer practice and coloring with Pearl. Life just isn't fair. Eric sent a few pictures of Seoul visible from his hotel room. He says it is only 10% of the city. Wow!