i live under a rock

i found out yesterday that prince william was getting married to kate somebody.

home-ful

We got it!

My friend Kerry can't say enough good things about it. It's an old farmhouse in a safe, quiet village. It's four doors down from a large park and next to a soccer field. There are trees and deer. And hardwood floors and big windows. And an address for the movers.

I am so blessed to have such good friends around the country looking for a home for us. Thank you, Jen. Thank you, Kerry. Thank you, Juls.

eta pix: (in case you never clicked on the earlier link)

nurture

Showing my age and not hers,
Lexi has been known to describe things
as "way silly".

Last night she read me
the book Olivia Reforms a Band.
(I love it.)

[Still no word from the Glendale house. Have e-mailed three times.
Two other possibilities in Glendale and Wyoming (for the Cinci-literate). Nothing in Fairfield.]

a house to pray for!

This looks VERY kateish!

The owner has been contacted...

(There's a possibility in
Ames, but no details.)

maybe france?

This was on yahoo today:

Languedoc-Roussillon, France. If you're willing to look beyond Paris, (note from kate: I most certainly am) the southwest of this country can be highly affordable. Cessenon-sur-Orb, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southwestern France, is colorful, eclectic, and very open to retirees. (nfk: close enough) The village dates from prehistoric times, but the feel is medieval, with the church dominating the center and the tower of Le Donjon looking down from above. (nkf: sounds good)

Here in this quintessentially (nfk: "quintessential" is always a good thing)French country corner, you'll find many expats of several nationalities. They've sought out this unsung region because it offers everything you need for a comfortable life, yet boasts a small, charming, typically French village atmosphere, with centuries of history and lots to do and see. As a result, this town is growing and attracting both more French people and expats. Perhaps the most appealing part is that the cost of renting in this picture-postcard corner of France can be modest, certainly relative to Continental Europe in general. A monthly rental of 400 to 600 euro is realistic.

Here's one.

And another.

And another that is not really kateish. But it's tres affordable.

And I haven't even started looking here...or anywhere else. Yet.

Lexi has mentioned that we should live in France with Kristina and Zoe (her two-time at-shool babysitter that we both think is fabulous who is moving to Paris this summer).

Wondering about visa requirements...

wait a minute.

another teacher who is returning to the US in june went home last week.
and did some househunting.
and bought a house.
as easy as that.

of course, while she is unemployed as of august 1, she has an employed husband.

sigh.

jobs. a conversation.

Lexi, do you want to help me pick out a card to send for the new baby?

No. My job is to play.

You're right. That is your job. But you're not doing it. You're sitting on the couch.

And your job is to be in the kitchen.

Really? Doing what?

Making food while I play.

And what food should I make?

Chicken nuggets and...I just can't remember.

(But it did get her up and off the couch. And I went to make supper. I'm not telling if it was nuggety or not.)

still looking...

We're back!

Trip details soon. And pictures. (It was sunny and windy. We had a great time and Lexi didn't want to come back to Russia.)

For now, I'm house-hunting.

It's sort of hard to do from here.

Have had a rental home in AZ offered to us...not my first choice of locations, but it is a house...

vitamin d, here we come!

Be back Friday!

Here's our find of a hotel. I hope it's great! Or, at least clean and safe...

(If you find a house for me that is perfectly kateish and sound that is under 35 K, please buy it and I will pay you back.

If you find something perfectly kateish to rent that is under $800 pcm, go ahead and sign the lease.

If you're not sure that something is perfectly kateish, just keep a list for us.

Thanks!)

a tip

If you don't have any Trader Joe's Peaunt Butter Filled Pretzels


a bag of pretzel sticks and a jar of ALGOOD peanut butter will do...as long as the need is great and the milk is cold.

anybody know anything

about buying houses that are in foreclosure?

We found one online that was built in 1900 and costs...

$30, 000.

Yep. That's all.

It needs paint and carpet-ripping-out. It probably needs more.

But that's the cost of the entire house. Not the downpayment. THE HOUSE.

Friend is doing drive-by's. Suspect friend may be dressing up as foreclosure agent and going undercover. In her maxivan. ;> (Don't forget to slap some magnetic signs on the side before you head out.)

a kind word

Lexi is in an esl reading group with two other little girls. Her teacher recently told me that of the three, Lexi is the only one who can define words. She has the strongest vocabulary of the three. And, she can figure out the meanings of new words.

That was nice to hear.

bits of nothing

Well, let's see...

We have one more week of school until spring break. And, this year, except for October when we went to France, a holiday means...getting sick. Yep. Just a cold. Hopefully it will be on the wane by this time next week.

Another thing to add to your harder-being-single list is...delousing. How am I supposed to do this by myself? Sigh. I think I've been successful...but...I guess we won't know for a couple of weeks. I found a couple of what-might-be-eggs but they were much bigger and plumper than I thought they'd be...so maybe I have fleas, too? Shudder. Laugh! Not serious about the fleas. And I found ONE lousy louse. It's only a maybe-louse because it's so, so small. Those giant eggs did not come from this little speck. Unless they grew tremendously after being laid...

This just creeps me out. Moving on.

I've been in touch with a "searcher", someone who will find Lexi's birthfamily and pass on a letter in the hopes of filling in some gaps in her history. BUT it turns out I have the only parental rights termination document in all of Russia that does not contain an address. I don't have anything with an address. I only have a city...and it's a big one. He told me yesterday that he won't be able to help us.

While going through all those documents, I decided to put all the disparate bits of information from different sources together in a timeline for Lexi. And looking at the information I do have would make anyone weep. How this little spark survived and still is able to "attach" is nothing short of a miracle. She should be a movie of the week. (Do they still have movies of the week? I don't think so.)

Private blogging. Hmmm...it has kept us more, well, private. But, it's kept us WAY more private than I thought. I had no idea so many people relied on feedreaders to read blogs. Now that we're private people check in wayyyy less often. I know that's my fault--if I posted every day people would check more often. Not sure that to do about this...

Lexi got a camera from a friend for her birthday last year. I think I'll put the year's worth of photos into a slide show for her--and maybe someday a photo book. They're...interesting with moments of genius.

EIGHT is creeping up on us. Not sure what to do about the party. Usually she tells me all her friends will come to our house to eat cake and have a party. (Sound like last year?) Yesterday she told me only the boys would come. ;> Last year it was only the girls, so I guess that's fair. And, the two parties she's been invited to this year were both boys' parties... I'm a "whole class" kind of inviter for this age. And it will be a goodbye party of sorts. So...we'll see. I was thinking bowling, but maybe they're all coming here again.

a good thing

about our upcoming holiday? Even though we're in an apartment that has a mini-kitchen (and that's a good thing, too),

breakfast and dinner are both included. Included! As in, I don't have to cook or balance meals. For almost a week.

That's good.