The Funeral Home Home

Tonight we viewed yet another home in search for our new place to live. Here is a picture of the place.

You may be thinking that it kind of looks like a funeral home and well, that is because it kind of is. Technically it is the apartment that you can't see that is above the funeral home.

It was an interesting place. On the upside it was a huge apartment with three large bedrooms, one small bedroom, lots of closets, a big living room, and a lot of character. On the downside it was a little run down, didn't have washer and dryer hookups, didn't have a dishwasher (why can't I find a place with a dishwasher!), had a super small kitchen, and we got the impression that some of the plumbing and electric may not quite be regulation.

Oh yeah...also on the downside - it is above a funeral home, which could be a little bit weird.

As a testament to our weirdness as a family, we thought about it for a good hour before we talked ourselves out of it.

As a poor testament to our 80's upbringing, the phrase I ain't scared of no ghosts! was never used, but only because neither one of us thought of it at the time.

Househunters Fort Wayne

Ben and I have began our quest to find a new home for next year. Our two bedroom town home is busting at the seems and we really just need a bigger place.

There are a few problems. Such as...
1. Our lease isn't up until May 1st, but
2. We have to give 60 days notice, which means that
3. We need to know where we are going to live by March 1st, which coincidentally is
4. A little over a month away.

We began our search with a nice little three bedroom home. Everything in the home is in wonderful shape. The only thing that wasn't great is that the kitchen needed some updating. The landlord also believed this to be the case and is completely redoing the kitchen. Neat, huh? There are two problems with this house. The first problem is that there is no dishwasher and I need a dishwasher. Okay...maybe I just want one, but it is still a problem. The other problem is that (to borrow Connor's phrasing) it is eleventy hundred billion thousand miles away from the school we had decided to send Connor to next year. Okay, so it is really on 20 minutes away, but that drive gets old.

Now I have to check out all the local schools and decide if one of them will fit our needs.

Ughh.

Life Lessons

Remember when we were kids and a children's TV show was purely for entertainment? There were no life lessons, no moral to be learned, no profound truths for the ages. The only information we gained was that smoking would make your face turn weird colors, that coyotes are extremely dumb, and that it is always duck season.

Connor and I were watching Word World tonight and we learned the following very important life lessons:

1. Writing your name is fun and enjoyable. You should definitely try it.
2. If you only eat candy, your teeth will fall out.
3. Jackets are not very useful for holding jelly.
4. If you really care about your friends, you will make them a song with words.

And to think that the only one of these I came close to covering with him was the whole don't just eat candy all the time thing. He would have been completely unprepared to assist in the case of a jelly emergency.

The Stink Eye

For a good five minutes tonight Connor practiced giving me the stink eye. He thought it was hilarious. I thought it was adorable. It does make one wonder...is that what it looks like when I am giving him the stink eye?

And the award for worst mom ever goes to....

Sometimes I feel like the worst mom ever. I know that I am not actually the worst mom ever - but there are days where I just feel like an epic failure.

Tonight was one of those nights where Connor messed up and I reacted in the completely wrong way. I didn't keep my cool, I didn't act like it was no big deal, I wasn't in control at all. I basically did the exact opposite of what I have been told I am supposed to do.

There were tears (both of us), there was pouting (both of us), there were frustrated sighs (yep, you guessed it), and then he fell asleep on the way home. At that point there were more tears; just me this time, telling Ben how I completely blew it. Then there was reassurance; Ben telling me that it would all be okay.

As I put Connor to bed I told him in his sleepy state, I did the thing that several experienced parents have told me never to do, but that I am determined to do anyway; I apologized to him for loosing my patience and asked for his forgiveness. Then in a very sleepy and quiet voice he told me "I forgive you mom." Four simple words that help make a mom feel a little bit better. The best part is that I know tomorrow we will start with a clean slate and a good morning hug.

A Tale of Two Cities

We have been in Fort Wayne for nearly two years. It is hard to believe that we have lived here that long. Our time at seminary is flying by. There are days when we feel as if we have been here forever, but most days, it feels like we just moved here.

I have found that I now have two homes. When I am in Fort Wayne and I speak of traveling home, it is a reference to Topeka. Ben and I wax eloquent on the virtues of Topeka, how we miss our family, what a wonderful church St. John's is, and how there is no place we would rather be.



After a couple of weeks on staying in Topeka, we begin to long for Fort Wayne and we long to go home. We miss our friends, the rude drivers, the snow, the crisp air, the massive evergreen trees, and our circle of confessional Lutheranism.



It seems that our home is wherever we are not. It is an odd feeling to be so unsettled. Our plan is that when Ben receives his call in a couple of years we will be able to finally single out one place as home...or maybe we will have three homes then?

Connorisms

Connor is a very fun kid, challenging, frustrating, nerve wracking, but fun. What is great about Connor is that he has an interesting way of looking at the world. He does not see things the same way I do. He even makes compelling arguments for his view, specifically why it is better than mine.

Lately he has been fixated on whether or not something is delicate. He has put much thought into this process with the result being that compared to a bomb, almost anything is delicate. Who knew?

I've attached a video of him explaining some of the delicate or not delicate things in this world. (Thanks for the Flip Slide Ben!)

Things and Stuff

Ben is back in school. This means that my evenings of watching a favorite television show, or reading books with him are over. With the return to school comes the inevitable return to homework, stress, papers, studying, and late nights.

Connor is still fighting nap time at school, but has been a better listener overall. He was so good that we took him on a pajama raid (we glossed over the fact that he pushed a kid off the lunch bench...the kid probably deserved it, right?). We were amazed how many people were at Dairy Queen that evening. My guess is that it was the balmy 21 degree temperature that made them think it was the perfect night for ice cream.

Sophia is finally feeling well, but has firmly established Mom as her favorite parent. It is kind of an ego boost, but can be very frustrating when I am trying to cook dinner and she sits outside the kitchen crying Mama, Mama.

All in all we feel that our life is returning to normal. Hopefully the weeks to come will be uneventful.