A Quickie

F and I are all moved in together. Last weekend we went back to my old place to do the final cleaning. I walked through with the property manager on Monday (no charges, thankyouverymuch) and turned in my keys and garage door opener. That evening they were having some people come to look at the place, wanting to start renting June 1. No word if they’re taking the place or not. I have to drop off my May rent check tonight.

F and I cleaned the house together for the first time last weekend, too. Remember, I’m anal and he’s boarderline OCD. Consequently his idea of “light surface cleaning” is *very* different from mine. I would define it more as “solid cleaning.” I’m scared to see “deep cleaning.”

This weekend we are going to WI for my step-sister’s bridal shower. On the way back I’m dropping F off at the airport so he can fly to Europe for work for the week. He will be in Europe for work every other week for at least the next 2 months. Sucks, but I’ll deal. I’ve got things I can do around the house to entertain myself (I’ll probably eat crappy food, resurrect my previous roommate: TV, and nap a lot). The following weekend the parents will actually visit. I hate to jinx it, but I think getting slapped by Karma (twice!) means they’ve met their quota. The weekend after THAT we’re going to Cleveland! I’ll get to meet F’s best friend from college AND introduce F to (most of) my Cleveland Friends.

I’m sure that somewhere in there I’ll acquire some more blog fodder. I hope this can tide you over in the meantime. Have a good weekend!

2 for 1 Deals by Karma

Well, my parents still haven’t visited. This past weekend (attempt #2) was thwarted because Stepdad caught what Mom had and was also on his death/sick bed.

Again, having another weekend with no plans, F and I went to work on combining our houses. We are industrious little ants, aren’t we? All day Saturday we went through what remained of my stuff and ended up finding another 2 carloads of crap to take to Goodwill. We also had 2 more carloads of stuff to move into F’s house, which we did, and put away. We realized at that time that all that was left in my house was furniture – some designated for Goodwill and some designated for F’s house. We made some calls and luckily found out that U-Haul is open on Sundays AND that we could rope a friend of F’s from work into helping us (I may be scrappy, but there are limits to my strength).

Sunday morning we rented the U-Haul, met F’s friend and started loading furniture from my house into the U-Haul to take to Goodwill. Alright, the guys did that, and I basically just watched. I like to tell myself that I was at the ready to dial 911 lest one of them get injured. I also provided water when needed and the occasional direction (“No, not that table, this table”). Goodwill was happy to see them pull up and actually helped them unload the truck. Then we loaded the truck with my “keeps” and drove over to F’s house. Again, I mainly stayed on the sidelines (“Left bedroom for this, right bedroom for that”, “Would you like another water?”).

After F’s friend left, we dusted everything down, set everything up, arranged things where we wanted them, and even hung things on the walls (you know my taxidermy fish survived the purge!).

So now I’m living at F’s house for reals. I’ve changed my mailing address with lots of places (but not all of them yet). You can send me mail there, too. We haven’t cleaned out my townhouse, yet, though. We’re going out of town this coming weekend, so that’s being put off until the weekend after. Should be a pretty easy job: mopping floors and vacuuming, a little light dusting on the windowsills, cleaning the bathrooms and kitchen.

I did call my property manager and filled her in on the haps. She said she’d slip a “move out checklist” in my door for when we clean and that she’d make a note that I should be out by the end of April so they can let prospective renters know that they have a unit available for May/June. If they find an early renter, they’ll reimburse me some rent. Once I turn in my keys I can turn off my utilities, too.

Let me tell you, it’s been nice not having to pack a bag to stay at F’s house, and vice versa for him. I still spin around now and then in the kitchen as I try to remember where to find certain things. I still do a bit of a double-take when I see my clothes in my half of the closet. Overall I’d say the blending of the houses went better than expected. Our furniture matches each other – nothing looks hodge-podge or out of place. The house looks “homey” now, warmer than it was. And we have a great guest bedroom set up. We figured it out – with the guest room + the kids rooms and sofa sleepers we could “comfortably” sleep 9 in beds. Not sure when that occasion would ever come up, but if it does, we’re ready!

Karma strikes!

I’m without much blog fodder today because Karma struck. Struck my Mom and knocked her on her ass. See, Mom decided she wanted to skip out on a Forced Family Fun Function on Easter by *pretending* to be sick. It worked, she and Stepdad got to spend the holiday together, all was good. Then a couple days before coming to visit me and F, Mom *actually* got sick. Sick with a plague that sounds a lot like what I had in March (for most of the month of March – resilient little bug it was). Consequently, they didn’t make the 5 hour drive to visit us. And believe me, the prospect of getting re-infected with Uber-bug didn’t thrill us.

They’re thinking of coming this weekend instead, but right now they’re scrambling to find someone to watch the dog. Apparently the kennel is closed this weekend. We’re banking on the neighbor for now, but I’m not holding my breath.

So instead of entertaining my parents for the weekend F and I were busy little bees. We got to work going through the stuff and crap at our respective houses and dropped off FIVE carloads to Goodwill (cumulatively). I’m so proud of us, mostly me (3 of those carloads were my crap). F is a pretty sparse/minimalist-type of guy (to a point). I, on the other hand, have been burdened by guilt-laden attachments to cast-offs, hand-me-downs and other detritus from my parents and their kin for YEARS. I’ve carried this stuff from apartment to apartment in Cleveland, and then finally here. It was time to stop the madness. It felt so good to finally rid myself of these things that I will never use.

Granted, we still have to go through my garage, but we made it through the rest of my townhouse and it’s looking pretty good in a half-moved-out-but-not-quite-yet kind of way.

Mom seemed a little put-out to hear about this drastic purging on the phone last night, and I can only think of 3 reasons why: 1) being a hoarder herself, she doesn’t like to see me leaving the fold; 2) she actually thought all of that stuff was valuable and I should have rented a storage space to keep it; or 3) she has doubts about F & I and didn’t want to see me lose my stuff lest we not work out and I have to move out and just buy new stuff. I’m hoping for options 1 or 2. Maybe I’ll find out.

No, my lease isn’t up until the end of June, but we wanted to get a head-start on things. With spring and summer coming up, our weekends are getting more and more full. Those of you who have helped to move me know how daunting a pile of stuff I have/had. We figured it would take us at least 2-3 weekends to accomplish what we did this past weekend. Plus, if we can continue to be this productive, I just might be able to get out of my townhouse by the end of May and get out of my lease a month early. We’ll see how well we do and what my Property Manager says.

Lil’ Kate: Kid tested, mother approved

Yes, it’s official, I survived Spring Break week with all 3 of Fiance’s (F’s) kids.

I’ll be honest – it wasn’t exactly “easy.” I don’t have kids of my own, as most of you know. I haven’t been around kids much since babysitting was my major source of income. Having 3 kids around all the time is exhausting, and I wasn’t even around all the time. F took the week off and had the kids 24/7. I got to go to work.

But it was a good week. The kids had a good time. F was over the moon about spending time with them. I got more hugs and kisses than ever. They genuinely like me and like spending time with me. Better yet, they’re actually pretty good kids. Granted, they’re not perfect, but I’ve met some real monsters in my day and these were no monsters. Just your typical 6-9 year-olds.

Frosting on the cake: F’s Ex pumped them for all kinds of info and I passed the test with flying colors. Not that I necessarily need her approval, but you know I like it. Helps ease some tension as far as I can tell… or at least makes me feel better.

Am I glad they’re gone? Yes – back to the old routine, and you know I like routine. Will I be happy to see them again? You bet. Do I find the possibility daunting that they may, one day, should the stars align, live with us permanently? Of course. I’m no parent and I have to learn how to be a step-parent. At least they’re old enough to tell me what they want/need. And F is there to show me the ropes. For the most part my job is just to be a back-up singer, enhancing his parenting. But it still makes me nervous. I’d like to be a good stepmom. I set the bar pretty high for myself sometimes and then obsess about it to no good end. I’m learning not to do that, though.

This weekend my parents come to visit. Should get at least one blog post out of that. Stay tuned.

Alright already! Something worth blogging about

It’s been an exciting month since I last posted. I know, I know, I haven’t been good about posting regularly. The new BFs? As you know, they can be rather time consuming.

And though I know my scant readership rather well, I still feared you all putting on your judgy pants, so I will come clean now and admit there has been more going on behind the scenes than I’ve been letting on. I do keep secrets from you, yes I do.

First off – my little Stepbro got married! So, congrats to him and his new Dutch bride. The wedding was awesome even though half the family came down with one bug or another the following week (including me). Knocked me on my ass for 3 days, and I’m just about at 95% now. It’s two weeks later. These are tenacious bugs. Be forewarned. I suggest you regularly douse yourself in ethanol or other antibacterial substances. Avoid the public in general.

Now, on to the good part.

You all know that BF and I have rather thoroughly covered all important topics (potential “deal breakers” if you will) in regards to relationships when we started dating. No reason to beat around the bush – best to get it all out in the open and decide if we can tolerate each other right off the bat. Hiding “the crazy” is not allowed – let it all out and see who bolts first.

No bolting happened.

In December I was struck with the urge to inform BF “You do realize that you are going to marry me someday, right?” To which he unhesitatingly replied, “I know.”

Trust me, I was as shocked as you to hear that come out of my practical and (usually) rational mouth. More shocked that he was already aware of what I was informing him. Little stinker, waiting on me to mention it first.

We successfully survived the holiday season (complete with letting our parents in on our plans – and getting nothing but excited support in return). I get along with his kids. We can divvy up chores like old pros. We tease each other with less-than-serious proposals. We make each other very happy.

Come February, on a lark, if you will, we started to look at rings. Not seeing anything that we particularly loved, we decided to design our own – and our “information gathering” mission to the local jeweler turned into an actual design session. Over the next few weeks we were actually picking out stones and settings, looking at CAD drawing mock-ups, wax mock-ups, and money was exchanging hands.

Are we really doing this? Yes, yes we are.

Again, Practicality spoke up and said, “You’re in no hurry. Why not put off an ‘official’ proposal until summer? You’ll have been together approximately 9 months by then. That’s a respectable amount of time. No one should accuse you of rushing into anything.” I listened to Practicality and agreed, as did BF. It gave him some time to concoct a fun way to propose.

This past Saturday we went to pick up the finished ring. I tried it on and immediately girled out. I’m so embarrassed. I turned into a freakin’ raccoon – distracted by shiny objects, compelled to hoard. Pathetic!

I struggled all day Saturday and Sunday, putting the ring on, taking it back off, wrestling with whether or not I could actually put it away in a safe deposit box for the next 3 months or so. BF was no help. I believe the raccoon came out in him as well.

“Just wear it!” he says.

“I don’t know… It is *awfully* pretty, isn’t it?” I said, staring at it.

“It’s gorgeous!”

I’m still staring. It practically glows in the dark.

“But what if people ask how you proposed? What should I tell them?” I asked.

“I don’t know. Make something up, but make me look good.”

Now he’s staring at it.

“It’s not like we haven’t already committed to each other,” he points out.

“Telling the truth is a more hilarious story. I think I’ll just stick with that.”

We snap some pictures (which most of you have seen) and emailed them out. They’re not the best pics – my socks are more in focus than the ring – but if you shrink them down until they are in focus, you get the idea. Trust me, it’s gorgeous.

So, I guess by default, we are officially engaged. I am wearing the ring in public, and happily accepting the “oooohs” and “aaaaaahs” and general fussing that it is generating. BF (or is it just F for fiancé now?) is trying to decide if we should still have some sort of proposal with a production (you know, like in the movies). I’m not pushing for it. I’m willing to skip ahead (ha, like we haven’t already) to just flat out celebrating. So, we’ll see. I’ll keep you posted.

Answers to FAQ’s:

Yes, those are rubies. Rubies are my birthstone. For July.

Yes, I know the stones look huge, but it’s an optical illusion. I am freakishly small, so on my petite hand the stones appear rather large.

Yes, I am rather modest.

No, we haven’t set a date. The most I can tell you is it’ll be in 2009. I didn’t think I’d have to give you a date just yet. Remember, I was planning on having to figure that out this summer.

Yes, we do have a general plan. Now, I may have girled out over jewelry, but I do not girl out over weddings. I like to attend weddings. I like to be in other people’s weddings. The whole planning and organizing part? Yeah, that makes my skin crawl. Completely sucks the fun out of it for me. Do. Not. Want.

The plan for now is to get hitched at our local court house, then fly down to Mexico where we will have a small ceremony to appease our attending parents, followed by a small vacay/honeymoon on the beach.

“Do I have to wear shoes??” F asks.

“Of course not. I probably won’t either,” I say.

“Sweet!”

As for the rest of you: When we get back to MN we’ll throw a big informal reception. And by “informal” I’m talking about something along the lines of reserving a park, having food catered in, and everyone shows up in T-shirts and shorts. That’s about the extent of my desire to plan. Bridezilla I am not.

Yes, we are moving in together. My lease on my townhouse is up at the end of June, and I’ve already started moving stuff over to F’s house, where we will be living. You’ll all be informed of the change of address this summer. Phone number won’t change.

OK, I don’t think I’ve left any pertinent details out. I hope everyone is satisfied, all of your burning questions answered, and you’re just as giddy as I am!

Happy V-Day, everybody!

Or, “Single Persons Awareness Day” – whichever you’re more comfortable with.

I’m having a good, traditional Valentine’s Day week, thank you for asking. I’ve received roses, heart-shaped cookies, pink strawberry-frosted mini-cupcakes, cards, and tonight is dinner at one of my favorite places in the bustling metropolis of Rochester. Family, friends and coworkers have been great about stretching the holiday out beyond the confines of a single day. Thank you, one and all. Considering how miserable the weather has been lately, it’s been a wonderful way to brighten the depressing blight of winter.

What’s on the docket for your Valentine’s Day celebrations?

January's been a blasty blast

Man, I’m getting bad at posting on a regular basis. I apologize, but most of you have been slacking as well, so I don’t feel nearly as bad as I should.

The new year started off on the right foot – dinner and a movie with the BF. One of the nicest meals I’ve had (on record, and I keep a record) and a relaxing evening, you can’t go wrong.

Caught up with a friend who used to work here and now works elsewhere. Her kid is one of the cutest I’ve encountered and it was great to visit with her. We need to do that more often.

Saw Avenue Q! It was *hilarious* in ways I never imagined it could be. If you have the opportunity to see this show, I highly recommend it. I laughed so hard I cried. I may have even peed a little. The songs are fantastic, and the references to Sesame Street will slay you (if you grew up with Sesame Street, of course).

Spent a weekend with the BF’s kiddos and it went great overall. I only lost control of one child once, and crisis was quickly averted. I’ve been told I’m not the only one to have this happen and not to feel bad. The youngest only had one small and relatively short-lived meltdown, and I can live with that. Otherwise they really seem to like me and don’t mind me hanging around. I believe I got the equivalent of a standing ovation. They’re on board with me and their dad being an item, and that’s all kinds of awesome.

February is off to a good start as well. Grandma turned 80 so we ventured to the Northwoods for her birthday lunch this last weekend. While we girls lunched, BF was ice fishing with my uncles. His first “real” ice fishing adventure and I’m so proud of him. He was a trooper. Bringing along his own flask of Polish certainly helped to keep him (and my uncles) warm. The night was filled with heated games of “Fill or Bust” (a lot like Farkle, but with the added element of cards) and “Uno Attack” which leads to much swearing and aggravation. Great fun. The next day we went snowshoeing around the property, checked the deer stands, and came across 2 porcupines in 2 hollow trees. It was pretty cool. Lunch with Mom & Stepdad, and then we were on our way back to MN.

Those are the highlights. If anything else exciting happens, I’ll be sure to keep you posted.

And yes, I think this BF is a keeper – for reals. The family loves him to death. Summer may hold some interesting “developments.”