Moving to California with 4 Kids

I am thrilled to report that I am back in action. The House of Many Little Men is 90% unpacked, 5% decorated, and today the cable man paid us a visit, so I can now finally be a blogger again!  Yahoo!

Thank you, Nonna, for making this possible!!!  If Alan’s mom had not come to help with the unpacking, I’d still be more like 40% unpacked. I cannot describe to you how much work goes into unpacking a family of 6 with too much stuff!!!

I just put JD down for a nap, the boys are playing in their room, and Daniel is playing cars.  This is the perfect opportunity to ignore the laundry and assembling my house, and update my blog.  I know you are all DYING to see photos of my new place. Ok. Well, I know my family is anyway. So without further ado, let me tell you a little about our new place! More pictures to come tomorrow!

We have been so fortunate with the wonderful places we’ve been sent to live! We are always being “tourists in our own town.”

This is the nicest house we’ve ever had, and I love it. It’s a little smaller than my last house, as there is no basement, but it has way way more space upstairs, which is actually so much better. It’s easier to keep up with where everyone is too, and that’s a very good thing.  I also have a balcony off of my bedroom, which is just the neatest thing. I can go out there and peek at the ocean and watch the cars drive by. At least, I could do all of that, if I’m ever less busy. So far I have had no time to sit, or peek, or watch anything!

I mentioned on my personal Facebook page that I can see the Pacific Ocean from my front porch. What I mean is that I can see it, through this one clearing in the trees, because of the elevation of my neighborhood. I don’t actually live on the sand.  It’s still a nice little view though, and there is something extremely therapeutic about seeing the ocean every single day. I just can’t explain it. It has greatly helped me to cope with my homesickness.

Homesick? Me? I can’t believe it, but it’s true. Yesterday I dusted off the “Virginia” souvenir plate that used to belong to my great-grandmother and set it out on my china cabinet. It has little pictures of Virginia landmarks all over it. An hour later, I sat down for a little snack break, and when I stopped and actually looked at what we will refer to as THE PLATE, I just burst into tears.

What in the world? It was the photos of the Natural bridge and Mount Vernon that did me in. Strangest thing. We’ve lived all over the country. I’ve never had so much trouble leaving a place.

The good news is that things are really looking up here. The weather is amazing. I’ve met a few people, and there are just subtle hugs from God that I find in nature each and every day.  I just know that very soon I will no longer be so emotional!

I’ve also been uncertain and nervous about this homeschooling experiment. I still have a lot of work to do, and I’m opening school on MONDAY!!! I was going to start on the 20th, but Caleb just keeps begging me to start sooner, so I think I can do Monday. The neighborhood school is already in session, so I have felt seriously ashamed that mine aren’t in school yet. With the move, it just hasn’t been possible.

Today when I realized the cable man was coming and would wonder why my kids were not in school, I was a little concerned. I was fully intending to explain that my kids were starting school on Monday, but then Alan came upstairs. Alan had already talked to him, and Alan said, “The cable man’s wife is homeschooling their children too, and they are also starting on Monday.”

Relief. For today I do not have to feel like a weird-o. I suppose it is time for me to just embrace weird-o-dom.

Guess what else. AT&T gave us a free DVR. We haven’t had DVR in 10 years, so this is exciting. He also showed me how to block half of the channels I’m paying for. Funny huh? I also blocked everything R rated and all purchases.

Why do I even bother with cable? Two words: Alabama football. It’s a big thing, ya’ll!!!

Okay. What you really want is pictures, right? Tonight I will upload pictures of the new house, and since most of my readers, according to my statistics, live in the Eastern time zone, they will be up and ready for viewing when you wake up in the morning………That is….IF John David cooperates. He has kind of been TERROR Baby at night. I don’t get it. He sleeps really well for nap, but he goes into torture mode at night. He knows how to put himself to sleep, so that’s not it. I’m feeding him plenty of solid food during the day, now that we are out of the hotel. He doesn’t appear to be sick. I just don’t get it.

Funnies from the move:

Caleb: “Do we ever have to go back to the hotel again?”

Me: Nope!

Caleb: Phew! Thank goodness!

*******

Before our flight West, Nonna and I took the boys by Walmart to get a portable charger for my cell phone.  As we were walking in the parking lot, I went to grab Dan’s hand.

Dan: Can’t!  (He had one hand closed as if he were holding something in that hand.)

Me: Dan, what do you have in your hand?
Dan:  My ball.

Me: Oh! (I thought this was adorable. He had an imaginary ball in his hand.) Just switch hands, Dan, and I will hold this hand, and you can hold your ball in the other hand.

Dan: *carefully switched hands*

…..walking peacefully into Walmart…..until……..I go to get a buggy and hear all heck breaking lose from Caleb and Daniel….

Me: Daniel! What in the world!

Dan: *crying/whining* Caleb has my ball!!!!  (imaginary ball)

Me: I turn to see Caleb dribbling an imaginary ball. “Caleb, you’d better throw that ball back to Daniel!”

Caleb threw the ball in the opposite direction of Daniel, and Daniel took off after it.

Seriously, Caleb????

*****

Photos of us, exploring beautiful California:

Yes, it feels really great to be together as a family again!!!

Mom and I at the aquarium.  We could not have done this move without both sets of our parents!

If only I’d had my real camera!!

It’s a horrible photo of me, but JD looks so cute I just had to use it!

I was a little disappointed in this aquarium, but I’m spoiled by the Baltimore Aquarium, the Georgia Aquarium, and the gulfarium in Fort Walton Beach.  However, there was one great thing about this one that the others could never have: watching sea animals in the wild! I actually saw a sea lion swimming around, looking for a rock, while we were standing out on the aquarium deck.

Everyone who visits us must go to Point Lobos.

Hiking with rocks is a dream come true for these two and a total nightmare with Daniel and JD. I can officially only go to Point Lobos with another adult in tow.

One more observation from this whole moving experience: It has brought Joshua and Caleb much, much closer. In Virginia, they had their own best friends, but this summer they’ve only had each other. It’s been precious to watch them renew their bond.

Okay. More photos next time! The natives are getting restless….