Guilty of not blogging more

This past week we signed the 4th and final (it better be) contract on a house.  After 4 months of looking we never found the perfect house so we are having one built.  Our closing date is September 15th and although it seems a ways off we are excited.  We love the house plan and the neighborhood and it feels like the right place to raise our family.  The hardest part about the wait is living in this apartment.  The dryer doesn't work and the dirty laundry is taking over the place as I get furthur behind.  Adam says that if I string a clothesline outside of the apartment our dryer would probaby get fixed soon.  Our kitchen area has flooded twice and yesterday I opened up a drawer in the bathroom that was full of water.  The plumbing in this place is really old and the maintenance can't keep up with the constant disasters.  Just about everything in this place has a problem and it takes them weeks to even do the little things.  Yes, I feel a little crazy but now that there is an end in sight it will be easier to deal with.   The fact that my eye surgery didn't correct my vision completely is frustrating as well.  Everything is pretty blurry and I go in for my 2nd surgery in June.  After that I should be seeing 20/20 according to the doctor.   Thank goodness Adam got me a GPS for my birthday.  Everytime I go somewhere I haven't been before it acts as my eyes since I can't really read the road signs. 

The other day on the way home from school the kids found a tortoise and she now lives in the boys room in a swimming pool of dirt.  She looks like she has been hit by a lawn mower and her shell has a crack.  It doesn't look like it goes into the flesh but from what I've read on the internet it has the possiblity of getting infected.  The kids keep asking for me to take it to the vet but I'm not sure vets do that sort of thing.  We've had her for 3 days now and she is still very active so she will probably be okay.  I guess tortoises are very common around here and it probably won't be the last one we find.  A man I was talking to told me that during the rain they will crawl out on the road and you can't help but hit them.  The first visual that popped into my head was the Super Mario Bros. but I imagine it is not funny at all.

The kids have another month of school and are gearing up for a fun summer.  They are taking swimming lessons at the YMCA right now and we will probably continue that through the summer.  The boys are playing baseball and all 3 older kids will be going to a week of summer camp.  We are coming back to Idaho for 2 weeks in June and we can hardly wait.   We all got a season pass to a theme park here (kind of like Lagoon) and to a water park.  I'm told it gets really hot here in the summer and there are a lot of fun water parks to try out.  There are quite a few places to go camping and fishing and since we are new here there are a lot of new places for us to explore this summer.  Now that the house is on order we can start checking out the area instead of looking at houses every weekend.   

I hope everyone is well.  We are doing great and the kids have adjusted pretty well.  Just yesterday, speaking for all of us, Naomi said with tears in her eyes that she misses her Grammie Joan.  Our lives right now would be absolutely perfect if all of you lived out here with us.  We miss everyone and are excited to see you in June.  Love you all.  Julie

Spring Break 2010

The kids have had the most fun this week just "hanging out" with the other kids from the apartment complex.   We went and saw "Alvin and the Chipmunks" at the dollar theater and went to Chuck E. Cheese another day.  We got a bike rack for the back of the van and we have enjoyed riding bikes at some of the new parks we have found.   The weather this week has been perfect and it has been nice just to be able to go outside.  Last night it started to snow and has snowed and blowed all day long (today is Saturday).   Next week the weather is forecasted to be bad so thank goodness the kids are back in school Monday.  This apartment seems to get smaller as the kids get louder.

We went to a Japanese Steakhouse for my birthday today and the kids had fun watching them cook our food.  Joey told the cook he was a "good egg spinner".  We then went out for ice cream and are now back at home snuggling around the fire getting ready to watch the "Wizard of Oz".

I hope all is well in your homes and we will blog again soon.

Monday, March 8, 2010

I just got back from the eye doctor and had the bandage contacts removed from my eyes.   My vision is about 20/100 so excuse any typos.  I can't see really well quite yet but that is normal at this point.  It is pretty amazing that we live in a time when this surgery is possible.  Everyone who has had it done says it is awesome and as soon as I can read anything I'll add myself to that list.  Right now I can't read any street signs and had to actually get out of my car to check and see if I was about to go off a curb or if it was the exit.  I am definitely a menace on the road (more than usual) and stay home as much as possible.

I just signed the whole family (even Adam) up today for a membership at the YMCA.  They have a lot of neat programs and I'm loooking forward to signing the kids up for swimming, baseball, and summer camp.    The kids don't need as much cough syrup to get to sleep at night if they get enough exercise each day.  They have free child care while you exercise so I am excited to get back into a routine and Ivy will like going and hanging out with kids for an hour a day. 

I have the last 2 weeks in June off and we are planning on coming to Idaho for a visit.  If we stay long enough everyone will probably stop missing us. 

We found a giant frog the other night and took some pictures of him with the kids.  I will have Seth post them when he can - I can't really see which ones are any good. 

We are all doing well.  The kids are starting to give the "Gaglione's"  a bad reputation around the apartment complex so it is good we'll be here for only a few more months.  The kids get out of school the last week in May and hopefully we have a home by then.  House-hunting is awful - I'm ready for the realtor to tell us where we have to live and I will adjust to whatever.  It is really a difficult decision but when we bought our house in Jerome, as nasty as it was, it just felt right.  I'm hoping for that same feeling here. 

We love you all and hope to talk to you soon.  Julie

Happy Birthday Ivy!!

Today, February 24th, Ivy turns three years old.  We love her so much and couldn't imagine life without her.

I hope everyone is doing well.  We love and miss everyone.

February 17, 2010

Not much is happening right now - just day to day stuff.  It has been cold outside so it is hard for the kids to get out and play much.  Our apartment is pretty small and it will be nice when we can get back into a house. 

Ivy's Birthday is coming up and  we are planning a trip to Chuck E. Cheese to celebrate.  Hopefully now that we live by one we won't have to stay there 3 hours everytime we go.  Uncontrollable kids and noise - you can only take so much.

For my birthday this year I am getting my eyes "fixed".   I need new contacts so I thought I would get a 3rd opinion on whether or not I am a candidate for Lasik. I am not a candidate for Lasik (cutting a flap in your eyeball)  but I am a candidate for PKR (scrapping the surface off your eyeball).  I've talked myself out of it at least 10 times a day but I am still scheduled for it on March 4th.

We are so happy to hear cousin Lily is eating and getting closer to going home.  She is so cute and the kids love to look at the pictures of her. 

Well, everyone have a great day and we will talk to you later.  I will get some pictures posted after the kids come home from school.  Love to everyone.

Some photos

 

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