Our New Home!!!

Long story short, we picked out our new home! It's in Merrimcack, not too far from the turnpike and in a lovely neighborhood! Yay! It was one of our two top choices and we were able to get it for a wonderful price. The downside is, of course, some ugliness installed by the former owners. The kitchen is painted bright mustard yellow with a grotesque wallpaper border featuring plump, psychotic figures in chef's hats. This clashes outrageously with the pickled oak cabinets and forest green countertops. Brr!



But hey, painting is easy! And new, muted countertops to match? Hmmm...maybe a Christmas present for the house next year! It'll be loverly! The rest of the home is very lovely and very neutral, excepting for the family room adjacent to the kitchen, which is inexplicably mint green:



Whoa!I had seen this property on the internet in Las Cruces and ruled it out completely since the downstairs looked so funky. I'll post some more pics later! Yay!

Our Apartment!

Tah-dah! First the main room:

Tyoma's room:

The kitchen:

Our room:

Sorry if the shots are crooked, my photoshop is back in 'Cruces! We're on the third floor, which means a hike up the stairs to haul suitcases and groceries. The night we got in, I thought we would perish. After nine hours of travel and little sleep, bumping three hundred pounds of luggage up two flights of stairs was murder.

"What! There's no elevator?!" I gasped at the well groomed receptionist. Heh. To her credit she replied with an offer of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. Eh, life is full of trade offs. Tennisfiend singlehandedly manhandled the crib and changing table up the stairs to my complete astonishment. Watching him teeter and grunt sent a chill down my spine. Visions of his tragic death, bent and mangled at the bottom of the stairs, crushed by the festive "Sleigh Crib" box were hard to shake off even after we assembled the entire nursery. Brrrr. I wonder how Mom will manage the stairs. Heck, I wonder how I will manage the stairs carrying a squirmy 18 month old!? As if generations were felled by flights of stairs. Heh.

He looks like he knows that we are going to New Hamphire and leaving him behind!

Last Wheelbarrow Ride in Las Cruces

*sniff* It's hard saying goodbye. Tennisfiend will be leaving in two weeks for New Hampshire. For-ever. Goodbye first home!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy 75th Birthday Dadfiend!

Despite the craziness of the impending move, we all took time to put on a gourmet feast for Dad's birthday. The table was packed with cheese, fruit, crackers, sweets, pastries and wines. Whew! Amidst all the hubbub, Tyoma decided to skip his nap, leading to a slew of phone calls to the folk's to change times for the gathering. I think I changed times four times total. The irony? We wound up getting together at the planned time anyway! Heh.

OMG! Fienderversary!

From blogger

Wow! I can't believe that the year is rushing by so quickly. Time seemed to stand still for us in the fall, especially when we were waiting to hear back from interviews.

I suppose when you have much to fill your time with, it happens that way!

So, Happy Anniversary Dear Moosh! Thirteen wonderful years!

Our tired selves felt too wiped to celebrate at a restaurant, so we had a crab dinner compliments of mom. Also, the wine was compliments of mom, too! Yum!

Dinner With Rusty and Nova

E's business partner invited us over for a convivial farewell dinner.  I was so touched  by the care and love they put into our delicious meal.  It was a delightful gesture, with my favorite pinot noir and cheese, salmon and decadent "better than sex" chocolate cake.

Despite the inherent sadness of the occasion (E's departure is not good for the company),  our evening was upbeat, jolly and showed a great deal of respect for E and his part of the company.

I was anxious to go, but glad that I did.