Sunshine and Rain Clouds

Do you have those days where there is so much good and some bad that the day has a mixed-sort-of-feeling to it and at the end of the day you’re feeling more perplexed than not about the whole thing?  Or, maybe you were expecting it to be a great day, and so the not-so-good really brought you down…

That’s how I’m feeling tonight.

I hemmed and hawed over whether to post this, but settled for writing to get things off my chest.  Don’t worry… there’s lots of good in here too.

A good thing: We closed on the house on Tuesday and took possession yesterday.  What a surreal feeling to walk into a big, empty house with the kids last night… I haven’t been able to wrap my brain around the fact that It. Is. Ours.

Today I took off work because I wanted to paint.  For now, I am only painting our bedroom and the girls’ room.  One thing I didn’t remember about the house… Every. Room. Is. The. Same. Color.  EVERY ROOM.  Not even a joke.  Tan.  Tan, tan, tan.  That WILL be changing.  Ha!

A not so good thing: I was not nearly as prepared to paint today as I should have been.  This is entirely my fault for not planning ahead.  I don’t much of an excuse (although I can give a few – really busy at work and working overtime, completely wiped at night and thus not spending time planning, etc.), and I should not have been at all surprised that I had to make three trips to the store today.  Those three trips meant that I did less painting.  I had six coats total to do, and I only got three done.  Boo hiss.  So, tomorrow will be a test in painting while children run amuck.  I am bringing snacks and movies and toys and anything else I can think of to keep them out of my paint. 

Heaven, help me.

Master bedroom beforehand (see that lovely tan???):

The color I picked for the master bedroom.  Oh, yes, I did.

The master bedroom in progress – more to finish in here tomorrow:

The girls’ room beforehand (again, with the tan):

The paint I picked for the girls’ room:

Okay – an aside.  I must talk about this paint color.  Let me say that simply, this is The. Most. Perfect. Color. Pink. Ever.  EVER.  I *love* this color.  I have been seeing this color on the walls of Pottery Barn rooms in the catalog for a number of years, and I finally succumbed to it.  Thank God that when I asked Julia what color she wanted her room to be, she gleefully shouted, PINK!  You, my dear, shall have it.  If you are wondering what this color is, it is Benjamin Moore Pink Cloud 887 for Pottery Barn.  I am in LOVE.

Here is the girls’ room in-progress.  Slight concern – because I had forgotten / didn’t remember / didn’t even know that this room was tan, I am wondering if I should have  primed before painting… I guess worst case is that I’ll have to buy another gallon and slap on a third coat, which is no worse than having to prime.  But still.  This definitely gets a second coat tomorrow and we’ll see if I feel it needs a third.  I mean, seriously, if I’m going to pick the perfect color ever, it better look perfect when I’m finished.  Ha!

Hopefully I’ll have more pictures for you tomorrow!

Other rooms I’m considering subjecting my Passion for Painting to include: 3rd bedroom, guest bedroom, a living room wall.  We’ll see what happens.  It won’t be happening this weekend, I can guarantee that.

Let’s move on, shall we?

So, you might be wondering why I haven’t mentioned Adam yet in this post, and that’s because Adam is currently in the Midwest (Ralston, near Omaha, right now).  Adam drove back to Pella, IA, on Wednesday to meet the movers who were going to pack and move all of our remaining items to Arvada.

From what I heard yesterday, it seems like the packing part went well.  They even told Adam that they thought they’d be fully loaded by 1 pm today.

Apparently that was wishful thinking.

At around 9:30 AM this morning, I received a text from Adam stating that they didn’t bring a large enough van and they weren’t going to be able to pack and bring all of our items to Arvada.  Upon further discussion, apparently they weren’t able to fit almost half of our stuff into the load, and we’re not entirely sure what will be arriving here in Arvada between 8 am and 10 am Monday morning.  Am I annoyed?  Only a lot.  There are other things concerning this as well that I won’t discuss here, but suffice to say, I wrote a nice but firm email to our relocation assistant about this.  We don’t yet know when the rest will make it. 

Add to that, because I never considered the possibility of this happening (I mean, come ON, this is the THIRD TIME we’ve done this – this is the first time that they estimated the size of the moving vehicle incorrectly), I never told Adam what were absolute Must Brings with him.  So, now I’m not even sure if I will have my steam vac to clean the apartment carpets.  Small, tiny, itty bitty problem in the scheme of life?  Yes. Can I borrow one or rent one?  Yes.   But, with my stress and annoyance level as late, this surely didn’t help today.

However, we will have SOME stuff here this coming Monday and Please God Please God Please God let that include our king-sized bed.  Please.  PLEASE.  Thank you.

Okay, so, did I tell you already?  WE BOUGHT A HOUSE AND WE LOVE IT AND WE OWN IT NOW AND OH, MY GOSH, WE’RE MOVING IN AND OUT OF THIS APARTMENT, HALLELUJAH!!!!

The girls seem to be handling all of the hubbub going on around them okay, but Julia has become increasingly defiant and downright naughty over the last few days, and I hope it’s a side-effect of Adam being gone mixed in with a whole lot of change.  Tonight I took the girls swimming (we all needed it after a long, hot, and sweaty day), and she openly defied me multiple times, the last time being that she pushed Raven in the pool which caused Raven to bounce off (with her abdomen, thank God, and not her head) the side of the pool.  I was so disappointed with Julia’s behavior, so I told her we were going inside.  She threw a tantrum that would make a 2-year-old proud, and she worked herself up so badly that a.) she peed herself on the concrete, and b.) she threw up.  Good night, almighty, child.  She then proceeded to scream and cry all the way back to the apartment.  I’m at a loss as to what to do here other than stick to the consequences I suggest (which I did tonight and holy moly, did she ever hate it).  I know she’s not upset at me as much as she is upset at her situation because she will be screaming and fussing about  and come to me immediately for comfort.  It’s almost comical.

What else can I tell you about…?  My Paypal account being “reviewed” because we’ve moved twice in six months?  Or… my inability to find a waste management services that does trash AND recycling? My inability to pack anything (I don’t know what my problem is here)?

But then… I have managed to get so many other things taken care of such as address changes.  And then there was that great bird that I got in the mail from one of my besties and I can’t wait for her to see my front entry decorating that I came up with today all because of that bird.

But, that was kind of the “last straw” for my evening.  Good day?  Yes, so much good in our lives and so much wonderfulness going on that I really can’t complain.  But, bad day too?  Yes.  All of those little things add up overtime and while life is Good, in a manner of speaking, there have been a lot of little nits of late that keep piling up on top of me and I can’t seem to shake them.  (For those wondering, yes, I have been reading my Bible and praying and trying to find ways to alleviate this “burden” that is one me – I keep holding out hope.)  So… life really IS good… and I keep telling myself that… but, occasionally you just have to sigh and throw a tiny pity party and write about it on the internet, right?  Ha.

Have a good night,

Erin

ps.  I’m not joking.  Best Pink Paint Color EVER.