we have moved into our house, shoes off, beds to sleep in and everything. Joy!

Our internet access is currently in transition/spotty, so expect more regular updates by the end of the week.

BUT the outcome of all of that are at least 2 cool joys. Here is #1.]

Oy! Admittedly, I wasn’t one of the big, strong guys unloading stuff from the semi-flatbed moving truck today. They kindly put me in charge of checking off progress on the inventory lists. And meanwhile try to corral a high-energy kiddo within a designated safe/play zone. And puzzle over possible contents of boxes that have been in storage for nearly three years.

Still: this mama is tired. And I forgot to take pictures of the chaos – although I’m sure you’ll get that tomorrow when the unpacking commences. Fun, ne?

Actually, it is totally fun. Our first house! Six years of dreaming and saving and job changes and moving have finally led us into our Very Own front door.

A red door.

Totally fun.

Want to play? It is super simple.

1 : Make a list of 52 fun activities or accomplishments (small things that you can sprinkle into your week or that embellish your larger plans/goals). Each one should be doable within a day or a week.

2 : Complete the 2012 sign-up form on Google docs. You will be added to the Participants list within 1-2 days after I receive your form. I’ll also send you a graphic if you’d like to use it for a blog, etc.

3 : Go and enjoy your year, and post updates as you progress through you list.

And as I’ve said before, there’s no pressure if they don’t happen, but how nice if they do. It’s just my way to deliberately add a little more joy into everyday life.

GO
watch a thunderstorm | visit a garden | take a picnic to the Outer Banks | visit a historic place | go fishing with the boys | go camping in the mountains | pick berries | visit a local farm | play at the beach | go to a festival

TRY/LEARN
re-upholster a chair | try zumba | learn about a local environmental group

BAKE/COOK
pretzels | Aimee’s okra pickles | Nutella pastries | bread with Bebe | taco night for Mr. P | biscotti | a pitcher of sun tea | comfort soup | cookies w/Bebe | kiddo-friendly sushi rolls

HOST
invite friends to meet for bowling | have a backyard movie night | invite friends over for a champagne brunch | have a garden party | have friends over for make-your-own pizza

GIVE/SEND
support public library | call a friend who lives far away | volunteer | donate clothes/toys | join a community Earth Day project | support local food bank | send a care package

MAKE
make summer pants for Bebe | stencil a floor rug | write three poems | embroider something | add crocheted trim to a pair of pillowcases | finish sweater for Mr. P | make a bottle of Soulemama’s ‘bug-away’ | make a couple of baby gifts | make a Harvest Notebook for our new garden | do a project with autumn leaves

TREAT
watch a foreign movie | dance with Mr. P | get flowers | buy some pretty yarn | watch the sunrise | get a french manicure | plant a fruit tree

An interesting year lies ahead. We can expect regular blog posts again. We’ve lots to share & to celebrate. Tomorrow we’ll check-in briefly – we’re still traveling home across 8 states.

Right now I have a hotel bed to crash into, a tired three-year old who’s eager for his good-night story, and a new list to finish for another Year of Lovely Things.

For my Lovely friends from previous years, sorry for the holiday delays, sign-ups will go live Jan 2.

Wishing you all joy and well-being in the new year. See you again in 2012.

We’re heading down to temporary housing for a few months. Mr. P was campaigning for making do with an air mattress for 3 months, but I’ve persuaded him that putting the bed in storage would endanger our domestic tranquility. And the yarn stash + sewing machine + craft supplies + baking supplies + kitchen aid mixer. And something to sit on. So a moving truck it is (that’s day two).

Maybe there’ll be a house in our future this fall/winter, fingers crossed.

We’ve just had a medium-ish earthquake here in VA. We’re all fine, more surprised than anything else, only some dishes knocked into the sink and a few things knocked off the walls. Bebe calls it, “Boom! Shake!” (with arms thrown up in the air and eyebrows high).

Growing up in various places, I went through school earthquake drills and a few earthquakes. And lots of small shakes while I was working in Japan. So I grabbed Bebe, tucked us into a doorway, and waited for everything to stop. It took a while.

USGS are saying it was a 5.9 earthquake centered in Mineral,VA (by Lake Anna, Louisa county). Aftershocks are expected within the next hour. Broke the area record for a magnitude 5.8 earthquake in 1897.

Regarding the nuclear plant in nearby Lake Anna, VA, reports are saying that it was not affected and has been shut down.

The Pentagon & US Capitol building in DC have been evacuated. Apparently it’s been felt as far away as SC, Boston, NYC and Philly.

Crazy way to break up our lunch, and (sigh) has guaranteed Bebe won’t be napping today.

swimming laps in the twilight just before dawn, and watching the sun rise in a blaze of rose and gold over the ocean;

sipping coffee with Mr P at a beachside cafe while Bebe happily devours scrambled eggs & a cut-up pile of small pancakes;

wading past the surf zone on a hot day and drifting in calm ocean swells;

building and rebuilding small sand castles around Bebe, who gleefully destroys them and then immediately throws his hands up in shock and pretends to be surprised by the destruction, dramatically howling, “Oh nooo! What happened? The sand castles are broken! What am I gonna do??”;

finding a couple absolutely lovely skeins of Madelinetosh DK at a local yarn shop;

watching evening fireworks with Mr P;

and heading home (current home) again.

Hope you have a lovely weekend.

We’ve interspersed our daily home hunting with big and small adventures: a community barbecue, a beach day, an impromptu dash to the Outer Banks and back. And a change of hotels, since our first place was dirty and increasingly creeptacular – things like neighbors having early morning kitchenette fires; a pit bull (?!) bursting out of a room as Bebe & Mr P walked by, etc.

Which reminds me, did I mention the wandering pit bull we encountered at a house visit? Yep, we saw the large empty dog crate and then looked up to see the large dog. Eeeep! Immediate Scene Exit by the Family Perches + Realtor. Followed by leaping out the secondary front door, closing Bebe into the car, and then finagling some dog distraction so that we could re-open the door, close the main one, and then close the glass door.

In a sitcom, this would be scary-funny. In person, my Bebe was way too close to a seemingly-mild yet totally untethered guard dog in its own territory. Our realtor burned up the cell phone chastising whoever was representing that house. Bad selling agent, bad! And “No, they do NOT want to come back for another look later. No, not ever.”

Carry on, home hunters…

1. Make sure toddler has adequate entertainment, snacks, and naptime. Even so, be prepared for mini meltdowns.

2. Find a realtor whose awesomeness entails: being prompt and highly competent at her job; sustaining graceful patience with our active and often screechy toddler (and humorously swapping anecdotes as a fellow mom-of-toddler); pointing out all of the good eateries, specialty markets, and family resources in our search areas.

3. Encroach on toddler’s naptime at your peril. Seriously.

Bebe’s decided that looking at houses is Fun. Especially that big, empty rooms are fun to dash through (back and forth and back again) and fill with loud, happy echoes.

The challenges come when visiting a home still occupied by the owner’s large and/or small dogs; new (because they’re someone else’s) toys; remote controls, water glasses, etc – all of which Must Not Be Disturbed. Confusing boundaries for our wee young human to understand and accept.

Mr. P met Bebe’s occasional eruptions of Shrieking Protest with his usual humor and grace. I handed out abashed apologies like a tissue vendor on a Tokyo street corner (i.e. constantly and accompanied by head-bobbing Excuse Me’s and Thank You’s). Our realtor demonstrated her awesome-ness.

For tomorrow, Bebe says, “Yahhh: let’s go More Houses now please! And apples!” Immediately followed by the contrary, “No, I don’t like go see houses anymore. Or apples. Where’s my blanket?”

Ah, life with a two-year-old.