A Household Turned Upside Down, Again!

Last week, as the Boychick started school, and I began orientation for my GA in the UNM College of Education Graduate Writing Studio, the Engineering Geek finished up an important project at work. This project had shifted some of the EG's plans for taking vacation time to finish putting in the wooden flooring.

Since the Boychick's room was part of the project, we had been hoping to do it while he was at "Camp Aunt Madge" in Illinois, and then at the Coyote Tracks camps in New Jersey. But the EG's work project made short shrift of those plans. So now, in the midst of things, we once again have a household turned upside down!

On Friday, the EG went to work on his 9/80 day off, specifically to finish his project.

Yesterday, we took Shabbat. It was the first real down-time day that EG and I have had on the same day. I took the Boychick to Taekwondo after we prayed, and then we spent the afternoon hanging out around the table in the breakfast nook, talking, drinking lemonade, eating cookies.

This morning after breakfast and the paper, the EG took the screen/storm doors--fancy, but a pain--apart to clean them. I did some housework. And this afternoon, the EG and the Boychick began moving everything out of the Boychick's room.

Although the Boychick had cleaned his room before leaving for Illinois, there were still more layers of stuff to excavate and clear out. Also, since he was gone for a month, and we only went into his room to take care of Fred Thompson, the fire-bellied toad, the relatively clean

room had a layer of dust all over everything.

Here, the Boychick excavates fossilized materials

where the dresser stood. The dresser and

the Boychick himself will be dwelling in the

Chem Geek Princess's suite for the duration.

Here, the Engineering Geek brushes out the dresser as it stands on the furniture dolly, prior to taking up residence down the hall.

I don't think that the Boychick is particularly happy about the chaos descending now--at the beginning of school. He had thought first that it would all be done by the time he arrived at the Sunport on August 2.

Then, he had hoped that the Chem Geek Princess would be getting settled in her townhouse before he moved into her room.

Unfortunately, the CGP's prospective townhouse is being purchased on a short sale. The current owner was in foreclosure, so the offer had to go to the mortage holder--one of the big ones currently in trouble--and they had to go to Fannie Mae. As you know, Fannie Mae is also in trouble. Still, the Princess is hoping that the offer will be accepted. In today's market the mortgage lender and Fannie Mae stand to lose more if they allow it to go to auction. But it all takes a very long time...

So now, the Boychick has to camp out in his sister's room. It's not the best of all possible worlds. But we need to get the work done before Rosh Hashanah, which is about five weeks away.

Once again, it's a household turned upside down just at the start of school.

Last year, the living room flooring was being installed just as we began homeschooling.

Now, we hope to get the last two rooms done, prior to 5769!

Things will work out. They always do.