Yesterday we woke up, brought Axel to preschool and began our move.  By noon, we had signed away our house, picked up Axel from his last day (awesome that it happened to be Dilly Bar Day), had picked up a giant UHAUL and had boxes in the back.  

By 6pm, everything we own was parked, on wheels in the driveway of the home we hope to close on Friday. Yes, we're completely mobile at this point, could set down just about anywhere.  It feels good to be on the homecoming stretch – pun intended.

As Bon Jovi would say, "Whoa, we're half way there.  Whoa!  Livin' on a prayer."

Can I even explain how excited Axel was to ride in the front seat of the UHAUL, headed down the highway?  Jahred reports that they had to make a pit-stop because Axel had to go "potty."  What he really intended to do, turns out, was tell everyone in the place that he was, "Yeah, I'm riding in the HUGE truck out there!  Yup, I'm riding in the front seat because THERE'S NO BACK SEAT!"

And that's how you squeeze 2500 sq. ft. into 26 linear feet.  Holy jigsaw.

Everything tried to go to hell in a hand-basket today. It turns out that with unpacked paper bowls and two remaining ingredients in your kitchen, everything winds up just fine.

Thanks to our local on-call handyman crews. We'd be lost without you all once again.

Sorry folks. I do love a good moss. I just find it such an opportunistic grower! While my house is in disarray and the storms are wolloping Minnesota harder than ever this moss continues to thrive.

The bricks in this picture however remind me of the last meatloaf I saw. A reminder - I guess - of why I don't eat it.

Things are getting wild. The kids are feeding themselves. This is what I found when I woke up this morning...this and the cereal, milk and several spoon choices all displayed on the counter.

Oh dear Axel, I promise you many a gourmet breakfast in our new house.

It's crunch time.  As Axel would put it today, "We have 6 sleeps in our old house, 2 sleeps at Grandpa Moustache's and then we're in our NEW HOUSE!"

Six sleeps may seem like an eternity when you're five, but for a Mama, it may just be one sleep short of getting this all together.  I'm finding my body takes an 18 hour shift these days and my mind takes the remaining 6 hours while my body sleeps (on a mattress on the floor at this point).

My questions lately –  WHERE IS THE SHRINK WRAP?  Where did I leave the tape?  SHARPIE ANYONE?

To keep me motivated I've been creating playlists.  Sometimes on Pandora...sometimes in my head. 

My "Sound Track for Movin'."
Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young - "Our House"
Carole King - "I Feel the Earth Move"
Jefferson's Theme Song - "Movin' on Up"
Phillip Phillips - "Home"
Journey - "Don't Stop Believin'"

Ollie has made a playlist of his own this month as he's been spending plenty of time in the jogging stroller.

Ollie's songs to "Run With."
Tupac - "Rollin' with my Homies"
Maroon 5 - "Moves Like Jaggar"
Carly Rae Jepsen - "Call me Maybe"
Katrina and the Waves - "Walking on Sunshine"
Queen - "We are the Champions"
The Clash - "Should I Stay or Should I Go"

One final song that I'm in love with lately.  I'm sure it's been over-posted across the blogosphere, but here's my LOVE for "Same Love."

I took a picture of a Bumble Bee today.  It made me happy.  He was such a fat little guy and it was almost comical the way he hovered around the flowers, drunk on pollen, before settling on the petals.  The photo below almost makse him look muscular, a fit bee according to this...I assure you, this was his good side.  The side profile would tell a different story.

This is how slow he was:  I saw him, thought about taking his picture, walked myself inside to get the camera, goofed around with the settings, raised it to my face, snapped a few frames – never losing sight of his enormous self.  Happy life to you, Bee.

While I'm stretched thin these days between scanning documents for the mortgage company, running from summer camp to summer school, putting three square meals on the table, managing two naps (none of which are my own) and oh yeah...trying to find humor in the little things, Axel has been picking up the slack...and the shrink wrap.

Seriously, this kid can do it all.  When I came downstairs after putting Ollie down for a nap today, Axel had wrapped up several pictures all by himself.  Notice the full extension of his toes to stretch that wrap.  Wow...this kid deserves the world.

In other news – while I'm packing up to move, other members of my friend/blog family are preparing for a journey home as well.  One of my biggest blog fans is losing her battle with cancer and although she undoubtedly isn't spending her final days reading my ramblings...I am thinking of her and the wonderful family of women (and men) she will be leaving behind.  Erin, Brenna...I need a blog out of you.  You have so much to offer the world – wisdom beyond your years.

Man I hate to lose readers.  It pisses me off to lose them to cancer.  I'm thanking the universe right now for the healthy kiddos and mommies in my life.

I have to use my first embedded YouTube video to show y'all this.  If you don't watch primetime television (or are too cheap to pay for even basic reception like us) you may want to see this:

Let it be known that I LOVE Americas Got Talent.  This guy is one of the reasons.  You NEVER know what you're about to see and as always, the "average Joe's" are more interesting than "hollywood's finest" any day of the week.

We met a few REAL goslings the other day.  There's a sweet spot where the Munsinger Gardens meet the Mississippi River and form a calm little pool.  These goslings were quite unafraid of us...their parents were a little more leery.  You can see the conversation that Axel had with their father below.

Although Axel assured me that these goslings were very different from the one he played in Charlotte's Web, the similarities in behavior between human and avian goslings are uncanny.  Wanderlust, curious, ever-moving, clumsy...