Good News

Well, well, well. Almost one year exactly since my last post. It truly is amazing what all can happen in just 12 months.

I am indescribably happy to report that I am sitting on our porch, listening to the birds and the water, the wind and the windchimes, feeling the breeze and the warm sunlight. OUR porch. On the family property. Yes, we finally pulled it off. :) This wonderful place is home.



It took a few more weeks after I wrote my last post, but we did find some renters for our house. We had to accept a reduced rent but at least they have been good tenants so far. Once that was settled, it took a good 3 months to jump through all the mortgage hoops in order to secure financing to pay off Billy's siblings. We moved in the beginning of October 2012. I still have trouble believing we managed it- it definitely would not have been possible without help from all quarters, including our real estate agent, our mortgage broker who was nothing short of amazing, and of course our incredible friends who supported our quest through to completion. We are forever grateful.



Of course moving in, as difficult as it was to achieve, is still only the beginning! A property like this requires a lot of maintenance, and on top of that we have wonderful plans for improving it and truly making it our home.



We've begun remodeling to the interior of the house, and I am hard at work building and maintaining a large vegetable garden in the field.



There are all the usual adjustments to moving a family, plus we are sort of rebuilding our lives after having everything on hold for 2 years. On top of all that we are still piloting our business through some of the toughest financial times we've sailed it through, and while the sky there is clearing we still have a way to go. Sometimes it seems a bit overwhelming, but then I take my coffee out onto the porch in the morning and I remember all over again what a gift and a blessing it is to be here and to be caretaker of this incredible legacy.



(All photos were taken by me with a Motorola Atrix 2 cellphone 8MP camera, except: the family portrait- for that I used the camera phone to snap a picture of the professional print, which is from a chain portrait studio- and the picture of me mixing grout, which was taken by my friend Jeff.)

New Year's Letter- 2011 Recap

January 2012

Dearest Family and Friends,
2011. . . it was certainly an unusual year for us, full of new discoveries and deepening friendships, disappointments, struggles and many blessings. As you no doubt remember, Billy lost his beloved parents in 2010. This loss still aches, as it will for many, many years to come.

We hope to move our little family to Billy's parents’ previous home in GA. We must pay Billy’s siblings before we may move into the family property. To that end, we are trying to sell (or possibly lease) our house in Suwanee. The real estate market is so difficult right now, that we are doing anything in our power to help make this happen. To keep the house in Suwanee clean and show-ready, we moved out last April. Since then, we have been the grateful guests of very dear friends, and our combined families (four adults, six boys ages 4 to 12, four dogs and two cats) have been humming along surprisingly well!

Our experiment in communal living has been helpful to me on so many levels- it’s been wonderful to have the added support (both practical and emotional) of other adults, and the kids have enjoyed having more playmates every day. I could go on and on about the experience, but suffice it to say it has been unimaginably valuable, and I am in awe of the friendships we have developed. Though I am very eager to move forward into our home, the parting will be bittersweet.

Even with the added excitement of trying to sell a house, managing Billy’s parents’ estate, new communal living arrangements, and the continuing changes in the music business, our year was also full of fun activities and learning. We’ve had some hiking and camping trips, LOTS of field trips and activities with our fabulous homeschool group, and a road trip to Virginia for Festy, a wonderful camping/music festival.

The boys are thriving. Littleman (8 yrs) displays an unending curiosity of the world around him, seeking always to understand. His latest major interest is skateboarding- he received a skateboard for Christmas, and is determined to ride it well! The Pirate (6) has had a particularly good year it seems- he’s made leaps and bounds in his self-esteem and social skills. He self-identifies as an artist, and continues to practice art often. Babyman (4) is growing fast, of course. He’s talkative and frighteningly adventurous. He loves to hike, climb and zoom around on his scooter. He can turn on the cute charm whenever he wants to, and he knows how to use it!

Billy is still busy at work, which considering the current state of the music business is a testament to his skill and dedication. While the shifts in the music industry have been difficult, they are also exciting and I have high hopes that the end results will be positive, both for us and for new music in the future.

Of course I’ve been busy, what with everyday life and the added variables I’ve already mentioned. I’ve let many things slide, such as my blog, the boys’ blog, pleasure reading, photography, and my Etsy shop. At least I’ve found some creative outlet by practicing my knitting! Also, I’ve put a lot of energy into meal planning and cooking. . . it’s been necessary to help feed so many people, and the experience has been invaluable! I like to cook.

So as you can see, 2011 was an interesting year! We are all doing well, and are looking forward to even better things to come in 2012. I hope this finds you healthy and happy. I miss blogging, and hope to get back to it more this year. Please comment, email, or hit me up on Twitter (@kit_mama) anytime! I love to hear from you!

Kiss your loved ones, and go thank those special people who help you get through your days. They are a priceless treasure in our lives. :)
Brightest blessings on you and yours. . . Love Always,

Kit & Billy, Littleman, The Pirate & Babyman




The whole combined family (minus a couple dogs and cats), pictured Spring 2010

Little Boy Projects

I'm afraid I have not been very good at making a note of all the various projects and adventures all our boys have got up to in the last couple weeks. I can't remember them all, but here is a small sample:

- The kids turned the mulch pile at the end of the driveway into "Mulch Mountain", a replica of Stone Mountain complete with buildings and a functioning cable car, all fashioned of gardening tools and assorted paraphernalia gleaned from the garage.

- Many insects have been captured, followed each time by impassioned petitions to be allowed to keep said insects as "pets". If they survive long enough, they are released back into the wild backyard.

- The kids have planted a garden, set out avocado pits to sprout, and planted several flower pots' worth of seeds.

- One kid has learned how to ride his bike. He also lost a tooth. The tooth came out when another boy sat on his face.

- Many forts have been built and deconstructed. One of the forts was a radio station. Sample playlist: Queen, That 1 Guy, Evanescence, Rush. . .

- Three boys decided to play "Robbers", and to that end began building a ladder with which to climb into Mama & Papa Bears' bedroom window. They were wearing helmets and life vests, which apparently somehow made this idea OK. THAT project was halted post-haste.

- One boy created a calendar on the dining room wall out of sticky notes. "ESTR" Sunday is clearly labeled. The month started out with 30 days, but now April has 44 days, divided into 13-day weeks. Nice of them to give us the extra time, don't you think? I could sure use it to get this blog back on track. :)

Co-Hab Project: Week One

Um.

I hardly know where to begin.

Things are humming along in my corner of the world, sometimes with a few more RPMs than I can handle. All in all though, I am feeling most excellent about our days here in our new abode with the Bears.

I will try to get blogging more often, because every day is an adventure around here and there is a lot going on. How could there not be, with no fewer than 6 young, active boys running around all day, 3 (sometimes 4) dogs, 2 cats, 2 vibrant mamas, 1 Dad working (mostly) onsite and 1 Dad in and out at odd hours. Throw in a perpetually evolving full slate of projects and a near-constant stream of visiting friends, and you might begin to form an idea of life in La Casa de los Osos. My dear friend Mo is a blogger too, so you can read about some of our shenanigans over at Five Bears A-Blogging.

Our first week of co-hab went very well indeed. Our families mesh amazingly well, and even the dogs (because I had to bring our Gypsy with us) settled in together with very little fuss. Household rules and schedules, chores and study time are being assimilated pretty well. I only have a couple laundry baskets' worth of stuff left to unpack. The kids are delighting in a greater freedom, which I can afford to allow because there are other responsible eyes helping me keep watch. And I have had to adjust quite a bit to accommodate this newfound sensation of having other adults (and older kids) to help me accomplish everything that needs to get done in a day. It's pretty damn wonderful, actually.

This week has been a week of finding rhythms, of learning our place in a larger system and how best to work together for mutual benefit. It's an exercise that our small nuclear families often never get the opportunity to fully engage, and one that I think is extremely valuable. It's also eminently sensible: I continue to be amazed at how much I can get accomplished with the simple addition of a few more responsible caretakers who can help carry the load. With other folks around to answer questions, take care of Babyman's needs, keep an eye on creative activities, help with chores, help keep kids on task, and stay home if I need to run an errand, my days run SO much more smoothly than before. When I think about all the things that the other adults and the older kids are helping with, and consider that I used to do all those things by myself, I am impressed that I ever accomplished anything at home before.

Now, this doesn't mean I have turned into Supermom, nor did I accomplish everything I set out to do last week. But there have been many, many times that I completed a task and looked around with a strong sense that I was forgetting something. . . only to realize that I hadn't forgotten it, it had simply been taken care of by someone else. Thus I was free to move on to the next task, whether it be mopping the kitchen, reading out loud to the kids or baking some cookies for bedtime snack.

In addition to my new ability to accomplish things, I am thrilled with the effect this has had on my kids' daily activities. They are engaging in very creative projects, and playing outdoors a lot. It's the sort of thing I couldn't afford to allow before, because there simply wasn't enough of me to keep an eye on things and still keep our days moving forward. I love that every time I give the boys a bath they are filthy. They've been doing things. It's great.

So, I officially declare our first week to be a success. I could definitely get used to this co-hab thing. It may not be for everyone, but if you can hit on the right chemistry of folks it's a divine way of raising families.

Changes!

I just want to check in with a quick update, since things have been so quiet here on the blog. I have been absent here because I am focusing all my energy on MOVING. Billy and I are putting our house on the market, and to that end we will be moving out so that these 1280 sq ft are not overrun with messy kids and dogs while potential buyers check it out. We are immeasurably blessed to have wonderful friends who are opening their home to us while the house is on the market. It will be an adventure!! I am actually looking forward to this experiment in cooperative communal living. :)

So, to that end I have been completely immersed in sorting, purging and packing. It's really astonishing how much STUFF we have accumulated in 11 years since moving into this house. Of course, we had 3 babies in that time period, and I also have all the paperwork associated with owning our own businesses. It's A LOT. But we are making good progress.

I'm sorry to have to set my blog aside for now, but I can only do so much. :) I am sure I will be checking in next month if I do not find time before then.

Happy Spring!!