Honesty: The Best Policy?

Yesterday at church I was asked two questions over and over:

1. Are you ready to have this baby?
2. How is the move going?

I thought before answering either question and then replied in a way that none of my questioners were expecting.

Them: Are you ready to have this baby?

Me: (Smiling very sweetly) No.

And

Them: How is the move going?

Me: Well, we found mice. In the kitchen. So, the unpacking is on pause.

I often wonder if I should just give a general, non-committal kind of answer. A simple, "fine" or "okay" would placate most people. But see, I decided long ago that when someone asked me a question I would give them an honest answer.

Which has led to me saying some odd things.

Lots of people have been asking me recently, "How are you feeling?" It's a pretty standard, ask-the-pregnant-lady kind of question. Sometimes I say "tired". Other times I say I'm "okay". My current favorite (and most accurate) response is "round" as in "I'm feeling round". No one expects me to say this, which might be partially why I continue to use it. But really, I picked that word the first time because it was the most accurate description of how I was feeling.

And I'm not ready for the baby to come. Even though she could make her debut any day after Wednesday, I'd like her to stay in a while longer. With the current state of our house, she's much safer in than she is out. Also, I wonder if I should just say the move is "coming" or some other mildly evasive response. Does anyone besides us really care that we found mice? (The answer, as far as I can tell, is that some people don't care, but some people do.) And even if they do care, do they want to hear the saga while standing in the hallway at church?

I wonder, do other people give such bizarrely honest answers? Do they expect the standard "fine" when asking how someone is doing? Do people really want to know how those around them are feeling or what they're thinking?

Know this: if I ever ask you how you're doing, I'm not just asking to be polite, I really want to know.

Reading List

I'm in the middle of three books right now:

The Red Pyramid

Timeline


and Fablehaven, Book 5: Keys to the Demon Prison

If you'll excuse me, I'm going to get off the computer and go read.

What are you reading?

P.S. While looking up pictures for the above books I found this. I know I'm not the only Percy Jackson fan, so I thought I should share.

Late Notice

I didn't write today's post last night for a handful of reasons:

1. When we turned on the stove to make dinner (for the first time since moving here) the smell of gas was so overwhelming it drove us out of the house for a solid two hours.
2. I had a Stake Young Women meeting.
3. We had a massive thunderstorm which caused the power (and the internet) to go out.

I've been too busy today to sit down and write, so I'm finally doing today's post when I normally would be writing tomorrow's post.

The storm was actually quite nice, aside from Peter being terrified of thunder. We slept with the windows open (only a few inches and with blockades so they couldn't be opened anymore) and by the time we woke up our house was lovely and cool. In fact, we haven't had the AC on at all today. It is much warmer now than it was when we woke up, but it's cooling off again.

We called the gas company and told them about the smell and the fact that our water heater won't stay lit. They sent someone out to check. The boys and I played outside while the fellow was here. Bryan's brother Spencer took one for the team and stayed inside with the man checking the gas. I mostly didn't want to blow up. Apparently we had air in the line (which was our theory) but it is now gone. The stove worked when he was here, but the water heater still wouldn't stay lit. Apparently the thermal couple is bad and needs to be replaced.

Better than a gas leak, eh?

Squeak, Squeak

So...we moved. We're totally out of the old place and all of our belongings are in the new place. Many of them are still in boxes as it is difficult to unpack when you are 36 weeks pregnant. There's another reason why many things are still in boxes.

We have mice.

Or a mouse.

I'm not pleased about either option.

We didn't notice evidence of their existence when we first looked at the apartment. However, when we came to do our write-down-all-the-damage-so-we-don't-get-charged-when-we-move-out walk-through, we found droppings. Bryan's mom was awesome and came and cleaned it all up so we could move in.

But we've found more.

We discovered tonight that the condo below us has been for sale and vacant for two years, so it's really not shocking that there's a vermin problem. But as not surprising as it is, it's still not particularly awesome.

Traps have been set and we're trying to be vigilant about cleaning up every crumb after every meal. We've paused in unpacking the kitchen though, which is bad because we're running out of food that can be prepared in the microwave and we're nervous about using the rest of the cooking appliances. Most of the dishes are still packed up. I decided that we would eat canned fruits and vegetables for dinner on Monday night, until I realized I had no idea where the can opener was.

Other exciting things about this new place:

• The dryer sounds like a Yeti and puffs smoke from the back when turned on
• The garbage disposal is rusted to the point that it won't move
• Our shower is stuck in the on position, which means no baths in the big tub
• The former item doesn't matter much because the pilot light won't stay lit on the hot water heater so we have little-to-no hot water
• We're missing screens in two windows and the sliding door, which is a problem because we try to keep the windows open and the AC off as much as possible

Those are the big things. We are thankful to not be homeless. We'd be even more thankful to be mouseless.

And to be able to use our whole house.

And have clean clothes.

And hot water.

Wow, high living standards really do put a damper on things sometimes, don't they?

Authentic Japanese Cusine?

We had sushi on Saturday night. I've been craving it my whole pregnancy and we don't exactly have a kitchen right now (I'll explain that in another post) and Peter heard us mention the possibility of sushi and latched onto the idea immediately.

I thought I would go and order a regular meal and not eat any of the delicious rolls. However, it turns out there are plenty of fully-cooked sushi (okay, not technically sushi) rolls. Man, it was good.

I was very proud of the boys. While we've gone to a sushi restaurant a handful of times, neither boy had ventured beyond their kid's-meal bento-box. But on Saturday, both boys tried a piece of a California roll and another one that I can't remember the name of. And only one boy spit any of it out!

Last night at dinner we ate left-overs. We brought home most of the California roll and Peter was eating a piece of it. That's when he told us the following story. Two things to keep in mind, he only went on Saturday and Bear is one of his invisible friends:

Peter: I had sushi on Saturday and on Tuesday. I went with Bear. They had sushi and taquitos there, which is WEIRD for a sushi place.

Yes Peter, it would be weird.

Forecast

Whoa, if that's the low, we really need to find somewhere else to be next Sunday.

Culinary Delights

When one is in transit, one chooses only the highest in quality to fulfill their dietary needs. And then, of course, they conduct themselves with the utmost in decorum.

Moving Day

Today is the day. We've got the truck reserved and the Elder's Quorum notified. Thanks to help from our families, our earthly possessions are neatly packed.

As an aside, I realized this week that I have no problem telling other people what to do. I've been doling out jobs to my siblings and Bryan's siblings for a few weeks now. Perhaps I could say that I'm bossy, but that sounds negative. Instead, I'll say that I have excellent delegation skills.

And since I can't lift ANY of our boxes full of stuff, I'm off to delegate some more.

35 Weeks

I am 35 weeks along today. Other than slightly swollen feet and the constant need to eat, I'm feeling pretty well. I'm hoping she stays in for the next 5 weeks so we have a chance to get settled in our new house. And, you know, so she can keep growing.

Civil Disobedience

Yesterday was a tough day for Cooper. There were many tantrums. Bryan's sister suggested that it's because his routine has been so disrupted with company and moving. That could very well be. He reached his breaking point at dinner last night. Perhaps it was a reflection of the water conversation last week, but this time he remained cordial.

Cooper: May I have some mustard (meaning Honey Dijon vinaigrette)?

Me: You still have some on your plate.

Cooper: (Much louder) May I have some mustard?

Me: (Pointing) Cooper, it's right there on your plate.

Cooper: (Nearing a full-fledged screaming tantrum) MAY I HAVE SOME MUSTARD?

Me: No Cooper, you still have some.

At this point he grabbed a handful of food to throw at me. I got a hold of his hand before he could chuck it. This made him even madder.

Cooper: (Now crying and very mad) May I hit?

Me: What?

Cooper: MAY I HIT?!

Me: Oh Cooper, you're tired aren't you? No, you may not hit.

Cooper: (Lots of tears)

I'm hoping that he feels better today.

But hey, at least he was polite.