The one when HAZMAT was called in

It was the eve before Christmas Eve.  Actually, it was more like the middle of the night before Christmas Eve.. 2 am to be exact.  We had just finished wrapping every present there was for us to wrap (yay us, a night early)... we headed up the stairs to hear the doorbell ring twice.

Funny story... we thought it was odd and our first inclination was to check on Mom & Kelly. Maybe Kelly got up and roamed outside?  The front door does stick and is tough to open... but the doorbell?  At 2 am?  Really?

It wasn't Kelly... we opened the door to be greeted by a two stink/smoke bombs.  They were smoldering on the cement at the front door giving off an awful odor.  Curt ran to the curb... looked both ways, called out.... no one in sight.  Probably some bored teenagers... but who?

We didn't think any more of it until Christmas night at 4 am when we had a do-over-of-sorts.    Except no doorbell this time.  The blast was bigger than a doorbell.  Woke us out of REM cycle three.  It sent plastic shards and acid everywhere... this homemade water bottle pipe bomb.  Gosh... didn't seem random anymore.

So we walked through the shards {& what we later learned was acid}, went to church and when we came home I couldn't shake the feeling of being violated.  This time, it was an increase in violence... what would be next?  There is a history in this neighborhood of helicopters circling overhead, domestic violence, cops running down the street with guns drawn... and it hasn't included us.  Until now.  {It's really not that bad of a street... just crazy isolated incidents}

I called the non-emergency line and the moment I said, "water bottle bomb," one would have thought I said, "fire fire fire!"  She had me dispatched to an on-duty officer and they were on our doorstep within minutes.  Guess it was a bigger deal than we'd thought.  The police rebuked us for not calling the night of the smoke bomb.  Who knew?

The police spent most of Sunday afternoon in front of our house with different investigators coming and going.  They interviewed the older kids.. thinking there could be a middle school connection.  Then we found out that we weren't the only ones.  There were four other homes close-by that were hit.  So the thought was... as the incidences increased in violence, what would be next?

The real fun for the kids began when HAZMAT was called into the scene to test all the substances and clean it up.  Bummer....they weren't suited up in their cool marshmallow man outfits... but the kids all had their noses pressed into the front windows watching every move.  McKenzie was even trying to videotape it.  And that's when the cop got mad... "I better not see this video show up on youtube!"  "You don't want to tick off a cop!" She turned it off really quick!

The best part was that Kelly was ready to pack up the car and head out because of the incident.  He'd come outside and ask the investigators questions and walk around the scene, spreading the acid.  He even told them he's been an LA firefighter for 60, 70, 80 years.  (He's 83).  We all had a good chuckle.  So we had one of the cops tell him that he really just needed to stick around for three more days and wait it out.  That was enough for him... hearing it from a cop... and we all avoided the 'we're leaving now' conversation.

The other best part of this incident is that we get a new much- overdue and needed doorhandle... the acid ate through the fake brass finish.  And yah!  Painted door!  Gone with the disgusting mauve... in with rich brown or black.  Too bad the main floor didn't flood so we could get new carpet.  Is that so wrong?

Not much slows our 'Hurricane Noddy' down

Feisty Faith is  her middle name, rightly so.   "Hurricane Noddy" has become her nickname. She gets the award for most active baby in our fam, hands down!  Either that, or we're just getting older and it's tougher to chase after her constant messes.  I have never 'baby-proofed' our homes in that I've never had to install a gate for the stairs, child locks on doorknobs, drawers, cupboards, or even lightsocket covers.  Adventurous Viviana is forcing us to take measures...if we want our cd/dvd's more scratch-free than not, our dishwasher level and not torked, our floors less ridden with cheerios, crackers, cookie-cutters and tupperware, our drawers that house the cd/dvd's to be intact and not broken, TP to last more than a day or two, my makeup to be intact rather than smeared all over the floors, walls, faces, and tummies... and no broken bones or icky bruises from her climbing adventures.  Nobody told me that ex-micro preemies were beyond active and a little hyper {and we're grateful she is}!

Nothing slows this little girl down.  We've been fighting the 'puke-all-night-long' bug around here since Thursday.  It slowly gets passed along, no matter what measures of cleanliness we take.  And why is it that the pukey virus attacks at night, and ALL NIGHT LONG, right about an hour after Curt and I get to sleep?  Never fails.  Vivie casually puked all over my shag rug (try getting THAT smell out) yesterday and then stood up, walked through it, and continued on without a missing a beat.  We all thought, 'phewww' she's gonna miss this one!  Then it hit her...in the middle of the night.  Lucky bedmates!  

She was sleeping basically next to Curt's head and then I heard the heavy swallowing right before the puke happens so I grabbed her and held her over the edge and saved Curt from being showered with chunks...thank heavens for wood floors and easy clean ups!  Poor little thing continued every hour through the night and woke up the next morning, napped, then acted like life was peachy again.  As for us, we're exhausted, so please please please spare us one night...who will be next?  I'm betting it's Izzie.  What fun.

Simple Gratitudes:

1. Grateful that maybe this year we won't be puking during Thanksgiving...???

2.  Grateful for 'internet church' when I'm not able to get there, LDS.org saves the day.

3.  Grateful for burp bowls and washing machines.

Denial WAS my happy place.

This past week has been somewhat of a 'realization week'...I'm officially out of denial.

Read on.

Watching the news these past couple of weeks makes me want to start collecting spare change, stash it in my walls and hoard every last dollar that can be found. Highest jump in oil prices in a single day ever and I drive a tank (hello...!!!! Haven't we heard of CNG yet?) Wall Street plummeting. Legendary Financial Institutions going awol. Housing crisis apparently not bad enough for said financial institutions to do much to modify and help unless you default on your loan first. A good way to see the bright side of things when you don't have much money invested- not much to lose...

...except the roof over our heads.

What? Did I yell in your ear? That's how I feel. I guess I was feeling unattached several months ago when I posted about "the house that someone else built." But I certainly didn't forsee us as part of the crisis, in the wake of craziness and uncertainty all around us. I should have just listened to a brother / friend / mortgage advisor a year ago when he told us in so many terms to 'get out!' Hindsight is always 20/20, isn't it?

If you've heard the news from one of the kids, yes, it's true. I'm feeling overwhelmed at what lies ahead and occasionally still question why in the world we were supposed to come to this overpriced, under- appreciated, commission-draining money pit in the first place? (besides the fact that our territory in Utah was dissolved and this was the only option to keep our job with Baxter??? And, maybe I wanted to move back home--more than a little bit... to So Cal even though every other family member is scattered throughout the US).

I just keep telling myself that it doesn't matter...I don't have to understand. Okay...so we're losing over 100K with a blink of an eye. Watching our American dream...fourth home in 11 years...quickly go down the tubes. But we really can't wait it out until the CA market decides to flourish again--could be 15 years for all I know. My friends point out that perhaps darling Dr. Daneshmand played a big part in saving Vivie's life--delivering by emergency C-sec when he did maybe playing a big part? Yes, the Lord's hand was the reason. But just maybe our NICU is special. Maybe we just needed to have a trial away from family to watch how everyone could pull resources and come together in a time of need. We sure found some forever friends as a result.  Only Heaven knows and it's not up to me to find out. So, go forward with faith. I think I'm good at that--but apparently we have more lessons to learn...and isn't that the beauty that is LIFE. It sure feels like we came here ... then 9 months later bedrest ... Vivie survived the odds ... crazy first year ... breathe for a second ... and then THIS.

There could be MUCH WORSE things, I know. I'm very aware of our immense blessings. I just never thought we'd be renters once again and have so much financial uncertainty! It is happening to many people who couldn't see it coming. Anyone that really knows me....would know how much of a challenge this is--to be without a home to make my own is like taking the medium away from an artist (not saying I'm an artist, but this is where my sanity comes from!) Guess I have to spread my wings and find a new hobby or modify.

Basically we're 'readying' the house for sale. I've done my research and then done it again. The skinny of it is that it will have to be a short sale because it's worth almost 200K less than what we bought it for 1 1/2 years ago. In the end, we're trying to avoid foreclosure and with 4-5 already sitting empty on my street it looks grim, but we're hoping for the best. It's apparently not easy to get a bank to accept a short sale. Our area has been hit HARD. Harder than hard.

The plan is to follow the prophet's counsel. We came to California debt-free and we fully intend to be that way again. Because there is one stable and known factor in all this...that is, Curt's J-O-B...and finally with a 2 1/2 year history in this SD market we know now what to expect for bonuses and can budget accordingly. Whereas, coming here we had a very different picture in mind... boy didn't that stink the day Baxter changed the commission structure 2 months after we bought at the height of the market. OUCH.

We plan to stay local so we can keep Curt's income and stay with this territory...as in the 'other side of town' in Vista or San Marcos if we can find something we can squeeze into for much less than we're paying now. My feeling? Temecula...here we come. Much more affordable. We've talked about Arizona or Washington for long-term roots once our financial standing is more stable. You know...the roots we fully intended on sticking into that beloved San Diego ground? Only time will tell. But for now? Tie up loose ends...like organizing every drawer, closet, nook & cranny, power washing, carpet cleaning, staging, project-finishing...making this home shine so we can put that for sale sign up and someone else can buy it for a bargain and make it his/her own.

I'm truly saddened. I love our community, I love it that it's a 10 mile drive to the beach, I love it that this street is alive mostly because of our six monkeys. I love the relationships we've built, the routines we have, the school, but I don't love the taxes, melloroos, lack of security and well-being. And I refuse to pretend that all is well on Mulberry Street (or Glencrest Dr. if you please).

So, there you have it. Uncut. Life sure throws a curveball sometimes, doesn't it? And maybe there's a silver lining in all of this (besides getting out of debt). And it's the lessons we take from it and how we handle those curveballs that make all the difference in the world...but it sure can stink in the meantime!!!! I'm just grateful that as we press forward things become a little more clearer...than mud, that is.

The House That Somebody Else Built

I have to remind myself why we bought this home....often. Don't get me wrong...I'm grateful to be here in dreamy-weather-land, AKA San Diego (we PAY for it though-I could buy a new car with the taxes we pay every year--or just pay off our current one in less than a year). I'm thankful that Curt is employed and that his income pays most the bills, but I still miss SOOO many things about our Utah home that I have to remind myself WHY we bought this particular home. It may sound like a snotty statement, especially to those who have never owned their own homes. This is #4 for us, and it's the only one we didn't build and choose options in. It's a resale and it has just never felt like ours. (Although, I've always dreamed of buying an old home, renovating, and discovering vintage fireplaces, staircases, etc). But this is different.

Curt had been working in San Diego for 3 long months before we moved the family in April '06. It was a race against time and I was done being a single mom. It was the only one on the market at the time that had the wide-plank hand-scraped hickory wood floors I so desperately wanted and it doesn't hurt that the there's a peek ocean view from the master balcony....and it wasn't a million gazillion dollars like the rest of them--well, almost. The turret has great entry style not to mention the 20 foot ceilings (not so great though when painting them). Curt's office is away from the main part of the house so he has a retreat of his own when he needs to put himself in time-out (just kidding--but not really). Mice only live in the garage some of the time, and we're not infested with termites or mold...yet. None of the kids have been killed or injured living on the corner (it's a cul-de-sac street on both ends) and the hotel-grade Vegas-style carpeting on the stairs has really grown on me....plus it will last 25 years. We have five bathrooms, so almost all potty-trained McLaughlins can go in-sync without a huge line (I don't have to sit on the boys disgusting toilet seat--they're not straight-shooters)...but the toilets do get plugged quite often...we'll blame that one on the boys. We have a huge outdoor fireplace and courtyard off the formal dining room (again, which we use twice a year) with a fountain for ambiance with soooo much potential (that we hardly ever use), double ovens (that we use once a year), and an extra large bedroom with a dreamy Juliette balcony for the little girls to take over and play mommie to their babies, pollies, and barbies...and make 'denna' in their pbk kitchen for all their guests. We really do have a lot of reasons to rejoice...

Really, it's just that we KICK ourselves for not thinking of renting for a while before the market declared itself. I couldn't bear the thought of moving then five children and all the goods TWICE and to be in limbo for an unknown period of time...as renters. It's not that renting is a bad omen, it's just that we've owned a home since 1997 and our thought process was that it would be like going backwards...so we just didn't consider it. Egg on our face now! And so yes, we bought at the peak of the 2006 market here in San Diego and have watched in horror as home values dropped at least 11% in the last year - probably a tad more in our area. It's a sore subject for me, no doubt. Bye, bye equity and really large down payment down the toilet for now.

I guess the real issue is that we recently found 'OUR HOME' ...at least the one we were originally looking for two years ago that didn't exist on the market. You know, the one that fits our family's needs, desires, and tastes perfectly and would have been financially do-able if we still had that great equity and down payment. We're talking 1/3 acre (you just don't find acreage like that in SD North County in a planned development), fantastic neighborhood, privacy, huge backyard, 4100 square feet of NEW greatness, main floor master suite, laundry room that's NOT an entrance from the garage, bonus room for the kids that we can lock them IN along with the xbox, karaoke, guitar, piano, etc; a huge gourmet kitchen complete with GE monogram top-of-the-line appliances, 3rd car garage---along with all the great features we currently have (minus the ocean view). So, because there's no way for us to swing it currently being SUNK in our home, dreaming a little never hurt anyone!

So I'm beginning 2008 focusing on completing the vision I had of this most wonderful home at 1497 Glencrest in the beginning--the house with a lot of panache and style...and make it OURS. Knowing there's no pregnancies in the wings...knowing that I NEED projects to be a sane person, and knowing that OUR HOME with everything we wanted 2 years ago really isn't an option now unless I win the lottery tomorrow which would be a miracle since I've never played the lottery. Maybe I'll start tomorrow. SIGH.... So I'm going to rejoice in this place on Glencrest...you know, the house that somebody else built, but the house in which we call home.

This will be the year of sewing drapes, installing more closet organizers, doing finish-work, decorating the kids rooms and putting my spin on this house like I did our Utah home. I will attempt to spiff-up our home and make it OURS...take ownership and complete the vision of the Glencrest home with a lot of panache and potential. The list is drawn and it's LONG. Now I just need some moolah and fairy dust to make it happen. Stay tuned. Only time will tell how ambitious I will be.