Anything to reduce the noise level around here!

Hey, check this out. Yesterday, UPS dropped off an overnight air envelope on my doorstep. Not for me, but for the previous owner of the house. I figured whatever it was, he probably would want it, so Paul gave him a call, and they agreed to stop by and get it. After Idol! Hehe! Before we called, we debated as to whether or not they’d be watching American Idol. I said no. Paul reminded me that they’re “old” (like my parents’ age) and older folks always seem to really get into those shows. So when they said they’d stop by after the show, we really cracked up! YES, BABE. YOU WERE RIGHT. YOU CALLED IT.

Anyway. So they stopped by and got their mail, and we convinced them to stay and talk to us for five minutes, which turned into an hour. They told us ALL KINDS OF STUFF about our house that we’ve been wondering about, including how to turn off the damned alarm! For five straight months, we’ve been listening to the house alarm beep loudly for 45 seconds every time the front door opens. We couldn’t disarm it without the code, but now that we have it…BLISS! Now when we open the front door, it just goes, “Bee-beep.” Just a nice little beep. Not that intrusive, endless beeping we’ve been tortured by since December! Awesome.

They also told us they left a huge folder in the kitchen drawer with all the home warranties, information about the permits they pulled when they did work on the house, and all the paperwork from the builder – and we never got it! Isn’t that bizarre? Who would toss that out? I’m not sure who to bitch at. I’m guessing a cleaning company came through and cleaned a bunch of stuff out, because this house was EMPTY when we closed on it. The old owners told us they left five gallons of paint in the storage closet for touchups, lots of replacement fence pickets, a skimmer for the pond, the remote that operates the blinds that are way up high, and the key to the gate – and none of that stuff was here. Who would even WANT that crap? Did it just get thrown out? It’s annoying to me.

But I don’t even care about any of it, since we finally have the alarm shut off! Yay! Now, if you come visit me, it won’t feel like you’re breaking in.

I’m stalking you, Tokyo Joes!

I keep thinking I need to write a series of blog posts about all the ways my life has improved since we moved across town. Maybe we’ll make this the first post in that series. Here’s my first topic: Tokyo Joes! Where have you BEEN all my life?

I remember eating at Tokyo Joes with my favorite Julie way back in the summer of 2002 when she lived downtown, in Capital Hill. We walked there from her apartment at 11th and Sherman and at that time, I didn’t even like sushi – but I dove into a chicken teriyaki bowl and some edamame like I’d never seen food before. Everything was just so GOOD and so FRESH! And for YEARS now, literally years and years, I keep thinking, “Mmmm, I should find a Tokyo Joes!” I would drive past one going to my twin club meetings way up north and feel greatly annoyed that there wasn’t one remotely close to my house.

Fast forward to last December. The day we closed on this house, Paul and I were sitting in the office of the closing company about five floors up, and Paul said, “Hey, look, there’s a Tokyo Joes down there on Havana! We should go there for lunch.” But noooooo! Our closing ran long, and I had to go pick up the kids from school. Once again, teased with the idea of cheap, delicious sushi, only to have it snatched away from me.

And then we moved in! And did you know, I have not one, but TWO Tokyo Joes restaurants near my house? The girls and I are practically regulars at the Cornerstar location, at Parker and Arapahoe. And I met my girl Arin and her boys at the Southlands location a few weeks ago. I even got a nice sunburn having lunch out on the patio. My kids go to year round school, you know, and they’ve been home with me for about 3 weeks, during which time we haven’t eaten out anywhere that doesn’t have a play area. So, I’m really looking forward to hitting up Tokyo Joes this week! The little girls and I will be grubbing on some noodle bowls and California rolls very soon, I promise you. It’s sort of like our little thing, you see. Poor Pablo and Mallory don’t even know what Tokyo Joes IS! Just as well; they’re the picky eaters, unlike their baby sisters, who like to dip their fingers in the wasabi.

As long as I’m writing a freakin’ novel about Tokyo Joes, I might as well continue on, and share a few Tokyo Joes facts with you. Did you know:

• Tokyo Joes is a Colorado-based company
• They offer gluten free teriyaki sauce, and it’s AMAZING
• Their hiring slogan is, ”The Few, the Proud, the Pierced!” 
• At closing time, the employee with the most senior rank cleans the bathroom, which is usually the store manager or even the district manager
• They really do promote a healthy lifestyle: they sponsor their own bike team!
• You can join the Tokyo Joes Addict Club on their website and score some great deals
• And you can follow them on Twitter! 

So there you have it. I’ve professed my love for Tokyo Joes – I want to marry them! I LOVE having them in my neighborhood. Yay for sushi!

I love my house! But…

Holy crap, I’m missing the gigantic bedroom my kids shared at the old house. I’ve been trying and trying to come up with a good configuration for their bedroom, and somehow fit four itty bitty beds and three dressers into a standard small-ish bedroom. It’s driving me up the wall! My kids are about ready to track off from school for three weeks, and I think I should make it my goal during those three weeks to get a handle on this bedroom/playroom/toy/clothing situation. They have too many toys they don’t play with, too many clothes they don’t wear, and I can’t figure out where to put any of it. It’s fucking annoying. Wish me luck. (Anyone want me to do a product review of their awesome bunkbeds??? I’m all ears!)

Let’s hear it for MONDAY! Woooo, hoooo.

Yeah. Monday. All right! ::musters up enthusiasm::

The weekend was okay. My sister and I had a lot of fun, and I actually watched THREE MOVIES. Look at me go! I’ve already watched more movies in the 2 months we’ve lived here than in all of last year. We saw Pineapple Express, The Love Guru, and You Don’t Mess With the Zohan. Pineapple Express was hysterical – we laughed so hard, both of us nearly peed. Sexay! It’s fun being old. The other two movies sucked, in my opinion. Thumbs down, dude. Thumbs down. I don’t recommend either. But I highly recommend Pineapple Express! It was hysterical! I always love seeing Rosie Perez in another role besides that of Click the Camera on Diego.

Yesterday, we had family over for most of the day, and a family friend came into town late in the afternoon. We all went to dinner last night at the pseudo In-N-Out (also known as Old School Burgers) and it was downright delightful, even if I didn’t get to eat my burger with a nice, toasty bun. The weather’s been gorgeous here, and I’m getting really excited about springtime. It’s all brand new to us in a way, because we bought the house in December, so we have no idea what’s going to pop up out of the ground. I know there’s a ton of stuff planted, but it’s all DEAD now, so it’s hard to tell what it is. I just know it’s going to be gorgeous, though. I’m thrilled to have such a beautifully landscaped yard now. We did lots of work on our old yard, but we really lacked the time and money required to plant everything I wanted to. And here, it’s all done.

Our pond is looking spectacular, too! The water is so clear, I can see all the way through to the bottom now. I’m about ready to go buy some twenty-five cent feeder goldfish to throw in there and see if they’ll live. K’s dad is not going to have his pond anymore, so he’s passing along some of his pond accoutrements. Hopefully we’ll get his nice big fish, too!

Today, I’m planning to get a lot of stuff done. It’s only 8:30, so I have the whole day ahead of me. My mom’s going to take the girls and have a picnic, so I can get stuff done here. I think I might grab her carpet shampooer while I’m over there. Paul’s aunt and cousin are coming out from Cali in about a week, and we want the house to look really nice. I love these “Oh shit! People are coming! Hurry!” moments we seem to have, because they really kick Paul in the ass when it comes to stuff around the house. I guarantee we’ll get stuff done this week that I’ve been nagging him about since day one. What do you want to bet by the end of the week, there will be hooks for backpacks and lunchboxes and kids’ coats, and curtain rods in place, and all the stuff on the walls that require a drill and a level for hanging.

Oh, and I’ve got the study nearly done, too! I painted one wall bright orange, and it came out so pretty! It’s so cheerful and bright – the kids really love it. We’ve got white shelves all over that wall and an area for the kids to do school work. It’s coming along nicely.

So I guess I need to get it in gear. See ya!

Hey, small world.

Kayley’s been going to a little youth group type thing for about six weeks now. My sister usually takes her, but yesterday, I took her. While we were there, I met one of the other girls who goes there too. And then when I saw her mom, I realized I know her! Our husbands went to CU Boulder together back in the day. Cool! So, we made sure the girls exchanged numbers so we can all hang out soon. They live right by us, too!

AND! Mallory’s room mom asked me to provide mini water bottles for their Val’s Day party today. She said I could drop them at her house, which is…about fifty yards from my house, straight through the park. I can see their house right out my kitchen window. We didn’t realize one of Mally’s classmates was our actual NEIGHBOR!

And, did I mention I took the girls to Chik-fil-A for lunch on Monday and ran right into two old friends of mine, from the playgroup we went to every Wednesday when Nikki and Lexi were babies? My girls didn’t remember them, of course – they were about 2 the last time we saw one another! How fun, though, to catch up and see how big everyone’s kids are now. And THEY live right by me now, too.

Just had to throw all that coinky-dink stuff out there, because I thought it was cool.

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