The Pumpkin Elf

Have you ever seen an elf? I've never actually seen one, but according to the boys they do exist! And ironically, it seems there is one for just about every holiday or special occasion. Whether an elf, fairy or even a leprechaun, these tiny creatures are magical. Its magical what they can accomplish, even if their presence is only perceived.

In our house, we are visited by a number of elves, fairies and a leprechaun or two. At Halloween, the pumpkin elf comes to play tricks and leave treats, during the christmas season, Snowflake and Jingle appear shortly after Thanksgiving to watch the boys and each night "return" to the North Pole to give the Santa, the Jolly ol' elf, a daily report. Then of course, the tooth fairy (we've never figured out her real name) comes the night a tooth is lost. Recently, we've noticed that she has been leaving dollars from Tooth Fairy Land (instead of a president's picture on the bill, its her picture?!, thankfully it is easily converted into U.S. money and the currency exchange rate is equal to that of ours. O and sometimes she'll leave a little fairy dust behind. On St. Patricks Day- we know that a leprechaun has been to visit if we find green pee in the toilet. I guess their parents never taught them how to flush.

This morning the boys woke up wondering if the pumpkin elf had come to visit while they slept. While Matthew was brushing his teeth, he swore he saw something!!! When they came downstairs, they found clues that he had been there (orange napkins in the pantry) and that he had helped himself to Matthew's brownie, because there were crumbs by the couch and the refrigerator (because of course Matthew certainly did not eat his brownie the day before while sitting on the couch - something not permitted or while walking around the kitchen). When we returned from school today, the boys promptly ran into the house to see whether or not he stopped by while we were out- he had not. I've reassured them however that there were still a few days before Halloween and he usually shows up when least expected.

Halloween by far is my favorite holiday! But I seem to be lacking enthusiam this year and need a little pumpkin elf magic myself.

I know its a little strange and slightly crazy to think that all these magical beings play tricks on us and come bearing gifts. But its fun! More fun for me than the boys at times, I think. I have a good friend who once said that she remembers her childhood being magical. So do I! I hope that one day, the boys will look back on their childhood and remember the magic.

Murphy's Oil Soap

Wow... a whole month has gone by (I feel like Kristen). Its been a little CRAZY around here! We are officially moved into the house. Actually, the first night we stayed in the house was our 10th anniversary (more on that later). Everything we need is in its place, the rest still in boxes hidden away in the basement or bonus room. I'll continue to work on unpacking next week. I'm hoping that when Ed and Lana return from their trip, they'll be rested and ready to help.

O.K., let's play catch up! Eddie and I celebrated our 10th anniversary on September 5th. This is how we spent it- soccer practice for both boys, enjoyed the best hamburgers in town at Five Guys with friends, watched Maryville's football team bring home another victory and then slept in our brand new house. We had said to each other we would not give each other gifts. I'm usually the one who doesn't abide, but this year Eddie surprised me with a beautiful handmade wooden box. Is wood the traditional gift for the 10th anniversary-I'll have to look that up. If it is then I will be so impressed, but I do know that he had some help from the girls at work.

It was very strange actually staying in the house.At first, it didn't really feel like it was ours. Then, we all seemed to be turned around and lost. Rooms that looked somewhat familar all of a sudden had new unfamilar names, i.e. I told Cameron that he could find himself a snack in the pantry, he asked me what a pantry was. My reply- its the room with all the shelves and food, in the old house it was the food closet. The boys will call out for me and I think I'm being loud enough to hear and they'll still call out because they can't find me. I'm not trying to be boastful about the size of the house, its just funny. Needless to say, sans furniture, rugs and curtains, the house echoes. If I'm not home and I call Eddie or he calls me, I can always tell whether or not he's at home, because when he talks it sounds hollow. We've been here 4 weeks now and its beginning to feel more like home.

In addition to moving into the house, I started a new job. I am now employed by the Maryville City Schools. I took a position as a TA for Nancy Caroline Connell at Fort Craig. Its awesome. I worked 2 weeks before we started Fall Break. I love it. Nancy Caroline is wonderful to work with and I'm so happy to be at school with the boys. Its so wonderful to be able to peep in on them during the day, see them in the hall or on the playground, eat lunch with them.

I'm sure that way more has happened over the last month, but I can't remember them. The boys (and me) are on fall break until the 14th. They went camping with Ed and Lana at Pirateland in Mrytle Beach, then went to New Bern to visit with my parents until Saturday. I'll drive to Greensboro and meet them. I think I was depressed the first few days they were gone. I stayed in bed all day last Friday to nurse a migraine, then didn't really feel like getting out of it again til Monday. When I'd talk to them I would cry. Early case of empty nest syndrome? I've used this time to unpack, clean up and go to appointments ( dentist and eye- I'm still having a horrible time with my eyes). Unpacking and cleaning up brings me to the title of this blog. Rho- I plan on adding a photo just to make you happy : )! It seems to be the case that certain items multiple like rabbits in our house. Namely, sprinkles, icing, office and school supplies and Murphy's Oil Soap. As we were moving in to this house and out of the rental, I purchased a large bottle of the above named household cleaning product. Little did I know or realize, I already had 2 open bottles of the liquid. And just last night, as I was sifting through a few boxes, I found another open, barely used bottle of ... Murphy's Oil Soap. I'm hoping that after I "google" it, I'll find all these wonderful ways to use it. I'm convinced that all these collections of oddities goes hand in hand with my craftitis disease.