A Perfect Melody

This is one of the coolest things I have seen in a while.

This is what the composer Jarbas Agnelli said in regard to his video-

"Reading a newspaper, I saw a picture of birds on the electric wires. I cut out the photo and decided to make a song, using the exact location of the birds as notes (no Photoshop edit). I knew it wasn't the most original idea in the universe. I was just curious to hear what melody the birds were creating."

Birds on the Wires from Jarbas Agnelli on Vimeo.

It is through things like this that I see His intricate beauty and perfect design.

Luck of the Cheap

I debated whether or not to share this with everyone (you know wanting to keep up a 'cool' facade and everything) but I was just too excited not to share my experience!

Last night while going for a walk I noticed a discarded hoodie sweatshirt laying near the side of the road. It had obviously been out there for a couple of days because it was soaking wet and we have had rain for the last few days. Most normal people wouldn't even notice the discarded clothing or at least they would just keep walking even if they did spy an unwanted hoodie. Not this girl. I full on stopped the stroller went over to the sweatshirt and checked it out. To my delight, not only was it my size but it was also a particularly pricey brand name! Since there are no lost and founds on random residential roads and it had obviously been sitting outside for a while (rationalizing in my mind), I snagged the soaking garment and stored it in the bottom of the stroller. For the rest of the walk I reveled in my incredibly good luck! When we arrived home I promptly placed the hoodie in the wash and waited in anticipation to try on a cleaner version of my find. After the hoodie was washed and dried I threw it on over my nightgown and paraded around our living room showing off my new outfit to Ben. He was not quite as excited as I was...

Does this make me sound like a homeless person scrounging up clothes from the street? Does this make me sound unbelievably cheap? Yep, but I could care less because I am thrilled to bits with my new hoodie! Notice that I did not mention the actual brand name or the color of my new find? Yeah, that was on purpose. I can't give away all of my secrets. Next time you see me you will have to figure out if I actually paid for my clothing or swiped it from the side of the road.

The Woes of Renting

This moving business sucks.

This past weekend we decided to post our house up for rent and pray for the best. We were thrilled when we had response to our ads within a couple of hours! Wow, will it be this easy? Um, apparently not. We had 3 showings yesterday and I felt like a bonafide realtor.We took all the necessary steps to make the place presentable- we de-cluttered, put on soothing spa-like music, lit a scented candle and sent the maniac toddler to play at Grandma and Far-Far's. Everyone claimed the home was 'beautiful' but nobody was ready to commit.

What gives?! In part I think people in Victoria are looking for a killer deal. Do you know that someone actually had the nerve to ask us to lower our rental price by $500 a month? When I didn't budge they wanted to know if the place could come with the furniture. At this point I told them to get lost... Rent in Victoria is bizarre. Considering the cost of real estate is pricey (even comparable to much of the Bay Area now) rent is still pretty low. I think the only landlords making a profit (or even covering their mortgage) on this island are ones that purchased their property 20 years ago. OK, I am done with my rant now...

Please pray that our home will rent quickly to awesome tenants. It would be a huge load off our shoulders to have our housing situation wrapped up...

Seaside Sojourn

We decided to take advantage of a beautiful autumn morning and go for a family constitutional out on Dallas Road.

As you can see, Lil was not such a big fan of 'family time' to start with.

As soon as we set her loose she was thrilled to be able to snack on a few rocks.

She did some rock walking with Mom.

Can you find the baby?

Cute Daddy/Daughter shot.

Sharing- something we have been trying to work on lately.

Someone was too squirmy for BOB the stroller so her strong Daddy had to carry her back to the car.

Sorting and Selling

We have been busy prepping for the upcoming 'international' move. We are planning on leaving around Nov. 1st, but figured that it was better to have a garage sale and rid ourselves of unused treasures ahead of time.

Since our sale, people have been inquiring 'how did it go?' and my answer is 'OK.' We encountered a bit of a garage sale phenomenon- people purchased most of the items that barely escaped the garbage bin (i.e. junk) and left the relatively decent items untouched. Another rather sketchy incident also happened at the sale. We had two 65+ ladies literally shouting at each other over a mirror. Things even escalated to the point where the mirror was being yanked between the two of them. Unsure of what to do, we stepped into the background and let them have it out. The bizarre thing is that in the end neither of them even bought the stinkin thing! I guess they caught a case of 'want what they can't have' syndrome.

Packing away one of our treasures.

Lil thought she was in heaven while Mom and Dad 'played' with loads of old toys.

Baby for sale. A good price for you my friend...

Most of the items you see above are still kicking around our house. Let me know if you need a 'piano bar' or Christmas items.