Is the real estate market really in trouble?

Okay, I know it is, but I am beginning to think that all these "reports" that say no one is buying a house are all a bunch of bologna. We have so many potential buyers coming through our house that I am getting sick of it. I know it is a blessing, people keep reminding me of that, but the constant intrusions are making it so hard to live my life here. Take today, for example, we are cleaning up our side yard and taking a load to the dump and two different realtors show up with their clients. We look like messy white trash, but today is the only day to get it done. We finish that and are cooling off when Kate comes running in and says that Alex has flooded the bathroom. He took a couple rolls of toilet paper (is that so sad when my first thought is that my little pain in the butt has just thrown money away!!) and he put those down both sinks and the tub and flooded the entire bathroom. We even had water in the drawers and cupboards of the bathroom. We grabbed every towel we had and cleaned it up, as well as plunge the sinks and removed all the mess.

As soon as we finished, I was just starting to pick up the towels and throw them in the wash, our doorbell rings and more people want to see the house. So I send Bryan to the dump and he takes the kids, esp. Alex, and I am now alone. I would love to go swimming before I start packing again, but someone else is supposed to come and see the house in an hour and I don't want to be caught in my bathing suit if they come early. Same goes for the shower. So I am hot and sweaty and afraid to do anything about it!!! We already have one offer and the people who just left said not to be surprised if they put in an offer also, so I am hoping this insanity will end soon!! No more than a week, cause we are moving out then anyway! Well, I am all done complaining for now, maybe I will complain some more tomorrow!!

How MRSA is spread....FYI

Alright, I realize that everyone is probably concerned about getting this MRSA from Alex. It is definetely a possibility, and I am sorry for having him in contact. Once he was on the antibiotic, he should have been fine, but it appears it was not working. He is now on a new one, it is apparently the last one that we have to try, so I am praying it will work. He had MRSA for quite a while before I took him to the Doctor, which is why my kids have it now. MRSA is spread through contact with blood or fluids that come out of wounds (like puss or something totally gross!). It is not airborne and stuff. A thorough hand washing will kill germs and antiseptic wipes on door knobs and stuff will go a long way. He should not share towels or linens and stuff. Which is probably how my kids got it. Alex and Connor sleep together every night and Jenna sometimes too. They are now taking a new antibiotic, which smells like a combo of vomit and another really stinky bodily function! I feel so bad for these kids having to take it! I give them a syringe full of their medicine and "wash" it down with a syringe full of juice or koolaid. That is the only fun part! Anyway, hopefully we haven't infected the entire family, but I think everyone will be okay, as Alex's sores haven't bled or ruptured and we don't all sleep together! lol. Let me know if anyone has any more questions about it!

See you all later!

More MRSA and the strange combination of Soy Sauce and Baking Soda!!

That kid, I swear!! He is enough to drive me absolutely insane!!!

First off, I took Alex, Connor and Jenna into the Doctor today because Alex now has a rash all over his whole body. I thought he was having a reaction to the Bactrim he is on for MRSA. The doc said it is not a reaction that he would have broken out in hives all over if that was the case. He also said that since he started getting the rash last night that it would not be from the antibiotic that we started 8 days ago. (Gerry told me that it probably was a reaction and I tend to believe him more.) Anyway, I also took Connor and Jenna in because the each had a little pimple looking thing that Alex started with. It appears they all have the MRSA now. Now they are all going to be on the same antibiotic that Alex will be on, a new one that I couldn't pronounce if you paid me to. Connor has to have 3 Tbs, 3 times per day! 9 TBS per day!! I am going to go insane!

While I was digesting this, I got a phone call that someone else wants to come over and see the house. We are having someone come by almost every day and I swear it is always during dinner or some other important time. While I am happy for the traffic coming through the house, I am not enjoying trying to keep the house clean, while packing and keeping up with Alex. Speaking of cleaning up after alex, right after the potential buyers left the house, that little turd (affectionately called such) went and stole my soy sauce (I was making Chicken Stir Fry) off of the counter and also took the baking soda (I had just made a batch of cookies) and proceeded to pour out half of my new bottle of soy sauce and dumped it on Kate's carpet. Then he sprinkled the baking soda on top of it. It was all Bryan and I could do not to pick him up and throw him through the window!! I had just told Bryan that Alex was not getting into very many messes lately. Remind me to never open my mouth on that subject again!!! After he made this mess, I went and got my carpet cleaner and found that the last time I used it I forgot to empty out the dirty water. That smelled so bad and was so gross!! I don't know if it will ever be the same again! Anyway, I am tired, sooooo overwhelmed with trying to move and sell this house, and slightly discouraged. I am excited to move and have a fresh start in a new area and a new ward and new friends, but I wish I didn't have to do all this garbage to get there!

See you all later!

It appears to be........MRSA :(

Well, the Doc thinks Alex does indeed have a staph infection known as MRSA. It's the antibiotic resistant one that has been in the news. The doc tried to scare me and say that it is the one where you check into the hospital and you don't check out. Thanks for that, doc! It only kills you if it is a very bad infection, which his is not, so a little antibiotic known as bactrum and he should be good in about 10 days. If not, then the dermatologist will straighten this all out. Anyway, a little troublesome, but hopefully not a big deal. Grandpa didn't seem too concerned, so it is probably nothing. However, my mom was VERY concerned and started talking about parasites and full moons and poor little Alex. I will admit his immune system must be shot, but I think he will recover just fine. A little acidophilus would not hurt him, tho.

Anyway, that is what is going on with my little psycho. I only refer to him as that because he is! He is driving me crazy! In the last 24 hours he ruined my new food processor, dumped out my shampoo, poured out a very large box of powdered milk all over the floor and table, then dumped water on it, climbed up the tall shelf in the garage and took Jon's RC airplane in the house and played with it, would not sit still for FHE and disrupted the WHOLE thing, stripped down completely 3 times- once while he was poopy!! and this was just in the last 24 hours. I am making very little progress in the house cleaning and he will be lucky to reach his birthday next month! But then he will be so cute, like after the doctor appointment, he was hungry and said he wants a burger, would I please buy him a burger? Then asks, you want a burger too, K? And asks it in such a sweet way that I so badly wanted to buy him a burger. Especially after the mean doctor squeezed one of his sores to make the puss come out- it hurt him and scared him! Unfortunately for us, we have NO money for any extras, including burgers. Sucks! So, I am doing my best to love him when he is so cute and try to remember that I love him when he is not! Hope your 24 hours was better than mine!

Our houses and all that other stuff...

Hi everyone! I haven't blogged in a long time! There is so much going on and I keep thinking I should write about it and then I will sit down at the computer and go blank! Oh well. I will just start writing and see where we go.

We signed a lease yesterday and will be moving on August 2. The house in over by Power and McDowell, near Grandpa H's house. It has been really hard trying to decide where to live and what to do, but this house is the only one that I have felt really good about. There have been a few others that would have worked, but I just could not be happy about them. I know it was frustrating for Bryan to put up with, but I feel like this is where the Lord wants us to be. Things are falling into place for it- Many thanks to Bryan's dad for helping us out. We could not get into the house with out him!! The kids are excited to move by their Grandpa and cousins. It should be a good place to settle for a while and I found out it is in my brother Todd's ward. Not that they go to church, but still that is nice. I think Jon's favorite part is the bonus that we found out when we signed the lease- landscaping service is included!! Woo hoo!! A lot more free time on his hands!

More house stuff, we are listing our house for sale on Thursday with our realtor, Greg Askins. He is great and has a lot of experience with short sales so hopefully we can sell it before the bank tries to take it! We are listing it for $249,900, which sucks, but what can you do. I love this house and am sad to see it go. We were making it what I wanted: new flooring, new pool, new lighting fixtures and stuff. I wanted to paint the kitchen cabinents off white and put a light chocolate color glaze over the top, then get some cool hardware for them. Then top them off with a beige/brown/gold/black flecked granite counter tops. Oh well, I will have to try again in a few years. We have learned that a short sell will hurt you for about 2 years instead of the 5 to 7, so here's hoping for a quick sell!

I am taking Alex to the doctor this afternoon for some weird rash thing he has going on. When he had tubes put in, one of the nurses thought he had chicken pox, which he doesn't. He has these small pimple like things that get really red and swollen and then go away and new ones will take their place. They are on one side of his chest and back and keep popping up. He always has at least 5 of these things. It is possible that he has a staph infection or something. I found a new one this morning and they seem to be very tender, so we have an appointment in a couple of hours. I am wondering if he picked up a staph infection when he was in the hospital, but we will see what the doc says!

Hope everyone is doing well, oh here is a note for Leslie and Jeremy- I really enjoyed having your kids over on Friday. They were so good and the day went really fast! I am looking forward to being neighbors, I am really happy to be moving close to you guys. :>)

See you all later!!