there's still so much more to talk about with this move and i've barely scratched the surface, mostly because we've been pretty busy in general. saxy started working this week and has been gone since tuesday evening since one of the jobs they needed to do was out of town (and they'll apparently be doing it again next week). and i've been running around doing children related stuff. i haven't even really tried to do more with the unpacking/organizing because i'm not used to all this running around so come home and am pretty tired. yesterday i even ended up napping for a short bit. just plain weird since i wasn't sick and have been sleeping almost normal hours at night (well, normal for anyone else).

we're going to have to make a "fix it" list for the landlord i think. our toilet has the clog problem, the kids bathroom has leaky faucets, and we're being eaten alive by something in this house - people and animals are in perpetual scratching mode. he did, apparently, fog or spray the house, but it needs at least one more good dose. maybe i'll pick up some foggers or something. i know i need to get the animals some of that advantage flea and tick stuff (or, probably the k9 stuff since gypsy will be spending more time outdoors) - the frontline sucked badly. even so, the amount of bites we're getting is way greater than what our animals may have brought with them. i've got bites everywhere - ankles, hands, arms, feet. and i was in the van with all 3 animals for 5 days and no problems at all till we got here. and some of these bites are nasty, and itchier than anything. i'm sure i'll eventually get used to it out here - i lived in ohio as a kid and i know i got bitten all the time there and wasn't too bothered by it, it's just a matter of reaclimating. i hope.

i've been running around trying to get things sorted out school wise for the kiddos. things are pretty different out here. in cali all they want is proof the kids were born and that they have shots - shot records and birth certificate usually does it. oh, and proof of residency. because the districts are magnet programs, even proving the district you're in ca be pretty arbitrary. example, kitten will be in fontana's school district but will still go to her old high school because she's in the dance program and it's the only local school with a dance program. there is a transfer paper that needs to be filled out, but the district rarely rejects them. here they need a special certification for the shots plus certification on dental, eyes, and hearing, both on special georgia state forms. we got the immunization one easy (froggy needed one shot to be caught up), but we didn't know about the other one and now need to do that one. i've found our local medical center, but need to find a clinic for kaiser, i guess. the medical center info says it does pediatrics, but i'll have to call and see on that.

froggy's school registration is started. i still need to give them proof of residency and the sight/hearing/dental certificate. jewel's registration period starts next week. we're still sorting out the particulars for taz, which is okay since i can't locate his birth certificate. i'm sure it's in the last pile of stuff i took to the cali social security office, but i have no clue where that's at right now. i'm having dad rush us a new copy. mjay, mcat's lady wife, has been a wonderful help in all this. i keep running up against these little roadblocks (like no one has heard of the woman who is supposed to mentor us through the process for taz), but she knows the system and keeps finding the info i'm failing on. i'd probably find it eventually, but eventually won't work when school starts august 9. lol

we're also working on getting me set up to sub. out here i can do that with just my b.a. and the completion of a workshop. oh, and, of course, they have to hire me. i'm trying to fill out the application and am trying to locate all my colleges to request transcripts. the plan is to sub for at least a year then apply for one of my master programs i'm looking at, more than likely the mapw at kennesaw state. heck, with me subbing instead of full time teaching, i can probably sub while i do the program. we'll see. i have to get to that point. right now the plan is to become a resident and, hopefully, reduce my registration fees. it'll be nice to be going to a fairly local college though. so much easier to get advising and such when you can go and see people face to face.

one of the things we're having the most problem adjusting to here is the sun. not so much heat and so on, it actually is cooler than cali even with the humidity (even if saxy believes otherwise). out here it gets in the 90's with a high humidity, but it never feels like 104 in the shade. lol we do need to keep our a/c. on though (not a swamp cooler, thank god! they'd be insane to put even more moisture in the air with the humidity out here), but that's not too different than cali in the summer and it actually cools things off rather than just making it damp. however, the sun seems to be up about the same time or earlier than in cali and doesn't go down till 9 or 9:30 pm! i know it's being closer to the tropics and all that, but oh my! the kids have lucked out with late bedtimes a few times because we lost track of time and the sun goes down so late that we can't use it to judge.

and yesterday we got a taste of those quick and nasty storms that the area is prone too. dang things was fast too! it was nice and bright and sunny while we were out, but in the evening the clouds moved in and lightening and thunder started. silly dog turned into a whimpering coward like she does with fireworks. i have to admit, i'm a bit worried about her. she's lost all her training, even her potty training (we're keeping her in the living room during the day to "catch" her and get her outside), and i've heard her crying at night. the storm thing is one more thing to worry about her adjusting to. anyway, we had tornado warnings until around 8pm, but no tornado appeared for us (thank god!), just lots of rain and lightening. it actually appeared to clear up before midnight.

this past weekend we also had our first dinner with mcat and family. it was really nice and their house is just lovely. saxy loves the master bathroom. lol me, i'm just looking forward to being able to look for a house that i can do up like that. they've done a wonderful job with it. froggy and their daughter e became quick friends, and their son appeared to develop a liking for jewel. taz, well, taz either watched movies or played with the musical instruments they had in the playroom. lol he had his first exposure to the spoons you slap on your leg. loved them so much he wanted to take them home. dinner was wonderful and for desert we had a key lime pie that was out of this world. mcat and i talked a bit about family (he told me a few things i didn't know about since no one in mom's family will talk to me). i just hope i wasn't too . . . i dunno. i was a bit more uncomfortable than usual i think because not only was it meeting new people (okay, so not that many, but, believe it or not, i get uncomfortable when meeting any number of new people) but it was also the first time i'd been in a social situation like that in i don't know how long. i think it went well. i've invited them to christmas dinner, but they may be out of town, so we'll see.

i think i'm about caught up with all the happenings. we still have to take pictures of the house, but i'm still organizing boxes. which i will be going to do in just a few, as well as to finish filling out the sub app and a few other things, plus i'm going to start getting my stories out again - now that we're moved i don't have to worry about things getting more lost than usual from the move. ;)

so much to do! it's nice to be busy, but i'm hoping it will settle down to a dull roar soon enough.