blogarexic

Yep. We are still in the hotel. Last Saturday was the three month mark from the fire, and today marks our three-month hotel anniversary. We're going a little stir crazy to say the least, but the warm weather this past week has helped tremendously. Mostly we have been spending time at Grandma's house and sending the boys outside. They are happy as clams, spending hours outside each day. In fact, yesterday when I was unbuckling the boys to take them into the hotel for dinner and bedtime, I scrunched my nose happily. They smelled like sweat, dirt, and sunshine. I love it when little boys play hard. Ethan and Link were fast asleep by the time I took Porter into bed at 7:03.

I can't believe it's been five weeks since I posted - sorry! Since the beginning of January, we have taken a trip to Pinedale (which was even better than we had envisioned) and survived the whirlwind of Kamie's wedding. It's been a great month.

Not much has changed around our "apartment." I laughed out loud the other day when I realized that when the house burned (three months ago last Saturday), Porter was not yet sitting or teething. Since that time, he sits, stands with something to hold on to, almost crawls, and is currently cutting teeth 7 and 8. He continues to be very mellow and is such a happy baby, still spending much of his time playing peacefully on the floor, braced for the moment when one of his rowdy brothers bowls him over. He is the most flexible of all my children, probably because of our displacement since the fire. When we were staying in a hotel in Pinedale, we came home after church, everyone had a bathroom stop, and then I put Porter to sleep in the bathtub without any resistance. I love it.

Lincoln has turned into a hulk. Not so much in size; more in attitude. He is the sweetest, drapiest, loving boy when he wants to be, but be careful...he'll turn on you in an instant. Sometimes he gets so mad that he really does begin to turn a little green. But despite his tantrums (which we are learning to deal with more effectively every day), he is darling. He tags around after Ethan all day long, copying, mimicking, and driving Ethan totally crazy...just what little brothers are supposed to do.

Ethan continues to astound us with how tuned in he is. He was talking to Greg last week and said with an exasperated tone, "Dad, I'm so nauseated with being in this hotel. I'm ready to move to Pinedale." So young and so perceptive. He said it perfectly. Also, his latest obsession is Ben 10 the cartoon superhero. He worked very hard to earn his very own Omnitrix. He has had it for a month and still wears it every day, all day. I have to say it is the best toy we ever bought for him, before or after the fire. He loves to be around mommy and daddy, just happy to have someone to snuggle with. If he's watching TV alone, he's quick to remind us that he's very lonely without someone to sit with (of course Lincoln doesn't count).

Greg is trying to stay busy. We had a meeting with our insurance last week and are hoping, hoping that we are close to a resolution with them. Also, I think we will hear on Greg's job - really - by the end of the week. If they called him this morning, he would be on site in Wyoming by early afternoon without thinking twice. We can't wait to get out of here.

As for me, I'm trying to stay sane without projects to work on. I have just finished chronologically organizing all our receipts since the fire into an Excel worksheet to submit for insurance reimbursement when the time comes. Greg and I drool over Pinedale properties online, dreaming of the day that we'll actually live there. I spend most my days keeping Michelle away from her photo work and giggling like high schoolers while the boys play outside. I'll miss being so close to the Kemps when we move, but with only a four hour drive, you can bet that we'll be down or expect visitors pretty frequently.

So yes, we're still waiting and going crazy, but mostly we're still just happy. I'm grateful for Greg and my boys and look forward to the day when we can say, "Remember when we lived in the hotel...?"