Move! That! Bus!

It snowed today. Huge, wet flakes that whirled stubbornly down until the still-green grass finally relented and accepted a light covering of white. The sky was gray, the trees barren, and the air raw.

I hummed "In the Good Ol' Summertime" as I ironed my shorts, pulled out my flip-flops, painted my toenails, and carefully selected my most flattering (OK, fine, least non-flattering) swimsuit.

Why? Because tomorrow, we are heading here:

(Pictured: random, non-us people who had the bad luck

to be walking in front of the castle

and who now get to be on my blog.

Sorry, random people! I'm sure you're very nice).

And to answer your next question...NO, the construction project is not done. Not. Even. Close.

Status report: Living room has bare drywalled walls and ceilings, no trim, and no flooring. There is a gaping hole where the fireplace will go. A boarded-up section of kitchen where once there were stairs. Sad, shredded bathroom walls that once were covered neatly (though unattractively) in tile.

I have suggested (gently, but with undertones of true pleading) to my contractor that it would be great, really really awesome even, if we were to come home and find the project completely finished à la Extreme Home Makeover. Even the parts I said I would do, like the painting. Bus rental and dramatic presentation optional. He just laughed nervously and broke eye contact, so I won't be exactly counting on it ... just hoping.

Lest you think us even more moronic than we are, I feel the need to explain that the Disney trip was planned, booked, and paid for long before the home renovation. And even once the home renovation was conceived, the project was going to be done by the end of the summer. Well, September. Okay, beginning of November. Well, certainly by Thanksgiving. And all along, I've smiled serenely and told friends that I didn't really care how long the renovations took, as long as we were finished by the first snowfall. So, uh, today pretty much shot that all to hell. The bottom line being that we could all use a break around here.

My parents are flying Bear, Bug, Tom, and I down to DisneyWorld (and meeting us there!) as our Christmas gift this year. Having just carried many thousands of armloads of STUFF from the kids' old bedrooms to their new ones, I am personally thrilled that this Christmas gift is taking the form of a trip and not of more STUFF. Also? As exhausting as this construction project has been, my version of heaven has been modified to something like sitting on a bench near a palm tree while bathed in warm sunshine. I think I can make that happen. I might even be able to eat something yummy on a stick at the same time if I'm feeling ambitious.

I'll be seeing you in a little over a week. I plan to be relaxed and slightly tan in a nice, glowy kind of way.

Hugs,

Jenn

PS - Dear DisneyWorld, Do you think we could skip the horrendous food poisoning this time? I'd be truly grateful, and trust me, so will the resort's housekeeping staff.

PPS - Dear Florida, Please get a handle on the humidity levels before Saturday. I'd like to have one set of Disney vacation photos in which I do not appear to have attached shrubbery to my head.