Gag Orders, or An Abbreviated Update

I have been so frustrated lately because I am under a lot of limitations on what I can talk about on line right now.  My frustration makes me unable to post the cute stories about my kids that I usually share when I can't write about what I really want to, which is about ME, obviously, so my blog has been a bit barren lately.

I'm still obliged to not write everything I'd like to, but to get my blog somewhat back up to speed, here's a breakdown on what's going on:

1.) The Furious Five have landed in the USA and we are parked in sweltering Iowa until we can move back into our house in Wisconsin.

2.) The yellow house in the woods that I had fallen in love with is dead to me.  After the first offer fell through on our house (due in part ~maybe~ to some loose-lipped tweets that I may have sent out saying that I didn't really care about the deal falling apart-- because I love our house and would happily move back into it. Oops! Lesson to everyone: You never know who might be reading your tweets!), we realized that we did, in fact, love our neighborhood too much to leave it.  Also: NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE VALUE OF LIVING WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE OF TRADER JOE'S.

3.) The Health insurance situation, when moving from out of the country back to the USA, really, truly sucks. Like, 90 days waiting period sucks. Like, what do you do if you need to see a doctor in those 90 days? Like, am I going to have a nervous breakdown while I live in fear that I will need some serious medical attention before November when our insurance finally kicks in. Like, oh my God, the National Health Service in England is the most awesome thing ever and I pray every night that America will see the error of it's ways and try to create a system that makes a legitimate effort to take care of the medical needs of every one of it's citizens. 

4.) No matter how fucking hot it is. No matter how much I might bitch, moan and whine that I "can't take the heat." No matter any issues I might have about the status of the less-than-adequate air-conditioning situation that might be playing out at our summer cottage. I am still thankful to tears that we have a second home that we can live in while we wait for our container to arrive from the States. Because that date keeps getting pushed back and our things may not be here until the end of August! And the idea of having to live with other people or in an Embassy Suites-type place for a month and a half sounds like it would, quite literally, kill me.

5.) My husband and I are teetering on the brink of a three-week stint of absolute freedom. Destructo and CC are going to sleepaway camp in Northern Wisconsin for three weeks and the Animal is heading to the East Coast for three weeks of fun with his Grandma, Grandpa, and two like-aged cousins.  I'm not sure what we are going to do with all the time we will have on our hands, but I know that there will be a significant increase in our daily happiness levels.  **wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Say no more, say no more!**

6.) It might make me a horrible mom, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that I will probably not miss my kids while they are gone.  I will go on the record, as a good mom, though, too, and say that I know I will be really, really excited to see them all when the three weeks is over.

7.) BlogHer is coming up on August 2nd and I am obsessed with it. Excited about it. And just generally giddy about the whole affair.  I am rooming with Ann and Maggie, my two most favorite Madison bloggers and friends. I have not set up an ambitious party schedule for myself (like last year) and have vowed to take it easy this time around and just concentrate on connecting with friends old and new while enjoying San Diego (a city I've never been to). 

And to remind you all just how much I love BlogHer, here is a little blast from the past of my post from last year that I got to sing for the finale of the Voices of the Year Keynote at BlogHer '10.  (If you poke around in my sidebar, you can find video of that performance, too.)