Well, darn blogger...

Sorry I took so long to Post....

So, I typed up a huge post...and stupid blogger WILL NOT let me copy and paste it! I am so irritated. I tried to copy it a few days ago, but couldn't get it to do it. I assumed I WAS doing something wrong. Well, nope, Big Daddy confirmed it wasn't me. ARGH! I am so frustrated.

DARN! I have to retype the whole thing!!! Boo!!

So....without further adieu...this is the other days blog post:

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I have to admit it, I've been intimidated to start blogging again. What? Me? The girl who used to document her whole life is hesitant about blogging again? Doesn't that seem a bit dramatic? But, honestly can you blame me? (and if you know me at all...drama is to be expected!) I haven't blogged on a regular basis since we left Kansas over 13 months ago. Will you still love me and my blog? Will you still read and comment? Or have you moved on without me? Will you care if I come back?

Truly, I have tried many, many times to pick up where I left off, but it was just too hard. Trying to decide how to start again. And how to explain where I had been and why. I mean, my blog name is "The Real Roxann" and I pride myself on being real. Being honest. And I always try to blog real...meaning a real, true and honest look at my life and my feelings...the good, the bad and the ugly.

There were some serious situations going on in our home during the end of the year 2008. Life felt very uncertain: hard, scary and way stressful! It started the end of October and continued for several months after we moved to Ohio on Dec. 19th, 2008. The things that were going on were so serious. And we couldn't talk to anyone about it. And so I couldn't blog about it. And keeping it all inside was so, so hard.

As our daily struggles became weekly struggles and then became monthly struggles, I didn't want to blog. I just couldn't use my blog as a constant place to whine and moan about how much life sucked then. I didn't want to do it and I figured that no one would want to hear it.

Believe me, I know that despite our struggles, we have it pretty good. But, that doesn't mean it's all sunshine and roses. The past 15 months have been some of the hardest times so far. Sometimes rocky. Sometimes filled with fear, uncertainty and the underlying questions of whether or not we had made the right decisions and how to deal with the complications caused before and after the said decision.

And I just couldn't bring myself to blog about it. And then, there is the privacy issue. Since much of this revolved around my husband, I had to be very careful of what I could say. Because in his business, you never know who is reading.

Anyway, as things started to get a bit easier as the months go by. I really wanted to blog again. But, I could not figure out where to start. Should I explain where I've been? Should I share the things you missed? Should I tell you about the changes in our lives? Should I tell you about the struggles?

Bottom line, if I am who I say I am. Real. Then, I have to.

Towards the end of our time in Kansas, we were facing some very troublesome conditions. Big Daddy’s job situation was horrible. The management at his station didn’t know what the hell the were doing and managed to dismantle nearly 2 years of blood, sweat and tears he had put into that station. He was turning that place around and they came in and ripped it apart. It was horrible and a blow that he took personally. (although, it had nothing to do with him. When you work for a family-owned business and you are not part of the “family,” you can often be taken for granted and disrespected. And, that along with the fact that Ike’s boss, the General Manager was fired with NO warning and her job, along with his own, was dumped into his lap, for a measly $10K more a year. (his boss was making mid-6 figures!) With that addition, the stress level in the workplace had become unbearable and the environment had become hostile. It became clear that we had to go. For my darling husbands sanity, it was not an option to stay. (my sanity, too!)

So, we began the job search again. Not believing we were we “doing this again.” For heaven’s sake, we hadn’t even been in Kansas for 2 years.

In short time, the job interviews were coming in. Some seemed interesting, some seemed downright frightening. (hello…job in Bakersfield, CA?!!! Um, no thanks! I don’t want to move to the “armpit” of California!)

Anyway, after some interviews and some opportunities…
The job in Columbus, OH was the front runner.

So, the house was listed and within weeks of the decision to “move on” we were moving! Between that and trying to maintain some sense of normality and not let anyone know of our plan to leave, it was a difficult time.

At first, Big Daddy was going to move without us, as we had done before. But, it became clear to make it through these trials, we needed to all be together. So, in a last minute change of heart, the decision was made that we’d all be going!

Key the calls to the new company to request a bigger corporate apartment and new arrangements. Then, key Mama to take care of all the details for everyone to move in less than 3 weeks!

And 2 ½ weeks later, on Dec. 19th, 2008, we moved the 900 miles from KS to OH, with 2 completely loaded cars. We had us, the 4 kids, the Winter clothes, the Christmas presents, the dog, the cat, the 5 fish (loaded in a makeshift “tank” constructed of air tubing and an empty milk jug.)

The journey was exciting and progressing fine, until we stopped at a roadside motel, looking for a decent place to stop and rest. And after paying, Big Daddy deemed it disgusting and we were moving on….. Then, Marinne got sick on both ends. We ended up just pressing on and driving all night long to get her settled.

We arrived in Columbus at 5:30am and so began our new life here.

It was hard, those first months. Everyone was terribly homesick for Topeka, for we loved it so much there. We missed our friends. We missed our life there. This was a hard adjustment!

And then, the depression set in. For everyone, from Big Daddy all the way to the baby girl.

After all, we were a family of 6, downsized from a 2000 sq. ft. house to a 1100 sq. ft. apartment, in the middle of Winter.

But, as Spring came, we found ourself with only a few weeks left in our Corporate apartment and our house in Kansas still on the market after 4 ½ months. Talk about scary.

But, we progressed with house hunting on faith. And we found a beautiful home. See PHOTOS of HOUSE here. And we closed on March 27th…with just a few days to spare on the timetable. And within days, we closed on our house sale in KS. It was awful, we lost a TON of money, but at least it was done.

And since then, we’ve very slowly tried to find out new life. Over the Summer, we spent parts of June and the entire month of August in Oklahoma. We were really missing home.

It wasn’t until Fall, that we really started settling in.

We’ve been working on getting furniture for a formal dining room, we’d never had before. And now, we are preparing to replace the furniture that we’ve had for over a decade, that is completely falling apart. That’s the plan for later this month.

And finally, we are finding a new “normal.”

Ike is very stable in his job. He’s already received 2 promotions in the year we’ve been here….and just completed an excellent score by the General Manager of the station in his 1 Year Review!!! Way to go Big Daddy!

Ike bought a motorcycle he’s been re-doing and that takes a lot of his time. And he’s doing honey-do’s around the house…which amounts to putting up more storage and building a room for Logan in the basement!


Logan is excelling in 8th grade, despite the fact he is carrying 3 classes that are high school level. Poor baby has hours of homework every night! He's got a 3.844 GPA!! And just last week, he’s been chosen as one of 15 students in the entire school to join the Science academic bowl team! Woot!

Jensen has finally settled in nicely. Loves his teachers. And they love him. Really making progress in reading. Made scads of friends. And if he has his animals, he’ll be just fine. (he’s just like his Aunt Sis.)

Griffin is progressing great in First Grade. He’s reading like a champ and has made a good friend who lives on the next street over. (unfortunately, John is moving to New Zealand next year!) He’s found a love for Lego’s this Fall…and got almost nothing but Lego’s for his birthday. (his choice!)

Marinne is getting big. I decided to keep her home and home school her, rather than send her to preschool. She knows letters, colors, shapes, numbers and she can do most of Griffin’s first grade Math. She’s on a path of educational excellence, just like her older brother, Logan. AND we enrolled her in Ballet, Tap and Tumbling at a dance school in our town. She loves it.

And me….I’m still scrappin’! And I’ve become a busy PTO mom again. And I unpacked my scraproom. It’s basically done, but I’m constantly pulling things out as I use them, so it’s always a work in progress. And over the past few weeks, I’ve been burning the candle at both ends. (since Dec. 22nd) I’ve cranked out work for 2 manufacturers and I’ve done 20 cards, 3 projects, 1 2pg. Layout and 2- 1pg. Layouts! No wonder I’m tired!!!!

And add to that, Logan had strep, Griffin had an upper respiratory infection, 2 ear infections and a sinus infection.

Marinne had a birthday on Dec. 23rd and she turned 5. Yep, FIVE!!!! Can you believe it? (especially my Savannah friends….)

Christmas, New Years and the end of Christmas Break….and here we are in 2010 and I've just had my first scrapbooking trip for the year and preparing to go to Portland for Trip 2 this week.

I guess, since I didn’t blog last year and I’m lame and didn’t send out Christmas greetings of any kind….I guess I’ll give you sneak peeks of our life last year.

Any other suggestions of what you’d like to hear about and how I can make up for lost time?

Please…just love me again……

Roxann