Just talking to myself

It's certainly not the first time I've talked to myself, but it's something I usually just do in my head. Now I'm not only able to talk to myself, but document the conversation as well. How odd.

Mispronunciations

I love it when my son mispronouces words. It reminds me that he's still a little kid. My favorite was when he first started talking- the moon was 'moonay'. One that the entire extended family got into was 'laler' for later. He no longer pronounces it that way, but we do and smile when we do it. Having already developed quite the sense of humor, he decided to purposely use the work 'laler'. He said "I'll do it laler" as he was walking off and then turned around to flash a cheesy grin. The kid definitely knows how to charm is way out of trouble.

The Naked Bandit

The other night, I'm bathing my 4 year old son while trying to keep an eye on the 10 month old. He's busy splashing and swimming around in the tub, while she's turning the water on and off and crawling off looking for danger. I pull him out of the tub, wrap him in a towel, pick up the baby, and start heading up the stairs to get them into pajamas. I naively think my son is following along behind me. After reaching the top of the stairs, I hear a door slam. Followed shortly by a door opening and my husband yelling "Courtney?!". I head back down the stairs to find my husband standing with the naked boy he'd rescued from the yard. Oh, what the new neighbors must think.

Father-in-Law and the Air Mattress

We just moved into a new house, but don't have the old house on the market yet. We were waiting to move the kids, toys r us mini store, dog, and cat and clean the place up before we sell it. Most of the furniture was left so the house still seems like a home. Therefore, at the new house, we have nothing to sit on or sleep on. Time to pull out the old air mattress. After 30 minutes of using the tiny little battery operated pump that came with the mattress and still having a air mattress without air, I figure it's time for Plan 'B'.

I'm thinking the intelligent solution to Plan 'B' would be:
1) Drive to store, buy new batteries for pump.
2) Drive to old house and pick up air compressor from garage.
3) Sleep on the floor because I'm too tired to notice anyway.

My father-in-law has a different idea. He starts blowing it up himself. Now, the guy is full of hot air, but I'm wondering whether he'll get the mattress filled up before he passes out. After about 20 minutes of blowing into the thing, he starts asking weird questions. Is the room spinning? Why are there stars floating in the room? And then follows with nonsensical banter. I'm starting to grow worried until he asks whether I like my mattress soft, firm, or ultra firm.

Thanks to him, I slept like a baby that night. Or at least as much as one can while sleeping on an air mattress.

15 kids??

So, a family in Arkansas just had their 15th kid. And they've already talked about having more. Is there something else going on here? Are they running a sweat shop in the back yard? I'm thinking little Jackson will soon be joining his 14 brothers and sisters making blue jeans and sweaters for Walmart.

The origin of my name

When I first became a member of a message board, I had to choose a screen name. I had no ideas. Didn't want to use my real name or anything similar. Nothing I felt very attached to, so I drew a blank. I saw the name spritz somewhere on yahoo and decided I liked it. Don't know what drew me to it. Never had spritz cookies, never known anyone with the last name Spritz. The weird thing is, whenever I see 'spritz' written anywhere- as in spritz perfume on your wrist, I think it's referring to me. Maybe that song "You're so Vain" was written about me.

What I've learned so far in real estate investing.....

1. Always stay in control of the situation. If you're not in control, you're sitting around helplessly frustrated with no way to fix the situation.

2. Always have multiple backup plans because nothing, I repeat, nothing will go as planned.

3. Money talks. A repeat of #2, but always have backups for funding. You never know when you'll need them.

4. Keep a sense of humor because it may be the only thing that keeps you from falling over the edge.

5. Keep your eye on the prize and remind yourself of why you're doing what you're doing.

6. Never assume anything. Verify any information you get from the seller/buyer/title company/mortgage company yourself. And don't forget to ask all the pertinent question.

7. Nothing is as easy as it appears from the outside and from seasoned people who have been doing it for years.

8. Real estate is not a faceless piece of paper. It is instead people's dreams, hopes, and failures. Treat them and their property with respect if you expect the same.

Now that I read back through this, these lessons apply to life in general.

Nothing to say, really

So, I'm wondering what to say that would be of any interest to anyone. Work? Nah, boring. Family life? Too many inside jokes and situational funnies. What else is there. Friends? Been too busy to catch up. Coworkers? Oh, they're crazy, but that's not something I want to get into today. I think I'll make some lists.

Funny things kids say

My 4 yr old son's favorite band of the moment is Beastie Boys. Poor kid is forced to listen to 80's music constantly. He became particularly fond of the song Girls. You know- Girls, to do the dishes, girls, to do the laundry, girls to clean up my room. After he started singing the lyrics, I decided this was not something I wanted my son to hear. Now every time he hears Beastie Boys on the radio, he wants the "clean the bathroom" song.