Sarah @ Barefaced Approach asked “What is your favorite thing to do when you get me time??”

It kind of depends. I often go through periods of interest in one hobby, then put it on the shelf for a while and fall back to an old hobby or pick up a new one {yay ADD}. Lately I’ve been reading, writing, and {no lie} cleaning. I don’t know what’s come over me with the whole wanting to clean thing, belated nesting maybe? Not that I’m complaining. Anyway, when Lucy gives me enough time for the set up and clean up I’m looking forward to painting again.

One Cluttered Brain asked:
“Have you ever considered vlogging?”

Ummm…I dunno. I’m not familiar with it. I don’t really know what it would entail. But now I’m intrigued. So yes, I have considered vlogging, just now at least. I guess I never really considered it before because I can’t imagine anyone wanting to watch me.

“How long have you been blogging?”

A really long time…at least, it feels like a really long time. I think I started my first personal blog in 2004. This blog began as a family blog back in April of 2008. I’d say I really started making the transition from family blog to a “blog blog” {whatever that means} last year.

“Why Domestic Dork? And WHO designed your blog header and gal at the top? It is fabulous! Did you pay them to design your blog or do you just know people?”

“Domestic Dork” because I’m a SAHM, but I’m not particularly good at keeping house. I’m very ADD which is just not conducive to order and cleanliness {just ask my mom what my room looked like when I was a kid}. I am a lot better than I used to be. But “dork” also applies to the fact that I’m just a big geeky, dweeb overall. I always have been. I never fit in growing up. But it’s gratifying these days to see that people like me for who I am, weird, geeky quirks included.

As for the design, I did it all. I try to be modest about it, but the truth is I’m really freakin’ proud of myself. I drew the cartoon of me and Lucy on paper first, then turned it into a digital illustration. I used to have a different design, also by me, but I like this one much better.

“I must know. Twitter or Facebook? Which is better?”

Ooooh, that’s a tough one. I think I enjoy Twitter better.  I do like uploading photos to Facebook. But overall, I think I’d have to pick Twitter. People seem more engaged on Twitter. And there are no annoying Farmville or Mafia invites, so that’s a plus.

“And it's random I know, but who WAS your fave Sesame Street character and WHY?”

Wow, it’s been so long since I watched Sesame Street. When I was a kid I think I remember liking Oscar, Big Bird, and Snuffleupagus best {no idea why}. I was more of a fan of the Muppets I suppose. But anything Jim Henson is great. Random fact: I actually used to do puppetry when I was a teen. It was a blast and something I miss doing.

Jessie Kaitlin asked “This is sort of a question about you and Mini-Dork. What sort of activities do you do through the day?”

Really? Not much. I probably spend too much time on the computer {something I’ve been working on changing}. I also like to read. Lucy’s going through a pretty needy stage right now so she doesn’t let me get a lot done. She likes to dance, and explore and whine {lots of that lately}. I do try to read to her daily, but she’s not quite got the attention span needed to listen to a book most days. Adam takes the car for school and work so we spend a lot of time at home, just enjoying each other’s company. But since moving there’s a lot more to do within walking distance {such as the library}. I’m looking forward to warmer weather so we can go more places, like the park.

Casey asked “Why do you consider yourself a ‘dork?’”

Well, I partially addressed this above. But let me put it this way:
Hermione Granger’s nerdiness + Ron Weasley’s laziness & scaredy-cat nature + Hagrid’s housekeeping skills + Neville Longbottom’s social ineptitude + Luna Lovegood’s quirks = ME.

“What has been your best parenting decision?”

Breastfeeding. Aside from the financial factor {we’re students, so money is tight}, and the fact that I don’t have to wash bottles, it’s been a very special experience. It kind of sucked at first {no pun intended}. But with time and support we got through the rough spots. The health benefits of breast milk vs. formula are awesome, of course. But there’s more to it than that. It’s an almost spiritual experience. Maybe it’s just the hormones that make me love it so much. But it’s been wonderful for Lucy and for me.

“What vacation destination do you recommend to people when they talk about going on vacation?”

If you can afford it, Paris. I was lucky enough to get to go with a relative my senior year of high school and I’ve been dying to go back ever since. The French are charming {the only rude people I met were Americans, be polite and you’ll be treated politely in return}. The city is beautiful. The food is amazing. And the art! Oh, the art! I could spend weeks and weeks just visiting museums.

Vyckie said “I'm curious to know who did the design too ~ did you do all this yourself?”

I did. :)  It took a lot of banging my head against a wall to figure out the coding bits. But there are lots of great websites out there with tutorials. I prefer the drawing part of the process.

Brittany asked “as an American who has had a desire to move to Canada since about middle school, I'd love to know: 1) What is your favorite thing about life in the Great White North? and 2) What do you miss most about life in the US of A?”

Honestly? The health care is why we originally moved here. Knowing my family will be taken care of medically no matter what financial position we find ourselves in is very comforting. But I’ve also found that Canadians, in general, are great people. They seem more laid back than a lot of Americans. Also, having a Tim Horton’s on practically ever corner is awesome {though perhaps bad for my waistline}. I also feel like Canada has taken some steps in the right direction that people are still fighting about in the US {like marriage equality}. 
What I miss most is my family, of course. But I also really, really miss Target. I also miss the USPS {I am not a fan of Canada Post}, and the price of cereal in the US {it’s really pricey up here,and the selection isn’t as good}. I also miss feeling like I know what’s going on. I mostly follow US news because I still don’t have a good grasp of how the Canadian government works.

Jenn asked “How do you decide what to write about/How do you narrow down your ideas?”

You know, I just kind of go with the flow. I just write about what interests me at the time. I narrow things down based on what I lose interest in. I sometimes come up with a bunch of ideas at a time, but by the time I get around to finishing the list I don’t necessarily feel excited by all my ideas anymore and they just fizzle out.

Insanitykim asked “When can I join your club and have a hat like that? And, can the hat ties be made of licorice?”

If you’re a follower, consider yourself in the club. And I don’t know about the licorice part but you can get a hat here or you can get one of many different similar hats and matching gloves {moose, owls, lobster, orca and more!} in adult or child sizes here.

Thanks for your questions! If you missed the last post and have a question just leave it in the comments and I’ll answer it there.

Room 1 – It’s really, really looooooong.

Walk in closet. It has shelves and bars just like this on the other side too. The closet can be reached from room 1 and room 2.

Room 2.

Bathroom. It has a nice deep tub that I’m excited to use.

Kitchen. It has a REAL fridge {if you follow me on Twitter you know how important that is to me}.

Linen closet. We’ll probably use it as a pantry instead.

Coat closet.

Family room/dining area. It’s big. Adam measured it. We’re probably going to have to build our own baby gate because it would cost $330 to buy a wide enough one with enough extensions to reach across the room {plus shipping}.

So, there’s a peek at the new place. I cannot WAIT to get in there and decorate for Christmas!!!

I met Adam August 27th, 2005. Two weeks later we were in a ring shop looking at engagement rings. Exactly four months later, on December 27th, 2005 we got hitched. Yes, I know how crazy that sounds.

Two weeks after we asked ourselves “hey, what if we moved to Canada?” we were crossing the border.

So yeah…we make big decisions quickly and go for it. So far it’s worked out really well for us.

Here’s the newest one…we’re moving {again}. See, unfortunately our two fur babies have been getting more and more aggressive with our real baby. They attack her. She has been bitten and scratched and my mama-bear instincts won’t stand for it anymore. They may not sound like serious injuries but cat bites can actually be very, very nasty. I also don’t want Lucy growing up with a fear of animals because the animals in her own life are cuddly sometimes and unpredictably violent at other times. It’s sad for me. And I feel guilty for “divorcing” my cats. But I keep telling myself, the cats are cats. Lucy is my daughter. And she comes first. So, we’re paying a forfeit fee and taking them to the shelter tonight. :(

What does that have to do with moving? Well, we’re in our current place because it was the only place we could find that welcomed both children and animals. It’s bigger than we need. It’s got some issues we don’t like. And it’s in a neighborhood we have grown to hate. Once we had made the decision to say goodbye to the kittehs we wondered if we might be able to find a smaller, cheaper place to live since we’d no longer need a pet-friendly rental. And we did. And I’m in love with it. Why?

• It has carpet. No more ugly foam mats to protect Lucy’s little knees. No more falls and bonks on a hard floor.
• It has a normal-sized refrigerator that isn’t leaking cold air.
• It has a dishwasher.
• It has lots of space where it counts. In our current place we have more space than we really need, but it’s all in the basement/rooms we don’t use. The new place has lots of space in the kitchen, the family room, and the dining area! In fact…it’s spacious enough in the living area that we’ll now be able to fit all the people we want to invite for Lucy’s birthday party! Yay!
• No more stairs! There are stairs to get up to the apartment. But there are none in our living space. I hate stairs. Knowing I don’t have to walk up and down stairs every time Lucy needs a diaper change or I need to use the bathroom makes me want to do a happy dance.
• It’s within walking distance to the library. I repeat, it is within walking distance TO THE LIBRARY. I cannot begin to describe how happy that makes me…you know, the bibliophile without a car all day because Adam takes it for school/work?
• Walk-in-closet. *swoon* And it’s a niiiice closet with lots of shelves and multiple bars at different heights and magical fairy dust.
• Nice, new windows (did I mention it was renovated about a year ago?). That means no more cold, Canadian, winter air pouring in our home through gaps between the glass and the wall.
• The only utility we pay is electric.
• The building is nice and secure. You can’t enter without a key or without being buzzed in. And there are security cameras in the hallways. Medicine Hat isn’t exactly the crime capital of Canada. But I can be a bit paranoid some times. So the security definitely appeals to me.
• It has those fancy hot water heaters that provide instant, on demand, unlimited, hot water. Um…maybe that’s a bad thing because it will probably mean I’ll use up the city’s entire water supply taking hot showers/baths and that’s maybe not so good for the planet…
• It’s just really pretty.

The one drawback is that there is no in-suite laundry. That means we’ll be washing the cloth diapers in the coin-op down the hall (but at least I don’t have to go up and down stairs to do it). Paying for laundry always sucks, but even taking that into account we’ll be saving money in our new place. {If you’ve ever done cloth diapers with coin-op laundry please leave any advice in the comments.}

We’re going over there today to take some measurements (so we know what kind of baby gate to get) and to drop off some paperwork. I’ll try and take some pictures while I’m there. We move in Dec 1st. So…yeah…I’m going to be REALLY busy in the coming days. In addition to moving and all the hassle that entails I’m still doing NaNoWriMo {I don’t think I’m going to finish by the 15th but I still hope to finish early}, I’ve got a few clients at the moment, I’m planning Lucy’s birthday party, I’ve got some Christmas crafts {advent calendar and some gifts} that need to be finished, and Adam is approaching finals and picked up some extra hours at work recently. So, we’re sorta, kinda, maybe a little busy right now. That means the blog posts will be sporadic at best until some time in December. But oh boy, once they get going again you are going to be pleased. I’m going to have posts about the new apartment {with pictures of course}, posts about the holidays, posts about Lucy’s AWESOME party that I’m currently preparing for, some product reviews/giveaways, and, you know, my usual awsomeness. ;)

Life’s a crazy adventure. Wish us luck!