…and I call myself a time management professional?

I have so much to blog about, and so little time these days. Here are a few of my random thoughts, in random order, that I hope to get to when I can catch my freakin’ breath!

Death and dying and the stuff we leave behind (did you happen to catch Oprah today?); my experience as “The Talent” on FLN’s new show; my half-hearted desire to stop buying stuff in the midst of needin’/wantin’ a lot of stuff; summer plans and the babysitter blues.

I’ve hammered out a few major tasks this week, so blogging will move back up on my priority list. I’m just not always so good at practicing what I preach!

Life is looking up…

We got some good news about the damage on our house (not nearly as bad as we thought), and the cars are both running for now. I shoot my second episode of “Time Makeover” starting tomorrow–surely I won’t have car trouble again (did I just tease the Universe or what?)? Our kids are healthy, the sun is shining…I think things are looking up for the Kersh family.

After I get through this week of taping I’m looking forward to setting some ground rules for our next Consumer-free (more or less) experiment. Now that it appears we won’t be going into Chapter 11 due to much less structural damage to our home than we originally anticipated, it may be more challenging to stay away from the stuff. My bookclub meets this week to watch “Inconvenient Truth” together (I’ve really missed my gal pals during these past few crazy weeks!)–so perhaps seeing the movie again will light another fire under me to do my part. Not to worry, though, we definitely plan to continue purchasing toilet paper. More later…

Is our last name Kersh or Cursed?

Worst. Week. Ever. That pretty much sums up the week of April 9th for our family. We are still dealing with the fallout from the major structural damage to our home uncovered by our painters. Two joists that support a chimney, fireplace, and our playroom are totally rotten and in need of repair. The more we learned from structural engineers, contractors and a lawyer or two, the worse the news got (removing the entire chimney, ripping out our entire kitchen ceiling, possibly removing a fireplace…you get the picture). Gone are our dreams of a minivan–we’ll be tearing down major parts of our house and attempting to rebuild.

This news alone was a bummer, but add on to that significant car trouble mid-week and we started to feel a bit cursed. I was on my way to shoot my first episode of a new show for the Fine Living Network called “Time Makeover.” I’ve never aspired to be on TV, and this came to me out of the blue, but I was totally excited about the opportunity and thought “what do I have to lose other than my dignity, and a little cash for some fun TV clothes?” My check engine light came on in my car on Tuesday, so rather than risk car trouble on my way to the shoot on Wednesday, I drove Carter’s car…and got a freakin’ flat tire! In the rain. In my TV clothes. With my TV hair and makeup. Fortunately, the production assistant came to my rescue, dealt with AAA and just made it all go away. But still…what are the odds?

The next day, Carter took his car in only to learn he needed 4 new tires plus an oil change and inspection. I took my car in only to learn I needed over $1000 worth of work to keep my old VW running. $1700 later, we had two working vehicles. Bye-bye tax refund.

But wait…there’s more…

On Thursday evening, I learned that my husband Carter’s beloved father, who raised four amazingly successful children pretty much on his own while in his 50’s and 60’s, passed away. Fortunately, Carter was able to race up to Brevard in time to say goodbye. My father-in-law was 89 years old and in failing health so this wasn’t completely unexpected. But the world is a much sadder place without him in it. I credit him completely for making Carter the man, father and husband that he is. And I feel so fortunate that our daughter will remember his oh-so-clever “Apple Pie & Rosie” stories, and his wonderful sketches on all of her birthday and holiday cards, and the artful way he moved his hands when he spoke or told a story from his or Carter’s childhood. I promise to fill my son’s head with stories, memories and pictures of his grandfather so he will “know” him in some way.

Obviously, a death in the family makes the events from the rest of the week seem totally unimportant. Despite all of the crap we had going on at once, there were a few bright spots. I had loads of friends and family members come to my rescue with food, rides to the car repair shop, offers to help with the kids, hugs and phone calls sharing their sadness and love for our family. I cried my way through Thursday partly because I felt sorry for myself, but mostly because people kept doing nice things for us and I was blown away by their generosity. We are so grateful that Carter made it to Brevard in time to say goodbye to his father. He will treasure that last conversation forever, I know. And, on a Hollywood note of shallowness, the TV gig was totally cool! I don’t think you’ll be seeing a syndicated Neat-Freak show anytime soon. But they asked me back for a second episode so I guess I didn’t totally suck. Look for me, starting in July, on the Fine Living Network, helping busy families find solutions to their time management challenges.

I mentioned in an earlier post that we were back on the consumer free bandwagon. That went out the window when all hell broke loose. I’m giving myself a get-out-of-jail-free card for the next week or so, then I’ll set some new rules and get us back with the program. I just read a NYT article about a family that went paper-free for an entire year (including toilet paper)…I feel a challenge coming on! Onwards and upwards for the Kersh family!

Off the grid…literally

The lovely spring storm that churned up the east coast yesterday took out our electricity so we’ve been powerless for a day and a half. This event was just icing on the cake for what turned out to be one of the worst weeks ever for our family. I’ll be back to blog tomorrow about all that has been going on. For now, I’m just rejoicing in the ability to read my email, charge my cell phone, and brew a cup of coffee. Living off the grid is not for me!

Consumer-free…born again!

The universe seems to be conspiring against us and our shopping ways, so the Kersh family has pledged to go consumer free again (number of months still to be determined). I may change the rules slightly, but the overall sentiment is the same–live with what we have, purchase only what we absolutely have to have, and find ways to simplify our everyday living.

Perhaps it was the Time Magazine article last week discussing 51 things we can ALL do to help slow global warming (including #51–Consume less, share more, live simply).

Or maybe it was returning home from New York and learning that our painters uncovered significant structural damage to our house that is going to cost a ridiculous amount to repair (a major wake up call to ALWAYS have money set aside for these types of unforeseen emergencies!).

Or, could it be the amount of shopping I’ve been doing to prepare for an upcoming episode or two I’m shooting for the Fine Living Network (I told you all I had totally let my wardrobe go…and boy did I do something about it. The thought of appearing on television in my mom’s hand me downs drove me shop…a lot!).

Or maybe, just maybe, we miss the satisfaction of feeling like, in our own small way, we’re doing something to make a difference. I truly found that we thought more, used what we had, got over what we didn’t have, and enjoyed the challenge of living with less during our last consumer-free experiment. I want to find a way for us to live sustainably–in every way. Obviously, the need to buy comes up from time to time. But I think we’re capable of finding a place of comfort (or discomfort) that we can keep up indefinitely.

For now, we’ll give it another shot and see how it goes. And of course, I’ll continue to track our progress here.

We heart NYC

We’re back, unpacked, and still beaming from our trip with our six year old daughter to NYC. Seeing the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Central Park, Rockefeller Center, the Statue of Liberty, Mary Poppins on Broadway and more through the eyes of a child is a must-do experience for every parent. I can’t tell you how many times I heard “mom, this is the best (fill in the blank) ever” during the weekend.

Kudos to Uncle Rogan and Uncle Cleve for making the experience so amazing. They literally carried our daughter all over town, encouraging her to close her eyes and open them just at that magical time when the enormous dinosaur comes in to view at Natural History, or the city towers above you (or below you, depending on where you are). They created games for her such as “guess which elevator will open first” and “how many stops before we get off the subway” and “I’ll gobble up your Thai food with my chopsticks” that kept her giggling all weekend long. It was the perfect combination of a family visit and a touristy vacation all rolled into one.

We did do a little shopping along the way. Any parent of a girl who has escaped American Girl Place without shelling out some bucks please step forward and share your secret. We, who managed to go six full months without buying much of anything, found ourselves willingly paying $20 to have Molly’s dreadlocks combed, smoothed, spritzed and braided back into a “proper” 1940’s hairdo at the doll salon (I’m not kidding…this place really exists). And that was just the beginning. There was the brunch (surprisingly tasty food and a table complete with special seat for Molly) and the historical displays filled with costumes and accessories for each doll, and the temptation to purchase life sized American Girl doll clothes (which we narrowly escaped).

The trip exceeded expectations in so many ways. But mostly, we enjoyed some one-on-one time with our big girl and look forward to a day when we can repeat the trip with our son to celebrate one of his special birthdays. Pump-it Up parties may be all the rage, but I think she’ll remember this trip forever.