Fences, Boundaries & Thorns

This is our house in the "almost done" stage of having new siding put on with fresh paint & trim. Obviously the front porch has not yet been re-built, nor the steps. Part of me likes the advantages of this situation! No door to door sales people, nobody trying to convert my religion, not much of any interference whatsoever. This is a very easily identifiable boundary to what would otherwise be an access point. If only we were so easily able to identify personal boundaries. Inappropriate questions, those awkward silent moments when I feel compelled to answer a question I'm not comfortable with rather than honestly state my feelings, "I'm not comfortable discussing that." If only! If only I did not feel the need to apologize for not catering to every whim I hear uttered by mere acquaintance or passerby. There is an old saying which unfortunately I cannot remember whom to credit for, it says "good fences make for good neighbors." I never understood that as a child or to be honest, until now! To me it seemed an oxymoron. If there were a fence, that would be an obstacle to the neighbor's access & thus that relationship. Ah, but therein lies the point! Sometimes, we are too open, we share too much. Sometimes we need good fences, good boundaries. Children need limits but adults do too.

Roses come to mind for some reason. They are so beautiful, smell wonderful, they are strong but look delicate. Then there's the thorns! Why did God give roses thorns? Because they need protection. So, like the rose, rather than enlist ladybugs to clean up my aphid infestation, I need to grow thorns. They need not prick anyone, but their visibility would be a cue, a notice, a boundary stating: "I have limits". I am not a doormat, I am a door with a dead bolt, you may enter if I choose to let you, or you may not. Why am I just learning this at 41 years of age? Hm, better late than never I suppose.

Not that I wish the pain of 2, count them 2, sliced open fingers on my husband but, the outcome was good. He decided it was not his day to build a front porch & steps. I feel almost like I live in a castle with a moat now! Although the drawbacks are that the UPS man can't figure out how to get our attention & if the dogs are snoozing and he has too good of manners to honk, I get a note rather than the package. I'm willing to deal with that though.

So remodeling & hoping for a flower garden is teaching me about boundaries & my need for them in my personal life as well as aesthetically. Something good comes of everything, this remodel project seems to be remodeling me as much as I am remodeling the home. Upgrades for all of us, much needed ones at that. Yes, the foundation of the new porch & steps will be much more secure, with a hand rail too. Safe, secure, a bit more bold than the previous one. This applies both literally & figuratively. Wish me luck in building my boundaries, growing a few thorns, as easily as the ones will physically crop up about me & our home. I took a class on boundaries through my church, however, having been such an open book, a map for all terrain vehicles to do donuts & whatnot wherever they please, when I tried to apply what I learned & establish a boundary I was accused of being bitchy. That deeply troubled me at the time. Now it makes me laugh at my weakness. Some parts of growing older & wiser are very welcome, 41 has it's upside I guess is what I'm saying!!

So, I openly embrace this realization of freedom to establish boundaries, limitations, without compromise, without lengthy explanation nor apology. This is uncharted territory for me & frankly I welcome a sailing expedition in new waters! Somebody throw me a life preserver because I know my heart is going to question each logically necessary step, but I will clutch firmly to my buoy & dog-paddle upstream if I must. This needs to happen. Maybe not just for me, but maybe some of you Dear Readers need a fence or two of your own. Be blessed Dear Readers & good luck with setting limits, be they a picket fence protecting your garden, or a barbed wire barricade, set them in your heart as well. Hearts are like flowers, delicate, beautiful things that need protection. Grow your thorns in peace & hopefully once visible, they will not need to be put to use. Be Blessed.

Stone Soup Parenting Recipe

A wonderful friend I met online & hope to meet in real life someday said the following about parenthood: I don't know but if there was a recipe for the making of a good parent I think it would include nerves of steel, a watchful and caring eye, a heart that can not hear the hurtful words that get thrown about, a calm and loving demeanor and a quiet smile to get us through. I asked her permission to print this & she agreed saying to feel free to add my own "spices". This thing called parenting is a recipe indeed, Lisa L. in Long Island, NY you hit the nail on the head there. Sometimes I feel I'm stirring a recipe for disaster, I keep trying to add sugar instead of Cayenne pepper but dang it anyway, at times we end up with stew. Or perhaps, Stone Soup would be more accurate since we each add what we have to the mix then tread either ever so lightly or at times more vigorously to keep afloat within it all. There goes an onion for me to lasso as a life preserver! With all the layers, perhaps I will survive, cherishing each layer as it disintegrates to the next.

I've been trying everything lately to cope with stress. I've cut off my hair, I'm piercing my nose, getting tattoos, exercising, eating dark chocolate, meditating and so on. However, I would have to say, friendship is by far the most wonderful coping mechanism I've encountered thus far. That, and prayer. It truly does take a whole village to raise a child!! Especially when I have a half a dozen or so children whom can raze a village!!

Once again I hail the invention of the Internet & cyber cafes for allowing me access to friends I would have otherwise never "met". These friends, whether they realize it or not, and hopefully they do, are an integral part to my survival.

How the heck did I get this age anyway?! The plan had been to play hard, live fast, die young & leave a good looking corpse. Now that pipe dream is long down the tubes. I have no regrets and I do not mourn it's demise at all, forgive the cheesy pun please. I am thankful for my current sado-masochistically painful-bliss. The bodily scars, wear and tear of motherhood and age I could do without but the family, as crazy as they make me and I them, I do not regret for a moment. While my timing of children could have been better, I have a 21 yr old and a 3 yr old currently with 4 other children in between, it is a chaotic melody that I march in an off-beat rhythm to with or without prescription medication. I still feel like a late 20-early 30-something year old myself, yet I am trapped in a body of an old woman. Funny, I don't even have the energy for bingo. Okay, not funny. I am so confused and unable to keep track of every one's schedules, I feel like I have Alzheimer's. Yes, I'm in my own little world but usually fairly peaceful there. Let's see, husband has a half day of work today then other obligations; 17 yr old will come home from Navy enlistment testing sometime today; 16 yr old remains with her father and Nana for now; 7 yr old is eating yogurt; 6 yr old is awaiting the computer; 3 yr old is watching cartoons; niece and her fiance are asleep after swing shift work last night. How'd I do? Who knows right? I'll grade myself-this time I got it right without the aid of sticky notes even. However, tomorrow is coming & then it's another crap-shoot so to speak.

The work on the exterior of the house is finished, all but the decks and steps. I liken it to us humans, much work left to be done on the interior and structural boundaries needed for accessibility. Maybe we should keep it like it is? hm, more food for thought in this recipe of parenthood and life. For now Dear Readers, Be Blessed and enjoy your season as well as seasoning!

Scary - Midlife Crisis?

I love my children more than life itself but lately I am discovering a few things. Trying to let teenagers feel my love and still set boundaries and be sane mix like oil and water, hurting more than childbirth itself. I am also being reminded daily how differently men are wired than us women. I say one thing seeing it as being supportive and it is viewed entirely differently, seen as a chore for him. But enough -believe me it has all been more than enough although I know it is far from over.

Eating chocolate chip cooke dough at 3AM is cathartic but what to do when one runs out of cookie dough? I'm beginning to look like a bulging tube of pre-made cookie dough myself. Okay, I'll admit it, I threw in "beginning to" to make myself feel better, it's actually been that way a while now! So I have moved on from cooke dough to dark chocolate candy, soda and more. I have to wonder why I bothered to get out the fake sugar (which is supposedly calorie free) to put in my coffee when I had a brownie for breakfast?!! I must move forward and not hide behind the excuse of my on-line-ordered-swimsuit being on back order. I must go ahead and stuff myself into the old out of style, slightly tight one and make myself go to water aerobics and work out this stress. Xanax just isn't enough and darn it anyways, I can't be comatose 24/7. Bummer.

So instead, I've redone my nails, and have plans for tattoos. I chopped off all my hair in a new "Posh Spice" haircut, unfortunately the rest of my body remains Scary not Posh. Oh well, oh and I'd even take Scary Spice's body at this point, at least it's skinny and she just had a baby. UGH. All this and my three adorable boys, as crazy as they also make me, are only ten plus years away from sending me reeling in this teen vs. parent chaos all over again. My husband is so relaxed about it, so dimwitted about my female brain and heart, bless his heart by the way, he just rolls with it all and occasionally adds his own stuff for me to deal with. Thanks Hun, I needed an extra helping of cr*p on my plate right now, mm mm, tasty! Just for that I might get my nose re-pierced, just to tick him off. I need to go skydiving again, that's what I need.

My little boys take time out at the park from the playground to hunt for flower/weeds to bring to me. Their gesture warms my heart and reminds me why I wanted a lot of children in the first place. Suddenly troubles melt with the sweat beading up on my brow from the heat at the park. The mosquito bites seem less itchy as I see my boys' sweaty little bodies, faces beaming with pride and love, smiling at me. It is all worth it once again. Read this back to me when they are teens to once again remind me of the good times, okay? Hopefully by then I'll have grandchildren to spoil and play with.

If not, you may find me in a rubber room somewhere, doctors and I working frantically on finding just the right dosages of medication as I strum my bottom lip and continue to babble as incoherently as I do here. Mumbling to myself about children, "it seemed like such an innocent and good idea at the time". I'll be the one with the funky, short hair cut and the tattooed neck and pierced nose, with my nails hopefully done if not chewed off entirely.

For now I will try to remind myself that these bumps in the road which seem insurmountable are but tiny pebbles from God's eagle eye view and better for us to overcome than ending up in the ditch. Be well my Dear Readers and be blessed.

Seagulls, Mosquitoes, Charlie Brown God & More Surprises

Today, I went to take the children out to lunch, something I haven't done in a long time. Well thank goodness I did because when we got in the car we found our furry babies waiting for us! What the h*ll? How did that happen? Luckily I had left the windows cracked & a cover over the windshield to block sunlight. I had thought earlier in the morning I had heard our little dog barking but I didn't see her anywhere so I assumed it was a neighbor's dog that I mistakenly identified as ours. When our little one didn't sleep with us I had assumed she slept with my niece instead. Boy was I wrong! We were certainly surprised to see them & they were relieved to see us & eagerly jumped out to go do their business & come in the house. I called my husband explaining in a confused state & he sheepishly answered that he had forgotten he put them in there the other night when doing something else. I really teased my husband terribly about this, our poor babies!!

The other surprise is that a friend, while laying on her bed staring at the ceiling, crying & soul searching over a recent emotional event suddenly noticed a pattern in the ceiling texture. It was that of a cross & Jesus' hands reaching out with two hearts below it. Shortly after this a person who had caused her unhappiness called & apologized & wanted to come over. It was a surprising way to see & hear God. He is everywhere when we have the time to look & listen. This is on top of the fact that I had a dream last night that the problem had resolved itself. Interesting isn't it?

I took the boys to the park again today where, NOT surprisingly, we were viciously attacked by mosquitoes again. They chased seagulls & made a new friend. The friend actually had a book of Charlie Brown & Snoopy - he was only 8, I didn't think 8 yr olds knew who Charlie Brown & Snoopy were. That was a nice surprising blast from the past!

Once home from the park I happened to notice our old washing machine's door was open. How odd I thought as I went to close it. More to my surprise was yucky old laundry sitting in it. Gross. So I thought I should check the old dryer & yes, there was more of our missing laundry. This explains what my 3 yr old has been doing when he has taken a bit longer coming upstairs than the rest of us: helping me do laundry - bless his heart!

The last surprise I will tell about that happened today is that I got to play a simple game of checkers on line with a friend who lives in a foreign country. The fact that I was able to is cool enough to me, plus it was fun as rules are different in different countries apparently & the board showed up in both our native languages. Technology is cool. Plus the fact that we had time to visit with each other for quite a while was very nicely surprising in itself.

Dear Readers, today I wish you friends found new & old; the ability to hear / see God wherever / however He may choose to get your attention & send you a message / whomever your God may be; & I wish you happy furry-baby visits in surprising ways as well. Be well & Be Blessed!

Selective Hearing

It is easy to at first believe that children have the market cornered on selective hearing - or rather - NOT hearing. "Please take out the trash this evening" is invariably answered with "What Mom? You never told me that! I didn't hear you" as we mothers know all too well. "Honey, please remember to pay the water bill on your way home from work" however, can be equally met with a "Huh? When did you tell me that?" answer from a significant other. Husbands have often learned the fine art of delicately & deliberately inserting an interested (if your lucky) sounding "uh-huh" in the pauses of our rambling conversations. All the while they are surfing the net or the zillion-plus channels on the dish, not hearing a word. So, although we'd like to credit our glorious children with the prowess of mastering this skill, I hereby point out, we adults possess it as well.

Sadly, it is not only limited to the male-adult species. Apparently there is a gene or chromosome or nucleus or brain-wave or what-the-f*ck-ever present in us females also. If I'm violating some sort of code & dishonoring my female compatriots forgive me, but I have to be honest. "What, I thought we picked out the wedding ring with a diamond in the center, the big pretty one" or "Weren't we going out to dinner tonight?" OK, these examples sound materialistic so forgive me, I must be feeling neglected & it's transferring through to my writing!! But hopefully, the implication is obvious. How about this one, "what? when did you tell me we were having company for dinner? Can I serve a frozen lasagna?"
I reminded my teen son last night that the Navy wouldn't appreciate selective hearing as a character trait. I don't know if he heard me though.

Come to think of it, I believe this trait exists in animals too. Just a couple days ago I begged my big dog not to puke in the house, yet she did so twice. I've told the birds not to bite but the African Gray just laughs & taunts me with a "Ouch! Don't bite!" mimicking & continues to do so. She then has the nerve to call me in the irritated, whiny, deep voice of my teen son, "Mom!" followed by whistling as one would do for a dog. Charming huh?! Not. My attempts at teaching her to say, "Hi Honey, how was your day?" or "yes dear" are of no avail. Figures she has selective hearing, remember - or weren't you listening/reading?

Well, I suppose I will end my rant there for today. So, listen up!: Hear all the beautiful sounds around you & tune in to the not-so-lovely ones as well, they may be important. Be Blessed Dear Readers & thanks for reading!

Ecclectic Melody-Without Rhythm

The other day, after swim lessons, I drove the 3 boys to the US Armed Forces Recruiting office. I told the boys we were there to sign them up for military school so they'd learn how to mind Mom better. They waited in the car for about 3 minutes, still somewhat drippy from the swim lesson we had just left (& yes, the windows were down) until I re-emerged. I got 3 posters to decorate their room with & a piece of paper the recruiter needed to get to my oldest son. I tried to pas it off to my 3 little guys as an enrollment form for military school / boot camp, but the little smarty pantses figured it out!



When my Senegal parrot takes a bath he emerges looking like a punk rocker with a spiky hairdo, it is so hysterical! It is rather funny when the African Gray gets to chattering & whistling, my Senegal then starts to chime in. The other day, Sunny (the Senegal) got so excited when I was slicing summer squash, I asked if he wanted some & it sounded like he said "yeah!" - if so, it would be his 1st word. He does his happy dance when I get him out & hold him too. My husband's fresh water fish tank with it's myriad of live plants & various fish provides relaxing inspection in a quiet, bird-yammering-free environment. His smaller salt water tank is just as interesting & fun to watch. I end up playing a game of "Where's Waldo" so to speak, looking for the various fish & the crab.



I just overheard my 7 yr old son shouting instructions to his 3 yr old brother in the bathroom, just prior to them plopping their grubby little naked bods in the tub: "No Ridge that's not how you do it! See, you hold it like this & lift the seat!" My complaints of sitting in piddle-dribble & military school threats have paid off!! Hooray! Oh, & they were grubby from good ol' fashion birthday party fun! A back yard pool & trampoline, good friends, cake & koolaid & a silly-string fight to boot! "Lord, please let my little guy be worn out enough to sleep past 6AM & allow me to do the same." There's just something frustrating about a bubbly, non-caffeinated face 1/4 of an inch away from my medication-induced -previously closed eyelids, chanting, "Mom, you get up now, it wake up time!" while jarring me & nearly squashing my boob with his knee-cap having climbed up on the 1 & 1/2 inches of bed between me & the floor. It's SO not fair- & mind you, I'm a morning person, & thank goodness for that! I say that because I thought I complied with the morning's wake up call in a rather timely fashion, however I still found my son already 1/2 way through an ice cream sandwich he'd foraged out of the freezer for breakfast! Ugh. Did I mention I was out of coffee this particular morning too? This chain of events & my husband rising earlier than normal led us to venture forth & brave the retail-circus that is Walmart bright & early thus beating the crowds. However, we made a pit-stop at the Circle K convenience store for $1.29 recess peanut butter flavor coffee with sugar & whip cream. All Hail cheap "foo-foo coffee" & it's being readily available! Now if I can market Children's Benedryl ( no, not the non-drowsy, good grief what would be the point?!) Popsicles for kiddy-desserts!

Our American culture seems to value quickly & efficiently getting things done. This is so true that many a "soccer mom" in her SUV has scheduled every nano-second of her child's life with various classes & activities. I must say, I highly value time to just watch & listen to the goings on inside my head & my children's world as well as out. I am thrilled my 7 yr old has time & interest to watch clouds & share with me when he sees an interesting formation.

Dear Readers, for today I shall wish you the following: friends, be they furry, finned or feathered, human - near or never met face to face, & plenty of time to enjoy them & the rest that life has to offer when not to hurried to find it. Be Blessed.

Bathroom Violations & Ninja-Deer Recon.

My poor niece, bless her heart, fell in the shower recently. To add insult to injury she was subsequently violated by a bath toy. I refuse to go into further detail, knowing full well, you are capable of drawing your own mental picture if you must.

My 7 yr old son taught his 3 yr old brother to pee standing up. He failed to teach him to lift up the seat though & aiming skills need LOTS of work. Sitting in "piddle dribble" I also feel violated! Handy enough, it turns out, the Dollar Store carries sanitary wipes for just such disastrous situations. Hooray for the Dollar Store!

Our Furry-Babies (2 dogs) got groomed & all prettied up for the 1st time in about forever. They look considerably thinner without the extra hair. Too bad that same tactic doesn't work on me! We had an all points bulletin family emergency briefly yesterday when I noticed Stewie (our black lop bunny) had dug out of his exercise pin. Luckily he was munching weeds in the shade of the slide & Was easily captured. He's enjoying being relocated back to his old digs in the house.

Tonight I let Pixie & Loki (furry babies) out to do their business & startled a deer on the hilltop in our backyard. It leaped with such speed & agility that I was jealous of its graceful prowess as it disappeared over some rocks up the ridge. I'm toying with 2 theories on this. 1) It is a spy for Santa on a recon-intel. mission; or 2) it's a ninja deer on a training op. You can vote & decide!

The two recent lightening & thunder storms have been incredibly beautiful! The 1st one unfortunately caused 6 fires & power outages for about 4,900 people. The most recent one boasted such loud & close thunder that our house shook more than once. I just LOVE (!) summer rain storms though. my poor husband has been paged back to work frequently to give the computers T.L.C. & pampering for "Post-Traumatic-Storm-Disorder". Luckily, he finds many escapes to lessen his stress. He either messes with his fish tanks or amuses himself with DVDs- the most recent favorite picks of his are "Kids in the Hall" & "Danger Mouse", my lovable goofball!

Until next time Dear Readers, I wish you your own brand of goofball-escapism, delight in simple, natural beauty, like summer rain storms & piddle-dribble-free toilet seats! Be Blessed!

Enigmas

On the www.excite.com home page, the dictionary word of the day today is "enigma". While I always am up for fun ways to boost my brain power & add vocabulary this handy feature has the fatal flaw of being very repetitious. I know for a fact there are many more words in the English language that could be used instead of recycling the same ones repeatedly. But, none the less, I have to give this site credit for giving me a title & theme for today's little tidbits.

The site's definition of an enigma is a puzzle or a mystery. This could easily be a definition for life in general don't you think? I do! Like, where does the matching sock go during the wash & dry process? It certainly doesn't make it's way back to be bundled up with it's mate. Or, why is it the spare freezer in the garage only fries & dies when it is newly stocked with ice cream sandwiches & other tasty treats & not when it is virtually forgotten & unused? Or, why does money come out of a checking / savings / coffee can so much quicker than it goes in? - it's the same density as far as matter & quantum physics go. I don't get it, it's an "enigma". Another enigma is how a little, sweet 3 yr old boy can stand & pee & getting said product virtually everywhere in the bathroom in addition to the toilet bowl while not dancing about wildly? It seems he is trying to be still & aim, & yet..... Thank goodness for the dollar store's sanitary wipes to rid us of that last enigma!!!!

Life, life is definitely an enigma & if we think we've figured it out, I believe we are only fooling ourselves into a passive submission of ignorant bliss. What is that saying, how does it go? The wise man knows he knows nothing. Something like that. Well all hail moi, I must be flippin Einstein because I aint got a clue, that's for dam* sure!! Now teenagers, there is one of life's greatest enigmas of all. How can we produce offspring whom we love & nurture just to have them virtually spat in our face for doing so? Do you know my 17 yr old son had the audacity to honk for me to come out to the car yesterday, rather than give me a courteous, "Mom, it's OK, I don't need the portable DVD player for my trip, you can stop looking we need to leave now" Yeah! That's charm for ya! Did you know if the garbage is overflowing by even 1 sandwich baggy it is solely my fault- how dare I? Don't I know he has a job now?! Suddenly certain species of wildlife who eat their young are now revered for their keen sensibility rather than looked down upon in disdain with the words "eeew, gross" on our lips. But rather now it is , "Hip Hip Hooray!" No, I'm not a cannibal. I'm just a tired mother of many. Instead of marvelling at nature's beauty or other such works, today, I marvel at "Enigmas" this includes Sudoku, gosh that puzzle drives me nuts!!!

Why does it cost to have a used fridge hauled off to be donated to a gospel mission? Why would a house be built with no windows facing the back yard? Why are freckles cute on little kids & called age spots & deemed ugly when we are older? Why is it good to laugh & be happy but bad to have laugh lines & crow's feet? Why is tanned skin considered beautiful but bad for you? Why is it considered beautiful to be natural but impossible to naturally be what is now classified beautiful without surgery & hair color? Why do you need a license to have a dog or catch a fish but no license to have a child? Why do we tire of answering why questions so we end up doing so with a "because I said so" or "just because that's the way it is" response to inquiring minds? Why do Internet news medias think I care what Britney is doing, who Prince William is dating & if an American Idol contestant got into a disagreement on a plane- but real news is not reported? Enigma's. Is it fate, karma, destiny, devine intervention or what that I happened upon this ever appropriate word just before sitting down to write today? That too is an enigma.

For now my Dear Readers, I hope you are not too puzzled, too mystified or perplexed, that I have not left you in too much of an enigma of your own. If you have some answers feel free to mail them to me!! Thanks for reading & Be Blessed!

Independence, Victories & Wounds

Yesterday was America's Independence day, Happy Belated 4th of July America! This day, I too found a bit of independence.

I became no longer dependent on land for a few hours as I roamed a gorgeous lake in a nice boat for a few hours. Not only was the water clean & blue but the sky seemed to be vying for attention in competition with the lake. A few harmless, charming, fluffy white clouds added a decorative touch here & there. A fighter jet did a fly-by in a celebratory salute "Hello". Pristine mountains showed off their beauty with snow covered tops-somehow seeming closer from our watery perch-taunting us with their cool serenity as the sun beat down upon us.

It was a day of victories & of pride in many forums. Some people strutted like peacocks with full plumage, strongly showing off sculpted bodies, tattoos & tans (they need a scar!) Others maintained a more coy demeanor as they almost shyly flaunted their bikinis, tans & fashion sense. Some felt this included wearing pants with the waistline nearly below their entire bottom so as to show off the inner layer of bagginess, be it swim trunks or boxers! Backwards hats, sideways hats, sunglasses on eyes, top of head or backwards altogether. Then there were those prideful of their possessions . So much to take in! It made the beauty of the natural surroundings & excapability all that much more inviting! So off we went!

My oldest son excelled at wake boarding in his first efforts, another natural talent for him I suppose. His friend also had fun even while less successful. Then there were the dual inflatables, what a riot that was. My 3 yr old would have braved this adventure on his own but I insisted his oldest brother go along. Many family memories made & Sadly my camera batteries died, rendering me unable to capture any of it. Any that is except 1 lone picture of my niece's fiance holding the "skier down" flag. Next time, I would like to try wake-boarding, even if it kills this old worn out body I'm trapped inside. We tired quickly in the heat, calling it a day by mid afternoon. While my oldest son sported his sunburn (despite us all using amply sunblock) like a purple heart awarded for returning semi-victorious from battle with the elements, mine was more of a "friendly-fire" wound.

After a short break our festivities continued with BBQ-ing & later fireworks. This independence day I am reminded that any battle can be won with enough determination. I hope I can incorporate this fighting spirit of determination into my own life & my own little struggles, no matter how insurmountable they may seem to me. Wish me luck expanding my independence as I do you with yours. Be Blessed Dear Readers!

The Attempted Rescue & Miscellaneous Other Goings On

When my family returned from their maiden boating trip yesterday there was an extra passenger. A baby Clarks Greeb was injured, my husband happened to notice it in the lake, turned off the boat & the little thing made it's way over to his outstretched hand as if to say, "Please help me?". As soon as the boat was put away & our family was back home the downy baby was taken to a friend who is very knowledgeable about water fowl. Sadly, it was too late, it was too sick & nothing could be done. It was a gentle reminder of how many beautiful little creatures are in God's world & how fragile they all are.

My husband was busy today & installed 2 more windows in the house! I got our floors fairly clean for the first time in a long time. Between parrots, dogs, kids, many members of the household & construction work, the place was an absolute mess! Anyway, it felt good to get some stuff accomplished. I also learned how to write "This end up. Fragile, handle with care." in Russian, thanks to a translation website, so I can get a care package mailed. I am extremely behind in getting things mailed off, so it was nice to get a step further in that department too.

My sons & husband set up a salt water fish tank with a clown fish & a zebra fish. Their names are Nemo & Marty. Can you tell we like animated movies? Once the tank is better established there are plans to add more. In the fresh water tank my 6 yr old requested aquatic frogs which were added. However, when I went to look for them I couldn't find them anywhere in the tank. I think Wilbur (our piggy of a fish) might have had a snack since hubby said Wilbur was eyeballing them pretty good when they were introduced to the tank. Despite the carnivorous Wilbur, the home office where these two tanks are located, is very soothing & relaxing to be in. Hubby says he gave me a corner to do scrap booking in, but he keeps spreading out, a little bit further & further. I don't know how realistic it is to picture us sharing an office space together anyway, but who knows? It was thoughtful either way.

Our "Transplants", my niece & her fiance have officially been here in Oregon 1 month today! I'm very proud of them for already having jobs & making progress in other areas as well. Yea!! One area of progress would be my niece learning how to drive. It is much easier to learn in our little town than on the "mean streets of L.A." that is for sure!

My 7 yr old is learning the value of a dollar because his obsession with Pokemon & Yugio cards led me to tell him I would not pay for anymore cards. He has to earn money & buy them himself if that is what he wants. He was happily compliant with chores today & excited to be paid for going the extra mile so to speak with cleaning his room long after his brothers had abandoned the project. He was so excited to pick out the packs he wanted, it was very cute. Going through the self check out line & feeding 14 one dollar bills through the cash machine, wasn't as cute! Ugh. Oh well, we all lived through it. He also wanted a journal, I paid for that, I want to encourage him to write & draw. He got a new pair of PJ's too because he seems to be drinking Miracle Grow instead of chocolate milk when I'm not looking. Next I will take my 6 yr old on his own special little shopping trip. Then the 3 yr old. Yikes! Thank goodness for the dollar store!!! I love that place.

Tomorrow I have plans to see a matinee with my niece & then take the boys to see Ratouille, that ought to be fun!! I also have to make it by the post office & fed ex, wish me luck there! That can be a long drawn out process (post office, waiting in line) but hopefully it won't consume the whole day!

My migraines seem to be returning with a vengeance, ever since the misplaced trigger point injection in the back of my skull. My personal opinion-don't ever do that! Ugh. Acupuncture has worked amazingly well in helping me with that pain though, so, time for another appointment it seems.

Sadly, there is nothing else to report so this is it for today Dear Readers. Until next time, Be Blessed!