Days End

My vacation with Pat is at its end.  We has a great time here in Reno, NV.  The only thing that would have made it better would have been if our sister, Denise, could have made it.  We ate good food.  We gambled and laughed about the odds.  Sometimes he won and sometimes I won, but we both lost.  And neither one of us left much money at the casinos.  He bought brakes and I got a hair cut.  I got to spend an afternoon with a friend and her kids.  I still am shocked at people smoking next to me indoors.  I loved the feeling when I won the $26 on the penny slots.  I was more impressed when Pat won $80.  We talked of the future and the present and the past.  I love my brother and am so grateful to have had this time with him and thankful that Dave took on full time child care duties so I could do so. I love all the men in my life.   And now to go home.

Sarah and Her Little Kids

Met up with my friend Sarah today.  She was kind enough to drive Pat to a couple of stores so he can fix his motorcycle.  After that we went out for lunch.  We had Mexican food.  Cade had fries and a burger and he shared them with Parker.  Then we went to her house and hung out.  Gabbed about work.  Parker was shy at first, but warmed up to me.  She liked me to tickle her.  Cade had to show me his room and all his toys.  He claimed to remember the trip we took to the zoo for an Elizabeth day.  I'm not sure he really did since it was three years ago.  It was so good to see her and she is looking really well.  I finally got to meet her husband Eric. It was an enjoyable afternoon.

Airport

It is very strange to travel without a child. The last two trips included Audrie and carseat and all her paraphernalia. And while that is quite the hassle, it also gets you to the front of lines. Traveling by myself meant I got to stand in the long line. It moved and everyone was patient. The plane was full. I sat with two teens who were occupied with their iPods. Nice turbulence coming into the airport. I am being sarcastic. It wasn't nice. But we landed and it's all good. As we landed I noticed that it is vey brown here. Guess that would be right being the high desert. Now I just need to connect with my friend Sarah and enjoy the 97 degree day. It seriously is lovely. Just wish I had my cool sunglasses, but alas they are in my car.

Good-byes

Doug and Kristie came by to say their good-byes.  They are starting to make their way back to Georgia.  They had a whirlwind trip here again.  Most of their time was spent with the boys as it should be.  They also showed their friends from CA around a bit.  They did a few things in Portland and drove down to Crater Lake.
As you can tell from the pictures, both little kids are just enamored with their aunt and uncle.  Barring unforeseen circumstances we won't see them again until next year.  Maybe we should make plans to meet somewhere.  Now that could be an idea.  :)

Saw Cassie at the Park

The little kids and I went to see the hula competition at Esther Short Park tonight.  Well that was the intention, but we didn't really make it beyond the playground.  We did make one circuit looking for Kaina, but we never found him.  We did find Cassie.  We weren't looking, but she was there.  So she spent a good chunk of time playing with the kids on the playground.  Audrie got worn out.  The little man fell asleep on the drive home.  I think they had a good time.  I got a little break and sat on a bench and watched people.
I also bought myself a pair of sunglasses.  My first ones ever.

Kristie

I woke up thinking about Kristie.  Probably because I went to bed thinking about Kristie.  I was on another cleaning binge on facebook.  Cleaning out some of the personal messages.  Facebook keeps everything and it took me awhile to figure out how to not delete everything at once. So I was reading a conversation I had had and I was pretty snarky.  I know where the snarkiness came from  It was my reaction to the "adult" children acting like toddlers.  Hindsight it explained a lot more.  I had thought my snarky conversation was private and it obviously hadn't been.   It was venting.  Ah well, it is in the past.
But reading that conversation made me realize again just how far my mind has been changed.  How much my attitude has changed.  How much I really LIKE Kristie.  And how much I was very WRONG in my initial opinions. She is very smart, funny, organized, creative, sensitive, and courageous.  I'm really glad she is part of our family.  It is nice having her to talk to.  :)

Picnic at the Park

The little kids and I went up to the lake and had a picnic at the park.  Audrie played on the playground and the little man rolled around in the grass.  After she had had all the tire swing she could stand we ventured down to the lake to see if we could find any ducks.  No luck on the duck front.  Came back up to the playground and she played some more.  She was more than ready to come home for a bath after an hour and a half of playing and walking at the park.  It was a good day.

Really Sad

I got to the end of my work week and realized how peaceful it was.  I didn't have Mike calling or showing up wanting something.  Lately he has been doing that a lot and it sets me on edge.  And I hate that I have to feel so upset when I see him.
When I get home I get these great smiles and kisses and hugs from the little people.  I remember that with Mike a long time ago.  And it makes me sad that that will never be again.

Cupcakes

Audrie looks at pictures of Parker on facebook.  She really likes the one where Parker is eating a cupcake.  So she decided she needed a cupcake.  That meant baking some cupcakes.  So we went into the pantry and picked the kind....funfetti.  She helped do all the work in mixing.  We baked the cupcakes and she couldn't wait for them to completely cool down, so I got out a can of frosting.  Frosted her one cupcake and told her the rest had to cool down more.  I came back a few minutes later and she had frosted the cupcakes.  Kind of.  She is a very big helper.

Holding Pattern

So neither the parent or possible parent showed up today for visitation.  That prompted a conversation between Papa and Beth, the social worker.  Feels like it is time to do something different.  While Beth agrees with us, the paternity issue has to be resolved.  And in the mean time, Wesley has been pushing for visitation.  Remember that Wesley is another potential father.  And since he has been pushing he has been granted that request.  So Wed. will now include an hour for him to see the little man.  And if he IS the father that will all be fine and dandy.  But if he isn't, it is a waste of every one's time.  Wesley is ready for his test and Mike is or was ready for his test.  We are just waiting on Cassie.
And I finally got an explanation of why Cassie has to be tested.  Her test removes half of the DNA pattern and then you get more accurate results with the other half to a father.  Made sense once it was better explained.
But again or still, we are in a holding pattern, but with visitation thrown in for Wesley.  That should be interesting.  Maybe.
And in the meantime I am enjoying all the kisses, cuddles, pinches and smiles he has to offer.  I love that little man and he loves me.

It's Easy the Second Time

Had to set up the ipad.  How extremely easy it is the second time you do it.  You get to bypass the itunes download and setting up an apple ID.  And then because I already have all that stuff it just almost does it itself.  The best part...all of Audrie's books now again read to her.  I have no idea why they stopped before, but they had.  So we are up and running again.  Yea!

Speech Therapy

Jacqui, the actual speech therapist joined us today.  She ran the show and tested Audrie to see where she is at.  Audrie has made significant progress since her initial evaluation.  Jacqui explained to me how language is learned and what we do next.  I have a homework assignment to do before she comes again in August.  Audrie is talking so much better.  Makes me very happy.

Addendum

Audrie wants me to add riding the city bus onto our list of things to do this summer.  She has a fascination with things that go.

RIP Uncle John

We got word last night that Uncle John has died.  He has lived the past few years in a nursing home with dementia.  It was a slow decline.  Now he is in a better place.  He joins his twin sister Jean who died just a couple weeks back.  For some reason I just knew they would go close together.
My best memory is taking Mike and Josh and heading to Astoria, picking up John and Cris along the way.  We visited Fort Clatsop.  That was the day we rode the trolley and heard the stories about Astoria and the cannery.  It was a grand day.

Wedding Day

Today was Doug and Kristie's wedding day where everyone got to join them.  They had it up at Beacon Rock State Park.  The shelter was lovely done up with tea lights and flowers.  The backdrop of Beacon Rock and the Columbia River were gorgeous, even if the sun didn't show itself until after the ceremony was done.   Kristie was a lovely bride and the boys were great walking her up the path.  Audrie did her best to be entertaining.  This time around she is all about Donny.  Chased him all over to be with him.  Then she started flirting with Mark.  Mark is Doug's friend from California who performed the ceremony.  She liked him so much she stroked his cheek.  Yup she is a flirt.  They had a lovely lunch afterwards and a scrumptious cake.  The little man got his first taste of cake and didn't even have to wait until his birthday.  It was a splendid day.

OMFG

I had this whole blog post written in my head on the drive home yesterday from dropping Mike in Orchards. He comes around every few weeks and we relent and break our boundary setting.  Usually we are given the song and dance about treatment and detox.  Right now it is what works and he may have good intentions at that time.
So he showed up on Friday after seeing me at work all week and getting food.  I haven't quite got to the no food part of my boundary, obviously.  He slept on the deck and actually went to detox Saturday afternoon.  His UA was clean so he couldn't stay.  Dave brought him back home and they ended up having a chat about the demon talking to them.  Mike was staying strong.  After I got up from my nap, he told me he couldn't stay clean that day and needed to go and asked for a ride.  So I took him and gave him c-tran money for the rest of his trip to wherever he was going.
And I thought about it on the way home.  It seems like he needs a breather from his life every so often and that is what prompts these trips home for one night.  Seems like it is always one night.  One night of rest and lots of food.  He eats us out of house and home in the short time he is here.  And then he goes back to his life on the street.
And that was all fine and dandy.  Glad he is gone because he does change the dynamics in the household and while I love him, I don't like the changes.  That is why I gave him the ride.
What I didn't know is I also gave a ride to my ipad.  We discovered the theft when we were getting Audrie ready for bed.  Every night she spends a little ipad time in her wind down period.  She likes youtube videos. Not last night she didn't.  And of course she doesn't understand.
This time we filed a police report.  Just done with the stealing.  Makes us feel like the only real reason he comes around is not a breather or a ride to detox.  Makes us feel like the real reason is to see what else he can steal.  Time to get real serious on our boundaries.

Easily Revised

Due to circumstances I have had to revise my list of things I would like to do this summer.
So the tally says we have been
to the zoo with a picnic
to the six to sunset concert with a picnic and David and Jacob
to the farmer's market
to the park with a picnic
rose festival
recycled arts fair with David and Emma
the Vancouver Farmers Market.

Still on my revised list
Trip north to see Aunt Treva, Uncle Isaac, cousins and Nana Nita,
Saturday market
finger painting
Omsi
Another trip to the zoo
Something with David like dinner.

Some of those may have to be without Papa depending on his work schedule.

Eggshells

So it will be a weekend of eggshells.  Mike is here and sleeping on the deck.  He wants to go to Doug and Kristie's ceremony on Sunday.  Fine with them as long as he is sober.  So he is here staying that way and then riding up with us as long as he doesn't get into detox first.
So we are on guard, on edge.  There isn't much left to steal.  But we are watching out for what is left.  I hate feeling this way about my child.  But it is the way that it is.
Being on edge means less patience with children and I hate that also.  Dave has a pretty negative response when Mike is around so that will add to the whole shebang.  Should be a sunny weekend.

Always Amazed

So I haven't before had the pleasure of seeing two children grow from babyhood to toddlerhood.  I know that everyone is different and yet it seems logical that babies would be more similar.  Nope.  I am constantly amazed at the little man and all the things he can do.  When Audrie was learning all this stuff she was tentative and took her time.  Little man seems set on getting out into the world as fast as he can.  Either that or he wants to join his sissy in doing everything that she gets to do.  They are so different.

Quick Stop

Doug and Kristie made a quick stop here this morning to pick up my truck.  It kind of hurt my feelings that they couldn't wait and see me for a minute.  I understand her wanting to hurry and see her boys.  That is why I figured the original plan was to pick them up before picking up my truck.  Oh well.....nothing changes.
Seems Doug did tell Dave that he thought perhaps Tanya's boyfriend was out of the picture.  Seems Elizabeth did some housecleaning of her facebook friends and him and all his associates are gone.  The only way she would be allowed to do that is if he was gone.  I'm sure it would be a good thing if true, but it's not over till it's over.  And even if he is gone, if she didn't learn anything, the next one will be worse.  Again her choice.

Minnie

Minnie has arthritis and has had for quite awhile.  When she was about two years-old she injured herself and since then she has struggled with gimpiness.  If she plays too much she pays for it.  Lately She seems less motivated to move much.  So we decided to try giving her baby aspirin once a day.
Wow, what a difference that makes.  She has been playing and not gimping.  She seems happier.

Wondering

So I practice ahimsa every day.  Most days not very successfully.  I still call other drivers idiots on the road. But I got wondering this morning.  Is it ahimsa to laugh?  There have been some really really funny things lately.  And while laughter isn't generally hurtful, it could be if someone knew they were being laughed at.  Anyway I know it is good for me to laugh so I am going to think it is not breaking ahimsa.  So today I will try to do no harm to anyone, especially my addicts.  But if something funny comes up I am going to laugh my butt off.

Surprise

The box was addressed to me.  The card inside was addressed to me.  And yet as soon as I laid this beautiful quilt out to see it, the little kids claimed it. Well at least while it was laying on the floor.  They kind of remind me of quilt inspectors.
I haven't had a quilt made for me since my grandmother made one for my wedding.  That was 28 years ago.  So thank you so much Kristie.  It is lovely.  And what was I just saying about Kristie adding to our family.  :P

Today

I am blessed with a job that amuses me.
I am blessed with family that loves me.
I am blessed with good food that nourishes me.
I am blessed with great friends who sustain me.
I am blessed with Dave, Audrie and the little man who complete me.
I am blessed with berries to graze on with Audrie.
I am blessed with smiles and cuddles that fill my soul.
I am blessed with Kristie who adds greatly to our family.
I am blessed with siblings who show respect.
I am blessed with sons who give me different perspectives.
I am blessed with all my life and those in it.
And it looks like today I am blessed with a box in the mail.

Laughing My Ass Off.

Tanya's security people called today because her house alarm is going off and they can't get ahold of her.  Our number must have been a back up.  They said it wasn't an emergency.  Good thing because we have no way of getting ahold of her since she needed to change her number so we couldn't contact her.  Bummer. I'm not sure we would contact her anyway.  She can figure it out when she gets home.

Just Pictures

Who Has Time?

My neighbor has breast cancer.  She is in the early throes of what is going to happen.  So all I know for right now is she has it.  When Dave told me he said she had been sweeping it under the rug hoping it would go away and not going to the doctor.  Just an initial thing.  This isn't his opinion, just the way it was told to him.  And my reaction is "of course".  Who has time to be sick?  She works full time and is full time caretaker of her granddaughter.  She has a husband who has had several different jobs in the time we have been neighbors, so not a great stable place.  And on.  Her life is similar to mine in many ways.  So I can see how she swept it under the rug for awhile.  There is no time for aches and twinges and things in the routine that throw the whole thing off.
We will keep our fingers crossed that it all works out for her and her family.

Family Closeness

Denise posted pictures of a trip she and her family just took on facebook.  She is indeed lucky.  But that did get me thinking.  I am close to my boys.  Mike is one of my closest relationships, which is why I struggle with the addiction aspect.  Doug and I are close, but 2500 miles separate us most of the time.  I think it goes without saying I am very very very close to my grandchildren.  Since they live with me.  :P  I think it is all a matter of perspective.
I think I may be envious of her proximity to all of her children.  And maybe how she gets to be grandma and do all these wonderful things and then send them home.  I get to do wonderful things and then put them to bed.  Not too much spoiling going on here since we are parenting.  But you know....I wouldn't trade.  I love my life and I love Denise's life.  We are both indeed blessed. And her family is my family....just 1700 miles apart.
Oh and I harvested the above picture from facebook.

Yay!

Finally we got Audrie's health insurance back.  The state in their infinite wisdom kicked her off back in Mar.  We have spent all this time trying to get it all straightened back out.  So as of now she is again covered.  That  is a relief. I'm just happy she didn't need any medical or dental attention in that time.

And So It Goes

Last day of Dave just being home.  He finished the mowing and got the weedeating done.  I managed to get the carpets cleaned, including Audrie's room, went grocery shopping and washed Audrie's bedding.  We had a simple supper and watched a movie.
Scored this morning.  Went to a yard sale next door to Mom's house.  Bought a brand new Fannie Farmer cookbook for fifty cents.  The book hadn't even been opened.
Tooth count is at eight.  And Audrie has all her baby teeth now.
And so it goes......

Rhythm of the Summer

We have a nice rhythm going for our summer.  One that allows us to get our work done, mostly, and have activities for us and the little kids.  In amongst that we have naps, visitations, speech therapy, etc.  All that is about to change.
Dave is going back to work at the park.  He had told them when the little man came to live with us that he probably was completely retired.  They had talked to him at the beginning of the season about working and he said yes if it could be a part time shift.  There was no such critter, so they were going to see if a shift could be time shared.  Nothing came of that and we went on with our life and making our routine.
This week they called again.  They are short staffed so they got permission to create a part time shift just to get Dave back.  The details got worked out and Dave goes back to work on Monday.  It has to feel good to him for them to do this just to get him back.  They really appreciate his work ethic.
So starting on Monday our rhythm changes.  No more impromptu picnics away.  Now we will just do it at the park.  No more dinners with David in the middle of the week, and boy am I going to miss those.  Guess we could invite him to our picnics at the lake.  :) We'll have to fit our activities in on the weekends like every one else.  :P
It will be good.  It will give Papa a break from child care duties.  And it is only until Labor Day.

Farmer's Market Saturday Morning

So today was a quick trip to Vancouver to get WIC vouchers to use at the Farmer's Market.  I only had to stand in line for 45 minutes.  Still worth my time for the $20 worth of vouchers (next year will be $40).
Walked around the market afterwards.  Got Audrie some apples, the little man some zucchini, and cherries, garlic, and green beans for Dave and I.  Had one of the flower vendors make me a small bouquet.  Gave a young mother a couple bucks so she could put it with her WIC vouchers and get a half flat of berries.  She looked like she was going to cry.  It was a good trip.

Home Study Is Final Finally

The little man is almost eight months old.  He has been in our home since he was three weeks old.  In that time we have jumped through all the hoops the state of Washington has required of us.  Today we finally got notification that our home study for our relative placement was completed.  We passed.  Yea!  We knew that he was here for the duration anyway, but it is nice to know that it is all official now.

Six To Sunset

Our friend David joined us at the Six to Sunset concert at the Esther Short Park tonight.  The band was the Hit Machine.  They played mostly dance music from the 80's and late 70's.  Audrie loved it.  She danced.  Jacob showed up and joined us for awhile.  He and Audrie entertained each other.
We brought a picnic with us.  Ate light as we usually do for picnics.
I had wondered if my friend Barb would be there, but didn't plan on seeing her.  The park was packed.  Well turned out she was sitting ten feet from me.  She had seen Audrie and Dave walk by and then saw we were sitting practically next to them.  The last picture shows her peeking at us.
David regaled us with new stories.  Audrie did the entertaining of folks sitting next to us.  The little man pretty much just stayed on the blanket and took it all in.  He did take a nap while the music played.
It was a great evening with friends.  Thanks David and Jacob for joining us.

How Long?

Three months.  And counting.

No Visitation

When I saw Mike this week he informed me that he is not ready to give up his lifestyle and that he was thinking about not seeing the kids.  Well that is a choice.
Cassie had called last week.
So when neither of them showed up for visitation this week, we were not surprised.  Cassie feels like she did her duty with her phone call.  And Mike is off doing what Mike does.
Good thing for the little kids that we love them so much and are so willing to take on the job of raising them.

Inventory

Today was the whole store inventory at work.  We are closed two days for it.  I spent Tuesday doing inventory of backstock.  Michal and I were teamed up today again and we did office supplies.  I was surprised at how many people were so happy that I wanted to do that section.  I must feel about the other sections the way they feel about office supplies.
This year it felt a lot smoother than last year.  I don't know if it just was smoother or whether it is because it is my second year of doing it.  Anyway I felt less stress.  But my brain was still tired by the time we were done.  It was a long day.
Now I have a nice four day weekend.  Got to like that.

The Puffin Cafe

Tonight we joined David in Washougal at a little marina restaurant called the Puffin Cafe.  They serve Cuban kind of food there.  I had intended to break out of my comfort zone and have something Cuban.  But when it came down to it, I couldn't do it.  So I had the best halibut fish sandwich I have ever had.  And in a way it was breaking out of my comfort zone.  It was served with pepper jack cheese, pickles, lettuce and their sauce.  Audrie loved my seasoned waffle fries.  David had a Cuban sandwich and Dave had spicy shrimp tacos.
We watched boats being launched and boats coming in.  We watched guys going out to fish and people coming to eat.  The restaurant itself is on the river so we felt the movement a bit.  It is an open air restaurant in the summer.  I like that.  The little man was amused and enthralled with everything and every one.  He did a little entertaining of his own.  Audrie was entertained by the boats.  The restaurant had a waiting list before we left.  Pretty good for a Tuesday night.  And I could tell why.  
Thanks David for a great evening.  We'll have to do that one again one of these days.

http://www.puffincafe.com/

It Worked

Fed the little man his sweet potatoes mixed with peas tonight.  He ate the whole thing.  I wasn't too sure when the bowl of sweet potatoes turned green.  Guess he isn't too worried yet about the color of his food.

Little Bits

Audrie has a tiny bear and she was carrying it around very carefully today.  Pretty soon she came and told us that he was sleeping.  Later she said something about the bear but wouldn't tell us where it was.   When I went to put the little man to bed I found the tiny bear all wrapped up in his covers "sleeping".  Too cute.

Mona said she needed a yard boy.  I gave her Josh's number.  She called and he went and talked to her.  He texted me and said she was cool, had a lot of work and thanks so much.  Glad I could facilitate that for both of them.

We had another nice simple supper.  Grilled steaks and potatoes and some steamed peas.  I saved the remaining peas to try and trick the little man into eating them.  The lady at WIC told me to add them slowly over time to his sweet potatoes and switch the ratio as time goes on.  We shall see.  Mom came over. Pat was suppose to but he had truck troubles.

Going to be a weird week at work.  Only working three days and one of those is inventory.  And since it is inventory we can't receive anything after Tuesday noon.  Means everyone else is working even less than me. I'm going to be counting with Michal this year.  That should be different.  She informed me last week that we start counting on Tuesday.  Yeehaw.  Monday is my training on the new machines we are using for inventory.

Audrie wanted Nana Nita again today.  I tried to explain that she would see her in a month.  It is hard to do when she has no concept of time.  And a month is a long time to someone who is two years-old.  Maybe Nana Nita will be down before then.  We can only hope.

They're Back

Dave heard multiple shots last night.  Guess you can tell that Tanya and Randy are back.  They had been gone to Disneyland and then if they followed through on the promise to Elizabeth they spent the fourth at the beach.  And here I thought the quiet was because they had gotten bored with that game.  Guess not.

Breathe Jodi

Poor Jodi.  Friday night she heard a pop.  Asked Josh what it was and he said fireworks.  Nope.  The cops, ambulance and EMTs came next door.  Not having heard more, we assume the neighbor kid shot himself.  He had been depressed and had attempted suicide about a month ago.  Sounds like this time he did more than attempt.  Jodi said the cops were there till after 4:30 in the morning and she had heard the pop at about 11:30.
Jodi was freaking out because it was someone she knew. She felt touched.  She heard it.  It is a hard thing for the brain to process.  I told her to breathe and hug her boys and feel blessed.  It is a harsh thing, but it is a time to feel grateful for what you have.

Simplicity

Mom came over to play with the little kids while Papa mowed.  I brought home some small pork chops and marinated them in soy sauce.  Sliced up a cantaloupe, cut up some cauliflower and made garlic bread.  Papa bbqed the pork chops and we ate our simple supper.  After baths, Audrie and I went outside to play with her pink ball.  We went down to the garden to see how it was growing and we grazed on raspberries.  Simplicity at its best.  As my friend Marilyn says....simple pleasures.

Jodi's Birthday

Jodi's birthday is next week.  She hadn't given me any clues this year as to what to get her for a present.  So when I got email from Magenta Theater for a play coming up, it seemed like just the thing.  They are putting on "Scenes From Wind in the Willows".  So I got her two tickets so she can go with Zach.  Gives them an outing together and something new and different for him.  It will be new for Jodi too as it is more of a children's play.  She had really enjoyed the play I took her to last year, but it was a grown up play.

http://www.magentatheater.com

Quiet

And I like it like that.  Mike is back in Cascade Locks, which means we don't hear from him much.  Dave screwed up his meds and has spent the majority of the week sleeping again.  Hopefully that is over and we can quit doing that.  Almost feels like he does it on purpose so he can sleep rather than deal with Mike.
Doug and Kristie will be in the area in less than a couple of weeks.  Looking forward to that although I'm sure we won't see them much.
Looking forward to my sibling trip and now our trip to Seattle.  Almost counting down the days, but I am still trying to live in the present.  :P

Today

I am enjoying the warmth of the sun.
I am happy that my brother is feeling better after his spill.
I am contemplating working on my wall again.
I am in awe of the changes Audrie is going through.
I am in love with the little man.
I am amazed at how much he seems to be in love with me.
I am accepting blessings from the moon.
I am sending light and love to Mike.
I am enjoying my jasmine soap.
I am smelling my newly blooming lavender.
I am breathing.
I am practicing ahimsa and doing okay.
I am supporting Dave in his recovery.
I am enjoying my little conversations with Kristie.  Gives me new perspective.
I am hoping that Doug takes care and gets through the summer without mishap.
I am counting my blessings every day.
I am grateful.

A Funny Story

From the zoo trip.  We were down in the monkey area watching the monkeys.  We walked to this one window and there was at least one magazine, maybe three, all torn up all over the floor.  I was thinking wow, it looks just like my living room when Audrie gets done playing with newspaper, pictures, magazines, wedding invitations.  Her newest skill is tearing paper into strips.  Her response to the monkey cage was "mess".

Fourth of July

Fourth of July.  It was a day filled with play for the little kids.  We went to the park in the morning.  Audrie loves the splashpad.  The little man is not too sure about it.  The afternoon had deck time and skinny dipping in the pool.  They both love the pool.  Most of the water ends up on the deck.  Then the little man took a nap while Audrie did her fireworks.  She had pop its, a can of worms (waste of Nana's money), and sunspots.  She really liked those.
We bbqed as per normal.  Ribs this year with bean and rice salad and deviled eggs.  Yum.  Well....I had hot dogs.  I know.  I'm strange.  Mom came over and ate with us and watched the sunspots.  It was a very nice day spent with the kids.

Brain At Work

I started watching "Nim's Island" and I wasn't too sure it was going to grab my attention.  While I was deciding, Audrie started watching it and became engrossed.  I was amazed.  It's not animated and has a little bit of a complex story line for a 2 year-old.  I let it play.  One of the main characters got lost at sea after many mishaps with his boat.  The last mishap showed his boat sinking.  Audrie became so concerned about Jack being in the water.  It's a family show so we know how it will end, but she doesn't.  And it took a good five minutes to come back to Jack being in the water. The whole time she was worried.  I was totally amazed at her grasping the gravity of the story and being concerned.  Her brain is amazing.  She isn't such a little girl anymore.  And the movie was worth watching.
Also speaking of her brain....she fell at the playground yesterday and got a little bruise on her cheek.  We noticed the bruise today.  She was able to tell us when and where she got the bruise.  It is the first time she has put actions and consequences together and been able to convey them to us.

Rush is a Bust

Wow.  Financial Aid didn't release funds until this afternoon for the full time students and not until Friday for the part timers.  So we had no rush to speak of yesterday or this morning.  Brenda and I were sent home by noon each day.  Kind of a let down, even though we knew it would be slower than any other season rush.
I did see Aaron and told him to tell his mom 'hi' for me.  And other than that I don't have any good stories.

RIP Auntie Jean

Mom called me this afternoon.  Auntie Jean passed away.  She went on hospice about a week ago.  They had discovered she had cancer in her lungs, liver and pancreas.  She was a phenomenal woman.
She had great stories and kept us entertained whenever we were with her.
Mom and I went down and stayed a few days with her in Florida a few years back.  We had a great time.  She took us shopping in a Greek town.  We went to a yuppie mall and to walmart.  We ate at Panera Bread and played bingo.  We walked around her trailer park.  We met her good friends.
We are going to miss her so much.  But she is now with her Bob.  And she lived a great life and we were lucky to have had her in our family.
RIP Jean Andrews

Polly Anna

I am adaptive.  I may get annoyed or depressed for a day, but then I just snap out of it.  Get on with the business of life.  Been that way for a long time.  Maybe it is my sociopath tendancies that just don't let me feel much.  Anyway....
Marilyn posted on facebook about her trip from Missouri to Montana driving.  She commented about the precautions she took.  Flannel shirt and baseball hat to make it appear that there was a man in the car with her.  Wasp killer in her cup holder.  It kind of took me aback.  I would never ever think of those things nor the need to have them.  I would just drive.
Nana Nita was here a few weeks back and commented about never stopping in rest areas with children as it isn't really safe or comfortable.  I'm like...really?  I stop at rest areas all the time with a child in tow most of the time.
We don't have health insurance.  I don't like it, but I don't think about it.  I just know that things will always work out.  They always do.
I am pretty oblivious to my surroundings and I don't live life from a place of fear.  I can remember the neighbor telling me how he answers the door with his nine mil in the back of his pants.  This was twenty years ago.  I don't even think about it when I answer the door.  I just open it.  Totally oblivious I tell you.
We had to take a class for safety at work.  One of the things they expounded on was having your cell phone in your hand and speed dialed to 911.  I didn't even have a cell phone then.  The woman teaching the class told me I was so dumb.  No....I just don't live from a place of fear.  And now that I have a cell phone....it is in my purse, not in my hand when I walk in a parking lot.
I'm just a  Polly Anna. And I like being that way.