What I'm Reading, the Cat, and Other Things

OK, the cat is not working out. She lives almost exclusively in our bedroom/bathroom. I can live with that, and I appreciate that she uses her litter box (and only poops every other day) and uses her scratching box (and not my furniture or fancy bedding). However, she's attacked the dog TWICE with bloody results - completely unprovoked. She hisses at Zulu anytime Zulu is anywhere near her. If her paw can swipe Zulu, then she uses it. She wants nothing to do with the kids, but does not hurt them when they do get their hands on her.

I emailed the shelter to see about exchanging her. I want a cat, but I don't want this cat. I want a cat that loves my dog and kids, and she is not it. I thought I was adopting a lazy, fat, laid-back cat. She is fat, but she's got a lot more spunk to her than I was expecting and she's clearly aggressive with the dog THAT IS TWICE HER SIZE (and the aggression is of far more concern than the spunk). Oh, Penuche, you put on such a good show at the shelter.

Moose and I worked on the yard yesterday, getting ready for my in-laws to visit (it's stuff that needed done anyway, but in-laws visiting is good motivation). We put the strawberries in more appropriate containers and seeded cucumbers, radishes, carrots, and spinach. I also potted two patchouli plants and a eucalyptus plant. The car smelled downright heavenly on the drive home. We also mulched one the beds and mulched around a big oak tree (need more). Does the purchase of plants go against my "No Stuff" challenge? I decided it does not, because it (a) stays outside and (b) enriches life and the environment. They are all things that will decompose safely and not take up space in my house. My challenge, right? I can make up the rules as I go.

I have succeeded in paying off my Kohls card and the statement balance on my Visa. I have given away five bags of things on FreeCycle, and sold a small appliance I wasn't using on Craig's List. I did visit a local consignment shop, but it was a bust. They appeal to an older crowd, so my low-ride pants and formal dresses didn't appeal to them. Fair enough. I tried.

I remain in a deep funk of unknown origins. I am not throwing myself off a bridge (though, we do have plenty of those in Louisiana), but I'm just blah-de-blah lately.

Over at Composting a Life, Laura's writing topic of the day is What I'm Reading? For once, I'm not reading multiple books and am actually just two pages into a new book: Nothing Right by Antonya Nelson. As you can imagine, it's really helping my blah-de-blahs. It's a collection of short stories that I originally read about in The Writer (or was it Poets & Writers - one of those magazines). As I said, I'm two pages in, but I'm loving it. It's been a rich and thoroughly depressing two pages smothered with motherly guilt and angst-ridden teenagers. As someone consumed with both motherly guilt and teenage angst (despite, umm, being 28), it's fair to say that I expect to LOVE these stories.

Recently read, If You Want to Write by Brenda Ueland was AMAZING. If you are at all a writer or creative-type, you must read it. She's dead but pretty much the most likable and down-to-earth person ever. If I had known about her earlier, I would have put her down in one of those college essays about, "If you could have dinner with anyone, living or dead, who would it be?" Her book is a golden ticket of knowledge and beauty.

The Urban Homestead is quite informative but far less personal than Made from Scratch. So, good enough if you want more information on homesteading, but don't expect a lot of love and passion in it. I'm looking to read The Backyard Homestead next (already own it, so I won't be buying it during my "No Stuff" break).

Columbine was also an awesome read -it hits on so many levels, mistakes kids make, mistakes parents make, mistakes teachers make, mistakes the media makes. It makes the world seem like a small place in some weird way. It reminds me of the classic Hiroshima by John Hersey - good, old-fashioned, investigative journalism. We don't have a lot of that anymore.

So, that is that.

On Planting, Potty-Training, Etc.

Dragged the boys outside this afternoon. That big one hates going outside:

-I'm thirsty.
-It's so hot.
-Being outside makes me tired.
-It's cold.
-Being outside makes my elbows hurt.
-It's so bright.

Once I suggested he help plant some hollyhocks and lettuce, he was up for it ... as long as I put the pots and soil and seeds and shovels in the shade. I also let him water them afterward (he likes watering - I think he just likes being in charge of the hose). Later, he and Moose "scrubbed" the driveway. A bucket of water, some sponges and an old vacuum cleaner part provide an hour of entertainment.

I'm considering potty-training Moose. He knows how to bring me a diaper, so I'm guessing he could probably handle going to the potty. If I get it done before my in-laws come to visit over Labor Day, then we can probably drop both kids off at the RV and have a night out.

I am drowning in books once again. So much to read. Finished Cutting for Stone (surprisingly good, I expected it to be a bit boring. I mean, it IS about surgeons from India in Ethiopia and is 600-plus pages long) and my friend Laura's book. Am still reading The Urban Homestead and started Columbine. I'm fascinated with most anything written about Columbine - but not in a morbid way (I don't think). For most people my age, there was school before Columbine and school after Columbine. They were two different places. I also went on a trip with a few kids from the Littleton area (they were not from Columbine High School, which actually isn't even in Littleton). They knew some of the kids and were hesitant to specifically tell you where they were from. "Outside Denver" is all the teachers and kids said for the first few days.

Moose is on his third outfit for the day.

Note to self: Order more sippy cups.

Sweet Home Louisiana

Made it back Thursday morning around 6 a.m. I took two 5-Hour Energy Shots to make the drive and it took me like two days to recover from the stuff. I had a similar experience with caffeine pills in college (took them for a week, completely melted down, and never touched them again). On the plus side, I made the drive in 13 hours and 20 minutes (including stops) AND painted the office when I got home. I finally passed out and proceeded to have a pounding headache most of the next day.

The house was standing and the boys, dog, and plants were alive. I suspect my husband makes a better homemaker than I do (the house was certainly tidier). However, all three guys were happy to have me home AND I was happy to be home with them (you know, after the energy shot hangover passed).

My mom is doing OK and will hopefully be back at work by the end of the month. It's been a long and miserable process for her.

My husband had a PET scan while I was gone. We got great news Thursday. The scan was clear. Thank goodness.

Not wanting my mom's lousy kidneys and my husband's cancer to take all the attention, I decided to FALL at a bookstore yesterday. It was the perfect storm - flip flops, long dress, door with metal slates, carrying a box of heavy books. I went down hard, dislocated my pinky and skinned and bruised my knee. I was so embarrassed. I don't remember falls sucking this much as a kid. My finger is in a splint (most the time, the darn thing gets hot and itchy) and my knee hurts every time my pants touch it. So, umm, fun times.

Post-fall, I dropped some items off at a locally-run thrift shop and saw TONS of plastic pots in their dumpster. I asked the employee (or, more likely, criminal doing community service) if they were just throwing them away. He said yes and agreed that it was wasteful and loaded 20+ into my trunk. Plastic pots aren't my first choice, but FREE plastic pots certainly are.

I am convincing Husband to build me a chicken coop and run. He's surprisingly on board with the idea. City ordinances OK chickens, but we need to get the by-laws for our neighborhood. Hopefully no one has thought to ban them.

Bean starts school in exactly one month! He'll be a real kindergartner at a new school. I should probably figure out how to register him for that foolishness. I am also hoping to get Moose into a private pre-school a couple days a week starting this fall.

It was Artist Sunday at church today - church members and people from the community came out to sing, read, dance, and play. There were belly dancers, little ballerinas, violin, piano, drums, poetry, stories, etc. Artists also had artwork (jewelry, paintings, collages, books, etc.) on display and for sale in the church classrooms. Very neat.

Am in the middle of three books right now - Urban Homesteading, Cutting for Stone, and a book written by a local friend. I'm enjoying all three and having a hard time deciding which one to pick up each time I get a chance to read ... now wonder I can't keep the house tidy. Ha ha.

Assembly of Blog

I arrived in Indiana on July 2, after a 20-hour drive that included sleeping in my car. To be fair, the drive from Louisiana to Indiana is prettier and cheaper and slightly shorter than the drive from Texas to Indiana. However, it's not as populated - so you must stop where you can! Little Rock is like the biggest deal you pass through. I was 1.5 miles from Bill Clinton's childhood home (eating a Wendy's), but it didn't seem worth visiting.

My mom was in the hospital for a week with a kidney infection brought on by a kidney stone. Lots of pain. She was finally released and has regained some strength ... just to go into surgery tomorrow. Fun, right? Who wants to get old? She'll be off work for nearly a month when it's all said and done. Miserable, but necessary.

I have been away from the boys for a week and a half. It's nice to catch up on sleep and sit quietly and enjoy a book, but I miss them like crazy. Life's too easy (though, my mom is sometimes a demanding patient).

I am working on turning my online life over to a new email address. It's a slow-going process, but I appreciate that Gmail imports emails for 30 days from my old account. I am getting all the blogs switched over and hope to assemble them into one or two coherent blogs in the near future.

I picked up Made from Scratch: Discovering the Pleasures of a Handmade Life by Jenna Woginrich and can hardly put it down. I'm almost halfway through, and I've only had it a couple hours. I am currently OBSESSED with getting a chicken coop (and have selected Red Star chickens as my preferred breed - and my city does allow chicken coops in-town ... not sure my neighborhood does, but better to ask for forgiveness than permission). I also can't wait for a garden next year (I'm looking at you raised vegetable garden beds) and am starting to toy with the idea of beekeeping. I don't think we have the land to keep enough distance between our boys and the bees, though, SO I started looking at houses further out in the country. My poor husband.

So, that's that.

I am set to return to my boys this Thursday - it'll be very late or very early Friday. It's been great to be able to take care of my mom (thanks mostly to my husband taking time off work to watch the kiddos), but I am ready to get back. I've seen three of my oldest and dearest friends during my time up here - that's been great too (oh, and I got to meet two of their new babies - yeah!). I grilled for the first time - shrimp on kabobs and corn on the cob. AMAZING. Also eating lots of Jimmy Johns and Qdoba ... just because I can :)

My Intention

For about a month now, I've been attending a writers group at my church. At the end of each meeting (most of the time), we set an intention for the week. In the past, my intentions have been to write every day for the week, write fiction every day for a week, etc. This week, however, I was stupid enough to say that I intended to start Julia Cameron's The Artist Way and do morning pages every day. For morning pages, you write three pages first thing in the morning - even if you're just complaining about being tired. My youngest, Moose, gets up at 6 a.m., so I thought I'd get up at 5 a.m. and leisurely write my three pages and get ready for the day before he got up. Of course, he got up at 2:30 a.m. screaming, and it took me 20 minutes of snuggling and back rubbing to get him back to sleep. When the alarm went off at 5 a.m., I told my husband to turn it off.

I got up at 7:30 and hid out in the bathroom writing my pages. My husband wondered why I was in the bathroom for an hour - I'm usually low maintenance in the "get ready" department. I got my morning pages done, though, and I feel accomplished :) One day down, six to go.

The Artist's Way is actually a 12-week commitment, but I'm going in one step at a time. If I manage to get through this week, then I will set my intention to do it again next week and so on.

No Word & More Stuff

Husband called the urologist's office several times Friday and was told they may not have the results until as late as Tuesday. So, that's fun ... waiting a week to find out if you have flipping cancer.

The appliances did not show up. Apparently, they left the warehouse June 10 and will call us this week to schedule delivery. So, it's just me and you for another week GE P7, you 1961 time machine you.

Zulu has completely recovered. She is still getting medicine and has a follow-up appointment and her annual exam tomorrow. At 8:50 a.m. No worries, I will be awake and alert as ::someone:: and ::someone else:: have decided that 6 a.m. is the new waking hour.

::Someone else:: (the smaller of the someones) has also decided that he needs to poop at least five times a day. This has recently in a bleeding diaper rash come today. THERE IS NOTHING I WOULD RATHER DO THAN TEND TO MY CHILD'S BLEEDING AND POOPY BUTT, GIVE THE DOG MEDICINE TWICE A DAY, AND WAIT ON MY MAYBE-HAS-CANCER-BUT-WE-DON'T-KNOW-YET HUSBAND. Oh, it's been a long week and if Sunday is any indication, this week isn't going to be easy either. At some point, I must mow the lawn.

In interesting news, I woke up Saturday with terrible, terrible shoulder pain. It literally felt like the weight on the world was resting on my neck and shoulders. I got in for a massage (wha wha, I have time and money for massage) while the boys were supposed to be sleeping. The massage helped my mobility, but it seemed to spread the pain across the entire span of my shoulders (so, instead of just knots of lactic acid, my whole upper back was flooded with it). She said even the bottoms of my feet were tight and it would take more than one session to work out (please, like I have time and money for another session). Anyway, I was grateful for the improved mobility, since I'm the only person who can pick up anything over 10 pounds. After the boys went to bed for the night (for real, not like nap time), I escaped to Michaels and walked down to the dollar store. They had some muscle cream there (for a $1), and I bought it on a whim ... expecting it to at best do nothing and at worst burn all my skin off. But you know what? I worked WONDERS. Oh, it makes me reek of menthol, and it's not 100 percent better, but the relief is AMAZING. I'd still like another massage, but I have no complaints about the dollar I spent on this stinky cream.

Also at the dollar store: two foam swords for the boys, a book by Rosie O'Donnell, and a book by Mary Pipher (one of my favorite writers). Score!

I went to the newcomers meeting at church today and asked them: What do you say when people say, "Unitarian Universalism? I've never heard of it. It must be a cult." The chaplain said: Well, three of our first six presidents were Unitarian ... The education director said: Oh, just tell them we'll never be organized enough to be a cult.

So, there you have it.

Now, to put ::someone:: and ::someone else:: to bed. I'm sure I'll pass out shortly there after.

Oh, another good thing:

We finally found a piano and are expecting it tomorrow. It's an upright from William Knabe from he late 1800s. It's beautiful and still plays quite nicely. It's more than I expected, that's how beautiful it is. We might have it tuned as our anniversary gift this year. The piano is actually for our anniversary last year, but we never found anything we liked or could work out logistics to move it. Our moving money leaves us with enough cash to pay for it and for professional piano movers. Now, who in the household will learn to play this beast?

Hooked on Phonics Deal

This is too good not to share. Money Saving Mom has a post about getting a $200 Hooked on Phonics reading system for $30! Check it out here. It's for kindergarten to second grade. They also have a toddler reading program on overstock too. Use the code SLICK50 to get an additional 50 percent off. I ordered both for about $50, including shipping (and I had $20 in my PayPal account from using Ebates, so it was like $30 for all of it).

Wahoo!

Husband is leery about it, but I told him I could probably resell the system for that price, so we're not out anything if we don't use it. I've wasted $30 on worse.

Speaking of good deals, I scored big at CVS this week - two razors, three cereals, and two men's deodorants. I spent $15 and got $20 back (including a $5 off $15 - you never see those anymore). I only run one transaction per a week now, I just don't have the mojo to do multiples anymore. It costs me a few more bucks that way, but time is money too.

This afternoon, I went to lay Moose down for a nap and was in his bed with him. Well, he escaped, and I proceeded to nap. Then Husband came in and laid down beside me and told me to get up. Then he fell asleep. So, we napped in the boys' bed while they bounced off the walls. We heard a crash of Play-Doh supplies but ignored it for a few more minutes of sweet slumber.

Also, for the first time this year, I'm going to stop reading a book before I finish it - Once Upon a Time by Gloria Vanderbilt. Good grief, talk about a rich and bitch sob story of nothing. I'm on page 50, and I think it's time to stop. I've moved on to The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers. It's so much better so far.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Yesterday marked the big 2-8 for me. Despite being far away from friends (newer and older) and family, it was a wonderful day. I woke up to a house smokey from turkey bacon :) with eggs and toast. We took the boys to the big park and played in the fountain. I chatted with a mom there about things to do around here. We went home for lunch and then opened presents! Of course, I had already opened everything from my mom and my in-laws (hey, it's not my fault it's here before my birthday), but Jonathan and the boys had some wonderful things for me - a new Fossil purse, gift cards to Michaels and Kohls, three pairs of Target flip flops, and a new feather pillow. (I left my old pillow at the hotel and was very sad about it.) Then I took a nap with my new pillow. Later we went to Copelands for dinner, they serve New Orleans-type food, and it was SO good. We came home and did cake and then I headed to a journaling group. The group meets at the church and was very, very good. We did free writing and made goals for next week's meeting. So, so nice to be writing again.

My mom sent me a couple Cricut cartridges - new releases at that! I was very impressed. I didn't inherit my love of crafting from her, but it's nice to know that she pays attention when I rattle on and on about my crafting.

My in-laws sent me True Blood Season 2 (so I got to cancel my order - wahoo!). I watched it all up and am now having Sookie withdrawal. I've read all 10 books and seen both seasons and the new season doesn't start till June ... and we don't have HBO anyway, so I'll be waiting for that DVD season to come out in a year. The horror!

I have read two books recently, The Prize Winner of Defiance Ohio and I'll Fly Away. Both great reads.

On my birthday, Bean got a new big kid bike with no training wheels. Mind you, he could barely ride a small bike WITH training wheels, so he's got a lot of practice to do. His little buddies two doors down both ride bikes without training wheels, so he has some peer pressure which should help in this circumstance. Also, I think he's starting to get a little self conscious about being cool. When his friends knocked on the door today and Husband said, "Bean, you want to go play?" he jumped up and said, "Yeah!!!" then he quickly collected himself and said, "I mean, I'll meet you guys outside." What was that all about?

I somehow talked my husband into going into a junk store antique shop today to look for a coffee table. We actually found lots of cool stuff, but nothing suitable for our coffee table. There are lots of antique stores around, so I'm sure we'll find something eventually. There is a trunk at Pier 1 that I like - maybe that'll go on clearance mid-summer or something.

We also ate a somewhat famous Southern diner for lunch called Strawn's. OH SO GOOD! We are quickly understanding why the Southern states are typically the most overweight. Anything that isn't deep fried is smothered in butter and/or lard and/or gravy. Even the kids' pancake platter came with a HUGE dollop of HOMEMADE WHIPPED CREAM. Amazing.

So, yes, we continue to love Louisiana. The only downside so far is the smelly, yucky-tasting water. All in all, though, it's a small price to pay. Oh, the flipping 8.6 percent sales tax too. Ouch. Oh, and car insurance rates (do you here DAT, Louisiana, learn how to drive!). Still, though, I'll take Louisiana over North Texas any day.

Why You Don't Nap at 5 p.m. and Drink a Cherry Coke Shortly Thereafter

I finished a book tonight and then started another one. I finally turned off the light and tried to sleep for about an hour before I just gave up and decided to finish some laundry and peruse the internet for a while.

The kids had a great time at the child care provider's today. She said they were a joy and totally easy. Bean did manipulate her into giving him half an ice cream sandwich after breakfast - telling her that "I get dessert if I finish all my food." She said that Moose looks like me. I love being told that, even if it's not true. They don't really look like Husband either, but they sure look like each other (at the same ages, they don't look that much alike nowadays with the skinny versus heavy, short hair versus long hair, glasses versus no glasses).

I ordered True Blood Season 2. It should be here when I arrive back from Texas (Bean and I are headed out that way for him to enjoy the last two days of school and a birthday party at House of Toys - I'll also do all the closing paperwork while I'm up there). So, at least I have Sookie Stackhouse as a friend when I get back.

I'm hoping to paint the boys' room tomorrow. Bean picked out a color called Hint of Mint. It's green, but it's almost gray. For some reason, the kid is obsessed with gray. Ask him his favorite colors and he will tell you gray, brown, and green - in that order. What a strange one.

Moose was sitting on my lap when I fell asleep at 5 p.m. today. Husband moved him off of me, but he came back later and sat nearly on top of my head ... while I continued to sleep. He's taken to saying "Mommm-me, Mommm-me" a lot. It's odd that Bean calls us Mama and Dada (still) and Moose has taken the Mommy and Daddy route. He's strange as well.

I don't know where they get it from.

A New Obsession

Now that a healthy chunk of stuff is unloaded, between garage sales and consignment and eBay sales, and now that I've had time to sit and ponder (thanks to less stuff being around), I think I have found a new obsession.

I just finished reading The Mistress' Daughter by A.M. Homes (who also wrote The Safety of Objects, which was turned into one of my favorite movies, and The End of Alice, a great book). She was adopted and in her 30s, her biological parents got in touch with her. She learned that her biological father's people were American Revolution descendants - so she could join the Daughters of the American Revolution. For many reasons, this doesn't happen for her, but it now has me obsessed with the idea of finding a link to an American Revolution patriot. Oh, how exciting!

After the boys went to bed last night, I did A LOT of searches of Google, and I've already found a wealth of information - like, my distant cousin (I think she'd be my second cousin, maybe) has NINE published books AND homeschools FIVE kids. I feel like such an underachiever. I am, however, ordering at least one of her books. She has two books on homeschooling, too, so those of you into that might want to look her up.

I also found that my great-grandma (the only great-grandma I remember well) is descended from a man "probably" born in England around 1700 and was "in bondage." For a second I thought I was black, but I believe that means he was an indentured servant, but I like to pretend he was a pirate. So, yes, I'm a 12th-generation pirate!

I have the name of a major from the Revolutionary War who shares a family name and area with my family with the same last name - so I may have found a link, but I'll need to trace it through. But it seems like a pretty solid lead.

All this in just like three hours of free searching. So amazing.

Also, so many beautiful and old-fashioned names to sort through. I just LOVE looking at the names.

I have to get walking - I am watching the three boys from House of Boys for a bit after school, and the whole gang of us doesn't fit in the car.

Whine

My great aunt has breast cancer. Oh, cancer loves to eat away at my family, but this is the first time I know of a relative with breast cancer. We don't know how bad it is - she goes in for another test this week that will determine that. Cancer sucks. This news just made me want my grandma back. She died of lung cancer eight years ago. My great aunt sounds like my grandma. I remember answering the phone at my mom's, shortly after my grandma died, and it took me a few seconds to identify the caller. It was pretty surreal for a moment. It just always feels like I'm losing more of her all the time. I have two shirts that she hung up before she died. I've never worn them again and - just barely now - they still smell like her laundry. My grandma was a laundry expert (I thought). It's something I can't seem to replicate.

It makes most everything else feel pretty insignificant - the move, the question of whether or not to have another baby, a new car, setting up a craft day with friends, repairs on the house, to sell or store our fridge, washer, and dryer, etc. We have to move and we have two healthy kids. We don't require a new car if we don't have more kids. Our buyers want $300 for repairs - I said no last night. Now, who the hell cares about $300. Who cares about appliances. It's just money. You can be buried with it, and it won't do you an ounce of good in the end.

A childhood friend lost her father last week. He was a character - so funny and happy. He loved his Irish heritage and was a teacher for many, many years. The world lost a great man, and my friend and her siblings lost a most wonderful father. I don't like being this old and seeing friends lose parents.

Then it makes me feel guilty for not having a relationship with my own dad. But then I remember this, that, and the other, and it's just not worth it. MY father, the man I loved, he's been gone for a long time, and I sometimes wonder if he ever existed. Little girls make up a world of excuses for their fathers. Little girls have vivid imaginations. I'm not a little girl anymore. I don't like who he was or who he is. I'm not out anything most days. Once upon a time, I would have called him every name in the book. Finally, though, I think I've settled on one: He's a coward.

Then, a fellow blogger, Carrie at Farming on Faith wrote about A Virtuous Woman (found in Pslam 31). I'm not that into the Bible, but I'm finding myself thinking a lot about this:

A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life. She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. She gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls. She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night. In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet. She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple. Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies the merchants with sashes. She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: "Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all." Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

As if I didn't feel like I have enough to do :)

In happy, wonderful, easy, and distracting news, I have finished all the Sookie Stackhouse books and have the new one (out May 4) on pre-order and ordered a book of short stories that also feature Sookie. It's always good to have things to look forward to.

For now, though, I will consider lopping my breasts off and my idleness.

Not Myself Lately

With so much stuff stripped away, it's been interesting.

It's quite easy to keep the house picked up and, within an hour, it's easily shiny and spotless.

Much of my craft stuff is packed away and the rest of it is spread out into a couple closets. I haven't touched the stuff in nearly a month. That's right - I've gone an entire month with no crafting.

I've done a lot of reading. Books 3, 4, 5, and working on 6 of the Sookie Stackhouse series. Reading is a very tidy hobby.

I'm considering keeping the craft stuff packed away after we move - at least for summer (when I'll be unpacking and then rewarding myself with an escape from the heat and a trip to my family up north). I'm strongly considering having a real guest room instead of a craft room. Can you believe it? I mean, we'll be living in a place where people might actually WANT to visit us.

I'm thinking I can downsize my stash to just fit in our current TV armoire. Our rental home has a built-in in the den that houses a TV, so we won't need it in the den. The formal living room will be the toy room. Yes, we're going to keep things classy there. (I don't have to worry about selling it, so I plan to live strictly with what is most convenient for my family - caring little about what you think when the first thing you see is a mess of toys to your left and my craft stuff all over the dining room to your right.) The kitchen has space for our small dining table (where we eat all of our meals unless we have company).

One of the offers has till 3:30 p.m. to respond to our counter. If we get a no or don't hear anything, then we'll accept an offer from the other buyers. They have a home to sell, so it's not a done deal, but there's a high likelihood of everything turning out OK. All the math and money talk makes a humble English major uncomfortable. Husband is crawling the walls in anticipation. I actually told him to HAVE A DRINK AND GO PLAY VIDEO GAMES last night. So, you know it was bad.

Well, I think someone pooped in their pants. Twasn't me.

Vampire-Free? Who Wants That?

I got an email from Oprah touting Vampire-Free books. WHY would I want books without vampires?

I caved into the Twilight mania, and I loved it.

It took me a few episodes to get into True Blood, but I did. Now I'm all antsy that Season 2 doesn't come out on DVD until flipping MAY.

BUT, my mother-in-law informed me that True Blood is actually based on books, the Sookie Stackhouse series. I looked them up on Amazon and found the first 8 books at a great price (like $30), and they arrived today (umm, I don't think I can ever go back to Free Standard Shipping, this girl will be forking over the big bucks to keep Free Prime Shipping ... so I guess that's not free, but I don't care).

Oprah, I plan to read THOUSANDS of pages of vampire-filled books.

Also, Weight Watchers, I miss cheese. Reduced-fat cheese is garbage. I could chew on my flip flop if I wanted to eat rubber. Moose wasted an entire beautiful piece of white American cheese and it took all my power not to gobble it up (but it just isn't worth 3 points). The other day, I cubed cheese for the kids at my mommy group. Tasty, perfect cubes of colby cheese. I didn't eat a single one, and a little part of me died. Today I found myself daydreaming of pepper jack and brie. Oh, stinky cheese ... till we met again.

A Little Bit of This and That

Yesterday, Bean came out of the bathroom and was bleeding from his chin. He was very upset. I suspected what might have happened but asked him anyway: "I was in Mama and Dada bafroom." I told him to show me what happened. He wailed some more. "I not go in timeout?" I said, "No, you won't go in time out, but it's important to tell me the truth." So, we walked into the bathroom and he showed me the razor ... he'd also wiped blood all over my new hand towel and had flung my hair straightener on the ground (and it's not a cheap hair straightener).

He tried to shave.

It was a brand new blade.

Luckily, it was just a small cut - very small. It could have been much worse.

I don't think he'll be doing it again.

Most importantly, my hair straightener was fine :)

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Bean gets his new glasses today. His prescription was upped. The eye doctor anticipates that he'll easily be out of glasses by 10. The new glasses are very cool - dark blue metallic rims. Umm, remember the money I was saving from Pantry Challenge? Yeah, they'll be paying for glasses. If he treats them as well as he treated the first pair .... the kid better not need braces, that's all I'm saying.

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I'm getting a lot of grief for Moose's hair lately. Yes, it's long. Yes, there's a lot of it. I'm just so not there yet. I shaved off all of Bean's hair, and I've been traumatized ever since.

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I'm signing up for a stained glass class! It'll be this Saturday and next Saturday! It's my reward for my husband heading to Vegas last weekend!

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I am about 100 pages away from finishing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I can't believe it's almost over.

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Once I finish Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I'll have read five books so far this year. Pretty darn good ... we're not even done with January.

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Moose stayed in the church day care for about an hour yesterday. He cried and cried. One of the workers finally picked him up and rocked with him. She said he snuggled in her lap the whole time. What a baby ...

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Moose got three shots yesterday. He's now up-to-date on everything except the MMR, which I'm putting off till I take him to Mother's Day Out or till he starts pre-school. You know, I realize I don't know a single person who has personally had an ill effect from the vaccine, but all the controversy around it does make me uncomfortable.

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The Rock is a much cooler name than Dwayne. I mean, really, Dwayne???

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I got bored in the first 15 minutes of Angels & Demons (the movie). My husband got through about half of it and then went to bed. So, umm, you know it's really good.

Since you asked ...

This is an excerpt from I Love a Man in Uniform by Lily Burana. She's attending a military dinner with her husband and meeting other officers' wives for the first time:

One of the women looks me over. "Is your husband an Academy graduate?"

He isn't, I explain. He received his commission through ROTC.

She nods, lips pursed.

When she discovers that my husband is a major, she makes a point of telling me that hers is a colonel. She asks where we were stationed before, how long we have been married, and if we have any children. The expression on her face shifts with every question I answer, and I get the sense that our conversation is not so much a friendly exchange of personal history as a way of gathering information that can, and will, be used against me.

"So," she says, "where did you meet your husband?" She pauses for a chilly, bristling beat. "In a bar?"

... maybe this verbal hazing is part of the getting-to-know-you process. I can't tell if this woman expects me to fire back. I didn't get the secret Army wife decoder ring. All I know is that she intended to make me feel bad and she succeeded.

Aside from a handful of women, mostly from my husband's pilot training class, I share these exact feelings when meeting officers' wives. It's why I "opt out" of most wife things. It's too much pressure. Most days, I'm thrilled just to get a shower ... forgot competing with my husband's rank, education, the size of my house, and the shade of my lipstick.

Also, someone should feed this line to my husband:

As I recited my misgivings to Mike - that I might not meet the standards for a successful officer's wife; that I might not fit in with the other women; that I might morph into some tedious spouse-bot ...

"If I wanted a Stepford wife," Mike said, "I'd have married one."

That ends today's book report.

Current Frustrations & Good Stuff

Frustration the First: American Airlines. Because THEY are not offering assigned seats for my second flight, I cannot check in. You know, I failed to mention my "traveling with lap infant," because I was afraid you would pull this shit. Then you go ahead and do it anyway. I hate flying, and it's not because I am scared of airplanes. It's because airlines treat you like you're horseshit. Also, I don't like taking off my shoes or being treated like a terrorist because I am attempting to smuggle baby stuff (for my baby, who is ::right here::) on board. I guess some of that is the TSA ... let's not get started on them. (And spare me the lecture on them "keeping us safe.")

There are other frustrations, including us not finding out our aircraft till after December 2009 - a month and year and idea we have had in our minds for so many years now. My husband is in the third round of assignments and the second round of assignments is apparently coming in late. It could mean nothing, but I guess I shouldn't be holding my breath for December 2009. It might be January 2010 ... but knowing how Air Force Quip operates, I imagine not much will be presented in January 2010 after they have had two weeks off. Lame.

My husband also suggested that we will be out of here in December 2010. Don't me get me wrong, I do not like this city or the weather, but I have finally made friends I actually like and will miss. Also, this house ... do we try selling early or wait till we have paper orders? I don't want to see someone else living in MY house or making friends with MY neighbors. Mrs. House of Toys said, "It's like they'll be living your life." Maybe that's an exaggeration, but it sure feels that way.

Then I'm worried about decluttering and finishing up projects and how we'll be putting all this work in and then not even enjoying it.

Sometimes, I wish I could compartmentalize my feelings and worry and bring them out when they would actually be serving a purpose ... but I don't have that. It's just everything, all the time. Everything is here and now - no past, no future. It's all right this second ... and that gets exhausting.

Also, finished reading The Hour I First Believed. Loved it. It's Wally Lamb's first novel in nine years (his previous books, She's Come Undone and I Know This Much Is True were bestsellers). Current events play a part in the fiction, and it's a very creative way to write a novel. Awesome. You should read it.

Am now reading The 5 Love Languages of Children and am attending a Christian mom's book study for it. Good book, interesting discussion.

Moose is now giving kisses (more like placing his open, drooling mouth on your face) and intiating play (he throws a blanket on his head and then pulls it down, wanting you say, "Where's Moose?" and "Peek-a-boo.") Oh, he is delicious. He could probably stand unassisted, but he doesn't. He doesn't even cruise around the furniture all the much. He's a very, very good crawler. I guess he figures that serves him well enough. I'm fine with it.

Sweet Relief

The last two days, I got Moose to nap without any drama. Yesterday, we went to Chuck E. Cheese before nap time. We came home, I patted his rump for 10 minutes, turned the central air fan on, and he slept for 90 minutes - not as long as I'd like, but I'll take that over 2 hours of screaming. Today, we went to the library on base for story and craft time, ate lunch at home, then did 10 minutes of rump pats, turned on the fan, and he slept for 90 minutes again! Yippee! Bed time is still proving difficult. Since the boys and I are headed to Indiana in a week, I decided not to push the issue ... his sleeping times and places will be completely disrupted again shortly. So, he just stays up with me and passes out with me for now. I'm not complaining (yet).

Something funny Bean says (and I don't want to forget): When you ask him a question like "Who wants lunch?" or "Who wants to go?" or "Who needs a bath?" he replies, "I not!" Ha ha. I must hear "I not" at least two dozen times a day. He also calls his knees "legbows" (like elbows, but on your legs). He cracks me up. He just told me, while looking at Moose's 3-month picture, "Him's wearing brown hair." (Moose's hair is now blond.) Oh, the poor grammar skills of children.

In other news, I actually ordered photo prints so I can scrapbook. It's been years since I printed pictures. Maybe Moose will actually get a few scrapbook pages one of these days :)

Also, the new Stampin' Up catalog was released July 1. It's a good one! Far stronger than the last two. There is quite a bit I'd like, but it'll have to wait for a while. You know, unless you're interested in getting me an early anniversary or Christmas gift :)

Kellykrisser, I have two of your four cards ready. Will continue to work and have your prize out to you soon!

I'm reading Audition by Barbara Walters. I'm only about 25 pages in, but I'm fascinated. Unlike a lot of celebrities, she's actually smart and educated and a capable writer. Thank goodness. Also, in a world full of memoirs about drugs and depression, it's nice to read about "a life" and not a vice. Well done, Ms. Walters.

Grumble

OK, so do you know where Megan McCafferty* is TONIGHT?

She's in at the Barnes & Noble in Thousand Oaks ... mere minutes away from in-laws and where I will be in June. I've actually been there!

Gah! My SIL should have graduated yesterday! (Sorry, Steffanie.) Then I could go to Megan's signing and think of a bunch of great things to say but then overthink them and just end up just saying, "Um, thank you." I had a similar experience with Liz Phair.

*Megan McCafferty is the writer of the Jessica Darling series. I just finished the final installment, Perfect Fifths, last night.

Sick Kid

As you may remember, a couple weeks ago the doctor said Bean's smoker's cough was due to sinuses and allergies. We've been giving him is Zyrtec and Singular every morning, and we haven't seen a huge improvement. His cough was particularly bad yesterday, waking him up at like 2:30 in the morning. It sounded like his lungs were going to come out his throat (they have not ... yet). Yesterday evening he started running a fever, about 100. He took a nap and it's pretty clear that he's tired.

Today, he's still running that same fever. We're giving him Motrin and just letting him veg on the couch. He's still coughing. I opted to keep him out of school for the day - he didn't have a fever when I sent him to school yesterday. He has a doctor's appointment tomorrow at 9:20 a.m. We're seeing a new doctor on base and, if it's who I think it is, I've heard less-than-good things about him. Luckily, Husband will be available to go in with me ... so hopefully that will make Mr. Doctor behave better than he has with some of my friends. Anyway, I'm actually hoping that seeing a different doctor will provide some more productive answers. I feel like this cough has been going on for years.

Moose is napping and still has a bit of a runny nose, but it's clear and nothing too exciting. He's eating and sleeping well, so I'm not so worried about him.

I planned on leaving around 8 a.m. tomorrow for the drive to Indiana, but obviously I'll be getting a late start. Worse case, I can wait till Friday to leave and still be on schedule to see the friends that have made plans with me. We'll see how the day and night and the doctor's appointment go ... but I really need to get out of Texas!

Since Husband was home this morning, though, I was able to pop in at the library and pick up several books on CD:

Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
I've always meant to read this, but I've just never gotten around to it.

Dry: A Memoir by Augusten Burroughs
I read his first memoir Running with Scissors, so I can't wait to see what this one has in store. I hope it's not about sobriety. Sobriety is boring.

Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama

The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks
I've never read a Nicholas Sparks book nor seen any of the movies. Crazy, I know. Anyway, I thought it's be good to have something light.

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wild
I read this in college, but I don't remember it. With more than 30 hours of driving ahead of me, surely I can find some time to appreciate a classic (but I'll admit that is the one I'm most likely to skip).

Twilight

I was up till probably 2 a.m. reading New Moon, the second book in the Twilight series. I can't bring myself to do anything else till I get these last 75 pages read. I'm then grounding myself from the other two books till Feb. 25. I have some things to do.