It's Raining Again...

Is it ever going to end? 

I mean, the nice thing is that I haven't had to water. And the grass seed we just planted has been amply watered. But... 

That Man just cut the grass on Saturday and it's ready to be cut again. There are things we'd planned to get done this week and... And the constant rain has kept my groundhog remedy from working so he's eaten my cone flowers almost to the ground. 😠

This week is our town's huge street fair. Ugh. We decided to take the day off so we wouldn't have to fight to get home. (One year the rent-a-cop patrolling the end of our street didn't believe us when we said we lived here. He said "doesn't everyone?" We ended up driving around him to pull into our drive. What an *ss.) Another year, someone blocked our driveway and didn't leave until the next morning. Jerks. (I have so many stories) 🙄

Well, we're working from home for a half day. Both of us have to answer phones anyways. The whole company is shutting down early for the annual kickball game. Which we'll miss, but there's not much we can do about it. If we tried to go, we'd get home even later and that would be disastrous. If they reschedule kickball because of weather, That Man will make it next week, but I will be on retreat. I do feel sad to miss it. It's a lot of fun, but I'm also not giving up precious retreat hours.

I'm very very close to being done with the Old Lady story. 😁I'm ready to start the final read through before sending it off for critique. I'm excited to be done. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to start on retreat, but I have a pretty good idea. We'll see.  

(and yes, I just discovered I can put emojis in here.) 

That's all. I'll try to check in with anything interesting that happens on street fair day... It's supposed to be hot and thunderstormy. 

Behave! 

Happy Father's Day!

I miss my dad. I know my siblings miss our dad too.

It's been 11 years since he had to go. It's been 15 years since That Man lost his dad. It sucks and there's nothing else to say about that. 

I do have a lot of awesome dad's in my life. That Man is at the top of the list. My son, my brother, my uncle, my brothers-in-law, and good friends. I texted them all this morning. Well, texted most and talked to my son since we have his youngest all weekend and Small Boy wanted to talk to Daddy.

Not sure when they will get here. B won both games yesterday but they lost this morning, so I don't know what's going on yet. 

We're having a chill day so far. There's a list of things that need to be done and we're thinking about it. Ha!

That is all. I might update later...

We'll see...

Behave!  

Feel Good Friday...on Saturday

Yay for Saturday!

It was a long week, but I think you probably gathered that. Ha! 

Here's a list:

1. We have the Small Boy this weekend. His brother is in another state at a soccer tournament. Last time I checked the score, they were kicking butt. The Small Boy is currently running the loop around our downstairs. It's kinda rainy so... He's been so good and we're having fun. 

2. While there was no sleeping in this morning... The Small Boy woke up at 5am. We were in bed really early last night. There will be no sleeping in tomorrow either. 

3. Making super progress on the old lady story this week. I have a bunch of scenes to add and I have a critique to do, but so far so good on getting it done before retreat.  

4. Knowing we have a day off coming up this week. We took off for our town's annual street fair. Not to go, but to defend the parking. Our niece and a friend have to work a booth downtown so they'll be parking here. Other than that, hopefully it's a day we can get some stuff done. 

5. Dinner in the crockpot and a plan for tomorrow. I do have to run to the store, but that's a tomorrow problem. 

6. K4 and her man coming home this afternoon. Yeah, she was just here last weekend, but I miss her. 

7. Hopefully seeing K3 and A tomorrow. I know they have a full day, but their planning on stopping by to see That Man. 

8. I don't know when K1 and J and Mr. B will be back tomorrow. It depends on how the games go. If they win, they have an afternoon game. But we'll get to see them at some point when they pick up Small Boy. 

9. Getting a text that said Mr. B's team won the first game!

That is all...

Behave!

Tuesday...

I saw a meme the other day that resonated with me...

"Everyone complains about Mondays, but Tuesday can go f*ck itself too"

And yeah, that's right. 

We were at the grocery store earlier and the cashier (we usually do self check out, but I was too tired to fight with the 'put your item in the bag' bullcrap) asked how our week was going and I said 'long and I know it's only Tuesday'. Ha! 

Why do the work days go so slow and the evenings go so fast?

Which isn't entirely true. Today went fast at work, but I still was counting down the hours until we could leave. 

We got home to a strong smell of cat pee. Yep. My fat boy...displeased about something...God knows what...decided to pee on the kitchen rug. So that's outside and has been hosed off. Gross. I honestly don't know what his problem is. We've tried all of the things, including multiple trips to the vet. She gave him meds, but giving him the meds stresses him out even more, not to mention it makes him a zombie cat. He's such a sweet boy and I wish we could figure this out. 

Work on the Jeep is commencing. I'm so excited to have her back. It's going to be a while, but it'll be worth it. And the pile of parts will be gone from my living room. Ha! 

I took last night off from writing since I'd had a terrible nights sleep the night before. But tonight I kicked butt. I'm close to the end of what's already written, but I have quite a bit to add. My goal is to finish before retreat (two weeks!) so I can start something new and I think that'll happen. It might not be fully edited and ready for critique, but I'm okay with that. 

And that is all...

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

Oh Sunday... Why do you come so soon?

We're in the last few hours of the weekend. I'm tired, and I want another weekend day. 

Let's get to the weekend list:

Friday night: Grocery store. Quick trip for just dinner stuff since neither of us wanted to go anyway. Good dinner. Writing. Bed early. 

Saturday: Mr. B's soccer game in the rain. Pizza shop for lunch. Actual grocery shopping. Jeep stuff. Writing. K4's man made dinner. 

Sunday: My boys coming to help take the old furniture out. Tacos for lunch. Hanging out with my kids and grandkids. Grass mowing. Plant tinkering. Laundry. Writing. 

Oh and I got a shot on Saturday. I haven't had a tetanus shot in probably twenty years. My old doctor kept saying I need one, but she never followed through. My new doctor, upon having an actual conversation with me and finding out how often I'm doing weird stuff in the yard and that I'll be wrenching on the Jeep, insisted I get updated. Let's just say I'm happy with the doctor change. It's really nice when someone actually listens to and hears you. 

That is all. 

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

Hi Friday! 

I know I've been lame and vague all week. It's been a busy one. Like every single evening there's something we need to take care of or do. 

Monday - Eye doctor appointments. K5 softball game.

Tuesday - Pick up Little B from school and wrangle him until his family picked him up. This meant a pizza shop dinner, a trip to the park, and ice cream. And dirt digging. And hilarity as he told me babies are blind until they're three and that there was a baby "looking at him like a psycho". 

Wednesday - Take the camper to get inspected. Grocery shopping. 

Thursday - Pick up camper after paying a ridiculous amount. I finally get some writing done. 

Now we're here. And guess what? We've got nothing. Well, except a mountain of laundry. 

I will say, everything was good except for paying to pick up the camper. It was a lot and I'm still stunned. 

I am looking forward to sleeping in a little tomorrow. And to clarify, when I say "sleeping in" I mean I'll get up at 7am instead of 5:30. It's very rare for me to sleep past 7. 

Mr. B has his last regular soccer game tomorrow, so we'll be going to that. And then it's Jeep stuff and yard stuff. And writing. 

And that is all...

Behave!

Here Comes the Heat...

It's currently 86*. 

Summer is coming! We have on air conditioner in. We'll get the rest soon. 

That's all. 

Behave!

Feel Good Friday

It's Friday! 

I am very glad. I am very tired and have a massive headache. This is the first weekend in quite a while that we don't have any obligations except for what we put upon ourselves. Well, and that's kind of massive and comes with a ton of pitfalls, but it is what it is. 

We're talking about poison ivy and a lot of it. We've got to remove it. So that's what we'll be doing...among a ton of other things. 

Anyways... Here's the list:

1. The pup continuing to improve. She's graduated from the cone of shame. At least for now. If she starts licking again, it'll go back on, but the area is looking almost healed and she's left it alone consistently. 

2. The sun is out! (Shh... I know we're due more crappy weather this weekend. I don't want to talk about it right now)

3. Making progress with the old lady story. My goal is to get the edits finished before retreat so I can start something new there. If we do get the crappy weather, I can make mega progress, but we'll see. 

4. Apparently there's a bear running around our town. 

5. Oh yeah, and sleeping in tomorrow. I need that.

That is all!

Behave!

Short Week/Long Week

Why does a short week feel so long? I keep thinking today is Friday... 

Not much going on...just trying to get through. I have gotten quite a bit of writing/editing done this week. 

It's cold and rainy. Dreary. We had to turn the heat on last night. I'd like to see some sun, please. Of course, it's supposed to get pretty hot next week. 

Our pup is on the mend. All the swelling is down and she's acting like a normal dog. 

That's all I have...

Behave! 

Weekend Wrap Up!

I don't want the weekend to end! There's still so much I want to do. 

But here's the wrap up:

1. The dog is doing so much better. Her leg is still pretty swollen, but she seems to be on the mend. She hates the cone of shame, which is understandable. We only put it on her if we're not home or at night. Or the second she tries to lick. She's eating well and doing all of the dog things, though she's a little bit entitled now. Ha! Since her leg is no longer draining, she's back in bed with us. Which is good because she sleeps so much better. (and so do I) 

2. The kids were all here for dinner on Saturday. It was a really nice time. They helped with some heavy lifting and we had a chance to actually hang out. 

3. The wedding was beautiful. The weather, the venue, the grooms. It was very small, but everything about it was nicely done. We were honored to be invited and I can't wait to see their honeymoon pictures. 

4. We did a lot of yard work today and we're both done in. Also laundry and an excellent dinner. 

5. I got a lot of writing done too. I'm feeling pretty good about where I'm at. My goal is to be done and have this sent out for critique before retreat. That way I can start something new there. And I think I know what. 

That's all. Tomorrow it's back to the grind. At least it's a short week. 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

Long weekend commencing!

Here's the list!

1. It was a rough week. The old gal got an infection in her leg. We truly thought we were going to lose her. Her leg was super swollen and she did not want to move. There were no tail wags and barely any eating. Vet appointment. We had pre-warned the kids that she was not good. We really expected the worst. Two shots, antibiotics, and pain pills. She's on the mend, though her leg is draining like crazy. I'm really glad we don't have carpet. She's more herself today, though she has to wear the cone of shame. At least it's a soft one. Otherwise we'd be covered in bruises. Now it's draining since she licked it open. Blech.  

2. Sleeping in tomorrow. That wasn't part of the original plan. We were supposed to have Little Man tonight, but Mr. B's games were cancelled for the weekend. We would have still taken him, but with the dog not being great, we figured it was for the best to keep her as calm as possible. 

That Man has been sleeping downstairs with her so she's not stressed by going upstairs or trying to get on our bed. I think that will continue tonight since the thought of the wound draining on our bed is gross. 

3. We have a wedding on Sunday. K3's best friend. It's going to be a really nice wedding, I think. K3 thinks so too. He's in the wedding. They did something really cool. Instead of a registry, they had a "Gift us an experience instead of a toaster", so you could donate to specific things for their honeymoon. I'm looking forward to it despite only knowing the grooms, K3 & A, and maybe one other person. 

4. Getting a little writing done this week despite the stress. 

5. Obviously no camping. So much rain...

6. So that means...more yard work tomorrow. But we have help since K4 is home. 

That is all...

Behave!

Weekend Wrap Up...

Well...it's Monday again. 

The weekend was pretty decent. Here's the list:

1. Being able to get K5 overnight last minute. Coordinating seeing her has been a challenge due to her sports schedule and our schedule. The last time she stayed over was the week after my surgery. At her insistence. She said it was her job to help take care of me, which is super sweet. Friday night we watched movies and then Saturday we headed up to our camping spot because she wanted to fish. Then lunch, ice cream, and general silliness. It was awesome. 

2. We chilled Saturday night on the patio. 

3. Sunday was lots and lots of yard work. We trimmed hedges, cleaned out flower beds, mowed, and transplanted some flowers. (There's still so much to do) Made a trip to the mega mart, and stopped in to an open house for the new firehouse going up in our town. 

4. I tweaked my back. Picking up a shirt from the basement floor to put in the washing machine. The joys of getting old. It still hurts but not as bad. 

5. I didn't get any writing done, though I had the best intentions. 

6. It's starting to look like camping won't happen. If it rains this week, things will be a swamp. It was bad Saturday with squishy grass and standing water. We're going to continue to prepare as if we will camp, but...

7. It's kind of okay. We'll have Little B and he would be muddy. And we have the wedding on Sunday. 

That's about it. Now to get through the work week. It's a bit shorter than normal with an early dismissal on Friday, but it's still busy. Plus we have eye doctor appointments as well. 

Behave! 

Feel Good Friday

Oh Friday! 

1. That Man and I had the most wonderful time on our trip. It was just the two of us and we had awesome food, awesome beach days, and so much fun. We stayed in the same little house we did last year. It was even nicer because they're doing construction on the bridge for the main road, which is pretty much in front of the house. So once the construction workers left for the day, it was so very quiet. We got to watch Canadian Geese hatch and see their fluffly little babies take their first swim. So cute. The trip was much needed. 

2. Mother's Day was nice even though it was thrown together last minute. No one realized the date so ideas were being thrown back and forth as That Man and I traveled home, but they got it figured out and it was a nice day with my kids. 

3. We came home a day early because we had to go to the wedding of a coworker. That was nice. We found a funky but super cool gift on our trip. 

4. I don't feel like I've had more than two seconds to myself since we got home...

5. I have gotten a decent amount of writing in this week. I even got some done on our trip on the day it poured buckets of rain. 

6. Campout coming up! We'll have little B for at least one night since Mr. B has a soccer tournament. We also have the wedding of K3's best friend, so we'll miss the picnic, but I'm still looking forward to the quiet by the creek. 

That's all I have for now. The calendar is filling, but there are a lot of good things on there. I have my first and only writing retreat of the year coming up. We have one more wedding after the next one. And we have a ton of stuff to take care of in the backyard. 

Behave! 

Kittens...

Here's a few of the kittens when they were babies...

We called this one "Boots". He went to live with K4's friend.

Here's a baby Fred.

We called this one "friend". My sister adopted him and now we call him "Filth Collins". He is also very special.

Then we have the moustache cat. I can't remember what we called her. My sister adopted her too. She's tiny and a sweetheart. 

Here's the kitten train. I can't find an individual picture of Regi when she was that little...She's in the front here. There were five kittens in the litter we rescued. 

And this is Max. He wasn't part of the litter. We found him the year before behind my Jeep howling up a storm. His momma left him. We bottle fed him. He's a good kitty. Though he makes the rules. Ha! 

And that's all...

Behave!

Old Gal

Here's the old gal. 

This was taken during the pandemic when I was working from home. She's much grayer now. Not that you can tell from this picture...

Behave!

Cat #3

This is Regi.

She's from the same litter as Fred. She's one of the most normal out of the whole litter, though one eye is a different color. She's a sweetheart and she loves That Man. 

On this day, a ladybug had made it's way into the house and she was perplexed by it. She was going to eat it, but then changed her mind. Or something like that. 

Behave! 

Here's Your Sign

I meant to post this ages ago. 

We were traveling and stopped for dinner at I guess was a regional chain restaurant. The food was good and not overly priced. 

Upon returning from the ladies room, I spotted this sign...

Ha! 

Behave! 

Cat #2

This is my baby, Fred. 

I always wanted an orange cat. I love this chonky boy, but... He is seriously brain damaged. I really think it has to do with the severely dehydrated and near death state we found him and his litter mates in. Not a single one of those cats are normal...

I mean, I know orange cats are special, but Fred is a special kind of special...

And I love him...

Behave! 

Random

 I take care of the supplies for the day job. While doing my weekly inventory to see what we need, I came across this in the store room... I have no idea! 

Behave!

Cat

We bought the dog a new bed...

Behave