Queen of the Castle

It's been awhile!

When hubby is home, we’re so busy. He left for awhile, I’ll now get to bed on time. The first few day’s he only found 1 expired salad dressing. The last day he tore son #5's room completely apart. Everything out of every drawer and out of the closet and bookshelf. son #5 tried on clothes until he was blue.

I think this is part of ruler of your domain, King of your Castle, kind of thing.

Hmmm, maybe that stack of pants on the top shelf where he can’t reach them, is for him to grow into, thus …. Already, um, organized! I just let him have at it and guess what? He didn’t finish. So I have a hall full of stuff. He left only enough hangers in his closet for what was hung …. And took them all to a downstairs empty closet. Oh, except when I finished the wash I had to make two trips downstairs for hangers!!!!

It’s funny now but not then. Geez.

There is a reason they work outside the home. I’m a firm believer men provide for the family, have domain over the outside of the house and it’s upkeep, the garage, their car and storage room. Oh and if they can, they can cook the meat. (hunt it and kill it too for all I care.)

If they were to organize a kitchen, the pancake turner would be in a cupboard across the room from the stove.

Oh and they are definitely in charge of pine wood derby cars.

Actually, I’m only saying what I wish were true.

I have made all 5 of the pinewood derby cars. My dad tried to help with the last one but when he put the axel in the wood broke so we had to use son #4's car (which I made) and dad drilled holes in the bottom and filled them with lead to bring it up to weight. Son #4 came in toward the bottom and son #5 came in 2^nd of 13 boys’. So, I had some help this year. They didn’t even re-paint it.

I usually bbq the meat, until son #2 recently took over.

I also schedule the outside maintenance or the boy’s do it. (they mow, but I have to hire tree guys). Hubby does do the garage when he’s home. I do the trash with the boys sometimes. I take the car in (since we only have one J) and I do the storage room since son #3 failed in that position.

So, I do it all, including working outside my house which takes about 14 hours a week even though I only get paid for 8.

And… and … soccer L

It begins again … sigh

Oh sigh…

Practices with an Englishman for a coach … so extra long practices “men”

“don’t be a ‘nancy’ RUN! Down field”

And … the freezing cold, no parking, early morning SATURDAY (for crying out loud) games. What is wrong with these people????

Such a great venue to post a vague vent. I think this is what cyber "space" is for ...

no one reads this ... maybe an alien in 10,000 years :)

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Puppies have arrived

Well that puppy having business was only stressful due to the one puppy. After resuscitating it, which in itself was amazing, Gigi didn’t whimper or anything, I just heard all of this licking. So, I looked and there were two puppies lying beside her in her bed. She was licking away. So, the first puppy born was lifeless, completely limp and not breathing. I picked him up and started rubbing, head down etc, but nothing. Little Andrew started to cry and said, “I know Mom, I’ll say a prayer!” So he began and the thought came to me that I couldn’t kill a dead puppy. So, I just opened its little mouth and put my mouth over it and its nose and breathed air in. Andrew finished his prayer and as if right on cue it started to cough and actually moved in my hand. It was amazing to bring that little one back. She gasped for a while, we did the bulb syringe thing, didn’t seem to help though. But she pulled through. Then it hit me, that I had put my mouth on an amniotic fluid /muconium/ dog saliva covered head. Sick! I tried to rinse my mouth, but it’s still kind of a gross thought even though at the time you just do what you have to do. It worked too! Then, it just was the only one not eating. She was nuzzling and everything to try, but she just couldn’t latch on.

I tried taking them all to the vet, but Gigi went out of her mind, it was worse and I thought I could lose all 3 puppies if I stayed there, so I left and bought a bottle and formula. Dog formula smells better than human formula J, just in case you’re wondering. So we bottle fed for every 2 hours, but sometimes she almost got nothing.

The vet made a house call and tried to get her to latch on, which she did, so we thought if I helped she would quickly learn. I did get her to do it again, but when she did, it was a weird noise, then I noticed milk coming out of her little tiny nose. Her nose is fine, her upper gum is fine, but there seemed to be a small toothpick wide gap in the back of her pallet. L I haven’t even yet confirmed that with the vet that has the visual instruments to actually see it, but I’m 90% sure that is the problem. Pretty sad, so I called and I would have to continue bottle feeding her every 2 hours for about 5 weeks. NOT going to happen, I don’t have the time, energy or people to help. So, I called the vet tech back and she wanted to do it for free. Right! She deserves to have this puppy if she’s going to hand raise it. So, we sadly said good bye to her yesterday afternoon. I got home from work and fed her what I could and Trish (vet tech) was here in a hour with a nice hot water bottle bed etc… she’ll take her to work with her and get the surgery she’ll need at about 5 months old. I was so very grateful to be able to find such a woman. She saved the puppy, will give her a wonderful home, released our family of such a high maintenance duty, released us from the pain of watching her die if we failed. Anyway, this lady is a puppy angel J

Ok, so, now Gigi is just doing all the mothering. I don’t have to worry about really anything other than what I normally do with her. She doesn’t follow me around the house, she stays in the puppy box. I do have to make sure they have a warm environment, but that’s it. Ok, free to work on the normal household chores (LAUNDRY to my eyeballs!) cleaning toilets, floors, dishes, food to make, beds to clean, stuff to dust, oh a stupid tree to fan the branches, put missing lights on, decorate mess and clean-up. We’ll have one guest for Christmas so I have to figure out what exactly to do for him. I still have fall décor up. Geez!

Ok, have a lovely day! Mine is half over and then time to pick up school prepare for a different class that I haven’t taught for a year and then scouts, mutual, piano, school pick-ups and the worst … dinner. What to make?

Ok, better get to those toilets! I have so much time, oh and bills that need paid, do you think bright yellow envelops mean anything?

Life is exhausting

I haven't had time to do anything. Since I last wrote. I'm still not unpacked from our visit to NYC. I don't remember life being so incredibly hectic when I was younger. Have times changed that much?

What did mothers do all day? Oh wash by hand, kill the chicken, bleed it, pluck & clean it, cook it, roll out the homemade noodles just for chicken soup for dinner. Oh and beat the only rug to get the dirt out.

It seems to me that we would have so much more time. The soup is in the can, you can probably vacuum an entire 7 rooms for the time it took to drag out a rag rug and beat it properly. Laundry is done almost completely for you. So, what's the deal?

My children are having an old fashioned day today. They are riding bikes and helping me clean. I nixed the "screens" - anything with a screen is off-limits, unless they are calling me from their cell. Oh, yeah, cell phones. When my grandmother wanted me because I'd been gone all day playing, she'd go to the back yard and call or start calling neighbors to see where I was and they'd send me home and visa versa. Now, I have to worry if they're not home on time.

My friend and I would walk to town. It's a big deal for my children to walk up to the local grocer.

I have letters to write and a box to send to my son. I have work lessons and church lessons to pepare for. Oh, yes and Thanksgiving is Thursday. My husband will miss our dinner so it will be kind of weird to have so few people here. I'll still roast a turkey - don't love it, but it HAS to smell like Thanksgivng or it wouldn't be Thanksgiving. I tried it one year by roasting a beef roast. NOT the same!

Even bigger news, my cute little 4lb dog is due with 4-5 puppies. x-ray was inconclusive as to how many there were. It looked like 5 to me and the tech. Vet wouldn't commit. So, I have a whelping box that my dad made. I'm not sure she even likes it, so who knows if she'll use it. Then, will I know what to do? Will I know if I should take her to the vet because things aren't working right? That is my worry, that she will need me and I won't be able to help and we'll end up with a c-section. I don't want to jump the gun on that, but I don't want to risk her or puppies either. They'll be so darling. I'm not sure I'll be able to part with them. I'm obviously not a dog breeder, she's family, not a business.

Well that all being said, I need to get busy with my list of things to do today. It's so long, I get nauseated looking at it, prioritizing it was difficult, as was my decision to write this before. It's been much too long between posts, but no one reads it except for me and 1 other person. Good venting for me though, or a means of expression to the great void in the absence of a good listening ear.

Simplicity - is non existant, but i'm trying.

Battle

It's a daily if not hourly battle to lose weight, for me. I joined Weight Watchers at the advise of a friend, she didn't have time to explain the program to me, which I wanted her to do. But, she just waved me off saying that she didn't have time. She was right because it's personalized. I love it. I have learned so many "tricks" and had some profound things said in meetings that really "clicked" in my brain.

So, now 27 lb's later, I'm feeling much better. I am happy to say that I can eat my own food and found what works well for me, which I would not have been able to do without them. Never guessed it would be like this. It's much different than what I thought it would be. I don't buy their food, although I could, anyway, just thought I'd let myself know since I'm the only one that reads this :)

So, another day of success and I feel good going to bed not hungry and also knowing that I ate well today, healthy and less calories than I burned ... yay, today will be fruitful!

Sometimes there is fun stuff to write about!

Sub-Cultures

Every now and then I get an opportunity to get a peak into a new sub-culture of America. Like when my son was playing high school football. Wow, what a lesson that was! Football Mom's are NOTHING like soccer mom's, not to mention football "Dad's". Ok, but that was nothing next to Cheerleader "Mom's", that one was one for the books. A whole new world that I really had forgotten even existed. Kind of like venturing into beauty pagents. Worlds that exist within their own realm.

So, my newest peak is into the world of dog breeding. I know there are many people that think that is just sick and wrong. You should only choose pound dogs. However, I really wanted a small dog that was guaanteed NOT to shed, ever.

Then, the thought occured to me that it was be really awesome, in so many ways, to let this little dog of mine have a darling litter of puppies. So, now I'm learning to not cringe everytime someone say's the word "Bitch" or I see it written in a contract. She's really not one at all, she's a very sweet tempered little thing. However, this is business. "Not like they're ever going to meet in the wild, Mam." So, with everything checked off my list of why to do it and why not, we've decided to try for a healthy litter. I still have a lot to read.

I did find her "Stud" and he is a darling guy, but he wasted no time in getting to "know" her. She looked at me like, I was suppose to save her. I know, I'm putting human qualities onto an animal, but it's the mother in me. I've learned what a "tie" is ~ if you don't, really, don't bother to look that one up.

So, if all goes well, we will have some puppies soon, and hopefully healthy and an uncomplicated "whelping". Man, the jargon of every business!

Cheers!

School Is IN Session

I miss the time I had alone with the baby of the house or toddler. I usually had my mornings with just my little babies and I miss those day's. I would be alone now if it weren't for the dog. Even though I have this time, you would think thinge would feel less stressed. Instead, it's an incredible morning rush to get everyone ready and driven to 3 different schools that begin at 3 different times. Then...my work, papers/bills, laundry, kitchen, floors, and that endless list hits and before I know it, it's time to start the pick-up for 3 different schools at 3 different times. Stay with me here, because I know that all mothers already know this, and that is the afterschool nightmare, of, homework, papers that need to be signed, spelling words, reading, scouting, music lessons/practice, church meetings, sports practices, and then the actual rush to get dinner, to bed on time and remember to brush teeth, etc...

I am now looking forward to my work starting up again next week. Those day's I'll have to get myself ready and Andrew ready for school a full 2 hours earlier than he needs, just so that I can drag him off somewhere to be taken to school for me because I still have to drive downtown and begin my work at 8 am.

I heart goes out to the women, and there are so many of them, that not only do that daily, but have to arange for the pick up of those children, as well as they are responsible for the entire income of the family and all of the yard work as well as in home work. Something has to give somewhere, because I honestly don't know where they get the stamina to do it and they do, some women do it all. I am not one of them, so now I feel guilty for being stressed out. I have no clue what it is like to raise a family alone.

Who are these women that have time to lunch with their friends or shop? Grocery shopping has to be scheduled in my world.

Is anyone else out there feeling like me?

I want my babies back and to be surrounded by unfolded clothes and diapers!

They'll Delete Me if I Quit

The start of school is always an interesting time of year. The kids, no matter what the age, are filled with anxieties, anticipation, excitement, sleep deprevation, shopping and all that comes with the new school year. I think parents have that same list only for different reasons.

Many of our anxieties revolve around theirs; will they be well accepted, will they make new friends, are they up to the task of the next levels and etc... When we have more than one child I think we feel everything doubled for each child. It doesn't even matter what they are doing, are they entering military service, church service, college, AP Highschool classes, Jr. High - yikes, the lone sibling in elementary school? There is just so much to worry about and so I find that I can't think about any of it. I can't change anything by worry and I can't remove the hurdles of lfe. So, I suppose if we just do our best, give advice when asked for it, or not - if they're young enough to not try to stop you. Then ... things will fall where they may and then you work through those.

Sounds like good sound logic to me. I just can't do it, I still worry about everything and everyone. I want to fix stuff, you know? I want to make everything all better and nice. That's not a good thing so I'm sure it's best that it isn't that way, but it doesn't stop me from wishing.

What I like about the new school year, is that for a time again, I get to begin and end in September, just like I spent the first 24 years of my life. I didn't enjoy the January to January thing ~ it's werid.

I'm enjoying the new school year and hopefully this busy September and all of the changes and new things to adjust to, worst of all new time schedules! It will really warm up my October with a sense of order, consistancy and the calm that things are settled down a bit. That with a nice cup of hot chocolate with the first snow or Halloween eveing! Let it Snow!!!!!

Oh, and I'm not loving acorns, dead leaves (love the fall colors, BEFORE they fall), harvest is just at a bad time, much of my garden will go to waste.

"It makes you want to buy a boquet of sharpened pencils" ~ "You've Got Mail" I still have to buy new boxes of Crayola brand crayons, nothing smells better, well maybe a new Pink or Gum eraser!