Smelling the flowers

Got a call from my youngest last night. Seems he loaded fireworks in a mortar tube, put them in upside down and held it wrong and shot himself in the testicle...three days prior. And then didn't want to go to the doctor. I tried to talk him into going in, but he wanted to postpone going until today to see if it was improving. I guess it's terribly swollen and mightily sore. D'oh. He did talk to a friend of his who is a nurse and he gave him some good advice, so I laid off badgering him about going in.

Son #2 was able to rent a car yesterday. Today the refrigerator, and groceries should be delivered. As I was typing this I got a text saying the refrigerator has been delivered. Woot! His address is confusing, so I wasn't sure it would make it. Now for the groceries to arrive in the right place.

Text just came in that everything has arrived. He is thrilled. He said that the amount of turkey sausage sticks is hilarious, the shampoo and conditioner, and deodorant along with the dish soap came at exactly when he needed it and he's very curious about the tortellini.

He's so happy and thankful. It feels good to be able to play Santa and to know that I have lifted some of his stress.
 
So, the youngest son gets to keep his testicle. He came to our city to Urgent Care Thursday night (insurance reasons) and got things checked. They did an ultrasound, declared it would be okay and gave him a script for pain killers. I checked in with him yesterday and it's much improved.

We had a busy weekend and I'm tired as hell today. I slept like shit last night, mostly due to my thumb suddenly acting like it has trigger finger, if that is possible in a thumb. We were also awoken by our phones going off with flash flood warnings. Crazy, heavy rain!

Tonight is Polycocktails. B wants to go and we want to see B, so we're going for a bit. I feel totally socialized out. Saturday we went to the Art Fair on the Square for hours and hours, and then to Movies on the Lawn at a friend's place. We would have skipped the movie, but I had told Frankie that we were going and she was expecting us. I miss the crap out of her and she feels the same, so we went and it was great seeing her. S2 and S3 went and they enjoyed it a lot. (Lots of yummy treats for them to indulge in.)

A few weeks back Bond asked if we were going to need to bring in someone to help clean and I said yes. I was relieved he asked, because I've been saying that I just can't do it all. I spend so much time cooking now that we're eating keto. I push myself all day long on the weekends to get as much done as possible, but I cannot get all the things done. If I want to have any time away from working, then things just don't get done. It's hard to fit in cleaning toilets and getting laundry done. I'm not getting any younger and seeing as I already raised my kids, this is supposed to be the time in my life when I get to take it easier instead of harder. I doubt he could even come close to keeping up to the pace I am going at and he's five years younger. After the whole thumb thing, it's come back to the forefront of my mind. I hate to push, but I think I'm going to have to. It would be so nice to have someone come in to clean following our five days with the boys every other week.
 
Last night at the Memorial Union. Saturating sunset.
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We had torrential rainfall early this morning. I haven't ventured outside since I got to work today, but it's supposed to be extremely humid. Sometimes it is nice to work in an office.

Yesterday I took a noontime walk around the square. I actually went around twice. On the last leg I started feeling off and my vision was whacky. I've never had anything like it before; part of my peripheral vision was swirls. I wasn't able to read things on my monitors for close to 30 minutes. Gradually it got clearer. I believe it was a migraine aura. I had had a hella-headache in the middle of the night. I took some Tylenol and drank sparkling water and by morning it had lightened considerably. After the swirls went away the headache started amping up again. I went home and rested. I was worried that I was coming down with a full blown migraine and I didn't want to have to drive if it got seriously bad.

After taking it easy and lying in the dark it eased up and I was able to resume life. I made Mocha Fluff and then swept and mopped the kitchen floor. I finished just as Bond got home from work. It was date night, so B was shortly behind him. We went to a new restaurant, which was pretty good, although challenging to order keto. After dinner we stopped by the Union to enjoy the sunset, before heading to our house for some sexy times.

I haven't had an eye exam in a couple of years and I've been feeling quite a bit of eye strain, so I should call for an appointment.

Weight

Since mid-June I've been at the same weight (146), up or down less than a pound, but steadily 146. Which is discouraging, because I'm trying to really follow this way of eating, so wherever I'm going wrong it's minor infractions that evidently add up. Not losing hasn't really discouraged me from this WOE, because I see health benefits in other ways, but I really want to get to 130 lbs. I'm so tired of being overweight.

Saturday we starved ourselves at the Art Fair, because we couldn't find anything keto-friendly and quite frankly it's something we can do now that we're able to tap into our fat stores. However, when I got home I ate quite a bit, but not overly. Unfortunately I was up 1.3lbs the next morning. Argh. And the next day I was still at this weight (147.3). :( Then on Tuesday (yesterday) I dropped to 145.9. Which made me ridiculously happy even though it was only .1 less than I've been at for a month. Still, it was a new lower number and that made me happy. Then today I dropped to 144.1. Woot! I wonder if it was the walking that helped.

If the weight loss stalls out again, I should consider quitting sparkling water. I guess some people stall on it. I'd like to get a glucose meter to check my blood sugar levels before and after meals to see what effect different foods have on me. It would help figure out if certain things are stalling me.
 
I forgot to mention that I've decided to commit to making our kitten raw cat food when the time comes that we finally get him. I told Bond yesterday and he got the funniest smile on his face, like, "Of course you are." I've done a lot of reading on catnutrition.org/ and after reading the testimonials from cat owners and the endorsements from vets I think it's the best route to take.

Today we debated the merits via Messenger over making a purchase for a meat grinder attachment for our KA. Our concern is that grinding bones will tax the motor and burn it out. So, we've decided to buy a dedicated meat grinder, probably the one recommended by the lady on the cat nutrition site. It runs $160, which is fairly steep, but if it saves us one visit to the vet due to a health issue related to diet then it'll have paid for itself.
TASIN TS-108 ELECTRIC MEAT GRINDER
 
One of my cats has been on a raw diet since day one, the other since he wss a year and a half(when I got him), they are both 9 years old and I've never had to take them to the vet for a health related issue. My girl, Lockjaw, has perfect teeth as well. I definitely highly recommend it
 
assets said:
One of my cats has been on a raw diet since day one, the other since he wss a year and a half(when I got him), they are both 9 years old and I've never had to take them to the vet for a health related issue. My girl, Lockjaw, has perfect teeth as well. I definitely highly recommend it
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Thanks for the positive endorsement. I really feel this is the way to go to have a happy, healthy cat. I fed my dogs raw for a span and they did very well on it. I get the feeling that it's a bit more complicated with cats, but it's totally do-able.

Do you make batches and freeze some and thaw as needed?

Oh! I love your Bengal (?) avatar pic. :)
 
OMG, my dear heart, Franki, sent me a text asking if there is a poly get together that happens in the evenings. I told her about Polycocktails and asked if they (she and her hubby, Smatch) were thinking of opening things up again or just to socialize. This lead into a discussion that she wants a girlfriend and her hubby is okay with it. She wanted to know if i thought she'd find someone from her area (she's 40-50 minutes away), etc. I suggested OKCupid and then told her that I'd date her in a heartbeat. So, guess what?! That is what she wanted, but didn't come out and say it. We're going to meet Sunday afternoon to talk things through, and in the meantime we're going to talk to our partners. I'm totally squeeing right now. I have felt so much for her for so many years. We don't see each other often, but we are alway so comfortable with each other and fall right back into that in the blink of an eye. Plus, she's hella hot! And sweet! OMG, I'm the luckiest person on the planet right now.
 
So much has happened in my life since last Thursday. For some time my daughter has been telling me that she is depressed and doesn't want to live. Thursday afternoon she became suicidal and sent out good-bye texts to me and her cousin. Instructions to him on where to find her keys, where to find her dog, etc. She's been using meth and living with a drug dealer. Some crazy shit went down Saturday when she did bath salts with someone, and the fallout was too much for her to handle.

I made some calls, reached out to a friend, Ruby, who is a peer specialist for AODA, and made plans to get go north asap. My friend volunteered to go with me and at first I turned her down, but on second thought I accepted her offer. I'm so glad that I did, because she was very helpful in contacting the mental health crisis center and the police while I drove.

My sister was out looking for my daughter. No one would come to the door of the boyfriend's house. Megan's vehicles were there, so if she wasn't in the house then the big question was where was she and how did she get there. While she was there the UPS driver stopped to deliver a package, and she was someone my sister knew. She said that no one ever answers the door there, and that if they are outside when she pulls in that they go into a building and don't interact with her. Tweakers be sketchy. My sister took a picture of the place and sent it to her son to confirm she was at the right place and my nephew about freaked out, because he was afraid they'd do something to her. He's scared shitless by this guy. My sister left and returned several times while frantically driving around trying to find Megan. She found the boyfriend's dog tied to a picnic table at the boat landing. It later came out that the dog had followed Megan when we walked away from the farm, so she tied her up and sent her cousin a text telling him where she was.

We were on the phone with my sister when she spotted my daughter on a bridge. She didn't want us to call the police right away, because she wanted to talk to her first. Megan took off, my sister caught up to her. She started to give my sister a hug and then broke it off and started ranting on how she just wants people to leave her alone and how she can't even kill herself right, because who forgets to bring a knife? At some point my sister called and said, "Call them now." Ruby made the call for me, and the police dispatcher asked if her boyfriend's last name was Morgan after he heard his first name. Yeah, he's well known by law enforcement in the area. In fact, I guess he's going to prison/jail in a few weeks.

Turns out that a passerby had already called in about a distraught female on the bridge, so police and an ambulance had already been dispatched.

My sister offered up that she'd take Megan camping in response to Megan saying she just wanted to get away and be in the woods. When the police arrived, Megan went from raving to sane in a heartbeat and told them that she just had a bad week and she wanted some peace and quiet and all she wanted to do was go camping. So, they didn't take her in. They really couldn't as she wasn't presenting like she was a threat to herself or others in the moment. My sister offered to let her camp in her RV that is at my parents' farm, so that was the plan. She wanted her vehicle and her dog and then she was supposed to go there. She never did, but I didn't know this, because she was refusing to see me until the following night.

I woke to the motel ringing the phone at 5 am to get my attention that my sister was trying to reach me. About an hour before she had shown up at my nephew's trailer (that is on my parents' farm) under the influence of something and her state was deteriorating and she was starting to pass out. I called an ambulance and Ruby and headed to my parents' which was about a 20 minute drive for us. We met the ambulance on my parents' road as we were arriving. The same police officer that responded the night before was the one who responded to the latest call, so that was fortunate. He said that when she saw him and the medics that she bolted for the knives. I felt relieved that she had played right into our hands perfectly and I was sure something would come of it.

Lots of things did swing in our favor. Northwestern Mental Health Center chaptered (refers to Chapter 51 of the statutes) her thanks to the nurse going to bat for us. We also covered our bases by meeting with a social worker to get the ball rolling on trying for a Third Party Petition to get her committed by a judge just in case we were unable to get her chaptered. Thankfully we didn't have to go that route, because it's very difficult and takes close to two weeks to get it through.

By the time we returned to the ER, Northwestern had chaptered her, so we didn't have to go that route. They wouldn't have done it if the nurse, who also works for an AODA facility, hadn't have gone to bat for us.

So, lots of things went in our favor. They got her into a locked psych ward in Eau Claire and we believed she'd be there for 72 hours, not counting weekend hours.

OMG, she was mad and she was panicked. All she wanted was to get out, because she said that she couldn't breathe in there. I didn't visit her on the weekend. My plan was to go up yesterday and hopefully (with her permission) talk to her psychiatrist, therapist, and social worker to make a plan, and to see her. Her social worker called me Saturday and I told him my concerns and what I observed in her behavior. I told him that I suspected she has a mental disorder and I really hoped they'd be able to diagnose her. During the drive up north, I told Ruby that I had suspected for some time that she had something but that I didn't know what. Ruby said that she thought so too, and that she had a feeling she may have Borderline Personality Disorder. I've since done my research and also asked my sister and nephew if they thought the description fit Megan and both of them agreed that it sounds like her to a T, minus the anger issue. Her father and her brother to some degree also fit the disorder.

Bond was going to go with me yesterday. We needed to drop his car off for a recall servicing and then we were heading north. However, as we were getting ready Megan called to say that they were letting her out and could I pick her up immediately. Then she threatened to start walking if I couldn't. Seriously? I'm three hours away, so it simply wasn't physically possible. Her cousin picked her up. She's going to stay with him under strict conditions that he has set up. There will be no more financial support for her from me (hopefully).

He's taking her along to do some odd jobs he has lined up and she can earn some cash doing that. He had back surgery this spring and the doctor should be clearing him for work in the next week to week and a half. He says he can't really leave her home and go, because of her abandonment issues. He believes she'd head for town and then the (ex)boyfriend's within five minutes. I guess one time he went to town to get ice cream when she was sleeping. He left her a note saying where he had gone and when he'd be back. She was so shook up over it that it took her five to ten minutes to calm down after he returned. I had no idea that it had gotten that bad.

My brother is ready to head to Wisconsin to give her a good lecture and get her ass in gear getting a job, etc. As if that would actually work. She is too sick to manage getting herself to go to work on a steady basis. Fuck, she needs therapy, and medication. And some tough love, but not just tough love. It's not that simple.

I spent some time yesterday doing more research. I believe I have found a therapist that uses the method that is most successful for this personality disorder. It's a super shitty disorder and treatment isn't easy. I am hoping I can get her to make the appointment, but I may have to assist with getting that done.

I'm so pissed at the person who decided to cut her loose. She kept telling me that they weren't doing anything for her, and I kept reminding her that it was because it was the weekend and they don't have their staff there for that on the weekends. So, it seems that they didn't want to deal with someone who didn't want their help, so they took the easy way out. But by doing so they have failed her totally and fulfilled her belief that there is no help for her. Fuck them and their lazy Monday morning attitude.
 
Petunia said:
Thanks for the positive endorsement. I really feel this is the way to go to have a happy, healthy cat. I fed my dogs raw for a span and they did very well on it. I get the feeling that it's a bit more complicated with cats, but it's totally do-able.

Do you make batches and freeze some and thaw as needed?

Oh! I love your Bengal (?) avatar pic. :)
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That's my girl, Lockjaw, as a kitten, both my cats are Bengals.

I'm actually lazy/busy and buy premade raw. The company that makes it is pretty great. It's called Red Dog Blue Kat. They are a local company here in Vancouver and use super high quality meat, I sometimes joke that my cats eat better than me. I used to feed them whole raw but that is so messy. I've never done the grinding it myself route.

I'm not sure that is more complicated with cats, they do require much more protein than dogs though.
 
Date night with Franki tonight. She's so cute; when we got together to discuss dating she wanted to know what date we should consider as our anniversary. She decided upon the day we first decided that we wanted to date. Adorbs.

It'll be nice to have a night out of the house sans children. It's been really great since we changed their schedule, but a night away from them will still be sweet. I've been so stressed with the daughter situation that it's hard to not let overshadow homelife. Last night by the end of day I was feeling down and emotional. I didn't let it spill out towards anyone, but it was hanging on me like a blanket. Stress is hard.

Speaking of the daughter situation, she had a good day overall, but by late afternoon it seemed like she was getting wore down, and I think that's why my energy level fell, too. Midday my middle son messaged me about Megan saying she was moving to KY. From there a flurry of message between her and I, and requests for phone conversations from my brother happened. For a good hour in the afternoon I focused on that instead of work. Mostly my brother wanted me to know that he had called Megan the night before, threatened her with making her move down to KY and filing for power of attorney, placing her in a treatment program, etc. if she didn't get her act together. Typical behavior out of him. He is scared for her and he doesn't know any other approach. I let him know that he'd never be able to get POA for her and he agreed, but he was hoping she wouldn't know that.

She is seriously considering moving down there, but is frightened that she'll be lonely. And that she'll miss her cousin. For now, she is going to go for two to three weeks. My brother's work schedule lines up with him being able to pick her up midweek next week and return her in three weeks, give or take. I think it'll be good for her to take a vacation of sorts.

We had some severe weather last night, with tornado warnings, so we spent an hour in the basement watching MasterChef. Afterwards S2 wanted to make the scrambled eggs that Gordon Ramsey demonstrated. He pretty much roped his dad into guiding him the entire way. S3 claimed the TV when we returned topside and watched another episode of MasterChef. He told me that he loves cooking and wants to do more. Very cute. The eggs were divine, by the way. I never would have thought to make them that way or to use creme fraiche in them. Very soft, but super tasty.

I started looking for kids' cooking classes. Found one close by. If S3 decides to stop swimming lessons, then maybe we'll sign him up for a couple of classes. He'd be moving onto Level 6 and he's not sure he wants to pursue going further with lessons. Most drop out around Level 3, so he's already gone further than most. It sounds like Level 6 is more about endurance and swimming below the surface. The cooking classes are $50 a pop, so that would add up. A couple of classes, though, would be a lot of fun for him, although we could simply do it at home. They also have cooking camps that run $225 for a week. I doubt I could get Bond to go for that, but maybe.
 
Last night I had to dig through paperwork looking for Twitch's SUV title. I was pretty certain that we separated that stuff when we split, but he can't find it, so he wanted me to look. Wow, that is an emotional workout going through our past life. I think this also added to my sads/low. It wasn't in the filing cabinet or in a tote of office stuff that I have, so he'll have to order a replacement title from the DMV.

When I texted him to say I didn't find it I also let him know that it was emotionally brutal to go through that stuff. He replied that he knows it is and that he has regrets every day about how he messed everything up and how he wishes he could go back and fix it. I felt bad that I shared with him that it's hard to go through that stuff. I let him know, because I didn't want him to ask me to go through it again (for the fourth time). Still, doing so adds more guilt on him and at this rate he'll remain in the hell he's created for himself and never heal and move on.
 
I saw Thad when I was driving home the other day. We were both advancing towards a 3-way stop side by side so we put the windows down and had a quick conversation. He really wants to hang out with Bond and me. He sends me messages fairly often asking if it is possible. I finally gave in and made plans for Monday night. He's bringing a partner. They're arriving early enough to hang in the kitchen while we prepare dinner. He's jazzed. I'm sure it'll be pleasant if not a bit odd for Bond and me. I'm think he's under the impression that we have intellectual conversations on a regular basis, because he's caught us having a few of them when he's popped by in the past and we've pulled him into our conversation. He might be disappointed to learn that more often we're talking about household chores and what's for dinner. A good political, or social justice, discussion is more what he's hoping for I'm sure.
 
Date night with Franki was really sweet. I wonder if I'll be able to transition from friends to romantic friend. Probably yes. We've always walked the edge of that, so now it'll be something we don't have to pull back from. Afterall, she is the person who made me squirt for the first time six years ago. LOL. I met her through our experimentations with kink and we became friends almost instantly. A year or so later she asked if she could try to get me to squirt. We planned it for when we were at their trailer up north one weekend. Twitch, Smatch (her hubby), were there participating, observing the whole thing. It was kind of a hoot. For the record, ever since that first time there are times when it just happens and I'm less than enthusiastic when it does. Someone just happens to hit the right spot and it's uncontrollable from my end. The person who caused it to happen is usually pleased with themselves, but for me it's meh as far as an experience and more of an ugh over the fluid mess.

I feel so huge compared to her. She's so tiny and I'm carrying extra weight. I tell myself that it doesn't matter to her, because if it did she would not want to be in a relationship with me. I believe that's true, but it's still hard to not feel unattractive. All of this in on my side. She has never, ever said or done anything to lead me to think she feels that I'm unattractive. Just my lovely brain weasels.

B took off on her Colorado trip in the wee hours of the morning. Bond visited briefly last night with his youngest, S3. Her daughter has a big attachment to a hat with bunny ears and she couldn't find it. They heard noise from the front and discovered she had totally unpacked the car in search of her hat. Some of the things were too heavy for her to lift, so she pulled them and in the process pulled the gasket out. Bond tried to get it back in place, but it's stretched now and it doesn't fit like it should. Agh! Kids! Before that, the kids were having a water balloon fight and she stepped back into a window well, the kind that is super big for an egress window in the basement and banged her leg up. Bond said that B handled it all very well. She's such a good momma.

My daughter sent me a picture of a fresh tattoo of a yellow flower, the ones that look like wild sunflowers, this morning. Evidently a friend of hers is a professional tattoo artist and did the tattoo for the price of a hug. She said that the words, 'do you suppose she's a wildflower?" from Alice in Wonderland will be added at another sitting. I find this encouraging. It seems that a person who is intent on suicide wouldn't bother getting a tattoo. I hope it's a good sign.
 
I just wanted to say that I'm so sorry to hear of your daughter's struggles, and for what it's worth I'm sending positive energy her way (and yours!).
 
RainyGrlJenny said:
I just wanted to say that I'm so sorry to hear of your daughter's struggles, and for what it's worth I'm sending positive energy her way (and yours!).
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Thank you! Much appreciated.
 
My daughter went MIA on Saturday in the middle of the night. She took her car, because I guess her SUV is broke down? Or maybe it's Aaron's truck that is broke down, but either way she had his tools in the car and he asked her to return them before Monday so he could work, but she was a no-show.

I learned of this yesterday when my brother called to say he couldn't reach her to get her answer about whether or not she was going to KY for the next couple of weeks. Earlier in the day she had replied to a message from me, but it was kind of scrambled. I believe she was telling me that her phone was messed up, but I couldn't be certain. My brother needed an answer, because he was in Detroit and finishing up with work there. He needed to know if he was heading to WI to pick her up, or if he was heading for home directly. If he was picking her up his plan was to leave in the morning, but if he was heading home he was going to leave after he got done on second shift training workers on something and then he would drive as far as he could before stopping for some sleep.

I sent her texts, IM's and left several voicemails. Basically starting with telling her it was urgent she contact her uncle, and then escalating to letting her know that if she keeps shitting on people that they will quit helping her. I also said that I will be pulling financial support if that is the way she is going to operate.

I nearly canceled on Thad, because emotionally I was not in a space for entertaining guests. But then I got ornery and decided I wasn't going to let her behavior influence my life like that.

Partway through the evening, while I was cooking, my brother sent a message saying that she texted him. He told me to talk to Aaron, or maybe he meant that he talked to Aaron. His message was unclear, but Aaron got his tools back and he said that she is messed up again.

I really don't know what to do with her anymore. I'm not sure I should do anything. I am pulling financial support. I am trying to accept that she may die because of her decisions and personality disorder and I am trying to absolve myself of guilt. I have done so much for her. I am in debt due to helping her out more than I can afford to. I've taken her into my home. I've done supervised visitation with her and her son, so that she could be part of his life. I've tried to get her help, but she resisted. It's time for her to be accountable. I need to survive this.

Dinner with Thad:

He had a lot of negative things to say in general about how his relationships have gone. Not that he was bad-mouthing anyone, but just one tale after another of how things have ended or gone sideways. After he left, Bond and I were talking and it seems to us that he needs to build on one relationship and let it develop deep roots before adding more partners. It seems that jealousy is a common component throughout his relationships, added to the fact that he has started relationships with women who do not identify as polyamorous resulting in things keep crumbling around him.

I am having mixed results with my weight loss. I was up three pounds this past week. Yesterday I started a food log. Today I woke to a 1.1 lb weight loss. I tallied my carbs from yesterday and I was happy to see that it came to 17.1933 even though I ate a package of mixed nuts from the vending machine that totaled 9 carbs. My goal is <= 20 carbs/day and <7 carbs/meal, so to eat 9 carbs in one blow could easily have ruined the day. I suspect we eat out too frequently (Tuesday and Thursday date nights), and on those nights I tend to have a gin + soda water + 1 sucradrop, or two drinks. The other inclination I have is to eat before I get super hungry, and to eat beyond satiation. If I'd listen to my body, I'm sure I'd have huge success.
 
Ruby came over Wednesday night to ask a favor. She needs someone to register a car she is buying in their name, because she has so many parking tickets from when she was living downtown and couldn't afford parking. Her life has changed dramatically since those days. She was working a program where fines were forgiven in exchange for community service, but the person who handled that job left and the incoming person didn't have record of about half of her time she had put in and she refuses to accept back dated proof, even though the place she volunteered is more than willing to do so. So, Monday evening we'll sit down at my computer and register her car in my name.

My middle son is in such a bind. For the second week in a row he hasn't received a paycheck. The temp agency is supposed to be investigating, but they told him they cannot cut him a check until the next pay period closes. Such bullshit. Presently he has $1.00 to his name.

I sent him money via Venmo, but he won't be able to access it until Monday because his bank is slow to approve it. His electricity is shut off, and his phone will be shut off at midnight. I contacted my brother and he's going to loan him $100. Hopefully he'll be able to get the power back on today. The stress this kid is under is crushing. I'm pretty pissed at his father, because he called me Tuesday night to ask if Josh was in trouble, because he asked him to help him out. He wanted to make sure he wasn't doing drugs or anything like that before sending it. Well, turns out he never sent any money. He didn't ask for his address and he won't do electronic payments. I sent a text to ask him if he was going to and I also sent him Josh's address.

We picked our kitten this week! He'll be ready to go home with us on the 18th of August. We're so excited. There were 8 male kittens to chose from, so that was rather nice. I wasn't expecting to have so many choices. They have been calling him Weston.

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We're in a friendly naming war at our house. I'm pushing for Covfefe Kerfuffles Kikitty. :D

The time is going to fly by between now and when he comes home. I want to work on revamping his scratching post this weekend. We have new carpet for the base and sisal to wrap the post. I'd really like to start prepping wood for the highways and plexiglass for the interior drop soffit, but I'm not sure if that'll happen this weekend. I'd like all of that in place before he is a juvenile. I've got my eye out for a cat stand on the Facebook marketplace. We need to order a meat grinder and food supplements, and pick up litter, a litter box, brushes, dishes, toys, etc.

Baby Shower/Sit & Sip

My son and I were discussing dates for a baby shower here in Wisconsin. Because we're running out of safe travel times between now and the due date, we have decided to have the shower after the baby arrives. Our tentative date is October 6th. Because traveling solo with a newborn is pretty daunting, we extended an invitation to the baby momma (MB) and her family. MB is on board and excited to meet Josh's family. Today I sent my family a heads-up message with details to follow so they can pencil in the date. I hope they come. This may be their only chance to meet Baby Avery's mother. Plus, Josh will be hurt if they don't show up. Bond said that we could have the basement carpet replaced before the shower, which means we need to get busy painting. I want the painting done before the carpet is laid. I'd also like new bedding for the guest rooms. Everything needs freshening. What we have is tired and getting shabby.

Hey, my ex-husband called while I was writing this to say that he will send money out tomorrow when he gets off of work. Um, he just called back to say he's going to send it via Western Union before he goes into work today. That's fantastic!

OMG, my brother just called. My son was in an accident. His neighbor drives a duelly and he ran him off the road. Driving too fast with a vehicle that is too wide for the roads in KY and with all the hills and curves he didn't see my son coming. My son went off the road, hit a mailbox which broke off the passenger side mirror. The mirror flew into the cab through the open window and smacked him in the face, briefly knocking him out. Other than the mirror, his truck is fine.

What a day! :(
 
My mercurial daughter; when she's on, she's on fire. Saturday she asked for money. I sent her $20. She is starting a bartending job Friday. I told her that if she wanted to earn money that I'd pay her to clean her grandmother's house or other things like that. Bond suggested that she fix the door on Grandma's china hutch (center panel came loose). She jumped on that and did it on Sunday. She told me that Grandma wants her pantry cabinets refinished. She said that she was up to the task when I asked. Today she let me know that there are many coats of paint and that she's making progress, but needs to buy paint stripper. I'm so happy and surprised how she jumped on this. She also wanted to know if I had enough money so she could pick up the materials for the table I want her to build in the same trip to buy the paint stripper. I love it when she's motivated and enthused.

It took two trips, but we managed to get a Costco membership! Well, actually Bond got on his wife's membership. We didn't buy a lot, mostly some food stuffs, and limited at that, as we have an excellent grocery store with good prices and we've found most everything we need to eat keto there. I will need to do my homework to know what Costco has that is keto-friendly. I see people post on the Facebook group that I'm on about the great things they find, but they also say the same about Aldi's and we stopped there after Costco and it was a bust.

Saturday night we went out to dinner with Franki, Smatch, TwistedPleasure, Elevate, and Franki's cousin and her boyfriend, and then to a burlesque show. It was so much fun. I wasn't looking forward to it, so it was a very pleasant surprise to actually enjoy the show. The performers were fun and so many of their routines were clever and cute. Both Bond and I were thinking that B would like it, so maybe we'll take her there sometime soon.

Sunday we donated about 100 snails to Pet World. I have about 100 more that are too small and will have to grow some before I can drop them off. I will be glad when we're down to 5 or 6 snails again. We bought a Florida pleco for the big tank. He's not as shy as we thought he may be, but he's not nearly as active (yet) as Gary, our bushy nosed pleco. I love Gary, and I wanted to get another of the same, but Bond wanted to get a different variety, so we now have Sherry. S/he better get busy eating and cleaning!

Pet World is close by the furniture/appliance store where we bought our kitchen appliances for the remodel. Our saleslady kind of dropped off the planet and didn't respond to an email and a couple of texts that Bond sent her back in March. We stopped in to see if she was there and she was. She had somehow missed his messages and we think it was because of the timing. She had surgery on her hand in March and that was when he sent them. It took a while, but we got the refund we had coming for an overcharge. Actually, we had them give us store credit and then we bought a cooling mattress pad for our Tempurpedic. I thought they ran around $150-200, but it was $380! Ouch. The store credit was $180, so that helped. Bond forgot to bring a $50 gift card they gave us at Christmas, which was too bad, but there are other things we want, so it'll get spent at a later date.

Afterwards we went to Farm 'n Fleet to see what they have for cat stuff. We bought a three post platform that has different materials for scratching up each post and a hammock on top. It's only 24" tall, so it'll be good for him when he's a kitty. We've been eyeing the big climbers. Bond thinks we can make one. I question if we can make a stable one and if we'll get it done. :p

It was past 2:30 when we got home, so Bond skipped Beatdown. He worked on the lawn mower, I cleaned and cooked, and he mowed lawn once he got the mower running again.

I thought I'd sleep so well; new mattress pad that would handle the body heat, AC set to 75 (down from 77), and clean sheets. Pfft. Sometimes I hate myself. There are times when I wake myself all night long, because the sheets feel so good and last night was one of those nights. That's crazy pants! I was awake from 2-3 am, maybe longer. I took more ibuprofen in hopes that it would calm the nerves in my leg that were unhappy about all the housecleaning I had done, but it took a hella long time to get back to sleep.

Tonight Ruby is coming over to get her car registered and she also wants to soak in our jetted tub.

B is driving back from Colorado today. She said she's sad, tired, and bored. Bond and I are feeling like she's gotten very distant and we're wondering if she's thinking of ending the relationship. We hope she's not ending it, but if so, we hope that the friendship continues.
 
Hey, hey! My girlfriend's back in town! :) I slept like shit, so I'm using the thought of seeing B tonight to fuel me through the day.

Bond was remarking this morning that it's different having someone he is so in tune with dating the same person as he is, because when things feel off the other person can validate. However, it also seems that we can influence one another too and make something into "reality" when it may not be the case. It is kind of humorous when we feel a collective relief or joy over something our shared girlfriend says.

I posted this picture to a Maine Coon Facebook group last night and wow, so many responses. Lots of suggestions for names.

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The breeder emailed last night asking me to select a time for picking up the kitten on the 18th. We're driving 4 hours one way, and her appointments are in 30 minute increments. Damn. That's difficult to know exactly when to say, but I picked a time and we'll do our best to hit it.

I asked my hive mind for vet clinic recommendations, chose one that is close to the house and has great reviews, and also multiple comments on how economical their prices are. I hope it's a good fit. I made an appointment for the 19th.
 
Developments in Baby Land:

My son forwarded a message from his baby momma.

Hey so I have a question on when I'm on maternity leave after she's born do you care if I come up there and stay so we can go see her at the same time I mean I can stay in the back bedroom I have no problem with that I just I want to make sure you get to see her too​

He likes the idea and I'm so filled with relief. I wasn't sure how they were going to manage otherwise. I suggested this to him several months back and he said no, but he's had a change of heart. I want them to discuss how they will handle the other having a romantic interest and if their home needs to be a safe zone, so visits would be at the other person's home. He's having a hard time processing things due to the concussion he suffered when the mirror struck him in the face last week, so he didn't really track what I was saying. He told me he'd reread it after getting some sleep.

This is such a game changer. For one, if they are cohabitating they will not need doubles of everything. Part of me says, "But what if they find they cannot live together?" Secondly, it means I can start using my vacation time. I feel such freedom knowing I can take some time off of work. I looked at the calendar and we'd have to do something next week if we want to fit it in before we get the kitten. We can't very well leave a new kitty right out of the gate.

The other big news is my son relayed last night is that they are going to induce her on the 31st at midnight. Midnight! Seems so strange. Maybe they do it in the middle of the night because it's quieter and it gets things going before the hospital gets busy. Unsure.

I asked my son if it would be okay for me to come down for that and he said yes. I debated about whether or not a grandma needs to be there, which made me feel guilty, but when I thought about it I feel that my son needs someone there for him. So, I'll drive down either the 30th or 31st and return on the weekend, Sunday or maybe even Monday seeing as it's Labor Day. Although traffic might be a bear.
 
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