Smelling the flowers

Saturday I'm heading to Ikea with Franki and Michelle. I can't wait. We've been doing this annual trip for a number of years now. It'll be a full day with two of my favorite people. We'll leave early, stop for breakfast on the way, shop, take a break for lunch, and most likely return to Ikea again before calling it a day.

Initially I wasn't even considering things I may want to buy, but after Franki asked me I started thinking of picking up a bathroom rug for the basement bathroom, and another set of king-sized sheets. Today, however, I realized that it would be the perfect opportunity to buy shelves to extend Max's cat highway. Now I feel rushed for time to figure out exactly what we need for that. I feel like I'm arriving late to the party. I will most likely end up buying a variety that I think will work and we'll have to fill in the gaps later. Maybe there will be a second Ikea trip in the near future. Bond would probably love a shopping trip - I'm just not sure I'd survive it! LOL. He would want to compare all the things and then debate back and forth as to their merit and costs. In the end I predict he'd be locked in indecision. All the while he'd be in his glory.

I sent the second half of the down on Megan's tiny house today.
 
I got a surprising call from my son, Josh, last night. He said that his baby's momma had called him. He quickly reassured me that the baby is fine. The problem is her stepmother is trying to force her to give the baby up for adoption. She is telling her that she's not being responsible. She also said she was going to push my son into signing away his rights so the baby could be placed for adoption.

This is the woman who told Mary she needed to go back to work when Avery was two weeks old, because she needed to start paying rent ($150/wk). This is the woman who told me at the hospital that they didn't think Mary should stay with Josh during her maternity leave, in case she had postpartum depression and they were so far away. (Josh lives one hour away.) This is the same woman who posted multiple times last week on Facebook that she is depressed.

Mary says that she won't allow her to take Avery with her anywhere, because, "you never know about those people out there." She even prevented her from taking the baby to work with her, something that is allowed by her employer.

Mary's father is a very quiet man, as in, he rarely talks. He just found out last night that Mary has been paying rent. I guess he was hella mad.

Mary also said that when her stepmom first found out she was pregnant she told Mary that she was going to try to force her into placing the baby for adoption.

Something is terribly wrong with this lady. She's very controlling, but there is something off about her and I question her mental stability.

Today Mary is coming to Josh's and they are going to put the crib and other things together. They are talking about her moving in with him and she even went so far as to say she'd move to Wisconsin if she needed to just to get away from her stepmother.

Bizarre.
 
My son sent me a video of Avery rocking in the swing I sent him, later followed by a picture of him holding her. I asked him how his day was going and he said, "Fantastic!" He looked so happy in the picture. The plan is for Mary to stay the weekend, go home after that, find a job by him, and then move in with him. I think they have a shot at making this work. :)
 
The Ikea trip was eventful. When we got to Franki's house, Michelle and I were heads down looking at our phones trying to find the name of the restaurant we usually stop for breakfast at when do this trip, so that we didn't notice the smoke billowing up from the engine. Franki got in the car and asked if the car should be smoking like that. OMG! Michelle quickly shut it off and we jumped out. As she was getting out she said that they had the oil changed the day before, so I instantly knew what the problem was, and once she got the hood up I quickly spotted the oil cover sitting at the front of the engine. We'd been driving for 40 minutes, but at highway speeds we didn't see any smoke and it likely wasn't smoking all that much. Once we stopped the oil started dripping down from the saturated felt hood liner onto the hot engine. Franki grabbed a rag and paper towels and we sopped up as much oil as we could reach or pull out of the felt liner. Luckily Franki had two quarts of the same weight oil in her van, so we added that until it showed on the dipstick.

The rest of the trip was delightful. I bought a lot of shelves for Max's cat highway. I'm anxious to get them up now. He hasn't figured out a way down and he loves going up there, but he needs one of us to help him down. The boys figured out that if they lift a huge box we have that he'll jump into it and they can lower him down. My concern is that he'll go up there when we're gone during the day and will be stuck up there for hours.

After we had dropped Franki off, my daughter started sending me texts about her cousin, Aaron, hitting a deer on his motorcycle and being med-flighted to the hospital. I had to call my sister to let her know where they were taking him and the fact that he was being med-flighted. She had gotten the news that he had been in an accident, but didn't know the details. What I didn't realize at the time was that he was still at the farm (friend brought him there first) and they hadn't taken off yet. Despite sending her directly to the hospital (an hour drive from where she was at) and the helicopter not leaving for many, many minutes after I gave her the message, the helicopter made it to the hospital before she did, thank goodness.

He has seven broken ribs, a punctured lung, head lacerations, and bruising. He's a lucky guy considering how much worse things could have been. No helmet for fucks sake. Ugh. He's lucky his brains aren't scrambled.

Megan sent me pics and a video of the helicopter as things were progressing at the farm with the EMTs. Pretty shocking.
 
My brother called me yesterday to say that he's going to be at the farm Sunday through Tuesday to change locks on the trailer, kick the druggies out that have been hanging there, and attempt to convince my daughter to go to KY with him.

Aaron has been in a total asshat mood. I get that he's miserable, but that doesn't mean he gets to treat people like shit. He's lucky he's not across town in a hospital, because two days ago I'd have been in his room in a flash telling him a few choice words. Megan went to see him and he was totally pissed at her for him being transported via helicopter. I guess when the medics told him they had called in the med flight he managed to tell them he didn't want it. They turned to Megan and she said to do it, because they were the pros and they thought it was necessary and there was so much blood from his head wounds and he couldn't breathe, so she was scared shitless. I think they'd have brought it in regardless. It's not like she has power of attorney or anything. So, he was an ass about that. After talking to my brother I guess his daughter was there at the same time. Aaron tried to tell her that he's had it rough and people don't understand that. She was like, "Really? You want to go there with me?" This girl is a quadriplegic. She broke her neck four days before her 15th birthday. She has a college education and is making her way in the world. He needs to quit using excuses. Same with Megan. Via Frank I also learned that Megan was in a dirty sweatshirt and has sores on her face. Sounds like she is using still.

I told my brother that I'd join him at the farm and lend a hand and support. Fuck, this is so messed up. My parents are afraid to even be out in their yard. They're 82 years old and afraid. This has to be fixed.
 
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Ex-husband #1 called me last night. He is very upset with our daughter and with the situation at my parent's farm. (My nephew lives in a trailer house on their farm.) I told him the Sunday - Tuesday plan. He's relieved. He said he won't even go there without his 44. Holy crap! He's a worrywart, but that's incredibly scary on several fronts. 1.) he's carrying a gun, and 2.) he thinks it's necessary. He told me that some of the riffraff have stolen food out of my parent's freezer that is on their porch.

I put a call out to my youngest son to see if he can also be there on Sunday. I think that my brother and I can handle it and we come off as pretty scary when needed, but we're getting older and we may have lost our edge - and these are adults, not children. I am hoping that my brother's son-in-law and his stepson will be there, too.
 
I didn't mention the call I got from Josh last night. He just needed to vent. Mary had planned on coming up to his place with Avery after work (a 16 hr shift), but when she walked in the door her father and stepmother ambushed her with a confrontation. Again they are telling her that she is not a responsible parent and that if she moves into Josh's they want the two of them to have to have an evaluation done to prove they are fit parents. Her dad also said that Josh has to move to TN and buy a house first. Mary told Josh that she was going to stay there for the night, because she was too exhausted and things were too tense.

Where are these people coming from? Her stepmother forces her to go back to work when the baby is two weeks old and then accuses her of not being a fit parent.

Josh called again a little bit ago. He learned more of what happened and needed to vent. Evidently her stepmother took/stole her check from her and deposited in her account. They held Avery away from her and wouldn't let her take her. Both her father and stepmother were physically fighting with her, and Pam is threatening she will call child protective services if she moves to Josh's.

Straight up crazy pants and controlling. I advised Josh to have her report the check stolen and see what can be done, and to ask for a cop to be there today when she gets home from work so she can pack up her things and get the baby and leave. I also told him that both he and Mary need to start journaling all of these events. If child services are called they have nothing to hide as they are doing a fine job when allowed, and that a log will go a long ways to helping social services get a grasp of what has been happening.

They are starting to think moving to Wisconsin may need to happen just to get farther from Pam.
 
Twitch's mother died Friday afternoon. She's been in a nursing home for a number of months, I'm unsure exactly how long, maybe a year. They aren't having her funeral until the 16th. If it was today or tomorrow I'd be able to go, and would because I'm up north, but I am taking a Visual Studio 17 class next week so I can't be gone.

Things went well on many levels yesterday with telling people they have to leave the farm. Aaron was actually relieved that we were forcing it to happen. Megan is devastated and angry. She does not want to go to KY. She told my sister that all she'll have in KY is an uncle that works all the time (all over the world), an aunt she doesn't get along with, and a brother who doesn't look at her. With that viewpoint/feeling I can't really blame her. I offered for her to move in with us (after talking to Bond) and she quickly shot it down. I called her favorite uncle on her father's side and he said no to her moving in with him. Can't blame him there. It's not like she's even admitting to a drug problem and attempting a recovery. She just sent me a text to see what he said. I think she was hopeful. This is so heartbreaking. Fucking drugs and addiction.

My father won't let up on his strange politics (did you know Michelle Obama is a man?) or his world currency revaluation bullshit and his belief that the United States is actually incorporated and not the nation we believe it is. That airplanes crisscross the country dumping chemicals that brainwash us and keep us compliant, etc. All I want to do is go home to sanity and calm.

A full day of having to play the heavy really takes a huge toll on me. And it's still continuing. The guy that has been staying with Aaron won't be home until sometime today. He's such a mooch and a drain on society. He's the one we believe has been stealing food out of my parent's freezer. I really pushed for him to be gone yesterday, but couldn't make it happen. My brother had to be in Wausau this morning at 5:00pm and I didn't want to deal with him on my own, but oh well, it is what it is. My brother can head back later today or head for KY. He would like to go directly home if Megan isn't going with him. I think I'd like him back here to offer support. He's really sick with a cold and thinks it's strep so I should just let him go home. My sister gave him a full prescription of antibiotics and he's starting to feel better, so maybe I will ask him to return.

My mom stayed talking about Thanksgiving and I invited them down, or rather asked her if they would want to. It would be so much easier, all the way from cooking, cleaning, and fitting people in the house. And with dealing with my dad. I'm going to talk to my sister and her her input. It would also be easier for my brother's daughter, because our house is handicap accessible.
 
So, I invited my family for Thanksgiving and it wasn't until a day or two later that I realized I messed up B's Thanksgiving tradition that she started a couple of years ago. Damn it. She's being gracious and is willing to do it all at my house. I hope my family is ready for all of us, plus our friends, and I hope my friends can handle all of my family. Josh and Mary Beth and the baby will probably be here, too. Taylor might bring his GF. I don't know if Megan will come. It might be too much for her. I am also unsure about my nephew. I think my niece and family that live in southern WI will come.

I'm sick with a cold this week. It started on Saturday with a sore throat. Yesterday afternoon I started feeling human again. I still have the crud, but it's not as intense. It's been a hard week, because I'm in a Microsoft class for MVC that is taught in C+ and I am not a C+ programmer. I'm in way over my head and I just want to go home and never return. I really need to find an exit from this job.

We went to Bond's work Halloween party Saturday night. OMG, so much fun. He put the time in the calendar an hour early on accident, so when we arrived 45 minutes past what we thought was the start time we were actually early and the first ones there. That's a first for me! LOL.

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B and I did our own make-up and then B did Bond's, although he said he added the black on his face. I absolutely loved how it all turned out - although I looked rather feline once I put my glasses on. We also brought a dear friend and in this picture he doesn't have his mask on. Bond has zero fucks to give on how many people are appropriate to bring with to a work party. LOL. We're getting well known among his coworkers as a triad. Hopefully we're normalizing it for others and not leading people to think it's for freaks. Sometimes when we all have our hair colored vibrantly I worry about that.

I need to get some updated pictures of our kitten. He's getting so big. He's 8.5 lbs now. Totally loveable and so much personality.

My break is done, so I need to end this. Ciao.
 
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Thanks, PinkPig and Reverie. :) It was loads of fun!

Yesterday was Bond's 47th bday. We celebrated with Michelle and John, and B Saturday night with dinner out at a really good restaurant followed by a couple of drinks at a fun bar that wasn't terribly busy and had a divided area, where we commandeered a table, that was almost like being in another room.

We did some chores that day and Bond went into work in the afternoon for several hours before we went to dinner. It seems like the task list never ends. We really should have gone hiking like we were thinking of doing instead of being responsible adults. It was absolutely lovely out! Mid-70's and gorgeous. I think we would have if we had realized that the weather was changing to cold and rainy the next day into the unforeseeable future. Boohoo.

We're heading to Chicago Wednesday night, staying over at a motel, and flying out early the next morning to Orlando. Sons #2 and #3 are coming with. It'll be a Disney trip and the first time for both kids. We return on Sunday. It should be fun - I hope. :) I have low expectations. Bond got pulled into a cheap trip contingent on listening to a timeshare speal. Twitch and I did that once years ago and the sales pitch was so intense that I vowed to never repeat the experience. But, Bond is quite impervious to argument and persuasion, and can out logic the best of them, so he'll be fine...I know one thing, he'll never buy a timeshare. He'd buy a vacation home before he'd go that route.

We got an estimate to have interior painting done. I am hoping they'll do it next week or the week after. $2,200 (labor) for the front room, stairway, hallway, and five bedrooms. Next up after that is new carpet in the lower level (stairway, hallway, and two bedrooms.) Thanksgiving is our deadline. If we're going to do it, we want it done before we have holiday guests. I'm going kind of bold for our bedroom colors: golden on all walls except the wall behind the bed and dark blue on that wall. The boys have been told they can pick colors if they wish. I think S1 is considering it. S2 said he doesn't want his room painted. He doesn't want it done, because he doesn't want to clean his room and move stuff. Seriously. His father told him it's happening. He's not paying someone to paint and then skipping a room.

We had 12 wild turkeys in our backyard Sunday morning. It was quite the surprise to open the bedroom drapes and see them there. I love that we have a nature area behind the house. They stayed around quite a while scratching underneath one of the trees in the yard.

Bond's mother called him for his bday and they had quite long Facetime conversation. It made me all the more eager to have her visit us over Christmas. She's such an interesting lady.

Franki is coming over tonight. It seems like ages since we've seen each other. Last week I canceled because of the cold coming on as I didn't want to spread it to her. She has enough health issues as it is with asthma and a liver disease.

Tomorrow night is our date night with B, and the next night we leave. I'm not sure when I'm going to pack.
 
I checked the weather for Orlando and it looks like heavy rain all day Saturday and rain on Sunday. Boo!

Last night was nice with Franki. We ate dinner and then watched 'Love It or List It', 'House Hunters International'. She doesn't have cable, so these were new to her. Bond worked until 10:30, so we had the house to ourselves. The cat knocked himself out showing off and getting Franki to play with him. He ambushed her when she came out of the bathroom and when she jumped he jumped over her reaction. He was in high form getting her to play with him. He's such a social animal. I love it. One of his favorite games is to have us flip the mouse that is on a lead and attached to a wand up onto his cat highway. He races up the cat track grabs it and runs down the highway to the end, jumps onto the top platform of his cat stand from one to the next until he's down and then he races into our bedroom and back, dragging the wand all the way. It's quite the production!

Late yesterday afternoon Bond sent me a message saying the painter wants to start TODAY! And they'll be painting while we're out of town. Gulp. He and Bond met this morning to go over room colors (the ones we've decided upon) and whatever else needs to be discussed before they get to work. I'm worried about being gone while they are there painting. I'm concerned about the kitten mostly, but also about not seeing the paint colors before the room is completed. We're directing them to start with the rooms that are going to be a warm white (Hint of Vanilla). I am also comfortable with the guest room color. It's a beachy theme in that room and the paint is called SW Tidewater. Franki gave her vote of approval last night and I feel it's fairly safe. The painter expects the job to take two weeks. He must be planning other jobs in between, because that seems like a long time.

B is coming over tonight and hanging out while we (probably me, not we) pack. We'll give her instructions for Max and get all that set. It won't be a regular date night, but at least we'll get to see her.

Thad and I crossed paths on my way into work today, so he called me as we drove. His life seems to be going along pretty well. He just got back from PA where he attended a conference on homelessness. Sounds like a pretty amazing time. When I got to work I had an email about an upcoming series (The Other Half of Health: An Introduction to Social Determinants, Part I: Family and Social Support) happening at the Capitol, so I forwarded it onto him. He told me he loves me. :D
 
We're packed and ready, other than the boys having to pack when they get to the house after school. That is a pretty big "other than", but it'll be okay. Most likely they won't bring as much as they need and we'll just have to deal with it once we're there.

I checked the weather forecast and it's improved so much!! No worries about getting rained out on Saturday now.

B kept saying she didn't know how we could stand being so unprepared for this trip and that it would break her if she were in our shoes, therefore neither Bond nor I slept worth a shit last night. LOL. I finished watching "The Dressmaker" right before bed and my dreams were filled with it all night long. Ugh. And Bond kept touching me and making me so hot I thought I'd combust. I'd move away from him and he'd reach out and place a hand or a foot on me to keep contact. As soon as he does that I swear I feel like I'm going to go up in flames. Added into the night of internal flames was the kitten laying on my head or in my face or between our chests and trapping the blankets and pulling them oddly. It was a relief when morning came, although by then we had both settled into a sound sleep. Figures.

The painters prepped the walls in the rooms that are being painted Hint of Vanilla. Paint should start being applied today. We shut the kitten in our bedroom for the day. I bet he's going to be a crying baby over not being able to see what they are up to.

Bond's work is coming in hot on the release and I'm wondering if we need to cancel our trip. He bought trip insurance, so we could if needed. Bond doesn't want to, but I think he's a nervous wreck over it. They've never been this behind so close to release. It's been hard because the other studio is fairly new to COD.
 
We're back from Florida! It was really nice to get away. The weather cooperated for the most part. Friday was absolutely perfect. Saturday was muggy and then light rain in the evening. Sunday was cool and windy, so we modified our plans (using the hotel pool in the AM) to directly going to a big mall after checking out to do some shopping. We missed our kitten and were totally ready to be back home. I was more than ready to be back where I could eat keto with ease, too. We went to Universal Studios Friday and Saturday and food options are so limited. It was much harder to get more fat than protein, while keeping carbs low, than I had anticipated.

Bond lost 4 pounds and is now 170.2 lbs. He thought 175 was going to be his set point, but evidently his body had other ideas. I wonder if he'll bounce back up now that we're back home, or if he'll stay at the new weight.

He weighed the kitten and he's 9.8 lbs. He had so many visitors when we were gone. The only thing lacking in his world was someone to sleep with at night. B brought her daughter, Bond's ex stopped by with S1 and her BF, and we had painters in the house that wanted us to leave him out, because they like him. I was a bit unhappy to see that Bond's ex brought over kibble for him - he mentioned that she was bringing over some kitten food that one of her cats had when she was a baby. My understanding was that we were going to use it for treats. However, when we got home there was a bowl out of kibble. Grr. No wonder B said that she was moving his water bowl, because the painters kept shutting our bathroom door - and that he was drinking it. He has never drank water, because he eats raw and it provides what he needs. We always have a bowl available, but he has always acted like it's an odd curiosity and not quite sure what to do with it. So, we leave, he gets fed species inappropriate food, and of course, he needs water to hydrate the dry food. Oh, well. He is back to his usual diet now.

We also returned to find even more cat toys! LOL. B is ridiculous! :)

He was a purrnado for a long time after we went to bed. Such a love.

My heart is full of love for Bond's kids, especially S3. He is such an affectionate, cuddly kid. I've noticed when we travel that he bonds more and more with me. I think he misses his mom and I'm a good substitute. It's pretty cute. On the flight back to Chicago last night he laid his head on my shoulder, gave me a squeeze, and then went back to his video. Awww!

The room colors turned out pretty great. I will get some pictures posted at some point. Next up: carpet. We'll need to shop for that this weekend.
 
So, let's see, B's son nearly ripped off a fingernail when skateboarding last night. She took him to the ER, because it was sqwicking her out. They didn't take the nail off, which she thought they might do. She said that it's moments like that when it's hard to not have another parental unit for backup, so she decided to let the ER deal with it, because she just couldn't. Her son is so active and rather accident prone. He reminds me of my youngest.

I had a dr. appt yesterday at a different health care provider. I haven't been thrilled with the variety of different doctors I've seen since switching medical insurance companies. I did some searching and found one that is a women's only clinic. I met with a Physician's Assistant (PA) Nurse Practitioner and really liked her. I went in to see if there is anything that can help improve my focus. She recommended Black Cohosh to start with, took some blood to run full labs, and I'll check back.

I need to order something for my niece's virtual baby shower that is happening on the 4th. I wanted to get her a bigger ticket item, but she didn't have many of those types of things on her registry and the couple she did have were already purchased. What I had in mind is a Fisher Price Deluxe Rock 'n Play Sleeper like I got my granddaughter. ---her sister got back to me and she already has one. I decided to go with the cloth diapers she has on the registry. Not as much fun, but definitely needed and at $13.25 each they really add up.

Bond got home at 11:00 pm last night. I couldn't stay awake, so I was already sleeping by the time he climbed in bed, although I woke up when he came into the room and we talked a bit before falling asleep. I am hopeful that is his last late night, but who knows. I'll be glad when we're past this season.

I need to start thinking about a Thanksgiving menu that offers us plenty of keto options along with the regular carbavor foods.
 
I think the Black Cohosh may be improving my concentration at work, because it's been a pretty good week workwise. The hard part of the week is that we need to go grocery shopping, but haven't done so. Last night I picked up Papa Murphy's pizzas for the kids, because Bond hadn't made it to the store over lunch like he thought. For the two of us I ended up thawing hamburger patties with provolone. Thankfully neither one of us needs much to eat these days to be satisfied.

Because S1 was at his mother's when we went to FL, and because it was actually our weekend to have the boys, he is staying with us this weekend. He's easy to have around, other than the fact that he destroys the kitchen with late night cooking. The rest of the time he's in the basement on his computer gaming.

We have so many things to do this weekend, and I want to get to Franki's, too. Her hubby is out of town until Sunday or Monday. We could have some alone time and that would be so nice.

It's going to be nonstop running in order to get everything in. You all have no idea how time consuming shopping is with Bond. I really don't know how I'm going to accomplish everything when a big portion involves shopping. I need a winter coat and Bond needs a belt. His belt is ridiculously too big for him now. He's had it since 1999 and he had to put an extra hole in it shortly after he got it but quickly went back up to the next hole after that. He's so thin now. He has the body of a younger man now. I can't wait for his mother to see him in December. I think I'd like to get a North Face jacket/coat. I was tempted to order one last week, but I feel that I need to actually try some one first to check fit. I should also redo my measurements. I may end up ordering online, but at least I'll have checked some in real life before going that route. I also desperately need sweaters.

This morning I placed a grocery order that we can pick up between 11am and 2pm tomorrow.

We need to shop for carpet - to at least get an idea of what we want and prices. Tuesday our painter is bringing by someone he works with that does carpet to measure the rooms and give us a quote. I'd like to be educated on carpet before that.

Our house is dirty and messy, so I/we need to clean and organize things. The painters pulled things out and put some of it back, but they messed some stuff pretty solidly. Like our bedroom curtains were hung wrong, so they need to be redone. I need to cook. Life is so much harder when I don't have things ready for the week.

My tenants put a new roof on the house this past weekend. I would like to go by on Sunday to see it and arrange paying them. It'll give me a good opportunity to scope out what needs to be done to make it ready for putting on the market next summer. We're planning on new windows in early spring, but I'm sure there are other things, like plantings in the front and a new coat of paint on the fence, that need to be done.

Today B and Ginger (friendship is back on) left for a long weekend in Denver at her friends. They'll head back on Tuesday. I doubt we'll have our date night, and I suspect she'll be anxious to have her kiddos on Wednesday, so most likely no moving it to Wednesday.

This morning I started thinking about timing for asking to cut my work hours. I think the first of the year would be best, because my vacation time can be calculated at the new rate and I won't need to figure out how to finish the year with fewer hours if I were to change things now.

Oh! Bond has actually started work on his divorce. Well, he started gathering paperwork at least. I guess he started in the summer. I thought all he had done was sign off of her house and vice versa prior to our kitchen remodel, but he's actively worked on getting ready to file. I'm so happy.

My sweet grandbaby, Avery.
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The naughty Max. (Picture by B)
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Max has learned how to open our bedroom pocket door, but has yet to master pulling on a regular hinged door to open it.
 
Josse, the painter, came by on Saturday with an invoice and to get paid. While he was there I asked him if he knew of anyone who has a cleaning service. After learning that he has a carpet guy it occurred to me that he may also know people with cleaning service businesses. He does, and he will get their contact information to Bond or give them Bond's info. I'm excited. I think we're considering every other week cleaning, but depending on their rates maybe weekly. I double checked with Bond this morning that it was okay and he said it was and that I work my butt off around there. Bond said it would be nice to have a deep cleaning before the holidays. I agree. So much less work to host if I don't have that on my plate, too.

I bought a jacket! Actually, I bought a jacket Saturday morning, and decided it wasn't the right one that night. Sunday morning Bond and I went to REI where I found another that cost 2.5x's as much, but is a much better jacket, and then we returned the first one. I was expecting shopping to take forever Saturday with Bond along, because he loves shopping and comparing prices. But, he actually rushed me out of there before I was even close to be ready to go, which was rather irksome. Even with the extra shopping Sunday, which he was very patient with, I will need another shopping excursion to buy some sweaters. At least I was able to get new gloves at REI, so I can check that box now. We did buy a battery operated lawn mower while at the mall on Saturday. The Sears is closing and they have a 60v Craftsman on sale for $199, compared to its regular $350. That was a sweet deal. :)

Tomorrow is my youngest son's 24th birthday. He wants a winter coat. I asked him to send me a link to the style he wants, but so far he hasn't complied. He called me last night on his way back from drill. He's super jazzed about a deployment opportunity next June to the Middle East. I cannot imagine being excited about such a thing. Anyway, if he gets it he'll make some good money and have minimal expenses, so he'll be able to pay things off and make bank. He said between drill, school, and work he's working 15 hour days. I asked him what he was doing for work, and he still has his lawn business going. I thought that would have ended for the season, but evidently not, plus he's planning on doing snow removal. He's carrying 22 credits in a push to graduate this December. Well, maybe it'll actually be a January graduation as he plans on taking his final class during the interim between semesters. He says his grades are good, nothing less than a B, B+, at the moment. I swear this kid does better when the pressure is on. He did say he's never been so stressed in his life.

I went to Franki's Saturday night. Her hubby was up north. I was tempted to spend the night, but decided I'd sleep better if I went home. I have been exhausted since our trip. We went out to eat, took her son's dog (he lives across the street) for a long walk - got 12,000 steps for the day! and then cuddled up on the couch to watch Katherine Ryan, a comedian from Canada, on Netflix. It was a really nice night.

Bond helped me do a bunch of cooking Saturday afternoon before I went to Franki's and Sunday we fit in carpet shopping after we did the jacket thing. So, cooking happened. Shopping happened. (We never did get Bond a belt!) The laundry got done. But, the house did not get cleaned and the drapes did not get hung correctly. We went to see the new roof on my house and took my friend, Ruby, along with us. The roof looks great. The new bathroom looks great, too. Next up is taking out the window in the other bathroom and re-tiling the shower. Then new windows. We also took care of B's kitties. I will count that as more wins than losses for weekend tasks. :)
 
I entered my leave time into our time system for the rest of the year and I can easily carryover 21 hours if I wish. That's with three days off at Thanksgiving, and the time off over Christmas when Bond's mother is visiting, 19th through the 26th. It would be a lot of fun to take a couple of extra days, because I really like not being at work, but if I cut my work hours next year, it'll be even nicer to have those hours to use then. I'd love to go to Italy in 2018 and Bond sounds like he is agreeable to making it so. His oldest sister lives in Italy, so it would be an economical trip if we didn't have to pay for lodging. :D

B gets home today! Yay! We let her know last night that it didn't look like pet chores were done in the morning. Boy, was she made at WP. He forgot to do them. She was already mad because he didn't let her know how her daughter's first swim team lesson went, and then when she finally got info back it was mostly about he and his GF took a tour of the YMCA during the DD lesson and how they would not be using the facilities, because they aren't up to their standards. So typical of WP. Life is all about him and how things affect him.
 
OMG, you guys, we are actually hiring someone to clean our house. I'm so excited. I've never had a cleaning lady before and I really didn't think I ever would, so it's totally surreal. She's going to come on Wednesdays, and will do deep cleaning as needed, probably seasonally. To kick things off she'll do a deep clean next Wednesday and Thursday. The house will be sparkling for Thanksgiving. :D That'll make hosting so much easier. I can cross cleaning off my to-do list and use those hours for other things. My life may start to balance out.

Josse will act as our go-between for communication, because she knows limited English.
 
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