He's definitely just a "little bit" of doggie!
When I sit, he's usually found cuddled up next to (or on top of) my soft slipper!

                             
He's enjoying Sushi's "chair" (the ottoman) and Sushi is *trying* to be okay with that!

      
Chirper feels more threatened than the other pets.  After all, I'm *HIS* human (and he's mine)!!!!! 

Chirper is bigger than the puppy!

===========================

Jesse and the girls worked some more on the wood pile in the backyard.  As you can see, the amount of split/chopped wood has increased and there are some logs left.  We haven't received the other half of our delivery.  I don't know if there will be as much, or slightly less, wood compared to the first trailer full.

Before lighting the fireplace this year, Jesse said he wants to buy a reflective heat shield.  It's shiny stainless steel and fits against the back wall of a fireplace.  It's supposed to send the heat out into the room and make the fireplace more efficient for heating.

Does anyone know what I'm talking about? 

Does anyone have an opinion about whether they work, or not?

=========================

I've made some progress this weekend, regarding the dining room table.  I need to seal up the box that's going to Nikki and Jaiden (it's on an arm chair in the dining room) and then pack up my fabric and notions for a seamstress to make some more clothes for me.

I found three large yardages of fabric in the garage - fall/winter fabrics.  What a great surprise!  And, Jesse is happy that one more place in the garage is now emptied of my "stuff" that I store there!!!!

================================

Another plan, once the fabric is boxed up, is to make a fall centerpiece for the dining room table.  The white floral arrangement will finally be put away for a while and the grape vines and leaves will go with it.  I got as far as wrapping up the candles that were on the table and fireplace mantle.
 
  
I can't wait to get the oranges and russet colors together on the table.  We're supposed to be in the upper 70's today and tomorrow, then back to fall temperatures.  The flowers and leaves, pumpkin, squash, and oranges make it feel VERY fall around here - especially when the air is chilly and we have the tea kettle whistling with water for spiced tea or Swiss Miss!

============================

I'm making waffles for breakfast this morning.  Before falling asleep last night, I told Jesse I was craving waffles so bad, I felt like getting up out of bed and fixing them right then and there!  I controlled my desires, but morning came with the desire still burning in my mind (and stomach)!!!!!

============================

Speaking of falling asleep.  I woke up yesterday around 8:30am.  I know it was around that time because I got a cup of coffee and sat down on my end of the sofa to watch Charles Stanley's show, "In Touch."  The next thing I knew, it was 11:30am!!!!  I had fallen asleep with my glasses on, sitting straight up, with my hands folded in my lap, and (hate to admit it, but . . . ) was snoring!!!  Jesse said he opened and closed the den's back door 92 million times to let the dogs in and out.  The girls were talking loudly.  Chirper jumped up and down from my lap.  "Little Bit" slept on my slipper when he was inside.  Jesse said I never stirred!

I've turned into a real, live "Granny" before my (and everyone else's) very own eyes!!!!   I wish someone had taken a picture.  If I slept for a little over 2 1/2 hours (sitting upright!!!!), right after waking up, I'd guess that maybe I did a little too much last week.  I always feel okay at the time, then a huge sleep falls upon me, as my body recovers from the injustice it's been put through!!!!

============================

I've enjoyed reading my book this past weekend.  I MADE myself lie down on both Saturday and Sunday to read and rest in the middle of the afternoon.  A sure way to make me get off of my feet is to get lost in a book.  I usually watch two episodes of "Jeopardy!" from 3:30 to 4:30 during the week and that's my rest time.  I've substituted my book for the TV show on the weekends.

I also caught up on browsing through many catalogues that have arrived.  I usually order things online, but they send me their hard copy catalogues in the mail, anyway.  I need to pick out and order a calendar for 2010.  My tradition has been to order the calendar, store it in the bottom drawer of a mahogany chest (Jesse is using it as a nightstand right now), and then on January 1st, I take it out and insert everyone's birthday's (etc.) on the pages, and ceremoniously hang it on the kitchen wall.  I've been doing that for something like 30 years!!!!

I'm not sure what I want this year.  I'll have to look online because they show the pictures that represent all 12 months.  The catalog does not.

========================

I have some new reading books I'm going to introduce to the girls today.  One, in particular, should be a good reader for Luci.  She's having a really hard time learning to read.  I think it's because her sisters read everything for her.  She enjoys being "waited on" and they enjoy feeling "superior" and it ends up stunting Luci's reading growth. 

I have reading/phonics books for all of them from "Christian Light Education" and one primary reader from the same place for Luci.  I also have a set of fun book they can use as an activity book for extra practice from "Pathway Publishers."  I buy ahead, knowing that the books will be used at some point in the future.

=========================

Today, I'm also introducing some new ChorePack chores for each day of the week.  Two more chores, each day, except for Wednesdays and Saturdays - when there will be 4 chores added.

========================

I'm sure my waffle batter is ready to be used and the waffle iron should be getting hot enough.  So, for now, I will say good bye and

Be Blessed  ~

There was a sign (one subdivision over from ours) last summer advertising Yorkies and Chihuahua pups.  This little guy was found on the side of our house in the dark, with no collar or signs of ever having *worn* a collar.  His little hips are so skinny they are hollow and when you run fingertips down his sides you feel lots of ribs. 

We don't know if he's been outside and lost for a long time or has been underfed by the owners.  He ate like a tiger when he found Sushi's bowl of dog food.  And, drank like there was no tomorrow - several times.  That's why we suspect he has been gone for several days.  And . . . our nights have been soooo cold . . . poor thing!!!!!  

We had the cat carrier crate for him to stay in overnight.  Luci padded it with towels and a soft blanket.  He did really well and seems so grateful to be inside.  He comes when you call him ("C'mon boy!") and understands, "No! No!" if told.  This morning, Jesse drove around and looked for "Lost Dog" signs and saw none.  Maybe that means he was only missing for a day and the owner hasn't had a chance to post a sign.  But still . . . he is SO SKINNY.

               
                      At any rate, he is as cute as he can be and smaller than Chirper. 

Chirper is extremely curious.  He can't figure out why the pup looks, moves, and smells like a dog but is so tiny.  Stormy (our other cat) is crushed.  She's sickened by the thought we could have possible entertained the idea of adding another pet to *HER* house.

Sushi is thrilled.  We are really having to watch her because she wants to play with the little thing and simply overpowers the pup in her excitement.  Last night, we called Sushi, she turned, her leg knocked into the pup, and the pup fell over on his side.  We're talking a VERY LITTLE dog, here.

Since we have the cage, we can care for him until we found the rightful owners.  And if they don't come to us????  I don't know what we'll do.

Sushi looks like a Great Dane next to the little guy!

====================

I went through some old pictures last night.  I need to find a picture to add to the book that will be at my dad's memorial service.  My older sister (the scrap book QUEEN!!!) is putting together something and asked that I contribute a picture and a page of memories.  I don't know exactly what she has in mind, but it will be beautiful when she finished, I'm sure!  In going through some old photos, I found my paternal grandfather's discharge papers from the army during World War I - pretty cool, huh?!!

I found lots of old pictures (dating back to the 1800's) that had, somehow, worked their way from the family album OR had been sent to me at different times.  I'm the keeper of our family's history! 

I also found some pictures of the same grandfather (from the 1930's) when he worked at a meat packing company.  They are, of course, in black and white and I put one in a simple black frame and it looks great in my kitchen with the pale yellow walls and black & red accents.  I have two smaller pictures that I will hang by the larger one.  When they are hung, I'll take a picture and share. 

I also found a handful of pictures from when Annamarie and Rissy were babies.  I was so glad to find those and really have no idea how my pictures all got so separated. 

=====================

I need to putter around here this weekend, cleaning my desk, putting away the rest of the pantry items donated to us, and getting Nikki's box sealed.  We have clothes for Jaiden and a few other things we are sending her way.  Nothing too strenuous.  Nothing at all like what I did last weekend when I bent, stretched, and turned as I unpacked our warm clothes from their plastic bins!!!  I hurt for a few days after that stunt!

====================

I have a green clay facial mask on and it's time to go wash my face.  I took advantage of the waiting period to write on here.  But, if I don't go now, my face may shrivel up!!!

Be Blessed  ~

Yesterday, I did a little more bending and reaching than usual, and then took not enough time to rest on my bed.  My muscle were screaming at me - wondering what I was trying to do!

===================

We need to keep her occupied with lots of toys and she loves the smoked ham bones Jesse buys her.  If she isn't occupied with things of her own, she takes shoes and stuffed animals OR CHAP STICK!!!! belonging to the girls.  She obeys fairly well.  If I knew what I was doing, I'm sure is capable of being better trained than she is.  I'm a dummy when it comes to dogs.

Jesse gave her a pink squeak toy and she fell in love with it.  It was her favorite present! 

It's interesting to watch an animal and realize they have favorite things.  Which means they must form opinions in some way - and make choices on some level.  I'm not sure how animal's minds work, but I can't deny finding it interesting.  If the girls get loud and rowdy and chase each other or grab each other, she is quick to pull on their sleeve, or the bottom of their skirts, to pull them apart.  She definitely senses violence and doesn't like it.

We had a rag mop drying outside of the back door and the girls were in the backyard playing and running around.  Jesse and I watched from our bedroom window while Sushi grabbed the rag mop's raghead and ran all over the yard with it.  I told Jesse she probably thought she was herding a "sheep" around - what she was bred to do!  It was the funniest thing to watch.  She went under the trampoline with the mop and pole and couldn't pull the mop stick through the legs and had to back out from underneath and run AROUND the trampoline instead.  Just too funny to watch and I'm VERY sorry I didn't grab my camera that day.

We sang happy birthday to her and all day long we hugged her and said, "Happy Birthday, Sushi!!!"  She didn't know what we meant, but I guarantee you, she loved the attention and dog treats!

=====================

Rissy and Luci have both finished the 1st quarter of their math books.  That means we have caught up with public school children's schedule.  Public school children are on fall break today and yesterday.  We started 3 weeks (maybe more) after the public schools did.  Even though I don't like to compare or measure myself against what the public schools are doing, I *DO* find some peace with the fact I am proceeding with school in a "legal requirement" way!  Oklahoma is very lax about homeschoolers (good for me) because you have to report to no one.  I save workbooks (with dates) to prove to the state what we do, just in case anyone should ever come knocking on my door.   

              
                Jesse took this picture.  I like Rissy's concentration and the picture's lighting.

This is the same look she used to have as a baby.  Serious concentration.  She always studied anything new and rarely smiled.  She was SO into another world.  What in the world is she looking at so intently, this time?

           
                                                   She's killing flies!  She hates them. 

If I don't have the fly swatter in my hands, she has it!!!!!  I wonder if I look as determined as her when I'm killing flies?

==================

After Jesse doing the last load of laundry (last night) and me folding the whites, I decided it's time to buy new socks for the girls again.  I probably have socks in a sack, hanging from a hanger in my closet.  I try to stock up on socks like I do canned goods in the pantry.  Never know when you might need something!   The socks looked mostly thread bare and I can't ignore the fact my children's feet have grown in HUGE proportions, recently.  Seems like I just bought socks in the spring.  Where does the time fly?

                              
                                                                    Chirper on my lap.                           

My hair is growing in more and more everyday.  Platinum AND brown colors.  As you can tell, it's extremely short, but I DO have hair that I can run my hand over - like a crew cut . . . IF I had thicker hair.

========================

The girls only have spelling tests in school today.  Nothing else.  I have to pack two boxes and get them ready to mail at the post office, when we take the girls to their therapy appointment this afternoon.  Stephanie came by, last night, and took a bag of clothes (she thinks they are hers and Nikki's maternity clothes), because I hate to throw away other people's things.

========================

The house is beginning to look like a home again.  The summer/spring boxes are out of the dining room and den.  All that is left is two boxes with clothes that are too small for the girls.  I'm not sure Jesse wants to save them for other people's children.  I love giving clothes to people who need them.  I'd much rather give to someone I know, than to a charity or thrift store. 

I think I'm going to get moving and fix the family some breakfast.  The sooner I give those spelling tests, the sooner I can get on with other things on my list for today!

Be Blessed  ~

I did my usual school teaching and at 1:30pm we all showed up at Pizza Hut for their lunch buffet (which ends at 1:30, but they were kind enough to extend it for us).

I didn't have much chance to rest my back (lay down on the bed rest), and it definitely makes a difference when I don't get that break from being upright.  My shoulders and middle of my back are just aching, tonight.

It was nice to taste pizza and especially Pizza Hut's yummy *light* crust.  I think I'm glad I went, but I feel like I'm really paying for it tonight.  We scrounged around the refrigerator for dinner - I ate a bagel with cream cheese.  I was still full from the pizza lunch and so was Jesse.

Speaking of Jesse, he worked like crazy to clean the house while I taught school, and finished up the work this afternoon . . .   AND, finished the laundry this evening.  He even dusted the ceiling fans off!!!

He moved the furniture around in Luci's new room - the way we had it before JoAnn moved it while she stayed here.  I guess she'll get the guest room with the double and twin bed in it, after all.  We were debating whether to give her her own room, or not.  She is using the double bed and is very pleased with her new abode!

I took some pictures today.  It was Sushi's 1st birthday.  I don't have the energy to post pictures, so they'll have to wait for another day.  She got some new doggie toys and was so thrilled.  Too bad we didn't get pictures of her in motion!

I'm going to go hit the bed and give my back a rest.

Be Blessed  ~

The weathermen all said today would be more rainy and a bit colder than yesterday.  I don't really see a difference.  Rain is rain and cold is cold!  Rain and cold together make for a bleak, gray sky!

                     
                                     Even the martins are staying in their houses!!!

I went outside the back door to smell the air.  You know? . . . to see if it smelled fresh and crisp or whatever else rain and cold can smell like . . .

I didn't get far . . .

                      
I stayed tucked under the eaves of the house  - the only dry spot in the backyard!

====================

The girls want to play outdoors so bad.  They have been running through the house for the past two days.  When I round a corner into a room, there is usually at least one child running into me from the opposite direction.  They've gotten so big, playing in the empty garage is no longer "room enough" for them!

But, playing outside is out of the question.
               
Do you think the pink horseshoe set needs to be brought in for the winter???!!!!

==========================

School was a challenge today.  I had NINE calls within one hour.  Considering I had to talk during those calls, you can imagine how only 5 minutes (or more like 2 minutes) was between each call.  It was so frustrating and made it even harder to keep the girls focused on their work.  But, the calls were important ones. So what are you gonna do?

                  
                                            See Rissy's bare feet again today?
                                        Brrrr!  I don't know how she can stand it!

========================

I didn't get a bath until almost 10pm yesterday.  Jesse sat with our pastor/friend (the one who was just released from the hospital after having a quad bypass) while his wife filled prescriptions and did some grocery shopping.  He didn't leave there until 8pm.  I ended up making beef bratwurst, sauerkraut, mashed potatoes (with the skins left on), and chunks of pineapple for dinner.  The ground meat didn't thaw in time.  Tonight, I'll make a meatloaf or start a pot of chili.  The chili sounds good, but Annamarie and Jesse had upset stomachs within the past 3 days and chili might not be a good choice for them.

========================

Jesse went to the grocery store this morning.  There wasn't much on the list.  But, while he was there, my doctor got my lab work back and said I need to stay on my thyroid medication.  She called in a new RX and I called Jesse right away.  He was already in the parking lot.  He had to go back inside and wait for them to fill it.  Poor guy.

=======================

This afternoon, Jesse went back over to our pastor/friend's house to sit with him, until his wife gets home from work.  I made banana pudding this morning with bananas and vanilla wafers and sent a bowl with Jesse.  I doubt anything much sounds good to eat while you are recovering from such a major surgery.  I didn't want anything to eat while I was in the hospital, and nobody opened up my chest (it just felt like it!!!).

========================

                         
                                               Luci doing penmanship lessons.

Does anyone have an idea WHY the flesh of people in my pictures looks so dark?  The clothing or paint on the wall always looks realistic, but I KNOW my girls aren't as dark as they were this summer.  Their pictures still show them to be very tan with dark brown skin.

                           
                                                      Rissy doing cursive penmanship. 
                                   For some reason, she never writes with her book on the table!
                                                But, she writes prettier than the other two. 
                                                                    Go figure???!!!

=========================

I'm going to move on and try to lie on the bed a bit to rest my back.  I had to fill MORE forms out online for Social Security (to qualify for a county program's assistance) and it seems like there is always one more form they need.  It's a wonder people ever get benefits or disability opinions from SS  at all!!!!!  I don't want their checks, just an opinion that states I need some help around the house with my work.  You definitely need to be persistent!  Sitting at the computer and teaching the girls this morning has left me with a bit of an ache in my back.  Surely the weather doesn't have anything to do with it!!!!

Be Blessed  ~

I don't know how the girls can stand running around the house barefoot.  If our carpeting was plush and had lots of padding, MAYBE I could understand a little better.  But we have nothing more than a few threads of carpet fibers woven over a nonexistent pad, on top of slab cement.  And, leaky windows!  Seriously, our windows are the worst, and they don't keep out heat OR cold!

==================

======================

We were blessed with some free groceries this past weekend.  A friend's son and daughter-in-law just moved out of his house.  He is repainting a room and his pantry.  The daughter-in-law had bought all kinds of things to keep in the pantry.  Things our friend will never use.  He told Jesse to haul off whatever he thought our family could use.

There were some things I would have probably never bought - too expensive and all - and I'm just so grateful for the pantry items.  I will see that they are put to good use!.

====================

I finished school up late today.  Of course, that's because we started rather late.  Ate lunch around 2pm (late), and, now, here I sit, blogging rather late in the day.

Luci is plummeting forward with math - she's VERY good with numbers and memorizing combinations. 

While we had school at the table, Jesse patched the cracks in the fireplace.  The sealer was supposed to set in 4 hours.  I'll wait until tomorrow, just to be sure, and then LET THE FIREPLACE ROAR!!!!!!!!!!!  LOL

=====================

I took the time to add some more chores to our Chore Pack cards.  They are still working really well.  The secret to their success is a parent has to take the time to inspect the work each day when the Chore Packs are handed back at the completion of the work.  A sloppily made bed doesn't count.  Clothes hanging out of the drawers don't count, either!

Up until now, the Chore Packs have only included their personal grooming and eating chores, with one small chore that each child does for the pets.  I am adding things like spot cleaning their bathroom, cleaning with 409 under the dog's dishes, dusting the glass table top in the den, and other things that impact the whole household.  We'll see!  There is one card per day for each child and I'm thinking about writing a second item on the back of that card, AFTER they master their "one chore a day" cards.

Like I said, I'm pleased with the success of the system.

====================

I don't know if my ground beef and ground turkey packages will be thawed in time to make dinner.  It really is pretty chilly in here, today.  Jesse asked me to call a local Pizza Hut to see if they might have some sort of a special on Tuesday nights.  It's been so long since we've had Pizza Hut and a long time since I've been able to taste ANY pizza!!!!  If they have no special, I think we might end up eating hotdogs!

====================

Speaking about being chilly, we turned the thermostat down another two degrees in the back of the house last night.  I've had to gradually get used to the temperature dipping lower and lower.  Having a bald head makes it a bit nippy.  BUT, if I sleep with a sleep cap on, I perspire!  I think we all slept better with warm blankets in a cooler room.  We woke up this morning with the cats nestled down into the blankets of our bed and Annamarie's bed!  I don't know how the bird stays warm - it's truly amazing!  I guess God gave them a permanent "down" jacket for a reason!

I had better make that Pizza Hut call.  I hate to turn down an offer to not cook dinner!

Be Blessed  ~

Too bad I don't associate this with a 5-star restaurant steak dinner by candlelight experience or a day enjoying the conversation of company!

Instead, I remember hours and hours spent at the kitchen table doing school work!  Planning three lessons is proving to be challenging for me.  Most of you probably already plan for three . . . or more, children and wonder what I'm talking about, here!  Gradually slowing down Annamarie and taking extra time with her (math AND spelling) and then finding the time to help Luci with her reading . . .  it's wearing.  Poor Marissa gets the used up ends of me and my patience.  Fortunately, she is pretty self-sufficient when it comes to learning.  She's muddling through cursive letters write now - Luci is doing beginning penmanship because her writing is illegible!  I also reintroduced history and science this morning.  Nothing like a challenge!

=====================

It's been a good couple of days for sorting through all of the fall/winter clothes.  I threw loads in the dryer with a cup of water (for moisture) and set the dryer for ten minutes on each load.  The clothes were all so toasty warm when they came out AND without wrinkles!  Some clothes were put back in the bins for another year (colors or styles that didn't look that great on the current child, as they had looked on a previous sister) but everyone is set for fall.  Annamarie will need a few tops to go with her skirts.  Fortunately, last year's dresses still fit her.

           
                           The girls and my things neatly packed away until next spring.

I even ended up with 2 large bags, 2 small bags, and 2 plastic bins of clothes to give away or put back up into the attic for the time when someone else's child grows into our cast off clothes.
           
                                       That's the remainder of Sushi's bone on the carpet!!!  Yuck!
                                   At least she doesn't chew our shoes or the girls' stuffed animals!

I feel like stuff is everywhere! 

We have a path from the front door to the den with plastic bins or boxes on each side!
   View from the foyer.                                                          View from the dining room entrance.

Isn't that horrible looking???!!!  I'm afraid to put the lids on any of the bins and carry them to the garage.  As sure as I do, I'll find a summer frock in someone's dirty clothes basket or pushed to the back of a dresser drawer!!!  I'm making sure NOT TO COMMIT before I seal the lid on anything!!!  I still need to go through their drawers and probably UNDER the beds!

You can imagine the dirty and fuzzies unpacking all of the clothes has left on our carpeting.  The carpeting is pathetically thin, as it is.  NOW, it has "thingies" all over it.  I'll have the girls vacuum, once I've decided to seal the boxes and send them back to the attic!  Until then . . . you kinda get what you get, around here!

====================

I made lamb chops Saturday night served with mint jelly.  I COULD TASTE THEM!!!!!  Granted, I only ate 2 small chops, but tasting those two was worth all the tea in China!  Last night, I made chicken breasts in the oven with a bit of barbecue sauce.  I could taste that, too.  It's just that I eat such SMALL portions compared to before.  I probably eat less than Luci.  The weight isn't coming off of me too terribly fast, so I'm not too concerned.  My clothes feel better and that's not a bad thing!

====================

Jesse picked up half of the firewood he ordered *for cheap* this weekend.  The reason for the cheap price is that he has to take monster size logs and make them fit into our tiny fireplace.  He's been busy with the chain saw when the weather has stopped drizzling.  He has to pick up the other half of the wood at the end of the week.  Meanwhile, the fireplace is waiting for him to replace a bit of mortar that has cracked and one hole in the bottom corner to be filled.  It looks so sterile and pristine after the chimney sweep came (about a month ago) and it's crying for someone to light a fire!

These days are so cold and damp and I miss the fireplace.

Doesn't that look warm and cozy?  I can feel the warmth!  I see wood and think fire.

Funny thing.  I look at the same picture in the summer and think termites!!!

The girls are wrapped up warm and outside helping carry the newly chopped wood to its winter home - the corner of the yard.

=========================

Tonight's dinner will be Friday night's "fake steak" - ground sirloin patties broiled and served with A-1 steak sauce or barbecue sauce.  Too bad I didn't have the forethought to pull some stew meat from the freezer and simmer a beef stew all day.  It's one of those kind of days and not supposed to improve much this whole week.

Late last night, I started a new book.  Imagine my delight when I pulled from my bookshelf a FOURTH book (a sequel) to the books I had been reading.  I hated to say good-bye to the characters and now I don't have to.  Jesse thought I was ridiculous, I'm sure, for being so excited!  It's taken me a long time to read the series, but I've enjoyed the stories immensely.  I'm learning a lot about Nova Scotia.

==========================

Be Blessed  ~

I've posted pictures of the boxes in the garage and the spring/summer clothes on the dining room table.  And, I knew things would get worse before better . . .   but I have to wonder how things got THIS BAD!!!  We moved to a bigger house so we would have room to spread out.  In a little house, we all know, a few things out of place makes the house feel like it's a mess.  Our *larger* home feels like it is a mess - like a cyclone blew through here!

Despite the stacks and stacks of clothes and boxes, I really DO have a sorting method in mind!  I have things for granddaughter, Jaiden, things for friend's children (Keziah and Bethany), and things to hold onto until one of those 3 girls grows into a bigger size!!!  There is a method to my madness!!!

These are too big and the bags are for Keziah & Bethany.    And, these are empty boxes,  ready for the table stuff.

                         
                               This is the remainder of boxes AFTER I went through them. 
                           My sofa is still covered in clothes that are too small for our girls.

==================

At first, Luci was so excited every time I pulled another item from a box.  I would say, "I think this will fit Luci," and she would clap or jump up and down.  Then, after she had a stack of clothes on her bed, when I said, "I think this will fit Luci," she rolled her eyes and sighed as I handed MORE to her!

                    
                          She definitely has a pile to go through on the bed in her room!

Rissy was immediately overwhelmed and asked if she could finish trying things on later in the day. 

                               
                            Her pile isn't as large as Luci's but pretty big, nonetheless!

I guess, since they cleaned up their rooms this morning, it was a little discouraging to see them piled with clothes so soon after the rooms looked orderly.  Kinda like my house and how *I* feel, right now!!!!

Annamarie, who grew a lot, is the only one with not many clothes.  The winter dresses that were made for her last year still fit (about 4 or 5 dresses) and I have bought her some skirts for this year.  We'll have to browse through some thrift stores looking for warm shirts and sweaters she can wear.  I gave her two of my own tops (a short sleeve and a long sleeve, both in black) and they look nice on her.  Plenty of room to grow.

I'll go through the piles on Luci's and Rissy's beds and pick the nicer things out.  No one needs 10 shirts and 7 sweater tops!

==========================

I did okay yesterday.  I didn't stay to have saline infused at the clinic.  They were very busy and, after waiting an hour, I decided to have my lab drawn from my arm by the lab tech, and not through my port by the ladies in the chemo room.  I promised to drink lots of Gatorade this weekend (oh joy!).  I laid down a bit when I got home and watched the local and national nightly news. 

Someone from church surprised us with dinner and, although I was planning to make something easy, I was VERY grateful I didn't have to cook.  We bought some ground sirloin yesterday.  I planned to shape it into patties and broil it, serve it with A-1 steak sauce, and call it "fake steak."  I'll probably fix that tonight or make the meat into patties and freeze it (formed) and serve it another night, when I need something quick and easy.

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I think Jesse is taking advantage of the clothing boxes being inside and is trying to straighten up the garage a bit.  When we got home, yesterday afternoon, he said he wanted to lie down for a short nap.  I heard lots of commotion and this is what I found . . .

                  
                                         That's Jesse on the bottom!

  
Annamarie saw me grabbing the camera and quickly ran to get in on the picture taking!  She and Luci had been playing dress up.  There were lots of high-pitched screams, shrieks, and a man's voice hollering, "Owwwwwwww!" 

. . . then, I moved my camera and looked closer . . .

        
              Yep!  Sushi (the D-O-G) was in the middle of everything and *ON* the bed (a big no-no!)!!!!

I don't think Jesse got much rest! 

He got a call that my wedding ring was sized and ready to be picked up.  My gold band kept falling off of my finger.  I threw clothes in the laundry basket and my ring came off with it.  I folded a towel, one time, and the ring came off with it.  Since I'd like to wear the gold band again, sometime, I elected to have a diamond band sized down - one that Jesse bought me years ago.  It was a size 8 and I need at least a 5 (technically could use a slightly smaller size right now).  He left to pick up the ring and make a "meat run" at Sam's. 

I forgot to take a picture of the ring on my finger.  It's a perfect size with a bit of room for my finger to grow bigger.  I don't know if it's white gold or platinum, but it is definitely different, and I like it.  All of my other jewelry is yellow gold.

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I should get back to work on the bins of clothes and cleaning the last of the light weight clothes from the girls' closets and drawers.  We are supposed to have some really cold weather move in tonight and snow in the Oklahoma panhandle . . .  and, I heard (last night) there was a snow advisory up there!  CRAZY!  Just plain crazy. 

Have a great weekend!

Be Blessed  ~

Jesse is in the den telling the girls "where they came from" and it's all too funny!!!

It started with the girls asking, "Do we know for sure that Sushi was born October 15th?"  I told them, "No, she was 12 weeks old when we got her and, counting backwards, that would have made her birth date in  the middle of October - so we chose October 15th."

Then, Jesse said, "Rissy we aren't sure of your birthday, either."  Rissy paused and said, "You're not?"  Jesse told her, "Nope.  We picked you up off the streets and you looked about 12 weeks old, so we decided to say your birthday was February 27th."  Dead silence.

Jesse continued, "And, Luci.  She was harder because she was so big.  In fact, she was left somewhere (I don't remember where he said) because she was so heavy her parents couldn't carry such a big baby around, any more.  That's why her nickname used to be "Tonkita" - taken from Tonka toy trucks and all."  (The Tonkita part *IS* true.  She was a HUGE baby.)

Annamarie, buying the stories (she can't always separate fiction from reality) said, "What about me?"  Jesse told her, "We found you floating down a river in a basket wearing swaddling clothes."  We felt God tell us to raise you and so we took you in."  Annamarie's response was dead silence and probably some confusion.

That's when Rissy spoke up, "That's not true!  That's not where we came from or how we got our birth dates!"

Luci chimed in, "Yeah!  We remember our adoption stories and that's not what happened with me!  My mother went to a party and didn't come home and scared her room mate who was babysitting.  Her room mate called the police . . . " 

Not a good story, but the truth about her!

Then Rissy said, "Both of my parents were in jail and the nurses protected me in the nursery when I was born.  I came came straight into foster care and they brought me to you."

Talk about putting a sober kibosh on our fun stories!

I've always been honest with the girls about their adoptions and given guarded information about their birth parents, when they ask me.  Their parents (all 3 mothers) weren't ABLE to raise them, but every one of their mothers cried while at the hearing where their parental rights were terminated.

We can joke with our girls because they are secure and know they are loved and we would NEVER send them back!  So, everyone had a good laugh at Jesse's stories this morning . . . even Annamarie, when she remembered where she "REALLY" came from all those years ago!

"The other Lori":   I feel like I'm in a race with you!!!!

I've had a few episodes of nausea this week and a huge back ache yesterday.  I am trying hard to stay up all day (without lying in bed at all) and it was too much for me yesterday.  The nausea experiences were on Monday and Wednesday afternoons and pretty severe.  Both of them hit me out of the blue and required a wet cloth on my head and nausea medication. 

I'll be so glad when I heal up from all the poking, prodding, and fixing that my body has gone through, this year!

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Thank you so much for all of the kind comments and messages you have left me regarding my dad.  Sometimes I think about him and my eyes tear up because the reality is slowly sinking in.

Be Blessed  ~

I talked with Mom briefly this morning and then my youngest sister, Nancy.  She filled me in on what was going on.  Our family doesn't have funerals, and this time it won't be any different.  There will be a memorial service and Nancy said they think the middle of November is the most likely date.  I won't be able to attend that either (4 weeks won't make that much difference in my energy level) and so I will have to face my feelings and desires again a month from now.  It so hard . . . not being there.

                                           
                             This photo was taken several years ago, a good picture of my dad. 
                                                        "Beautiful blue, kind eyes"
                                           (a quote from my oldest daughter, Stephanie)
                                              That's how she remembers her grandpa.

He *was* kind.  He was sympathetic.  He was understanding.  And, he gave *good* hugs!  Sometimes a hug, and no words, were exactly what I needed.  The twinkle in his beautiful, blue eyes was just gorgeous - so full of life!

He was the right type of father figure, the kind I needed, when my biological parent's home was falling apart.

When I got married, he proudly walked me down the aisle.  When that marriage crumbled, he and Mom encouraged me to move home - to California.  To protection.  To a "daddy" to care about me.  But, I stayed in Oklahoma. 

He's been a bit "slowed down" for this past year and we didn't get to talk as much.  Conversations over the phone were very brief.  Of course, it would have been nicer to live close and steal an occasionally hug or that famous glinting blue-eyed smile from him.  But, I live here.  I'm not able to travel right now.  Those are the cold hard facts.  As Nancy, said, no one does well in our family with the answer "no" - and I told her I preferred to describe us all as "overachievers" and not defiant! 

Daddy never made me feel defiant.  I'm sure he shook his head at my crazy antics more than once.  I won't go into the time I ran into the garage wall & hot water tank with my 1962 Falcon Squire station wagon and set things ablaze, and how every fire truck and police car available came with sirens & lights (full force), trekking their way up the hill to our house  . . .  That's another story for another time!  HOWEVER, my youngest brother, Rich, delighted in bringing up that story last week in Daddy's room, these last days of his life.  Everyone laughed (I WAS SO DUMB, back then!!!!!) and my sister, Penelope, said I was definitely made a part of the family in memory during my dad's final days. 

He got to come home before he died.  It was only for a little more than a day - but he was home and knew it.

It will be hard to call home and not talk with him.  It will be hard to not ask Mom about Daddy.  Hard, hard, hard.  I will try to remember all of the memories and stories he and I shared.  And, I will forever be grateful that I had a "dad parent" with me well into my 50's.

I realize I've been blessed to have him be a part of my life and have some of his influence make me, in part, what I am today. 

I will miss him so, very much! 

There's no doubt about it.

Be Blessed  ~