Relationship Drama

A friend of mine just came over for a bit this morning to talk about her frustration with her husband. He is being a bit mean and unwilling to help out in the household. They have their grandson while their daughter serves in Iraq. It seems her husband's expectations for their 7 year old grandson are a bit too high. He wants to "beat" him for the mishaps he does. She feels their grandson is doing some of the mishaps to gain his grandfather's attention. Very sad situation.

Grandpa was raised that a man doesn't show his feelings, the he sucks it up. He is trying to instill this same value in his 7 year old grandson. Not good. She is doing her best to show him contrary. Her grandson spends some of his time here at my house. He likes to talk and ask questions. I try to explain things to him and let him know, without talking bout his grandpa, how life works, how people are different, how people deal with things differently, just to give him some other perspectives.

It's rather sad because his face is so expressive. When he is sad, he tries so hard to be a big boy. Rather than complain, he gets really quiet. It's a very obvious difference in his behavior. When you ask him, "What's wrong?", he shrugs his shoulders and says, "Oh nothing. I'm fine."

If you don't have an idea of what is bothering him, it's hard to help him.

Caffine Crankiness

I am getting rid of all my coffee...:( Yes, just a sad occasion. For the past week or so, I have started drinking coffee again, decaf coffee. Lately, I have been waking up feeling really down, from the moment I open my eyes. I have experimented with coffee before where it seems to alter my mood, which is why I drink decaf. I make it very weak and it still seems to have this effect on my mood. So, I've decided to give my coffee supply away to my neighbor. I have LOTS of coffee supply.

There's just something about coffee that's cozy, relaxing, tasteful, delightful to smell, all that. It's like carrying a cup of comfort...lol! No, I'm not really that big on drinking coffee. I'm not one of those people who just HAS to have that cup in the morning. I like it for the taste, the feeling... I just like it.

This means I will return to drinking tea. Tea is good, but it's not quite the same as coffee. I'm good with tea. I will make it fun by getting different flavors :).

Trying Again

Today we are going to try the drivers license test for my son again. Last time, I forgot about the crack in the windshield and the broken horn. My mechanic, Gabe, fixed them right away. So, we go today to take the test again. We have to go to the next town over because our city is booked for the next month. I've been letting him drive on his permit to go very short distances (keep that under your hat!...lol!), but I will feel soooo much better if he were legal. It has been such a help to have him driving now, especially now that he has his part time job :).

Next weekend, saturday, is the prom :). This will be my 3rd child with one more to go in three and a half years. We went down to San Diego to the bridal shop I have always gone to for them. We picked up his tux with no problem. This saturday coming, he has his appointment to get his hair cut/trimmed, then we will pick up the flowers. A friend of mine's son has paid for a limo for him and his friends. We will all meet at the school to take pictures. I prefer to meet here at the house, but most of the kids live near the school which will be more convenient for them.

The next journey will be grad night.

Almost There

We are almost there with being over the allergies/colds :).

I read this article about how allergies evolve. It had me a bit overwhelmed because sources come from both inside and outside our homes. In fact, it said that inside is usually worse than outside. It spoke of how chemicals can literally reside in a layer of dust that might be on the table or shelf; how we add chemicals into our homes by use of aerisols like disinfectants or furniture polish. Even humidifiers can add to our environments, cooler air being worse than hot air humidifiers. It spoke of how our air ducts can become contaminates as well. I can't imagine what happens when we vacuum!

In a nutshell, the article suggested dusting with a damp cloth, cutting back/discontinue use of aerisols, disinfecting with bleach & water on a damp cloth and having the air ducts cleaned regularly in addition to changing the air filter.

I began to think about my teenager's rooms and what it would take to get them completely allergin free. Oh my goodness!! I was sooooo overwhelmed!! I began to think about the rest of the house and getting it allergin free. I became so discouraged. I mean, my house is "clean" and I am a neat freak and an organized nut, but it just seems it's only so much one can do to be allergin free.

Then I began to think, ok, we can let the house air out more often, but I started thinking about all the pollens that were out there and letting in more dust!! I mean wha? My mind just really went overboard with the thought of keeping allergins out or to a minimum. I even thought about the mold that must be coming of the lake. We live fairly close to the lake which is not the cleanest lake. Every time one of us coughs, I think of what we can possibly be inhaling to contribute to out symptoms.

Wow!

Interesting Guest

We had an interesting guest today! He is HUGE, hairy and has 8 legs! Yes, a taranchula!!! I got really worried because how long has he been out there? Is it a male or female? Are there any babies? What about the kids? Can they get into the house? What????? (The person in this picture is no one we know).

My son was outside playing basketball. As he bends down to pick up the ball, there was our little hairy guest. He had come from behind the air conditioning unit. By the time my son manage to get my attention, and by the time I managed to get the kids settled before going outside, he was on the other side of the yard trying to hide behind a dandelion weed. He was absolutely HUGE!! Obviously an adult one.

I got a plastic bowl and a lid. Then I used the rake to move him away from the wall. As I moved him away, he would raise his rear end up and released some clear fluid. I finally managed to put the bowl over him. Once he climbed up on the side of the bowl, I slid the top of the bowl underneath it. We punched holes in the lid so he can breathe.

I called the exterminator and left a message. I don't want to kill the creature, but I certainly don't want him here!...lol. Hope I don't have nightmares about him tonight!!

Uplift to My Day

My mechanic is such a sweetie! (The car in this picture is not my car, but mine looks like this but it's white).

Friday, I took my 17 year old for his drivers license test. Unfortuately, I forgot about the crack in the windshield and that the horn did not work. Yes, we were extremely disappointed. Before the disappointment settled in, I started brainstorming with my son for our next strategy.

Upon arriving home, I called my mechanic, yes, the wonderful who got my car running again :). There were a few other small things that needed to be fixed as well i.e. get another battery, check the oil leak & do an oil change and put the rubber strip back on the passenger side door....in addition to the horn and the replacing the windshield. He said to bring it in on saturday and the car was ready on sunday! A windshield alone should cost about $220.00. He charged me that for everything.... :). I am so thrilled!

Unfortunately, DMV has not more appointments until next month. So, it will be awhile before my son can take his test. We thought about going to another location, but they are all so far away. We decided to schedule it then keep checking for a cancellation. I had to get a money order so I can pick it up to today :)>

Monday Blah

Though my allergies are getting better, today is soooo monday.

I've been pretty sick all weekend. I pretty much laid in bed and only got up to take care of my grandson. He too has been going through some form of illness. We have had to give him asthma treatments on his nebulizer several times a day. At night, he would be fine. His appetite is still good.

I've continued my supplements with decongestants. It has gotten better. I think part of my illness was that of being so tired. Sometimes we push ourselves with the intention of getting our daily routines completed, not realizing, we really need to stop and get some rest. I tend to do this all the time. As long as I am feeling pretty much "ok", I just keep going. It's not until I stop at the end of maybe 3 weeks that I realize how tired I am.

Well, update on the new child who is no longer in the daycare. On friday morning, when I went to pick him up, I was prepared to let his mom know that she could not bring him back until she took him to the doctor. His nose was running thick.

Instead, she told me how her mother had had an alcoholic breakdown and, as a result, wanted her and the child out of the house by end of the day. That meant, she had to find a place to for her and her son to stay. She had a friend in mind who lives in the next city. When I returned to bring her son back, with all his belongings, at the end of the day, she confirmed and removed him.

She realized she shouldn't have encouraged her mother to drink alcohol knowing she has a history of alcoholism They played a game called "Chugga-lug" a few weeks prior. Later, for her mother's birthday, she took her to a motel with LOTS of alcohol and strippers. The breakdown occurred a few days later. She said to me, "I guess taking her out for her birthday wasn't a good idea." I said to her, "Well, you didn't know she would respond this way." She said, "Yeah, I kinda did." That was when she explained about the alcohol history.

Every family has its dysfunction. My family definitely has its share.