This...and that......and so on........

 

Good news!  Sioux has been feeling better for the past two day!!  

Sioux is slowly coming back to her normal, tail wagging, food begging self.  Truthfully the vet didn't really discover what was wrong as much as let us know what she didn't have.  But the medication is working, and we're very grateful.  It will probably take another week for her to fully recover.

Now for the "that" ~ I found out today that Ms, Loud is not leaving in June.  I'm not sure why she changed her mind, but she is planning on leaving in January of 2023.  Heck, I'll probably be gone by then. :-)  I didn't realize how much I dreaded moving into her spot until I heard that I likely won't have to.

Acid reflux....if you have this problem, I am so sorry for you.  I've never experienced it until last night, thanks to Romeo's fried food extravaganza that we had for dinner, which included fish sticks, onion rings and french fries.  Yes, you read that right.  Did I eat it?  You bet I did ~ hey, I never said I was always smart.  Anyway, enough of our poor culinary choices.  At 11:30 pm I woke up, and started coughing because I felt a burning at the back of my throat.  I drank a ton of water, coughed into my fluffy robe (so I wouldn't wake up everyone else), and did manage to get back to sleep.  But even that tiny experience left me with the resolve to never eat that particular combination of foods in one day ever again.  

So glad for the weekend!

Love, 365

Just a few troubles..........

This is Sioux and Romeo last fall on our trip to Ruidoso.  She had a good time, as did we.  It was funny when the deer came up to Romeo's window and she growled.  She probably thought it was a really ugly dog, haha.  I am not really sure how old Sioux is ~ she is close to 9 or 10.  Our youngest son adopted her from a little of puppies, mom a labrador mix, and dad apparently a greyhound.  She does have the greyhound coloring, the deep chest, but the lab tail, thankfully, because greyhound tails are quite delicate.  At one of the harvest festivals there was a greyhound rescue group that told us that when they hit their tail on a corner, it can break open and bleed.  I am glad that I don't have to deal with that, because she is a huge tail wagger....I constantly find my kitchen towels on the floor!  

The last week has been difficult.  She has had terrible diarrhea for 5 days in a row.  The vet doesn't really see anything in particular, and is sending off a sample to the lab (of the poop, which Romeo had to collect with a spoon and then kept in the fridge until the vet appointment) for analysis.  She's on a few medications, which are OF COURSE making her feel kind of sick.  It has been a real roller coaster ride.  One day she's close to her normal self, the next day droopy and sleepy.  She's currently under the table in the kitchen, not moving much. I think she's nauseated from the medications, but it's currently very windy outside, and she hates the noise from it, so that could be a factor.  I certainly hope she is back to her usual self in the next few days.....

This morning we are having blizzard like conditions, and the power went off for a little over an hour in the wee hours of the morning.  I only know because when it came back on, the tablet Romeo had plugged in suddenly lit up, as I was tossing and turning trying to sleep while the wind is howling.  Then Romeo comes upstairs to tell me that I probably won't be going to work today because of the weather....which I had to laugh at, because our office closes only when there's an apocalyptic event.  Snow and 60 mph winds is not enough to close, much less a delay in opening.  It had been years since I've taken a mental health day, but I decided today was a good day to do it.  So I quickly sent off a text, and here I am at 8 am in my pj's, sipping coffee and eating a pumpkin scone, looking outside at the nasty weather instead of driving in it to work.  It is possible that they know I'm not really sick, and are calling me all kinds of names this morning.  But I just don't care.  I've driven on plenty of dicey roads to be there on time, and haven't called in sick in a number of years.  Does it sound like I'm trying to justify it?  Yeah, it kinda does, but I still don't care.  :D

In the meantime, I'm sending off a few prayer to St. Francis for Sioux.  

Love, 365

First day of spring!.....

 The official first day of spring has brought us some very nice temperatures and sunny day.....but I doubt that winter has left us and probably has a surprise in store ~ we often receive snow in March, and even as late as April.  It will freeze overnight again...so all those who went to the nursery today to buy their flowers and veggies will kick themselves at having to go out again.  I think the nurseries count on it!  

My Mother's birthday is tomorrow, and hopefully the edible arrangement will arrive today ~ there seems to be a problem with some of their stores not open yet (& they're in Texas!  I thought everything was open there).  So, if it doesn't get there today, it'll be late.  Sigh.

I received a call from my eldest son, they received notice from their landlord that he will not renew their lease because he's planning on putting the house on the market.  No big surprise there, the Austin/Round Rock real estate market is so hot, it's on fire.  Apparently there's quite the influx of people (mostly Californians) who've sold their property in CA and have money to burn.  A house that is listed for $500,000 will sometimes sell for as much as $100,000 more.  I imagine the rental market is pretty hot now too, so I hope they don't have any problems finding something.   My son seems a bit down on having to move once again.  Until his ex-wife agrees to sell the house, they aren't able to qualify for another mortgage.  If they were taking my advice, I'd say rent anyway.  The market will change as those things always do.  It might be a year or so, but it will.

Ugh, I just can't pile it on with the worry.  It never accomplished anything except bad things anyway (like having breakouts, and not being able to sleep).  

I am trying to put off going through my bathroom cabinets for a spring clean out....haha.  Spring cleaning is not my favorite, buy we always need to do it!  What about you?

Love, 365

Flying in the time of Covid.....

 

Two days before I was due to fly out to Texas, I received an email from Southwest letting me know the flight out would be completely full.  They offered me to opportunity to change my flight at no charge if I wanted to.  Two days before, really.  I had scheduled time off from work, and my kids were expecting me to be there.  I was rather annoyed, but I had already had both of my Moderna vaccines I figured why not.  

This flight wasn't anymore comfortable than any other flight I've been on.  Shoulder to shoulder seating is not something I enjoy.  I picked up an N95 mask from work to wear ~ I do not know how our hygienists wear these all day.  It was miserable.  When I used the restroom I took it off and panted.  I did not wear it on my trip home, I just wore my surgical mask ~ I just couldn't bring myself to do it.   In many ways I wish I had decided to fly before they started filling the planes again.  It would have been nice to be on a plane only half full.

Everyone wore their masks, and Southwest announced right before boarding that wearing a bandana will not do, and offered free masks.  I've seen people drape a piece of lace over their face and call it a mask.  They also explained that you must wear the mask over your nose and mouth, another point of contention.  The airports were busy!  It's immediately apparent that people are tired of staying home and are taking off to visit family, or go to a business meeting, or take a vacation.  Luckily 3 out of 4 of my flights were all on time.  And that is another thing I dislike about flying these days.  I can never get a direct, go from here to there flight to Austin or San Antonio on Southwest.  It seems they prefer to fly you to Phoenix first (hey! that's the wrong direction!), then they'll go back the other way to Texas.  Coming home they went to Houston first, then back to Albuquerque.  Why oh why??  I could have just ditched my $200 voucher and taken Allegiant Airlines, which has a direct, 1 1/2 hour flight to Austin.  But I couldn't bring myself to do it.  

I haven't enjoyed flying for over 20 years.  Remember when boarding a plane was an adventure in and of itself?  The seats were wider.  They didn't care how much your bag weighted.  Meals were served ~ although the way I remembered it, they weren't all that great.  Sure beats a tiny bag of pretzels though!  And with the constant threat of terrorists, we still have to remove our shoes, and aren't allowed to bring our own water, or food.   

Do you still like flying?  

Love, 365

Oh. My. God........

 

The little guy....he is getting close to 2 years now.....

I just got back from my visit to the kids....it was ~ exhausting.  It was great to see them, spend lots of time with them, don't get me wrong.  And being able to cook meals, help out around the house, give them a chance to go out together was great.  But I was vividly reminded of how tiring it is to be around three kids ~ ages 9, 5 and 1 1/2.  The youngest is my son's child.  The other two are his wife's children.  The eldest is a nice kid, very smart, listens, is respectful.  The 5 year old is a bundle of energy that never quits.  He is always bouncing off the furniture, running up and down the hall, and constantly creating mischief.  And never, ever stops talking.  He drove me nuts.  I like him, I really do, but 24/7 with him for 4 1/2 days is really just too much.  I was able to see my oldest grandson, who is 11, only twice.  He is high on the spectrum.  He doesn't speak much, although he has come a very long way, and will respond to a question now, instead of pointing at something and making a noise indicating he wants some.  Maybe he will be able to live in a group home someday.  He is adorable, and I wanted a photo, but shit just happens and we didn't get one of us together. 

Plus, my eldest son and daughter in law are starting real estate careers, and they were super busy.  With the exception of dinner, we didn't spend much time together just shooting the bull.  I was tired of hearing the "I'm sorry it's so crazy right now!" and I marveled that they added the "right now".  Haha  My youngest son started a new job 3 weeks ago, and is very busy with that, and very stressed over it.  We did have a few meals together, went on a nice walk and were able to chat without kids around. 

In other words, I really didn't do much.  Sat around making sure the kids don't injure themselves jumping off the furniture or throwing stuff at each other.  I never let my kids act like that, but I am not going to judge their parenting efforts.  And for pete's sake, those kids never go outside!  It was a little weird, I was always outside as a kid.  They have a nice backyard.  I was sorely tempted to throw them out with their foam dart guns and a ball and lock the door for at least an hour.

My daughter in law remarked "I bet you don't stay with us again, haha" and I made a remark, but was thinking "you got that right sister!".  I was so wishing I had rented a car and a hotel.  

Part of it is that we aren't near enough to visit on a regular basis.  In fact my son mentioned that they don't have any support, because everyone lives too far away.  It's true.  His Dad is a couple hours away, but does come every (or was it every other??) Thursday.  I'll tell you this ~ I never had a night off because my Mom never kept the kids over, or did very much baby sitting for us.  She was still working, and just didn't have the energy.

Just reviewing the past 5 days makes me tired.  I've give you a blow by blow of airline travel tomorrow!

Love, 365