Life is full of disappointments...and other lessons a mother must dish out.

Last week I realized that Easter was nearly upon us and I hadn't done any shopping for said event.

Uh-oh.

So off to the store we went, me and my brood (sans daughter, who was working).   I carted the boys down the candy aisle of the nearest mart store and made them pick out candy.  It was torture, just ask them.  {snicker}  I think it was the biggest haul they've ever made.

While they were busy planning a massive sugar overload, I asked them what *else* they wanted in their baskets.  Normally they get a little bit of candy and one or more non-candy items--some, if not all, will point to the reason for this celebration.  We don't emphasize the basket in our house, but use it as a bit of fun.

Anyway, this is where I back up and mention that I really *had* thought about Easter weeks before the event. I *had* asked the kids what they wanted back then and only one of them came up with an answer.  The 17-year-old wanted a laser pen.  Like the red pointing lasers...only this one was violet. 

So when I asked them at the store what I could got them for their baskets, he bulked.  He had already told me what he wanted and it wasn't at the mart store.  So he pouted instead of telling me what *else* I could buy. 

Then, just 3 days before the event he came to me with ideas.  Mind you, we live in a small town. Shopping choices are the grocery store, the gas station and a dollar store.  So when he said he wanted a new flashlight--a **GOOD** one--I asked, "can I get that at the dollar store?"  No, I could not--and it wasn't looking like we were going out of town before Easter.  Poor child.

So on Easter morning as he dug through his basket he found.....a violet laser pen.  It was at this moment that I pointed out to him that life is full of disappointments--but today wasn't one of them.

Ahhh, life is good.  Thank you, Jesus.

Happy Anniversary to us!

This week I had the awesome privilege of sharing our 21st anniversary with my husband. This year we {gasp} got away from the kids--just the two of us--and enjoyed a couple of days in each other's company.
We love this time of year. It seems that every year on our anniversary it is dubbed the peak time for viewing the fall foliage. It is so very nice of the weather people to recognize the importance of that date.
Anyway, we went to prime Amish Country in Ohio. Not the normal, every day Amish country that we're in the thick of...but the commercialized, highly marketable Amish Country that, in truth, has little to do with the Amish people. Mennonites are who you usually see working at the stores. But that's another story for another day.
The leaves were beautiful. I tried to get some pictures with my camera phone, but somehow it reset itself back to the original settings and it takes small pics again. So...use your imagination.

tada! a tree!

And in this pic, if you squint and tilt your head just right, you'll see a humongous scarecrow sitting on the porch roof of this building. I think they sold furniture. We didn't stop. Not even to take the picture--which explains its off-kilt slant and the blurry car in the foreground.

In fact, we stopped for very few things. When I say "we" I, of course, mean my husband--since he did all the driving. For some reason we were in a hurry to get...nowhere. And we couldn't stop anywhere on the way. He's a funny man....even on a quick getaway retreat he still can't slow down and relax. I love him more than words can express.

Happy anniversary, wonderful man. We're growing old together!

Mom's Angel Food Cake Pan

I remember watching a sitcom one time where a newly wed woman was fixing a roast. She cut it in half and put it in the oven. Her new husband watched with wonder and finally asked her why she cut the roast in half. She rolled her eyes and stated that he obviously knew nothing about cooking.
Later, curiosity got the best of her and she called her mom to ask why she always cut the roast in half before putting it in the oven. Her mom told her that it was always the way they fixed it and it always turned out just right.
Later, the mother called *her* mom and asked why she always cut the roast in half before putting it in the oven. Her mom said, “Because it wouldn’t fit in the pan.”

Funny, but true--we do things out of tradition and we don't know the reason we do them.

When we go out I don’t get Carrot Cake because it always tastes like Spice Cake (which I’m never in the mood for) and it always has Cream Cheese frosting.
I remember when I was a child mom made the best Carrot Cake. It was made in an Angel Food pan, so it was tall with straight sides and a hole in the middle. It was sliced in wedges, not squares. She never put Cream Cheese Frosting on it…probably for no other reason than she likes cake without frosting. Besides, it never really needed it. The edges were wonderfully crispy—and who would want to ruin that with frosting?

Yesterday I decided to recreate that for my children. I made Carrot Cake from my mom’s recipe using her Angel Food pan. Everything was going well right up until it was in the oven for a couple of minutes. I looked in and the batter was leaking out the bottom of the two-piece Angel Food pan and dripping on the oven floor. I put a cookie sheet on the shelf under it and hurriedly called my mother to find out what I had done wrong and if I could salvage it.
“WHY is the batter leaking out? I used your recipe and your pan!”
“It’s because it’s a two-piece pan,” she said. Then she went on to explain that Angel Food cake doesn’t have any oil in it, therefore it doesn’t leak out of the pan. Carrot Cake has oil in it. “It would have been better in a Bundt pan.”

That’s when it hit me.
Mom didn’t have a Bundt pan until some time in the 80’s. She had always used the Angel Food pan because that’s the only pan she had. Matter of fact, I don’t remember her baking sheet cakes when I was younger, either. They were always two-tiered round cakes. I had no idea why I was using the Angel Food pan instead of a Bundt pan other than the fact that it’s the way my mom always did it.

She assured me that it would be fine if I set the pan on a cookie sheet—that it would soon stop leaking. She was right. It turned out well and is delicious.

Next time I’ll use a Bundt pan. But I still won’t put frosting on it.

So what about you--are you doing things out of tradition? At home? At work? At church? Are you afraid to do things in a different way just because "this is the way we've always done it"? Traditions aren't a bad thing, but if we get hung up on them, it's not healthy.

Blessings to you, my friends.

Critters...again

In late July and early August I blogged about some of the critters in our world...and promised pics of others.

Well, today is the day, my friends.

You're barely able to contain your excitement. I can tell these things.

So without further eloquence, meet:

the salamander,

the baby bass,

and the uninvited bat.

Yes, that's a badmiton racket. You don't think bats let you pick them up and move them out of the house, do you? I don't allow my boys to touch a bat--and you KNOW that *I'm* not going to touch one. Besides, you have to STUN them before you can move them--hence the racket.

We also had three toads...but I made the boys turn two of them loose. It's really difficult to catch enough crickets for three hungry toads. And we have crawdads. I don't know how many we have today. The boys keep catching them and putting them in the same tank. Crawdads are territorial, you know. You can fill in the blanks on why the population keeps dwindling. I don't know why I don't have any pictures of these critters. I handed the camera to the middle child with instructions to bring me pics...but these are all I got for my troubles. Oh well, it will give me something to blog about later.

TTFN

Graduating Class of 2009

The graduation was last Saturday. It went well. Katherine felt special, which was everything I wanted for her. She didn't wear a traditional cap and gown. Everyone who knows us well knows that we aren't very traditional.

Instead she wore a sash and headband (with a cap and crown attached). Both said, "Princess Grad".

I'm surprised that nobody has put out a webpage with ideas and suggestions on hosting a homeschool graduation. For those of us doing it for the first time, it's intimidating. In the end we decided to do our own thing. I wrote a speech. Her father presented her with the diploma. Then she gave a speech.

A friend grabbed my camera and took pictures, otherwise I wouldn't have any.

*I* forgot to take any pictures! Can you believe it? That was my only regret from the day...that I didn't get any pictures of the guests. After everyone ate (of *course* I fed them all), the teens got a game of softball together and played outside in the heat and humidity. We older folks stayed in air-conditioned comfort and talked. :^) I'm so glad I put on all the invitations to "dress casual." I think everyone was comfortable, therefore we all had a good time.

We are so blessed. I just can't say that enough. We are blessed with friends, with family, with fincances and support. I could go on and on....but I won't. Thanks for reading.

Okay, here's my River Barge story...

When dh and I were first married








we rented a little house that sat right along the riverbank. The Ohio River riverbank, that is. It was just big enough for the two of us and we were so happy to be living as a couple. Both of us worked full time jobs. He drove a delivery truck and had to be at work at four o'clock every morning. I worked an office job and had to be at work around eight o'clock (they were very leniant). Anyway, since we lived 40 minutes away from work, he would get up at three...and being the loving, newly-married wife, I'd get up with him and see him off to work. Then I'd stay up and do the housework, write the Thank You notes and do all those other mind numbing tasks. Sometimes my job would be slow and I'd come home a little early...and sometimes it was stressful and I had to work late. All of this would eventually take its toll and I'd be extremely tired by the time I got home from work. On one such evening I went to bed as soon as I got home...thinking I'd just take a little nap and get right up to fix supper.
Well...I ended up taking a big nap...in a deep, deep sleep. I woke up when dh came running in the room and called out my name. I woke up disoriented because it had become dark while I slept...and dh was excited about something.
It turns out (as he tells it to me) that a barge was traveling down the river. When they travel at night they use a spotlight to keep track of the shoreline so they don't run aground. Nothing unusual about that. But on this particular night this particular barge was shining it's spotlight on our house. Specifically...on our bedroom windows.
And it was blowing it's airhorn.
Dh's imagination got the best of him and he thought maybe I was standing at the window dancing for the barge-hands. Or so he says. We'll just have to take his word for it, I guess.
*I* never saw the barge light. And *I* never heard the horn.
And I certainly wasn't dancing in the window.

Wow! Has it really been a week since I last blogged?

Happy May Day, everyone!
This week I've:
**ordered prints from Wallyworld of the Senior Portraits for family and friends,
**written out the invitations for the graduation/party,
**strolled down memory lane while perusing through a big box of snapshots--picking out ones to be put onto a photo board for the graduation/party,
**strolled down memory lane while perusing through files of photos on the computer--picking out ones to send to Wallyworld to be printed so they can be put on the photo board for the graduation/party,
**visited my parents. again.
**oh yeah, we went camping until Tuesday. Back to work on Wednesday. Boy, was it a hurried/busy half-week at work! I'm glad it's over!
**enjoyed the company of my children. All week. Well, I enjoyed it most of the week. Occasionally--not so much. But that's another story for another day.

Okay, I'll tell you a short story. But that's it for now. I mean it now--don't whine for more.
My oldest son got mad at me Wednesday morning. I'm not entirely sure why...but he's 16, so that's probably reason enough. Anyway, he had promised a lady from church that he would help her get her herb garden in this week. Wednesday was the day...so I dropped him off at her house, sour mood and all. Several hours later when I picked him up he was a different boy. All smiles and talkative. He told me, "You can't stay in a bad mood around that couple!"
I'm so thankful to God that He has placed some good, godly people in our lives.

What I've done been doin'...

I've got graduation on my mind.

So far we've...

... shopped for decorations and paper products. *check*

... planned the menu. *check*

... bought the invitations, set the date and time. *check* *check* *check*

... made out the guestlist (*check*) only to have several people from church ask if they were invited (oops, oversight on my part). (*uncheck*)
... printed out a diploma because the one I ordered won't be here in time. *check* Found a really nice frame for it. *check*
... taken photos, narrowed them down, printed the proofs. *check* *check* *check*
(Shelly, I looked into the place where you got your pics and the closest one is the same one you used. Thanks, anyway!)

Wanna see? I knew you would.

We each have our favorites. Her daddy doesn't care for the ones of her peeking around the corner of the barn...but it shows her playful side, so we'll definately order a few of those prints. We'll let him pick out which one to use for the big frame. BTW, most of these were taken at my parent's farm. The one by the water was taken at the local park. The one with the guitar was taken at church. We've been travelin'!!!

Okay, now I'm off to pack. We're going camping for a few days in an attempt to unwind and regroup. I'm so frazzled I can't think straight. "See" ya later next week. Be good. :)

Finally Friday.

Don't go bursting my bubble by telling me it's only Thursday.

I need a vacation.

Between work, planning a graduation, and hormones...I'm beat. I didn't get K to a photographer in time to get her pictures taken, so I am doing them myself. We need to get these done, K. Do you hear me? I need to move on to doing the photo collage and planning the meal.
And you know what? I just did a mental check and other than a week's vacation in June, I don't expect to get any reprieve until sometime in August.
Mother's Day, Father's Day (and the appropriate banquets at church), the graduation and it's party, a wedding in another state, VBS, youth camp, scout camp, the church picnic, 4H activities, Boy Scout outings....UGH!

{deep breath}

I think I'll just take it one week at a time. The days fly by too fast to take them one at a time.

Bills.

It has come to my attention that bills are due. Again.
Ugh.
You know...after more than 20 years of writing checks and buying stamps and running around town to pay the *local* bills (so I don't have to spend the stamps I just bought)...you would think I would either:
A.) be so used to doing it that it would be a habit by now.
B.) set up my online account to automatically pay them every month.
or
C.) deserve a break.

I choose option C.
Sadly, the utility companies don't agree.

The older my children become, the busier I get. The busier I get, the faster the days roll around. It's the middle of the month AGAIN!?!?! Wow...didn't we just have one of those a month ago?

So...I need to buck it up and get out the checkbook.

Ugh.

Ahhhhh.

It's one of those peaceful moments in my life. All is well with my soul. I'm happy and I know it.
My husband and two teens left yesterday morning with the church youth group to go to an annual Christian concert event. They arrived back home an hour ago. I've talked to all three--hearing all the exciting news--and now they're resting. My girl had the most sleep--3 or 4 hours. Doug, who had to drive one of the vans, slept for 2 hours. My boy stayed up all night and HE is the one who is most talkative.
He's growing up. And it makes me smile. When I witness those touching moments when he's being the protective or helpful big brother to his little brother...and when I see how he teases his big sister one moment and the next he fiercely protects her...it just touches my heart. My oldest boy is growing up and becoming a man--and I like what I see. Good job, sweet boy. You're going to be OK in this world. Our job of raising you is almost over and in a few short years you will step out on your own. May God continue to be your focus and guide. Blessings to you.

Weddings

Weddings have been on my mind today. One of the message boards I frequent is talking about weddings. I just had a young couple over for dinner tonight...and since they are getting married in a couple of months, the wedding is high on their list of topics to discuss.

{sigh}

Weddings are a lot of stress...so why does anyone romanticize them?

Who cares! Let's look back at mine.

I remember our wedding day. I remember when my Dad gave me away. I turned to him, kissed him on the cheek and said, "I love you Daddy." As he turned away to sit with my Mom I heard him sniffle.
I remember my cousin (who is one day older than me and was my best friend growing up) had a hard time at my wedding. I was standing in the reception line, being greeted and congratulated by everyone...then my cousin comes by. TO THIS DAY I still wonder what it was she was trying to tell me. She was crying so hard I didn't understand a word of it. Bless her heart. Her emotions triggered MY emotions. Thanks a lot, Cuz.

But all-in-all it was a nice ceremony. Actually, it was probably the shortest ceremony that everyone attending had ever been to! Our minister was **SO** nervous! More than *we* were! He forgot some things...like the scripture that we had agonized over for days to pick out. In the blink of an eye (well, almost) he was announcing us as Mr. and Mrs.

Then my niece...how adorable was she!?! She was two years old and did a great job. The dress she wore was the same one that *I* had worn at her age when I was a flower girl at a wedding. I don't remember my experience as a flower girl and I'm guessing that she doesn't either.
Poor thing was so tired and needed a nap and wasn't afraid to show it.
{sigh} I miss being able to fit into that dress...as well as my skinny jeans. But I wouldn't have missed out on these last 20+ years. I may never be this skinny again...but I will ALWAYS have the love of this wonderful, quirky man.

Shopping

Well, my guys have been out of town this weekend with the Boy Scouts...doing the Boy Scout thing. The usual...camping, rock climbing/repelling, cave exploration, fire, food and mud.

So this left my daughter and I with a rare couple of days to enjoy each other's company. And what did we do? SHOP, of course!

We have shopped at lots of stores in the two closest towns...and enjoyed a wonderful visit with my all-grown-up niece at her apartment. It has been a great weekend.

She had to go to work an hour ago...so it's just been me and the dog here at the house.

Hubby just called and said they were on the way home...so it won't be quiet for long.

Just thought you might be interested in what's new here. How has your weekend been going?

Quirks

Here's another one of my earlier writings. Enjoy.

Quirks

Towels. My kids fold the laundry. One of my quirks is that the towels have to be folded in a certain way. They lay in the cabinet better and they look neater when they’re folded this way. It’s not complicated. It’s not like I’m asking for them to fold a napkin swan. Simply fold long ways twice and then over. Tada!

Now, the kids aren’t wonderful at putting away the laundry they fold, but that’s a kid thing and doesn’t annoy me very much. You have to let some things go and pick your fights. Do you know that saying—is this the hill you want to die on? You know what that means, right? If the last memory that my kids had of me was me yelling, “You didn’t put the folded laundry away!” that would be so sad.

So one day while I was putting away the towels I noticed that my little towel-folding rebel had been at it again. That irked me. In order to get them to fit in the cabinet I had to turn them so that the folded edge was to the side instead of facing the front. Later I was irked again when I got ready to take a bath and I pulled out one of those wrongly folded towels and it tumbled on my face instead of coming out of the cabinet neatly (understand, the cabinet is mounted above the bathtub—high above it). WHY can’t they remember—fold twice long ways, then once over? Tada!

God has a sense of humor. I know this because of two things: First, I have a sense of humor and I am made in His image. Second, sometimes He just CRACKS ME UP!
He wants us to “pray without ceasing” and to me that means we can have a conversation with Him all day long—not only while we’re on our knees. So, here I am in the bathtub, and God decides that now is a good time to answer me. The problem wasn’t that my child was a towel folding rebel—the problem was that I was allowing Satan to use this minor (and it IS minor) inconvenience to PUSH MY BUTTON!

So I let it go.

No longer was I going to allow Satan the enjoyment of watching me to get my Irish up whenever I saw a towel folded once long ways then short ways then again long ways. What a relief! That burden was no longer mine to carry! I instantly felt better instead of bitter.

Then I got tickled. Being a visual person, my mind tends to make up a mental picture if there isn’t a visual image. I imagined Satan, lying back in an easy chair with some cute demons at his side fanning him with palm leaves and feeding him grapes. He decides he’s bored and needs entertainment, so he reaches over beside him and pushes a little button and sits back to watch the action. Nothing happens. He sits up and pushes it again. And again. PushPushPushPushPushPushPushPush Nothing happens. I have disconnected that button! Then I picture him frantically grabbing the wires and trying to reconnect it. Is it red to blue? Black to green? He’s twisting the wires together, but still the button doesn’t work. It won’t work because I let it go.

This is fun! I have POWER over Satan! What else can we let go, Lord? You know what, He’s showing me!

Bring on the outlaws...

My knight in cardboard armor is ready for 'em.

Timothy spent the afternoon playing with a cardboard box, a Boy Scout knife and a wild imagination.

Gotta love that boy.

Things are back to normal around here...

Everyone is mostly over the cold. Boy Scouts is keeping us busy every weekend again (it must be Spring), and the kids are all looking forward to school lessons to be over with for the year.
Today the Scouts held a Pancake Breakfast fund raiser. It sounds like they made out pretty well. I'm so proud of all the boys...they really pitched in and were friendly and helpful. We have a great group of guys.
Last night my husband and I got to enjoy a Date Night out. Our church organized a dinner-and-a-movie night. We ate at a local pizza shop (actually, it's the one where our daughter works--and she "got" to be our waitress for the evening), then went to the church to watch a video. Around 30 people participated. Everyone agreed that they had a good time. It was fun!
Oh, you want to know what the above picture is about? It's just my husband and daughter having a "moment." My husband volunteered to drive a van load of teens to a Christian concert a couple of years ago. He grabbed one of our puppet wigs and wore it--the entire day. The teens loved it. He said he had his picture taken DOZENS of times that day. He loves to tell about the drivers on the interstate. The teens would wave at them as they passed the van, so they'd be smiling by the time they reached the driver--then they'd sort of freeze when they saw him...a big man in a bright pink wig.
That's my wild and crazy family. I love 'em all and wouldn't change a thing.
TTFN

Words of wisdom for the teens....

First off...I'm not going to get into the whole dating/no dating debate.

I just want to say that I've seen so many of my children's friends who are dating (both ps and hs) and, quite frankly, I'm upset with them. The trend these days seems to be to start at the top--in everything you do. Does anyone see a problem with that?

Excuse me?
{tap, tap, tap} Is this thing on?
Good. Listen up! 'cause here are my words of wisdom to you:

When you start with "I love you", there's no place to go from there but down.

Thank you.
This has been a public service announcement from a concerned mother. Now go clean your rooms.

Update on us.

Hi guys. Long time to blog.
The cold/flu has been making the rounds in my house. I was the first to catch it (as previously mentioned)...then the boys...and now my daughter has it. Poor thing.
She and I seem to get the flu worse than the males in this house. The good news is that it only lasts about 4 days and you feel better. Alive, even. Meanwhile, life goes on. I didn't miss any work. I work in an office alone. Most of the time, I'm the only person in the building--besides my kids if they follow me to work. So I didn't think anything of going to work with a cold. Little did I know that the cold chills weren't from the cold temps outside, but from the fever within. Our thermometer is broke. WHY is it that you never know these things until it's too late? It's not like I could run right out and buy another one.
But you know what? I never really know that we have the flu until the SECOND person gets hit by it. You know how that is, right? Tell me I'm not alone. Please.
Anyway, by the time I got home from work, I was exhausted. After resting for a bit, I had to haul laundry downstairs and toss it in the washing machine. A mundane task, mind you...but it wore me out. At what point do you think it dawned on me that I needed to be in bed? Never. I couldn't think clearly. I just took frequent breaks. Even climbing the stairs--something that I do a hundred times a week--left me huffing and puffing. I reasoned that my lungs were worn out from fighting the green gunk that I was coughing out of them. {Insert clanging bells and giant red flags here. Nevermind, I couldn't see 'em.} So when the clothes were done in the washer, I hauled them outside to hang on the clothesline. WHY was I hanging clothes outside in 30-something degree weather you ask? Because my dryer decided it was tired of providing hot air. {Side note--after 65 dollars of parts, dh finally found the right one and VIOLA!, it works.} The laundry is all caught up just in time for the next round.
So anyway, I'm feeling MUCH better. Just a cough remains. The boys are coming out of it. Dd is going to milk this for all its worth.
I don't blame her.
A girls' gotta do what a girl's gotta do. :)
Hope all you guys stay far, far away from the flu.
And to anyone who may have seen me this week: I'm REALLY sorry if I exposed you to the flu. I didn't know that it wasn't a simple cold.

A hat named CLYDE.

A few years ago we went to the Ohio State Fair. The State Fair is filled with all sorts of wonderful things...most of which we didn't partake. Not that we have anything against Fried Oreos and foam fingers, but we were there for 4H judging. Oh sure, we perused through the freebies building. You know the one. It's full of businesses hoping to catch your eye so you will buy their product or services. They give away yard sticks, magnets, notepads, key chains and pens to show you how serious they are about their business.

Anyway, by the time judging was over and we had a sack of freebies we were beat...so we headed out. On the way out was the Dickies booth. The fellas all REALLY, REALLY wanted to stop there because they were giving away the chance to drive a race car. No, not an actual race car. They strapped themselves into a chair and grabbed a steering wheel and watched the huge TV screen and pretended to drive a race car. When they were done they got a Dickies ball cap to remember that moment forever and ever. Great fun for those full of testosterone. Or so I hear. I don't have a picture of that. But I *do* have a picture of what my daughter and I did to kill time while the fellas were standing in line. We pretended to fight a bull. That's right. I can just hear you now: "Golly, I wish I was there to pretend to fight a bull." You might think it's great fun to stand in front of a green screen in a hot, closed-in trailer on a hot August day. Or not. But we also got a Dickies ball cap to help us remember this moment until our photos became available to download from the internet two weeks later.

When we emerged from the trailer we noticed the daily parade was in session. By then the fellas had joined us, so we positioned ourselves to watch the parade. It was a nice little parade with THE band (what other band would there be at the Ohio State Fair?), some kids and a team of Clydesdales pulling a wagon. (Don't get ahead of me, k?)

Right next to the Dickies trailer was a booth where they were giving away samples of a new cheesy snack cracker, so we all grabbed a snack before leaving. It was there, with cheesy-yellow-powdered fingers, my teenage daughter decided that her hat needed a name. What could she name a hat that came from the Ohio State Fair after she fought a bull for it? Clyde, of course. What do you expect from a horse lover?

My quirky dog.

The first picture in yesterday's post is of my dog, Mimi. She's a retired Greyhound. Several years ago we were involved in a "rescue" group that helped find homes for retired Greyhound. We fostered several dogs. I forget the count now. Anyway, Mimi was our second foster dog. From the second she got into my station wagon, I could tell this dog had a Princess attitude...and that's what I called her all week. Princess Mimi. She stayed with us a week and was adopted out right away. She left on a Saturday. She came back the next day--Sunday. I'll tell you the rest of her story another day.
She's getting old now and no longer sleeps upstairs with the rest of the family. Occasionally she'll venture upstairs to make sure we're still there or alright or something. Who knows what a dog is thinking. But she rarely sleeps in our bedroom.
Yesterday was stormy. Last night was worse--with high winds, beating rain, and the *BOOM-BOOM* of transformers blowing out.
Last night, about 1 AM, she came into our room and laid down.
Whenever she's scared at night, she will sleep on the floor at my husband's side of the bed.
Whenever she's sick at night, she will sleep on the floor at my side of the bed.
And whenever she just wants to be near us, she will sleep on the floor at the foot of the bed.
She was on my side of the bed.
Great.
But it must've just been a case of the jitters giving her a queasy feeling...because she got up in 15 or 20 minutes and trotted off downstairs for the rest of the night.
Whew! Dodged the bullet that time.
Hope you guys all have electric today. I forgot to turn my puter off last night...so it was a bit messed up this morning and I couldn't get online. All is well in my world now. :)