5.28.2006

The Latest News

John and I are settling in nicely to our nice little home here in Owasso. OK, so 3 beds, 1.5 baths isn’t exactly little, but it’s not sprawling or enormous, either. I have no room I don’t know what to do with, and if we were to find we were expecting, I’d have to make room for the baby, but room enough to make it.

The dogs come in 3-4 times a week, more than the cats like, and less than the dogs like. We’ve not decided yet which dog would make the better good will ambassador to the cats; Bear’s so friendly, loving, and playful that it doesn’t occur to him to do anything but play. Alas, he’s at least 3 times larger than the cats, and I don’t think they understand he just wants to play. Then there’s Grizzly. Grizzly is curious, interested, and just that. The cats might well do better with his dispassionate approach, but at 8 times larger than the cats, just one wrong move could be all it takes to say good night to the kitty in question. Still, they sniff at each other, they’re gradually getting closer to each other, and I think we’re making headway.

I decided to leave my job. I still love the idea of writing professionally, and I’m not willing to completely abandon that idea. Unfortunately, living here and working for a company there was more stress than I wanted to deal with. Of course, that means I have the opportunity to spend time and energy taking care of the house.

That’s a joy to me, actually. There is a simple delight in my heart when I see a bedroom picked up, bed made, curtains opened to let the sunlight in. There is a simple delight for me to see the dishes done, put up, the counters wiped up, and know that dinner is all but taken care of. I want home to be a haven for my husband and I. I’ve always wanted to be a hostess, and never had the time, energy, or organization I needed to get on top of the chaos that was my house. Moving in here has been amazing. We threw away more stuff than I can even begin to count for you, and gave away a truckload more. Now that I have less stuff to keep up with, I can keep up with what I have. Do I still have more than I need? I’m sure I do. As I’ve said before; I’m a packrat. I’m also incurably sentimental. Still, I’ve learned that I can save things I have a sentimental attachment to, without keeping everything or piling it up so high that I can’t get around the house for the mess. I can’t explain why it makes me feel so good to keep the house neat, I just know that it does.

I bought a cheap little digital camera. So far the pictures are all crap, so I’m seriously thinking about sending it back. Once I get a functional camera, I’ll try to get pictures of my sweet little house up somewhere. I want to include the silk flower arrangements I did for the kitchen and the bedroom (far cheaper, and more allergy friendly than the real thing, and less of a concern with animals that eat EVERYTHING they lay eyes on.

Well, I’m off to finish getting the Office dealt with, and then the little daily polishing that has to happen. Oh, and I tried posting this once before and it didn’t post. We’ll see if it works this time! Next time I'll have to tell folks about Pass Your Plate, too!

5.26.2006

Latest News (Volume whichever) ;)

Well, I'm sitting here in my living room in Owasso. We've gotten mostly moved in, though there are still plenty of boxes to deal with. I'm hoping to use most of this weekend, though, to actually do that.
The dogs come in about every other day, but only when John and/or I can be here to be certain they don't torture the cats. And yes, that is the concern; my kitties torture them through the glass door (though when Lady tries to torture them by showing them how she's in here, getting affection, and they're stuck out there, I refuse to play along...so she gets no affection when they're around to see but not to enjoy). Once the dogs come in, though, the kitties pretty much go to the back of the house and we keep the dogs in the living room, with us.
We've also put a sprinkler outside so the dogs can play in the water. Correction: So Grizzly can play in the water. Poor Bear still thinks water is evil. It comes on and sprays for about 15-30 minutes, and Grizzly has a grand old romp in the water. It's funny to watch. I'll have to take a picture so you guys can see sometime.
I left my job. I was getting really stressed out, and that wasn't worth it to me. I might free lance a little still, but nothing seriously steady at all. Which means that I'm back to being a mundane little housewife. That works for me; I'd much rather housework was mundane and add the spice to my life in other places, ways, and amounts. I like my life this way. Oh, and the fact that we chucked close to 150 bags worth of stuff and therefore moved much less junk here makes it so much easier to keep the house clean. I LIKE it this way.
I got home this afternoon from a morning at Pass Your Plate. I went in, assembled a split 10 (+1) into 22 entrees for John and I. I loved it...fresh, healthy ingredients, pre-chopped, grated, etc, then I assemble into a meal that I bring home, freeze, thaw later when I'm ready for it, and bake in the oven (OK, so there are 6 or so that will take some more work, but still!) I love to cook, but I hate to clean up; this let me cook without cleaning up! YAY!! I already have June's menu; I'll be ready at the end of the month for another month's worth of meals prepped in one morning!
Other than that, there's not much to tell. We don't have a new church yet, but we've got a couple of leads to try out in the next few weeks. I'll post out here when I have new pictures to share; I bought a cheapo digital camera that should let me put some semi-decent pics of the new house, the animals, and the two of us out for folks to peruse.
I now return you to your regularly scheduled insanity. :D
H

5.04.2006

Home Again

With John and I moving to a new city, I wanted to be sure if one of my animals managed to wander off, I could get them back home again. We took them to the vet today, where the vet, a former classmate of John's, advised we tranquilize the cats first. It seems the needle to inject the little microchip is bigger than what the cats can handle comfortably otherwise because of the thinner skin on the cat. So we agreed, he drugged the kitties, and then left to let the medicine take effect. Apparently, whatever veterinary equivalent to morphine he gave them upsets their stomachs; Kit thew up 3 times while there, and Lady threw up when she came home. The rest of the appointment was relatively uneventful; Grizzly tried to antagonize the stoned Lady, Bear wanted to sniff everything, and Kit refused to come out of his carrier. Still we brought them home, enrolled them online, and have pills now to give the kitties on Saturday to make the trip up to the new place less stressful for them; they'll sleep right through the most traumatic parts of the whole thing.

Bringing them home, though, was funny and endearing. As I mentioned before, Lady waited until she got home to throw up. We just opened their carriers so they could come out when they were ready. Lady immediately stumbled out like the stoned kitty she was...she couldn't walk straight, stumbled around, and proceeded to throw up. She was actually more active, stumbling around drunk, than she normally is. Kit, on the other hand, stumbled out a few minutes later, took about 5 steps, and fell over. He laid there, his little tongue hanging out and half passed out for a few minutes. Then he got up and stumbled a little further along. I scooped him up and carried him in to lay on our bed to look out the window. He almost immediately stumbled back into the living room, came straight for me, and then stopped, too tired to move closer. I stepped over, scooped him up, and spent the better part of the last 45 minutes I cuddled him in my lap. He's always seemed to be happiest, to feel more secure and safe in my arms than anywhere. He always has to be where I am, always has to lay where I am, and naps with me when I do. It's so adorable!

They've now woken enough that they're in the kitchen eating...or at least they were when I walked back into the living room to finish this.

And as far as packing goes. John has now disassembled the kitchen table, and it really looks like we're moving out. Wow.

Now to call Uhaul and make sure we have a truck; they were supposed to have called by now!

5.03.2006

John ROCKS!

I NEVER could have done this on my own. John's been right there, packing, throwing away, dealing with the kitchen and laundry...

Sorry if I offend, Dad, Papa, Grampa, every other man on earth...
But I married the BEST man on the face of the earth. He's THAT Awesome.

Yes, I am baised. Shamelessly so. But that doesn't change the fact that John ROCKS!

H.