Catching Up With Alta

I sure hope that no one is upset with me. I know that it has been some time since I have been posting anything here. Things have changed so very much for me. I mean really - they have changed in ways that I never thought about.

Friday, March 28th 2007 was the first day that I had not smoked a cigarette in over 26 years. That is my official quit date. It hasn't been easy to get to where I am now. I had to pretty much give up my computer because I used to sit in front of the darn computer and smoke like a chimney. All I needed was a picture of a fire on the computer screen and we could have hung our stockings by it. Not any more - I am done with that. Been there - Done that!
Oh yeah! I still crave that smoke from time to time. I still want to run down to the corner store and buy me a pack and start smoking again. And there are days that I could run down to the corner convience store and buy a whole carton, sit on the curb and just light the carton on fire and smoke it like a musician playing a harmonica. But I just go on and get past that moment or those moments.

Since I don't know when, things have been changing for me. I think it may be because I'm growing older. Maybe it's because I'm growing wiser. Hmm...I might need to ponder on that a little bit.

The first part of this year I was drawn to read the Bible. I couldn't tell you why if you ask me. It was just something that I wanted to do, something I thought I needed to do. Get this - the plot thickens. I'll get to it before I'm done, hang on...

I talked with Superman about it and I told him that I had no idea why I wanted to start going to church or why I wanted to read the Bible, it's just that I had a craving for it all. My cravings got stronger and stronger. I am pulled by something. I'm being led toward or to this little church. Brother Andy is the pastor, he preaches words that I understand, words that I am thirsty to hear. I'll get more into this also, so hang on again...

May 2008 has brought me to a point in my life that I thought would never happen. This is my official and legal Mothers Day. What a feeling it truly is. I have my wonderful husband, my 3 boys and God to thank.

I'm gonna change the subject a little bit (sorry bout that). Our cat Dusty is now diabetic and has to take insulin shots. Yes he has cataracts like Jack. Dusty hasn't become completely blind yet but I do think that it will eventually happen. We are going to make Dusty as happy and comfortable as we can until he goes over the rainbow bridge. And just to let you know, if I talk about it anymore I'll be crying and snottin all over the place.

In the past 3 weeks we've had 2 deaths in the family. Both on my dad's side of the family - one of his sisters and one of his brothers.

Now that we are catching up with Alta (yep, that's me), I'll tell you about some power surges. I mean some real doozies too. Hot flashes! I personally call them Power Surges. There is no way in this world that what I am feeling is hot flashes. I'm way too young for that. Guess again! I have to schedule myself a doctor appointment. Somethings gotta be done!

I'll try to let you all know where we stand on home school in one of my next post. In the meantime hang in there...

I Lost Count

I lost count of the days now. Not just the days, but the days! The days that I have been nicotine free.

Let me think out loud just a minute and then I'll let you know. Ok - my last one was on the - hmm...let me get to the calendar...April 4th was 7 days...so...March something...got it...March 27th was the last time that I smoked. So my first day of no nicotine was March 28th, 2008.

I tell ya, it has been a struggle. I have avoided all the things that I used to do. Sit at the computer - light one up. After every meal - light one up. I had more reasons to light one up than stars in the sky. PIT i FULL

Today has been kinda rough but I've made it this far.

We have a few things going on that is taking up lots of our thoughts.

1. We have got to buy another vehicle. This is pretty funny because we are vehicle poor. I mean it. If we put all of our vehicles in our yard, it would look like a used car lot. Gotta think again, so that I can tell you exactly how many we have. Our green hunting truck, there's the Dodge, then there's the truck that my mom has at her house (it was my dad's), then there is our SUV that is falling apart little by little. Ok, there's only 4 of them but isn't that enough. LOL Oh yeah, there is also the patrol car when Superman isn't working. Yep - like I said, a used car lot.

2. A graduation is in the very near future. My sister's baby is graduating from high school. We want to go to the graduation and spend a little bit of time with my sister and then we want to use the rest of the week as our vacation. So we have to plan for someone to feed the horses while we are gone, someone to feed the cats and clean the litter boxes. We have to board the dogs. Oh yeah, and now that we have a special needs cat, we have to find someone that can give Dusty his insulin shots twice a day.

3. I have a huge list of things that need to be caught up on. I think it may be easier to just throw the list away and start over.

I think that's all for now. I am gradually getting back to the computer so please be patient with me. Thank you very much for your support!

Here Lately

Here lately I've been busy. I know - Imagine that! I've been trying to figure out what has me so busy.
Could it be that I homeschool 3 boys or maybe we have 3 horses, 4 cats, 2 dogs? Maybe it's the bike riding we've been doing lately or the window cleaning that I started a couple of days ago. Maybe it's our Boy Scout Troop or running errands here and there. Maybe it's all the time spent in the kitchen. Oh who knows. LOL It's ok though, it's just that time of year.

I do know that my laundry is not even close to what it used to be. I discovered GoodNites. Yes, we have a bed wetter and it's not the end of the world. I sure thought it was the end of the world when I was washing his sheets and blankets every day of the week. Since we have discovered GoodNites all of that has stopped. Now our youngest child has his special pajamas and he is so proud. You can find out more by going to the GoodNites website.

Five to seven million kids in the United States wet the bed.
20% of 4- to 12-year-olds wet the bed.
Bedwetting is more common among boys than girls–about 2/3 of kids who wet the bed are boys. 72% of kids who wet the bed will outgrow it by the time they're 11–99% by age 15.

Cats and Trees

I thought by now that I would have some really funny things to tell you about our cats and our Christmas tree. Unfortunately, I don't have anything about our cats and our tree. I just knew that I would wake up Sunday morning with our tree laid over on it's side. I went to bed all prepared for the catastrophe. We had all talked about the possibility of finding Tigger at the top of the tree or even getting to the top and knocking the Angel off and somehow wearing the Angel. I suppose Tigger and the other cats have decided to leave the tree alone for now. I wonder if any of them will find themselves in the tree before Christmas is over?

Update on Tigger - Put the Cotton Away

This morning I called the vet and set up a 2:30 afternoon appointment. This appointment was for our vet to see the progress that Tigger had made. Tigger has made a full comeback!
The vet was very impressed with Tigger. Dr. Bennett is our vet. I have been taking my animals to him since the early 80's. He has always been very honest with me and he has always treated my animals the way that I believe they should be treated. Dr. Bennett said "you are very lucky that Tigger made it". According to Dr. Bennett, not many animals in the condition that Tigger was in would have pulled through.

Dr. Bennett ask me where the boys were. I told him and his assistant that I had to have a few minutes with some adults, so I left the boys in the car. He was rather disappointed and he even said so. LOL He said that they are very entertaining and he really enjoys them. He said he didn't have anything to give them and then he ask me if they could each have a syringe. Of course I said yes, so he sent them each a syringe.
On the way home all 3 of the boys played with their syringes. They figured out how to make them stick to their lips and their tongue. JD ask me if they could call him and thank him for the syringes. I think we will all sit down and write a thank you note to Dr. Bennett and all of his staff.

One last thing - When I started to walk out the door, Dr Bennett said, "tell the littlest one that he can put the cotton away".
If you don't remember, when Tigger first got sick and we all took him to the vet, MJ said that if Tigger didn't make it, we were going to stuff him with cotton and keep him.

WoooHooo! Put the cotton away!

Tigger's Journal

This may be too graphic for anyone with a weak stomach. Please read with caution.

I have held off on reporting too much about Tigger because of his condition. He has been a very sick little kitty. My last report was that the vet showed me how to give fluids to him with an injection. It has been a long 2 weeks for us with Tigger. Of course it has been more difficult for Tigger than for me and I have to admit it certainly hasn't been easy for me.

Wednesday, October 3rd - 3 of the cats went to the vet to be fixed and declawed.

Thursday, October 4th - 3 of the cats came home and everything was fine.

Friday, October 5th - Tigger very sick. Tigger had to go back to the vet. He had to get fluids via an injection.

Saturday, October 6th - Tigger even sicker. He had to go back to the vet and stay over the whole weekend.

Monday, October 8th - Tigger came home and I had all kinds of instructions on giving him fluids. He just laid around as if he had no will to live. He would not eat or drink anything and he was throwing up (a lot). By process of elimination that Tigger may have eaten some of, one of our house plants - we believe it may have been our Peace Lily. Needless to say that the Peace Lily now lives out side. I am still considering getting rid of the plant completely.

Tuesday, October 9th - Tigger getting worse. The vet ask me to come in and he would show me how to give the fluids via an injection. I got sick in the vets office and thought that I was going to pass out. This has happened to me before at the vets office (LOL). It's only me feeling sorry for the animals that I was with at the time, including Tigger. I started giving him fluids via the injection this evening.

Wednesday, October 10th thru Friday, October 12th - Still giving him fluids via the injection twice a day. He is still throwing up. He is still not eating or drinking anything at all.

Saturday, October 13th - Tigger walks to the water dish and takes 2 laps. He will not drink milk or anything else. He will not eat canned cat food, tuna or anything else. All this time he had been sleeping in the shower in my bathroom. He didn't want to be away from us today, he wanted to lay in the hallway near the den. So we let him stay out all day and be near us.

Sunday, October 14th - No more throwing up. During the night he learned how to open the shower door, somehow get under the bathroom door and under my bedroom door. Today he ate about 5 little niblets of dry cat food. He also went to the litter box by himself. He drank a few more laps of water. He meowed and showed some response when I put my finger gently in his ear.

Monday, October 15th - A few more niblets of dry cat food. A few more laps of water. He drank a little bit of milk tonight. Used the litter box by himself again. He meows a little more now. He is walking kinda funny...Putting his head down and swinging it back and forth as he walks. It looks like he is drunk. I am still giving him fluids via injection. He purred a little bit.

Tuesday, October 16th - His appetite is really starting to pick up. More trips to the food bowl and to the litter box. His litter box trips are clearing up. There was blackish blood and then red blood, now they look more like wet cat food. Today he fought the injection and I made a call to the vet. Per the vet...as long as he is not dehydrated, I can hold off on the injections. Tonight I managed to get him to drink some milk and some chicken broth. I also got him to eat a little bit of canned cat food.
Now he walks very weird. His back legs don't want to work. It's almost as if they were asleep. I kinda feel sorry for him but I have to give him credit because he certainly is trying.
I tote him to the food dish and take food and liquids to him. I take him to the litter box and generally he uses it. The reason I am carrying him is because of how he is walking.
Tonight he is starting to perk up his ears and eyes when he hears certain sounds. He still wants to be close to us and we are still letting him be close to us.

Wednesday, October 17th - The girls get their stitches out and Tigger is getting a check up. I will update more when I get back from the vets office.
Update - The girls did get their stitches out. The vet and his assistant was pretty impressed with Tigger. The vet said that the way Tigger is walking is a sign of diabetes. However, he doesn't believe that it is diabetes because Tigger's walk has improved since yesterday. Not much but there is an improvement. To give you an example of how he is walking - it's kind of like one of the raptors on Jurassic Park.
I am trying to let him walk more on his own now. I do help him to the litter box because I want him to be able to make it on time. He is drinking more chicken broth and milk. He is eating more dry cat food and canned cat food. Tonight he showed an interest in 2 very important things. Those things are his play cubicle and a piece of yarn. He really perked up with the piece of yarn and batted at it. The vet has him on medication now, which I am sure will only help.
Just to let everyone know, the vet said that there is still a chance that he may not make it. Also, the vet wants to see him again in about 2 weeks to monitor the improvements.
Oh yeah - lots of purring now too and he is bathing himself.

Thursday, October 18th - I am amazed at the progress that Tigger makes overnight. He is sitting at the shower door this morning, asking to be let out. When I let him out, I immediately notice that he is walking a little better. I follow behind him to make sure that he wants his breakfast. I give him milk that he smells of and is done with it. He don't even want his chicken broth. I kinda get concerned about it. He heads off in the direction of the dry cat food. That's what he wanted. He starts eating and I begin to wonder if he is going to get full. I offer him a little canned cat food and he wants only a tiny bit of it. He hurries off to the litter box, does his business and off he goes again. He gets to his cubicle and there he lays for a couple of hours. Later on he lays by the window and soaks up some warm sunshine. He chased his ball for about 2 feet today. Tigger was laying on the floor today and did a long cat stretch. Throughout the whole day you could see his walking improve. Now he walks with his legs straighter and more like a slinky type of cat walk, his tail up in the air. Purrs and purrs. He ate more canned cat food this afternoon. More long cat stretches and even one where he rolled over onto his back wanting a belly rub.

Friday, October 19th - We can see his improvement from hour to hour today. His walking has improved so much. It's almost as if there has never been a walking issue. I called the vet to get a refill on the meds that he was just started on. The meds are to help his liver heal. The liver damage is caused from the plant he ate. When I called the vet, I had to tell them all about how much he has improved and still improving. They were all so extremely happy. No more fluids through the I.V. Tigger is now eating like a horse and begging for more. He actually chased one of his little bell balls today for about 5 feet. Once he got to it, he had no interest in playing with it.

Saturday, October 20th - Now that Tigger is so close to being well, I just may stop updating daily on him. I will let you all know what the vet says when I take him back in a little less than 2 weeks. Today Tigger is back. Walking normal and in to everything. He hides under the bed and waits until someone walks by and then he pounces on them. He played with his bell balls today for a long time. He also played with one of our other cats (Biscuit). Long, long cat stretches and so much more cat personality.

Hang in for the vet report in a few days.

Staying In Touch

I know! I haven't been here much. But I've been busy. Remember me saying that I have a very full calendar. And since Granny Karen is in the hospital, we have been running to the hospital to visit with her. We are also taking care of her animals while she isn't home.

There is still a lot going on around here and there will be all month long. Hopefully, this week the boys and I will be able to skip school and go to the library book sale. I look forward to that sale twice a year. I haven't been to it in about 2 years now, but I still mark it on the calendar just in case I find myself in the area of the sale. I will make it a point this week to be in the area. I'll have to tell you all about it too. I know the boys will enjoy it. I just know it!

I have a little journal about Tigger that I will be sharing later in the week. He is still hanging in there and what a little trooper he is.

Tigger Still Not Well

After a long weekend for us, I called the vet this morning to see how Tigger was feeling. Tigger is on a long road to recovery, if he actually recovers. The facts are hard and I am crying as I tell you this. Tigger did make it through the weekend. Tigger could go any time now. We all pray that he get better and stays with us for many more years.

Our vet has tried and tried to figure out what went wrong. In all reality, we really don't know.

On Wednesday we took him, Biscuit and Captain in to be fixed and declawed. Surgery went well with all of them. We brought all of them home on Thursday and they all just laid around sleeping and resting. Friday morning I noticed that Tigger was very lethargic and dehydrated. There was also some greenish liquid throw up on one of the carpet runners. I immediately called the vet and he suggested that we bring Tigger in for some fluids. Tigger stay all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We brought Tigger home today with all kinds of instructions and what to look out for.

The vet started asking me questions about house plants. I told him about a few that I have and he believes that Tigger may have eaten some of my Peace Lily. This may be what is causing his problem.
Possible liver damage.
We are just not sure. We know that he is still lethargic and dehydrated. Tigger is home with us now and I am giving him fluids all the time. He shows no interest in food or water. I am giving him Gatorade with a syringe.

Please keep Tigger in your thoughts and prayers.

Tigger Not Feeling Well

And back to the vet we go. Tigger hasn't been feeling well since we brought him home from the vets office. Last night he would drink a little water and then throw up a lot of fluid. Poor little guy just laid around and was very lethargic. He was extremely dehydrated. After a call to the vets office today, they suggested that we bring him in to get some fluids in him. I had a doctors appointment in town, so we just dropped Tigger off and then went to my appointment. We went back by the vets office to see if Tigger could go home but they suggested that he stay over night so they could watch him and get more fluids in him.

We are all worried about little Tigger.

And They Sleep

We all know that cats sleep. A Lot! We picked all 3 of the cats up from the Vets office this morning. I was concerned about the ride home and how the boys and the cats would handle each other. Well, I was concerned for no reason at all. Ok - call me a worry wart!

Everyone did well from their surgery and were ready to go home. When I first saw them all in their kennels at the Vets office, I wanted to run and grab them all and just love on them.
I think I have become a softie after all these years. Really! To the point that yesterday after we dropped the cats off at the Vets office that I was going to cry. We managed to get about 10 minutes down the road and I started to really thinking about them. Thinking about the surgery and if something happened and should I just go and get them or call the Vets office and cancel everything. I had to talk myself out of doing that.

The ride home was not bad at all. Now getting them out of the car was a different story all together. Captain had somehow wedged herself under the front passenger seat. Tiggie, oh he was easy because he had laid down in the back floorboard and went to sleep. Biscuit hid in the very back, in the cargo area. JD and MJ climbed in the cargo area and locked the door. I guess they thought that Biscuit might attack them and open the door and escape. Locking the door sure did prevent that from happening.

Everyone is home at last. Last night it was very quiet here at home. I think the cats must run around the house and make all the noise. Yeah - right! Once we brought all the cats inside, I put them all in my bedroom where it's nice and dark, cold and quiet. Biscuit finally came out about 2 hours later and decided the best place for her was in my lap. Tiggie has just laid around anywhere. It's like he walks 10 feet and then just falls over for a nap. Captain has hid in my bedroom all day. She always has liked it calm and quiet. Finally tonight around 10pm, she came slipping into the den. She paid me a quick visit and was off to grab a few little nibbles of food.

My arms were loaded with medicine for all the cats. I was almost overwhelmed with all the vials and syringes and this and that. At first I thought I was going to pass out. I really was overwhelmed. I started taking notes about the times and such of the meds. Why? Because I didn't want to forget. I was blinded by all the darn things. All the instructions that I needed to know where written on each package.

Instead of all the cats running around and chasing poor Mindy (our Schnauzer), they are all hiding somewhere where they cannot be bothered. I am guessing that Sunday or Monday the normal activity of cats running between our feet while we try to walk will resume. At least now when they grab our feet it won't be with claws.

And The Total Is...

Hopefully you all remember our cats. Just in case you don't - There is Captain Hooks, we call her Captain. She is named that because she is a Hemingway cat, she has 6 toes. There is Biscuit. Now how she came about that name is a long story. Biscuit is the litter mate to Captain. Then along comes Tigger. He got his name because he is stripped like a Tiger but acts like Tigger from Winnie The Pooh. We call him Tiggie. And last but not least come Dusty. He is our big fat yellow tabby cat. He was named Dusty because he always looks smutty.

It was either Friday or Saturday that we noticed that Captain and Tiggie were getting a little too darn friendly. Oh they were just all smoochy, smoochy. Ok - no more cats. Not gonna have it, no way, no how. Since then we have been putting Captain in our bedroom and letting Tiggie have run of the house. Then we would put Tiggie in one of the boys bedrooms and let Captain have run of the house. Every now and then someone would leave a door open and we would all run into each other trying to grab cats. Kinda like a cat scramble. It was a sight for sore eyes.

Saturday I called the vet, made the appointment that was long over due. Yep! The one to get Captain, Biscuit and Tiggie fixed (Dusty was done several years ago). Not only are we getting them all fixed, but we are having their front paws de-clawed. I know the de-clawing is a touchy issue for some and I understand. But think of it this way.
Our cats never, ever go outside. And when they all get to running and playing, you can sometimes find them about 4 foot up the wall. No joke! They will jump up and grab on to the wall. They just kinda hang there like a squirrel and look around as if to say "can you see me now?". The walls were not made for cat claws.

The vet gave me a total on the phone when I made the appointment. To get the 3 cats done, the total was $550. I thought, shoot, that's not bad. This afternoon I called to check on them and they were all doing just fine. I'm sure they are all really mad at me right now but they are well and that's what counts most.
Oh yeah - And The Total Is...$689.00
Biscuit had an infection in her uterus. Why or how - we don't know. She will be on antibiotics for a few days. I really am looking forward (NOT) to giving a cat (especially Biscuit) a darn pill every day. That's where a sling shot comes in handy. LOL Get your husband to sit in his very favorite recliner, put the cat in his lap and ask him in your most sweetest voice - "Darling, will you pleeaaassssseeee hold Biscuits mouth open", then you load the pill into the sling shot and take your very best aim. Now - fire away!

Ok, so we know that's not gonna happen. Just suck it up and give the darn cat the pill. Yep, that's what I gotta do.

Living in the Real World

We all know that once the weekend is gone that Monday comes along. It's a fact. Not one that much of us like but it happens. And once again I find myself asking - where did the weekend go? I wonder where the weekends go because we stay busy. We always seem to run from here to there and back again. I'm not so much the runner in the family, it's more Superman than me. The boys are all fine with staying home or being on the go. I really think they prefer to stay home than running from here to there. However, there are times when they will ask if we are going anywhere. I try to post our schedule (appointments) on the calendar and I do a pretty good job of it. I just don't post things like buying groceries or horse feed or things like that.

Yes, it's Monday. I used to really dread Mondays. That's when I worked in the real world. Now that I am a SAHM (stay at home mom) and a WAHM (work at home mom), I don't dread Mondays anymore. Funny how I said the real world. What exactly is the real world?
For me the real world consist of rolling out of bed at a decent hour, doing the brush teeth and make bed thing. Next I'm trying to get things a little organized for our daily school lessons, while I am waking the boys up and reminding them to get their chores completed. They're pretty good with their chores, so that's the easy part. Doing this and that for all the critters, such as feeding, cleaning the litter boxes, opening gates for horses and so on... Next, I'm giving a bottle to our baby squirrel while making sure that the boys clean the table and do their dishes after they eat breakfast. Then we're off to school where we talk about Columbus sailing the ocean blue, counting from 1 to 200 and figuring out what number comes before and after. We work on growing plants, examining plant cells, work on cursive writing, figure out the plot, setting and characters of a story. We work on spelling words and telling time. We do addition, subtraction and we multiply and we divide. We do fractions and we count beans. We draw and we color. I think it would have been easier to just say there isn't anything that we don't work on.
Some days we all walk to the mailbox together. Some days we run errands and read road signs. Everyday we laugh! No matter how bad the day is - we still find something to laugh at.
We eat lunch and we clean up our mess. We add some more and count some more beans. We count coins and we try to talk in Spanish. We run, we jump and we sword fight. Some days I'm toting a cat like a baby trying to get them out of the bathroom while answering 900 questions. Some days I'm feeding the baby squirrel while trying to wash my hands. One just never knows around here. LOL

Schools out and we all run our separate ways. Me to the barn and then to the kitchen. The boys? Oh they scatter in all different directions.
We all sit down to supper and we laugh and giggle and we talk about our day. We all do the cleaning up from supper and then we all scatter again. The boys scatter off to get their showers and do any homework that they have. Then they find us and hopefully we all can sit down to a movie or to another family conversation or even for some quiet time to read a book.

Bedtime. For everyone except me. Of course I am the one that has the most problem going to sleep. I take the time that everyone is asleep as my quiet time, my time to relax and finally read my emails, clean off my desk, do a little dusting, maybe even some laundry. Now I'm thinking, just how many hours are in the day anyway. LOL

In the morning we start all over again. That brings me to another question. Isn't it time for me to get some sleep? Yeah - I think so!
Goodnight all!

No Place Like Home

There's no place like home. No matter how near or how far, there's no place like home.
Once again we take things for granted and just don't realize that our boys haven't experienced some of the most common things in life. Security is one of them. Having a place to call home and being able to actually go home. Missing someone or something and then finally seeing and being with them again.

All the way from the airport the boys kept saying they couldn't wait to get home and they were glad to be back in Florida. When we pulled up to our gate the boys jumped out of the car and were just full of excitement. We all grabbed bags from the car so that we could get it unpacked and get inside. MJ and JD kept asking if they could go over and get Mindy, Molly and Rocko. Once inside we sent them on their way to Granny Karen's to get Mindy, Molly and Rocko. Later, Granny Karen called me and told me all about the hugs that the boys gave the dogs. They missed the dogs and were really glad to see them. Our boys have never had a home to come home to or pets who missed them or anyone to miss them. Oh the love that they are feeling now.
MJ and JD ran into the house with Mindy and Molly in tow. It was loud and the boys and the dogs were jumping everywhere. So silly! Then they were all off to fine all the cats. Once everyone was found and hugs were given out things began to settle down.

WW, JD and MJ walked around the house checking things out. Maybe to see if everything was just like we left it. They were really worried about all the animals on Thursday when we were getting ready to leave. They were worried that the horses would starve to death and no one would pet the cats and on and on...When we got back home they saw that everything was just fine and they were ok after that.

I am glad that we have these boys and I am glad that we are able to show them love and give them security. We are not rich in monetary value, however, we are extremely rich in love and value. Families need that more than money!

Empty Bottles

Last night I thought that I would spend some relaxing time in a hot bath. I walk into the bathroom to start the water and Captain (as usual) thinks the running water is for her drinking pleasure. Much to her surprise, her tail ended up soaked and the cat hair flew as she took wing and hovered above the water for a brief second before finally finding her wings and flying across the bathroom. Well that's what it looked like in the blink of an eye. Cats sure can move fast!

With the bath water all steaming and ready for me, I eased down in the water and instantly could feel my skin start to cook. Ok - a little to hot! It's too late to back out now. I lean against the back of the tub and try to relax. I see empty bottles (now why didn't I close my eyes). The empty bottles are shampoo bottles, liquid soap bottles and heavens knows what else. I just looked at them and wondered how did they all come to live beside the tub. Oh, now I remember! (That comes directly from one of the boys sayings.) I buy the large bottles, because it saves money, and I refill all the bottles around the house. Once the bottles are low enough, I turn them upside down and put them by my tub in order to use them and not waste a single drop. I even put a little water inside them when they are completely empty, just to make sure that not even one teeny tiny drop is wasted. I managed to empty the shampoo bottle, the soap bottle and the conditioner bottle last night. Now around my tub looks all nice and neat again, no skeletons standing around upside down waiting for their brains to spill out.

So far today I have managed to get a little cleaning done (Karisma, this is all your fault). I hate housework! I really do. There is no doubt that I had rather move horse manure all day as to spend 1 single hour cleaning house. I always keep the house fairly tidy, because we all pick up behind ourselves. I can promise you that if I find a pair of socks laying around, I will attach them to the floor with a nail and a hammer. Well not really, but the boys think I will. I have them convinced and that is what's important. During the day we are all individually responsible for our dishes. You mess it up you wash, dry and put it away. After supper we all pitch in and do the dishes. Laundry, well I wash everyone dirty underwear. Isn't that a lovely chore? I know I do it because there is a certain way that I want it done. What can be so darn difficult about doing laundry? Nothing, absolutely nothing. It's just something I do. Ok - the boys help out a little. They fold their own clothes and put them away.

Since I have dial up and it's slower than molasses in January, I am able to do a few of these things, while I was waiting for a few (dozen) windows to open on my computer. Here are a few sites that I found that I will be saving in my favorites folder, for later use. DIY Ideas, Garden Ideas, Kitchen and Bath Ideas. I think these sites may be what put me in the cleaning mode and not Karisma. Ok Missy - I'm sorry to blame it on you!

Bloggers Against Abuse

On September 27th, join thousands of bloggers around the world in BlogCatalog’s Blogging for a Great Cause Challenge.
This Month’s Blogging Challenge:
Bloggers Against Abuse September 27th, 2007
The Outcome we are after is to be part of the largest group of bloggers to ever blog about an important cause, all on the same day.
So how do you participate?
On Sept. 27th, blog about putting an end to some sort of Abuse (you decide what kind of abuse to blog about). In the meantime though,
Spread the word among all the bloggers you know. Perhaps even give them a link to this Discussion.
If you are a graphic designer, perhaps you can come up with some small badges announcing the event, that we can then place on our blogs. To share the badge, place it on this thread.
Let other members know of any organizations who are involved in putting an end to abuse.
What do you get?
You will receive a link to your Blog Post from the Blogcatalog blog when we list everyone who participated.
You get to use your blog for an important cause.
You get to create blogging history.

Biscuits In The Dresser

Biscuits in the dresser! Yes, that is exactly what I said. Not only are was Biscuit in the dresser but the napkins were in the refrigerator. There are some weird happenings around here. Biscuit is one of our cats. Now napkins - those are just plain napkins that you wipe your mouth and hands on at meal time. I think it was Monday when I hadn't seen Biscuit all day long. I thought and thought but all I could remember was that I saw her before I took the boys to day camp. I wondered if maybe she ran out the door. Biscuit always tries to blend in with us when we are heading out the door. I have no idea why she thinks she can pass for one of the kids. I mean really, she stands less than a foot tall and weighs less than 10 pounds. Maybe she thinks she's invisible and just sneak through the mass of legs trying to get out the door. With the boys an myself there are a total of 8 legs trying to get outside at one time, so I guess Biscuit thinks, what the heck would 4 more legs hurt.

Anyway - once I picked up the boys from camp and got them inside, I said "we have to have a cat search". We have them from time to time. Living with 3 cats means that 1 is always hiding somewhere. So our search began. We found tuffs of hair (cat hair) but no cat (these are the tuffs of hair that we have to throw away before they get a name). We continued our search and whoa and behold - MJ comes out and announces that he has Biscuit. We all flock around him as he holds Biscuit while she yawns like she was just disturbed from a long winters nap. MJ says "Momma, she was in my dresser". Oh my - poor kitty (I think to myself). But knowing Biscuit, her yawn was her expression of the kind of day she had. The napkins in the refrigerator - that happens around here, and so does eye glasses in the freezer and butter in the oven. We just laugh and blame it on the gremlins.