I'll bring you up to speed after we answer this question: WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED TO SPRING? We had a nice start. Blossoms on everything....fruit starting to grow. Then I woke up to 38 degrees this morning. This is not what I signed up for in late April.

Worse, the weather is supposed to get a bit worse over the next two days before returning to what I would call great spring weather. I am praying it doesn't get down to freezing and hurt out crop of plums, peaches, nectarines and even cherries. We hadn't even counted on cherries this year since the trees are not that old...I believe they are about four years old now. We even have blackberries starting on our bush out by the mini-barn. Sheesh!

The hubby returned from visiting his brother with Beast Jr. having behaved himself for the most part. His brother has a new puppy, also a German Shepherd like Heidi, but only about 10 weeks old. She is full of energy like Beast Jr. so the two of them had a ball together. He even allowed her to bite his lip and drag it out a couple feet from his face (well, that's an exaggeration but you get the idea) and he never even growled at her. At one point, the Beast Jr. was tied up to the back deck and was just laying in the sun asleep. The pup, Ninja, came over and actually chewed through the rope to *rescue* Beast Jr. so they could run and play. Beast Jr. wasn't really interested in doing anything but lay in the sun for a while but Ninja grabbed the severed rope and started tugging it so Beast Jr. would get the idea that he was FREE !!! It was too funny for words.

The recent rains all over the country were evident in Centralia because the lake in back of the brother's house was much fuller and Beast Jr. and Ninja had a ball romping in the edges of it. Ninja decided she would tantalize Beast Jr. by swimming back and forth along the edges until Beast Jr. finally gave up the game and went back to lay in the sun on the deck. The brother finally got to see that it was HIS dog that was the perpetrator in some things that he had blamed on Jr. He's a real jerk when it comes to animals and animal behavior. The Beast saw some bad signs of jealousy in Heidi and knows his brother thinks that Heidi will *get over it* without his having to do anything. I'm not anxious to see the episode when Heidi finally takes action. I don't think it will be a nice scene.

We had a bit of a problem with Beast Jr. when he first got home. Since the brother is so lackadaisical and not a *leader*, Beast Jr. decided HE would take over that position. It was not a fun two or three days while we let him know he was NOT in charge here. But it worked because today, I went outside for a walk and took Jr. along with me (without a chain on him). He stayed right at my side nicely and turned when I did plus did not even give me a problem coming back into the house. He stayed until I said *come* and into the house he came without any further urging. It was the calmest walk I have ever taken with him. However, I was very calm too and had imagined that was the walk we were going to have. If Cesar Millan is right, dogs really DO respond to the *aura* of expectation you have about them and the activity you are expecting to have. It sure seems like what happened today.

Beast Jr. will be 10 months old in a short time and I have high hopes about the type of dog he will turn out to be. My son and daughter were here, visiting, for the weekend. My son just loved Beast Jr. and played and wrestled with him. At one point, I actually saw Beast Jr. so tired that he couldn't bring his tongue into his mouth, he was THAT exhausted. However, so was my son.

It was nice to see my kids and they really liked this house we live in. They have (of course) seen all the homes we've owned (except my son didn't see the Port Charlotte house but saw pics and his sister told him about her stay with us there). But they agreed they liked the way the house is laid out and love all the trees. They can imagine what it will look like in a couple more years when the trees start to get mature.

I am feeling better every day. The doctor's new meds he has me on seem to be helping get rid of all the excess gas in my abdomen and the bulge on my right side is slowly diminishing. I am in a lot less pain and can be much more active and I love that. I haven't felt this good in a couple years to be honest. I had kind of a bad day today but it was because of a lot of gas and bowel movement I was having. It was painful and forced me to rest until it was done.

His nurse called late on Friday with the results of the CT scan I had done on Wednesday but I was outside so she left voice mail. By the time it showed up on my phone, the office was closed. I called this morning and this afternoon several times but couldn't get anyone due to busy signals. I am going to try again early tomorrow morning and see what she has to say. I really don't expect any bad news or they would have tried harder to get ahold of me but I will let you know.

It's late and I am tired so I will say goodnight and have a great week. I had a lot of fun today on a site my sister sent to me that had some really funny t-shirts on it. Wouldn't you know it but the only one I really remember is this: *If you met my family, you'd understand* I guess it's because it is really so appropriate. I should get it for each of my kids.

My favorite bumper sticker is this: Insanity is hereditary, you get it from your kids.

Love you all. Remember to tell those you love that you do every chance you get. It could be the very last thing you ever get to say to them and you will cherish that forever if it's so.

I'll bring you up to speed after we answer this question: WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED TO SPRING? We had a nice start. Blossoms on everything....fruit starting to grow. Then I woke up to 38 degrees this morning. This is not what I signed up for in late April.

Worse, the weather is supposed to get a bit worse over the next two days before returning to what I would call great spring weather. I am praying it doesn't get down to freezing and hurt out crop of plums, peaches, nectarines and even cherries. We hadn't even counted on cherries this year since the trees are not that old...I believe they are about four years old now. We even have blackberries starting on our bush out by the mini-barn. Sheesh!

The hubby returned from visiting his brother with Beast Jr. having behaved himself for the most part. His brother has a new puppy, also a German Shepherd like Heidi, but only about 10 weeks old. She is full of energy like Beast Jr. so the two of them had a ball together. He even allowed her to bite his lip and drag it out a couple feet from his face (well, that's an exaggeration but you get the idea) and he never even growled at her. At one point, the Beast Jr. was tied up to the back deck and was just laying in the sun asleep. The pup, Ninja, came over and actually chewed through the rope to *rescue* Beast Jr. so they could run and play. Beast Jr. wasn't really interested in doing anything but lay in the sun for a while but Ninja grabbed the severed rope and started tugging it so Beast Jr. would get the idea that he was FREE !!! It was too funny for words.

The recent rains all over the country were evident in Centralia because the lake in back of the brother's house was much fuller and Beast Jr. and Ninja had a ball romping in the edges of it. Ninja decided she would tantalize Beast Jr. by swimming back and forth along the edges until Beast Jr. finally gave up the game and went back to lay in the sun on the deck. The brother finally got to see that it was HIS dog that was the perpetrator in some things that he had blamed on Jr. He's a real jerk when it comes to animals and animal behavior. The Beast saw some bad signs of jealousy in Heidi and knows his brother thinks that Heidi will *get over it* without his having to do anything. I'm not anxious to see the episode when Heidi finally takes action. I don't think it will be a nice scene.

We had a bit of a problem with Beast Jr. when he first got home. Since the brother is so lackadaisical and not a *leader*, Beast Jr. decided HE would take over that position. It was not a fun two or three days while we let him know he was NOT in charge here. But it worked because today, I went outside for a walk and took Jr. along with me (without a chain on him). He stayed right at my side nicely and turned when I did plus did not even give me a problem coming back into the house. He stayed until I said *come* and into the house he came without any further urging. It was the calmest walk I have ever taken with him. However, I was very calm too and had imagined that was the walk we were going to have. If Cesar Millan is right, dogs really DO respond to the *aura* of expectation you have about them and the activity you are expecting to have. It sure seems like what happened today.

Beast Jr. will be 10 months old in a short time and I have high hopes about the type of dog he will turn out to be. My son and daughter were here, visiting, for the weekend. My son just loved Beast Jr. and played and wrestled with him. At one point, I actually saw Beast Jr. so tired that he couldn't bring his tongue into his mouth, he was THAT exhausted. However, so was my son.

It was nice to see my kids and they really liked this house we live in. They have (of course) seen all the homes we've owned (except my son didn't see the Port Charlotte house but saw pics and his sister told him about her stay with us there). But they agreed they liked the way the house is laid out and love all the trees. They can imagine what it will look like in a couple more years when the trees start to get mature.

I am feeling better every day. The doctor's new meds he has me on seem to be helping get rid of all the excess gas in my abdomen and the bulge on my right side is slowly diminishing. I am in a lot less pain and can be much more active and I love that. I haven't felt this good in a couple years to be honest. I had kind of a bad day today but it was because of a lot of gas and bowel movement I was having. It was painful and forced me to rest until it was done.

His nurse called late on Friday with the results of the CT scan I had done on Wednesday but I was outside so she left voice mail. By the time it showed up on my phone, the office was closed. I called this morning and this afternoon several times but couldn't get anyone due to busy signals. I am going to try again early tomorrow morning and see what she has to say. I really don't expect any bad news or they would have tried harder to get ahold of me but I will let you know.

It's late and I am tired so I will say goodnight and have a great week. I had a lot of fun today on a site my sister sent to me that had some really funny t-shirts on it. Wouldn't you know it but the only one I really remember is this: *If you met my family, you'd understand* I guess it's because it is really so appropriate. I should get it for each of my kids.

My favorite bumper sticker is this: Insanity is hereditary, you get it from your kids.

Love you all. Remember to tell those you love that you do every chance you get. It could be the very last thing you ever get to say to them and you will cherish that forever if it's so.

The Beast left this morning (along with Baron) for his brother's house in Centralia. His brother has a week off and the Beast is going there to join him and spend a week of fun and games in what we hope will be some nice spring weather. This will be unlike MY time in Chicago for Gallants wedding. I will have some alone time just kicking back and enjoying myself. If I have nice weather while HE is gone, that will be a bonus. The weatherman says it should be wonderful weather (even getting up to 80 a day or two) but you can't always trust those guys. They lie. Oh, maybe not deliberately (I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt here) but they are more often WRONG than they are RIGHT. We shall see.

The Beast Jr. (aka Baron) knew something was up. He had seen the Beast take the suitcase out last night and pack it in the trunk. But when he turned off the garage light, I think he was confused. He took it in stride tho' and didn't feel he had to be velcro dog. This morning, however, once the Beast got dressed, Son-of-the-Beast took his position and would NOT leave his side. The poor dog had to pee and poop but wouldn't do it until the Beast went outside with him and STAYED outside. All the time he was sniffing for a spot, he kept his head bobbing up to make sure the Beast was still standing on the deck. Once the Beast looked like he was heading for the door, Beast Jr. BOUNDED up the steps in two leaps to make sure he didn't get left outside.

The Beast was enjoying keeping Jr. on edge. He grabbed up the leashes, two of the dog's chew toys and headed out to the car but made Jr. stay inside. The dog actually had his eyes pressed up against the glass (and if you think about how a doberman's head is shaped, it's a funny mind picture. Almost like a cartoon image.

Then the Beast took his pillow out to the trunk (yes, he always takes his favorite feather pillow with when he travels) and put his jacket in the car. (Picture dog's head pressed against glass with eyes almost touching it) I was amazed that all this teasing didn't start him whining from the pure torture he must have felt.

The Beast finally picked up his travel mug that I had already filled with fresh coffee and headed for the door. This time Baron was NOT going to be left behind but kept right at the Beast's side and slightly in front of his legs. He KNEW that he could slip out that door before you could blink in that position. The Beast stopped and made him sit and stay. I watched poor Baron literally shaking with anxiety that he might, despite his best efforts, be left behind. But the Beast just wanted to get out the door without being knocked over by this 90 lb. behemoth. You never saw such joy as when he was given the command *come*.

One of the reasons I am staying home without a lot of fuss by the Beast (he still prefers to take trips WITH me even if all I do is crochet while in the car) is that I must see my doctor as soon as I can get in. He put me on a new medication my last visit and, since then, I have been having some strange symptoms. At first, it was only on occasion. Now they are constant. I really don't know for sure if they are related but I figure better safe than sorry. It's painful so I want to get to the bottom of it because my pain medication for my back doesn't affect it one way or another. I also have some muscle swelling on my side that is getting worse. Like I said, it might be totally unrelated but I can't think of any recent injury that might be causing either or both. We shall see what the doctor says.

Another reason the Beast didn't argue much with me is that, unless it rains (and there's no assurance that it will), our fruit trees are in a *tender way* and need to be kept watered while in that delicate condition. We even have some cherries on our trees! Our red pear tree is loaded with baby pear-lings. We also spotted the beginnings of a couple apples on one of the apple trees. So, of course, the Beast is suffering all the anxieties of potential farmer-hood. I played off those anxieties because we lost some fruit (and some veggies in our garden) last year when we were gone for a week because no one watered while we were gone. He has vivid memories of that still. This year, he will take no chances. We have the start of a lot of peaches and nectarines plus our plum tree is just loaded with small, baby plums. We may just have the start of a fresh fruit salad.

Well, I want to try to make it to the Indian Pow-Wow in Guntersville this afternoon. It's the last day and there should be some bargains to be had if I am lucky. Hope you all have had a great weekend. Love you all.

I know I said I would be back the next day after my return but, alas, old age () means I require more recovery time than I used to need. It's taken until today to feel halfway back to normal. On to the wedding.....

The wedding was very different from most Catholic weddings I have attended. This one was not a high mass ceremony. The priest that officiated was very laid back and different. My mouth dropped when he told everyone that showing signs of your love in public was a beautiful thing and not to be hidden. That is certainly different from the Catholic teachings I grew up being told. Love and affection was something to be done in private back then.....heaven forbid that a husband would kiss his wife in public! Now it is being espoused as a desirable thing and I almost cheered.

Poor Gallant looked like he was going to have teeth pulled for the longest time. The priest had supplied chairs for Gallant and Lilith to sit down in while he preached about love, marriage and the wonderful thing it is to display your love for each other whenever possible. The bride and groom lit their marriage candle and the vows were spoken. The priest had them sign the marriage license in front of everyone and then the witnesses (best man and the maid of honor) signed. The priest signed and gave the license to Gallant who then broke out in a smile for the first time all day. I guess he was truly worried that Lilith might change her mind until that license was signed and she was officially MRS. GALLANT. It made me cry to see him so happy. He is a good son to my sister, Bee, and he waited a long time to find the woman he loved. He deserves to be happy.

We then went to the reception at a nearby restaurant that caters to such things. The reception was small, only about 50 people and the room was the perfect size for it to be intimate. We all sat down and ordered drinks. The talk was all about how lovely the ceremony had been and how happy the couple seemed to be. Lilith has a daughter, 10, who gave the most touching toast to her mother and her new dad. Those of us that had really not cried a whole lot did after that. It was just a beautiful touch.

The meal selection was wonderful. The choices were a chicken breast in a mushroom/wine sauce, chicken fingers with a truly different and delicious dipping sauce and then there was a Hickory Barbeque Chicken that we heard was very good. We all got soup or salad, our choice of potato or rice pilaf and steamed vegetables. It was all extremely tasty and filling.

We had a few more drinks and ate some of the wedding cake after the obligatory cutting by the bride, groom AND new daughter to Gallant. It was a truly wonderful reception because it was small enough to talk to everyone. There were people there that many of us had not seen in many years. There were disposable cameras at all the tables so we all took turns taking pictures of the people sharing our table. This is a choice many couples are making since professional photographers have become so expensive. One of the brides relatives works for a professional lab and she is having the film developed and turned into either 2 or 3 of each shot so the couple has enough to share.

By the time the reception wound down, we were ready to get home, take off our bras and girdles (if we had any on) and put on our jammies to relax. And relax we did. Dee got on the Internet, which she keeps going single-handedly. Bee and I took out our current crocheting project and worked on it while we threw in a dvd for background noise. I think we watched Lord of the Rings (which we have all seen so many times, we could probably lipsync the whole movie). Add a nice drink and we were in heaven. I think it was really the first time I totally relaxed the whole weekend. I know I slept well that night (although liquor may or may not have had something to do with that, too).

My trip home was relatively uneventful although I didn't have time to relax between planes. I was forced to make a run for it to get my boarding passes and make it to the proper gate in time. When I got on that last plane in Atlanta, heading for home, I was ready for my own little slice of heaven. It's always nice to get back into your own routine as I am sure my sisters, Bee and Dee, were also. I did enjoy the time with my sisters and look forward to seeing them again in September for another wedding of a niece this time. We will all probably be in motel rooms rather than have to make the trip back to our respective residences after the reception. It IS a distance to drive and most of us don't like driving at night any more.

Well, it's late and time for me to get to bed. The Beast did that a while ago and we both were busy today working outdoors. He cut grass and helped me to plant some flowers. I also planted some seeds of wildflowers and asters.

There is a bird trying to build a nest in my Topsy-Turvy planter so I had to cover the hole on top of it to discourage it. I have to pour a gallon of water in it each week and I don't think that would do any eggs much good. Better to cover the hole and make it find another spot. But it makes me feel kind of mean doing it. *sigh*

If I don't get back for a couple days, have a great weekend. We are expecting weather in the mid-70's and rain on Monday night. By next week Thursday, we should have gone up to the 80's ! (Mouth drops open here).

Love you all. And give your love to those you do as often as possible. It's okay to show your love and affection in public these days so....have fun~

Well, I am home from Chicago and grateful my trip back was pretty uneventful although I did have to rush from one connection to another. I actually went 8 hours without a cigarette and really didn't care. I just wanted to get to the next plane heading for home.

When I left for Chicago, it was a wonderful, sunny and warm day here in Alabama. I knew, however, that I was heading into cold weather. I got on my SouthWest flight to Atlanta that lasted about 45 minutes. When I got to Atlanta I had to take the train to another terminal but that was fine. I got there in plenty of time and was grateful to sit down and rest. I really wanted a smoke but it was not close to my gate so I just sat there and crocheted. The plane was late arriving so our flight was delayed. As a result, I knew deep in my heart that I would lose the next connection I had to make (which ended up being a flight to Iowa and THEN making my connection to Chicago.

It was a real mishmash due to so many of American Airlines flights being canceled. Little did I know what awaited me when I arrived in St. Louis. I had missed my connection to Iowa (for which I was thankful later on) and my flight to Chicago was CANCELED. I almost cried. In fact, being perfectly honest, I DID cry because there was no plane that would get me into Chicago available on any other airlines either. I could wait around on a standby basis if I wanted but they said there were so many people that had to be shuffled to other airlines that they really didn't have any hope for a seat being available.

I envisioned me trying to sleep in the airport because the only flight they could put me on was at 6am and even that was on American Airlines. I was assured that the plane was not one of the ones being taken out of service for maintenance.

THEN....they gave me a voucher for the Marriott Hotel located directly across from the airport AND $15. worth of food vouchers. The hotel had a bus that picked up passengers from the airport so I got onto it and headed for the hotel and a place I could lay down. By this time, my back was flaring up and I needed to take my pain pills (they were packed in my bag) and lay down for a bit until they kicked in. I also had to contact my sisters in Chicago so they could cancel the
limo that my sister, Bee, had arranged to pick me up. I had called her earlier because of the one plane being late and having to make that extra jump to Iowa so I wasn't sure at that time exactly when I would get to Chicago. NOW I had to let her know that I was stuck in St. Louis for the night and would (hopefully) be arriving early in the morning the next day.

Since I had so many problems just getting to St. Louis, I really hadn't had time to let anyone know just how frustrating and exhausting it was. After checking into the hotel and finding my room, I called both my sister Bee and the Beast. The Beast was horrified and worried that I might have problems the next morning but I told him that I had high hopes that it would be alright. My sisters were both relieved that I wasn't *lost in space* and that I at least had a comfortable bed to sleep in instead of trying to sleep in those damn plastic chairs at the airport. I then took my pain pills and laid down for about 15 minutes.

I was starving so I headed to the Bar & Grill in the hotel, thinking I would just order something to take back to the room. I envisioned getting into my warm pj's and hitting the sack, watching TV until I got sleepy. Laying in bed watching TV always makes me sleepy. It's like listening to the caller on Pogo's Bingo Luau. His voice always makes me tired for some reason. I keep the sound OFF until after the Beast goes to bed and THEN turn it on to get ME ready for bed. It might seem strange but, hey, it works.

When I walked into the Bar & Grill, I encountered lots of people I recognized from the airport and decided to sit down at the bar, have a drink and listen to their tales of woe. I sat down next to two gals from Minnesota who were afraid that they might not even be able to get home the next day because Minneapolis/St. Paul was being hit by a blizzard or something. I told them that most airports have equipment ready for clearing runways so, as long as the storm had ended, I was sure they would get home. We talked for about an hour and they invited me to share their appetizer which was something wonderful with lots of cheese and lobster meat. We also bought rounds for each other. I finally relaxed enough to order my dinner (to go) and head back to my room. I wanted to eat, shower and get to bed by 9pm since I had to be up by 4am to make sure I was at the airport early enough to beat someone to death if my plane was canceled again.

The Marriott, by the way, was wonderful and comfortable. The staff was gracious and helpful. They also had compassion for all of us that were there due to American Airlines maintenance problems. I thoroughly enjoyed the time I did spend there and the bed was extremely comfortable.

To make this long story short, I got into Chicago (finally) and called the limo number so they could pick me up. I was so happy to get to my sister's house that I can't begin to tell you. I was also glad I had a day to rest before Gallant's wedding. I parked my broom on her front porch and got comfortable.

She had made some of her chicken soup which I enjoyed for lunch along with some wonderful French bread. I really miss the bread in Chicago. We haven't found any good bread here in Alabama yet unless we hit the Publix on the way to Huntsville. However, it's a 35 minute ride to get there so we only stop in when we have to go to Huntsville for something.

This entry has become rather long so I think I will tell you all about Gallant's wedding tomorrow. I WILL say this much....it was a truly nice wedding and an enjoyable reception afterwards. From the location (close to the church) to the food, everything was wonderful. More tomorrow.

Love you all and hope you have as nice a day as we are having. It's sunny and expected to hit somewhere in the 60's today. Don't forget to tell your loved ones that you DO love them. Do it now and often.

I did not have a good day today. I woke up with hot, shooting pains up my right side from my hip to my underarm. It faded if I kept still or laid down. I have NO CLUE as to what was causing it except perhaps that I missed a couple of my nighttime pills for neuropathy (it's caused by diabetes). I finally HAD to take pain pills to control it because I needed to get to WalMart to refill some of my prescriptions. If I am going to Chicago for Gallant's wedding and then leaving the next day after returning to drive with the Beast to his brother's place in Centralia, well, I won't have time for that.

I actually counted all my pills to see if I had enough (except for the two I knew needed refilling) and did find out I needed one other one refilled. I am really upset over the fact that I am currently taking six different medications. I used to laugh at people who had to take a lot of medications. Learn something from this. Do NOT laugh at people taking a lot of meds. It can come back to bite you in the ass.

Our pink dogwood has been in bloom now for a couple weeks and it is so pretty that I really hate the thought of it losing it's blooms. But, alas, it will. It's just nice to look out my back door and see it. It will be absolutely beautiful when it is more than a sapling.

COUNTDOWN TO CHICAGO.....FOUR DAYS FROM RIGHT NOW BUT ONLY THREE BY THE TIME YOU READ THIS!!!!

When I went to Walmart, I picked up some odds and ends that I would need like kleenex (my allergies are driving me nuts every morning), some Efferdent (yes, I do wear dentures and I don't want them yellowed or nasty looking), some Aussie Instant Freeze to help me spike out my new *do* and some more test strips for my glucose meter. With all the EATING and partying we will be doing, I need to keep track of my glucose level and I was down to about six or seven. Now that I have insurance again (I WAS on Cobra from my last job....and with pre-existing condition, it's almost impossible to find something affordable), my doctor told me he will write me a prescription for my test strips since he wants me to test my blood sugar levels four times a day every other day. That adds up and test strips are pricey. Whatever portion of it they pay, it will help.

My sister, Dee, told me that they were testing the blow up mattresses to make sure at least one of them didn't have a slow leak. I remember staying at Bee's house a few years back and sleeping on one that was almost flat by the time I woke up in the morning. Now that I have a really bad back, we hope to avoid that. My sister, Dee, is also known as Bratfink, and if you haven't read her blog, you are really missing something. She has a skewed send of humor that we all love. If you are offended by sometimes bad language, tho', don't go there. She is who she is and that's all I can say. But she sure has gained a following. I read it the first thing every morning and check later in the day because she sometimes writes updates. We talk on an IM all the time but I also find out a lot of stuff only by reading her blog. So, go, enjoy. It's here on Xanga...under Bratfink.

The Beast spent most of his day today either on the internet looking up houses in the Guntersville area or out riding around in the neighborhoods that he had found possible houses for us to buy as an investment. We have a couple CD's coming up in May and the interest rate really sucks. So, we came up with a plan because my niece, Tara, was told by her landlord that she has to move out at the end of her lease or even before then if she finds something suitable. The house she is renting is settling badly and needs to have foundation work. It's creating major problems in the house she is in so she was talking about finding an affordable rental in the same school district (she promised her sons she would do that).

The Beast came up with a brainstorm and discussed it with Tara. We would buy a house that was in the school district and, with an amortized payment, would fall within the amount she wanted. We would put it under a Land Contract for her with the provision that, in five years, she would get an actual mortgage and buy out the *loan*. We would be selling it to her (in five years) at the same amount we paid for it less the amortized amount she had paid against the original price. We figured it out at 6% interest (which is much higher than we will probably be able to get for a few years) and, even paying taxes and insurance, it falls below her maximum amount.

However, one thing we did not figure is that she is looking at these houses differently than we do. She has NEVER lived (in memory) in a fairly new house. She actually said to the Beast tonight *You are looking at houses like YOU were going to live there*. She really doesn't understand that we are looking at it as an INVESTMENT in her and we want her to have a nice environment. I told the Beast, while I am in Chicago, he has a lot of time to check out properties and then take Tara out to see them on the weekend. She will relax and learn to look at things right once he reminds her that even if the walls ARE all white, she can always paint them in HER colors after she moves in.

Also, what she is not considering is, if something happens to change her situation in the future and she doesn't want to fulfill the land contract, we would want to be able to resell it or even move into it ourselves. That is why the area it is in is so important to both of us. She is family but......she is still young enough to change her mind. She might even, once she restores her credit after her divorce, want to move closer to her job when the boys graduate. That is NOT that far off and would relieve her of a 45 minute drive every day (in good weather). Then where would we be if it was not a good property? Oh well. We won't do it if it doesn't look like it will work for us. We won't waste our time or money on a bad investment from our standpoint.

I'm thinking of protecting any money our kids might inherit after we die. They will have to pay off any outstanding bills, that's a given, but they would also have to sell the property and vehicles unless they made some sort of provision with each other on that. That's IF there is anything left by the time we both are gone. I have my own plans if the Beast dies before I do. But I'm not going to discuss those plans right now. We shall just wait and see.

Time for me to hit the sack now. I'm feeling fairly good and that means I should wake up feeling good. I have to finish packing and get some other stuff done before I leave. That includes making up the chicken and veggies to add to Baron's kibble. The Beast needs at least a week's worth because his brother will make up enough for both is dog and Baron when we get to Centralia.

He gets meat very cheap since he is a butcher and works for a major grocery chain in Illinois. He's actually a supervisor and does more ordering and stuff but he's almost ready to retire now so he's training a couple people at different stores now. The chain is going to wring whatever they can out of him before he officially retires, I am sure. At least they are not fighting him about vacation days and other days off he has coming to him. He's spent 30 years working for them so he gets a LOT of both types of off time. I think he will be off more than he is on in the future. He officially retires in July, I believe.

Okay, I'm exhausted and ready for bed. I WILL make another entry before I leave for Chicago. I may even be able to tell you about Gallant's wedding while I am IN Chicago because Bee offered me her computer while I am there (when she is not on it, of course). I will try but I KNOW Bratfink will tell you all about it if I don't.

Love you all. Kiss, hug and tell those you love that you do. Always end your phone conversations with *Love you* and watch it spread like wildfire. It's easy to do. Try it. Have a great week and may your weather be wonderful.

Woke up to drizzle and overcast. Not a great way to start the day. Plus Baron was in bed with me and licking my neck. I was not anxious to get up at 7am but, since I had fallen asleep at around 8:30 the night before, I thought I might have slept long enough.

So I dragged my butt out of bed, dragged Baron OFF my bed and headed to the kitchen for my morning coffee. I don't know how long the Beast had been up but....let me say this....the carafe of coffee was easily swallowed, if that give you a clue. I figured at least an hour and a half, if not longer. But I am guessing because he never did tell me.

Baron was beside himself with energy but he is a wimp about any kind of weather except WARM. I can't really blame him. He has short fur, no undercoat and definitely does NOT have a good layer of fat on his bones. You can still see his lower rib cage. He's just starting to fill out and show signs of bulking up. But he's only 9 months old....soon to be 10 months....but who's counting? I just wish that male dobermans matured before they were 3 years old. Yeah...no kidding!

He ran off some energy when the Beast went out to check on his trees and discovered baby fruits on them. Yes, we WILL have fruit this year. But it wasn't enough so it was throw some balls to him in the house to try to drain a little more (we throw them up in the air so he can jump up and catch them). He's gotten pretty darn good at it with practice. I do it with his milk bone biscuits and his doggy cookies, too. He's learning and it all helps.

However, even HE grew tired of that so the Beast went out front again and Baron did his drag the broken sapling around thing but the Beast got chilled and came inside. He watched Baron running around until he (Baron) realized that the Beast wasn't coming back out. He ran up on the first two stairs of our porch and just stared inside and barked a time or two......like *hey....are you coming out or not?* When the Beast opened the front door, Baron took off without waiting to see that the Beast was only going to try to get him to come into the house. He is getting smarter as he gets older. I do mean Baron when I say that. The Beast will get no smarter I'm afraid.

The rest of the day was pure hell when it came to Baron. Twice the Beast ran out of patience with him and threw him out into the back yard. Baron would bark, bark and then hit the front door with his paw (a no-no here). When the Beast ignored that, he would go to the back door and bark LOUD....that got an IMMEDIATE response from the Beast who would rise to his feet with a rolled up newspaper in his hand and Baron would run under the kitchen table. When the Beast strolled to the back door to open it and let Baron out (since that is what he seemed to be wanting), Baron would back up because it was NOT what he wanted. He was looking for attention and a play friend. Does that remind you of your kids at all????

Well, that game grew old and the Beast started ignoring him entirely. It started annoying me because I knew that those kinds of behavior have to be addressed and the Beast seems to forget that part when it becomes an effort for him. Kind of like he did as a father but I will not go into that.....

So I started coming out of my room to address the behavior. I told Baron...*NO!* on his barking....and when he hit the door like he wanted to go out, well, I dragged him out when necessary to let him know that I would NOT put up with that. He got the idea very quickly. He actually started running close to the Beast thinking the Beast would protect him. When I told him *IN*...which he knows mean *IN* the kennel, he tried that and then ran into the kitchen but I stood my ground and just calmly said *IN* once more and he lowered his head and trotted right into the cage. He KNEW his behavior was not acceptable. He WILL learn....I just hope he lives long enough. I get really, really tired of being the one meting out discipline when it NEEDS to be meted out. *sigh*

The Beast and I disagree often on this. He thinks he has established himself as *pack leader* and I keep telling him the behaviors that tell me that Baron has NOT actually surrendered to that yet. But you can't tell a man. They know everything. I REFUSE to let a dog dominate me or try to make me do what HE wants when HE want. I will if he needs to go outside to pee or whatever and I pay attention to when he's hungry but other than that, I'm sorry. I am the OWNER/PACKLEADERESS and HE is the DORG!!!

The Beast went to bed a little after 10pm and he didn't put the dorg into the kennel. He lets him lay on the bed with him. I wouldn't object to this except for the fact that Baron has this thing for chewing cloth. I have an expensive new bedspread on our bed. Baron has decimated two different sets of sheets (top sheets and pillow cases alike) and one bedspread. I do not and will not trust him for some time to come. I immediately wake up (even if I do not know that Baron is in bed with me initially) if he starts *licking* because that is a prelude to his chewing most of the time. Of course, he also licks himself but when you are asleep, you can't tell the difference.

Baron apparantly heard something and started barking so I knew from the sound (I can tell if he's in his kennel or up on our bed just by where the sound originates) he was not in his kennel. So, I got up from playing bingo online to stop his barking AND put him in his kennel. He didn't even fight me but went right into it as soon as I said *IN*. So, I did go get him a dog biscuit to reward him afterwards. He needs to be rewarded for good behavior because he IS a puppy still.

So, here I am, half asleep but watching an episode of Murder By The Book that I want to see the end of before I head off to bed. But, I can do that even after writing this update. I hope I'm not spoiling anyone . I AM going to try to make entries more often.

So, here I will end today's entry. We will be having mid-70 degree weather tomorrow and sunshine so I am eager to have tomorrow be here. I have things I need to do that include getting into the car and driving. After this program is over, I am off to bed.

Love you all and have a wonderful weekend (and I hope a wonderful week of weather!). Tell those you love that you love them often.

Bright and early, the Beast took Baron outside to let him run off some energy. As a puppy (9 months old) but 85 lbs of puppy, he still has all that typical puppy energy that needs to be drained. The day was overcast and it had rained most of the night but it didn't deter Baron from his need to run and play.

The Beast has this *game* he plays with Baron. Baron has this HUGE broken sapling he drags around with him and the Beast pretends he's going to grab it so it sets Baron off and he goes dragging it at the highest speed he can manage. He will then drop it on the ground and turn towards the Beast to see if he is going to try to get it again. The Beast makes a lunge towards him (from quit a distance away so he's really no threat) and Baron excitedly grabs the sapling again and off he goes. It gets truly funny after you watch it for a while. It also takes five to ten minutes before Baron finally drops the sapling and wanders over to watch what the Beast is REALLY doing.

What he is really doing is checking the many fruit trees and inspecting them for signs of fruit starting. As I mentioned before, the peaches, nectarines, plums and pears have been in bloom and, more recently, the cherries started blooming. He has been vigilantly watching for signs of any fruit forming and today he found them! He was ecstatic! It seems peaches, nectarines and plums are finally forming. It means we WILL have fruit this year. I doubt we will get any cherries but we definitely will next year. If that changes (if cherries do form on some of the trees), I will let you know. But the apple trees haven't started blooming yet so we don't know what will happen there.

We did find out that the crabapple trees (which are the primary pollinators for all apple trees) keep their blooms for weeks so they will still be available for pollination when the apple trees finally bloom. You can see the blooms forming on the trees so we may get lucky on that point and at least get a few this year. Now the Beast will be preparing for the Japanese beetle assault which we experienced last year. He found a deterrent for them last year that not only killed many but actually kept them away from the trees (primarily the peach trees) for several weeks (or until the spray washed off the leaves and fruits).

We had no experience with Japanese beetles in Florida so it was one of the things we had to learn (mostly the hard way) last year. This year...HE IS PREPARED TO DO BATTLE!

Although today is yukky and may be rainy off-and-on, we missed the violent thunderstorms that hit other areas. Most of those areas were to the north and west of us so I count us lucky on that score. The rest of the week is going to be amazing, mostly because the highs will be in the 70's. I may hate to get on that plane to Chicago if their weather is too much colder but brave it I will! I wouldn't miss that for the world.

I got my hair cut yesteray and I really like it. It's way shorter than I really wanted but....it will grow and give me time to really *play* with it. The fun part is that I can *spike* it and it looks kind of cute. Well, as cute as it could be on this old, wrinkle puss of mine. It's very easy to blow dry and curl and takes about 2 minutes....well, maybe 5. It just seems to be such a short time compared to what it USED to take me. The Beast was a bit shocked when he saw me at first but did finally admit that it looks a lot nicer now. Heck, anything would have looked nicer. At least my *bedhead* upon awakening is not so shocking that even the dog looks twice and recoils. I DO have to go get some gel or whatever it is they use for spiking so I have some to practice. Right now, I have a spray I can use after blowdrying my hair that does it but I think the gel will be easier.

I have to cut Bratfink's hair when I get to Chicago. I don't think she's had it cut since I did it at the last family reunion. Plus Bee wants me to cut her split ends. We weren't sure what the rules are on flying with scissors since I am doing all carryon so they told me not to worry since they had some good scissors there. Phew...would hate to lose my haircutting scissors to those big dump barrels they use to collect lighters people forget. But, if I don't like the scissors, I will have to run out somewhere and pick some up to use. I was thinking.....maybe Hobby Lobby? It's not like I have an agenda or anything but I could spend some time looking around at stuff I want to bring home.

Since it's less than a week until I leave, I can now truly start packing so that I don't forget anything. That is always a nightmare I have. Worse, I am going to have to prepack the BIG suitcase since the Beast informed me that we will be leaving for Centralia (and meeting up with his brother) the very next day after I get home. *sigh* I just hope they have at least halfway decent weather because I know we will be here in the Tennessee Valley. I just hope I am up to it after all the fun at Chez Cushee (my sister Bee's house). She's certainly been busy cleaning up her files and reorganizing her work area. All to make room for me to have my own space while I am there. Oh, not that she hadn't intended to do that anyway but I was as good a reason as anything when you procrastinate for too long. I know how it is since I desperately need to do the same thing here at the *Farm*. Since we now have fruit, I figure we can call us a farm legitimately. It sure will be without question in a couple years when all the trees are producing. I have this nightmare about me being busy, busy, busy cooking and canning 'til I drop. Only time will tell.

Well, it's time for me to do some housewifey stuff (laundry, making beds, washing throw rugs and washing the kitchen floor) so I should start and get it over with.

Love you all and don't forget.....tell those you love that you do. ALWAYS. Even if it seems awkward to begin with, it gets easier over time. I even have some of my *other* aunts doing it now. It spreads once you start it.

Have a great weekend.

I think I've told you before about the Beast's obsession with fruit trees especially. It hasn't changed. We came home from Louisville with a Bing Cherry tree since he couldn't locate one here in Albertville. I could have strangled him but he had been claiming he *needed* it as a pollinator for two other cherry tree types he has planted. He actually has two *triangles* of these trees on our property. One in our backyard and the other on the lot we bought next door. The bing he bought in Louisville went into the triangle in our backyard.

I try to imagine what the properties are going to look like when these trees mature and, I gotta tell ya, I think you won't be able to see the house for the trees! Then I walk outside to check the mail and I find TWO MORE TREES in buckets sitting next to the driveway! I swear, this man has an obsession with trees. He can't pass up a new peach, pear, cherry or apple variety Lowe's has. We may have to buy another lot just for his trees. He is fighting global warming in his own way, I guess but it's driving me wacky.

He actually expects me to remember what all these trees are. I told him I'll remember them when they start producing fruit because I am sure I will be swearing at them, him and providence.

Oh, yes...a little footnote about the Bing. A few days after we returned from Louisville he went to Lowes for some dirt and what did he find? You guessed it! Lowes had Bing Cherry trees of all sizes. It figures. I'm beginning to think I can't let him go to Lowes on his own. I may have to be ready at any time to jump in the truck with him just to keep him from buying more trees. Is there a name for this kind of obsession? If you know, leave a message. I'd just like to know for the hellavit.

I got a tip from one of the few readers of this blog about some property in a nice area of Louisville. As I was telling the Beast about it (since I will query the reader before we go up next time), he asked me what the prices were. I was so embarrassed because I hadn't even thought about asking. *Color me red-faced* Okay, so this is another blonde moment for me.

I am making the trip up to Chicago for Gallant's wedding next week (he's the son of Bee and my nephew). I'm looking forward to several things: the food (especially the to-die-for bread), the quality time with my sisters, Bee and Bratfink, and seeing the relatives at the wedding. Gallant was actually tickled that both my sister Cee, who lives in Florida, and I are coming for his wedding. He didn't expect us to do that since neither of us is close to him. But, since we love him regardless, we just couldn't NOT come for it. Know what I mean?

The Beast is taking Baron to Obedience Classes. Not so much for the training as the socialization with other dogs. He gets soooooo excited when another dog comes around that he can hardly contain himself. The socializing with other dogs helps in that area. Apparantly there is a 4-month old pup in the class (which is surprising since the earliest age is usually 6 months) that Baron just loves. He will get on his belly and crawl towards it so that he doesn't scare it by his size. It actually had his paws on Baron's head yesterday and was licking his face. The Beast is amazed at Baron's behavior around the pup since it shows that he now understands a bit more about puppies than he did before. He used to get hyper around puppies and we had to get him away from a puppy because he hurt one once with his excited jumping. He didn't know how to play with a dog smaller than he was.

Last night the Beast came home from the class and said Baron was terrible during the class, the worst behavior he had ever seen. He didn't understand why until he got Baron home and Baron couldn't wait to jump out of the truck. He ran over to an area he uses often and took a HUGE dump. The poor baby must have been miserable during the class. It's a good thing we live just a short way away from the woman giving the class or he might have had to empty his bowels in the truck! *laughing hysterically here*

Speaking of that, it reminds me of something I have to tell you about. The Beast had to take some stuff to our local dump a couple weeks ago. Our trash service will only take what we can fit in the bin. They don't get out of the truck because the bin has this *bar* that the truck can pick up, lift and empty without lifting a hand. It makes things tough if you have big boxes or a lot of them that you need to get rid of. Ever try cutting up five or six large boxes to fit in a trash can? It's a lot easier to take it to the dump (it's free to residents). So, he loads up the truck with boxes and some other stuff and heads for the dump.

He hadn't been there since last year so he was unprepared for the fact that he had to back up to a particular area that was slushy and *fragrant*. When he got out of the truck to unload the back of it, his shoes squished in the smelly muck. When he got back into the cab of the truck, he realized his shoes STUNK!!!! He drove home with the windows open (he had the dog with him) and even the dog squished himself as far away as he could. When he got home, he took off his shoes in the garage and had the nerve to bring them into my kitchen. I could smell them two rooms away! I came out and found him spraying the muck off into my sink and gagged. It was THAT bad!

As soon as he finished, I told him to put them into the washer immediately. I gathered some dirty rags from his garage and my craft area, plus a few towels, threw them in (holding my breath) and washed them all. He was wearing his canvas shoes when he went to the dump and I was really all for his throwing them into the trash but........he said he had just broken them in. That means that they were comfy and probably had a hole or two in them.

The worst part was how his truck smelled. He gathered up some cleaning stuff and went out to wash the floor and pedals in the truck. He still had the windows open and poured lots of ammonia and Mr Clean into the bucket he had filled with water. After he was done, I waited until the floor had dried and went out with some Clorox2 and sprayed it to make sure he didn't have some nasty stuff that would grow into some awful science experiment. It also got rid of the worst of the lingering smell. I think it will be a cold day in hell before he goes to the dump again during the spring or summer months. At least during the winter, the ground gets hard. If he has a bunch of boxes in the meantime, I think he will spend the time cutting them up rather than going through THAT again!

I told him the next time he goes to the dump, I do not want his shoes brought into the house. He has his own sink out in the garage and he can use that one. I walked around my kitchen, dining and living room areas spraying Renuzit Super Odor Neutralizer to get rid of the last of the smell.

We are expecting the thunderstorms shortly so I had better get this posted before I lose my Internet. I hope everyone has good weather and a wonderful weekend. Take care, hug your loved ones and enjoy life.

Love you all.

We had some really nice weather after my last blog. Our fruit trees all started blossoming (everything but the cherries did, anyway) and I did some work on my flowerbeds but didn't seed them just yet. I just have the feeling that we will have one more very cold streak in the next week or so. The Beast mowed the lawn and planted some more trees he had bought. He bought another pear (decorative, not really fruit bearing), a nectarine and god only knows what else. I have lost track along the way. I just know that right now it all looks pretty with the pink and white blossoms and tiny little green leaves starting.

The Beast and I have been discussing off and on what we will do with the money currently invested in CD's that will be maturing shortly. It was short-term but a decent interest rate (slightly more than 5%). There is just nothing that is not risky to invest money safely in at this time. Then he came up with a bright idea. We could kill two birds with one stone. Why not invest in a condo or house in Louisville that we can rent to our two kids living there (sister and brother, both single, both working and they get along well....most of the time). We could rent it to them a lot cheaper than they are currently paying for sub-standard housing (in MY opinion but then, I am MOTHER) and still be able to put a few bucks aside to cover maintenance.

So, we decided to check out the internet, pick out some possibles and then go to Louisville to check them out. With prices at all time lows, we might get a decent deal, have the kids renting it and, in a few years, when the housing market is in better shape, we can always sell it and probably make more than we would have in interest in any other secure investment. We both believe that real estate is a good investment. Besides, it would also give us a place to come and stay during the summer for a bit. Our kids have lived there long enough to know the *good* and *not good* areas and that would help us too. So we called our daughter and our son, packed up a few things and the dog (which my daughter assured me was okay at her place) and headed off to Louisville.

Well, even though I packed for colder weather, I didn't really anticipate COLD weather or I would have brought different stuff than I did, including my gloves and winter hat. I liked to froze while up there. It didn't help that I hurt my back and the medication wasn't touching it (or so it seemed). Like a typical Northerner, my daughter didn't feel the cold like we did and she had to turn on the heat so I could uncurl my fingers and stop shivering. Her apartment is small so it heated up really quick and I thought I might actually live. But, OMG....her apartment was so small! I don't think she realized just how big an 85 lbs. doberman pup is and how little room there was for him to even turn around with three adults in the same space. It was almost funny.

It was also when we realized for sure that Baron is a *country* dog. He just didn't know how to handle the noises and the closeness of everything. He didn't have the space to run like he is used to having and we kept having to call him away from the streets since he isn't familiar with traffic. The Beast, my daughter and I went through all the listings I had printed out and separated the ones that were in *bad* areas. Bad areas are ones that have seen their best days or bordered (or were in) known drug areas. We wanted a *good* area for the kids to live in that was still convenient for them to get to work and would appreciate eventually for our investment. More than half of the listings we had picked out hit the trash can. The Beast and our daughter went out for a ride to some of the areas closest to her apartment to *look it over*. By the time they came back, I was asleep in the bed my daughter told me was ours. Our son had returned to his place to get a wireless connector for his sister's computer and that was when I snuck off to bed since I was in pain AND exhausted. I never heard anything after I hit the pillow until the next morning.

After determining that I was NOT up to getting up early for breakfast, the Beast and our daughter went off to meet with our son for breakfast. The dorg and I slept on comfortably. I got up to take my pain pills and muscle relaxer, went back to bed for an hour and then laid there watching Saturday SciFi movies with the dorg until they got back to the apartment. I HAD freshened up and put on clean clothes before laying back down to watch TV. I thought we would be going out to look at the other properties that they hadn't driven past the previous evening.

Lo and behold, when they got back, I found out they had already done that and pretty much decided that it was a bust. They found ONE place not on our list that had just gone on the market (a *For Sale By Owner*) in a really nice area. They had called the number and left a message since the price wasn't listed and you couldn't see inside. The Beast and I decided that we needed to get Baron home and come back when the weather was warmer and there was more of a selection on the market. We will also board Baron before we come back to Louisville for THAT. I was ecstatic because I knew it was in the 70's in our area of Alabama and it was in the 40's and humid in Louisville. I know our daughter was disappointed but we have another month before the CD's mature anyway.

Just as we were packed up to leave, the owners of the place they had found returned the call and wanted to set an appointment for us to come look at the place in a few hours. My husband told them we were just getting ready to leave but would be back in a couple weeks and would call them before we came to make sure they hadn't sold it already (insert huge laugh here). I did give them my email address since the wife told me that they had just picked up the flyer with pictures they had printed up and she would scan and send me one. I told her I really appreciated it (and it looks beautiful). It's a 3 bedroom, 2-1/2 bath townhouse with a one car garage and off street parking for those with two cars and guests. It's a little more than we hoped to spend but that's the asking price with no experience on what the market actually is these days. So, it may end up right where we hoped by the time we return. We shall see.

Now, I wondered why the Beast was acting so strange about some things while he was packing up the car. It should have been a 1-2-3 and ready but he came up and asked our daughter to give him a hand. I said *I'll come help* but was told, *No..no...just relax.* I became suspicious at that. Sure enough, I walked outside on the porch and he had BOUGHT ANOTHER TREE!!!! I could have screamed. When I said, *Okay...what the HELL is THAT?* He got a sheepish grin on his face and said, *It's the bing cherry I've been trying to find.* It was true he had been trying to find one because it is the pollinator for the Black Tartarian cherry that is the real pie cherry. I told him that he was so worried about how Baron was feeling confined and frustrated in our daughters apartment and now he was cutting down the room he had in the back of the car by 1/3 because of the tree! I swear, the man can't be trusted around a plant nursery of ANY kind.

Baron, however, was wonderful on the trip home. I swear he knew we were headed there just by how he relaxed and slept. If he got up, we rolled down the window and he (typically) stuck his face out into the wind. When we were still in 40 degree weather, that didn't last long. As we got closer to home (and the temp rose), he kept his head out longer and longer. I swear to you this is the absolute truth.....when we crossed the line from Tennessee to Alabama, the temperature outside rose 9 degrees....and about 20 miles into Alabama it was almost 20 degrees warmer. That was when Baron got excited. I think he could smell that it was HOME.

Since we got home, the coldest it has gotten at night is about 52 degrees and it's been in the upper 60's or lower 70's by 3pm each afternoon. I love it.

My niece Tara bought our 50 inch flat screen TV( at a cheap price, of course) and we got to hear all about her new job working for the pharmaceutical company. She's blown away by the fact that her entries are in the hundreds of thousands and even millions but this is exactly what she was trained for in college. She's worked with large figures but not THIS large and is loving the experience. She is at the first level but can go up and up as she gains experience. The idea is exciting to her. She is also well -paid and has wonderful benefits so I am happy for her.

She thought she wanted to buy our travel trailer from us and we were prepared to take payments from her but, after talking it over with her boyfriend and her sons, she decided that there were things that she wanted to do that were more important to their future. I had to agree with her (I thought she was a bit nutty to consider it in the first place but...hey, I love her and want her to be happy). So now the Beast and I will do some minor cleaning and put it up for sale. We plan on selling it complete with dishes, glasses, pots, pans, silverware, utensils, coffee maker, etc. so it will be a *just pack food, linens, pillows and your clothes and go!*

Well, time for me to close. I have been slowly packing for my plane trip to Chicago on the 10th. My nephew, Sir Galahad, is getting married on the 12th and I will get to spend a few days with my sisters, Bee and Dee. I'm really looking forward to it since it's been a long time since we have gotten to spend some quality time together. Our sister, Cee, will be up for the wedding, too, but clear on the other side of the city so she will miss out on most of it. But we will have the time at the wedding and reception with her and, who knows?, we might just need that break! LOL

Love you all. Keep those you love close to you and always make the last thing you say to them is *I love you* because you just never know.....