Happenings at the House

 Well... 

I've absolutely neglected this blog. I kept meaning to get back to it but then what do you say. Sometimes I just peek at other blogs but I don't know what to say to get back in touch... you know... 

Perhaps I write my thoughts just to keep them in order. 

Phillip, one of our French Angora bunnies.

All my children are adults now and the four eldest are on their own and I think their financial situation is precarious but I don't pry. Their lives are their own and they haven't asked for help - I'm proud of them and worried both at the same time. I suppose that's what parenting adults looks like.

The two youngest are at home and my son is going to community college and beginning his studies there. He'll start a new club (forming the rules and so on, figuring out the finances and chapter officers) and play the role of an Anglican minister in a school play. Rose is finishing her senior year of high school.

My mother in law was finally convinced to move out to senior apartments awhile ago, so we no longer have to worry about those phone calls about ohh, the taxes are past due and I need a new furnace (when it's about 15 degrees in Ohio where she lives). But weird things keep happening and here I'll have to triangulate a little with the sister in law from time to time to check up on her.

For example, from what I gather, recently she was sent little girl's underwear in the mail. I was a bit alarmed at this and asked her who sent it and she didn't know. She told me she carefully wrapped it all back up and sent it back to the person who sent it to her along with a letter telling the person who she is, where she lives, and probably lots of personal data such as the fact that she lives all alone and whatever and she has no money for their underwear "ministry." 

I tried to get her to look around for this old mailing and even convinced her to dig about in the trash for a bit but I guess because of the holiday she had sent original "ministry" mailing in the trash out a few days prior apparently. And sure enough, she mailed the undies last week. I hate being just far enough away that there is no way to really "fix" or look after stuff. I tellya, if some weirdo sent me a pair of little girl's underpants in the mail today, the cops would be called and they'd think *I* am the weirdo for even talking about it... This is just not okay and I just feel so icky about my 86 year old mother in law receiving this stuff. 

So on my list for today is dealing with regular household duties, driving "kids" where they need to be and calling sis-in-law about "girlie panties". Things like this are not really interesting or particularly bloggable week to week and nothing will come of it. But anyyyway. That is the sort of stuff I have been up to of late :)

Look Out, Dad!!

My father is the purple dot above the blue weather station. He's juuust outside Milton's evacuation zone.

Well!

My brother and I just sat through Helene with our dad in Florida. We didn't plan our trip that way - we had booked it months in advance as our mother passed away in February. We wanted to go back to check up on the old guy. So Dad got to direct us to all the restaurants in the Tampa Bay Area he wanted to visit. I mean, what else do you do before a hurricane if you already have batteries? And have food portions tripled since I have stopped going out to eat? I think so. I also got to ride around town in a golf cart to visit his high school buddy and his wife who have retired nearby.

Helene was devastating in some areas of Florida and Georgia, but it was nothing much in the particular area of Tampa where my dad lives. The airport was closed and some of the bridges were closed for a bit. We weren't sure if I would be able to catch my flight back to Missouri, or if my flight would even exist. But nothing life-threatening was going on where we were. 

This time it's a little worrying - hopefully Milton doesn't hit my father too badly, but he is hunkered down and hoping for the best. When you think about it, where would he go? Pretty much anywhere you go, everyone is already there OR it is already wiped out and devastated. Going north is going to be crowded and congested and the highways will be full. There is already so much devastation and wreckage north. Go south, and who says Milton won't come and cause hurricane damage there anyway? 

My brother tried to convince him just to jump on one of the last planes, just go to Alaska or whatever random flight is available and see what happens! Dad is going to stay put and see what happens. I'll keep ya posted, hopefully I will hear from him that everything was not a big deal just like last time.

Spongebob's House Went to a Rave...

This summer, I've been doing a lot of highway driving back and forth, going to Worlds of Fun where Woodjie worked this summer. One big benefit: he got a total of eight tickets and we've brought family members here and there throughout the summer. What you see pictured here is my souvenir. It's a men's medium shirt if you can believe that. I think it looks like Spongebob's house went to a rave. But I bought it with a matching pair of swimshorts because I am just that groovy.

I daresay I improved my crochetwork and learnt to do a granny square! I sorta cheated and used YouTube. The thing with YouTube is that you can pause it, slow it down, and go over over over OVERRRR the same 1.2 seconds about 500 times and skip the stupid ads. You just can't ask any questions.

I had to have something to do while waiting in the parking lot for Woodjie...

Emperor, Elf and Patrick have settled into an apartment nearby and sometimes I see them, pretty much just in passing. Their stuff is mostly gone and my house is surprisingly full for having only four people. I look back and wonder how we held so many folks here before. 

Woodjie's First Job!

 

School just got out a bit ago here. Woodjie is working as a line cook at a restaurant in the big city this summer. His uniform also comes with a little beanie. He'll be a senior next school year.

Bringing Garbage Home

Some people up the street were throwing this table away. It was in pretty bad shape and one of the legs was off. I've glued the leg back on, stripped it, sanded it, and stained it. It is still not any sort of heirloom quality but free is free... and I have several "children" here at home who are (hopefully) thinking of leaving the nest one by one again soon.  So this will work as one of several pieces of first furniture.

Ignore the trash on the floor. Right now the table is dry enough to be taken out of the high traffic areas of the house, but not dry enough to put things on just yet.  I still have all my sanding/ stripping supplies nearby too.

 

What A MESS.

Maybe my bloggy friend Virginia has seen a six and a half-foot tall curly-top kid driving about in a grey car with Missouri license plates since last November, because Emperor and Elf now live in the suburbs of Firebird City.  Patrick joined them in April.  I'm going through the stuff they left (everything but one suitcase each, thanks guys) and boxing it up.  And finding graffiti from ages past.

This is what I am left with.  You would think packing up all the stuff they had would mean I had MORE room but apparently not!  Packing things into boxes makes the items inside expand by about 60 percent.  Scientific fact.

 

Not sure why I am trying to paint a room full of boxes, but since I no longer do laundry and flip the dishes about in the dishwasher so much I don't have much else to do... Well, there is the poison ivy in the rock garden but I am pretending not to notice that... the house seems veryyy empty with only two children in it.

 

Polish Festival in Weston, Missouri!

I went with a friend last weekend to the festival in Weston, Missouri.  There was a band playing Polish music, lots of Polish food for sale, Polish outfits and almost every sort of trinket from Poland you could imagine.  These bunnies are Polish pottery cookie jars.

Honey pots with little drizzlers.

Um... can you tell that Kansas City has a bit of an unhealthy obsession with Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs?

One of the shops downtown had works from several metalworking artists as well as some stained glass. 

Here's what I bought.  A giant bowl with bunnies. I love bunnies!

And my mug.  It was a great day!