Monday Monday, What's Happening?

 Good Morning OFF Sisters,
I hope everyone had a blessed weekend celebrating Easter or Passover.  Family time is precious, so enjoy.  I was able to drop Utley off with my son and his girlfriend.  Then, we had dinner at Olive Garden.  Yummy.  I was able to resist the garlic breadsticks.  

Today, I have to get to a Quest lab for my INR.  There is one right around the corner from the hotel.  Then, I am off to Michigan.  

I hope everyone has a blessed day. 

Hugs,
Trish

Good mornin' ya'll.
Have a great trip, Trish. Drive carefully.
I begin my jury dury. I did this once in Eugene years ago. I am hoping I can take my iPad with me so I can read. Or maybe I'll take my crochet. But what I'm working on has 3 skeins of yarn, so it is a little unweildly. Of course, I'm more concerned with finding a parking spot! My DH says I should use his handicapped placard, but that would be a bad place to get caught doing that!
Everyone have a fantabulous day!

 Today I go for my first medical check since surgery .... Did have a phone consult with my nurse already.  Today I see the surgeon, nurse, and dietician.  My weight loss has been slow and steady - about 15 pounds since surgery. I'm very happy with that.

Ill probably try studying some more for my Emergency Nursing Certification exam later this month.  I'm not sure now why I decided to do this, but I did, so I might as well pass it!  It looks lovely again out there, so I'll get a long walk in as well.  Take care everyone ....

Feeling better today, diverticulitis attack under control and am on the mend despite some minor  cramping this morning ...Cooked that big Easter ham yesterday, smelled delish so had teensy portion with asparagus last night, solid food tastes great as was sick of soups and yogurt and water for Easter.  Later today will portion it and freeze.

Yesterday managed to find all the missing receipts and prepare tax papers for accountant I see this afternoon (our deadline is end of April to pay annual income tax),  in between Skyping to friends in Europe  several times , who also invited me to a 65th birthday in late June, so also researched and booked my air ticket online  and  as a result am going to the big birthday bash...Was so busy with all that yesterday never really noticed I was alone for Easter (as I had called off my guests because of my diverticulitis attack)...Later on last night Skyped with a shut-in lady here in town, and felt good about that as almost like a visit without the effort of driving over.....

Today is cold, windy and we are going to get several days rain...

Lordy, Lordy. I noticed this morning our daighter had taken down her FB page. She called to say that both kids had been with their Dad yesterday. He had his daughter sign on to our daughter's FB page (he had been drinking). Our daughter had gone to Easter dinner at a dear friend's Mom's house. Our daughter has known them for years and the guy has worked for our daughter for at least 10 years! Anyway, her ex went off, yelling at the kids, telling them their Mom was having an affair with the guy. The kids just laughed, cause they know it is ludacris! He started throwing stuff, yelling at the kids. Granddaughter went across the street to a friend's house. Grandson tried to reason with his Dad. Wound up threatening to kick his Dad's a**. Our grandson is a weight lifter and can bench press more than his Dad's weight. Anyway, his Dad told him to get out of his house and don't come back. He grabbed some clothes, got his sister and went to our daughter's. Granddaughter is supposed to go there Wed and Thurs but now doesn't want to. Attorney says she has to go unless she fears for her safety. Basically, if her Dad cracks a beer she can leave. If he is sober she has to stay. He has never hurt anyone, or driven drunk. He just yells, threatens and throws stuff.
Of course, this AM he has called our daughter apologizing, sorry for everything he said and the threats he made (he isn't going to mediation, he'll make her pay him for the rest of his life, etc). She told him he better talk to our granddaughter as soon as she got out of school because she is now scared of him, and doesn't want to do the shared custody thing. Our daughter has always been in the house to diffuse his tirades, protecting the kids from most of it. Now she is gone, there is no buffer!
Thanks for listening. I just want to go scoop up all of them and bring them here. Can't.
Vickie, I understand your situation!! Gramma's shouldn't have to go through this! But we HAVE to be totally there if we can!

Oh, Caroline!  I feel your pain.  I haven't had much of a chance to respond, but I've been keeping up with your daughter's dilemma and praying for all of you.  You're right, these are dreadful situations, but what can we do?  I know how much it hurts you for your daughter and grandkids to be in this situation.  Just keep venting it all right here.  We have to have a safe place to let it all out, don't we?  At least here on OFF, no one else can read what we write, except our OFF sistas.  We have to lift each other up in these troubled times.

Hi Trish and my OFF family:

Had a nice day yesterday at Easter with my family ... ham, cheesy potatoes, green bean casserole, carrots, apple pie ... I was stuffed. My SIL has gotten a pair of budgies, and we enjoyed listening to them sing. I got a birthday card and a check from my brother and SIL ... it was just a nice day with the family.

This morning, I was drinking my coffee protein drink, and I put it back on the end table without putting the cap on ... and I missed the end table, and the drink spilled all over the rug. Mom got all upset, like I killed the cat or something. She was about to go to the store and had to sit for awhile ... "I'm too upset!" Geez, I cleaned it up. She gets upset about the smallest things.

Not doing a whole lot today ... still in my jammies. I may go out to the store ... want to go to a Meijer later and have to go get some stuff at a drugstore ... didn't take enough calcium along and forgot my dental floss.

Hope your trip goes well, Trish. Carolyn, hope your daughter's issues work out. Sounds like her soon-to-be ex is a piece of work.

Have a good day everyone.

Good morning Trish and everyone.....

I missed being here for three days. I have to get a laptop. I am always at my guy's house with no internet. I hate that!!

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter/Passover. Mine was very nice. Spent the day with lots of friends. I spoke with all my grandchildren and both daughters.

I went tanning this AM and now need to shower and get ready to run errands. I filled all my sister's meds and ordered more.

Wishing you all a great day!!

Been praying and will continue to pray for many of you and your families.

Love and hugs to all....connie d

Hello my OFF sistas!

All of my company has finally left and I am experiencing a huge let-down.  It was such a long tense week last week and then throw a major holiday in on top of it--I'm wiped out.

Carrie left to go back to Waco around noon.  I let her take one of my puppies with her.  Lulu is just not very tolerant of Benny and sometimes she snaps at him.  We all decided it would be better for Lulu to go live with Carrie for the next few months until we can get Chris and the baby settled in a place of their own.

I will really miss Lulu.  She's my little bed buddy.

Chris and the baby left around 2 p.m.  We had a lot of stuff to settle before she left.  I paid all her bills, for one thing.  Then we had to give her cash for gas and groceries until I can get moved down to the lake house in a couple of weeks.  She is going to start picking up job applications and filling them out.  The sooner she can find a job, the better.  This is going to be quite a financial strain for all of us.  But we will make it work, somehow.

Benny was so cute yesterday!  He had his first Easter egg hunt.  Oh, he caught on right away!  He also ate the ears off his first chocolate bunny.  And he loved the jelly beans.  But he didn't like the Peeps. 

We had a great Easter dinner.  I made a ham, green beans, sweet potatoes and devilled eggs.  Mom brought mac n cheese and okra n tomatoes.  I did make that gluten free, sugar free berry cobbler, but nobody really liked it much.  However, Mom brought her gingerbread, so the dessert eaters were happy with that.

I plan on moving semi-permanently down to the lakehouse around the 18th.  Butch is here through the 15th, and then it will take me a couple of days to pack up all my stuff and get myself moved.  I have a million little details to take care of between now and then.  My mind just whirls non-stop thinking about it all.  I wake up in the middle of the night and I can't get back to sleep for thinking about all this stuff.  I'll be so glad when things settle down a bit.

I'm worried about Christie and I trying to share a house together.  It never really seems to work out for us.  We love each other, but we rub each other the wrong way!  I pray daily for strength and patience!  If you're so inclined, please pray for us to be able to set aside our differences and make this work out, for Benny's sake.  It will help if she can go to work.  That will limit the amount of time we have to spend together.  I'm not worried about taking care of Benny--I know I can do that.  But I'm not so sure Chris and I can share a house and a kitchen and a baby together without fighting.

John (Christie's ex) is being a jerk and making noises about suing for custody, but I think it is just an empty threat.  I told Chris not to respond to it.  I think he's just trying to hurt her by threatening to take her baby away from her.  I don't think he truly wants custody, and his parents are elderly and not physically able to take care of the baby, so how on earth would he manage it anyway?  Of all the grandparents, I'm the only one young enough and physically fit enough to care for Benny.  I don't think anything will really come of it. 

Besides, child protective services already told Christie that John would only be allowed supervised visitation because of the assault and his prior DWI convictions.  I doubt he will ask for more than that.  He called the other day and never even once ASKED about Benny during the entire phone call!  Some great dad, huh?

I had better close now and find something productive to do with the rest of my day.  This is our last week to work on this place together before Butch leaves.  We need to get as much done as we can.  I sure do wish we could have met our goal of getting the house on the market this month, but it's just not going to happen.  Oh, well.  God is in control.  I have to remember that.

Love you all!

Vickie, I know what you mean about getting along with your daughter. I love my mom too but she rubs me the wrong way ... I couldn't live with her full time. A week is going to be too long. She drives me crazy ... she is so critical of everything I do and is waiting for me to make a mistake.

Good luck with your daughter ... hope she can find a job and you can keep the peace. I hope, also, that she can get on her meds and stay there to stay sane.