goo gooby goo

Facebook rules my life right now (not really) so I laid this blog down for a nap.  It's still napping, but every once in awhile I try to lift it up again and remember how much fun I had playing with it.

It's still sleeping, but I'm just about to lower the crib side and see if it can stand up for a moment.  Come to mama ...

Ooh, the knees are a bit wobbly.  The feet are struggling to stand ... but that hand is reaching out for the pacifier.  And a bottle.  And ... an entire box of Arrowroot cookies.  Yep, that's my child.

While the ol' blog is blinking and trying to get a feel for the world again ... let me grace you with this little bitty napper.  She was mad at her daddy for leaving her ... and going off to the military to save the world ... and save Kauai from Hurricane Iniki.

When they were reunited ... well, I'm just glad I had my camera rolling.

:)

* tap tap *

Is this thing on?

* tap tap *

It's just me, checking in again, albeit way late ...

It's cold in McKinney, there's ice on my car, my garage is full, my storage unit is full, my daughter sold her car and she's driving Rick's now.  He's carless and hating it.  We spent the evening at WalMart last night (whee) and I came home with a new trash can.  Again, whee.  We're headed to a basketball game tonight and I'm looking forward to eating the peanuts.  I'm carb-free now ... so I'm hoping I can have the peanuts. 

Liz has a new job at a book publishing firm and she's just been promoted to a publicist.  Ted Danson's ex-wife is one of her clients and that seems to be all she can talk about ... Casey Danson this and Casey Danson that ...

And I'm in the process of buying a new car.  My lease is up in April and I want to have another car all ready to go.  Like now.  I can't seem to stay off of car-buying websites.  Jeep. 

Low carb, SUV, Cirque D'Soleil, Sunroof ... those are the only words in my vocabulary anymore.

Maybe summer.  That word figures in there pretty often, too.

Jeep.

november 30th

... is fast approaching.  IF there was still going to be a wedding, it would be missing a few things.

We do have a dress and all that goes with that.  No shoes, though.  But Elizabeth wanted to wear tennies anyway.

We did have a cake ... um, that's partially in our freezer, partially in my tummy.

We had a venue, we had a getaway car and we had the table decor.  We also had the easels for holding the games and the photos and such.

So ... Liz was going to be partially dressed and I was going to be partially fed.  We could've sat at a beautiful table and looked at some easels.  And then made a quick getaway in her little red car.

Sounds like a good wedding to me!

Now ... if we only had a groom.

He's back in Hawaii, wearing tennis shoes and playing the games.  But you know what? 

I have the cake.


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it's been awhile ...

... and so much has happened to our little Kahle klan, most of it heartbreaking.

I doubt the details are as important as the fact that the Kahles are recovering and pulling themselves up by the bootstraps and moving on.  That truly is the most important part.

It's November now, the month that the Wedding of the Year was due to take place.  It will not be.  There's no more Ben ... in fact, was there ever a Ben?  Well, there was ... but not the Ben that we all wanted and hoped for and yes, even loved.  That Ben no longer exists.

There's still an Elizabeth ... and she's recovering.  She was hit (read: blindsided) the hardest by the cancellation of the wedding.  But she's in her own apartment now and starting a new life in Frisco, Texas.

There's still a Kris ... and she was hit hard, financially.  The apartment she signed her name to still exists along with a second one that she is downsizing to.  The invisible Ben never moved into the original apartment and the very visible Elizabeth now occupies the smaller one.  Nothing occupies my wallet anymore.

And there's still a Rick.  He sat back, watched it all unfold and just shook his head.  He's still shaking his head.  And his piggy bank.

But ... you know what?  We're just fine.  Elizabeth was shown a tremendous amount of love through all of this and so were we.  Our house is coming along fine and soon the holidays will be here.  I found my Christmas decor and I'm bound and determined to put it all up, all over the place.  I love me some Christmas decorations and I'm gonna smear them all around our house!

Ho Ho Ho!   Wait, Gobble Gobble!  Gotta get some turkey in me first.

Anyone seen my platter?

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October 3rd and counting

Elizabeth is home from Hawaii, possibly for good.  Ben is coming home (to what will be his new home) on the 30th of October.  We have finally vacated our beautiful apartment in Frisco and moved into our horribly hoarder-ish house in McKinney.  There are boxes everywhere and no matter how many I unpack each night ... more boxes appear each day.  I wake up and there are six more boxes blocking my view of the backyard.  Only the dog is happy.  He gets to sit/sleep/lounge on the couch at will.  We can't find his bed.

Elizabeth's best friend is getting married on Saturday and tonight is her wedding shower. 

Every night this week and next and next and next ... are all booked.  And then, of course, there's a wedding coming.  Hers.

How are the wedding plans coming along, you ask?  Well, we have a dress.  And a venue.  And that is darn close to all we have.  This move has been the death of us ... and nothing else has gotten done.

So here I sit.  "I Love Lucy" is on in the background and there's a water bottle in my hand.  And a laptop in front of me.  So much to do and ... absolutely no desire to do it. 

Remind me not to move again.  Ever.  Not even off of this couch.

.

sailing, sailing ... flooding, flooding ...

So, we did go to Hawaii.  We were fortunate enough to set sail on my daughter's ship, The Pride of America, and get to see her in action at some of her work events.

We also met her "intended", Ben Adams.  Lovely man.  Lovely couple.  We will be proud to have him join our little family.

While in Hawaii, we heard the most beautiful words in the world; "You have an offer on your house" from our real estate agent.  You don't know how much I wanted to hear those words.  I nearly cried.

Being in Hawaii though, I realized that I would no longer be able to hide scuff marks or cracks in the walls nor water damage.  I became stressed, worrying about hiding things and making the house sellable, but what could I do?  We had an offer.  And those words sat above any concerns that I had for the house.

We accepted the offer from the kind folks who wanted our house ... and we were still in Hawaii when the inspection happened.  Yeah, I really was forced to lay down my paintbrush and stop the madness.  I did it willingly.

We witnessed our future son in law ask for our daughter's hand in marriage.

We returned to Texas to begin packing up our big ol' house ... and start the closing process.  And find a new place to live.

AND THIS IS WHERE THE CRAZINESS BEGAN.

We packed and we packed and we packed.  And Rick got sicker and sicker and sicker.  And the Texas weather got hotter and hotter and hotter.  And Elizabeth and Ben (the intended) jetted off to Scotland and England ... and watched their luggage not follow them.  They spent two weeks with us in Frisco all the while waiting on their luggage to catch up to them. 

And wouldn't you know it?  The ring that Ben had planned to propose with was IN the suitcase that hadn't found them yet. 

Hundreds of phone calls to the airline and I finally jumped in and alerted the media.  Yep, I did.

WFAA's Monica Hernandez came to our little (big) house on Creek Point and filmed a story about a guy who wanted to propose to a little Texas gal ... but didn't have his luggage (and all of his worldly belongings) and didn't have the ring.

One phone call from WFAA and dang!  The airline found the luggage!  In Baltimore, of all places.  Go figure.

More packing, more closing junk on the house .... and finally the luggage arrived.  WFAA arrived, too.  They came back to film the actual proposal ... which was pretty darn cute!  We all hauled off to The Shops At Legacy and watched Ben propose ... and watched the news station film it.

AND .... right before we were slated to close on our Creek Point house ... we had a flood inside.  Of course we did.  OF COURSE WE DID! 

Got that all cleaned up and we were all set to close on the house ... WHEN RICK GOT SICK!  Ambulances and everything. 

Sigh.

Just when you think you've got it all under control ... the escrow folks would not close until Rick could sign, OUTSIDE of THE HOSPITAL, which he couldn't do.  Why?  Because Rick's little bout of a bladder infection began to spread ALL THROUGH HIS BODY ... enough that his bloodstream was infected and he had to be put in isolation.  NO ONE would go through the trouble to gown up and go in for Rick to sign the closing papers.  Not even the HOSPITAL NOTARY.  Like, seriously?

So, we waited.  And we extended our closing date.  And we searched for an apartment.  And we found ourselves NOT getting into any of the apartments that we wanted to ... sad tale after sad tale.  We were about to be homeless.  And you know what?  I didn't care.  I knew we'd be fine. 

So, Elizabeth was now engaged, Rick began to improve by leaps and bounds (turns out he was also a bit toxic and had to get some of those awful pain meds out of this body) and dang if ELIZABETH didn't turn around and get sick.  OF COURSE SHE DID.

We were still packing and packing and packing ... and getting further and further behind it seemed.

We finally had to call out for help ... which we did get, in the way of four women who stepped up and helped us.  Note: Women.  Yep.  Women for the win!

So, to summarize, we finally did close on our house once Rick was out of isolation.  We nearly emptied our Creek Point house (a wayward desk and a few garage items had to stay behind, sadly) and moved into an apartment complex overlooking a baseball park in Frisco.  We have belongings in two different PODS and a storage unit AND WITH OUR MOVING COMPANY.  Yeah, don't tell me about having too much stuff.  That's all I hear from my dear, darling daughter.

107 degrees, 108 degrees, 109 degrees.  The temperature kept a'climbin'.  Life got hotter and busier and crazier ... but we were out of that house. 

And ... on July 31st, I returned to work.  Suddenly my summer break was over and you know what?  I'm totally ready.  That was the wildest summer ever and I'm happy to see it go.

Rick is home in the apartment with me.  Buddy and Jeannie are there, too.  And Elizabeth is recovered and prepping to return to her ship for one final contract ... and to her beloved, Ben.

Anyone doubt me when I say that we had a flood on day one?  Yeah, didn't think so.

And there's a wedding in the works (November 30th) and that's what's on our minds now.  Floods don't bother me now ...   HOWEVER, if the wedding goes off as planned, well, it'll be the hottest day of the year and yet, it'll rain.  We won't be ready on time and the dress will be delivered to Kansas.  And the whole place will flood.  I just know it.

'Cuz we're Kahles.

but before we can go ...

"Excuse me, Ma'am.  We can replace this blown air conditioner for a mere $9000.  Shall we go ahead."

Yep, it got a might hot in our house two days ago.  And the puddle on the floor beneath one of the a/c returns got a might big.  I had the choice of calling a plumber or an a/c repairman for help.  Opted for the a/c man ... and whaddya know!  I was right!  I only had to pay an a/c man this time.

$9000 later, we have a new, working unit.  Of course, we are $9000 poorer now.  Heck we're just flat-out poor.

Rick explained to the repairman that we are poor ... and that we are headed off to Hawaii on Saturday.  That nice man gave us a discount of $1000.  Thank you, Rick.  Next time keep your big mouth shut about heading to Hawaii.

$9000 ... according to EVERYONE I KNOW or have ever met ... is WAY over-priced for an a/c.  AND we didn't really get a new one.  Just a bunch of new parts. 

Ugh.

I am going to Hawaii to rest, recover, relax and FORGET about life in the states.

In case I don't have very good reception on the ship (that's my daughter's excuse for why she doesn't text/call/email very often) I will see you all when I return on the 27th.  My daughter will be 27 then, engaged, embarking on a new life ... and I'll still be poor.  POORER, in fact, just thinking about a wedding.

~ Aloha ~

.

so saturday is the day ...

This very Saturday, this coming Saturday, I will ...

meet my daughter's boyfriend
meet my daughter's soon-to-be fiance (yes, same person)
see my daughter's workplace
see my daughter's living quarters
eat at the restaurant that she eats at daily
eat at the restaurant that she can never eat at (but I can)
order drinks at the bar that she hangs out in (her bf is the head bartender)

and just, in general, enjoy all that Honolulu has to offer ... aboard a big ship.

Sunday we'll head to Maui and start the process all over again.
Monday we'll disembark and try out the "Road to Hana".  I've always wanted to do that.
Tuesday we'll head to the Big Island and see if it's still there.  There's been a volcano erupting, I hear.
Wednesday we'll change positions on that Big Ol' Island, provided it's still there.
Thursday we'll head to Kauai and take in a Luau.  The pig is already trying to escape ...
And on Saturday, back we go to Honolulu for an extra day. 

It's a whirlwind and I'm very nervous.  Yes, I am.  And I don't know why.

Maybe it's because of Rick and his pain problems.  Or his cognitive problems.  Or all of his problems in general.  Maybe I'm the problem.  Most likely ...

Maybe it's because I was just in Honolulu in October ... and it weren't real pretty.  Maybe it's because I don't like ships.  Or harbors.  Or flying.  Or travelling.  Or vacationing.

Odd.  I used to live on a cruise ship.  I grew up around harbors.  I used to be a flight attendant.  I used to be a travel agent.

Hmmmm.  Maybe I just drank too much caffeine this morning.

prince charming

In exactly 23 days, I'll meet my future son-in-law.

I've never actually wondered about this day; where it would take place, when that day would be ... but I've always wondered what he would be like and how he would fit with Elizabeth.

This is what I pictured:

Medium build, medium height.  Medium to dark brown hair.  Young, but a couple of years older than Elizabeth.  A degree (or close to it) in some sort of something that would lead to a regular ol' office job, even though she desperately wanted someone who knew Hollywood inside and out.

And trim.  I pictured someone wearing jeans (niceish jeans) and a dark polo shirt.  His version of dressed up.  Yes, I was not hoping for a GQ man; not a magazine-pretty man.  My guy for her has some dirt on his hands, but not too much.

He also can wrangle her down.  She can be headstrong, but he could calm her with his gentleness and kindness.

She has a cat ... but he doesn't care for cats ... but would put up with hers for the sake of their marriage.

In exactly 23 days, I'll be meeting a man that fits absolutely ...

NONE OF THAT.

Yep, I'm a good guesser.  Not.

Mr. Benjamin Lee Adams has won Elizabeth's heart and, may I add, mine.  Rick is still working on opening his up to Ben ... but she and I both know he will.

Mr. Adams is purt near the opposite of everything listed above.

He's not a medium build, he's fit as a fiddle.  Not medium height, he's STINKIN' TALL.  Try 6'5" on for size.  And please note, Elizabeth is a whoppin' 5'2".  Hooo doggy.  He's a tall drink of water.  And, I mentioned fit as a fiddle ... I'm told he works out everyday.  She likes to, too ... but hers is mostly for show.  His seems real.

I imagine he does wear jeans and a dark polo shirt, but I ain't seen it yet.  So far, I've only seen a work uniform.  That's right, he wears a work uniform, as does she.  They work at the same company.  On the same ship, actually.  Fortunately they're in the same state.

Is he a couple of years older than Elizabeth?  Nope.  Try 19.  Okay, 18 1/2.  She's about to have a birthday and he just had one.  So, uh, closer to 19.

He doesn't work in an office ... he's the head bartender on their ship.  She likes that.  I hope she doesn't like that too much.  I'll judge that when I meet him.

He hasn't mentioned cats yet ... but he does like dogs.  I plan to offer him ours.  And Elizabeth's cat, you know, to break him in.

Most importantly, HE CAN WRANGLE ELIZABETH.   We've always prayed for a nice young man to enter Elizabeth's life to take care of her and watch over her.  He has assured me (via telephone) that he's up for that job.

I don't know much else to say until I meet him ... but I do have this video that I like.  It shows a side of both of them that puts my heart at ease.  She gets goofy/giddy and he wrangles her back into line.  Yea Ben!

So, in 23 days I'll have more to report.  For now, you can see for yourself what I'll be meeting!

She's a short drink of water.

Hey, there's a blue polo!

*

And ... here's the video!

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packing ... packing .... and packing

Before I share with you all of the mean and cruel things Rick has said to me since I packed up his office ... let me tell you all of the mean and cruel things that car dealer said to me when I took my little black car in for a check up.

Said car was making a noise not unlike a dog barking.  A FREAKIN'  LITERAL DOG barking.  I would step on the gas and hear WOOF!  I would come to a stop and hear woof!  Step on the gas, WOOF!  Come to a stop, woof!  It would drive you batty!!!!  It was driving me batty, not to mention the dog.  I think he was darn tired of woofing everytime I stopped and started.

So, off to the dealer we went (the car is still under warranty.)  The dealer, either because he didn't trust me or because that's the new norm, jumped in my car and asked me to duplicate the noise.  I was terribly afraid the noise wouldn't happen because that's the kind of luck I have ... but alas, my doggy started barking his head off.  Woof, Woof, Bark, Bark!

The dealer was amused.  He'd never heard that before.

And because he was so amused, he turned around and peeked into my backseat. 

"What's in the box?" he asked.

"Oh, just my daughter's Christmas gift that she couldn't fit in her suitcase when she left to go back home to Hawaii.

"May I see?"

I was beginning to feel challenged.  But my dog was still barking, so I knew I was going to win this case.  I got out of the front seat of my car and headed to the backseat.

"See, just this."  And I showed him the hoverboard that Santa had carried down the chimney for my dear, darling daughter.

Mr. Car Dealer took the hoverboard, held it on his lap and we drove off again.  No dog barked.  No noise was heard.  No feeling of accomplishment nor pride was gleaming on my face.  Only embarrassment.

"You mean I just brought my car to the shop because my hoverboard was making a noise?"

"Seems so," he said.

I'll never return to that dealer again.  I can't.  I just can't.  I know I was the lunch topic that day at the Nissan dealer.

----------------

Now where did my doggy go?  He was here just a minute ago ...

.

so ....

... my dear, darling daughter wants to get married.
... my dear, darling husband had his "trial spine stimulator" removed.
... my dear, darling car is wreaking havoc on my life.
... my dear, darling daughter's cat adores me
and
... my dear, darling new house is being built faster than the speed of light ... and this is not good.  Not good because my dear, darling old house ain't near ready for being put on the market.

Oy vey.

I took Rick back to the hospital yesterday to have the trial "machine" ripped off of his back and the whole experience evaluated.  He passed with flying colors even though he had no idea what he was saying most of the time.  The man is completely sleep-deprived and I could see his brain exaggerating about how well the machine worked.  First it was 400%, then 75%, then 90%.  We let the 90% be the marker and yes, he was then approved for the next surgery that'll happen in three weeks.  Oh joy.  Another week, like we just had for him to recover from surgery ...  Whee.

Then my car decided to die and, of course, it was just fine when I got it over to the dealer.  Of course it was.  I hate my car.  It lies.  Maybe it exaggerates, too.  Maybe it just didn't want it's "machine" ripped out of its back.

And finally, there's a wedding pending.  And since I've never met the "boy", I'm about to rip the spine stimulator out of my dear, darling daughter's brain.  Uh huh.  No cash is coming out of my pocket till I at least meet my future son-in-law. 

Do you suppose a broken down Nissan Rogue would be a good wedding gift?

How about a cat?

.

just because ...

Welcome to Medical City Frisco

Because we haven't ever gotten to check out this particular hospital in Frisco, we decided that Rick should have some surgery done here.  Uh huh.  That's the only reason.  And isn't it nice how they welcomed us?  We're not even there yet and we get a "welcome to" message.  I wonder what we'll get when we actually arrive?

They claim that Healthcare is better in the City.

Good thing we don't live in the country.

But seriously (or not) we've never gotten to visit THIS hospital before.  Heck, I didn't even know this hospital existed and here it is just minutes from my house.  I hope they have a good gift shop.  And a good cafeteria.  That's my only criteria, you know, shopping and eating.  And more shopping, and occasionally checking in on Rick.

So, after all is said and done (and believe me, I've said plenty), we FINALLY have a surgery date for Rick.  He's been waiting for over two months for this particular trial surgery and we have high hopes for its success.

I'm expecting great things after this.

Like a trip to Hawaii, a trip to Europe, a new car, a new house, jewels, money and ...

well, I am getting a new house ...

Thanks Rick.  Your pain guarantees me lots of fun things!  I hope you get something out of it, too.

-------------------------------------

Tuesday Morning at 9:15 AM Texas time, Rick will be under the knife.  Please lift him in prayer for a successful and uneventful surgery!

The guy there on the left has been through so much.

(:^)

2017 in review ...

2017 has closed out.  Gone.  Kaput.  Kicked to the curb.

We ended it with a bang, literally.

Our house is falling apart around us, with creaking noises going on overhead incessantly.  None of our doors are tight so cold air seeps in all the time, in all the wrong places.  Several of our toilets flush at will, usually during the middle of the night. And just as we were about to sit down and watch that ol' ball drop ... the oven kicked the bucket.  Out came the crockpot for our dinner.

So, as we plan to move in 2018, we will not be sad to see this house go.  No oven (although we did reboot it and get it to work), no heat (because I turned the heater off and it thought I meant FOR GOOD), no fireplace logs (used them all, trying to warm up the house), creaking, creaking and MORE creaking, flushing toilets (ghosts?), and several ruined floors from several broken pipes awhile back.   And a peeing dog that helps keep those ruined floors ... ruined.

Yep, we couldn't get out of 2017 fast enough.

So what does 2018 hold for us?

A new house (that'll break us for sure), back surgery for Rick (that'll break us more), a daughter in Hawaii who constantly needs help financially (need I say it, we're broke) and a move (that's it, we're officially poor) done in two parts.  We'll need to take an apartment after we sell our house ... and before we can move into the new house.  My hands are already up in the air in desperation.

But 2018 won't be all bad.  Did I mention that we're getting a new house?  A NEW house.  Literally.  And nothing goes wrong in new houses, right?  Oh, shut up.

We won't be too much further from where we are now ... but we will be out of the Frisco tax umbrella.  We will not live in a creaking house (can I get a BIG AMEN!?) and our peeing dog ... well, he's coming with us ... unless I kill him first.  The toilets might just flush on cue, and the house might just be warm.  And maybe the pipes won't freeze and flood.

There is hope for us in 2018.  The biggest hope is for Rick.  He will be having back surgery that is supposed to be the be-all/end-all back surgery.  It is supposed to put an end to his pain.  And for that, we can only say that no matter what, 2018 will be a good year.

2018, here we come!!!!

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this kid ...

this kid ... is da bomb.

She's the one in the middle.  Upper middle.  I don't have any sons.

So, Rick is in pain.  Rick is in P A I N.  PPPPPPPPAIN!!!  Nothing new for him, though.  He lives in pain and he just grits his teeth and bears it.  Poor guy.  

Every couple of years the pain is so extreme that we have to take him to the Emergency Room and beg them to admit him ... praying for the surgery, any surgery, that will ease his pain.  We made that trip in November (right before Thanksgiving) and we made that trip again last Thursday night.

Let me back up and say that Rick has been trying to get in to see a new spine doctor.  He wants NO MORE SURGERIES and he wants NO MORE REHAB/nursing homes.  So, he took it upon himself to find a new doctor that might give him some relief.  Oddly enough, he picked a doctor that is reknown in our area and, of course, impossible to get in the see.  Remember, this man is in extreme pain right now ... so being told that there were no more appointments in December was a big disappointment.  But he preferred to wait it out and just grin and bear it, again.

Fast forward to Thursday night when I took him to the ER.  I was prepared to beg for an admission to the hospital and also prepared to beg for the surgery that would relieve his pain, if only temporarily.  Rick hates the ER but agreed to go because he couldn't stand the pain any longer.  Tears are common for this trooper.  Seriously.  And that's how I knew he was serious.

So, once inside and checked into our ER bedroom, Rick tells his story and wouldn’t you know it … the ER doctor knows the guy Rick has been trying to get an appointment with.  She offered to call him on her cell phone, reached him, and moved his appointment up to the very next day, Friday.  THIS, the Kahle family has decided is an absolute miracle.

And the ER sent us home that night with explicit instructions as to how to get our appointment the next day.  Ask for Ashley, Ashley knows the story.  Etc., etc.  

Since nothing ever goes as planned and since nothing is ever easy, we couldn't get the appointment the next day that we were promised.  I put THIS KID on it.  I was too frustrated.

This kid did it.

Elizabeth grabbed the reigns; demanded to speak to Ashley or someone else just as competent and wouldn't stop until Ashley was found and Ashley was reminded and Ashley relented.  And ... she got him in.  

The very day, Liz took Rick in ... and the nice doctor there said he wanted to try something new with Rick that he felt sure would work.  Fingers crossed.  Elizabeth got all of the info and it seems that Rick will have an object (some sort of monitor and pain medicine squirter) placed onto his spine and he’ll have a remote.  The jist of it is that this object will kill the pain and Rick can control the dosage until the nerve endings are fried/dead and no more pain is felt.  The pain’ll still be there, but he won’t feel it.  There’s also a battery in this pack-thing, but it will only lose 5% in 15 years, at which time, they can opt to replace the unit or let it go, slightly lessened in intensity.  He'll be 80 at the time so who cares?

The good part is … Rick will have a trial first.  A simulator-thingy will be placed on top of his spine on Monday.  It will very nearly mimic the results he’ll have after he goes under the knife and it’s permanent.  He’s excited about that.  We’re all excited about that.  Then, after Christmas, if all goes as planned and it works, he’ll get the real thing.  Not sure what kind of recovery we're facing but we're all still in favor of this thing.  And Rick is a new man.  He has something to live for!  

Wanna know something funny?  This funky object-thingy will be able to give MRI results, as needed, anywhere in his body.  Yeah, I’ll believe that when I see it, but hey.

So, that’s it.  Here’s to some pain relief on Monday Dec. 18^th!  And hats off to the gal above that got the ball rolling.

Now, if I could just kick my cold.  Maybe I can get a cold-killing-object-thingy placed on MY spine!

.

epic failz

I was putting together a calendar, yesterday, for my dear, darling husband as one of his Christmas gifts this year.  I spent several hours pouring pooring stressing over which photographs to include and finally decided on about 60 that I felt depicted our past year pretty well.  Never mind that they all began to look alike after awhile ...

Once done, I couldn't help but marvel at how some of my finer work had managed to get included into the final project.

Just what Rick always wanted on his calendar, I'm sure ...

That there is 409 sitting atop our table.  Glad I took a picture of it.

This is our cat.  She had no head.

Anyone want a banana?

Food I thought my dear, darling daughter would like ...

(no one else would)

My dear, darling husband ... who was never proud of this look.

Glad he didn't keep this look for very long.

Yeah, this needs to be in all calendars.  Typos in an ad for a family night.

A beach with no people.  Also needs to be in all calendars.

And ... our Christmas tree this year.  No ornaments, no lights.  And an attempt at throwing a Santa hat atop it in lieu of an angel.

My husband already knows I'm lazy; let's not rub it in.

So there you have it.  Two hours worth of work yesterday and THESE epic photos are what I have to show for it.

I think I'll go buy him some socks.  He'll need them when he takes my gift out to trash the next morning ...

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Since last checking in, my dear, darling, daughter Elizabeth has been dragging me all over creation completing tasks that she has been unable to do while cooped up on a ship for 18 weeks.  18 LONG weeks, as she tells everyone who'll listen.  And d,d,d Elizabeth has missed quite a few things while being gone.  Most notably, Chipotle.  It's hard to believe, but that child went a whole eighteen weeks without Chipotle.  I'm sure Chipotle noticed.  I'm sure they were considering filing Chapter 11 over it.  Maybe 13.  Maybe both.

Besides Chipotle, I've also eaten a gluten-free Thanksgiving meal that d,d,d E prepared, as well as a gluten-free fish and quinoa meal just last night that she put her brain to.  The Thanksgiving meal?  Well, I've had better.  This one would've been better, too, if we hadn't forgotten the mashed potatoes.  The fish last night?  Well, a glutenful crusting would've been nice.  But fish?  All plain and alone?  Huh uh.  And you may keep the quinoa.  Please keep the quinoa.

We've seen Reba McIntire in concert, we'll be seeing Celtic Thunder soon and, of course, her favorite, Cirque du Soleil.  She's drug me along to Christmas Light Display after Christmas Light Display.  Can't get her to put lights on OUR tree, though. 

Tonight is a holiday concert at our church.  We'll go.  Wouldn't want her to miss that.  (Actually I'm singing in it ... so I wish she WOULD miss it.)  I'm sure we'll find a gluten-free bakery after that.

If you drive by my house in the next five weeks, you will not see Rick's car in the driveway.  Nope.  That car has travelled to as many events with d,d,d E.  I can't tell if it WANTS to go or it if just likes that it's finally getting some action.  Rick doesn't drive it much anymore.

And finally, d,d,d E has a little jaunt planned to Miami now.  It's always somewhere.  If she drags me along, I swear I'll drop from exhaustion.  I'm not 26 and I don't climb steamship stairs for a living.

I'm ready for that long winter's nap, Santa ...


ho, ho, yawn.

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d. d. daughter ...

... is at it again.   Home for three whole days now she came with plans to spend every waking moment with her dear ol' mom and dad ...

And then off she goes to see the world.  She claims she'll be back in time for Christmas ... or not, depending on how the wind changes or how much money she has in her knapsack.  Napsack?  I never knew how to spell that word.  Actually never needed to, either.

Alas, she bought herself a ticket to Belfast.  That would be Belfast in NORTHERN IRELAND.  That would be in a troubled part of the world.  And that would be stupid, not only because of the destination but because she's going alone.  But stupidity is her middle name.

So, here her mom and dad sit ... pondering whether to put out the decorations or not, whether to haul all of those boxes down all of those stairs or not, whether to cook the big ol' goose or not.

The goose won.  Christmas or no Christmas, daughter or no daughter, we's a-eatin' and a feastin'.  Ain't gonna let Northern Ireland stop us from that!!

AND ... it won't have to be GLUTEN FREE!    Whee!

☆

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recapping

Our trip was short and sweet so there's not much to recap ... but here goes.

When you go to Hawaii ... watch out for Nene's.  They are allowed to cross when they see this sign.

I took this picture of this gorgeous golf course.  I didn't notice the storm coming in.  I also don't see the restaurant we ate at.  

A)  I was totally in the wrong spot for our dinner that night.

B) I didn't care, because the view was beautiful.

C)  It was my birthday and I was allowed to do whatever I wanted.

We eventually did find the restaurant we were looking for ... but it was nowhere near here.

It was nowhere near here, either.

But it IS a gorgeous shot, thank you very much.

This pretty sight was our view from our hotel room.  

Not too shabby.

Rick liked it, too.

We enjoyed this view while dining on our fine Hawaiian cuisine.

McHamburgers and McFries.

Yea, Hawaii!

And while we were "home" in our high-rise digs, my dear, darling daughter was "home" in her own digs.

Meet, The Pride of America ... my daughter's home away from home.

Behind all of that barbed wire, security guards, police and passenger-check-in stuff ...

lies a tiny twin bed and a tiny Barbie-sized closet that my daughter calls "home" ...

for three more days anyway.

;)

my dear darling daughter ...

... is due home for a vacation break in exactly 7 days and 3 hours.  Yes, she has been counting it down.   For someone who LOVES her job, I'm surprised that she wants a break so badly.  But then again, everyone needs a break ... even people who live in the Hawaiian islands.

She's dying to see her cat and she's dying to see her car.  She's not dying to see her parents, though ... because she just saw us!   I certainly couldn't say anything about it, though, just in case she read this blog.  And you never know.

But on October 18th, Rick and I headed out to surprise her on Kauai.

And surprise her, we did.

This was how she looked when she saw us and tried to process what she was seeing.

This was how I looked when I saw her.  Nope, it wasn't windy there, why?

This was how our luggage looked when they saw TSA.

This is how they shaped up when TSA said they couldn't board in their present condition.

See that black backpack on the end?  It didn't shape up enough and stayed behind.  Somewhere.  I guess it lives in Honolulu now.

I hope it's very happy.

This is how the three of us looked once we all settled down and realized we were in Hawaii.  My hair never did settle down.  Maybe it's still in Hawaii, too.

This was our welcoming committee.  He and his cohorts followed us all over the island.

This was the first thing we bought Elizabeth.  She was thirsty and we complied.  I guess they never give her anything to drink aboard ship.

Here's what Rick and I dined on.

Good ol' McDonalds.  They never miss a beat.

Next up?

The rest of the story.

Don't worry, we were only there for four days.  It won't take long.

;)