Ummm Helloo….?
It’s been…ummm…way too long since my last post. In my defense, we’ve undergone some major lifestyle changes in the past few months and then I lost the link to Movable Type…doh! John was kind enough to send it to me the other day. Oh, and John, I figured out my password.
So, just what are the changes to which I’m referring? I guess it’s only been one major one….my mother-in-law is now living with us. I realize some of you have lived this way for a very long time but this transition has been somewhat hard on us, particularly Larry. Before y’all think I’m just some nasty DIL out to bad mouth her MIL I will say in Norma’s defense she is a very kind woman who just wants to please everybody. And that’s a major part of the problem.
If something needs done around the house (dishes, laundry, cooking, etc), Norma wants to do it. The only problem with that is she wants to do it HER way and when you explain to her that some things needs to be done a certain way, she just does it her way anyways. When you then tell her she needn’t do that particular thing any longer (because you can’t stand the way she does it but you don’t tell her that), she then gets upset and pouts because you won’t let her help.
The hardest part of all this for me is letting her cook, mainly because her style of cooking is very unhealthy. And her food stinks. Really. It’s inedible. Again, I know it sounds like I’m just being mean but it’s true. The food is really horrible. Larry and Kyrielle can’t eat it either so it’s not just me being some food snob. And you can’t prevent her from cooking. I don’t how many times I’ve told her I would handle dinner when I got home only to find dinner already made when I did get home. And she made it a 3 o’clock in the afternoon so it’s been sitting on the stove for 3 hours before we’re ready to eat. And I did I mention it’s gross?
So…I’ll cut myself off here. I really could go on about any other number of things that are driving us crazy but we’ll save those for another blog.
On a happier note, we’re now a five-horse family. Yep. I bought another horse because I just can’t spend enough money on the hairy beasts. This one is a 9 yr old Appaloosa gelding. He looks like a giant Dalmation except his spots are reddish brown instead of black. He’s being shipped from Ohio to Oklahoma so he won’t actually be here until Friday. Maybe in another blog I’ll relate why I bought this horse and the special place he has in my heart because it really is kind of a neat story. Suffice to say that right now, we’re very excited to be bringing this horse home and plan to spend many happy hours riding him. I’m hoping Kyrielle can start using him for her riding lessons but I have a feeling she’ll be afraid of him. He’s rather large. Maybe if I’m feeling technologically adventurous I’ll post pics of him once he gets her.
On a career note, I’m still working as a contractor for the life insurance company. Like any job, it has its good days and it’s bad. Of course, I’d rather do something else so I’m training to become an equine massage therapist and a barefoot trimmer. A barefoot trimmer is like a traditional farrier, only we don’t believe in shoeing horses. We believe the horse’s hoof, in it’s natural shape and condition, is the best possible foot for a horse to travel on. Many people in the equine community, especially traditional farriers, consider us quacks or just plain nut jobs but we have nature, anecdotal success stories and pending research on our side. I’m still a long ways away from actually trimming for a living but I’m reading and learning all I can until my training starts in earnest, probably in a few months. As for the equine massage, I’m taking my first certification course in October in Northern California. When I get back from that, I’ll be qualified to massage horses professionally. So, we’ll see what the demand is for that in this area. I don’t expect the massage therapy to replace my current job but, when I can combine that skill with the trimming, I think it will support me full time.
Back at home, all the animals are doing great. George is having a grand time barking at the horses and chasing them up and down the fence line. We still can’t let him roam the property at will because he promptly leaves the property, at a dead run, and there’s just too many other dogs roaming around to let George do that safely, but he appears to be enjoying himself all the same. We’re slow learners when it comes to leaving food on the counter and George has helped himself to many a tasty treat. We really just keep under estimating how far George can actually reach in snagging those tasty treats. He is a very smart dog.
This weekend is Kyrielle’s 10th birthday party so we’re a bit preoccupied with that. She’s having a slumber party, at our house. Oh the joy. Think I’ll hunker down in the bedroom with a good book and a bottle of wine.
This has gotten WAY long so I’ll end it here. Maybe I can actually post on a regular basis from now on……..maybe…….
As the first of our group to have already been through a series of slumber parties where Sloan had her 8, 9, and 10 YO friends over, I can safely say that you have little or nothing to worry about. As long as Kyrielle has toys and there are movies at their disposal, they will be good to go. Get pizza (try to avoid soda or you will be up all night) and encourage them to play their louder games early. I let them go until about midnight and since they were all sleeping in the livingroom, I didn't hear them telling their little whispered stories at lights out. Sloan has a dancing Twister game as well as her own Karaoke machine, and those did the trick quite nicely! I even got up to make pancakes for them all the next morning, so you know my mood wasn't really THAT adversely affected!
And, sorry, but I simply do not understand the mindset of having parents, in-laws or blood, live in my house. It will not happen. I'm sure there are many arguements both pro and con that could be made, but I know that disaster would be on the menu based simply on the fact that in my house, I Am The Law (queue song by Anthrax here)and my style of doing things would be in direct conflict with my mom's. Now Amy's mom might not be too bad, if only because I know she regards me as God's gift to her daughter (which I am, of course!), but her smoking would get old in the first, say, ten seconds. You guys keep on expanding your extended families......we will stay right here with our own space, schedules, and food cooked the way we like it (my only concession to that statement would be when John's mom is making her world-renowed meatballs.......mmmmmmmmmmmm!). Have fun, kids! We'll be thinking about ya and waving, smiles from ear to ear...........
Posted by: Sean at August 22, 2005 04:32 PMSean and Amy, I whole heartedly agree with everything you said about extended families. In this case though, there was no other option, or at least we thought so at the time.
I will explain the full situation in another post. I have a feeling it may get a tad long......
Posted by: Cindi at August 23, 2005 10:48 AM