Andy, Andy, Andy!

Busy Saturday!

The day began with a family meeting at TEN AM!! Now that is NOT a time for the Chin boys to meet on a Saturday morning, however it was definitely going to be a workday. The pool was coming out and going away. Justin had spent the night and we all ganged up and encouraged him to help out.

The boys headed out into the heat and humidity, armed with a bottle of OFF, since the mosquitos had claimed the yard long ago. It was time to get rid of our own private Frog Pond/Swamp combination. The boys soon called for Catie to take care of trash detail, picking up plastic parts, as they headed off to sell the pool to the scrap metal dealer. She was less than pleased.

She scampered off quickly to the neighbors yard, hoping not to be found, but ran into our favorite police officer Mike, who was visiting. He soon showed Catie just what happens when you run away........



I asked him to keep her handcuffed while I got my camera and he replied, "Don't worry, I don't have the keys with me." Catie's face was priceless. She informed me that handcuffs are "really heavy". I told her I don't plan on ever finding out. After the picture was taken, Mike "found" the keys.



Edgar has taken over the house! That little puppy just climbs right out of the cage while the others watch him. He then climbs up the stairs, up on the couch and grabs a toy to play with. He has just decided he is on the same ranking as Josie, Rocky and Frankie. Tonight, I decided to ride the mower and try to help with the yard. I carefully put away my knitting so no dogs would get it. I came in to get a Coke and found about 6 balls of yarn pulled out of the storage cube and a huge mess!



Joe quickly pointed out that HIS dogs were in bed with him, Frankie was locked up and it could only be.......EDGAR! He is NOT a permanent resident, no matter what HE thinks!

After the boys showered off the mud and Catie coated herself in mosquito ointment, we settled down for a load of take-out food. Mr. M's pizza, subs and China Buffet for Catie and Papa. Mike took off fast to go hang out and play some music, Andy happily went off to meet Sam, who was returning from her mission and the rest of us finally relaxed.

We worked hard today, but a light rain fell through the sunshine, leaving us with a beautiful rainbow to end the evening.

Scrapbooking

I finally found a friend who has an interest in scrapbooking. We spent a lazy summer afternoon, just exploring the art of scrapping. I almost forgot how much fun it is to share a hobby. Maryann and Cat love to scrap, but neither one is local, so I have to wait for those special times when we are together. As I think of it, every holiday weekend is a scrap weekend, usually with one of the two or sometimes both.

This year I missed the Scrapbook Convention in Northville because I didn't want to go alone. Let's face it....it is BORING to someone who isn't into it. Kind of like asking me to go to a football game. So the thought of a local scrap buddy is wonderful.


I have tried to convince Deb, Valli, Ruby and Carol to give it a try. No takers! I continually hear that they are too busy to begin to even organize, muchless scrapbook their photos.

I have boxes of old photos (previous to digital) and all are categorized and ready for the mood to hit to document the days of the past. I have online storage, photos on discs and a computer full, but I know where every photo I have ever taken can be found.

As we sat exploring some of my albums, I was thankful for every page I had ever put together. My heritage album brings a lump to my throat as I look at all my favorite photos of my parents and grandparents. It isn't finished, but I doubt it ever will be. It is a life project.

Each child has an album and they are filled with wonderful memories. Some of them are absolutely ordinary days, which are the best of all. I look back and wish I had taken more photos of Karen. I don't think you can ever have enough. My Christmas album begins in 1971 and it is so much fun to watch the years drift by as I turn the pages. Each year there are more children and yes, sadly, some faces disappear. It is documentation of my life.

Somehow, it just wouldn't be the same with all those photos piled in boxes.

CAT BITES and TETANUS SHOTS

Even though I have my own private ZOO at the House of Chin, I agreed to let Sabrina stay here while she waits for her "passport" to go to London. I didn't know she would bite me!

Today the neighbor knocked at the door and when I opened it, her dog ran in with her.

Josie barked. Rocky barked. Frankie barked.........SABRINA WENT NUTS!

She began hissing and attacking everything and everyone in sight! The dogs were running like crazy trying to get away from her, but she was going to kill anything she could get. It was insane! As Catie began scooping up dogs, I reached for Sabrina to comfort her. WRONG MOVE!

She attacked ME! She bit me so hard that I had two very deep puncture wounds in the flesh of my thumb and hand. It hurt like hell. I was really mad, but more dismayed that this cat who has been in my lap for weeks had actually attacked me. Then I got the bad news......to quote the Dr. "Cat bites are dangerous. You MUST come in immediately to get a shot and be put on antibiotics or within hours you could have a very dangerous infection."

DAMN IT! I hate shots!

I also had a day planned that was about to be further interrupted by driving to Charlotte for medical care. So I am now taking Keflex, my hand hurts like hell and Sabrina knows we are not friends at the moment.

Lazy Days of Summer

Summer is a synonym for "lazy days". I am convinced that we sometimes forget that and I intend to change this year. I have spent the past years working so hard all day and running around at night to keep up with my responsibilities, that I am sure I missed far too much. One thing I have learned since being off work is that my kids are fun!

Andy is hilarious! Today he was grounded and out of boredom began to do one thing after another thinking if he aggravated me, I would let him go out. NOT! I wonder how many kids can bark exactly like a Chihuahua?

Justin and I went out house hunting, since he and his Mom need to move. Then we had lunch together and we even invited Andy. (We feed him when he is grounded.) We got all the puppies out and let them loose with toys. I don't know the last time I spent an hour playing with puppies. Of course, they got into my knitting and unwound two balls of yarn.

Laura alerted me that Cat was on Yahoo Messenger and we got to chat online for a few minutes. She informed us that an apartment is going to cost over $6400 a month in London!!! They are still hunting and hoping to find something by the weekend, since Paul has to go to Germany on Monday. They need a home! Otherwise, London is great.

Catie had gone to the lake with the neighbors, so I took the luxury of an afternoon nap. aaaaaahhhh Then I sent Andy to the store for everyone's favorite ice cream.

Today I DID NOT clean the house, do the laundry or even meet a single responsibility. Instead, I just took a day off. Now tomorrow, I will pay for it, but who cares?

Puppies Rollin' Out the Door!

Yesterday I discovered Craig's List. Unbelievable! I had about a million puppies yippin' and it was time to get rid of the Porch Monsters. In desperation, I posted them to Craig's List.

Within an hour I was getting emails and phone calls. Wow! I wish I could say that they were gone, but I can say they are going! People wanted me to email pictures, so of course I ran for the camera. When I emailed them, I found I had to identify them, otherwise I got another email asking about "the brown one on the right". Try to figure THAT out when you have a million photos.

Soon I was getting emails asking about "Brutus", "Little Andy", "Mimi" and "Edgar" (or as the boys say when they imitate Catie "Eggger". A man called to say that his little girl was deaf and going off to a special boarding school. "Brutus" would be her reward for this tough journey. Why did she pick him? She loved his name.

Mimi continues to be a favorite and may join Little Andy soon, as the new owner can't pick between them. Edgar has 2 people coming to see him tonight. Of course, Andy is keeping "Wendy Wu" and Mike is still begging for Mimi. HELP! Laura may have one sold for us. God bless Laura, as usual.

On another note, Andy finally found a car, so we spent ALL day getting the minor repairs done on the "new" car. I got a bit tired of calling for prices and finally got smart, sending Andy. The Jeep rolled down the street, courtesy of CraigsList and Catie tells me the neighbors are interested in Cat and Paul's car. Hmmmm maybe I need to keep this up.......could I have a career in sales?

Three Years Is a LONG Time

OK...today is the day that Cat, Paul and Tate leave for London. Yesterday she warned me not to get sad. Sure, Cat...no problem! I was instructed to pretend it was just like the days when she went off to college, off to the Air Force or off on a vacation.

She forgot one minor detail. During all of those times, she was just hours away if I really felt that maternal need to hug my kid. This time we have an ocean to cross. Oh, and by the way.....our daily telephone contact is just a tad bit more expensive. I am already finguring out which things to cut form the budget in order to afford that addiction.

I lay here in the night last night thinking about just how long 3 years is. Hmmm, 3 years ago Andy was a 13 year old kid just getting out of Jr High, Mike was a Sophomore and Catie was a 10 year old fourth grader. Tate wasn't born yet and I felt a helluva lot younger. Three years is a long time!

How much will life change in 3 years? Andy will be graduated from high school and hopefully in his second year of college. Mike will have graduated, I hope! Catie will be a Jr in high school and driving. Oh, my......Joe will be 60 years old!

Tate will be a 6 year old first grader and maybe have a brother or sister? Yep, 3 years is a damned long time. I will swallow the lump in my throat all day today and carry on, hoping that I get the guts to board a plane for a very long flight and see London some day. Otherwise, 3 years will seem like eternity.

The Month of June

June began with Prom....Sooooooo much fun to watch the beautiful couples dressed to their best going off for that magic evening. We gathered at Island Park, parents and kids, to admire and take a million pictures. I was so sick with some kind of cold from hell that I could barely walk (but you KNOW I took pictures anyway).












Most of these boys are the same guys that I have watched sweat and grunt as they wrestled their way to the State Championship this year. They sure clean up well! As for the girls? Well, let's just say, I have never seen a prettier bunch of girls! They are a far cry from the taffeta gowns of the 1970's and all I could think of was they looked like HOLLYWOOD....then I found out that the theme of this year's prom was....HOLLYWOOD!

These past 2 weeks have been spent apartment hunting for Grandma. She arrived in Michigan and decided to stay, so off we went in search of the perfect home. Once we secured it, the wrestlers to the rescue....(oh, and Mike too!). Those guys had her moved in within an hour. Muscles come in handy.

Fathers Day was a nice relaxing Sunday and Cat bought Dad a membership to the Lansing Boat Club. What a perfect gift! He drove straight there and secured his dock. Now it is time to get the boat ready for the water and it makes me miss the days of the past.....Cat, Karen and Joey out scrubbing down the boat with Dad. Ok, that was a tear jerker of a memory!

We just spent our 37th Wedding Anniversary together this week and took 24 hours to hide away together. Joe surprised me over and over from the beautiful roses to the diamond necklace....I am going to keep that man around for at least another 37 years. Seriously, I am a lucky woman.