A Real Stand-up Guy

Inspirational song: Welcome to the Jungle (Guns N' Roses)

Well. We had a good run. Now our peaceful existence is doomed. Completely doomed. 

On Monday, Dmitri finally mastered the forward crawl. He still hates being face down on the floor, but at least he can go the directions he wants now. Today (Friday), he made the next physical leap. He pulled himself to standing, holding on to his rocket car instead of adult human hands. He kind of inched around a little bit, and when his sister ran over to excitedly praise him for standing, he let go with one hand and faced her. Granted it was only a few seconds later that he started getting off balance and toppled both of them over. But he is progressing exactly as I predicted, skimming right through crawling to running, like his grandpa did at that age. 

For the first time, he crawled off of the living room carpet to the tile, and it felt like a huge sea change to me. There was a sort of leaving-home sensation about the whole thing. Suddenly I have a whole lot more floor to keep clear of hazards. One of the first things I did was to take a plant stand and stick it on the porch. It was one of the outside ones anyway. I removed a stack of pots and baskets that was on it, and put it down on the floor, where Dmitri couldn't harm either them or himself with them. I know it has only been two years since Valerie was doing this stuff, but it feels like I'm way out of practice getting the lower quarter of the house child-friendly again.

I'm ending the day watching a series of videos by a Polish YouTuber I really like, over a year's worth of renovating her 1930s flat. I'd like to pretend I have focus for a lot more writing, but really I just want to zone and watch her talk.

The Best Kind of Day

Inspirational song: Tell Me Something Good (Rufus and Chaka Khan)

This was supposed to be a do-nothing day. I tried to stick to that, but I couldn't quite make it. Yes, I stayed in pajamas until like 3 in the afternoon, but I wasn't napping and lolling about. It took me roughly two hours to take care of all of my urgent plant chores. Of all the living room plants, only three stayed in place to get water. The other few dozen of them were taken to the sink, inspected, trimmed if necessary, watered thoroughly, and drained before putting back in place. That takes time. It also means heavy lifting for several of them, and I was already tired from yesterday. But man, it felt good to get it all done at once. 

I discovered some of my little plant buddies are finally starting to notice that spring has arrived. I had begun to despair that either of my hoya carnosa krimson varieties were ever going to wake up, after months of them not budging. The krimson princess has three new growth points, and finally--finally--the krimson queen has a millimeter of new growth on its only stem. All of my philodendrons are truly awake now, including the newest Brazil that is already bushier than when it came home with me a week or so ago.

I spent time next door this afternoon, paying attention to the house more than the neighbors for once. We talked a little about what ought to be fixed before listing, and what isn't important. We are hoping to be on the market within 2 weeks. It feels like a big hill to climb, but I will do what it takes to make it work. We already have good comps, so we know our list price. From here, I just have to hope the offer they choose is from a cool person who wants to live here, rather than a corporate landlord kind of thing. Please, please, send owner occupiers our way.

I went out with my son-in-law and the kids to shop for a replacement microwave. Theirs stopped working, and they are so sick of relying on a backup countertop model. We found one that will work (in this case, more basic more better), but it's on a truck, headed this way, not in stock yet. While we waited for confirmation from my daughter that this one was good enough to pre-purchase, I had time to stroll through the plant section, and have one jump into my hands. Meet Patrick, the starfish sansevieria. Hidden from view is his tiny pup friend, sprouting in the back of his pot.

Beaned

Inspirational song: Montana (Frank Zappa)

Okay, look. I told you last week, I lost my tolerance for alcohol. I've had two rum and cokes, coincidentally my least favorite mixed drink because of college memories. I'm goofy now. It was game night so I diligently applied myself to cleaning house for folks to be here. That made everything sore, but particularly my hip joints and mid-back. I used a bit of the brown fire water to make me forget how much stuff hurts. It sort of worked, but it also made it a little difficult to focus on gameplay. It was card games tonight, one new, one old. Good thing the new one was first. I wouldn't have been able to learn if it was second.

I'm wiped out now, but man the place looks and smells good. And somehow, I managed to sneak in a freshly washed bed, all made up and unwrinkled. I cannot wait to fall into it. Tomorrow is my super rest day, and I will feel zero guilt over not getting anything new done. Bring it.

Smooth as a Baby's Butt

Inspirational song: See Me, Feel Me (The Who)

On the dream team of doctors I have now, one of the sweetest, most wholesome of the lot is my dermatologist. Visiting her is always positive and uplifting, even on the day she biopsied a basal cell carcinoma on my nose. She's just so darned nice. I saw her today, and left feeling good about the world, as always. She looked me over from my scalp to the soles of my feet. All clear. She was great about answering my questions and encouraging me to think of anything I could to ask. I go back right before New Years Eve, and I admit I'm looking forward to it. 

I had to find a way to fill the hour plus between the end of the Rotary meeting and my appointment show time. Right as we were preparing to end the meeting, I got a text with a picture of both kids in the dual seat shopping cart at Home Depot, and I told them to wait there while I raced over to give cuddles and wander through the store with them. Valerie saw me from a couple of aisles away and ran to greet me. When I got close enough to make eye contact with Dmitri, he looked startled and confused, not sure how I apparated out of thin air during his shopping trip with his parents. He seemed pleased, but a little nonplussed.

I'll end with a fragment of a story. In the group chat, we learned that Valerie was refusing to put her pants back on after a potty encounter. Our daughter gave in and just let her do her thing. Our son-in-law used a proper noun as a verb in the best possible way, saying what, we just take it on faith and let her Donald Duck around the house? Now I cannot stop giggling at the imagery. I'll bet she was proud of herself for getting to choose her own adventure.

Game Changed

Inspirational song: Jump (Van Halen)

Wait a minute. Where did six inches of snow come from? All of northern Colorado was surprised by an unannounced spring snow this morning. The closer you got to the Wyoming border, the deeper the snow was. Fort Collins got ten inches. The airport in Denver got less than two. It felt like spring snow, too. Wet and fluffy at the same time. Melted off roads and sidewalks by mid-afternoon. Heavy coats not needed.

I needed cereal, and I intended to go to Walmart where I know the honey nut Chex come in family size. Instead, by the time I picked up my daughter and the kids, I changed the hustle and we went to Target. On the way, we picked up coffee at Ziggi's, and my whole world was rocked out from under me. They have a gluten-free breakfast sandwich that is actually really tasty, and available all day. I don't think you realize how badly it SUCKS only being able to get fries from McDonald's as the one option for drive-thru window food when away from home and hangry. I have gone almost ten freaking years like this, unable to trust any drive-thru not to gluten me, and send me into a tailspin. I just wanted to be able to get some kind of sandwich that won't hurt me, and it wasn't until this very day that I found one. There are Ziggi's coffee shops all over northern Colorado (it started here in my hometown), so pretty much anywhere I go now has a quick grab-and-go sandwich for me. My life has changed.

Our shenanigans at Target were as fun as always, with Valerie running laps around the store, and Dmitri showing off how strong he is now, both sitting and standing. For a trip that was literally to buy a box of cereal, we sure spent a lot of time in that store, and halfway through we had to go get a second cart. Cereal. Yeah.

Oh, and if anyone is still on crawl watch, that boy did actual knee moving in a head-first direction today! I did not catch it on video, but I did notice as he was moving around the living room, going from sitting to prone and back again, he discovered that now he can get into stuff all by himself. He thinks emptying a diaper bag is pretty darned fun.

Swimming In It

Inspirational song: Just What I Needed (The Cars)

We all knew when kids came along that more germs would be swirling around our habitats. But, man, we really thought the increase would wait until one or both of them at least went to preschool. So far all of 2023 has been about who is sick this week, of about 8 regular offenders. It ranges from mild tummyaches all the way up to covid. It doesn't even factor in the big problems that come with age (like a certain person who has the shoulder of a much older man, and who will need to get a new one put in one of these days). Yesterday both kids were little glazed donut monsters, getting mad when we would sneak up on them with kleenex to steal their boogers. Today my crampy tummy was back, bad enough that I stayed home from a trip to the aquarium to nap and say bad words. By the time the kids' daddy showed up to retrieve them, he looked like he had a bunch of germs vying for supremacy in his system. I wonder who will win.

I stayed up late wondering what I would write. I finally got tired enough and informed the Mr that I would just steal some of his aquarium pictures and call it a night. It's a night.

 

Not the Same

Inspirational song: Great Gig in the Sky (Pink Floyd)

Back in the old days, when I watched a lot of HGTV and DIY Network, they made home expos look like Disney World. Huge displays of every kind of product imaginable, including a lot of things we never imagined were possible... or desirable. Those shows were fun to watch. They made me want to go to home shows. 

In person, in a small county, a home and garden expo just isn't as magical as on HGTV. It was more like walking into Willy Wonka's office than his chocolate room. I went to the local one wanting to see a whole lot of garden displays. Instead it was like twelve window installers and seven solar installers all calling out to get us to hire them. There were a few displays that weren't just contractors with duplicate products from the guys down the row. And for all that it was billed as a spring home and garden show, there was very little in the way of gardening. Crestfallen, we left after half an hour, and went for breakfast.

I saved a bunch of my breakfast leftovers to hand to a baby boy, so he could smash up some GF pancakes and scrambled eggs. He seemed to really enjoy it. Valerie got half of my leftovers too, but she ate more delicately, with a fork, sitting at the table. Both kids still have colds, possibly the same virus I had a couple weeks ago. At least I hope it was the same virus that I might already have antibodies to. Valerie is starting to understand when we say please cough into the crook of your elbow. Dmitri just lets the spittle fly right into our faces when he needs to cough. And we have wiped enough noses in the last two days to qualify for a major award, surely.

Today's photos look like each kid was lost in thought most of the time. I guess I just got lucky with my timing. Excuse me while I go delete a bunch of blurry action pics.

Blah

Inspirational song: Pride (In the name of love) (U2)

Apparently I didn't get enough rest yesterday. I've spent almost every non-childcare moment sleeping. When the kids left, I turned on the Houston-Miami basketball game and fell asleep to it. When that was done, I found a complete audio book of Pride and Prejudice on YouTube, and I managed to fall asleep to that too. It was probably a good thing I was unconscious most of the evening, as I have a doozy of a tummyache, and this was an effective way not to focus on it.

The lights on timers were already out when I woke up enough to write. I suppose I'll move back to the bedroom and see how hard it will be to go back to sleep.

Comfort and Joy

Inspirational song: More Than a Feeling (Boston)

I spend a lot of time with my glasses pushed up on top of my head. There is almost always a cat on my lap, in my way, so I end up holding my devices or reading material so close to my face that I can't focus on them with my glasses on. It makes my view of the rest of the world a bit blurry, but in a lovely astigmatic starburst sort of way. I've noticed that my most common view, that of my plant corner, is not diminished in any way by the lack of focus. I love it all, from the bright, soft white grow lights, to the jumble of leaves, to the accidental pale blue walls that so closely resemble my grandmother's living room in Ada. (Accidental because I intended to paint them gray, and was gifted a mis-tint paint that was supposedly battleship gray. Once I diluted it with white, it wasn't.)

I got to be someone's emotional support animal again today. They had an appointment they couldn't get out of, that brought up all sorts of bad feelings, both emotional and physical. I promised I would be available in any way I was needed. I was there, offering my arm as a sacrifice for squeezing during the hard part. Thank goodness it all went fast and much less distressing than anyone expected. I was glad for my friend who had an easier experience.

Tomorrow is back to work being grandma. I suppose I should stop trying to compose and turn in. I have to be well-rested now that the little man is so very close to being self-propelled. I have to pay closer attention, both as protector and videographer.

Balm

Inspirational song: Mother (Pink Floyd)

Nothing about today went as expected. I didn't get any of my usual Wednesday cleaning done. We didn't hold game night at the house. And I didn't put in a appearance at the Rotary social, even though I really intended to. One of my inner circle sustained an injury overnight (yes, that's vague on purpose), and I spent the day trying to figure out whether rushing over with dinner was being too smothering, or showing just the right amount of care. I was told it was okay to bring food, so I was off to the races.

Because of the nature of the injury, I guessed that crunchy or chewy food wouldn't be welcomed. I had a big tray of pork chops from Costco just begging to be cooked, so I made a crockpot version of sweet and sour pork. Slow cooking meant the meat was fall-apart tender, and the sauce was packed with flavor without being mouth-burningly spicy. I got the sauce and the pork started, and then ran out to King Soopers for everything I lacked. I made a double batch so we could have it for dinner too. You can't imagine how good the car smelled, driving this stuff around. 

I decided I also wanted to try again with angel food cake (again, Costco quantities, this time of eggs). My oven is still, well, my oven, and I took all the ingredients over to my daughter's to bake the cake (and play with kids). She also had a spare crockpot we could give away with the food. I brought mine over to finish slow cooking, and then split off three servings worth to take to the injured party. 

When the Mr and I arrived with the food, I was glad I chose the things I did. Our person had a huge bruise, a swollen face, and cuts inside the cheek where it hit teeth. Soft food was the right call. We stayed long enough to hear about what happened, but it was obvious they weren't feeling up to animated conversation. I wish I could take away the pain of the whole thing, but my mothering instinct had to be restrained to just feeding and limiting how much energy Mr S-P got to take up making them be social. It was already a rough week for everyone there, and this injury didn't make it any better. I'd like to go back and do more for them, but I'll wait until they've had a chance to get their bearings at least.

Showing Signs

Inspirational song: Let's Go (The Cars)

"You in danger, girl."

--Oda Mae Brown (Whoopi Goldberg), Ghost

As much as I loved the new setup yesterday, one thing that bugged me was how uneven the hanging plants were at eye level. The 12 inch S hooks I bought at Lowe's were too long, but that was the only size they had. To even out my new plant display, I had to go to the danger zone, where I knew I could buy other sizes. I had to go to Flower Bin.

I rolled up after Rotary, and from my parking spot, I immediately noticed they had begun putting out flowers in the outdoor displays. It's fully spring in most of the country, but here we have several snowstorms to anticipate before it's really planting season outside. Most of what I noticed on my way into the store were early spring flowers, like pansies and violas. I didn't walk through the outdoor section to see more. 

The greenhouse was full of hope. Geraniums are already huge and blooming. I have a special fondness for them, and I can't wait until I'm ready to bring some home. They had rows and rows of other bedding plants, still very much in their infancy. I tried to remember the name of the bright pink Supertunia I wanted so badly last year, that was completely sold out by the time I started looking. They had two called Royal Velvet and Royal Magenta that looked promising, but I know that neither of them were the one from last year. I need to dig through old blog posts or Garden Answer videos on YouTube.

I got my shorter S hooks and got the hell out of there before I went wild on annuals. I have a few financial things to square away before I know this year's flower budget. I know it can't be quite as crazy as last year's overindulgence. I'll need to be creative with single-specimen plantings and moving a few houseplants outside for the season to make it look as lush as last year.

I Like It

Inspirational song: That's the Way (KC and the Sunshine Band)

How many months have I been going on about wanting to hang my plants in the front window now? Long enough that I've had the curtain hangers and pole sitting around for over a month while I begged the Mr to help me put them up on the wall above the window. Over the weekend, he got half of them done, where I had made space by moving out a chair and Saoirse's bed from the spot where we needed to put a stepstool. The other half was dependent on me completely emptying the plant shelf corner, so we could reach the rest.

This morning I decided I would try again to do the difficult overhead stuff that he kept putting off. To make my task easier, I used a nail to bore out a pilot hole, and lo and behold, it made it possible for me to drill screws in straight. This is a surprise, because working with my arms raised above my shoulders and/or with my head tilted back puts undue stress on my spinal cord and makes me start to black out. I've had this trouble for 20 years. So I worked slowly and carefully today, taking lots of breaks down at floor level, and got everything installed. I just about broke down when I test fit the bar, and we had put the outer brackets almost an inch too far in either direction. I had to have my daughter hang out when she dropped off the kids, to give me another 20 minutes of work to complete the job before I had to be full time grandma.

Valerie enjoyed helping me rearrange the plants. She likes watching me water over the sink, when I show her how to soak plants thoroughly and let them drain before taking them back to their place. She remembers some plant names by herself, like the spider plants. Others she repeats as soon as I point them out and name. I cannot express how endearing it is to hear an almost 3 year old properly pronounce "watermelon peperomia." 

Full of Beans

Inspirational song: Mexican Radio (Wall of Voodoo)

Errands with babies are getting easier the more baby boy gains core strength. There's no issue now with keeping him upright in a shopping cart. The hard part now is the toddler tantrum Val throws when she is forced to ride in the cart also, for expediency. We had a long cranky spell as we rode in from the parking lot to Petco, but once we were wandering around looking at birds and fish, things calmed down. I was able to use words to convince her not to pick up breakables in Michael's, but Professor Grabbyhands didn't get the memo. I let grandpa keep them in line to buy his craft supplies, while I went as a free adult over to Lowe's for some S-hooks for plants. (A nice, small philodendron Brazil might have also followed me out of there.)

We tried taking them to a Mexican restaurant, but they were short-staffed this afternoon. All but one server had called out. We requested a take-out meal, hoping it would lessen our impact on their difficult situation. On the way home, Val fell asleep, again proving that everyone declaring she was done with naps was premature. Once at the house, I ate enough of my meal to get rid of the low blood sugar shakes, and then I shared rice and beans with a boy who appreciated them greatly. His daddy grew up in New Mexico, and lives for spicy Mexican food. Dmitri needs to love these flavors, and he's already there with refried beans. Granted, that's one of my best comfort foods, so he's inherited it from both sides of his family. 

Too bad we can't convince Val to eat with the same gusto. Eventually we will find something she likes better than chicken nuggets.