"STUFFIES" FOR GROWN - UPS

Have you seen the TV commercials for "Stuffies" ?  They play often on Fox News channel which says something to me but I'm not exactly sure what that message is.  "Stuffies" are large stuffed things, (animals), that have all sorts of pockets and pouches in which your child can stuff their pajamas, blanket, pillow, younger siblings, last nights dinner and the family dog or cat.
Kids are natural "STUFFERS" as any parent who has ever said, "Clean your room", knows. Kids do NOT put things away, they stuff them out of sight. Thus the evolution of "Stuffies". Instead of under the bed or in the pillow case kids now have an official and accepted place to put their stuff.

I WANT A STUFFIE !     I'm thinking I could be on to something here. Picture a LARGE flesh colored stuffie in the shape of a BUTT !  Picture where the opening is on this particular model and then picture stuffing all your S--- into said stuffie when you have guests coming on short notice or are just in a mood to remove the clutter.  Better yet, picture the stuffie that comes with little rag dolls that represent the various members of your family and when one of those family members pisses you off you have a large fist shaped stick that you can use to stuff the doll into the butt! Over and over again !
Or how about a stuffie in the shape of a toilet and you can just stuff anything you are angry with into that toilet stuffie with the handy plunger shaped stick. For a few dollars more this model could be created with an automatic "FLUSH" sound to make the experience even more satisfying.
Say you have some anger issues here that need addressing. You might want the deluxe incinerator stuffie that belches smoke and flames as you stuff all your egg shaped "anger pods" into it. Just write down on a piece of paper whatever it is that is making you nuts, place it inside the pod and ram it into that inferno until your anger subsides.

I think I feel better just envisioning this. The idea is not patented so I'm sure it will be on the market in the near future.

MY OCD THANKSGIVING

Let me start out by saying this Thanksgiving was one of the best ! Family was here, fun was had and there were lots of laughs and great food.  Grand pa was feeling fantastic enjoying the company and attention of Abby and Roman.
Grand ma had a WONDERFUL time even though my OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE DISORDER kicked up a notch. It seems I have always been Obsessive, as in keeping my room "organized". I'm not saying clean, I'm just saying "organized".  There is a HUGE difference.  It may be a mess but it is MY mess and I can find everything I need.  The compulsive side shows up in my need to do it all my self ! As husband has said for 45 years, I HAVE to be in charge and I HAVE to be right, and I AM bossy. I never gave a name to all this but OCD does seem to fit the picture.
SO . . .  bring in some super efficient and capable young adults in the form of oldest son Kyle and his wonderful wife Bridget, put them in MY KITCHEN and grand ma goes into shock. It took all my will power to just sit back and LET THEM DO !  Dinner was fabulous ! I DID NOTHING !  I sat and watched the parade for the first time in 41 years, I snuggled with Abby, crawled on the floor with Wynn and Grey, chatted with Kristen and Kent, laughed and played with Roman and Smith and just had the most fun ever !  All the while telling myself "LEAVE THE 'KIDS' (Kyle and Bridget) ALONE.  Just because they didn't do the mashed potatoes MY way, the potatoes were fabulous.  The turkey was yummy and there wasn't a TON of left overs that I would have ended up throwing out 3 months from now.  There was the PERFECT amount left over. My hands itched at wanting to be in the kitchen cooking but I FOUGHT IT AND WON !!!
I guess I really do have an obsessive/compulsive disorder after all because it really WAS an internal battle to LET GO !  Go figure someone else can do as good as. IF NOT BETTER than me !! This  may be the beginning of a wonderful discovery.

THANKS KYLE AND BRIDGET FOR ALL YOU DID !!!!!!

I LOVE MY CLEANING LADIES

Angels come in all sizes and shapes, even in the form of a cleaning lady. Thank you Isabelle and Ingy for making my life so much easier and for forcing me to pick up the clutter every two weeks before you arrive. If it wasn't for you my house would be piled high with plastic beer cups, (even though we never drink beer any more but they work great for water too.), odd lone socks strewn everywhere, news papers piled high, and STUFF !  The clutter has a life of its own and if it wasn't for the cleaning ladies the clutter would soon take over the house. I still have some of the Halloween decorations around with no interest in packing them up except that I will need the room for the Christmas decorations.
Today the cleaning ladies arrived while I was out so they not only got to clean my house but they got to keep watch over Ger while I was out. The ladies chased Ger from room to room, but did not realize that was happening. I called Ger twice while I was out and he was in a different room each time I called. He didn't want to be in the way of the ladies so he was trying to find a place where he was out of the way. How come he never does that for me? He never c ares if he is right in the middle of what I'm doing !  But in spite of this the ladies did a fantastic job of cleaning. They even clean the INSIDE of my microwave and toaster oven. I think they may have cleaned my oven but that would take a stick of dynamite and a jack hammer.
The ladies are good and I am thankful I can afford this luxury. I wonder if they put up Christmas lights?

THE POWER OF BATS

Once again I have to make a case for DIVINE INTERVENTION. You will never convince me that GOD does not have a hand in my life. Even if it comes through THE BAT MEN !

Yes, the bats are back and H is in a tizzy. Cancer and all the man is more upset over the fact that there are bats in our belfry, so to speak, than the fact that he can't walk ten steps without falling over.
Several visitors have mentioned that they can hear the bats when sitting on our lanai. Others can smell them, yuck. And still others see them hiding behind the rain gutters. I have failed at all three of these but trusting our friends and family I called THE BAT MEN. This is a company called DPS. They capture and dispose of wildlife that decides to take up residence in places that are not wild. Usually they deal in skunks, opossum, raccoons and fox but they also take care of bats. If you remember from my previous postings about the bat population residing on my house you might recall that bats are a protected species and can not be captured. They have to be evicted and allowed to find a new residence on their own. I purchased two bat houses and called DPS. Mike arrived all happy to see us again. He remembered us from his last visit about a year ago and was very glad to see Ger still alive and kicking. Mike informed us we had a huge colony of bats so he would return later in the week with his partner in crime.
This is where it gets interesting . . .
Mike and Tony arrived one morning to set up the bat evacuation but since Mike loves to talk we first sat down to chat for a while. Ger was still sleeping so the conversation started with Ger's health. Tony knew all about us, having been brought up to speed by Mike. Naturally the conversation came around to religion and thoughts and beliefs about God's intervention with death and dying. Tony told his life story of being a catholic as a child but finding a wonderful church in Florida that has become his and his wife's home. He is a "minister" in his church and Mike is one of the parishioners. These two men are so spiritual and filled with love and support for Ger and I that it can only be explained by knowing the Lord had something to do with bringing these guys into our lives at this time. Two hours later the guys got working on the bats.
Tony and Mike showed up this morning to check the evacuation site and took time to have a prayer circle with me. As Tony prayed for Ger and I , I couldn't help but thank God for all his support during this time. Just when I think I can't do this any more something like this happenes and I am renewed and refreshed.
And to top it all off we went to the oncologist today and she said the Cancer was receding a bit so the chemo is working again.
Thank God !  And thank the bats too !