Hey, Mom! How are you?

Hey, Mom. How are you? Things are ok here. I’ve lost nearly 45 lbs since my procedure and embracing a healthy lifestyle. I exercise almost daily, and I definitely have more energy. Because of my energy boost, Cliff and I have been getting some projects done around the house. Last weekend’s big project was installing a new ceiling fan in our bedroom. The one we chose is beautiful, but it was a pain to get installed. I did a little to help, but it was Cliff’s persistence that did the job.

We also managed to get a couple of small projects accomplished as well. The crate we had for Dandi worked well, but it was in the way of a closet we need to access occasionally. So, we decided to firmly install a baby gate to make the hallway where she sleeps a big “crate” for her. We had tried installing a crappy gate in the drywall, but the big galoot ripped it down in no time. This time, we installed one of our preferred gates, and made sure it was firmly in studs. I don’t think it’s going anywhere.

We also completed one final deck project. Cliff wanted to put a border on top of the deck skirting we just had installed to make it look more polished. A small band of white PVC makes it look great.

But you probably want a good Ramsey or Dandi story. Well, I have one that involves both. When we were doing our deck project, Ramsey was outside playing. And whenever Ramsey is playing, Dandi isn’t far behind. Dandi likes to follow her human girl around. In fact, she follows her everywhere.

They are both a couple of messes. And Ramsey can’t stop herself from playing in the dirt when she’s outside.

I’ll be back soon to share the updates Jennifer has been making to Papaw’s house. Maybe I can get back on here to share tomorrow. Until then, I love you.

Hey, Mom! How are you? I know it’s been a couple weeks since I wrote to you. Truthfully, I had been dreading Valentine’s Day. Honestly, Cliff and I never really celebrated Valentine’s Day previously. That was his anniversary with his first wife, so no need for us to celebrate. But since we lost you last year on February 13th, there is absolutely no reason for me to look forward to the bogus holiday. All it is now is a chore for me to do something for the kids at school. But regardless of all of that, Jade, Ramsey, and I ventured to Cherryville. It was time to celebrate Christmas. Ramsey was really excited to see the family and visit “Austin’s house”.

You know what the little knucklehead liked best of all? Some stress balls she got from Jennifer and Winnie. She got lots of makeup this Christmas and a few other toys, but she seemed most excited about squeezing those stress balls. She also liked a baby doll that Richard brought to her that wasn’t even part of her Christmas. I don’t know how many times she dressed and undressed that doll over the weekend.

Austin and Chloe did a nice job with their thoughtful gift. I bet you would be able to name everyone in the picture.

Funny story about Ramsey. We were all at Papaw’s house playing games after Jennifer made us a steak dinner. Chloe couldn’t make it as she was feeling ill that night. Ramsey was playing by herself, and Leighann showed up to get Jade for their quality time. When she walked in the door, Ramsey excitedly said, “It’s Chloe!” It’s like she had been waiting for her to show up. Leighann was flattered, and we had to tell Ramsey who was visiting. But her excitement was so sweet.

Jennifer is really motivated to get Papaw’s house. When you last saw it, it was quite the wreck. Well, thanks for Jennifer’s persistence at getting stuff trashed, donated, or otherwise claimed, it’s really shaping up. In fact, our steak dinner was eaten at the dining table in the middle of the den that will eventually be Jennifer’s dining room. Oh, and she’s completely ripped up the carpet in the hallway. The hardwoods are beautiful, but also a bit creaky.

One more story, and I can let you go. Yesterday, I brought Ramsey home from school because there were people at the house working on projects that Cliff had to supervise. One of the projects was adding skirting to our deck, which we hired our yard guy to do. He brought his kids to my house, which was fine. When Ramsey got home and saw the kids (a boy and girl) outside, she made a beeline out there. They were all swinging on her swing set, and Ramsey seemed to really enjoy their company. When her therapist got to the house, Ramsey opted to go inside to play upstairs. Later that evening after therapy and dinner, Ramsey went to the back door asking for “brother and sister”. We knew she wanted to resume playtime with those kids, and she was sad to learn they had already left. It was so sweet.

Our next trip to Cherryville will be your birthday weekend. Hopefully, I’ll be back in touch with you before then. But when we go, it will be to demo the playhouse. I’ll try to get some photos to share. And since we’ll have all that wood, hopefully, we can have a big bonfire that evening. And when we return home, we’ll have two new family members. I hope Dandi will get along with Peach and Honey.

Love you lots. Talk more soon.

Hey, Mom! How are you? Happy Monday (said no one ever). This weekend we were snowed in. It’s been about 3 years since we got our last snow. Ramsey was excited to go outside to play in it. Unfortunately, I don’t have any pics of her in the snow because I couldn’t get outside in it before her fun was over. When she saw it snowing, she immediately started looking for clothes: boots (her rain boots worked), gloves (her horse gloves), a scarf (we found something), a coat (Nanie’s coat that she’s been wearing lately), and a hat (she wore Cliff’s bucket hat). I wish I had gotten a photo of her in her getup, but alas, I am a mere mortal.

So, funny story about the galoot. I let the dogs out quickly to use the bathroom the morning after the snow. Dandi seemed to like it, but Tokie and Piper wanted to find dry ground. Piper came back in quickly, and Dandi followed him. When Tokie was ready, I tried to encourage her to come in through the laundry room. When Dandi heard me calling Tokie, she ran outside to retrieve the little princess from the deck. Dandi ran to the deck and pulled Tokie off by her sweater. She then proceeded to drag Tokie all over the snowy yard by the back of her sweater, and Tokie was trying her best to get away. Meanwhile, I’m yelling at Dandi while laughing my butt off. There was no way I could have recorded it, although I really should have.

In other news, the big galoot is subtlety trying to kill me. She slashed my throat with her claw the other day. Schools are closed today, so I’m working from home to help with Ramsey. I hope no one notices my horror movie accessory if I have to get on a video call.

I guess that’s the update from here. Love you, miss you.

Hey, Mom! How are you? I didn’t wish you a Happy New Year, but 2022 is showing that it can remain just as ugly as 2021. I’m trying to stay positive though. I do have some funny stories to share with you.

First, my big galoot. I can’t believe we’ve had her for a year. I’ll always regret that she never got one snuggle from her Nana. She is such a sweet goofus, and I love her to pieces. She can definitely be destructive as is evidenced by one of our kitchen chairs that didn’t survive her chewing. We put the remaining chairs on the table to keep them away from her. Funny story is that Dandi loves watching TV, especially when she can see other dogs. I guess she has aspirations of being an actor when she grows up.

Next, the other mischievous scamp in our house. This one reminded me so much of me and Jennifer. Do you remember when we were really little, and we made mud pies on the porch of our playhouse? I remember trying to get away with hiding my hands from you and trying to wash the evidence away. Ramsey wasn’t that devious. She doesn’t care if I catch her playing in mud. But one day, she wanted to go outside to play. I specifically told her no playing in mud or water. Well, the picture does better justice to what happened next.

In other news, I’m down 33 lbs since getting my procedure. I can definitely see the results, and I found my lost energy this week. I’ve been making good use of it by getting on the elliptical machine and doing a bit of strength training when I get home from work. I think I’m motivating Cliff as well. He wants to get a recumbent bike since that will be easier for him to use because of the PD. If I can rearrange the guest room in a way for it to do triple duty (guest room, office, gym) I’m ok with getting a bike.

I guess that’s all for now. I’ll be in touch again soon. I love you.

Hey, Mom. How are you? I’m starting to feel the return to the land of the living. I know I told you that Ramsey got Covid. My getting it was an inevitability. I started getting symptoms on Christmas night. It was no shock that the test I took on December 27 was positive. Cliff’s was also positive. I had a fever, chills, body aches, headache, and dry cough for several days. But I’m feeling much better now. I’m thankful that I didn’t get severely sick, although I did monitor my O2 to make sure it never dropped below 90. I guess my vaccine earlier this year helped me not get too sick.

So, there isn’t much to this update. I’m grateful that Cliff let me have a few days to rest and get better. His symptoms are actually starting to get worse now, so since I feel better, he can now become the bedridden one if he needs. He did tell me that while I’ve been out of commission, Piper seemed worried about me. Apparently, he came to the bottom of the stairs a few times to see if I was all right. He’s happy I’m available for snuggles again.

I think Ramsey’s been worried too. One day, I asked her to go get Cliff for me. She went downstairs and said “Daddy, come upstairs please.” When he hesitated, she went to him and said “Mommy is sick.” I didn’t know if she would be able to get him, so I was proud when she came through for me. Otherwise, she’s been keeping me company through the sickness. I know she’s going stir-crazy. She wants to get out of the house, and she really wants to see her Nanie and PaPa. Maybe a few more days of quarantine will be enough until we can visit them again.

I’ll be back in touch soon when more is happening. I’m hoping my 2022 will be better than 2021. I love you.

Hey, Mom! How are you?

Merry Christmas. I wish I could say it’s a great Christmas, but it’s not. Of course, your absence is the worst part of this Christmas. But things just got so messed up this year. On Tuesday, Ramsey’s school called me to pick her up because someone in her class had been diagnosed with Covid. We got a test for her on Thursday, and it came back positive. My baby has the thing that killed you. So far, she seems ok: just a low fever and a couple of coughs. She definitely doesn’t feel well. She actually took a nap yesterday, which she never does. So, her diagnosis was the start of the end of my Christmas plans.

I was supposed to host Christmas this year. I had started getting the house in order to accommodate everyone. I had even assigned rooms: guest room for Jennifer, Ramsey’s room for Winnie, the 3rd floor lounge pullout for Jade and Charlotte, and the 3rd floor playroom for Austin, Chloe, and Link. Cliff and I had even gotten a fence company to come out to create a partition in the back yard so that the little dogs could have an area outside safe from the big dogs. So, I was sad to have to cancel everything last minute. We’ll still get together sometime, but not for Christmas.

We also couldn’t celebrate with Cliff’s family. We had planned to have Christmas Eve lunch with them and then open gifts. Instead, Sandra dropped off lunch and a couple of gifts for Ramsey. We’ll have to celebrate with them at a later date as well. Ramsey did get a collection of stuffed animals she wanted from her Nanie and PaPa, which she is gleefully playing with right now.

We did put a tree up this year, but we didn’t even decorate it. It’s a new tree with fiber optic lights, but I just couldn’t get myself together enough to even get out all the decorations. So the reindeer stayed sequestered in the attic, along with the bins of ornaments and stockings. Jennifer said she wasn’t in the Christmas spirit this year; I guess the same can be said for me. I did muster up the motivation to make Cookies for Santa, which Cliff and Ramsey happily agreed to be taste testers.

I did get you a present. My plan had been for us to get a family picture with this present. I know you would have liked it.

I know these were your favorite candies, and I really wanted a family photo of us all enjoying them in memory of you. Instead, I will keep them in the fridge until we have that moment.

Merry Christmas, Mom. I wish you could have celebrated with everyone. I love you.

Hey, Mom. How are you? Things are ok, I suppose. It’s that time of year for hustle and bustle, but I’m not really feeling it. I’ve got most of my shopping done, although Santa is befuddled by what to get Ramsey this year. We really want to do something special for her, but we just don’t know what. Or at least, we don’t know what with the time we have remaining until Christmas.

We of course missed you yesterday for her birthday. I’ll tell you a birthday story, then share the video. We all went to Costco after horses on Saturday. We needed to cash our rewards certificate and pick up some paper products. While we were in the store, Ramsey wanted to go down the toy aisle. I encouraged it because anytime she can give us ideas is great. She did not disappoint. She found this massive dollhouse and plopped right down in front of it to play.

She was determined we were leaving with it. She did not get her way, and the dramatics ensued. We left Costco with a very disappointed little girl, who was also hangry. After feeding the beast, she seemed better. Sandra wanted to get the dollhouse for her, so I went back to Costco later that evening to get it. Cliff and I were up until 2 AM putting that thing together. But her reaction was worth it.

She had a pretty good birthday. In addition to the dollhouse, she got a set of toys she requested from us; a skateboard, dart board, punching bag and horse stable from Nanie and PaPa; a space tablet from Jennifer and Richard; and some new dolls for her house from Jade. She got to have her favorite foods as well as some chocolate cake. And it wouldn’t be complete without wearing her birthday hat.

In other news, I’m still on a liquid diet. I’m starting to feel a bit hangry myself. I can’t believe I’m looking forward to eating puréed food, but I’ve already planned my first day of meals. I had a rough time right after surgery, but I’m feeling a lot better today. I guess I’ve healed well, and now I’m just cruising until I can start eating again on Friday. I did lose almost 20 lbs during the first week, so something is working.

Also, look at my new cozy nap space. Works well for my lunch break at work. I’m not eating anyway, so I might as well rest.

Well, it’s almost time for me to take advantage of my cozy space. I love you, Mom. And even though you’re not physically with us this year, I still got something for you.

Hey, Mom! How are you? I’m living in what feels like a perpetual fog. This happened on Thursday.

I opted to get an ESG surgery to help me with weight loss. It’s something I’ve considered for a while, and I finally did it. I didn’t want to do gastric bypass because the rearranging of internal organs scares the crap out of me. This procedure felt very safe, so that’s what I did. But since I can’t have solid food again for two weeks, I feel sluggish, like my brain can’t really clear. I’ve also never craved refried beans so much in my life. I think it will be the first thing I eat on the purée part of my diet…maybe with a soft boiled well-mashed egg.

Don’t you just love it when nurses have at your veins and leave a rainbow hue on your skin?

So, I’m back at work today. I would say that I’m operating at about 70%. I’m able to get things done, and even though I feel dulled, I know I’m still sharp enough to do my job. I had thought about leaving early, but it looks like I’m going to make it through.

Question: does it make me a creeper that I like looking at my family whenever they arrive home? I don’t do it every time, but I love seeing my little girl’s face on the Ring doorbell.

Since I spent the weekend recuperating, Cliff said Dandi was worried about me. This morning, she was ecstatic to see me return to the usual routine. She kept trying to jump up and hug me while I finished getting ready. I just love that dog. I’ll get some more pictures of the derp soon.

Well, I know this wasn’t a very full post, but I wanted to let you know what’s happening. Over the next few weeks, I’ve got to get the house in order as I’m hosting Christmas this year. Jennifer and I are already planning, and Jade said she would come help me get things ready one weekend. So much to do, so little time. It won’t be the same, but I guess it never will be again.

I love you, Mom. I’m looking forward to showing you progress photos.

Hey, Mom! How are you? Thanksgiving has come and gone. I didn’t get any pictures of our meal. Jade came over, and I prepared turkey tenderloin, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, deviled eggs and yeast rolls. I also plopped some cranberry sauce from a can on a plate and heated a frozen sweet potato pie for dessert. Ramsey ate pizza, but I did put a couple of tiny bites on her plate. She did enjoy some rolls, but I was also proud of her for tasting the cranberry sauce. She shivered a little when she swallowed it, but at least she tried it. Even though I don’t have a picture of the meal, maybe these pictures of my cleared table and island will make you proud that I actually accomplished a little bit of declutter.

Funny Thanksgiving story. We put the leftovers on the island. A while later, Jade shooed Dandi away from the platters, but she had already helped herself to the leftover turkey and stuffing. There wasn’t a tremendous amount left, although she did get a healthy helping. A while later the tryptophan kicked in, and she was passed out on the couch.

So, I know last time I mentioned that I was at Papaw’s house for Jennifer’s first session of “come and get it”. I won’t get into the details of what happened. You can probably guess as you know the family. But I will share the moment that really made me misty-eyed. Debbie came, and when she walked in the bedroom to see Ramsey, Ramsey looked up from her iPad to say “Hey, Nana.” She called Debbie “Nana” at your memorial as well. You both have similar hair and build. She knew it wasn’t you, but for a split second, she got her Nana back.

So, I have one little Ramsey video to share with you. She was playing groceries one day, and I thought it was so cute the way she was using the cash register as a scanner.

You know, last year I invited you to come up for Thanksgiving. I really wish you would have accepted. I know I have memories of the last time you came up when we got to see Disney on Ice with Ramsey, when we put together puzzles with laser sound effects, when we watched The Haunting of Hill House because you wanted to know what we thought of it. These are nice memories, but a few years old now. I wish we could have made newer memories last Thanksgiving. I know you said you didn’t want to because you wanted to be alive for Christmas. But you would have been much safer with us than you were with the worthless losers you worked with who didn’t give a shit about your well-being.

Sorry, I’m obviously still harboring anger. I know how you got it. And I can’t help but feel mad at the asshole who thought it was all a hoax and just passed it along with no thought of how they shattered other humans with their terrible decisions. But then again someone like that doesn’t care about other humans.

I’ll let you go before I keep spitting more vitriol. I love you.

Hey, Mom! How are you? Sorry I haven’t reached out since Austin’s wedding. My work has kept me so busy, and then I’m so exhausted at night that I just go to sleep. But I still really like my job. I feel fulfilled with all I’m doing. In fact, on Thursday we had a Thanksgiving potluck and company town hall that I organized and executed. I got a lot of nice compliments on it. It would surprise everyone to know that I like event planning since I never do any event planning for family get togethers. But when you do something at your job, the last thing you want to do is that same thing in your free time. Cliff is probably happy that I event plan for my job so that we don’t have to do any outings in our free time.

So today I am writing to you from Papaw’s house. Ramsey and I came down last night because today is one of the days Jennifer has designated as “come and get your stuff”. I’ll give you an update on how all that goes later.

As usual, I have to share some Ramsey news and pictures. She lost another tooth recently. This is the first time she’s been so excited about the tooth fairy. After her therapy session the day she lost her tooth, she made me go to her room with her so she could put her tooth under the pillow. Then she started yawning excessively like she was about to go to sleep. The next morning, I heard her come to my room. But she didn’t immediately get in the bed to snuggle with me. I heard her a moment later run back into my room, and after switching on the overhead light, she loudly and excitedly announced “I got money!”

Another bit of news for Ramsey, she got her first Covid shot last weekend. She was such a brave little girl. I told her that day that she was going to go ride horses, get her shot, and then we would see a movie. She seemed excited about getting her shot, until we asked her to sit in the chair. At that point she got really nervous. When she finally sat in the chair, the nurse gave her the shot so quickly that she didn’t even notice. Once she got her obligatory Band-Aid, she got up and started dancing around saying “I got a shot!” Of course, we gave her lots of high-fives and praise since she was such a good and brave girl.

I’ll end this post with a couple pictures of my derpy pup. I don’t know why this dog likes to keep her left ear up, but it’s funny to watch it twist and turn like a radar as she’s listening to all the sounds.

Well, Mom, I guess I’ll let you go. It’s hard to come to my first home since you’ve been gone. I love you…always.