I kissed this wily turd...

I kissed this wily turd since he's the one hanging out with me. 😂 Happy New Year, Harley.

Shaun carried the Booger upstairs...

Shaun carried the Booger upstairs when the kids wanted their presents. It was his first time up there. He had to check everything, even the tree! Cub came up, of course. He always does. I just didn't feel good about leaving Bear out. He's part of the family, too. ❤️

I feel like such a jerk.

I feel like such a jerk. March 15th was Shadow's 24th birthday and I didn't say anything to the internet because he's not even on here. I thought "What's the point if he won't even see my post?" But I keep thinking about it and clearly it's just not sitting well with me that I didn't mention the anniversary of such a life-changing and special day.

I think he had a good day despite my lack of public acknowledgement. He wanted Five Guys as his birthday dinner so we had that. He'd asked for some audio recording equipment and he got it. He also asked me to make him some apple/carrot/spinach juice, but he forgot about it and was pleasantly surprised when I made it for him.

It's crazy how time flies. It's hard to believe that he's 24 already. I guess no matter how old he gets I need to make sure I document the day because even if he won't see it, it's important to me.

Today is Kira's birthday. She's a whole 24 years old.

Today is Kira's birthday. She's a whole 24 years old.

She wanted a Strawberry Shortcake for her birthday, but I think there was some confusion on whether she was celebrating today or this weekend.

Long story short:  She has all of this cake now. 😂

Unbeknownst to us, she made the 2 smaller cakes for herself last night so she would have a cake today. Me and Shaun went shopping this morning and found a slice of Strawberry Shortcake, but not a whole cake. We also found the other strawberry cake which looks really good, so we snagged it, too. And cakes pops, just because. 😂

So... Looks like we'll be eating cake for the rest of the week. 😂

She wanted dinner at Cracker Barrel so we did that and it was good. She also wants to go thrift shopping this weekend, so that's our plan. I hope she's had a good day! ❤️

Hey, friends, the party is booked!

Hey, friends, the party is booked!  It's going to be on Saturday,  November 25th, 2023 at Sunshine Skate Center in Oxford from 7:30 to 10:30 pm.

They only had party packages on the weekend.  I didn't want to book it on Black Friday and I'm traveling to Alabama the weekend before and back home the weekend after, so this is the best I could do as far as timing.  I'm used to the holiday interfering with my birthday plans so I understand if that is still the case, but I hope I get to see some friendly faces.

If you expressed interest in coming before I'm going to tag you in the comment below to make sure you see this.  I have to bring a guest list with me to the rink so I'll need to know at some point if you were serious about coming.  (And it's ok to come without skating if you just want to say hi - just please let me know if you're coming and if you're skating or not).

I'm so excited to see everyone!  ❤❤❤

Me and Shaun...

Me and Shaun had planned to go see the Dresden Dolls at Meow Wolf Santa Fe tonight, but we're not going. I'm almost as excited about canceling our plans as I was about making them. 😂😂😂

I was up at 4 this morning because I hadn't seen Adrian since I got off work yesterday evening.  Normally, she comes to bother me while I brush my teeth before bed and she's very cuddly when we sleep, so that was pretty different. Logically I know that cats hide and do weird shit sometimes, but I woke up in the middle of the night searching for her because I was sure she was dead somehow.  My brain was GOING OFF. I was like "A snake ate her. She got outside when I wasn't looking and is coyote food. Something fell and squashed her." 

So at 4 this morning I turned the lights on and started searching the room. Finally, I started climbing the ladder to my loft bed. It was then that she came to the edge of the loft bed with eyes squinting and a cringing face like "Why the fuck is the light on?  What's happening?" She looked SO disgruntled. 😂😂😂

Anyway, I didn't get much sleep after that and I've been tired all day. As for the concert, doors aren't until 10 pm and I'm like "That's crazy." I'm crashing out by 10 on a good day. 😂 Thankfully, the tickets weren't expensive and Shaun is happy to support the artists whether we go or not. I've seen Amanda Palmer live a few times, but never the Dresden Dolls together. And yes, I would like to, but also, that feels like effort and sensory overload and a sold-out show in a small venue with a virus still around. So I'm content to stay in tonight and be an old fogey with my best friend and my ani-pals. 😊❤️ I have a dentist appointment in the morning, anyway. 😂

Yesterday I woke up and hit the ground running.

Yesterday I woke up and hit the ground running.  There was a bunch of stuff I wanted to accomplish and I did pretty much all of it.  Today has been the opposite.  I slept until 10-something, did Shaun's nails, and just finished stuffing myself on Pizza Hut - which really hit the spot.  I can't believe it's already so late in the day, though.

Shaun told me that this morning he looked out of the window and saw Harley walking along our privacy wall.  Thankfully, Harley saw Shaun come outside and ran back in, then met him inside like "I was here all along."  That is the second or third time we've found Harley outside (where none of the cats are supposed to be).  He's getting out of the dog door.  We've been leaving it unlocked since Cubba's key batteries died, but we have more batteries coming today so this shouldn't be an issue for much longer.  But this totally makes sense for Harley; after all, he was found in the motor of a car from Douglasville in the Oxford PetSmart parking lot.  He clearly has an adventurous streak.

Twice in the last few days, Shaun has pointed out lint on Cubba's belly button.  I legit didn't know that could be a thing for dogs, but I guess it makes sense since the hair swirls all towards one place.  Now I'm going to be looking at his belly button all the time.  😂

I sent Shaun to his game room (or rather, just away from me) because I need some quiet.  I feel sensory-overloaded at the moment and need to be by myself.  I thought I might catch up with some family and friends over the phone today, but I don't think that is going to happen.  I would like to talk more during the week... except that I don't want to.  I've found that I spend a lot of time in meetings for my job and it's oddly social despite being remote work, so I feel like I get a lot of socializing in during work and kind of the last thing I want to do is spend more time talking or messaging back and forth when I'm off.  I'm sorry if anyone feels neglected.  I'm taking care of myself right now.

I don't know what else this days holds for me, but it's gorgeous out.  Maybe I'll at least pot some plants and take a walk.  I don't know.  Gotta let my brain and ears settle first.  😂

I hope you're all having a lovely day.  I see a lot of happy pictures.  I'm glad y'all are enjoying time with your families, but to be honest I'm so relieved that I'm past having to put effort into holidays.  I've openly been an atheist for a long time, and this is the year I stop going through the motions of holidays I don't celebrate or care about for the sake of other people.  The kids are 23 and I'm 40.  I'm just done, and I'd rather be done than be a Grinch.  So Happy Easter or whatever else you might be celebrating.  I will always wish my friends and family the best, no matter our differences.  Love to you all.  ❤

The two kinds of holiday people summed up:

😂😂😂 The two kinds of holiday people summed up:

Got to do the light tour this evening...

Got to do the light tour this evening. It was gorgeous out, but gusty.

If you watch the video, be warned that it's loud.

I made it back to Cincinnati last night.

I made it back to Cincinnati last night. Traveling feels so strenuous; it wipes me out. I let everyone know that I made it back safely and then went almost directly to sleep.

It was great being home. We had a nice holiday together and I had a great birthday with Shaun and Shadow and Kira and Kalien and Mystir at the skating rink. Then Shaun helped me start preparing my home office setup. We got a huge monitor and some lighting and I ordered a desk chair. We moved a few things around. There is not much left to do but work once I get back for good!

Now I'm onto my second half of this journey:  Getting put on a project. Unfortunately, they are slow to come this time of year, as many businesses are taking time off and have run out of space in their budgets. But I'm not worried. I still have plenty of stuff to learn, so I won't be wasting time.

I'll be with family again at the end of the year, then I'll be back in Cincy until no later than mid-February. Not only will that be the required training time, but our lease here will be up and it'll be time to go remote! I'm so ready! I hear the winters here are harsh, and cold and snow are not my jam.

Anyway, I'm back away from the family. But I'll be home again soon, and then home again for good. We've got this. #LFG

So let me tell you about this.

So let me tell you about this.

Kira is the baker in the family and she asked me what kind of cake I wanted for my birthday.

Ever since I was a kid I have had Red Velvet cakes for my birthday. But Kira makes a DELICIOUS Tres Leches.   So I asked her for a Red Velvet Tres Leches and she DID NOT disappoint! That cake was SO YUMMY. 🤌🏻 I ate as much as I could before I had to head back to Cincy. I hope she'll make it again for me next year. 😋

Tomorrow I'll be 40 years old...

Tomorrow I'll be 40 years old and since my birthday sometimes falls on Thanksgiving (like tomorrow), we celebrated tonight.

I wanted a skate party and that is what I got - complete with pizza, ice cream, and friends. It was such a fun time and I'm grateful for that. 😁 Super thank you to Shaun who always spoils me. ❤️

Here are a few pictures, and a video of my light-up wheels.

My friends Kalien and Mystir. Thank you both for hanging out with me! ❤️

So damn excited. 😂😂😂

New speed skates that came with the birthday package. Can't wait to try these out! 😁

My beautiful husbang.

My beautiful indoor skates. This was my first time really skating in them besides around the dining room.

Part of Stranger Things was filmed here.

Meia came to work...

Meia came to work this past week to teach us some stuff. I was SO, SO happy to see her. It had been too long! We hung out every day after work and it was amazing.

One night while we were out I mentioned that I wanted to take a helicopter tour and she said she was up for going with me... so I booked it immediately! It was a beautiful day - perfect weather, nearing sunset - it was so much fun!

I've wanted to do this for years. I found out that they also do light tours nearer to the holidays. I'm already booked for that. If I gotta be out here away from my family I might as well have whatever fun I can! Don't mind me; I'm just tryna live my best life!

Pardon my face. The excitement was TOO REAL. 😂😂😂

I feel like rambling, so... here I go.

I feel like rambling, so... here I go.

I got some skating in today.  The weather here is really cold in the morning, but sometimes it's the 60s - 70s° F in the afternoon.  Today was gorgeous and I should have spent more time outside, but I did what I felt like doing.  I almost fell on my face due to running over a rock that I didn't see, but I caught myself.  One side of my back hurts a bit when I skate lately.  I don't know if I'm doing my posture wrong or what, but I'm not a huge fan of that.

There is apparently a very nice women's care center here in Cincy and I have an appointment there on Friday.  They do a range of things excluding ob, which is fine because that is not what I need.  I probably need my hormones checked and this IUD checked.  I'm so grateful for the care I'm able to get now that I'm out of Alabama.  I know there is a lot to love about Alabama.  It's beautiful.  But I will never live there again.  I love myself too much to put me through that.

I'm gonna talk about my ears now.  I used to wear earrings all the time, but when I worked at my last job I stopped.  I spent so much time on the phone there that my earrings were uncomfortable and I eventually just said "Screw it" and took them out.  This probably happened in about 2010.  (Btw, I'm not blaming anyone and I wasn't even upset about removing my earrings - it was a choice I made and it was fine.)  My lower lobe piercings were a size 2 gauge at that point, I believe.

I could've decided to start wearing earrings again anytime in the last 5 years because I haven't spent much time with a phone held to my ear, but I never did.  It's no secret that I was in a rut about my appearance by the time I graduated college... and during school there was a lot more to think about than my ears, as was also the case after graduation and with us moving.  And to be honest I was kind of over the "body jewelry / all that's available are barbells / horseshoes / captive-bead-rings / variations on that" type of look.

Anyway, at work a lot of the people have stretched lobes and it looks so good and I have started to miss my holes.  The guys at work usually wear very nice-looking plugs and I finally decided to see if anything had changed since I last shopped for earrings and OH MY.  YES.  YES IT HAS.

Ok, so...there is some really beautiful stuff out there.  Nice wood and stone plugs and tunnels (instead of just metal or acrylic plugs with like, peace signs or someone flipping the bird or pot leaves on them).  Not only that, but there are dangly plugs and tunnels with dangles that thread through!  I'm so fucking excited!!!  I love dangly and pretty earrings!  Obviously, now that I'm making the big bucks I ordered (quite) a few pairs of earrings.  In a size 2 gauge.  That - as you might have guessed - will not even think about fitting in my ear holes. 😂😂😂

That means I had to order some smaller stuff, too, to get back to my old size.  I misjudged and thought I could get a 10 gauge in there... nope.  I've shrank all the way back to a 14 gauge.  I've gotta start over basically from the beginning.  But that's ok.  It's a journey!

I liked my ears at a 2 gauge.  Not too big, but big enough to see through.  I'll be able to wear my old jewelry or my new stuff.  And I've also been thinking of ways to modify my EVEN OLDER regular earrings so that I can wear them, as well.  I love the threading-through tunnels idea.  I think it looks so cute!  I know that's not exactly a new idea, but I definitely like the way it's being done with petite little chains better than what we were doing before.

Well, I have a little bit of homework to do for my job.  Yesterday was the office Halloween party and this precious pupper was there (his name is Chewy and we wore him out with ALL OF THE ATTENTION) and I think most of us got VERY LITTLE done.  Kelsey dressed up as Wednesday Addams.  I went as Three-Hole-Punch Blu.  If you don't get my costume, then you clearly are not a fan of The Office.  The few people who got it appreciated it, so that was nice.  But yeah, we have a group presentation coming up on Tuesday with a test run on Monday, so I'd like to go ahead and get my part finished.

I hope you all are doing well!  I am.  I really am.  I miss home, but I started to realize yesterday how much I'm going to miss my office mates when it's time to head back.  But there are bigger problems to have, so I'll take it.  Talk to you all soon!  ❤️

I am wishing my favorite person ever...

I am wishing my favorite person ever the happiest birthday today. My beautiful Shaun is now 40!

I am halfway kicking myself for not surprising him with my time off, but I wanted his help with booking my travel. 😂 I don't even have a gift for him today. 😢 I'm bummed about that, but the last 2 weeks have been crazy and I'm just happy that I was able to be here with him because I really thought I wouldn't.

We've had a pretty chill day. We ate at Shaun's favorite restaurant and Kira is making him a cake. I think Shadow might have a surprise up his sleeve, but we'll see. Maybe we'll go up to the mountain this week. I know he would love that.

Anyway, I'm off to chill with the fam. I hope you all are doing well! ❤️

We went to a botanical park this morning...

We went to a botanical park this morning and had a walk with Cub. Not trying to overload everyone with photos today, but here are a few:

Shaun is always making faces for photos. 😂 But why is my husbang so cute, though?! He has the best face. 😍😍😍

This was taken shortly before we left... at which time I called him a Nasty Trickster for having me reach into his pocket for the car keys only to find something disgusting there instead.

(It was CHANGE! 🤮🤮🤮 Get your mind out of the gutter!)

Interesting layers in this rock.

I tried to be as fair with this photo as I could; as in, not some weird forced-perspective trick. This bloom was STUPID TALL.

Here's a fun game: Spot the bun.

Also, peep those mountains in the back. You might have seen them in Stranger Things. Those are our beloved Sandia Mountains.

OMG. Shaun is the best Papa.

OMG. Shaun is the best Papa. I love him more than words can say.

He's comforting this scared, trembling puppy. Cub wants no one but Shaun.

Wow.

Wow. Our house is situated in such a way that we can see fireworks from all over the city. That is wild.

I haven't left home on an Independence Day evening in many years so I'm used to missing out on the shows. I'm not a big fan of fireworks because of how they affect animals and people with PTSD, but they are pretty. It's neat that now I don't even have to leave to see a bunch of them if I want to.

Cubba's not having a great time with the fireworks.

Cubba's not having a great time with the fireworks. Doesn't help that Balthazar is snuggling him and Bastian keeps giving him a dirty look for being too close. 😂

Cubba handles the fireworks...

Cubba handles the fireworks better than my pack ever did, but I still run the group, still spend the holiday glued to FB for timely post approval, and my words from before are still true.  Well, except that we've more than doubled in members since 2016.

PLEASE take care of the innocents in your charge, today, tomorrow, and always.  ❤

Me and the kid are in the floor with a shaking, cowering pile of dogs.  I'm on Facebook, rapidly approving lost and found posts in Happy Tails Lost & Found Pets of Calhoun County.  This is how we spend Fourth of July. 

If you have pets and haven't yet secured them and assured their safety, please do it now if they haven't run away in terror.  If you can't find them, post them ASAP.  We have just shy of 5000 members in the local area, so maybe your fur-child can be found before it's run over by a car.  Don't mean to be a damper on everyone's party, but seriously - take care of the innocents in your charge, this evening and always.  Thank you.