Bridezilla??

JESSI IS ENGAGED!!! She just called a little while ago to tell me. After I did all of the squealing, I told her I was really glad I no longer had to lie to her. Remember the post when I said she and I had gone to get pedicures while her daddy and Lance cut some trees and we were hoping Lance would have talked to John but he didn't? All a lie. He did talk to John, and I knew he was going to talk to him a couple of days earlier. But I didn't want to run the risk of Jessi reading that on my blog or someone else reading it and congratulating her. So I lied. I am pretty good at doing that, but it is NEVER with the intention of causing hardship or harm. I lie when there is something that needs to be kept secret for a very GOOD reason. (Don't ask me to lie for you if someone is going to get hurt in the process. That ain't happenin'.)

So, will Jessi be a Bridezilla? Nope. Not at all. We'll save that title for some other bride who thinks the entire world revolves around her and thinks everyone should bow down to her wishes and demands. Not that Jessi shouldn't have the world revolving around her and all of her friends and family bowing down to her during this special time, but that just isn't Jessi. (Thank God!)

John and I are so, so very happy for our girls. Both of them have found wonderful men who love them dearly and would do anything and everything in the world for them. Jess has had her share of heartbreak, but that is all in the past, and I believe that from here on, her life will be filled with nothing but joy and happiness.

Lance is a wonderful young man, and I don't think John or I could have asked God to send anyone any better into her life. The only thing that worries me somewhat is that Jess told me that she thinks Lance is just like her daddy. LOL No, seriously, that does not worry me in the least. It brings me great comfort because I know what a wonderful, kind, caring, loving man her daddy is, so I know she will be loved, protected, and provided for.

Congratulations, Jessi and Lance. Daddy and I are so happy for you. We love you and can't wait for you to begin your lives as one.

Who is your daddy?

When asked that question, most of us wouldn't think a thing in the world about it. Throughout our lives we often meet new people and in the process of learning about one another, that question can often come up, especially if there is already some link or connection, but the questioner is trying to put the connection together a little better. However, that question...who is your daddy?...takes on a whole different light when it is your own mother who asks you.

This was our weekend to stay with Billie. As soon as we got there Friday night, I did my nightly ritual and crawled in bed. (The first week back to school after a break always kicks my butt, so it is nothing unusual for me to be in bed asleep by 9 at the latest.) Connie came over after she got off work, and she, John, Billie, and Zac talked for a while. Connie and I had decided a couple of weeks ago that we were going to go shopping yesterday. As we were out and about, having fun and spending more money than we...well, at least I...should have, we talked about how things are going with Billie, and this is where the question comes in.

Connie told me that on Friday night, Billie looked at her and asked, "Who is your daddy?" It's probably a good thing I was in bed because I probably would have either 1) looked at her like she had lost it (and sadly, that is very near the case), 2) burst out laughing (which would have hurt her feelings), or 3) made some comment about how I hoped it was Sean Connery because then I'd finally get to meet him. (Of the three, the third one would have been the best option, but in my state of exhaustion, I cannot promise that would have been the one I'd have gone with. Honestly, I probably would have combined the three.)

Let's keep in mind that all five of Billie's children were fathered by the same man. Anyone who has a loved one with dementia/Alzheimer's knows that questions such as that aren't really all that uncommon in the later stages, but we (or at least John and I) haven't experienced that with Billie just yet. Sure, she's called John Tim or Tim Danny (heck, I do this with my students on a daily basis), but this is the first time I've been made aware of this total loss of memory for something like who the father of her children are. Sure, we've learned that it is next to impossible to carry on a conversation with her because the short-term memory loss means she can't follow along, but she hasn't had problems with the long-term memory. And since Connie is 46, I think who her father was definitely fits into the long-term memory category.

When Connie took her for her last visit to the GP, they began the paper work for having her put into the dementia unit at Summerford. That could happen in as few as two months. And it won't be pretty or easy. John and I were talking on the way home, and we both think that once she gets there and has people to talk to and visit with, she'll adapt. (We hope so, anyway.) But getting her there won't be without heavy hearts. The really crappy part is that Billie will honestly and truly have more awareness than many of the other residents, but she doesn't have the ability to take care of herself on a day-to-day basis.

Alzheimer's is a disease I would NOT wish on my worst enemy. It is horrible, and there isn't a damn thing that anyone can do, except support Alzheimer's research. Being a caregiver, even a part time caregiver, takes so much patience, dedication, and strength. I have so much respect for those people who are 24-hour caregivers. I don't know that I have the strength to do it, and I know I don't have the patience.

I can't believe this week is over

Why is it that a week at work draaaaagggggsssss on forever, but a week off seems to FLY by? It seems like it was just yesterday that I was walking out of BRHS for a week off, and now I'll be walking back IN in less than 36 hours.

I didn't paint the bedroom like I'd planned, but that's okay. If I'd gotten started last Saturday, I probably would have been able to get it done, but I just wanted to relax then, and then I just wouldn't have had enough time since we were coming up here to the lake on Tuesday. So, I'll get to that sometime after school it out for the summer.

It has been a really good week, though. We've taken a couple of days to do nothing except take it easy. And the days we "worked" weren't difficult days. Even the plumbing wasn't too bad. =) We've spent time with family and friends who are family to us; we've spent time together; and we've spent some time alone. I think we're both recharged fairly well. Neither of us want to go home, though. If this could just be home. Anybody in Winston Co. need to hire an x-ray tech or a teacher? I know where you can find one of each. LOL

We'll head back southeast tomorrow, and then next weekend we'll do our Groundhog Weekend. Hopefully we'll be back here every weekend once April gets here. Well, except for GW. And I'm not so sure how much longer we'll be staying with Billie because the paperwork for getting her into a nursing home is about to be started. That is NOT going to be a fun process because she still knows enough to know what going to a nursing home entails, but she doesn't realize that she needs more care than what any of us can provide. It's getting harder and harder to see that her needs are being met adequately, and it is quite stressful, especially for Connie. I mean, none of us are trained in any way to care for someone with Alzheimer's, and it does take someone with in depth knowledge to truly know how to handle a person afflicted with this disease.

So I guess that's about it for tonight. And probably for the next few days. By the time we get home tomorrow and I get stuff ready for Monday, I doubt I'll have time to post, and I'll probably be too exhausted to post Monday. So...I hope you all have a GREAT week!

Still a happy girl

I think I may be even happier this evening than I was the other day. Today has been absolutely beeeeaaaaauuuuutttttiiiiifffffuuuulllll! John and Tim went fishing, so after they left, I cleaned the trailer and cleaned off the porch. I decided it was probably warm enough to go sit on the swim deck, so I grabbed my book, sunglasses, a drink, the camera, my chair, and a light-weight jacket (just in case) and headed to the water. It was a perfect day! I'd been down there about an hour when Ron, Cindy, and the boys came riding up. John and Tim were fishing in the slough and saw them so they cruised home. Wes and Brooke popped by for a minute, too. After the boaters left, John and Tim decided to ride to DJs to get "minners" so they could fish from Danny's boat slip. I stayed on the swim deck and kept doing what I had been doing.

I spent pretty close to all day enjoying the sunshine. It has been so gloomy around here lately that I was beginning to wonder if it would ever be sunny again. Today proved that the sun still does exist. My face is just a tiny bit red, but that's perfectly okay by me. Just to have "real" sun (as opposed to "fake" tanning bed sun) kissing my skin makes me so happy. (I honestly wonder if I couldn't be slightly affected by seasonal affective disorder because I get so blah during the winter months.)

John grilled burgers for dinner tonight, so between my sun fix, getting to visit with family, and my delicious dinner, I don't think this day could have been much better. Tomorrow should be another good one.

Hope you have a GREAT Saturday!

ummm...oh, yes...ahhhh...soooo good...

Oh. My. Gosh! I am in HEAVEN. Nothing could ever be so good. Yes, yes, yes!!!!

Hey...GET. YOUR. MIND. OUT. OF. THE. GUTTER. I am talking about the hot wings my fantabulous hubby made us for dinner. They were SOOOOO good. His "secret" is John Boy & Billy's Grilling Sauce. He fries the wings up nice and crispy and then tosses them in JB&B sauce. I honestly can say that I'd rather have his wings than any restaurant wings out there.

We've had such a relaxing day. Danny & Linda are in the process of building their house out here so we heard Marty and his crew this morning before we ever got out of bed. I was already awake, but it was so cold, I wasn't moving. LOL Right now, Marty is just getting the trees that have to come down out of the way, and then he'll start with the footing. We told Danny & Linda that we were going to let them figure out all of the problems before we built so we can learn from them. So far, we know FEMA can be a huge pain.

Danny, Linda, Mike, and Audrey came out for a while to see what had been done. After they left, John and I decided to try to fish. I caught two crappie. One was a keeper; one wasn't. John caught a nice bass and a small bream. We ended up tossing the keepers back. After dinner, John decided to fish a bit more, but it had cooled down enough that he wasn't having any luck, so he didn't fish long. Now, we're just sitting here relaxing.

Tomorrow should be another fairly nice, relaxing day. I had planned on planting my elephant ears today, but I didn't, so I will probably do that tomorrow. Ron, Cindy, and the boys are down here, so we're hoping to see them for a bit tomorrow afternoon.

I guess that's about it for today's update. =) I'll probably be calling it a night soon. The weird dreams have kept me from sleeping well the last couple of nights. Hope you have a GREAT day tomorrow!