<p>It will all work out, MP. My fingers and toes are all crossed for you.</p>
<p>C_Q – so sorry about your dog. We miss them like the Dickens when they’re gone. I still get pangs going down the cat food aisle.</p>
<p>Oregon – I’m of the “ignore it and maybe she’ll get distracted” school when it comes to wacky emails from family. What’s the phrase – “Not my monkeys. Not my circus.”</p>
<p>arabrab–made me laugh. I have been waiting to hear the news of the day. Crazy Sis met with the lawyer who has said he will resign soon if she does not cooperate (in so many words). But I will not inquire with my head in the sand for now.
MP–yeah, gonna be double weird to have all leave at once. Hope you make a list of fun things to do --even if youdo none of them
H went out with a couple of buddies (yes!) he sees every few months. I was so happy not to figure out dinner and then I went and ate enough for two. dang.
I am a bit frustrated as I am in the middle of planning a fall trip to Italy with D amd H and then realized that H and I plan on traveling for about 10 days before or after BUT WE DO NOT travel well together at all. Period. and now I have PTSD/travel from our last few trips. It is both of us but of course mainly him (!) and think I might abort this trip.My magical plan (other than a lobotomy or heavy drugs) was a week of a small tour with less than 16 people but either they are full or none of the dates are working. I know, a third world living on a mountain problem. Actually remembering that.</p>
<p>Waiting on wedding news here and hope NM’s D is ok.</p>
<p>DIL sent the cutest videos of G’son as long as you think a 2 year old should have his own sparkler…
He is so verbal as S did not talk at all until after 3 but then spoke in grammatically perfect sentances </p>
<p>Good morning. Arabrab, first time I’ve heard that saying and if you don’t mind, I’d like to steal it because it perfectly describes so very many things ;)</p>
<p>Missy, how are you feeling about the empty nest? I agree an empty-nest bucket list is a grand plan :)</p>
<p>So far, its been very nice to have mcson back. His first project for a major design since he’s been back was very well received by the client. Strangely enough, despite the unexpected nature of loosing our lead and longtime designer/coder, things are settling down into a routine that feels manageable and actually a little more productive in terms of efficiencies. It’s meant that I’ve had to take over some of mch’s management duties to free him up for more programming time, and the search continues for a new team member, but I’m learning that there are some roles it serves us better to separate and at the same time, there’s a need to also share other tasks in a more collaborative fashion. So as trying as the circumstances have been, at the same time therein lies a lot of opportunity for growth. </p>
<p>Popping in to say D2 is feeling better. Taking her to see a kidney specialist this afternoon. Last minute wedding plans are driving me crazy! If only they would have let me be in charge! Picking up the slack now and not enjoying the stress! Will finish printing ceremony programs today, adding the embellishments to place cards, printing up seating chart poster and making a sign for the guest book project. Still need to find candle holders for the Unity candle ceremony and paper for the guest messages. Also need to make table numbers since D2 didn’t get around to making them. Got my shoes and a cute Kate Spade purse yesterday at Nordstrom’s Anniversary sale! D2 still doesn’t have her jewelry. sigh… Thank heavens there is another week!</p>
<p>So much going on with all of you!
Congrats to dte! Grad school! Very impressive.
Sorry to hear of pets who have passed. 
Patience and strength to those dealing with settling family estates.
Thinking of cq’s daughter! Hope the job is everything she has wanted!
missypie…glad that you delegated! You will finally be an empty nester!</p>
<p>Glad the bride is feeling better, nm. I’m looking forward to hearing about the wedding.</p>
<p>arabrab - I love that expression</p>
<p>mp- as another soon-to -be -empty- nester, I have decided to embrace it. I created a list several months ago with all of the things that I plan to do, travel, activities with H and with friends, projects, etc. I find that I have a lot to look forward to and some more time to actually do these things. I think of it as getting a break after 23 years.</p>
<p>Have a work event this afternoon. Can I just say that as a 57 yo married woman who is not in management, I am not jumping for joy? </p>
<p>First, arabrab, your use of “what the Dickens” made me wonder where that phrase came from. In case anyone else cares:</p>
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<p>Y’all are giving me too much credit. I am not worried about what I will do after the nest is empty. (I worreid about that 5 years ago, now not so much.) Rather, I am not looking forward to the list making, shopping, assembly, packing, traveling, and physical labor involved in the two moves.</p>
<p>But speaking of bucket lists and travel, my mom told me that yesterday she got her passport out of her safe deposit box to get it renewed. She quoted me as saying one should always have an up to date passport. Mom said that just going through the process made her excited, even though she will likely never use it. She said that it was the first time since my dad died that she’s been excited about anything!</p>
<p>Of course, the one place she wants to go is Germany, where her grandparents came from (Prussia.) That would be a difficult trip for us to take. I thought of Prussia, then settling down in a hotel along the Rhine, but the castles, etc. would require lots of walking. </p>
<p>MN, glad your D is getting better but I am sorry that so much work has landed on your (very capable) shoulders. </p>
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<p>I can totally relate to the post-“vacation” PTSD. After a few family trips I have said “never again”, but then there is always a next time. </p>
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<p>There are ways Son and younger D pronounced and called things that were way adorable. When we talk about them, middle D will always ask how she said things that was cute. I always have to tell her that she said things correctly. </p>
<p>MP – I’m glad your mom has things she is (finally) wanting for her future. Might a river cruise (minus touring the castles) along with a custom guide for some part of Prussia be a possibility? It costs, but sometimes a private guide with a much less than ambitious schedule makes for much happiness. Anyway, I think it is cool that she got her passport renewed. (One of my favorite vacations with MIL was a cruise to Alaska, where she pretty much never got off the boat, but was happy enough with the views.)</p>
<p>I guess “what the Sam Hill” is another variant on the dickens concept? My first boss at the university would say, “What the Sam Hill?” any time she was annoyed and wanted an explanation right now. </p>
<p>NM - glad D2 is feeling better. I hope it is all resolved before the wedding.</p>
<p>kmcmom – you’re welcome to use, “Not my monkeys. Not my circus,” any time you like. (And looking at that, I’ve no clue how I was supposed to punctuate that sentence, though the way I did it is clearly not right. Brain rot is setting in.) I’ve no idea of the attribution, and am too lazy to research it tonight, but it does fit so many circumstances rather perfectly.</p>
<p>Finally cooler weather tonight. Aaah. I’ll take humid and cool. </p>
<p>I am tossing little itty bits of skinny pop corn to the dog. It (for us, please remember I am only talking about a state that simply freaks out if the temps go above 85 and below 30) (not kidding at all) has become our conversation and on Tues. will be 100 and we wil all die.
So goodby all…loved you.</p>
<p>Good morning.
Oregon, I’d love t take a bit of that heat off your hands. Very lame pool weather around here! They’re blaming the arctic vortex or something.</p>
<p>NM, I am sorry you’re stressed but I also know you’re the perfect person to pull this off! Your d is very lucky to have you in the crunch. There will be a special place for you in heaven for pitch-hitting in the final inning, you know ;)</p>
<p>Nice book club meeting last night that involved a gorgeous sunset on an electric pontoon boat and plenty of wine 
Got home and two of mcson’s friend were here. Quite an interesting late night discussion. It’s amusing to hear the “romantically righteous” advice that comes from mcson these days to his bachelor buddies. Entertaining, to say the least. In an “evidence of dawning maturity” moment, Mcson sent us all home/to bed around 1:30. Hi ho. The kid is taking this whole adult thing to a new level 
</p>
<p>Today, he’s off to a friends cottage at the lake a few hours north of here. It’s very nice to have him mobile and in possession of a vehicle, meaning here but not stuck here…makes the whole nest re-entry thing kinder and gentler on us. Next weekend he’s playing a music festival back in AA. I know it sounds funny, but I didn’t get to enjoy that aspect before since he only got his licence last year.
As we lie to say, no wine before its time ;)</p>
<p>Well I was pleasantly surprised that the work gathering (happy hour at someone’s house) turned out to be a lot of fun. The bad news is that I rode in a carpool with 5 others and ended up staying waaaaay longer than I wanted to. One of my other colleagues and I were ready to leave and getting the others to go was like the proverbial herding cats. Since neither of us was the driver, we were sort of stuck. Well at least it was fun.
Spending the weekend getting ready for the upcoming trip. We leave Thursday.</p>
<p>D2 saw the specialist yesterday. Unfortunately she has not passed the stone yet. She is uncomfortable but not in severe pain like she was in the hospital. They are hoping it passes this weekend. They do not want to do surgery before her wedding…and neither does she! She goes back to the hospital on Tuesday for another CAT scan if it does not pass before then. She is very nervous.</p>
<p>Got the wedding programs assembled and now tying ribbons on them. Making table numbers on my Cricut is up next!</p>
<p>Have a good weekend everyone!</p>
<p>NM – I’m hoping the stone-dissolving fairies make a quick and effective visit to D2. A pre-wedding kidney stone is surely not what anyone had in mind to take a bride’s mind off of wedding jitters.</p>
<p>What does, “Making table numbers on my Cricut” mean? I thought table numbers were just numbers printed on a card and stuck on the table, but clearly I’m missing something. (Lots, if truth be told. I was the GS leader who did not do crafts.)</p>
<p>NM sending prayers that your D2 will not need the surgery.</p>
<p>I don’t have one, but I know what a Cricut is! It’s a machine used to cut out shapes in paper (or fabric or other materials), used in scrapbooking and by crafty types. Our elementary school had one in the supplies room. I know you can make beautiful things with one. </p>
<p>Talked to D for quite a while last night. She’s very impressed by her new company. They have an organized system for training employees! And, she has a college intern, who at this point knows much more than she does. It sounds like a great place to be a new employee. Said it’s the most diverse company she’s experienced, both in race/ethnicity and gender (has women in leadership roles). And, she met the celebrity husband of the company’s president yesterday. </p>
<p>You got it right cq! Yesterday was D2’s birthday. She got the best present ever. She passed the stone!!! Is that too much information? ;)</p>
<p>Happy birthday to D2!</p>
<p>Great news! What a relief… </p>
<p>Wonderful news and a happy week to come!</p>