I got the blues

Winter weather has got me down and out or should I say in as I feel like a prisoner in my own home.  I've had to cancel on three playdates in a row because it was just to nasty and windy out to be running around in the car unnecessarily. 

Poor Joey this morning just kept telling me over and over, "I want my friends" referring to whom I'm not sure but am thinking the boys at his old day care.  At least if we had to miss playdates he still got in some fun each week when he was going to Miss JoAnna's.  I tried tracking down my sister in law to see if we could get together with her and Elsa for a playdate since they only live down the street, but had no success in making contact.  What a bummer.

And it looks like we're bound to be housebound for at least another couple of days.  I sure hope we get a break by this weekend or I, and Joey, are going to go seriously crazy.

Out of the mouth of Men

Scene:  Daddy and Joey playing playdough at the table.

Daddy:  "What is this Joey?"

Joey:  "A motorcycle"

Daddy:  "Look Joey Daddy made a cow"

Joey:  "Cow"

Daddy:  "Lets make some turds"

Now I know where Joey gets all his wonderful words from

Out of the mouths of babes

Scene:  Joey and Daddy sitting at the table playing playdough.

Grandma:  "He sure is bossy" (speaking of Joey)

Me:  "Yep, he sure is"

Joey:  "I'm the boss"

5 Minutes later is still walking around telling everyone he's the boss.  Too funny.

Daddy's Boy - Pt. 2

Three generations of Monson's all working hand in hand.  Larry and Joe got his grandfather's bike over to Pop-Pop's house without a hitch, unless you call them leaving before Pop got here a hitch.  It was a comedy of errors, all on our end, that caused the communication failure.

Anyway once they got it over there, they began dismanteling it so that Pop could begin the refurbishment process.  I think it will turn out to be a true labor of love, with three generations of Monson men putting their heart and soul into it.  Already they've begun working as a team, even little Joey getting in on the fun.

Pop Pop is teaching him the different names of tools, and Daddy's teaching him how to use them.  It may take them a year to get the job done, but by the time it is finished Pop will have a nice motorcycle to ride and hopefully Joey will have learned some mechanic know-how while getting in some true bonding time with his grandfather.

Daddy's Boy

Joe sure is his Daddy's boy.  It makes my heart happy when he always wants to help his Daddy with whatever he's doing.  Just this morning Larry was loading up a motorcycle to take over to his Dad's and Joey had to be right in the mix.  He lifted and carried one of the ramps to the truck and helped Daddy put it in.  Then he rooted him on as he rolled the motorcycle up and into the back of the pickup.  They really are two peas in a pod. 

I can just imagine in the years to come the projects they'll do together from building birdhouses, to boyscouts, to restoring old cars and motorcycles.  Makes me a little jealous, but at the same time like I said earlier it makes my heart happy... and I know that Joe and I will have our special moments too from hanging out in nature and camping, to getting his first dog, learning to cook and do laundry - you know the things a wife will really appreciate down the road (lol), to just having fun together.

For now though it's all about boys and their toys.

Bubba's said his final goodbye

I have been so sad this week coming to the realization that I was keeping my Bubba dog alive more for me than for him.  He has been failing in health this past year and let's face it Joe with his youthful enthusiasm has not been easy on him these past few months.  It's been getting harder and harder for him to get around with his hind quarters just completely failing him at times.  After watching him collapse several different times on Thursday morning I decided enough was enough and I wasn't doing him any favors making him live in constant pain and struggle.  Larry and I had known this was coming and had called around to several vets and the SPCA to determine which service was the best for us.  After speaking with the SPCA it was a no brainer.  They seemed the most compassionate, were cost effective, and cared for your pet up until the last moment of his life.

I waited until Larry got home from work, we dropped Joey off at Grammie and Pop Pop's and headed over to the SPCA.  I did my best not to cry on the way over as I'd been crying on and off all day and I didn't want Bubba to sense how upset I really was.  When we got there, Michael helped us through the process and then they allowed us as much time as we wanted before they were to take him back to the exam room, with a long hug and a kiss amongst my tears we said our farewells.  I will miss him dearly.

For those of you who don't know I inherited Bubba 8 years ago when my then boyfriend Ron passed away unexpectedly.  His family asked me if I'd be willing to take him since they couldn't think of a better home than mine for him, especially since they knew I was already in love with the big lug.  I said yes and we've been the closest of companions every since.  He got me through some very difficult times, and I'll always be grateful to him for that.

It was also because of him that I met Larry, while taking him for one of his many evening strolls.  If it weren't for him I wouldn't have Joe, or my hubby.

Bubba I love you and always will.

The nasty cold bug has got us in it's clutches

Yep, we're still stick.  Joey came down with it the Monday after Christmas, and Larry and I both caught it from him within the next few days.  Larry had taken the week off basically so we could have a staycation - hit the snow, visit with friends, head to the seashore, but all that planning was for naught since this cold nocked us on our fannies.  We've been plagued with fevers, coughs, sneezing, congestions, loss of appetite, and low energy.  No fun at all.

Joey has started to rebound over the last couple of days and has his energy and appetite back.  He hasn't had any fevers for three days or more but still has the occasional coughing fit and congestion in his nose.

Larry is slowly starting to gather energy and has been a real blessing handling Joey while I rested.  I don't know what I would have done without him this past week.  He had really bad fevers the last couple of days but they finally broke through last night.

I haven't had the fevers as bad as the guys, but everything else has hit me hard and as a result my fibromyalgia has been flaring up too.  It even hurts just to bend my arm or to lay on my side.

I'll be glad when were all back to normal and can resume our lives.  Luckily mom was not touched by the bug and has been a great help to me with Joey as well, and chores around the house.  She has one hearty constitution because whenever we get sick she seems to skate free of whatever we manage to bring home no matter how hard we are hit with it.

The funny things that Daddy's say

We've all been sick now for days, our nerves are a little worn, not enough hours in the day to get adequate rest to fight this bug and Joey who brought it into our house is on the mend (thank goodness) but that means his energy level is back up while ours are definately still down.

Anyway, I've let him watch way to many cartoons in the last couple days because face it its an easy babysitter that can't catch his cooties.  So tonight he's begging for more Barney, then Elmo, etc. and Daddy says "No" so Joey gets louder and finally Daddy says in response, "Tough, it's my turn" and I burst out laughing.  It came out sounding like he was a little kid himself in competition for TV time.

I just gotta love my guys as they always make my days more interesting and somehow manage to make me laugh at the same time.