How's that?

Yes, indeed, part "owner" for 7 whole days a year. Anyone who wants to sleep on the couch next July is welcome to join us. Bring sunscreen and Little Debbies.

See ya tomorra night cowsies, I'm off for another 8 hour drive (but this time Miss Mature 16 Year Old will be doing LOTS of the driving).

Kiwi

WOW!!! an eight hour drive---------------have fun kiwonk---does this guitar camp have a website???----sounds very interesting!!! maybe i will go next year!!!!have to make two pies for mil's family supper tonight-----turkey dinner ------------- strawberry rhubarb and pumpkin------------------thanks for the new thread kiki!!!

I'm not sure how to interpret Kiki's apparently jubilation that dd is driving. I sure wouldn't be glad. At all. Zilch. Zip. Zorro.

I am writing a book about me or single moms or something. I'm on page 3.

Lohani is sweeter than Bagz I'm noticing.

lohani is sweet when she feels like it---she can be just as BAGGY as bagzzzzzzzzzzzz----she is nice now because she gets a discount at the groceteria.

I was about to join the loosing Floozies when I noticed that nice things were being said about me here. I will post here.

I like having my DD drive. I do worry, but she is a pretty reliable, steady person so I don't worry like I will when the boys drive. If the boys drive.

Writing a book for single moms is an excellent idea. I know very few successful single moms...or to put it a better way, I know very few single moms with successful kids, like the Peach offspring. You should tell them how you did it.

I've redecorated my room, too, Wabby. I think you said yours is green...didin't you? Mine has been painted green for some time, but now I have gone total green...green everything in different shades. It looks good.

Today I'm going to paint ds14's room. He wants it to be dennish...with a day bed(he wanted a sofa bed but I nixed that due to inadequate mattress) and shelves. We no longer live with the pretense that we put our clothes away....I have shelves and bins in the laundry room and the boys keep their clothes there...So he doesn't need clothes storage...and his room doesn't have a closet...it has one across the hall, but it is small. I'm going to hang his guitars up rather than having them on the floor.

BTW...he had his first public performance. He played an original blues piece and he was wonderful.

I want to divorce my brothers. As many of you probably remember, my brother has questioned my motivessaid "watch out for Lohani" when my mom was here, made horrible comments about me to anyone in the family who would listen etc. They all were critical of me putting her in a home rather than her coming here. HERE???? Can you imagine? The home she was in was outrageously expensive...but who cares????

Now that the estate is finalized and I guess he's happy with what he got(I was executor) he wants to be all buddy-buddy. He did nothing to relieve me when my brother then my mom were sick. Whatever their relationship with her, and let's face it no one had a good relationship with her, they should have helped ME. BUT...they are just like her. Totally selfish.

NOW he wants to come for Christmas. Can you believe it???? He thinks I'm going to have him here???? Is he on drugs????????? Probably but that's another story.

I have told them that now that she is dead I'm finished and free of this. Period. No family dinners(I'd have to cook anyway) no holidays...etc. ARGH.

I'm just venting. Being estranged from your family has such a social stigma.

I have to get to work. It's August..summer is almost over. bye

Geez. Isn't that the truth. When ppl ask you about your family and you tell them you don't see them, they sort of look at you like an axe murderer. Like there is something wrong with you, not that you have such an unhealthy family relationship you are forced to distance yourself.

Yes! Yes! Yes! Did I tell you about the woman who, when I told her about my mom, said "I'm glad my mom's normal."

Later, I found out her 17-yo brother brought older women home to his bedroom and mom, with permission, watched through the keyhole.

People are ALLLLLL in denial. When you tell them you don't see your family, they're afraid it's catching.

Later, I found out her 17-yo brother brought older women home to his bedroom and mom, with permission, watched through the keyhole.

Strange. Sounds like a Louis Malle movie. Mrs. Robinson Redux, or something.
I haven't had a summer vacation. but get to go to Chicago in a month. Pray for a cool lake breeze... I don't want humidity!

Just got the new Coldwater creek catalog. Motivated to eat teeny tiny servings and get into 18's rather than X's.

Stay cool, yall, the heat index is supposed to be 105 here tomorrow.
Why doesn't MY fat melt and go away like butter?

An aside: A friend of mine took a job in the video store when her kids were little. She said parents would come in with adult children then argue about what videos they had already seen.

Peaches is right, on close inspection all families are weird, or become that way. My good friend who has the same name as Bagzie used to have an ideal family of origin. Now her brother is drinking heavily and they are being pulled apart just like everyone else. It is sad to see.

How do you avoid this for your own kids?

I'm off to Kmart to get spackle compound to fill in holes in DS14's room..the longest paint job in history. bye

Has anyone read We Were the Mulvaneys by Joyce Carol Oates? It was about a perfect family who was torn apart by circumstances beyond their control. Good book.

DS is sick with a horrible flu. All feverish, coughing, sore throat. At least he's at home and he has his mother and a girlfriend to fuss over him.

Painty, fat will only melt away like butter if you go out in the heat of the day and run. I see these ppl around here running on 95 degree days and they're all skinny. They also look like they're about ready to have a heat stroke.

It's overcast here today. The cool weather feels wonderful. We need some rain. It's been months and months since we've had anything other than a sprinkle. I'm not looking forward to getting my water bill.

I will get that book.

We don't have a water bill; but then again, we don't have much living grass, either. It looks terrible..not because it is dry but because everything is drowned by all the rain.

Must go paint..bye

The one thing that concerns me about having such a crummy family is that I won't have anyone to come to my kids weddings. I don't plan on inviting my family. Will you guys come so I don't look like a freak who is hated even by her own family to my future inlaws. Granted this is many years away, but it concerns me.

Wabby, we seem to be getting almost nothing but rain -- had a deluge today that came on suddenly. Good thing I was home, because we had big puddles on the window sills before I could get to all the windows to close them. I would complain about this summer, but secretively I am all in favor of it: we have a day of rain, then cool nights, then eventually it gets hot for a day or two, then it rains again. Everybody complains about the relative lack of "summer", but since I despise hot weather, it is perfect. I don't say so out loud; I could get lynched. My sympathies to you, Painter.

Lushie, what a coincidence that you have another friend named Bagz

I don't think you can -- extended family is so beneficial at times, that completely avoiding it would be worse. Maybe some of our kids will be able to tell us in 20 years what it's been like not to have many relatives -- mine will have no siblings, nieces or nephews. But she has plenty of cousins, so I guess she will have to choose whether to maintain close relationships with them. You would think she might choose to have a big family herself after being an only child, but from the way she talks, I doubt it.

And speaking of the only child, I have not heard word one from her since I dropped her off at music camp -- yes, I know, we're all shocked and surprised... Maybe I'll call the school and request that they leave a message for her to call her mommy. Ah well, I'm sure no news is good news.

Today I was flossing my teeth and I popped out a filling -- in the tooth that is going to have a root canal in 2 weeks. What a pain in the ! I swear the thing is going to crumble away before I get this work done. I have to see my dentist tomorrow. It doesn't hurt, but it's not too pleasant feeling either. I can't eat much of anything (oh, boohoo), so I guess that's the good news...

Kiwi

All those great weddings of the future will be the perfect Cowsie reunion!! You will have friends from around the world!

Lushie, Maybe DD will want to be married on the beach in Hawaii. That way it would be a beautiful, yet small wedding. And all the cows will surely be there!Plant the thought in her head now.

I actually get along ok with some of my siblings (there are 6 of us - how did my mother survive?). My younger sister -ok, although she can drive me crazy. My older sister is wonderful as long as she doesn't drink. We just don't ever discuss certain things. My oldest brother I love to pieces, although he doesn't live close by, my middle brother I live right next to, love him, but can't be around him when he drinks and I really can't stand his live-in woman. My youngest brother scares me. He has a major anger problem. DH's family is more of the same, except there are more siblings - 9 of them.

My friend told me she went to Catholic school in Ohio, and the nuns wouldn't let them wear tights under their dresses in the freezing winter because if they got a run in them, the boys would wonder where the run ended. And it would give them impure thoughts. Do ya think???

I just watched 'Monster' last night. Depressing movie. Everyone ranted about how ugly Charleze Theron looked in it. You could still see the pretty under all that makeup.