Today's topic: Discomfort and the Urinary Tract

Ha! If that title doesn't send you running and screaming, what will? Guess you know what's going on with me now, huh?

What's been happening? Tonight Emma gets to sleep in her own bed for the first time in more than five weeks. Poor kid. On the day that Takayo left, my mom, sister, and other sister's son arrived. They left that Thursday, and Emma and Audrey went to Justin's mom's house that day and are returning today.

What did we do while Mom, Laura, and Andrew were here? Um... Not much really. Some shopping. Some eating out. Went to the park. Swam in the pool. Gathered eggs. I'm afraid I was too worn out from the previous weeks to do much entertaining. Hope they didn't mind too much.

I told Justin the other day that I want a tattoo. Don't know where, don't know what, but I want one. Probably not the best reason to get one, but it's actually better than the reason for my first one! I have a tattoo of a gecko. Thought it was cute. However, didn't realize it was a "Gecko" as in logo for clothing. What a dork I am! So I want it redone/covered. I talked to someone and she told me to think about what I want, not what I think this can be turned into, but what I would actually want as a tattoo. I'm thinking trees. Justin suggested willow tree ala Willow Creek Angus. Sounds good! So now it will be the reward for losing weight. You'd think having clothes that fit would be reward enough, but I guess not.

I finished reading a Marian Keyes book this morning. (it's due at the library today and I can't renew it since somebody has it on hold) I think Anybody Out There was the title. Still a funny, highly enjoyable book by an author I love, but also a tear-jerker! Sheesh! I hadn't liked Rachel's Holiday as much as others but kept reading it anyway and in the end loved it. So I figured I'd better chug on with this one even though it made me uncomfortable. Good book. Won't say too much about it--no spoilers here!

One great thing about books by Marian Keyes is the language. I learn the best words! Feck, yokes, gobshite... great words! But not likely to make their way into my daily vocabulary. Or will they??

I have another book by the same author checked out, and I also have one on hold at the library. Add to that the other books lying around the house that I'm in the middle of: Devil in the White City and Coroner's Lunch. Good thing the girls are starting school soon! Um, I mean, I'm sure I'll be, uh, doing housework and stuff, um, while they are in school. No time to read! No sir! Just work work work. Yep. That's it.

Oh! Good news! The front walk is just about done. We put in a flagstone walk to the front of the house. It's been sitting there not done all summer. Justin and I worked on it this weekend. Yay! Now all the stones are set in place, even, not rocking, and filled in with topsoil. I still need to reset a few of the stones that are wiggly and then plant the groundcover in some of the spaces. So nice to finally have it done. Why the heck didn't we do it sooner? I dunno.

“The greatest gift is a passion for reading. It is cheap, it consoles, it distracts, it excites, it gives you knowledge of the world and experience of a wide kind. It is a moral illumination.” Elizabeth Hardwick