Smiling Mom

Well we knew it would happen eventually. We just didn’t know when. Our 1100 sqft house just got a lot smaller.

Nonnie and Grandpa came to live with us. It was a hard sell, but as Hubby and I looked around the institution that they were living in, we decided to open our hearts and our playroom to them.

It’s the least we could do.

Nonnie and Grandpa sleep a lot during the day and are up making noise all night long. Honestly there have been a few nights where I’ve needed to put in earplugs just to drown out their sound.

Oh and let’s talk about their smell. Although they can bathe themselves, their habitat leaves something to be desired. Once a week I let them out of their room so I can clean, wash, and scrub every inch of it. They get so stinky so quickly.

But they are family, and it’s the least I could do.

Then tonight after some intense exercise, I told Nonnie and Grandpa it was time to get back into the playroom because frankly I was sick of the mess they were making around my home. Well unfortunately Nonnie felt that Grandpa was invading her space and so she attacked him.

I broke up the fight.

It was the least I could do.

Now Nonnie’s ear is split in two and Grandpa is a bit bloody around his jugular, but all is fine.

Hey, listen. Families stick together. When someone needs a home, we will provide.

It’s the least we could do.

Meet Nonnie-she’s a he. We call her him our trannie hammie.

And Grandp-smaller but feistier, he’s a crowd favorite.

Kayla’s not so sure if she likes them or not. Most days she just tolerates their existence.

But the kids are especially thrilled that Nonnie and Grandpa are here to say.

And to be honest, I don’t mind having them here either, stinky cage and all.

I am NOT in the market for a new dog.

I am not.

No, really. I’m not.

But I’ve become mildly obsessed about getting a shed-less dog when our sweet Kayla croaks.

She’s 4.

And she’ll most likely be with us for another 10 years.

But that’s neither here nor there.

I’m obsessed.

Mildly.

Just for research purposes only.

Seriously.

I have decided, much to my husband’s strong opposition, that our next dog will be a poodle mix.

They don’t shed.

I’m sold.

I’ve researched the Poogle.

The Cockapoo.

The Goldendoodle.

The Saint Berdoodle.

Even the Yorkipoo.

Obsessed. Mildly obsessed.

But I love my lab. So I keep coming back to the Labrador Mix.

The Labradoodle.

The mini-Labradoodle.

The Toy Labradoodle.

Then I found this site.

Not the best site to navigate. I especially hate the words that follow you around.

But look here.

I found the dog.

The Dog.

That.

I.

Must.

Have.

I neeeed her.

She’s a Tiny Toy Labradoodle Puppy.

Seriously. Can you see why I must have her?

My heart aches when I see this picture.

Those eyes….

So I showed her to Hubby.

And he melted.

He said I could have her.

And I smiled.

Then I told him the price.

And he laughed.

Sigh. It was a good pipe dream.

Now, if I could just come up with $2200…

Got any idea?

Anyone?

Ya, me neither.

Sigh.

After our camping trip, Hubby began doing extensive research on exactly which client we should use to create our digital photo albums.  I just assumed that I’d use iPhoto’s built in book maker.  So I mentioned that to Hubby.  But I’ve also had experience with Blurb.com’s version.  Both seemed good to me.

So Hubby checked them out.  He made books using each client.  But he just wasn’t happy.  Each had something about it that wasn’t so great.  In iPhoto, it was hard to make captions, as it wasn’t built into each template.  In Blurb.com, Hubby didn’t like the static look of each page.

So he checked out Shutterfly.com.  And loved it.  Shutterfly gives you the option to totally customize each page.  Each background color and design can be made, captions can be put on each picture, and there are a ton of different page layout options.

This propelled me into getting organized.  Yesterday I sorted all the photos I have into folders by birth year for both of my kids.  In BC’s first year of life, there were 1100 or so pictures alone….  Next step is to sort through those pictures and find the top 100 or so.  Oy vey.  I have a lot of work to do!

I should start this by saying that I was one of those girls. I was the girl who believed with my whole heart that I could change my man.

Go ahead and laugh. I know. Because I now laugh at the younger generation for the same thing.

But I believed that I could, in this particular area, change Hubby.

Hubby always has told me he was going to buy an RV when he retires.

SM: OK Hubby. That sounds great.

I hate to drive long distances, hate the idea of spending buckets of money on a gas guzzling vehicle which will sit in our driveway depreciating as we don’t use it. But this was a battle I wouldn’t have to fight for many years.

I could change Hubby’s mind.

And then it intensified. By it, I mean his desire for an RV. He wanted one now.

He had a 5 year plan. What was the plan? To buy one in five years. No plan, just a desire that he called his plan.

But I knew better. I could change him. I did the math and knew there was no way we could buy an RV in 5 years. Heck, we can barely afford our mortgage let alone groceries each month!

Then the conversation went from an occasional mention to an every freaking time we saw a damn RV type of fixation. Do you know how many Northern Californians have RVs?

A LOT.

Then…… we took a camping trip this weekend with our dear friends who happened to be sporting the almighty folding tent trailer.

I had been talking these up off an on for months now. Aside from them being about $40K cheaper than an RV, they use no gas, insurance would be cheaper, and storage would be less of a concern.

Hubby stepped one foot into the trailer and fell in love. He was sold.

We, folks, are buying a tent trailer. Hopefully next spring, but it’s a go.

I feel like I’ve just won the lottery. Hubby no longer wants to spend an asinine amount of money on an RV which would be under used and over priced, and now is excited, I mean EX-CITED about the folding tent trailer.

Wait a minute. I don’t know if I should look at this as if I’ve just lost upwards of $10K or if I’ve gained $40K.

I think I’ll look at it as gaining $40K.

See women, some men can be changed!