Sushi Tuesday.......prayers needed!

Here we are again folks....................SUSHI TUESDAY........................the day of the week that I have devoted entirely to all the little things that put a smile on everyone's face~

You know..... like when the cashier doubles your grocery coupon just because OR the when the clerk at Dunkin Donuts makes your coffee with just the perfect amount of sugar and cream without having to ask. Just that perfect little extra special something!

What's YOUR extra special something??????????????????????

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My extra special something is my return to my weekly sushi dinner tonight - Thank you KU!!
I missed two weeks in a row due to my hospitalization and subsequent queasy tummy.
This is my first week back and I just have to say that .....I LOVED IT, LOVED IT, LOVED IT!!!

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It's been a busy week so far and it's only Tuesday - Yesterday I had my follow-up appt. with the surgeon which did not go exactly as I had planned. I had this idea in my head that I would go in there and she would tell me that we could do a small & quick outpatient laparoscopy to fix the problems I was having. Unfortunately my appt. took a very different and unexpected course.

The short version of the story boils down to my cat scan showing some small metal clip-like object deep against my abdominal wall that does not belong there.

When I say it does not belong there, I mean that even with the surgeries that I have had, this object is in a location where it should not be. None of the surgeries would have used a clip like this and any metal objects that were used in my previous surgeries are no where near this area in my belly. So the question that begs to be asked is.........."What the hell is it and where did it come from?" That is the million dollar question.

Unfortunately due to the fact that I have had several surgeries recently, I am not a candidate for laparoscopy so I will have to have yet another "open" surgery to have this removed.

This was most definitely NOT what I wanted to hear and certainly a tremendous amount to wrap my brain around.

I think in the course of a half hour I went through a million different worries and thoughts:
1. OMG - not another surgery/hospitalization
2. What am I going to do about work? Will I lose my job?
3. How in God's name are we going to afford MORE medical bills?
4. Hubby is going to give up on me....enough is enough- he deserves better
5. I want to feel better already...............

And so on............................Now I know much of this was just my brain trying to process the information but I have tell you that by the end of the evening I was just emotionally spent!

Thankfully when I woke up this morning I had a new perspective and much more positive outlook. Not to mention getting to wake up to the most wonderful man and my two fabulous fur children.

I will be going back in for surgery on July 14th and am just praying in the meantime that it will be the last piece in this puzzle that has been my physical health lately.
Anyone out there who has an extra prayer to share - I would greatly appreciate it!

And on the topic of prayers: I am going to send out a very special request to my bloggy friends & family. A dear family friend of ours, Ralph is in end stage liver disease. He is currently up at the Cleveland Clinic being treated and is waiting oh so patiently on the transplant list for his new liver. His condition has been shaky as of late. We are just hoping and praying everyday that he holds out long enough for his miracle to arrive.

Please Please Please keep Ralph and his family in your prayers. It will surely be appreciated.
You can read all about Ralph and his family on THIS site. Thanks in advance!!!

Not much else to share for today - Wishing everyone a great day and fantastic week!

MOOD REPORT:

Making addicts out of my cats AND my mom........

Back off my stash b*tch~!!!

See Zoey?...............See Zoey on Catnip?.............See Zoey get a WICKED case of the munchies and aggravate the crap out of Baby cat! (Don't ya just LOVE the eyes?)

(Not my proudest feline mommy moment-however definitely the one I laughed hardest about)

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I have a feeling this post will be a real mish mosh of thoughts, ideas and pic - fair warning!

Sorry for my unmotivated blogging as of late - I think I am still trying to catch up from my hospital stay and to be honest, not too much has been going on with me that is blog worthy.
That is definitely fine with me as I am really would just like to be put on cruise control for awhile.

We have not moved forward with the adoption paperwork. We are waiting to get my health stuff all straightened around. I am thinking that within the month all should be well and we can then change gears at that time. At this point a bit more waiting is really nothing big - I mean in the grand scheme of this IF journey - a month is a drop in the bucket.

Most importantly though, I want to be in a good physical, emotional AND spiritual space before really digging in to the next step in our journey. I know that time will come.

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I have my surgeon follow-up appt. tomorrow (the first one got cancelled due to her being stuck in surgery all day) I am anxious to see what comes out of that appt.

Mom is coming up to visit me in the morning before my appt. - well actually - she is coming to make a visit to one of the local clothing stores- CATO'S- in my area that she does not have by her. I am just going with her. The last time I took her there to do some shopping she ended up with the motherload (hehe - just realized I made a funny there.....motherload...hehe!) of clothes for an outrageously cheap price. I think I got her hooked on the place!!!! I guess I should feel bad about getting her hooked but honestly the only person I feel bad for is my father when he has to pay the bill! C'est La Vie!!!

As for a ZOEY UPDATE:

Other than her new catnip addiction which we are going to have to work on, she has found a few more new fixations to focus all her attention on.

One new fixation is the sink in the bathroom - she is very fascinated by watching the faucet. If you turn on the water just barely, she gets amazingly excited and tries to lick the stream of water. She usually ends up getting frustrated trying to put her head under the faucet so she takes her paw and soaks it, then licks it. It's really quite amusing to watch.

Here is a pic of her in bathroom...................................

Her second new fixation is her (well it USED to be mine) stuffed monkey buddy! This little guy has been hanging around our house for quite some time and apparently last week, Zoey discovered him. They are now BEST of friends as evidenced by the way she carries him around.
She loves to wrestle with him and to take him into her kitty condo as well.

Here is a pic of her wrestling with monkey...........

Not much else to share - will try and beef up my blogging, I promise!!!

MOOD REPORT:

Show & Tell - Two of my favorite things

Yep it's that time again - SHOW & TELL A LA MEL over at STIRRUP QUEENS
Be sure to head on over and CHECK OUT what the rest of the class is showing!

Today was one of those days where I had to literally rack my brain to think of something fabulous or witty to share with you all.

To be totally honest- I really came up with little or nothing.
And most of you know what that means......................................

YEP - Kitty pics!! My favorite "infertile" standby!

C'mon.....throw me a bone - after all - They ARE my children!!!

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I love this shot of BABY and ZOEY - they actually seemed happy to be laying together!



ZOEY playing Peek-a-boo!


"Seriously mom - how many more pics are you going to take?"

MOOD REPORT:

...things that rattle around in my brain.

"I thought you said we had tuna fish in here"


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JENN'S PAINFULLY TRUTHFUL INNER THOUGHTS

It totally pisses me off that I am surrounded by several undesirable, white trash neighbors who have multiple children that they can barely take care of.

When I see very young pregnant girls, I desperately fight the urge to ask them what their birth plans are and silently hope that they might be "the birth mother" we are looking for.

I can barely tolerate to look at my body in the mirror anymore - between my weight and my surgical scars, I feel truly ugly and deformed.

I used to have thoughts and dreams of performing - either singing or being a stand-up comic. Just never thought I was good enough.

Lately I have felt like a really shitty wife, daughter and friend- just have not had the energy to do anything about it.

I am scared to death to think that hubby and I may never have children but equally scared to death of actually getting to adopt.

I have not worn a sleeveless shirt or dress in 20 years because of the size of my arms.

Several times throughout my life, I was embarrassed to tell people I was Jewish for fear of what they would think. Sometimes I still am.

I hate my feet - size 11W, calloused and rough - shoe shopping just sucks!

I really don't cook - never had the urge to and I really don't care.

Anti-depressants are my friend and have been for years.

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MOOD REPORT:

Since getting my sushi dinner every Tuesday always manages to perk me up in the mood dept.,
From here forward - I dedicating SUSHI TUESDAYS to that little extra special something that puts a smile on my (or your) face.

You know - like when the cashier doubles your grocery coupon just just because OR the clerk at Dunkin Donuts who makes your coffee with just the perfect amount of sugar and cream without having to ask.
What's YOUR extra special something??????????????????????

My SUSHI TUESDAY extra special something is this little monkey friend.

Hubby brought me this while I was in the hospital - I love that MAN!!!
The pin in his left ear is an adoption/foster awareness ribbon that we got in class and I thought appropriate for this little guy!!! ( you know me and dressing up my animals!!!)

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So you know how I was saying yesterday that I had a lot of stuff rattling around in my brain? Well I have been slowly working on sorting some of it out and decided that I am going to write about it.

Bear with me folks if this does not come out as eloquently as I would like.

Most of you know that since 2008 I have had many medical issues and hospitalizations. Some serious and some not so serious. It's been a very long, exhausting and frustrating process. It has obviously taken a toll on me physically and emotionally but it has also done a number on my loved ones as well.

When I was hospitalized last week, I chose to not contact many friends and extended family.
I realized that this may have inadvertently hurt some feelings which was not my intention.
I chose limited contact for a few reasons that I want to explain -

First off, I was in an incredibly crappy mood and state of mind. It was hard enough for me to be decent to the medical staff let alone people that I really care about.
Secondly, I really felt and looked pretty shitty. I hated even having my husband or parents see me let alone visitors.
Thirdly, and most importantly, I did not want to worry or bother people with an issue that has been ongoing and was not life threatening.

Lately I have begun to feel like I have used up my "allotted" amount of support from friends and family. Isn't that something?
Like everyone gets a tally sheet to keep track of the amount of support they offer to any given person in their lives. That eventually - your friends/family will look at their tally sheet and realize "hey - Jenn has used up all her emotional support points" and move on.

Worn out loved ones - I imagine that this is what people who have chronic illness have to deal with on a daily basis.
Thank God that I do NOT have a chronic illness and that I know this is a lengthy temporary situation which will be fixed shortly.
PLEASE UNDERSTAND.....friends and family.....I do not want to wear you out.
You mean the world to me but I know you have your own lives. You have other friends and family to worry about. You have your day to day tasks to take care.

Even if you didn't get the chance to call or visit - it's okay - I know you love me.

I know a lot of this did not come out exactly as I would have liked, but I am sure you get the idea. Thank you for indulging me in this post.

I do love you and am eternally grateful to have each and every one of you in my life.

MOOD REPORT:

Excuses, excuses, excuses.....

Ummm...yeah.....it's been awhile hasn't it? Sorry about that. I wish I had a fantastic story filled with personal enlightenment, or heroic acts to come back writing about. My story is not nearly as exciting.

Maybe if I break it down into a play - it will sound better than it really was?
Yeah - let's try it that way:


LIFE OF AN INFERTILE JEW WHOSE BODY IS FALLING APART

THOSE APPEARING IN MY PLAY-
Jenn's cardio-vascular system (small role)
Jenn's gastro-intestinal system (lead role)
Jenn's crap-ass veins (brief annoying appearance)
Sleepy Jenn ( one long continued appearance)
Jenn's new surgeon, Dr. G (lead role)
Several un-named yet excellent nurses (supporting roles)
Hubby & Mom/Dad (supporting roles)

ACT ONE-
TUES. June 16 -High BP & moderate belly pain - appearances by Cardio & Gastro -Trip to E.R.

ACT TWO-
CT scan, bloodwork, and monitoring til 1:30am - appearances by Cardio, Gastro, & Crappy viens DX: Probable Small-bowel obstruction

ACT THREE-
Wed. June 17 - Get Admitted to hospital, have naso-gastric tube placed -click on this link to truly appreciate the utter nastiness involved, arrive in room 2:30am, spend an hour with admitting nurse answering questions. Attempts to sleep thwarted by frequent vital checks, medication administration, snoring roommate, etc. - Appearances by Sleepy Jenn, Un-named nurses.

ACT FOUR-

Remain in hospital til Saturday - lots of x-rays, nasty tasting contrast, enema's (don't ask), meds, and further testing. Appearances by Dr. G, Sleepy Jenn, Un-named nurses, hubby & mom/dad.

ACT FIVE-
No surgery - hurrah!!! Discharge from hospital Sat. June 20th - Follow-up with Dr. G on Monday for game plan. Appearances by entire cast!

AND...................CURTAIN!!!!

P.S. The sequel to the play is that Sleepy Jenn caught up on sleep the entire weekend!!!!
Nothing like your own bed, quiet, and no interruptions to set the stage for a good nights sleep!

So there you have it folks - My week in review

I am feeling better although I am a bit tired still. I am sure that will get better each day.

I did get some good news this morning - My wonderful new doc, Dr. J called with my lab work results from my initial appt. She did the whole work-up on me -including cholesterol and vitamins. My total cholesterol was ..........wait for it............wait for it............. 148 and my triglyceride number was .......87 - BOOYA!!!!!! If you are interested - here is a webpage all about cholesterol by the American Heart Association.
As you can see, MY numbers are well within the normal range - YEP - NORMAL - can you freakin believe it? Something is actually NORMAL about me and I have proof!

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Bear with me if some of what I write comes out like diarrhea of the mouth for awhile.

There is so much stuff rattling around in my brain from not having blogged that I will have to slowly pace myself this week in catching up.

Today is good - The sun is shining, friends/family have called to offer love and support, and my Zoey kitten is laying on my hands purring as I type this!
YES - All in all I would say life is good today!!!

MOOD REPORT:

Super Sushi Tuesday.....hurrah!!!!

Hi boys and girls - can you believe it's Tuesday already?? You know what that means............

SUPER SUSHI TUESDAY

I think after giving it a bit of thought...I have decided to change the direction of my Tuesdays.

Since getting my sushi dinner every Tuesday always manages to perk me up in the mood dept.,
From here forward - I dedicating Sushi Tuesdays to that little extra special something that puts a smile on my (or your) face.

You know - like when the cashier doubles your grocery coupon just just because OR the clerk at Dunkin Donuts who makes your coffee with just the perfect amount of sugar and cream without having to ask.

What's YOUR extra special something??????????????????????????????????

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Physically, I am one big bloated crampy mess!
AF is reeking utter havoc in my uterus - I swear I feel like she has a soccer match going on in there. The stupid bitch is tiring the heck out of me!

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We Finished up our adoption classes last night - HALLELUJAH!!!! The topic covered was the affect of adoption/foster on the primary family. The instructor focused much more on just adoption in this session then she had in previous sessions. It was good to get a bit more insight into the adoption end of things and to receive some info on what to expect.

As a bonus, we ended up creating a connection with another couple in that class that lives somewhat nearby and we exchanged numbers so that we can keep in contact.
I think it will be good to have friends who are going through the same things we will be going through - at least we can support one another!

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Have I told you all that I absolutely LOVE my new family doctor , Dr. J?

My husband started seeing this doc when he got diagnosed with Diabetes and I met her on his first visit. Recently my old family doc decided to close her practice (she is staying home with her kids now) and I had to find a new doc. I switched over to her practice and am totally thrilled with her care. She is young, very laid back, a great listener and is just very sweet.

Anyhoo.................I managed to drag myself this morning to my follow-up appt. to have my BP re-checked.

At my appt. Dr. J gave me good news and not-so-good news:

The good news is that my pressure is definitely coming down. The not-so-good news (not gonna say bad) is that I have to double my dose of medication because it's still not back to normal.
All in all not a bad appointment!

I was going to head off this afternoon to an appt. with the new therapist however that was canceled due to an emergency on her end. I will have to reschedule.

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Not much else going on in the land of Geneva ( and that's Geneva, Ohio - Kate, since you asked)

Gonna go try and tackle a bit more of the dreaded paperwork!!

MOOD REPORT:

Playground, Paperwork, and Zoey - OH MY!!!

It's Monday and I finally managed to get enough time and energy to post!!! AMEN!!!

Let's see.......where was I? Oh yeah - I left you all a short Saturday post with promises of great stories to come. Gotta keep those promises!!

First off - can I just say - Yea-Freakin-Haw!!! - tonight is our LAST adoption pre-service class. No more running in the door - scarfing down dinner and running right back out to class.

The flip side of my excitement over being done with classes is this nasty feeling I get every time I look at the mountain of paperwork that Jim and I will have to tackle in order to get our Homestudy started. It is pretty daunting to say the least! I will just have to tackle it a bit at a time or else I will lose my mind!
(Breathe Jenn.......in....then out.....good-now go to your happy place.......ahhhhhh....there it is!!!)

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In other news - I promised you all a re-cap of my Saturday - so without for ado:

About a month ago, The City of Geneva's rec dept. was able to secure a grant to be able to put in a totally new playground. Our rec dept. director worked long and hard to get this grant and finally we got the okay. Once we had everything ordered and ready to go - an article was placed in our local paper announcing a "community playground build" day.

It was absolutely amazing the amount of calls and support that started pouring in from citizens and local businesses in the area. Without ever having to ask - donation promises of coffee, donuts, pizza (from 4 different places), chips, water, juice, etc started pouring in. People also just called to lend their services as well. It was so cool!!!! Part of why I love my small town of GENEVA!!!

Our little community just came together to make this day happen - and it did and it was good!

This past Saturday was the actual build day - we all started around 8:30am.
I had volunteered to be the "first aid" person for the day since I have the nursing background - all told my duties involved cleaning and bandaging cuts on three different people. (not very eventful but glad it ended up that way)
I also ended up helping piece some of the equipment together as well.

I think we had anywhere from 30-50 people volunteer over the course of the entire day.
It was the perfect amount of help without everyone tripping over one another.

At the end of the day - the whole thing was put together and put up!
Here are few pics over the course of the day:





In my opinion it turned out even better than the poster we had to go off of!!!

I was so grateful to be a part of something like this for my community. I know that it will be used frequently by many families for a long long time. I am also excited at the prospect of someday being able to bring OUR child to this playground and explain to them how mommy helped to build it! Pretty cool eh????

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Wow......this post is getting really long - if you are still reading....thanks for hanging in there as I probably would have bailed by now if it were me!

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As for the Zoey kitten - what is there to say?
Let's see.....she is now nearly 4 lbs. I truly hope her growth curve slows down a bit in the coming months or we may have a real pudge monster on our hands! She has recently developed a weird fascination with the bathtub and toilet - she loves to watch you when you are in the shower (I know - very weird) She also loves to stand on her hind legs on the toilet and watch it as it flushes. (I know - very very weird) She continues to aggravate the Sh*t out of Babycat every chance she can. Most days, he just tolerates her however I have found them sleeping together which tells me he really DOES love his new sissy!!!

I managed to catch the greatest pic of Zoey this morning - keep in mind that both cats LOVE to play fight and that Baby is shedding up a storm currently. This is how I found Zoey this morning after walking back in the house:

Gotta love it right!!!!

As for me: AF is in town - she rudely woke me up this morning at 1am (bitch) with pretty intense cramps! Nothing like having to get up in the middle of the night for a potty trip, supplies and medication! Joy oh Joy!

So there you have it folks - the long and short of it all!

Tomorrow is chock full of appts - first the doc for my BP which seems to be coming down a bit and the new therapist to help me "work through my infertility grief"
Promise to report back tomorrow!!!


MOOD REPORT:

Community outreach and the wonder twins!!!

The Wonder Twins
"What Mom??? We weren't doing anything!!!!"

Can you believe how much bigger The Zoey kitten has gotten??? I mean look at her compared to Babycat - it's scary considering she's only a bit over 3 months old. I really think she is going to give Baby a run for his money in terms of the weight dept. Our nickname for him is "fat cat" but that might have to change if "she" keeps eating like she has been.

I felt the need to put something on the blog today however it will have to be short.
Why does it have to be short you ask???? Let me explain!
You see I spent the entire day doing a community playground build for The City of Geneva.
I was the designated first aid volunteer - though I did much more than that.
I promise that after I regain some energy and get some sleep - I will provide all the wonderful details as it is a great story most definitely worth telling!

It's amazing what a full day in the sun will do to you!!!
(Yes folks.......I wore sunscreen and drank PLENTY of fluids)

For now - I am going to jump in the shower, clean myself up, and head directly to bed!

Ahhhh sweet bed - I will enjoy every moment when I slip under your covers tonight!!!

Until tomorrow folks!

MOOD REPORT:

Show & Tell - new day, same sandbox!

Aren't you all confused, scratching your head......thinking for just a second that today is Saturday?

It's not - you see Mel over at STIRRUP QUEENS recently took a vote and it was decided to move S&T to Thursday - so there you have it! If you haven't already done so - don't forget to click on over to see what everyone else is showing!!! (there may be boobs involved)

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My body is falling apart and definitely NOT aging gracefully - the following meds have now been added to my massive pill box repertoire:

One step forward two steps back - that is the body of Jenn's motto since 2008.

I just need to say it - WTF????? Enough already!!! I am sick of feeling sick, being sick, doctors trying to diagnosis the sick, and the meds to treat the sick! "C'mon God - throw me a bone here!" Seems like every time I go see one doc, I have to go see another - it's a really bad chain reaction.

It's ironic - I went from pumping myself full of random fertility meds to now pumping myself full of assorted anti-depressants & blood pressure meds. Hmmmmm - kinda makes you wonder if the two things are related, doesn't it? May have to think about that some more given the fact that my doc "recommended" I go back to see a counselor to work on some of my unresolved infertility issues. (Mel - your recent post could not have been more timely I guess - thanks for that!!!)

Uggghhhhhh - my head hurts and I really want my Dunkin Donuts coffee!
BUT I am re-thinking that this morning based on my Blood pressure and new med!
F*ckity F*ck F*ck F*ck - This totally stinks!!!

MOOD REPORT:

Can you believe it's that time again? SUPER SUSHI TUESDAY!!!!
(echo of Tuesday...)
Super Sushi Tuesday is dedicated to ALL things "Fertility Forbidden"

Leave a comment with one thing for the week that you have given up, quit, cut down on, long for, miss dearly, wish you could have, etc.

This is where I step in for you! Since hubby and I are on the road to adoption and not actively TTC anymore.....I will GLADLY be your "sushi surrogate"
In other words - I will selflessly indulge all your "fertility forbidden fantasies" for you!

This week I figured since I have been on "kitten picture overload" that this sushi pic was perfect!

The "fertility forbidden" food of the week is: Kraft Bagelful's - They are yummy!!!!

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Life around here has been pretty average as of late - which to be honest is nice for a change.
For awhile there it was pretty up and down - I am just hoping that things stay on the boring side
for a bit. I would LOVE a "bit more boring, run-of-the-mill" stuff coming our way.

We went to our adoption class last night - pretty cut & dry stuff there. Only two more classes left and then on to the whole home study process! Ugghhhhhhhh!!!!

I did finally contact an adoption lawyer in Cleveland for a phone consult. I really liked what I heard after speaking with her and set up an appt. to meet with her to discuss our options.
Our biggest concern at this time is trying to navigate the Ohio law in regards to adoption advertising. Basically the law in Ohio states that the only people who may do adoption advertising are: licensed agencies & licensed adoption attorneys. No private individual or couple my advertise on their own behalf.

Now understanding the kind of person that I am & how badly I want to help in this process - that law totally frustrated the heck out of me. I had researched, read, looked up info, and talked to other couples who adopted privately about their networking plan. I was so confused as how to interpret this law for us, so as not to get into trouble.

After speaking with this attorney however, I finally got some piece of mind about this.
She basically told me that this law has an enormous amount of gray area to it - that because the "type" of advertising is not spelled out - there is much room for interpretation.

I came away from this conversation feeling fairly secure in setting up a plan to help us network that included some types of advertising. Being pro-active in this has allowed me to feel a bit more "control" of this process. There are so many things that are "out of my control" that having even a tiny bit of "control" thrown my way has meant a lot.

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On a completely different topic:
Anyone else out there having a "I'm feeling shlumpy and old" week?
The kind of week where you keep looking in the mirror and playing with your hair?
Or pulling back on the sides of your face to see what a nip/tuck would look like?
I could go on and on......but I know you ladies get the idea!

I am SOOOOOO there - however today I finally decided to do what any hot-blooded, feeling old & shlumpy woman does when they are feeling like that:

Take a trip to the beauty salon - and so I did - and it was good!

I took the unnerving plunge of going to a different salon in town this time. I even told the receptionist when I called that I wanted them to hook me up with a stylist who "could bring back a bit of my funky old self" (....the receptionist laughed but promptly mentioned a specific stylist and set up the appt.)
Totally did an overhaul in the color dept - went from medium brown with blond and reddish highlights on top to an overall deep brown mahogany color with just the slightest touch of blondish highlights in front. The color was put on over my old highlights which gave my hair several different shades on the brown/mahogany color - it is pretty cool.

The cut was pretty cool and the stylist actually showed me the best way to style it! (love that) Got all my facial waxing done too just to make sure things looked polished.

All in all I was truly pleased with the result and ended up coming out of it, depleted in $$ but with a bit more bounce in my step which I feel is priceless!

(oh and if you were hoping for pics - sorry - I just don't do self pics well - maybe another day)

That's all for now -

MOOD REPORT:

Show & Tell - Saturday news in a nutshell

It's Saturday once again - come one - come all...........Join in the fun! Let's see what random pics Jenn can come up with this week shall we? Oh and and by the way.....don't forget to visit Mel over at STIRRUP QUEENS to check out what she and all the other cool kids are showing at the head of THEIR class!

It's been fairly uneventful this week - work, home, adoption classes, hubby, the kitties, repeat!

I tried with all my might (well maybe a bit of might) to think this week about what I might actually put in this week's Show & Tell - I was hoping for something spontaneous and funny or something heartwarming and touching OR even something just plain silly!

Well.....I ended up with nothing - a big old goose egg - nothing but negatory! You get the idea.

So here it was Saturday and I am frantically wracking my brain and old pics for something Show & Tell worthy.

Nothing here.....nothing there.....shoot....nothing there either darn it!

What's an Infertile-hopeful-adoptive-parent-to-be to do?

Come on....take a guess!

You know you want to!

Got an idea?

Think hard! (I bet you are closer than you think)

Oh YES I did.....I totally dressed up the Zoey cat!

Call it deep rooted insanity or total baby-longing transference - I call it adorable!
I mean really..........who can blame me? I really think the cheerleader outfit brought out the best in her! Can't you tell from the pics?

(Well maybe not - since I sincerely think she looks pissed and totally over it)

Thank goodness kittens have short memories - GOD, I really hope that is correct!!!

Hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend!

Hugs and love!

MOOD REPORT:

The great midnight escape caper.....

As I write this "the monster" is laying on my hands purring!

So I was incredibly tired last night and decided around 9pm to head upstairs to watch TV in bed.
Hubby does his nightly ritual of taking his meds, locking up the house and then grabbing "spasticat" and putting her in her room for the night. (this is no small feat sometimes!)

Hubby then heads upstairs and joins me in bed to watch some TV as well.

We are laying there quietly for about an hour and ....dum dum dum........all of a sudden:
It was like something out of a horror movie!

I hear a noise
Hubby hears a noise
We look at one another - shrug it off
Continue to watch TV

Then BAM!!!! Out of nowhere this hyperactive, spastic, black ball of fur takes a flying leap on to the bed (my side of course) and scares the living daylight out of me!!! (all the while I laughing my butt off) She is running all over the bed like a bat outta hell!!!

You guessed it - she figured out how to escape her "kitty jail"

I scoop the holy terror up and take her back downstairs to return her to her room.
All the while with the hopes that hubby had inadvertently left a crack or tiny escape hatch which can be fixed.

NOPE -BUZZ - WRONG ANSWER.

Put her back in her room - put glass storm window across doorway as we have been doing.
Promptly watch Zoey climb up the molding of the doorway and jump out again.
She did have the courtesy of sitting right outside of her room after showing HOW she escaped as if to say..."Mom...mom....MOM.......Hey look what I can do!!!" (kind of like Stuart on Mad TV)

So I pick her up again and march back upstairs......all the while still giggling to myself.
(It is SOOOOOO hard to be mad at this adorable, purring fuzz ball sometimes)

Get upstairs and explain the dilemma to hubby - I had already resigned myself to a sleepless night of booger licking and a fur collar.

Hubby gets up - takes the fur ball with him and heads back downstairs without saying a word.

10 min. later hubby returns, gets into bed without saying a word.

I say, "did you put her back in her room?"
He says, "yep"
I say, "did you figure something else out for the doorway?"
He says, "yep"
I say, "wanna elaborate?"
He says, "you probably don't want to know"

Now my interest is peaked! I bug him til he tells me the following...............................

"Let's just say that Zoey is now PANDA protected"

In order to understand the humor in this you have to know that about a year ago, after watching some unnamed PANDA starring cartoon movie - hubby came across a certain fleece throw blanket featuring said PANDA - which he just HAD to have!
Every time this blanket is in use......hubby says he is "panda protected" (which in husband to English translation means I can't touch him - that's if you were wondering)

I could not imagine what sort of contraption hubby had come up with but soon found out when I got up later to pee.

Hubby had put the storm window back in it's place but had taken the blanket and tacked it up inside the doorway as well. This prevented the fur ball from being able to see out of the room as well as created a much taller barrier. (hubby is very inventive to say the least)

It worked though Zoey was NOT a happy camper - literally throwing herself at the blanket and window for an hour or so. She finally gave up after an hour or so and went to bed.

HALLELUJAH!

Sleep at last!

So yeah........this horror movie has a happy "panda-protected" ending!

MOOD REPORT:

Super Sushi Tuesday, Crazy 8's & Zoey - OH MY!

Can you believe it's that time again? SUPER SUSHI TUESDAY!!!!
(echo of Tuesday...)
Super Sushi Tuesday is dedicated to ALL things "Fertility Forbidden"

Leave a comment with one thing for the week that you have given up, quit, cut down on, long for, miss dearly, wish you could have, etc.

This is where I step in for you! Since hubby and I are on the road to adoption and not actively TTC anymore.....I will GLADLY be your "sushi surrogate"
In other words - I will selflessly indulge all your "fertility forbidden fantasies" for you!

Still taking your orders......bring 'em on!

Admit it....that "sushi cake" looks awesome!!! You know you want some!
No? Fine...more for me!!!

Okay - so my wonderful friend BEAUTIFUL MESS tagged me for this game called CRAZY 8's it seems forever ago and I am just now getting around to doing it.

Please pop on over to her blog and check it out! - not only is she an incredibly heartfelt, creative and honest writer, but she has been one of my most loyal blog readers from the very beginning. Thank you dear friend - it means the world to me! P.S. Your support of The Cavs is awesome too - even if they didn't do it this year.

You will have to excuse my lack of tagging others as most of the bloggers I read have already been tagged. I will however do my best at filling in the other info. Here goes:

Eight things I am looking forward to:

1. waking up to my hubby every morning
2. my 6th sober anniversary (July 18th)
3. having no Zoey scratches on my legs
4. when shedding season is done for Babycat
5. (Zoey erased this entry by walking on my keyboard while I was typing)
6. being able to exercise again
7. continuing to blog
8. building a family through domestic adoption

Eight things I did yesterday:

1. Let Zoey loose on Babycat
2. got my Dunkin Donuts coffee
3. picked up an extra special birthday brownie for mom
4. went with mom to Presque Isle Downs & Casino
5. promptly lost all my money at above Casino (boohiss!)
6. made hubby a grilled swiss cheese sandwich for dinner
7. went to adoption pre-service class

Eight things I wish I could do:

1. Dance
2. have plastic surgery
3. make sushi on my own
4. make a baby on my own
5. cook better/more often
6. become a mid-wife
7. love myself more
8. be a better friend

Eight shows I watch:

1. House
2. Dog- The Bounty Hunter (love it)
3. A Baby Story
4. What Not To Wear
5. Ace of Cakes
6. Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives
7. SouthPark
8. America's Next Top Model (hangs head in shame)

Eight Favorite Fruits:

1. watermelon
2. cherries
3. golden delicious apples
4. strawberries (gotta watch those seeds)
5. clementines
6. naval oranges
7. kiwi
8. pomegranate

Eight Places I'd like to travel:

1. Israel
2. New Zealand
3. New Orleans
4. New York City
5. Japan
6. Thailand
7. Jamaica
8. back to Kaui

Eight Places I've Lived:

1. Bath, Ohio
2. Akron, Ohio
3. Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio
4. Stow, Ohio
5. Kent, Ohio
6. Geneva, Ohio
7. (that's all folks)

So there you have it ladies & gentlemen! Crazy 8's - hope you learned a little bit more about me.

Feline update:
We are patiently waiting for some correspondence from Zoey's long distance boyfriend - Darth. She has been a little sad since he hasn't called, written OR sent any more pictures. You know how men are......(sighs)

Babycat and Zoey have developed quite the unique relationship. It is an "opposites attract "sort of relationship. Babycat is fat, laid-back and generally slow-moving. Zoey on the other hand is sleek, hyper-active (ADD for sure) and constantly moving. They would have you believe they don't like one another HOWEVER I have since caught the both of them sleeping within inches of one another on our bed. I am hoping to catch a good photo op of them soon.

MOOD REPORT: