Philosophical Nonsense

Our darling daughter Melmel is going to move back in with us immediately after she graduates in early May. Life with her grandmother has pretty much reached a boiling point, so the sooner she's out of that situation, the better her mental health will be. I'm beginning to wonder if she is developing depression, so the sooner she is up here where I can be proactive about getting her help if needed, the better. It was awfully nice to hear Melmel go from despair in her voice to somewhat more hopeful. I might not have given birth to her, but she's my kid too, and I want her to be happy.

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Boe got his first paycheck. That was lovely! I even dropped a hundred bucks on groceries to stock up instead of making do with the goods from Mom's latest Cook-a-thon and very little else.

I made a peach pie for Boe in order to celebrate. :-)

On the work front, Boe has recieved calls from school in Lancaster, Virginia, and Pinedale, Wyoming. (I'd prefer Virginia -- Pennsic's only 8 hours away, after all -- but Wyoming starts their teachers out at about $11,000 more.)

My lovely, smart daughter Mel's 22nd birthday is today. She is doing really well in school and will graduate in the summer of 2012 -- sooner than I will!

In costuming news, there is no costuming news. I can't seem to manage any creative stuff while I'm quietly freaking out about our financial situation and am frustrated out the wazoo.

Princess just came thumping down the stairs with a feather duster larger than she is in her mouth. I am totally charmed.

My stepmom is having a booze-laced hen party this evening, so I am going over a bit early to help with hors d'ouevres and whatnot. I also made a cake for the occasion, as they have never seen the work I can do and I kind of wanted to show that off just a little bit. It's chocolate cake with cream cheese icing...yummy!

So, we have 4 days left with Mel, counting today.  I got Boe home early from work instead of driving out to pick him up at 8 at night, because he wanted to spend as much time with Mel as possible.

As soon as I got Boe home, Mel announced that my folks had called and she was spending the night with them.  They're picking her up at six and dropping her off sometime tomorrow afternoon.

*headdesk*

I love my parents, I really do, but come on! 

In other news, I start work tomorrow.

My brother is now a married man! Brett looked wonderful, Faye was radiant, and everyone enjoyed themselves.

I am exhausted from trying to make sure my Mom, Dad, and stepmom Bitz all got equal amounts of time with us. Lemme tell ya, LJ, divorce is brutal when it comes to trying to make sure no parent is slighted or gets pissed off. I think my sister and I succeeded in ensuring parental happiness. Poor Melanie, my sister, is recovering from strep throat, but she hung in there like a champ. My SuperAwesomeAdorable Niece, Elena, was a delightful flower girl and did exactly what she was supposed to do -- scattered flower petals, sat down and didn't fidget during the ceremony, and danced the recption away. Oh, and caught the bouquet. :-)

Mel enjoyed herself too -- after a couple glasses of wine, she danced with Boe, my Dad, several of my uncles, my Mom, my Grandma, and Elena. She also very graciously allowed us to take her photo without sighing or trying to hide her face.

Boe looked yummy and very handsome in his suit. We had a lot of fun dancing, but I made sure he danced with Mom whenever Brett or Dad was dancing with Bitz. Mom's relatives were quite impressed with Boe for that. Hey, the woman buys us a new washer and dryer, I think we're gonna make sure that she isn't miserable, you know what I mean?

Most of all, Brett and Faye are so much in love...you could tell any time they looked at each other that they were the happiest couple on earth.

I am tipsy and looking forward to a shower. Mel has her own hotel room and so it's just Boe and I tonight, which is awfully nice.

*is pleased*

Lieutenant and Mrs. Kirby, I like that.

The past week and a half has been...ok, I guess.  Busy.  From the time that I get up until I pick Boe up from work, I am in the car.  Mel needed to get a new Social Security card, State ID, change her mailing address, open a new bank account, look for work, get a bus pass, and a partridge in a pear tree.

I?  Have needed to look for work and register for classes.  I completed the registration for classes at IPFW, I crammed all 4 classes into a Tuesday and Thursday schedule.  Today, I announced I was taking a day for myself and I am registering with East Allen County Schools, region 8 Schools, and Imagine Academy to work as a substitute teacher on MWF.  This means that I was fingerprinted, had an expanded criminal history background check done, showed my CPR and First Aid certifications, and am currently printing out my resume and references.  Whee.

Well, if I want to get over to Columbia City in time to register with Region 8 and pick Boe up from work, I'd better get moving.

At 5 PM today, we have to send Mel back to Florida.  Boe, Mel, and I have been crying our eyes out for the past half hour.

I don't want to let her go.  I want to keep her here.  Boe's heart is breaking, they are staying up all night tonight and cuddling on the couch, watching movies and talking.  I have to go to bed to get some sleep, since I'm driving.

It's not fair.

Well, we have Mel with us for the week.  It was nerve-wracking, waiting at the airport for her flight to come in, nerve-wracking driving through Chicago, and nerve-wracking driving back from Chicago.

What wasn't nerve-wracking is Mel herself.  She and Boe have such similar personalities that it has been easy for me to fall in love with this girl.  I'm so glad I get to be part of her life!  She's sweet and smart and funny, and I am blessed indeed.

Bristol was wonderful -- tiring, but wonderful!  Brian and Lisa are a couple of my favorite people to begin with, and I had an absolute blast with them.  Mel started the day off in one of my shift-and-kirtle combos, but purchased a Pendragon bodice and skirt, and looked so smashing in it that she wore it the rest of the day.  She also had her face painted, hair braided, and henna work done.  All three of us talked and laughed the entire way home.  She has some issues to work out, but a lot of that will come over time in a non-judgmental environment...Mel believes that she does not deserve anything good in her life, and since I have lived my own life struggling with that attitude as well, I believe that I will be able to help her begin to mute that little voice inside her head.  It's weird to feel this maternal about a 20 year old, but she's comfortable with it, so I'll go with it too. 

My heart is so full right now I can hardly stand it.

Good Lord, has it *really* been two weeks since I updated this thing? O.o

The rundown:

Mel is coming up to Indiana next Saturday. I am nervous, excited, and stressed, all in one hot mess.  We're taking her to the Bristol Renaissance Faire (she's never been to a faire at all, and it'll be our first time at Bristol specifically), and since she's close to me in size, I figure she can dress up in my Flemish Take Two.  Since that's what I had planned to wear before her visit was arranged, I am making myself an Elizabethan waistcoat/jacket like the Layton jacket in natural colored linen jacquard lined in pink/coral shot silk, with a pleated skirt of slate blue velvet and a stomacher of dark blue/light blue/orange (which picks up the coral color of the silk quite nicely) brocade, all worn over an olive green petticoat bodies seen here and a small roll.

We are painting the Tornado Room today. Or, rather, Boe is since I'll be working on the living room and bathroom.

It only took 2 months after purchasing the house than we developed a water leak in the seam between the tub drain (we have a clawfoot tub) and the outflow grey water pipe. :-/ I hope that Boe can get it fixed without calling a plumber.

I start my new job as soon as my background check comes back from the company. The difficulty is that the company that my new employers contract to do the background checks is taking FOREVER, so my new supervisor is planning to get me in and do my orientation herself instead of sending me to Auburn Hills, MI (a 4-5 hour drive from Ft. Wayne). I will be grateful to be back at work ASAP.

Boe finally got his tax refund. We got our living room furniture out of layaway (finally!) with some of the proceeds.  Here is a link to our new sofa.  We also have the matching loveseat.  It's awfully nice to stretch out of a sofa instead of curling up in a loveseat to watch TV. 

My brother in law is being laid off at his place of employment...3 months after he, my sister, and Awesome Niece of Cuteness moved down to FL.  Argh!

Boe is now working on his master's degree in special education.  He eventually would like to earn his doctorate.  He has already been told that if he earns his doctorate in special education, he will have a job at the university where he is earning his master's...his salary will also go up considerably.  I'm cool with that.

I have to enroll in classes sometime the first 2 weeks of August.

*ahem*

I would like to announce that Boe is on the phone with his daughter Melody right now. They have been talking for 3 hours or so.

This is the first time they have spoken with each other in 18 years.

I was able to talk to Melody too. She is a bright, articulate young lady that loves to read, loves to talk, and called me Mom.

I've never been someone's mom before.

'Scuse me while I cry a little bit, m'kay?

ETA: It's 1 AM...that makes 5 hours. :-D