November

You'd think, as much as I LOVE scary stories that Halloween would top my list of favorite holidays.

I don't think I have a favorite holiday...

This year, having failed to carry out a single plan we made for the day, we slid from 'proactive' to 'sluggy', though I did procure a couple scary movies and have been slogging through House of Leaves all week.

Matt had Friday off, too.

My freaky set-up shot to get the framing set.  I don't even know what the heck happened!
It seems a little spooky, so I am putting it on here.  Long live Halloween.

And what's so super scary is...Nia was not even in the house! (so we used a blurry weasel) 

Okay, well, really.  I tried to get this photo for a full month, but BENJAMIN CADE AND CHANDLER MACKENZIE kept EATING MY FANG STASH.
Even taking this, a SINGLE shot, they and their father ate 6 pairs of fangs EACH.  Also, blurry weasel had 4 candy corns.

I had all kinds of plans for Halloween shots-off in the pasture, in the woods, maybe a cemetery.  I got the papasan couch in the living room between movies.

On to November!
The first was COLD, holy moly, COLD and WINDY.

We have no wood yet, so we cranked up our 2 heaters (I bought more, they will be here early in the week) and that worked okay.  Then Chan knocked one of them over and it died-we took it apart looking for a reset button or something (sealed radiant oil heater) and nada.  So, we went off and bought another new heater to keep from freezing in the night.  

And the heater joined one of our fans in the trash, it's been a week of things quitting around here.

Sunday, Matt had band practice.  I am unsure what, if anything, will come of the endeavor, but I can't complain that he's off hanging out with friends.

I used the non-windy and warmer day to tarp the camper again and add another new heavy duty tarp to the top.  I also composted most of the garden and my beloved morning glory vines, pulled weeds and piled up fallen branches.  Then I set the dogs and cats up with warmer sleeping areas.  I thought I would have more time for that.  They had blankets for last night, but for really cold nights, they need dead air space between them and the ground/porch.  I made a huge pouch out of a big tarp and filled that with cedar shavings and piled their blankets on top of that.

Good, no, GREAT news.  It's the first week of November and only a couple dozen lady bugs in the house!  Last year was a peak year for them, like the 17 year cicadas and that sort of thing.  There were billions of them, I estimate 2.3 million of them were inside this house last winter, the windows were covered, even with plastic on both sides and fresh caulking.  It was a nightmare all winter, I came close to losing it and moving into the camper until spring.  They were EVERYWHERE.  Take a shower and they'd wash out of my hair, fix a drink and there were be two floating in it before I got back to my desk.  Use a straw and lid and there'd be one cramming itself in the hole.  They got in the food, covered the back of the fridge, they clogged the lint filter in the dryer, coated the carpet in dead bodies and tiny dots of red juice, burrowed in my bedding, got under the pillows, landed on my face-mainly my eyes-when I read at night.  UGH.  I have never been so mentally tortured, I did not invite anyone over after Jake's party in November because between having no heat and being covered in beetles, I would have been horrified to ask anyone to come endure that just to hang out with me and hear me mutter 'ladybugs' over and over while counting pieces of wood and twitching.

But, so far so good this season.

I even have someone coming to give an estimate on the central unit.

In the bad news sector, the dentist said Ben AND Chan need their wisdom teeth pulled.  I am getting a second opinion and having the orthodontist review their records and look at the x-rays.  All Matt and I hear is 'oooo, you need those wisdom teeth pulled!" EVERY time we go to the dentist.  I am choosing to ignore it for now.  The orthodontist told me on July 2nd that they were fine. I had them send him the new x-rays they took last Monday, we go in next week.

In the meantime, with my hoards of cash that I am not spending on teeth (for the first time since 2008, no ortho payment!), I am buying a new sectional sofa.  It is chocolate brown corduroy and seats 7.  It's NEW.  I have never in the nearly 18 years we have been married, had a new couch.  Or bed, but that's on the list.  Our current seating of one papasan couch and 2 papasan chairs seats 4 people.  And one of the chairs might or might not flip your ass out into the floor.  So when we watch movies all together, someone has to use a camping chair.  That's CRAZY.  When the kids have friends over, it's worse.  I am done living like that.

In other good news, my blood work came back and other than a ping for having low (good) cholesterol, everything other than my weight was nearly dead-center in the 'normal' range.  Since that moderately high blood sugar count 4 years ago (103) , I have panicked a little ahead of the annual test and this year, if you recall, Ben and I were home alone and ate about a month's worth of sweets in a single weekend-the weekend RIGHT before my blood test.  I was 2 pounds heavier than last year, mainly due to Little Debbie squeezing my my jeans with me.  That tasty, tasty heifer.  

Also, she weighed me with my shoes and jacket on.  I HATE that, I swear those women have a sadistic streak.  Who does that to another woman?  "Oh, I see you shop in the plus size section.  Let's just get you on the scale.  No, leave your shoes on.  And your jacket.  GET ON THE SCALE NOW.  Let's see...hmm, it's on the line.  I'll just round UP!"
Because Satan, my Lord and Master, commands it.  BTW, I am a size 3.  And I have 6 children.
ALL IN PUBLIC SCHOOL.
And I think having my hair cut so that I have weird dog ears on each side is CUTE!

Okay, I guess I feel a little better.

In final news, because really, NOTHING is going on over here at the moment, we have our eye on a potential dog to adopt.  Nia is nearly 2, we think it's a good time to start all over again with an unknown pound hound.  He's an 18 month old Basset/lab mix.  He LOOKS like a lab with 3 inch long legs, but that face.  OH, he looks like an otter, he's SO cute.  We are going to talk to our vet about him, particularly potential back problems.  He already weighs 40 pounds, so he's a good sized doggie

I don't like slick haired dogs, but there is something about this little guy...that face.

We have been to see him twice, he's sweet as can be-quiet and calm and happy, loves to be petted on.  Part of me wants to get another really big dog-we have the room and Kuma and Jess are 8 and 9.  Jess is in no shape to defend the homefront.  Nia and this otter would hardly be any backup for Kuma.  But then again, we are not actually under attack.  I do like that they make a scary racket when anyone comes up or drives by.  I never wonder if it's a crazed killer at my window, it HAS to be a branch because Kuma would bark if anyone came up.  And big dogs are put down due to lack of homes.  But so are ugly dogs and I don't want an ugly dog.