Quarantine and chill and kindness chatty clubhouse: Jump in and join the conversation! All is welcome!

[Judique]

Good Sunday Morning to all Quackers.

@DisneyMommyMichelle welcome to our thread. Hope you stick around awhile, we are a friendly and really supportive little group. Hope your Halloween fun went well.

@lynxstch Thanks for sharing the pictures of your granddaughters. And, sorry to hear that your daughter-in-law is not getting anywhere with her medical issues.

@footballmouse Hears sending well wishes for wonderful baby shower today. Hopefully you were able to get in enough of a nap that you will be fully awake and be able to take it all in. On a different note, how did the tattoo come out? Sorry if I missed that along the way.

@flyingdumbo127 No advice on the bowls, but hope you are able to get something figured out so you get exactly what you are looking for.

@Pea-n-Me Sending good thoughts your way that you are feeling better.

Here is the update as of today with the kids. The boys are going over to FH's house this AM for a few hours. I struggle because the temporary order (that we had no say in) says I'm to be flexible. I don't want the court to think I am not. I am literally petrified of messing anything up at this point that will prevent me from the final order being in my favor as far as the kids go. FH knows how to push every button of mine and get me to cave. I am working on that. I also have to tell him I messed up on the day for 4-H. (it is next week not today, my daughter had it written down wrong on the calendar), which makes my stomach churn just thinking about it. Any time I have to communicate with him, I get sweaty and my stomach gets in knots. I keep praying that someday that won't be the case. I have little hope we will ever be one of those sets of parents who become "good friends" down the road or even want to have much of a conversation with each other, outside of what we need to regarding the kids, but I do hope that it will settle enough that I don't want to throw up every time I have to talk to him or text him. He is very manipulative and really does not have the ability to think about anyone but himself. Or, if he is thinking about someone else it's only because he is worried about how they will make him look. It has taken me since he told me he wanted the divorce and hours of therapy to admit that he was verbally and emotionally abusive to me and the kids. I know I was not perfect in our marriage (who is?) and I know I could have done many things differently. I was SO very depressed and anxiety filled that in the end it was all I could do to keep it together for the kids. And that is what I poured myself into, the kids. So, while I know I could have done better and I blame myself for so many things, at the end of the day, he chose, several years ago, to start putting effort and energy into another relationship while pretty much ignoring me and the kids. I begged for counseling and he refused. I asked him to go to dr.s appointments with me to more understand depression and he didn't have time. I am still trying to get out of the fog. And, he now wants to be "Disneyland Dad" to show everyone he is a great parent and is more qualified to have the kids more than I do. I am all for all kids, not just mine, having a healthy relationship with both parents, but so many times that is not that case, and it certainly isn't for me. I don't understand why people can say things like (Frog you are so fortunate to be out from that abuse) but then think that it's ok for kids (mine and kids in general who are in these situations) to be forced to be in it still. No, FH (and I am would bet many other parents, moms and dads) wasn't just awful to me, he was awful to the kids, and even when it was directed only to me, the kids saw the behavior and were being taught it's ok to be treated like that or to treat someone like that. He also had the nerve to tell me that the kids should not be in the middle just because he and I are done, and that they should have a say in their lives...um ok, but he tells my daughter she has to get a court order to even take her own items out of her room at his house or that if she doesn't want to come over she also needs a court order, yet when he wants to see them extra says they should get to choose.

Ok, off my soapbox now, my apologies if I offended anyone, I am super sensitive today.

Take care everyone. I think we have a few who are headed to Disney soon?

As you write all this out, it will help you to come to terms with things. At first I saw you as 'still in love' and 'hoping things would change'. Now I see you as recognizing where you've been and working to get to a new place that will be better.

I think you've gotten past a lot of that and are making mature decisions for your future. You still need to vent and a lot of what you say here is an outlet for that.

It will take time to get to a good place, but there's a strength in you that will bring you there. Your children are strong also and will help you get there. No, they shouldn't have to go through this but time will fix that also.

 

[lynxstch]

@frog3101 --what @Judique said is so true. Keep reading it over and over, and realize that you are getting stronger, even through the bad days. Well said Judique!!

 

[AuntieMe3]

Happy Sunday all....We made it 1000 pages...wow.

I'm finally feeling almost 100% again. I still have an occasional cough totally try and clear some congestion but not nearly as much as before. Yay.

Friday, I ended up doing a thorough cleaning of the main parts of the house. I always felt like we had soo much dog hair that was almost impossible to clean up completely because the boys would just bring it right back, so I dusted, wipe down walls, vacuumed and washed the floors...basically de-dogged most of the house. Then I put out my Halloween decorations. I'm waiting for a Amazon delivery with some fairy lights and batteries to finish up and then maybe I'll share some pics.

Yesterday my sister and niece came for an overnight visit so my dad come over for dinner. I made tacos and then DD ordered everyone some FroYo while we watched Hocus Pocus too and then some other little Halloween shorts on Disney+. I love when they come visit and am going to miss that when they move. They just headed home about 30 mins ago. The main reason they came up was to tell my dad about their upcoming move. My dad sounded a little sad, as he enjoys their visits as much as I do, but he's looking forward to going to visit them once they're up there.

When my dad got here, he brought all 3 of his little dogs with him(2 chihuahuas and a chubby little terrier) so that was nice having them run around the yard. DD usually dog sits when my dad goes out of town so it will be nice for her to be able to bring them here instead of having to stay at his house...she's still a little uncomfortable being there since my mom passed. One of the dogs didn't want to leave when my dad left so she stayed the night with DD but was ready to get home first thing this morning. Soo funny.

This week now that I'm feeling better, I'm hoping to see the baby...I haven't seen her in a couple weeks and miss her sweet face.

Hope you all have good rest of the day.

 

[dazedx3]

I agree, with Judique, so much growth in the way you talk now than earlier. I am so proud of you frog3101!!
We are in Maine now, so beautiful! The fall colors are so vibrant. I wish it was a little warmer, but oh well. We went to Freeport today and went to the LL Bean outlet store, still too pricey for me, I’m kinda cheap. The rental house is lovely, right on the water. it has water on 3 sides, with sailboats moored all around. It took us 3 days to drive here, which was tiring, can’t do road-trips like we used to.

 

[PollyannaMom]

- Wow!!

 

[flyingdumbo127]

to 1000 pages indeed! And a most sincere extra thanks to God, Who brought us altogether to begin with and has kept us a family ever since. to all of you as well, you know that. Thanks to God, dad's flu shot went fine this morning. He was disappointed to learn Target no longer is giving out the $5 gift card when you get a flu shot. He was told that he would have needed to have gone to a CVS store to get the shot and then the $5 would be off of $25. Not at all what we were expecting. Oh well.

extra to you dear Judique for your loving and wise words to Frog. Amen! Frog, I, too, am so very proud of you and your kiddos, too!

that you are feeling so much better, AuntieMe3. Also, so grateful you got to have some extra family andtime. my friend.

Dazed, 3 days of travel would not be something positive for me either. Much that you and Kris find much peace and fun on your vacation. Thinking of you.

Lynn and PollyannaMom, hugs always to the two of you as well, and prayers your afternoon has been happy so far.

Love to all.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Jeez, I feel like I’ve been writing this all day! Started this morning…

It’s nice that some of you can help frog from personal experience. After reading her post today, I just want to say to frog, don’t feel bad, we all do the best we can do as we traverse the ups and downs on the road of life, and parenthood. None of us are perfect, and we really don’t have to be. You weren’t the one who left the marriage, and I’m sure your kids will see and better understand that over time, if they don’t already. You also don’t have to apologize for any emotional difficulties you had, it happens, and your partner is supposed to support you through that, as per the vow he took in front of everyone. It sounds like he only wanted it when it was good for him. Doesn’t work that way, unfortunately. What I get from the story is that he doesn’t have much integrity. Just keep working on yours. That’s what’s important for your kids to see.

Lynn, I don’t like the sound of those boys coming to your door that late at night. Sounds a bit sketchy looking for an iPhone charger. I probably would’ve called the police to let them know about them in case they were possibly up to no good (or maybe they needed some help). Reminds me of something funny I saw the other day. The Amazon guy came to deliver something and saw the two dogs sitting at the door looking out, so he started animatedly talking to them. It made me smile. Then Grady decided he’d had enough of that, and barked at him. Just a woof or two, nothing ferocious, but enough to say “I’m not sure about you, now go away!” (Toto was ready to go out for pats.) I hope there’s nothing on your news about break-ins, robberies, or anything like that! Just seems funny at that time, on a Saturday night, no car seen, etc. Auntie, we are back to having the tumbleweeds that we didn’t have for a long time. We try to stay on top of it but it hides. I’m glad you had some doggie visitors this weekend.

DH, who is feeling back to normal, is making me spaghetti and meatballs tonight, which I’ve been craving. It smells so good cooking. (Lots of garlic.) Today is the first day I’ve felt like eating. (Maybe I lost a few lbs!) We ordered take out the other night from a place we don’t go to too much (one of my favorite places closed ) and I got a sample of their meatballs which they say are ‘homemade’. They actually weren’t bad, and were homemade, but we all agreed that DH’s are better (and a heck of a lot less expensive ), so that put the idea in our head, lol. I’ve been collecting a lot of recipes I want to try. Looking forward to getting some energy back. I watched half a movie the other night on my iPad but couldn’t get into it. (Father Stu.) I couldn’t stand not knowing how it turned out though (since I’d read it was really good) so I read the synopsis online and now I want to finish the last hour. Maybe tonight if I can’t sleep. I am not a big movie or TV person, I guess.

Enjoy your Sunday evening, everyone! Sending prayers for everyone.

 

[Snowysmom]

@dazedx3 Glad to hear you are enjoying Maine and the Fall colors are out. 3 days on the road does not sound like fun but the destination is worth it. Enjoy, relax, and have a good time.

@FlyingDumbo Glad your Dad's flu shot went well. I got a $5 off $20 at CVS coupon when I got my flu shot. Too bad Target doesn't do it any more.

@AuntieMe3 Happy to hear that you are feeling better.

@Judique Very wise words for Frog.

Wow! 1000 pages. That is an accomplishment.

I had lunch with Jeff and as usual he has very good advice. I am going to mull over moving for a while as to when and where. Jeff did bring up the issue that if I am living in Kenny's area 45 minutes away that Jeff and Aimee would not be as available to help me if I needed it and Kenny has a very busy schedule which does not allow him alot of time to help. Right now that would not be an issue but down the road it could be. He did bring up that maybe it is more the place itself that I live in that may be what I need to focus on. If I found a townhouse that spoke to me and that I really felt like I could make a home, it may not matter if it is in another town around here or out near Kenny. He suggested looking in both places and then think of how I would feel living in a particular area if I found a good town house. He is a wise young man. I will slow down a bit and really think about my options and talk with the kids again. No one is buying during the holiday season so I have time.

Have a good evening.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Good evening, friends,

Dadfor a very sore arm after his flu shot Otherwise, he's doing just fine for which, of course, we are so grateful! Dad's description of the sugar cookies Pavilion's had ready for him to pick-up sounded anything but appetizing to me! Needless to say, he did not waste money on them. This is an extra blessing in disguise all-around mostly because dad is now free (I sure pray he will) stay home tomorrow! A week from tomorrow works a ton better for others involved as well, so win there, too. We have now all week to decide whether to try a Pavilion's one final time or depending on weather bake or own. All good.

I enjoyed listening to Christmas music earlier from 's dad got me from the library. Emmanuel (Hallowed Manger Ground) sung by Chris Tomlin was a wonderful new song find. Our was uncooperative in playing (made a horrible noise) another CD that worked just fine on dad's bedside CD player (one that plugs in) Even CD's can be temperamental, lol.

Did I share on here before two frightening late-night knocks at the door YEARS ago? One when I was living in a small town in Northern, CA and the other while visiting my grandma in Houston? I will just say always better to be safe! Thank God, I was and so was grandma, btw. I have read in books and heard that some town's police departments come into schools and churches to speak to youth particularly about a variety of things. The idea, of course, is so that the kids and community see the police as the caring people they are as opposed to a force that is either all-bad/unkind or unapproachable.

Dear Lynn, I think, this could be an extra reason for you to consider letting your police department know what happened last night. Perhaps when any officers speak with youth, one of the topics can be, of course, the kids' own safety particularly at night along with respect for others and the time. Not to mention discussing what an emergency really is particularly later at night! Just a suggestion. Beyond thankful to God that you and Don were A-okay! Please don't do that to us again. We love you and need you to be safe!

Pea, I truly hope you and your husband enjoyed every bite of your So glad you were up to enjoying it and that your DH was feeling well to prepare itITA with what you said to Frog as well! Precious all-around!

Snowysmom. Jeff gave you very wise advice indeed. I agree with him. Take your time. Look around both areas, check out at least couple places in each area as you also navigate the community both in terms of activities and shopping nearby. Know always, we are all here for you!

Sweet Dreams, everyone.

 

[Breezy_Carol]

Good evening.

Still up late because the Ravens had and 8:15 kick off.

Wanted to be sure I got in on page 1000.

Friday night went well with the kids until 2 am. Kids went to bed and asleep about 9:30 after a good evening. Then Carter called for Grandmom at 2 and I went in to him, same at 2:10 and 2:20 so I laid down on the guest bed in the room with his pack and play. And he started talking, about anything and everything. Aunt Jen and Uncle Andrew, pictures on the wall. He woke up Tessa in the next room so she came in and laid on the bed with me. We were awake until 5:30. Carter actually ended up sleeping on the floor after throwing everything out of the pack and play.

Got up about 7:30. Made chocolate chip pancakes. Then we went to the Fall Fun Fair at Fair Hill. The kids painted pumpkins and we saw some of their animal displays. Got apples to eat and walked around. Then their parents came, in their new car, and picked them up about 1.

We picked up the house, had lunch, went to do church duties, then out to dinner, Church this morning. Then laundry and to Bath and Body Works for $3.50 hand soaps. Cooked out for dinner and now football and catching up.

Will only do a minor catch up as I am tired.

where we have our RV.

I was going to ask in what part of the country you lived....

it's chilly in the midwest this morning

....but you answered.

my Disney trip next week.

So exciting! Did you get ADRs at Tusker House. That was our favorite meal, both food and characters.

dinner at The Melting Pot

Sound like a good idea that didn't work out so well.

Two of our beautiful granddaughter

So many home coming pictures on my facebook feed this weekend. Nice looking girls but dresses are so short now. (I must be getting old.)

off my soapbox now, my apologies if I offended anyone,

Feel free to vent whenever. And no need to apologize.

As you write all this out, it will help you to come to terms with things.

Judique had good words of wisdom.

We are in Maine now, so beautiful! The fall colors are so vibrant.

Glad you are safely there and the colors are good. Enjoy!

Going to watch the rest of the game in bed I think.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Lynn, I had mentioned the people coming to your door looking for an iPhone charger to my DD, and she said she’d seen that on Reddit, where people were doing it to scope out houses. Not to get you scared on anything, but just to inform. I did look it up on Reddit and saw several threads about scams like that. I’d post it but some of the language isn’t Dis-friendly! Definitely call the police if it happens again! (And maybe call them to let them know about it happening this time so they can keep an eye out for it!) Stay safe! I don’t care how nice looking they are! (Ted Bundy!)

Dazed, I’m so glad you and your family are enjoying your trip to Maine! Hope to see lots of pictures!

Carole, too funny about the grandkids. Sounds cozy! And chocolate chip pancakes at 7am after all that! Impressed!

Snowysmom, I agree with Jeff and flyingdumbo. Your biggest challenge might not be where you live, but finding somewhere that feels like home without Chris being there with you. I think you’re on the right track sticking near Jeff and Aimee, though. Not only is Kenny busy with work and kids, but at some point he’ll probably working on another relationship, won’t he? Your being near Jeff might take some of the pressure off him since Jeff is more on auto-pilot. His wife seems supportive, too, so they’re a nice “team”. You have friends in your area, too, right? Those relationships are important, too. I know it’s painful right now to go to old familiar places, but I’m sure there are lots of newer places around to try where you are, too. I’m always discovering new places! At any rate, I think it’s good to mull all this stuff over. We care!

Dinner was tasty but I still don’t have much of an appetite. The meatballs will be better tomorrow, anyway!

Night, all.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

I was going to ask in what part of the country you lived....
....but you answered.


So many home coming pictures on my facebook feed this weekend. Nice looking girls but dresses are so short now. (I must be getting old.)

Yum on the pancakes!!

Lol on my Midwest comment!!

Yessss, I felt like I must be old too! Not only short but super tight too!!!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

So many home coming pictures on my facebook feed this weekend. Nice looking girls but dresses are so short now. (I must be getting old.)

Yessss, I felt like I must be old too! Not only short but super tight too!!!

There was a thread on the CB on that subject last week!

 

[Snowysmom]

Good Morning. 44 degrees here this morning. Still no heat or hot water. I am praying that they get a cancellation or reschedule so they come and fix my pipes today. Not likely but just hoping. The thermostat says 70 degrees in here but I think it is a couple of degrees to high. But still OK. I am on the schedule to fix the pipes tomorrow.

Carol I did get Tusker House reservations so looking forward to that. The kids should like it. I have lunch reservations.

Have a good day.

 

[Judique]

Happy Sunday all....We made it 1000 pages...wow.

I'm finally feeling almost 100% again. I still have an occasional cough totally try and clear some congestion but not nearly as much as before. Yay.

Friday, I ended up doing a thorough cleaning of the main parts of the house. I always felt like we had soo much dog hair that was almost impossible to clean up completely because the boys would just bring it right back, so I dusted, wipe down walls, vacuumed and washed the floors...basically de-dogged most of the house. Then I put out my Halloween decorations. I'm waiting for a Amazon delivery with some fairy lights and batteries to finish up and then maybe I'll share some pics.

Yesterday my sister and niece came for an overnight visit so my dad come over for dinner. I made tacos and then DD ordered everyone some FroYo while we watched Hocus Pocus too and then some other little Halloween shorts on Disney+. I love when they come visit and am going to miss that when they move. They just headed home about 30 mins ago. The main reason they came up was to tell my dad about their upcoming move. My dad sounded a little sad, as he enjoys their visits as much as I do, but he's looking forward to going to visit them once they're up there.

When my dad got here, he brought all 3 of his little dogs with him(2 chihuahuas and a chubby little terrier) so that was nice having them run around the yard. DD usually dog sits when my dad goes out of town so it will be nice for her to be able to bring them here instead of having to stay at his house...she's still a little uncomfortable being there since my mom passed. One of the dogs didn't want to leave when my dad left so she stayed the night with DD but was ready to get home first thing this morning. Soo funny.

This week now that I'm feeling better, I'm hoping to see the baby...I haven't seen her in a couple weeks and miss her sweet face.

Hope you all have good rest of the day.

I haven't seen my newest granddaughter recently either. I hope to this coming weekend. Son is back to work after his baby leave and Dil is going back soon. After Dil goes back to work son is going to burn some more leave closer to Xmas.

 

[Judique]

Can't decide which chore to do first today. Yardwork or inside work. I think the yard is going to get a little love! So many leaves in the far back of the yard and none of the leaf bearing trees are mine. I guess I'll just mulch them up with the lawnmower as it's so far back.

Last night DD told me she ordered Hello Fresh. I've always wanted to try it out. It should be here on Friday, so I may make lasagna tomorrow and that will mean leftovers for a day at least. I have a packaged salad I should eat today, and there are other use or freeze options.

We will see if she follows through and actually cooks the food! I'm certainly not motivated to cook every night!

 

[Judique]

Looks like it's time to pull up my cherry tomatoes. I stopped gathering them and now there is quite a mess out there. Just needs to be cut up and mulched into my keyhole garden and it will help make new soil. I ate a few yesterday but I think it's time to let them go.

 

[tazdev3225]

Good morning everyone.

Had a busy weekend. Late Thursday I had a call from my daughter who was in the ER with Ben. He was jumping on the top bunk bed and went face first into the ceiling fan. They were going to stitch his eyebrow, but Ben freaked out. She has to keep it glued together. He is a daredevil.

Friday we handed out more letters for donation requests and realized the phone number was wrong. Now we have to go back to the few places we went to earlier in the week and explain the issue and give them a new flyer.

Saturday was Wyatt's Homecoming game. I was so excited for him. They finally won a game, and he played very well, even scored the extra point on one of the touchdowns. He had the biggest smile on his face. My daughter at least got her car repaired and can handle her kids now. I was getting a little annoyed by it all. I love helping out, but I hate feeling like I am they are taking advantage of me instead of figuring things out on their own. Crystal can get a bus to work but always has excuses why she can't. I hate being tough on her, but she is 18 and needs to become a little more self-reliant.

Somewhere in all that I stopped at the tire dealer/auto mechanic to get air in my tires. The sensor was reading low pressure which happens when the weather gets colder. I decided to get the battery checked while I was there, and it needed to be replaced. I was glad I did though. With the cold weather coming upon us it would have died at an inopportune time.

Sunday was church and I took LJ with me. He behaved really well for a toddler and joined 2 little girls for some fun. They all decided to head up to the altar for a bit. My church is very tolerant of the little ones which is a blessing. I have been in churches where the little ones and their families were not treated as nicely. We went to a Halloween event at the local police district, but he was getting tired and wanted to be held the whole time. I took him to my son's house where my grandson was waiting. Then I picked up my husband and headed back to my son's house for football.

This week won't be much better. I need to get more letters out. Do a thorough house cleaning before the trip even though I know I will come home needing to do it again, and I need to figure out meals for my husband for next week. I keep telling him a spoonful of peanut butter does NOT count as a dinner.

I cannot wait to go to Disney on Saturday.

Hope you all have a good day.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I am tired. I went to bed at 9, listened to music on my phone till about 11, and then tossed and turned trying to find a position my back didn't hurt in till almost 4:30. Woke up at 7:00 with one of the cats sitting on me and meowing for breakfast. I will be taking a nap

I think I must have quoted this post yesterday and then not actually inserted it! Hope you got more sleep last night.

Looks like it's time to pull up my cherry tomatoes. I stopped gathering them and now there is quite a mess out there. Just needs to be cut up and mulched into my keyhole garden and it will help make new soil. I ate a few yesterday but I think it's time to let them go.

I have to do that too, and am dawdling. I feel like I'm "killing" them when I do it, so I tend to put it off.

...but I hate feeling like I am they are taking advantage of me instead of figuring things out on their own. Crystal can get a bus to work but always has excuses why she can't. I hate being tough on her, but she is 18 and needs to become a little more self-reliant.

I wonder sometimes if how safety conscious we (as a society) have become with our kids/grandkids in more recent years has us "missing a window" for them to really catch the independence bug? It's as if they just resign themselves to being taken care of.


Have a wonderful trip Disney!!

 

[footballmouse]

Good Monday morning!

Worked 3rd shift this weekend so I'm exhausted today. We had the baby shower yesterday so I was only able to get about 2 hours of sleep yesterday morning.

The baby shower was really nice . We had it at a park and it was combined with our family picnic. It was nice to see my nephews kids. I don't really see them that much since we don't get together for Thanksgiving or Xmas. My youngest great-nephew, Max just turned a year old, we had a fun little game of peek-a-boo going on. Evan and Bailey received a lot of nice gifts. I'll post a picture of the toy box that I gave them. A friend at work made the toy box and another friend painted it.

Snowysmom - hard decision you have about moving. Hopefully you can think about this without causing too much stress for yourself.

Frog - hang in there, hopefully one day the two of you can at least be on speaking terms when it comes to the kids.

Taz - how exciting for your upcoming Disney trip.

A friend of mine at work is headed to Disney in January , she was asking for my help with details. She couldn't decide on a character breakfast, deciding between Chef Mickey, Topolino's or Tusker House. I've only had Chef Mickey but heard good reviews on the other two, does anyone have experience at them?

Congrats on 1000 pages!

Starting to see some emails coming in so I guess I need to get back to work. Have a great day!