all together

we are all safe and sound at tech mom & dad's. great-gramma made it here yesterday. after running some errands this morning, we hit the road and made it in good time. caslon and photo guy arrived about 3 hours later, after changing a flat tire when they had driven 5 of their 6 hour trip. a couple of hours after that, crt and computer guy arrived with monarch and purple princess. baby bear fought valiantly to stay awake to see her cousins, but after chasing princess up the steps and around the living room and dining room, she crashed around 8:15. her cousins walked in the door by the time hubby and i came back down.

be forwarned, my psuedonyms for my family will probably vary. especially the non-blogging ones.

princess the beige cat wants to be with us on her own terms. she did hide from baby bear for a little while, but now that the little ones are in their beds, she is in the middle of the living room floor. i'm sure she wants us to know this is her kingdom, she reigns, and nothing will change that. she's declawed in front, she is not a farm cat. (the birds that congregate on the trees in the back yard taunt her, as do the goldfish in the water garden.)

great-gramma's hearing is getting worse. she refuses to wear her hearing aid. so we either have to speak very loudly and repeat ourselves, or speak quietly enough so she doesn't realize we're talking. tech dad and i agree that she treasures the company and while she could retire for the evening, she did not travel hundreds of miles from her home to be by herself upstairs. so we smile, and when the time is right, converse. sometimes she falls asleep in the middle of our conversation, but that's alright. it is so nice to have her here with her only daughter and 3 great-granddaughters. her shoulder is healing well. she cannot lift it as high as she could with the one God gave her, but the one the surgeons gave her enables her to throw wood in the furnace in the cellar like she used to. she is doing great for an 86-year old woman.

caslon (peridot rose) brought gingerbread house kits for monarch and purple princess to assemble tomorrow. tech mom almost poisoned her only daughter with pesto, which contains finely ground pine nuts. thankfully, caslon read the label on the pesto jar before all the pasta was covered in it, so there was no need for her epi-pen (sp?) tonight. i'm also trying to figure out how difficult it is to leave nuts out of partial batches treats, but thankfully crt brought fudge with no nuts, so caslon won't be completely deprived. on the other hand, at least tech mom made treats, unlike myself... caslon handles it well. hubby keeps offering his younger sister the nut-infested treats, as any loving big brother would do.

i'm on tech mom's laptop, sitting back in her deep-red leather recliner with my feet propped up. there are 9 adults and 3 children in the house, and tech dad has set up extra seating with some folding chairs like you'd bring to a ball game or camping. i suppose i'll share the recliner at some point this weekend. the buzz of conversation under lamplight and white Christmas tree lights is like music.

it's nice to be here with some of our loved ones. to be able to kick back, relax, and talk about... whatever. i don't take it for granted. a good friend's son is stranded in denver, inkling is with her beloved but far from her other loved ones.

i'm not sure how often i'll be on this week. i am addicted, so i may find myself claiming any laptop that is in sight as my own. or maybe my family will send my to blogger's anonymous and banish me from my beloved hobby.