7 Kids, 2 grandkids, 1 on-the-way, 2 cats, Mom, and Dad

Did some cleaning or Losing my steam.

I admit it...I'm in a slump. Since Beautiful Wife has started her battle with cancer I've been doing it all...cleaning, dishes, cooking, laundry, snow removal, etc.

My solution...just fake it until you make it. I think I need to tackle some of the storage areas with trash bags so that I have a place to put things away. I hate clutter. Once I get rid of clutter in an area it is so much easier to clean.

The problem...BW and the Princesses are all fully-grown clutter generators.

Beautiful Wife left her plate on the table after having some slices of honeydew melon. Fizban decided to check it out. After a couple of tentative licks, she licked both pieces thoroughly and then decided to tuck in for a snack.

Out my window or What can I say...

I spend a lot of time in my office.

This is a picture of how it looks when the sun is starting to get low, around 4pm in the afternoon.

Cold Morning or How cold was it?

It was -5 degrees Fahrenheit this morning when I pulled out of my driveway. The wind chill was probably closer to -20 and it was the kind of cold that makes your nose feel like the inside of your nostrils are going to freeze together when you breathe.

Winter time or Beware the snow snake!

My kids always wanted to go outside without the right gear (boots, mittens, hat, etc) to play in the snow. I used to tell them that they had to beware the snow snakes because if one bit you, you'd end up with frostbite.

They weren't sure what frostbite was, really, but getting bit by any kind of snake sounded bad.

My new coffee shop or The good with the bad.

There's a coffee shop in the hospital where Beautiful Wife gets her chemo treatments.

The good news is that they have Harvey's Bakery baked goods. My favorite is the maple round.

The bad news is that they serve Starbuck's coffee.

Same view or Let it snow!

This is the same view from my office while it snowed this morning. They canceled school for the princesses so they've been taking it easy all day.

Good morning or What I see when I start my day.

This is the view from my office window facing the back yard.

Love season premiers or I feel downright normal.

Beautiful Wife and I watched the season premier of the TV show Monk.

Tony Shalhoub really does make the show. I wondered if I'd still like it since Sharona wasn't going to return this season. The good news is that it is still a fun show to watch for our entire family.

All of the Princesses watch and try to be the one that notices the first significant clue that tips you off to the solution of the mystery.

When you only have a little space or Keep the tail out of my way.

I bought a wireless mouse the other day and I like it. The receiver plugs into a USB port and it was easy to install. Prior to installing the wireless mouse I used the nubbin in the center of my keyboard to do mouse activities.

The WM is a pleasure to use and easier on my hand too.

Now I need to get a USB hub. I have the wireless mouse, a printer, a headset to use with the phone software on my laptop, and a PDA that all need a USB port, and I only have two on the laptop.

Little sore today or Back in the dojo again.

I went back to karate class last night. The last time I attended class was November 3rd (we have attendance cards). We found out the next day that Beautiful Wife was scheduled for lung surgery on November 11th and I haven't gone since.

Things have changed. We now have two changing rooms. We used to have to wait in line for the bathroom in order to change. Changes have been made to the kyu ranks way of being graded and promoted. I'll have to review all of that before I start teaching again.

The best thing, as far as I'm concerned, is that black belt class now lasts for an hour instead of 45 minutes like it did before. I'm almost to the end of Chatanyara no Sai kata. I practiced it all the time before I had to take time off and last night muscle memory kicked in and I did pretty well. I learned about 10 more moves that I have to work on remembering now.

Son has a friend that is going to college in Keene. Friend used to take lessons at the same dojo and asked Son to continue teaching him until he gets his blackbelt when he comes home during breaks. Son is busy with work and school and no longer goes to the dojo so he's asked me to teach him.

Karate has been the best thing that has ever happened to us. How many dads have their 19-year-old son asking them to teach them anything?

A small price to pay or You can't do this pot-luck.

I've read, seen, and heard all kinds of moaning and groaning over the 40 million dollar price tag for the inauguration.

Give me a break. Can we really afford, as a nation, to look like we can't celebrate our democracy in a world-class way? In this age of constant and instantaneous media coverage can we afford to have the President and his family seen blowing up balloons and making finger-food for the balls?

I'm sure all the media types are not turning back in their press credentials and skipping any of the events they can cover because of the price tag.

Network Voice Over: Welcome to Hypocritical Version of News with your anchor, Dan Truthstretcher.

Dan (straightening lapels and brushing dandruff off of tux): I'm here at my third Presidential Inaugural Ball and I have to tell you, all of this gourmet food makes me feel really bad for those tsunami victims. I couldn't eat a second dessert because I was so upset.

Dan grabbing champagne glass off of a tray...

Dan: I have to tell you, that as soon as I sober up I'm going to really dig into the President's National Guard records. How can we possibly believe he has nothing to hide after seeing the amount of champagne that is flowing here?

Dan holds hand to ear and listens to hidden ear piece...

Dan: Ladies and gentlemen...this just in...We have word that there is even better champagne reserved for the big donors to his campaign. Obviously, this is a cover-up of astronomical proportions. I won't rest until I find the facts I need to prove my agenda (CUT! Let me try that again). I won't rest until I find the facts I need to prove that the lying SOB (CUT!)....(CUT!)...right-wing agenda (CUT!)...Listen, I don't have time for this, I need to go check out this better champagne angle before they run out!

What do you make of this or What visits the yard while we sleep.

I went outside today and looked at some of the prints in our yard. I didn't stay outside too long since I didn't put on a coat and it is only about six degrees Fahrenheit.

I thought at first that I saw the prints of a big cat like a bobcat but then realized that it was the print of a teenage deer. As the deer walked through the snow it would drag its hooves, much like a human teenager shuffles through the mall, and leave claw-like marks in the snow.

If it isn't one thing or If it isn't one thing...

Beautiful Wife is being treated for thrush, which is the bird-like name given for a yeast infection of the mouth. This is one of those "side-effects" that you find out later most people have but isn't serious enough to mention.

Unfortunately, BW has a real "thing" with things that taste or smelly "funny" so this is a problem. Also, it can affect swallowing and that is a problem too. Fortunately, she has a friend that she can call that just went through chemo. That friend told her to call the doctor right away and she did.

The doctor gave her a prescription and she says that it isn't getting worse and actually feels a bit better after less than 24 hours on the meds.

The worse part of the whole thing is how you have to take the medicine. It is a liquid and she takes one teaspoon, swishes it around her mouth, holds it in there as long as she can stand, and then swallows it!

The kids think this is payback for all of the awful medicines she made them take when they were younger.

Another picture or This was just "having fun."

Beautiful Wife did this painting on canvas using acrylics. She applied multiple layers of color to get the effect that she wanted.

When you're feeling sick or I couldn't do this feeling my best.

Beautiful Wife painted this on canvas using acrylics. She paints while feeling nauseous from chemo to help keep her mind off of it.

An intense show or That thing you do when you're scared.

We were watching Lost tonight and there was one part that made us all jump.

Youngest Daughter said, "It made my heart skip a jump!"

Things I don't do or I do wash my hands.

When I use a public bathroom I don't:

- spit in the urinal when I walk up to it
- flush before I go
- hold on to the flushing handle
- lean on the wall
- talk to the person next to me
- pick my nose
- wipe it on the wall
- put my bottle of water on back of the urinal
- put anything on the back of the urinal

I do go to the bathroom, make sure my zipper is up, wash my hands, and hope that someone is coming in when I leave so I don't have to touch the door handle.

Pumping gas or Maybe self serve isn't for you.

Oldest Daughter was upset the other night because it was taking so long for the gas to pump and fill the tank on the car she was driving.

There is a solution to that problem...press that big button in front of the type of gas you want to pump!

She didn't say how long it took for her to figure that out...

Counting or Barney would be so sad.

Overheard at a basketball game...

Oldest Daughter: OMG Bree! Did you see that...it was a three pointer.
Bree: Uh...no...it was a two pointer.
Oldest Daughter: No...the score was 9 and now it is 11
Bree: *stare*
Oldest Daughter: You know...9..10..11...three points...
Bree: *stare*
Oldest Daughter: OH.....OMG...I'm SO stupid!

The Mighty Huntress or I'm sharing with you like a good girl!

I woke up this morning and saw Fizban laying on th floor by my slippers. I turned on a light and there, perched on top of my slipper, was a dead mouse. Her little kitty cat face glowed with pride as I picked up the slipper and then tossed the mouse out the back door.

When I came back in the living room she looked at me like she couldn't believe I had eaten it that quickly. "Dude, take your time...nobody's going to steal it from you!"

Fighting cancer or It is a battle.

I was thinking about the people I've seen during our time at the clinic so far. Each patient has a smile or small wave for us and some share tidbits of advice about topics ranging from constipation to the cost of prescriptions. When they are in the treatment bed they almost always have an introspective look about them that reminds you of the seriousness of what is going on there. Every one of them is in a fight to defeat cancer. Some are only hoping to improve their quality of life while some, like Beautiful Wife, hope to eradicate it from their body. All are determined and take the fight seriously.

The caregivers are on the front lines as the buffer for the patient. The patient puts their energy into the fight, the caregiver is there to battle anything that affects their loved one's ability to fight. Sometimes the battle is as simple as finding salt & vinegar chips because that is what their loved one wants. I was getting coffee and a mother came to the coffee shop in tears because the machine took her money but didn't give her the chips that her daughter undergoing treatment wanted. I went with her to the machine and after some coaxing with additional money and a few judicious "taps" of my fist the machine gave up and delivered the chips. Now, when I see that mother, we share a quick smile of a battle won, even though it was only for a bag of chips.

As a caregiver you become efficient in the battles and are less willing to give the benefit-of-the-doubt, bite your tongue, or worry about hurting anyone's feelings. You are in a battle against cancer and your loved one is the prize. Everything else pales in comparison and social niceties no longer matter when faced with such a ruthless assailant.

However, a caregiver has to learn to be gracious and accept help when it is offered. I still find it difficult to reach out and ask for help but I've become better at accepting it when it is offered. Every act of kindness helps me to not become so hard that I feel nothing at all. It injects humanity into an inhumane process and helps me to remember what the fight is about. I don't fight so that I can beat the doctors into the ground or offend family members, I fight so that Beautiful Wife can end these treatments cancer-free and go to Disney, Italy, and France with me...so that we can walk in the snow...something she loves but that we can't do even though it blankets the ground where we live.

Pecan-like flavor or Buddy can you spare a decade or two.

I bought a bottle of 2001 EOS Zinfandel Port yesterday.

I read the winemaker's notes and he suggests drinking it now through 2008 or letting it age for 10-20 years if you enjoy tawny port with a pecan-like flavor.

I didn't know that when I bought the wine but I think it definitely enhances its coolness. I may have to buy a couple more bottles to save for 10 and 20 years just to see how it turns outs.

I think I'll wait until I try this bottle first though just in case it doesn't live up to the winemaker's hype. I looked in WS for a rating or review but they didn't have one. I don't want to buy wines solely on their rating system, but it is a good place to start.

So if I like this and get a couple more bottles we'll have a wine dinner in 10 years for our good friends so we can see how things went. We may have some Bordeaux wines that are ready to drink by then too.

Hey, I have a full tank or The snow and grill.

I decided to take the cover off of the gas grill and start it up. It is a Weber purchased at the end of the summer and I am so glad that I bought it.

One click of the auto-start button and the grill lighted, warmed, and awaited my offering of steak. I warmed it up by putting some massive potatoes on it that I purchased at Market Basket earlier.

It was surreal to go outside to check on the baked potatoes and then the steak when snow was falling so heavily.

A momentous occasion or It was so comfortable.

I slept in our bed for the first time last night since Beautiful Wife came home from her surgery, over seven weeks ago. I've been sleeping on the downstairs couch with only Fizban keeping me periodic company.

Buddy, the cat that barely tolerates my presence, looked like he was deeply offended this morning as he glared at me from the safety of the other side of BW's body. He's had her all to himself during this time and has actually even gotten used to me petting him on the way in and out of the room. Obviously, he assumed he "won" and that I had retreated to the couch downstairs so he was gracious in victory.

I went to move my arm from under the covers and he fled in terror. I had to be the one that gave him medicine right after we got him and he's never gotten over it.

It was hard to sleep at first since I feared that I'd disturb her or accidentally bump her when I rolled over.

Plus...I was on the wrong side of the bed...

Sleepover Party or I will survive!

Youngest Daughter had her cousin sleep over last night. Middle and Oldest Daughters had four cheerleading friends sleep over too. I am always grateful at how well insulated this house is regarding sound. It is possible to retreat to the bedroom, close the door, and not hear a thing that is going on elsewhere in the house.

I got up this morning and made frozen waffles (done eight at a time under the broiler) and turkey bacon. I decided to try turkey bacon since it bugs me so much that I buy a pound of bacon so that I can throw away 10 ounces of fat and get only six ounces of "meat" out of the deal. I had one tiny spot of fat that made it to the drip tray and the slices were only fractionally smaller after cooking.

The best part...it really tasted just as good.

One other note...high school girls love bacon.

Snow removal or By any name it is a pain.

When did a snow-blower become a snow-thrower?

I had a cousin from a more southern state opinion that it must not be too hard to do snow removal since I have a snow-blower.

Obviously, she's never put on boots and then slipped and slided up and down the driveway while trying to steer something that doesn't have a steering mechanism other than brute force.

Watched Lost or Prime time is getting good.

Beautiful Wife, her Sister (not the crazy one), her mother (has periods of craziness) and I watched "Lost" last night.

In one scene a couple of the characters come upon a waterfall and pool of water and decide to go swimming. The male character strips off his shirt but leaves on his jeans. The female character strips off her jeans to reveal tiny black panties with strings on the side but leaves on her tank top.

There was then plenty of shots with her swimming, climbing rocks, and generally moving around showing her ass...ets to their best advantage.

There was also another character in her tiny bikini that decided to sunbathe with her top off (didn't get to see the nippular area).

And I can remember when it was amazing when Cheryl Ladd climbed on the boat with her bikini...Now we get to see panties and they are moving around in them!

It is getting to the point that you have to send your kids to another room in order to watch TV at 8pm. Even then they are likely to see a Victoria's Secret commercial that is way racier than what used to be in the catalog when they started out.

No school today or It is supposed to get worse.

I got up this morning and got to tell The Daughters that school is canceled for today. So far, they are giggling with glee since this is the biggest school cancellation sham in history.

I've heard that south and west of us they are already blanketed with snow. It is starting to snow harder here now but they could have easily attended half a day at this point.

Oh well, at least the princesses got to sleep in so maybe they'll be in better moods when they talk to daddy.

I am having trouble reading or Glasses won't help.

If I put her bed on the floor she jumps up on my desk and then cries. She didn't see any problem with flicking her tail in front of my screen.

She has time on her hands or We'll call this the oxycontin period.

This is an acrylic painting, on a canvas board, that Mary did of a scene she paused on the TV last week. She was playing with color and seeing how different combinations looked next to each other.