THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER : VOLUME 149   JANUARY 2023

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL! 

 

Dear Readers,

 We welcomed our newest family member:

CILLIAN RYAN LOWE

BORN NOVEMBER 28TH 2022

WEIGHT 7 LBS  10 OZS

 

Congratulations to Sarah and Sean on the birth of their third son and fourth child in under four years. His name is pronounced with a hard K instead of a soft C and his middle name is in honor of his Uncle Joshua Ryan! I think he most resembles his oldest brother Liam although he is much fairer in complexion and has strawberry blonde hair!  Lochlan is far more interested and loving towards this baby then Emmy Lou or Liam! 

On December 12th Kay underwent a double mastectomy and is now cancer free! She will undergo reconstructive surgery in early April,  and be  prescribed Tamoxifen for five years.  Over her summer break she will  undergo surgery  to remove her fallopian tubes. Kay and Richard have been absolutely amazing throughout this whole experience and been blessed with a lot of support from family and friends!.They were showered  with everything from meal delivery services to every possible aid for mastectomy patients. Coryn and Jermy secured a power reclining chair for her from a local breast cancer support charity to sleep in for the first  few weeks after surgery. Unfortunately the first chair the Logues delivered did not work so after hauling it up the  Flaig’s very steep and narrow staircase they had to haul it back, pick up another chair and get it upstairs again! But it was definitely worth the hassle:  Kay found it so comfortable that she and Richard have since purchased one so that she will have it  on hand for her upcoming surgeries,

Thanksgiving was hosted by Coryn and Jeremy and they roasted their first turkey together for our wonderful feast! Coryn’ s table decor was beautiful and she used her best china so we had to hand wash and try it after our meal and fortunately Ming Jon was with us and turned out to be a dab hand at drying dishes! He  flew out for the week to spend some time with Kay especially before her surgery and with all the airline flight disruptions to come over Christmas  he definitely picked the right holiday to visit!

The first weekend in December I  turned my home into a set fit for a Hallmark Christmas Movie - not that  I watch those sappy romance films ! I was expecting the Remsburgs, the Indy Lowes and Bryn to be here for the holidays so I was motivated to create a winter wonderland both outside and inside  my home.  Richard kindly hauled my four sections of Christmas tree up from the basement and helped me set it up. It took me three days to cover it in lights and decorations and I was especially proud of the new rustic country bow I made for the top - very Joanna Gaines inspired!  Liam, Lochlan and Alex’s faces lit up with delight when they came through my front door and saw thousands of white lights , shiny ornaments hanging from the tree, numerous wreaths, the mantlepiece and stairs,  Christmas themed toys, books and even Christmas  pillows and throws on the sofas and chairs! Ava and Owen, being older, remember most of my decorations from previous years and were  a tad less enthused but greatly enjoyed teasing me about my ‘Elf on the Shelf’ which they assured me was definitely a fake as they threatened to bake him in the oven or flush him down the toilet. Such charming children.

 Emmy Lou took one look at my Christmas tree and informed me that a witch was sitting on top of it. I asked if she didn’t like my beautiful bow with  trailing ribbons down the tree but she answered  that the witch was sitting on it so she couldn't see it!  Of course I gave an Oscar worthy performance enacting my fury at a witch daring to be in my house past Halloween but she appeared every time Emmy Lou visited in December! Of course her parents tree at her home has a Yeti on top of it and a pair of elf legs sticking out of the branches that move if you walk by them! I am sure that this fuels her appetite for more ghoulish decorations!

It was most fortunate that I had finished my Christmas decorating by the first week in December as from then on Sarah and Sean’s children were sick for weeks battling the flu - with Sean and Sarah also needing a visit to emergency care for prescription medications ! Of course their biggest concern was keeping newborn Cillian from becoming sick but  he remained healthy - probably due to the antibodies he was born with and the protection afforded by being breastfed.

The most frightening health scare came on Saturday, December 17th when I was checking out at The Hen House and got  a tearful  phone call from Sarah to let me know that Emmy Lou had suffered a seizure, was non responsive and was enroute to the hospital in an ambulance with Sean. Sarah was going to drop the three boys off with me and join Sean at the hospital - so conveniently located a couple  of blocks away from me. I went into full Grandma panic mode as tears sprung to my eyes as I dashed through the parking lot, fortuitously remembering to throw my groceries into my car as I burned rubber peeling out of the parking lot  feeling sick to my stomach at the thought of anything happening to my beloved Emmy Lou. When Sarah pulled into my driveway I dashed out to her van to help bring the babies in so she could get to  the hospital as quickly as possible. IIf Cillian needed to nurse I would text her immediately so she could return to feed him.

 Fortunately Sean soon texted that Emy Lou was responsive and that the doctors said this often happens in small children when they experience a dramatic rise in temperature in a short period of time.  After a few hours of being in the Emergency Room  she tested positive for the flu and was discharged.  Sean and Sarah took her home and then Sarah returned to my house and elected to spend the night with the boys as Sean wanted to fumigate their house and keep a close watch on Emmy Lou: despite the doctor’s assurances that she would be fine Sean was so worried that she would suffer another seizure that he set an alarm for every hour throughout the night to check on her - no doubt this lack of sleep contributed to his sinus infection shortly after this ordeal.

Emmy Lou with Sean at the Emergency Room! 

The following day, December the 18th, was Emmy Lou’s fourth birthday and she spent most of it in bed instead of at my house celebrating with all our Kansas City family! By this time Owen and Alex were sick too so there would not have been many guests! I took her presents over to her and set up the My LIttle Pony Castle and six ponies to play with on her bed as we watched the show together on television!

Since Alex was also sick at this time  Richard's parents were keeping him with them as Kay could not lift anything over five pounds for several weeks post surgery and Richard had his hands full taking care of Kay! Alex is a real heavy weight and very clingy when  he is sick.

Liam had his first sleepover at Grandma’s  as Sean and Sarah were coping with two sick toddlers, a newborn, a Nanny who was on vacation for much of the time and sleep deprivation as not only their newborn but sick children were waking  up needing care in the night!

Fortunately Liam thoroughly enjoyed his alone time with Grandma and apart from running a fever his first night and suffering a stuffy nose he slept well-only waking me once to find him standing up in bed next to me declaring that he was a big boy now! I agreed that he was and suggested we go back to sleep as it was still dark outside and thankfully he did! We had freezing temperatures and snow overnight so Sean and Sarah asked if Liam could spend another night so of course Grandma kept him! He was so easy with no siblings around to vie for my attention! Fortunately he loves art projects and spent a lot of time painting, coloring and drawing - he can already draw faces with eyes, noses and mouths in the right places and he’s only two!

Liam enjoyinghis first sleepover at Grandma's

Bryn was scheduled to fly into Kansas City from Los Angeles on a Southwest Flight on Friday December 23rd but  he developed flu-like symptoms so rebooked for the following Monday but his flight was canceled and no other flight was available until Thursday so he elected to stay home.

Lori, Blake and Claudia drove from Indy on December 26th and fortunately suffered no adverse weather to impact the drive and so made it safely to the Logue’s house where they stayed. They brought a lot of home baked cookies with them which we greatly appreciated as I had not had any time to bake for the holidays and lots of Christmas gifts!

The Remsburgs were due to fly in the following day but unfortunately they were also flying on Southwest and like Bryn they found themselves stuck at home after their flight was canceled too! I think we have all agreed that we should probably try to arrange our family gatherings at  off peak travel times for most people! We were all so disappointed to miss this chance to be together but we had seventeen of us here for a few days of family togetherness! 

 Coryn invited us all over to supper at her pristine house one night and I arrived with booster seats for all the little kids and two bags of pre- packaged oriental salad which Coryn threw in her fridge as she opined that she didn’t feel it would compliment her taco soup! I have to say that Coryn really came through for me another night when she turned up at my house with all the ingredients to make supper for us all ! I think that was the day that Blake and I had collaborated on lunch - spaghetti and meatballs! Of course the children who were all pretty much recovered by this time would only eat macaroni and cheese or chicken noodle soup! As always the Indy Lowes were steller house guests, insisting on helping  with the clean up after every meal! Lori, Blake and Claudia also got the chance to spend extra time with Kay and Alex at my house as Richard dropped them off with me when he needed to work! I have to say that when you have six children running around your house it is very noisy and chaotic! Fortunately Lori and Claudia have visited enough to know what to expect - I think Blake was a bit overwhelmed at times! I bet he will wear noise canceling headphones next time! 

The Logues: Christmas Eve at Grandma's!Playing Harry Potter game!

Ming Lee would have been so happy to see us playing family games once all the small children had gone home to bed. I am sure you have all seen the slow motion video of me celebrating my win after a game of Apples to Apples! Thanks Lori!

By New years Day we were all looking forward to a happier, healthier year ahead and to celebrate Coryn and Jeremy invited me to enjoy New Years Day dinner with them, Ava Claire and Owen. I  drove over to their house after watching the Chiefs football game to drive to  the Plaza with them for  a very early dinner.

 I immediately noticed that the children were very subdued and learned that they had both had sleepover’s the previous night! I immediately suggested that we might want to forgo the plan to eat out but their parents were eagerly anticipating a night on the town with Grandma so off we went! Poor Owen was so tired that he fell asleep in the car and I had to hold his head up for him!

 Jeremy was anticipating eating at the Cheesecake Factory and as we neared the restaurant he was dismayed to see a line wrapping around the block but nevertheless  found  the one and only parking space on the top floor of the parking garage. We pushed past the long line to the restaurant and learned that we would have a three to four hour wait to be seated. This was not an option. Coryn and Jeremy were in a state of disbelief that the Plaza could be filled with throngs of starving people at five O’clock in the evening! They both believe that only old people like me eat at this ridiculously early hour and thus catering to my preferences they had skipped lunch to have a five O’clock appetite. I of course was not in the least surprised - asking incredulously why they hadn’t made a reservation  since it was a Chiefs home game day and New Years Day too!  They retorted that no-one supposedly came down to the Plaza anymore and certainly not at this time of the day. They confidently pushed their way through the crowded sidewalk to PF Changs feeling confident of being seated after spying several empty tables. However it was not to be - they  could not seat any more customers for ninety minutes as they had too few staff members working! A very worrying sign of the times when even a Chinese restaurant can't find enough family members to staff it! Jeremy called Brio’s but got no response - too busy to answer the phone he surmised so we walked on and finally found seating at a Mexican Restaurant that I remembered eating in some years before when Ava Claire had given an impromptu floor show as a precocious toddler.

Of course I had made several helpful suggestions as I frequently do -anything to help my children out - suggesting we go straight to dessert at an almost empty Cinnabon or go home and order in Pizza but I have to say the Logues were determined to  eat dinner on the Plaza that night!

Once we were seated, our orders taken and our drinks delivered we started to relax until Jeremy accidentally knocked over his water glass and flooded the table, his pants and chair! We mopped the mess up as well as we could with our napkins and finally found a busboy to help with  the clean up. Unfortunately he showed up with a pail of filthy water and an old fashioned string mop and added more water to the floor! With this disaster behind us we enjoyed dinner and rose from the table only for me to realize that my purse was missing. I immediately went into full panic mode convinced that someone had stolen my brand new Kate Spade purse - a gift from Kay and Richard as I would never spend that sort of money on myself ! Jeremy, noticing my agitation asked what was wrong:  he calmly explained that he had moved my purse to a drier spot after the water spill. What a relief!

Last weekend Kay came down with Covid and so had to delay her return to work. Unfortunately she had a more severe case this time than previously but amazingly Rchard and Alex have remained disease free!We were all so sorry that she had to deal with this whilst still recovering from her surgery and gearing up for another one.

 Despite the rocky start to the NewYear I hope for smooth sailing from here on: This old battleship is ready for calm waters ahead, with nothing to rock my boat -unless it’s a baby in my arms or a toddler trying to clamber aboard! Your always anchored in family love Mother.

Ava Claire and Emy Lou doing their nails!

Av

Thanksgiving at Coryn's

Emy Lou opening Xmas presents at Grandma's

Sean opening a gift

Sarah with baby Killian

S

Lochlan is into it!

Grandma with Liam, Emmy Lou , Lochlan and Cillian!

 THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER:   VOLUME 148                                      NOVEMBER 2022

Dear Readers,

Fall has befallen all my Kansas City grandchildren with high fevers, runny noses,  congested noses, sore throats, coughs, watery eyes, and diarrhea. Miraculously - despite spending days with these germ infested children   - my immune system has warded off all these ailments !  This is the third week of suctioning noses, tackling dried up snot with baby oil and a warm washcloth, and trying to get syringes full of cough, cold and anti- fever medication into toddlers who are in no mood to swallow anything but fruit snacks, goldfish and cookies. Normally Liam and Lochlan consume two cans of chicken noodle soup for lunch but now I am lucky if I can get half a can down their throats. Liam especially seems to have lost weight. I am hoping that by this weekend  all the children will have made a full recovery! At least we have been able to keep them all out of the hospital. The children's hospital here is completely full with all the kids infected with RSV.

Unfortunately their illness prevented Liam and Emmy Lou from Trick or Treating this Halloween - so I have no pictures of her in her porcupine costume to share. Hoping it fits her next year! Such a shame as it was the warmest Hallowen night I can remember -  children did not need to wear winter coats over their costumes. We actually had  lovely warm weather in October but this month we have already had freezing temperatures and snow. 

Sarah and Sean expect the birth of their fourth baby at any time now: hopefully they will be able to catch up on sleep beforehand!  Sean has been on a month long sabbatical from work and has spent most of his time caring for his sick kids - he did find time to fix my bathroom walls and ceilings and re- painted it all! Looks so much better! He patched up the dining room wall around the window which was a mess from where I had removed all the drapery hardware.I am sure Sean thought he would get a lot more projects completed but the Nanny was also on vacation for much of the time he was off. But he does have fourteen weeks of paid paternity leave in his future! Sarah started her  maternity leave this past Monday and will have until May 4th to bond with the new baby and hopefully to  figure out how to keep his three toddler siblings from terrorizing him!

Lori, and our family friend Lori Griswold , recently met up to visit Blake in Santa Monica for a few days and Marc and Bryn were able to spend time with them too. They are pictured on the patio of the rental house where the girls  were staying - Blakes one room place being too small for company! They enjoyed the beach and riding bikes around! Blake will be returning to Purdue next semester as his co-op experience with Red 6 will end next month.An Indiana winter is not going to be very pleasant after a Californian fall!

From left: Blake, Bryn, Lori and Marc

Marc, Lori G, Blake and Bryn

Blake, Marc, Bryn and Lori

Unfortunately cancer has invaded our family yet again and this time it is my beloved eldest granddaughter Kay. At only thirty-one she has been diagnosed  with breast cancer which thankfully has been caught at an early stage. She is BRCA positive which she fortunately knew  prior to  Alex's birth so has been vigilant about breast exams. She and Richard will be meeting with her surgeon and oncologist to discuss treatment options next week. When Kay and Richard came over to tell  me  she quickly informed me that she wasn’t pregnant knowing that’s the  first thing that pops into my mind  when my kids announce that they have something to tell me! I certainly was not prepared for another cancer diagnosis in our family.

I am always especially grateful  to have a large family at times like this as there is strength in numbers and we always face any crisis together. I know Richard’s family is going to be totally committed to supporting Kay and Richard through this too.

Ming Jon will be here next week to celebrate Thanksgiving with us and then right after Christmas Lori, Blake and Claudia will be here along with Leslee-Ann. Craig, Ray  Callie and Bryn and hopefully Marc will be persuaded  to join us all!   Kay and Richard are going to be surrounded by love, support and prayers.

 The recently held midterm elections thankfully spared us a massive increase in Republican winners but of course it hasn’t stopped Trump from declaring his intention to run for the Presidency of the United States again. The fact that he is facing serious civil and criminal charges in many  states  does not seem to affect him or his mob minded supporters. Hopefully he will not win his party’s nomination or better yet be convicted by then on several counts. My blood pressure medicine would have to be doubled if he were to ever be allowed to run again.

Last month we celebrated  three family birthdays: Richard’s, Sarah’s and Coryn’s. It just so happened that Coryn , Ava Claire, and Owen all spent the night at my house on October 20th prior to her birthday on Friday, October 21st. Coryn had to work on Friday but the children had the day off school so thus I had a  houseful that Friday: Liam. Lochlan, and Alex were also here and Emmy Lou arrived later in the day for an impromptu birthday dinner for Coryn! Ava  Claire had called me previously to let me know that she and Owen wanted to do something for their mom which would involve an art project and baking cupcakes! Grandma   was well prepared with cake mixes, frosting,  sprinkles,candies,  decorative picks, colored sugars, and candles.I think Liam may have consumed more cupcakes than he decorated and he was certainly not following Ava Claire’s instructions as well as Owen but they put a lot of effort into it! Alex and Lochlan were happy to watch the big kids decorate as they mashed cupcakes into their mouths.

Liam watching the older kids decorate up cakes whil he eats one

Owen' Ava Claire and Liam decoratngcupcakes.

On the days  my grandchildren spend with me at my house they manage to leave my floors covered in spilled milk, food that hasn’t made it into their mouths, toys strewn everywhere,  my kitchen counters covered in sippy cups, bottles, plastic bowls and a trash can full of stinky diapers. But the clean up of all this mess is a small price to pay for the priceless memories we are making together. 

Alex, Lochlan, and Liam in the wagon being pushed/pulled by Owen and Ava Claire

Lochlan would lik some of Owen's lunch!

Lunchtime!

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You can just see Ava Claire in sunglasses  behind Liam's head!

Ming Lee’s birthday is November 21st and it always makes me smile  when I  remember how much he loved his birthday as a child - he alway wanted a party! In truth Ming Lee could turn any day into an instant party with his ability to utilize anything into a competitive game - like throwing ping pong balls off of my deck into flower pots in the garden below while he and his siblings trampled through my flower beds to retrieve lost balls. The more upset I got the more fun he had! All of you will have memories of his  central role in your birthday parties in the gym at the old YMCA! I love looking through the family albums and reliving these happy memories.

I am pleased to report that this tough old bird got a clean bill of health at my annual check-up so I should be strutting my stuff for awhile yet! So thankful for all of you and wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving stuffed with family and love! Mother

Liam enjoyng an ie cream treat with his ousins on Grandma's deck!

 Ava Claire and Owen

Lochlan in one of the chairs I dragged out from the kitchen to hopefull keep the mess contained!

Alex in the the other chair  and both boys needed a bath after! More work for Grandma but they loved it!

Alex and Lochlan - these two are less than three months apart in age but  big size diference!

Exploring my garden! Ava Claire and Owen are such great helpers!

We went through a lot of cups and bottles!

 THE LOWE FAMILY NEWSLETTER VOLUME 147 September 2022 

Dear Readers, 

The highlight of July was Lori and Clauia’s visit for several days. Shortly before their arrival Lori texted me to explain that she and Claudia were on the intermittent fasting diet: eating only between 11:30 am and 7:00pm so they no longer ate breakfast. Therefore I should not bake any breakfast breads, coffee cakes or purchase donuts to ensure a good start to the day. This was not good news for my sweet tooth as I only indulge in unhealthy but delicious sugary baked goods when I have guests - otherwise I eat a small carton of yogurt. I was concerned that acceptable lunch and dinner menus might be a cup of vegetables and a small portion of lean protein but Lori assured me that they were eating whatever they wanted when not fasting. 

While I stretched out on the couch with my coffee and yogurt watching the morning news, Lori and Claudia would each sip a cup of tea and head out into an already hot and humid day for a brisk early morning walk. I marveled at their ability to exercise on an empty stomach. I can barely summon the energy to get out of bed on an empty stomach! I was still trying to muster enough energy to get off the coach and get dressed for the day when they returned, all hot and sweaty and ready to shower. 

Coryn invited us to a delicious lunch at her house one day and arranged a special event for us: candle making at a store in downtown Lees Summit. Josh decided to join us, perhaps thinking that he would enjoy the candle making process but ended up being assigned to stay with Owen while Ava Claire elected to go with the rest of us. He might have enjoyed candle making but not all the stores we visited that afternoon! Exploring all the shops in the downtown area gave us a chance to cool off after cooking on the sidewalks. 

We enjoyed picking out the scents we would blend to make our candles - there was a lot of choice- I picked Lily of the Valley, Eucalyptus, and White Tea and Fig! We were all happy with our blended scents! I keep mine on my desk and take a whiff every so often to remind me of the fun we had that day! Lori insisted on buying us all an ice-cream treat at some point that afternoon and we all enjoyed being able to sit in an ice cold ice cream parlor for a while before forcing ourselves out onto the sizzling sidewalks again in one hundred plus degree weather! 

Another day Lori, Claudia and I went grocery shopping to cook dinner for us, Coryn, Ava Clare, Owen, Josh, Sean, Sarah, Emmy Lou, Liam and Lochlan at their home.! Unfortunately Kay, Richard and Alex could not join us as they had been exposed to Covid . They had tested negative but thought it prudent to wait a few days to retest before mixing with us.I think organizing a meal for twelve and being around five very active children assured that Lori and Claudia would sleep well that night! Claudia has endless patience with all her nephews and nieces who love playing with her!

Ava Claire, Emmy Lou, Owen and Lochlan on Claudia's lap

                             

Owen, Emm Lou, Ava Claire, Claudia with Lochlan and a very unhappy Liam!

Lori and Claudia graciously invited me to dinner at Bolings Chinese Restaurant so conveniently located five minutes from my house and another day they cooked crab legs - from the Hen House of course- for us. I have to say that we were eating such sumptuous food during their stay that I actually had no appetite for my usual evening snacks and didn’t eat a bite after dinner either for the duration of their stay .Unfortunately I did not lose any poundage on this regime! 

Lori’s birthday fell the day after her planned return to Indy so we hosted an early surprise birthday party for her one night and Coryn did a fabulous job of baking two gorgeous cakes that were beautifully decorated :one was chocolate and the other a lime and coconut confection which was perfect for a hot summer’s day! Jeremy was able to join us in time for dessert as he left work much earlier than usual to mark the special occasion! 

Lori blowing out her candles with an assist from Owen

     

On the day before Lori and Claudia left the Flaig family tested negative for Covid the second time and so it was deemed safe for Kay and Alex to visit! I am so glad that they were able to spend time with all the family here in Kansas City and of course to see the many changes in the youngest family members since their last visit! We are very much hoping that they and Blake will spend Christmas with us here this year! Then they can meet their newest nephew and cousin shortly after his birth! 

August was a busy month for me as Coryn returned to work three weeks ahead of her children.Ava Claire and Owen attended a day camp in Lees Summit for the first week then switched over to Grandma’s camp on the three days of the week I regularly babysit my younger grandchildren. They were a lot of help with their younger cousins who adore them. I was actually able to pull some weeds in my garden while they pushed the kids in strollers,wagons,bikes and toy cars around the cul de sac. One of my neighbors teased me about having a daycare license claiming that every time he looked out of his window he saw another car pulling into my driveway unloading kids! 

Lochlan, Liam and Owen eating a pile of goldfish together!

Grandma with Lochlan and Alec who both insist my lap belongs to them

Coryn has been reading the Harry Potter Books with her children and they are all enjoying this activity very much! Lori had a Quidditch robe that her kids had played dress up in many years ago that she gave them - it is almost permanently worn by Owen - even in 100 degree heat and humidity. Ava Claire rarely seemed to have a chance to put it on so we found a Hermione costume for her on Amazon. I have recently bought a large black wagon- that can fit three toddlers- which they turned into the train leaving for Hogwarts on platform thirteen and a half! The little kids know nothing of Harry Potter of course but are more than willing to play along! 

picking out bath bombs in his robe

Grandma trying to mainain her distance - that kid in the weird costume ha nothing to do with me !

So in love with his Harry Potter Quidditch cape is Owen that he even wore it to the Hen House one evening while we were shopping for snacks for movie night and donuts for breakfast the next day! Yes, they had a couple of sleepovers while at my camp! Grandma tolerated his refusal to remove his cape no matter the risk of heat stroke but firmly closed the chapter on loudly casting spells on my deck late at night when many of my elderly neighbors might already be sleeping. I did allow five kids to run around my house using chopsticks as imaginary wands - praying that no -one got poked in the eye.

Speaking of chopsticks Lori and Claudia gifted very cute kid friendly chopstick sets to all the kids as they know how much they love trying to use them! I often put a bowl of chopped fruit out and let them all try to grab a piece with chopsticks. Cladia actually took Ava Claire and Owen to one of our nearby Chinese grocery stores - a place I frequented a lot to fix your dad’s favorite meals! I haven’t been there in years now as the distinctive smells were never appetizing to me! Claudia is an adventurous eater like her dad and thought her cousins should be exposed to the delights of asian cuisine other than the standard restaurant fare! 

Josh has returned to Bolivia, I took him to the airport in late August wondering when he might return but of course Josh has no plans - except to leave Bolivia after a few months for Brazii He has been volunteering for a number of years now at an animal rescue park , loving his daily walk with death as he allows big cats- like a puma- to lead him into the jungle and amazingly enough in all the years he has been caring for them he has never been mistaken for prey.This year, to further add to my stress, they have forest fires to fight - Josh is on a fire team and has a water pack. This is a very scary situation for a mother to comprehend - my son could either be raw meat or burnt ends for the cats to devour. I take comfort in knowing that frugal Josh would think a free cremation and ash scattering on land he loves would be a fitting end! That he volunteers for this seems madness to those of us who lack his passion for adventure, life endangering volunteerism and being immersed in different cultures. 

With Josh away I was forced to use my do-it-yourself skills when I noticed that a couple of tiles in my shower, just above the drain pan , seemed to be pulling away from the wall. I used my finger nail and confirmed my suspicion. The tiles were loose. I watched a how to fix the problem video on Utube and headed to Lowes for tile adhesive, grout, grout sealer and caulk. It took me longer to clean all the gunk off the back of the tiles and the wall than it did to stick the tiles back on! I had to wait a day or two before grouting and decided that I would caulk over the weekend. Sean inspected my handiwork and volunteered to recaulk the entire shower for me if I would watch Emmy Lou and Liam on Sunday while he did it.. Lochlan would stay with Sarah so they could both nap! I tok Sean up on this great offer as I was only planning on replacing the caulk I had removed to fix the tiles! 

Sean showed up with the kids and lunch earlier than I had anticipated so I wasn’t even dressed for the day! A couple of hours into Sean stripping the old caulk out of my bathroom and spraying bleach in every nook and crevice in case of mold - of which I couldn't see any - Kay arrived with Alex and thus the cousins had an unexpected playdate and I got to enjoy another free meal as 

Kay insisted on picking up dinner for us that night! Sean did an excellent job and I was very grateful to him knowing how little free time he has with a demanding job and three soon to be four demanding kids! 

Some months ago the house next door to mine was sold to a young couple,Kristen and Ollie and amazingly Ollie is English, a Lodoner and Eurasian like all my children - his mother is Japanese though. Our cul de sac is very excited to finally have some new young blood in our neighborhood and I see a lot of tea parties in our future! They bought the house in February but did not move in until after their marriage in June by which time, the vacant house had beenoccupied by mice. That probably explains my issue with mice this year! Must have run out of room next door! After living in the house for a couple of weeks Kristen and Ollie left for a five week trip to Europe and this time returned to find the house infested with recluse spiders that have a life threatening bite for some people. Personally I would have thought their lifestyle better suited to a townhouse or condo as I do not think they realized how hard it is to maintain an empty house!They have also found a few big ticket repairs that need to be made to the house because they bought it without a home inspection due to the very competitive housing market putting them up against multiple buyers! However we are a close knit neighborhood so I know we will all pitch in to help! 

Kay has begun working towards her third degree - this one in educational administration as she works her way up the ladder to better pay and professional advancement.Fortunately Alex continues to be a fairly easy child who loves to play outside, especially with water! 

Lochlan’s first birthday on August 27th was cause for another family celebration as Sean and Sarah hosted a huge cookout. Both my youngest grandsons are walking now and this makes playing in the yard easier - when crawling everything goes in their mouth from grass to acorns. 

Unfortunately we have not been able to hold any of our celebrations outside this year as we have endured months of high heat and humidity with very little rain. My water bill has doubled this year as I have to water every day to keep my flower beds alive.! Climate change is definitely here. I dread the thought of having to plant a desert landscape all too soon. 

Sean remembered that I had made a Halloween costume for Calie one year when she was a character in the Sonic movie and thus felt that I could perhaps tackle one for Emy Lou who has decided she wants to be Ash in Sing 2 which requires me to make a porcupine costume! This promises to be a prickly challenge but mother will sharpen her needles, stiffen her backbone and spike her drinks for the next few weeks and create a pointedly sharp porcupine costume! Love from your sometimes prickly but always loving Moher!