Father's Day: Who Knew This Young Boy Would Grow Up to Be The Best Father Ever?

 I've actually come back in to edit this a little bit because Mr. T saw this picture and told me that when he wore this costume that his mom, Orlando Grandma, made, he WAS Superman. For him it was the coolest costume around, didn't even notice it was homemade.  He was actually concerned that his "secret identity" might be revealed. Isn't it great the imagination kids have and how they believe. We lose that ability as we all grow older. Let's get that back - the ability to believe that anything is possible...

And how funny that about 45 years after this picture was taken of him in his Superman costume, that he would be going to yet another Superman movie with these two tomorrow:

"The Great Zacharini" and his little sis The Maven, aka "Cool Clown".

Yep, we like our costumes in this family...

...and Superman!

And we have our very own Superman right here, in Mr. T.  He always saves the day, always does the right thing, may not be faster than a speeding bullet, but he's good at battling the LA traffic.  That certainly qualifies him as a Superman!

And Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there, and the ones who are no longer with us.

It's That Time of Year Again

Moving time.

I knew there was a good reason not to unpack everything when we moved from Florida to California last August and settled in our rental home.  

Yes, we are moving again. No, not back to Florida.  A much shorter, but necessary move.  Down to Orange County, CA.  Yep, the OC, the Orange Curtain, whatever you want to call it. The northern/mid part of Orange County is where we will look.

Mr. T has some new territory to cover for his job and fighting the infamous LA traffic would be an incredible time waster and gas waster.  

Cons first: 

 Bye bye mountains. At least close by ones that I can see everyday driving around.  

Familiarity goes out the window again. Won't know where anything is.

Got to pack.

Got to find a new rental (wait, that could be a Pro. And fun).

I will truly miss living in the San Fernando Valley, I've really come to love it.

Can't call myself a "valley girl" anymore or casually say "I live in the valley".

Pros:

Get to look for a new rental.

Closer to the beach!

No more 405/Sepulveda Pass traffic (although I will miss driving through that pass regularly)

Same distance from the kids, just in the opposite direction.

Mr. T will not have to spend half his day driving to appointments.

Summer temps aren't as high as in the Valley.

New places to explore and new people to meet.

Closer to the dog beaches.

Lots of great biking trails.

I will be an Orange County Housewife (Yikes!  does that mean I need to get "some work" done?)

In about two weeks The Maven and I may start going down that way a couple of times a week and scout out some rentals.  We will have to see how her recovery is coming along.  Which, by the way, is going well.  We have been walking twice a day and she goes further each time we go and now is able to walk without a cane.  Facial muscles are still affected, but even that seems to be easing a bit.  In fact she is feeling well enough to meet a new friend for coffee this weekend. So good to see her improving day by day!

So, get ready friends and family for the next great house hunt!  We will be on our own this time.  No realtor, just a map, Zillow, a phone and a GPS.

We march on into unchartered territory!

Things were getting a little boring around here anyway - you know that's not true!

Panda is not going to be happy to see that big yellow truck again, is she?

Dear Diary.... Things are going well...

I was sent this Youtube video recently and thought I'd post it here for some of you cat lovers.  Even the dog people may get a kick out of it.

I can imagine these thoughts running through the heads of certain cats in this household!

The Maven is doing well.  Still quite tired, but next week should be better as she enters her second week out of the hospital.  Recheck with doctors showed that she is progressing as expected and patience will be needed while waiting for the return of her balance and facial muscle strength.  We are trying!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Home

A year ago, "Home" was a completely different place and now it is a rental in the northern San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles.  It's not even The Maven's "real" home, as she has an apartment she rents in her brother's house in the city, but since she has been here for a few months and has settled in, this was home to her yesterday when she returned from the hospital.

Home is where your kitties are, where the crazy Bostons live and where your mom and dad, brother and sis-in-law are to welcome you back with love and food.  It's where wonderful cards of support from friends, family and strangers (no more) arrive and show you that you are loved and that many are thinking of you.

She's back home.

It wasn't an easy drive back here for someone who is still very dizzy, sore and somewhat disoriented, but we made it back.  Safe and sound.  And our star patient walked from the car to the house under her own steam with my fancy pink cane from my knee injury. (Okay, not the coolest look for a twenty-something, but she used it!)  We are to always be with her when she walks anywhere so Mr. T followed behind her with his hands on her shoulders.  Up three steps, turn, down three steps into the family and collapse on the couch (carefully).  She did great!

  

But it was hard and stressful.  Her brain was tired, her eyes were tired, but neither would let her rest.  We kept everything low-key and quiet (well, for the most part, as quiet as this household gets), Maven's kitties descended upon her and helped her stay calm and centered.  Once the brain gets worked up, it's hard to get it to settle down, but soon it did and she had a good night's sleep, calling me via cell phone (no old bell here - although to be honest I wouldn't have heard it like I did the ring of the phone) a few times during the night.

Today The Maven caught up on the sleep she missed yesterday during her transition from hospital to home and it has made a world of difference.  We have walked in the backyard, sat in the backyard, walked out front, watched TV (couldn't yesterday because of sensory overload) and ate well.

Most importantly we laughed.  We laughed at the sight we made, me the somewhat arthritic 50ish mom leading around my young, healthy daughter with a pink cane. She was able to see the humor in the fact that the right side of her face is having some slackness to it (which is expected and should go away) - "Guess I'll wait and meet that guy for coffee in two weeks, not one". We watched the irritating, but can't-stop-watching-NJ Housewives and laughed. Laughter is important when you are in the midst of a crisis.  When you are young and having to put your life on hold once again. You have to laugh, or you cry.

 You also learn empathy and understanding for what some people live with every day of their lives with such dignity and strength. And laughter, if possible. Or at least moments of happiness.

The Maven is on her way to have many moments of happiness.  She will work hard to get her balance back and her facial muscles under control. She will stay positive and determined. She will do the exercises and thrice daily walks necessary to gain her strength and work on her balance. She will and I will too. And we will both be the better for it.

And we will try to laugh along the way, because in our family laughter is some of the best medicine.

She's home.

Thanks to everyone for your support and encouragement!

Pictures from St. Vincent's Hospital in the middle of Koreatown in downtown LA. This hospital is one of the oldest in Los Angeles and is Catholic based with many lovely works of art honoring the nuns/nurses, doctors and staff who have worked there over the years.  To illustrate the melting pot nature of the LA area, The Maven's two surgeons were of the Jewish faith, her surgery nurse was Sister Priscilla, one of the few nuns left practicing here and her anesthesiologist, Korean. Staff nurses were Mexican, Filipino, Asian, Caucasian, African American.  People come from all over the world to have the type of surgery that The Maven had done here.  There is an attached extended-stay hotel/residence for out of town patients and their family members. 

 The House Clinic sits across the street, where the modern technique for removal of Acoustic Neuromas was pioneered in the 1960s by Dr. House. How incredible that we ended up in this very place at just the right time. 
Wow.

Quick Update on The Maven

I am about to leave for the hospital, but wanted to write a quick update on The Maven's post-surgery progress.

She was moved to a regular room 24 hours after surgery. She looks, sounds and ambulates quite well considering the short time it's been since her surgery.  She is still quite tired and sleeps a lot, but the nurses and Physical Therapists have her sitting in a chair for meals, walking to and from the bathroom and twice daily walks up and down the hallway.  She has graduated from a walker to walking with someone at her side supporting her arm.  

She is still wearing a large bandage around her head which I understand they will remove today.  She has some weakness in her facial muscles as a result of the pressure in her head from the surgery.  The docs say that will go away soon.  The Maven is very dizzy and that is expected right after this kind of surgery.  Her balance nerve on her right side was removed because of the damage done by the tumor.  Her brain will adjust and compensate to the one remaining balance nerve and will now not have the constant distraction of the damaged one that was removed.  Each day her dizziness is expected to diminish.

The Maven is in good spirits and they may release her on Sunday. That's a bit of an overwhelming thought, but it will be good to have her back home. 

In the weeks to come she and I will be walking for increasing amounts of time each day.  The goal, of course, is for her to gain her strength but almost more importantly to increase her stamina in preparation for returning to life on her own and work.  I'd say we have our work cut out for us!  But she can do it!

Thank you so much for all your kind words, prayers and positive thoughts.  It are these things that have made all the difference to me, her mother, waiting and watching as she goes through this enormous challenge.  

And I read her each and every comment, email, FB post, etc. and she is very grateful for each and every one of them.

Over! Surgery Over!

Quick post via Mr T's ipad to let you know that The Maven's surgery is over and we are waiting to see her in recovery. I will post in more detail in a day or two, but wanted my good friends here to know the doctors removed the tumor, her facial nerves are un damaged and her hearing seems okay. It will be awhile before we will know how much her balance will be improved.  Docs are optimistic.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your support, kind words, prayers and positive thoughts!

Finally... Surgery Week.

After what seems like a very slow march towards May 29th, surgery day, we are finally almost there!  It's been several weeks of additional tests, jangling nerves and trying to keep busy within The Maven's limits with her Vertigo symptoms.

Tuesday will be an all day marathon of pre-op tests, lab work and medical exam.  And then Wednesday, The Maven will report to the hospital by 5:30am.  Not fun for a "not a morning person", but worth it to her to get this ball rolling.

Not sure of surgery time, they are not sure themselves.  Apparently there will be two Acoustic Neuroma surgeries done that morning and they haven't told us who will go first or when.  They expect the surgery to last 4-5 hours.  I will be posting on Facebook when the surgery is over, not sure when I will get a chance to post on the blog, but I will get a quick post up as soon as possible.  First 24 hours, The Maven will be in ICU and then 4-5 days in a regular hospital room depending on her recovery.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate all the encouragement, prayers and support I received through comments on this blog and emails.  The Maven has read them all and I know she draws comfort from the fact that she has so many people pulling for her and keeping her in their thoughts and prayers.

This WILL be a successful surgery. 

The Maven WILL lose that sense of dizziness, fatique, headaches and nausea.

 She WILL get back to her life of work, independent living, and normal  everyday activities that we all at times take for granted. 

 She WILL.

Dogs Gain Stronghold in Battle of the Bed!

An unexpected weekend visit from Stan the Greyhound as given the BTs a distinct advantage in wresting the King Bed domination away from the felines:

You may ask, where does this leave Mr. T and me?

Well, there is that very large green couch in the family room....

Enjoy your long weekend and may we all take a moment to remember those who gave their lives so that we may enjoy the freedoms of this country.

Scrubbies and Lemons Compliments of Pat

I've talked about my blogging friend, Pat, before.  She's a Texas gal and a really nice one at that.  Her blog is  Corn in My Coffeepot

and it's full of good humor, good information and good homemades.

Homemade just about anything if you take a look at her blog archives.  I remember one of the first posts I read from her blog was about recycling Dryer Lint.  Another was about making her own laundry detergent.  And there are the posts about her chickens....

Well, Pat is an expert crocheter. One of the last posts I saw of hers she was crocheting a rug!  One of her projects in the last several months that caught my eye were her crocheted scrubbies for the shower or bath.

I hate the way the synthetic scrubbies always unravel and are so itchy against your skin. (yes, I realize that is the purpose of them, to ex-foliate).  I feel like I'm always buying new ones.  So I ordered a passel of them from Pat.

They arrived nicely bundled up with a sweet thank you note and Pat's business card for her online business, 9th and Denver.

And of course, the scrubbies.  I doled them out to various household members to try them out.

The blue one with the white edge is a newer version of Pat's scrubbies.  A bit different material.  She wanted me to try it out in comparison to the others.

My findings:  while these scrubbies don't work up the lather as much as the synthetic ones do they still get the body soap spread and they are much softer on sensitive skin.  I noticed as we used them more and more they stretched and therefore were better at lathering after a few uses.  At first I had trouble getting mine to dry and then I noticed Mr. Tennis' always dried. DUH!  Don't hang it in the shower spray!  After moving mine to another area, that problem was solved.  I noticed the newer Scrubbie 2.0 didn't stretch out and therefore I didn't get the lather action I would get from the 1.0 model.

They can be tossed in the washer with the towels!  

Love this feature!  I hung one up to air dry and put one in the dryer.  I prefer the air drying because it stayed more stretched out and was therefore the shape that I like when using it.

Mr. T went back to his synthetic scrubbie because it just worked better for him.  The Maven and I have stuck with ours though, because we like the feel better.

Stop by sometime and see Pat's Etsy shop found right on her blog on the sidebar.  And take a look at her blog posts - it's always fascinating reading....

Remember my lemons in the jar "marinating" in vinegar?  I got that idea from Pat.

They have finally reached the point that I can use the liquid as a natural cleaner and it works great, especially as a degreaser.

Thanks Pat for all your good ideas and for coming up with a reusable, comfortable scrubbie!

The Rise of the Felines

The cats have taken over!

It's enough to make any self-respecting Boston head under the covers and not come out until well, until THEY leave! 

Panda here, reporting from the front lines of this feline coup.  I mean someone needs to tell you all what's really going on here at Boston Manor!

Actually, since the young black and white one kind of looks like Sadie and I, I've sort have taken him under my wing and bestowed upon him some of my best advice.

Such as, "THIS is the most dignified way us black and whites should sit"!

And... "stick with me kid and you'll get all kinds of treats from the two-legged ones".

Even our trusty side-kick-honorary-Boston-Bumby has joined the ranks of the "two Ds" (Darcy and Dexter, aka Smoky and the Bandit)

I mean look at her!  A shot of tuna juice to the bowl and she is consorting with them in the mess hall!

So, I got her alone and had stern talk with her while she rested in her barracks.

"Listen kid", I told her, "these two will be leaving the compound at some point after their two-legged one feels better.  I like how you are schmoozing with them and getting on their good side, but we need to make this work to our advantage.  Bring me back some good dirt!"

I observed Bumby working her undercover magic and managing to extract some primo intel from the pseudo Boston, Dexter.

She even took her spy-game to the outside and observed the sneaky black and white feline in his undercover mode.

I mean, this kid really thinks he blends in!  Not!!

Then Dexter, aka, "The Bandit" was seen passing on classified information to his accomplice, Big Darcy, also known as "Smoky"

Oh yeah, sure, you two are just "relaxing".

What do you have to say about these two compromising pictures of Boston Manor secrets being passed on to "Smoky" during a supposed grooming session?  Hmmmmmm?

Caught! Red-pawed!

Don't give me that blurry-eyed kitten dance Dexter!  I know you and Big D are planning something sinister, like taking over "our" king-sized bed.

Agent Bumby!  Agent Bumby!  Unfluff your tail and get a hold of yourself!  You are supposed to be working for Sadie and me, not playing "chase The Bandit" all over the house.

I mean, look at your face. You LOOK guilty!  

You've turned, haven't you?

Oh Bumby, nooooooo!

You've allowed them onto THE bed!  Look at you! Right there with them!  You don't even have the decency to look contrite..

Look at that smug look on "Smoky's" puss.  And "The Bandit"! He's a cool cucumber taking over our bed without even blinking an eye.

MISSION "BOSTON MANOR BED TAKEOVER" COMPLETE.

DARCY & DEXTER SUCCESSFUL.

INFILTRATION OF SAID MANOR AND SUBMISSION OF HOUSEHOLD FELINE FINAL>

NEXT MISSION:

TAKEOVER OF BIG GREEN COUCH
AND
BATHTUB

WELL DONE D & D!

So, where does that leave me?  Former ruler of Boston Manor along with my minion, Sadie?  I'll sit in the cat bed and figure it out...

Panda, former leader of the Black & White King Bed compound, out!