Well, once again, I'm sitting on my rather rapidly expanding rear surfing the great Interwebs, persuing blogs, checking FB, when I should be preserving my zucchini for future use, because really, who can eat 24 pounds of zucchini in 3 days?!?!?!? OY!

I'm asking for prayers today for my friend Inkling. She has discovered that she most likely will not get her health needs taken care of for a lot longer than she originally had hoped. This is due, in part, to a Socialist Health Care System in BC. Don't get me started on government funded health care...and this is why I think it is a bad idea...and that's all I'm saying on that...She is also frustrated by being a new mom with limited finances, few real and good friends that are nearby to her, and is feeling lots of pressures from within and without. Pray for her heart and her body - that God will give her healing and peace and encouragement, and maybe even a big fat anonymous gift of money that will help to make things a bit easier for their family.

We had a good day today - Uncle Designer came and spent a day of his vacation and played with Captain Chaos and Tiny Princess, and even took them to lunch. It was nice, and I got a heap of things done around the house...just not the stinking zucchini shredded and frozen. If you want some, come and get it will you?!?!?!

I had a blow-up with BB this weekend. I don't know where his frustration truly stemmed from, but it came out that he went off on me for not having dusted. He made some loud, obnoxious statements about my lack of committment to our family, and my slacking ways of sitting around and watching tv and "doing nothing". Now, before anyone gets upset and tells me that I should have stood my ground or not taken it, or anything that will degrade or belittle BB, he was not truly frustrated with me, and I was not frustrated with him. We argued, because we were frustrated at other things, and it just happened that the proverbial straw happened when we were in the room with each other, with something the other had done.

For the record, I had indeed been keeping up with the housework, and the house just hadn't been dusted yet, as we had been preparing for other events that pushed dusting down the priority list. The vacuuming had not been done that day, and the cats had been particularly feisty, wrestling and running all over the place, leaving tufts of hair everywhere. All other things were done, all laundry was done, house was otherwise shiny and clean, dinner was cooked at home and the like.

For the record, I was a bit catty when I asked him over the phone how long he'd be gone with Capt Chaos, and what he was planning on bringing home.

Let me rewind a bit - we decided to seriously curtail our spending, buying only that which is completely necessary. That means, we're trying not to eat out, but to cook what is in our freezer and our pantry. We're trying to not buy video games, clothes that aren't replacing worn out items, cars that require us to take on a payment. We're trying to keep lights off, use less electricity, use less water, use less gas to heat the water or air. We're trying to keep the temp in our house warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter. I'm learning slowly how to sew, not just mend, so I can make special occasion dresses for Princess, and special toys and doll clothes...I'm knitting myself a new sweater because the one I want was waaay more than the $12 for the yarn. We've budgeted a certain amount of "eating out" money. We went out and took advantage of IHOP's "Kids Eat Free" promotion, and cut our bill by 50% on Friday night.

I asked BB Sunday morning if he wanted to eat out or in, and he said "in, we went out this weekend already". I said ok, and we went about getting ready for our day, and the next thing I know, he announces that he's taking Captain Chaos out for a treat at the Golden Arches for breakfast, and then going to a special sale at a local hardware store, leaving Tiny Princess and I at home.

When he called me to ask what time the paper said the sale started, I told him and asked how long he thought he'd be gone. He said "not very" and we ended the conversation as we do.

When he arrived home, we chatted and he showed me what he'd purchased, claiming some of the items were for me, and I said thanks, as some of the items were needed. The next thing I know, he's storming around the house, slamming doors, grumbling and mumbling...we had it out, and ended up spending the next 3 hours in separate parts of the house taking out our frustrations on our various and respective projects.

I guess that is why I'm not shredding zucchini right now...I sort of worked myself out on Sunday and yesterday so I could show my husband that I am doing things on a daily basis, and got ahead of my to-do list for this week.

I can't pack for our trip on Saturday when it is only Tuesday. The laundry is done, the house is clean, and all I need to do this week is get Captain's school supplies, and pack.

SO...I'm going to sit here and enjoy an episode of my show, and wait for the pouring rain to slow down and then cook some dinner. I'm not going to ask BB for dinner out, even though the smell of the lemonade made me want to throw up earlier...and I'm not going to make him eat leftovers.