CatInTheMist's Xanga

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 01:02:19 GMT

My Dear Friend Fauquet has prompted me to make a long missed post. I am afraid, I have spent my spare comptuer time on Facebook rather than Xanga. Mostly because it is a quick fix to see what people are up to. I am under Catherine Breazeale Ellis or Cat Ellis should you have a facebook account and want to visit me there. Much has happened since the last time I was on Xanga. I now have a second grandchild and life is a little more complex, but I am content within myself.

Mama at labor onset. She says finally!

An angry Hayden Michael or H. Michael as my Dawg and Blythe refer to him. He was extremely insulted at the way he was handled at birth.

Aunt Blythe in awe. She witnessed the birth. I've never seen anyone as moved by a birth as Blythe was. She was bouncing side to side staring in horror at Tracy's pain and then when the head started to emerge, I thought she was either going to pass out, vomit or knock one of the nurses down in an effort to be clear of the room. Needless to say she did not find it a beautiful event. Sais la vie.

I was completely in awe of the birth and my new grandson.

Danyale was tickled pink.

She adores here new brother.

Eleven days later Hayden had his first Halloween.

He was Tigger and his mom a vampire.

With her abundance of hair, she makes an excellent Anne Rice vampire.

Coco was tickled, too, though you cannot tell it by any of the pictures I've taken thus far.

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 20:23:23 GMT

Sweets is having a boy. Michael Sean or Sean Michael will be his name. He will be arrive in a controlled delivery on October 20,2009.

Update 11/21/09 He was not named Sean Michael, but Hayden Michael instead. Some of us call him H. Michael.

Sunday, May 03, 2009

Sun, 03 May 2009 23:29:05 GMT

Where we are?

Sweets is now fifteen weeks pregnant. Thursday, she walked from one school building to another to go and view a computer room, where the temperature was set at 50 degrees. But Sweets was sweating and her heart rate was so fast she could feel her pulse beating from her heart down her arms and into her wrist.

She was fanning herself and her classmates were asking her if she were okay. She said she was feeling funny and then she fainted. She awoke in one of her classmates arms surrounded by a lot of alarmed people. They drove her to her car and sent her home. She called me to let me know and I ask, “What did your doctor say.”

She replies, “I didn’t call her, because I have an appointment on Tuesday.”

I say, “Uh, call your damn doctor and then call me back.”

She calls me back and says she has an appointment in an hour and would I come and get her to take her because she feels funny. I go get her, take her to the doctor and the doctor admits her in the hospital. In addition to the erratic pulse that kept fluctuating up and down for no apparent reason, she had had a migraine for two weeks that she had not complained about.

They did and MRI, an echo cardiogram, and an overnight telemetry to monitor her pulse. They also drew enough blood to donate to the Red Cross.

All they could find was that she had chronic migraines and low iron. They were unable to figure out why she has the erratic pulse. If it continues she is to go to a cardiologist. In the mean time she is to do no house work, yard work or anything else strenuous.

The baby’s heart beat is strong.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:58:03 GMT

My daughter needs your prayers and support, please go visit her. Thank you so much.

sweets added a weblog entry: Pregnancy Updates and Fears

Saturday, February 28, 2009

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 19:02:08 GMT

Miracles From God

Sweets is having another baby. She needs your prayers for a healthy pregnancy. Having babies for Sweets has not been easy. We've always considered Danyale to be a miracle from God and now here is yet another.

Danyale is happy about it, though when she was told and shown these pictures. She responded, "Ewwww, it looks like a blob to me." Danyale will be eight when this baby comes to us. Her world will be rocked, but I am glad that she will have the chance to experience this.

When she and I discussed it, she was a little taken back that she would not be allowed to play with the baby at first. I said, well, babies are very breakable during their first year, so you can't really play with them very much, but before you know that baby will be crawling all over you. You will be a great help to your mother fetching diapers and picking out clothes for the baby to wear. You'll even be able to help teach the baby to dress his or herself. She replied, 'Yeah, that will be a good thing.'

Sweets is still in school and doing very well. The school is supportive of her pregnancy and want to help her get her studies done before the baby comes so she can have more time off after the baby is born.

Now I am also going to ask that you pray for Sweet's ex-husband. I want you to pray for an open heart. He is very ugly to Sweets and says bad things to and about her in front of Danyale. When he picked up Danyale this weekend, he once again threatened to go back to court and take Danyale away from Sweets because he says Danyale would be better off with him than her mother. He made this threat in front of Danyale, which made her cry and cling to her mother. She said she didn't want to live with him. He only thinks of what he wants.

He tells Danyale that Sweets is an unfit mother. He tells her Sweets is lazy. He thinks she is unfit because she cannot buy everything Danyale wants. He thinks she is unfit because she makes Danyale eat the dinner the rest of the family is eating and does not fix separate food for Danyale because she is lazy. He also thinks she is lazy because she does not bath or dress Danyale. When does he think that children are suppose to learn these things. I could go on and on, but you get the picture.

This is a woman who is striving for a better life for her family. She is doing well in schools with A's and B's, which doesn't sound lazy to me.

When Sweets was married to her ex-husband, nothing she did was good enough for him and he took every opportunity to tell her how unworthy she was. It makes me very sad that even though the divorce papers forbid this behavior, he is still doing it. So, my prayer is that God open his heart and release all the bitterness that must be festering inside it.

I pray that he comes to a realization that Danyale is as much a part of her mother as she is of him. Danyale does not need to be told that her mother is unfit, lazy, weak or any of the many other unkind and untrue things that he is saying about Sweets to her and their child.

I pray that he realizes that by doing this he is abusing Danyale as much or more than he is Sweets. A child needs to feel good about both parents. It is not a competition, because both parents serve specific needs for the child.

Whenever Danyale tells me about the bad things her daddy says about Sweets. I feel a cold fury. I ask God to help me. I reply that I am sorry her daddy says such mean things about her mother. I have advised her to let him know that when he says things like that it hurts your feelings, too. I say, your daddy loves you and it does not matter that he does not like your mother. Your mother loves you and she is a good mother who loves you very much.

And when I am alone I have to pray for myself. This conflict that is causing so much damage to my daughter and my granddaughter hurts me. I know you all think I am sweet and kind. And I am. I try to always see both sides and not judge one or the other, but just figer out how to resolve issue. I try not to interfere unless I am asked. Then I say exactly what is on my mind.

I pray for myself because I cannot resolve this issue. I pray for myself because there are times when I would like to jump on Sweet's ex-husband and beat the living crap out of him. I want to shake some sense into him and make him understand that it is not all about him and what he wants.

A child does not need to have everything she wants. She needs to learn that there are limits to everything in life. If she does not learn that at a young age, she will always be an unhappy, unsatified adult. She will not have the mental tools she will need to be an independent adult.

I guess I am ranting so I'd better just close with God bless them and guide them to all the love that is in them and just waiting to grow and allow peace.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 16:20:48 GMT

Digging for Gold

My Dawg heard a rumour that there was old Spanish gold buried under our house. So, here he is digging for it.

Digging and digging and digging.

He was very excited and diligent.

He thought he found something in this hole, but it was just an old brick.

So he dug another.

And another until there were ten holes dug all around my house.

I am just kidding you know. About the why that is. There really is ten holes all around my house. They even dug where one of my Azalea bush once lived.

They are actually digging to lift the house so that it is level. We have a lot of Yazoo Clay in our area and occassionally it shifts and your house starts to split. So we have to do this to make it straighten out.

See my poor Azaela bush laying on its side.

Here they are starting to jack hammer holes on either side of my kitchen door.

Digging under my chimney.

The hole under my chimney.

Once all the holes are dug they start inserting these concrete lifts into the dirt and drive them down until they hit rock.

They have to insert and drive down a lot.

It is not a pretty site. My house looks like it has been hit with bombs all around.

This too shall pass.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Thu, 29 Jan 2009 02:36:52 GMT

Mexican Cruise

It's been awhile since I posted and it is not easy for me to do this tonight. You see, I work on computers all day in a highly stressful job that has completely killed my love of computing, I suppose. By the time I have put in my hours for the day, I am done. I do miss Xanga and mean to update Facebook and visit all my virtual social groups. But I am just too tired by the end of the day and don't even like to turn on the laptops on the weekends anymore except for quick look ups on Mapquest or local events.

My Dawg, daugher Blythe, my sister and Dawg's buddy went on a five day cruise to Mexico last week. We went the same route as last year on the Fantasy out of New Orleans. This time I took Bonine the minute I got on the boat. So, I did not have a repeat of motion sickness. I actually found the rocking of the boat soothing from the get go.

I did not even look at the laptops available for hourly rental on the boat.

My sister does not like for me to post pictures of her, so this is the disclosure of why she is missing from the following shots.

The cruise was too cold the first few days. But it was warm when we got to Cozumel. This is Blythe standing in front of our boat.

This was the view of the Fantasy and the Ecstasy from the main square for tourists. Rather picturesque.

There is a restaurant in Cozumel called La Mission. We went to it last year but could not remember the name, but we managed to find it again and eat there again. Dawg was very brave and tried their grilled fish. He wanted his food to look him in the eye while he ate it.

It was good.

This is me being a tourist in front of my favorite Caribbean character, Pirana Joe.

This is Dawg's buddy, showing how I was supposed to pose.

This is Dawg's buddy being a tourist with the mermaid outside of the bar Dawg likes in Progresso.

Dawg got in on the lack of action. Notice how annoyed the mermaid looks.

All in all it was a wonderful computerless week.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 00:42:09 GMT

New Orleans Trip

Click on photos for best view.

Timiko and Jason came over Saturday to pick me up for a road trip. We went down to New Orleans to visit Blythe.

Before we left, Timiko posed with Dawg, who was headed north for his own weekend road trip.

We went to New Orleans, where we met up with Blythe and took a street car ride to the Quarter.

We had drinks at Lafitte's

Later, we had an extremely excellent dinner at the restaurant where Blythe works, The Marigny Brasserie. I had Fennel Seed Crusted Tuna Over Parmesan Risotto with a Saffron and Pesto Broth. So very good. If you go to New Orleans, be sure and check it out.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 23:52:23 GMT

Sorry I have not been around, but life here in Mississippi has been very hectic. I have been working so much at my computer that when I don't have to work, I don't want to look at a computer.

Here are a few pictures to let you know we are all okay.

Danyale has had her 7th birthday.

At her birthday party, my mother was standing next to Dawg with a glass of tea in her hand, when he hands her his bottle of Jack and says 'take a picture Cat.' He is lucky she didn't hit him with that bottle.

And Jason has had his 30th. Timiko is still trying to keep the boy in line.

And Sweets has gotten married.

Saturday, September 06, 2008

Sat, 06 Sep 2008 09:32:17 GMT

Love doesn't just sit there, like a stone; it has to be made, like bread, remade all the time, made new.
--Ursula K. Le Guin

When a relationship is new and your partner is wonderful and exciting and shines like a harvest moon in a black sky, it is easy to forget the difference between love and infatuation.

Infatuation hits us like firecrackers and gets our attention like no other emotion, I know. It is like a drug, so sweet and hot that it makes your eyes roll back into your head and your brain fall into your toes.

Love is a choice. Love comes when we choose to commit, no matter what. It is a commitment that you make with your heart and not your head, but it is a commitment none the less. Am I saying that Love is not a feeling? Not at all. When we choose to love we choose to accept a deep, abiding emotion that will bring us all sorts of joy and pain.

Love comes when we start to see all the flaws in our relationships and things start to get a bit sticky. Love is when you are willing to work on building a real and true intimate relationship. Love comes after the new wears thin and you wonder what you were thinking when you started the relationship.

For me, Love is a necessary choice to live a full and eventful life. I need to love like I need to breathe. Sounds a bit like addiction, eh? And it can be. Like all things Love can be bent into something that is not healthy, but with conscious, honest effort, Love has been the greatest choice of my life.

Instances where Love comes after we choose to commit:

Child birth. Yes, that is a choice to commit. I got pregnant, I chose to commit to my baby and through that commitment flowed a wondrous Love. As a foreshadowing of what was to come, first there was great anticipation and excitement and then so much pain and suffering, I almost could not bear it, but when they put my baby into my arms…Boom Love washed over me like warm water in Springtime.

Marriage, too, can bring much love, with a true commitment from both parties within it. True commitment, does not include thoughts that there will be a safety net of divorce if it does not work out. If you have those thoughts going into a marriage, or any commitment, with another person, you will likely block Love from the relationship. When you commit to another person, it must be as deep as blood between siblings. He or she must become your family and not just a lover or friend that you might leave along the way. You must choose to commit to them in order to find the Love that will sustain you. And they must choose to commit to you, too.

I never said Love was easy. It is hard, grueling work at times, but Love is the most wonderful and fulfilling gift that you will ever choose to accept.