My empty nest did not become a reality.  My last chick flew the nest but I gained a grandson due to financial difficulties of one of my other daughters.  So while they get their house in order, I am taking care of little Alex.  He is doing fine.....I am adjusting!  I am really glad when his nap time comes since it gives me time to catch up on my sleep too.  I went too many days and nights without adequate sleep while my sisters were here from California and I am slowly being able to get caught up one nap at a time.  So this will help explain my lack of journaling but will be back to tell about the wedding.  Yes, she did get married and is now in Florida having the time of her life.  She even got to have her picture taken with SpongeBob SquarePants.  If you know anything about Jen......this is a really big thing for her.  I will be back, I promise.

I started to do this entry last night but fell asleep while putting the baby away to bed.  He likes to have someone with him in the room when he falls asleep.  What I was going to say was that I have just said goodbye to my two sisters and I miss them already.  They left early this morning to go to New York City to do some sightseeing and to do some family history stuff.  While it was orginally planned for my sister Carol to stay with me at my house, the plan got changed when my sister Debbie decided that she wanted to come too.  My take charge sister, Debbie, booked a room for herself and my sister Carol at the hotel in my town.  My sister Debbie did a lot of assuming without a lot of checking and as a result a few feathers have been ruffled and now there are some hurt feelings.  Soooo.....to maybe help bridge a few gaps (or maybe not...depending if anyone wants to bridge any gaps), firstly, since I had planned for Carol to stay with me in the beginning, it would have been more appropriate to check with me about any change of plans.  Carol and I had exchanged emails confirming the fact that she would be staying at my house.  Now the confusion begins.  Debbie decided that she wanted to attend the wedding (I am thrilled that now both my sisters will be here) but she tells Jen and Jen is juggling too many jobs at the moment with preparing for her wedding and does not let me know right away.  I am running around trying to get everything prepared too plus dealing with family and health issues so I am not reading my emails in a timely fashion.  I didn't read the one that said "we are staying in a hotel" until much later and that is only because my sister Carol had asked me if I had gotten Debbie's email.  She went through my Xanga messaging and my Club Pogo messaging to get my attention.  I would have liked for both of my sisters to stay with me so we could of had those late night gab sessions and memory walks plus to update ourselves about our families.  But I do have to say.....it worked out better that they did stay in the hotel since 1.  It is an old hotel and Debbie would have gotten spooked if she would have had to stay there alone (ghosts and all that.....plus she was on the third floor and no elevator) 2.  My household was in chaos and everyone's hours would have put a strain on Carol's ability to get any sleep.  3.  My husband got progressively more and more grumpy as the week wore on.  As it was, he is very lucky that I have not prepared his final resting place somewhere in the backyard after expressing his "grumpyness" in my sisters' presence the last night they were here.  After all, I rarely get to spend time with my sister since they live on the west coast and I am out here in New York.  So Mom, if you are reading this, don't get mad at Carol since it worked out better that they were in the hotel since that is where we girls had our final dinner together (take out Chinese) and enjoyed our final moments together...that is after we climbed the stairs of torture first.

My daughter's wedding is tomorrow.  Heather is already here.  Jessie and James w/Alex came up early.  My two sisters arrived Wednesday from California.  My Husband, my two sisters, Alex and I have just picked up Scott from the airport in Rochester, NY (which was an adventure in itself)coming from NC.  My stepdaughter, her partner, and Kendal have arrived from Indiana and are staying with my stepdaughter's mother.  Josh, Trish, Adrianna, Damien, and Neko are coming up tomorrow afternoon.  Matt and Denise will meet us at the church.  The family gathers with only Lindy (Scott's wife) and Granny not being able to make it but they will be there in their hearts.  Jen is getting married and this is to be her special day.  The family stories have already begun, starting with Aunt Debbie getting pulled over for speeding, Jen's Bridezilla moment last weekend and I just know it is going to get interesting when Alex as the ringbearer goes down the aisle with Kendal.  I figure that part will work out......the problem will start the moment he is handed off  to his Dad, James, and then eventually to Tom (Heather's huband) since James is also an usher for the wedding.  I have already cried when she came down the aisle during the dress rehearsal so I am making sure I have plenty of tissues for the real deal.  I am determined that I am going to enjoy this wedding come what may.......and I will find any humor in any of the last minute disasters that usually occurs when this kind of event is planned.  So.......to shower and to bed I go and I will keep my fingers crossed that all goes well.   

The temperature of the pool water was 80 degrees this afternoon at 2 o'clock.  When I entered the water I did not even get that first freeze that usually occurs when you enter water on a hot muggy day.  It was heaven and I had the pool all to myself.  What makes it even nicer is that NY has a law where women can go topless in public if they wish and still be legal ......as long as you are not doing anything lewd or touching yourself in a subjective way.  Of course, nearly all the women of NY do not choose that option since:  1. We are mostly raised to be modest.  2.  We like clothes especially during the winter time.  3.  Most of us do not have the body beautiful that we wished we had so we could flaunt it.  4.  The men acted like idiots when just a few women did test it out to see if they really would not be arrested.  Men walking into doors, windows, people, lamp posts, parking meters......and then there were the men in cars....same scenerio!  Anyways.......with this law in effect and the fact that we live on a dead end street with only two house, plus the fact that our house is on the top of the hill and completely surrounded by our forrest, I got to go topless in our pool in the middle of the day.  No tan lines for me this year......yay.  After all these years, I finally have the home where we have privacy.  Of course, I take a shirt ....just in case someone comes up the driveway.  The lilac bushes give me the time and privacy just in case someone does come up.  I was out swimming last night too.  It was so peaceful and so beautiful with all the fireflies flickering along the edge of the forrest and across the lawn.  My own little private fireworks show to enjoy. 

Pool is setup.  Water has been added along with all the chemicals.  Now we just have to get the electrical underground and to the pool.  Last weekend the trench was dug....by a backhoe....so my Husband is really happy about that.   This weekend will be devoted to installing all the electrical connections our inspector requires.  Everyone is really looking forward to getting into the pool......but we are being good and waiting until everything is in place.  Jen's wedding day is starting to pick up speed and will be upon us really quickly and she is starting to stress out a bit.  Hmmmm......Bridezilla in the making?  Pretty soon my house will be bursting at the seams with people.  On a sad note, my Mother will not be able to come since she is having a pacemaker put in right before the wedding.  We will miss her but we have come to an agreement that we would rather have her get her pacemaker and miss the wedding than.....not get the pacemaker and possibly die before the wedding.  Sometimes you just have to get your priorities straight and we love her too much to risk losing her.......even for a wedding.