Odds and ends.

1. The house is sooooo close to being done. And it feels amazing. Seriously, I could not have done this without help. My Mom rocks, big time. There is so little left to be done, so little that I could finish it all in a day or two, but I won't, because I need things to occupy my brain, time and energy until Swiss comes home.

2. Dealing with the pseudo-step kid who doesn't like me isn't fun at all. I never know what to do or say to avoid living up to my (I think) unearned Wicked Stepmother moniker. He's 21 and has 3 kids of his own (if you do the math here, you'll find that yes, in fact, I am a Step-grandmother as well. Laugh all you want, but if you are going to make a crack about it- make it a good one!) and has held onto the idea that "I'm not going to call her Mom" ever since Swiss and I got serious... even though I've never asked or wanted him to do so.

He wants the lowdown on when Swiss gets home (which of course I have shared with him, even though we have a window 2 weeks wide), but he won't call me to ask, or e-mail me, he uses his wife via Facebook to communicate with me. Blech. But anyway, I invited him and his family down for the homecoming or to visit shortly after Swiss gets home because I know if I didn't, it would be because I don't want them to be a part of our life. Even though that couldn't be further from the truth. I suppose I just keep on doing the best I can and maybe some day he and I will be on better terms... meaning he won't see me as an intruder into his family anymore. *sigh*

3. Dude, it is 61 degrees out. And sunny! And it is fabulous! The windows are open and the sun is shining in and the grass is greening up and it makes me happy. Plus, you should see the beautiful light that my studio room gets!

4. I am mostly completely in love with our Commissary. (I say mostly because there are minor annoyances, like no fresh seafood, a sort of paltry health food section, and inconsistent brands stocking- like having a certain brand's organic mustard but not ketchup for instance) The avocados are like 79 cents a pound. And limes are 3 for 33 cents. And the chicken is dirt cheap. And the cheeses! The ice creams (though no sorbets)! The German foods isle and the Hispanic foods and the Asian foods and the specialty items! It is wonderful... and juuuust down the street. I foresee much cooking and much deliciousness coming from our kitchen. Hooray!

5. This house is pretty great, I love the floor-plan and the rooms are all super spacious (except the bathroom which are, ummm, let's call them efficient). But the one thing I don't love? There are only 8 drawers in the entire place. Eight. And they are all in the kitchen. Dudes! Where do I put my makeup??? My hairbrushes? My STUFF? Very perplexing. Who makes bathrooms these days without a single functioning drawer I ask you??? The Army!!! That's who!

6. The hubs got word that he'll be getting a promotion of sorts upon redeployment stateside. He'll actually get frocked, but it is a job he will be great at. The only down side? He's gonna be in charge of A LOT of guys and a lot of things... so that invariably means longer work days, late nights, weekends, the works. I want to be peeved about it, but seeing as how I'll be at home for breakfasts and lunches and, well ALL the time, I'm thinking we will make it work and things will be fine. More importantly, Swiss will be happy because he is finally getting the respect and responsibility he deserves. Yay Swiss!

7. My Mom was sufficiently amazed by IKEA. And I bought soooo much stuff! But it all looks 84 shades of awesome in the house and I had delicious Swedish Meatballs with Lingonberry jam. YUM. And it is just 55 minutes down the road. Wheee!

8. The Class Six here has 7 (SEVEN!) kinds of hard cider. Swiss and I luuuurve hard cider. Aaand, 3 of them are kinds I've never had... one of which is local! Squee!

9. The painting/creativity bug has bit me again. All I have to do is get the studio prepped and I can starting painting away. Plus, I bought myself a ton of new high-quality acrylic paints with my birfday money from my parents. I. Can't. Wait!

10. Fletcher has finally started to settle in to life on a military post. "Taps" doesn't bother him like it used to and he's less threatened by all the other bugle calls. The neighbor's car doors though? Not cool. Ha.

Okay- that is all. That got waaaaay long than I intended it to be, but there you have it.