... A Little Remiss

My apologies to both of my regular readers for my lack of recent posting. I've been firmly rooted in 3d-land, and enjoying every minute of it. Okay, with the women-folk doing that mood swing thing lately, I haven't loved EVERY minute of it, but my point stands.

As I mentioned in my last post, I now have my girls full time, and that's required a bit of adjustment on my part. Add to this the fact that they've both got learner's permits, and you should start getting an overview of why I haven't been posting as much.

I'm also discovering that I have a bit of a green thumb. I inherited a few plants from my uncle's house after he died... a couple of dieffenbachia, a snake plant and one that I think it a peace lily. All of them were in rough shape when I received them, so they've all been re-potted, and I also took a couple of pups from the snake plant. I also bought a bromeliad last winter, and it gave me a pup, which I just transplanted into its own pot. And to top it off, a friend gave me a spider plant clipping, which I'm trying to get to take root.

Speaking of pups, one of my dogs isn't feeling well. Her nose is dry, she's absolutely pounding the water, and she's having a bit of a bladder control issue. I think it's a urinary tract infection. I will find out today.

And on top of this, it's Christmas time, so I need to get the tree up.

...A Long Time Coming

Today is a day I've anticipated for over seven years. When my ex-wife and I parted ways, she stayed in the area, and we shared custody of our children -- joint legal custody, and joint physical care. I had the kids every Monday, Wednesday, and every other weekend. She took the kids on Tuesday, Thursday and alternate weekends. In actuality, the kids spent significantly more time at my place. On the ex's days, they came over early the next morning to get ready for school here; they stayed here after school until she picked them up on her way home from work. She frequently asked me to take the kids on her evenings or weekends for one reason or another. My ex is leaving town today -- in fact, she's leaving the state -- and now I have the kids full time.

My ex has never hid the fact that she didn't like Iowa. She said this when we were together, and she's said this to the kids many times over the years. I guess that she's finally had enough, and she's moving to Texas to start a new life. She plans to see the kids monthly, and for a couple of extended visits during the year, so it's not like she's dumping the kids and skipping town. Fortunately, she seems to realize that it's in the kids' best interest to let the kids stay here, where they have a stable home, good schools, and an established network of friends. The kids seem to be okay with their mom moving away, so I guess it's a win to the fifth power. I say "fifth power" because everyone seems to be pleased with the new arrangement. The ex gets to move out of Iowa. The kids are happy that their mom is moving somewhere that she'll be happy, and my wife and I are incredibly pleased that we get the kids full time.