Owens Oasis

     Owens Oasis~ the best place to stay, where you will be fed bacon cookies, mansketti and have to pay for laundry (not really).  Grendel came home for a few days over the holiday- when we got home the manz had this sign outside the front door, and signs (with prices and reminders) on the fridge and washer- fun, fun.  We all went out to the farm for Easter dinner, feasting on ham, homemade potato salad (with homemade pickles in it- the secret ingredient), field peas, butter beans, okra (especially made for Dad, me and Grendel), candied sweet potatoes (a whole pan just for Grendel- they are a recognized super-favorite), corn (which is always wonderful, although always claimed 'to salty'), 4 bean salad, biscuits (for Eric, who eats most of them with heaps of strawberry jam), califlower/broccoli/cheese salad.  Tea, of course, carrot cake, chocolate cake, sort-of-a-fruit cake that a church lady made (but forgot the pineapple in it, so it was dryish- but I liked it) and my lemon cookies.  (I always bring cookies.  Everyone else out cooks me around the block, but I make awesome cookies. Even if they are just cake-box cookies, I add things to them- in this case lemon kool-aid powder, rolled them in sugar and *wham* tart/sweet slightly crunchy moist inside cookies from heaven).  Tons of food- we were there, and Charles's Mom and Dad, sister Karen, husband Wayne (who is a hoot, always) and their son Eric who comes in from the military base.    Family gatherings are low-key, we are all to busy eating during dinner to talk much, and once everyone leaves the table the men fall promptly asleep in front of the tv.  Conversation is mostly just catching up and local gossip- everyone knows something about anything- and stories told by Wayne, Dad and Charles- (Charles tells the best stories, hands down).   Coco and Lacy race around, then hop up on laps after dinner.  It's funny to me because Mr. Owens rules Max and Bear when it comes to food- they don't beg or come around when we are eating- I expected the same from his Dad.  But after dinner Coco happily hops up on his lap to watch dessert, and Lacy jumps up on Wayne.  Of course, they are much smaller dogs (terrier and westie) than Ursula..... or Max (also known as 'Mr. Chubchub').  After dinner and before I try to help in the kitchen- I have become kitchen-awkward and not sure where things go or the cleaning system (never having had a dishwasher, it seems that everyone has a different system of what goes in the washer/what doesn't, if it is scraped or rinsed or prewashed or just gets stuck in....and because I remember the time that our portable dishwasher Mother and Daddy had ate the good glasses, I am terrified of putting the wrong thing in- especially when it comes to holiday dishes/glasses).  But I try to help- packing up leftovers is always a puzzle to- because it is 'take what you want' but I don't want to be greedy or take what won't get eaten, and the leftovers are partialed out between the three households and the two boys.  Of course, everyone has favorites- I eat everything pretty much so I am the easiest- and Mom did make a whole pan of sweet potatoes just for Grendel.  (He managed to make them last until Tuesday...good work boy!),

And that reminds me of a couple of stories- I was calling Grendel 'boy'- I have always called him 'boy' or 'boyo' or 'monster' affectionately- turns out that Charles's Dad had also been 'boy' his whole life to his family. Then Dad told about the cards one of the church ladies had sent to the house for years (Christmas and whatnot I suppose)- they were always addressed to 'Owl' Owens.   (Dad's name is Al).  I love it!   Owl.   I know what I'm going to tease him about from now on~

Easter bunny came to our house before dinner- peanut butter eggs, jellybeans and a chocolate bunny for the manz, cadbury eggs, jellybeans and chocolate bunny for the boy.   My beloved husband made himself a bunny ear hat and cottontail, and woke up me from my nap doing an Easter dance : )    Boy and I made the cookies, we went to the farm, came back and took more naps.  Except for Charles, who had to go out on road calls to fix flat tires and refill gas tanks.  It amazes me that people run out of gas- a gas call has a $50.00 charge *plus* the gas- and he usually gets a tip as well. Next week he will be training on lock-outs and learning the ways to open the new doors~ 

It was hard to go back to school after break, I admit.  I am curiously sleepy (I just want to sleep all the time- I start yawning, watery eyes, can't stop, can't think until I've had a nap, which is ok at home, not so much at work or when out and about).  Two days of school (followed by naps), then yesterday back to the city with Grendel.  He got his hair cut again, another donation to Locks of Love so it was free- it is shorter than it has ever been, a good cut but I miss his long hair.  He went to the throat doctor as well who gave him different medicine, told him to keep to his 'no-cut' diet (if you have to cut it with a knife, you can't eat it-) and is sending him to an allergist again for a detailed test and hopefully a targeted allergy prevention system. 

In the meantime, back to school today- school and meetings and twenty thousand things that need done. I'd rather not, but I must- it will all work out and I'll be back in the groove before I know it.  In the meantime, another cuppa coffee will be a very good thing.