Been a long time

I am too lazy to actually check this out, but I think this is the longest gap between posts since I started this thing. The past few weeks have been very eventful for the Winn clan. Jarom finished up his classes with good grades and Alixa finished up her time at Rural Metro with a wonderful baby shower thrown by her coworkers, many of whom she had little or no contact with. She even got a present from the mail lady. I guess Lix just makes good impressions on people. But then it was time to go, so we packed up our clothes and a few basic supplies for the summer and hit the road for Richmond, where we would spend an enjoyable evening hanging out with Nate and Kenz. We met one of their neighbors on Sunday morning as we were leaving. He saw a young couple, one a pregnant lady, and assumed that we were the new people next door that he hadn’t met yet. Good people.



We made it to Delaware safely, where we found a wonderful setup. There is enough closet space for Jarom to keep his clothes in his own room, which is a treat. Lix is excited because the hot water lasts for more than 7 minutes. I get a spot next to the window, where I can enjoy the sunlight and keep an eye on what is happening. Jarom and Alixa aren’t the only ones who like the house, which means that I have had a steady stream of visits from grandchildren Allie, Madison, Adri, and Juliet. They all seem to love me, although there are varying degrees of braveness. Some touch my tail, some hold me, and some keep their distance. I’m sure they will all get used to me by August.

Jarom loves the wallpaper

After pulling in on Sunday, Lix spent most of our first week here transferring from Tennessee Medicaid to Delaware Medicaid. It was a painful process that saw her put in three separate applications at three different locations. Then we started to get calls from people wondering why there were so many different applications put in. So she then had to go around and cancel them. But it seems as though things are all taken care of, and she has had two doctors visits at the hospital here. She is already dilated to a 1 (I don’t actually know if that is good/bad/unique/normal for this stage of the game, but I thought I would throw it in there) and is really hoping for an early baby.

After 4 days of his parents, Jarom just had to get out, so they jumped in the car and took off for Cleveland to see the Forest-Keepers. After an uneventful drive across PA, they got to OH just in time to see Mars and his rec-league volleyball team lose in the finals of their league championship. One day they went golfing with Mario and a couple of kids from his branch. It was a beautiful day, a wonderful course, and a great time, but the additional guests were not exactly quick players. It took 6 and a half hours to get through 18 holes, and by then even Jarom was ready to get out of Dodge. One morning they went to see Mikah at her art school, and loved the work that she does. Jarom wants to get her to do some art for our house someday. He is very jealous of people who can draw. Nights in Cleveland meant Settlers of Catan marathons with Mars. Unfortunately for everyone, Lix is both a good player and very sneaky, and she wins most of the time. Before leaving the state, they decided to renew the vehicle registration, which meant a quick trip to the shop for a new catalytic converter and an emissions test. It was a steal at only $450, plus they threw in a hefty batch of new cigarette smell that we are still trying to get rid of.

This week it was back to DE so that Jarom could start his internship at the University of Delaware. It’s been a couple of days, and it seems like it will be a good gig. He gets to wear shorts to work, and will get to learn a variety of systems and tasks that will hopefully be useful as far as future employment goes. Lix is struggling in her new role as housewife. She got a little bored one day, and was highly offended when Jarom asked her to do the laundry while he was gone. She has started quilting, played a little bit of piano, and done a lot of cooking.



This week Jarom got me a pair of feeder mice, since I hadn’t eaten for about 4 weeks and the pet store was out of rats. I only wanted one of them, so I graciously offered the extra to Chewie to play with. Jarom tried to get him to bat the little guy around, but the best he could get out of him was a steamroller. But it turns out that Chewie just likes a good chase, because today the little mouser turned up on the garage steps. Jarom is glad that even though he is getting old, his cat still has some killer instinct left in him.