Welcome to Camp Aunt Wench

My family's relationships are all complicated for starters anyway. Normal for my family is something that is often met with quizzical looks and the occasional "huh?" from outsiders. But when it comes to the muck, we tend to help when and where we can....almost to a fault. That's what has happened again. This time it's a chaotic situation at my brother's house. Dad calls the place a "flop house", I call it a crazy zoo, complete with a poo-flinging monkey type. My niece is here because she doesn't need to be around that stuff right now. It is getting adventurous to say the least over there. So since I have a daughter that is 3 months older than my niece, I get to host Camp Aunt Wench. They seem to play well together at first, but that's because they hardly ever see each other despite living a mere 6 miles apart. However, given a few days in a cabin together, things are going to get interesting. We have the older girl who is the youngest of three, and the only girl. Add to this we have the younger girl who is an only child. The one who is accustomed to fending off siblings for her things or space, tends to get a bossier as the days pass. The one who is not entirely accustomed to sharing tends to get whinier as the visit progresses. I hear "she's being mean" numerous times. Please define "mean". I guess my family can be brutes in some ways (regardless of gender), so it is entirely possible that what we consider normal is in fact "mean" to another. I can only suppose that the longer my niece is here, the better she will assimilate to my family's brand of chaos. However, as the aunt, it is my job to keep it interesting and fun or as a mom, I will go absolutely bonkers beyond recognition. In several ways this visit to Camp Aunt Wench is good for everyone involved. My niece gets away from the insanity in her own home, and my chaotic house gets a dose of fun. My usual intentions of doing fun stuff often end up tossed by the wayside because I lose momentum halfway through the day.

In the meantime, we really ARE camping in the house because the kitchen remodel is progressing in small steps because of my husband's retail hours. I am washing dishes in the tub with a dishpan and the drainer parked in a large roasting pan so the clean ones can be plucked out of the way in the event someone needs to defunk themselves. Oh yeah....that's right, I haven't been here to post anything for something like 2 weeks. I got word that new cabinets were being bestowed upon us with 2 days' notice, and one of those days I was working. So it was a bit of a stash-and-dash to empty the kitchen with some semblance of organization that allowed me to still feed my crew without drive-through and takeout menus. I can deal with no stove, as I have a nuker, crockpot, electric skillet and toaster oven. However, the SINK is highly important and makes things more challenging when it's lacking. I have incoming water because the pipes are still in place. However, the lack of a drain is posing a bigger challenge. It's manageable but not exactly convenient. In any case, we've been occupied with that and I will be glad when I have a sink back....I think I can even deal with bare plywood for temporary counters, as long as I can wash dishes while standing again. I've been spoiled by modern conveniences like sinks and electricity, so I can't see myself going off to the woods where bugs will feast upon my flesh while I wash dishes on my prayerbones.

Now if you'll pardon me, I just saw two little girls trailing off to my room, to bid Uncle DevilDog a good morning.......