WHAT'S THAT SMELL?!

So, over the weekend, I had our carpets cleaned, I opened the windows to let some pollen-saturated fresh air in the house and I cleaned like a mad woman. The house looked & smelled fantastic.

Then, the kids came home.

But, it wasn't until just yesterday that I noticed there was a slightly foul odor in our computer room. My first thought was, "Oh, man, do my feet really smell THAT bad?" I mean, I had been wearing my gray ballet flats from The Gap all week and, if you're like me, suede does a number on your feet. Phew. No, it couldn't have been my feet, but I did make a mental note to pick up some Odor Eaters for my shoes (ha ha ha). My second thought was, "Hmm...did the kids eat something in here and leave it laying around?" No, they couldn't have...they've only been home since Saturday afternoon and they are forbidden from eating within a 10 foot vicinity of the computer desk. My third thought was, "Oh, boy, what did the cats kill now and is it under the computer desk?"

I looked last night...like a moron...without a flashlight. So naturally I didn't see anything in the dark abyss that is below my computer desk. All I saw was the orange-red crayon that had been under the desk in the same spot for about a year (yes, I'm lazy sometimes). Well, this morning I was sitting at the desk checking my email, doing some early morning blog reading and begging my son to change his shirt when I smelled that sour, not so fresh smell AGAIN. I knew it wasn't me...it couldn't have been. My tootsies were freshly washed and I told myself that I was NOT wearing my beloved gray flats today. Both kids denied any flatulence and, hmm, how funny is it that I haven't seen any of our cats this morning. Could they be guilty? Yep. Problem is, I don't know how long ago the incident happened, but judging from the smell it must have been a while ago:

A shovel wouldn't fit under the computer desk so I put on my yellow rubber gloves and used a small Priority Mail box (thank you, USPS!) and slid the poor little wabbit out. Thank goodness he or she was still whole and an extra special thank goodness that my kids were already on the bus and en route to school!

I'm happy to report that the foul smell is no longer lingering and now my computer desk is giving off the familiar scent of fresh linen scented Lysol. Sort of.

A funny thing happened in the flower bed last night...

We have three cats.

They are indoor/outdoor cats.

We have one litter box.

It hasn't been cleaned out in months because none of the cats use it. Apparently, our flower beds (and the horseshoe pits...ha ha ha) are much more desirable areas for cat elimination of any kind. Unless, of course, it's a hairball that needs hacking up and then it's either the comforter on my bed or the hallway that becomes the targeted spot...gross.

Yesterday evening Adam was in the backyard redoing a few of the pavers and our female cat, Betsy, was with him. She was trotting through the freshly mulched flower bed and I was watching her. She stopped, dug around for a bit and squatted. No, no...that spot wasn't right. She moved to a different spot in the flower bed and dug another small hole. No, no...still not right. This time, she goes to the FAR end of the flower bed...farthest away from us...and digs yet another hole. I guess it wasn't very nice of us to be watching her, let alone laughing at her, and she felt she needed some privacy.

WRONG.

I guess third time isn't a charm after all because next thing we know she trots back over to where we are, digs up a FOURTH spot in the flower bed and proceeds to tighten up her back legs and get a look on her kitty face that meant business.

That fourth hole was the only one she covered. Thanks for the, uh, fertilizer, Betsy.


Afterword:
Don't ask me why I'm talking about my cat's poop. After you have kids, anything goes...even discussions about poop...no matter who's doing the pooping.

Our dear, sweet Betsy...

She's really nice -- I promise! The sweetest cat you'll ever meet -- seriously! I swear she's up to date on all of her shots -- just ask the vet! No, she doesn't bite -- unless you're a rabbit, bird or rat.

Betsy -- she's the ruler of our home. She's keeps us all in check.

Pissed

I'll admit it...my language is pretty colorful at times. It's also inappropriate at times. But, never once have my children repeated my language nor have I been questioned by my children about what something means...until this afternoon.

I was in the laundry room putting a load of laundry in the washing machine when I noticed it smelled kinda funky. Cat pee funky. Yeah, ew...not so nice on the nose. We have three cats -- and one litter box -- and I take great pride in the fact that I haven't had to clean the litter box out in months. Now, before you get all "OMG, she's so gross" on me, just realize that my kitties are indoor/outdoor and they would much prefer to handle their business in the flower bed. Hey, whatever floats their boat...it just makes for less crap that I have to scoop out of the litter box on a daily basis.

Anyway, recently we've noticed a fourth cat hanging around the house. He or she is all white. He or she has actually been inside of our house...never venturing further than the laundry room, but still...the mystery cat has been in the house nonetheless. I don't know if it's my cats getting all territorial or if it's the white cat trying to lay claim to my laundry room, but I just don't appreciate the cat piss smell that is out there.

So, this afternoon I'm talking to Adam about the smell in the laundry room. Malia is in her room working on homework. Aidan is in the living room with me watching "Inspector Gadget." As I'm folding jeans, I say to Adam, "Man, I'll be PISSED if one of the cats is spraying in the laundry room!"

Next thing I know, Aidan's asking, "Mom, uh, what does it mean when you say pissed?"

Immediately, I felt about 2 feet tall and I began apologizing profusely. Adam's in the kitchen snickering at my misfortune and I'm lecturing my son about how it's not appropriate to say such naughty words.

Eeek.

Sinu-what?

I just got over a sinus infection. In fact, I took my last antibiotic on February 8th. Obviously, the z-pack didn't do jack because here I am a little more than a week later and I feel something coming on. Could it be my sinuses again? Is it possible that the antibiotics didn't do their job. Possibly. Am I going to spend another $20 on a copay just to get a prescription for some $20 antibiotics again? Probably not.

After talking with my parents tonight, they suggested that I:

1. Keep my cats out of the house -- um, this is not an option and, as far as I know, I am not allergic to cats.
2. Use a warm compress on my face for 20 minutes three times a day -- again, probably not going to happen because I'm not THAT disciplined (besides, I'd look like a jackass at the office when I'm sitting at my desk with a washcloth over my face)
3. Start using a neti pot -- a neti what?

The third suggestion intrigues me. My parents told me that they found some product at Costco today for sinus relief. SinusAid, SinusIde...I couldn't quite make it out and my father wasn't too sure about the exact name. My guess is this:

http://www.sinucleanse.com/index.htm

I figure it's worth a shot -- well, at least that is what my brief rundown of the website tells me. Of course, this warrants yet another trip to freakin' Wally World. Ugh. But, if it means my sinuses get bathed and pampered then I guess it would be worth it, right? I'm a bit skeeved out about intentionally pouring water in one nostril only to see it come out of the other one, but I guess I'll get over it, right?

Anyone out there have any experiences with neti pots or sinus cleansing? Anyone have any other ideas besides asking for yet another prescription (because I'm not good at remembering to take medication)?

I just want to be able to breathe again.

Nighty night!

8:30pm rolls around and it's time to tuck the kids into bed -- Malia has a loft bed (that Adam built for her a couple years ago) and as she climbed into bed she found one of our cats, Ziggy, already snuggled up in her bed: