I rolled over onto all fours, feeling like a fire breathing dragon and looked for the dead ant's brethren, whom I found had assembled an army on my window sill. They weren't centered on any one thing, but there were several hundred of the damned things and they were small, like we'd killed all the big ones and were stuck dealing with the minor demon spawn.

Furious about this unwarranted attack, I awoke the big tall general who whined like a baby about too much light and how he couldn't possibly open his eyes in so much light (it's overcast today and the shade was mostly drawn) too view this insect army assembled above our bed, poised to attack our sugary drooly breath.

Actually, he was the only one tall enough to reach the uncaulked hole in the window frame where there was space between where the damned ants were parading forth. I squished the darned ants all over the sill, cussing about not being able to use the big-ass can of Raid and bitched at Mike until he started squishing, caulking and commiserating.

After leaving a veritable killing field on the window sill, I got out a sponge, a bottle of vinegar and started to sponge off the window sill and every section of everything that had seemed to have a line of ants on it recently. I was told this week that vinegar obliterates the ant trails. I don't know if it works, I don't know if I dare believe. I do know we've caulked and recaulked everything into a hermetically sealed space of heaven around the head of my bed.

Speaking of heaven. We are getting married. We don't know when. Probably the beginning of April when the tax return comes in. Canon Marcia will do it no problem. The issue is that it's appropriate to pay her and we don't have it and when the tax return comes we will. She inferred she'd do it for free, but I'd feel bad not paying a minister.

We're just planning to have a few friends and just do something simple and inexpensive. We'll have a dinner afterwards and Pauline has said she'll take Russell, so we can have a honeymoon of some kind. Next year, when we have money, we'll invite the family, all the friends, and have a ceremony and a big expensive party. In the interim, we aren't going to tell Bear for the time being because we know he'll slip and tell our families. He's too little to keep a big secret. Mike will retain his name and not take mine until he's out of school.

We're simply out of reasons not to be married right now and have a lot of good reasons to get married now...the kids, money matters, and Mike needs the insurance.

And of course, the incredibly obvious thing: we are madly inexorably in love with each other and want to spend the rest of our lives together. I am still in disbelief that I get to wake up each morning next to my best friend and that we're about to make it legal and official.