Monday, February 15, 2010

Presidents' Day And Other Happenings

Happy Presidents' Day - especially those of you who get the day off of school or work. Personally I'd rather be celebrating spring. A warm, but not hot, sunny day with the windows open and the smell of fragrant flowers wafting through a very clean and dust free house (it's my fantasy, isn't it?). While I'm at it, on this very lovely day I would like to be boxing up clothes that are now much to large for me and putting away my new, significantly smaller clothes that fit just right and proclaim a chic, yet casual sense of style...

Wow. That was a great happy place. I'll have to remember to go there more often!

There is still snow everywhere. Mostly still pretty snow, except for on the sides of the roads. A good deal of that snow is rather dirty. And the snow on our deck? Sookie has an issue with getting off the deck with all the snow in the yard so she's been using the snow on the deck AS HER RESTROOM! "Don't eat yellow snow" has taken on a whole new meaning. Not to mention the poopcicles out there. Just... yuck. The silver lining? I'll get back to you.

And guess what! They're calling for more snow tonight and tomorrow night. At one time some meteorologists were saying we could get another 10 inches. Thankfully that thought is now passe and they're talking about 2 to 4 inches where we live. The silver lining? Because it's supposed to snow tonight and into the morning hours I think school is going to be delayed by 2 hours. Not such a bad thing considering we've all had the last six mornings to sleep in late. We could use a 2 hour delay to ease into getting up early again.

While I'm on a roll here, I think I'll just keep up the slightly negative tone of this post.

Todd and I are sick. Late Friday afternoon he started complaining about stomach cramps and I just figured he was being some kind of a baby (because I lack compassion. It's true.) Friday night, however, as Katie and I were watching The Princess Bride (as opposed to the opening ceremonies - don't judge me. I'm still a proud American) my tummy started doing the same thing. Sure enough. We both ended up with some weird kind of stomach bug. There has been no throwing up, but a lot of wishing there was some throwing up just to feel better. And there's been quite a bit of, um, "running" to the bathroom, if you catch my drift. I was actually going to go into work this morning, but my stomach still hurts and I can't eat much of anything without feeling horrible. Weird. The silver lining? I'm starting my weight loss program today! And heaven forbid the kids get it and miss school - from my fingers to God's eyes.

My sister, Terri, lives in Fort Worth. They, too, had snow. Quite a bit for that region, in fact. She had a great time playing in the snow with her grandson, Anthony. They had snowball fights and built a snowman. Lots of fun for an awesome grandma. But she slipped and fell Friday night on her driveway, breaking her leg at the ankle and requiring an ambulance ride to the hospital. They set it and put a splint on it, but when the swelling goes down she'll require surgery. The silver lining? They prescribed her some killer goofers!

I've been reading An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon for the last couple of months. It's a little over 800 pages and I'm having a fairly difficult time with it. If you don't know anything about this book I'll tell you. It's book number 7 in the Outlander series. The first several books of the series are amazingly good and the real talent DG has is for building such complex characters that you end up feeling as though they're good friends. So you keep reading the series, even though the books start getting a little bogged down. I'm finding this current read a little bit like a treasure hunt. There's a lot of sand to dig though, but I keep coming up with little, or big, gems so it makes the work worth it. Living near Philadelphia with all it's Revolutionary War history makes it interesting, too, because that's what's going on in the book. So I'm enjoying it, and yet I'm not. I just want to read the good parts and move on to a much smaller, much more shallow and insipid, much easier book to read! But I can't until I've finished this one. So maybe I should get off the computer and read some more.

Oh wait! I forgot I was supposed to post more pictures of the blizzard. So without further ado, I give you THE GREAT BLIZZARD OF 2010










And how about these pictures of "Meerkat Brady", taken by Laura. He was looking for his girlfriend through the snow, but couldn't see over the drifts!

Labels: photography, reading, sick, weather, weight management, whiney

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Saturday, February 28, 2009

I'm Still Around

My poor mother had to call me today because I haven't been keeping up with my blog so she didn't know what was going on with me. Sadder words have never been typed! So I'm going to give you a bit of random...


We had Chinese food the other day and check out my fortune:



Todd was pretty smug when I read it to him because every time I complain about my weight or any other cruddy side effect of having cancer he says pretty much the same thing. This is the part where I usually say something flippant and roll my eyes, but Mothers with Cancer lost one of our own last night so I'm going to embrace these simple words and be grateful for what I have.



This upcoming Friday I am going to the spa with my friends; Kris, Laura and Sheri. Last year for each birthday we chipped in and bought a gift card for a one hour massage and we're finally getting around to cashing in on them. It's going to be exactly like Sex in the City, except there will be no sex going on and the spa is actually in a pretty rural, yet quaint, little town. But there will be four exceptionally beautiful and fashion savvy women. Really.

Laura made the reservations for us, but we each had to call in and give them our GC number. So I called and gave my number to the receptionist and then I took a deep breath and said, "I have a rather embarrassing question to ask you." She was very nice as I told her I had breast reconstruction a couple of years ago and am unable to lay on my stomach. My obvious concern was that I wouldn't be able to get the massage. After relaying the information to the massage therapist she came back and told me it wouldn't be a problem.

Here again I would like to complain about the inconvenience of cancer, but I remember Lisa and my fortune so I won't.


Sookie is much better. Poor, neglected dog.





Todd, on the other hand, is still sick. His fever broke a week ago and his doctor put him on a steroid dose pack to clear the chest congestion so he could breathe, but he's still under the weather. He's going back to the doctor on Monday and I just hope he doesn't have pneumonia because: A) He has another business trip next week and he gets to visit his brother's family; B) He's tired of feeling miserable; and C) I don't do well with sick people in my house.


We had a little taste of spring yesterday. It was delightful. First of all, I have instituted a new "below freezing" rule which says if it's not below freezing I'm not driving the kids to the bus stop. Now the bus stop is only a half a block away and it's not the walking in the cold weather I'm opposed to. It's them standing there for 20 minutes in the below freezing temps that I don't like. Let's face it - I'll always be a Southern California beach girl at heart. But yesterday morning it was around 38 - well above freezing.

And when I opened the back door to let Sookie out it smelled wondermus. I don't remember this smell in California, but you Southerners know exactly what I'm talking about. The smell of early spring. It's in my top ten favorite smells ever, maybe top five.

It was just nice to leave the house for some Homie Hang time and not have to bundle up like Randy in A Christmas Story. But guess what. We are now expected snow. Not just a little, either. Depending on who you listen to we could get up to 10 inches of snow between tomorrow night and Monday morning. Of course, I'll believe it when I see it.

I have mixed emotions here. On one hand, we've had a lot of snow events this year, but no measurable snow to speak of. It would be nice to have one good sledding snow. On the other hand I'm ready for spring. I'm ready to have the windows open and take the dog for walks without freezing.



There is much more random in my life, but this is all you get today. Who knows? Maybe I'll write more tomorrow!!

Labels: blessings, cancer, random, sick, Sookie, weather

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Monday, January 12, 2009

Where In The World Have I Been?

Or more appropriately, where has the last week gone?? Is this what happens when you go back to work? You're actually up and out and doing things and the next thing you know, the entire week is gone and you're onto the next one? And not just the working thing, either, but Todd was in Phoenix last week which meant I was running the kids all over the place just about every night. So who has time to blog? (Sorry Lynilu!)

Saturday I worked in Katie's room with her. Holy moly, is all I'm gonna say. 'Cause really, anything else would just be mean. OH ALL RIGHT! I've just gotta say a little more. What an absolute disaster! We got a lot done, but we're far from finished. We did see - and even vacuum - a good deal of carpet that we haven't see in quite some time. That was exciting.

Saturday night I had a little bit of a meltdown. It was a cumulation of a lot of things - some big, some not so big - all related to cancer in some form or fashion. It sounds pretty lame to me considering I've been out of treatment for over three years now. It's this stinking "new normal". I don't like it. I miss the old normal. I was fairly happy with the old normal. It wasn't perfect by any means, but I was comfortable and content with who I was. Now I have a hard time seeing that same person. And not just my outward appearance, either. Even my way of thinking is different and not necessarily for the better.

I blame Beth Moore for the cryfest. My Home Team is doing her study on David and Friday we watched a video where she talked about the process of dealing with an overwhelming circumstance when you're close to God. With each step she mentioned I could see a short video of my life three-plus years ago played out and, frankly, it hurt.

I saw myself flat on the floor next to my bed, crying my heart out to God. I saw myself during the days before my surgery, praying the doctor was wrong. I saw myself as I was going through chemo, weeping and praying for success and asking to be around long enough to see my grandchildren. I saw myself when I was weak or in pain or heartbroken over my long distance marriage, praying for the strength to just get to the next day. And I saw myself following all my scans and appointment with my oncologist after my last treatment, praising God and thanking Him for getting me through it all.

Try as I might to go to my happy place and ignore Beth Moore altogether, I couldn't do it and I ended up in tears. Stupid Beth Moore. Stupid leaky eyes. But what great friends I have to love me despite my little emotional outburst.

After that I was kept pretty busy and didn't have a lot of time to think about and process the lesson. But deep inside I knew it would happen because there are some things I'm still dealing with that make me very sad, though I tend to just push those matters to the back. But Beth had opened the door and by Saturday night the door flew open and it all came spilling out. Poor Todd. Or I should say poor, wonderful Todd.

There is, as usual, much more to the story that I'm not willing to share. Some things are just too personal (she who wrote nearly every detail of her breast reconstruction says). At least for right now. Some day it will be written down for all to read, though. Because nobody ever told me it would be like this and though I realize everybody is different, I'm finding out these taboo issues are common among survivors.

Not surprisingly, I slept really well Saturday night! And last night, too. I had the hardest time getting out of the bed this morning. Not only that, but I'm just about to admit I'm getting sick. So far I've managed to deny it to myself and everyone else, but the sandpaper in my throat can be ignored for only so long. And now it's after 11:00 and I have to get up early tomorrow!! Because, you know, I'm still working toward that Mother Of The Year thing. Only 352 days left! But I have to say, each freezing morning I get up and out early enough to drive my kids the half a block to the bus stop the less appealing the award is looking to me.

So there you have it. That's where I've been. Right here, doing my thing - whatever that may be.

Labels: awards, breast cancer, homies, reconstruction, sick, whiney

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Sunday, January 04, 2009

Sickies, Weight, Age, and Other Depressing Subjects

I'm almost afraid of jinxing myself by typing this, but since I'm not the superstitious type I'm going to type it anyway. Everyone in my family has been sick except for me. Taylor started it off, to be quickly followed by Katie and Todd. Apparently all those immune system workouts at the preschool last year has finally paid off. Still, I wish the rest of the family would feel better. And stop breathing on me.

Todd's folks gave us a Wii for Christmas, including Wii Sport and Wii Fit. There's a fitness test on Wii Sport that measures balance, stamina and strength and then tells you your fitness age. The first time I did it I came up as 57. I'm 43. The goal is 20. No biggy, though. I figured after a couple days of getting into the swing of things I'd test closer to my real age. So two days later I took the test again. This time I scored at 77. As in 20 years older than my already too old score of 57. Made me want to throw a shoe at the TV. I made up for it with my last test, though, where I came up as 31. I think I'll stop with the testing for a while and just go with that score.

To do the Wii Fit you have to make a profile. You give your age and your height, you stand on the balance board to be weighed and it gives you your BMI. It also plumps up your cute little Wii character in direct proportion to your BMI. Which I find very sad because if she is my virtual self shouldn't she look how I WANT to look? You know - tall, thin, alluringly sexy as opposed to short, pudgy and middle aged - how I look in real life.

When I get past my Wii image I thoroughly enjoy it. I do a little yoga, a little balance fitness and a little aerobics for 30 minutes a day and bank my points. Right now I hold the lead in slalom, ski jump, hula hoop*, tight rope and running (I think). And I'm just competitive enough to want to keep those leads.

So the whole point is to exercise every day and watch my little Wii character's BMI go down. So far I've watched it go up. I gained 3.1 pounds in three days and watched my fluffy little Wii girl get fluffier. In my head I know I couldn't have gained 3 pounds of fat that quickly, but it sure is discouraging! No matter. I still plan on having fun with it. Maybe eventually my little Wii chick will be short, thin and middle aged. I'm not keen on the short or the middle aged, but I'll take it.

My only other depressing subject is about tomorrow. The Monday after a two week break. I'm looking forward to getting back to work. I'm just not looking forward to getting up early. And do you know why I get up early? It's not because I have to leave the house at an early hour or anything. No. It's because I'm a bloomin' good mom, that's why! I could easily sleep until 7:30, maybe closer to 8:00 and still get to work by 9:00. But I get up early enough to take my shower and then see Taylor before he leaves for school at 6:45. I could take my shower after that, but then I wouldn't get to hang out with Katie before she leaves at 7:20. For sure I could take my shower after that, but then Sookie would be in her crate from 7:30 until Taylor gets home from school at 3:00. So I sacrifice that which I hold near and dear to my heart just so I can be the loving, nurturing, selfless mom that I am, dangit!

Along those lines, I'm happy to say that it's already the fourth of January and I'm STILL in the running for Mother of the Year 2009. I'm feeling good about it. I really think this is my year!

*If you're interested, and I can't imagine you would be, Todd wrote a post about me and the hula hoop.

Labels: exercise, family, fun, Health, kids, sick, Sookie, weight management

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Monday, October 06, 2008

A Day of Hair, Leaves and Dogs

You may recall a month ago or so I said I was going to cut my hair after I'd lost 15 pounds. I changed my mind. I haven't lost 15 pounds, but I did cut my hair today. Well, I didn't cut my hair because I'm totally inept at that. Just ask Todd. Or Taylor. Or Katie. They each have received one hair cut from me. Lucky for Taylor and Katie their haircuts where when they were very young. Todd was not so lucky. But I digress.

As I said, I haven't lost 15 pounds. I've lost 10. First I lost six pounds, then I gained five, then I lost four. So I may not be ten pounds lighter than I was, but I did lose ten. But that doesn't even matter because I decided I really needed the change. I very much like it, though it doesn't make me look 30 pounds lighter like I'd hoped. *sigh*

The cut is great, but at this very moment it looks hysterical. I ended up with a migraine today so I came home, popped two Excedrin Migraines and fell asleep on the couch with Sookie. So I think I'll go wash it and see what I can do with it.

My friend, Darlene, is my stylist and she lives on a dairy farm in the country. So I grabbed my much adored camera and took a little drive after. The leaves are starting to change, though we're still a few weeks away from peak foliage.






And the Sookie portion of today's post. Look what she did to the screen. We still close it, though, to keep the really big bugs out.



An innocent looking Sookie.



Anti-Sookie/Brady fencing.

Labels: photography, random, sick, Sookie

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Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Whiny Wednesday

I still feel like ca-ca, though less than I did yesterday. I took Nyquil last night and had drug-induced dreams of Anne of Green Gables arguing with me about sudoku puzzles. If that doesn't make for a fitful sleep I don't know what does.

The kids ditched me today for their friends. I can't imagine why they would rather play with buddies instead of hanging out here, listening to me blow and watching me fall asleep in the chair. But whatever.

I finally managed to do a little grocery shopping yesterday, but before I could put the food away I had to clean out the fridge. I pulled out six or seven containers of some kind of ancient consumable and placed them on the counter so I'd have room for the good, edible food I had just purchased. After that I needed a nap so I just left the crud on the counter. When I went up to bed at 8:30 last night they were still sitting on the counter but I didn't have the energy or the care to do anything with them. This morning they were suspiciously gone. And I can't find the containers which leads me to the conclusion that Todd didn't actually empty them, but rather he threw them away. Not just the mystery matter inside, but the actual containers. Some of them were really good containers. But do I care? Not really. Because caring takes energy and I have none.

Which is why the wreck of a house I'm existing in doesn't bother me. I'm just looking forward to my date with Nyquil tonight and hope I don't dream about a vicious red head with a penchant for number puzzles.

**Addendum**

I have confirmation that yes, Todd did, in fact, throw the containers away. As pertains to the house he also informed me he's staying at the Marriott Courtyard tonight. He's a funny guy!!

Labels: dreams, sick

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Friday, February 29, 2008

Busy, Busy, Busy

I'm going to be very busy this weekend doing nothing. Seriously. I have the pleasure of a ton of alone time and I'm going to fill that time with flicks of the chick variety, books and computer. Coffee will be flowing freely and I may even throw in some Vermonty Python ice cream for good measure. I'm not going to go totally crazy with the eating, though.

I'm picking the kids up from school and taking them directly to church where they will get on a big bus and head to Harrisburg for PCTC - Pennsylvania Christian Teen Convention. They went last year and it was an awesome experience for all the teens.

My only glitch in the whole Weekend-To-Myself plan is another stinkin' cold. It's not a terrible cold. Mostly a full head - scratchy throat, plugged up ears, postnasal congestion. That sort of thing. But it made me miss Home Team this morning and I'm not happy about that! I drove the kids to the bus stop because it was about 12 degrees outside with a decent windchill and when I went upstairs around 7:20 to start getting ready I decided to lay down for a few minutes since I had plenty of time. The next thing I knew it was 9:10. Home Team starts at 9:00. Then I rolled over with the intention of getting up and making it for at least half of bible study and the next thing I knew it was 10:00. So I gave up. But I feel the loss of connecting with my Homies.

Oh wait. There may be another glitch. We're supposed to get some snow and possibly ice tonight which means I'll have to shovel the drive way tomorrow since my snow blowers will be in other parts of the country. That will cut into my indulgent plans and I'm not thrilled about that. But oh well.

But I am looking forward to having the remote control all to myself. I'm looking forward to catching up with all my blog buddies without hearing someone say "You spend more time with people you don't even know than you do with us." (I've never actually heard anyone say that, but there's always the risk.) I don't have to prepare any meals, do any laundry, be nice to anyone... I'm excited.

Both the kids asked me if I was really happy they were going away. Geesh. They make it sound so horrible when they put it that way. I told them I was thoroughly looking forward to some time alone, but that by Sunday I would be so happy to have them back. Hopefully I didn't damage them any more than I already have. Driving Taylor to the bus stop in my pink robe and then cuffing him upside the head for messing with the buttons in the car in front of some of the neighborhood girls did enough of that.

And trying to pretend our life is a musical after watching Dream Girls and singing our conversation with a little dance move thrown in here and there seems to really bother him. Not Katie, though. She just plays along. OH! That reminds me of when she was very young - probably around four or five, maybe a little older. I would tell her to go clean her room and then spy on her from around the corner. She would walk around the room very dramatically, singing, "My mother told me to clean my room, but I don't want to-o-o-o-o-o-o. Why must I do these things she asks of me-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e?" It was hysterical! I so wish I would have gotten that on tape. She was starring in her own little version of Katierella or something. So funny!

Back to all of my family being gone. I suppose I could have lied to them and tell them how sad I was going to be, how miserable my lonely weekend would be, how I would probably spend most of the time crying, blah, blah, blah. But they would have caught on pretty quickly and lying is just wrong.

Lucky Todd gets to see his new niece and nephew - The Pretty Princess and Tank. Or Olivia and Nicholas. I'm very jealous. VERY JEALOUS! They are so cute! We're going to California for Christmas (in Palm Springs) and I'll get to see them then. But this very weekend -- nay, this very day he'll get to hold them and squeeze them and munch on them... Jealous I am. (I talk like that because I'm part hobbit. Remember?) My mother-in-law cracks me up because she's so worried my children will think she doesn't love them any more now that she has two new grandchildren. How wrong she is, but I can't figure out how to convince her of that.

Ooo! Look at the time!! It's almost time to pick up the kids!!

Ciao!!

Labels: babies, family, fun, homies, joy, kids, movies, nostalgia, reading, sick, TV, weather

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Friday, February 08, 2008

Happy Friday!!

Friday means I get to sleep in as late as I want to tomorrow. I've been so tired lately that I may just stay in bed until lunch. Probably not, but just knowing I can makes me nigh giddy.

Friday also means that I get to meet with my Homies. I adore that about Fridays because I love my Homies. A few of them weren't able to make it this morning and I missed them, but I was sure happy to be with the ones who were there.

We're doing Beth Moore's study on the book of Daniel and it's some powerful stuff. I find it interesting because several years ago I wrote a play for VBS on the book of Daniel. I read the entire book a few times and then each chapter numerous times as I wrote each scene. It's fair to say I have a pretty decent knowledge of the whole book. But Beth Moore digs deep and reveals fascinating tidbits that writing a children's play just doesn't uncover.

***

I'm sick again. Not terribly so, but enough to be exhausted and feel a bit icky. No worries, though. As I said above, I get to sleep in tomorrow morning. And if I do nothing more than lay on the couch all day after that then no biggy.

***

Katie tried out for the school play and made it. We don't know what part she has, but the play is the comedy Lagooned. Here's a synopsis:

Just sit right down and enjoy a tale - a tale that combines parts of Fantasy Island, Treasure Island, and Gilligan's Island. Now you've got some idea of what's in store when you're lagooned. In this sequel to Tim Kelly's ever popular play, "Don't Rock the Boat," some favorite characters do their best to survive on a weird atoll in the South Pacific, the home of cannibals, jungle drums, and nasty wildlife including a gorilla! They don't realize the island is actually part of Fantasy Tours, an organization that stages shipwrecks for clients willing to pay the price. The phony natives think the ship's loonies are customers and the loonies think the natives are genuine. Naturally, when the belching volcano demands a bride, the hilarity explodes! Oh, yeah, the U.S. Navy has mistakenly designated the island for target practice!

Looks fun, doesn't it??

***

THIS JUST IN - Katie is watching Everyday Italian and Giada De Laurentiis throws in a "tablespoon" of butter. I made the comment that it was more than just a tablespoon and Katie says, "Mom, it's an Italian tablespoon. And not only that, but you know how the camera adds 10 pounds." The silly girl makes my heart smile.

***

The silly girl also frustrates me. Did you know that 13-year-olds know much more about applying makeup than middle aged women? Yeah. I'm not lying. Just ask Katie.

***

Taylor is off having an airsoft battle with three other 10th grade boys who think it's fun to be shot by little plastic b.b.s. Katie is going to a dance at school and then coming home with three other girls for a sleep over. Todd and I are probably going to watch more of season 1 of the Gilmore Girls tonight. It doesn't get more exciting than that!

Labels: Bible, food, homies, kids, random, sick

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Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Catching Up and Upcoming Posts

I started my training in earnest this morning. I finally feel well enough to do something more strenuous than blowing my nose and throwing away the Kleenex. Though I did lose two pounds last week. I was going to ask my scientist friend, Kris, what the molecular make up of snot is and how to determine the density in direct proportion to mass quantity which resulted in reducing my overall weight by two pounds, but I thought she'd enjoy it just a little too much so I changed my mind.

Today I walked 2.5 miles on the treadmill in just under 50 minutes. Not a great time or distance, but I'm happy with it. Especially because I think I should be able to call it an even 3 miles as the last half a mile I walked with my legs crossed. No easy feat, that. Note to self. Remember to go potty before you start your training.

Not only am I in training now, but I'm also making better food choices. Don't you dare say I'm on a diet. I am NOT on a diet. Like New Year's Resolutions, diets are another set up for failure. I consider the "D" word as bad as the "E" word. I am simply choosing to eat healthier foods as advised to me by the powers that be at Weight Watchers.

Tonight I'm getting together with three other neighbors - Kris, Sherri and Laura - for our first weekly... something or other. I don't think we've actually named it. But we're going to meet, weigh ourselves (with no one else seeing), drink water or maybe even tea, hold each other accountable and be encouraging. I so want to take a cheese ball or dip as bad as Kris wants to serve wine or martinis. But that would defeat our purpose. We're setting aside 30 minutes once a week. Our "business" should take about 10, leaving another 20 to just shoot the breeze.

***

After walking this morning, I started going through some of our boxes in the basement. I'm happy to say there are now four less boxes. Never mind two of the boxes were already empty. They are now in the designated empty boxes section, making the boxes-full-of-who-knows-what section looking a little better.

***

Tomorrow is PJ day at the preschool. I love the thought of wearing my jammies to work. I just have to remember to take a change of clothing so I don't have to wear my jammies into the restaurant when I meet Todd for lunch afterwards.

***

There are those among you who continue to plague me about a story I mentioned in passing on another blog. The Lake Perris story. You know who you are. And while I'd rather not dredge up something I thought I had laid to rest, I'm finding it's a bit like a decaying tooth. I can try to ignore it, but it just keeps getting worse. So I will start working on the retelling of that fateful day. Mom - consider this your warning.

***

One more post you can look forward to is the Little Rock Race for the Cure in October of 2005. Now THAT'S a good story!

Labels: exercise, food, friends, job, random, sick, weight management

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Thursday, January 10, 2008

My Most Humble Apologies

I have not been a very good bloghopper. My laptop is having connectivity issues so I'm relegated to the basement desktop. It does not have my favorites so my whole bloghopping system is nonfunctional.

Not only that, my head is still stuffed with cotton and my thinking skills are a little iffy on good days.

I am sleeping with the computer guy, but it doesn't seem to give me preferential treatment. Hopefully I'll be able to access the internet on my laptop by the weekend. (Huh, computer guy??)

Labels: blog, sick

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Wednesday, January 09, 2008

The Latest Installment of the Reconstruction Chronicles

My drive into Philadelphia today served as evidence that I'm still a long way away from my New Year's Resolution. Here's an example (singing in italics):

Indescribable, uncontainable, you placed the stars in the sky and you know them by name, you are amaz...

Buddy! This is a freeway, not a country road!!

Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden...

Whoa, Lady! Sorry I called you Buddy. What's with the hair??

And I'll sing glory, hallelujah, I lift Your name on...

Dude!! Move over!!

Obviously Christian music does not a good Christian make. Although I did get a prime parking spot in the impossible parking garage at the hospital. Luck? Or something else??

The nurse ushered me back to the little room and I changed into my lovely gown while she took down my vitals. Then she left me alone with my book. I was happy. Hey, I'll take quiet reading without guilt any time I can get it.

After a nice little while the doctor came in. He was not, of course, alone. He introduced me to Dr. Morelli and we shook hands as if we were getting ready to have a business lunch, the difference being I bared my boobage after the hand shake. The tasteless jokes running through my mind right now simply boggle.

The incision revisions look great. Still not perfect, but good enough that I'm happy with them. The nipple, not so much. He told me I had two choices. He could try one more time to build it up or I could just leave it like it is and schedule the tattooing and that the tattooing would probably even things out. So I opted for the tattooing. It was all I could do not to laugh when he said, with a perfectly straight face, that's what he would do if it were him.




I'm still thinking of something with a Celtic flair. (JUST KIDDING!)




Well, Ladies and Gents. I'm off for a nap. I ran a fever all day yesterday - at one point over 102 - and I'm starting to run a low grade fever now. So I'm going to try to nip it, nip it in the bud!

Labels: God, reconstruction, sick, traffic

Mused by Jenster :: 1:59 PM :: 18 People musing:

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Thursday, November 29, 2007

I Picked The Wrong Day To Stop Drinking

There is very little caffeine in the house right now save an outdated can of International Foods Sugar Free French Vanilla Cappuccino. I was even at the grocery store yesterday and completely forgot to pick up some coffee. So this morning, instead of making up some of the frothy, guilt-free, goodness, I went without any caffeine.

Preschool this morning was a bit more challenging than usual. During one episode where I wasn't quite fast enough to keep beanbags and a few kitchen toys from being thrown over the baby gate into the hall I told Beth, "I picked a bad day to stop drinking caffeine."

Probably a better example of my slow reflexes and cognitive skills would have been before school started. Another teacher, Joy, had been in our room writing down the names of all the teachers and assistants so we could each draw one for our Christmas party. Then she said, "You'll have to draw today since you don't work tomorrow." I gave her a blank stare and said, "But I can't draw." Oy!!

After school I decided to run over to our very new Philadelphia Premium Outlets. They opened a few weeks ago, but I've been waiting for the novelty to die down a little before braving the crowds. The parking lot seemed pretty full, but the stores themselves weren't too bad.

I made a bee line for Starbuck's and ordered a venti non-fat White Chocolate Mocha. The lady making the drinks asked if I wanted whip and when I said, "no," she started laughing. I think I sounded very sad. Not as sad as I would have sounded had I known how many points a venti non-fat White Chocolate Mocha, no whip is. Ten!

I did some window shopping while chugging my medicine mocha since I wasn't allowed in the stores with a drink. Then I headed off to find some nice shoes. Todd's company is having a thing at the Philadelphia Art Museum tomorrow night for the Renoir exhibit. I went to the mall yesterday and bought some nice slacks, a few nice tops and a new coat - all at incredible prices - but no shoes. I should probably feel guilty that though it's Christmas shopping season, I've been shopping two days in a row and haven't bought anything for anyone other than me. Hold on a minute. Let me see... Nope. No guilt whatsoever.

Okay. Back to the shoes. What I wanted was a pair of black, casual dressy heals and I found them at Naturalizer. Didn't Naturalizer used to be strictly boring orthopedic shoes?? These shoes are not your grandma's shoes and quite versatile. I can wear them with nice slacks. I can wear them with jeans. I can wear them with... I guess that's it. Since the outlet stores are brand new they had everything on sale. I got these for 50% off. Even the beginnings of a migraine due to the late hour of caffeine administration couldn't dim the joy I felt.

After that I went in search of a decent pair of jeans that actually fit me. I have the hardest time because I seem to be in between sizes. If I were to put on a size six, let's say for discussion purposes, it would fit in the thigh and hip area, but be too big in the waist. The size four, however, while fitting perfectly in the waist, would be to small in the hip/thigh region. So I went to a shop that specializes in clothes for my frame - could be a petite store, could be a plus-size store, could be a store that caters to brunettes. I'm not saying.

Before I go on, I have to tell you another one of my less than brilliant moments. I have no idea where it was coming from, but the area around this part of the mall smelled like a huge pile of markers. I LOVE that smell. So I stopped walking, covertly looked around and took a huge sniff when I didn't see anybody. While I enjoy that odor immensely, it's probably not the smartest thing to do when a migraine is trying to grip you.

Anyway, I found the jeans I wanted, took a four and a six into the dressing room, and chanted "please fit, please fit, please fit," while trying on the four, but no such luck. So I shucked them off and tried on the six. Oh my gosh! I couldn't even be upset that it was the six and not the four because they fit PERFECT! When I got up to the register the cashier told me they were buy one, get one for half price. So I grabbed another pair of the exact same jeans.

There were other stores I wanted to check out, but by this time my pupils were dilated and I had that ice pick in the head/I just want to puke feeling. So I came home, took some Excedrin Migraine, sprawled out in my favorite chair and dozed off. All seems to be right in the world again. Good thing, too, because we're shooting a movie for Katie's Social Studies class in a little while.

Every time I have surgery - and we've established that's quite often - I use that as a sort of detox period. I use the narcotics to ease me off of caffeine. It works like a charm. Apparently it's time for another surgery because I'm obviously addicted again. Why do I do this to myself?? I enjoy a glass of wine or a bottle of beer now and again, but I can go days, weeks, months without alcohol and never miss it. I've never become addicted to the aforementioned narcotics, though I will admit to liking them when they're needed! But I usually switch to Tylenol long before I have to. Heck, I can even go without sniffing markers and glue for years and be perfectly happy. But caffeine? I wish!

Labels: shopping, sick, weight management

Mused by Jenster :: 2:39 PM :: 10 People musing:

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Monday, October 29, 2007

Weekend Update

KATIE

I'm very pleased to report Katie is doing well. No adverse effects from whatever she ate Saturday night. I don't believe she ate a whole peanut because I think the reaction would have been much more severe. What's likely is she ate a little bit of a peanut. Still more than is safe for her, but we thank God she's okay.

Is it wrong to coddle a 13-year-old? Because I can safely say she was sufficiently coddled yesterday. She stayed in her jammies all day and we watched The Bridge to Terabithia (we both cried) and Jane Ayre. It was a lovely afternoon/evening.

TODD

Yesterday he was stiff and sore and had a headache. He stayed home from church with Katie and then went to Youth Group last night while I stayed home with her. Sleep was minimal last night and he complained about feeling sick. A trip to the doctor this morning confirmed what we suspected. A mild to moderate concussion.

Me: What did the doctor say?

Him: He said I'm concussed.

Me: He called you a cuss??

Him: No. He said I'm concussed.

That conversation never took place anywhere but in my head. Thought I'd share it anyway.

PIG TONGUE

Last night's theme for the youth group message was taming the tongue. Thus, the pig tongue gross out. Matt decided just to put the tongues in a plastic tub of water and the kids who were brave enough "bobbed for tongue". Sounds a bit like a make out game, doesn't it?

Labels: church, family, sick

Mused by Jenster :: 4:49 PM :: 16 People musing:

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Saturday, October 27, 2007

So Much For A Relaxing Saturday

The morning held such promise. I slowly awoke to the sound of a drenching rain pattering on the roof. Snuggling further into the blankets, I smiled at the thought of doing mostly nothing all day. Todd and I had to drive into his office for our flu shots, but other than that my day was whatever I wanted it to be.

After lazing around with a couple cups of coffee we headed off for our shots. We decided to hit Costco afterward since it's not too much further, but not before stopping at Starbuck's for my traditional post anything-slightly-resembling-a-medical-type-procedure Venti White Chocolate Mocha. By the time we got to Costco it was starting to rain pretty good.

We fought the crowds and wandered up and down the aisles until we couldn't fit anything else into the cart. When we came out it was pouring like the liquid of your choice out of a boot. I ran up ahead of Todd to unlock the car and he threw our purchases into the back as fast as he could. He took the cart to the corral and as he shoved it in with his foot his other foot slipped, causing him to fly up into the air and land on his back, his head bouncing on the slick pavement like a rubber ball. He wasn't nauseous or seeing double, so he drove home.

Thankfully the rain let up this afternoon because Todd and Taylor had to help our good friend, Ben, move out of his apartment and into our house. Most of his stuff went to the infamous Matt Silver's basement, but he's going to be living with us until he gets married next spring.

Todd has a blackbelt in Isshinryu Karate, but he hasn't practiced it in years. Still, boys will be boys and when Taylor found out Ben was going to throw away some old slats from his bed, Tay asked Todd to break the wood with his hand. I think flexing muscles and moving furniture stirs up the testosterone because Todd took the ridiculous challenge. Twice. The only thing he managed to break was the skin on his knuckle. Thankfully he stopped trying when his hand went numb. He said Taylor laughed so hard he had to hold his jimmies while he rolled on the floor. Can someone explain that to me? Not being equipped in that way I don't understand.

As Ben and Todd were finishing in Ben's room I left to take Katie to Applebee's. She and Taylor had been invited by some of the young adults to Buddy Night and Taylor was meeting everyone there with another friend who had helped Ben move. I dropped her off and cruised home with the sunroof open and the iPod blaring. Ben had gone to band practice (he leads the youth and adult band at church) and Todd and I were going to enjoy some quiet alone time with a little Thai food and a glass of Riesling.

I was the only one to have a glass of wine, but we both had the Thai I picked up on my way home and our quiet time resulted in both of us falling asleep while watching a movie on TV. I had just awoken when the phone rang. It was Katie calling to tell me the group had gone to Nelson's for ice cream and she thought she may have eaten a peanut. For more on her nut allergy you can read here.

I grabbed the EpiPen and Todd and I flew out the door. Cristie, the girl who organized the Buddy Night, met us at a Wawa with Katie and we drove on to the hospital. I kept talking to her so I could listen to her and make sure her throat wasn't closing up. It was a relief to hear her clear and calm voice and know she wasn't having a terrible reaction.

We had to maneuver around a horrible accident and finally made it to the hospital. She was given preferential treatment because of the nature of her visit, but because her breathing was fine we weren't rushed back. When we did make it to the back Katie hopped up on the gurney and leaned back, only to sit back up with a funny look on her face. Todd asked if she was feeling sick and she nodded her head. The hippie doctor handed her a little spit bowl just in time.

Todd grabbed the tiny bowl and held it for her as she threw up mass quantities of stuff with the force of a power washer. Suffice it to say the little spit bowl wasn't big enough. Oh, and if I hadn't already asked what she had to eat at Applebee's we could have guessed. Nachos. When she finished her hurl session she and Todd hobbled into the bathroom to clean up and the nurse came in to change the sheet on the gurney.

Then he picked up the overflowing puke pot, sloshing the contents onto the floor, and threw it - contents and all - into the biohazardous waste bin. Todd and Katie came back and she looked much better. Todd, on the other hand, looked much worse for the wear. All I can say is it's a good thing he was there because if I had been holding the plastic vomitorium and the barf splashed onto my hands the nurse would have had a whole lot more to clean up.

Tossed cookies aside, it was a fairly uneventful emergency room visit. No IVs. No shots. No drama. Just the constant smell of nachos and something unspeakable. My Dove deodorant smelled MUCH better. Thank heaven - or not - for Todd's camera phone:



After Katie drank some water and kept it down without a problem she was given Benadryl and Pepcid - both pills - and a liquid steroid. She tossed it back like a kid at a frat party and we all held our breath as we watched her to see if it would make her throw up. I even said, "I'm sure that tasted better than all that disgusting stuff you let loose with," and she just shook her head no. Okay, then.

They had us stay another ten minutes or so to make sure she tolerated the medicine without incident and then we were released. A shower, a glass of water and a nice, cozy bed was the thing for her when we got home. Washing everybody's clothes was the thing for me.

Now it's 11:30. Katie's asleep, Todd's watching the ballgame in bed, Ben is in his room and I'm waiting for Taylor to get home from Buddy Night. This would be the nice, relaxing part of my Saturday.

Labels: food, gross, kids, medical, moving, sick

Mused by Jenster :: 9:14 PM :: 20 People musing:

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Saturday, September 22, 2007

One Of These Things Is Not Like The Others

I'm not taking NyQuil anymore. It takes me too long to get going. Thankfully Todd was home to make me coffee this morning, otherwise I'd probably still be stumbling around.

The TV was on and there was a commercial for something - a new show, a website, I don't know. Anyway, I thought it said, Psychics, Mediums and Lithuanians. The obvious answer was Lithuanians. Then I realized nobody asked the question. So I backed up the commercial and found out they had said, Psychics, Mediums and Clairvoyants. Not sure how I got Lithuanians from Clairvoyants, but there you have it. The sad thing is I don't even think I can blame it on NyQuil.

Labels: random, sick

Mused by Jenster :: 5:35 PM :: 13 People musing:

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Friday, September 21, 2007

Forget the Booze, I'll Take the Nyquil

One of the "hazards" of working with kids when you're not used to it is picking up every little germ and virus the little angels bring to school with them. Add to that an uncertain immune system and you can be assured of taking home your very own little illness.

Yesterday at school I thought I was having an allergy attack. But last night I was running a slight fever and I realized I had a cold. My first cold in a very long time. So I made sure I had a good eight hours to sleep and took two Nyquil. After nine hours of sleep I got up to chat with the kids before they left for school. It was nice not having to rush around. After all, I didn't have to be at Bible study until 9:15 and the hostess lives less than five minutes from me.

I still felt a little fuzzyheaded and curled up in the big, comfy, green chair to chat with Katie. I reminded her to go brush her feet and to please take her dirty dishes to the bathroom. So she covered me with a light blanket, kissed my forehead and told me to go back to sleep. Then she left.

I figured I'd just rest for a little bit before I went to take my shower. When I opened my eyes to look at the clock I thought I'd only been asleep for about 10 minutes. My blurry vision told me the clock on the mantel said 7:30. But after rubbing the haze away I realized it was 8:30!

It took me several more minutes before I was able to actually pull my body from the comfort of the chair. So I went to Bible study with no shower, no makeup, and a mind that was working only slightly better than it had been at 7:00.

Still it was great to get together with the ladies after our summer break. And last Spring my participation was sketchy with all the stuff I had going on.

I just need to remember to take my Nyquil earlier next time.

Labels: job, sick

Mused by Jenster :: 11:39 AM :: 12 People musing:

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Thursday, August 09, 2007

Just Call Me Goldilocks

I don't get migraines very often, but when I do they're awful. I'm lucky they don't last for days, but they are very intense when I get them. They're bad enough that I can't think straight, I can't talk and I sometimes even become a little irrational.

The last time I had a migraine was November 22, 2005. It was the night of my very last chemo treatment. My parents and in-laws came over to the house for a celebration. I had ordered cupcakes with white frosting and pink ribbons and we were going to have Chinese for dinner. This particular headache came on so fast and furious that I had very little warning. I can usually feel it coming and take something to help a little, but not this time.

It was a little ironic that I didn't throw up once during the entire time I went through chemo until the very last day. I know the treatment that day didn't cause the migraine, but I do think it intensified it.

And this post doesn’t have anything to do with my last migraine, but you know I get started and have a hard time stopping.

So anyway, I got another migraine this afternoon. I was driving Taylor to band practice when I felt the beginnings of a headache. When I got home I decided to relax in the chair for a little bit to see if it would go away on its own. Basically I was too lazy to go upstairs for Tylenol.

It didn’t go away and quickly turned into a raging migraine. So I went upstairs and took some Excedrin Migraine, then went down into the basement where it’s fairly dark. I tried to get comfy in one of the recliners, but it was too big. I then tried to get comfy in the other recliner, but it was too something.

Next I went back up to the room to lie in the bed. But it was too bright and the headache seemed to be worse when I lay down. So I came back down to the family room and sat in the big green chair. It was still too bright and I couldn’t find a position that relieved the pressure in my neck.

In a last bit of desperation I tried my chair in the living room. With the shades drawn it’s fairly dim and the wings on the side were the perfect rest for my head. I was able to relax and the next thing I new 30 minutes had passed and my headache was gone. No insane ramblings, no crazy thoughts and no throwing up.

Note to self: Next time you get a migraine take the Excedrin Migraine and head straight for the living room.

Labels: random, sick

Mused by Jenster :: 10:31 PM :: 10 People musing:

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Wednesday, May 30, 2007

They're ALL Home Today!!

Labels: family, sick

Mused by Jenster :: 9:24 AM :: 4 People musing:

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