I visited with S.' teacher this morning, and I'm feeling much better about the bathroom incident. There is a single bathroom in the classroom that the children all use. However, not all the kids have good bathroom etiquette. Things like shutting the door while they are in there and knocking before entry are still being learned. The teacher is also dealing with kids who wait until the last possible minute to go potty.
A new boy started on Wednesday. It was his very first day to ever be in any sort of classroom setting. He is one of the kids having bathroom protocol problems. What I think happened is that he needed to GO, and S. was already in the bathroom. He was probably much more interested in getting her OFF the potty than anything sinister.
Mrs. G. has assured me that she will continue to work with the kids' proper bathroom protocol and will spend a little more time reinforcing it. Meanwhile, I'm going to talk to S. about saying NO or OCCUPIED very strongly should someone walk in while she is in the bathroom.
*whew*
I've re-arranged an afternoon meeting, so lunch today with S. is still ON! She still doesn't know, so this is going to be a pretty nice surprise.
As a side note, Mrs. G. seems to have a fine appreciation for S. We both agreed she is a pretty funny kid. Yesterday afternoon, Mrs. G. had a worksheet for the kids. S. responded with, 'I don't want to do this.' Mrs. G. talked to her, and S. did complete the worksheet. I suspect this will not be the last difference of opinion, though. I told Mrs. G. that we found punishment really doesn't phaze S. very much. In order for her to follow rules, she needs to understand why they are important.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Four Drop offs and a Funeral
Gee, it has been a long time...
Monday
S. started Kindergarten on Monday. Where has the time gone? Her first day, she wanted assurance that Mr. W. and I would hang out with her if necessary. However, once we got to her class, she dove right in and couldn't have said we were there or not. Her teacher had a little gift sack for each set of parents. It contained a little packet of Kleenex and some chocolate to help the mommies and daddies get through the day. A very sweet poem she wrote about the first day of school accompanied the bag and left me boo hooing in the van on the way to daycare.
L. was NOT happy about going to her school without S. She did eventually voluntarily enter her classroom, but she made her displeasure known.
Tuesday
Again on Tuesday, we took S. directly to her classroom. She couldn't wait for us to leave.
L. started a new class at daycare. She refused to walk in her new classroom until she was a couple of her buddies from her previous classroom. I spent a good amount of time discussing L.'s food allergy and pointing out where we keep the epi-pens and how they work. I'm confident these teachers will be just as careful as her last teachers.
Wednesday
Mommies and daddies are not allowed to walk their child to class as of today. I dropped S. off in the designated area. She barely slowed down for me to yell, 'I love you. Have a good day.'
L. went right into her new class and was raring to go. Good times.
I worked obnoxiously late and when I got, home, Mr. W. told me the disturbing story S. told him. She said a boy came into the bathroom while she was in there and touched her privates. She told the teacher, and the boy got in trouble. We did not get a note home or any communication from the teacher about this. I am trying not to go off the deep end. S. doesn't seem traumatized, just annoyed. I am struggling with an urge to drop kick this kid into the middle of next month.
On the other hand, S. brought home some work from school. They are spending the first couple weeks learning how to use their tools. Yesterday, the was glue and scissors practice. I'm really proud of how well she managed to keep her glue contained.
Thursday
Freddy, the betta fish, is dead. So dead, in fact, that he was starting to stink. We held an impromptu burial service for Freddy out by our front step shortly after breakfast. May he rest in peace. Sucky way for a 5 year old to start her day, losing a pet...
On the way to school, S. confirmed her story about the bathroom incident and added the detail that the boy kicked her as well. I am going to visit with the teacher tomorrow morning. Her conference period is from 8:05 to 8:55, and I need to hear from her what is going on.
Again, L. tripped merrily into her class. I think she really loves the new activities available to her now.
I am leaving for home now, and really hope that we have some sort of communication from the teacher.
I am excited about tomorrow, though. I am taking a long lunch and spending it with S. I haven't told her about it, so it's going to be a surprise.
Monday
S. started Kindergarten on Monday. Where has the time gone? Her first day, she wanted assurance that Mr. W. and I would hang out with her if necessary. However, once we got to her class, she dove right in and couldn't have said we were there or not. Her teacher had a little gift sack for each set of parents. It contained a little packet of Kleenex and some chocolate to help the mommies and daddies get through the day. A very sweet poem she wrote about the first day of school accompanied the bag and left me boo hooing in the van on the way to daycare.
L. was NOT happy about going to her school without S. She did eventually voluntarily enter her classroom, but she made her displeasure known.
Tuesday
Again on Tuesday, we took S. directly to her classroom. She couldn't wait for us to leave.
L. started a new class at daycare. She refused to walk in her new classroom until she was a couple of her buddies from her previous classroom. I spent a good amount of time discussing L.'s food allergy and pointing out where we keep the epi-pens and how they work. I'm confident these teachers will be just as careful as her last teachers.
Wednesday
Mommies and daddies are not allowed to walk their child to class as of today. I dropped S. off in the designated area. She barely slowed down for me to yell, 'I love you. Have a good day.'
L. went right into her new class and was raring to go. Good times.
I worked obnoxiously late and when I got, home, Mr. W. told me the disturbing story S. told him. She said a boy came into the bathroom while she was in there and touched her privates. She told the teacher, and the boy got in trouble. We did not get a note home or any communication from the teacher about this. I am trying not to go off the deep end. S. doesn't seem traumatized, just annoyed. I am struggling with an urge to drop kick this kid into the middle of next month.
On the other hand, S. brought home some work from school. They are spending the first couple weeks learning how to use their tools. Yesterday, the was glue and scissors practice. I'm really proud of how well she managed to keep her glue contained.
Thursday
Freddy, the betta fish, is dead. So dead, in fact, that he was starting to stink. We held an impromptu burial service for Freddy out by our front step shortly after breakfast. May he rest in peace. Sucky way for a 5 year old to start her day, losing a pet...
On the way to school, S. confirmed her story about the bathroom incident and added the detail that the boy kicked her as well. I am going to visit with the teacher tomorrow morning. Her conference period is from 8:05 to 8:55, and I need to hear from her what is going on.
Again, L. tripped merrily into her class. I think she really loves the new activities available to her now.
I am leaving for home now, and really hope that we have some sort of communication from the teacher.
I am excited about tomorrow, though. I am taking a long lunch and spending it with S. I haven't told her about it, so it's going to be a surprise.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Drugs, drugs everywhere
Seasickness patch worked, but also induced terrible dizziness. Good thing I didn't vomit on that stuff, since I could barely get upright, let alone hit an appropriate vomit target.
The doc has submitted a request for the Zofran to be covered... Right now, I'm perfectly willing to pay full price for anything that keeps everything currently in my tummy from making a violent re-appearance. Although, $20/pill hurts...
The doc has submitted a request for the Zofran to be covered... Right now, I'm perfectly willing to pay full price for anything that keeps everything currently in my tummy from making a violent re-appearance. Although, $20/pill hurts...
The security system woks
We have a brand new security system at work. Badges are required to move from floor to floor and into certain departments. After more than 9 years of never having to deal with a locked door, I have definitely hit a learning curve.
I can tell you with 100% certainty that the lock on the glass door that goes into IS works perfectly, seeing as how I have smashed myself into it on multiple occasions. Maybe a broken nose will help me remember to swipe my ID badge? ... Probably not.
I can tell you with 100% certainty that the lock on the glass door that goes into IS works perfectly, seeing as how I have smashed myself into it on multiple occasions. Maybe a broken nose will help me remember to swipe my ID badge? ... Probably not.
Operation Eeyore Sleep
We (or rather, Mr. W.) did it! The girls are no longer sleeping on toddler bed and in a crib. Both have been put away and twin size beds have taken their place.
In order to make the transition from little to big more comfortable for the girls, we ordered matching Eeyore Blue Roses bedspreads, sheets, etc sets. The girls love them almost as much as jumping on their new beds.
We skipped the side rails for now, and L. did fall out of bed once last night. She was cranky when Mr. W. picked her up to put her back in bed. However, she did manage to stay in the center of her bed the rest of the night. Yay L!
In order to make the transition from little to big more comfortable for the girls, we ordered matching Eeyore Blue Roses bedspreads, sheets, etc sets. The girls love them almost as much as jumping on their new beds.
We skipped the side rails for now, and L. did fall out of bed once last night. She was cranky when Mr. W. picked her up to put her back in bed. However, she did manage to stay in the center of her bed the rest of the night. Yay L!
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Appointment!
Had my prenatal check-up today. It was oh-so-fun PAP, etc. appointment. We did get to listen to the little bean's heart fluttering away at 156 bpm. Everything's perfect, and he commented on my little bump. Mr. W. turned into a giant squooshy, kissy-faced marshmallow after hearing that little flutter... Awwwwww.
I have a script for seasickness patches which I will try for a few days. If these don't work, the doc will start the process to TRY to get Zofran covered for me... On the lighter side, apparently the medication in the patch will make your pupil dilate if you touch your eye after applying the patch and before washing your hands thoroughly. He had a patient who wound up subjected to all kinds of neurological workups when she showed up at the ER with uncontrollable nausea and vomitting and one dilated pupil. A good thing to note!
I again declined all genetic, spina bifida, etc. screenings. I'm one of those who worries incessantly when there may be something wrong, and I would never forgive myself if an invasive test wound up harming my baby. So, it makes perfect sense to me to skip screenings that already put me at a higher risk due to my 'advanced maternal age.' When you add in that I have no intention of terminating, it just makes sense to save the insurance co. some money.
Now if you could tell me that an amnio was guaranteed 100% not to harm the baby and gave a 100% correct diagnosis, I'd be all over it. Otherwise, I want to avoid what happened to a good friend of mine. She too, would never consider an amnio or termination and she DID have screenings done. She received terrible results and wound up having to deal with worries at the back of her mind the rest of her pregnancy. She delivered a perfectly healthy little boy.
I'll head to big, bad, research hospital an hour away in another month or so for a detailed ultra sound. This should give enough information to prepare me for the need to deliver at big, bad, research hospital if there is something seriously wrong with the bean. The local hospital where I plan to deliver doesn't really have a NICU. Can you imagine how badly it would stink to be stuck in one hospital while your new baby has been airlifted to another one an hour away? *shudder*
M.W.
I have a script for seasickness patches which I will try for a few days. If these don't work, the doc will start the process to TRY to get Zofran covered for me... On the lighter side, apparently the medication in the patch will make your pupil dilate if you touch your eye after applying the patch and before washing your hands thoroughly. He had a patient who wound up subjected to all kinds of neurological workups when she showed up at the ER with uncontrollable nausea and vomitting and one dilated pupil. A good thing to note!
I again declined all genetic, spina bifida, etc. screenings. I'm one of those who worries incessantly when there may be something wrong, and I would never forgive myself if an invasive test wound up harming my baby. So, it makes perfect sense to me to skip screenings that already put me at a higher risk due to my 'advanced maternal age.' When you add in that I have no intention of terminating, it just makes sense to save the insurance co. some money.
Now if you could tell me that an amnio was guaranteed 100% not to harm the baby and gave a 100% correct diagnosis, I'd be all over it. Otherwise, I want to avoid what happened to a good friend of mine. She too, would never consider an amnio or termination and she DID have screenings done. She received terrible results and wound up having to deal with worries at the back of her mind the rest of her pregnancy. She delivered a perfectly healthy little boy.
I'll head to big, bad, research hospital an hour away in another month or so for a detailed ultra sound. This should give enough information to prepare me for the need to deliver at big, bad, research hospital if there is something seriously wrong with the bean. The local hospital where I plan to deliver doesn't really have a NICU. Can you imagine how badly it would stink to be stuck in one hospital while your new baby has been airlifted to another one an hour away? *shudder*
M.W.
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
This, that and the other
All about S.
Got a note from daycare that a child in S.' class came down with scarlatina (aka Scarlet Fever) last Friday. I'm guessing this is where S. was exposed to Strep.
Kindergarten is a mere 20 days away. It has finally dawned on S. that when she starts her new school, she will be leaving her old friends and teachers behind. We had a case of the nervous whines on the way to daycare this morning. Bless her heart. She has attended the same center since she was 6 weeks old. She will never be in the same school for that long again (please, let her finish college in 4 years!). She's worried about her teacher, her friends, being all by herself, etc. She is so outgoing and friendly with everyone, that I know she will settle in just fine. Meanwhile, I've promised to:
A. go with her on her first day and stay as long as she needs (Mr. W. is in on that promise, too).
B. go have lunch with her at least once.
On the mommy-bragging side of things, we requested a particular K teacher for S. One of the instructors is very militant, and I know from the depths of my soul that teacher would be a bad match for S. We picked the teacher we got the warmest fuzzies from during the Kindergarten parent orientation back in February. Additionally, this is the same teacher who was recommended by another faculty friend. Turns out S. is in high demand. We met another Kindergarten teacher at the local museum, and she was impressed enough with S. that she asked the principal if S. could be in her class.
Of course, next year, the teachers will switch from discussing who 'gets' to have S. and who 'has' to have S. Well, maybe not that extreme.
All about L.
L. is a terror to her older sister. There, I've admitted it. My 2 year old is rough and mean. The funny thing is now after L. has bitten, pinched, hit, pushed, thrown at her big sister, she starts shushing S. in a futile attempt to avoid getting in trouble. It's wrong to laugh, but I immediately know when L. has done something wrong. Her shushing noises are not exactly super quiet.
Speaking of aggression, I'm concerned about L.'s lack of speech. Not only is she not understandable by just about anyone besides me, she is trying to enunciate and failing miserably. I'm giving her another couple weeks before I start talking to our doctor. As much as I hate the thought of it, it is very likely time for L.'s hearing and language skills to be examined more closely.
All about me
You know how products very rarely live up to the hype? I have found one that truly does. Oh my goodness, am I happy. It's this tummy sleeve I bought at Motherhood Maternity. It's just spandex/nylon stretchy tube top looking thing. However, you can put it on over your regular button down pants while they are unbuttoned and unzipped. The edge looks a bit like the end of a tank top (black in my case). This sucker holds my pants up, smooths out the lines where everything is unfastened and allows me to put off (perhaps permanently?) switching to those belly-covering maternity slacks and skirts. I'm almost as in love with this thing as I am the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
I have my next doctor's appointment Thursday morning. Hopefully Mr. W. remembers to ask off so he can go. There's nothing quite like listening to that little heart beat to get a guy 'vested' in a pregnancy.
Also, I am definitely feeling the little bean move. Wow! I never expected to feel it so soon.
M.W.
Got a note from daycare that a child in S.' class came down with scarlatina (aka Scarlet Fever) last Friday. I'm guessing this is where S. was exposed to Strep.
Kindergarten is a mere 20 days away. It has finally dawned on S. that when she starts her new school, she will be leaving her old friends and teachers behind. We had a case of the nervous whines on the way to daycare this morning. Bless her heart. She has attended the same center since she was 6 weeks old. She will never be in the same school for that long again (please, let her finish college in 4 years!). She's worried about her teacher, her friends, being all by herself, etc. She is so outgoing and friendly with everyone, that I know she will settle in just fine. Meanwhile, I've promised to:
A. go with her on her first day and stay as long as she needs (Mr. W. is in on that promise, too).
B. go have lunch with her at least once.
On the mommy-bragging side of things, we requested a particular K teacher for S. One of the instructors is very militant, and I know from the depths of my soul that teacher would be a bad match for S. We picked the teacher we got the warmest fuzzies from during the Kindergarten parent orientation back in February. Additionally, this is the same teacher who was recommended by another faculty friend. Turns out S. is in high demand. We met another Kindergarten teacher at the local museum, and she was impressed enough with S. that she asked the principal if S. could be in her class.
Of course, next year, the teachers will switch from discussing who 'gets' to have S. and who 'has' to have S. Well, maybe not that extreme.
All about L.
L. is a terror to her older sister. There, I've admitted it. My 2 year old is rough and mean. The funny thing is now after L. has bitten, pinched, hit, pushed, thrown at her big sister, she starts shushing S. in a futile attempt to avoid getting in trouble. It's wrong to laugh, but I immediately know when L. has done something wrong. Her shushing noises are not exactly super quiet.
Speaking of aggression, I'm concerned about L.'s lack of speech. Not only is she not understandable by just about anyone besides me, she is trying to enunciate and failing miserably. I'm giving her another couple weeks before I start talking to our doctor. As much as I hate the thought of it, it is very likely time for L.'s hearing and language skills to be examined more closely.
All about me
You know how products very rarely live up to the hype? I have found one that truly does. Oh my goodness, am I happy. It's this tummy sleeve I bought at Motherhood Maternity. It's just spandex/nylon stretchy tube top looking thing. However, you can put it on over your regular button down pants while they are unbuttoned and unzipped. The edge looks a bit like the end of a tank top (black in my case). This sucker holds my pants up, smooths out the lines where everything is unfastened and allows me to put off (perhaps permanently?) switching to those belly-covering maternity slacks and skirts. I'm almost as in love with this thing as I am the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
I have my next doctor's appointment Thursday morning. Hopefully Mr. W. remembers to ask off so he can go. There's nothing quite like listening to that little heart beat to get a guy 'vested' in a pregnancy.
Also, I am definitely feeling the little bean move. Wow! I never expected to feel it so soon.
M.W.
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Back on the meds
Experiment 'Mrs. W. stupidly goes off her anti-nausea meds' met with abysmal failure. I'm back on, but at half dose. This seems to be giving me better relief than the full dose, but just barely. The doc had offered to write me a script for Zofran, and despite the expense, I plan to take him up on it. The Reglan he wrote me for is horrible. I need to just flush those pills.
On the bright side, S. is getting to watch just as much Rocky & Bullwinkle as she wants. Between my nausea and her strep throat, we're quite a pair this morning.
M.W.
On the bright side, S. is getting to watch just as much Rocky & Bullwinkle as she wants. Between my nausea and her strep throat, we're quite a pair this morning.
M.W.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Yet another indication I feel rotten
I received my long distance bill today. Total minutes logged in the past month: 9 Mr. W.'s family is all local, so he never logs in long distance time.
Since all of my family and my best friend all live outside my local calling area, this says quite a bit. It is very hard for me to talk on the phone when I feel *ahem* green, so I have pretty much stopped calling everyone. The phone conversations I have had have been very brief. Well, brief for me, who has logged in 2 hour plus phone conversations in the past.
I probably ought to call my mother tonight. She's probably a tiny bit worried.
M.W.
Since all of my family and my best friend all live outside my local calling area, this says quite a bit. It is very hard for me to talk on the phone when I feel *ahem* green, so I have pretty much stopped calling everyone. The phone conversations I have had have been very brief. Well, brief for me, who has logged in 2 hour plus phone conversations in the past.
I probably ought to call my mother tonight. She's probably a tiny bit worried.
M.W.
Flying naked
I am either really, really brave, supremely optimistic or very, very stupid. I skipped my anti nausea medication routine last night.
The vomiting worsened over the past week and a half or so, and I began to suspect that the meds were no longer working. I could be right on that assumption. In fact, since I have yet to yak today, I am beginning to wonder if the meds were actually exacerbating my symptoms.
I'll give it another couple of days before I pass final judgment. All I know with any sort of certainty is that my head is completely clear for the first time in 2 months. The vomitting may be a cheap price to pay for being clear-headed and capable of assisting Mr. W. in the evening. The poor man has had to handle everything from house cleaning to bathing the children to fixing dinner for the last 2 months. I feel rotten about it, and I want that to change.
M.W.
eta - changing my vote to very, very stupid. I began chucking my up around 8 last night, and I still haven't stopped...
The vomiting worsened over the past week and a half or so, and I began to suspect that the meds were no longer working. I could be right on that assumption. In fact, since I have yet to yak today, I am beginning to wonder if the meds were actually exacerbating my symptoms.
I'll give it another couple of days before I pass final judgment. All I know with any sort of certainty is that my head is completely clear for the first time in 2 months. The vomitting may be a cheap price to pay for being clear-headed and capable of assisting Mr. W. in the evening. The poor man has had to handle everything from house cleaning to bathing the children to fixing dinner for the last 2 months. I feel rotten about it, and I want that to change.
M.W.
eta - changing my vote to very, very stupid. I began chucking my up around 8 last night, and I still haven't stopped...
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Angry!
This story: http://news.aol.com/story/_a/boys-face-trial-over-slapping-charges/20070724153509990001 has me seeing red. Two middle school boys went around slapping girls on their rear ends and are facing criminal charges.
I am angry that the yahoo district attorney started off swinging. Charging the boys with felonies, threatening to send them to juvie and requiring them to register as life long sex offenders. These kids are stupid 13 year olds.
Don't get me wrong, even if the girls did not mind this sort of touch, it was wrong. I would seriously question my parenting practices if my girls tolerate such behavior at any age! Nobody has the right to violate their person. I don't care if it is thought of as a 'handshake' as one girl is reported to have said. Just because the behavior is generally accepted, it is not necessarily right. The school was 100% correct in handing over these boys.
We have had too many generations of women who grow up thinking that being objectified is okay and normal. It is not.
I am angry that the choices for criminal punishment do not fit the crime. The article gets a little confused, but if I understand properly, the boys would not be permitted to spend time with their younger siblings should they accept a plea bargain Why can we not have a punishment that fits the crime?
Perfect punishment, in my not so very humble opinion:
1. Class time. These boys need a full-blooded in your face accounting of how women have been abused through the centuries. They need to be taught that what they were doing was wrong down to an emotional level. Slapping bottoms today can translate to worse later (Tailhook, anyone?) and even much worse.
2. Penance. Once class time has been completed, heartfelt letters of apology should be sent to each and every girl assaulted. It is up to the girl to decide whether she wants to accept. I feel as the victim, she needs to know that what happened to her was wrong.
3. Probation. These boys will need to keep to the straight and narrow until they reach age 18.
Should my 3rd child be a boy, and should he engage in this kind of behavior, I can virtually guarantee that he will beg the judge to send him to juvie. Anything the courts can dish out will pale in comparison to my wrath. I put up with this kind of garbage through high school, and I will NOT tolerate any child of mine participating in aggressive, demeaning behavior.
M.W.
I am angry that the yahoo district attorney started off swinging. Charging the boys with felonies, threatening to send them to juvie and requiring them to register as life long sex offenders. These kids are stupid 13 year olds.
Don't get me wrong, even if the girls did not mind this sort of touch, it was wrong. I would seriously question my parenting practices if my girls tolerate such behavior at any age! Nobody has the right to violate their person. I don't care if it is thought of as a 'handshake' as one girl is reported to have said. Just because the behavior is generally accepted, it is not necessarily right. The school was 100% correct in handing over these boys.
We have had too many generations of women who grow up thinking that being objectified is okay and normal. It is not.
I am angry that the choices for criminal punishment do not fit the crime. The article gets a little confused, but if I understand properly, the boys would not be permitted to spend time with their younger siblings should they accept a plea bargain Why can we not have a punishment that fits the crime?
Perfect punishment, in my not so very humble opinion:
1. Class time. These boys need a full-blooded in your face accounting of how women have been abused through the centuries. They need to be taught that what they were doing was wrong down to an emotional level. Slapping bottoms today can translate to worse later (Tailhook, anyone?) and even much worse.
2. Penance. Once class time has been completed, heartfelt letters of apology should be sent to each and every girl assaulted. It is up to the girl to decide whether she wants to accept. I feel as the victim, she needs to know that what happened to her was wrong.
3. Probation. These boys will need to keep to the straight and narrow until they reach age 18.
Should my 3rd child be a boy, and should he engage in this kind of behavior, I can virtually guarantee that he will beg the judge to send him to juvie. Anything the courts can dish out will pale in comparison to my wrath. I put up with this kind of garbage through high school, and I will NOT tolerate any child of mine participating in aggressive, demeaning behavior.
M.W.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
HP 7 Stats
When I received the book: 5:00 PM July 21
When I finished the book: 2:00 AM July 22
Number neglected people in my house: 3
Number of correct predictions: 3
Number of incorrect predictions: 3 (yes, I know that makes 6 when I only listed 5. One of my predictions falls in both camps, I think).
Overall: I loved the book. Rowling tied up enough loose ends that it was satisfying, but left enough open-ended that I can use my imagination however I see fit.
When I finished the book: 2:00 AM July 22
Number neglected people in my house: 3
Number of correct predictions: 3
Number of incorrect predictions: 3 (yes, I know that makes 6 when I only listed 5. One of my predictions falls in both camps, I think).
Overall: I loved the book. Rowling tied up enough loose ends that it was satisfying, but left enough open-ended that I can use my imagination however I see fit.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Oh, cruel world...
I checked the UPS site today, and my copy of Harry Potter 7 is in Waco. It is just waiting to be delivered tomorrow (please let it be morning!!!!!!). I don't know which is worse: not knowing precisely where my precious copy is or knowing precisely where it is and not being able to get my grubby mits on it.
To make matters worse, a former Stampin' Up demo I know is selling all her old stuff at half price. The sale begins tomorrow morning. On top of that, I am committed to a Stampin' Up party at 2:00 tomorrow afternoon. How, oh how, oh how, am I to get that book read and still get to sleep at a decent enough hour that I can drag my sleepy self in to church on Sunday...
Cruel, cruel world.
To make matters worse, a former Stampin' Up demo I know is selling all her old stuff at half price. The sale begins tomorrow morning. On top of that, I am committed to a Stampin' Up party at 2:00 tomorrow afternoon. How, oh how, oh how, am I to get that book read and still get to sleep at a decent enough hour that I can drag my sleepy self in to church on Sunday...
Cruel, cruel world.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Please, just shoot me and let me die now
Oh lord, someone has burned some popcorn. I think I'm going to die from the stench... Either that or spend the rest of the day worshipping before the porcelain goddess...
Whhhhoooooosssssshhhhhhh!!!!
Mr. W. and I were late to work this morning. This isn't so unusual, but today we were really late. As in 30 minutes late. Why?
Because we had hot air balloons in our backyard early this morning. Okay, not really in our backyard, but they floated right over our swingset and over our roof. I was hauling the garbage out to the curb when I heard a really loud whhhhhoooooooosssssshhhhh that sounded like it was coming from directly behind me. I whirled around and discovered a hot air balloon about 30 feet off the ground right behind our house. He was so low, I don't think he would have cleared our roof. The whoosh was from the driver lighting his gas, and up, up, up he went.
S. was in the garage getting into her carseat, and I called for her to come out and see the balloons. Behind the balloon that got my heart pumping came another dozen or so following near identical paths. Mr. W. came running out of the house with his belt hanging loose to see what was going on. L. wanted to see the bawoooooos too, but the sounds of them firing up the gas scared her a bit. She was fine so long as I had her on my hip...
Mr. W. took pictures and caught some video of the balloons as they sailed by. I'd love to post them, but (and I'm almost ashamed to admit this, LOL) I have dialup at home and it would take forever to load. This also explains why there are precious few photos on my blog. It is the work of 15 to 20 minutes to upload a single small one.
I'm beginning to hate YouTube. So much hysterical-ness, and so little bandwidth. Work internet speed is much faster, but the nanny program keeps me out of such sordidness as YouTube (and even The Leaky Cauldron sob, sob).
Back on task. It was too funny passing everybody parked on the side of the road to watch the balloons sail by (including the jocks at the high school). Our little town is part of a balloon race course this year. Here's an article from the Waco paper, I think you have to sign in (but it's free). http://www.wacotrib.com/featr/content/features/stories/2007/07/19/07192007wacnatballoonchamp.html
Because we had hot air balloons in our backyard early this morning. Okay, not really in our backyard, but they floated right over our swingset and over our roof. I was hauling the garbage out to the curb when I heard a really loud whhhhhoooooooosssssshhhhh that sounded like it was coming from directly behind me. I whirled around and discovered a hot air balloon about 30 feet off the ground right behind our house. He was so low, I don't think he would have cleared our roof. The whoosh was from the driver lighting his gas, and up, up, up he went.
S. was in the garage getting into her carseat, and I called for her to come out and see the balloons. Behind the balloon that got my heart pumping came another dozen or so following near identical paths. Mr. W. came running out of the house with his belt hanging loose to see what was going on. L. wanted to see the bawoooooos too, but the sounds of them firing up the gas scared her a bit. She was fine so long as I had her on my hip...
Mr. W. took pictures and caught some video of the balloons as they sailed by. I'd love to post them, but (and I'm almost ashamed to admit this, LOL) I have dialup at home and it would take forever to load. This also explains why there are precious few photos on my blog. It is the work of 15 to 20 minutes to upload a single small one.
I'm beginning to hate YouTube. So much hysterical-ness, and so little bandwidth. Work internet speed is much faster, but the nanny program keeps me out of such sordidness as YouTube (and even The Leaky Cauldron sob, sob).
Back on task. It was too funny passing everybody parked on the side of the road to watch the balloons sail by (including the jocks at the high school). Our little town is part of a balloon race course this year. Here's an article from the Waco paper, I think you have to sign in (but it's free). http://www.wacotrib.com/featr/content/features/stories/2007/07/19/07192007wacnatballoonchamp.html
Monday, July 16, 2007
Could it???? nah
I keep feeling this faint little swirly waaaayyy down low in my belly and only when my bladder is completely empty. It's way too soon to feel the baby, right? Right?
ETA: I'm only 11 weeks (even though it feels like an eternity of puking)
ETA: I'm only 11 weeks (even though it feels like an eternity of puking)
Bad News
A dear PIM is dealing with a terrible, terrible burden right now. Her husband was diagnosed with a devastating illness several months ago, one for which there is no cure. I don't know how she continues to put one foot in front of the other each and every day. I think she is amazing.
Her story has brought and continues to bring me to tears. Please, take a moment and appreciate those around you that you love. Be grateful for them and be thankful they are in your life, because there are no guarantees...
Her story has brought and continues to bring me to tears. Please, take a moment and appreciate those around you that you love. Be grateful for them and be thankful they are in your life, because there are no guarantees...
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Pure Speculation...
I am so excited about 'Deathly Hallows' being released, I can't hardly stand it! So after gazing into my admittedly cracked crystal ball, I have the following speculations and predictions. I will be greatly surprised if any of 'em come true.
1. Hagrid is among the casualties in 'Deathly Hallows.' Makes sense as the rest of Harry's mentors have met untimely ends.
2. Snape is not evil. My guess is that Snape is the tragic figure in the series. His wants and realities crash, and he cannot find happiness in this lifetime. He loved in vain (Lily), he swore allegiance in vain (Dumbledore), he tries in vain to get past his grudge against Harry's father. Nothing in Snape's life has gone well. Harry comes to appreciate this and develop compassion for this lost soul. Compassion for those who are trapped in their own weaknesses is lacking in Harry as of the end of book 6. I hope Rowling grows Harry in this area of his character.
3. Pettigrew plays a key role in foiling Voldemort.
4. The locket Kreature hid is one of the horcruxes.
5. The book ends with the wedding of Fleur and I-can't-remember-Weasley-boy's-name. The series just has to end on a positive, life goes on and the future is bright note, doesn't it? Doesn't it?!
Any other takers?
1. Hagrid is among the casualties in 'Deathly Hallows.' Makes sense as the rest of Harry's mentors have met untimely ends.
2. Snape is not evil. My guess is that Snape is the tragic figure in the series. His wants and realities crash, and he cannot find happiness in this lifetime. He loved in vain (Lily), he swore allegiance in vain (Dumbledore), he tries in vain to get past his grudge against Harry's father. Nothing in Snape's life has gone well. Harry comes to appreciate this and develop compassion for this lost soul. Compassion for those who are trapped in their own weaknesses is lacking in Harry as of the end of book 6. I hope Rowling grows Harry in this area of his character.
3. Pettigrew plays a key role in foiling Voldemort.
4. The locket Kreature hid is one of the horcruxes.
5. The book ends with the wedding of Fleur and I-can't-remember-Weasley-boy's-name. The series just has to end on a positive, life goes on and the future is bright note, doesn't it? Doesn't it?!
Any other takers?
I've been tagged!
I think this is the first time I've been tagged. I'm pretty clueless, though, so if you've tagged me and I didn't answer, I'm sorry!
Thanks, Jen for poppin' my Tag cherry, LOL.
1) I must post 7 random things about me:
Thanks, Jen for poppin' my Tag cherry, LOL.
1) I must post 7 random things about me:
- I get a kick driving Mr. W.'s big honking red truck, even if it doesn't have air conditioning.
- I've never been drunk
- I learned more German in college in the US than I did the 5 years I actually lived in the Bundesrepublik
- When I was in high school, I took electronics classes because I wanted to study electrical engineering and work on robotics with Jim Henson. I was a rabid puppeteer and spent many weekends performing in hospitals, kids parties, etc.
- I have no sense of fashion and prefer to wear one color at a time. Yes, it is entirely possible you will see me on What Not to Wear.
- My favorite tv series of all time is 'Babylon 5' followed by 'Star Trek: Voyager"
- I think Hagrid dies in 'Deathly Hallows'
2) Tag 7 other bloggers :
- Okay, everybody I checked to try to tag has already been done! pbbbttt on me for being so slow, LOL. If you haven't been tagged and you're reading this, then it goes to prove I'm a dork, and please consider yourself tagged. Just let me know so I can read the juicy bits.
3) Post Rules & the bloggers I tagged here.
4) Leave tagged bloggers comments on their web sites so that they know they have been tagged.
I totally Rock!
Thanks, EJ for giving me this (it took me this long to figure out how to insert the picture!).
You totally rock, yourself!
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
It's a baby... or an alien.
For your viewing pleasure:
It's an alien!!! The ob I settled on (boy do I wish I could go to my family doc) just had to take his own pictures of the little bean. Isn't he cute? I think he looks just like me.
It's an alien!!! The ob I settled on (boy do I wish I could go to my family doc) just had to take his own pictures of the little bean. Isn't he cute? I think he looks just like me.
Monday, July 09, 2007
Tired, very tired
Mr. W. has worked every day since the tail end of May. This includes weekends and 4th of July. Not only has he been in the office every day, but he hasn't been getting home until 7 or 8 at night.
I'm tired. Very, very tired. I think maybe I'll ask the in-laws if they want the girls to spend Friday or Saturday night with them. The girls would really enjoy it, and I think Grandma and Grandpa would as well. I know I would enjoy being able to sleep in for once and not have to worry about feeding anyone but myself for a meal or two.
I'm tired. Very, very tired. I think maybe I'll ask the in-laws if they want the girls to spend Friday or Saturday night with them. The girls would really enjoy it, and I think Grandma and Grandpa would as well. I know I would enjoy being able to sleep in for once and not have to worry about feeding anyone but myself for a meal or two.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
This kid has expensive tastes
My first pregnancy, my biggest cravings were for Mac & Cheese out of a box and lemon drops. Everything was better with a lemon drop or some macaroni & cheese. Second pregnancy, it was Chick Fil A chicken biscuits and sour gummis. I would drag myself out of bed early in order to have time to swing through the drive-thru. This go around, I keep thinking I want lemon-flavored things, but then they turn my stomach. Chick Fil A just doesn't sound good at all. However, I think I could eat three meals a day of Outback's blue cheese pecan chopped salad (yes, I asked, and the blue cheese is pasteurized) and their bread this go around. We cannot afford to satisfy this craving as much as I'd like (plus the place doesn't even open until 4 pm).
I'm guessing this is going to be my caviar baby.
On the bright side, smearing ginger juice all over my belly really seems to help the morning sickness! I have not been sick since Monday. Nauseated, oh yes, but I've kept everything down for 2 whole days in a row!!! I thought I was going to lose it this afternoon, but 20 minutes after rubbing freshly cut ginger in my belly button, I felt okay. Hallelujah and let the angels sing!
I'm guessing this is going to be my caviar baby.
On the bright side, smearing ginger juice all over my belly really seems to help the morning sickness! I have not been sick since Monday. Nauseated, oh yes, but I've kept everything down for 2 whole days in a row!!! I thought I was going to lose it this afternoon, but 20 minutes after rubbing freshly cut ginger in my belly button, I felt okay. Hallelujah and let the angels sing!
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
True, false, multiple choice
You are given one crazy pregnant woman at the end of a long day at work. She is home alone with two high-energy little girls, one of whom is not potty-trained. Her husband is supposed to be home any minute. The girls fussed during dinner, and then stripped down to nothing afterward when crazy pregnant woman sat down for just one minute. The non-potty-trained child has had a massive, smelly, ooey-gooey poopy nasty diaper and removed it. Crazy pregnant woman (who is also extremely nauseated) tries to call her husband to find out where precisely he is so that she can perhaps avoid having to deal with the mess only to have his cell phone roll over to voice mail.
The crazy pregnant woman:
a) calmly deals with the poopy mess, cleans off the worst of it and begins bathing the two children.
b) not so calmly deals with the poopy mess, while wishing it wasn't raining so she could just turn the garden hose on said poopy booty.
c) extremely angrily dials and re-dials and re-dials her husband's cell phone, leaving messages along the lines of 'you need to come home now' and 'where are you, I need you home NOW' all while screaming WHERE IS HE!!!! causing her elder child to ask what mommy was going on about and then cursing under her breath while trying not to breathe, or look at the poopy mess while wiping it off her cherub's tushie, and dumps both kids in the shower while still trying not to breathe since the bathroom reeks of nasty poop and then, when her husband FINALLY comes home, yells at him that he has to change the trash out of the bathroom AND give the kids a bath, because she needs to go someplace and calm down and so she sits down and writes a random blog engry.
Correct answer: A, just kidding, it was C. *sigh* I do feel better now. And by 'better' I mean that I don't want to pack an over-week bag and just leave. Maybe I'll go to Sonic and get some fried cheese. Fried cheese sounds good...
The crazy pregnant woman:
a) calmly deals with the poopy mess, cleans off the worst of it and begins bathing the two children.
b) not so calmly deals with the poopy mess, while wishing it wasn't raining so she could just turn the garden hose on said poopy booty.
c) extremely angrily dials and re-dials and re-dials her husband's cell phone, leaving messages along the lines of 'you need to come home now' and 'where are you, I need you home NOW' all while screaming WHERE IS HE!!!! causing her elder child to ask what mommy was going on about and then cursing under her breath while trying not to breathe, or look at the poopy mess while wiping it off her cherub's tushie, and dumps both kids in the shower while still trying not to breathe since the bathroom reeks of nasty poop and then, when her husband FINALLY comes home, yells at him that he has to change the trash out of the bathroom AND give the kids a bath, because she needs to go someplace and calm down and so she sits down and writes a random blog engry.
Correct answer: A, just kidding, it was C. *sigh* I do feel better now. And by 'better' I mean that I don't want to pack an over-week bag and just leave. Maybe I'll go to Sonic and get some fried cheese. Fried cheese sounds good...
Quack, quack
I live in central Texas (motto: we have gorgeous wild flowers and grass fires), and it is freaking RAINING AGAIN. This is July. It should be 100 degrees with a burn ban in effect, not 80-something and flash flood warnings. I'm really beginning to buy in to TJ's weather machine theory.
Oh well, at least I'm not scared to death of a wildfire burning down our neighborhood this year. The bog around our neighborhood is just too swampy.
On the lighter side, the lawn police were after us last month. Apparently our grass was just too tall and considered to be a fire hazard. Couple things wrong with that. 1) It has been raining so hard and so often that it's been difficult for Mr. W. to get the mower out (excessive rain=fire hazard?); 2) It's not like the grass was so tall we could hide anything worse than a bunny (and did I mention all the rain?). I figure if our grass is shorter than the grass in the medians, then we're not that bad, LOL. I also figure that people are less concerned about fire hazard than our little letter of warning would have us think.
Oh well, at least I'm not scared to death of a wildfire burning down our neighborhood this year. The bog around our neighborhood is just too swampy.
On the lighter side, the lawn police were after us last month. Apparently our grass was just too tall and considered to be a fire hazard. Couple things wrong with that. 1) It has been raining so hard and so often that it's been difficult for Mr. W. to get the mower out (excessive rain=fire hazard?); 2) It's not like the grass was so tall we could hide anything worse than a bunny (and did I mention all the rain?). I figure if our grass is shorter than the grass in the medians, then we're not that bad, LOL. I also figure that people are less concerned about fire hazard than our little letter of warning would have us think.
I have a new rash around my belly button
You know that saying, 'Desperate times call for desperate measures.'? (how am I supposed to punctuate that?) Well, this girl is desperate with a capital 'D.' Desperate, desperate, desperate. The nausea has gotten worse in the past couple days, and I am willing to try out any whack-o, loonie home remedy that I haven't tried before (and which doesn't involve excessive illegal narcotics).
Last night, after taking my Unisom and vitamin B-6 supplement, I went to the kitchen. I lobbed off a small chunk of the fresh ginger that Mr. W. picked up earlier. That chunk was then diced into little bitty pieces. (and here's the good part) Then, I stuffed those little pieces into my belly button (go ahead and laugh, I don't mind) and put scotch tape over the little pile to keep it in place.
I am apparently, slightly allergic to the sticky on scotch tape (either that, or it's pretty irritating) because at midnight, I had to take the tape off and dump the little bits of ginger in the trash since I was itching like crazy. Because of the effects of the Unisom, I was too groggy to do a good job clearing off the left over sticky. So this morning, I woke with my pajamas stuck to my red, itchy belly.
On the bright side, I haven't thrown up today, and the nausea isn't too, too bad. Maybe my little experiment in desperation worked. I'll give it another go tonight, but I plan to use the medical tape we have on hand instead of scotch...
Last night, after taking my Unisom and vitamin B-6 supplement, I went to the kitchen. I lobbed off a small chunk of the fresh ginger that Mr. W. picked up earlier. That chunk was then diced into little bitty pieces. (and here's the good part) Then, I stuffed those little pieces into my belly button (go ahead and laugh, I don't mind) and put scotch tape over the little pile to keep it in place.
I am apparently, slightly allergic to the sticky on scotch tape (either that, or it's pretty irritating) because at midnight, I had to take the tape off and dump the little bits of ginger in the trash since I was itching like crazy. Because of the effects of the Unisom, I was too groggy to do a good job clearing off the left over sticky. So this morning, I woke with my pajamas stuck to my red, itchy belly.
On the bright side, I haven't thrown up today, and the nausea isn't too, too bad. Maybe my little experiment in desperation worked. I'll give it another go tonight, but I plan to use the medical tape we have on hand instead of scotch...
Monday, July 02, 2007
Actuarial, schmactuarial...
My latest professional development endeavor swirls around actuarial exams. These are really nasty exams given by really snotty, arrogant individuals who all think these exams are MUCH easier than the ones they had to suffer through. I have seen complaints that *gasp* today's candidates actually get to use financial calculators and aren't required to use slide rules. yeah...
Three years ago, I planned to sit for preliminary exam 2, Financial Mathematics. Lovely stuff about interest rates, IRR, put, call and assorted other financial gobbledygook. Lo and behold, I turned up pregnant and could not stop barfing long enough to study anything non-porcelain related. History has repeated itself to a certain extent. I am currently doing in-depth porcelain studies, but I will study for and maybe pass this exam come November. I will I will I will!
My new nearly-favorite website is this one: Actuarial Outpost Exam 2/FM - Financial Mathematics. For real entertainment, check it out on July 13 when the latest exam results will have been posted. I can guarantee weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth. Meanwhile, I'm visiting it because some of the individuals who hock study guides post practice questions (and their solutions!) for free.
I'm also visiting that site so that I can start feeling really badly about my chances of passing...
Degree in math? nope
High gpa in college? nope
Obscenely high SAT? apparently 1420 doesn't cut it (680 math, 740 verbal way back in the dark ages)
Degree in finance? nope
Any kind of advanced math? Does 1st semester calculus 17 years ago count? nope
No life, no family, no kids, no major morning sickness to distract me? nope
So far, I've logged in somewhere in the neighborhood of 3 hours' study time and can successfully work 5 sample problems pulled from previous exams. This sounds impressive until you realize the problem bank is somewhere around 300 problems. So it looks like I can work 1 2/3% of the problems. I need somewhere around 300 hours in order to stand a reasonable chance of passing. This is going to be verrrrrrry interesting.
I ordered a study guide last week and received e-mail confirmation that they are shipping my order. New definition for an optimist: Spending $130 on study materials for Mrs. W. to sit for an actuarial exam.
This weekend's topic: Simple and compound interest, present value and future value
Tonight I will be looking at discount rates... Fun!
Three years ago, I planned to sit for preliminary exam 2, Financial Mathematics. Lovely stuff about interest rates, IRR, put, call and assorted other financial gobbledygook. Lo and behold, I turned up pregnant and could not stop barfing long enough to study anything non-porcelain related. History has repeated itself to a certain extent. I am currently doing in-depth porcelain studies, but I will study for and maybe pass this exam come November. I will I will I will!
My new nearly-favorite website is this one: Actuarial Outpost Exam 2/FM - Financial Mathematics. For real entertainment, check it out on July 13 when the latest exam results will have been posted. I can guarantee weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth. Meanwhile, I'm visiting it because some of the individuals who hock study guides post practice questions (and their solutions!) for free.
I'm also visiting that site so that I can start feeling really badly about my chances of passing...
Degree in math? nope
High gpa in college? nope
Obscenely high SAT? apparently 1420 doesn't cut it (680 math, 740 verbal way back in the dark ages)
Degree in finance? nope
Any kind of advanced math? Does 1st semester calculus 17 years ago count? nope
No life, no family, no kids, no major morning sickness to distract me? nope
So far, I've logged in somewhere in the neighborhood of 3 hours' study time and can successfully work 5 sample problems pulled from previous exams. This sounds impressive until you realize the problem bank is somewhere around 300 problems. So it looks like I can work 1 2/3% of the problems. I need somewhere around 300 hours in order to stand a reasonable chance of passing. This is going to be verrrrrrry interesting.
I ordered a study guide last week and received e-mail confirmation that they are shipping my order. New definition for an optimist: Spending $130 on study materials for Mrs. W. to sit for an actuarial exam.
This weekend's topic: Simple and compound interest, present value and future value
Tonight I will be looking at discount rates... Fun!
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Now this, is pitiful
While Aimee at Greeblemonkey is enjoying the wonders of the iPhone, I am studying for an exam coming up in November. For those of you interested in the particulars, it is one of the preliminary actuarial exams. Yes, folks I am up to my ears in interest theory.
Anyhoo, these pesky actuaries expect candidates to have a more than decent understanding of certain mathematic principles when they sit for the exams. The one area I fall flat for math is memorizing. In particular, memorizing the quadratic formula. It's sad, I know, but I never DID actually fully, permanently memorize one of the more basic and well-used formulae. No, I spend waaaaayyyyy too much time trying to factor equations. That will not be an option for this timed exam.
In my internet quest for the formula, I found this little website: http://www.calculus-help.com/funstuff/calculussongs.html and have downloaded 'The Quadratic Formula Song' It strikes me as being something Aimee's Brian would invent (were he to take a mind for making calculus fun...).
Maybe with a *ahem* catchy tune, I will finally, finally manage to memorize this sucker.
Over 2aaaa, over 2aaaa, over 2aaaa... mmmmm quadratic formula...
Anyhoo, these pesky actuaries expect candidates to have a more than decent understanding of certain mathematic principles when they sit for the exams. The one area I fall flat for math is memorizing. In particular, memorizing the quadratic formula. It's sad, I know, but I never DID actually fully, permanently memorize one of the more basic and well-used formulae. No, I spend waaaaayyyyy too much time trying to factor equations. That will not be an option for this timed exam.
In my internet quest for the formula, I found this little website: http://www.calculus-help.com/funstuff/calculussongs.html and have downloaded 'The Quadratic Formula Song' It strikes me as being something Aimee's Brian would invent (were he to take a mind for making calculus fun...).
Maybe with a *ahem* catchy tune, I will finally, finally manage to memorize this sucker.
Over 2aaaa, over 2aaaa, over 2aaaa... mmmmm quadratic formula...
Friday, June 29, 2007
As the pregnancy turns...
First, let me just say how much I adoooooore the pregnancy hormones than turn me in to a raging, weeping, barfing mad lunatic.
Yesterday, I finally got around to calling my doctor's office in order to schedule my first ob appointment. This is the same doc I have gone to for 9 years. He delivered both of my babies, and takes care of my entire family's aches, pains and regular vaccinations. I am somewhat attached to him and the way he practices medicine. Okay, I am VERY attached to the way he practices medicine.
Imagine my disappointment when I was told he no longer delivers babies. In fact, NONE of the doctors in his practice delivers babies any more (and haven't for nearly a year). My reaction to this news was to very quietly and rationally hang up the phone and burst into tears. Yes, full-blown tears streaming down my face. AND. I. COULD. NOT. MAKE. THEM. STOP!
A little background is in order here. My alternative to the family practice clinic is the ob clinic nearby (gotta love an HMO!). I had dealings with one of the OB's there when pregnant with S. and then again during labor with S. that *ahem* did not go well. In short, I would rather perform a c-section on myself in a parking lot with a rusty knife than allow this woman anywhere near me again while I am in labor.
Anyhoo, so I dissolved into tears at around 1:05 pm (gotta love cell-phone call history) with visions of this hideous monster of an obstetrician delivering my baby. At 2:18 pm (gotta love Outlook), I e-mailed Mr. W. and asked him to take me home. After a (very short) negotiation, he agreed. I managed to stop crying for 10 minutes to put on make-up and scoot out the front door (oh the things I am proud of...). Once I got in the van, the tears started up again, and did not stop for a good 2 hours.
I called my mom in tears. I watched the news in tears. I ate peanut butter cup ice cream in tears. Once I got to the point where I could finally speak coherently, I called the ob clinic and scheduled my first official ob appointment. I have met and been seen by the ob I chose to take over my prenatal care on a couple occasions. I have a decent feeling about him, and he is supposed to be the least interventionist of the doctors there. However, if I think about that woman delivering my baby, I lose that good feeling. (sigh) Did I mention that I loooooove pregnancy hormones?
M.W.
Yesterday, I finally got around to calling my doctor's office in order to schedule my first ob appointment. This is the same doc I have gone to for 9 years. He delivered both of my babies, and takes care of my entire family's aches, pains and regular vaccinations. I am somewhat attached to him and the way he practices medicine. Okay, I am VERY attached to the way he practices medicine.
Imagine my disappointment when I was told he no longer delivers babies. In fact, NONE of the doctors in his practice delivers babies any more (and haven't for nearly a year). My reaction to this news was to very quietly and rationally hang up the phone and burst into tears. Yes, full-blown tears streaming down my face. AND. I. COULD. NOT. MAKE. THEM. STOP!
A little background is in order here. My alternative to the family practice clinic is the ob clinic nearby (gotta love an HMO!). I had dealings with one of the OB's there when pregnant with S. and then again during labor with S. that *ahem* did not go well. In short, I would rather perform a c-section on myself in a parking lot with a rusty knife than allow this woman anywhere near me again while I am in labor.
Anyhoo, so I dissolved into tears at around 1:05 pm (gotta love cell-phone call history) with visions of this hideous monster of an obstetrician delivering my baby. At 2:18 pm (gotta love Outlook), I e-mailed Mr. W. and asked him to take me home. After a (very short) negotiation, he agreed. I managed to stop crying for 10 minutes to put on make-up and scoot out the front door (oh the things I am proud of...). Once I got in the van, the tears started up again, and did not stop for a good 2 hours.
I called my mom in tears. I watched the news in tears. I ate peanut butter cup ice cream in tears. Once I got to the point where I could finally speak coherently, I called the ob clinic and scheduled my first official ob appointment. I have met and been seen by the ob I chose to take over my prenatal care on a couple occasions. I have a decent feeling about him, and he is supposed to be the least interventionist of the doctors there. However, if I think about that woman delivering my baby, I lose that good feeling. (sigh) Did I mention that I loooooove pregnancy hormones?
M.W.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Funny at work
Conversation with Sales VP and his secretary while discussing end of year bonus issues.
Me: I want to let you know that there may be a few issues concerning end of year retro incentive. I will be on maternity leave when that kicks off, but I am working on procedures to ensure it goes as smoothly as possible in my absence.
Secretary: So, does that mean you're pregnant?
VP: Yes, I do believe it does.
Secretary: Weren't you, like, that way a year ago.
Me (laughing really hard by now): More like 3 years ago. The baby turned 2 back in February.
M.W. (still laughing)
Me: I want to let you know that there may be a few issues concerning end of year retro incentive. I will be on maternity leave when that kicks off, but I am working on procedures to ensure it goes as smoothly as possible in my absence.
Secretary: So, does that mean you're pregnant?
VP: Yes, I do believe it does.
Secretary: Weren't you, like, that way a year ago.
Me (laughing really hard by now): More like 3 years ago. The baby turned 2 back in February.
M.W. (still laughing)
L.'s new trick
As if we weren't exhausted enough. Between pregnancy for me and insane work hours for Mr. W., we've also added in the new and oh-so-fun fact that L. can climb in and out of her crib at will. This, in fact, she did until after ten o'clock last night. It is time to break out the big girl beds...
Monday, June 25, 2007
Updates all over the place
My Niece
Her court date was week before last. The judge was NOT happy about the plea bargain where my niece would do 10 years probation and told her so in no uncertain terms. He also added the restriction that my niece is not to be alone with any of her children for the next 10 years. 10 years where she cannot be alone with her child over a stupid accident... I hate this for her.
Me
Ultrasound on Friday showed a heartbeat located in the uterus! I'm still having twinges and assume it is just a cyst, but I still haven't heard the official report from the doc.
I am reduced to pretty much eating jello and pudding as those don't hurt when they come back up.
I hate, loathe, despise, detest, etc. etc. etc. being pregnant. It is worth it in the end, but gee, if I could pick up a baby at Target, I'd be delighted. The only reason we go through pregnancy rather than adopt is because I do love the breastfeeding experience.
I hate the nausea and constant vomitting that lasts 6 months for me. I hate the baby kicking and adding to the constant seasick sensations. I hate being so uncomfortable. I hate feeling like I'm sharing my body with a little parasite for nine months. I hate the constipation. I hate the stretchmarks. Really, there is nothing about pregnancy I enjoy. Nothing.
It took me awhile to accept that and to realize it did not make me less of a woman or mother. Nor does it mean I love my children less. Nor does it mean I do not value the privilege of carrying a child. These all hold true, but I am miserable the entire nine months. For those of us who struggle with the 'ideal beaming pregnant mother' and falling short, there is nothing wrong with us. (((hugs))) to the other miserably pregnant.
Her court date was week before last. The judge was NOT happy about the plea bargain where my niece would do 10 years probation and told her so in no uncertain terms. He also added the restriction that my niece is not to be alone with any of her children for the next 10 years. 10 years where she cannot be alone with her child over a stupid accident... I hate this for her.
Me
Ultrasound on Friday showed a heartbeat located in the uterus! I'm still having twinges and assume it is just a cyst, but I still haven't heard the official report from the doc.
I am reduced to pretty much eating jello and pudding as those don't hurt when they come back up.
I hate, loathe, despise, detest, etc. etc. etc. being pregnant. It is worth it in the end, but gee, if I could pick up a baby at Target, I'd be delighted. The only reason we go through pregnancy rather than adopt is because I do love the breastfeeding experience.
I hate the nausea and constant vomitting that lasts 6 months for me. I hate the baby kicking and adding to the constant seasick sensations. I hate being so uncomfortable. I hate feeling like I'm sharing my body with a little parasite for nine months. I hate the constipation. I hate the stretchmarks. Really, there is nothing about pregnancy I enjoy. Nothing.
It took me awhile to accept that and to realize it did not make me less of a woman or mother. Nor does it mean I love my children less. Nor does it mean I do not value the privilege of carrying a child. These all hold true, but I am miserable the entire nine months. For those of us who struggle with the 'ideal beaming pregnant mother' and falling short, there is nothing wrong with us. (((hugs))) to the other miserably pregnant.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Just for Greeblemonkey
So, I was, like, in the bathroom, and like, you know, hurling up breakfast. Wouldn't you know there'd be someone else in there. She was like, are you okay? I was like, yeah, it's like morning sickness. No big. She was like, do you want me to get Mr. W? And like, I was like totally touched she was being so, like thoughtful and all.
I totally told her everything was cool, but she, like, went to Mr. W. and told him his wife was barfing in the bathroom.
I guess my little secret is, like totally out there now. Fer shure.
I totally told her everything was cool, but she, like, went to Mr. W. and told him his wife was barfing in the bathroom.
I guess my little secret is, like totally out there now. Fer shure.
Friday, June 15, 2007
This time the bucket is red
It seems like the only time we buy a new bucket around here is when I'm pregnant. I don't remember the bucket from my pregnancy with S. I tried really hard to block that out, LOL. With L. it was a pretty baby blue bucket that went with me everywhere. I have vivid memories of me and that bucket behind the Shipley's Donuts when taking S. to daycare one morning... ah, the memories.
This go around, the bucket is a really cheerful bright red. I think I'm growing attached to my bucket. This is a good thing since I spend more time with that bucket than with Mr. W. Poor guy. I don't snuggle up to him. He's been replaced by my shiny red companion.
There's just something special about the relationship between a girl and her barf bucket.
And I'll have you know I only had one communing session with the bucket while writing this post. I suppose it's good to still be sick, but if I'm going to lose this pregnancy, the least the pregnancy gods could do was spare me the constant vomitting. Especially after I decided a turkey pot pie sounded good for breakfast. Baaaaad idea...
This go around, the bucket is a really cheerful bright red. I think I'm growing attached to my bucket. This is a good thing since I spend more time with that bucket than with Mr. W. Poor guy. I don't snuggle up to him. He's been replaced by my shiny red companion.
There's just something special about the relationship between a girl and her barf bucket.
And I'll have you know I only had one communing session with the bucket while writing this post. I suppose it's good to still be sick, but if I'm going to lose this pregnancy, the least the pregnancy gods could do was spare me the constant vomitting. Especially after I decided a turkey pot pie sounded good for breakfast. Baaaaad idea...
Thursday, June 14, 2007
I had fun at lunch today
I presided over and ran the Table Topics portion of my company's Toastmasters club. Neither of our speakers could make it to the meeting, so I did up Table Topics a little differently. Normally, during the Table Topics portion of the meeting, the Table Topics master gives a topic to each person, who then gives a 45 second to 1 minute 15 second speech over that topic.
The company has been on a big push lately with Customer Service, and I thought a complement to that initiative would be handling sticky situations. I gave each of the attendees a sheet of paper listing seven sticky situations that I personally experienced in recent memory. Each member was asked to either pick a scenario off the list or describe one from their own experience. Then, the speaker would give a short talk on how he/she would have handled the situation. Once everyone in attendance gave a short talk, I switched gears and we had a good 15 minute discussion. We talked about how to tell a customer 'no' and what to do when your supervisor said something you knew was incorrect in a high-level meeting.
Just in case you were curious, the sticky situations were:
1. You have been asked to evaluate a speech given by a novice speaker. The speaker struggled through the speech. You spoke to the speaker before the meeting and found out that the speaker was worried about nerves but was very excited about the topic of the speech.
2. A customer has asked you for information, and you are unable to provide it for him/her.
3. Your supervisor has given a presentation and has asked for your feedback. Overall, you thought the presentation was great, but there were a couple areas that needed improvement.
4. An angry customer has called you and insists that you can help him with his problem. However, he has somehow reached the entirely wrong department, and you are unsure who can help him.
5. You have been working as a team member on a major project. Close to the deadline, you realize that you gave other members of the team wrong information. This means there will be additional work for the team, but the project deadline remains unchanged.
6. You are attending a meeting with your supervisor and other more senior staff. During the course of the meeting, your supervisor makes a statement that you know is incorrect.
7. A customer has asked for special consideration, and you find that the customer is not eligible for that consideration.
All in all, I was impressed with the maturity and professionalism of our little group. I hope the others came away from the meeting with an additional tool or two to pull out when the next sticky situation arises. I know I did.
The company has been on a big push lately with Customer Service, and I thought a complement to that initiative would be handling sticky situations. I gave each of the attendees a sheet of paper listing seven sticky situations that I personally experienced in recent memory. Each member was asked to either pick a scenario off the list or describe one from their own experience. Then, the speaker would give a short talk on how he/she would have handled the situation. Once everyone in attendance gave a short talk, I switched gears and we had a good 15 minute discussion. We talked about how to tell a customer 'no' and what to do when your supervisor said something you knew was incorrect in a high-level meeting.
Just in case you were curious, the sticky situations were:
1. You have been asked to evaluate a speech given by a novice speaker. The speaker struggled through the speech. You spoke to the speaker before the meeting and found out that the speaker was worried about nerves but was very excited about the topic of the speech.
2. A customer has asked you for information, and you are unable to provide it for him/her.
3. Your supervisor has given a presentation and has asked for your feedback. Overall, you thought the presentation was great, but there were a couple areas that needed improvement.
4. An angry customer has called you and insists that you can help him with his problem. However, he has somehow reached the entirely wrong department, and you are unsure who can help him.
5. You have been working as a team member on a major project. Close to the deadline, you realize that you gave other members of the team wrong information. This means there will be additional work for the team, but the project deadline remains unchanged.
6. You are attending a meeting with your supervisor and other more senior staff. During the course of the meeting, your supervisor makes a statement that you know is incorrect.
7. A customer has asked for special consideration, and you find that the customer is not eligible for that consideration.
All in all, I was impressed with the maturity and professionalism of our little group. I hope the others came away from the meeting with an additional tool or two to pull out when the next sticky situation arises. I know I did.
Wishing I had ignored that blasted pain in my side
Levels went up, but didn't double. Doc wants me to have another ultrasound next week to see if there is a fetal pole. (sigh)
I am so sick and miserable I can't stand it. Mr. W. is stuck and can't take me home (we ride together). I guess this is okay since I'd just be throwing myself a pity party at home.
If I lose this pregnancy, I'm not doing this again... My kids are picking up on the stress and are seriously acting out. S. misbehaved so badly during her swimming lesson yesterday, that she knocked another kid into the water. Naturally, it was the youngest, most frightened kid. L. is whining and clinging all over the place. Mr. W. is stressed about handling everything while I am so out of commission. On top of that (and this is really silly), we are in complete disagreement with respect to girl names.
I am so sick and miserable I can't stand it. Mr. W. is stuck and can't take me home (we ride together). I guess this is okay since I'd just be throwing myself a pity party at home.
If I lose this pregnancy, I'm not doing this again... My kids are picking up on the stress and are seriously acting out. S. misbehaved so badly during her swimming lesson yesterday, that she knocked another kid into the water. Naturally, it was the youngest, most frightened kid. L. is whining and clinging all over the place. Mr. W. is stressed about handling everything while I am so out of commission. On top of that (and this is really silly), we are in complete disagreement with respect to girl names.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Results are in, sort of
Finally head back from the doc:
1. There is something that is probably a yolk sac in the uterus. It's too soon to really tell if there is a true bean in the sac. Odds are pretty good, though.
2. There is definitely something on my right ovary. It's probably a cyst, but there is a chance it is ectopic. This is odd since I feel the twinging on my left side.
3. There isn't anything on the left ovary.
4. If my hcg results come back tomorrow doubled from where they stood Monday, then I'm in good shape.
Deep breaths.
1. There is something that is probably a yolk sac in the uterus. It's too soon to really tell if there is a true bean in the sac. Odds are pretty good, though.
2. There is definitely something on my right ovary. It's probably a cyst, but there is a chance it is ectopic. This is odd since I feel the twinging on my left side.
3. There isn't anything on the left ovary.
4. If my hcg results come back tomorrow doubled from where they stood Monday, then I'm in good shape.
Deep breaths.
Still waiting, waiting, waiting...
This is killing me. Aaaaaaaaggggggghhhhhhhh!
I did talk to my best friend last night, and she assured me that they wouldn't have let me leave if there had been something truly awful going on. She's right, but I'm still biting my nails.
I did talk to my best friend last night, and she assured me that they wouldn't have let me leave if there had been something truly awful going on. She's right, but I'm still biting my nails.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Waiting, waiting, waiting...
for the doc to call with my ultrasound results. First blood test came back with high levels, so that's good. Now I just want to hear that the tech found one intrauterine bean... They'll be drawing blood again tomorrow, and I'll get the results on that Thursday.
Waiting, waiting, waiting...
Waiting, waiting, waiting...
Monday, June 11, 2007
Step away from the bulletin board...
I left a snarky reply on a public bulletin board directed toward women with morning sickness. A couple of 'enlightened' women decided to post that morning sickness was all in the mind. Oh please!
I'm not proud, but honestly, who goes around gloating about how good their fortune is to a bunch of people who are experiencing the opposite?
M.W. the hormonal and nauseated
Because Joansy asked, this is what I posted:
Well, aren't you the fortunate ones. You know, some people claim that pain in childbirth is all in your mindset. Along with PMS and menstrual cramps. Just because you are fortunate, it doesn't mean the rest of us will share in your good fortune. And, you know, since I never had back pain in pregnancy, that must all be in my mind, too.
I'm almost sorry about the snarkiness of this post, but I've endured horrible, horrible morning sickness with all three of my pregnancies. I almost hate women who haven't endured this misery and are oh-so-happy to share that with me. The morning sickness board probably isn't the best place to share your good news.
fwiw, I've spent time last pregnancy and this one consciously meditating on feeling good and channeling positive energy. I'm still having violent vomitting. Apparently, my mind just isn't in the right place.
Going back to my nice place now. Congratulations on your healthy pregnancies.
I'm not proud, but honestly, who goes around gloating about how good their fortune is to a bunch of people who are experiencing the opposite?
M.W. the hormonal and nauseated
Because Joansy asked, this is what I posted:
Well, aren't you the fortunate ones. You know, some people claim that pain in childbirth is all in your mindset. Along with PMS and menstrual cramps. Just because you are fortunate, it doesn't mean the rest of us will share in your good fortune. And, you know, since I never had back pain in pregnancy, that must all be in my mind, too.
I'm almost sorry about the snarkiness of this post, but I've endured horrible, horrible morning sickness with all three of my pregnancies. I almost hate women who haven't endured this misery and are oh-so-happy to share that with me. The morning sickness board probably isn't the best place to share your good news.
fwiw, I've spent time last pregnancy and this one consciously meditating on feeling good and channeling positive energy. I'm still having violent vomitting. Apparently, my mind just isn't in the right place.
Going back to my nice place now. Congratulations on your healthy pregnancies.
Goin' to the doc
Wouldn't ya know that my regular doc is out of the office today, so I get to see someone I've never been to before. joy...
I'm annoyed with the appointment clerk, and know I should just drop it. When she asked me how many months pregnant I was, I told her 5.5 weeks. She asked me when I found out, and I told her May 31 (yeah, yeah, it was actually the 28th, so sue me). She then assured me that I was actually 7.5 weeks or more. Oh, please. I decided not to argue with her, but I know my cycle. I will be 6 weeks on Thursday. I don't need a snotty appointment clerk to tell me differently!
I have a 3:00 appointment, and I don't wanna goooooo.... (hear the whine? I get it from my kids). I do plan to ask for a script for the morning sickness. I'm not even 6 weeks, and it's already spiraling out of control.
M.W.
Post appointment update: Doc is convinced that everything is fine. However, he's ordered a quantitative hCG and an ultrasound just to make sure. I go back tomorrow for the ultrasound and then again on Wednesday for the second blood draw.
I'm annoyed with the appointment clerk, and know I should just drop it. When she asked me how many months pregnant I was, I told her 5.5 weeks. She asked me when I found out, and I told her May 31 (yeah, yeah, it was actually the 28th, so sue me). She then assured me that I was actually 7.5 weeks or more. Oh, please. I decided not to argue with her, but I know my cycle. I will be 6 weeks on Thursday. I don't need a snotty appointment clerk to tell me differently!
I have a 3:00 appointment, and I don't wanna goooooo.... (hear the whine? I get it from my kids). I do plan to ask for a script for the morning sickness. I'm not even 6 weeks, and it's already spiraling out of control.
M.W.
Post appointment update: Doc is convinced that everything is fine. However, he's ordered a quantitative hCG and an ultrasound just to make sure. I go back tomorrow for the ultrasound and then again on Wednesday for the second blood draw.
Saturday, June 09, 2007
Trying not to worry
Ugh. I've been having occasional twinging in my left ovary. Guess I'll be going to the doc a little earlier than I'd intended. I don't think it's an ectopic pregnancy, but I ought to get it checked out just to make sure. If it's still bothering me on Tuesday, I'll go in. The nice thing about my doc is that 99% of the time, I get in the day I call. The other 1% is because he's out of the office that day.
If it gets worse, I guess I'll be making an ER run later this weekend. (sigh)
M.W.
Sunday night update: Thanks for all the well wishes. It hasn't gotten any worse, but I'm still twingy. Thinking maybe I'll call in on Monday rather than waiting 'til Tuesday. I'm pretty sure it's a cyst since it doesn't seem to be worsening, and I've had no bleeding or other scary symptoms. I had a corpuse luteal cyst when pg with L. and this feels pretty similar. But if it isn't, I sure don't want to mess around. Nothing like having someone you know nearly die from a ruptured tube to make a gal take things seriously.
If it gets worse, I guess I'll be making an ER run later this weekend. (sigh)
M.W.
Sunday night update: Thanks for all the well wishes. It hasn't gotten any worse, but I'm still twingy. Thinking maybe I'll call in on Monday rather than waiting 'til Tuesday. I'm pretty sure it's a cyst since it doesn't seem to be worsening, and I've had no bleeding or other scary symptoms. I had a corpuse luteal cyst when pg with L. and this feels pretty similar. But if it isn't, I sure don't want to mess around. Nothing like having someone you know nearly die from a ruptured tube to make a gal take things seriously.
Thursday, June 07, 2007
I swear they weren't there yesterday...
I have 3, count 'em 3, long hairs on my face. These aren't the normal dark coarse ones that sprout from the mole on my chin and that I pluck on on a weekly basis (yech). No, these are baby fine to the point of being nearly invisible. However, these suckers are each at least an inch long. Where did they come from? Are they some kind of magical quick-growing hair? Is this going to be my future? Will I wake up one morning covered in baby-fine fur?
Inquiring minds...
Inquiring minds...
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Radio
I'm still at work, waiting for my data to finish loading so I can send my department head the numbers he won't look at for another couple of weeks (bitter, me?).
Since this is way after regular business hours, I break one of the cardinal rules and listen to streaming audio. My favorite station right now is 98.7 the River of Savanah, Georgia. I originally come from that part of the country and love listening to the local flavor.
The Delilah show is on now. That kind of soft pop appeals to me tremendously when I'm stuck working really late. It always throws me, though. I tend to have Delilah on the radio on the way home, too. Since Georgia is Eastern time zone and Texas is Central, I always get major de ja vu listening to what I heard an hour ago. Confusing, isn't it?
M.W.
Since this is way after regular business hours, I break one of the cardinal rules and listen to streaming audio. My favorite station right now is 98.7 the River of Savanah, Georgia. I originally come from that part of the country and love listening to the local flavor.
The Delilah show is on now. That kind of soft pop appeals to me tremendously when I'm stuck working really late. It always throws me, though. I tend to have Delilah on the radio on the way home, too. Since Georgia is Eastern time zone and Texas is Central, I always get major de ja vu listening to what I heard an hour ago. Confusing, isn't it?
M.W.
And so it continues...
4th test was also positive. I didn't take a picture, though. Maybe I can fish it out of the trash?
Ugh. I feel like crap right now. Dizzy, tired, HUNGRY, nauseated all together. Unfortunately, I can't do a blessed thing about any of that right now since I am still at work for at least another couple hours.
Ugh. I feel like crap right now. Dizzy, tired, HUNGRY, nauseated all together. Unfortunately, I can't do a blessed thing about any of that right now since I am still at work for at least another couple hours.
Cast of Characters: Freddie Nemo Wheezer
Along back in April, we had a 5th birthday party for S. The theme was 'The Little Mermaid.' My mother asked if she could give S. a betta fish as a present. I told her it was okay, thinking we'd pretty much ignore the thing while it sat there and did nothing.
Mom brought us Freddie (or is it Freddy, S. can't spell just yet). Freddie is blue with red fins, and Freddie is neurotic. The little guy sits in his glass bowl in the center of our kitchen table. We have dinner with Freddie usually six days a week, as well as most breakfasts and lunches on the weekends. The thing is, Freddie just about poops himself anytime someone moves, makes a sound, looks at him cross-eyed, etc. If we didn't have a cover over his bowl, I'm certain he'd have done the belly-flop of death out of his bowl and onto our kitchen table by now.
His glass house has one of those big leafy plants sitting on top with the roots going into the water. Freddie frequently gets himself tangled up in the roots and then thrashes around until he comes zipping out toward the bottom of the bowl. I don't know, maybe the fish needs a valium... and I need to sleep.
M.W.
Mom brought us Freddie (or is it Freddy, S. can't spell just yet). Freddie is blue with red fins, and Freddie is neurotic. The little guy sits in his glass bowl in the center of our kitchen table. We have dinner with Freddie usually six days a week, as well as most breakfasts and lunches on the weekends. The thing is, Freddie just about poops himself anytime someone moves, makes a sound, looks at him cross-eyed, etc. If we didn't have a cover over his bowl, I'm certain he'd have done the belly-flop of death out of his bowl and onto our kitchen table by now.
His glass house has one of those big leafy plants sitting on top with the roots going into the water. Freddie frequently gets himself tangled up in the roots and then thrashes around until he comes zipping out toward the bottom of the bowl. I don't know, maybe the fish needs a valium... and I need to sleep.
M.W.
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Update to the Broccoli question
Per the USDA food nutrient database: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/
*drumroll please*
The floret of the broccoli (raw) has more Vitamin A than the stalk. All other nutritional values provided were identical. Thank you very much. I will now skip eating broccoli stalks with no guilt. LOL
M.W.
*drumroll please*
The floret of the broccoli (raw) has more Vitamin A than the stalk. All other nutritional values provided were identical. Thank you very much. I will now skip eating broccoli stalks with no guilt. LOL
M.W.
Some people are just bullies
The daughter of one of our secretaries is expecting her first baby later this month. The women this girl works with have been horrible to her. Between yanking her chain concerning work hours and then forcing her to listen to every pregnancy/labor/delivery horror story in the book, they are turning Lori into a nervous wreck.
I hate people who prey on pregnant women, especially first time mommies to be. Whether it's telling horror stories or reaching out to touch her belly without permission, it is bullying and wrong. Ugh! I'm just seething about this. If she weren't nearly 9 months pregnant, she could go job hunting, but as it is, she is stuck. Oooooh!!!!
I hate people who prey on pregnant women, especially first time mommies to be. Whether it's telling horror stories or reaching out to touch her belly without permission, it is bullying and wrong. Ugh! I'm just seething about this. If she weren't nearly 9 months pregnant, she could go job hunting, but as it is, she is stuck. Oooooh!!!!
Clothing dilemma
Starting this year, I started giving away my maternity clothes (the nice ones, not the icky ones that were falling apart). When I started giving out boxes of clothes, the mommies all asked me if I wanted them back. I answered, of course not.
For the most part, I don't really want them back... However, there is one nice black dress that will be great when I'm huge. How tacky would I be to ask the mommy if I could borrow it for a few months? She's on maternity leave right now, so I don't think she'll need it again for a bit, LOL. Okay, I won't really ask for anything back. But if people offer, I'll accept. I'm not proud.
My mom would say that it was time for new clothes. That's a novel concept. Hardly any of my maternity clothes were brand new. I accepted hand-me-downs and purchased stuff off e-bay for maternity wear. Buying new for the 3rd kid feels odd. Maybe I'll start frequenting the local consignment shops...
M.W.
For the most part, I don't really want them back... However, there is one nice black dress that will be great when I'm huge. How tacky would I be to ask the mommy if I could borrow it for a few months? She's on maternity leave right now, so I don't think she'll need it again for a bit, LOL. Okay, I won't really ask for anything back. But if people offer, I'll accept. I'm not proud.
My mom would say that it was time for new clothes. That's a novel concept. Hardly any of my maternity clothes were brand new. I accepted hand-me-downs and purchased stuff off e-bay for maternity wear. Buying new for the 3rd kid feels odd. Maybe I'll start frequenting the local consignment shops...
M.W.
This is new and different
We made it to the zoo on Sunday. S. and L. had a ball playing in the water sprinklers (who needs to see monkeys when you can watch a pack of half-dressed kids getting soaked). Unfortunately, the festivities had to be cut a trifle short due to *ahem* intestinal problems. Turns out that the same hormone surges that cause morning sickness can also trigger *ahem* intestinal issues. New one on me, but I am getting to experience it firsthand. blech
I still haven't put a call in to the doc yet. Perhaps end of June, I'll call to get set up as an ob patient. I'm in absolutely no hurry to go in (heck, it's been 2 years since my last PAP), but I guess I ought to before too long.
When I was pregnant with S. and then with L., I had a call in to our doc before the urine had dried on the stick. I'm much more relaxed this go around. For example, I had a nausea-free day today (until about 2 minutes ago, yuck). Instead of fretting that there was something wrong, I've enjoyed actually feeling good while pregnant. This is a rare, rare thing for a gal who had 6 months of severe morning sickness with each of her two pregnancies.
M.W.
I still haven't put a call in to the doc yet. Perhaps end of June, I'll call to get set up as an ob patient. I'm in absolutely no hurry to go in (heck, it's been 2 years since my last PAP), but I guess I ought to before too long.
When I was pregnant with S. and then with L., I had a call in to our doc before the urine had dried on the stick. I'm much more relaxed this go around. For example, I had a nausea-free day today (until about 2 minutes ago, yuck). Instead of fretting that there was something wrong, I've enjoyed actually feeling good while pregnant. This is a rare, rare thing for a gal who had 6 months of severe morning sickness with each of her two pregnancies.
M.W.
Saturday, June 02, 2007
I love that kid
Mr. W had to work all day today, so it was just me and the girls. Our big plan for the day was to go to the zoo so we could play in the water part. It took us forever to get out of the house because: A) I slept like crap last night (again), and felt like I was wading through wet cement. B) L. was behaving like the contrary 2 year old she is. and C) S. could not stay focused on such complex tasks as putting her shoes on.
By the time we left the house, it was 10:40. Mr. W had loaded the recycling in the back of the van, so we swung by the recycling center. Note to self: They do not take green glass. By then, it was 11, so I offered to pick up a pizza for Mr. W and a couple of other people stuck at work on Saturday. Pizza was delivered at 11:30. Then we stopped at Burger King for lunch and some play land time. Question to self: Why on earth would a fast food joint with a play land NOT have a changing table?
By then, L. had indulged in full-bodied screaming, so we went home instead of to the zoo. The plan was for the girls to take naps, and then we'd head out. If we didn't make it to the zoo, then we'd set up the wading pool in the backyard. However, I was so exhausted, I could hardly keep my eyes open, and neither of those things happened.
At bath time tonight, S. pulled her lower lip and said that we had not set up the pool. I sat her down and asked her if she remembered us telling her that we were going to have another baby. She answered yes, and I went into the whole 'pregnant mommies are very tired' routine and apologized for not doing the things we planned today. She hugged me and asked if I would feel better when the baby was here. I answered that I would feel better sooner than that. She sat for a minute and said, 'How about if I pretend my bath is my pool.' I told her that was a fine idea. She scampered off to put her clothes in the dirty clothes and announced she was going to change into her pretend Ariel swimsuit. Happy as a clam and not grumpy with me at all.
I hate to disappoint her, and I will suck it up and take her there tomorrow. Of course, since Mr. W should be home, I think it will be far more likely.
M.W.
By the time we left the house, it was 10:40. Mr. W had loaded the recycling in the back of the van, so we swung by the recycling center. Note to self: They do not take green glass. By then, it was 11, so I offered to pick up a pizza for Mr. W and a couple of other people stuck at work on Saturday. Pizza was delivered at 11:30. Then we stopped at Burger King for lunch and some play land time. Question to self: Why on earth would a fast food joint with a play land NOT have a changing table?
By then, L. had indulged in full-bodied screaming, so we went home instead of to the zoo. The plan was for the girls to take naps, and then we'd head out. If we didn't make it to the zoo, then we'd set up the wading pool in the backyard. However, I was so exhausted, I could hardly keep my eyes open, and neither of those things happened.
At bath time tonight, S. pulled her lower lip and said that we had not set up the pool. I sat her down and asked her if she remembered us telling her that we were going to have another baby. She answered yes, and I went into the whole 'pregnant mommies are very tired' routine and apologized for not doing the things we planned today. She hugged me and asked if I would feel better when the baby was here. I answered that I would feel better sooner than that. She sat for a minute and said, 'How about if I pretend my bath is my pool.' I told her that was a fine idea. She scampered off to put her clothes in the dirty clothes and announced she was going to change into her pretend Ariel swimsuit. Happy as a clam and not grumpy with me at all.
I hate to disappoint her, and I will suck it up and take her there tomorrow. Of course, since Mr. W should be home, I think it will be far more likely.
M.W.
Friday, June 01, 2007
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Public Service Announcement
Post Partum Depression is serious and real. Very, very real. Please take a moment to check out a brand new blog dedicated to sharing stories of PPD. I had a mere touch of it after S. was born and a stronger touch of it after L. was born (but that was probably more due to the stress a broken foot put on me). I was extremely fortunate that mine resolved on its own with little more than some sun exposure and taking care about what I ate. Others are not so lucky.
Check it out: http://ppdstories.blogspot.com/ and if you have a story of your own to share, please do.
M.W.
Check it out: http://ppdstories.blogspot.com/ and if you have a story of your own to share, please do.
M.W.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
I am losing it
So this morning during my nausea-hazed stagger to the bathroom, I grabbed the new pg test Mr. W. purchased for me yesterday. Because, you know, the pink test may have been lying and the blue test could tell me a different story. It didn't. Still pregnant and now wondering how much money I will waste peeing on sticks.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Oh boy...
or girl...
Yeppers, that there is a positive pregnancy test. I think I've lost my mind to want a third child. If I could be 100% positive that this little bean will 'stick' I think I'd be over the moon (as well as into the toilet). As it is, I'm cautiously very happy.
I haven't really made the announcement with my family, so we'll see if any of them are still reading the bloggy wog. Personally, I think they got bored and forgot all about it, LOL.
It's the wee small hours, and I should be in bed sleeping. However, there are too many things turning round in my head not to mention my stomach.
Let the pukefest begin!
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
I am a mean, mean mommy
S. decided to have a not so great day at school yesterday. Apparently, she vented her frustrations by spitting on her friends on multiple occasions. Not cool.
When we picked her up, her teachers told us about her little spitfest. The full range of motherly emotions from embarrassment all the way through deep anger swooshed through. However, I managed to take a deep breath and talk to her.
In true mother of the year fashion, I laid into her with a major guilt trip.
Me: How would you feel if your friends spit on you?
S.:
Me: Would it hurt your feelings?
S.: Yes
Me: Don't you think it hurt the feelings of your friends when you spit on them?
S.: Yes
Me: God doesn't want us to treat our friends that way.
S.:
Me: What you did was mean and very rude.
This is when S. starts tearing up.
S.: You're being mean to me, Mommy.
Me: No, I'm making sure you understand that what you did was wrong and hurtful.
After that, she turned into a weepy cling-on for pretty much the rest of the evening.
I feel badly that I made her cry, but it had to be done. She initially thought the whole spitting thing was hilarious. {sigh}
M.W.
When we picked her up, her teachers told us about her little spitfest. The full range of motherly emotions from embarrassment all the way through deep anger swooshed through. However, I managed to take a deep breath and talk to her.
In true mother of the year fashion, I laid into her with a major guilt trip.
Me: How would you feel if your friends spit on you?
S.:
Me: Would it hurt your feelings?
S.: Yes
Me: Don't you think it hurt the feelings of your friends when you spit on them?
S.: Yes
Me: God doesn't want us to treat our friends that way.
S.:
Me: What you did was mean and very rude.
This is when S. starts tearing up.
S.: You're being mean to me, Mommy.
Me: No, I'm making sure you understand that what you did was wrong and hurtful.
After that, she turned into a weepy cling-on for pretty much the rest of the evening.
I feel badly that I made her cry, but it had to be done. She initially thought the whole spitting thing was hilarious. {sigh}
M.W.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
I have turned into an old geezer
This is one of those days where I'm feeling my age and wondering what on earth happened to that homesick 18 year old who first came to Texas with nothing but two suitcases, a carry-on and a blanket I had mailed to myself. I have vivid memories standing in line at the university bookstore to purchase my first semester textbooks. I had enough money to buy one plane ticket back home to Germany, but once those books were purchased, I wouldn't. I seriously debated with myself, and I wonder if I would have chucked it all and run if the line had been just the teeniest bit longer.
Anyway, I am remembering that kid today.
For starters, I had to take the mini-van in so that the tires could be rotated and balanced. A mini-van? Me? While waiting for the guys at Discount Tire to get to my vehicle, I wound up talking to a young man who was buying tires for his Mustang GT. Through the course of our chitchat, he let me know he is 27 years old, his wife is expecting their first next month and he loves to race. Geez, it seems like just yesterday, I was cruising the Autobahn and doing a (legal) 100 mph. Now I drive a mini-van...
I got home and tried (in vain) to get my two children to take a nap. We were planning to meet up with some old friends of mine from college days, one of whom I haven't seen in 12 years. 12 years? Did I really graduate 13 years ago? 13?
Mr. W and I wound up dragging two exhausted children to a lunch followed by a wander around the old university campus. We saw the bears that live in the center of campus and even saw a couple horses. I have no idea why there was a horse trailer in the middle of a construction zone. We even stopped by the memorial for all students who have died in residence. One of them was a dear friend of mine. He was a hemophiliac in a time before there was a good HIV screen for blood donors... I rubbed my fingers over his name and thought once again how he should have been running around campus with his own family, visiting old haunts. It's been 15 years since his passing.
I had good conversation with old friends. Even though we haven't seen much of each other since graduation days, we still have strong bonds that let us take up like there hadn't been a huge gulf of time.
I am content with the person I am, and I plan to feel that way about the person I become. Although, I still wonder what happened to that shy, insecure, terribly frightened 18 year old who came to Texas completely on her own with nothing but two suitcases, a carry-on and the blanket she mailed to herself.
M.W.
Anyway, I am remembering that kid today.
For starters, I had to take the mini-van in so that the tires could be rotated and balanced. A mini-van? Me? While waiting for the guys at Discount Tire to get to my vehicle, I wound up talking to a young man who was buying tires for his Mustang GT. Through the course of our chitchat, he let me know he is 27 years old, his wife is expecting their first next month and he loves to race. Geez, it seems like just yesterday, I was cruising the Autobahn and doing a (legal) 100 mph. Now I drive a mini-van...
I got home and tried (in vain) to get my two children to take a nap. We were planning to meet up with some old friends of mine from college days, one of whom I haven't seen in 12 years. 12 years? Did I really graduate 13 years ago? 13?
Mr. W and I wound up dragging two exhausted children to a lunch followed by a wander around the old university campus. We saw the bears that live in the center of campus and even saw a couple horses. I have no idea why there was a horse trailer in the middle of a construction zone. We even stopped by the memorial for all students who have died in residence. One of them was a dear friend of mine. He was a hemophiliac in a time before there was a good HIV screen for blood donors... I rubbed my fingers over his name and thought once again how he should have been running around campus with his own family, visiting old haunts. It's been 15 years since his passing.
I had good conversation with old friends. Even though we haven't seen much of each other since graduation days, we still have strong bonds that let us take up like there hadn't been a huge gulf of time.
I am content with the person I am, and I plan to feel that way about the person I become. Although, I still wonder what happened to that shy, insecure, terribly frightened 18 year old who came to Texas completely on her own with nothing but two suitcases, a carry-on and the blanket she mailed to herself.
M.W.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
The thrill is gone
I can feel it creeping up on me. It starts out with having a hard time falling asleep and then waking up every two hours all night long. It progresses on to wanting to sleep all day long and feeling paralyzed when faced with a task even slightly difficult. From there, it turns into an inability to focus on things that I really enjoy doing and typically find relaxing.
I'm referring to going through one of my depressive cycles. It's not bad right now, but I'm thrown that I am having one at all. Spring is typically a great time of the year for me mental health wise. However, the past two or three weeks have been a bit of a bummer.
It's probably not a big deal. People who don't deal with 'depression' per se still experience bouts of the feeling that nothing is producing any sort of inspiration.
Ah well. At the ripe old age of 35, I've been through enough of these to know when I need to seek professional help, and I'm confident that this too shall pass. Meanwhile, I'm living in the land of the 'blahs.'
Truth be told, the fact that I'm able to pinpoint it and blog about it indicates I'm probably coming back out of the cycle. This is good since I have a half dozen Mother's day cards I need to make tonight and tomorrow!
I'm referring to going through one of my depressive cycles. It's not bad right now, but I'm thrown that I am having one at all. Spring is typically a great time of the year for me mental health wise. However, the past two or three weeks have been a bit of a bummer.
It's probably not a big deal. People who don't deal with 'depression' per se still experience bouts of the feeling that nothing is producing any sort of inspiration.
Ah well. At the ripe old age of 35, I've been through enough of these to know when I need to seek professional help, and I'm confident that this too shall pass. Meanwhile, I'm living in the land of the 'blahs.'
Truth be told, the fact that I'm able to pinpoint it and blog about it indicates I'm probably coming back out of the cycle. This is good since I have a half dozen Mother's day cards I need to make tonight and tomorrow!
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Which is healthier?
Which is the healthiest part of broccoli? I don't like the stems, but I do enjoy the floret part. Hopefully that's got the most nutrients...
It's been awhile...
S. turned 5!!!!
I can hardly believe my sweet little girl is 5! Where did the time go? It seems like only yesterday, she was a newborn. If I close my eyes, I can still smell that sweet new-baby scent and remember how very special it was to hold her close and just breathe in that baby essence. I didn't understand why I was cursed with an extra-keen sense of smell while pregnant and enduring horrible 6 month long morning sickness until I held her in my arms. I knew from the day she was born, that if nothing else, I could always identify her by smell. Now we're gearing up for Kindergarten. Pre-registration is done; we've researched and requested a particular K teacher and we even have a nifty new backpack.
She is totally cracking me up lately. She is absolutely certain she is going to marry this boy who was in her daycare class the first 4 years of her life. It's to the point that when we went to the gem and mineral show this weekend, she announced that the ring she was given was going to be his wedding ring. Such a funny girl.
L. is accident prone
Poor little L. has had a hard time. She fell on her face at daycare a couple weeks ago. Unfortunately, she landed just so that her top front left tooth was jammed back up into her gum. It will be some time before we know if this accident damaged the permanent tooth behind it. The baby tooth is working its way back down, but she does look kind of snaggle-toothed.
She's also got a bite mark on her forehead. I really don't know how one of her classmates managed to get a grip there. Some kind of talent.
Sigh...
You ever find yourself in a situation where you think you might be getting something, but you're not sure you actually want it, but when you find out you're not getting it after all, you're terribly disappointed?
M.W.
I can hardly believe my sweet little girl is 5! Where did the time go? It seems like only yesterday, she was a newborn. If I close my eyes, I can still smell that sweet new-baby scent and remember how very special it was to hold her close and just breathe in that baby essence. I didn't understand why I was cursed with an extra-keen sense of smell while pregnant and enduring horrible 6 month long morning sickness until I held her in my arms. I knew from the day she was born, that if nothing else, I could always identify her by smell. Now we're gearing up for Kindergarten. Pre-registration is done; we've researched and requested a particular K teacher and we even have a nifty new backpack.
She is totally cracking me up lately. She is absolutely certain she is going to marry this boy who was in her daycare class the first 4 years of her life. It's to the point that when we went to the gem and mineral show this weekend, she announced that the ring she was given was going to be his wedding ring. Such a funny girl.
L. is accident prone
Poor little L. has had a hard time. She fell on her face at daycare a couple weeks ago. Unfortunately, she landed just so that her top front left tooth was jammed back up into her gum. It will be some time before we know if this accident damaged the permanent tooth behind it. The baby tooth is working its way back down, but she does look kind of snaggle-toothed.
She's also got a bite mark on her forehead. I really don't know how one of her classmates managed to get a grip there. Some kind of talent.
Sigh...
You ever find yourself in a situation where you think you might be getting something, but you're not sure you actually want it, but when you find out you're not getting it after all, you're terribly disappointed?
M.W.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Eerie
The shooter at VA Tech's name is very, very similar to the freak-out nutcase I dated in college. I wonder what he is up to lately, and if he's still insane...
M.W.
M.W.
Monday, April 16, 2007
June 11
In an ongoing effort to destroy my niece altogether, the oh-so-fabulous court system has delayed her hearing until June 11. Nice...
Oh, and we have another glowing example of how nicely CPS is protecting the children. I posted a little while ago about how my grand-nephew was required to attend a particular daycare center. Imagine our horror when: a) a child brought a gun to that daycare center (that CPS required) and b) CPS caseworkers 'forgot' to mention the incident until my brother in law brought it up. Needless to say, my grand-nephew will not be returning to THAT center.
Doesn't this read just like some soap opera? I'm sick with anger over the whole stinking mess.
M.W. - the depressed and angry
Oh, and we have another glowing example of how nicely CPS is protecting the children. I posted a little while ago about how my grand-nephew was required to attend a particular daycare center. Imagine our horror when: a) a child brought a gun to that daycare center (that CPS required) and b) CPS caseworkers 'forgot' to mention the incident until my brother in law brought it up. Needless to say, my grand-nephew will not be returning to THAT center.
Doesn't this read just like some soap opera? I'm sick with anger over the whole stinking mess.
M.W. - the depressed and angry
त्य्पिंग इन हिंदी
थिस इस जुस्त तू वेइर्द! हिंदी सीम्स तो बे सुच अ बौतिफुल व्रित्तें लंगुअगे.
Monday, April 09, 2007
Someone, please shoot me now
Dratted Easter lillies!
I go through this every year. Every single ding-dong year! We get ready for early morning church services on Easter Sunday. I have a niggling thought that I've forgotten something important. In the rush to get out the door in an attempt to actually be on time, I shove that thought out of my head. Twenty minutes after sitting down in the pew, the first full-body sneeze hits and I remember...
I am horribly allergic to the gorgeous white blossoms of doom that are set out each and every Easter Sunday. My sinuses swell to the point it feels like they are about to make an escape through my eyeballs. My throat turns into a flaming red hot torturing device. My nose becomes red and rough from all the tissues. Clear snot pours out of my nose. My teeth ache, and I am all around miserable. It's usually 2-3 days before everything clears out.
Why can't I ever remember this BEFORE I get to church when I can get hold of an antihistamine?
It doesn't help that this year, I am also probably coming down with L.'s cold...
Doed addybody hab a keenex?
M.W. - the congested
I go through this every year. Every single ding-dong year! We get ready for early morning church services on Easter Sunday. I have a niggling thought that I've forgotten something important. In the rush to get out the door in an attempt to actually be on time, I shove that thought out of my head. Twenty minutes after sitting down in the pew, the first full-body sneeze hits and I remember...
I am horribly allergic to the gorgeous white blossoms of doom that are set out each and every Easter Sunday. My sinuses swell to the point it feels like they are about to make an escape through my eyeballs. My throat turns into a flaming red hot torturing device. My nose becomes red and rough from all the tissues. Clear snot pours out of my nose. My teeth ache, and I am all around miserable. It's usually 2-3 days before everything clears out.
Why can't I ever remember this BEFORE I get to church when I can get hold of an antihistamine?
It doesn't help that this year, I am also probably coming down with L.'s cold...
Doed addybody hab a keenex?
M.W. - the congested
Saturday, April 07, 2007
I swear I am not making this up
We had SNOW today. SNOW in Central Texas in APRIL. SNOW!
Did I mention we had SNOW today?
This is the front of my house.
SNOW...
Did I mention we had SNOW today?
This is the front of my house.
SNOW...
M.W.
Updated to add: According to news reports, this is the third time since weather has been recorded here that it snowed in April. Once in 1992, once in 1928 and then now... Crazy!
Friday, April 06, 2007
From S. as Reported by Grandma and Grandpa
I'm going to be a grown up tomorrow. I'm going to have my own house, my own animals and my own kids and I'm going to drive a car. I'm fed up with Mommy and Daddy.
Another one on the chin
My niece's court date yesterday was postponed until some time next week. Great...
M.W.
M.W.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Court Date
If you're the praying sort, please take a moment for my niece. Her court date is today, and she will find out if the judge accepts her plea bargain agreement. It is most likely he/she will accept it and move on and my niece will start on 10 years' probation. However, the judge can reject it and sentence her to jail anyway...
Ironic this falls on Maundy Thursday, and I can't help but think of Jesus' betrayal. Her whole ordeal has been a huge betrayal by our legal/child protective system.
This is what weighs on my mind today.
M.W.
Ironic this falls on Maundy Thursday, and I can't help but think of Jesus' betrayal. Her whole ordeal has been a huge betrayal by our legal/child protective system.
This is what weighs on my mind today.
M.W.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
When will I ever learn...
On the way home from work after having picked up the kiddoes, Mr. W. and I had a little conversation about a couple of co-workers. Co-worker A's son is in the same daycare class as L. Co-worker B (the annoying one) is a distant relative we see at the occasional family reunion.
Me: Yeah, I think Co-worker A is about to rip off Co-worker B's head and stuff it up his backside.
S: Why does she want to rip off his head and stuff it up his backside?
Mr. W: [uncontrollable laughter]
Me: Ummmm, I just meant that she's very angry with him.
Mr. W: [more uncontrollable laughter]
One of two things will happen:
1. S. will come up to Co-worker A at daycare and ask her why she wants to rip Co-worker B's head off and stuff it up his backside.
2. S. will come up t0 Co-worker B at a family reunion and ask him why Co-worker A wants to rip his head off and stuff it up his backside.
Gee, I've been a parent for nearly 5 years, and I still make rookie mistakes like this one!
M.W.
Me: Yeah, I think Co-worker A is about to rip off Co-worker B's head and stuff it up his backside.
S: Why does she want to rip off his head and stuff it up his backside?
Mr. W: [uncontrollable laughter]
Me: Ummmm, I just meant that she's very angry with him.
Mr. W: [more uncontrollable laughter]
One of two things will happen:
1. S. will come up to Co-worker A at daycare and ask her why she wants to rip Co-worker B's head off and stuff it up his backside.
2. S. will come up t0 Co-worker B at a family reunion and ask him why Co-worker A wants to rip his head off and stuff it up his backside.
Gee, I've been a parent for nearly 5 years, and I still make rookie mistakes like this one!
M.W.
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Presentation Update
I totally forgot to write up my presentation this week...
I was scheduled to present some analysis (which explained away a source of complaint) Thursday morning at 8:30. Tuesday evening at around 3, I found out I was moved up to Wednesday some time and that I needed to present on some reports I had developed. Yikes!
So, I frantically worked on the second presentation and didn't have a chance to review the first one before I was called on to present at 9:30 AM on Wednesday.
My first presentation went very well. The district sales managers loved what I had to say and wanted copies of my presentation so they could show their agency managers. My second presentation went even better. They loved, loved, loved the new reports (although a few of them would like to see some changes) and even applauded me. :)
I'm feeling pretty good right now.
M.W.
I was scheduled to present some analysis (which explained away a source of complaint) Thursday morning at 8:30. Tuesday evening at around 3, I found out I was moved up to Wednesday some time and that I needed to present on some reports I had developed. Yikes!
So, I frantically worked on the second presentation and didn't have a chance to review the first one before I was called on to present at 9:30 AM on Wednesday.
My first presentation went very well. The district sales managers loved what I had to say and wanted copies of my presentation so they could show their agency managers. My second presentation went even better. They loved, loved, loved the new reports (although a few of them would like to see some changes) and even applauded me. :)
I'm feeling pretty good right now.
M.W.
To fight or surrender...
My niece must make a horrible choice right now. She faces criminal charges for what happened to the baby. She can either go to trial and risk a prison sentence or she can accept the plea bargain offered to her that would give her 10 years probation. While the guarantee that she would not go to jail is appealing, her chances of getting a job in her line of work with this conviction drop to zero. They've probably already dropped to near zero without a conviction, though... The trial would be hard on her, and she's already pretty fragile after enduring this mess.
I honestly don't know which I would choose for myself. When I was younger (and didn't have children to consider), I know I would have fought for justice all the way to the bitter end. Now that I have children, I'm not sure I would. Moving on with my life so that I could focus my attention back on my kids would most likely supersede my desire to clear my name.
I feel so helpless. I can't imagine what my niece is feeling...
Another part of this whole mess that has me so very angry is the taunting. Why do people feel the need to mock my niece and call her names? I'm not even talking about Joe Public. When she turned herself in, the processing people gave her a really hard time. I've already gone into what her son's case workers have done. I don't understand how people can be so intentionally cruel. It is certainly not our public servants' right to taunt the guilty, even if there has been a conviction.
M.W.
I honestly don't know which I would choose for myself. When I was younger (and didn't have children to consider), I know I would have fought for justice all the way to the bitter end. Now that I have children, I'm not sure I would. Moving on with my life so that I could focus my attention back on my kids would most likely supersede my desire to clear my name.
I feel so helpless. I can't imagine what my niece is feeling...
Another part of this whole mess that has me so very angry is the taunting. Why do people feel the need to mock my niece and call her names? I'm not even talking about Joe Public. When she turned herself in, the processing people gave her a really hard time. I've already gone into what her son's case workers have done. I don't understand how people can be so intentionally cruel. It is certainly not our public servants' right to taunt the guilty, even if there has been a conviction.
M.W.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Thoughts from this conservative
With the way things are heating up in the political world (something about an election next November?), I thought I'd chime in with some of my conservative/libertarian points of view. These thoughts are in response to things I've seen coming from liberals as well as conservatives. These run counter to many who claim conservatism, and I suspect I am more libertarian than anything else...
1. If I tell you that you can't do X, then that opens the door for you to tell me I can't do Y. Therefore, I won't tell you not to do X, and you don't tell me not to do Y, and we'll get along just fine. The only exception to this rule is if X or Y cause harm to another person or person's property.
2. Believing that a Creator kicked off this whole existence thing does not make me an idiot. Nor does it mean that I don't believe the world continues to evolve and change. It does mean that I don't think we are here by mere coincidence. Some creationists think that evolution explains a great deal of how the Creator make this world, and some creationists think dinosaur fossils were planted by Satan to confuse the faithful. Before you start calling someone names, you might want to find out where on the creationist scale the person lies.
3. Not all conservatives worship President Bush. That is a ridiculous assumption.
4. Not all conservatives who question affirmative action are raging racists. Some of us are asking one huge question: Where have we failed to provide equal opportunity that affirmative action would be needed in the first place?
5. Not all conservatives think that a woman belongs barefoot and pregnant in the home. Some of us have actually read the description of the ideal wife as it is found in the last chapter Proverbs. She didn't exactly stay home and hover over her children 24/7.
I have more, but I'm really supposed to be working right now.
M.W.
Updated to add: I did not intend my number 5 to be a slam against at home mothers, and I realized it could be read that way. I just don't think it's healthy (or what God intended) for a woman to make her children her sole identity.
Also updated: Amen TJ on the fathers. My husband does not babysit his own children. He parents them!!!
1. If I tell you that you can't do X, then that opens the door for you to tell me I can't do Y. Therefore, I won't tell you not to do X, and you don't tell me not to do Y, and we'll get along just fine. The only exception to this rule is if X or Y cause harm to another person or person's property.
2. Believing that a Creator kicked off this whole existence thing does not make me an idiot. Nor does it mean that I don't believe the world continues to evolve and change. It does mean that I don't think we are here by mere coincidence. Some creationists think that evolution explains a great deal of how the Creator make this world, and some creationists think dinosaur fossils were planted by Satan to confuse the faithful. Before you start calling someone names, you might want to find out where on the creationist scale the person lies.
3. Not all conservatives worship President Bush. That is a ridiculous assumption.
4. Not all conservatives who question affirmative action are raging racists. Some of us are asking one huge question: Where have we failed to provide equal opportunity that affirmative action would be needed in the first place?
5. Not all conservatives think that a woman belongs barefoot and pregnant in the home. Some of us have actually read the description of the ideal wife as it is found in the last chapter Proverbs. She didn't exactly stay home and hover over her children 24/7.
I have more, but I'm really supposed to be working right now.
M.W.
Updated to add: I did not intend my number 5 to be a slam against at home mothers, and I realized it could be read that way. I just don't think it's healthy (or what God intended) for a woman to make her children her sole identity.
Also updated: Amen TJ on the fathers. My husband does not babysit his own children. He parents them!!!
Monday, March 19, 2007
What color is your number?
I attended (and spent too much money at) a Stampin' Up party yesterday. One of the topics of conversation revolved around colors and numbers.
One member asked what color the number 6 was. This confused me, and I started treating it like a riddle. My answer was 'black' since it is positive as opposed to 'red' as a negative number. She explained that she'd read that numbers people react differently to numbers.
Once I 'got' what she was talking about, it made perfect sense to me.
1 is white
2 is yellow
3 is orange
4 is blue
5 is pink
6 is green
7 is royal blue
8 is purple
9 is teal
So, what color are your numbers?
One member asked what color the number 6 was. This confused me, and I started treating it like a riddle. My answer was 'black' since it is positive as opposed to 'red' as a negative number. She explained that she'd read that numbers people react differently to numbers.
Once I 'got' what she was talking about, it made perfect sense to me.
1 is white
2 is yellow
3 is orange
4 is blue
5 is pink
6 is green
7 is royal blue
8 is purple
9 is teal
So, what color are your numbers?
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Around the breakfast table
Mr. W. and I were discussing the merits (or lack thereof) of eating prunes.
Me: I don't care.
Mr. W.: You need to care.
Me: I am completely careless.
Mr. W.: You should be caring, young lady.
S.: Daddy, Mommy's not young.
Well, thank you very much, S.
Me: I don't care.
Mr. W.: You need to care.
Me: I am completely careless.
Mr. W.: You should be caring, young lady.
S.: Daddy, Mommy's not young.
Well, thank you very much, S.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
To do list
Enjoy having a full 8 hours all to myself while Mr. W. and the girls go to a train show in Fort Worth.
Go shopping. I must purchase: 2 business professional type outfits in anticipation of big presentations next week; 1 pair dress shoes that will handle my oh-so-stylish rigid insoles while not looking like something from an institution (yeah, right); 1 girdle type object so that I won't jiggle about so much in my new professional type outfits and any other spring wear; 1 pair garden gloves so that I can start attacking the weeks that currently own our flower beds.
Stamp! I want to add two more projects to my gallery today. The poor thing only has 11 items...
Figure out what I will purchase at the Stampin' Up party I am attending tomorrow afternoon.
Clean the kitchen.
M.W.
Updated 3/19/2007:
Enjoyed myself! Watched some Lifetime or Family channel sappy movie. Talked to my mom on the phone.
Shopped til I dropped. I found a pair of shoes that I hate, but seem to work with my current foot woes. Found half a dozen outfits for work. I spend more money on clothes for me on Saturday than I have probably in the last three years combined. Since I detest clothes and shoe shopping, this was truly a big day.
Started a stamping project, but still need to finish it. Inspiration turned to dust after I had the background done...
Kitchen is still a mess, but I did get the dead flowers off the kitchen table...
Thanks for asking, T.
Go shopping. I must purchase: 2 business professional type outfits in anticipation of big presentations next week; 1 pair dress shoes that will handle my oh-so-stylish rigid insoles while not looking like something from an institution (yeah, right); 1 girdle type object so that I won't jiggle about so much in my new professional type outfits and any other spring wear; 1 pair garden gloves so that I can start attacking the weeks that currently own our flower beds.
Stamp! I want to add two more projects to my gallery today. The poor thing only has 11 items...
Figure out what I will purchase at the Stampin' Up party I am attending tomorrow afternoon.
Clean the kitchen.
M.W.
Updated 3/19/2007:
Enjoyed myself! Watched some Lifetime or Family channel sappy movie. Talked to my mom on the phone.
Shopped til I dropped. I found a pair of shoes that I hate, but seem to work with my current foot woes. Found half a dozen outfits for work. I spend more money on clothes for me on Saturday than I have probably in the last three years combined. Since I detest clothes and shoe shopping, this was truly a big day.
Started a stamping project, but still need to finish it. Inspiration turned to dust after I had the background done...
Kitchen is still a mess, but I did get the dead flowers off the kitchen table...
Thanks for asking, T.
Friday, March 16, 2007
Injustice
Note: I had this up for a short bit, and took it back into draft land. Felt guilty, so put it back. I'm so angry and heartsick about my niece's and others' situations that I'm not very rational right now.
My niece, God bless her, stands accused of shaking a baby. Not her own baby, mind you, but the baby of a drug-addicted chronic criminal she was caring for while the so-called mother was doing time in prison. For several weeks, my niece spent plenty of time at the doctor's office ensuring that the poor child received adequate medical care and physical therapy. Necessary due to the bio-mother's lack of self restraint while pregnant.
One day late last summer, the baby turned blue and my niece administered CPR after calling 911. The paramedics came and whisked the baby away. Further examination of the baby supposedly revealed bruising on the infant's brain. It is entirely possible the bruising was a result of the CPR, and in my opinion explains the infant's physical injuries. The child was later rushed to a bigger hospital after he developed a massive systemic infection thanks to the medical care he received at the first hospital (too big of a needle that was left in his poor little body for too long). The newspapers were quick to name her and state that the child in her care was rushed to the big fancy hospital out of town (neglecting to mention that it was because of the care received at the first hospital). They also failed to mention that the infant in question has all kinds of problems due to his biological mothers' indiscretions during her pregnancy.
My niece found herself publicly accused and without all three of her children in a matter of moments. In the interests of protecting the innocent, CPS took all three of her kids. Her two school aged daughters and her then 8-month old son. The entire family was fine with that, and I actually felt relieved that the baby's injury was being taken so seriously. I also expected that the investigation would be prompt and courteous, and that my niece's sterling character would shine through.
The case worker for the two girls found that my niece was a fine mother and that any injury received to the baby had to have been the result of an accident. The girls have never had any suspicious injuries and were quite capable of telling their case worker what sort of care they received from their mother. My niece was given free and full access to her daughters back in December.
The case workers for the baby, on the other hand, have exhibited the temperament of a pair of little Napoleans. Despite the fact that they are neither licensed counsellors nor psychologists, they saw fit to tell my niece that she has an explosive temper disorder. This happens to run contrary to what all the psychologists and counsellors have had to say after having visited with her in a clinical setting.
Several family members have been given the okay to care for my grand nephew while his case is decided. My mother-in-law falls in that group. Or at least she did until CPS came by for a surprise visit, and she was out with S.' daycare class to the zoo, taking her great grandson with her. Now the Napoleons have decreed that the baby must go to daycare each day.
I am angry on so very many levels. There has been no evidence of harm done to any of her children. Physical body scans came back completely clean. Her daughters and even jerk of an ex-husband have all confirmed that she has never harmed and would never harm any child. And yet my niece is still forbidden to be alone with her son and must go find someplace else to sleep other than her own home each and every night. This is killing her and is certainly not good for the baby during these early months where bonding is so very critical.
On the bright side, though, the Napoleons think her case should be decided in the next six months or so. (please note the deep and bitter sarcasm)
It angers me that there is such a huge backlog of abuse cases and a larger pile of cases that haven't even been opened. Here we are with what should have been open-and-shut (first caseworker commented on how fabulously cooperative my niece was), and we are 7 months into this agony with no end in sight.
My niece has done all the psychological testing, she has seen and met with all the people she has been assigned, attended every class, her children have all been screened and examined to within an inch of their lives, and yet SHE STILL CANNOT COME HOME AND BE WITH HER BABY.
Meanwhile, in other places, the most revolting people in the known universe are given court-manded free access to their children.
I am sickened at the injustice.
M.W.
My niece, God bless her, stands accused of shaking a baby. Not her own baby, mind you, but the baby of a drug-addicted chronic criminal she was caring for while the so-called mother was doing time in prison. For several weeks, my niece spent plenty of time at the doctor's office ensuring that the poor child received adequate medical care and physical therapy. Necessary due to the bio-mother's lack of self restraint while pregnant.
One day late last summer, the baby turned blue and my niece administered CPR after calling 911. The paramedics came and whisked the baby away. Further examination of the baby supposedly revealed bruising on the infant's brain. It is entirely possible the bruising was a result of the CPR, and in my opinion explains the infant's physical injuries. The child was later rushed to a bigger hospital after he developed a massive systemic infection thanks to the medical care he received at the first hospital (too big of a needle that was left in his poor little body for too long). The newspapers were quick to name her and state that the child in her care was rushed to the big fancy hospital out of town (neglecting to mention that it was because of the care received at the first hospital). They also failed to mention that the infant in question has all kinds of problems due to his biological mothers' indiscretions during her pregnancy.
My niece found herself publicly accused and without all three of her children in a matter of moments. In the interests of protecting the innocent, CPS took all three of her kids. Her two school aged daughters and her then 8-month old son. The entire family was fine with that, and I actually felt relieved that the baby's injury was being taken so seriously. I also expected that the investigation would be prompt and courteous, and that my niece's sterling character would shine through.
The case worker for the two girls found that my niece was a fine mother and that any injury received to the baby had to have been the result of an accident. The girls have never had any suspicious injuries and were quite capable of telling their case worker what sort of care they received from their mother. My niece was given free and full access to her daughters back in December.
The case workers for the baby, on the other hand, have exhibited the temperament of a pair of little Napoleans. Despite the fact that they are neither licensed counsellors nor psychologists, they saw fit to tell my niece that she has an explosive temper disorder. This happens to run contrary to what all the psychologists and counsellors have had to say after having visited with her in a clinical setting.
Several family members have been given the okay to care for my grand nephew while his case is decided. My mother-in-law falls in that group. Or at least she did until CPS came by for a surprise visit, and she was out with S.' daycare class to the zoo, taking her great grandson with her. Now the Napoleons have decreed that the baby must go to daycare each day.
I am angry on so very many levels. There has been no evidence of harm done to any of her children. Physical body scans came back completely clean. Her daughters and even jerk of an ex-husband have all confirmed that she has never harmed and would never harm any child. And yet my niece is still forbidden to be alone with her son and must go find someplace else to sleep other than her own home each and every night. This is killing her and is certainly not good for the baby during these early months where bonding is so very critical.
On the bright side, though, the Napoleons think her case should be decided in the next six months or so. (please note the deep and bitter sarcasm)
It angers me that there is such a huge backlog of abuse cases and a larger pile of cases that haven't even been opened. Here we are with what should have been open-and-shut (first caseworker commented on how fabulously cooperative my niece was), and we are 7 months into this agony with no end in sight.
My niece has done all the psychological testing, she has seen and met with all the people she has been assigned, attended every class, her children have all been screened and examined to within an inch of their lives, and yet SHE STILL CANNOT COME HOME AND BE WITH HER BABY.
Meanwhile, in other places, the most revolting people in the known universe are given court-manded free access to their children.
I am sickened at the injustice.
M.W.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Check out my stuff!
I've been stamping and making cards for 3 years or so. It's my refuge and where I let my creative juices flow (or dry up to dust as the case may be).
Anyway, I've just started a gallery out at Splitcoast. Check it out if you like.
My Cards 'n Stuff
M.W.
Anyway, I've just started a gallery out at Splitcoast. Check it out if you like.
My Cards 'n Stuff
M.W.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Now THIS is funny
I received an Outstanding Club President award for my area in Toastmasters 'for outstanding performance and lasting contribution during the July 1, 2006 to December 31, 2006 term.'
I have been the biggest slacker president, this club has ever seen! I occasionally check in with my officers, but we haven't had a single formal executive meeting. About all I can say is that we've paid our dues on time, and I've nudged/guilted all the officers into attending officer training.
I wonder what precisely, the criteria was...
I have been the biggest slacker president, this club has ever seen! I occasionally check in with my officers, but we haven't had a single formal executive meeting. About all I can say is that we've paid our dues on time, and I've nudged/guilted all the officers into attending officer training.
I wonder what precisely, the criteria was...
Delivered!
I take back all my griping about the United States Postal Service! Per their little tracking gizmo thingy, my camera was delivered today!!!!! This puts them between 1 and 3 days BEFORE their estimated delivery date.
How am I going to hold out another three hours in the office plus an hour to get the kids and get home plus another couple hours before the kids are in bed before I get to play?
How? How? How?
M.W.
How am I going to hold out another three hours in the office plus an hour to get the kids and get home plus another couple hours before the kids are in bed before I get to play?
How? How? How?
M.W.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Finally heard from the adjuster
Our roof needs to be replaced. I kind of expected that, but had hoped we could get away with a repair. Between the nasty hail and horrible winds we took last spring and the horrible winds we took on Feb 24, it's amazing we have a roof at all...
Since we had serious thunderstorms yesterday going on into today, I really, really, really hope the tarp Mr. W. spread out over our roof kept leakage to a minimum.
Meanwhile, our house is quite a sight! Mr. W. used silicone to try to keep the tarp down. When that didn't work out so well, he resorted to heavy yellow rope to keep it tied down. Imagine, if you will, a beautiful suburban house with two long white silicone lines down the roof and another half dozen yellow ropes tied to a huge grey tarp draped over the roof and flapping in the breeze.
M.W.
Since we had serious thunderstorms yesterday going on into today, I really, really, really hope the tarp Mr. W. spread out over our roof kept leakage to a minimum.
Meanwhile, our house is quite a sight! Mr. W. used silicone to try to keep the tarp down. When that didn't work out so well, he resorted to heavy yellow rope to keep it tied down. Imagine, if you will, a beautiful suburban house with two long white silicone lines down the roof and another half dozen yellow ropes tied to a huge grey tarp draped over the roof and flapping in the breeze.
M.W.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Cat Stories
While Mr. W. and S. were on their very first fishing trip together, L. and I luxuriated in a quiet day with nothing that had to be done. We took full advantage of the unseasonably warm (even for us!) weather to hang out in the backyard.
The ugliest cat in the known universe decided to join us for a little fun in the sun. Eliza (the cat) would climb under the patio furniture. L. would climb under after her. Eliza would hide in the twisted coils of the garden hose. L. would lift them off her concerned the keeeeee (L.'s word) was stuck.
Eliza would hang out in the open, and L. would grab her tail. Did I mention that this cat is as tolerant as she is ugly? Eliza would meow for help, and L. would pick her up. After a good 30 minutes of thistorture playtime, Eliza decided to go exploring on the other side of the fence.
L. responded by wailing 'keeeeeee, keeeeeee, keeeeeee' loud enough that I think she might have been the one scaring the fish onto S.'s line. When she burst into tears, I knew it was way past naptime. So, she and I settled in for a nice afternoon nap.
M.W.
The ugliest cat in the known universe decided to join us for a little fun in the sun. Eliza (the cat) would climb under the patio furniture. L. would climb under after her. Eliza would hide in the twisted coils of the garden hose. L. would lift them off her concerned the keeeeee (L.'s word) was stuck.
Eliza would hang out in the open, and L. would grab her tail. Did I mention that this cat is as tolerant as she is ugly? Eliza would meow for help, and L. would pick her up. After a good 30 minutes of this
L. responded by wailing 'keeeeeee, keeeeeee, keeeeeee' loud enough that I think she might have been the one scaring the fish onto S.'s line. When she burst into tears, I knew it was way past naptime. So, she and I settled in for a nice afternoon nap.
M.W.
Fish Stories
Mr. W. took S. on her very first ever fishing trip. They packed up her brand new Disney Princesses rod and reel, a couple of Mr. W.'s rods, his tackle box and a bucket of live minnows and headed out to Mr. W.'s parents' farm.
They trekked out to the tank (pond for people less familiar with 'Texan') and began to fish. After some time with no luck, they walked down to see if there was water in the creek. There was, but Mr. W. and S. decided to stick it out at the tank. About that time, some cows decided it'd be a good time to splash around on the opposite side from the fishing expedition.
Mr. W. thinks those cows scared the fish clean onto their hooks. Final count was 5 for S. and 4 for Mr. W. Not only did she catch the most, but she also caught the largest: a 20 inch large mouthed bass. Her little Princesses rod and reel couldn't really handle that load, so Mr. W. had to help haul the fish up for inspection.
I am happy to announce that true to my request, Mr. W. and S. left all the fish back at the tank, where they will continue to grow fat and happy in anticipation of the next fishing trip.
M.W.
They trekked out to the tank (pond for people less familiar with 'Texan') and began to fish. After some time with no luck, they walked down to see if there was water in the creek. There was, but Mr. W. and S. decided to stick it out at the tank. About that time, some cows decided it'd be a good time to splash around on the opposite side from the fishing expedition.
Mr. W. thinks those cows scared the fish clean onto their hooks. Final count was 5 for S. and 4 for Mr. W. Not only did she catch the most, but she also caught the largest: a 20 inch large mouthed bass. Her little Princesses rod and reel couldn't really handle that load, so Mr. W. had to help haul the fish up for inspection.
I am happy to announce that true to my request, Mr. W. and S. left all the fish back at the tank, where they will continue to grow fat and happy in anticipation of the next fishing trip.
M.W.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Strange dreams indeed
My subconscious decided to celebrate my new-found liberation with a very, very strange and vivid dream. So vivid, that I almost had to ask Mr. W. if it really was a dream.
I dreamed I was diagnosed as having some sort of weird brain aneurysm, and there was nothing that could be done about it. Specialist doctor looked at me and told me he guessed I had about a week left, but he couldn't be sure. He sent me for an emergency brain scan.
I sat in the waiting room next to another woman who was also waiting to see a doctor. That sappy song, 'Live Like You Were Dying' came on, and it made me so angry, I wanted to break things and scream and yell.
I turned to the woman next to me and told her that song was full of sh## and that I had no intention of living like I was dying. I wasn't going to quit my job, since I wanted my kids and husband to have my death benefits. In fact, I wasn't going to change much of anything beyond trying to beat this thing.
It's funny, I've been awake for half an hour or so, and I'm still pissed off about that song. Methinks extended days of stress have gotten to me.
M.W.
I dreamed I was diagnosed as having some sort of weird brain aneurysm, and there was nothing that could be done about it. Specialist doctor looked at me and told me he guessed I had about a week left, but he couldn't be sure. He sent me for an emergency brain scan.
I sat in the waiting room next to another woman who was also waiting to see a doctor. That sappy song, 'Live Like You Were Dying' came on, and it made me so angry, I wanted to break things and scream and yell.
I turned to the woman next to me and told her that song was full of sh## and that I had no intention of living like I was dying. I wasn't going to quit my job, since I wanted my kids and husband to have my death benefits. In fact, I wasn't going to change much of anything beyond trying to beat this thing.
It's funny, I've been awake for half an hour or so, and I'm still pissed off about that song. Methinks extended days of stress have gotten to me.
M.W.
Friday, March 09, 2007
It's IN!!!!!
It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in! It's in!
That ruddy project that has been keeping me here 12 hours weekdays, with another 6 or so on weekend days is going into production right now! Right this very second!
The heavens have opened and choirs are singing!
No more waking up at 2 am with stomach acid churning. No more not seeing my kids until after they're asleep. No more answering bleepedy bleep bleep e-mails asking the hold up.
My purgatory is over!!!!!!!! Now if Amazon would just ship my camera, already!
M.W.
That ruddy project that has been keeping me here 12 hours weekdays, with another 6 or so on weekend days is going into production right now! Right this very second!
The heavens have opened and choirs are singing!
No more waking up at 2 am with stomach acid churning. No more not seeing my kids until after they're asleep. No more answering bleepedy bleep bleep e-mails asking the hold up.
My purgatory is over!!!!!!!! Now if Amazon would just ship my camera, already!
M.W.
Thursday, March 08, 2007
The sincerest form of flattery
Apparently, I have the skills to impress a junior high boy.
While my sister and her 13 year old boy were staying with us nearly three weeks ago, we went into our semi-regular 'show everybody what weird and/or disgusting trick you can do' routine. My sister can do this weird lift one finger off the table while her knuckle is under her fist. I tried it, and can do it, but not as well as she can. My nephew can wiggle his lower eyelashes and his ears.
I demonstrated my ability to hold one eye perfectly still while crossing the other (guaranteed to gross out every adult in the room). My dad and sister cringed, my mom refused to look, and my nephew was fascinated.
In fact, he was so impressed he spent the last 2.5 weeks perfecting that trick. Now he can do it too. I'm so flattered.
I guess I need to work on my next one... Maybe I can figure out how to roll one eye up while the other one stays still. My sister has informed me that I am going to become the person your parents warned you about, with my eyes stuck in weird places.
M.W.
While my sister and her 13 year old boy were staying with us nearly three weeks ago, we went into our semi-regular 'show everybody what weird and/or disgusting trick you can do' routine. My sister can do this weird lift one finger off the table while her knuckle is under her fist. I tried it, and can do it, but not as well as she can. My nephew can wiggle his lower eyelashes and his ears.
I demonstrated my ability to hold one eye perfectly still while crossing the other (guaranteed to gross out every adult in the room). My dad and sister cringed, my mom refused to look, and my nephew was fascinated.
In fact, he was so impressed he spent the last 2.5 weeks perfecting that trick. Now he can do it too. I'm so flattered.
I guess I need to work on my next one... Maybe I can figure out how to roll one eye up while the other one stays still. My sister has informed me that I am going to become the person your parents warned you about, with my eyes stuck in weird places.
M.W.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
I just couldn't stand it any longer
I just know my lost digital camera is going to turn up any day now. How do I know this? Because I caved in and ordered a replacement. Sometime in the next week or so, I will be getting a brand new Canon PowerShot A550. 7.1 megapixels of portable photograpic equipment.
The straw the broke the camel's back, so to speak, was not having a camera handy to snap a few quick pics of the girls being absolutely adorable! My dad gave S. and L. each a pair of wooden shoes from Holland. L. has been completely fascinated by them (to the point where she cried when I took them off her to go to bed last night). The other morning, she was wearing her wooden shoes and galloping around the house neighing. She had S.' stick giraffe (she owns a stik horse as well as the stick giraffe) between her stubby little legs and was having an uproarious good time. S. was enjoying the show, giggling wholeheartedly. I only have one halfway decent picture of the pair of them, and that was taken on Mr. W's camera that I dug out of its storage drawer. I want my own camera, goshdarnit!
Once the replacement camera comes in the door, I know the other camera will come out of hiding. At least, I hope so, since I really want to download our Disney vacation pics off it.
M.W.
The straw the broke the camel's back, so to speak, was not having a camera handy to snap a few quick pics of the girls being absolutely adorable! My dad gave S. and L. each a pair of wooden shoes from Holland. L. has been completely fascinated by them (to the point where she cried when I took them off her to go to bed last night). The other morning, she was wearing her wooden shoes and galloping around the house neighing. She had S.' stick giraffe (she owns a stik horse as well as the stick giraffe) between her stubby little legs and was having an uproarious good time. S. was enjoying the show, giggling wholeheartedly. I only have one halfway decent picture of the pair of them, and that was taken on Mr. W's camera that I dug out of its storage drawer. I want my own camera, goshdarnit!
Once the replacement camera comes in the door, I know the other camera will come out of hiding. At least, I hope so, since I really want to download our Disney vacation pics off it.
M.W.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Added a new bloggy wog
monsterpiggymonkeybubble has been added to my blog roll. It belongs to my old pal TJ, who went to high school with me a looooooong time ago.
Now we can all click on the link to get to TJ's world. He was quite a character in the good old days, and I don't think much has changed.
Hi, TJ!
Now we can all click on the link to get to TJ's world. He was quite a character in the good old days, and I don't think much has changed.
Hi, TJ!
Next stop: Podiatrist
X-rays came back squeaky clean. No naughty old fractures, no pesky new fractures, no sign of bones being where they shouldn't.
I am, however, displaying some of the symptoms of a neuroma. Basically, scar tissue on nerves between the 3rd and 4th toes. This does require surgery to fix. However, I am not displaying all the symptoms of a neuroma, so the doc thinks that's pretty remote.
I have been referred to a podiatrist, so I expect to get an appointment in 6-8 weeks. Meanwhile, I get to wear comfy shoes with these hard arch support inserts. The inserts seem to be helping with my foot pain, but they are wreaking havoc on my sciatica. Can't win for losing, eh?
I am, however, displaying some of the symptoms of a neuroma. Basically, scar tissue on nerves between the 3rd and 4th toes. This does require surgery to fix. However, I am not displaying all the symptoms of a neuroma, so the doc thinks that's pretty remote.
I have been referred to a podiatrist, so I expect to get an appointment in 6-8 weeks. Meanwhile, I get to wear comfy shoes with these hard arch support inserts. The inserts seem to be helping with my foot pain, but they are wreaking havoc on my sciatica. Can't win for losing, eh?
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