sNOw way, Jose!

As Mike was getting ready this morning, he mentioned that the snow outside was really pretty. I was unenthusiastic, mainly because I was still trying to sleep and "snow" is a 4-letter swear word in my book after February. March is a spring time month. We should not be getting snow in March. (I know, I live in NY, I can get snow in MAY, but STILL.)

Anyways, when I got up and looked outside, I saw that he was right. It is really pretty. So pretty, in fact, that I made a point to go outside with my camera and take some pictures.









And one non-snow picture for the fun of it. This is from last week. Emily put her hat and gloves on and then came over and told me to take a picture. Who am I to argue with that?

The fun just keeps on coming!

So my aunt had a massive heart attack last week. She's diabetic and we're pretty sure she didn't take her insulin on Tuesday. When my cousin found her Wednesday, she was incoherent.

No wonder. Her blood sugar was 1344. No, I didn't forget a decimal point. A normal blood sugar reading is 1-200. She usually swings between 50 and 600, but even STILL! Augh.

When she went in to the hospital, they said something about her having a cut on her foot that was infected. It turns out that the circulation has stopped to both of her feet. Some time in the next 10 days she will be having both legs amputated below the knee.

I can't even begin to tell you what a death knell that feels like for me. I keep feeling this oppressive feeling of DOOM hanging over me. My poor mom feels exactly the same way. She's trying to help my cousin as much as she can, but my cousin is in Las Vegas, so it's not like Mom can just run over there to help out.

We went to Mike's parent's house on Tuesday for dinner and after I shared all of the above good news (read that with heavy sarcasm) Mike's mom shared hers.

One of Mike's cousins was arrested Monday night for trying to derail a train. Yet another situation where I have to reign myself in lest I start using too many capitals again. Because, honestly, WHAT THE HELL WERE THEY THINKING?!

Mike said that the charges? Yeah, they're felonies. Those kids have just hosed their futures in a BIG way. They are due in court tonight. I dunno what is going to happen, but yow. Mike's poor uncle must be beside himself.

This wasn't the post that I had planned for today, but I just had to share all the good news that's coming from this end. Hopefully I can come back tomorrow with the funny post I planned for today.

Greetings!

Welcome to the post in which I USE TOO MUCH CAPS LOCK for EMPHASIS.

This week promises to be a doozy. Mike and I (and the kids, of course) got home from MI about 7 last night.

Oh. Did I not mention that I was leaving town? Whoops. Well, it was partly off-topic (much like this) and partly because I didn't want to say "hey - we're going to be out of town for 4 days, please feel free to stop by and plunder." Just in case someone a) knows where I live and b) really wants some of our stuff. Unlikely, but still.

So. This week. I am writing this BEFORE 7 am, which is an ungodly hour of the morning.

I am going to meet my mom and our friend Bridget to walk at the mall (for marathon-training purposes) at 830. Then I am coming home to confront the chaos that is my house.

Tomorrow, I have a guy coming to give me an estimate on patching the carpet in our living room. (We're planning to take the hearth out, but want to make sure that it doesn't leave an obvious, hearth-shaped hole in the carpet.)

Thursday our bathroom is FINALLY getting painted. When I was pregnant with Lucy and painting her room, I realized that the main bathroom is in serious need of paint. My parents graciously offered to pay someone to do it as an anniversary present to us. We got estimates and decided on a friend-of-a-friend. And then she got tied up with a project, then Lucy was born, then she got tied up on another project and stayed tied up. Come to find out, MONTHS LATER, that she didn't want to drive all the way out here to do the job without a couple other side projects to do here. I didn't have a) more projects or b) the inclination (or ability) to PAY her for those projects, so we decided to find another painter. He has been found and he's coming Thursday.

In preparation for that, I have to WASH THE CEILING in the bathroom (there's mold growing, which is part of why I want to get it painted) and take everything out of there. I'm looking forward to the finished project, but I am NOT looking forward to the process. And what the heck was I thinking, setting it up for this week? Did I not know that I would have a MOUNTAIN of laundry waiting for me?

And I realized this morning that the end of the month is nearing. That means there are bills to be paid. And groceries to be gotten. And vacuuming to be done (it would be nice if the carpet guy doesn't have to wade through dog hair piled hip-deep to get to the hearth).

My aunt is in the middle of a fairly significant health crisis out in Las Vegas. She is my mom's only sister and my only living relative, other than my mom, on my mom's side. For a while, it was looking like she wasn't going to make it to Easter. She seems to be out of the crisis somewhat, but now they are dealing with the long-term ramifications. I may or may not write more about this later. It is a subject that makes me WRITE IN CAPITAL LETTERS a lot because I am MAD that she DID THIS TO HERSELF! Yeah. Probably better that I leave that subject alone. If you are the praying kind, I would very much appreciate your prayers for my Aunt Joyce.

Things that make you go hmm...

First, let me apologize for the quality of this picture. I took it with my cell phone and it's more blurry than I realized at the time...It seems to me that if the bra can't stay up on a stick thin mannequin who isn't moving, the chances of it staying put on, say, me (not stick thin and most definitely moving) are not good.

***

Another thing that is making me go "hmm" or really, more like "huh".

Lucy had some blood drawn last week to do an IgE raster test for allergies to eggs, wheat, nuts, milk and soy. I have been impatiently waiting for the results, trying not to hope that they would say that she isn't allergic to anything and I can go binge on milk and milk products to my heart's content.

Except....

When I called today, that is more or less exactly what they said.

They said that there was very little to no reaction to any of the foods and for all intents and purposes, she's not allergic to milk.

Ooookaaaay. So, what do I make of the reactions she seems to have when I do have milk? She gets gassy and her poo stinks. The nurse said she would talk with the doctor and get back to me with next steps.

The doctor now thinks that Lucy is intolerant of the cow's milk protein and that is what is causing her issues when I have milk.

The end result is basically the same. I need to continue the low/no dairy diet. I have an appointment in April for Lucy's 9 month check up and I'll ask more questions then.

Guess I have to put off my dairy party a while longer.

Worst. Mother. EVER!

This is Emily's Easter basket from my parents.

This is Lucy's Easter basket from my parents. Except the socks. Those are for me.

This is all the candy I took out of those baskets prior to taking the above pictures.
Emily's basket now contains exactly 2 (TWO) pieces of chocolate. I am SO mean.

This is the candy that I saved for here at the house.
The rest went to work with Mike.
And I can have ... the Peeps. And I don't even LIKE Peeps.

My parents brought over the Easter stuff early because they are going to be out of town on Easter Sunday. My corned beef and cabbage turned out really well. Lucy LOVED it. AND then she slept from 7:30 to 1:30. Woo-hoo! And since I got up at 5:30 to feed her and then got in the shower with Mike, I was only up once last night. Yay.

This is Mike's and my Easter basket from my parents.
And anniversary present, and all other minor
gift-giving occasions for the rest of the year, too.

Luck O' The Irish

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I hope everyone is wearing green and eating corned beef and cabbage, or drinking green beer. I have a crock pot full of corned beef, potatoes, carrots and cabbage and OH! It smells SO GOOD! It's making me hungry.

My parents are bringing out a couple of freshly baked loaves of soda bread* and we're going to eat ourselves into a stupor.

*Note: the bread was freshly baked here, not my parents.

And this year, I have every intention of KEEPING my boiled dinner in my tummy, unlike last year, when a piece of bread went down wrong and every thing came back up. It was all Lucy's fault. The morning sickness was kicking my butt pretty heavily.

This year, Lucy gets to experience the joys of corned beef and cabbage without inducing vomiting in her mother. YAY! I'm sure she'll love it. She loves anything that is food.

I am planning to dye Emily & Mike's milk green tonight. I think I'm very clever.

Share, share, share

Shortly after Emily was born, my girlfriend Karen contacted me and offered to share with me the clothes that she had used for her daughter. These were clothes that she received from another friend of hers after that friend's 4 daughters were done with them. Karen used them with her daughter, shared them with a mutual friend and her daughter as well as another friend's twin daughters and then passed them along to me.

Some of the clothes that Emily (and now Lucy) wear have been worn, used and loved by 8 girls before they got to us. And for the most part, the clothes have been in near perfect condition.

Kids grow so incredibly fast that it just doesn't make any sense for a new parent to go out and buy an all-new wardrobe for their child. Most times, you can find perfectly acceptable used clothing and toys at yard sales, consignment shops, or, like me, from a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend.

I cannot tell you what a blessing it has been to know that I have a basement full of clothes for both girls. I do typically buy them some new things for each size, partly because I want to and partly because there are some gaps in the used stuff I have. For some reason, I almost always have to buy pajamas in any given size.

And now that I am nearly 100% certain our family is complete, I am starting to consider what to do with the things that both kids have outgrown. Some things will be kept for sentimental reasons, but more and more I think I will share the remainder of my stuff on a service like Zwaggle. Zwaggle helps you get rid of the things you no longer need and use the points you accumulate to trade for things you want. It's a win-win.

This post was brought to you by the Parent Bloggers Network and Zwaggle. Use that link to sign up for Zwaggle and get extra Zwaggle points (zoints) to use toward your first transaction.

STORAGE!!

Do you hear that sound? That's the sound of a heavenly host singing.

I saw this cabinet in the Aldi ad this week and had to have it. There is an overhang on the counter of my "island" (really, it's a penninsula and not much of one at that). Mike's mom left the wire rack that she used there, but it was open so it collected dust and random food particles (ick!) and DOG HAIR and squicked pretty much every one out.

Mike put it together for me last night and it is perfect. And it inspired me to organize and clean a little. I washed all the appliances that were on the ugly wire rack and then started looking around my kitchen with a more critical eye. I pulled out a little-used and little crockpot and discovered it had a broken foot. Garbage. I decided to move the boxes of mixer accessories (we have a Kitchenaid, so we have a food mill that goes with it) and the vacuum sealer thing downstairs. The blender and the food processor got put in a cupboard.

So this is pretty much all that is in my new cupboard. It will change, but for now I am enjoying the CLEAN STORAGE!

Also, see below for another development. I'm not sure what I think of it.

Wait, Come Back, DON'T LEAVE!!!

I got a card in the mail this weekend telling me that Domino is due for his yearly check up.

I called the clinic this morning and told the nice lady that I need to make an appointment with Dr.A. She haltingly informed me that Dr.A is no longer with the clinic.

[insert needle being ripped off the record noise here]

W-w-w-what?!

Dr.A, aka the World's Best Veterinarian, has left to pursue other opportunities. The receptionist couldn't tell me if she was going to another clinic in the area or if she was even staying around here.

*sniff* Excuse me, I'm getting a little choked up here.

I've mentioned before that Domino is a bit of a problem child. He wasn't properly socialized when he was young, so he's afraid of other dogs and people he doesn't know. Add to that a suspected case of abuse, a definite bad past experience with a vet (maybe when they took his manhood, dunno), a couple trips to the pound (read: and a pre-existing case of anxiety and you have a nasty situation on your hands.

Dr.A gave us a prescription for Prozac to tame the anxiety so that Domino can actually be trained, referred us to a training program for other problem dogs, and helped us develop a strategy for dealing with the yearly visits.

That strategy involved an early morning office visit, a tranquilizer shot in the butt, a leisurely exam on a sleeping Domino and a dopey dog being taken home to sleep off the rest of his mickey.

Dr.A says that Domino is the only dog who almost made her pee her pants. We brought him in for one of his appointments with a Valium already in his system. He was happily drunk and mellow. Until Dr.A walked in. Then he FLIPPED THE HELL OUT. She and one of the technicians were trying to restrain him so that they could give him the tranquilizer shot and he was having none of it.

I have this incredibly vivid memory of Dr.A holding Domino around the neck while he whipped his head back and forth, slapping her in the face with his basket muzzle (sort of like this one). I knew that if he didn't have that muzzle on, he would have bitten her until he could bite her no more. It was terrifying. Dr.A, being the wonderful doctor she is, just laughed it off. And was thankful, I'm sure, that we load him up, Hannibal-The-Cannibal style, before we set foot in the clinic.

So, now it appears that I am vet-less. I have 11 days of happy pills (Prozac) left and no refills. I called the vet clinic where I used to work and am hoping to beg Dr.D to take Domino on.

If you're reading this, Dr.A, thank you so much for all that you did for us. You taught us that Domino's problems weren't the end of the world. You gave us strategies that make life easier for all of us and we thank you for it. We wish you the best of luck in whatever your next opportunity is. We will miss you.

His bandanna* says "Who's your doggie?"

* Blogger's spell check says that is how that word should be spelled. I'm not so sure. I think it should be bandana. What say you, innernets?

Passing It On

I am thrilled to be able to share some of the things from my childhood with Emily and Lucy. I have passed on to Emily my Cabbage Patch Kid and a set of blocks made for me by my dad.

For Christmas last year, my parents gave Emily a personalized book, with a story about her visiting Elmo on Sesame Street. I have a similar book that my sister gave me when I was about 4, with a story about me visiting Bert and Ernie. I don't think Emily quite gets that the Emily in the book is her, but I am really looking forward to the day that she does.

Another thing I am passing on to my kids is the sick day tradition. This week, when Emily felt so icky, I made up a little bed for her on the couch. I let her lay on the couch and watch TV pretty much all day. My mom used to do the same thing for me when I was sick. What's funny is I didn't even realize I was passing on this tradition; I just did for her what I thought would make her feel better. It wasn't until several hours had passed that I realized why I thought that would be comforting to her.

And today I am passing on the tradition of not putting Emily up for sale on Craig's List.

Another thing I want to pass on to Emily and Lucy is my love of reading. That's why I am so excited that by participating in this blog blast for Parent Bloggers Network, I have a chance to win one of 5 subscriptions to Highlight's newest magazine for 2-6 year-old kiddos called High Five. I had a chance to read through an issue while at the doctor recently and Emily would love it. It's full of fun games and short, easy-to-read stories.

Lookit what I did!

(hint: my hair is about 6 inches shorter)

I love it! I had my hair cut like this before Emily was born, but decided to grow it out. It feels super light and springy.

This has been a secret I've kept from Mike, and one of the few times I have successfully kept a secret from him for any length of time.

I was going to write more but Lucy is feeling high-maintenance this evening and I can't do both at the same time.

PS: Thank you for the get-better-soon wishes for Emily. She is on the mend. Thank goodness.

The pinnacle of pitiful

Emily has a stomach bug. She's running a fever, she threw up last night (in our bed. On Mike's side, narrowly missing his pillow. Whoops!) It's pretty clear that she doesn't feel well. Poor kiddo.

Lucy had a minor brush with this same bug earlier in the week, when she threw up 4 times in 45 minutes. I'm sure you can imagine how much fun that was. Thankfully, that seemed to be all that the bug had up it's sleeve for Lucy, but it is kicking Emily's booty.

She's laid on the couch almost all morning watching taped (DVD'd?) episodes of Sesame Street.

I think the TV therapy and relaxing on the couch is helping since she just honked down half a slice of bread and butter and a small bowl of noodles for lunch. We'll see what the afternoon brings...

All BY MySELF

*Note: for that title to work properly, you need to picture me singing along with Celine Dion, preferrably while sitting by a rain-streaked window. For extra effect, imagine me singing into a hairbrush microphone.

Ok, now that the stage is set, Mike is in Mexico. On business. For the better part of the whole darn week.

Ugh.

So I am living the single parent life.

So far, it's not too bad. I am hiding out at my parent's house today and will probably do the same tomorrow and, from the looks of it, Thursday.

I even managed to make the pre-bed toy clean-up routine NOT be the impatience and tear-fueled fight that it is usually. (Hint: set a timer and tell your kid it's a race. If they finish cleaning up before the timer goes off, they get a treat. In our case it was M&Ms. Worked like a charm.)

-----------------------
And because I can't seem to stop talking about Emily and her clothes, here's more.

I found a bunch of size 4 slim jeans downstairs when I was searching for shirts. I put a pair on Emily when she got up from her nap and they fit. They are a little long, but fit well enough otherwise.

I was going somewhere with this train of thought, but lost it during the computer crash and reboot I just had to do. So now I'm going to go do some work.

Where did my baby go?!

*

I put Emily's hair in a ponytail Saturday morning and suddenly she went from looking like a little toddler to looking like a BIG GIRL!

Who is this big girl and what did she do with my BABY?

*I would like it noted for the record that Emily chose her outfit on Saturday, so I had NOTHING to do with the green striped shirt and the pink flower-print pants other than the fact that I let her put them on. And you can't see them, but she's wearing white and purple socks.

Along the same baby lost, must find her line, I have to put Emily into 4T shirts because her tummy is hanging out of the 3T ones. The clothing joys, they never end.