Fudgie

Ian and I try to read almost every night before bed. I would like to say that it is because I am such a model parent and blah blah, but really it is for several reasons. One reason, though not the most important, is that I get to reread the kiddy stories that I've carted around for years and years. Another reason is that it gives Ian a chance to settle down after romping all over the house horsing around with Daddy. It's good for the sweat to dry off before bedtime. I also love it when something tickles him and he just grabs his middle and laughs his head off. There's not much better than that. And it's hard to predict what will set him off, other than body parts or body functions. He is 5, after all.
My HC of course, thinks I just like to hear my own voice. But nobody listens to him when he gets in those moods. ;)
We have read Stuart Little (he liked the first half, but lost interest in the last couple chapters) and several Bobbsey Twins books (now he has a renewed longing to go to the circus...and I think I caught him saying "Swell!" once). We've also read all of the Junie B Jones Kindergarten books. We're going to wait a bit to start First Grade. But for some reason, I decided to try him on Judy Blume. So we started "Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing." Fudgie is now his favorite topic of conversation. At the chapter about Fudgie's 3rd birthday party, he laughed so hard he rolled off the bed and into my lap (I was sitting next to the bed in a kiddy chair). He still mentions it from time to time, the funny parts. Tonight we are reading the last two chapters. We'll see how that goes, but I think "Superfudge" is in our future. I can't wait until he gets older and we can start Chronicles of Narnia. But in the meantime, any suggestions or favorites? Try to keep in mind that we are PBS kids and don't even like the Disney movies with death and sadness (Lion King? Bambi? Fox and Hound?) That's curbed a few that I've thought of. Thanks!

Into the Fall

Things have been different at our house with the death of our computer. The desk is used for papers and bills, free time is used playing inside and out and all my daily websurfing is being replaced by other things, like reading on the treadmill. A good thing, believe me. I find myself composing blogposts in my head at odd times. Like the third night in a row of no sleep when everyone had the flu a couple of weeks ago. What misery!
Now we just have lingering obnoxious coughs. Erin says "Blesh" after every one of them. I guess she thinks they are sneezes?
Ian got his cast off yesterday. In September, he fell off the monkey bars at the big playground (a rare treat for his kindergarten class) and broke his elbow. Thankfully, it did not need surgery and seemed to have healed nicely after 4 weeks in a water cast (we love water casts!!! No itching at all and nice long baths without having to keep anything dry...). Ian's face was comical yesterday as the nurse came at him with the saw to cut off his cast, but he got through it. Now he just has a puny little arm and has to be reminded that he can use it. The first thing he did after getting the cast off was to wiggle a bit and say "Hey! I can touch my ear!"
He is enjoying being able to turn over easily in his sleep and being able to wear long sleeved shirts again, since it was 34 last night here and a bit chilly.
Erin is just buzzing right along, asserting herself at every opportunity, yet still managing to be charmingly adorable at the same time. She is wrapped around Daddy's finger so tight he bounces. This year she was Little Red Riding Hood for Halloween and everyone made much of her cuteness. Ian was a quiet ghost and didn't get it that everyone kept calling him Casper.
My HC is still having fun at work, though the driving all over the place gets old, naturally. The real estate agent wants us to lower our asking price again, but we're not going to. She is not happy with our decision, but we'd rather stay here with our currently manageable payments than end up with nothing left over to purchase again and have to rent the exorbitant prices that are now so normal. Even in our little town, a 2 bedroom rat hole is renting for 5 or even $600 a month. No Thanks! So that's frustrating, but at least we LIKE our house! It's just in the wrong town!
Also trying to save up for Christmas, which is increasingly hard, as anyone can attest. The holiday season always seems to turn into a giant Excess Party, where money and meaningless gifts are flung about in abandon. For the rest of us, who struggle anyway, we wish that others would realize what a big deal it is for us to buy our 20 Christmas cards and finagle the postage to send them. Last year there were some hurt feelings from a few that didn't get a Christmas card from us. I didn't have the energy to explain that we only got 20 and had to ration.
It is so tempting to just gloss over financial difficulties, but so much of normal worldly life is about glossing over and faking prosperity. It's also hard to hear others whine about their difficulties and how Christmas is 'so hard' when they only have $x amount to spend on their kids this year because money is tight and blah blah blah. It's hard to feel sympathetic when you know they make $1,000 a month more than you and eat out every day for lunch.
And now the self-pity part of my post is through. We are grateful for what we have. It could be so much worse. It's just a bit frustrating to see the piddly amount in the savings account, since we've been saving for 8 months.
And there's a fair share of guilt since it was my turn to go to the dentist this time and took a big chunk out of the kitty. I would feel no such guilt if it was my HC that had to go to the dentist. And yes, I really needed to go to the dentist and now all my teeth are fixed, etc. But still! Argh!
In happier news, it looks like we will be having company for Christmas and we are all very excited. Maybe this time there won't be an ice storm and the power won't be out for a week. ;)
Other happy news: we are done mowing the grass until next spring! Yay! Now as soon as we get a freeze, all the flies will die. That is what I'm truly waiting for. Hope everyone is doing well. I miss interacting with everyone. I just wish I could post pictures. That is truly the worst!

New Schedules

Well, we have officially gotten into the swing of school and the new job. Erin is increasingly hard to keep busy, since she is constantly saying stuff like "Daddy door. Ian door." Which means that they've gone somewhere without her (through the door). The nerve of those guys! I've been on a housecleaning kick because it makes me feel like we'll sell the house quicker if everything is clean. The real estate agent came to take new pictures of the house since it's been on the market since Feb of 08. And those pictures show dead grey grass. Unfortunately, we've done a lot of work on the house since those first pictures, but she likes the old pictures of the unpainted kitchen cabinets and drab walls better than my paint jobs, so those pictures are still on the description. I'm sure if anyone does come to tour the house, they will wonder if they're at the right one.
Ian still says that kindergarten is long. No nap time, so I guess they work instead. The new teachers are....serious. It's a big change from pre-K because they were young and bubbly and enthusiastic about everything. In K, you're lucky if anyone cracks a smile. Not too crazy about that, but there's nothing I can do. They've also told me that Ian is immature, but he did just turn 5. It's hard for me not to get a little riled at that, but a lot of the class is 6 or turning 6 soon, so I guess that would make a difference. I comfort myself with the fact that Ian is smoking the rest of the class's butts in reading. He is also finding it hard to make friends. Several reasons being: Daddy was a cop in town and so has arrested a lot of parents and relatives; Ian can smoke everyone's butt at reading; he has food allergies, so he brings his breakfast and lunch every day and has faced ridicule because of it. So there's no friends there, really, but it just makes us want to move! New start, new teachers, new classmates! It would be really nice. But until then, we will deal with teachers that really need an attitude adjustment and look annoyed and tired all the time.
My HC is loving his new job, even though it takes a lot of hours and we are both bone tired every night. Movie nights are now only on the weekends. We don't even watch tv. He is also becoming quite the filing guru. I am very proud of him. We are still excited about visiting the dentist when our insurance starts.
The kids are recovering from the first school-borne illness. Ian got a cold and a stuffy nose. He still has the stuffy nose, but feels fine. Erin got it and it turned into a raging ear infection. The meds prescribed gave her raging diarrhea and rash, so she was taken off of it. Now we have to go back to the doc's on monday. I really dread these dr visits. I hate sitting there for 2 hours just to be told to keep drinking fluids and taking tylenol. Waste of time!!
In the meantime, we are doing ear cleaning with prescription drops because I don't believe anyone has ever seen the inside of Erin's ears. All 3 of the doctors and specialists that have tried just say "There's too much wax in there to see." After I got annoyed and asked a nurse how to fix this problem, I got a scrip, instructions and plenty of help. Gee, why didn't anyone think of this before?! Honestly. Is it small towns or what?! Ridiculous!


Lest I get all het up again, I will brag about my brilliant HC. The people next door moved and left a bunch of junk, including 2 broken headboards to twin beds. My HC took them apart and used the lumber to make me a coffee table! I love it. I get to stain and varnish it and I'm so excited. We are completely table-less in our living room and now we have something to put our glasses on instead of the floor! And we have something for the kids to snack at and color at (not on, Erin!) and it's a gorgeous wood. I have none of this ability and am amazed that my HC would be motivated and able to do it. The staining and glossing are done and we are so impressed. It's a bit darker than I expected, but that way it won't show Erin's scribbles too badly. ;)
Now I think I've caught everyone up to now, having skipped a week or two. Can't believe that next week is September!!
And congrats to my friend Rachel for delivering a gorgeous baby Elias last Thursday! Mommy and baby are doing great and should be home by now. Thanks for all the prayers! The fun has just begun, Rachel, but I know that you're enjoying every bit of it.

Job, School and Grandparents!

To be short, since I'm sitting in the library and my hoodlums are being hoodlums, my HC started his new job, which has so many initials, I'll just keep him as my HC. This was his first week and he's been busy, but he really likes it. I think he likes eating lunch out even more, since he can eat whatever he wants without the guilt of our munchkins and their food allergies. He had pizza. Twice. sniff sniff. I think I've forgotten the taste of cheese. sigh.
So that is going wonderfully. Still no bites on the house, which makes my HC's commute rather miserable. And school is starting next week. We were hoping to have been moved before school started, but you do what you've got to do. Ian is excited about his new teacher, since we know her from church (it's his Sunday school teacher) and he's got some friends in his class, so that's even better.
And Gramma and Papaw are coming to visit! That's the best! They'll be here for his Meet the Teacher and for his first few days of school, so we are all excited about that. And there is the promise of Red Lobster. Mmmm...
And did I mention that my birthday is Sunday? August is turning out to be a pretty spanking good month. Now if we can just hold out until payday. Transitioning to one payday a month stinks, but we'll get used to it. :)
And my bestest college friend, Rachel is due for her first baby in the next couple of weeks. So August is good for more than just me. So if you're eating a pizza or a really good mouthful of cheese, think of me and enjoy a little more. And if you see a little bundle of joy at church or the grocery store, think of little Elias and how eager we all are to see him when he manages to come out into the world.

Happy Birthday Ian!

Today is Ian's birthday. He is 5. My HC and I are still reeling from the fact that he can no longer be considered a baby, a toddler, or a preschooler. He is now officially a little boy. Sigh. Tomorrow is Erin's birthday. She will be 2. She is definitely not a baby anymore. Sigh. Our home computer is still dead, so I am at the library. No pictures, obviously, since the library computer doesn't download or anything, but I figured I could at least update our lives. My HC is excited about his new job. He'll be starting it at the beginning of August. He will be receiving all new equipment and a pretty jazzy take-home car. We are very thankful and psyched about how everything is going. He's going to Wagoner next week to try on his uniforms, collect some of his equipment (hopefully the take-home car?) and meet some more people. He'll still be working at the Ranger office on the weekends until things get a little more settled in the job transition department, but he is happy with it, so I guess I am too.
In the meantime, we have a lot to do getting Erin's joint birthday present (from Gramma and Papaw and Great Granna and Great Papaw and from us). It's one of those play kitchens with the dishes and stuff. We got it from Toys R Us yesterday and my HC and I will be assembling it tonight. Uh...one of those spouse-bonding things, since I am an instructions fanatic and my HC is a slap-it-where-you-think-it-goes type assembler. In August, Gramma and Papaw will come to visit and we are very excited about that. It's something else to count down to, now that the birthdays are upon us. :)
Now I need to scoot because the kids have trashed the library's blocks and puzzles and I have pickles to can and a cake to bake. And it's almost lunchtime, at least from the rate Erin is screeching "Nak!" (snack)
So thanks to everyone who has checked and not found anything new for a while. We feel just as out of touch without our computer. And how in the world is anyone supposed to know the weather?! (that was sarcastic)
So Happy Birthday to my munchkin/urchin/punks. How did time go by so fast?

Hot and Sluggish

July has been punctuated with periods of extreme heat and mountains of garden vegetables. I think the neighbors are starting to hide when they see me trek down the road with shopping bags full of my vegetable offerings. There's only so much that my little freezer can hold and I ran out of canning jars. Sigh.
We are having a heat advisory until Tuesday. The heat index will be up to 110 until then and it is Nasty out. We have been trying to get outside earlier, but still end up with sweaty red cheeks after 20 minutes. And that is including staying in the shade with a popsicle.
Mimi and Grampa (my grandparents) came to visit with their friends, Bill and Shirley. They got here last Wednesday and they continued their trip after touring the Oklahoma Aquarium with us last Friday.
We had great fun. I have some pics, but I need my HC to fiddle with the camera and download them for me, since our computer had some kind of brain aneurysm and is malfunctioning every 16 minutes or so.
Can't believe that the kids birthdays are in 10 days! Ian revises his birthday list often, but only to rearrange the order that he wants his Hot Wheels ramps to go in. He got one from Mimi and Grampa for his early birthday present and he's been putting them together every day and getting them just right.
Praise God for Netflix too, because when you are forced inside to sit in front of the AC and move as little as possible, it is best to do it while watching a movie. And since my Pride and Prejudice allowance has been used up until at least October, there is precious little for my HC and I to agree upon. Well, we did start Lord of the Rings again, but then we got our Netflix delivered and that got put on the back burner.
Wish I could post some new pics. These are a couple years old; electronics and I are not getting along this month!
But I will end by saying that I am hoping that we have some very, very good news to share tomorrow.

Tails of Four Skunks

As told to me by my HC.

I was driving along, going from one campsite to another and saw two little baby raccoons in the road. I got out to make sure they were okay to to make sure they got across all right. I got close enough to see that they were healthy little babies. I leaned over them and got hissed at. They started to get a murderous gleam in their eyes and eyeballing me like I would make a good snack, so I backed off some and watched them get across the road.





I went on a little farther and saw a Mama skunk and four little baby skunks crossing the road. They were so tiny, they could have fit in my hand. I stopped the truck and stayed in it (did you really think I was going to get out?) and watched them. The Mama skunk went off somewhere and it was just the baby skunks sitting there. I sat there watching. They were so cute. Then they all put their noses together and stuck their tails all up straight in the air. They looked like the points on a compass. Evidently, they were willing to spray EVERYthing in all directions. I guess they didn't like my truck. I backed up a little and stopped again. Then they all ran towards me, and immediately stuck their 4 little noses together, stuck their tails up and waited. I backed up again and they chased after me and assumed the position. I don't know where the Mama skunk was during all this, probably right outside my truck door with HER tail up.
I've never been chased by baby skunks before; I've never even heard of them doing that. And I don't know that I would have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself.
But it worked; I picked another road.

*I would like to add that my HC didn't take any pictures, he was too busy backing up in his truck. I got these off Google Image for illustration. ;)

Dripping

Yesterday it was over 100 degrees here. Everything was dripping. It was the day that we had decided to put off the inevitable and drive to the recycling plant to deliver our cargo of soda cans that we've been saving since last winter. It was 30-something cents per pound. We got about $15 for the lot, so we were pretty happy. We went to Sonic and got some lunch. We had set the bug bomb off at home to rid ourselves of the pesky black ants that had become too much of a nuisance to ignore or spray any longer. So we couldn't go home for another hour and a half, so we decided to drive over to the nearby State Park, since we'd never been. Having spent all our money at Sonic, we had to scrabble for change in the car for the $3 entrance fee. It was so hot outside, we weren't interested in the playground, which we could see rippling in the heat. What to do? Oh, Dripping Springs on a hiking trail with natural falls, which at 77' was the highest waterfall in the area. It was next to the park's 'formal gardens' so we started there. You can see from the red faces that we were keen to get in the shade. We went to the overlook and saw the falls, and the suspension bridge (eek). It was supposedly 88 steps down to the base of the waterfall and was recommended to wear hiking shoes (Ian was wearing flip flops). We weren't going to go down there, but Ian's pleading won out. Everyone grabbed a hand and we walked down. It was a bit steep, but it was all paved steps with rails, so it wasn't bad at all. The falls were gorgeous. The boardwalk was railed off with lots of benches, so you couldn't actually touch the water, but the cool spray from
the falls was enticing enough so that we stayed there long enough to cool off some. On the way back up, my HC and I remarked simultaneously: "That was worth the $3."
Then we went home and got in the pool.

Turtle Trouble

Besides this being the last full week of the library program, I was also holding onto the last threads of sanity when my HC told me that he had found us a new pet at work one night. "Excuse me?" I said into the phone. "I think there's some static. Did I just hear you say something about a puppy?"
"No," he said. "It's not really a puppy. It's a kitten."
"!!!" I said (My HC is allergic, hello! And we have two large dogs. I am not one who believes that cats should be allowed inside... In college, my roomie had a cat and the large, solid, smell of the litter box actually made me contemplate sleeping in my car a few times. No thanks!)
"No, it's not really a cat."
"????"
"It's really a turtle. A little baby turtle."
"And?" Clearly there was a catch.
"It's a little snapping turtle. I found it in a puddle."
"What about our fish? It will eat them! We've had them for years."
"It's tiny. We can get it minnows or something."
I haven't even seen minnows since I was a girl in Florida. It is hard to see how we will supply a growing turtle who would probably like small fingers to eat even more.
So the turtle came home.

Then chaos erupted.
This turtle should be named Houdini. We lost it twice the first two hours we were awake. It was still in the tank, just contemplating its escape. And wedging itself up between the tank lid and the lightbulb so no one could see it.
We got back from the library.
"The turtle's gone," Ian announced on the way to his room. Clearly unfazed, he kept going.
"Whaaaaa?" I said, rushing to the tank.
Yup. Gone.
Thus began the search.
An hour and something later, my HC and I had torn apart the house searching and resigned ourselves to olfactory location sometime in the next week.
Then my HC decided to dig one more time in the corner behind the desk. He got a nip for his efforts, but he found the turtle.
The turtle's floating log was taken out of the tank. Now he is reduced to sitting on top of the air bubble stands, but he's doing well.
[shakes head] Sigh.

"Oohs, Aahs and Ha Ha Has"

An article on the front page Westville Weekly Times, Tuesday, June 16
by Mandi Goforth

Lessons, left brains and laughter were the products of this week’s fun at the John F Henderson Library this week. Native American Storyteller Will Hill performed on Monday for a special family program. Dressed in Native American costume, he told several stories that have been passed down from his grandparents. Mr Hill also began each story with beautiful flute music and a song. With his many voices and dramatic movements, he held the audience captive as he told diverting, moralistic stories featuring character favorites such as Rabbit, Skunk, and Buffalo.
Upside down artist Dana Helm came to show us how to turn off our right brains and enter into the realm of the left. She began her presentation with a musically timed upside down artwork that she later gifted to the library. She would periodically rotate her easel so the audience could see what her composition would look like once it was right-side up. Children and adults looked on in amazement as her sketch was completed. Then she turned the tables. “It’s your turn,” she said. “Everyone try. Even the adults!” Dana supplied a page of comic faces and instructed everyone to turn the paper upside down. “Turn off your right brain. The side that’s telling you that this is impossible, that you can’t do it. Yes, you can!” The amazing results to this difficult exercise are being displayed in the library’s hallway. Come and see your child’s left-brained masterpiece!
Harmless T Jester, a veteran entertainer who has toured all around the United States and even performed an opening act for the Smothers Brothers, left everyone with aching sides and laughter-induced tears. He told jokes and stories, did impersonations and funny faces. He juggled everything from little balls to sharp knives (they looked more like machetes). Three helpers tossed him bowling pins and he juggled those while perched on a board centered on a rolling cylinder. He then made everyone in the room raise their hands and swear a solemn oath that they would never, ever play with fire. Then he proceeded to juggle flaming torches and set his own bottom on fire. Almost. Well, it was close. In case anyone missed it, he did it again in slow motion. “I never laughed so hard in my whole life,” nine-year old Dusty said. “That was the funniest guy I’ve ever seen,” a mother added. Harmless ended his show by telling the kids of a prehistoric time before computers, DVDs and YouTube. Every trick he learned, he said, he learned by reading books. Needless to say, there was a stampede in the library later on as interested boys looked for books on rope tricks and juggling.
Next week promises to be just as fun when Robert Lewis, a Native American Storyteller comes Monday to enthrall us with more timeless lessons. Toddler Tuesdays are rolling around again with games, singing, reading and experiences guaranteed to expand the knowledge of your toddler (siblings too!). The much anticipated Critter Tales will be returning on Wednesday with live animals to touch and discover. Come a little early to get a good spot, as this presentation is always crowded. On Thursday, Kirsten Jackson, Queen of Theatre will be presenting another opportunity for your little Drama King or Queen to show their stuff. Acting, singing and dancing is all anticipated and encouraged. A teen drama workshop will also be held. Don’t miss this opportunity to let your inner diva loose!
The spectacular summer program is at the halfway point. It’s not too late to register or attend this inspiring and hilarious free entertainment. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by! Be creative at the John F Henderson Library. See you there!


Ian, Erin and friend Connor play during Toddler Tuesdays at the library

Rain On Our Parade

Today, we were very excited. We have been planning on going to the river all week. Ian had his follow-up with the allergist in Tahlequah and then my HC was going to show us a good spot on the river to play and swim and picnic. We were a bit late for our appointment and it's a bit of a drive, complete with sharp curves, s-bend roads and a hairpin turn up and down mountains to get there. The posted speed limit is 65 for most of the way, though there are "suggested" speed limits of 35 in spots. My HC thought it was very important to get there on time and proceeded to show us exactly what our Jeep could do at 55 around those curves. Most everything fell from one side of the Jeep to the other, then back again. When we got there, I peeled my hand off of the handle above the window and unclenched my bottom from the seat. Ian reluctantly unfastened his seat belt and hobbled down to the ground. Erin was just glad to get out of the car. It took a few minutes for the green tinge to leave her face. (We made it there on time and he never went over the posted speed limit, so I could hardly fuss about it, could I? At least, that was the argument my HC presented to my terrified whimpers.)

Well, we found out Ian's results. If you remember the previous post about Erin, there's a scale for the severity of an allergy. A level 3 is an alert level.
He scored a 2 for Brewer's Yeast, Coconut and Corn. (sigh, but not such a huge deal)
He scored a 3 for Cheese, Eggs, Wheat and Soybeans. (Grrr! Soy?!)
He scored a 4 for Milk. So now we are completely on Rice Milk and I cancelled our WIC today. We can buy our own Juicy Juice and Rice Krispies.
He had no reaction at all to environmental allergens. So that was good.
We are still processing the whole soy thing. So far, we are swapping our vegetable oil for canola oil. The doc told us to drink o.j. with calcium and added vitamins, keep taking our vitamin supplements and try to eat a lot of green leafy vegetables.
so there.
As if to echo our sobering reality, we exited the office to a dark grey sky and strong winds. We went to Wal-mart to pick up more rice milk and a rotisserie chicken, since Ian couldn't eat the sandwich I packed with wheat bread and cheese (Erin doesn't care for sandwiches; she had cut up chicken in her baggie). We decided to go to the river anyway. We stopped for gas and pulled onto the road to the bridge we had decided to visit. We were immediately enveloped in a curtain of hail that smacked and bounced against our Jeep. My HC spun us around and we took shelter under the overhang at the gas station we had just left. The hail left and a heavy downpour took its place. We proceeded to the bridge, but it was raining/lightning/thundering too hard to get out of the car. We ate some beef jerky and watched. We decided to go explore under a double bridge not far from that same gas station. This picture is one I took while under the bridge. You can see how dark the storm was. Ian thought it was night time. The rain stopped enough for us to get out and throw some rocks in the water. We got back in the car, as the temperature had dropped to the low 60s. The kids pretended to drive.



Erin's turn.


Ian's turn.


Everyone's turn.


"Dad! Ian's hogging the steering wheel! Make him move!"


After a while, the rain slacked off some and we played a little more. We threw some more rocks in. We ate some chicken. Erin was cold and wanted to be held. We were all cold! We decided to go home.


Erin took a nap, Ian immediately changed into some sweats and played video games.




Now we are watching Nemo and the sun is shining outside.

Busy Bees

The library summer program has started and we've been weaving around like crazy, getting here and there. The programs are scheduled differently each week to accomodate the different presentations and audiences, so I finally cleaned out the ole bike trailer (it was yellow with pollen) and hitched it up to my HC's bike. I forget why the hitch was put on his bike, since he's rarely around (or in the mood) to haul Shorty Red Curls around. I would like to place a motion to move the hitch from his bike to mine, because he is a good 8 inches taller than me and his bike reflects his size. In other words, my feet don't touch the ground very well when I am riding his bike. But that's neither here nor there.
Our favorite thing so far about the library program is Playgroup. It is co-sponsored by the Cherokee Nation Learn and Play Kid Connection. They have so many toys and learning experiences. There is a tub of water and floating ducks, wooden fruit that you can string up, play-doh, drawing, books, etc etc. And the teachers there practice counting and fine motor skills. It is for children 5 and under, though older siblings are encouraged to play along as well (and who doesn't get a kick out of baby toys? Everyone protests and scoffs, but after the baby leaves the room, the toys are still being used.).
But the absolute coolest thing about this is that they teach Cherokee. For those who aren't familiar with this area, Tahlequah (where my HC works) is the capital of the Cherokee Nation. The Heritage Center is there, the tribal buildings, the Cherokee Hospital, etc are all there. All of the street signs are in English and in Cherokee. It's pretty cool.
This month, the focus is learning numbers. I don't have a Cherokee font on my computer, so I will give the pronunciation.
One-- sa w u (sah-quoo)
Two-- ta li (tot-lee)
Three-- tso i (chjoh-ee)
Four-- nv gi (nuh-gee)
Five-- hi s gi (hees-gee)
Six-- su da li (soo-dah-lee)
Seven-- ga li quo gi (gahl-qwoh-gee)
Eight-- tsa ne la (chah-nay-lah)
Nine-- so ne la (soh-nay-lah)
Ten-- sgo hi (sgoh-hee)

There will be a quiz. So far, I can remember a few, but the best part is the accent. You know all those indian movies, like Last of the Dogmen and Dances With Wolves? They make those gutteral throat noises? Well, it's just like that and it's pretty awesome. But that is just me and my fascination with languages. And yes, plenty of people around here speak it. You can go into a room and two old guys will be rattling back and forth.
The lady who is the native speaker is a lot of fun and laughs at my pronunciation. It is now my personal goal to impress her. For some reason, Spanish was a lot easier....
When we are at home, we are goofing off around the house and playing a lot outside. My first squash is ready to come off the vine today. We will be having a squash cutting ceremony later today when we are out playing, if it does not hail (hello, summer storm season!). I can barely keep the swimsuits clean and dry before we are putting them on again to go out and play. The kids and I are getting tanned (okay, fine, the kids are getting tans). "Mommy, your spots are getting more!" said Ian as he pointed in wary fascination at my darkening freckles. In Britain, when someone has acne, it is described as having spots. Great. I am either pimply or a dalmation.
But today is my HC's Friday, meaning it's his last workday before his weekend. We're planning a visit to the river to play, so I'm sure I'll get even more spots then.

Nice Cold Air

Finally (!!), my HC deemed it hot enough outside to put in the ACs in the kids' rooms. Woo hoo! Erin was very happy about this, since she's the one that has been sweating through her naps and waking up wet and red-faced. Ian has been sleeping in his underoos and finds it very inconvenient now that he actually has to wear pjs. Both were bundled up under their blankets last night. We also put the pool up yesterday, since Ian's been asking since February. It all started with a puddle. I had emptied out the dogs' water bucket and it made a puddle. Erin made a beeline and plopped right down next to it. She played happily until Ian found it and entered feet first. Mud was everywhere! Of course, they were both thrilled and played like the little piglets they are for a good hour. Thus the pictures. :)
While they did that, I was looking for the sprinkler in the shed. I didn't find it, but my HC decided that it was time to get the pool out. Yay!
Of course the water was still way too cold today, but Ian got in anyway. He gasped and chattered and insisted that it wasn't too cold to swim. After a bit, the wind started blowing and he came inside so he could be bundled up into his comforter and play some video games. (the ac in his room was on and it was cold to him...sheesh)
Meanwhile, our new fun thing is signing up for Netflix. We have a good ole video/tanning place in our wee town. The proprietors are very nice people, but they have the monopoly. You get movies until 5pm the next day and pay $3. The really old ones are $1 and they let us have the kiddie ones for 5 days. After a good salespitch from my mom, who does hers and my grandparents' Netflix accounts, we decided to take the plunge. Of course, this lead to quite a bit of time picking movies out for our queue. Isn't it ironic that after all that time, 3/4 of our picks are kid's movies? Hm. We just like to say that the ones we want to watch aren't on dvd yet. Yeah, that's right. We didn't REALLY want to watch Madagascar 2 or Bedtime Stories. Nah.
With great reluctance, my HC headed back to work for another week of fun on the river. The kids and I are trying to remember what day it is here at home. I am trying to remember the right way to load the dishwasher since it is my least favorite chore and I have short-term memory loss when it comes to that sort of thing.
The sad thing is that you can't do quite the same thing with laundry. If you run out of plates or glasses, there are always the paper ones to fall back on.
Not so with underwear. Pity.

The First Week

Last Monday was the last day of school. It was also the middle of my HC's first week at his new job. He really likes it, but the 45 minute commute is pretty rough. So he's gone for 12 hours, sometimes more, depending on required overtime, like a call at the last minute. But he did see a moose. I didn't believe him at first, but then he whipped out the camera phone. It was blurry, sort of like those pictures of Sasquatch. You can sort of tell what it is if someone tells you first, but the "moose" looked like a cross between a deer and a horse. He promises that it really was and said it was a female and he suspected a newborn in the bushes, but being someone who enjoyed life, he decided to observe from a distance. What a smart guy.
Erin had another virus that kept us from doing her entire allergy testing. My HC also had to go back to the doc for another physical, since a letter was required. Then it was back to the allergist on Wednesday for Erin's followup and Ian's blood tests. Ian was a trooper and did great. All the nurses said how well he did. I guess they get a lot of screaming and hysterics. He cried a little, but the stickers and sucker and post-visit Hot Wheel from Walmart worked its magic. We find out the results at our next visit. Erin is on her no milk/wheat/egg diet for 6 months. At the end of that, she might go on a rotation type diet where she can have one item every 4 days. Taken in small doses, she may build a resistance to it. He also cautioned us to be aware of the development of more allergies, like rice and potatoes. I refuse to think about that. If we have to do without much more, we'll be stick figures.
As it is, we got a cookbook called "Sophie-Safe Cooking" by Emily Hendrix. She grinds up oats in a chopper and makes her own oat flour. Then you can make muffins and pancakes and cornbread. Every recipe in this cookbook has been great so far, though we are still adjusting to the texture of oat flour. The porcupine meatballs are a raving favorite so far. And the apple muffins. The cookbook is "A Collection of Family Friendly Recipes that are Free of Milk, Eggs, Wheat, Soy, Peanuts, Tree Nuts, Fish and Shellfish." Perfect for us and such a gift from God! Try going for 2weeks with no carbs and you'll get it.
On Wednesday, we came home from the allergist in Tahlequah and went on The Great Road Trip of 2009. My HC had been summoned to Little Rock, AR to do the PT portion of the hiring process for the Arkansas State Police. They're like Troopers in other states, but they get to do more than just traffic. He had to report at 8am and do a jump, sit ups, pushups, a sprint and a 1.5 mile run. He passed with flying colors, though he does admit to having difficulty with the 24 situps. And he was pretty sore the next day. :)
Immediately following the run, they had to go inside to do a written test. We find out in about 4 weeks if he passed. If he does, it moves on to the next phase: Background Check. Then they contact everyone you've ever known (according to my HC) and ask them questions. He is nervous about this part.
ASP is hoping to be able to form an August academy. If not, the academy won't be until January (Aaah!). :(
It was a long drive home. It took about 4 hours, though who knows for sure since we stopped so often. There are gorgeous rest stops in Arkansas, though, for the record.
One even had a creek that we played in. And did I mention the Cracker Barrel at almost EVERY exit?! Oh yeah.
Living in Arkansas won't be so bad at ALL.
Friday we recovered. No one wanted to go anywhere.
Saturday was a workday and Ian had a party to go to; the fire chief's son turned 6 and had his party at the fire station. You should always have a healthy respect for invitations that say "Prepare to Get Wet". Water balloons and I'm not sure, but there may have been a fire hose involved.
I'm not sure because we dropped Ian off and stayed home to clean it because we had a showing!!!
And later that day, we had an offer. It was 10K below the asking price and with a lot of extra demands that we were supposed to pay for.
Today we counter-offered. We'll see how it goes. If it is successful, they want a June 30 closing date. Wa-hoo.
It's been a busy week.
Next week is the library program.
I regret that I don't have the blurry picture of the moose to share. Maybe I can convince my HC to email it to me. hehehe.

Slugs and Flashing

Yesterday morning was greeted with a loud scream of alarm from Ian. Since this is a normal occurrence, it didn't merit much of a response. Then came the thumping of feet down the hall. "Mommy, come look in the toilet!" My mind instantly flashed back to high school, when similar requests were made by Jeff Foxworthy with questionable results. I shook these disturbing pictures out of my mind and followed Ian into the bathroom. "Hurry Mommy, I gotta go!" I looked in the toilet. Nothing but pale blue water. Guess it's time to replace the breath mint in the toilet tank. "No, no. Look!" Ian got down on his knees and peered into the toilet. He motioned me down. I gingerly knelt next to him. He got eyelevel with the toilet seat and pointed again. "There." Then he jumped up and ran for the safety of the doorway. Uh....I had just seen a byline for an article where a man sat on the toilet and got bitten by a snake....on the unmentionables. I backed up a bit and kept looking. Well, I'm sure you already guessed. It was a little slug. It had taken residence under the rim.
The cold and wet had left them with no choice but to come inside and pester us. I had found and disposed of 4 the night before, but this one was sneaky. I'm sure he was grateful, ultimately, considering the nature of his hiding place. I chucked him outside and Ian relaxed enough to do his business. Though I have noticed him thoroughly checking out the toilet every time before he uses it.
Erin has been sick again, but not from allergies, that we know of. Just lots of diarrhea and fever and some ear pulling. I put off the egg allergy testing until tomorrow to give her tummy a chance to get better. The fever is almost gone now, at least.


Anyway, I've been encouraging Ian to play with Erin a bit more, since they mostly just do their own thing in the same room, but are finding their interests merging some. Erin likes to watch the trains when Ian puts the track together. Ian is concerned that she will grab one and run off or mess up his tracks. It's true, she does do that, but so did he, up until about 6 months ago. You'd think he'd remember.
Anyway, I was painting the hallway during bathtime (it's 2 feet away, don't freak out) and it was time for tub cleanup and getting out. I heard some crazy baby laughter. Big belly laughs. I think she started getting hoarse after a while. It went on for a bit and I peeked my head around so as not to disturb them and watched. Ian had wrapped his towel around himself and was doing a jump/spin open-the-towel "Da-Daaaaaaah!" Erin thought this was hysterically brilliant. She actually started holding her belly before I reminded him what he was supposed to be doing. You never know what will set her off, but everyone has fun doing it.
I just never figured my sweet munchie would get such a kick out of flashers.


To change gears a bit, my HC's last day at the local police department was Friday. He started his new job yesterday. Now he's a State Ranger. So I guess it's not accurate to call him my Hot Cop (HC) anymore. I guess he's really my Hot Ranger, but I'm too lazy to change it. They call them River Cops around here, so I guess I can technically keep the label. So he's enjoying the state-wide jurisdiction and the new job. He's not really enjoying the commute, but at least it's a pretty drive. And me? The hardest thing for me to remember is the packing of suppers. Whoops. I miss him being able to stop in for supper, but the lowering of stress levels is worth a whole lot more.

Liking It

Now that we have sort of reached an understanding with the new trial diet, we are finding out a lot of new things. My HC is finding out the most. Now that Erin is her beautiful healthy best, things are changing. As is normal, when most kids are babies they want Mommy, or whoever their primary caregiver happens to be (I have utmost respect for you no matter your age or gender; we are all after the same thing here). And when most kids don't feel good, they want the same person. In our house, it's me. Continuously.
Ian is getting to the point where he doesn't care who changes the sheets when he wets the bed or gets him another glass of milk. But Mommy is still the kisser of boo boos (for another couple of months, anyway). Erin is discovering this fact as well. Last night, it went like this.
I'm not sure if it's the normal course of things or not, since she's been sick for so long, but Erin tends to get up at least once a night because she is thirsty. She's always thirsty; she's part camel. And she takes after me. I get up a couple of times a night to get a drink or visit the bathroom and check on the kids. Usually my HC is awake and doing his after work wind-down and computer fix (Mobster, anyone?), so there's the added bonus of saying hi and how long have you been doing Mobster and come to bed already. (!!) Last night I was tired. My little chickie is up with the sun, which comes out 6-oh-something here. Last night she got up like usual. She fussed half-heartedly for a bit. Then started calling. "Maaaaaaaaaaa-meeeeeeeeeeee!!" After a while of no corresponding footsteps signalling my arrival, she tried something new and hit paydirt.
"Daaaaaaaaaaa-deeeeeeeee!" Daddy was on the computer and probably pounding keys loud enough to broadcast his presence. It didn't take many repetitions to have him bounding into her room to save the day (uh, night). Well, Daddy = playtime. She instantly went into a monologue. He got her some milk and walked with her for a bit. She wanted to talk and play and see what everyone was doing. Eventually, she got dumped into bed with me. She was cold!! Last night was chilly, somewhere in the low 50s and damp. I dozed off and on with her laying next to me, still talking to Daddy, who we could see from the bed, tapping away again at the computer. (as a side note, did he really thing she'd just go to sleep?)
After a while, I got tired of being kicked with little toes, warmer now, and got up to put things right. She got some more milk and then we changed a diaper. I turned her heater up and straightened her pillow and blanket and found Elmo. I walked with her for about 2 seconds and poof! Back in dreamland, back under the covers. Still, Daddy is mystified. But not intrigued enough to log off...
Erin was still sleeping today when it was time to get Ian from school, so I left Daddy home to monitor and went to get Ian. When I got home, they'd practically formed their own secret club, with handshakes and everything. Daddy had put shoes on her and taken her to play on the carport (which Mommy doesn't do; Mommy prefers the security of the fence.). They had colored pretty pictures with the sidewalk chalk. They had played on the playground and Daddy had pushed Erin on the swings just the way she likes it (this is one of the few things that Mommy cannot do; Daddy rubs it in, the oinker). They were happy to see me, but I have a sneaking suspicion it had more to do with the drinks I brought them from Sonic.
At suppertime, squealing, shrieks, giggles and wordy explanations heralded Daddy's stay at the table. At bedtime, she somehow managed to kick the wall, sing to herself and twiddle her thumbs until 10. She tried calling for Mommy and Daddy, but Mommy didn't go in until 10, when Castle was over.
I went in. The bed was mussed, the cup was empty and the diaper was full. I picked her up and went to get more milk. It was so predictable. Erin leaned out of my arms to peek around the corners. "Daddy? Daddy???" "
"Daddy's at work," I whispered.
"Shhh," she replied. "Daddy? Seeeep? Daddy?"
"No, Daddy's at work," I said again. "But Ian is sleeping."
The whisper was comical. "Daaaaaaa-deeeeee!"
I got her milk and she looked out the kitchen door, presumable for the cop car to be parked there. It wasn't. She looked disappointed. I guess she hadn't stayed awake long enough after all. Shucks!
She got her milk and a dry diaper and her bed all fixed. I walked a bit and she fell asleep. But that's okay. In a couple more hours, she has the chance to try again. And some things work every time.

Improvement

There has been improvement on several levels over the past few days. The weather actually improved for 2 days, allowing us to mow and weedeat the jungle that had shot up in the interim. It also allowed Erin to discover just how much mud she could step in before it sucked her shoe off of her foot. She also discovered that she didn't like the feel of mud on her feet or her hands and expressed her feelings by wiping it off on me. Ian discovered that he'll miss his teachers an awful lot after school ends in little over a week. His attitude toward school has improved somewhat.
Erin's health has improved so much, it's almost uncanny. The runny nose, wheezing and cough is completely gone. She is focusing on being as ornery as possible and getting into everything that's not nailed down. If it is nailed down, she knows where the toolbox is.
I have improved the oatmeal muffin recipe, or I actually followed the directions. One of the two.
We have decided to improve the interior of the house, having done our yard duty. The kids and I moseyed on over to Lowe's and got us a gallon of Brilliant White Flat Ceiling Paint. You never realize exactly how yellow your ceiling is until it is directly compared to Brilliant White. It also helps that I spackled all the cracks. But as for the color, think of the Crest White Strips commercial.
We also got us a five gallon bucket of Summer Rapture. It's the same minty/leafy green we painted the laundry room/bedroom. I think the house is ready. It is desperately needed in the hallway and in the kids rooms, since I've scrubbed all the old paint off along with a lot of pencil and crayon drawings. The blue ink remains, however. I disintegrated a Mr Clean Eraser trying, but to no avail.
Another improvement that has everyone smiling. My HC gave his written notice today at work. Yay! One more week to go and then you'll be able to see every one of my HC's teeth when he smiles. Then our stress levels will just float away. And that will be the biggest improvement of all.

Adjusting

Yesterday marks my first attempt at wheat-less, egg-less, milk-less baking. And it was edible. It was pretty good if you didn't remember how much better it tasted before I modified everything. But I digress.
I scoured the internet for recipes. I found one for oatmeal muffins. It called for weird ingredients and hand juiced oranges, the zest of one whole orange and cranberries. Real cranberries. Call me a nut, but I didn't want to waste our oranges to make muffins. And I'm not sure I've ever really seen real cranberries. Oh, wait, I did see some last holidays because my HC told me if I ever tried to make cranberry sauce from scratch he and the kids would go to McDonald's for Thanksgiving. I don't think he likes whole cranberries very much. Did anyone else get that vibe?
Anyway, that recipe was not realistic. So I took my old recipe and modified it. Instead of flour, I made my own oat flour in the chopper. Instead of an egg, I used 1/2 a banana. There was already applesauce in the recipe, which was good. The banana instead of an egg idea was from the pamphlet the allergist gave us. For everyone else, it had "For baking:" in front of it, so I wouldn't recommend it for fried rice or anything. :)
They baked and came out. They smelled so good. We have been without breads, crackers, buns or any kind of baked bready goods for a week. They cooled and the kids fell upon them like hyenas on a carcass.
While they were distracted by the discovery of muffin cups and the fact that they had, indeed, ingested paper, I snagged one. It was crispy on the outside and very moist on the inside. Very moist like it needed to be baked a bit more. Very moist like it giggled when I broke it open. You get it.
I was also confused by the fact that they hadn't risen much. Is oat flour really that heavy?
Anyway, I think Erin ate 4 of the things yesterday. And she ate one this morning while we were in the doctor's office for her follow-up.
Last night I made sweet potato fries that would have been better if I had read ALL of the directions and put them on a paper towel when they came out of the oven. So they got a wee bit soggy, but they were still good.
This morning we went to our doc's appt. Erin's doing better, though she's still wheezing. She's still got a cough, etc etc etc. She doesn't have a fever anymore and she's eating, which was evident from the muffin crumbs trailing us from the waiting room. We will continue to monitor her as she goes off of the 5 day scrips, blah blah blah. Ian is also going to be scheduled for his own allergy testing. Though his isn't as scary as Erin's he still gets the never-ending sleep-interrupting cough every 6 weeks or so. Sigh!
Tomorrow will be our first allergen-conscious shopping trip. We are sincerely hoping it goes well and is not too awfully expensive!

Another Worst Fear

There are several things on a Parent's Worst Fears list and I checked another one off today.
Some of the list that comes to mind are things like your child getting burned on the stove, bitten by an animal, falling off of a high surface (like the top of the piano) or drinking water out of the toilet (you just think that could never happen to you, but I assure you, it or something similar will come to pass eventually). Ones I've already checked off include: watching your child struggle to breathe, having to be hospitalized with an IV while they look at you in pained confusion. Today's was finding an open and empty bottle of Children's Tylenol in Erin's hand. I had been in the bathroom and my HC was sleeping off another late and stressful night at work. I don't know how she got that child-proof cap off when it takes me 3 or 4 muttering, frustrating minutes to manage it, but she ate the rest of the bottle. I woke my HC up and we read the bottle. We deduced that she had ingested 3 or 4 doses (thank the Lord that the bottle was almost empty!). After a frantic call to my mom, I hauled Erin into the bathroom to induce vomiting and my HC raced off to the pharmacy to find some ipecac.
Did I mention that the power was out?
Erin sputtered, gagged and screeched. I had a few sympathy heaves. After a lot of phlegm and a little bit of tylenol colored spit, I had mercy and stopped to wait for my HC's return. I wiped Erin's nose and face. She calmed down eventually and fell asleep sitting on my lap in the bathroom. My HC came in. Ipecac is not manufactured anymore due to the ephedrine in it. Ephedrine is used to make meth. He had called EMS. EMS called Poison Control. I talked to the EMT, who asked me how many miligrams were in a dose, Erin's weight and how many doses that I estimate she had taken. He continued talking to poison control.
When he called back, it was with good news. She had ingested around 600 mg and the overdose level for her weight was 1,000 mg. Even if I had gotten it wrong by a couple of tablets, she was still safe. I was advised not to give her any more tylenol for the rest of the day (duh! we were out anyway) to give her liver a chance to process it all. I was also advised to monitor her closely just in case, but assured that she should be okay, but EMS was there in case we needed them. God bless that man! He has come to our rescue several times. When I am worried about Erin's asthma, we have gone to the EMS building several times for them to check her pulse/O2 levels. They have always done it with a smile and soothing concern.

Meanwhile, Erin slept off the bad effects of her ordeal (and my torture) for the next couple of hours and woke up quite refreshed.

My HC and I collapsed in the living room. It took a while for my shaking to subside, though I will admit to some tears of relief and thankfulness to God.

It was rainy and cold today, but we roused ourselves later in the afternoon to see the Loyalty Day parade, of which 2/3 was squawking, blaring emergency vehicles.

It also happened to be Burnout night, where every broken, rusty car with a smoker's cough muffler pays $5 to burn out on one of the main roads into town. This lasts for hours and the burnout marks on the road are measured. Trophies are handed out to the winners (those with the longest mark). People come with lawn chairs to sit on the side of the road and watch this diverting entertainment. The rest of us stay holed up in our houses, trying to avoid the burnt rubber smoke, the disturbing cacophony of revving engines and displays of juvenile testosterone at every stop sign, including the one in front of our house.
Did I mention that our road is part of the Turn around route and the Detour? Yes. It is.

I have to admit that I am glad this day is over. Now we have 10 days left of no wheat/egg/milk before we test for triggers. My mom found this cookbook online developed by a resourceful AllergyMom that has recipes without the 8 or 9 common allergens. Who knew oat flour had SO many uses? Who knew anything about oat flour at all? Who honestly knew that McDonald's french fries have wheat and milk in them?! Huh?! HUH?!

But now the kids are in bed, Erin having conked out on the second step into her room. Ian is enjoying his weekend bedtime ritual of movie in bed while playing with Hot Wheels. It's Peter Pan tonight. I just know I'll get that "Following the Leader" song stuck in my head, though anything is better than "K-9 Krunchies". My HC sings that one when he wants me to scream and pull my hair out. I will most likely regret making that public.

It has been the absolute worst 2 weeks in my life. Surely the bottom must be reached at some point and the climb return upward? I can only pray.
And hum. Tee dum, tee dee...Following the leader, the leader, the leader...

Allergic to What?!

We went to the doc today for Erin's allergy testing results. She tested negative for any kind of environmental stuff, like pollen and ragweed and normal stuff. Then we got to the basic food allergies. Sheesh. It's a scale of one to six (severe) and the doc said he raises his eyebrows at a 3. Well, Erin got a high 4 for eggs, a 4 for wheat and a high 3 for milk. The best way to decide what exactly is causing her respiratory distress is to have a 2 week hiatus from the offending element, then introduce it in its purest form and look for a reaction, first in the morning, then in the afternoon. For the sake of time, we decided to combine all the elements in our hiatus.
So, in short, for 2 weeks, we are doing without eggs, wheat and milk. Poor Erin. Then I got the doctor's sheets on all the different ingredient names for all of this and the basics of what we can't have. No dairy. No butter. No bread or anything with flour in it. No noodles (!). Nothing breaded. No eggs or anything with eggs in it. Baked goods. Breakfast. Sheesh. So we are down to meat, veggies and fruits. Or anything weird that we can find at the whole foods store, though has anyone seen anything that doesn't have whole wheat this or 5-grain that?? Come on! No goldfish! No chicken nuggets! No toast! No cheese! No pizza!
It's like being on that Adkin's diet, sort of. Thank the Lord that we can have rice and potatoes (french fries). So we have two kinds of rice milk in the fridge (soy milk is nasty; sorry, but have you tasted it?!), lots of fruit and hopefully some applesauce for night-time meds that usually get stuck in milk.
So tonight's dinner is bunless hamburgers, veggies and fruit. Breakfast is grits or oatmeal, after I check the label to make sure there's no wheat products in there...argh! Lunch? No clue. We'll figure something out.
In the meantime, does anyone else have any ideas? We can use all the help we can get.
Either way, it will be worth it. Getting rid of this horrible 7 month cough and wheezing will be SO worth it.

Country Boy Videos

These two videos wouldn't fit in the original post.
For hints, Ian is wearing a black cowboy hat and a plaid long-sleeved shirt. In the country boy video, he is standing in the back right corner and is hard to spot. In "Buffalo Gals" he is standing right in the middle, though the lighting is bad. He was on the sides, so my HC got right up in there with the camera. Gotta love his dancing, either way. Some of the boys got pretty rowdy up there, so we were proud that Ian stuck it out and remembered his moves. :)
Sheesh, it's so hard to think that school is out in 3 weeks.

Country Boy

Today was a pretty good day. I got a pretty neat new haircut that will require a flat iron (another reason why more accidents happen in the bathroom). I was told that I look 5 years younger, which is a pretty big deal if you are still under 30. So I got a demonstration from my new hair stylist (Gwenda, God bless you) and I now know how to duplicate it. It's pretty easy too, even for a lazy hair person like me. Ian likes it, anyway. He's been telling me I need a haircut for a week or so. My HC is just happy that I didn't get bangs. The things you never knew... We went to Ian's class program and it was so cute. All the kids were decked out in their cowboy/girl finest. There were plenty of doting parents and big bottoms blocking cameras. Erin was fussy the entire time since it was a special occasion and couldn't be persuaded to nap. She got quieter when the program started. Talk about excess cuteness! The principal started it off, telling us to take plenty of pictures because after we blinked a couple of times, the kids would be walking across the same stage to get their high school diploma. There were a lot of tissues at this point. After all the singing, they did awards. Ian got the "Brightest Smile" award. Naturally, my HC thought he should have gotten something more along the lines of "Gifted Genius" but I explained to him that they didn't want the other kids to feel inferior [wink, wink]. The last thing was the slide show. Every child's baby, toddler and now pictures were shown. We went to the cafeteria for refreshments, but the line was all the way through the cafeteria, around and out the door, so we decided to say our goodbyes and head to "McSongit" as Ian calls it. Of course, they only wanted the apple juice slushes, but at least my HC and I got the leftovers (woo hoo!)

Pink

The wind is still relentless, though it's finally gone down from the 30 mph gusts that have been tearing at everything. Now if we can just get rid of all the coughing...that would be nice. Ian seems to be doing better, though the cough is still there, a little.
Now it's Erin's turn again, to hack and hack, a dry then a wet cough that makes her choke and gag and wake up and cry. Last night was not a good night. Now I am just sitting here listening to the coughing/gagging. We were hoping that the allergy doctor would figure out a way to fix this. We're hoping the blood tests will yield treatable results. It's strange that you get so used to being sick all the time that it starts being normal. Then you realize that not everyone else makes weekly and bi-weekly visits to the doctor and pharmacy. I think those offices have our numbers on speed dial. The pharmacy knows us by our prescriptions and just may get a picture of the kids at Christmas. Not really, but it's comparable to being so familiar to the Chinese takeout place where you call and they say "The usual?"
It still stinks that our camera is malfunctioning because I got some prime shots of Erin after she decided to decorate her arm and legs with pink marker.
I think she knew she was naughty because she brought me the marker when she was finished. The cap, too. I scolded her like she expected and then she kept saying "stuck, stuck!" Ian was scandalized. "Ooooh, Mommy! Look what Erin do to her!"
I told them that it probably wouldn't come off (though Erin tried with wet wipes). The worst part is that some of it came off in the tub and now she has faint pink marks, like she's been scratched. It looks like she's recovering from being dragged through the briar patch. Except it was a marker and not a pen, so the lines are thicker. Anyway, it's obvious enough that you want to inform everyone of it before they decide to call a social worker on you.
Big fun tomorrow. I am trying a new hair stylist, the praise leader from church. She is so busy by herself that she doesn't often take new clients, so I am relieved. Or I will be relieved if I leave her studio without a bowl cut, a puffball or a mullet, which seems to be the specialty around here. For females, anyway.
Ian's pre-k program is also tomorrow. He has to dress up like a cowboy (please, no guns or spurs). He will receive a blue bandana when he gets there. I know there are songs involved because he's been singing a garbled version of "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" that took me a while to translate from "Mommy, do you know that song, "Tha-Gadda-ma-Kutchy Boy?" He looked a little confused and then happy when he understood the real words to the title (I can't help him with the rest of the song, unfortunately). I think he inherited that skill from me. Though I have JD, my very knowledgeable step-dad, to thank for revealing, after 20 years, the real words to "Take On Me," even though there is one line still in dispute.
We'll try for some camera phone pics, and maybe some video. Cross those fingers! And pray that God sends us a camera that works.

How Does My Garden Grow?

With blister, sunburn and aching muscles. And there's not even a guarantee that it will. But at least there's one unpleasant thing that I will be avoiding. This year, there is an abundance of WeedMat. Yay. There almost wasn't, due to the 30 mph wind gusts that kept ripping through the yard. And there might be some missing pieces tomorrow, due to the 30 mph wind gusts that will be ripping through tomorrow, but please Lord, let them stay!
Our garden this year is twice the size that it was last year, and that's not counting the hills on the other side of the yard for pumpkins, watermelons and canteloupes. Now comes the hard part....waiting for results.

We have all recovered from our illness and for those wondering, my HC never got sick. He didn't get sick the last time the stomach bug roared through either. He says he has an iron stomach. I say he's ingested so many toxins from all the soda and junk food that nothing can survive in his bloodstream. We agreed to disagree.

Yesterday was the first day of the year that it was 80 and sunny. We were tilling the garden and shovelling out rows. We all got sunburnt. Erin is fine, she just got a wee bit of red under her eyes. Ian came home with burnt arms and neck and nose. And his little lips were all chapped and cracked this morning when he woke up. I keep chasing him with Herpecin, a medicated lip balm. He doesn't mind, but he likes the other stuff better, that tastes like mint. We don't have that kind anymore. Erin ate it.
Today my HC and I got even more burnt. Tomorrow we will rest. And then it's supposed to rain for 5 or so days, so I guess it doesn't matter that much.
But in the meantime, my garden plot looks goooooooooood!

Saving Mommy

Well, Ian got better. Then on Friday night it hit Erin. She threw up plenty, though she never had the other end of it. I was just fine and dandy and so was my HC. Then after all day of the other end, everything I had ever eaten decided it wanted to make an upward appearance. And of course it wanted to happen about an hour before it was time for my HC to go to work. He was sleeping through most of it.
And everyone else? Well, they wanted to watch.
I think Erin was trying to hold my hair back at one point and Ian was just standing in the doorway with an EW! look on his face. I had keep Erin from getting too close and after I almost knocked her down (I thought I was finished), I had Ian go wake Daddy up. Of course, Ian came right back. "Daddy won't wake up," he complained. It was clearly not a good time for me to do it. I hobbled into the bedroom and scrabbled at his leg until his bleary eye cracked open. Thank God he went into alert mode right away. He entertained the kids while I had some more trips to the bathroom. He called in to go on a later shift, which gave him 2 more hours at home. He fixed supper while I lay on the couch like a dead thing.
I almost cried when he went to work, I felt so awful. But one thing saved me from utter despair.
It was Elmo.
Elmo bubbles to be exact.
Gramma and Papaw got Erin a little Elmo bubble blower for her birthday last year. Since bubbles are seasonal in our neck of the woods (?!!!), we eagerly snapped up a bottle as soon as we saw our brand. Almost every day we have been filling Elmo up and turning him on for some bubble frolic.
Unfortunately, our lame camera is not transferring pictures to the computer, so you'll just have to visualize. If I can get my HC to sit and help me, we'll figure out what's wrong with it. Until then, I am thanking God for Elmo and the distraction he afforded while I was so disgustingly sick.
Today I feel better, just TIRED and my stomach feels like something you want to poke at with a stick, wrinkle your nose and leave on the edge of a ditch.
To Ian's great disappointment, he will be going back to school tomorrow.
That's okay. As long as Elmo has batteries, the world is a friendly place.

Ew

*note: due to the sensitive nature of this post and for the protection of my readers, there will be no pictures in today's blog.

Last night was the beginning of Stomach Bug II. The first was a few years ago when Ian was a toddler. Now he is 4, and praise God he can throw up into a bowl or the toilet (or the sink; or outside), most of the time. Erin thinks the emergency puke bowl is great fun. This morning she threw some cereal into it (don't worry, it's kept rinsed out). Then some bottles of Gatorade. A couple of hot wheels. Then she wanted to lay on the ground next to it to see her reflection in the sides. Ian thinks she is quite gross. "That's a YUCKY bowl!" he keeps telling her.
Of course, the twin companion to vomit comes out the other end. Explosively at times. Unfortunately, there is no bowl for this. But we are now minus one rug (I was sleeping; my HC determined this a matter of household security and made an executive decision), several pull-ups and a couple of rolls of tp.
Meanwhile, Erin decided to do another diaper fingerpainting when we were too slow to get her from her nap. So I have seen enough body fluid and waste today to last me for quite some time. And the Pizza Rolls that we heated for supper (we were desperate and cooking was not an option) did not phase us a bit. Ian finally managed to keep some string cheese down (he insisted, I was pulling for the jell-o). It's been 2 hours so far with no gastronomical pyrotechnics and we are SO praying that it was a 24 hour bug?? Please? Please?!
We are also praying that no one else gets it (go ahead and laugh, but we can hope, can't we?).

In other news, we went to the allergy specialist on Wednesday, for Erin. We got some nasal steroids even though she is under 2. They also took a few vials of blood for testing. We go back in 2 weeks to see the results. My HC was there to hold her while they took her blood and of course, it hurt him more than it did Erin. After a medicinal Happy Meal, Erin felt better. We also got strict instructions for some earwax removal, since it was too thick to see inside her ears. I don't know about anyone else, but I have always heard that "you should Never try to clean your kids' ears out with q-tips or anything; let your doctor clean the ears. You could damage something!" Of course, I go to the doctor and get "his/her ears are too filled with wax to see anything," with a hint-hint type of look. Finally the allergy doc steered us to an OTC oil that will cause the buildup to slip out (or you can suction, if you have kids that are amenable to that [I don't]). Sheesh.
Now we have the Blue Beast (nasal aspirator) and the Tuber of Terror! But so far, I haven't been able to catch anyone long enough to use it...