Not Me Monday

Hooray, my first Not Me Monday. This is a time for me to share all the things that totally did NOT happen this past week. (For the rules, click here.)

Our sweet little G did not pull up the blinds in his bedroom to make the cord really long. He then did not proceed in wrapping it around his little brother's neck. Mr. S does not have a scabbed-over rope burn around his neck.

Big E did not buy me some mineral powder foundation for my birthday that was used to "clean" the bathroom mirror. G & S did not proceed with their cleaning and squeeze half of the new tube of toothpaste on the freshly cleaned mirror doors and in/around our bathtub, then invite Z in to help smear around. Not my children!

I was not excited to hear that even without taking my microeconomics finals, I still got an A in the class. Furthermore, I am not excited that I have 3 weeks off from school.

G did not watch Z play in the toilet after G used it, but before he flushed it. G did not come to tell me to get the camera so I could take a picture of Z having "lots of fun."

I am not needing to finish my Christmas shopping. I've got 4 kids at home and I am not going to take them out to get a few last things, with the thousands of other people out shopping. Nope, not me!

The boys wanted to go play in the rain so I put socks on Z so his piggies wouldn't freeze. But I did not put our 5 1/2 year old's sandals on our 14 month old when he wanted to get down and walk. I did not put Teva-style sandals on a boy who was already wearing socks- that would be disgusting! I did not let him walk around like that and I did not bust up laughing when he looked like he was walking in skiis.

This is for you, Katrina

I've been busy (to say the least) with all of the end-of-semester stuff and haven't focused 100% of my attention on potty training the poor boy. Every time S goes down for a nap, he ALWAYS takes his diaper off. He hasn't been peeing (thank goodness), just doesn't like wearing a diaper. The other day I told him "keep your shorts on!" as I laid him down. Apparently I wasn't specific enough. He did however manage to put his shorts back on by himself.

Who said you can only fit 1 kid in a stroller?

On our way to pick up N from school.

C'mon now, who really needs a triple stroller? It appears as though a single stroller does quite well for our little family.

*the white stuff on Z's shirt.... truly, a sucker isn't complete gone until the paper stick has been devoured too!

This will do the trick

Me: "Umm, honey.... what's that on S's pants?"

Him: "I couldn't find a belt so I used the next best thing!"



Yes folks, those ARE zip-ties.

Fun with the Cousins

It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt!

*Ava wasn't hurt, S had a [very, very] little bloody nose. Two minutes later, he was back in service and joining the dog-pile.

Our Long Awaited Vacation

My grandparents moved up to Washington a couple of years ago and we hadn't gone up to visit yet. We attempted to on 3 different times, but something always came up. Nothing was going to stop us this time. We worked it out so I could take the first part of my econ final as usual, and then the second part I would email my answers to my professor by the deadline and give her my scantron Monday morning.

After finishing the first part for one of my finals, I came home, we packed up the van, and off we went. All 6 of us, 3 suitcases, 1 pac-n-play, 1 stroller, 1 baby bjorn, 4 carseats, 3 water bottles, 1 sippy cup, 2 backpacks (filled with toys, books, and food), and 1 diaper bag, were on our way!

Here's a quick recap of what we did:

(As written by N) "Over the break, I... went to Seattle. I went to the Space Needle, held a fish, and beat my Grandpa at Yahtzee."

All of it is true, especially the Yahtzee part! N had never heard of Yahtzee, and before the night was over, he beat Poppa 3 times. [That boy must have some Gage blood.]

Day 1: Off we went. The kids (minus Z) were really good. The 3 older ones were great on the airplane. S was a little scared at take-off and landing, but Daddy kept making faces and telling jokes to keep him distracted. Z cried for the whole flight, minus the 15 minutes prior to landing.... talk about cranky pants!

Immediately we were amazed at what fresh, clean, crisp air smelt like. It had been a LONG while since we have experienced that. Best of all, we got to use our coats... go figure, the middle of October and we got to wear coat! :)

We got our rental and headed north. We arrived to the house about 9pm, unloaded, and the boys immediately found some toys.

Day 2: I slept good. Daddy got up with Z during the night because he was crying, but I didn't hear anything. (Daddy says I did hear Z because I'm the one who woke E up, but I don't remember a thing!) The boys got to meet/play with their "girl" cousins (Gianna and Ava.) We went to lunch, then went around Whatcom Falls. [Z was still crying and being cranky!] We got back, then the 3 older went on the trail with Daddy and Poppa, while I stayed with Nonna and a sleeping Z. The girls were antsy because the boys were taking too long (they were gone for over 2 hours).

Day 3: Attempted to go to Seattle. (note the word attempted!) We were almost 1/2 way there, but Z wouldn't stop screaming. We did a little shuffle of carseats, E & I played musical chairs, offered him some milk, nothing was working. We decided to take him to urgent care because he was extremely irritated with something, and he would occasionally tug on his ears. We headed back and took him to the doctor.

Diagnosis: "He has a stuffy nose and the sniffles. Don't worry though, it can sometimes be confused as something else."

[My thoughts: Are you kidding me? Shall I remind you that we brought 4 kids, 5 and under, on a 3-hour flight flight. We're on vacation and I KNOW that I will hear crying at some point.... I hear screaming and fighting all day long, really, I'm used to it. But this out-of-control screaming that this kid is doing, isn't just me confusing an ear infection for the sniffles! We (people like E & I) don't go to the doctor over a stuffy nose. Sniffles and stuffy noses are just like "he probably has allergies or something" even if it lasts for a few weeks. Did I mention he is the youngest of 4 children?]

Yes, he has a stuffy nose, AND a very strong will for getting his way. If he had an ear infection, we could chalk his fusiness up to not feeling good, but instead, we were faced with the reality of our child wanting his way, and wanting it now! (i.e. not being restrained in a carseat for more than 2 minutes)

After the kids went to bed, we played a little card game.

Day 4: We took 2 cars to Seattle. (the screaming boy was NOT going to have his way. Sorry, but we are on VACATION, and you're crankiness will just have to wait!) E took the younger 2 (who didn't make a peep the whole way there) and the rest of us went in the van. We had lunch, went to the Children's Museum, Space Needle, and Pike's Place Fish Market. N got to hold a fish, and then we found a vendor that will selling fresh donuts. [Yumm!]

On the way back, we took a restroom break and E kept eyeing the Fish Market. I joking asked, "Are you sad you didn't get to catch a fish?" and he immediately [embarrassingly] admitted that he was.

"I wonder if you have to buy it, just in case you don't catch it?"

"Just go ask. If need be, we'll buy a fish so that you can catch it."

Look who's lucky day it was!

Z cried the last 10 minutes of the ride home, but E was still on cloud nine from his fishy adventure, that he didn't really mind.

Day 5: We had a yummy breakfast and left for the airport. After confusion of whether we would get our original flight [they had overbooked the flight by 4, and 3 of us were part of that 4. Towards the end, they would allow 4 of us, but not 5 (Z was a lap-child), which meant that one of us got to go with all the kids, and someone would have to stay. (Did I mention that we had 4 kids, 3 suitcases, 1 pac-n-play, 1 stroller, 1 baby bjorn, 4 carseats, 3 water bottles, 1 sippy cup, 2 backpacks, and 1 diaper bag? All of that, and one adult? Oh, that's funny- Talk about a sight to see!)

At the very last minute, a single guy gave up his seat because he had watched all the drama unfold (our willingness to take a 6.5 hour later flight to make it easier for the airline, but then SW wouldn't compensate all of us becase 3 of us were still "unticketed") BUT we made it home, and on time.

Hooray! We had an absolute blast. The boys had so much fun with their cousins. We loved seeing Grandpa, Grandma, Troy & Julie (and the girls too!). Everything was green (yet another distant memory) and people were nice. Seriously, it's like a whole new world. People don't drive crazy, they say hello, and love being outdoors. Oh, it was awesome. We can't wait for the next time we can go visit.

Here's some pictures for your viewing pleasure.

Poor G

G wants to be a cuddly big brother, but underestimates his power. He's very strong, and doesn't realize how rough he's being, even when he's just being lovable.

(yes, our children do wear clothing, just not in these pictures!)

ok, that's good. I'm not so sure I like this snuggling thing.

Now I really don't want to snuggle.

I'm screaming because I want you to leave me alone, not because I want kisses.

Here's a happy brother, perhaps he'd like to snuggle.



Nope, not him either!



Let's try this again.... Nope, he still doesn't like it!

S's duck lip (a week later)

Scenario: I'm cooking dinner, E's in the living room playing with thing 1 and thing 2. S was playing with Z in the boys room.

Disaster waiting to happen: S came running down the hallway, bent over, "driving" the big monster trucks (one in each hand). The rubber tire got funky, caught on grout, S's face planted straight into the tile floor.

Result: Busted top lip, sliced upper gum line from lip to front teeth. Still a happy boy, just with a big-o duck lip! TBD if he'll be joining his brother in the rank of sporting a dead front tooth. So far things look pretty good, but it's still healing.

Alright already

I am: an overachiever and a perfectionist.
I think: people think we're insane for all we've taken on in the last few months.
I know: outsiders see my side of the family as being closer than we really are.
I want: to be on vacation already.
I dislike: sick babies, people touching my face, and black pens.
I miss: Chicago and it's cold winters.
I fear: that one of our sons will become "lost" again in his own world.
I hear: N & G wrestling in their room, despite it being quiet time.
I smell: nasty! I'm hoping to take a shower after I'm done posting this and finish emailing my world religions professor.
I crave: to stand face-to-face with God and ask him why he had to think so highly of me.
I cry: only when people are not looking.
I search: the internet in hopes of finding solutions to "fix" things I'm experiencing.
I wonder: if I'll ever overcome being a perfectionist, and learn to let things go.
I regret: not busting my butt earlier this semester so I don't have to play catch-up..... I don't totally regret it though because the kids really needed my attention.
I love: my husband and all the things he does for our family.
I care: about my GPA. I expect nothing less than a 4.0 from myself.
I always: over analyze financial decisions.
I worry: that the boys will eat us out of house and home when they're teenagers.
I am not: so good at always eating only because I'm hungry... sometimes the food just tastes really good!
I remember: the first time I was awake during an entire c-section (with the second) and how strange it felt to have him pulled out.
I believe: that God has a sense of humor.
I dance: like a black girl.
I sing: along to songs I probably shouldn't know the words to.
I don't always: follow the dr's recommendation to not use q-tips. (Do I really need to explain how impossible it is?)
I argue: with the kids, but never with E.
I write: papers really, really well... now if only my writing transferred over into my oral conversations.
I win: monopoly every time.
I lose: my cool more times than people realize.
I wish: I could make things the way I'd like to have them, but I can't.
I listen: to music every day.
I don't understand: why some people get things handed to them.
I can usually be found: doing twenty things at one time.
I am scared: for the pain my friend and his wife will endure if their baby does not survive more than a few days after birth.
I need: to take a shower and finish doing my homework.
I forget: what my stomach looked like without a c-section scar.
I am happy: when the kids are playing nicely together AND my house is clean.

Tag #1 done.... #2-3, still to come! =)

Everyone who has read this and not done it, consider yourself tagged!

Mommy always wins!

I have a lot of pet peeves. One of them (besides the "usuals": black inked pens, people touching my face, people touching my butt, people stepping on my feet, loud noises, clutter) is doors being slammed. It's a scar I've carried with me ever since traumatic things happened during childhood, and I haven't been able to overcome it. Something about slamming doors just brings out the craziness in me. A few weeks back, G was a little over-the-top for me. He was being horrible (licking- saving it for another post), so I asked him to go to his room. Of course he didn't listen the first time around, so I waited 30 seconds and then instructed him (again) to go to his room. He stomped his foot and did the "uuhh, no" thing. Ok, apparently he needed a little helping finding his room. I took his hand and guided him to his room. He threw himself on the ground in protest, but I left it (him) alone and walked back into the other room. Just as soon as I reached the kitchen (it's the first place you reach when exiting the hallway with their rooms) he slammed his door. Umm, did he just do what I thought he did? His 5 year-old brother quickly confirmed what I thought I witnessed before I could even finish my thought.


I walked back to his bedroom, opened the door, and warned him not to slam his door again. If he did, he wouldn't like the consequence. I turned around, walked back down the hall.... WHACK! Oh, nuh-uh, he didn't just do that.


As I was walking back to his room, I could hear him fiddling with the knob. By the time I got there, he had locked the door. You wanna play that game, little boy? Mommy can play too. The difference.... MOMMY ALWAYS WINS! I don't care if Daddy at work right now, you will NOT be doing that in this house...




Try slamming your door now, Mr. G!

*update: after 2 1/2 days, he "earned" his door back. He hasn't done it since.

I know, I know

It's been forever! Things have been very, very busy to put it lightly. Our camera finally bit the dust [it was 4.5 years old- prehistoric in the tech world] so we were without a camera for almost 2 months. We finally got around to ordering a new one so we would have something to take pics with for G's birthday party. I finally got around to uploading pics from the old memory card and stumbled across these from 2 months ago...

More posts to follow (hopefully soon)...

Summer School 2

Here's to a bunch of catching up. There's 3 other posts that follow this one, but I made sure to include pictures for those of you (you know who you are!) that only look for pictures and don't read any of the journaling.

It has been about 3 weeks since the last post. Yes, we are all alive and well. Our family is still intact after my summer classes and E's closing shifts (minimum) 4 days a week. I'm so glad they're over. The routine went a little something like this....

6:00 Wake up and shower (if I was feeling generous)
7:00 Class starts
9:20 Get home
9:20-10:30 Finish dispatch
10:30-11:55 Attempt to spend "quality family time" without thinking about what was due the following day
11:55 E leaves for work
12:30 Put kids down for naps
2:30 Leave to pick up N
3-8:30 Chaos/crowd control (snacks, N's homework, dinner, baths, etc.)
8:30- ? Get 4 kids to bed, start laundry, get dishes done, pick up around the house
11:00 E gets home
?- 5:59 Finish a minimum of 2 assignments per night, in addition to one weekly 4 page research paper (typed, SINGLE SPACED)
6:00 Repeat

Looking back at the stacks of work that I have completed, I'm very proud of myself. Just shy of 40 assignments, all packed into a 5 week session. I managed to survive, largely in part to a fabulous husband that supported me. He would sleep in the office while I worked on assignments, and woke up whenever I needed some input. He sometimes carried the load of a single parent on the weekends while I did research. I am looking forward to having a more relaxed, further spaced out fall semester - at least as normal as it could be with the little last minute twist recently thrown in. (for those curious, NO, the twist does not equate to pregnancy)

Summer 2's grade.....

Darn straight! 96%

First Day of School

N started kindergarten: 1 kid down, 3 to go! I'm a little (2 1/2 weeks) late, but this is the first time I've got to sit down to blog in a long time.

I had class the same day so I went in as usual, then midway through I ran home so we could all take him to school, then off I went back to finish my class. N is doing really good. It was interesting to pick him up the first day and explain why he got a stick taken away. :) We don't blame him because we never put him in preschool and raising your hand to talk isn't something they strongly enforce at primary. He said, "Mom, Mrs. J took away a stick because I kept forgetting to raise my hand before I talked." I asked him why he kept forgetting and he said that it was because his teacher was asking lots of questions and nobody said anything. "Mom, I had to tell her the answers because I know everything and the other kids don't know anything." Hmm, I wonder where he could have picked that up from?

Lining up with his classmates


is his backpack big enough? he picked it out himself


"Have fun! Don't get in trouble because I'm not coming back until 2:40 to pick you up!"

Our Fishies

We're so excited that we've gotten so much use out of our pool this summer. Yay for all of our kids who love to swim! [update for those who didn't yet know: N has nicely "adapted" to swimming. He prides himself on being able to swim the entire length of the pool. We just needed a few lessons from Mrs. Laurel and a new pair of goggles.]

Camping

You read that right.... CAMPING. We went camping: well, sort of. For everyone who says, "yah right, you don't camp," you're totally right! I am not a big camper. My idea of camping is visiting the dirt, then retreating to a hotel room in the evening where I can shower all the nastiness away. Sitting around for hours and not being physically active just isn't my cup of tea.

We decided to have a little family outing during my 5 day break between summer sessions back in July. We went up to a lake that's about 45 mins from here. It was horrible to say the least. The elevation is barely higher than where we live, so the 110 degree heat was not escaped. To make matters worse, our assigned campsite was about 20 yards from the bathrooms that weren't equipped with flushing toilets... Sweltering heat and a glorified porta-potty- Fabulous! But who cares about that when the campsite is 20 feet from the swampy part of the lake? I couldn't wait to jump in! [note the sarcasm] I was constantly reminded how much I love camping. For the record, I did not complain once. Perhaps it was due to the much thought out planning of taking 2 vehicles. We knew there would be no way our 7 1/2 month old would share a tent with us and get a decent amount of sleep. Once the sun started to set, I brought the younger 2 boys home. Words can not express how wonderful the car's AC was. The whole drive home I couldn't help but reflect on how miserable I was, but it was all worthwhile. It was a temporary inconvenience for an experience we could share with the boys. The following morning, Daddy and the older 2 were supposed to come home around noon-ish. I laughed hysterically when they walked through the door before 8. Apparently camping (in a tent) at that location in July isn't what it was cracked up to be. We have learned our lesson.

Thinking Outside the Box

At some point between him laying down and waking up, his brothers decided to go in his room and throw him something over the railing so he wouldn't be bored while in his crib. He knew that Mommy never gets him out until quiet time is over, so he had to get a little creative and use what resources he had. I went to go get him up from his nap and, low and behold, our sweet boy has (once again) demonstrated his brilliance. Can you guess what we are currently working with S on? It's true... sometimes you just got to think outside the box.

Or in this case, inside the box! What else would you use a lego box for?

On a side note, did I mention he loves to help us clean? About a month ago we started taking him into the bathroom to get him used to the idea of peeing in the toilet. We'd give him a little privacy so he wouldn't have to perform in front of an audience. He got to the point where he would pull off his diaper and say, "I go potty!" and run into the bathroom. I'd wait a few minutes then go check on him to see if he was done. Every time it would be wet around the rim and we'd have a Wa-hoo-you-went-pee-pees-in-the-big-boy-potty-yay-for-S! dance and never gave it much further thought.

A few weeks pass and one day he pulls off his diaper, says "I go potty!" and off he went. I went to go check on him and saw that it was all wet around the rim. I begin to dance the special dance and start singing when.... wait a minute..... why is he running away? Better yet, what's in his hand? S, get back here. Aaahh, holy crap! He joyfully walked back over to me and handed me ["mom, I clean!"] my toothbrush, my WET toothbrush. Further investigation proved that the liquid on the rim was not urine, but the toilet bowl water that came from Mommy's "cleaning" brush. I love you too, S!

Almost There

Summer School Update

3 weeks down (23 writing assignments) , 2 more to go

It's not as bad as I thought it would be, but I hate always being tired. I seem to be maintaining a 95% but we will see what happens... It has been "fun" pulling all-nighters at least twice a week. The nights when I get lucky enough to get 3 hours of sleep, 6:15 comes way too fast! 8 more days.... 8 more days.... I can do it!

Summer School 1

The grades have been posted for the English class during the summer 1 term. I got...

an A (96.4%)

Any Takers?

Up for grabs

#1: 5 years old
Focused: if allowed, can sit in front of the TV playing video games all day
Talented: insists that he's better than anyone else (including Mommy & Daddy)
Confident: has a big head but "that's because there's an even bigger brain inside of my big head"
Sharp: Very good memory, can recall things that happened years back and what you offered in a negotiation 5 months ago, that has yet to be delivered
Trained Monkey: will mimic you to a T: "That's really great G, you're doing a good job. Now leave me alone for a while so I can finish what I'm doing."
Will ask daily, "can I go to school yet?"

#2: 3 years old
Dedicated: will fight tooth and nail to convince you he's really 5 years old and just as big as his other brother and his brother's friend CM
Handsome: a mini Joaquin Phoenix
Outspoken: must always get the last word in
Determined: will go out of his way to get whatever he wants. "I want new undies" No, you can't have new undies. "Oopp, there's a little drop of pee pee on my undies so I better go get new ones on"
Great teacher: (see example in #3)

#3: 2 years old
Comedian: finds humor in taking diaper off while in the crib, moving cherished blanket to the corner, aiming his king in-between the slats in order to clear the crib, and pee on the floor, bonus points it accomplished while also making #4 laugh hysterically
Great Student: has been trained (from #2) to yell "eeehhh!" as a way to express your opinions
Smart & Rich in Omega-3: Fish fiend, can pack away a bag of goldfish in a blink of an eye. If he's done eating them, he knows that they are to be placed back in their proper environment: a bunch of water.

#4: 8.5 months
Mobile: Can crawl/slither his way to anywhere he'd like to get
Artist: uses spit-up as the paint and carpet/tile/rug/wherever-he's-at as a canvas
Vocal: can yell and squeal louder than anyone
Resourceful: climbs on top of his brothers to wrestle, but quickly gets off before he can be the one to get blamed for his brothers screaming

Wanted
Chef: prepare at least 3 breakfasts, 3 lunches, and 2 dinners, and well as snacks for every 30 minutes. Have beverages on the table before food is presented or you will hear about it.
Maid: clean the toilet (and surrounding area) after every use, approximately every hour. Wipe down the table after all breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks. Clean the sliding glass down, inside and out, daily. Be sure to vacuum rooms that were vacuumed earlier that day. Address the cob webs that have collected dust. Sinks should be clear of any dishes.
Secretary: Take messages, organize, and keep an ongoing shopping list. Must remember where everything is at any given moment.
Nurse: Tend to the wounded after getting at battle. Willingness to deal with blood on a daily basis.
Accountant: Pay all the bills in an timely manner. Find alternative means of keeping budget consistent while prices of everything soars.
Handyman/woman: fix the 50 cent toy that, heaven forbid, fell apart.
Gardener: Ensure all the weeds are pulled and bushes are trimmed so the neighborhood nazis (aka HOA) don't leave a sticky note on the front door.
Laundry Service: Scrub ketchup/mustard/barbecue sauce/spaghetti sauce/poop out of clothing. Iron, fold, and put away.
Personal shopper: Find clothes for everyone's constantly changing sizes. Accountable for not running out of food and having backup Goldfish, for #3, a plus.
Student: Make sure all the assignments are completed, free from any bodily fluid, food, or beverage before turning in.
A Good Wife: Needs to have undivided attention and spare time to sit down and listen to husband and occasionally go on a date.
A Good Mother: Needs to provide undivided attention. Willingness to sit and "watch" child's accomplishments helpful. Brush kids teeth, get them to bed at a reasonable time, read the books they each picked out, all the while trying not to yawn. Must also act as though you hadn't realized you have all boys and you don't have a little girl when someone points it out.
Detective: Figure out where the funky smell is coming from and then determine what is it.
A good Sunday Member: Must not lose it and yell at the kids when they start fighting during Sacrament meeting.

Did I mention there is no salary involved for these services?

Madness

So the past few weeks were busy to say the least. Lucky for me, I have a mother who is awesome and is willing to help any opportunity she gets. I love you Mom!

6/27- Wake up in pain. Both ears hurt but I've got homework to get done. Start homework, then get a phone call that my sister is coming to stay with us the following Friday. Later find out that they won't be coming after all. Emailed my rough draft for peer review and got time to relax and holy crap my ears are really hurting now.

During the night I wake up in excruciating ear pain and start taking some leftover Percacet from the C-section. It wears of quickly so I alternate between that and lots of Ibuprofen every time I wake up (every 2 hours just like clockwork)

6/28- Wake up @ 5:30a in complete misery. My ears are totally infected and have become very swollen. I can't seem to break my 102 temp and become very nauseous. Go to urgent care, get prescribed antibiotics and Vicodin as I'm almost out of Percacet. To add to the joy, the nausea takes over and I start throwing up. (it was fabulous considering I had only ate some bread and crackers for the prior 24 hours). Life must carry on for at least another day as my final draft English paper is due by midnight and I still have until Wednesday until the class is over.

6/29- Still running a fever. Call urgent care and am told to either come in for a shot (that may not be effective) or go to the ER. By this time, my ears are completely swollen shut! I love my life. My fabulous husband and TB (the guys initials, no, doesn't stand for tuberculous) give me a blessing in hopes we can avoid an ER visit.

By this time, I can't hear a darn thing which I would normally sign up for but I can't enjoy it as the pain is miserable. We go to the ER and they run through all the questions (of which the husband has to answer for me because I can't hear) and then take a look at my ears. The dr. took a look and said, "wow, impressive!" and ordered a CT scan. Meanwhile, I'm put on strong IV antibiotics as well as a morphine drip. CT scan results: (in non-medical terms) double ear infections with scar tissue indicating I've had chronic ear infections. (Really? That's news to me! jk I've had ear problems my whole life, it's just something I've learned to embrace. I get one AT LEAST every other month but I don't let it get in my way because quite frankly, I don't have the time to sit around to dwell on it. This one was way beyond my "don't think about it" superwoman powers.) Referred to ENT in addition to adding to my list of meds.

I call my mom husband calls my Mom to see if see can come help on her way to Texas. She books her flight and is coming the following day.

FYI, I'm extremely OCD about cleaning my ears regularly. I clean them at least 2x a day, if not more. I can't stand stuff being in my ears. I love Q-tips and hate ear drops!

6/30- Go to ENT. The front office staff (consisting of girls, 99% of them who have bleach-blondes [not a hater, I too once had the same super blonde hair] with boobs double the size of my beyond engorged working boobs, a waist size of our 5 year old, and weighs perhaps a little more than our baby) are really dumb but they're "cute" so what more can I expect? Just please make sure that you tell them your name twice, spelling it the third time around. Get ear wicks crammed into my ears... bluntly put, they are the equivalent to having ear tampons... to force them open so that the ear drops can go in and all the infection can drip out. Love it! Prescribed 2 more prescriptions.

Instructed to never use Q-tips again. Are you kidding me? I can't have Q-tips but I have to continue my ear drops. Talk about torture! For all of you fellow Q-tip fanatics, apparently you're not supposed to use them in the first place. The "proper" way to clean your ears is to, after taking a shower, put a tissue on your pinky finger and wipe whatever is right at the ear opening. What kind of nonsense is that? Luckily, I'm not much of a proper person but we'll see how long I can try to act as though I am. :)

My Mom flies in and takes care of me and the boys while Daddy goes back to work. I'm pretty much useless by now so my Mom quickly takes on all the responsibilities around the house.

7/2- Big course portfolio, 3 different assignments, due for English. I tried my hardest to have them at least appear like the same person who wrote all the other papers completed the portfolio. There's only so much you can do while on heavy painkillers for 5 days straight. Luckily I almost had 100% in the class so even if I did horrible on the final, I should still probably get an A.

7/3- My Mom leaves for Texas. :( Another ENT visit, looks like things are improving and I won't have to be admitted to the hospital. Hooray! I didn't have time for that anyways. I can hear out of one ear, but the other is still closed. Have to come back Tuesday to get my ears vacuumed out.

7/4- 4th of July. Still out of it and start getting headaches. In case you're wondering, this still sucks.

7/7- First day of Summer 2 term.

7/8- 3rd ENT visit. N went with me and very loudly kept asking me, "Mom, when are they going to start hurrying up and call your name already? It really stinks in here so I think they should open the door and call your name so we can go into a different room." (Thanks for that insight son!) They hired a new girl, who (I'm sure by pure coincidence) looks identical to the other girls, but turns out to be even dumber. People, do not work in a medical office if you have do not have any medical background knowledge! The patient shouldn't have to explain medical terms to you so you can understand what you're writing in their chart.

Specialist findings: "all the gunk from the infection has settled right against my ear drum, making it impossible to vacuum out at this time. I'll prescribe you some new ear drops you'll use 2x a day for two weeks. Come back then and we'll see if we can do it then. Remember, no q-tips!"

My thoughts: ok, you can take away my q-tips, but you can't then give me ear drops. It's either yes q-tips and yes ear drops, or no q-tips and no ear drops. You can't co-mingle the two!

The ENT specialist read my thoughts and reiterated the instructions. What a stink butt, no wonder he's not married! lol

7/10- Still not 100% better but I'm working on it. One ear feels like an infection may be coming back but I can't tell if it's an infection or my superwoman weather barometer readings of the pressure changes that are happening all this week. (My ears can predict whenever there are pressure changes in the air. It's just another hidden talent I've been blessed with as a result to my chronic ear infections while growing up.)

Until my 2 week follow-up of a follow-up appointment, I'm left with the following feeling:

You have NO idea!!

Sad Day

I've got a gazillion things that I need to post on here, I promise I'm working on them. I'm also playing catch-up with reading everyone's blog. It's been a long, long time. I just started my second summer term yesterday so here we go again, but until then.....

Does this picture say enough?


I don't normally follow this nonsense reality TV show but I caught bits and pieces of the last episodes while channel surfing when I was still nursing. I realized it is Tuesday and I missed a big finale. While doing online research for an English paper, I took a break to see what happened last night. Despite all my yelling, "Don't do it, don't do it! Don't you dare send him home!" at the TV, he was still sent packing. The computer has now heard my opinion and the DH got a phone call at work because let's face it, this is some important stuff here. lol But seriously, what the heck was she thinking?

Hang in there Jason, America loves you!