Look! A break and I didn't even expect it.

Truly, I didn't anticipate taking a blog break, but that is how it is working out.  I've been busy with the close of the membership drive.  Since I'm the Membership Chair, I get the delightful job of compiling said information into book format and passing cards and directories out to PTA members.  I have the Walk-a-thon fundraiser coming up on the 7th and am still feeling low on the communication totem pole with the principal, who is a very, very busy man.  100 Book Challenge got rolling and now I'm updating.  I have a conference to go to the evening of October 5th for our PTA district. 

No.  I'm not even the president.

I have the appointment to check in on my foot on Thursday and I came to realize that on my last appointment, I've neglected to share some fairly vital information with my doctor regarding the whole story of Bailey, my hospitalization and the blood clotting disorders (homozygous for MTHFR and PAI-Type 1.)  There are new studies that have been done on the blood clotting disorders and information that I don't know.  I'll take him a copy of the genetic testing that was done and perhaps we can have a bit of a brief sit-down about it.  Tears will be shed on my part and I know that he'll feel bad that he inadvertently tossed a freight train at me the last I was there.  I've had discussions with myself numbering more than I could approximate on about how to get all of the information out there, have it be concise enough without sounding like I'm blathering on, but still be coherent and intelligent.  He is a great guy and when he finds out that his bedside manner fell short that day, he will feel like a total heel.  My point is not to make him feel bad, I just need to know the updated information and how that has a bearing on my physical health.  Still, I've chewed and gnawed on the conversation nearly all month. 

I love my doctor.  Truly.  He is a great guy.  That has made my thoughts of the conversation even harder. 

I'm busy with tons of stuff, still cruising on a foot that I'm thinking needs to remain booted for a little while longer while carrying a rather heavy mental load. 

I'll be checking in.  Don't worry.  I didn't forget about you!

We wait all year for this.

Sean Casey and me standing with TIV2 at the Carnegie Science Center in March, 2011.  We went for a talk that Sean was giving on his IMAX movie, Tornado Alley.  Props to Hubs for taking a picture of me that doesn't make me look drunk or high.

I know, I know.  We're science geeky people.  Storm Chasers starts on Sept 25 and we are so excited.  I have it Sharpie-d to the calendar.  You see, normally we don't have "big boy" cable, so we always have to wait until February to watch it when we purchase the season on DVD.  This year, we get to watch it, then purchase it.  The local cable company has somehow hooked us up with an extension to our cable that we aren't paying for, it doesn't include premium channels, but we do have about 50 additional channels and Discovery is in that freebie lot.  We've noticed that a lot of times, we are still bummed that we can find nothing to watch and are quite happy that we aren't being charged for the extra, but we will enjoy the few sunshiny extras that we can get while we have it.  Let's hope that it holds out through October 16.  Hubs and I love having our 10 PM Sunday night TV date!

Tales from the Trenches: When Aircast boots attack.

My poor husband.  I didn't sleep well last night, flipped over, awoke half-flip and in time to see my aircast boot nail him squarely in the knee.

Talk about a rude awakening. 

Poor guy.  When you sleep with someone who has to wear a boot, you need to put up some fluffy wall of defense.  Don't worry.  He only moaned for a short while.

Smiles in my day:
-  Though not what I signed up for, K- woke me up at 4 AM to "count her dollars" that the tooth fairy left for her.  She counted them in full voice.  No whispers.  Let me repeat the time.  4 AM.  I'm glad that she was so excited to finally get that first tooth out of the way.
-  Scented candles at work when nothing else smells pleasant.  The building smelled funky when I got in, then people in general smelled gross.  Thank goodness for scentedness!

Have a great day!

At 7 3/4.

HOORAY!  K- lost her very first tooth-- finally! 



Her tooth fairy box.  It is tucked just under the one corner of her pillow.  She wanted to make it easy on the fairy after all.

I think that I bought the tooth fairy box for K- back when she was 4.  We've been waiting.  And waiting.  And waiting.  And waiting some more.  Wednesday came and she called me on my cell phone while I was at work.  She was absolutely squealing with delight.

She was eating a piece of corn and it finally loosened her tooth. 

Now we've been waiting.  And waiting.  The tooth has been a source of entertainment.  We nicknamed it "Mr. Wiggles."  She could do "witch tooth" (AKA closing her lips and leaving that one to hang out) and do to the "draw bridge" (AKA drop the tooth flat out.)  Every now and then, it would be a little agitated and bleed slightly.  What did I do to remedy the situation?

I bought corn for dinner and made her keep gnawing on it.

Hubs buttered it up and they were having lovely conversation as Hubs ate his dinner late because he had been tending to the lawn before the rain that is due tomorrow.  "Mom!  I have a hole!  I don't know where it went!  I think I swallowed it!"  We talked about that being a possibility and that it was okay if it happened.  Certainly the tooth fairy would completely get it.  She called my in-law's to let them know and I found her tooth sitting on the Toys R Us ad that she had been reading.  We did have a tooth to put in the box after all! 

What is the tooth fairy leaving behind?  Well, I had gotten a $5.00 for the first tooth.  I have a dollar for each one thereafter.  MIL decided to sweeten the pot because K- has had to wait for so long and she slipped me another $5.00.  (She insisted.)  I'll tell K- that she has two $5.'s because the tooth fairy felt bad because of her long wait.  I will let her know that the haul for a typical tooth is not that large at all.  However, we'll be doing the transcontinental tooth fairy.  I have foreign coins and odd American currency (gold dollar, SBAnthony dollar, a $2.00 bill) and she'll get one of those to collect and learn about each time the fairy turns up. 

We have another loose tooth.  I expect that one to pop out within the week.  Aunt Kristin was right.  She said that when the first one comes out, K- would be dropping teeth out like no tomorrow. 

I'm so excited for her! 

Smiles in my weekend:
-  K- losing her tooth!
-  Rare butterflies for our state nectaring at our plants.  There is one that Hubs needs to go to work to identify.  Another is not a state butterfly at all.  One is a tortoise shell that Hubs has only seen one other time ever.  He said that I officially have a better selection of butterflies than they do on the 250 acre prairie that he has at work.  :)
-  Going to my neighbor's church today for a Homecoming Celebration.  Bless their hearts.  They were so happy to have us there.  We were Episcopal for the day and we were the only ones who came with bibles.  It struck my Baptist heart as a little odd and I'm sure that we struck them as equally as odd.  They were lovely people and Hubs commented on people smiling and really open and making us feel welcome. 

Have a wonderful week!

Crutch-free

When I had my bedazzled purple cast cut off, the doctor who put me into the cam boot said that I could technically walk on my foot.  Dr. W- told me limited weight bearing for two weeks.  I opted to stay with the original instructions.  Thursday, was my first day out, crutch-free.

It is grand. 

Grant you, I walk as if I am a victim of a displaced stick, but it's all good.  I have to keep a tennis shoe on, though.  The height of the cam boot vs. a flat foot is quite different.  I have to walk on my  toes if unshoed on the left. 

My crutches are still in the truck if I need them.  I'm looking forward to going to the grocery today.  I hadn't gone before, as I didn't care to go in a motorized shopping scooter. 

I go back on the 29th to see what progress I've made and if I'm shoe-ready.  I dare not walk anywhere without my boot.  I even sleep with it on.  Better to be safe than sorry, even if when I take it off, it smells like little kid foot.  Eeeeewwwwww!

Smiles in my days:
-  Busy, busy.  We had an open house Thursday evening where we were able to go to our child's class and get the full run-down of what they do with their day.  It helped to explain a lot of things and clarification is always good.  I could tell that the teacher was nervous, as she apologized the next day for things that she had missed.  I told her how much I appreciated it.  She needed an atagirl.  You know, sometimes it's a lot easier to get in front of the little people that their parents.  If you do something goofy in front of the kids, they'll laugh, you'll laugh and all is done.  Parents take things way too seriously.
-  Mike, the wonder neighbor, is back from his quick trip to Myrtle Beach.  Some old guy ran a stop sign and hit him with his car, though.  Mike rolled over the hood and landed on the other side.  The man saw that he appeared unhurt and he WAVED AND DROVE AWAY.  I told Mike that I'm sure that he'd rather it be him than his girlfriend, Ruth.  Wow.
-  We caught our last monarch yesterday.  The tally sheets will be mailed on Monday.  The butterflies will begin arriving in Mexico in about mid-November.  We'll see if any of ours made it.  Of course, we're really pulling for PMA 912.  I mean, I busted my foot for that butterfly and all!  I'll keep you guys up to date on whether any of our butterflies make it.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Pumped Up Kicks: What is your interpretation?

This song plays on the station at work all. the. time.  It's kind of catchy and I never knew what it was about until Joe, the jewelry display god, brought it up to me.  A customer was walking through, singing it very off-tune and Joe asked me later, "You do know what that song is about, don't you?"

"Why, no I don't." 

He went on to tell me that it was about a kid who went to school and shot up his peers.  Yikes. 

Several of us at work have discussed it.  My basic thought is that if you can take a fairly liberal minded bunch of artists and college students and offend them with a song, somethings got to be a little off. 

I looked up some lyric interpretatons online. 

What are your thoughts?  Me?  I have a love for alternative music.  This one makes me shake my head, though.

Smiles in my day:
-  Finally, K- has a very "wiggly tooth." 

Have a great day!

Please stop texting while you are driving.

To the offenders,

I have seen two young women driving along, both hands holding their phone while steering with their forearms, texting.  The speed is up and down.  There is swerving involved.  May I put this in perspective of how incredibly NOT OKAY this is?

I have a child.  A precious and wonderful child that we adopted.  We lost our daughter, Bailey in pregnancy.  To lose one child was horrible.  You aren't paying attention to the road.  You are reading messages.  You are answering idiotic things that you needn't be concerned about while you are driving.  Please keep my child in mind as you are being irresponsible. 

I have a husband.  My husband drives about a half hour to work.  We've been married nearly 15 years, together for almost 18.  I'll do the math for you.  Hubs and I have been together since I was 20.  He and my daughter are my all and everything. 

I have family.  My Uncle Billy died when he was 34.  He was driving up one side of a hill, when someone decided to pass a semi on the other side.  The two met up somewhere around the top of the hill.  Instead of swerving away from each other, they ended up swerving into each other.  My uncle died 4 days later, after having a perforated colon and developing peritonitis.  I was in high school and devastated.  My uncle didn't die as a result of texting while driving, but the other driver did and equally stupid thing.

I have friends.  I have friends who have lost siblings and children, parents and friends.  I have a friend whose sister was murdered.  I have another friend whose daughter drowned.  I have a friend who had both parents die within 15 months of each other.  They have experienced loss far more than anyone should. 

When you text and drive, you aren't paying full attention to the road.  When you aren't paying full attention to the road, you can't be fully aware of small things that can turn into big things if not recognized. 

Let me be blunt.  You are driving a very heavy thing down a road while playing with a screen and you could kill my people or someone else's family. 

Put your phone down.  Pay attention to driving.  Deal with your messages when you stop.

Thank you,

Amy at Bailey's Leaf