So today had some down moments. Just general frustrations with stuff in the house, specifically technology. Rhys was having a day. He wasn't feeling so hot and was crabby and needy but in general unsure of what that need is exactly. We were trying to have fun, it was just kind of difficult. It also rained pretty much all afternoon so that killed any plans for just going for a walk or to the park, which is a good stand by.
I was treated to a little down time this afternoon by both children sleeping at the same time. It rarely happens and I honestly didn't even try. I finally got itunes on my laptop but then was having issues with getting stuff off my ipod. Everything we had ripped is now MIA in hard drive lala land on our dead computer. This isn't as big of a frustration to me as it would have been if my car ipod player thing hadn't died a couple months ago. As soon as I fell completely in love with it, it decided to actually fall to pieces in my car. Devastating. So I decided I would be happy if I got to listen to a book while I folded laundry during quiet time. I would be getting two things done at once. Our library lets me download books now. Too bad the books I wanted weren't in ipod format. More cursing at stupid ipods. (Now I have a tiny little mp3 player from walmart just for my books so that is settled.) I ended up burning one section of the book to a cd and then ripping it to itunes so I could listen to it while I cleaned the bathroom. I actually do like cleaning the bathroom because you can see the clear difference between clean and not clean. It is just so much fresher and nice clean. This took me to my happy place.
Ava and Rhys woke up from their naps and were ready for action, so Ava and I decided to make cookies. We used my standing mixer and it was awesomely easy. Dinner was lovely mac and cheese with hotdogs. Only the finest in this house.
While in walmart to get the mp3 player and other things, like milk and eggs and toilet bowl cleaner, it started to pour again. I left while it wasn't raining as bad but I was still dropping bags all over the place and was completely soaked. It was that excellent hard, warm rain without a lot of wind. So I decided to just run into the house and get Ava. We spent the next 20 minutes or so running around outside and jumping in puddles. It was excellent. I loved playing in the rain when I was younger, and still do actually, so I am glad that she was so into it.
So I think in her mind the fun happened. I don't think she ever knew that I was in a bad mood and mad at technology. She just knows that we made cookies, had her favorite dinner, and played in puddles.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
rabbits!
I just went outside to do my morning garden check. We have about 6 strawberries that will be fully ripe by tomorrow morning. I am going to have to remember to go pick them tonight if they want to survive. The rhubarb is all gone! Chewed down to a nub. It isn't like I was going to use it alone, but I was going to hopefully use it with the strawberries. I have come to the realization that there won't be any giant strawberry harvest this year. It will be like one at a time. That does not mean that I didn't want to be able to say, "Check! Successfully grew some rhubarb." I had considered taking Ava to a strawberry patch to go berry picking, so there baby rabbit living in our bushes. The irony: There are about 100 carrot sprouts all over. I am definitely going to have to thin them out or I will have some mangled looking carrots, but I am sure I will just be growing some rabbit food.
We also have a lot of sunflower sprouts. I planted a variety of sunflowers and they are growing nicely. I just need them to grow fast enough that they don't look like weeds, just in case the landscaping people come around to take care of things.
It is now Tuesday. I am loving my new schedule of Wednesday/Thursday vs. Tuesday/Wednesday. I feel like my week is laid out much nicer. Not sure why, just how it is. I am trying to come up with some fun activity to do today. Not sure what it will be, but it is still early.
We also have a lot of sunflower sprouts. I planted a variety of sunflowers and they are growing nicely. I just need them to grow fast enough that they don't look like weeds, just in case the landscaping people come around to take care of things.
It is now Tuesday. I am loving my new schedule of Wednesday/Thursday vs. Tuesday/Wednesday. I feel like my week is laid out much nicer. Not sure why, just how it is. I am trying to come up with some fun activity to do today. Not sure what it will be, but it is still early.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Memorial Day Weekend 2009
We had a busy weekend, but somehow it didn't seem that busy. We kind of only had one thing a day, all of which felt pretty relaxed. It was excellent. Today was the only crappy weather day which was also nice.
The weekend did start out a little crazy. Ava woke us up early Saturday, asking me to kiss her booboo on her finger. I did and she went on to watch tv (Justin must have turned the tv on for her earlier). She came back and asked me to clean the booger off her finger. I handed her a towel and off she went. She was back a few minutes later talking about her finger. I couldn't get a good look because I was feeding Rhys, so I sent her to Daddy's side. Turns out it wasn't a booger. It was a pustule. A bubble of puss. There was a second red raised circle and her finger was a little swollen and red in general. There was a little dot in the middle of the circles so we assumed it was a bug bite of some sort since the morning before she had jumped back when she grabbed her boot, as if she had been bit by something. I called the Dr's office when it opened and the nurse said the doctor definitely wanted to see her. The doctor didn't think it was a bug bite but we couldn't really figure out what it was. She wanted to culture the puss, so after a failed attempt at just poking and popping it, she lanced it with a blade. Ahhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!! An hour of screaming followed that little episode. She was crying with her eyes shut and saying that she was tired. She really did eventually cry herself to sleep. We were told to put neosporin on it and keep it covered. Three days later the puss bubble is bigger and not gone. We will be calling again tomorrow.
Rhys can sit up, well mostly on his own. He prefers standing to pretty much anything, so we don't work on it that often. Today I had him sit on the ground to play with toys and he didn't wobble over. He kept starting to go and would catch himself and go back up. If he doesn't get too excited or distracted he can definitely do it.
I have also decided that we need to take way more pictures of Rhys and Ava. I just haven't been too into taking pictures and I think I will miss them in the end. I shouldn't be worried about all the crap in the background, and just take the picture.
The weekend did start out a little crazy. Ava woke us up early Saturday, asking me to kiss her booboo on her finger. I did and she went on to watch tv (Justin must have turned the tv on for her earlier). She came back and asked me to clean the booger off her finger. I handed her a towel and off she went. She was back a few minutes later talking about her finger. I couldn't get a good look because I was feeding Rhys, so I sent her to Daddy's side. Turns out it wasn't a booger. It was a pustule. A bubble of puss. There was a second red raised circle and her finger was a little swollen and red in general. There was a little dot in the middle of the circles so we assumed it was a bug bite of some sort since the morning before she had jumped back when she grabbed her boot, as if she had been bit by something. I called the Dr's office when it opened and the nurse said the doctor definitely wanted to see her. The doctor didn't think it was a bug bite but we couldn't really figure out what it was. She wanted to culture the puss, so after a failed attempt at just poking and popping it, she lanced it with a blade. Ahhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!! An hour of screaming followed that little episode. She was crying with her eyes shut and saying that she was tired. She really did eventually cry herself to sleep. We were told to put neosporin on it and keep it covered. Three days later the puss bubble is bigger and not gone. We will be calling again tomorrow.
Rhys can sit up, well mostly on his own. He prefers standing to pretty much anything, so we don't work on it that often. Today I had him sit on the ground to play with toys and he didn't wobble over. He kept starting to go and would catch himself and go back up. If he doesn't get too excited or distracted he can definitely do it.
I have also decided that we need to take way more pictures of Rhys and Ava. I just haven't been too into taking pictures and I think I will miss them in the end. I shouldn't be worried about all the crap in the background, and just take the picture.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
just a trip to the bank
So I went to the bank today with both of the kids. I have learned that unless I have a cart, it is much harder to bring Rhys into things in his car seat, so I had taken him out. I was getting ready to leave and Rhys had decided to try to grab the cubicle wall as we walked by. I didn't even pay attention to it because he is always grabbing at things. The banker guy was like woah! as if I almost took off Rhys' head. Rhys didn't even noticed and then decided to chew on my shirt and pull my hair. Meanwhile, Ava was stuck on robotic repeat saying, "Mommymommymommymommymommymommymommy."
One of the bank employees was big pregna"bye bye now" smile. I just wanted to laugh. Sorry lady, this doesn't bother me at all. They are both happy, smiling, and moving in the intended direction. It was a successful trip.
One of the bank employees was big pregna"bye bye now" smile. I just wanted to laugh. Sorry lady, this doesn't bother me at all. They are both happy, smiling, and moving in the intended direction. It was a successful trip.
The stick
This is our raspberry stick. I think it is supposed to turn into a bush? I think I was sold a stick to plant into dirt and they (the seller people) got a good laugh. I know it looks like Ava planted a stick, but it was me. We don't have sticks around here. Our trees aren't old enough to shed sticks.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
amazon
I ordered diapers from Amazon.com last week. I have been on a mission to find size 3 overnight diapers for Rhys. Most stores start carrying them in size 4, so I was ordering some books I wanted from Amazon and decided to look for the diapers. I got them at a pretty normal price and got free shipping. I am apparently a prime member so get free shipping on a lot of things. I am now kind of obsessed with looking to see what other random things I can buy from amazon and get free shipping. I have always gotten books from them, and the last couple of years got a lot of Christmas gifts. Amazon must be confused. I keep pretend shopping. I put it in my "cart" and then delete it all.
In that order of books, I got Kid Favorites Made Healthy. This was recommended to me by Justin's cousin. I am pretty happy with the recipes and am feeling pretty inspired to make some good healthy snacks for Ava. I bagged up a bunch of her normal snacks this morning. Ava rarely will sit and eat regular meals, which is fine with me, but I don't want her always having junk stuff. I am trying to eliminate fruit snacks all together because there really is nothing good about them. If she had her choice, she would eat bagged cereal (captain crunch with crunch berries or lucky charms, both aren't really healthy), goldfish crackers, swiss cheese sticks and prunes all day long. She would then have meals of fish sticks, chicken nuggets, and sometimes corn or peas. Anyway, I am on a mission to make her snacking more nutrient dense. I also want them packed and ready to go for all of my impromptu trips to the zoo this summer...
In that order of books, I got Kid Favorites Made Healthy. This was recommended to me by Justin's cousin. I am pretty happy with the recipes and am feeling pretty inspired to make some good healthy snacks for Ava. I bagged up a bunch of her normal snacks this morning. Ava rarely will sit and eat regular meals, which is fine with me, but I don't want her always having junk stuff. I am trying to eliminate fruit snacks all together because there really is nothing good about them. If she had her choice, she would eat bagged cereal (captain crunch with crunch berries or lucky charms, both aren't really healthy), goldfish crackers, swiss cheese sticks and prunes all day long. She would then have meals of fish sticks, chicken nuggets, and sometimes corn or peas. Anyway, I am on a mission to make her snacking more nutrient dense. I also want them packed and ready to go for all of my impromptu trips to the zoo this summer...
Sunday, May 17, 2009
been a while
So its been a while...what have I, we, the family, been up to? Doesn't seem like a whole lot, but we have definitely been busy.
In the last week Ava and I got all of our seeds in the ground. We definitely do not have an organized garden at all. I will be lucky if I remember what we planted where, and I doubt it will all be successful. Lets just say there will have to be a future post titled "the raspberry stick" and leave it at that. Ava emptied out an entire packet of pea seeds into the dirt mound that had been prepared for some pumpkins. The peas that I have planted have been exposed due to the crazy rains we have had this weekend. I am going to have to re-cover them and see if it will salvage any of them.
Rhys has been practicing his rolling. He typically goes to sleep on his stomach and now has figured out that he can fight nap/bed time by flipping back over. He has started saying da da da. He hasn't quite mastered swallowing his solid food vs. pushing it all out with his tongue. Usually halfway through the feeding he figures it out. I don't feel any real commitment to feeding him cereal every day because he hasn't crossed the six month mark yet. One month left and then I will have to worry more about actually "feeding" him. It is so much easier when the food actually travels with me and is always ready to go.
I started softball this week. A few years ago I played and had fun, and this year I am back at it. I am just as rusty and a little slower. I think it is funny to say I am rusty because in reality, I might actually be at the exact same skill level as when I stopped playing (though I know I was better at judging a ball and catching then) since I was 12. I am so glad I am playing though all the soreness makes me feel old. We have had two games so far and are 1 and 1. This actually is good for just about any softball team I have ever played with. Maybe it is me....
I worked pretty much double my normal amount of hours this week and was actually offered another shift that would have put me at 40 hours. I didn't take it. We finally got everything fixed on the van this weekend, so I am starting to think that maybe I should have sucked it up and taken it. Remind me of this moment in December when I am like where did all our money go...
The house is a little crazy right now. This is to be expected. Combine me working a lot, Justin in a class, and Ava being Ava and it equals disaster at home. All of our laundry is clean and we have less than one load of dirty dishes so I will take that as a win.
I met a woman on facebook who's daughter is a little younger than Ava. Her daughter has a portwine birthmark (It is no longer called a stain, to take away the negative connotation of a stain.) and Sturge-Weber type glaucoma. We have done a lot of talking. In comparing notes and numbers, I counted things up. Ava has been under general anesthesia approximately 25 times. She has had about 11 full laser treatments. We are actually changing dermatologists and have a consultation in a couple weeks. We just think that our original derm doesn't have the machine that Ava needs. She has pretty much said as much. We are often asked if Ava is still having treatments. She will ALWAYS be having treatments. Once we get it as clear as it will get, she will continue to get treatments for maintenance. It keeps the tissues from stretching, the vessels from re-growing, more or less keeping it where we had it.
That is about it for now. Ava is tired. I have to watch the season finale of Survivor so I know who wins before seeing it on the news....because the winner of Survivor is news.
In the last week Ava and I got all of our seeds in the ground. We definitely do not have an organized garden at all. I will be lucky if I remember what we planted where, and I doubt it will all be successful. Lets just say there will have to be a future post titled "the raspberry stick" and leave it at that. Ava emptied out an entire packet of pea seeds into the dirt mound that had been prepared for some pumpkins. The peas that I have planted have been exposed due to the crazy rains we have had this weekend. I am going to have to re-cover them and see if it will salvage any of them.
Rhys has been practicing his rolling. He typically goes to sleep on his stomach and now has figured out that he can fight nap/bed time by flipping back over. He has started saying da da da. He hasn't quite mastered swallowing his solid food vs. pushing it all out with his tongue. Usually halfway through the feeding he figures it out. I don't feel any real commitment to feeding him cereal every day because he hasn't crossed the six month mark yet. One month left and then I will have to worry more about actually "feeding" him. It is so much easier when the food actually travels with me and is always ready to go.
I started softball this week. A few years ago I played and had fun, and this year I am back at it. I am just as rusty and a little slower. I think it is funny to say I am rusty because in reality, I might actually be at the exact same skill level as when I stopped playing (though I know I was better at judging a ball and catching then) since I was 12. I am so glad I am playing though all the soreness makes me feel old. We have had two games so far and are 1 and 1. This actually is good for just about any softball team I have ever played with. Maybe it is me....
I worked pretty much double my normal amount of hours this week and was actually offered another shift that would have put me at 40 hours. I didn't take it. We finally got everything fixed on the van this weekend, so I am starting to think that maybe I should have sucked it up and taken it. Remind me of this moment in December when I am like where did all our money go...
The house is a little crazy right now. This is to be expected. Combine me working a lot, Justin in a class, and Ava being Ava and it equals disaster at home. All of our laundry is clean and we have less than one load of dirty dishes so I will take that as a win.
I met a woman on facebook who's daughter is a little younger than Ava. Her daughter has a portwine birthmark (It is no longer called a stain, to take away the negative connotation of a stain.) and Sturge-Weber type glaucoma. We have done a lot of talking. In comparing notes and numbers, I counted things up. Ava has been under general anesthesia approximately 25 times. She has had about 11 full laser treatments. We are actually changing dermatologists and have a consultation in a couple weeks. We just think that our original derm doesn't have the machine that Ava needs. She has pretty much said as much. We are often asked if Ava is still having treatments. She will ALWAYS be having treatments. Once we get it as clear as it will get, she will continue to get treatments for maintenance. It keeps the tissues from stretching, the vessels from re-growing, more or less keeping it where we had it.
That is about it for now. Ava is tired. I have to watch the season finale of Survivor so I know who wins before seeing it on the news....because the winner of Survivor is news.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
spring has sprung
I am in full sprng/summer mode. Thanks California. I had softball practice today and it was beautiful out. Then Ava and I worked on our garden. We have the strawberries, raspberries, onions, tomatoes, and peppers all ready to go. I am thinking if I get a chance, tomorrow or Monday I will finish things up. I am also in full on ready to move mode. We are strategically planning on getting things ready so we can put the house on the market when the market is ready for us. Anytime you see me spending extra money ask me if it fits into the house of 2010 plan. There is really no purpose to living where we currently do, other than we own it. It isn't really that functional of a location anymore, and I am ready to move on. In the mean time, I will continue to remind myself that we are lucky and blessed to have our house and just to appreciate it. Maybe in the midst of all my appeciation, I will think I should "pamper" my house and do things to make sure it is ready to be sold. I need to figure out what things we should focus on in order to get it market ready.
I am still working on my vacation post. I keep running out of time and I don't get to it or I just don't feel like it. We will see when I ever get around to finishing it.
I am still working on my vacation post. I keep running out of time and I don't get to it or I just don't feel like it. We will see when I ever get around to finishing it.
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