I've neglected this spot for too long. It's time to move on.
Click here to see what I'm working on now.
http://sticksandastring.blogspot.com/
Luke seems ok this morning. Just still going through kleenexes like wildfire. Fever was still 101 so I keep giving the motrin. The nurse just thinks the evening panic attack/ spell was illness related and not related to Tamiflu so we're sticking with it.
Rachel just had the one time of vomiting. Nurse doesn't think it sounds like flu for her. I haven't fed her yet though. Just some flavored water so far. She's not acting sick. Her temp is only 99.2. Giggly as usual. All she talks about is going to her cousin's to see Miranda's boyfriend Matt. She's enamored with him because he "slides her" and flips her in the air. A few minutes ago she was babbling about "when can i go to the doctor, " and coming up with symptoms because she wants to go to the doctor. She really has too much of her paternal grandmother in her. Scary.
I on the other hand feel like dog poop on toast. Bags under my eyes are enormous. Achy, hungry and sick to my stomach at the same time. Can't sleep because I'm on hypervigilant-listen-for-kids-mom mode. And hyper sanitizing mode. I scrubbed the grout in my kitchen counter this morning with comet and toothbrush for example.
DH is staying home today too to prevent spreading the love to his co-workers. He is going to run out for more tylenol and Lysol.
The dog is thrilled. I think this was her conspiracy to get us all to stay home for a whole day.
Well there you have the Southmayd Family Quarantine Update. Stay away!
Sometimes I hate Vox.....If you click on a picture while trying to format the post, you lose everything......I hate it! So here goes this monster post for the 3rd time!
Be forewarned...my "o" key is not cooperating....so I have to pause and deliberately press it hard each time.....so if you see any words like this: "g t the bkstre"...You'll just have to understand it says "go to the bookstore."
I can't believe it's May 11 already. Time is flying. We've been so busy lately and I've been too drained to blog at night....I've thought about it....but then I went to bed.
We had the big 7th birthday festivities. He was shocked and thrilled by the Tiger tickets.
And He got a ball! The ball boy gave it to him after a Cleveland Indian hit the foul. Made. His. Night/ Life!
And he's been playing little league....
And had his spring concert.....
And Rachel had her bike-a-thon for St. Jude's. She was a trooper....last kid out there riding and never took a break!
And she had her mother's day brunch with presentation that they made on the stage.....Hers was the best drawing IMO. (Just a little biased I know). It's a drawing of us making strawberry shortcake. She even drew the strawberries and our aprons and her chef hat.
And we got mom moved.
....
And celebrated my aunt and uncle's 50th anniversary.....
And my niece's Confirmation.....showing off the ring I got her.....
SO that has been the past few weeks.....This weekend we have Family FUn Night at school, Baseball game, Rachel's dress rehearsal and then the big Dance Recital, Friend's confirmation party.....Yup - I'm tired again already.
If this sounds really random and out of sorts, it's because that's what my emotional state feels like right now. Mixed up and random.
It's been a tough couple of weeks. My dear sister-in-law to be, Amanda, or, simply "Nana" as the kids call her, lost her mother a week ago yesterday. She was only 48 years old, and while the exact cause of her passing still remains to be revealed, her three beautiful children and her family are left to pick up the pieces and try to move on with things. Her death was unexpected, and her children had to make the difficult decision to remove her from life support when it became evident that she would not be living without the assistance of machines.
I don't even have the words to express how sad I am for them, especially Amanda, because she is getting married in July to my brother-in-law Michael, and it just hurts me to know that her special day (and all the days before and after) are going to be tinged with grief and sadness. I wish I had a magic wand to make the pain go away.
As I watched this woman's three brave children stand at her graveside in the snow this past Tuesday, tearfully bidding farewell to their beloved mother, it hurt my heart so to see them hurt so much. I've been there. How I wish there was a way to make it hurt less, but the truth is there isn't anything much that will ever fully erase those feelings of loss. The passage of time certainly has a way of easing things, thankfully.
The priest who performed the service suggested that the children and family turn to their faith and family to help ease the pain and get them through, and I could not help but nod in agreement when he said this during the service. It reminded me so much of all my friends and family who have been there for me throughout these last 15 years, to sit and listen, to offer words of comfort, to just be there to remember her with me.
And faith. If not for my faith in God, and the belief that his plan for me is perfect, and having placed full trust in Him and his wisdom, I'm doubtful I would be where I am today. In those early, raw weeks and months following my mother's death, I was angry at God and my faith in Him was totally shattered. But, over time, I began to trust again, to turn to him in prayer when things became completely unbearable and unmanageable. And, you know what, he always showed me the way. Maybe not in the timetable I would have liked, but he always showed me the answers.
It hurts my heart to know the pain Amanda and her brothers have endured, and have yet to endure as they attempt to move on with their young lives. I didn't get the chance to tell Amanda's older brother this, and I'm not sure if he'll even see this, but I did tell Amanda and her younger brother this when I expressed my condolences. What I wanted each of them to know is this: all that is good about their mom is right there inside them. When they are feeling sad or missing her, all they need to do is look in the mirror and they'll see her and draw on her strength. Our mothers teach us how to love, and that gift is timeless and priceless, and it is a gift that they will have from her for all their lives. Use that gift, and in doing so she will always live on.
I have no doubts now that their mother Deb is up there in heaven, free from her pain and suffering. Although she will be absent from this earth, she will always live on in the hearts of her three children and all those who were affected by her love and presence.
Seriously. It's the kind where you take one sniff and instant icicles in your nostrils. Even now at noon with the sun shining. School was canceled. My son was upset. "THAT'S NOT FAIR!" I'm so glad he likes school.
Sweet goodness I realized now my last blog post was well over a month ago! I'm sitting here trying to remember what the heck happened, other than the holidays and all the onslaught of that, and thereafter. The holidays were great. Kids had a wonderful Christmas. We got a Wii, which is just a blast. I've been really busy with the business recently. December kind of got crazy, then before I knew it I had a session on New Year's Eve with a beautiful 6-month-old. We got the dreaded stomach virus Christmas weekend...my January is turning out to be much more brisk than I ever expected it to be, which is awesome.
Oh and the Eagles. Well, I'm just as stupefied and amazed as the rest of the lot that we (a) made it to the postseason, and (b) have made it all the way to the NFC Championship. It has been so totally bizarre, this entire football season. Either way, we're all cautiously excited about the Eagles. What a wild ride it has been!
If you had to live as an animal for the rest of your life, which creature would you choose to inhabit?
The life of a Pug.
That's our phrase around here.
My book total for 2008 was 64! I'm really proud of myself. While I don't read many profound classics, I enjoy what I read and it's an escape for me. So hitting more than one a week is pretty darn good!
"SAFETY MESSAGE... TURN AROUND DONT DROWN."
That message was in the Flood Warning Alert from the National Weather Service. I mean.....I guess it gets to the point but it seems pretty obvious huh?
