As I am contemplating my blessings this evening- and there are many, maybe that's why I am still up at 11:56pm- I can't help but be especially grateful for my friends.
Thank you for letting me vent and not saying, "I told you so," or "You should..." Just letting me get it out.
Thank you for bringing something to my house when it was my turn to host scrapbook night because you know I am too exhausted to make much, even though I never bring anything to yours.
Thank you for continuing to invite me places even when most of the time I can't or won't go because I have too much going on or I'm too tired. I really enjoy the few times I CAN go.
Thank you for smiling in the back of the room as I give my talk in Enrichment and making me feel more comfortable and less self-conscious.
Thank you for letting me bring up stupid, weird things from my past that I don't know why I am still hung up on and not judging me.
Thank you for asking if you can watch my son so I can have a little me-time or not making me guilty for committing to a new hobby I really want to be a part of and then coming once and bailing out.
Thank you for calling me while you are out and asking if you can go ahead and pick something up you know I need to buy so I don't have to leave my house.
Thanks for just asking how I am doing, and letting me tell you honestly and for being encouraging and telling me how strong I am (which gives me strength) instead of thinking I am such a negative person.
Thank you for allowing me to check out books for my Pre-K under your name when the library will only allow me to check out 5 hardback books and all the picture boosk are hardback.
Thank you for making me feel comfortable being myself when I am around you and telling me I look so cute pregnant when I feel like a fat pig.
Just thank you for being there. You don't know how much each of these simple things have made my life a little easier. I hope I can be as good a friend to you as you are to me.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
SNOW DAY!
AAAAHHHHHHH! Guess what I just did?
I just woke up from a 2 hour+ nap. Yup, sure did. At 12:30. On a weekday! and it feels SOOOO good!
Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD closed school today, so that means half my kids stayed home with their big brothers and sisters, and half are still sick.
Every single one of my kids stayed home today.
Remember when you are little and your parents said, "Don't cry or I'll give you something to cry about." Well, that is how I felt yesterday. Lately I heve just been complaining about how tired I have been and how I am at my max, and then yesterday happened (See Laughter Is the Best Medicine). I felt like that was the lesson I was meant to learn. That it could get much worse and I needed to just keep my mouth shut and grin and bear it.
Kerrsh! Roger! Lesson learned. Got it.
But today. The forces of the universe have given me a break!! I have done absolutely nothing but get up, get dressed, feed Jackson and take a nap. It is so awesome! Later, I plan to actually be productive, maybe prep the nursery for painting, do some lesson plans, run a block up the street to Wal-Mart (IF the roads are better), but right now, I am just being lazy, because let's face it, after yesterday, if anyone deserves this day, it's ME! ;)
I just woke up from a 2 hour+ nap. Yup, sure did. At 12:30. On a weekday! and it feels SOOOO good!
Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD closed school today, so that means half my kids stayed home with their big brothers and sisters, and half are still sick.
Every single one of my kids stayed home today.
Remember when you are little and your parents said, "Don't cry or I'll give you something to cry about." Well, that is how I felt yesterday. Lately I heve just been complaining about how tired I have been and how I am at my max, and then yesterday happened (See Laughter Is the Best Medicine). I felt like that was the lesson I was meant to learn. That it could get much worse and I needed to just keep my mouth shut and grin and bear it.
Kerrsh! Roger! Lesson learned. Got it.
But today. The forces of the universe have given me a break!! I have done absolutely nothing but get up, get dressed, feed Jackson and take a nap. It is so awesome! Later, I plan to actually be productive, maybe prep the nursery for painting, do some lesson plans, run a block up the street to Wal-Mart (IF the roads are better), but right now, I am just being lazy, because let's face it, after yesterday, if anyone deserves this day, it's ME! ;)
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Just Cute
What a smile!
Jackson loves to "color on the paper" (a new talent)
"I gotta clap, clap, clap my crazies out!"
Dancing to cuz Addie's Christmas present: a Hannah Montana guitar!
When it comes to reading, Jackson is a multi-tasker. This is favorite book!
My little fireman! He loves to put on hats and masks and play dress up with the kids.
This was a big aawwww moment. We put him down for a nap on the bottom bunk of cuz Addie's bunk bed and my sister Meg's Christmas puppy ("Ricky Bobby") decided to join him.
Laughter is the Best Medicine
It is 1:15. Here are the events of the Blake household today so far. (yeesh) I'm scared to think what could come next...
Ben gets a flat tire on the way to school this morning. Apparently the tire had a piece of metal stuck in it. This wouldn't be so bad except that the roads in our area are icy. Many school districts are closed. Not mine (note the bitterness), but many. Unfortunately his school wasn't closed either.
Meanwhile, my day went fairly smoothly. I had all my kids except 2. A. stayed home because she had chemo last week and so her immune system is very weak this week. Several of the kids have nasty colds, and catching one could put her in the hospital, so...she's at home. S.M. stayed home because she, too, was in the hospital last week for several days with a nasty respiratory infection - viral. She was isolated in a clean room and everything. None of the other kids got that thankfully. So I had 5 and Jackson.
I was supposed to have an appointment in Lake Worth this afternoon. I was going to take Jackson with me, and Mrs. Olivia was going to come sub for me, but at noon I decided to cancel because I didn't want to get out in this weather. Plus, Ben called and said he was going to get the tire fixed after school (how did he manage to wait that long?) and he didn't know how long that would take, so I had to reschedule my appt. Normally, I would take the Neon, but Sunday the Neon wouldn't start. It's a battery issue, but neither of us have had a chance to deal with it yet, so we are down to the Jeep and yes, the Jeep got a flat tire.
Moving on. Lunchtime. This is the craziest time of the day on ANY day. I am simultaeously trying to open food packages, cancel my appointment, cancel my sub, get Jackson to eat his lunch and not throw it on the floor, play games with the other kids to get them to eat as well (Games include who is going to be the lunch champion today and get to pick the naptime movie OR one-two-three take a bite all at the same time and see who gets done first. Neglecting a lunchtime game results in 1.5 hour lunches.), and K. starts coughing.
She is probably the kid who has the worst cold of all. She has been fighting it for about 3 weeks now. She has been to the dr. twice and the emergency room once. Her cough is dry and non-productive, yet you can hear the mucus clogging her up when she talks and breaths. So...she breaks out into a ten-minute coughing fit. She can't breathe, she is crying, she starts throwing up. I guide her to the bathroom, but don't follow her in because I need to get her a glass of water. (She has already had one, but drank it all. It didn't help.)
Her choice of receptacle? The bathroom sink. Gross. It is bad.
So now I am on the phone trying to call her mom - no answer, and her dad (who just started a new job this week) - no answer.
Than Z.'s mom picks him up (he is a half day kid). As kids often do, Z. stars getting silly and not sticking too close to our lunchtime rules. While she is also on the phone (she is a hospice nurse who sends nurses out via phone), Z. decides it would be a great idea to start a game of tag. SO now I have one kid in the bathroom puking, Jackson crying to get up and throwing his food on the floor, three kids chasing each other around the kiddie tables, and one blessed child sitting calmly and continuing to eat her lunch. I bark at all the kids to sit down and eat, go check on K., still not able to get a full breath, but doing better. Her dad calls me back - he will send Uncle to come get her, it's bad weather anyway...
Skip ahead to post-lunch process. Z. and his mom are gone, kids are a little calmer, K. no longer coughing, but not hungry after the puking. Kids all go potty (in the process Jackson gets in the bathroom and plays with K's puke, still in the sink - haven't gotten a chance to wash it down yet. GROSS!) wash their hands and J's THOROUGHLY), and get on their beds. We are watching a movie, waiting for K.'s uncle to come get her, so we can't turn the naptime CD on yet. It is close to an hour past time to be settled in for nap, but at least I got the kitchen all cleaned up and the kids on their beds.
K's uncle arrives, takes K. home, I turn on the naptime CD, change Jackson's diaper, get him in bed. AAH, naptime begins. (3 kids left out of the 5 I started with today.)
NOPE. A. suddenly needs to go potty again. Poop this time. Which makes S.B. (who is potty training - weakness is #2) instantly remember she needs to poop, too. They both go and wash hands and get back on beds. Now L. says his tummy hurts, and he needs to poop, too. Oh no, I say, not believing him. He was the last of the first rounds of pottiers, so I'm thinking they're all just being turkeys. I go finish cleaning up. I also start dinner - beans (and cornbread and a hamsteak). I'm taking dinner to my VT sister who is not in good health today.
Few minutes later, L. is crying on his bed. I go check on him. Tummy really hurts, he says. Okay, I say, exasperated. We make it to the lineleoum of the kitchen right outside the bathroom. BLAHHH! Peanut butter sandwich and Oreo puke everywhere. (sigh)
On the kitchen floor, all over the bathroom door, all over the baseboards, all over the bathroom rug. (double sigh) Guess I know what I'll be doing all of naptime.
Now I feel bad, should have believed him. So I get him cleaned up, he seems fine now, says his tummy is all better, let him go get on his bed. L. passes out immediately. Bonus! I think, L. fights naptime everyday!
I go clean the bathroom and the floor. wipe up, mop, disinfect, clean rest of the beathroom, clorox wipes all the doorknobs and the kiddie chairs, bag up his clothes, call his mom - no answer, his stepdad - no answer. At least we made it to the lineoleum, I think. At least he didn't puke on the carpet.
Stepdad calls me back about 20 min later - on his way. I hear L. stirring. Uh-oh, I think. Go into the playroom, he opens his eyes. Doesn't look good. I'm racing for hte trashcan. Lying on his back, he begins to throw up and it is a lot, and he begins to choke on it. He isn't turning over. I race to him, turn him over into the trashcan, walk him to the bathroom again.
Strip him down, wipe him down, change his clothes again. This time I have to clean up the carpet, his naptime bed, his blanket, his pillow. (sigh) Stepdad gets here.
And then there were 2.
A.'s mom always picks her up during naptime, so she'll be here soon. S.'s mom calls me a few minutes later. She picked up S's sis from school early, so she's on her way to get S., too. And I have run out of kids at 3:00. I close at 5:30.
All I can do is laugh that this all happened in one day!
Pros:
I'm off early.
L. and K. can't return until at least 2:30 tomorrow due to the 24 hr puke-free rule, and A. probably won't be here either, so tomorrow will be an easy day.
My bathroom is super-sparkly clean, even the baseboards.
I have time to make sure dinner is ready to take to the VT sister.
This whole incident didn't happen when Mrs. Olivia was here. (I canceled my appt.)
Ben came home early.
At least Jackson slept through the night last night and no diarrhea from him today. His cold is getting better, too.
A. stayed home and so was not exposed to the germs floating around today.
Cons:
I have cashed 2 brownies and 2 mini ice cream sandwiches since.
I have a lovely brown spot on the carpet I can't get out.
I have to deep clean the downstairs so none of the other kids get sick.
My house smells like burned plastic because I put some of the toys in the dishwasher and one fell onto the heating element at the bottom of the dishwasher.
Ben gets a flat tire on the way to school this morning. Apparently the tire had a piece of metal stuck in it. This wouldn't be so bad except that the roads in our area are icy. Many school districts are closed. Not mine (note the bitterness), but many. Unfortunately his school wasn't closed either.
Meanwhile, my day went fairly smoothly. I had all my kids except 2. A. stayed home because she had chemo last week and so her immune system is very weak this week. Several of the kids have nasty colds, and catching one could put her in the hospital, so...she's at home. S.M. stayed home because she, too, was in the hospital last week for several days with a nasty respiratory infection - viral. She was isolated in a clean room and everything. None of the other kids got that thankfully. So I had 5 and Jackson.
I was supposed to have an appointment in Lake Worth this afternoon. I was going to take Jackson with me, and Mrs. Olivia was going to come sub for me, but at noon I decided to cancel because I didn't want to get out in this weather. Plus, Ben called and said he was going to get the tire fixed after school (how did he manage to wait that long?) and he didn't know how long that would take, so I had to reschedule my appt. Normally, I would take the Neon, but Sunday the Neon wouldn't start. It's a battery issue, but neither of us have had a chance to deal with it yet, so we are down to the Jeep and yes, the Jeep got a flat tire.
Moving on. Lunchtime. This is the craziest time of the day on ANY day. I am simultaeously trying to open food packages, cancel my appointment, cancel my sub, get Jackson to eat his lunch and not throw it on the floor, play games with the other kids to get them to eat as well (Games include who is going to be the lunch champion today and get to pick the naptime movie OR one-two-three take a bite all at the same time and see who gets done first. Neglecting a lunchtime game results in 1.5 hour lunches.), and K. starts coughing.
She is probably the kid who has the worst cold of all. She has been fighting it for about 3 weeks now. She has been to the dr. twice and the emergency room once. Her cough is dry and non-productive, yet you can hear the mucus clogging her up when she talks and breaths. So...she breaks out into a ten-minute coughing fit. She can't breathe, she is crying, she starts throwing up. I guide her to the bathroom, but don't follow her in because I need to get her a glass of water. (She has already had one, but drank it all. It didn't help.)
Her choice of receptacle? The bathroom sink. Gross. It is bad.
So now I am on the phone trying to call her mom - no answer, and her dad (who just started a new job this week) - no answer.
Than Z.'s mom picks him up (he is a half day kid). As kids often do, Z. stars getting silly and not sticking too close to our lunchtime rules. While she is also on the phone (she is a hospice nurse who sends nurses out via phone), Z. decides it would be a great idea to start a game of tag. SO now I have one kid in the bathroom puking, Jackson crying to get up and throwing his food on the floor, three kids chasing each other around the kiddie tables, and one blessed child sitting calmly and continuing to eat her lunch. I bark at all the kids to sit down and eat, go check on K., still not able to get a full breath, but doing better. Her dad calls me back - he will send Uncle to come get her, it's bad weather anyway...
Skip ahead to post-lunch process. Z. and his mom are gone, kids are a little calmer, K. no longer coughing, but not hungry after the puking. Kids all go potty (in the process Jackson gets in the bathroom and plays with K's puke, still in the sink - haven't gotten a chance to wash it down yet. GROSS!) wash their hands and J's THOROUGHLY), and get on their beds. We are watching a movie, waiting for K.'s uncle to come get her, so we can't turn the naptime CD on yet. It is close to an hour past time to be settled in for nap, but at least I got the kitchen all cleaned up and the kids on their beds.
K's uncle arrives, takes K. home, I turn on the naptime CD, change Jackson's diaper, get him in bed. AAH, naptime begins. (3 kids left out of the 5 I started with today.)
NOPE. A. suddenly needs to go potty again. Poop this time. Which makes S.B. (who is potty training - weakness is #2) instantly remember she needs to poop, too. They both go and wash hands and get back on beds. Now L. says his tummy hurts, and he needs to poop, too. Oh no, I say, not believing him. He was the last of the first rounds of pottiers, so I'm thinking they're all just being turkeys. I go finish cleaning up. I also start dinner - beans (and cornbread and a hamsteak). I'm taking dinner to my VT sister who is not in good health today.
Few minutes later, L. is crying on his bed. I go check on him. Tummy really hurts, he says. Okay, I say, exasperated. We make it to the lineleoum of the kitchen right outside the bathroom. BLAHHH! Peanut butter sandwich and Oreo puke everywhere. (sigh)
On the kitchen floor, all over the bathroom door, all over the baseboards, all over the bathroom rug. (double sigh) Guess I know what I'll be doing all of naptime.
Now I feel bad, should have believed him. So I get him cleaned up, he seems fine now, says his tummy is all better, let him go get on his bed. L. passes out immediately. Bonus! I think, L. fights naptime everyday!
I go clean the bathroom and the floor. wipe up, mop, disinfect, clean rest of the beathroom, clorox wipes all the doorknobs and the kiddie chairs, bag up his clothes, call his mom - no answer, his stepdad - no answer. At least we made it to the lineoleum, I think. At least he didn't puke on the carpet.
Stepdad calls me back about 20 min later - on his way. I hear L. stirring. Uh-oh, I think. Go into the playroom, he opens his eyes. Doesn't look good. I'm racing for hte trashcan. Lying on his back, he begins to throw up and it is a lot, and he begins to choke on it. He isn't turning over. I race to him, turn him over into the trashcan, walk him to the bathroom again.
Strip him down, wipe him down, change his clothes again. This time I have to clean up the carpet, his naptime bed, his blanket, his pillow. (sigh) Stepdad gets here.
And then there were 2.
A.'s mom always picks her up during naptime, so she'll be here soon. S.'s mom calls me a few minutes later. She picked up S's sis from school early, so she's on her way to get S., too. And I have run out of kids at 3:00. I close at 5:30.
All I can do is laugh that this all happened in one day!
Pros:
I'm off early.
L. and K. can't return until at least 2:30 tomorrow due to the 24 hr puke-free rule, and A. probably won't be here either, so tomorrow will be an easy day.
My bathroom is super-sparkly clean, even the baseboards.
I have time to make sure dinner is ready to take to the VT sister.
This whole incident didn't happen when Mrs. Olivia was here. (I canceled my appt.)
Ben came home early.
At least Jackson slept through the night last night and no diarrhea from him today. His cold is getting better, too.
A. stayed home and so was not exposed to the germs floating around today.
Cons:
I have cashed 2 brownies and 2 mini ice cream sandwiches since.
I have a lovely brown spot on the carpet I can't get out.
I have to deep clean the downstairs so none of the other kids get sick.
My house smells like burned plastic because I put some of the toys in the dishwasher and one fell onto the heating element at the bottom of the dishwasher.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Enrichment Tonight
I was asked to speak in church enrichment tonight about how parents can make elementary school fun. It was hard for me because I don't have any kids that are school aged, and sometimes I can get a little too focused on my goals for the kids, and don't always do the fun activities. I don't always remember that these kids have lives outside of school, because by golly, they better have their homework and no excuses, lol. In the classroom, I always try to mix it up, and I try to always have a lighthearted yet encouraging attitude with my group, but making school fun wasn't always my objective as a 3rd grade TAKS teacher.
I decided to spin the topic a little and give tips on how parents can help their kids be more successful in school (thus helping kids enjoy school more). I think it went well. There was a lot of discussion which was great and helped me loosen up a little because I get so nervous when speaking to adults I can hardly stand and hold my notes. I probably got off on tangents and wasted some time and I ended up on point #7 or so when I had 10 points and a discussion group planned, but all in all, I feel like we had good conversation, I felt confident about what ideas I had to offer, and I'd like to think people left having learned some things from some of my experiences. If I have to speak about anything, I'm glad it was about something I feel comfortable with. My nightmare is having to teach Relief Society or something I feel completely unqualified to teach. (Note: I actually did get called to teach RS in a Denton ward once, and I cried every Sunday on the way home from church. It was a miserable experience. Thankfully, the Lord took pity on me and I was released in a month and sent to the Young Women's Presidency, haha.)
Anyway, whew! It's over!!
I decided to spin the topic a little and give tips on how parents can help their kids be more successful in school (thus helping kids enjoy school more). I think it went well. There was a lot of discussion which was great and helped me loosen up a little because I get so nervous when speaking to adults I can hardly stand and hold my notes. I probably got off on tangents and wasted some time and I ended up on point #7 or so when I had 10 points and a discussion group planned, but all in all, I feel like we had good conversation, I felt confident about what ideas I had to offer, and I'd like to think people left having learned some things from some of my experiences. If I have to speak about anything, I'm glad it was about something I feel comfortable with. My nightmare is having to teach Relief Society or something I feel completely unqualified to teach. (Note: I actually did get called to teach RS in a Denton ward once, and I cried every Sunday on the way home from church. It was a miserable experience. Thankfully, the Lord took pity on me and I was released in a month and sent to the Young Women's Presidency, haha.)
Anyway, whew! It's over!!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Clarification/Update
Thanks to everyone who read and commented. I'm feeling a little less stressed now. I always do after I have the weekend to relax a little. Jackson is doing much better. The doctor was right. We just needed to reboot his system with the liquid diet for 2 days and then we put him on the BRAT diet, and he is doing MUCH better. He still isn't back to sleeping all night, and now he has a cold, but that I can handle.
I actually do have a sub who comes in once a week for 5 hours to releive me so I can go to doctor's appointments or take Jackson to doctor's appointments. I've even used her so I could go take a nap, which is so silly to me that I would pay someone so I can sleep, but when it comes down to it, I NEED the sleep sometimes. She plays with the kids, makes copies for me and even cleans my house when she gets bored during naptime. She is WONDERFUL, but even with her help it is still hard to keep up with everything on a daily basis.
I feel a little guilty posting that blog because I neglected to mention how much she helps me and also how much Ben helps me, too. He cooks, cleans, gives me a break so I can go have some girl time, lets me sleep in, etc. all the time. I should give credit where credit is due, but I still get overwhelmed sometimes. I think it is partly due to being tired from pregnancy and partly an overreaction BECAUSE I am pregnant and partly just tired of dealing with a sick kid.
Am I bipolar or what? One day I'm so happy and feeling super-blessed and loving being a mom, the next I'm angry and frustrated and having a pity-party. Some days I have this "I can do everything all by myself. I don't need anyone's help" stupid, prideful attitude and the next day I'm crumbling and feeling sorry for myself. I guess I just need to be humbled occasionally.
I actually do have a sub who comes in once a week for 5 hours to releive me so I can go to doctor's appointments or take Jackson to doctor's appointments. I've even used her so I could go take a nap, which is so silly to me that I would pay someone so I can sleep, but when it comes down to it, I NEED the sleep sometimes. She plays with the kids, makes copies for me and even cleans my house when she gets bored during naptime. She is WONDERFUL, but even with her help it is still hard to keep up with everything on a daily basis.
I feel a little guilty posting that blog because I neglected to mention how much she helps me and also how much Ben helps me, too. He cooks, cleans, gives me a break so I can go have some girl time, lets me sleep in, etc. all the time. I should give credit where credit is due, but I still get overwhelmed sometimes. I think it is partly due to being tired from pregnancy and partly an overreaction BECAUSE I am pregnant and partly just tired of dealing with a sick kid.
Am I bipolar or what? One day I'm so happy and feeling super-blessed and loving being a mom, the next I'm angry and frustrated and having a pity-party. Some days I have this "I can do everything all by myself. I don't need anyone's help" stupid, prideful attitude and the next day I'm crumbling and feeling sorry for myself. I guess I just need to be humbled occasionally.
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