Swing Swing

Ok, haven't been blogging much. But did you really want to read about the 8 straight weeks of antibiotics, the 3 cases of pneumonia, the constant ear infections, and the $220 paid in co pays? Didn't think so. Nor did I have the energy or desire to write about it.

School ended and the crazy month of June had trips. Carpinteria, Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo, The Sequioa National Forrest, Buena Vista Lake, and Fresno. I have the pictures in flickr to show you. I saved my self the time of writing and just took a bunch of pictures.

I have been known to swing back and forth in my interests. But one thing I keep coming back to is photography. So the other day all three kids took a nap and I got to play with photoshop on the new computer. Something I didn't used to get to do during nap time. I wanted to show you the before and afters. I am just learning but it is so much fun to play with this program.

3 Things List Time

Procrastinating as usual.

Last 3 things I have googled;
1. Zhu Zhu pets
2. Iphone
3. canon lens

Top 3 things I should be doing;
1. laundry
2. cleaning
3. playing with my kids

Last 3 things I have complained about;
1. sick kids
2. economy
3 not losing the baby weight

3 things I am thankful for;
1. kids
2. husband
3. staying home

Last 3 things I have eaten;
1. wheat thins
2. mac and cheese
3. yogurt

3 things I have thought about posting;
1. sick kids
2. pizza delivery guy
3. sick kids

3 things I am looking forward to;
1. wine
2. finishing the cookbook
3. Jerry coming home

Just Can't Win this Winter

I think I am coming down with another bug. I am going to fight it, hard. But seriously is there a bug I haven't caught yet? The kids have been healthier than me.

Just when I get going on a good gym routine too.

Never Ending Sinus Infection

Might as well have a picture to go with this story.

Two years ago I was told I needed surgery. I didn't have one. I got a second opinion and that Dr. had me treat the infection with antibiotics. Every time I got an infection I would go back to him. Until we moved here. I have had several sinus infections already this year so I went back for another CT scan. Guess what, I still have the same problems. Somethings have gotten better some things have gotten worse. I have chronic sinusitis in every single sinus. I would be very interested in comparing these CT scans with the ones I had in college before my sinus surgery.

Tomorrow, I am going to get some blood taken so we can allergy test. I had the skin test done my first year teaching and living in Palmdale. I didn't come up allergic to anything but cats & clover. I am very interested in these results. Because I don't like taking allergy medicine if I don't have allergies.

The other thing is, I am currently taking a 14 day antibiotic that is a huge dry horse pill that get stuck in my throat every time. I don't think antibiotics even work for me anymore, considering how many I have been on. Plus, Caroline is not reacting well to it. I think. She has had an upset tummy since I started it.

Fun stuff.

A little too soon

I was feeling better yesterday. Phase 2 hit last night, or maybe I caught something new. So far I am the only sick one in our house. I hate it. But really who likes being sick?

The worst part is night time. I actually dread going to sleep at night when I am sick. I know it's not going to be a restful night. Then I have to get up and out of bed to nurse. Torture.

Off to drink some liquids and get a nap.

Every once and awhile

I go a little crazy and think I can do more than I can. I get a little too busy, make plans, follow through, fall apart.

Monday after a whirl wind trip south and back I was so tired. Then I became sick. It hit like a bus, fever, body aches, headache and a cough. Luckily now all that is left is a cough and sore muscles. It feels like I have been working out, and I haven't.

I panicked and thought the worst. I have swine flu. I guess it was possible. So today the kids got their flu shots. But get this,to vaccinate for the swine flu each kid needs 2 shots at $17 each. Nice. $102 to try a brand new vaccine, that I am not sure I want to get at all. So I am going to do a little more research. The pediatrician recommends it, of course.

So I am the only one in our house who still needs the flu shot. I haven't had one yet. Big decisions. I guess as long as I don't try to do too much I won't get sick. Logic.

Sickies Again

I am taking a quick moment to post something on this little blog of mine. It's amazing how sick kids can really interfere with my Internet time.

Hannah is getting over the pneumonia but we are now treating her for asthma as well. I have tried to do some research on the Internet to investigate what this means for her. It's overwhelming to me.

James caught the flu and has been throwing up on an off for about 4 days. Poor kid hasn't had solid food and is pretty miserable. He is a little trooper though.

I felt like I was catching something, but now I am will powering myself through it. I don't have time to be sick as well. Jerry had been home for 3 1/2 of his 4 day'er and was tons of help. We are on lock down letting our brains turn to mush by watching way too much TV. But that's how we survive for now. Clear liquids, Tylenol & TV.

puddles

Today I melted into a big giant puddle of me. After the long trek up north, the funeral, Hannah being sick and just being gone from my home I melted. I had this crazy all night and into the morning dizzy spell & I hadn't really felt the baby moving much. I went into my OB just to be safe. The Nurse Practitioner thought my sinuses were the cause of the dizziness. The baby is fine. I really think my body just threw in the towel and said "get some rest girl."

I took a "Jerry" nap today and felt better. Hannah has a check up for her Pneumonia tomorrow. Jerry will be home again and we can get back to normal. I hope.

By the way, +3 lbs and +3 inches in the waist. We start every 2 week apointments now.

Sick Bed

Yesterday I was fine today I am sick, AGAIN. I am so sick and tired of it. I have not been 100% over a cold since Halloween. Each cold I get makes me angrier and angrier. I get it, pregnancy = reduced immune system, etc. I just finished an antibiotic for a sinus infection. I don't think it even worked, too gentle of a drug considering my conditions (chronic sinus problems & pregnancy).

Needles to say when I woke up this morning with bricks shoved in my forehead, up my nose, in my ears and down my throat I was mad. A mad sick momma doesn't make for very good company. When we got home from school I made a big deal out of gathering all the pillows and blankets from the house to make a giant bed to cuddle and watch Christmas movies. It worked well until "nap" time. Which neither of them took, now they are bouncing off the walls and I am supervising from a quieter place.

Jerry is home tomorrow, maybe he can tie up all my loose ends and watch the kids by himself while I sleep. Oh, I have to bake cookies for the preschool too. Fun.

sickies

That would be the award my family would win.

Today Hannah was diagnosed with pneumonia.

She is taking antibiotics as home to cure it.

Should be back to normal real soon.

running rampant

I will admit I am a bit depressed this morning. When mainstream media has their mind made up they run with it. I wish I could feel more comfortable, but I haven't gotten all the information, just the parts others want me to hear.

I had a bit of a cold over the weekend. I squeezed my run in on Saturday but Sunday I skipped. I also chose not to get out of bed on Monday or Tuesday for the treadmill. But today I got up and took Chip on a run. I wasn't feeling the best, but I knew it would be the best thing I can do for myself. The funny thing is I have been seeing all these people out running lately and they look terrible, their posture is off and they look like they are in pain. Today as I am running I start thinking about my posture and stride and I feel off. I had to work hard to ignore all of that and just run, and hopefully I don't look like a dork.

fell off the face of the earth...

at least with my blogging and reading of blogs.

Here is the deal,

Jerry came home the first week of April with a tweaked back. We thought it would be a quick rest and go back to work, however he is still home. What we think happened was that when he broke his back last May he also ruptured a disc and this went undiagnosed until now. Luckily enough he just has to rest it and it will heal, there is a chance of surgery in the future. For now he is mending with out going under the knife. He should be going back to work in a couple of weeks.

At the same time, same week he came home, we found out that our well that was giving us 8 gallons per minute is now only producing one. You have to have 5 to get a building permit. This was really depressing and it took a long time to understand. Because of this and the current housing market we decided to buy a house instead of building. So the search was on, we looked at many different areas and weighed issues like house/yard size to drive time to family near by and what we decided was Bakersfield. We started looking and found a really great buy, a never been lived in house that is in foreclosure, in a nice neighborhood, with good schools, around the corner from my in laws. So we are in escrow and if it all goes through I will have some of my creature comforts back in the beginning of June. I liked living up on the mountain because there was great hiking and a small town and I made a great friend. But I am looking forward to living in Bakersfield as well.

This is all why I fell off the face of the earth. I had to sort out my life before I could begin to blog about it.

Hot Rocks

BC -before children, I had gotten an occasional massage, I hadn't really found the appeal because of my lack of relaxation in the process. I kind of found it to be a waste of my time and money. I had been carrying around two gift cards for spa experiences and I finally decided to cash them in. I picked a day told Jerry he couldn't pick it up for work and I scheduled a massage. Since I was going to be there I also scheduled a hair cut. I decided to try the Hot Stone massage, I thought it looked interesting.

Yesterday was my day of pampering, I decided no mater what I wasn't going to feel guilty. I thoroughly enjoyed my Massage, now I find the appeal in them. My hair looks good again. Plus they were having a big re-grand opening week and I got some fun free stuff added in. It really was a nice day.

My masseuse offered me a glass of wine to completely relax, boy it works. Another technician said to her "what about the toxins?" Which made me laugh considering I had just detoxed with diet. We decided drinking a bunch of water would counter act any negative the wine may induce. By the way I survived all fruit just fine. I actually liked the challenge of it and thank goodness for avocados!

Yoga

I used to be a yoga skeptic now I am a yoga addict. I am the first to admit that I am a hypocrite. Because I used to freely bash yoga. Oh my, how things have changed in my brain.

My first experience was in college when I had a co-worker who was a bit of a free spirit. She gave me a VHS with a yoga workout on it. It was to help my back. Needless to say it had some sun salutes and some gentle stretching on it. Not much of a work out for someone who is used to running. So I quickly quit using it.

Then I tried a power yoga class at 24hr. Whoa! craziness, it was too much and too intimidating.

Then when I was a gym rat after I had my kids I would watch the people coming out of the yoga class and I would judge. Especially the guy who wouldn’t put his shoes back on and he would wander around the gym barefoot, Yuck! I didn’t attempt any of the classes because the babysitting at the gym was usually too full during yoga classes.

I went to a couple of yoga classes with my mother in law and learned it was a pretty cool workout. It got my curiosity peaked but I didn’t do much until I moved up on the hill. Then when reading our local gossip paper, I mean newspaper, I saw that a new yoga studio had opened around the time we moved up. The Twisted Cow, it had me interested, it took me several weeks to get up the courage to go to a class. It was great! I told my new friend Misty about it and she joined me. Soon our teacher Kerri had her hands full with a couple of yoga junkies.

Needless to say right about the time I was getting really addicted Jerry went back to full duty. His regular schedule is hit and miss for me to make it to class. I do depend on him because somebody’s got to watch the kids. I started missing my class and my evening away. So now I am trying everything I can to keep up my yoga practice at home, DVD’s, the Fit channel, practice what I have learned in class, and books.

I still am addicted to running, however with the lack of a gym staffed with baby sitters, I run less often. I think I am making up for it with my yoga practice. I can do yoga at home in the living room while Hannah naps. Since James has long ago given up the nap, he usually spends time with me doing his own version of yoga.

I can tell I am an addict because I am constantly thinking about it and I can’t wait to learn more and to become stronger and more graceful.

It feels like forever

Since my last post, that is.

I have been busy but so have you. We made it through the holidays. A new year with out any resolutions from me. I just everyday keep trying to get back to my running. I can't believe how easily routine gets thrown off this time of year.

I don't have to have surgery, now. I went to a dr. with brain and he said I would have to get a few of these infections before he would even consider operating. Fee-ewe.

My newest family project is seeing if I can potty train Hannah. Today was the first day. She is 18 months old, mainly poops in the toilet and has a keen interest. Wouldn't it be great to be rid of diapers? She did pretty good. Her brother however got jealous over the potty chair. We didn't use one with him, but since Hannah is such a peanut I don't want her climbing up to the toilet. The other funny part is training underwear start at a 18 month size and a 24lb weight. She just weighed in at 20lbs at her 18mo check up. So they are these giant baggy underwear. I have a couple of options, 1 do nothing and laugh at the size difference, 2 alter the ones I bought, 3 try to make some in her tiny size. If we get snowed in tomorrow I might attempt alterations.

Still haven't started the well. I don't know what the hold up is we drove past the site where the well driller is working and nothing is happening. Probably weather related.

We are bracing ourselves for this supposed giant storm headed our way. If we actually get some snow it will be fun for the kids. And a way to be outside doing something different.

What a mess

Well I have been busy, as most of you have been too. Tis the season.

Here is a quick update on our happenings.

The kids and Jerry are doing great. Jame is still into monster trucks and Hannah is into what ever her brother is doing. But she does slip away to sit at the book shelf and read books. Jerry has been working a ton. I think we are drilling a well very soon.

I am a mess. Besides being busy I got the slightest flu beginning of last week. That tiny case of flu turned into a sinus mess. I have been getting my terrible sinus headaches again. I went straight to an ear nose and throat guy this time. He had me get a CT scan and it turns out I am a mess. My plumbing is not working well at all. So I need another sinus surgery. The first one apparently only focused on the nose. This time I need to see a specialist and have the sinuses behind my eyes and above my eyes fixed. So considering this time of year its a little hard to get appointments and all but I am scheduled for a second opinion next week and with the specialist the first dr. recommended. Here is the kicker, the first dr. told me that antibiotics wont do me any good and that I will get addicted to pain medication. So he sent me on my way just to deal with the pain. That is one of the main reasons I am getting a second opinion. But I still have to make it through Christmas on my own. I have some left over pain meds from previous infections that I am using when it gets really bad. But I still have a life to live.

Well I will keep my blog updated as I get new information. Happy Holidays!

Running... out of time.

I really want to run the city to the sea 1/2 marathon October 14th. It has been my plan for a half a year now. But somewhere between the race on July 14th and now I have lost so much in my conditioning. I feel like I am starting all over from scratch. Hopefully its not as bad as I think it is and I can still do it. Even though I can't run as good as I was running, I am thankful that I did manage to move. Moving was my major set back.

Oh my back

Its a sad state of affairs here in monkey central. Yesterday we went to the lake, we had a great day. However, I tweaked my back wake boarding. Then on the way home we got a hole in our tire. So my manly man wanted to change it himself. But the piece of junk jack that came with the car led to another tweaked back and a call to AAA.

So today we are taking turns with the heating pad and rubbing down each other with the tiger balm.

You don't even want to guess what the inside of our house looks like right now.

I am only going to let this slow us down a day. Ready OK!

Small & Mighty II

By the way James is great but it's all about Hannah these days.

We had our 12 month check up today.

Weight: 19.1 lbs - 20%
Height: 29.5 in - 50%

at our 9 mo check up

Weight: 16.12
Height: 27.5

She is growing slowly but surely.

Crazy Monkey Days

I don't have much time for blogging but I will fill you in on a bunch of stuff in one long post. Things are busy, busy, busy for me these days. No complaints, we have established some routines, and that makes be feel better than I was feeling last weekend. I took a couple days last week and had do nothing days.

Then on Thursday I decided I better start cleaning up again for the weekend in case we get anyone wanting to look at the house. Mid day Thurs we got a call for someone wanting to look on Friday. I like 24 hours notice. I knew I needed to mow the lawn and clean up out doors. But I didn't know Jerry was going to have me weed-eat. I have never done it before so I got a quick lesson and some constant supervision from him. I trimmed the hedges and was hosing the sidewalk down when Jerry came out to say him and James wanted to swim. Which means, I have to change everyone, sunscreen, towels, pool cover off, floaters on, etc. I get them all ready and situated and then I move into the back yard to hose off the concrete. Jerry then wants me to turn on the spa because the pool is not warm enough to just sit in.

So, I turn off the solar panels wrong and all of a sudden there is a gushing stream of water off of the roof. I look a Jerry and think oh, no! He looks at me like, really did you have to go and do that? So he is getting upset with me and I tell him to calm down I can fix it. So here I go climbing up on the roof, I don't like heights or climbing ladders but I am doing it. It turns out I just blew off a cap that was put on with a hose clamp. An easy fix. Jerry later tells me he didn't think I was going to be able to fix it. But I did. While I am up on the roof fixing things my husband is floating in the spa. He tells me "you know the solar panels could really use a hose off so they work better." I am just laughing at the whole situation. So I climb up and down a few times with tools, hoses, etc. Everything is now fixed and clean.

I still have the whole patio area to hose off & Hannah wakes up from her nap. So she gets plopped in the holding pen (spa) with the others. Needless to say I was pretty tired after everything I did that day. So I ordered a pizza for dinner. Jerry kept teasing me about how hard it was being the dad. But what he forgets is I am dad & mom right now 24/7. Usually I am dad and mom just part of the week, now it is constant.

By the way I am an update from the Dr appointment we had on Wednesday. Jerry took more x-rays and everything looks good it just is going to take time to heal. He has 4 more weeks doing the same as he is now, then he will probably have 4 more weeks of what he is doing now without the brace. Then he may get to go back to work, but it might not be full duty.

Here is a picture of the building he fell at. He fell from where the window is.

A last and final note. James is getting really good at swimming with his floaties. By the end of the summer it will be really cool to see his progress.