The waiting game

A little calmer post than my last one. :)

Preston had his appointment with his ENT today. Right off the bat, Dr. Smith had us move to another room to "dig out some potatoes" from Preston's ears, but what he really meant, was that he was going to take out the tubes. They were both out of the eardrum but still inside his ears. It was a fairly easy procedure, and Preston did extremely well, despite it being painful. A sucker makes everything a little easier. Long story short, there's still a lot of fluid behind his eardrms now that they're closed up, and that fluid is about half infected, even after a 10-day round of antibiotics. So he is now on a 3 week round of antibiotics. When we go back in 4 weeks, if the fluid is still there, we schedule surgery. I'm not holding out much hope of it being gone considering we're starting the same pattern as last winter, but this is out of our control. We can only pray that his ears will clear up. So now, we wait. If it were up to me, I would've insisted on new tubes, especially since he said that if it was October, that he would just schedule new tubes then and there. But I"m not the professional.

It really frustrates me because of how I've battled with my ears my entire life. I'm on the verge of a full-blown infection right now, and it's really bothering me. So yes, the poor kid is taking after me. There's definitely some strong genetics at play here considering everyone on my dad's side has had ear problems. I don't see this resolving soon, so that really makes it hard. I hate seeing my children in pain. I hate seeing Preston battle multiple ear infections and being on antibiotics all the time. I really don't like him being on them for 3 weeks straight just to see if the fluid clears up. Sigh... It's out of my hands now.

Too late to bite my tongue

Those of you that know me well, know exactly how passionate I am about politics, and how even more passionate I am toward conservative values and politics. So it should come as no surprise that I can no longer bite my tongue and stand behind our president (not that I ever supported him). Socialism is wreaking havoc on our economy thanks to Mr. O, and we're in a downward spiral that's going to create more harm that we can even fathom. Seriously, THIS is bad. Our current state is not good, but compared to what it's going to be like post-Obama, we're in an economic eutopia. Throwing away trillions of dollars in funds we DON'T have for the "stimulus" plan (HA!), his "budget," and now, Nationalized healthcare????? Sorry. I didn't sign up for America to be the laughing stock of global economics. I didn't sign up for my children's, and my grandchildrens' lives to be forever spent paying for our current president's spending. Sorry, but I'm MAD. America made a sick and sorry choice in Novemeber, and we'll be paying for it. I can only pray that in 4 years, we will have smartened up and will NOT re-elect O.

Another sad day

My mom called at 6:45 this morning to tell me that my sister-in-law, Diana's mom had passed away very unexpectedly this morning. It took me completely off-guard. Sharon had suffered from COPD and heart issues for years now, but as of lately, had been doing better. I will miss her greatly as she was always a joy to be around. The one solace I can find is that she will no longer suffer. She's in a much better place now, and I know that that will bring comfort to Diana and her sister, who have both worried about her for a long time. Please keep them all in your prayers as I know they are finding this hard to deal with.

Still sick...

I'll tell you something... the flu STINKS! Yes, I am still sick, and I'm not one bit happy about it! I haven't slept well, the cough is horrible, my throat hurts, my ears hurt, I still feel blah... I have me some antibiotics, but I'm not sure they'll help considering I have the flu, but they'll at least keep my ears from being full-blown infected. Yes, I still have ear issues- no doubt that Preston gets his ear troubles from me! The kids are feeling better, but are still coughing. But right as I went to put Pres to bed tonight, he drank a full glass of water on a full stomach, and started complaining that his belly hurt. I got him to bed, laid with him for a bit, and as I went to leave his room, he got up and projectile vomitted all over me, the floor, his bed, and the wall. GAG! Poor guy! I'm almost positive that it was all the water he drank, because he's been fine all evening, up until he drank so much water. At least I hope it was just the water. After 3 of us having the flu, a stomach bug is the last thing he/we need!

Helloooooooo! Anyone out there?

No, I didn't drop off the face of the Earth, we've just been living in the land og the sickies for the past week. Starting off, our laptop caught a virus and was out of commission for over a week. Living without internet access STINKS! Then, Miss Kate brought home the lovely respiratory flu that wiped out 13 kids from her class over 3 days. She missed Lincoln day and her valentines party, but she was just horribly sick and couldn't go. Then Preston got a nasty, soupy cough that we thought was turning into pneumonia, but luckily didn't. He does however, have anothe ear infection, so we'e off to see the ENT next Thursday to see about new tubes. Yay... Not the best news, but it could be worse. So now, I have the flu, and it's really kicked my butt. Last night, I so wanted to get on here, but I couldn't even stand up. I hit the couch at 8:30 and didn't get up until 6:45 this morning, except to get more motrin everytime it wore off. The body aches and the cough are nasty.

Tonight we're going to the USDA's annual dinner to see Birds of Prey with Grampy. I'm feeling better today now that I'm back to eating and drinking, so I think I'll be OK to go.

Here comes the sun

A little sun and warm weather in the middle of winter sure does make you itch for spring! It reached 60 degrees today, and it was nice. Of course, the kids begged to go outside to play because it was so warm, but really, with the wind, it wasn't really that warm. We did go out and they rode their bikes on the driveway, ran races, and blew bubbles before I got cold and proclaimed it time to go in. Of course, with 8 inches of snow that melted, we were limited to the driveway. But it was nice while it lasted. Starting tomorrow, we're supposed to get rain and thunderstorms through Thursday. Our backyard is already underwater, so I don't even want to think about what it's going to be like after 5 days of rain on frozen ground...

Oh! Christopher finally figured out today that he could splice some wires together and hook up a phone jack directly behind our computer, so it's good-bye super slow wireless jack, hello fast 50 kbps (that's as fast as it gets here in the sticks, folks!). It only took him a year to figure that one out... But this means more pics!

Good-bye, PC

Yep, you read that correctly. Our desktop has gone to PC heaven, more or less. The motherboard went out and it was going to be way too pricey to repair on a 4 year old computer. So our laptop is now our main PC, all hooked up to the mouse, keyboard and monitor so it's easier to use. So thankful we didn't have to buy a new one while we're doing our Total Money Makeover. They were able to back-up our data and photos, and sent us home with our sick CPU, which, when Christopher plugged it in a turned it on, it RAN! It wasn't running properly, so it is useless.

Tonight was Aunt Barb's visitation, which really puts everything in perspective. And anytime you take young children, there's bound to be some memorable moment. Tonight, that was Kate, asking why Aunt Barb looked like plastic. Christopher explained the whole aspect to her, in scientific terms, of course. The kids and I are staying home from the funeral tomorrow. They just aren't looking forward to it, and they didn't know Barb very well since we only saw her 2-3 times a year.

Tomorrow will be a full day of everything Valentine as we tackle getting ready for their school parties this week!

You miss a day...

And it seems like there's so much to blog about! I'm sitting here in Kate's beanbag chair on the laptop, because there's still no word on our PC, which is still in the shop. I got a bad feeling walking into that place. It REEKED of cigarette smoke, which I can NOT stand. Plus, the girl working there keeps her infant child in there while she works... So who knows what will turn out, but I did make sure to tell them NOT to do a thing to it until they call me and let us know how much it will be. After our driveway fraud last May, I'm not taking any chances of getting ripped off again!

Poor Preston... his temp came back this afternoon, which is never a good sign. I'm hoping it was just a thermometer fluke. If it's still there in the a.m., he definitely has to be seen. He's acting fine, and not complaining, so I'm not too worried, but he's still sick, so I'm concerned.

Yesterday, Christopher's Great-Aunt Barb passed away, after being admitted to the hospital on Sunday. We still don't know what exactly was wrong- when Keith called us Sunday, it sounded like an anphylactic reaction, but haven't heard any more. She will be missed.

So what am I excited about? Gymboree is having their Baby Sale! YEEEEESSSSSS! You just can't pass up their clothes at $10 and $20! Plus, I got a 20% off coupon in the mail! So Tuesday, Preston and I are heading to Fairview to hit the Baby Sale and Archivers- running low on scrapping supplies! And I just placed a Mini Boden order with their 10% off and free shipping and returns. They have the BEST stuff under the sun!!! Gotta love it!

Six more weeks

Today is groundhog day. I have no idea wether or not he saw his shadow as I haven't watched the news. Really, I've always thought groundhog day was pretty dumb, because regardless of wether or not he sees his shadow, there's still 6 more weeks of winter.

As I was driving through town today, the sign on the car wash said, "We need winter to appreciate spring," and I thought, "Wow! How very true!" We had a similar conversation with Preston a few weeks ago as we took down our Christmas decorations, and he was devastated. We explained that if we kept them up all year, then next Christmas, they wouldn't be exciting anymore. That didn't satisfy him, but still, they came down. I'll be the first to tell you how much I hate winter. I hate being cold, hate driving in the snow, hate bundling up, just everything that involves being cold. But spring just wouldn't be as enticing if we didn't have to suffer through winter to get to it! I'm already thinking ahead to how nice spring will be. I can't wait for my bulbs to pop up and bloom, to go outside without coats, to see leaves again, and green grass. I can't wait for robins to arrive, and the chipmunk family to emerge. I can't wait to play outside and break out by spring wardrobe. There's so much to look forward to in the next few weeks. And really, six weeks isn't that far off!

And another good thing about spring- cold a flu season is over! Poor Preston... The good news is that he hasn't complained about his ears all day. Bad news is, that he sprung a fever today with that soupy cough. We'll see how he feels tomorrow and if the fever is still around. His lungs sound great, thank goodness! After all the asthma, I know this child's lungs like the back of my hand. I know what to listen for. We may have to break out the nebulizer tomorrow just to be safe, but at this point, if I took him in, they'd send us home to wait it out. Kate's not feeling the best either, but at least she made it to school today, although I didn't have her go to honor chorus after school. Praying we get these kids healthy!

Madder than a possum in a cat house

** UPDATE** Christopher arrived to work today to find a cardboard box on his desk. Inside was an ornament made to look like a possum. Around the outside of the box, they had taped pictures of cats, including one that was hissing. This was their version of "Madder than a possum in a cat house!" He showed me a picture, and it was hilarious! Apparently, Friday afternoon, they had convinced Christopher to leave at 3:30 so that they could all make this cat house! How flipping hilarious is that?!?!?!?!?!?

That's our newest catch phrase. Sounds like something you'd hear out in the country (maybe because that's where we are...), along with the likes of "Colder than a welldigger's butt" and "Madder than a hornet." This phrase comes thanks to Christopher's dad, courtesy of the research staff at MoBap.

If you know Keith as well as we do, you know that he is accident prone. Most of the stuff that happens, we can only laugh, and say that it could only happen to him. This is no different. About 2 weeks ago, while they were in San Antonio, we were out at their house and noticed that the kittens were not in their cat house. Mind you, it was only in the single digits, so any smart kitten would've been inside the heated cat house. So when they returned home, Keith went out to see why they weren't going in it. By this time, it was below zero. Lo and behold, there is a possum in the cat house, and it comes out and bites him on the hand! The critter was quickly "taken care of", which in the sticks means, shot with a rifle. Dee calls the state health dept. which tells her that possums cannot get/spread rabies, so Keith decides not to go to the dr. Of course, Christopher cannot fathom why medical attention was not saught, and just knows his dad will become rabid or otherwise infected with some deadly animal disease. He shares this info. with his co-workers, which seem to have the same feeling. So, in good fun, and their ever present running joke about Van, they come up with the phrase, "Madder than a possum in a cat house."

I can't count the times this week we've busted out laughing when we think of this phrase! And if you're wondering how Keith is faring, he has not yet started foaming from the mouth or biting his grandchildren, so he isn't rabid. ;)

CRASH!

Coming to you live, via our laptop! Seems that our desktop has crashed tonight and we cannot revive it. Sigh... Looks like I need to call PC Docs tomorrow to have them look at it and see what's wrong and how much it will be to repair it- if it's even going to be worth fixing being that it's 4 years old. I hate using the laptop because the keyboard is so awkward and I've made so many spelling mistakes already. But at least I have internet access!

Not much to report from our weekend. Kate and I made some major progress on the dollhouse and got the roof completely done and the staircase built. Now I need to do some staining and polyurethane the finished parts so that we can do a lot more this weekend. Both kids woke up with colds yesterday. Kind of discouraging considering they just got over colds just last week! This morning, Preston started complaining about his left ear. We gave him some drops and some Motrin just in case. He was fine all day, but right before bed, he started complaining again so he got another round of drops. I'm praying that it does not get infected. It's in the ear that Dr. Smith said that the tube is pretty much completely out, which means that the eardrum is healed over and no longer able to ventilate. If that's the case, the drops are useless and he'll definitely need oral antibiotics. Ugh. Hopefully we won't be driving to Matoon this week for an ear check.

Signing out... too many typos that I had to correct.