Fall favorites

Fall is in full-swing, and there are several things I'm just loving right now! In no particular order...
Ballet flats. I live in these shoes! They are absolutely the most comfortable shoes ever (aside from flip flops), and they can go with just about any outfit.

Jeans! I love jeans! I live in them as well! Being petite and thin, it's always been a challenge to find jeans that fit, but Ann Taylor Loft fits the bill! Finally, jeans that fit and don't need to be hemmed!

Footie pajamas! The kids both love their footies (yes, even Kate). We all hate waking up chilly! Plus, I just love how cute they look! I have a bunch of Gymbucks that need redeemed, so this pair of cowboy footies is on my list for my little cowboy! Besides, they match his cowboy bedroom!

Kashi Go Lean Cruch Honey Almond Flax. I got a free sample in the mail the other day and went right out and bought a box. It's that good! 32% of my daily value of fiber, too! That's about the only thing healthy about this cereal. There's nothing overly healthy about 12 g. of sugar first thing in the morning, but the fiber kind of justifies it for me.

The Beatles Please, Please Me remastered album. We rotate this one with the new remastered Hard Days Night album, and the kids are just crazy about the Beatles! Preston is still going to be George for Halloween, and his suit came today. Can't wait!

Perks

One of the perks of Christopher's job are the drug rep. goodies he gets. He used to come home with scads of pens, pads of paper, laser pointers, you name it, all sporting the drugs Alimta, Avastin, Procrit and the likes. Because of a new law that took effect Jan. 1 of this year, they can no longer give out those goodies, but they still bring food! Unfortunately, I don't get to see most of that! Every Friday the drug reps. bring them lunch, and occasionally, if there's extra, Christopher will bring it home. One time it was a cuper rich chocolate cake. Last Friday, it was sandwiches from Cool Beans in St. Louis. To die for! One of them was veggies and cheddar on rye, and it was amazing! I'd never had a veggie sandwich before, but it's definitely something that I would make. Mmmmmmm!

It finally feels like fall

Today was our first day that really felt like fall. It was a pretty nippy 55 when we left the house this morning, all wearing jeans and jackets. It was really nice, though! Tonight, it's supposed to get down to around 48, so it will be another chilly morning tomorrow! Since it was much cooler, I decided it was time to go ahead and wash all of the new fall clothes for the kids. Now they both have new cool-weather clothes to wear. That's what I'm excited about- a change in wardrobe! I'm so sick of my summer clothes (and the kids').

Adding to the fall weather, the trees in our yard are starting to change colors already! Some of them have been dropping their leaves already, much to Christopher's dismay, and when we went out to play after dinner, they were crunchy under our feet. I can't wait until they really start falling and we can rake them up and play in them. Christopher absolutely hates all of the leaves because he's the one who has to do all of the clean-up. When you've got 20 mature trees in your backyard alone, and it's fenced in, all those leaves collect, and that's a LOT of leaves!

Hopefully the fall weather cooperates with us because Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, Christopher and his dad will be putting our new windows in. That is, if it doesn't rain. I can't wait! We haven't been able to open windows since we moved in almost 2 years ago because they won't easily open or close, so this will be nice! I haven't even seen them yet other than the picture in the brochure (can you tell I didn't go order them?), so I'm excited to see how nice they look!

G is for garage sale

Last weekend was the city-wide garage sale, and Granny called me to see if I wanted to go with her. First off, Granny is the garage sale queen. She always has been, but this was the first time I'd been with her in years to see her in action. Not only did she have a typed list of the ones she wanted to stop at, she had them numbered in order to save time and driving! We went all over town, and this was my big find. I love the green paint! I got it for a whopping $3! Christopher even liked it! Other than the table, I really didn't find much. I did get 2 things of Martha Stewart glitter for a project I'm wanting to do, and a Curious George book for Preston.

Saturday is the city-wide sale in Shiloh, and Diana wants me to go along. I'm not too big on the idea of driving an hour first thing in the morning, but I also need some stuff in Fairview, so I really need to go. She went last year and said it was just amazing, all the deals she found. I'm super picky about buying anything at garage sales, so I'm not sure I'll come back with much of anything, but it should be fun anyway!

Happy birthday, Preston!

Let's try this again since the last post accidentally got deleted. Ugh... Preston was up bright and early Saturday morning to open his gifts from us. He was so excited for it to be his birthday! His favorite gift from us was his plasma car. They had some of these at preschool and he loved them! Even Kate said it was awesome and they've both been wheeling it around the house since yesterday morning!

They both also liked the bed tent and spent quite a bit of time playing in there before the party. It was all Preston could do to wait until 5:00! I can't tell you how many times he asked, "How much longer until my party?"

Preston had a really great party. He really enjoyed all of his gifts, particularly the Playmobil, which he is still really into. Here he is tearing into one of his many gifts.

The weather was perfect for our menu- chili and baked potatoes (among the mass of sides). After a storm blew up around 2:00, it cooled off pretty quickly to 60 degrees, so we were able to open up the house. The meal was pretty tasty, and thank you to everyone who brought some side dishes. YUM!

Preston's getting ready to blow out his candles, which by his request, were the trick kind that re-light. After blowing out the candles on his monster truck cake, only one lighted back up, I told him that those were some tricky candles (being sarcastic). Preston replied, "Yeah, they were trick candles! I tricked them and they didn't light back up!" There you go! Proof that there's always 2 ways to look at things! What a smart little 6 year old!

This was Preston's birthday shirt. I saw them selling on etsy for around $18 and though, I can do that! So I made it, and it was incredibly easy! So easy in fact, that I have another one with a P that's half made. I just need to sew the P on the shirt. It doesn't seem possible that my baby is 6. He's grown up on me too fast. I am so incredibly thankful that I have been able to stay at home with him every single day and witness every accomplishment. Those memories are priceless. Happy birthday, baby!

6 years ago today

Six years ago today, I landed myself in the hospital, a victim of circumstance and choice. I had gone for my weekly OB appointment, and I had been told the week before that if I had dilated anymore by that day, that I wouldn't be going home. So when Dr. Dermoday told me I was 5 cm, I had a meltdown. Gotta love those raging hormones! After I stopped bawling, we discussed the circumstances, and he gave me two options- do an amnio to check for lung maturity, then an induction, or check in upstairs for the remainder of my pregnancy. Being that I wanted an all-natural, non-interventive birth, I chose the latter.

As for being admitted, really, I had no choice. I was being admitted no matter what, it just depended on when I was having a baby. I was only 36 weeks, still technically pre-term, and was still considered high-risk from the placenta previa that I'd had early on in my pregnancy. Luckily, by 28 weeks, the placenta had moved just enough to allow me to not need a c-section, but I was still at risk for an abruption because it was so low. Also taking into consideration that Preston had not dropped, there was also risk of cord prolapse if my water would break. I also lived 45 minutes from the hospital, and Kate's labor/birth was 1 1/2 hours from start to finish. Since I was already half way dilated, my dr. just knew I'd deliver on the side of the highway. Like I said, I had no choice in going home.

We grabbed my bags and my birthing ball, and headed upstairs to my lovely L&D room to wait for Preston. We had no clue how long we'd be there. The on-call dr. that night thought for sure I'd deliver by morning, and for that reason, withheld all food. That did not make me a happy camper!!! Long story short, I was still there waiting 2 days and 2 cm, later before anything ever happend. Yep, that's right, I was 7 cm and still no labor. In fact, I was 7 cm. for almost 24 hours before labor began. Sweet!! And I wouldn't have delivered on the side of the road had I gone home, because his labor was an hour longer than Kate's (what happened to them getting shorter?)! But everything worked out in my favor, and I had the 100% natural, non-interventive birth that I had planned, with no complications at all, and the sweetest little black-haired boy that there ever was in my arms. I could not have asked for more.

Let's party!

Preston had his class party today, and he was so excited! It was definitely the highlight of his day. He's been having some separation anxiety lately, so to have me at school with him, just made his day! We took green cupcakes, and by order of the birthday boy, we had to have both chocolate and vanilla. With making 2 batches of 24 cupcakes, and only 19 kids in his class, you can imagine (or do the math) how many cupcakes we have left!

After snack time was over, all the kids went back to the classroom and played barn ball- a game where you earn chances to toss toy barn animals into a bucket for points. We had also brought in treat bags, so each child had to read 2 words (I, am, the, little) to get to toss the animals, then Preston gave them each their treats. It was really neat. Mrs. Tedrick really does a great job with those kids, and you can tell they all really enjoy her class! Since today was an early dismissal, she went ahead and let me take Preston with me, which was only 15 minutes early, but he really thought that was special!

Preston's class also took their first field trip today to watch them raise the circus tent. Mrs. Tedrick said that when Preston got on the bus, he said, "Hey! There's no seatbelts on school busses!" It was his first time, and he thought riding without a seatbelt was the neatest thing! It poured on them. Imagine a bunch of kindergarteners out in the pouring rain and mud. Yeah. I'm glad I wasn't there! We went to the circus tonight, and it was a waste of time and money (highway robbery). Preston started whining 10 minutes into it, and wanted to go home. I'd just spent $16 on my ticket alone (they had free passes from school), so we were going to stay longer than 10 minutes. Preston hated it. Kate enjoyed it, so it wasn't a total loss. I hate circuses- absolutely despise them. There are so many ethical issues at play to even begin mentioning. It could also stem from my falling off the bleachers at a circus when I was younger than Preston. I vividly remember that incident and the blue sailor dress that I was wearing- it was that traumatic. We came home tonight covered in mud. I think it will be our last circus...

Accomplishments

After getting a late start on Preston's party preparations (like alliteration?), I"m finally feeling like I'm getting on top of things. I got all of the cupcakes baked and iced today, all ready for his class party tomorrow afternoon. Treat bags for class party are made. Gifts for Saturday are wrapped. I"m doing my grocery shopping tomorrow morning to free up my morning on Friday since the kids get out of school at 11:30. That just leaves the cake to bake and decorate Friday night, and put the food together Saturday afternoon. It helps that I've cut back on the menu this time and not serving 10 different things like usual. Yes, I like to cook and entertain!

Tomorrow is the big circus. I'm not looking forward to it at all because I have ethical issues with the way they treat their animals. It just makes me so sad/mad. We're only going because the kids came home from school with free tickets and they're asking to go. Preston's school is taking the students to see the elephants raise the big tent tomorrow morning at 9:00. This will be Preston's first field trip, and his first time on a school bus. He's been talking for a week about seeing them raise the tent, so he's pretty excited!

A whole new house

This is what our house looked like this morning before the painters came.

And this is what it looked like when they left!

It seriously doesn't even look like the same house! I love the new color. It makes the house look so much better than the green. Now, if the bricks were just stacked stone, then we'd be in business! If you ever need any kind of painting done, absolutely call Ritchey Painting. They were SO fast, careful, and professional! Not to mention extremely reasonable! I hope they know how fabulous their work is because I told them that many times! A sweet thank you card is definitely in order! As are many recommendations!!!

But the best part... When Kendra came to pick up Gracie, she drove right past our house before she realized it! I'd forgotten to tell her the painters were coming! Love it!

Not Me Monday

It hasn't been a busy Not Me week around here because as you all well know, I just don't do too many things that are wrong. ;) For one, I certainly did not leave an empty milkshake cup in my car for 2 days because I was too lazy to bring it in. I'm always on top of things! I also did not let Preston sit inside by himself during our garage sale to play the Wii because he didn't want to be out in the garage with us. What kind of mother would do something like that? And I did not put a sign on my brother's computer desk that was in my sale that read, "PLEASE, buy me! I can't go back home!" And when said desk did not sell for $5, I certainly did not haul Seth's desk off to the thrift shop without his consent. I'm a good sister, I promise! I did not send Kate to school Friday fully intending for her to eat school lunch even though I knew that the pizza they were having had pepperoni on it, and she hates pepperoni. And when she found out and threw a fit, I did not tell her that she was just going to have to pick it off or go hungry. Seriously, I couldn't do that to my daughter.

Total chaos

Friday and Saturday we had the big (huge) garage sale. It wasn't nearly as bust as the one we had in May, but we still got rid of a lot of stuff. I boxed a lot up to take to the thrift store, too. Now, no more garage sales until May. Annette and I were both exhausted by the time we packed up yesterday. Totally exhausted.

While we garage saled, Christopher took the shutters off the house because the painters are coming tomorrow, barring any rain. Since they're in perfect condition, we're painting them rather than replacing them, which meant we had to make a trip to Effingham last night to see if Menards had any shutter-loks because ours broke when they were coming down. Menards had none, so we had to order them online. I can't wait to see how the house looks with everything finished! Our windows are in as well, so right now it's home improvement central around here!

This week is going to be absolutely crazy. Monday, I have Gracie and the painters. Tuesday, I have to paint the shutters so that Christopher can hang them when he's off Wednesday. Wednesday, I have to bake the cupcakes for Preston's school party on Thursday. Thursday, I have to clean bathrooms and be at Preston's school at 1:00 for his party. Plus, they get out at 2:00 and 2:15 that day, and there's a circus in town at 4:30. Friday, I have to buy groceries for the party before the kids get out at 11:30, bake the cake, start prepping food for Saturday, have Kate's parent/teacher conference, all with both kids home... Saturday is Preston's birthday and we have close to 30 people coming over that evening, so it's going to be a hectic day! I'm praying we don't have a repeat of Kate's party back in April, when Preston ended up in the ER at St. Anthony's the day of the party for a quick-strep, which thankfully was negative. Now, that was stressful!

Chicken and Biscuits

In honor of Kelly's dinner tour, I thought I'd share my all-time favorite recipe. I would request this every year for my birthday dinner, and still do. The best thing about it is that it makes a big batch, so I always divide it up between 2 9x9 pans and freeze one for later. YUM!

Chicken and biscuits

1 cooked chicken, deboned and shredded (can be boiled and chopped breasts, instead)
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken broth
1 c. cooked rice (1 c. before cooking)
1 8 oz. package of shredded cheddar
biscuits

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except biscuits. Pour into a 13x9 baking dish and bake at 375 until it starts to bubble. While it is cooking, prepare biscuits, but do not cook them. Place on top of chicken mixture when it starts to bubble and cook until biscuits are browned.

I usually make my own drop biscuits using Jiffy mix and spoon them on top, but canned biscuits work well too as long as they're not Grands as they are too thick and won't cook on the bottom. Enjoy!

It's always bad when the teacher calls

Preston's had a rough time at kindergarten so far, injury-wise. He's gotten hurt quite a bit, so we're never too surprised to pick him up and see a back eye or a fat lip. But today was the first time the teacher called because he'd gotten hurt. He was running on the playground, tripped, and fell flat on his face. He skinned his chin all up, busted his lip, and scraped his arm. They had him sit in the office for a while with ice on it, and really, it didn't look too bad when I got there. I'm just thankful that no teeth were injured. Poor Kate fell at the DQ when she was 3 and broke her two front teeth, which promptly turned a lovely shade of grey. But Pres is doing just fine, now and it hasn't slowed him down one bit, so he's pretty lucky!

Tomorrow's the big garage sale. I spent several hours setting my stuff up today, and then Annette stopped by with her stuff tonight and the garage is PACKED! I'll get a pic tomorrow morning of the craziness. I just hope we don't get a repeat of last time because we're without our banker tomorrow, so it's just the 2 of us. It should be fun!

Why you don't leave a milkshake in the car

You know, at 30, I should know better than to leave an empty milkshake cup in the car for 2 days, right? Guess again. I enjoyed a chocolate shake Tuesday on the way to get the kids from school, but when we got home, I had too much to carry in, and figured the cup could wait until morning. I made the same excuse each time I got in the car yesterday, too. So today I open the car door only to be blown away by the stench of sour milk. UGH! I had to smell it all the way to town and back, so I left the windows open all day to air it out. All the way to town I remembered being in grade school and opening my little chocolate milk container at lunch, and taking a drink only to find that it was sour. I just sat and cried until a teacher came over to ask what was wrong! I can still remember exactly how it tasted and smelled. Nasty!

And yes, I did throw the cup away today!

It's that time again

We're having another garage sale Friday, and it's sure to be another biggie. Normally, I only have one a year- they're a lot of work- but Annette asked if we could have another, and of course, I said yes. We got all of the stuff down from the attic today, and dug out some more stuff. The garage is already full and nothing is set up! That's my big task for tomorrow. For once, I'll have the entire day to do it, uninterrupted by children, so it should go pretty smoothly. I hope most of it goes this time. What doesn't, I plan to box up to donate to Nice Twice. Let the craziness begin!

Fifth grade love

Kate came home from school Monday saying that she had a boyfriend. She would'nt tell me who, but I later guessed. While guessing, we had the following conversation:

Me: Is it Levi?
K: No. Levi's in love with Jensen.
Me: In love?
K: Well, they've been in love since 3rd grade, but then they broke up, but they're back together.
Me: So do you love your boyfriend?
K: No, I just like him.

I finally guessed that it was Chase, and was relieved to find out that it wasn't Logan (better known as a future menace to society). We later had another conversation:

Me: So when you have a boyfriend in 5th grade, what do you do? Do you just walk around the playground together?
K: I don't know.
Me: How do you know he's your boyfriend? Did he ask you?
K: I don't know.

She hasn't really said much about it, but it's kind of cute. Right now it's no big deal. In a few years when she has a real boyfriend, yikes! I'm not ready for that one!

Welcome back to the 21st century

You never really know how bad dial-up is until you're back on high-speed. A few weeks ago when we discussed upgrading since it's now an option in our area, I told Christopher that I was OK with dial-up. WHAT????? Seriously, I'm glad we're back to something much faster! What a blessing! The guy came and was done so quickly that it really took me by surprise! The guy that hooked my mom's internet up took hours- most of them taken up by smoking in the driveway. Nice...

I had Gracie today, also, and I had been a little worried about having her there and the service man, but she was just as good as could be. She even lay down on the couch with Kate's Bitty Baby without a fuss when I said it was nap time, and within 10 minutes, she was out! I spent most of the day trying to understand what she was saying because her soft voice was difficult to hear. A lot of the time I just agreed with her, nodded, just to acknowlege her. She's only 2, so surely she doesn't think I'm nuts for some of my replies!

Weekend roundup

What a busy weekend! Friday was homecoming, so the kids got out of school early for the "big" parade. "Big" as in it lasted a whopping 5 minutes. But they got candy and they were happy! Kate's friend, Addison came home with us and stayed for part of the evening. She was supposed to stay all night, but her asthma had been acting up and her mom felt it was best to wait for another night (I agreed). So we spent the afternoon playing and then had dinner at Mc. Donalds before taking her home.

Saturday, Christopher and I got a kid-free afternoon to go to Fairview to go shopping. We got all of Preston's birthday gifts, so that's one less thing to have to do! We had a good time and enjoyed our quiet afternoon/evening!

Today we had dinner at mom's for Granny's birthday. The big 72! The kids had fun playing with Glen. I can't believe he's going to be 2 next month! He sure has gotten big!

Tomorrow the guy is coming to hook up our high-speed internet. Thank goodness! I am so glad this is my last time on dial-up!

Why can't anything ever be easy?

Seriously.

Kate had her eye exam this afternoon. We were absolutely positive that she'd need glasses. She'd been complaining about her vision for a while (more since school started) and has been having daily headaches that her dr. felt was due to eye strain. From what all the optometrist was doing with her eye thingy (sorry, I'm not so savvy with optical terminology), compared to Preston's exam last month, I was certain we'd be told she'd need them. But that would be too easy!

So, Kate is a little bit farsighted, something we've known for about 3 years, but the optometrist always said it wasn't enough to warrant glasses since kids just break them. But she felt that her vision problems are more related to her focusing system rather than her eyes. Yes, she has difficulty seeing up close, but she also has periods where she can't see well far away. Basically, she said that her focusing system gets "locked up" and when that happens, she can't see far away or up close. This was evident during her exam. And apparently, this is fairly common in kids, accompanies headaches, and is often outgrown. Soooooooo, we were told to go to Wal-Mart and buy a cheapo pair of reading glasses to try out before we go forking out for a pair of prescription glasses. She says to see how they help her when doing her homework and reading, and if there is a big improvement overall, she wants her to come back in a month or two and she'll dilate her eyes, get a true prescription. If we're still in the same boat, then she continues to use the readers as needed. So we're thinking that if there is a good improvement, we'll move on to an opthalmologist rather than the optometrist since this seems to be a complicated case. So far, she says she can see much better with the readers. The problem with them, though, is that all Wal-Mart has are readers for adults, so they're really big and can't be worn to school. That, and the fact that she'd have to constantly take them off to see the board and put them on to see her work. Sounds more like something bi-focals could fix, but then again, I know nothing about eyes! Argh.

Tomorrow is homecoming, so it should be exciting! The kids get out early for the parade, something Preston is really looking forward to. Of course, he's only thinking about the candy. Kate is having her friend Addison over for the night if her asthma symptoms calm down before tomorrow. Not sure if we'll go to the game or not, but Kate has already insisted on Pizza Hut for dinner!

Ladies man

Myabe it's his dashing good looks, or the way he rocks a backpack, but my son is definitely a ladies man.  Last year in preschool, he and Maddi Grace were inseparable, holding hands, waiting for each other before and after school.  The rest of the girls waited outside afterwards to play tag with him. 

Now it's started again.  He now has a new girlfriend, Rheanna.  Every day when I take him into his classroom, if the girls don't see him immediately, they ask for him.  Today I looked over to see him sharpening one girl's pencil for her as she stood watching him.

I don't know what the deal is, but I have a feeling I'll have my hands full in a few years!

Ups and downs

Happy 09/09/09! Today was the big release of the remastered Beatles box set, and I sooooooo wish that I could justify spending almost $200 on it, but there's a lot more things I could get with that much! Not saying it's not worth every penny because I'm sure that it absolutely is! I celebrated the big day by pre-ordering Please, Please Me yesterday and I can't wait for it to arrive! I'm pretty tired of the albums we've been listening to since spring!

Guess what we're getting Monday..... Cable internet! Probably the worst thing about moving to our new house was finding out 2 months after moving in that we're too far outside city limits to keep our DSL. Prior to moving, they said we were still within range, so you can imagine how upset we were when they called 2 months later to say we would have to go back to dial-up. WE've made it almost 2 years on dial-up, but we finally decided to call the cable internet people and have them set us up with high-speed. It's going to be SO nice! I promise there will be more pics then, when it won't take an hour to upload 2 photos. Yeah... Seriously.

And since this is my space, I can let go of my frustrations. Friday, I was pretty excited about being able to hear so much better after my tube. I thought, "Wow! This is amazing!" Well, that was then. Right now, I"m right back where I was to begin with. My poor, scarred up right ear has always felt "different." I've always described sound going in that ear as hitting a brick wall. It's like the sound just stops, whereas the left ear feels "normal." Well, now, it's more like slamming into a brick wall- it really just stops. Kind of like my eardrum isn't vibrating at all, or whatever it's supposed to do. Very frustrating. I'm back to not hearing voices well, having to have everyone repeat themselves. I guess we'll see what's going on when I go back... in January. But still, I am extremely glad that I had it done. To go from 3 straight months of pressure and daily pain to some degree, to having none, is more amazing than I can describe. It's been a world of difference and I am loving that! Not to mention that my ear is no longer popping 500 times a day!

PRICELESS!

Beatle Mania

I've been a huge Beatles fan since I was a child. Listening to oldies everytime we got in the car, I loved when the Beatles came on more than any other band. It's something I've always loved! Last spring, after listening to whatever childrens CD way too many times, I reintroduced the kids to the Beatles, and right away, it was an instant hit. In fact, we still can't get in the car without listening to them. Now, they sing at the top of their lungs, and pretty much have all the lyrics down pat. Not bad for a couple of kids 50 years later!

See my little mop top up above? No, not George, Preston. Guess what he's going to be for Halloween... A Beatle! George, in fact. We figured, he's got the hair, got the guitar, and loves the band, and Preston thought it was a good idea, too. He wanted to be Ringo, but it's not very easy to trick or treat with a drum set, so George it is. I can't wait!

The weekend that went bust

There's nothing like having a weekend all planned out and everything go awry. But that's life, right? Saturday was a nasty, rainy day- the entire day. We had the big baby shower for Jess and Stephanie that afternoon, and had a great time. The kids loved playing with their cousins downstairs with the guys. We were supposed to go to Cain's birthday party out at the cabin afterward. We wondered what they'd do with the pouring rain, since it was outdoors. Surely they'd have it somewhere else, right? WRONG! Oh, what fun! We're lucky we didn't get stuck in the mud puddles just getting there (dirt road). It was a mess! Let's just leave it at that!

We were supposed to meet all of them Sunday for a trip to the zoo in St. Louis. The kids were really looking forward to it. Well, Mr. Weatherman predicted another day full of rain, and Preston came down with some minor diarhea after the party Saturday, so we decided to stay home. But wouldn't you know, that it didn't rain a drop all day, and Preston was feeling much better. So after dinner, we drove over to Effingham to do some bowling. Preston bowled a strike and a spare, and we were sure he'd win, but Kate came up from behind in the last frame and beat him by 2 points! Lucky break! Sadly, I was beaten by both kids. They scored 74 and 76. Me... a whopping 48. I think I need to stick to Wii bowling. It's a lot more forgiving!

Piece of cake

I had my myringotomy yesterday, and seriously, it was a piece of cake. I was so worried. Terrified. Even Dr. S. could tell, as he kept trying to calm my fears, and asking if I was going to be alright. Now, had I known 4 weeks ago when we discussed the procedure, that the phenol was going to completely numb my eardrum, I wouldn't have been so scared. I was braced for a very intense burn, and even after it was applied, I felt nothing. So when Dr. S. asked me to tell him if the burning had stopped (meaning it was numb), I couldn't tell him, and was scared to say yes because I was terrified I would feel the cut. But, I felt no pain during the incision. I felt him scrape 3-4 times before cutting through, but no pain. Amazing! Because my eardrum is so scarred, he was only able to put in the teeny tiny tube that will last about 8 months. That was disappointing because I was hoping I could get one that would last longer.

So how is my ear now? FANTASTIC! OMG! I wish I'd had this done YEARS ago! The difference already is nothing short of amazing! There's no more pressure. No more pain, and I'd had daily pain since June! A few hours afterward, my ear popped and suddenly, everything was LOUD! I was hearing things I hadn't heard in years! In general, sounds are louder, but voices are still difficult, and with increased hearing in my right ear, it only makes the hearing loss in my left ear more pronounced. I really wish I'd had my left ear done as well, and I'm strongly considering it since the right ear has been so much improved! I adressed my hearing loss with Dr. S. because I'd forgotten to last month, and he says that we need to set up a hearing test, so when I go back with Preston in January, we'll tackle that one.

I still can't believe how amazing this is!

Tomorrow is the day

I woke up this morning and thought to myself, Tomorrow I get my tube. Realizing that it's tomorrow really threw me for a loop and now I'm starting to get worried. Before, it was always a few days away and I didn't give much thought to the pain (well, yes I did), until I'm faced with it. I can only imagine how I'll feel tomorrow. I can feel my stomach knotting as I type. I have considered cancelling, but my ear is still bothering me, and I know this is my only choice to have a "normal" feeling ear again. The longer I put it off, the worse it will be, especially with cold season quickly approaching, and the fact that the kids were sick with colds this week. Ugh. Please pray for me/think of me tomorrow morning at 9:20. It can't be too good when your ENT says, "It won't be fun. You'll know why we put little kids to sleep for it."