Cars, Crafts, and Kids

Thursday is turning into my "Errand Day." I've been lucky enough to have a (more or less) set schedule at work for almost a month now and I've been given Thursdays off. This makes me happy for two reasons: 1) I get a weekday to plan appointments and other regular "business hour" type visits--something that's been a bit of a conundrum in the past because of our long hours and odd days--and 2) because this means I'm free for Thursday Night Knitting again! YAY!

So today was good, because we got the Subaru registered during the morning and then I got to hang out at Chrissy's for the afternoon while Patrick was at work. And while I was there, I discovered a truly awesome version of hide-and-seek.

Chrissy and I were trying to have a conversation, but kept getting perpetually interrupted by the kids. It didn't really work when they were asked or told to go downstairs and play for a while--they'd come back up thirty seconds later with some additional concern that must be addressed right now. My favorite one was this:

Lila: Um, Caite, we just really want to play hide-and-seek with you.
Me: Well, honey my belly is getting too big...it's hard for me to hide if my belly is always sticking out where you can see.
Evie: You could count!
Lila: Yeah, you could count and we could hide!
Me: (slight pause) Okay. Go hide... One. Two. Three. Four. Five...

(Foot steps tromping downstairs as all three go to hide. Slight pause as Chrissy and I listen to them scramble to find hiding places. Then a smile as we continue our conversation. About two minutes pass and we hear foot steps heading upstairs again.)

Me: (Loudly) Thirty-three. Thirty-four. Thirty-five. Thirty-six...
Evie: Eeek! She's still counting! Quick, Lila hide!

(Foot step run back down stairs. Chrissy and I snicker a little, and another two minutes pass while we talk. Footsteps head back upstairs.)

Me: Seventy-two, seventy-three, seventy-four...
Jake: (calling out from the stairwell) Just so you know, the bathroom and laundry room are off-limits! So don't look for us there!
Me: Okay. I won't look for you there....seventy-five, seventy-six...

(Foot steps going back down. Another bout of hushed laughter from us, and three more minutes of uninterrupted talk before we heard the clomping on the steps again.)

Me: One hundred and ten, a hundred and eleven, a hundred and twelve...
Lila: She's still counting, Evie!
Evie: Quick, run!

(Not-so-hushed laughter as the girls run back downstairs. I hide behind the bed as we hear them head upstairs a few minutes later.)

Evie: Caite? Um, mom, have you seen Aunt Caite?
Chrissy: She went downstairs a little while ago. She's looking for you guys.
Evie: (confused beat) Well, shoot!

(She and Lila then run back to their hiding spots as I giggle behind the bed. About a minute goes by until we hear slightly more sedate steps heralding Jake's approach.)

Jake: You set us up!
Chrissy: What are you talking about?
Evie: (yelling from downstairs) Jake, I think I hear her coming! You have to hide!

(Jake leaves to go back downstairs. I don't know if he hid again or not...Evie comes back upstairs--crying this time.)

Chrissy: What's the matter? Why are you crying?
Evie: Well, I was running and...
Chrissy: Do you see what's wrong with that sentence already? You were running. What did you run into?
Evie: (whimpering) The corner of your sewing table.

(I give a sudden cough, as I can't hold it anymore. Stunned silence falls in the room as Evie abruptly stops crying. I see her feet trying to tip-toe around the bed so I jump out and scare her.)

Evie: Caite! You were supposed to come find us!
Me: You didn't say that. You just said I had to count. So I did. And since you were all hiding...I thought I would too!
Evie: Caaaite!

(She rolls her eyes and heads down stairs. Jake and Lila quickly come up to take her place.)

Jake: (hands on hips) I knew you set us up!
Me: Well, you weren't very specific when you guys gave me instructions. You just said "count," nobody said anything about coming to find you when I was done.
Jake: (Exasperated sigh.)
Me: I assumed you guys would come find me when you were done hiding.
Lila: (Who has been quietly watching our discussion.) Well, I just found you, Caite. So I win!

Well...you can't argue with logic like that! I love those kids!

This is how I feel...

A Slow Start and a Strong Finish

I had another day off today and Patrick didn't have to go in to work until one. Needless to say we took the opportunity to have a very lazy morning together...and for my part a lazy afternoon; because after Patch left I think I took another three hour "nap" and didn't really become coherent again until sometime around four...

After waking up and chatting on the phone with my sister for a while, I looked around and thought about all the stuff I could/should have been doing at that moment. Normally that kind of thinking takes the wind out of my sails and sends me into a depressive tailspin; but I've really been focusing on "chunking" my time and tasks lately and I think it's starting to form into a habit. So, instead of deflating like I usually would, I just set the timer on my phone for 15 minutes and did what I could in that amount of time.

For the next three hours I worked in 15 minutes shifts followed by 15 minute breaks. And the next thing I realized, Patrick was home, the house was clean, laundry was folded, and dinner was almost ready to be put on the table. Plus, I had totally finished I book I started reading a few days ago! (Beat that Wonder Woman!)

And it was a surprisingly inventive dinner if I do say so myself. I found myself staring into the fridge on one of my breaks and realized I had some chicken breasts and bacon that needed to be used before they expired and voila!: cream cheese and herb stuffed chicken breasts wrapped in bacon. Can we say "tasty?" (Seriously, I feel like I should have a cape fluttering around my shoulders and be wearing my underwear on the outside...but in the cool superhero kind of way, not the "someone should check on her Thorazine drip" kind of way...)

So now, my fellow citizens, I'm going to take my super-self off to bed--where I will have sweet dreams about all the stuff I don't have to do tomorrow!

"Knock, knock...guess who!"

Tonight Patrick and I came up with a fun new game to play. I've decided to call it "Knock, Knock."

About a week or so I started to feel the baby move...not very often or very strong, of course, but that's starting to change. I'm getting a little better at recognizing what's her and what's me--and she's getting stronger--which helps me tell the difference!

Well, tonight after dinner we were lying down watching TV when the cat jumped onto my lap and started kneading my belly. And it took me by surprise when I started to feel my belly kneading back! I pushed the cat away and gave some experimental pokes of my own and was thrilled when I would feel a little "tap, tap" in whatever area I had poked. Patrick caught on, and though it's still to early for him to feel her from outside, he very enthusiastically started to play my belly like a bongo drum while I laughed and told him when she responded. It was definitely the longest period of time when I've been able to feel her be active!

All in all, I would say our first "family game night" was a roaring success. We can't wait to play again!

Just another day

I had to work today. It wasn't too bad, but the system I use was down and it made things difficult. Patrick had to go to church by himself--and he did. (I got a picture text of him in the lobby area as "proof that he made it." Crazy guy--makes me laugh!)

I walked out to my car after work to find it buried under at least three inches of wet snow. I didn't have a car scraper--mine broke when Patrick was attempting to free my car out of it's icy cocoon a couple days ago. Luckily, I found some gloves in the backseat and was able to brush my windows off by hand. It was also lucky that I didn't have too far to drive, because the roads were very slushy and slick!

We've had a very mellow evening. Just hanging out reading (me) and watching TV (him). Nothing too spectacular...

Maybe we'll be more interesting tomorrow...

Today is brought to you by the Letter "P"

P is for "Productive"

I had a goal today to clean my house. I had the energy, the time, and a plan...it's like the the planets aligned or something...Now, I admit I didn't get to everything I had planned; but I did pretty good and am feeling awesome anyway! I'm copying down my To-Do List from today so that I can look back and bask in my self-satisfaction. (And also to brag a little bit. It is pretty awesome to see how much I got done in about three hours this morning.)

Bedroom
make bed
clear/dust surfaces
pick up floor
vacuum

Bathroom
tidy shelving over toilet
take out trash
wipe down surfaces/mirror
scrub toilet
scrub bath/shower
sweep floor

Kitchen
clear/wipe down counters
put out "Hot Spot"
empty dishwasher
do dishes
clean out fridge/pantry
take out trash
scrub stove top
shine the sink
sweep the floor

Main Room
pick up floors and surfaces
put out "Hot Spots"
dust
vacuum
take down Christmas decorations

Laundry
do some

P is for "Philanthropy"

Yesterday I got a text message from my sister-in-law Cari asking if I'd be home tomorrow because they were going to be in the area. I replied yes and was surprised and excited--her family lives a couple hours away and we don't get to see them as often as other family members. Patrick was upset that he was going to miss them (poor guy had to work today), but tried to accept fate gracefully. And I am sorry he missed their visit too, because they totally surprised us...I thought they were just stopping by to say hi as they were running errands or something, but instead they arrived bearing gifts: groceries to be precise.

It was one of the sweetest things anyone has ever done for me. The boys trooped in carrying sacks of bread and snacks, frozen pizzas and burritos. They were followed by Cari and Aaron with yet more sacks, a jug of milk, and some homemade hamburger stew that Cari had made for lunch. And they were followed by Scott and Ana who brought us more bananas and strawberries (yay!) and fruit juice. I was so surprised that I couldn't even cry--which I thought I was bound to do, given how teary I am lately--I just stood in shock as my kind and loving in-laws filled my fridge and pantry so that Patrick and I wouldn't have to worry about whether to choose gas or groceries with this next paycheck.

It was a huge blessing and a wonderful reminder of the real-life guardian angels surrounding me and my growing family. I am so thankful. And I look forward to they day when I can pay-it-forward. (I think my emotion has caught up with me...everything is looking blurry as I'm trying to type while I cry...good thing that spell-check exists.)

P is for "Promising"

Which is how the future is looking! I feel prepared for tomorrow, pleased with today, and at peace with the past. (How's that for an alliteration?)

What's happening to me?!

(Disclaimer: This post is probably rated in the "Too Much Information" category. Read on at your own discretion.)

I worked a twelve hour shift today. I was in intense pain for at least six of them. And, do you want to know why?

Because Taro Gomi is a liar. That's why!

Some people are hindered by the fact that another person is currently sitting on their lower intestine and blocking the works, so to speak... 

Some people are kept moving around all day without breaks because everyone else seems to have pneumonia or bronchitis from the inversion, or fractures from the icy rain...

And some people become very cranky, and bad-tempered, and literally cannot think of anything else to blog about because their day seems to be defined by nothing except the endurance of this horrible, awful pain...

Sorry folks, but that's the truth, and I've got nothing else for you...pregnancy sucks.

Just chillin' and playing doctor

I would say today was a good day despite--rather, in spite of--all the icy rain we got. 

Since I had the day off, I rode with Patrick down to Centerville so I could hang out with Chrissy and Kaylee. The drive itself was a mix of buttock-clenching and super annoying moments. There were some areas that were super slick, and I shut my eyes so that I wouldn't be able to see the inevitable end approaching...and there were some drivers that just should not have been driving in that weather. I have to hand it to Patrick though; for all that he got annoyed by conditions and other drivers' stupid mistakes, he was extremely cautious and we made it to the Wal-Mart parking lot in safety.

As I walked into the store to wait for Chrissy--who had very kindly agreed to pick me up--I realized I needed to use the facilities after a ride like that. And to my surprise I found a dollar bill in my pants pocket after I finished washing up. (Unexpected dollar bills always brighten up the day, I find...) So I wandered over to the bakery and bought a doughnut. Breakfast of champions right there. And, in a way, it was a free breakfast--even better!

I met up with Chrissy and we picked up Lila from preschool. (She totally wasn't kidding about the cul-de-sac ice skating rink, people! It was scary!) And shortly after that, we were joined by Kaylee, who treated us to lunch at Kneaders. She. Is. The. Bomb. And to top it off, she totally indulged us in some of their gorgeous and decadent pastries afterward. (My nutrition definitely took a backseat to my sweet tooth today...I think my final tally is somewhere around "Healthy meals: 2, Pastries/Candy: 5" Meh. I'll do better tomorrow...maybe...well, I'll think about it...)

When Patch finally got off work, we were at Dad's playing cards and enjoying his "homemade" empanadas. (I'm totally going to try his idea of using Pillsbury biscuits to save time on the dough.) I can't tell you how grateful I am that my Dad is such a sweet, generous guy. He gave us some money--always appreciated!--and some ice-melt to take home with us--even more appreciated! We definitely wouldn't have made it up our driveway without it...

And we were able to use some of the money to "play veterinarian" tonight. Baxter has been peeing in places other that his litter box for two days. He didn't pee very much, and almost always in a place where we could catch him in the act, so I was pretty sure it wasn't a behavioral thing. We changed his litter, monitored his food and water more closely, and removed all "temptation" (piles of clothes or blankets) so the only place for him to go was his litter box. And then this morning we saw there was a little bit of blood in his urine. 

I was really worried. We can't afford to take him to the vet, and I didn't want to give him up unless there wasn't another choice, but I wasn't sure if this was something we could really help him with. I did some research and decided to try one "cat lady's" advice: crushing up vitamin C tablets and mixing it into wet food. She said this had worked for her and she owns six cats (I'll stick with just the one, thanks.)...so we went to the store and got some Fancy Feast and vitamins to give it a try. Baxter practically inhaled it! I have never seen that animal eat so fast or determinedly. I'm really hoping that this works and he gets better soon. 

If any of you have/had cats with this problem, please leave me a comment and let me know if you know if there is anything else we can do for him at home. Thanks!

A Random Conversation

Me: (Loud cough in the middle of Face Off--one of our favorite TV shows)
Patrick: Did you take your medicine tonight?
Me: Not yet. I will after the show.
(Time passes. I continue to cough loudly. The show ends and I get up to walk into the bedroom.)
Patrick: You need to take your medicine.
Me: I will, but do I have to do it right now? It tastes nasty. I'll take it before I go to sleep...like last night...
Patrick: You need to take your medicine now, Caite. It's like WWII.
Me: (pause) Did you say WWII?
Patrick: Yeah.
Me: (longer pause) I don't think the two are related.
Patrick: Yes they are. Your body is fighting a war and you need to use the resources at hand to win.
Me: Are you saying I need to drop an A-bomb on my immune system?
Patrick: (rolling his eyes) I'm saying you need to take your medicine as the label directs, every six to eight hours, and not just at bed or before going to work.
Me: You know, equating that nasty cold syrup with nuclear holocaust does not really increase my desire to take it.
Patrick: Just take the stupid medicine, Caite! It might shorten your war by another five weeks!
Me: Fine.... But just so you know, I still think that's a really weird choice of metaphor...

We have no bananas today...

So, for the past two days I have been really struggling emotionally. There's no real reason for it (other than pregnancy--but that feels like a cop out when I say it), but I have felt extremely apathetic, depressed, and just plain gross. I've been moody and short-tempered--and tonight I was the lowest I have felt in a long time.

But I'm here to tell you that sometimes in life you really do come across knights-in-armor. (The more dingy and battered, the better! That way you know he's a knight who can get things done other than look good on a horse.)

I was feeling really frustrated tonight. We've been working so hard to stay within our budget this week. We've made a lot of adjustments pretty suddenly, and even though I can see how our efforts will be their own reward, the part of me that clings to my "creature comforts" has been rearing its ugly head for three days now.

You see, I feel like I've had my first real craving: bananas. Fruit of any kind helps, but the thing that really hits the spot for me right now is bananas. And we don't have any. And I had built it up in my head that we couldn't afford to go get any, because it would totally screw up the budget. And then, I started to lose it...I mean, after all, if I couldn't even go get a freaking banana, then how on this earth would I survive the kind of sacrifices we'll need to face as parents?! And nothing Patrick tried was making me feel better--not even when he gave me the best leg/foot rub I've had in five years of marriage. (How much more self-centered could I get?)

Then, in the middle of my sniveling little pity party, I found myself bundled up in warm clothes standing in the produce section with Patrick who was assembling a small collection of apples, strawberries, and--you got it--bananas. He also took me to the pharmacy aisle to pick up a "prego-approved" decongestant. (Turns out my cold didn't go away, it just moved into my chest.) He very calmly walked me back to the registers with our groceries and paid for them with money from his plasma donations. He didn't say really say anything...just squeezed my hand and smiled. And in that moment, I fell in love again.

It was just a little thing. I could and would survive without them if push came to shove. Really...all that fuss over a silly bunch of bananas!... But in that moment, those bananas meant the world to me. And I'm lucky enough to have a knight who delivers.



 

Umm...

Well....that about sums it up...

I'm practicing to be a mom...

We had a good Sunday. Patrick had to work--unfortunate for him--but kind of a bonus for me, as I got to spend extra time hanging out with family. (Plus I also got a really long nap, which was fabulous. I feel like I might be able to kick this infernal cold now.)

The boys spent the afternoon watching football. Boring. (That's right! I said it!) So Chrissy, Jake, and I played a game called Dominion while the girls ran around playing pretend. I am proud to say that I finally won a round of the game! (It's only taken me six or seven tries...)

And we got to round out the evening with a party at Great One's house. Her birthday party to be precise. (Happy Birthday, Grandma!) It was a lot of fun. Someone had found a bunch of old family photos and school projects, and we had a great time reminiscing about all the funny things done and said over the years. We would have liked to stay a little longer, but I have to work in the morning--unlike everyone else it seems--so we headed for home.

On they way, I mentioned that a load of whites was ready to be washed, and that we needed to make the bed. (Patrick did a great job on our comforter and coverlet yesterday, but wasn't able to get to the sheets before we were both dog tired.) Anyway, Patch started to whine about how he just wanted to lay down and relax...and when I say "whine" I mean "threw a bit of a tantrum." There was foot stomping involved, folks. I laughed, and he got more annoyed.

Anyway, the upshot was that I got tired of trying to argue with my man-child husband, so I agreed we could sleep under the pile of blankets--again--instead of sheets on two conditions: 1) He is going to make the bed in the morning after I leave, and 2) he is also going to do the load of whites--all the way through to making sure they get folded properly and put away. If he doesn't do these things, he agreed to a "consequence" of my choosing...I'm thinking something along the lines of doing dinner dishes for a week...(evil chuckle!)

You are now all my witnesses. If you have a spare moment in your holiday tomorrow, maybe you could send him an encouraging text...mwahahahaha!

Things I Am Grateful For

#1- Friends

I have a friend at work who was a lifesaver today. She picked me up and took me home so that we (meaning Patrick) could work out some car issues even though I'd be gone most of the day. Plus, she also bought me breakfast--just because. She's the bomb.

#2- "Miracle" money

One of the things I have been very stressed about this week was our finances. On payday I sat down, did some math, and figured we could (barely) make our bills and other obligations--but we'd have no money for gas or food. Patrick and I talked long and hard about it...well, he talked and I cried...but in the end we decided to pay the bills rather than rack up another set of late fees. We came up with a plan on how to cope, and went to bed praying that we'd be able to make it to next payday on what we had.

Well, lo and behold, this morning when I woke up I went to check out bank accounts to make sure all the bills had cleared--there was about $100 that I had some how not accounted for. We were able to fill our cars and get milk and other necessary groceries. It couldn't have come at a better time and I am sooo relieved!

#3- Patrick

Well I am always grateful to have such a sweetheart for my husband, there are some days when he outdoes himself. Today was one. Here's just a short list of awesome things he's done today:
* Washed our bedding
* Went to donate plasma so we could have some "emergency" funds in case we ever got this tight again
* Totally did the dishes!
* Scrubbed the toilet and wiped down the bathroom
* Did the grocery shopping
* Changed the litter box without being asked or reminded
* Bought a gigantic package of super soft tissues to help get me through this never-ending cold
* Somehow made me feel pretty despite being stuffy and looking bloated...even made me stand still so he could get a picture of "his ladies."

#4- Family

We spent a really fun evening just hanging out with Scott and Ana. We watched movies and ate junk food--and just generally enjoyed the fact that with MLK day coming up, we could all relax into an extra-long weekend.

And speaking of weekends--I hope you all enjoy yours!

I have hit critical mass

It has been a long work day, for the both of us. Twelve hours shifts a piece. I can't vouch for what Patrick's day was like, but mine felt like it was never going to end.

I have been fighting a cold for almost three weeks now; and today I was sure my nose was going to implode or something. I have gone through two and half boxes of tissues in just over 24 hours. Not to be graphic, but that's a lot of mucus people! And I'm worried that people who don't know me might think I have a drinking problem because my nose is so red and swollen... Having never been pregnant and sick at the same time before, I don't think I ever fully appreciated how awesome decongestants are. I miss them...a lot...a whole lot.

I spent at least half of my down time at work researching homeopathic ways to treat my much abused sinuses...so far I think steaming up the bathroom and taking a long soak has my vote. Patrick even got me some special mentholated bath salts to help things along. (He takes good care of me.)

Not much happened to me today. Unless you count the patient who came in reeking of alcohol (according to others in the office--I can't smell a thing) and proceeded to strip down in the middle of the halway before they could assign him a room. Luckily the nurse got him into one before he got down to his boxers...that would have been embarrassing for us all! He was definitely one of the more...interesting...individuals I've ever had to work with. I'm still not sure exactly how he injured himself...he kept changing his mind in the middle of his story. Hilarious--but not very helpful!

And the After Hours shift was pure torture! I didn't do a single exam, but we had 28 people check in. (The average is somewhere around 10, give or take a few. This is almost as many as doctor can see during regular business hours. ) I was stuck there--twiddling my thumbs--for a really long time. As time wore on, and on, and on...my emotions became increasingly frazzled. I came home to Patrick and promptly collapsed into his arms while he tried to soothe my toddler-like hysteria. Not a pretty picture.

I'm going to crawl into my bed and not come out again for a while. G'night.




 

A lesson in humility

Today was rough. I am physically and emotionally worn out. I hope you'll forgive me for not wanting to go into a lot of detail right now. And please, don't worry that it's anything major. It is simply one of those days where being an adult really, really sucks. And as I sat down and tried to figure out what (and how much) to write, all that I could think about was how much I wanted today to end on a good note.

That's when I remembered the following poem by Edmund Vance Cooke. I came across it in high school, the year my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and it's always stuck with me. I know it's something that I'll need to get me through tonight and the days to come. I hope maybe some part of it will stick with you too.

So, until tomorrow, may I wish you all sweet dreams, deep sleep, and a happier outlook in the morning.

How Did You Die?

Did you tackle the trouble that came your way

With a resolute heart and cheerful?

Or hid your face from the light of day

With a craven soul and fearful?

Oh, a trouble's a ton, or a trouble's an ounce,

Or a trouble is what you make it, 

And it isn't the fact that you're hurt that counts, 

But only how did you take it?

You are beaten to earth? Well, well, what's that?

Come up with a smiling face.

It's nothing against you to fall down flat,

But to lie there--that's disgrace. 

The harder you're thrown, why the higher you bounce;

Be proud of your blackened eye!

It isn't the fact that you're licked that counts,

It's how did you fight--and why?

And though you be done to death, what then?

If you battled the best you could,

If you played your part in the world of men,

Why, the Critic will call it good.

Death comes with a crawl, or comes with a pounce,

And whether he's slow or spry, 

It isn't the fact that you're dead that counts, 

But only how did you die? 

Ho Hum

I went to work today. It was slow...there was no lunch scheduled today so I ended up having two bowls of instant mac and cheese.

I watched the Biggest Loser while eating doughnut holes. So very, very wrong...but it's becoming a guilty pleasure of mine as I watch my own waistline expand.

I had a sneezing fit in the middle of the afternoon. (Just five in a row though, Chrissy. Plus, I was also able to clench. So there!)

I was a little bit productive sometime during the day and made up my grocery list/meal plan for the next two weeks. So, that's good.

I spent the after hours part of my shift quoting movie lines in different accents to a coworker while she was doing actual work stuff. (Although, if you look at it in the right light, I was boosting her morale and therefore her productivity levels, so...your welcome Ogden Clinic!)

"Pregnancy brain" set in hardcore today. Which may explain why this post is so rambling and short...and why I can't remember if anything of note happened that I should be writing about...

Umm, yeah. I'm going to go to sleep now.

"And in the mornin' I'm makin' waffles!"

This morning we had an appointment with the OB. Everything looks good. The baby and I are on track growth/weight wise. All in all, we're pretty dandy! Now, for some unknown reason, it has become tradition for us to have a big breakfast after each of my doctors appointments. Sometimes we've gone to Denny's or IHOP, but today we elected to eat at home.

I was just planning on bacon, eggs, and toast; but Patrick--not being a toast fan--mentioned that he felt like waffles. I wasn't feeling the waffle vibe as much but I said, "If you want 'em, knock yourself out." I showed him where the waffle iron was and he went to town. (A little back story here: it's been something of a running joke in our relationship that Patrick loves food and would love to cook...he just doesn't really do directions. We've had some interesting boxed meals when he gets the urge to cook. Not inedible, mind you, but interesting. So much so that my sister gave him this apron for Christmas this year.)

Just in case you can't see it clearly, it reads: "My food is problematic."

Anyway, he was really working some kitchen mojo this morning. He whipped up the batter--which did look delicious--and made sure the waffle iron was preheated. He even laid down some paper towels to catch any batter that might drip out the side. (An action which I found particularly thoughtful since I'm usually the one who cleans the kitchen.) I was focused on the bacon--one of the oven burners was acting up and I had to switch things over before I set off a smoke alarm--and it had been fairly quiet in his corner of the kitchen for a few minutes until I heard, "Ungh! The light's not coming on, but I think it might be burning!"

Me: "Well, open it up and check on it."

Patrick: naughty words

Me: "Wait! Don't move!"

Luckily I had left the camera near by so I could capture this moment:

For the record, these would have been perfectly golden brown otherwise...

Me: "Did you spray it with Pam first?"

Patrick: "You have to do that every time?"

Me: Trying really hard not to laugh as hard I wanted to inside...

Patrick: "Shut up... Where's a butter knife?"

The next fifteen minutes were spent with me finishing up the bacon and some scrambled eggs while trying to take surreptitious photos of Patrick painstakingly cleaning out the waffle iron.

Obviously I have a hard time being sneaky when I'm giggling...

It would seem that removing cooked on waffle batter in half inch increments totally destroyed his appetite for them. We settled for just eggs and bacon today. But, when the waffle urge strikes again, I know he'll do a marvelous job! (After all, this is not a cooking experience one is likely to forget...and if he does...I'll remind him.:D)

Contentment

I woke up happy today. All those good feelings of accomplishment from yesterday followed me through the night and into the morning. Yay! Patrick even woke up a little earlier than usual and agreed to help me continue on my tidiness quest by doing three simple chores before he left for work that would free up more of our evening for playing and relaxing.

I love it when he does stuff like this! It makes me feel special and appreciated—plus it gives me hope that maybe parenting won’t be as hard or scary as I feel because I know he’ll be there to help. J

The good feelings continued all the way to work, despite the absolutely frigid temperature! (Four degrees, people! Four.) I hit all green lights…that never happens! Plus, we had a drug rep visit the docs this morning, which meant free muffins for all. Woot! (I grabbed the biggest, most chocolate-y one I could find and said a little prayer of gratitude that we were given breakfast this morning since I wasn’t able to eat before leaving.)

Things went downhill just a bit during the course of the morning. Mondays are usually busy here…I can accept that. But this morning was downright crazy! In the space of 5 minutes I went from having just one chest x-ray, to having three spines, two knee injuries, and three more chests waiting.  And after that things just kind of snowballed so that it took me until 1:30 pm to catch up on everything that was ordered.

But, since there is a yin and yang to life, my crazy morning was rewarded with a free lunch from Café Rio courtesy of another drug rep. (Best day ever!) I got a lot of strange looks from my coworkers  as I carefully disassembled my salad so I could pick out all the beans and then reassemble it—but I took it in stride and told them they should be thanking me. Bean gas is bad enough, but I can only imagine that pregnancy bean gas is much worse…

And the karmic rewards continued with a much slower paced afternoon that allowed me a couple opportunities to rest between exams. Although it did get so slow at one point and I had to get up and walk around to avoid nodding off. Still, no complaints! It’s like I said: feast or famine.

I had a little bit of a scary time trying to pull into my driveway when I got home. We live next to a main thoroughfare that is plowed and salted regularly, but our street only gets plowed...so essentially we're driving on pack ice. It had melted just enough during the day so it became slushy and slick, which caused me to slide around a lot on my not-very-wide-driveway. Happily, I was able to keep my calm and park without any incidents. (But I don't think I'll try to park in the driveway the next time it's like this...)

I tried to keep yesterday's momentum going, so I switched over the laundry, did some more dishes, got dinner started in enough time so that it would be ready when Patch gets home, and did a 15 minute quick pick-up through the main rooms. Again, feeling pretty good about that!

I also got a lovely surprise visit from Scott and Ana, my brother and sister-in-law. We love to hang out with them, but ever since New Year we've been pretty busy and haven't seen them in a while. They were just stopping by on their way home from running some errands, so it was nice to visit for a little while! Scott was also very kind and lugged our garbage can down the treacherous driveway for me. (Our garbage pickup is on Tuesdays and we almost always miss it! Got to get out of that habit while it's still harmless to miss once in a while...)

Now there's not much else to do but look forward to a quiet evening with my husband. Always my favorite part of the day. 

"Establish a house of order"

(DISCLAIMER: This post originally had several pictures to go along with it, but due to technical difficulties, before and after shots will have to wait until we--meaning Patrick--figure out a different way to retrieve the photos off the camera's memory card. The current option isn't working.)

Today was Sunday, a day of rest...normally we take that "rest" part to heart with lots of naps and visits to family. But not today. 

We got to church (on time) for the (gasp) second week in a row! I think that may be our longest streak ever...I hope we can keep it going. Today was ward conference and many of the lessons were geared around a common theme: "Establishing a house of order." Each year, our ward picks a "theme" or set of goals to focus on. And I definitely felt that I needed to really apply this year's goal to my life. 

Remember a couple of posts ago when I mentioned we had to be very careful until payday? (Like most of us do from time to time.) Well, turns out I had no idea how right that was! We are running very close to empty in our gas tanks, our pantry, and our stress coping skills. :) And as I sat listening to the various speakers elaborate on the way cultivating a habit of order and reverence for our daily lives would benefit us, I got inspired to make some changes in my daily habits. 

I have a sort of split personality when it comes to maintaining order in my home. If I am able to get a room in "Spring Clean" condition, I become very anal about keeping it that way. (Picture labels everywhere, with organizational binders and schematics, and chore schedules...) On the other hand, the moment I slip up or become lax about maintaining my rigid perfection, I automatically do a 180 and become the kind of person who says, "Don't touch that pile! I've memorized where everything is!" Sad, but true. 

I have come to realize that perfection isn't always practical--or even desirable--%100 of the time. But neither is the alphabetical clutter approach. So I am choosing to focus instead on "tidiness." I looked around my house when we got home from church and didn't like what I saw. Christmas decorations were still up. The bedroom looked like the equivalent of a laundry Chernobyl. The kitchen was piled high with dirty dishes and random trash. The bathroom was suffering from an overflowing waste basket and in desperate need of a thorough scrubbing. And I was getting ready to have a nervous breakdown as I mentally cataloged all the things that needed to be done before I could classify my home as "orderly."

Then I remembered a saying from a website called flylady.net: "Your house didn't get dirty in one day, and it won't get clean overnight either." So instead of crying, I decided to pick three things I could do today. 

#1- We were going to be eating at home that night, so I needed stuff to cook with. Voila! First goal was to empty the sink and do the dishes. 

#2- Patrick and I both needed work clothes for tomorrow, so laundry was definitely on the list. Goal two: pick up the massive laundry explosion in the bedroom and sort it into the appropriate bins. (Two birds with one stone there, because I was also tired of tripping over things in the dark during my late night bathroom trips.)

#3- We were almost out of laundry soap, and had no money to get more. Luckily I remembered that I had bought supplies to make my own a couple months ago and just never got around to it. So, goal three: find laundry soap ingredients and mix up a batch. 

And I am happy to report that (with some help from my sweet husband) I met every single one of those goals! My kitchen counters still need to be picked up and wiped down, and the bedroom surfaces still need attention; but the dishes are done, the bedroom floor is clear and the bed freshly made, and two loads of sweet smelling laundry have been neatly folded and put away. And I feel okay about all that.

Tomorrow is another day, and I feel like I will be able to face it with more equanimity than before.  

Do you have a flag?

So today we went to Chrissy's to help build a fort, as promised. (I had planned to take more videos and pictures than we did, but small hands don't make the best shovels. So I ended up helping to build more than document.)

We didn't arrive until close to lunch time, so the kids were SUPER excited to finally get started. It was a bit of a circus trying to make sure everyone ate and went potty before getting bundled up in their snow gear. But, eventually everyone was ready to go...and go, they did!I think the girls just ran around for about 20 minutes in sheer excitement before they started trying to help build up the walls of the fort.

Jake and Patrick's plans were fairly elaborate--calling for a single tunnel (because it's easily defensible), and a few windows (because it made it feel almost like a hobbit hole that way). Chrissy has most of the pictures of the wall building process on her blog--A.K.A. Aunt Caite throwing snow on the pile so the kids could fall on it to pack it down. But I was able to capture the completion of the tunnel on video.

And here's is the first successful use of said tunnel...

Needless to say, everyone was exhausted by the end of the day. I know I called it quits shortly after the tunnel was made. I sat down after removing my wet things and the next thing I knew, Patrick was shaking my shoulder and saying that it was time to go. I made my way groggily to the car and we stopped by his parents for a quick visit before heading home. (Thank you again for the yummy cookies, Lisa! It was the perfect way to end such a busy, playful day!)

I am so glad we were able to play around with those cute kids today. Made me so excited for the memories we'll build with our own children. I look forward to seeing all the fancy additions Jake has planned for the fort...but I think I might sit out and just watch any snowball fights. :) If there was one lesson I learned today, it's that this baby of mine saps my physical energy more than I anticipated! 

Almost

Today I was almost late for work…but Patrick got up to shovel the driveway so I could be on time. Thank you, love.

I almost crashed and died on the drive to work…but I didn’t. Mostly I just got freaked out when I slid around icy corners.

I almost looked cute today…but it didn’t last. I did my hair and makeup before work, but by the time I got there my hair reverted to its “bed head” state and ruined the whole effect.

I almost fell asleep at my desk this morning…but then I got a patient and remained steadily busy the rest of the day. Seriously close call. There was drool.

I almost finished the baby blanket…but then I got bored and set it aside. At the time I was convinced that I just didn’t want to run out of yarn while at work; but I was deluding myself.

I almost had a bowl of soup for lunch…but I forgot to cover it in the microwave and lost about half of it in a tragic broth explosion. The worst part was having to wipe down the microwave afterward. Such a waste.

I almost had a crying jag (for no reason) in the middle of the afternoon…but was able to distract myself by looking up nursery ideas online. Pregnancy hormones are weird.

It almost stopped snowing today…but it didn’t. Temperamental weather.

I almost broke down and bought some snacks at the pharmacy after my stash ran out…but then I remembered that we need to be really frugal to make it to next pay day. So I refrained. And lo, the Diabetes Specialty Center sent over a bunch of chocolates as a thank you for our referrals. (No one else besides me seemed to consider the candy an ironic gesture.)

I almost got depressed whenever I thought about how long this twelve hour shift was taking…but then I would remember that it’s also more money in the bank. That definitely helped to perk up my outlook. I need to work as much as I can, while I can.

I almost fell over during an exam…but the patient was able to catch me and keep me steady. It was embarrassing for me, but I’m glad they were so nice about it. Not sure how I feel about this changing center of balance thing…

Lastly, I almost decided to wait to post until I got home (just in case something really interesting happened)...but then I thought that all I really want to do when I get there is put on comfy pants and eat Nutella while waiting for Patch to come home.

So, I hope you all have a lovely evening and are able to travel safely if you must. See you tomorrow.

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

Today was a good one.

We had an awesome morning that started with an early visit to my work for my 20 week ultrasound. It's fun to see your little munchkin growing no matter who you are...but it's also nice when you work with the techs and you get some extra pictures as a work perk. :) Everything looks great, is developing properly, and it's so exciting to be able to see facial features more clearly and stuff! Plus, we also had it confirmed that it's definitely: A GIRL! (For the record, I would have been excited no matter what. But, I also admit that girly things are more in my wheelhouse...so I look forward to that side of things.) 

I did get a lot of pictures, but I tried to whittle it down to my four favorites to show off. :D

Notice the writing in the bottom left corner? That's right, folks...my girl's not shy. :)

Look at that adorable profile! I particularly like the hand above the head in the dramatic fainting pose...

She did have her feet lined up perfectly right next to each other before this picture was captured. But she was too busy wiggling to hold the pose. 

I love that she's been caught sucking her thumb already! Made me think of my mom...sucking her thumb while reading in bed...Plus, look at those cheeks! They're starting to fill out a bit. :)

So, not only did Patrick and I enjoy an awesome morning, but I got to bum a ride down to Centerville with him to hang out with Chrissy today. We chatted, and watched a funny show called Pitch Perfect, and snacked on "questing" food. (Cold roast chicken, bread and cheese, and apples...c'mon, tell me that doesn't sound like something you eat while on a Middle Earth road trip...) It was a lovely mellow kind of day.

And then the snow came. 

Don't get me wrong. I love snow. I love getting snuggled up under a blanket with a mug of hot chocolate and just watching the flakes float down. But I hate driving in the snow. If this were a "more congenial spot" like Camelot, it would only snow once I was safely ensconced wherever I needed to be that day. But sadly, this is reality. And in reality, snow follows Murphy's Law; so of course it was worst during the evening commute when we would normally be making our merry way home. Yeah...our way wasn't merry today. We ended up not being able to stop by his parents to show off our ultrasound pictures because the roads were so crazy. (Sorry again, Rich and Lisa! And sorry that you've had trouble getting hold of us. We've been having lots of phone issues lately...but that's a whole different post.) So we waited for traffic to mellow. And while we waited, Patrick got an idea.

Mount Patrick. (Formerly Telford Peaks) Measuring approx. 3' 6" by the midpoint of the shoveling process.

Knowing how difficult it would be for Brian to manage the driveway and ramp with three inches of snow, Patrick decided to shovel the way for him. And, because he is a child at heart (and I love it!), he decided to put that snow to good use. A.K.A. a snow fort. We'll be back on Saturday to document the making of an epic fort with Jake, Evie, and Lila! 

After a short rest, some yummy homemade lasagna, and some bedtime hugs and kisses we finally made our way safely (and slowly) home. Although we did pass at least four accidents and almost witnessed two others...I reiterate, driving in snow sucks. 

Plus, I had a slight panic attack when we pulled onto our street to see a fire truck and two cop cars parked in front of our house. But as far I as could tell, no one had been hurt, or anything damaged...our best guess is that one of the houses across the way had a family/marital dispute of some kind...I didn't really feel like walking over to the officers huddled around the backseat of one of the cars to find out the details of the situation. 

Point being: me and mine were safe. (And since I was wearing backless shoes walking up a slushy, un-shoveled, inclined driveway in the dark, wearing only a thin sweater; my curiosity was extremely short-lived. I am so ready for that blanket and hot chocolate! Brrr! ) 

Me being somewhat full of myself

Most of my work days seem to follow the pattern of “Feast or Famine.” There are very few days when I am just steadily busy. And today fell squarely in the famine category.  I performed a total of seven exams….the equivalent of two hours of work in a nine hour day. So on days like this I have to find ways to keep myself busy so I don’t end up drooling on my keyboard.

Since I work at a satellite branch of the clinic (and because of the advent of digital imaging and electronic medical records) there really isn’t any paperwork for me to do. And of the tasks there are; I can usually accomplish them in about a half an hour. So that still leaves me with six and half hours of nothing much going on…This is where having a strong post-apocalyptic skill set comes in handy. (A.K.A. “Knitting”)

I have achieved a status similar to that of an eccentric mascot among my coworkers since I moved to this location. I am now officially known as “The One Who Knits.” (Personally I think it sounds kind of mystical…like I could be sitting in a Buddhist-style temple dispensing eternal wisdom as I work the fabric of the universe on my needles of destiny…)  

As I worked on a variety of Christmas projects, and now as I am about halfway through a baby blanket, I have gathered a small “following” of nurses, MAs, and receptionists who stop by my desk on their way to check faxes in order to ooh and ahh over whatever I packed with me that day.

It’s definitely a big stroke to my ego every time I get a comment on how even the gauge is, or how intricate the pattern is turning out. I’ve even convinced one of the After Hours receptionists to let me teach her during the slow evenings. (She kept saying how much she would like to knit, but that she just didn’t have the patience for it. I just had an inner giggle thinking of all the Yarn Harlot quotes about how much patience doesn’t have anything to do with knitting…and how most knitters aren’t patient at all. Yours Truly included.) But today I reached a new level of greatness in one nurse’s eyes.

You see, despite my best intentions (and the arsenal of music and audio books I have on my kindle), I do sometimes get drowsy after the third straight hour or so of knitting. (Sometimes not even that long. Ask Chrissy—she has photographic proof.) And today I must have nodded off in the middle of a lace row on the blanket or something; because by the time I got to the end, I realized that I was way off on my stitch count…way off. 

Not realizing that the nurse was right behind me, I muttered a not-very-ladylike phrase and proceeded to rip back the offending stitches. I heard her startled gasp and I turned around to blush…I thought she must have heard me and been offended. But she just rushed over to the blanket and picked up the bottom as if it were made of glass. After a confused beat on my part, I asked her what was the matter. She just looked at me and stroking the blanket, said quietly, “You put in so much work...and now you’ll have to start all over.”

I was so surprised by her response that all I could muster up was the phrase, “Umm…no, actually.” I proceeded to explain that I was just pulling back a few rows in order to fix a mistake, and that I would put the stitches back on the needles in just a second. Apparently, that concept rocked her world. 

She told me that her mother-in-law had tried to teach her to knit when she was first married. But every time she made a mistake, her mother-in-law made her pull everything out and start over. After the third time, she decided she’d had enough and never tried again. She watched me put the blanket back on the needles and was even more amazed when I fixed the twisted stitches as I came to them…I have to admit, watching myself through her eyes, I felt pretty darn cool. And it seems I’ll have another pupil whenever the evenings get slow. Yay! 

So, to paraphrase the Yarn Harlot once more: there are plenty of other really scary things in life to be afraid of, don’t be scared of string and needles. Knit boldly on! (If nothing else, it can spare you six hours of mind-numbing boredom on a slow workday!)   

Now comes the hard part...

So, here’s the real challenge of blogging every day for me: Finding something to blog about. I don’t have cute kids that provide an endless supply of material (yet), or a particularly fascinating job/social life. In fact, I don’t have much of a social life at all except for the rare occasion when I and a friend both have work off at the same time.

I found myself on the drive to work racking my brains trying to think of what to do. (Also, I found I was secretly hoping that someone would come in with a particularly good injury …preferably one with a funny story to go along with it. But then I realized that my wishing harm on another just so my day would be more interesting was probably not the right kind of karma I should be sending out into the world at the beginning of a workday. Although, really, when you work in health care you sometimes can’t help that sort of thing…after all, if no one ever got sick or hurt, we would get sooo bored.)

Apparently, either my commute isn’t long enough to allow good ideas to percolate; or it was just too early for my brain to really think. Both are equally possible.

But turns out that today’s lesson is “be careful what you wish for.” Because, wouldn’t you know it, someone did come in with an injury—right before I was supposed to go on lunch break.

 Now this poor lady slipped and fell on some ice about a week ago and went to the ER. But I guess she wasn’t satisfied with that, because today I ended up having to perform sixteen pictures on just her arm. (For those of you who don’t know, the average x-ray exam only consists of two to three pictures.) Seriously?! And I had to get the doctor to draw the line there because she was basically asking me to examine her entire body…that’s an insane amount of pictures people. Not to mention it would probably cause sterility to get that much radiation in one sitting, to say nothing of its carcinogenic effects…. 

Anyway, we were able to get her agree to just the sixteen x-rays today, and the possibility of another CT scan (she had one a week ago) if her symptoms persisted after trying some physical therapy. (And just FYI, there was absolutely nothing wrong with her as far as the x-rays showed. I found out later on that she was trying to get proof of injury so she could sue whoever owned the parking lot she fell in. Wow.)

Anyway, by the time I was finally finished with this one patient I had a line of four other people. So…yeah…I didn’t really get lunch. Not my best afternoon. I had to work so hard to keep the crazy in! Those people had no idea how close they were to witnessing a spectacular pregnancy tantrum. (Picture me lying on my back in the middle of the hall, kicking and screaming that I just wanted to eat my stupid sandwich before I was driven to murder one of them. That kind of crazy.)


But now I'm snug at home. I'm going to de-stress by watching mediocre television and eating fish sticks and ice cream. (Not at the same time...just clarifying. Even my cravings aren't that weird.) 

And would you look at that: I found something to write about!

Did I miss New Year? Must have hit the snooze button ...

About a month ago I had a conversation with my sister about the possibility of me joining in her daily blog-a-thon this year. Given my track record with all forms of electronic communication, I was skeptical about the reality of my meeting this challenge. (And yes, I’ve noticed that I’m a bit behind the calendar year in starting, but there is a reason for that which I will explain in a moment.) After a few days of uninterrupted introspection, I decided that it’s a challenge I need to take.

I have decided to be cautiously optimistic as I start on this journey…and am absolutely certain that Chrissy will be more than willing to volunteer as the Punctual Posting Police.

So, how about a little re-cap on last year before I launch into this one?

It was a relatively smooth ride for us in 2012. We reached the year mark in our first home. We got a cat that seems more like a dog at times…no complaints though, Baxter is one of the most easy-going animals I’ve ever known. (He even continues to lick Patrick’s toes despite repeated run-ins with his Nerf gun sneak attacks.)  I finished school. (Big shout of hooray there!) We are both steadily employed and looking forward to the day when our work schedules find their way into a more set routine.

Here's Baxter enjoying some much needed cuddling after a sudden Nerf attack.

But the biggest thing that happened to us last year was discovering that I became pregnant with our first child in September! We had been trying for a while, but I was getting discouraged and ready to take a break from it all when suddenly: SURPRISE! There were finally two pink lines instead of one!

Taa-Daa!

I was in shock for all of 30 seconds before I picked up the cat and started to waltz him around the house shouting, “Holy Crap, kitty cat! I’m gonna have a baby!” Needless to say, Baxter didn’t appreciate my enthusiasm as much as Patrick did. So yeah, it was a good year all around. (Even with a nasty bout of morning sickness…totally worth it.)

One proud Mama. (Forgive the messy hair and no make-up, my grooming habits took a dive with my queasy stomach.)

And as promised, the reason why I didn’t start this daily blogging challenge on time: because I was too busy celebrating our five year anniversary to notice that I missed the proper start date. What with the fast approaching arrival of a new family member, Patrick and I decided to give each other the gift of free time this year. We took a week off work to enjoy a “stay-cation” together, and it was wonderful! A week full of sleeping in, bubble baths, eating ice cream in bed, and doing nothing more stressful than deciding what TV show we wanted to cuddle up to…it was blissful and I am so glad we took the time to just focus on the two of us before we become the three of us.

So there you have it folks: my year in a nutshell. I look forward to all the surprises this year is sure to bring. And to the challenge of keeping track of it all here...wish me luck; I know I'm going to need it on many fronts!