Ron took Melissa and the kids to Ocean City today. I got to stay home and clean, clean, clean. I have to admit, I was glad to see them finally come home so that I could stop cleaning and not feel guilty for stopping!
They went through a mirror maze while on the boardwalk. Apparently there was a guy inside who told them that he is paid $5/hour to confuse the people in the maze. It worked, they said. Also, Bella and Felisa both said that's the job they want to have when they get older. Too funny!
It sounds like they had a good day. Spent four hours on the beach and came home with varying amounts of sunburn. I think that much time in the sun would have killed me. Very thankful to have been home.
I have challenged the kids to keep the house clean until they go back to school on Tuesday. Can we do it?
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Bits and Pieces
*Miracle of all miracles - Ryan is voluntarily practicing his cello. It's the first time in months he's played it outside of school! I hate to break it up but it's almost time to go - to school!
*My new dryer is here! I was the lucky winner of the 7-9 a.m. delivery window and they were in and out before 8:15. It fits perfectly in the spot and doesn't look like it will be eating my clothes like the last one was! Since it's raining today, I might just have to give it a test drive with a few loads of laundry instead of hanging them to dry. Thanks Mom and Dad Racinez for the dryer! We love you!
*My hero, Ron, bought me a new laptop. It was a very rush-rush last minute affair. I found out on Saturday morning that the motherboard on my old laptop was the problem and it's not worth it to repair. So he had about 24 hours to find me a new one so that I can get busy on my client's project (the client asked me about it Friday afternoon and so I could delay no longer).
*I put out a donation for Purple Heart today. I really hope they come pick it up. I also really hope it stays dry in those black garbage bags since today is another rainy day.
*I'm going to pick up a new bread machine on Freecycle today. Yay! My old one bit the dust last week and I was the winner of the one offered over the weekend. This is good since all the bread machine money (and then some!) went to the new laptop.
And now we have to go or we'll be late for school!
*My new dryer is here! I was the lucky winner of the 7-9 a.m. delivery window and they were in and out before 8:15. It fits perfectly in the spot and doesn't look like it will be eating my clothes like the last one was! Since it's raining today, I might just have to give it a test drive with a few loads of laundry instead of hanging them to dry. Thanks Mom and Dad Racinez for the dryer! We love you!
*My hero, Ron, bought me a new laptop. It was a very rush-rush last minute affair. I found out on Saturday morning that the motherboard on my old laptop was the problem and it's not worth it to repair. So he had about 24 hours to find me a new one so that I can get busy on my client's project (the client asked me about it Friday afternoon and so I could delay no longer).
*I put out a donation for Purple Heart today. I really hope they come pick it up. I also really hope it stays dry in those black garbage bags since today is another rainy day.
*I'm going to pick up a new bread machine on Freecycle today. Yay! My old one bit the dust last week and I was the winner of the one offered over the weekend. This is good since all the bread machine money (and then some!) went to the new laptop.
And now we have to go or we'll be late for school!
Monday, May 10, 2010
Ryan and Felisa
Felisa to Ryan: You're going to be 11 soon. And pretty soon you are going to move out of this house. (she counts from 10 to 16 to demonstrate)
Ryan to Felisa: That's still a lot of years!
Ryan to Felisa: That's still a lot of years!
Bella
The part needed to fix my laptop screen has arrived. Yay! Now I just need to set a time to turn it in for repair. Then I will have my laptop back to use as a laptop again. Woo hoo! I can take it up to my room and lie in bed while I work. I'm so happy about that! I'm getting rather behind on all of my scrapping/blogging projects as you may have noticed by my lack of follow-up to my week in the life project (among other absences).
Bella's First Communion was this weekend. Ron's parents were here as was Dad. A nice visit all around.
I am cleaning out the kids' craft area this afternoon. I found this written on a paper. Since it is all about Bella and this weekend was all about Bella, it seemed like a great time to post it.
Eye color: Brown
Body color: Peach
Favorite Accessory: Care Bear
Likes: Frisbee
Dislikes: Fevers
Favorite Food: hot dog from Foster's Grille
Most likely to say: No
Other than the frisbee answer, it sums her up exactly in my opinion. And Frisbee may have been her "thing of the moment" when she wrote this.
Now I'm going to put this in her special stuff drawer in her room then get back to work downstairs.
Bella's First Communion was this weekend. Ron's parents were here as was Dad. A nice visit all around.
I am cleaning out the kids' craft area this afternoon. I found this written on a paper. Since it is all about Bella and this weekend was all about Bella, it seemed like a great time to post it.
Eye color: Brown
Body color: Peach
Favorite Accessory: Care Bear
Likes: Frisbee
Dislikes: Fevers
Favorite Food: hot dog from Foster's Grille
Most likely to say: No
Other than the frisbee answer, it sums her up exactly in my opinion. And Frisbee may have been her "thing of the moment" when she wrote this.
Now I'm going to put this in her special stuff drawer in her room then get back to work downstairs.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Monday
Up around 0545 or so...
0600 I'm dressed and ready to go work out. Grab my Luna Bar and water bottle to head out. Notice that Bella is no longer sleeping on the couch (she came down last night while Kim and I were talking) so I make sure she is back in her bed, not out wandering the streets somewhere.
0710 Home from working out. Get Darby up and out. Get a cup of coffee.
0715 Check email... chess club this week! Add it to the calendar.
0723 Empty the dishwasher.
0730 Put away the dry dishes that have been in the dish drainer for too long. Organize the empty jars and put them away. The dishwasher has water left in the bottom so I start the Drain Cycle.
0748 Wake up Ryan and Felisa (Bella is already up)
0750 Ron leaves for work.
0800 Kim tells me that the hair dryer from the kids' bathroom isn't working. Turns on and heats up but no air is blowing. Gets very hot very fast! Executive decision - that one is going in the trash right now!
0802 Time to make breakfast.
0808 Breakfast is served. Oatmeal and Corn Pops. Ryan asks me why I am taking so many pictures today. I tell him that it is Week In The Life week.
0815 Eleanor stops by to say good morning to the kids.
0819 Tell the kids to get dressed. Weather Report is long pants today.
0823 Zoe is here. Her dad dropped her off.
0831 Throw in a load of laundry before we head out.
0834 Leaving the house. Only a few minutes behind schedule!
0842 Drop Kim at the Metro Kiss and Ride. She is headed to DC for some meetings then flying back home to AL tonight.
0845 Drop the kids off at the school Kiss and Ride.
0849 Back home. Move the deer antler out of the driveway and back into the garden. Broke a couple tips off when I backed over it but it's still mostly intact (minus the squirrel tooth marks!).
0851 Feed Darby. He's glad I didn't forget him. I think he was probably nervous when we all left the house and he hadn't been fed yet!
0857 Dentist office called to remind me of my appointment tomorrow. Guess that means the card I found in my purse last week was a current one. I have been known to call the office about my appointment time/date because I wasn't sure if the card was from this year or some other past year. Patty was laughing at me when I told her I had done it again!
0900 - 0939 Paying bills.
0942 Laundry
0945 Grab my MP3 player and take Darby out for a walk.
1009 Back from the walk. Check emails.
1018 I'm too hungry to think. Grab a slice of bologna out of the frig.
1020 Need to make the menu plan for this week.
1023 Still too hungry to think. Warm up a slice of leftover pizza to eat.
1045 A menu plan is somewhat done. I have figured out that I do not need to go to the store today so now I can move on to other things.
1049 and then some... Email two potential clients to set up appointments for this week. Remember that I never activated the Presto Pay for the PTA's gift card orders. Oops! Get that done. Watch the online registration tutorial for the Girl Scouts. Update my calendar with my to do's for the week. Check in on the Simplify 101 message boards. Attempt to clean my desk. Right away I find Christmas cards that need addresses and were never sent. Shani calls so we talk for a bit, catching up on our weekend happenings.
12:35 p.m. School's almost out - better hit McD's for lunch before I pick them up.
1:00 p.m. At school. A bunch of Teacher Wish Lists for gift cards were there -yay!
1:30 p.m. Home again. Homework time. Look up latin roots for Ryan. Address the last two Christmas cards for 2009 now that I have received the updated addresses. I need to clean out/purge/organize the homework basket but that may have to wait until another day. Assorted laundry tasks, email, clutter control etc.
3:00 p.m. Take the girls to Grandma's house but no one is home. Maybe they went for a walk.
3:30 p.m. Picked weeds outside when I got back from Grandma's and Felisa watered the flowers. Now it's time to make dinner and take a shower before baseball.
3:45 p.m. Carlin from the school office called. Bella borrowed lunch money from the office last month but it was never paid back. Got it in an envelope to go back tomorrow.
4:15 p.m. Grandma D is here. Bella goes with her. Felisa stays because it is her turn to play with Ryan on the PS2.
4:35 p.m. Dinner is in the oven. Cheese and sausage are cut and packed to bring to the game for snack. Shower time!
5:15 Leave for baseball.
6:40 p.m. Ron arrives at the game on his way home from work. Gets a chili dog from the snack bar. Then he heads home to be there when the girls come back.
7:45 p.m. or so... the game is finally over. Ryan is upset because he was in the outfield all game except the inning he played catcher (which he doesn't like) and he struck out twice.
Talk to Ron about the game when I got home. Then Jacob stopped by to bring Ryan a snowcone from the snack bar to cheer him up. Such a nice friend!
Check emails. I can hear the kids playing together on the PS2. They are laughing and having a great time. I hate to disrupt the fun but it is getting to be bedtime.
My back is tired from my workout this morning plus my two hours spent sitting on the bleachers. I miss my laptop... I want to take my computer upstairs and lie down! Do the dishes again, give the kids their allergy meds, and fetch some clean pj pants from the basement for Ryan.
9:38 p.m. Put Darby out one last time. Get my snack of cheesy pretzels and milk. It is finally bedtime! Ron is watching 24. Apparently there are only 6 hours left. My thoughts are that a lot can go wrong in 6 hours. How many more times will Jack Bauer almost die? Ultimately the good guys will win, of course. After 24, the 10:00 news. I watch the weather and the latest on the volcano in Iceland and the ash cloud over Europe. Then I'm asleep. Such a long day today!
0600 I'm dressed and ready to go work out. Grab my Luna Bar and water bottle to head out. Notice that Bella is no longer sleeping on the couch (she came down last night while Kim and I were talking) so I make sure she is back in her bed, not out wandering the streets somewhere.
0710 Home from working out. Get Darby up and out. Get a cup of coffee.
0715 Check email... chess club this week! Add it to the calendar.
0723 Empty the dishwasher.
0730 Put away the dry dishes that have been in the dish drainer for too long. Organize the empty jars and put them away. The dishwasher has water left in the bottom so I start the Drain Cycle.
0748 Wake up Ryan and Felisa (Bella is already up)
0750 Ron leaves for work.
0800 Kim tells me that the hair dryer from the kids' bathroom isn't working. Turns on and heats up but no air is blowing. Gets very hot very fast! Executive decision - that one is going in the trash right now!
0802 Time to make breakfast.
0808 Breakfast is served. Oatmeal and Corn Pops. Ryan asks me why I am taking so many pictures today. I tell him that it is Week In The Life week.
0815 Eleanor stops by to say good morning to the kids.
0819 Tell the kids to get dressed. Weather Report is long pants today.
0823 Zoe is here. Her dad dropped her off.
0831 Throw in a load of laundry before we head out.
0834 Leaving the house. Only a few minutes behind schedule!
0842 Drop Kim at the Metro Kiss and Ride. She is headed to DC for some meetings then flying back home to AL tonight.
0845 Drop the kids off at the school Kiss and Ride.
0849 Back home. Move the deer antler out of the driveway and back into the garden. Broke a couple tips off when I backed over it but it's still mostly intact (minus the squirrel tooth marks!).
0851 Feed Darby. He's glad I didn't forget him. I think he was probably nervous when we all left the house and he hadn't been fed yet!
0857 Dentist office called to remind me of my appointment tomorrow. Guess that means the card I found in my purse last week was a current one. I have been known to call the office about my appointment time/date because I wasn't sure if the card was from this year or some other past year. Patty was laughing at me when I told her I had done it again!
0900 - 0939 Paying bills.
0942 Laundry
0945 Grab my MP3 player and take Darby out for a walk.
1009 Back from the walk. Check emails.
1018 I'm too hungry to think. Grab a slice of bologna out of the frig.
1020 Need to make the menu plan for this week.
1023 Still too hungry to think. Warm up a slice of leftover pizza to eat.
1045 A menu plan is somewhat done. I have figured out that I do not need to go to the store today so now I can move on to other things.
1049 and then some... Email two potential clients to set up appointments for this week. Remember that I never activated the Presto Pay for the PTA's gift card orders. Oops! Get that done. Watch the online registration tutorial for the Girl Scouts. Update my calendar with my to do's for the week. Check in on the Simplify 101 message boards. Attempt to clean my desk. Right away I find Christmas cards that need addresses and were never sent. Shani calls so we talk for a bit, catching up on our weekend happenings.
12:35 p.m. School's almost out - better hit McD's for lunch before I pick them up.
1:00 p.m. At school. A bunch of Teacher Wish Lists for gift cards were there -yay!
1:30 p.m. Home again. Homework time. Look up latin roots for Ryan. Address the last two Christmas cards for 2009 now that I have received the updated addresses. I need to clean out/purge/organize the homework basket but that may have to wait until another day. Assorted laundry tasks, email, clutter control etc.
3:00 p.m. Take the girls to Grandma's house but no one is home. Maybe they went for a walk.
3:30 p.m. Picked weeds outside when I got back from Grandma's and Felisa watered the flowers. Now it's time to make dinner and take a shower before baseball.
3:45 p.m. Carlin from the school office called. Bella borrowed lunch money from the office last month but it was never paid back. Got it in an envelope to go back tomorrow.
4:15 p.m. Grandma D is here. Bella goes with her. Felisa stays because it is her turn to play with Ryan on the PS2.
4:35 p.m. Dinner is in the oven. Cheese and sausage are cut and packed to bring to the game for snack. Shower time!
5:15 Leave for baseball.
6:40 p.m. Ron arrives at the game on his way home from work. Gets a chili dog from the snack bar. Then he heads home to be there when the girls come back.
7:45 p.m. or so... the game is finally over. Ryan is upset because he was in the outfield all game except the inning he played catcher (which he doesn't like) and he struck out twice.
Talk to Ron about the game when I got home. Then Jacob stopped by to bring Ryan a snowcone from the snack bar to cheer him up. Such a nice friend!
Check emails. I can hear the kids playing together on the PS2. They are laughing and having a great time. I hate to disrupt the fun but it is getting to be bedtime.
My back is tired from my workout this morning plus my two hours spent sitting on the bleachers. I miss my laptop... I want to take my computer upstairs and lie down! Do the dishes again, give the kids their allergy meds, and fetch some clean pj pants from the basement for Ryan.
9:38 p.m. Put Darby out one last time. Get my snack of cheesy pretzels and milk. It is finally bedtime! Ron is watching 24. Apparently there are only 6 hours left. My thoughts are that a lot can go wrong in 6 hours. How many more times will Jack Bauer almost die? Ultimately the good guys will win, of course. After 24, the 10:00 news. I watch the weather and the latest on the volcano in Iceland and the ash cloud over Europe. Then I'm asleep. Such a long day today!
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Friday, February 26, 2010
Julie, Julia, and Sheila
I finally got to watch Julie and Julia today. And of course I had to multi-task. To just sit and (only) watch a movie just doesn't happen. Appropriately (I think), I chose to cook while watching. I made a Haitian cake (mini cupcakes actually) for Thinking Day tonight. And peeled apples for a batch of applesauce. I picked up my farm food today and included in this month's share - 15 pounds of apples!!! We won't talk about how I hadn't touched the peck of apples from last month. But now I have 5 left from last month and a batch of applesauce simmering away.
I enjoyed the movie. Even though I enjoy cooking, I don't think I could stand up to a year of intense cooking like that!
In other news:
*It looks like we dodged the snow bullet this time. I have to admit though that a tiny bit of me is sorry we didn't get another big storm. I must be crazy to want more snow drama.
*The kids have become my boot police. Each of them on separate occasions have said to me, "Aren't you supposed to be wearing your boot?" My standard reply... "I'll put it on later after I take my shower and get dressed." I like to think of it as ankle exercise to walk around bootless in my pj's in the mornings. I go back next Tuesday for a checkup. Hope it's good news! And in case you're wondering, I'm not wearing my boot right now either. I went out to the compost bin in the back and though most of the mud is frozen, I still needed to give my boot a bath when I came back inside. I promise I'll put it on before I go to school to get the kids!
I enjoyed the movie. Even though I enjoy cooking, I don't think I could stand up to a year of intense cooking like that!
In other news:
*It looks like we dodged the snow bullet this time. I have to admit though that a tiny bit of me is sorry we didn't get another big storm. I must be crazy to want more snow drama.
*The kids have become my boot police. Each of them on separate occasions have said to me, "Aren't you supposed to be wearing your boot?" My standard reply... "I'll put it on later after I take my shower and get dressed." I like to think of it as ankle exercise to walk around bootless in my pj's in the mornings. I go back next Tuesday for a checkup. Hope it's good news! And in case you're wondering, I'm not wearing my boot right now either. I went out to the compost bin in the back and though most of the mud is frozen, I still needed to give my boot a bath when I came back inside. I promise I'll put it on before I go to school to get the kids!
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Sorry!
So there in my email inbox is a note from the National Weather Service... Winter Storm Watch. 5 inches or more. Huh. I think the jury is still out - lots of weather reports are showing the snow as being farther north again this time.
Fast forward a little... I went downstairs to hang the latest load of laundry to dry. I had washed all the towels that had been on the floor catching snowy boots, mittens, etc. I didn't need them anymore so decided to wash them and put them away. Oh so efficient. And then it hit me... It's going to snow. No doubt about it. This is just like when I wash the kids' sheets and then that very night, someone has an accident. Wash the snow towels - a snowstorm comes riding in.
Also, the dentist called yesterday. The kids have an appointment Thursday afternoon. It always snows or rains when we go to the dentist. So that pretty much seals the deal, I think.
So I'd like to apologize in advance to all my snow-weary friends out there... Sorry!
Fast forward a little... I went downstairs to hang the latest load of laundry to dry. I had washed all the towels that had been on the floor catching snowy boots, mittens, etc. I didn't need them anymore so decided to wash them and put them away. Oh so efficient. And then it hit me... It's going to snow. No doubt about it. This is just like when I wash the kids' sheets and then that very night, someone has an accident. Wash the snow towels - a snowstorm comes riding in.
Also, the dentist called yesterday. The kids have an appointment Thursday afternoon. It always snows or rains when we go to the dentist. So that pretty much seals the deal, I think.
So I'd like to apologize in advance to all my snow-weary friends out there... Sorry!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
It's history: Winter 2009-2010 snowiest on record - Capital Weather Gang
It's history: Winter 2009-2010 snowiest on record - Capital Weather Gang: "...PRELIMINARY ALL-TIME SEASONAL SNOWFALL RECORDS SET AT THE THREE MAJOR CLIMATE SITES IN THE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON AREA...
AS OF 2 PM TODAY...WITH THE 9.8 INCH TWO-DAY SNOWFALL TOTAL MEASURED AT RONALD REAGAN WASHINGTON NATIONAL AIRPORT...THE SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL IN WASHINGTON DC STANDS AT 54.9 INCHES. THIS WOULD BREAK THE PREVIOUS ALL-TIME SEASONAL SNOWFALL RECORD FOR WASHINGTON DC OF 54.4 INCHES SET IN THE WINTER OF 1898-99. OFFICIAL SNOWFALL RECORDS FOR WASHINGTON DC DATE BACK 126 YEARS TO 1884.
AS OF 1 PM TODAY...WITH THE 11.9 INCH TWO-DAY SNOWFALL TOTAL MEASURED AT BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL THURGOOD MARSHALL AIRPORT...THE SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL IN BALTIMORE STANDS AT 72.3 INCHES. THIS WOULD BREAK THE PREVIOUS ALL-TIME SEASONAL SNOWFALL RECORD FOR BALTIMORE OF 62.5 INCHES SET IN THE WINTER OF 1995-96. OFFICIAL SNOWFALL RECORDS FOR BALTIMORE DATE BACK 118 YEARS TO 1893.
FINALLY...AS OF YESTERDAY...THIS YEARS SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL AT DULLES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT STOOD AT 63.5 INCHES. THIS WOULD BREAK THE PREVIOUS SEASONAL SNOWFALL RECORD OF 61.9 INCHES SET IN 1995-96. AS OF 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON...THE TWO-DAY SNOWFALL TOTAL AT DULLES IS 8.5 INCHES...WHICH WOULD MAKE THIS YEARS SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL 72.0 INCHES. OFFICIAL SNOWFALL RECORDS FOR DULLES DATE BACK 48 YEARS TO 1962.
THESE PRELIMINARY STORM TOTALS ARE AS OF THIS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON 10 FEB 2010...AND WILL BE UPDATED AFTER THE CURRENT SNOW HAS ENDED."
AS OF 2 PM TODAY...WITH THE 9.8 INCH TWO-DAY SNOWFALL TOTAL MEASURED AT RONALD REAGAN WASHINGTON NATIONAL AIRPORT...THE SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL IN WASHINGTON DC STANDS AT 54.9 INCHES. THIS WOULD BREAK THE PREVIOUS ALL-TIME SEASONAL SNOWFALL RECORD FOR WASHINGTON DC OF 54.4 INCHES SET IN THE WINTER OF 1898-99. OFFICIAL SNOWFALL RECORDS FOR WASHINGTON DC DATE BACK 126 YEARS TO 1884.
AS OF 1 PM TODAY...WITH THE 11.9 INCH TWO-DAY SNOWFALL TOTAL MEASURED AT BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL THURGOOD MARSHALL AIRPORT...THE SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL IN BALTIMORE STANDS AT 72.3 INCHES. THIS WOULD BREAK THE PREVIOUS ALL-TIME SEASONAL SNOWFALL RECORD FOR BALTIMORE OF 62.5 INCHES SET IN THE WINTER OF 1995-96. OFFICIAL SNOWFALL RECORDS FOR BALTIMORE DATE BACK 118 YEARS TO 1893.
FINALLY...AS OF YESTERDAY...THIS YEARS SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL AT DULLES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT STOOD AT 63.5 INCHES. THIS WOULD BREAK THE PREVIOUS SEASONAL SNOWFALL RECORD OF 61.9 INCHES SET IN 1995-96. AS OF 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON...THE TWO-DAY SNOWFALL TOTAL AT DULLES IS 8.5 INCHES...WHICH WOULD MAKE THIS YEARS SEASONAL SNOWFALL TOTAL 72.0 INCHES. OFFICIAL SNOWFALL RECORDS FOR DULLES DATE BACK 48 YEARS TO 1962.
THESE PRELIMINARY STORM TOTALS ARE AS OF THIS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON 10 FEB 2010...AND WILL BE UPDATED AFTER THE CURRENT SNOW HAS ENDED."
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
I got the boot!
{background theme song playing... "I fought the stairs and the stairs won"}
So late Saturday afternoon, after a few hours of shoveling insane amounts of snow and continuously commenting in amazement about the insane amounts of snow, I went inside to defrost and rest. Then I made dinner and did the dishes. Next on the list of things to do... take a shower and get ready to go schlepping through the snow to scrap with my buddy. Unfortunately I'm a bit of a clutz by nature so when I decided to go close the curtain on the back door, instead I missed the step, twisted my ankle as I fell and screamed bloody murder (and lots of obscenities) while I lie writhing in pain on the floor trying to catch my breath. The curtain remained open. After a few minutes I gathered myself together and crawled back up the steps (there are only two steps there - a very dangerous two steps down which many people have fallen over the years though all with less pain and injury), through the kitchen to the living room. Pulled myself up onto the couch, put my leg up on the back of the couch and watched Ron outside clearing off the car. (The kids had all gone up the street to Grandma D's house so only Darby was a witness to my fall.) Debated whether or not to knock on the window and ask for help. Decided I might need the car to get to the emergency room so left him alone to work. Then my scrap buddy called me back to see if all was okay (okay, so maybe there was one other witness to at least the verbal portion of my fall!). I gave her the bad news that I would NOT in fact be going to her house that night. Then I crawled back to the kitchen (did I mention that I heard a snap when I fell? I could bear weight but didn't want to make anything worse than it already was), pulled myself up, turned off the stove, covered the soup, made myself and ice pack and then hopped/crawled my way upstairs to my room. Propped it up with ice and waited for Ron to discover my predicament.
Dr. Google said it might be broken, might be a sprain. Recommended RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) of which I was already doing 3 of the 4. Had Ron wrap my foot/ankle with an ace bandage. Popped a few Motrin. Decided to sleep on it and decide whether or not I wanted to go to the ER on Sunday. (Remember the 2+ feet of snow and barely-plowed roads?)
Sunday I talked to some friends and emailed Dr. Julie (sometimes it pays to have a college friend who becomes a pediatric orthopedic surgeon!) who was nice enough to humor me and give me an email consultation. She recommended staying OFF the foot because if it was broken, it could be made worse by walking on it, potentially even bad enough to need surgery. I had seen that exact same thing happen to someone else a year or so ago so I was already paranoid about that and definitely staying off my foot. Ron brought the crutches up from the basement so I could crutch around more and hop less. I decided to just wait until Monday to see the doctor because if it was broken, the ER wouldn't cast me and would just send me to the ortho anyway. Saving time and money and stress by staying in bed another day seemed like a perfectly good option to me.
Monday morning... there is still way too much snow outside. All the schools and even the federal government are closed. And so are the first 3 doctor's offices I call. Finally I call the doctor that mom had used. He was doing surgeries on Monday but had an opening Tuesday morning. I took it! And then spent another entire day in bed. The good news though is that I got the last few monthes worth of digital pictures backed up onto the external hard drive and I am almost completely done with the digital album of our trip to Disney last January.
And now... I have been to see the doctor. My ankle is not broken just sprained. I have a walking boot and go back in 3 weeks for a follow-up. And my "vacation" is over. Oh and that trip down the long icy driveway this morning was a bit nerve-wracking. If my ankle wasn't already broken, I thought for sure it might be by the time I got to the doctor's office! Also, my ankle actually hurts more now that I'm walking on it with my boot. So I must remember to take frequent breaks and rest my foot - not get too drunk on this re-found freedom! All the fun of my housework is just too much to resist sometimes. ha ha.
This experience has allowed me to recognize a few blessings in my life.
*My children took excellent care of me - brought me breakfast in bed twice. And when they remembered to, came up to check on me periodically. Also, if they could hear my yelling, they would come running to help me with whatever I needed (usually a glass of water).
*Ron got the crutches out for me. Did pretty much all of the shoveling. And generally held the fort down while I was out of commission. I know being snowed in for days is not his favorite thing and having a broken wife on top of it is even worse, but he handled it all very well.
*I have lots of friends who care about me and who will keep me company over the phone while I convalesce. They also offered to cook or chauffeur or whatever I need. I love my village!
*While I am not in fabulous shape, I am thankful for how fit I *am*. Getting around on crutches is hard and I'm sore. I can't even imagine how impossible it would have been to crutch and to jump up stairs and to balance on one leg if I hadn't been going to my exercise class (fairly) regularly over the past 4 years.
*I can walk!
So late Saturday afternoon, after a few hours of shoveling insane amounts of snow and continuously commenting in amazement about the insane amounts of snow, I went inside to defrost and rest. Then I made dinner and did the dishes. Next on the list of things to do... take a shower and get ready to go schlepping through the snow to scrap with my buddy. Unfortunately I'm a bit of a clutz by nature so when I decided to go close the curtain on the back door, instead I missed the step, twisted my ankle as I fell and screamed bloody murder (and lots of obscenities) while I lie writhing in pain on the floor trying to catch my breath. The curtain remained open. After a few minutes I gathered myself together and crawled back up the steps (there are only two steps there - a very dangerous two steps down which many people have fallen over the years though all with less pain and injury), through the kitchen to the living room. Pulled myself up onto the couch, put my leg up on the back of the couch and watched Ron outside clearing off the car. (The kids had all gone up the street to Grandma D's house so only Darby was a witness to my fall.) Debated whether or not to knock on the window and ask for help. Decided I might need the car to get to the emergency room so left him alone to work. Then my scrap buddy called me back to see if all was okay (okay, so maybe there was one other witness to at least the verbal portion of my fall!). I gave her the bad news that I would NOT in fact be going to her house that night. Then I crawled back to the kitchen (did I mention that I heard a snap when I fell? I could bear weight but didn't want to make anything worse than it already was), pulled myself up, turned off the stove, covered the soup, made myself and ice pack and then hopped/crawled my way upstairs to my room. Propped it up with ice and waited for Ron to discover my predicament.
Dr. Google said it might be broken, might be a sprain. Recommended RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) of which I was already doing 3 of the 4. Had Ron wrap my foot/ankle with an ace bandage. Popped a few Motrin. Decided to sleep on it and decide whether or not I wanted to go to the ER on Sunday. (Remember the 2+ feet of snow and barely-plowed roads?)
Sunday I talked to some friends and emailed Dr. Julie (sometimes it pays to have a college friend who becomes a pediatric orthopedic surgeon!) who was nice enough to humor me and give me an email consultation. She recommended staying OFF the foot because if it was broken, it could be made worse by walking on it, potentially even bad enough to need surgery. I had seen that exact same thing happen to someone else a year or so ago so I was already paranoid about that and definitely staying off my foot. Ron brought the crutches up from the basement so I could crutch around more and hop less. I decided to just wait until Monday to see the doctor because if it was broken, the ER wouldn't cast me and would just send me to the ortho anyway. Saving time and money and stress by staying in bed another day seemed like a perfectly good option to me.
Monday morning... there is still way too much snow outside. All the schools and even the federal government are closed. And so are the first 3 doctor's offices I call. Finally I call the doctor that mom had used. He was doing surgeries on Monday but had an opening Tuesday morning. I took it! And then spent another entire day in bed. The good news though is that I got the last few monthes worth of digital pictures backed up onto the external hard drive and I am almost completely done with the digital album of our trip to Disney last January.
And now... I have been to see the doctor. My ankle is not broken just sprained. I have a walking boot and go back in 3 weeks for a follow-up. And my "vacation" is over. Oh and that trip down the long icy driveway this morning was a bit nerve-wracking. If my ankle wasn't already broken, I thought for sure it might be by the time I got to the doctor's office! Also, my ankle actually hurts more now that I'm walking on it with my boot. So I must remember to take frequent breaks and rest my foot - not get too drunk on this re-found freedom! All the fun of my housework is just too much to resist sometimes. ha ha.
This experience has allowed me to recognize a few blessings in my life.
*My children took excellent care of me - brought me breakfast in bed twice. And when they remembered to, came up to check on me periodically. Also, if they could hear my yelling, they would come running to help me with whatever I needed (usually a glass of water).
*Ron got the crutches out for me. Did pretty much all of the shoveling. And generally held the fort down while I was out of commission. I know being snowed in for days is not his favorite thing and having a broken wife on top of it is even worse, but he handled it all very well.
*I have lots of friends who care about me and who will keep me company over the phone while I convalesce. They also offered to cook or chauffeur or whatever I need. I love my village!
*While I am not in fabulous shape, I am thankful for how fit I *am*. Getting around on crutches is hard and I'm sore. I can't even imagine how impossible it would have been to crutch and to jump up stairs and to balance on one leg if I hadn't been going to my exercise class (fairly) regularly over the past 4 years.
*I can walk!
Saturday, February 06, 2010
32 inches
The snow total at Dulles... 32 inches. That's A LOT of snow! Especially for this area.
edited to include this list of nicknames (thanks, Mapi)...
Snowapalooza
Snowmageddon
Snowpocalypse
The Snowtorious BIG
and of course the much less exciting name, the one used by all the newscasters, Blizzard of 2010.
I think we ended up with the #4 biggest snowfall of all (recorded) time. Not sure how we're stacking up on the total winter snowfall tally.
edited to include this list of nicknames (thanks, Mapi)...
Snowapalooza
Snowmageddon
Snowpocalypse
The Snowtorious BIG
and of course the much less exciting name, the one used by all the newscasters, Blizzard of 2010.
I think we ended up with the #4 biggest snowfall of all (recorded) time. Not sure how we're stacking up on the total winter snowfall tally.
Friday, February 05, 2010
#501
Just now, when I signed in to Blogger, I noticed that I have made 500 posts. That's a lot. Who knew I had so much to say?!
And now here is post #501, full of randomness...
*Who stole my measuring spoons? I have two sets. One is missing. I recently reorganized my silverware drawer so they shouldn't be lost. They should be even easier to find! So if anyone sees my spoons out wandering the streets, please send them home! I need them to properly prepare nourishment for my family during the Blizzard of 2010.
*I set the mouse trap today. Not sure if the evidence I saw is old or new. Guess time will tell...
*I love sharp pencils. While working at the preschool yesterday, one of my jobs was the sharpen the colored pencils that the kids were using. That was one awesome electric pencil sharpener! Normally I'm a fan of the old fashioned ones that were screwed to the walls in elementary school. But this one was pretty nice. I wonder what the lifespan is of that particular model. Because that's one of my complaints about electric sharpeners - they never seem to last more than a year, even with minimal use. On a related note... pencils are more environmentally friendly than plastic inkpens that are thrown away rather than refilled.
*I am currently loving the red white and bleu potato salad from Safeway and the Mediterranean Feta salsa from Whole Foods.
*Latest snow forecast... 20-30 inches! Yikes! That's a lot of snow! Potentially rivaling the historic Knickerbocker storm in 1922.
And now here is post #501, full of randomness...
*Who stole my measuring spoons? I have two sets. One is missing. I recently reorganized my silverware drawer so they shouldn't be lost. They should be even easier to find! So if anyone sees my spoons out wandering the streets, please send them home! I need them to properly prepare nourishment for my family during the Blizzard of 2010.
*I set the mouse trap today. Not sure if the evidence I saw is old or new. Guess time will tell...
*I love sharp pencils. While working at the preschool yesterday, one of my jobs was the sharpen the colored pencils that the kids were using. That was one awesome electric pencil sharpener! Normally I'm a fan of the old fashioned ones that were screwed to the walls in elementary school. But this one was pretty nice. I wonder what the lifespan is of that particular model. Because that's one of my complaints about electric sharpeners - they never seem to last more than a year, even with minimal use. On a related note... pencils are more environmentally friendly than plastic inkpens that are thrown away rather than refilled.
*I am currently loving the red white and bleu potato salad from Safeway and the Mediterranean Feta salsa from Whole Foods.
*Latest snow forecast... 20-30 inches! Yikes! That's a lot of snow! Potentially rivaling the historic Knickerbocker storm in 1922.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Recycling!
I love those "how it's made" shows. For some reason I am fascinated by how things are made. No idea why. I just am.
So "Factory Made" was on tonight when I turned the TV on. Did you know that railroad ties can be made out of recycled plastic and recycled tires? How cool is that!
So "Factory Made" was on tonight when I turned the TV on. Did you know that railroad ties can be made out of recycled plastic and recycled tires? How cool is that!
Monday, January 11, 2010
Friday, January 08, 2010
My Vacuum Threw Up!
So last night while I was at Brownies and Cub Scouts, Felisa threw up on the bed. Just a coughing fit gone bad... Ron changed the sheets and washed the dirty one.
Fast forward to today... Darby just got home from his walk with Grandma D. He promptly threw up on the rug in the entryway. So I had to pick up the rug to be washed, revealing all the dirt underneath. Which means I had to vacuum it all up. No big deal - the vacuum is already out and plugged in from earlier when I was cleaning up after the Christmas tree. Then I decided that I should probably empty the canister, as it was getting quite full.
I should mention that this is a new vacuum that Grandma R bought for us in November. Ron had emptied the canister the first few times so this was my first opportunity to do so.
First... I pushed the button that said "Push". So far, so good. Then I lifted the lever that said "Lift to empty".
Then... the vacuum threw up all over my clean living room floor.
I was expecting to pull the lever, and lift something up and out that I could then dump into the trash can.
Instead, the bottom dropped out and so did a giant pile of dust, dirt, and dog hair! Ack!
Note to self... next time, hold the cannister over a trash can BEFORE pulling the lever!!!
(also, I hope this is the end of the throw up for awhile...)
Fast forward to today... Darby just got home from his walk with Grandma D. He promptly threw up on the rug in the entryway. So I had to pick up the rug to be washed, revealing all the dirt underneath. Which means I had to vacuum it all up. No big deal - the vacuum is already out and plugged in from earlier when I was cleaning up after the Christmas tree. Then I decided that I should probably empty the canister, as it was getting quite full.
I should mention that this is a new vacuum that Grandma R bought for us in November. Ron had emptied the canister the first few times so this was my first opportunity to do so.
First... I pushed the button that said "Push". So far, so good. Then I lifted the lever that said "Lift to empty".
Then... the vacuum threw up all over my clean living room floor.
I was expecting to pull the lever, and lift something up and out that I could then dump into the trash can.
Instead, the bottom dropped out and so did a giant pile of dust, dirt, and dog hair! Ack!
Note to self... next time, hold the cannister over a trash can BEFORE pulling the lever!!!
(also, I hope this is the end of the throw up for awhile...)
Tuesday, January 05, 2010
A small act of kindness
After school today Felisa noticed her friend had forgotten to take her backpack and lunchbox home. She very much wanted to go back to the classroom to get them for her friend. I didn't think it was that big a deal but decided to let her do it anyway. We waited a few minutes for Bella to come down from her class, then walked together back to the Kindergarten rooms. While there Felisa also found another child's forgotten lunchbox. Back through the halls to the lobby then outside to the Kiss-n-Ride shack. Felisa's friend was thrilled to see her backpack and had in fact been crying because she had forgotten it. So a small, thoughtful, helpful gesture turns out to be a ray of sunshine for another girl, an act much larger than I imagined. It warmed my heart. Unfortunately the second child was not in the shack so we had to return his lunchbox to the classroom but that is a small sacrifice compared to the joy of Felisa's friend. I'm not sure Felisa even realized what a terrific thing she had done.
In other news...
After dinner, Felisa and Bella enjoyed a nice game of dreidel. I'm pretty sure I never played dreidel as a kid.
Ryan is doing a report on Powhatan Indians and Jamestown. While helping him research the Indian children's clothing, I learned that Powhatan children under the age of 12 generally did not wear any clothes at all, except in very cold weather.
Reportedly, Ryan and his classmates are not allowed to bring their math notebooks home. So all the notes about how to do the homework problems are at school, not at home. Makes no sense to me. So instead, I must google whatever the question of the day is so that I can figure out how to do the problem then explain it to him. Today we learned about vertical, opposite, and adjacent angles.
Ron... Ron... Ron...
(he thinks I'm blogging about him so I couldn't very well leave him out now could I?)
*****
In other news...
After dinner, Felisa and Bella enjoyed a nice game of dreidel. I'm pretty sure I never played dreidel as a kid.
Ryan is doing a report on Powhatan Indians and Jamestown. While helping him research the Indian children's clothing, I learned that Powhatan children under the age of 12 generally did not wear any clothes at all, except in very cold weather.
Reportedly, Ryan and his classmates are not allowed to bring their math notebooks home. So all the notes about how to do the homework problems are at school, not at home. Makes no sense to me. So instead, I must google whatever the question of the day is so that I can figure out how to do the problem then explain it to him. Today we learned about vertical, opposite, and adjacent angles.
Ron... Ron... Ron...
(he thinks I'm blogging about him so I couldn't very well leave him out now could I?)
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Once in a blue moon
I like that expression. Not sure why. May be connected to our Full Moon adventures.
So apparently tonight is a blue moon. Felisa and I noticed the moon Monday night and talked about how it was almost full. I noticed it again last night when I put Darby out - nice and bright though I couldn't actually see the moon since it was behind the trees.
According to the internet, a New Year's Eve Blue Moon only comes once every couple decades.
So... Happy New (Blue) Year everyone!
So apparently tonight is a blue moon. Felisa and I noticed the moon Monday night and talked about how it was almost full. I noticed it again last night when I put Darby out - nice and bright though I couldn't actually see the moon since it was behind the trees.
According to the internet, a New Year's Eve Blue Moon only comes once every couple decades.
So... Happy New (Blue) Year everyone!
Friday, December 25, 2009
Merry Christmas!
The rain is coming down now, melting all the snow. But at least it didn't start raining until late afternoon so it was a White Christmas for most of the day!
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Is it because I'm selfish?
So Mom's not coming tonight. Or tomorrow. I'm sure it's because I decided that it would be better if we had a quiet Christmas morning, just the 5 of us, before she and other people came over for the afternoon and Christmas dinner and after we are all together tonight for dinner and church.
I thought it was because that would make Ron happy. But now I'm wondering if it's really because then I don't have to stress about whether or not Ron is grumpy and whether or not Mom is feeling slighted because my husband is being anti-social. Which means it's really about me. It's quite possible neither Ron nor Mom feel that way. I'm making assumptions and I'm making decisions designed to make my life easier without completely considering others. Which on a regular day is okay but when it comes to family things and holidays, well, that's selfish behavior.
So, I guess I'd better go apologize to Mom.
I thought it was because that would make Ron happy. But now I'm wondering if it's really because then I don't have to stress about whether or not Ron is grumpy and whether or not Mom is feeling slighted because my husband is being anti-social. Which means it's really about me. It's quite possible neither Ron nor Mom feel that way. I'm making assumptions and I'm making decisions designed to make my life easier without completely considering others. Which on a regular day is okay but when it comes to family things and holidays, well, that's selfish behavior.
So, I guess I'd better go apologize to Mom.
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