All I Want For Christmas....

Excited!

Yesterday, after returning home from Black Friday shopping (another post on that later today), I checked the mail. I'm so happy that we got Peanut's referral for the EENT and it came so quickly! First thing Monday, I'm going to call and make her an appointment. So happy that we are able to take care of whatever her issue may be before we get out of the military. Woo-hoo for our health insurance!

Thanksgiving

Today was the first time I've ever spent Thanksgiving alone (other than with the two kids). And I have to say, it was a WONDERFUL day. We started the morning off with some hot cocoa. Bugga's first and he loved it! He definitely added "cocoa" to his vocab list today ;-) Then we had some blueberry muffins. Yummy!

After that, we all got dressed and headed to Food Lion to pick up a few things I had forgotten to get for our Thanksgiving Feast. Once we were home, we put on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (it's not Thanksgiving in our house without it!) and I started cooking. We had Turkey Breast (didn't buy a whole bird since it was just us 3), stuffing, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, dinner rolls & of course, Pumpkin Pie. We relaxed after an early dinner and watched a few movies.

Then, when it got dark, we loaded up in the car with some more hot cocoa and went in search of Christmas lights. I'm hoping to make this a family tradition. We only found one house that had lights though :-( Buuut, the kids did fall asleep in the car, so it was worth it.

I'm so thankful for having a wonderful day with my kids. It was simple, yet fulfilling. However, I'm ready for Matt to return so our next holiday won't be so quiet and easy :-)

Hope you had a blessed and wonderful Thanksgiving!

Recap

So let us recap today's events...which began early this morning

1 am- Dogs are pacing....get up to let them out.

3 am- Dog are anxious...get up & let them out (contemplate leaving them out in the very cold weather...don't)

4 am- Get up to let dogs out AGAIN.

6 am- Get up for the day...let canine's out...

7 30am- Get kids out of the house...into car...car doesn't start...keep trying for 10 minutes while contemplating how I'm going to fix this and get the kids to school/daycare & myself to work....Praying for help....

7 45am- Give up....get out of car...lovely neighbor across the street offers to jump my car (THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!)...and we're off....better late than not at all....

............work, etc. goes well.............

3pm- Get off work early (yay!)...head to a friend's house to drop off something....head to pick up Peanut....takes an HOUR, when it normally should take 20mins....

5 15pm- Pick up Bugga....

5 30pm - 7 30pm - Hubs calls (highlight of my day)....whilst trying to prepare dinner for two SCREAMING/WHINING/BADGERING (you get the idea) kids....all while on the phone...give them a snack of fruit and pumpkin pie to hold them over while I cook....head to closet to change....find the stupid DOG had pooped in there....want to scream....abandon cooking....forgot to defrost chicken anyway...order pizza....clean up closet.....make cookies while waiting for pizza....pizza arrives, eat, wash up, put Bugs to bed...Kaitlyn to bed (though she refuses to sleep....still)...wine for me...

/end day/ i.e. vegging out on the sofa

Day started out pretty rough....got better....got rough again....but is ending nicely.

Seriously....everyday around 5-6pm the kids have major meltdowns. I seriously have to have dinner prepared or it's total freak-out. I really need to start having dinner in the slow cooker on days that I work. Seriously.

That...or just get a housewife ;-)

So....how was your day?

When Will It End??

Since my husband left sometime in August, one of the kids has been sick. It all started with Bugga who developed bronchitis. Then moved onto Peanut who had a persistent cough that just wouldn't go away and got worse at night. Other than the cough, she was OK. No fever, no runny nose, and only one complaint of a sore throat. However, after 20 days on two different antibiotics, she just wasn't fully recovering like she normally would.

When we went to New Orleans for Halloween, the day after Trick or Treating, she came down with a 104 fever! So I took her into our pediatrician in New Orleans (who is actually my sister's & my old ped.) and she was given yet another antibiotic (her third since Sept 28th) for a newly diagnosed ear infection and we were sent for a chest X-ray since she was STILL coughing. Thankfully, after waiting for 2+ hours, she had the X-ray and everything in her chest looked fine.

That brings us to about now. On Wednesday, I picked Peanut up from school (the culprit of all this I believe....) and she said her ear had hurt a little at school. Since it was too late to make a Dr. apt, I gave her Tylenol and had her rest. Well within a few hours she was screaming and writhing in pain....really like I have NEVER seen her before (my kids have been generally healthy since birth, minus a few colds here & there....and Bug's ear infections....but really generally healthy). I felt terrible since I couldn't really do anything for her. I gave her more Tylenol, a warm compress for her ear, and some numbing drops for the ear I had gotten a bit back from their Dr.

So of course, on Thursday I make a morning appointment to take both kids in to see their Dr. (whom I absolutely ADORE). Peanut's diagnosis was a double ear infection (I figured her left ear was infected, the one she was complaining about...she never said a word about her right ear) and bronchitis. She was prescribed yet another ABX and an inhaler. She is also being referred to an EENT to check out her adenoids (the culprit of all this, her Dr. thinks). Her pediatrician believes that the adenoids may be the problem because she would start to get better on the antibiotics, but after a few days of being off the medicine, her symptoms would flare up again. If that is not the cause, then we will move on to allergy testing. I really do hope that the issue is either her adenoids or allergies, because those seem simple enough to fix. I think.... Remove adenoids....remove allergen (we think to be our kitten). I pray it is nothing more serious. She's feeling better and finally getting some much needed rest.

Bugga wound up with a single ear infection...slightly surprising only because he hadn't been complaining at all about his ears.

Anyway, my babies are on their way to better...I hope. I really hope that Peanut's issue can be figured out and that she can be back to 100% all the time.

Wordless Wednesday

Scheduling Conflicts

Any of you wait until your kids are sleeping to get certain things done?

I certainly do.

Any of you who do wait until that magical time ever find that you are then just too tired to do those things?

Yep, me too.

Right now, I want to listen to/watch a video on "Crazy Love." The book I'm reading with the Bloom Book Club (see button on my sidebar). However, my kids just won't let me :-) Even though I have banished them outside, they keep coming in for questions, snacks, drinks, etc.

Is this one of those times that I sacrifice my own doings to accommodate my kids?

Guess so, since I paused the video.

Ah well, I'm sure I'll get around to it later this evening.

You know, after they are in bed. And I'm not distracted. You know....that time I'm supposed to be getting in bed.

Then.

Then, I will take care of me ;-) (I hope)

Wordless Wednesday- Camping

Wordless Wednesday!

.Wordless Wednesday.

Not the best picture, as neither one of them is looking at the camera. But I like it 'cause it's an action shot. After a long day in the car & posing in front of the camera, it was time for a play break!

Soccer Mom

For the past 7 Fridays I have been a Soccer Mom. Kaitlyn started Early Goals, a program for 2, 3, & 4 year-olds to learn about the game of soccer. I'll admit, it's mostly been chaotic, but what can you expect from such a big age range? The last few weeks have been better because they have separated the groups by age. Kaitlyn has loved it and done wonderfully.

This Friday was her last practice and they played their first "game." She scored TWO goals!! YEAH, go PEANUT! I was so excited & proud of her! I got her second goal on video.

Wordless Wednesday!