the perfect day, followed by a not so perfect day

Yesterday was perfect, today, not so much.
Yesterday morning, got up made breakfast (eggs, bacon, and muffins).
We logged onto northpoint online and had church over breakfast and on the couch in our living room.  It was really nice to do "church" from home with the kids sitting with watching or playing quietly nearby.   We then got ready for the day, packed a picnic lunch, and headed to the mountains to go hiking.

almost to the top

taking in the view at Buzzard's Roost

 We hiked 1.5 miles up to the summit of the Sharp Top and had a picnic lunch.
The day was warm and sunny and absolutely beautiful. 

the view at the top

Abbott Lake below, where we got married

 After the hike we walked around the lake at the bottom of the Peaks and then headed to a nearby city for an early dinner at our favorite restaurant, Chipotle.  After dinner we walked over to the Fresh Market and grabbed some goodies before heading home. 

Sharp Top in the background, can't believe Lily made it all the way up there

we strolled along the lake after hiking 3 miles, we decided we need to come back and explore more on a day when we weren't tired from hiking

It was the perfect day.
Today was not that day.
This morning Lance did not want to go to school, he said he was sick, he said his throat hurt, his head hurt and he couldn't go to school (he was sick on Friday with fever, headache, and sore throat).  We told him he was not sick and he was going since he didn't have a fever.  He then complained that he was very itchy and we then looked down at his legs and realized he wasn't going to school, at least not right away.  He looked like he had leprosy, his legs were covered in pink welts, it looked awful.  We first thought it was poison ivy from our hike yesterday, but then we discovered some welts on his back and shoulders where he would not have had contact with poison ivy.  I did a quick google search of hives and poison ivy and neither really looked like his rash, then I read about scarlet fever and got a little nervous (sore throat, headache, rash, all his symptoms once again the rash didn't match).  I called the doctor as soon as the office opened since we needed to find out what to do about his rash, he couldn't go to school and it looked too awful to wait it out, we got an appointment 45 minutes later.  We took Lily to school and headed over to the doctor.  By the time we saw the doctor at 9:45 his rash had practically disappeared, we were very frustrated, how was the doctor suppose to figure out what was wrong if there was no rash to show him?  The doctor did look at the few spots that remained, took his blood pressure, listened to his chest, and did a thorough exam and then gave us the typical doctor answer: Hives with unknown cause.  Hives caused by a virus, an allergen, or just a fluke.  Since he hadn't had any new medication or new food, there was no way to tell what caused the hives.  He said that they would come and go for the next couple of days or they might stay gone, no telling, not the answer I was hoping for.  I shouldn't say that, I am thankful that it wasn't something serious like scarlet fever, but it is never fun either to get the "it's just a virus" response.  So we left the office and took Lance to school.   That morning Lily had been complaining that her tongue hurt and that she was sick and could not go to school.  We hadn't really paid much attention to her because we just thought she was copying Lance like she does, but when I picked her up from nursery school, I noticed she felt warm and after taking her temperature I soon discovered she was running  a low fever.  I wasn't surprised Lily was ill since Lance was just running a fever Thursday and Friday.  So I now have one child with hives and one with a fever.  The good news is we might be able to find out if the hives is caused by a virus if  Lily breaks out on Thursday or Friday or we may never know.  So today was not the perfect day Sunday was, but then days like today make days like Sunday perfect.

the downside to Kindergarten

I had plans for today and like all great plans, they have been laid to rest.
Lance said he was cold and had a headache when I picked him up yesterday from school.  Once we got home, I took his temperature and confirmed what I suspected, a fever.
So today he is home sick, he is running a fever and has a headache, but other than that seems fine.  I keep expecting a rash, or a cold, or something else to appear, but so far nothing.
A fever/illness is not anything to complain about but I also got a call from the school nurse this week, the "scrape" on Lance's forehead wasn't really a scrape, but ringworm.  YUCK!  When I mentioned ringworm in front of him, he immediately flipped out and I tried explaining it really wasn't a worm inside of him, but a fungus, big mistake.  I had to try and explain what a fungus was, which is even more difficult.  I decided to just go with "rash" as my explanation and because if I tried to explain fungus and how it wasn't a mushroom I would be sunk.  Ringworm is kind of like lice, but not as bad. 
So I have kid home sick from school and one kid who is healthy and both need to be entertained but one really needs to rest.  So I wonder when Lily is going to come down with the fever, probably next Wednesday when I have paid for an extra long day at preschool or Friday when it's the last day of school and a picnic because that is just how life seems to go.
It looks like it might be a long, boring weekend, bummer.

you've got to be kidding me

I feel horrible, AGAIN!
I thought this was suppose to be summertime, the season of good health and fun in the sun, not colds and sickness.
This summer is seems to be in the running for worst summer ever.
So I think I might have another cold, this is getting ridiculous.
Let's see, I had something allergies or a cold the 9-11th of June which turned into a sinus infection the 19th of June. July 4th weekend, just two weeks after recovering from the pink eye and sinus infection I came down with a definite cold, even a day spent in bed trying to break a fever.
And now I am feeling crummy again.
Now it could be allergies, but it is pretty ironic that on Friday Lily didn't seem to feel to good and had a runny nose, a sore throat, and was sneezing. I didn't know whether it was allergies give her problems or a cold, but now, four days later when I feel the same way she did, I am starting to think it was a cold.
So it is bad enough that my kids keep picking up colds which is more than they did all winter, but they are sharing their love with me, I guess I should be more specific, Lily has shared her germ love with me.
So this summer Lily has given me two colds and one case of the pink eye.
Ridiculous.
I should note, it is ironic that the past seven weeks when all of this illness has been going around, I have been in class all day and not there to remind my kids to wash their hands immediately after grocery store/playground/library etc, wonder if that has anything to do with anything.
Then again, they both go to preschool which I thought was germ center.
Maybe it is all the stress of my classes.
Who knows, but only 4 more days!
I just pray we all stay healthy during our beach trip so we can have one good week.

worst summer ever

Lance has been a bit of a drama king lately and when something he happens he calls it the "worst ______ ever." Well this summer is starting to seem like the worst summer ever. The summer started off badly, Memorial Day weekend, Lily was running a fever. Then the following weekend Lance had a fever and the following weekend we were healthy, though I had just gotten over a cold/allergies the days before the weekend. The next weekend I was sick, pink eye and a sinus infection, last weekend everyone was healthy, and now this weekend, I am sick, I thought it was just allergies, but this morning I woke up achy and with a low grade fever.
Weekend illness would not be that big of a deal if I wasn't in class Monday through Friday from 9 to 12, which for the kids is the main part of the day since Lily naps in the afternoon and many days it is too hot to play outside.
So it is 4th of July weekend and I am sick in bed, not the way I was planning on spending the holiday weekend, there is still one more day of the weekend and I hope and pray I will be better tomorrow.
There is a lot of summer left and hopefully this summer won't really be the worst summer ever.

not the mother's day I had in mind

is not about being showered with gifts and pampered today, this mother's day is about mothering and trying to survive even when you feel the worst.
I have strep throat and though I should be feeling better I am still not 100%, probably because I did not sleep well last night, I could not go to sleep and despite falling asleep sometimes after 1am I still got up at the usual 7 am, I am as bad as my kids.
And the way life goes, Jeff was doing sound at church this morning so he had to leave by 8 and was gone until almost 1pm leaving me, exhausted not feeling great with two kids for the morning.  Lance, last night was running a fever and this morning it was back, probably strep throat since I have it, but it could be something else.  One of his eyes doesn't look to good either, hopefully not pink eye, but it looks like it.  I tried to take him to an immediate care clinic this morning, but they would not accept his insurance and I didn't want to pay the $123 when I could just wait until tomorrow.  So I have been giving him Motrin and Tylenol regularly in hopes of keeping his fever down and just waiting until tomorrow when I can take him to the doctor.
All in all, this mother's day is not what I had planned or even expected, but I guess that is what motherhood really is all about.  Maybe next year, and then again maybe not.

the phantom fever

Friday afternoon Lance woke from nap and felt warm, I didn't think too much of it.  He didn't eat much dinner and after Jeff tried to get him to eat it all came back up.  I decided then to take his temperature and sure enough he had a fever.  With the vomit incident at dinner I was expecting the worse, but it never came.  Jeff may have been right and the vomit was just the result of Lance's really good gag reflex.  So Friday night we gave him some Motrin and put him to bed.  Next morning still had a fever and was quite pathetic so more Motrin.  A couple of hours later he was back to his old self and fever was gone.  Strange.
Yesterday Lily woke up from nap and felt warm, took her temperature and sure enough she had a fever.  Gave her some Motrin and didn't think much of it.  Some time in the wee hours of the morning she woke up and she was burning up, I thought for sure her temperature was going to be 104 or 5, but it was only 102.  Gave her more Motrin and got her back to sleep.  This morning, though I didn't take her temperature she felt fine and acted fine, assuming she is better.
So both kids came down with some random virus which has resulted in us having a pajama party day today, the kids are still in their pjs and me in my sweats and we are just taking it easy, no reason to go out on this cold day, we are relaxing and hopefully get healthy until the next round of illness hits us, since it is the season for sharing all kinds of things. 

Quite a snotty weekend

alternative title: longest post ever

First it was Lily, then Lance, and now me, we are all suffering from too much snot otherwise known as a really bad cold. I am not surprised to catch a cold during a week that had a record low as well as a record high. Going from 9 degrees to 80 can cause havoc on the sinuses. Despite the coughing, sneezing, runny nose, water eyes, and just feeling bad we had a nice weekend, we got outside and enjoyed the warm weather, and got some stuff done (at least on Saturday).
Friday afternoon neither child felt like napping so we hit the playground and enjoyed the beginning of a warm weekend. It was so nice to be outside and not have to be bundled up. Lily wasn’t feeling well, but I thought it may be due to teething, little did I know it was a nasty cold that would hit Lance and I later.

(the kiddos enjoying the 70 degree weather on saturday)

Saturday morning both children woke up snotty and coughing. I felt so bad, they were quite pitiful, but they did improve as the morning wore on. We badly needed groceries so my mom came over to watch the kiddos so I wouldn’t have to drag the sick kids with me to the store. After planning my week’s menu, making my list, and finding coupons I hit the store, it was so strange going solo, I kept thinking I was forgetting something. It was a good thing though I went solo because there was no room in the cart for kiddos, I bough way too much food, but we got to eat. After putting the groceries away and eating lunch Lance and I played outside while Mom stayed inside and listened for Lily to wake up from nap. Once Lily woke up we set off on a walk, it was too nice of a day to stay inside and walking wouldn’t overexert my sick children, though at this point they weren’t really that bad. The walk was so nice, it was warm and the neighborhood we walked in is quiet with beautiful houses to admire. Lance fell asleep during the walk and slept a little bit more when we got home, but he started coughing badly and didn’t get a good nap in, day 2 of no good nap for Lance. The kids and I played outside some more and then Jeff got home and we made dinner. Despite some runny noses and coughing, it was a beautiful, nice day out and we enjoyed every moment.

(lily showing off one of her new spring dresses, i love seeing all that skin!)

Sunday I was suppose to go out-of-town shopping with a friend, but Lily and Lance had been running a fever on and off and with their colds, the time change, and the weather being beautiful I didn’t go. Since the kids had runny noses, bad coughs, and on-again-off-again fevers the kids and I skipped church and went for a walk instead.

It was once again a beautiful warm day. Lance once again fell asleep on the way back and got a small nap in, but not the kind that he needed, day 3 of no good nap for Lance. Both kiddos were awake when Jeff got home from church so we were able to have a picnic in the front yard.

After the picnic, Jeff and Lance worked on Jeff’s bicycle and Lily and I played in the yard. Lily then took a nap while Jeff and Lance took a short bike ride, I was starting to feel cold symptoms coming on so I tried to sleep, but not being a napper I basically just read for an hour. When Lily woke up we put both kids in the trailer and rode our bikes down the park in hopes of seeing a train on the trestle.

Unfortunately, no train came through, but it was outing. I hadn’t been on a bike in 2 years and it was also Lily’s first bike ride, we didn’t know how she would like it. She did pretty good considering she didn’t feel that great. The afternoon was great, but that evening was rough. Both kids seemed to feel horrible in the morning and at night and this night was the worst. Both kids were up multiple times and Sunday night seemed like the longest night ever.


Monday morning, all three of us felt miserable, but fortunately Jeff was still healthy. Jeff planned to take Monday off to go snowboarding, but since we were all sick and the weather was nice and warm he stayed at home with us. Monday seemed to be the worse day for the cold for both kids and though I have felt worse I didn’t feel very good either. We just hung around the house in the morning and then had lunch. While we were eating lunch the UPS man arrived with my FLOR, so we had a good time putting the new rug together. (should note:After playing around with carpet squares both kiddos took a nap while Jeff ran errands. Lance slept like a log, but Lily was very fidgety and would only sleep if I held her so nap time yesterday was unproductive. After both kids got up we went for another walk to enjoy the last of the really warm weather since it is suppose to get colder this week. When we got home I was able to cook dinner without having both kids underfoot since Jeff was playing with them outside, yeah for me! After dinner we played hide-and-seek until it was dark, it was so nice to outside.



Despite not feeling the best the weekend was overall enjoyable. I got a menu planned, groceries bought, and some laundry done so it was productive. I can't wait for spring to be here and stay, I love spring and summer!

word of the week:

poop!
I have changed way too many dirty diapers this week and I don't think I should have to change any for a week.
I don't know what was going on with Lance and his digestive system this week or why Lily decided to get in on the action too, but we have gone through way too many diapers and wipes in this house. Monday afternoon Lance wasn't interested in eating, Monday night still no interest. Tuesday morning, not interested in food really, by noon he was running a fever and acting not right. He ate a little dinner and then 5:45 Wednesday morning was diaper explosion. Ahhh, the smell, the volume, it was bad. He seemed better though Wednesday, no fever and he was acting normal, but every time he ate something we had a diaper to deal with. It was strange, he seemed to want to eat, but his digestive system didn't seem to be able to deal with anything. Yesterday he too seemed fine, but every time he ate, he pooped.
Then there is Lily, not that she was ill, but every time she pooped she it went out the back of her diaper and all over her clothes and once on me. The last few days have been rough.
Fortunately I haven't had to deal with any poop diapers from either child today! Hooray! I just hope Jeff and I stay healthy, though I think we would be sick by now, but we shall see.

was it something I ate

Or a bug? we may never really find out.
Last night Jeff came to pick up Lance at swim practice and he looked rough. He was pale and said that his stomach was bothering him. Occasionally when Jeff eats red meat he has some stomach issues so I didn't think too much of it. I was concerned because he did look so pale, but after checking on him later he seemed better. I got home from practice and he seemed fine so I didn't think that it was a bug or food poisoning. We went to bed and at 12:30 Lily got up to eat, I fed her, drank a large amount of water, and went back to sleep. I woke up at 1:30 and didn't feel so good, thought it was maybe all the water I drank. After about an hour I realized I had been plagued with whatever had been bothering Jeff earlier that day. I was up all night, it was rough. I was finally at 6 able to fall asleep until close to 8 am. I am feeling better now and I am thankful that whatever is the problem isn't as bad as it could have been (vomiting all night long). I was scared to eat anything this morning, but after toast and tons of water I felt better, though exhausted. I was able to get a small nap in too which helps, but I can't wait for a good night's sleep hopefully tonight. Since Lance has been healthy and Jeff and I came down with the funk within hours we think it maybe food poisoning, but you never really know. I keep thinking it might be the chicken divan casserole I made Sunday night so then I get paranoid and don't know if I want to eat the other casserole I made that night if it was the chicken. Also, I saved some of the Chicken Divan for my mom, should I have her eat it to see if she gets sick or not let her eat any since it may not be the casserole? It probably isn't the casserole since Jeff ate it twice and I had the funk worse. Okay, totally over thinking here and on a totally random note: it happened, I knew it would: Lance fell in the pool last night at practice.
Falling in was one of those things I thought would probably happen just once and it did and hopefully I pray it will never happen again. He is fine and fell in practically in the arms of one of the swimmers so she was right there to catch him. He is usually very good around the pool, but every now and then he gets a little too comfortable. Sometimes if the ladies don't get going fast enough I let Lance bop them on the head with a noodle. Last night he was trying to bop one of them and she grabbed the noodle and when he tried to move it he lost his balance and went right in. He was fine and definitely learned his lesson. It was kind of scary when it happened, one of those times when life seems to be in slow motion and you can't move fast enough even when you are so close. I kind of scared one of the swimmers because I shoved Lily into her arms so I could hold Lance after his dunk in the water and she wasn't prepared to be holding the lilybean, but I didn't want her to get wet. I love water and swimming, but I know how dangerous it is especially with small children and I wanted Lance to understand that you can't get to close and he is like me, he doesn't always learn unless he experiences it so last night he learned first hand. Last night was also a reminder that I need to review CPR on small children, it has been awhile. I also am thankful for the quick thinking of the head coach for pulling him out before he freaked out and the swimmer who caught him while he was falling, he got wet, but not fully submerged. So last night was not the greatest of nights for me and I survived, there will be worse, and hopefully much better.

stay away germs, stay away

It is June, summertime, there shouldn't be colds running rampant but there are and they are invading my house and I leave for the beach in 2 days!!! I don't want to be sick or have anyone around me ill when we are going on are one and only vacation!!! AHHHHHH! Jeff appears to be coming down with a cold, he felt a little off on Tuesday, he had a sore throat yesterday, he didn't sleep well last night, and he left for work to early for me to tell anything this morning. Lance's nose has been running marathons for the last two days so I don't know if it is still teeth, but since it is a bit different then it was he might have a cold. Also, everyone at our church seems to be spreading the cold love around, I talked to a friend on Tuesday who was feeling horrible, her husband was starting to come down with "the cold", four or five people she knew already had "the cold", and from being on facebook this morning I saw that at least one other person has been stricken with "the cold!" I am a miserable sick person especially when on vacation and I really hope that my immunities will be on high alert and I won't catch "the cold" that seems to be going around. This is June, there shouldn't be colds going around, that is what is suppose to happen in January!
Two more days and about 3 or 4 loads of laundry to go. I am very frustrated my wardrobe is microscopic and I discovered yesterday that I am missing two shirts. How on earth did I lose two white shirts???? I wonder how long they have been missing. I am trying to be very strategic on what clothes I am wearing now so I will have mostly clean clothes for the beach. It stinks having only a weeks worth of clothes, but I can't rationalize spending a lot of money on maternity clothes that I will never wear again (90% of the clothes I had with Lance I did not wear again) and with living with a toddler things can't get worn more then once because at the end of the day I am covered in dirt, snot, food, and who knows what else. Today I am going to break it down and torture my poor child with some vacuuming!

molars and skinned knees

So we still have an on again off again runny nose and his cough is better and the problem might not be another cold, but his two year molars. I don't know why, but yesterday in church I put my finger in his mouth and discovered two large bumps that weren't there last week. I had an "aha" moment realizing that the congestion, his hands being in his mouth all the time and the sporadic behavior was probably due to molars coming in and not another cold though some say teeth don't cause congestion, but Lance has always had a yucky nose when he is getting teeth. He doesn't seem to have any bumps on the top yet, just on the bottom and hopefully he will improve and stay well during our beach trip. Five more days!!!!!
Today we went to the park with our small group and then we met daddy for lunch. After lunch Lance was avoiding getting into the car and he fell on the sidewalk and busted up his scabbed over knee. There was so much blood and though it probably looks worse then it really is I began to feel a little light headed, it looked horrible. Last Monday night, we took a walk and Jeff took Lance on the longboard, well they hit a bump and Lance scraped up his knee pretty bad. It took a few days before he didn't have to have it covered all the time and was starting to look pretty good and now thanks to his encounter with the sidewalk we are back at square one. I just hope it heals before next week because sand and scrapes don't mix well.
So there are five more days before the beach and eight weeks until my due date. I am already starting to get pretty uncomfortable though I am not that big and still have eight weeks left. We also have nothing ready, but hopefully we will be stopping by Pottery Barn Kids on the way back from the beach and I will get the bedding I want so I will have one thing to check off the list. Five more days, I can't wait!

sick, again

Hibernating most of the winter is biting me in the butt. I feel like we just got over a cold and Lance is sick again. He just stopped coughing from his last cold a couple of days ago and now we have problems again. This time it is a little different, it isn't a constant runny yucky nose, but the bad part is the cough and the vomit associated with coughing (he must have a lot of drainage). Last night he started threw up after 30 minutes of trying to cough up all that gunk in his throat/chest and he did it again this morning after a coughing fit. The upside is that the throwing up clears his body and he is worlds better afterwards. Jeff has been amazing at helping Lance because me Ms. Weak Stomach can't handle much these days. I was also worried last night and a little this morning that it might be a stomach bug on top of a cold, but he doesn't act sick, he can eat and drink immediately afterwards, and he has done this before (when he got a cold before he ate many solid foods). The other strange thing is, he only seems bad in the evening and morning, he only woke up briefly at midnight coughing and after the coughing/ puking this morning he was his normal self with the exception of needing to wipe his nose once or twice (hmm, that was after we played outside, wonder if it is allergies). I should be thankful that he is sick now and not in a little over a week when we are at the beach, but I feel like we just got over a cold and I don't understand how he can be sick again!
On a positive note: Seven more days until our week at the beach, I can't wait!!!! I have been looking forward to our beach trip since last year, but I have been counting down the days for over a month now. Our beach trip is the only vacation we really take, it is a week away from the stress of work and life, and we get Jeff to ourselves for a whole week 24 hours a day. I can't wait. We are going much earlier this year and with my mom working all next week I am in charge of organizing and packing and making sure we have everything. In the past we usually borrow a van, but we can't this year so packing this year is going to have to be very strategic to make sure we can get everything in and on my mom's wagon. My sister and "Aunt Christy" can't come this year which is sad, it will be quiet and not the same without them their, but I know we will enjoy ourselves. Some friends of ours will be at the beach the same time as us which will be fun so we will have someone to hang out with and share a meal. The crazy thing is Topsail Island is 26 miles long with hundreds of houses to rent and our friends are in walking distance from us. Lance loved the beach last year and I hope he will enjoy it even more this year, especially now that he loves sand.

stuck in the moment

Lance has a cold, my poor buddy, he is not a happy camper and I feel so bad for him. He keeps gagging on all that congestion and tries so hard to breathe out of his nose which is so stuffed which causes the gagging and he hates to have his nose wiped which makes him cry which makes even more snot. Yesterday, I gagged while trying to wipe off his nose, it was that gross, which reminds me of my sensitive stomach and extremely easy gag reflex and I get stuck in the moment thinking that my annoying symptoms will never go away. I find myself thinking that this cold will never go away when time seems to tick by so slowly especially when I am up quite a few times at night and awoken to coughing and heaving by the poor guy. Not only am I stuck in the moment when it comes to illness and pregnancy, but when it comes to life. I am trying to stay focused on the future and positives, but lately with gas prices, poor business, and everything else crazy going on it isn't easy. I know that there is no guarantee to have an easy life, but I would sure like a breather for a bit. wait, haven't I said that before?

typhoid mary

I don't even know if I have the disease or name of the woman right, but that isn't the point. I hope I am not typhoid mary, but I am afraid I might unknowingly spread some germy love around. I don't even know when I started being contagious and it will only be the test of time to see how contagious I really am.
Where to begin?
Sunday- woke up and my left side of my throat hurt, looked in the mirror and noticed my tonsil was swollen. I felt pretty tired, but I haven't been sleeping well and I have been very congested lately so I didn't think too much of it. I took my temperature several times and I didn't have a fever. I was feeling kind of achy so Jeff went to the store for some Tylenol. Took some and felt worlds better. After doing nothing all morning and afternoon we went out shopping and dinner out. The Tylenol really made a difference.
Monday- morning- felt pretty good, tonsil was no longer swollen, went to nurse appointment, was tired in the afternoon, but with reason because I had woken up that morning at 5:30, last night, my throat started to really hurt, but went away and I was extremely fatigued and achy.
This morning- woke up and the right side of my throat hurt, I looked in the mirror and my heart dropped when I noticed that my right tonsil was bright red, swollen, and covered in white spots
I was so upset, I had the classic signs of Strep throat, which I might mention I have never had before! I was a little confused though because I didn't feel really bad, a little fatigued, but I am pregnant and not sleeping that well and congested. I called Jeff and dropped Lance off with him and headed to a urgent care center because I never get sick and don't have a regular doctor. They took my temperature- no fever, I had hopes that it was something else, but when the strep test results came back it was positive for strep. The doctor wrote me a prescription for an antibiotic and sent me on my way.
Fortunately I don't feel that bad, and I bet that once the antibiotic kicks in I will notice a big difference in my energy level, but what is strange is I do really fatigued at time, but it comes and goes.
I just hope that Lance and Jeff stay healthy and that I didn't spread the love to them. I am also curious if I have had it since Sunday or did I just get it today? Who knows. I just hope the antibiotic will not bother my already sensitive digestive system, I am going to be consuming a whole lot of yogurt the next two weeks!

feel a bit better

Yesterday whatever was wrong turned from manageable to miserable. I don't know if it is allergies or a cold or what, but I am feeling better today, or should I say this moment. I took a Claritin and it seemed to help on and off yesterday, it was really strange. I would be feeling good one moment and then, my nose would be runny and my head congested and I would be feeling horrible, but then it would stop and my head would be clear. It was kind of like the allergy medicine was working, but not consistently. I was feeling not so great this morning, but I feel pretty good right now and I have my moments. Lance seems to be better than he was, but he does have a bit of a cough. So this week has been not very exciting. Earlier this week I didn't feel good thanks to the dreadful days, then Lance didn't feel good, and now I don't. It has also been very cold out and I realized I am so not ready for winter especially with a little one who LOVES to be outside. It is suppose to be the sixties next week which will get us outside a lot hopefully. I am really torn, I am hoping for a mild winter for Lance (so we can play outside), but also a cold winter for Jeff (so snowboard business will be good). I guess a cold winter would be better because better business means less stress and we can pay the bills and I could buy warmer clothes to keep Lance happy.
Speaking of the store. I can't believe the day is here. The day we have been waiting for, for six years, we now have a skatepark. It seems to good to be true. We have been waiting for the skatepark to open for years and hopefully business will finally be steady. When things are rough business wise we always say, let's keep going until the skatepark opens, well now it is here and hopefully we will see an increase in business and be able to be successful. I keep waiting for the hammer to drop though, because it seems to good to be true: we finally have a skatepark and with the exception of Play-it-again, we are the only place in town that sells skateboards. So now that things seem to be good I am waiting to here of some corporate large store coming to town (though I don't think there is one), or some larger store from another city, or just another shop opening up to take away from our business. I know that I should see the glass as half full and not half empty, but in times past when we think we were going to get a break and finally have this kind of moment something has happened. For example, a large sporting goods store that carried snowboards closed their store we were all excited because we were going to be the only snowboard shop, well a large store opened up in town and took away a lot of our business, then we got news that they were closing, but they didn't close until a year after their announcement, then we got excited and then found out that Play-it-again was expanding. Anyways, it just seems that whenever we might get a break a new roadblock comes in. I hope and pray that another store won't open and that someone won't see the potential because we have been trying for six years to get a park, and be a successful store and I hope now if finally our chance. Also, Jeff was worked so hard to support the skatepark and get it open as well as support the scene here by having events and it would be a shame if someone came in right when it got easy and use the excitement that Jeff has generated for their benefit. So hopefully this weekend is the start of something and not the end.

haircut, sneezing, cool perspective, christmas music,

This morning Lance got a haircut because he was getting a bit shaggy and now he looks so different. He now looks like a little boy which makes me sad, he is growing up too fast. Anyways, the haircut was not easy, for some reason Lance did not want to sit, have his hair touched, have his hair combed, anything. His favorite candy, M&Ms didn't even work to make him happy. We finally got his hair trimmed and then I tortured myself by getting my eyebrows waxed. This normally isn't bad, but I have been sneezing a lot today and the waxing made the sneezing worse and for some reason it hurt a lot more than it usually does. Speaking of sneezing, I am miserable today. My nose is running, I am sneezing quite a bit, my head is slightly congested, my eyes itch and are swollen, and my face is tender. I don't know whether it is a cold or allergies, but I took a Claritin and hopefully that will give me some relief soon. I feel bad, but I know it could be worse and I am praying it doesn't get worse. Lance seems a bit better today, he is still congested, but his nose isn't as gross and he is still drooling a lot. Here are Lance's before and after haircut shots:
Before haircut:
It doesn't look bad, but it is getting kind of shaggy.


From this view it is starting to get a bit like a mullet and girly.
and after:

He looks so old and thinner. I think the haircut also makes him look more like his dad though he is the splitting image of him, but I notice more now.


He would not stay still so I could get his picture so this is the best closeup I could get.

A cool perspective:
I feel a majority of the time like a goober, but I realized this morning that I am cool, maybe only cool by association, but I am. How many people get to say that they own a snowboard and skateboard shop? We get to meet cool people and sometimes get to go to cool places. Though life seems pretty dull sometimes, it has the potential for coolness. Last night we watched a snowboard movie that was really cool ( i am so overusing the word cool). It was called bikecar and these guys built a bike-car and traveled over 600 miles to several ski resorts. It was good because it was about snowboarding and wasn't just a bunch of rail slides and party scenes. And you know it is good if I like it, I don't like many. Anyways, watching bikecar made me think about how lucky those guys were that they could just build a bike-car and travel for several weeks. Then I thought about all the neat experiences that we have had from owning the business and how Jeff is a mini-celebrity because of the shop and that our life is not dull as I think it is. I realized that I need to start living in coolness and not dullness. Did that make any sense? Probably not.
Finally, I have done it, I have busted out the Christmas music! I love Christmas music and why wait until Thanksgiving when you only have 30 days to listen to it, I want to enjoy it for a longer time period so I broke bad and started playing the Christmas playlist. That reminds me, I should look on itunes and see if they have a new happy christmas album. Do you call them albums anymore? Who knows.

cold for month of November, check

The doctor said at his 18 month check up that Lance would get a cold a month, so far Lance is living up to those odds. He had a cold at the beginning of October and he appears to be coming down with another today. Yesterday he kind of had a runny nose, he sneezed more than usual, and coughed more then usual, drooling a lot, and then last night he was up a lot. Today we have a yucky nose, some sneezing, and a lot of drool. I don't know whether it is a cold or some more teeth coming in, or both. I realized this morning that I never appreciated sleep until I had Lance. I forget how nice it was to go to sleep and not wake up until morning most nights, this does happen some nights, but not at the frequency they use to. Lance has been getting up a lot and sleeping with us in our bed which is not a good habit I want to create, but also because he is a bed hog. Last night I got rolled on, head butted, kicked, hit, and drooled on, and this is what I can remember while half asleep. I feel worse for Jeff because he was more awake and trying to deal with Lance then I was, I was not fully awake and not much help to the two of them. I did suggest at one point that we give Lance some medicine which gave him the relief he needed because he went to sleep shortly thereafter and sleep until morning.
So because we are a little under the weather we are hanging out today in the house and trying to get stuff done around here, but it is not easy. For everything one thing I do (fold laundry) Lance messes up two things (pulls out all his socks out of the sock basket and takes everything out of the drawer in the bathroom). We are going to go shortly to my mom's house to play, she is home sick from school (she has bronchitis) so we will have a change of scenery, but we are laying low today.
Last night Jeff and I talked and he wants to change things at the shop, but he doesn't know how. We went to the library and he got two books that will hopefully give him some ideas and suggestions on how to run the business smoothly and give him some more free time. The marketing book is quite entertaining because it was written in 1997 (not that long ago), but it can get quite dated in some of its ideas. For example: try e-mail your customers instead of calling, a lot of people prefer e-mail to the phone, now instead of e-mailing there are websites, blogs, myspace, etc that is easier than e-mails because customers come to you. Another suggestion was to get a cell phone as though cell phones were a new concept and not everyone had them, but there were some good ideas too.

of all the inherited traits

I had hoped that Lance would not inherit my allergies, but things aren't looking good for little man. Yesterday afternoon he started sneezing, had a runny nose, and his eyes looked red. I don't know if it is a cold or allergies, but he has never sneezed like he has been before with a cold. I feel bad for him because he doesn't feel good, and I pray that this may be a short cold that will go away soon. He is currently asleep which is unusual for so early in the morning, I hope he have a long nap because the last couple of days he hasn't slept as long as he usually does. Lance has also been getting into mischief this morning. He grabbed the end of the toilet paper and ran it into the playroom. While I was showering he decided he wanted to shower to so he took off his diaper and threw it in the shower. He found the cheerios from the diaper bag and managed to open the Ziploc bag and pull a plate out of his drawer and pour the cheerios on the plate. He figured out that there was a drawer underneath his bed and pulled out all of the sheet and blankets that were there. What was I doing while the mess was being made? Guilty of trying to find some new podcasts to listen to, update Quicken, check my e-mail, and shower/ get dressed. So this morning, I am officially a slacker mommy. I will do better I promise!
On a random note, speaking of doing better. I listened this morning to another God is Green podcast from Mars Hill/ Rob Bell and I am very convicted. I am trying to figure out ways that I can be a better steward. Something that I really don't want to give up, but am feeling pretty guilty about: DIAPERS! I know that they are pretty bad, but he are so much easier, and cloth seem so bulky, or at least what I have seen from people I know. Right now we don't have the money to invest in cloth diapers, but I might be able to go 50/50 with cloth diapers, so I am making a little difference. I am interested to see if this conviction about diapers will stick or if it is something I will get over quickly.

you never really know what is going on

Right now life isn't exactly how I want it to be or how I envisioned it and it is very easy to get bummed about it, especially when I hear of other people complaining about their situations when they have what I want or their problems aren't nearly as bad as what I am dealing with. I know that someone out there would probably feel the same way about me complaining about not being content with my life because they would love to have what I do, but it is still hard. I know that though we have no financial security I do have a beautiful baby and a husband who loves me which is more than some people have, but I just wish I could have . I look at other people and they seem to have everything and get whatever they desire, but after getting real with a few people this week, I realized that might not be the case with most people. Also, the people that I see that everything or just a lot of some things, they might not be any happier than me. I am very happy with life right now, I love staying home and hanging out with Lance, I love the business, I love my house, it is just that I let the lack of money and lack of control to fix the situation get blown out of proportion. I am terrified that everything is going to get taken away. This week my eyes have been opened to how things aren't always greener, and I am thankful for those people who have opened up and explained what life is like. For those people who are real with me, thanks, you have me how blessed I am, but also you have shown me how things aren't always what they appear because you never really know what is going on. What looks one way on the outside is something very different on the inside. I am queen of believing what I am seeing because I try to be real, not pretend I am something I am not, and I have a hard time with people who put up a front. After my conversations this week, I could easily get envious and wish my situation was different, but I have learned that things aren't always what they first appear. For example, my friend A, looking at her life it seems perfect, she has a gorgeous large house, a husband who financially supports her, she is able to stay at home without major financial downfall, and two great little boys, but sometimes she hates her life. I am shocked to hear that she isn't loving life, but A did have to move away from friends and farther away from family for her husband's job which keeps him away a lot, and staying at home in a unfamiliar town can be very lonely when you don't know many people, not to mention trying to get unpacked when you have two small children who need your attention every moment is close to impossible. I love A, she is an awesome friend and I am envious of her financial security and house and her small woes about paying for clothes when we can barely pay the mortgage, but I am thankful that my husband doesn't have to go away on business every week and I am extremely close to my mom. I admire A so much because I don't know how she does it, it is so stressful moving and not knowing where everything is and not knowing anyone in town, and having no escape from the kids. Hanging out with her helped me realize that though she has some things I don't have, there are some things that I do have, and I am not trying to put her down, but no one really has it all. Another friend, B, she also doesn't have to work and her husband is in another state so she is totally free to do what she wants, he doesn't get on her for talking to her mom, or not getting the house clean when he comes home, but on the other side, she is separated from her husband and they have a whole other set of issues. After looking at life I realize that finances are what I am envious of. I am envious of people who can spend money freely without having to worry will there be enough. I am envious of people whose husbands don't have "real" jobs, but still can pay the bills and have extra money. I am envious of everyone out there who has more than 2.07 in their bank account. So I am totally stressing about our finances because I am trying to get organized with Quicken and trying to figure out how we can be better at tithing, saving, and spending in general and it makes me ill to see our financial situation, so I get frustrated and wish I had someone else's life, but learning what I did this week, I realized I have it relatively easy and I need to be thankful for what I do have and stop whining. I know in my head that God has a plan for me, I just need to get that in my heart. I know that we will make in financially, I just need to trust that it will happen. Looking at our finances, we haven't been as good stewards as I thought we were being and I hope to be able to do better in the future. Well on to a not so serious note: I updated my other posts with pics that went with them and I have lots of pictures for today's post. Lance has been showering with one of us in the morning. This morning Lance

was with daddy and they came up from the bathroom sporting matching towels wrapped

around their waists. Lance's towel is a hand towel and right after the last picture he ripped it off and danced around naked. I can't get over how he looks so much like a boy and less like a baby everyday.










We went to open the store today so Jeff could work a little longer at the his first job and we could receive an early shipment. Lance likes the bike shop next door a lot more than our store, every chance he got he would run next door and play with all of their inventory. He also threw lots of food on the floor for Iris, the dog to eat, she was loving Lance today. Jeff saw a skateboard bench somewhere and decided to make one himself, so here is Lance testing it out:

If you look closely, you notice that his shirt is dark, that would be drool, it is so gross, I can't wait for this to slow up, it is so gross! I wish this cold would improve, he is drooling like crazy, very grumpy, has a yucky nose, isn't eating much, and did I mention grumpy. Oops, I am whining again. Today I win the bad daughter award. My mom was having gum surgery today and I totally forgot. I had planned to be available to take care of her today, but I forgot and was at the shop most of the day. I did run to the grocery and get some soft food for her. I hope to make it up to her tomorrow since I don't have any plans.

another molar and yummy treats

Poor Lance he is a mess. There is a waterfall flowing from his nose and mouth. He was sneezing and coughing Monday night and I thought it was the beginning of a cold, but yesterday for some reason I reached in his mouth and felt the second lower molar just about through the gum. This is hopefully the cause of the runny nose and crazy behavior of the little guy. I am just amazed how Lance can go from laughing and dancing to screaming and crying. He is like Dr. Jekyll/ Mr. Hyde these last few days, but hopefully once these molars come in he will even out and be a bit happier.
This morning Lance and I decided to indulge and went the the bakery to get some donuts for breakfast, I had a longing for a blueberry cake donut. It was so good and Lance looked very cute sitting in the chair eye level to the table, but enjoying every bite of blueberry goodness. It was so bad, but yet so good. I am really enjoying the slower life of staying at home, and really staying at home. I need to get a little more done during the day, but it seems like all the projects I want to do involve money and we still don't have any.