Ouch Part II: Broken

WARNING for those of you who have issues with even mild injuries/x-rays, bruising (I think bruises are awesome, by the way) and/or feet (I'm thinking of you, HTP): There are pictures of my x-rays and my beautiful bruised toe and foot below.  You may want to shield your eyes.

 

Moving on....

 

My hunch/instinct about my toe was right.  I broke my poor little 5th metatarsal right at the base of the toe.  Lame!!!  After an uncomfortable night and humming and hawing about getting things checked out, I finally went to the doctor late Tuesday morning.  When the tech was reviewing the first two of three films, I heard her say, "Ouch!" quite loudly from the back room.  I asked her if she was okay and she responded that she was fine, she was just looking at the pictures of my toe.  Awesome.

 

The nice doctor came in and saw me once he'd seen my films and we chatted for a few minutes.  He really was a nice, good, honest guy and whispered that he could buddy-tape the toe for me but that the clinic would charge something like $120 for it and suggested that if I was comfortable doing it myself, that I should do so.  No question there!!  Before I left, a medical assistant came in and gave me a lovely black shoe with a sturdy sole and Velcro straps...just like the one that has been collecting dust on the top shelf of my closet for a few years.  Compared to the flip-flops I had on when I walked in (even my loosest, comfiest shoes hurt like crazy), it actually felt quite nice to cruise around in.

X-rays of the toe along with bruising that night.  The bruising got way worse but I didn't get a good pic before it started to go down again. Also - I have since painted my toenails so my foot looks a tiny bit normal.

 

On the wise advice of my hubby, I went to see my podiatrist on Wednesday.  I asked all kinds of questions about activity level/usage of the foot, when I can try normal shoes, etc.  I wasn't too happy to hear that the first two weeks are the most crucial for healing and that I need to take it easy.  Ha, ha, ha!!  I know it's logical but it still bugs).  I have to go back in about a month to have new x-rays taken and hopefully at that point, I can stop wearing my crazy wicked-awesome strappy shoe...if it doesn't hurt.

 

Since my doctor's appointment, I've tried to take it easy and since the doc okayed it, I've kind of let pain be my guide.  I've definitely overdone it a couple of times in the past few days (like when I cleaned bathrooms, did laundry, and went out to a movie and dinner yesterday) but I've really tried to make sure that I sit back and put the foot up for longer than 10 minutes at least a few times a day.  And I'm counting sitting here at the computer and not moving it as rest time as well.  I have to because otherwise I'd go nuts.  I can't just sit around, read, and eat chocolate all day.  Well, I'm sure I could manage somehow - especially if it was dark chocolate marzipan from Mrs. Cavanaugh's - but I'm not wired that way.

 

In the meantime, my mom was apparently insanely jealous of all the attention that I've gotten with my broken toe so on Friday morning, she up and rolled her ankle and broke her 5th metatarsal.  Her break is on one of the longer bones up closer to the ankle so it's considered a broken foot.  Lucky lady gets to wear a back Velcro boot that goes up to her knee.  And she has a cane.  I am not envious.  We're going to see each other later this week and you can bet we'll be taking some pictures of our darling footwear and spending lots of time sitting around.  At least we both did this to our left feet so we can still drive.  I think between the two of us, we might be able to function as 1, maybe 1 1/2 adults.

More posts coming throughout this week.  And I'm not bluffing (for once)...I've already knocked out 3 posts and scheduled them!

Ouch

This afternoon Hudson and I worked on rearranging his room.  We sorted, cleaned, put away, threw-out, moved, and generally took care of business with everything in there.  When the bulk of the work was done, I sent him off to play and started to take care of a few bigger tasks that I decided to do on my own (i.e. making up his bunk bed which happens to be my all-time least favorite household chore. I'd rather scrub the toilets or mop the kitchen...I curse whoever invented bunk beds with railings).

 

I can't recall exactly what I was doing, but after running something to the kitchen, I walked back into the room and while apparently not paying attention to where I was stepping, I jammed my left pinky toe into Hudson's big, sturdy book basket.  I heard a crack but I don't know if it was the basket or my toe.  Either way, it felt less than marvelous and I quickly grabbed the railing on the bunk bed and stood there trying to decide whether I felt like swearing or crying.  I did neither and instead took my sweet time soaking up the pain and rather un-fondly remembering when I broke that same toe about 3 1/2 years ago...  Just before Christmas.  Spiral fracture. Huge black boot. 10 weeks before normal shoes didn't hurt.  Ugh.

 

Dinner had just arrived when this happened (pizza night...too hot to turn on the ovens or stove and too hot to make hubby grill out back) so I took it easy with my foot resting on a pillow while we ate and watched MIB 3 with the kiddies downstairs. Will Smith, by the way, is positively hilarious...I can't stop laughing when he's doing his thing. Anywho - hubby did his best to keep me from being on my foot too much and was kind enough to bring me pain killers and get me another slice of pizza.  I have a hard time being waited on but it sure felt better to be off it than hobbling around like a total gimp.

 

Tonight the toe has definitely swelled up a bit and it's starting to turn a lovely shade of light purple at the base and around the side.  The pain isn't nearly as bad as it was when I first love-tapped the book basket but I don't know if that is because I've stayed off it much of the night, if the painkillers are doing their job, or if it's because it's not broken and is already getting better.  I'm hoping and crossing my fingers that this is nothing more than a bad jam or sprain.  We'll see how the pain is tomorrow.  I really don't want a broken toe and I really don't want to wear that super stylish boot for several weeks again.  It'd make everyone jealous and I hate making others feel less beautiful just because I look so incredibly awesome with my bulky Velcro-strapped footwear.

 

Please don't be broken.

Obsession: Downton Abbey

I've got a lot of catching up to do but let's just get started with these two words:

 

DOWNTON ABBEY

 

When Max and I got into watching Downton Abbey back in the fall, we thought that we were the last ones to jump on the bandwagon.  I've been surprised as of late to find out that there are still a lot of people out there who haven't started watching it, let alone heard of it.  What very melancholy and hopeless lives they must lead.

 

Anywhatzerdoodle, we were immediately hooked and there was no going back.  We finished season 1 in a few days and within a week's time, we were done with season 2 (I think we stayed up until 2 or 3 o'clock some nights...just had to watch one more episode) and cursing the fact that season 3 wouldn't start until January 6th of this year.  It was September.  October, November, and December crawled by at a snail's pace as we waited for the first Sunday of this year to brighten our bleak existence.

 

Each Sunday night of this year has been filled with excitement and anticipation as we counted down the minutes until Downton Abbey would be on.  Granted we TiVo it and watch it after it records...but still.  Twice the glorious amounts of snow we get at this elevation (approx. 5,000 ft) has blanketed our satellite dish and left us in a state of sheer panic on Sunday evening.  Twice I stayed inside and tried not to have a nervous breakdown while my husband - remember he had major hip surgery in November - dragged out the ladder and climbed up on our snow-blanketed roof to clean the dish off so that we'd get reception in time.  It worked both times and he came back down to less-slippery ground safely both times.  Hallelujah!...because we couldn't have waited 1-2 days for PBS to make the episodes available online.

 

Last night was one of those nights.  We missed the first couple of minutes of it because our box was re-booting but no big deal.  We saw every other minute and they were the ones that mattered.  I discussed last night's gripping episode (seriously...how crazy was it?!) with no less than 4 people today.  During the conversation with my sister, she provided me with life changing news: Season 3 (the current season) of Downton Abbey is being released on DVD and BluRay tomorrow.  The season isn't even finished airing here in the states yet and they're making it available to all of us addicts.  Oh, my good glory...I almost passed out.  What a brilliant marketing plan on the part of those sneaky Brits.  After very little discussion between Max and I, it was decided that we would need to order it on BluRay tonight.

 

The deed has been done.  Our beloved copy of Downton Abbey Season 3 on BluRay will ship out via Amazon Prime tomorrow and it will be on our doorstep on Thursday.  I may or may not sit in one of our front bay windows and wait for it to arrive...I don't know if I'll be able to sleep tonight (or tomorrow night for that matter).

 

If you can't guess what our Friday night plans are, then something is seriously wrong with your deductive reasoning skills.  Please no phone calls, visits, etc. after 9:00...'cause we're not taking a break in watching the rest of the season for anything!

 

P.S.  I just told my spell checker to accept the word "Downton"...because it's totally legit.

Missed My Quota

Here we are.  Less than two days before 2012 is outta here and I have totally failed to meet my goal of 50 posts this year.  I did sit down to write a post once this month. Yes, once. But I got less than one sentence into it and ran out of time.  In my defense, I was planning on writing a bunch and getting the remaining posts up this month but in the past 4-5 weeks alone, I've had a bunch of totally legitimate and great excuses.  I may try to knock out a number of posts in the next day and see how close I can get (do I get a prize if I do it?) but in the meantime, here's a list of some of the reasons why I didn't put out one measly post in December before tonight:

• I've been busy.
• Max had a pretty rough recovery from his surgery for the first couple of weeks and I was his main helper.  He didn't need me with him 24-7 but that definitely took up a good chunk of my time.
• My parents came in town for a visit.  They didn't stay with us but I spent as much time as I could with them while they were here.
• On December 4th, I went and picked up a very darling almost 10-week-old yellow lab mix that we named Sally.
• Every day since December 4th, I've felt like I have been caring for a furry newborn that can't wear diapers and needs a whole lot more attention than I remembered puppies need.
• Ran a lot of errands.
• Did lots of laundry but I was so busy with other stuff that more than anything, I excelled at falling behind in it.  Let's just say my kids had to pull things out of their hampers a time or two.  Thankfully I was on top of it just enough to make sure that we all had clean underwear the whole time.
• Got back to volunteering in the kids' classrooms the week or two before Christmas.
• Went to the dermatologist.
• Being a creature of habit, I simply had to make three batches of caramels over the couple of weeks before Christmas.  This involves standing over the stove for a good 30-40 minutes during the cooking process (which I did at midnight one night) and then cutting and wrapping each batch on my own (well over 100 caramels per batch).
• Went to Hudson's last two basketball games of the season...new season starts in January.
• Delivered goodies to neighbors and friends with Hudson's help (I drove and he ran up to each door).
• Took the kids to Temple Square and City Creek to see the lights and then out to dinner afterwards.
• Headed up and coordinated Hudson's class holiday/winter/Christmas party.
• Finished up Christmas shopping, wrapping gifts, etc.
• Shoveled snow a number of times on Christmas Eve (kudos to my little bro for doing the brunt of it!) and in the days after Christmas.  On Christmas Eve I managed to slip on our horrendous sealed driveway and seriously hurt my pride and my hip.  I have a killer bruise to show for it.

To make myself feel a little better about not succeeding in my 50 post goal, here are a few of the other things that I didn't get done this month:

• Our annual Christmas card complete with a current picture (or pictures) of the kids.  I bought stamps for the cards because I happened to be at Costco one day but that's as far as I got.  Maybe New Year's cards this year?  Maybe...
• Never finished getting my neighbor/friend gifts out to everyone...still have a couple of things sitting on the kitchen counter.
• My kids didn't have ANYTHING prepared to give their friends this year.  They both have a few friends to give something to.  Maybe New Year's gifts?
• Get enough sleep.
• I haven't written an e-mail to my family since the 11th of November...I usually write at least twice a month.  The thought of catching up there makes me shudder.
• Take my kids to Zoo Lights (annual tradition)...need to put it on my must-do list for December 2013.
• Check my e-mail on a regular basis...when I finally peeked at my shopping e-mail account yesterday, I had over 900 messages.  Thank goodness I was able to delete about 99.75% of them without having to look at them.
• Not a single thank you note has been written for Christmas gifts (by me or anyone else in our house).

Now that I've succeeded in talking about how crazy busy my life has been, I have to say that I have had a lot of help over the past several weeks.  Meals were brought in by great friends and neighbors, kids were given rides to basketball practice and dance, friends came to play with the kids so that they were occupied while I got things done, a couple of people came to spend time with Max towards the beginning of his recovery so that I could get out of the house, and my hubby did everything he could to help me each day in spite of his condition.

I may be busy but I'm one lucky girl.

Rewind: Mommy-Daughter Pre-K Date

When Hudson was about to start Kindergarten, I got a sitter for Claire one day and he and I went out for a day of fun.  The other day I was going through some of the picture folders on my computer when I discovered a bunch of pictures of Claire from the day I had with her at the end of August and realized I never posted about it.

Our day wasn't anything over the top or super exciting but it was as good as it could have been.  Just like any child, she needs quality one-on-one time and days like this one reminded me that I need to give that to both of my kids more often.

We dropped Hudson off at a friend's place late morning and Claire and I headed to Gardner Village in Salt Lake.  She was excited for our date but was apparently tired, too, and fell asleep for about 20 minutes on the way there.  We went to lunch at the main restaurant where I had a turkey sandwich and Claire had grilled cheese.  I ordered an appetizer of fried green tomatoes and Claire was brave enough to give them a try.  She wasn't a huge fan but ate a few bites.  As picky as my girl can be, I'm always impressed with how willing she is to be adventurous and try new things.

After lunch we headed to the salon/spa where Claire got to have her nails painted.  She chose a very bold pink with a clear glitter finish...so girly!  She was tickled to have her feet in the foam flip flops...it was obvious that she felt very important.  She looked so proud, happy, and grown up sitting there.

When her pretty toes were all ready to go, we walked around the other shops and got a treat at the bakery before leaving.  It was such a pleasant and easy time with my girl...something that we both needed.

It makes me a bit sad to think that I won't get to have a special pre-Kindergarten day with any more children of mine.  I guess I'll just have to find other reasons (or no reason at all!) to take my kids out for special days now and then.

Kids + School + Busy = Me + Crazy

Holy smokes.  Forget the old saying about time flying when you're having fun.  Here's what I have to say:

 

"Time flies when the kids are just getting back in school, everyone is adjusting to a new schedule, and you think you're going to have SO much free time with the kids away and then you find out that you're horribly - almost hysterically - wrong."

 

I know the kids have been in school for several weeks now but still, it took a while for all of us to adjust and I'm just now starting to feel like we've gotten into the groove of things.  I felt like I was barely keeping my head above water for a solid month.  Those of you who have more kids than I do are probably rolling on the floor in fits of laughter right now.  I can see you.  And I can hear you saying, "You only have TWO kids, chica...try managing with 5!" (or 4, 7, 15 or any other number higher than 2).  Once upon a time I wanted at least 4 children.  I would have happily considered 5 and might have gone for 6 (if I had felt like I was supposed to have another).  Now, with as busy and crazed as I am with my 2, I wonder if I would have survived being a mom to that many kids.  And I wonder how those of you in that boat are sane.  Or are you?...

 

Now that I have conceded that I most likely have it easy with only two kids, I shall continue with my saga.  Since school started, our weeks have gotten more and more packed.  Our current schedules involve the following each week:

 

Claire

• group piano
• dance
• homework & piano practicing (daily)
• chores

Hudson

• piano
• Boy Scouts (3x/month)
• basketball practice (8 a.m. on Saturdays - blech!)
• basketball game (1 night/week)
• homework & piano practicing (daily)
• chores

Me

• volunteer all morning in C's class one day a week
• volunteer in H's class all morning one day a week
• pick up C & friend from school 2-3 times a week
• drive to and from dance every other week
• get H to & from basketball practices & attend games
• do all that other stuff that moms do: laundry, cleaning, cooking, laundry, grocery shopping, oversee/manage kids' homework & piano practicing (and chores!), and laundry
• attempt to stay sane and find some time for myself while doing all the things listed above

You want to know what the craziest part of all of this is?

 

I voluntarily got us into most of this.

 

Okay, I got into all of it when I became a mom...but a lot of it is what one could call "fluff".  My kids don't NEED to be in piano.  Claire doesn't NEED to be in dance and Hudson doesn't NEED to play basketball or go to Boy Scouts.  That being said, they're happy doing these things and that makes me happy.  I'm just glad that Max and I decided some time ago that we'll only allow one instrument and one sport at a time - 'cause if you ask me, signing up for more than that is like asking for a giant serving of psychosis with a generous helping of loony sauce on top.  Now, don't think I'm critical of those who do have their kids in multiple sports and such.  I'm actually somewhat in awe of them and their ability to juggle it all.  Besides, I'm sure that I will someday eat my words and you can all laugh at me again when I do.

 

In the meantime, I'm going to keep on running around like a chicken with her head cut off.  Oh - and just to mix things up a bit, Max had a kidney stone this week.  And he'll be having major surgery in a few weeks.  He's having his right hip resurfaced (left one was done about 4 1/2 years ago...the combination of hip dysplasia and degenerative arthritis is a real doozy).  Wish me luck!

Canning & I Made A Pie

August was a busy month in my kitchen.  I am glad to say that it wasn't a continual thing as I would have died of heat stroke had I turned on my stove and/or oven on a regular basis.  Whoever invented the natural gas outdoor grill is this girl's best friend...my family wouldn't have eaten all summer if it weren't for the Weber sitting on our back patio.

 

Anywho...

 

Back at the beginning of August, a local grocery store was having a ridiculous sale on red bell peppers.  They were something like $0.69 or $0.79 each.  And to make the deal even better, these peppers were positively enormous - literally about double the size of a normal red bell pepper.  Whenever those puppies go on good sale, I immediately start thinking about the jalapeno red pepper jelly that I make to give away at Christmas every few years.  Well, guess what folks.  Thanks to that fabulous sale, this just so happens to be one of those years.  I made a total of 5 batches of the stuff (about 30 jars - some 1/2 pint, others are pints) and it's all waiting in my basement cold storage room for me to wrap it up and give it away at Christmas.  Feels good to have at least some of the holiday hustle and bustle already done before the summer is out!

A couple of weekends ago, my little brother and his wife went up to Brigham City one day and brought me back a full bushel of Suncrest peaches.  I'm literally salivating from typing that.  I absolutely love Suncrest peaches - perfect flavor, texture, etc.  I think they're my favorite (thus far...haven't tried all of them).  Now, in case you didn't know, a bushel is a whole lot of fruit.  I spent all of one evening/night and another full day heating up my stove and running around my kitchen to make all sorts of goodies.  From said bushel of peaches I was able to make:

• double batch of fresh fruit freezer mix (peaches, grapes, crushed pineapple & OJ)
• 4 quarts of canned peach quarters
• triple batch of peach freezer jam (6 half pints)
• double batch of cooked peach jam (6 pints + 6 half pints)
• one fresh peach pie
• a handful of leftover fruit eaten plain or on cereal for breakfast

Now I'm totally out of peaches and it makes me kind of sad.  We have a nice fruit stand at the bottom of the hill...I think I'm going to have to stop there one of these days and at least get enough peaches to make another pie and have some for breakfast for a few days.

 

Oh - and I'm so nice.  I'm going to share the recipe for the peach pie on this here blog in the next few days...

5 Years Old and 5+30 Years Old

I obviously never posted an official "5 Years Old" picture of my girl.  So here you go:

A few days before her birthday, we had a family (both sides) party here for her.  We had Max's parents, his local brother and his family and my two local brothers and their families here to celebrate with us.  I made the chocolate and cherry chip cupcakes with almond frosting that we had for dessert.  I didn't realize until my sister-in-law pointed out later in the evening that by chance, Claire chose to put on a purple and pink outfit for the shindig that almost perfectly matched the purple and pink frostings that I had made.  Between her clothes, the cupcakes and the balloons, we had a serious color coordination thing going on!

Her actual birthday was pretty laid back.  We ran a few errands and had a fairly normal day until the evening.  The kids and I went out to dinner at The Olive Garden (her choice - hubby had to work late and couldn't join us) followed by a little shopping trip at Carter's where Claire picked out a couple of things and a stop at Maggie Moo's to get a couple of custom packed quarts of tasty goodness to take home to accompany Claire's birthday cake.  Max was home when we got there so we all enjoyed Claire's birthday cake and ice cream and watched her open a few gifts.

 

It's hard to believe that my baby girl is really five years old.

 

In other news, I turned 35 a few days after Claire's birthday.  I got to spend more money than I wanted to on having my the screen on my iPhone 4 replaced. (I may or may not have dropped it and caused serious damage way back in June.  Thank goodness for a really strong screen protector that held it in place all this time.)  When Max got home from work that evening, he brought this with him:

Chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream frosting with chocolate draped over the top.  I did not complain.  Not even once.  Happy Birthday to me!

Homemade Peach Jam

I just checked and in terms of posts per month, I'm still a few away from beating my record so far this year (a mind-boggling 8 posts).  That means that after this one, I still have 2 more to knock out in the next week and by golly, I am doing to do it...

Now back to business.

At the end of September and the beginning of this month, I decided to venture into unknown territory in my kitchen.  I made peach jam.  I've made strawberry freezer jam (and strawberry-raspberry...yum) and I've canned peaches and applesauce, too.  I just hadn't done cooked jam of any sort since Mrs. Cosgrove's cooking/home-ec class in high school.  And that was a while ago.

This year my awesome in-laws gave me more peaches than I could have asked for.  Bags upon bags of fresh peaches from their backyard tree.  I would normally can them all but for whatever reason, this year's crop was filled with cute little miniature fruit about the size of large plums - not exactly prime for regular canning.  And so, not wanting to waste all that glorious fruit...

I made a batch of freezer jam.  I searched for recipes on the websites of canning/pectin companies like Ball and Cert-O but could not find a recipe for peach freezer jam for the life of me.  So off I went to various recipe websites and found one that had good reviews.  I had no reason to think that it wouldn't turn out well.  Wrong.  I made an enormous mistake and followed the directions and - please don't scold me for breaking one of my own cardinal cooking/baking rules - I actually purchased (complete waste of money) and used (complete loss of brain power) bottled lemon juice.  I cringe just thinking about it...  The mixture smelled good enough and seemed just fine but a while after spooning it into the little jars, I noticed sugar settling at the bottom of each one.  I knew I had made it correctly.  I had allowed it to sit long enough and stirred the living daylights out of it.  Not cool.  So I furiously dumped every last drop of the stuff back into my ginormous mixing bowl to give it what-for.  In the process, I allowed myself a little taste of the jam.  What I tasted could not be fixed by freezing, by adding sugar, or by some jam-making master of the culinary arts.  There was barely even a hint of peach flavor...it was all sour bottled lemon nastiness in my mouth.  Cringing again.  Yuck.  I seriously just got the heebie jeebies thinking about it again.

Down the drain with that batch.

Next I grew back a few of the brain cells that were lost when I purchased the you-know-what and went back to the store and read every last word on the jars of powdered pectin and boxes of liquid pectin in the store.  Guess what I found in the process.  A recipe for peach freezer jam.  Right there on Ball's jar of powdered pectin.  WHY they couldn't have the same recipe on their website is beyond me but I was happy to find it, purchase the pectin, and get the heck out of there.

Attempt number two at freezer jam was approximately one billion times more successful and tasty than the first time around.  No explanation needed.  I followed these directions and used the fresh lemons that were sitting in my fridge the whole time and it turned out beautifully.  Wonderful taste and gorgeous color...much more like it.

In addition to the batch of freezer jam, I also made 4 separate batches of cooked peach jam.  These are my pride and joy (after my children, of course, but it's a close call).  I lovingly peeled the fruit and finely chopped it by hand before taking my beloved KitchenAid immersion blender and giving it a quick pulverizing.  I think that was my favorite part.  That and using a trick from my canning genius paternal grandma.  It's a trick which many of you probably already know (stainless steel knife in the cold jar absorbs the heat from the boiling jam and the glass doesn't shatter) but I find completely amazing nonetheless.  I also loved that every single jar of the stuff sealed within moments of my turning off and removing the lid from my steam canner.

Proof of my hours in the kitchen (and some time contributed by my awesome mom while she was here...thanks, Mom!) and proof that in spite of having made that unforgivable sin of purchasing bottled lemon juice, I can make real peach jam:

The jar with the white lid is freezer jam, the others are all cooked jam. 

My only problems with the cooked batches are as follows:

a) One batch of 10 or 11 jars didn't set up for whatever lame reason.  It's fairly runny and would probably be good on rolls or pancakes but just didn't turn out like I wanted it to.

b) They are so pretty that I hate to think of giving them all away at Christmas.  So I'm not...I've stockpiled a number of jars for us to use over the coming year.

c) It really tastes so very good.  This isn't really a problem but like my issue with it being pretty - and even though there is absolutely no way that I'd ever be able to eat all of that jam - I am selfish and once again hate to think of giving them all away at Christmas.  So I'm not...

Yes, I am giving away most of the jars.  My question is this: what do I do about the jars of runny jam?  I've already given away a couple of them to understanding friends that didn't mind partaking of my kitchen failure (still don't get why they didn't set...ugh!) but I don't know about the rest.  Do I give them away at Christmas and hope that people aren't offended?  Do I dump them down the drain?  Do you want one?  Help me!

GOOD NEWS...and Two Down, One To Go

Yesterday was a really good day.  Everything went just swimmingly at my appointments yesterday.

Okay - almost swimmingly.  At my 1st appointment of the day with my Neuro, we had the one hiccup of the day when we discovered that the scheduling gal at his office had failed to order a scan of my neck.  Which the doctor had specifically stated.  In his written instructions in my chart.  On a separate line so it wouldn't be missed.  Nice.  Anyway, as for the tumor at the base of my spine, it hasn't grown since we last checked on it two years ago.  Good tumor!  The gal who mixed up my MRI order called me within an hour or so with a time to go in on Monday for the MRI on my neck.  In spite of the stinky-ness of having to have another scan, it'll be good to finally have it done and my Neuro is just going to call me that afternoon with the results so I don't have to go in for another appointment.

We had enough time after meeting with my Neuro to run a quick errand and then get a very yummy lunch at The Dodo.  It was so nice to have a break between appointments...especially considering that we got to go out to lunch without kids and actually enjoy the meal without interruptions.  Ahhhhh!  Oh - and I finished off my meal with a Valium in preparation for the next part of the day.

Next it was up to the university for the MRI on my brain.  I had been informed beforehand by a couple of people (at my ENT's and at the imaging place) that the MRI would be about 45 minutes long...just right to finish up and hurry up to the hospital for my hearing test and meeting with my ENT.  I finished up my paperwork and got changed right as the tech came to get me.  On the way back he informed me that I'd be done within 10-15 minutes.  What?!  Turns out that my ENT ordered a fairly basic scan without the usual 2nd part with an injection of contrast.  True to the tech's word, I was done in less than 15 minutes.  I totally could have done that fast of a scan without Valium.  What a waste of a perfectly good pill.

Up at the hospital my hearing test went well.  No change since last year - I have very good hearing in my right ear and I couldn't be more grateful.  As for my ENT, he was happy to tell us that the tumor in my brain/inner ear hasn't grown since last year.  Additionally, since it hasn't grown since I was diagnosed 4 years ago, he is now comfortable with extending my checkups to 18 months apart rather than a year.  I can certainly handle that!  This means that I won't have to have another MRI or appointment (besides the scan on Monday) until April 2013 and Fall 2013 unless I have problems.  Hurrah!

I am so grateful for how everything went yesterday.  Even though there was a mix-up with my scans and I have to go in for an MRI Monday, the doctor (and therefore we) are assuming that since my other tumors haven't grown, the one in my neck is likely to have stayed the same was well.  I'll definitely be posting the results once I have them.

Blessings from heaven...

Yearly Pins & Needles...Or Not

It's that time of year again.  Unfortunately I'm not referring to fall (one of my 2 favorite seasons), baking and soup season, nights wearing slippers and sweaters, or anything else that gives me the warm fuzzies.  It's time for my annual check-ups on my three remaining tumors (right side of brain/inner ear, neck, and back...all benign but can be do a lot of damage considering where they've taken up residence in my central nervous system).  While this has been part of normal for me for the past three years, the week or two before my MRI's and doctors appointments have always found me a nervous basket-case of a stressed out wreck running around on emotional pins and needles.  However, for whatever reason, I've been blessed this year and have felt totally normal and at east about the whole situation.  I still don't enjoy the MRI's (Valium and I are very dear chums) and I'm still a bit nervous about the results but I'm just not thinking about it much or finding it to be that big of a deal.  Thank the heavens above because this is way more preferable than my usual!

I had one MRI Tuesday morning that was about 90 minutes.  I was so relaxed that I actually fell asleep...and woke myself up with my snoring.  Awesome.  However, it ended up turning into two MRI's as I had to go back in the afternoon for a quick 30 minute re-do on a spot as the radiologist wanted clearer thins of the area.  I was a little worried at first when they called me back because the area they wanted re-scanned is close to where the pesky little tumor in my lower back is.  I asked the question flat out and the tech said that it was actually the area where my 2007 surgery was that they needed a better shot of.  So long as it doesn't mean that the tumor they removed is back, I'm totally fine with it.

Today is a bigger day than Tuesday way.  This morning I'll meet with my Neurosurgeon who handles my back and neck to see what the results of the other day's MRI's are.  A couple of hours later it's another Valium for me and an MRI of my brain (only supposed to be 45 minutes but I still need some help to relax) before a hearing test and an appointment with my ENT Neuro about the one in my brain/inner ear.  That one always scares me a little more since the hearing in my only good ear is threatened should that little bugger grow (for those of you who don't know, I'm stone deaf in the left ear with no cochlear life so no hearing aid, implant, etc. can help).  Even with that knowledge and fear in the back of my head, I'm still feeling okay about the day ahead of me.  Here's crossing my fingers, saying my prayers, and hoping with all the hope I have in me that none of my tumors has grown and that I get to go another year before checking again.

Wish me luck!  I'll post results tonight or tomorrow...

Out With The Broken & In With The New

What's wrong with this picture?

a) dirty spots on the wall that won't wash off

b) whoever painted didn't get the bottom of the pipes

c) no washing machine

d) all of the above

A couple of weeks ago I was doing my favorite chore of laundry when the washing machine started making horrendous noises.  I checked it out and found that the agitator wasn't working.  Very agitating.  We had a repairman come out to diagnose the problem and ours jaws just about hit the floor when he said that the transmission was shot and that it would cost $577 + change to fix it. OUCH!  We didn't hesitate for a milli-second...no repair needed.  We'd be buying a new washer.

After an evening of research, I set out the next day to find a new washer.  After stops at four different stores, mission accomplished.  I was initially 99% sold on one at Lowe's but at my final stop, I found a slightly better machine on sale for $50 less.  Making the deal even sweeter were the facts that they were waiving sales tax if you used your store account (which we already had) and we could pick up the washer that afternoon instead of waiting a day or more for delivery.  In the end, I got a better washer and saved over $100 compared to the one at Lowe's.  The final cost was less than $13.00 more than the cost to repair the old one.

When Max got home that afternoon he took our broken washer away in his dad's truck and came home with a shiny new washer (which I managed to scratch the front of within 48 hours) to take its place.

I love, love, LOVE my new washer.  I'm sure that no one wants to read all the details about it so I'll just say this: bigger capacity + high efficiency ($$$ saver) + cleaner clothes = one happy chick.

Oh - and we musn't forget the very best part of getting a new appliance...the box!

It's been three weeks since I got my new toy and the kids are still using the box.  They play house in it.  Hudson plays his DS in it.  Claire takes her animals inside.  It's the perfect toy.  As usual, the adult is excited about what came in the box and the kids just want to play with the packaging!

Rewind: 1st Grade Mother's Day Program

On May 5th, I got to go see Hudson in the annual Mother's Day program put on by the 1st graders at our elementary school.  All year, his teacher had been talking about it and proclaimed several times that it's her favorite date of the year.  Having seen it for myself now, I can certainly see why.  We were all given "crowns" that our child had created for us, complete with a picture of us with the child (taken months ago at a parent/teacher conference).  Each child had a small speaking part and the group as a whole sang several songs, complete with arm and hand actions.  It was so stinking cute!  I recorded the whole thing and snapped pictures with our small digital with my left hand throughout the whole thing (not too steady working with both hands at once...hence a few slightly grainy shots).

 

 

The final number of the program was a song about a treasure box filled with love.  Each child had a little box on a ribbon around their neck and at the end of the song, they came down and gave the necklaces to their moms.  Here's mine:

 

 

I positively LOVE it.  I wore it all that day and to church on Mother's Day.  It really is a treasure to me and I know I'll hold it dear as long as I live.

2010 Brain MRI & ENT Appointment

I had my annual MRI for the tumor in my noggin and a hearing checkup today. As I mentioned last year, I'm somewhat of a basket case for a good week or two before the big day. I worry myself sick thinking about how rotten MRI's are, the possibility of the tumor(s) having grown, my hearing having gone downhill, etc. This year wasn't much different in terms of the days following up to my appointments but thanks undoubtedly to the prayers of many dear family and friends, today went beautifully.

The waiting room was packed when I got to Imaging and Neuroscience (first time I'd seen more than just a couple of people in there) and I assumed that I'd end up waiting a while. And I did. When they did finally call me back, they gal said I could wear the wire-free sports bra I brought along and that I could leave my underwear bottoms on. Not that you want to hear about me going into an MRI with or without any unmentionables on but this was very welcome news as last year, they required that I leave both off. Another happy thing was that when I inquired as to whether or not I'd have to have wear a horribly constricting brace over my breastplate like last year (read: hardly able to breathe...forgot to mention it in last year's post), I was informed by the tech that my particular MRI scan doesn't require said brace and that whoever set me up last year shouldn't have put it on. Another sigh of relief. One final bonus to this year's MRI: my own iPod. If you read my post from 2009, you'd know about my previous music experience there. This year was much improved with me listening to songs from Glee while wiggling my toes to the beat and trying really hard not to sing along. Between my precious Valium pill, listening to my own music, and feeling calmer than ever, this was hands down my best MRI experience yet.

After getting out of my MRI late, we rushed up to the hospital (ate my brown bag lunch of a sandwich and grapes on the way) for my hearing test and to meet with my ENT. I always wonder how much I'm missing/failing on my hearing test and was happy to have the tech inform me that there had been no changes since last year. We had to wait a while to see my doctor but when we did, the visit was short and sweet with him telling me that while the MRI showed a variance of about 1mm since last year, it's well within the range of normal (measurements aren't always exact and the system isn't perfect) and he's confident that there hasn't been any growth. And this means...the tumor in my brain/inner ear and I get another year off. Come next September, I'll be a bit of a wreck for a couple of weeks before we go through all of it again. But as my mom says, if we have to have this whole process happen every year and find out that the tumor hasn't grown every year, we'll take it.

Next week I'll be seeing my Neurologist about possible problems with the tumor at the base of my spine. I've been having numbness/tingling in my right leg off and on over the past few weeks and anytime a patient has these symptoms, he wants to meet with them. I have noticed that it's less noticeable (if there at all) when I get more rest and sleep so I'm hoping and praying that nothing more than a quick appointment and discussion is needed. Crossing my fingers that we keep the current plan of an MRI of my back and neck next fall. We'll see...

Home Canned Gold

Some years back a dear friend and neighbor taught me how to can peaches. I vowed to can every year after that and while life hasn't always allowed that, I most certainly love it when late summer rolls around and I'm in a position to do so. I love pulling out my canner, my pretty quart jars, and all the canning gadgets that my hubby bought me a few years back.

This year was my 1st time canning in two years. I managed it when Claire was just over 1 year old but overdid myself. At the time, it was less than a year after my back and brain surgeries and my body didn't care for standing on my feet all day. I'm thinking that last year the memory of the pain that canning caused back in '08 was still too fresh so I didn't really give it much thought. But this year, nothing was going to stop me. Especially considering that I had the perfect opportunity to pick up a 1/2 bushel of beautiful peaches while in Brigham City.

I spent a good chunk of the Monday and Thursday after going to Peach Days canning those beautiful Suncrest peaches. I am a touch meticulous about prepping them...in addition to pitting and peeling them, I also cut out the center of the fruit where the "grippies" around the pit are. This year at the suggestion of a couple of friends, I tried briefly boiling a number of the peaches to make peeling faster/simpler. Being the weirdy that I am, I hated it! Some of the peels were easier to remove but I found the fruit to be slippery, some of them were hard to halve because they were so slick, and I didn't like the cooked texture of the outermost layer. So back to my hand peeling with a soup spoon (my favorite trick). The prepping is always the most time consuming part but from there on, it's smooth sailing with getting the jars into the canner(s) and then kicking back and letting the stove do it's thing.

I now have 12 gorgeous quarts of home canned peaches sitting in the storage room in my basement. A perfectly lined up shelf of pure gold that won't be touched until I'm good and ready and the memory of the hours I spent working on them has faded a bit. But when they do get pulled off the shelf...oh, how sweet it will be! Peaches for breakfast in the winter and fresh peach cobbler at a moment's notice. Mmmmmmm!

Belated Mother's Day Gift...To Myself

Starting sometime last year and over a period of several months, I played with the idea of ordering myself a personalized necklace. I almost ordered it a couple of times and always decided against it. Then Mother's Day was on the horizon and I took a look at the website again. This time, they were promising that the necklaces would be received in time for the big day if ordered by April 20th. It was April 19th so I jumped on it and...when I went to the page with my desired necklace, it showed that they were sold out or back ordered. Bummer. Maybe next year.

Or not. A week or so after Mother's Day I went to the website again and found that my desired piece was available again. I quickly ordered it and on Saturday, I received my belated Mother's Day gift. Yes, my new car counted as as a MD gift as did the clothes that I got the weekend before and as my new iPhone will when we get it in the next week or two. Sorry...I am a little spoiled from time to time. But that's entirely beside the point. Back to the necklace. I wore it Saturday, yesterday, and today and got lots of compliments on it (cue proud look on my face).

To: Me

From: Me (with lots of love)

I know a few of you already know about this company or may have seen them mentioned on NieNie's blog. If not, you can just click on over to The Vintage Pearl to take a gander if you like. Lots of cute stuff and trust me, you won't be disappointed!

I'm So Much Worse Than I Thought...

It's no secret: I need to lose weight. I 'm not going to go into the nitty-gritty of the times I've lost weight in the past or times when I've put it on. And I'm sure as Hades not going to be posting the horrendous number I see when I step on the scale. I will say that I'm glad to be below my all-time highest weight but like I said, it doesn't take a genius to look at me and see that changes need to be made.

I've been trying to get started - again - over the past couple of months. Stopped eating after 8:00 or so in the evenings (for the most part), started eating healthier breakfasts and lunches, upped my fruit and veggie intake. I've dropped a few pounds but nothing near what I'd like to lose.

Then the other night, Max came up with a goal for both of us... Until we leave on vacation in a number of weeks, we're both going to make some changes and thereby hopefully shed a few pounds. No eating after 8:00, no fast food (only "fast" meals that are okay are salads, rice bowls, etc.), no soda (just my rule...Max isn't picking it up), and only 1 treat/goodie per day. I think the 1st three are going to be easy enough for me as I'm already pretty much in the habit of not eating after 7:30 or so, I only pick up "bad" fast food a couple of times in a month, and I'm not a huge carbonation drinker (though I do love root beer with a home grilled burger). However, the 1 treat/goodie a day thing is going to require a lot more conscious effort that I initially realized. Yesterday and today I did allow myself the single permitted treat (both times it was 3 or 4 tiny bite-sized sugar cookies that I made Sunday before this plan was devised...going to go up and toss them when I've finished this post). However, I've only been going at this for a whopping 2 days now and I can't believe how often the thought has crossed my mind that I'd like a piece of candy, a little cookie, some chocolate (of any sort), etc. I've succeeded so far in stopping myself from giving in to temptation but SERIOUSLY, I've never realized just how often I dip in to our household sugar product reserves each day. I'm interested to see just how much of a difference the decrease in sugar intake is going to make.

There's no way that I'm going to make this a weight loss blog and I'm not going to obsess about it. I'm just saying...I really was/am so much worse about grazing on goodies than I realized. Hopefully this change is going to do me some good. And fast.

Cute Little Chrysalis

I was out in the backyard yesterday afternoon doing some planting and transplanting. Upon moving a perennial daisy from its old home to its new one, I noticed a perfect chrysalis sitting on the ground right where I had just pulled the plant from. Three thoughts immediately crossed my mind:

1. Oh, no! I killed a butterfly!
2. I wonder if it's okay and if I can save it.
3. That would be so cool to keep it and have it hatch!

I immediately went inside and did some research online. I couldn't figure out the exact breed of butterfly based on the looks of the chrysalis but found all the info I needed to move forward in my hopes to save the butterfly. Once finished, I went out and picked up the chrysalis. When I touched it, the tail end moved. That's the only way to confirm life - good sign! I then set up a nice, roomy habitat for our new pet in a huge glass jar with dirt/mud and a daisy stem and leaves. It was quite pretty - textured glass and all - if I do say so myself. I came down to my craft room and got my scrapbooking glue dots and using just one, secured the chrysalis to an aspen tree twig that I then carefully leaned against the inside wall of the jar. I pulled a knee-high nylon stocking over the jar's mouth and voila!...we had our own butterfly in progress.

I did the "touch check" on it again this morning and thank goodness, it was still alive. I really hadn't killed it. From what I'd read online, its dark color is indicative of the butterfly emerging soon, so I peeked in on our visitor off and on today, hoping to see our friend coming out of its protective home.

This evening, I couldn't help but think that there must be some way to figure out what breed of butterfly we would be seeing in the next day or two. So I went back to the computer and instead of "dark chrysalis" or "dark red chrysalis" as I did yesterday, I decided that my thinking it was red was incorrect and typed in "dark brown chrysalis". Once again, I found images of a darkening monarch chrysalis but the shape/form wasn't right. I kept pulling up different pages and then I found it. We were the proud foster parents of...

Some sort of Hawk Moth. Gross! I immediately took the contents of the jar and put them in the trash. Garbage day tomorrow...perfect. I am still getting the heebie jeebies just thinking about it. And I get them even worse when I try to find a good (aka totally disgusting) picture of one to post here. Not gonna do it. I could post the picture that I took of the chrysalis when I thought it was a butterfly. But I've already deleted it because just seeing it grosses me out.

Honestly, I can handle cute little moths like skippers (used to chase and catch them on the neighbor's lawn) but anything bigger or uglier than that? Count me out. I can't believe I was going to nurture a moth. Blech!

Goodbye, My Love...

After talking it over for some time and deciding that I should get a newer vehicle (preferably one with better gas mileage that doesn't take up a big chunk of our garage), we decided to list my beloved Expedition in the local online classifieds a couple of weeks ago. What?! But Suzie - you LOVE that car! I know, I know. It's spacious, comfy, truck-like, and can win almost any battle with other vehicles, shopping carts, and even the rare cable car. We didn't expect it to sell necessarily...just thought we'd test the waters. Besides, Max was thinking that there was no way it would sell as he hadn't ever had any luck trying to sell one of his cars through the same popular classifieds.

As you've probably assumed by this post's title, it sold. We had several calls and a few people come to take a gander/test drive and in the end, the couple that came by Tuesday evening loved the car (though not as much as I did, I'm sure) and the deal was done Thursday morning. We even had another couple call a total of 3 or 4 times on Wednesday more or less begging us for the car - even asked if they could bring by earnest money - if it didn't sell to the other couple. Sorry, folks...

We spent a chunk of Wednesday afternoon looking at cars in hopes that we'd find the perfect new fit right away. No such luck. We looked at crossovers, a couple of SUV's, new and used cars, etc. but nothing totally clicked. The closest thing was a Subaru Tribeca but we weren't totally decided and wanted to make sure the deal was done on the sale of my car before moving forward.

I was a wee tad bit of a touch sad when finishing up the paperwork on my Expedition on Thursday morning. It felt so wrong to hand my keys over to the couple who purchased it. I know they are excited to have it and I know that they'll take good care of it. But it's MY car and I love it! No one else could possibly have the deep feelings for it that I did. But then again, for heaven's sake, self...it's a car, not a child (though if it were a child, it would be my best-behaved one...no attitude or whining whatsoever).

We spent part of yesterday afternoon looking at cars again. The first one that we looked at (and the only one that we drove) was...a newer Expedition. I won't get into the details of the car itself other than to say that it's a lot like my old Expedition but a whole lot nicer and prettier with more bells and whistles. I thought Max would immediately give it a big, fat "no" but he surprised me when he said, "It's like coming home." We both agreed that it was the front runner of the various cars that we'd looked at and driven but at the same time, we both want to make sure we check out other options before moving forward. This afternoon we're headed out again and if we don't make a decision today, we'll be driving all over kingdom come again tomorrow. I will admit that it's kind of fun looking for a new car but I'm afraid I'm being a bit difficult in what I am willing to get as my old Expedition is still tugging at my heart strings.

Goodbye, my darling. I will miss you (unless I get that newer one...).

Talk About Wasting Time!

I'll be the 1st to admit that I'm a pro when it comes to wasting time. I can procrastinate and put things off like nobody's business. But when it comes to wasting other people's time, I'm considerate and do my darndest NOT to do it. This morning, I lost a chunk of time and I'm never going to get it back. It isn't time that I willingly kissed goodbye. I wasn't putting something off or checking out blogs and FB all morning long. This time, it's all thanks to someone else.

Back in December, I got a summons in the mail from a local city's court to appear as a witness for the prosecution in a case. What? Court? Yeah...remember when I was in that car accident back in October? Well, I wish I didn't but I sure as heck do and this morning, I had to go and testify against the girl who hit me. Why? Because she was fighting the citation she received. The guys in the truck behind her who hit her and caused her to hit me a second time? No problem...they paid their fine, accepted their citation, and moved on (and the driver was there to testify also). But not Miss M. She wasn't at fault for anything. Even though she hit my car so hard that her front end was smashed up and her car was no longer drivable. Psycho.

I did my duty and drove over 30 minutes to get to court this morning. I arrived a few minutes early as I was supposed to. So did the guy who was driving the truck. And Miss M.? She and her two passengers/friends waltzed in (attorney-free) about 5 minutes late. Lucky for her the case before ours ended late.

When we finally got started, I was called up as the 1st witness. As requested, I described the accident, where it was, etc. No questions from the defense for me. The driver of the truck was next and his story matched mine to a "t"...he evenly openly admitted in court that he was at fault for the 2nd part of the accident. What a good guy. Miss M. said that she had a question for him and when he answered it, she proceeded (in a whiny kind of voice) to give her side of the story. The judge kindly told her that she'd have her turn and if she didn't have any more questions to sit down. The UHP trooper was then called to the stand. He read Miss M.'s written statement from the crash and then stated that the evidence wasn't consistent with what she said happened and that what the truck driver and I described matched up. Next, it was Miss M.'s turn to defend herself. She called her two friends as witnesses and they gave stories that matched each other (but not the original written statement from Miss M.). Finally, Miss M. took the stand and told a similar story, including a little blip about how the truck driver "must have kept his foot on the gas" after the initial impact and that's why she hit me the 2nd time. Such logic!

After all the testimonies, the judge told Miss M. that while he was sure she and her friends believed their stories, the damage to the cars (especially her's) was consistent with the testimonies of myself, the truck driver, and the officer, with the following happening:

1. she hit me going at least 25-30 MPH
2. she bounced back and the truck hit her at a lower speed
3. she ran back into me a 2nd time

He then proceeded to explain to her that the stories that the entire defense had given "defied the laws of physics" (I actually saw the prosecutor and some others in the courtroom trying not to laugh during much of this). After some debate from Miss M.'s male friend (who said that the 3 of them are in a physics class together and were on their way there when the accident happened), the judge said again that the physical evidence pointed to her being at fault and that he was charging her as guilty. What a shocking surprise. Don't you think?

In the end, the judge knocked her ticket from $120 down to $90. I think he should have charged her double for wasting everyone's time, lying, and not having any integrity. But that's just my humble opinion.