2024
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Take Stock
It seems that I should maybe have some interest in buying stock in Band-aids. I know they don't cost much, but it sure seems like we go through a bunch! With one mastering walking, one learning to ride a bike without training wheels, another on wheels being adventurous (make that 2!), not to mention they inherited their parents' frequent clutziness. (Is that a word?) I have started not even bothering to put the box away so they stay within reach. I couldn't do that when they were smaller because every little bump then required one. They now realize that they are for bleeding owies and that they are best kept for those painful occasions. Come to think of it...maybe stock in neosporin isn't such a bad idea either!
Monday, July 12, 2010
Misadventures in camping
I really tried to get a blog on with videos, but for some reason, it's just not happening, so you'll just have to hear about our adventures in camping instead. It seems that we are 2 for 2 on the bad-weather-seek-shelter weekends that we have been on with our extended family. Good thing that both times we were well equipped with shelter and informative updates.
This weekend, we took the camper out for the first time in a while. I was pretty excited, although this was the first time since we had Ian & it's a little different in a camper with a little one who needs to be in a pack-n-play and who is a light sleeper. The portable crib takes up the space of a bed, so someone needed to sleep elsewhere. Jason said he would sleep in his parents tent & so AJ wanted to be there as well. What should have been a great night's sleep, wasn't. Although it was a perfect night to be sleeping under the stars in the open air, the air mattress kept him from sleeping well...or should I say, the deflated air mattress. Why is it that they only get a hole when you're away from home and outside?? My brother and his wife just used it when they came to our house & it has been put away since then.
So with the flat mattress, came a screaming 17 month old who decided at 4:30 am that he wanted to do nothing but cry and flail around. He was unconsolable and remained that way until everyone else on the campground was up and moving around. Needless to say, Jason & I took our turns napping that day.
Hoping for a better night, I put him to bed closer to his usual bedtime, only to be threatened by a severe thunderstorm warning that had us pushing to pack up and beat it home. We moved as fast as we could, but certain circumstances made it difficult to get it all out in time. We couldn't hook up very well, because Mom & Dad's tent was parked in front of the hitch & we didn't have time to move it. When I was lowering the canopy awning, the brace pulled off of the camper & would have made it impossible to move the camper without fixing it somehow.
The hail started coming and we yelled for everyone to get in the suburban...but I still had to get Ian out of the camper, who was sleeping soundly. I tried to open the door, but the broken awning hindered the door opening and I couldn't hold the awning post and open the door at the same time. By this time, the hail is falling sporadically but it's raining pretty hard. I get in and grab Ian, who is completely out. He continues to sleep as we buckle him in & attempt to get ahead of the storm, which we didn't. We were completely swallowed up by the storm and drove as quickly as we could to Ivanhoe, where family had a house for shelter. The rain was coming down so hard we could hardly see the road & the wind & hail were pounding on us. The sky was dark everywhere & the lightning made it even harder to see. I have to admit, I was worried we wouldn't make it to town.
So, at 10:30, we were able to go back to the campsite. Aside from some water in the camper, (did I mention that one of the sky domes on top came apart on our way to the campsite Friday?), everything was OK. Well, except for having a ton of giant ants in the sink from putting the marshmallow covered skewers in there. Ewww! Even Mom & Dad's tent was dry, even though the ground around it was soaking wet & the door was left open. (Not sure how that worked!!) We got everyone in beds and hoped for a good night's rest. We had that until 5am until Ian woke up again madder than a hornet. After trying all the tactics again, but quicker in sequence this time, nothing seemed to work. I finally just took his pajama top off to see what that would do & he instantly fell asleep in my arm next to me in bed. No way that just happened!! We were in complete disbelief but relieved and got at least one more hour of sleep in before we had to get up and get ready to go. Jason had a game that day, so we had to get moving to get ready for that, otherwise I think we could have easily slept another hour or two.
So, as much as I enjoy camping, I can say that for the work of it all, I don't know if I'll be ready for it again soon. At least not until we have a crazy weather free weekend or when Ian is out of his crib...have I mentioned that sometimes I feel like the Griswold's on vacation?
This weekend, we took the camper out for the first time in a while. I was pretty excited, although this was the first time since we had Ian & it's a little different in a camper with a little one who needs to be in a pack-n-play and who is a light sleeper. The portable crib takes up the space of a bed, so someone needed to sleep elsewhere. Jason said he would sleep in his parents tent & so AJ wanted to be there as well. What should have been a great night's sleep, wasn't. Although it was a perfect night to be sleeping under the stars in the open air, the air mattress kept him from sleeping well...or should I say, the deflated air mattress. Why is it that they only get a hole when you're away from home and outside?? My brother and his wife just used it when they came to our house & it has been put away since then.
So with the flat mattress, came a screaming 17 month old who decided at 4:30 am that he wanted to do nothing but cry and flail around. He was unconsolable and remained that way until everyone else on the campground was up and moving around. Needless to say, Jason & I took our turns napping that day.
Hoping for a better night, I put him to bed closer to his usual bedtime, only to be threatened by a severe thunderstorm warning that had us pushing to pack up and beat it home. We moved as fast as we could, but certain circumstances made it difficult to get it all out in time. We couldn't hook up very well, because Mom & Dad's tent was parked in front of the hitch & we didn't have time to move it. When I was lowering the canopy awning, the brace pulled off of the camper & would have made it impossible to move the camper without fixing it somehow.
The hail started coming and we yelled for everyone to get in the suburban...but I still had to get Ian out of the camper, who was sleeping soundly. I tried to open the door, but the broken awning hindered the door opening and I couldn't hold the awning post and open the door at the same time. By this time, the hail is falling sporadically but it's raining pretty hard. I get in and grab Ian, who is completely out. He continues to sleep as we buckle him in & attempt to get ahead of the storm, which we didn't. We were completely swallowed up by the storm and drove as quickly as we could to Ivanhoe, where family had a house for shelter. The rain was coming down so hard we could hardly see the road & the wind & hail were pounding on us. The sky was dark everywhere & the lightning made it even harder to see. I have to admit, I was worried we wouldn't make it to town.
So, at 10:30, we were able to go back to the campsite. Aside from some water in the camper, (did I mention that one of the sky domes on top came apart on our way to the campsite Friday?), everything was OK. Well, except for having a ton of giant ants in the sink from putting the marshmallow covered skewers in there. Ewww! Even Mom & Dad's tent was dry, even though the ground around it was soaking wet & the door was left open. (Not sure how that worked!!) We got everyone in beds and hoped for a good night's rest. We had that until 5am until Ian woke up again madder than a hornet. After trying all the tactics again, but quicker in sequence this time, nothing seemed to work. I finally just took his pajama top off to see what that would do & he instantly fell asleep in my arm next to me in bed. No way that just happened!! We were in complete disbelief but relieved and got at least one more hour of sleep in before we had to get up and get ready to go. Jason had a game that day, so we had to get moving to get ready for that, otherwise I think we could have easily slept another hour or two.
So, as much as I enjoy camping, I can say that for the work of it all, I don't know if I'll be ready for it again soon. At least not until we have a crazy weather free weekend or when Ian is out of his crib...have I mentioned that sometimes I feel like the Griswold's on vacation?
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
So I have been dealing with an EXTREMELY slow computer & it hasn't been very happy with me. So I have spent my "free time" trying to cure it's ailments. One scan I ran found over 1000 parasites...whatever that means, but it certainly doesn't sound like something that helps your computer! I think it's finally starting to feel better, so it's picture time! Here's what our summer has been so far...
Swimming pools & swing sets...
...ice cream!
...butt cracks :)
...and baseball bats... and that's just the highlights!
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Dirty Chickens
If you want to catch up on how Jason (and the team) are doing in town team baseball, you can check out their website at http://www.ballcharts.com/minneotamudhens. There are some great pictures on there, stats & a schedule of events.
The "tooth" & nothing but the "tooth"
This weekend while I was gone, AJ lost 2 teeth. Ian popped up 2 new ones. I tease AJ & said it was nice of him to give his teeth to his baby brother.
Today, they both had well-checks and had to get shots. Somehow, AJ got by the system in kindergarten & didn't get his last set of shots. The nurse at St. Ed's spotted it & so we had to get him up to date. Not a happy "almost 8" year-old! Today, everything that now hurts is "as bad as a shot". I'll let him complain (for today)...he did get 4 shots! Ian got 2 shots.
Both also are on amoxicillin for a cough they can't seem to kick. AJ had the yucky junk in the back of his throat. Ian had full ears.
It was cute to watch them walking in the waiting room. They are like twins, only 7 years apart. Even their little ears tip out the exact same way. They both can't get enough of football or baseball, or any sport that has anything to do with a ball I guess. Today they've both been pretty good at throwing tantrums as well...all a part of my virtuous training for patience!
Today, they both had well-checks and had to get shots. Somehow, AJ got by the system in kindergarten & didn't get his last set of shots. The nurse at St. Ed's spotted it & so we had to get him up to date. Not a happy "almost 8" year-old! Today, everything that now hurts is "as bad as a shot". I'll let him complain (for today)...he did get 4 shots! Ian got 2 shots.
Both also are on amoxicillin for a cough they can't seem to kick. AJ had the yucky junk in the back of his throat. Ian had full ears.
It was cute to watch them walking in the waiting room. They are like twins, only 7 years apart. Even their little ears tip out the exact same way. They both can't get enough of football or baseball, or any sport that has anything to do with a ball I guess. Today they've both been pretty good at throwing tantrums as well...all a part of my virtuous training for patience!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Ventricular fibrillation...
Say that 3 times fast! So my week's been a little crazy...
Last Thursday morning, I got a call from my brother informing me that my 48 year-old stepmom went into cardiac arrest and was in a coma & on life support & they weren't sure if she was going to make it. She lives in Washington state now, so Jason did the legwork to get me on a flight to see her and it just happened to be the same one that my brothers were going to be on as well, so that was nice.
It's been a long road of recovery for her, but she's alive and physically, aside from being REALLY sore from them doing CPR and shocking her 13 times, she's doing great. Mentally, she's still showing signs of brain damage & that's mostly short-term memory. She doesn't seem to remember the things in her life that were causing her stress, so that's good, and as far as where she'll be, we don't know that yet. Each day she improves a little, and as long as she continues to do that, there's a chance she'll get back to her way of life. When she gets to a point where she levels off (mentally) then we will know how much care she will need and what will happen in the days to come. I am now at home, so I am calling for updates on her everyday. My youngest brother is still there with her until tomorrow & filling me in, so when he leaves, we will be trying our hardest to keep us constantly in her mind so she hopefully desires to come back home.
We have been blessed by the miracle of her survival & I pray for the outcome to be fruitful & pleasing to God. Keep her and our family in your prayers and that we will all be led to a closer life with Him.
Last Thursday morning, I got a call from my brother informing me that my 48 year-old stepmom went into cardiac arrest and was in a coma & on life support & they weren't sure if she was going to make it. She lives in Washington state now, so Jason did the legwork to get me on a flight to see her and it just happened to be the same one that my brothers were going to be on as well, so that was nice.
It's been a long road of recovery for her, but she's alive and physically, aside from being REALLY sore from them doing CPR and shocking her 13 times, she's doing great. Mentally, she's still showing signs of brain damage & that's mostly short-term memory. She doesn't seem to remember the things in her life that were causing her stress, so that's good, and as far as where she'll be, we don't know that yet. Each day she improves a little, and as long as she continues to do that, there's a chance she'll get back to her way of life. When she gets to a point where she levels off (mentally) then we will know how much care she will need and what will happen in the days to come. I am now at home, so I am calling for updates on her everyday. My youngest brother is still there with her until tomorrow & filling me in, so when he leaves, we will be trying our hardest to keep us constantly in her mind so she hopefully desires to come back home.
We have been blessed by the miracle of her survival & I pray for the outcome to be fruitful & pleasing to God. Keep her and our family in your prayers and that we will all be led to a closer life with Him.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)