Celebrate TODAY

"There are exactly as many special occasions in life as we choose to celebrate."
-Robert Brault


How many times have I been asked why I dye my hair strange colors, or why do I pack facepaints for every picnic we go to, or why we're having THIS get-together?  *smiles*  I usually stumble around with an answer, but the real answer is right here...We like to celebrate life!

I hope you can take a breather today and do sometime wacky and wonderful and wild and fun!  Do it "even if" the kids "don't deserve" it because the truth is, you will all feel better if you do.  Trust me, I know!  It's a lesson I have to remind myself from time to time, too.

Turn of the season

Autumn began last night at about 2am.  Oh, I know what the calendar says...the official equinox was on Wednesday and supposedly that was the first day of fall.  But that is a man-made time measurement.  This week has been 85F+, very humid, and very SUMMER.

But last night, the winds blew, and about 2am the storm broke.  There are orange and red leaves on the lawn this morning.  Mother Nature has decided that it is time for autumn.

It is also Momma Tina's birthday!  She and her DH are bringing the kids up and "abandoning" them with me to go thrifting.  *smiles*  Let the chaos descend!  This is half of my birthday present to her, so I'm not really complaining...just vaguely wondering what I am going to do with five children if it rains again this afternoon. 

Survival tip #274: When the kids are sick

Boy is "very sensitive" to lung infections.  The doctor's words, not mine.  It is incredibly frustrating that he doesn't offer something we can DO to help Boy and I'm thinking about requesting a referral to a specialist, but that is not the reason I logged in...it is simply the inspiration for my tip.

How many times have YOU been woken up by your child's cough, fever, or other cry for help in the middle of the night?  With Boy, it's coughing fits where he just cannot breathe.  Generally, we give him a dose of cough suppressant and then a nebulizer treatment and that settles him enough that he can go back to sleep.  Trying to collect all of this when you have been jolted out of your own slumber is a challenge, though.

So, my tip is to pre-measure before you go to bed.

Most pharmacies these days will give you extra measuring syringes (I don't like the spoons).  Measure out doses and then put them out of reach for the kids, but handy for you.  Maybe on your dresser or the master bath sink. (Put a plate under the syringe in case of a drip to avoid the dreaded sticky spot.)  You can also pre-fill the nebulizer so that it is ready to go at 2am.  (Just be sure to tilt it upright to prevent a spill.)  That way, you don't have to turn on all the lights and fumble around blind trying to take care of your patient.  Just grab the dose, treat your baby, and soothe them back to sleep.

*sigh*  It's never easy to have sick little ones.  While there isn't much we can do, not worrying about meds is a small blessing and we can get to the much more important concerns of comforting them when they are scared and not feeling good.

Little bit of yo-yo action

I fully acknowledge and embrace the fact that parenting is HARD.  I even say so as a part of my sub-title!  So it shouldn't come as any surprise that I have yo-yo days...the days when I want the gypsies to sweep in and just take the children and then I reconsider and think I should take on a baby sitting job myself for extra cash.  *sigh*  I don't remember my momma ever saying there'd be days like this.

So, what's to be done?  Well, once again, Beloved is a wonderful, loving, patient guy and he's coming to my rescue.  We are trialing out Momma-Away-Evenings.  The thought is that I have dinner ready to go when Beloved arrives home about 6:00pm.  I can then enjoy supper, give good-nights hugs and kisses, and disappear.

• Monday, dinner was ready, but Boy has karate until 6:15, so we met at the PD center and traded car keys.  I didn't go anywhere...I spent a few minutes at the library computer lab before wandering out and meeting them at the park, going home, and having dinner.
• Tuesday, I went to the main library on a mission for Beloved, then sat in the kids' section until closing, picking out books on cassette for the car for Boy.
• Wednesday, I am going to my first belly-dancing class with Rain.  I'm really nervous...I'm not coordinated AT ALL!
• Thursday, there is a Mom's Night meetup that I'm thinking about going to.
• Friday, a group of some friends are getting together for a discussion night, and I'm toying with joining them for that.  
• Saturday, I'm hoping to attend a drum circle, possibly with Beloved and the kids.
• Sunday, I'm stealing Beloved away, leaving the kids with my dad, and going to Starved Rock for the Vintage Illinois wine festival with Tina and her family.

We're trying it out.  Last night, Beloved said he hadn't seen me so relaxed in months, so I guess it's helping.  *bites lip*  I need to work on not feeling guilty about this.

To THAT end, I might be getting a job!  No, not baby-sitting.  I'm looking at Remilon, and actually have the second "test" due date.  Basically, they want you to research and write about career education programs to help students decide what path/school to choose.  It starts out at $8/hr, which isn't great, but it's work whenever I want to - 15 hrs/week - and academic research, which I never really minded.  So...*shrug*  After taxes, I could be bringing home $300-400 a month.  That would be a nice bonus, and instead of trying to think up something to do in my evenings away from home, I can "go" to work.  I'll let you know...

My world for a gallery

So Boy is 3 1/2 years old. He hasn't even started school yet, but there are little art projects that he's done that have been pretty cool. and BIG. and NOT FLAT.

<---  This piece is 4' tall and 3' wide!

I have no doubt it was pride and joy to my mom...I've felt very proud of Boy's artwork!...but there's the niggly of "Am I supposed to keep this for 'prosperity'?" What do you do with all of them?

I pulled out MY baby book to garner an answer...and I realized that while it was kinda cool to see what I had done for my "first" fingerpainting, the paint was flaking off the paper, the colors had faded a lot, and honestly, it didn't mean a whole lot to ME. huh.


Solution? Date the piece and take a photograph. Photographs are flat, easy to store, fun to share with long-distance relatives or friends.

Then, when the next masterpiece is offered up, you can replace the old one on the fridge and quietly slip it into the recycling bin, knowing that it already has been preserved for when he's old enough to be amused by looking at HIS baby book...and he won't have a mess of flecks to dust off the table, either!

Back Basement room...DONE!

I wish I had taken a photo before I started so you had some idea of how packed this room was! I've gotten rid of so much!  And it's finally DONE!!!  Well, at least the empty, sort, and get rid of phase is done! Now it is into more of the construction phase...deal with the mold and reparge....then we can decide what we are going to do with it.

Lists, chores, and honey-dos, Oh My!

 I have lists...ones for groceries, ones for the-next-time-I-get-to-Home-Depot, ones for bills, ones for chores, ones for books I want to read, ones for gifts I need to pick up, ones for the STUFF I need to trek out to GoodWill...all kinds of lists.  I bet you do too. 

Some times it is easy to get overwhelmed by the lists.  I'll be trying to go to sleep, and a nagging voice in my head starts rattling off "stuff to add" to the lists.  I'll have five minutes, but I won't know where to start.  I'll get so caught up with the list that I forget to ask for help, and then the REAL trouble begins!

Beloved also works with lists.  He uses them at work as well as at home, and apparently he's done some research into "list managers"...or maybe task managers, or management tools.  He also decided to sign us up for one of these programs so we could help sync our lists and prioritize.  The one he chose is Remember The Milk.  I haven't explored it thoroughly, but it looks pretty simple.  It's a "joint" account, so I can put "honey-do" things on his list (like replacing the toilet seat) and he can added to mine (like sew up the ripped pillows).  It's kinda nice to see where each other's priorities are...and also nice to have something to check off.

I'm also still peeking at FlyLady for tackling house cleaning.  I am not completely sold on her schedules, mostly because Beloved and I have agreed to spend 2 hours on Sundays to knock out the chores.  There's still the on-going stuff...laundry being the big one...and the once-in-a-while stuff that needs to be tackled...I think FlyLady lists might be helpful for those kinds of things...especially since she breaks them into 15 minute bits.  With the CHORES done, I can work on the other stuff through the week.

Another site that I considered was Chore Buster.  I think I might keep that one in my back pocket for now, but it might be a great tool once the kids can read and contribute more meaningfully to chores.  *smiles*  Boy does help with some things...he earns "tokens" immediately, and he can only use the computer or watch a show if he has a token to spend...but he isn't able to do real cleaning yet.  Pick-up and put-away are his big ones.

Do you use a program for your lists?  Opinions on the ones I mentioned?

Sleep, how I miss thee!

I haven't been sleeping this week.  I don't know what is up, but I am so tired I'm having a hard time functioning today.  Here's approximately how it's been:

Tuesday...went to sleep around 10p
Wednesday...woke up about 2am and couldn't get back to sleep until 2am the next night (yup, 24 hours straight)
Thursday...woke up at 6:30am.  Took sleeping pills around 8pm, got to sleep around 10pm...but the kids had a hard night and were up at midnight, 2am, 3am, and 5am.  I finally got dragged out of bed at 8:15am because Beloved was leaving.

So...yeah.  Since Tuesday I've gotten about 12 hours of sleep.  :-(

Flu, smu!!!

 GAHHHHH!  I just spent an hour warning about the H3N2 flu and the recommendations for the flu shot this year.  Please, please, please...don't buy it!  I'll have to redo all my research for you for why...but seriously, I spent an hour on the research.  I'll repeat it as soon as I get a chance...

Belated thank you...

I owe a big THANK YOU to my Beloved.  I was in a bad space and I couldn't get the words out in the moment, although tears did well up in my eyes.

He simply said that the house looks pretty dang good.  That of all of his friends, the only place that looks better is our friend Einhander, but he lives at home with his mom who works part-time and spends the rest of the time cleaning a practically-empty house.  That compared to our other friends, I do an amazing job keeping up with the kids and life and the yard.

The problem is the endless list in MY head of what isn't done.  The negatives that eat at me until I get up and run laundry and clean toilets at 12:30 am and gnaw on my self-esteem until I get overwhelmed, fall apart, and scream and cry.  It's driving me crazy, and it is starting to pull the world around me into the maelstrom.

*sniffles*  I know this kind of praise isn't a rarity...Friends of all kinds remind me that they love coming here for the sense of order, love, and comfort.  Beloved tells me often, and it is sincerely meant.  On the mirror on my dresser, there are more than a dozen notes, cards, and happy thoughts...little trinkets that he has given me to remind me that I AM DONG A GOOD JOB.

 Thank you for saying it.  Thank you for noticing.  Thank you for being a part of it.  Thank you.

Finding a balance

The Chicago Tribune had a story today about how kindergarten is the new first grade. 
"Forget cookies and milk, nap time and finger painting. Kindergarten has gotten serious in the past 20 years — and even more so in the past 10. Due to forces ranging from rising parental expectations to the No Child Left Behind Act, many children now attend full-day programs complete with homework and standardized testing."

This is one of the reasons I don't want to do mainstream schooling.  I really think that kids need to be KIDS and that children will naturally want to learn and grow and do the things they see grown-ups doing.  They play make-believe and get dressed up and go "to work" or pretend to read their favorite book or develop an understanding of how mixing red and blue fingerpaints makes purple. 

But this evening, I found myself frustrated and irritated when my 3 1/2 year old boy didn't want to write "S" in his "reading lessons book".  Instead, he was making very good "E"s and drawing zig-zag mountains.

And I lost my patience.  "Focus. We are doing 'S' now."  "Look at the paper." "Trace the letter." 

We were both near tears when I asked Beloved to take over the lesson.  I knew *I* was not helping Boy learn at that point...and that "learning" was turning into a trial to be endured.  Beloved and Boy did work together for another 15-20 minutes, and there were some "S"s made.  Beloved only said that maybe doing lessons at a different time would help.

I signed into the "Homeschooling Preschoolers" group on The Homeschool Lounge and looked at the most recent posts, hoping to find reassurance and a reminder that they are just kids.  In the top discussions, the discussions revolved around curriculum and worksheets.  For preschoolers???  To be honest, I'm skirting freak-out time!  At the preschool level, where is the balance between teaching discipline and focus and meaningless drills?  How do you know when you are pushing too hard?

Brilliant Recipe Brain EXPLOSION!!!

For years...seriously YEARS...I have wanted to do a cook book.  Mostly for friends and family, but maybe someday moving to a publisher house...I know, I dream big some times.  I have started a number of files, but it gets so cumbersome.  The online options have timed out on the free trials before I really get anywhere, because, well, you know, I'm a MOM.

So, what's to be done?

Well, I was looking at a request from someone who wanted a recommendation for 3 X 5 print-outs for recipes, and my brain exploded.  I know what comes in 3 X 5's!  PHOTOGRAPHS! My new thought...use my mad skilz and create photographs of my recipes!!!  Check it out!

Yes, that is MY recipe, MY photograph of the recipe!  Wooo-hooo!  I have actually taken a number of photos of meals I've been particularly happy with the presentation, so I am very close to having what I need to get this project on a roll.  Once I have the "cards" made, I can steal her idea of using small plastic photo books to put them together!  Oh yeah...guess who has a lot of work to do now! :-P

Sleep? I don't need no stinkin' SLEEP!

*sigh*  Yes, insomnia strikes again.  I was up reading until about 1:30am, tossed and turned for about four hours, got up to help Girl through a coughing fit at 5:30am, and decided I wasn't going to get back to meaningful sleep.  So, here I am.  The garbage man is kinda cute, though, and I bet he doesn't often SEE his customers since they do come around this early.  :-P

We bought a new-to-us hide-a-bed couch yesterday for the den.  I found it on RE-listed on craigslist for $85...I had pointed it out to Beloved last week when it was $100.  The woman is moving and consolidating and simply didn't want this piece anymore. It seems to be in fantastic shape and looks good in the room.  The drawback is that the BED part is a little too long for the cabinet we have the television on.  For the time being, guests might have to either sleep on the couch or make do with the blow-up mattress.  The upside is Beloved now has another reason to get the flat screen he's been wanting for years.  With 1/3 of the extra components not working quite right, we have some thinning to do in the electronics department anyway.

The whole family took a block walk to the local hair salon and three of us got cuts.  Boy and Beloved got some shape and trim, I had almost 1 1/2" chopped off.  *grins*  The woman was very amused by the green!  While Beloved commented that he wants to see me grow it out, it is still below my shoulders and I am confident now that I have enough "Special Effects" to go green one last time.  That will delay my decision for what comes next a little longer and alleviates the guilt of wasting the dye.

It is supposed to storm the next couple of days.  I'm not sure what we are going to do, but I think that being out of the house might be good.  Maybe going to the aquarium one more time before our membership expires in two weeks?  hmmmmmmmm.....