Helmets, mopey teenagers and tonsils the size of Godzilla

So I am sick today. Which sucks because it's summer. My throat hurts, my body aches, I'm tired. I just want to rest. But one kids is acting all angsty and disagreeable and the other is acting like Phillip:






I cannot wait until Daddy comes home today!

Buh-Bye Tonsils!

Yesterday Abby had her tonsils & adenoids removed. She also had tubes put into her ears. It was her first surgery and hopefully the only one she'll ever need. I was a nervous wreck while we waited for the surgery day to arrive. I am so relieved that it's over with and Abby is on the road to recovery.


Here's the little patient:




The hospital staff dressed her Hello Kitty up for surgery too.




The upside to tonsil surgery...popsicles and ice cream!



Taking a nice long nap in Mommy & Daddy's bed at home. (She was only at the hospital for 5 hours)

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is my favorite holiday and although we aren't really able to celebrate this year, I'm trying to make the best of it. I love taking Abby around our neighborhood trick-or-treating. As odd as this may seem, one of my criteria for picking this neighborhood when we bought our townhouse was that it would be good for trick-or-treating. I also really love handing out candy to the kids and seeing what they are dressed up as. But we are rolling with the punches and dealing with it as best as we can. Since Abby can't trick-or-treat, we got her a pumpkin full of her favorite candies. Aunt "Ah" Cassandra and Uncle Joe also dropped off some candy for the kiddos too.


Here's Miss Abby with her loot.






Abby really wanted to carve a pumpkin, so we made sure to still do that this year. She draw the face and Daddy cut it out for her.





Both kids are sick. Abby still has a fever. My tonsils are so swollen they are practically touching. I went to the clinic at Walgreens and saw a nurse practitioner. On top of having H1N1, I also have tonsilitis. But on the upside I got 2 prescriptions so hopefully I will start feeling better. I really need to get back to school and back to normal.

Good news

We just got back from the pediatrician's office and happily Abby is improving.  She is still having a little trouble breathing and will still be on a bunch of meds, but she can go back to school on Monday. 

Oh and for those wondering how could she get pneumonia so fast...the doctor said that people with asthma often harbor different bacteria in their lungs.  So I guess asthma patients get sick quicker.

Earlier in the week I got my latest thyroid panel results which was also good news. My TSH was .03 which is a little low.  My free T4 was 1.8 which is the highest that you can be and still be normal.  So repeat in 3 months. Since I put this off so long, I'm glad it turned out a-okay. I'd feel pretty stupid if it was problematic and I'd put off fixing it. 

Seriously?

Abby has pneumonia. She is a bunch of medications and will be out of school for the rest of the week. We'll see her doctor again on Friday afternoon and find out how she is improving.

In the meantime, we are trying to keep a positive outlook and hope that is truly the last bad thing that will happen for a loooooong time!

Wishing for sick days

Since yesterday afternoon I have had a fever and other upleasantness. As a result I haven't felt like doing anything. I wish I could just curl up in bed and try to feel better. But the downside of being a stay-at-home mom is that you can't call in sick to work. You have to still make lunches, kiss boo boos, do laundry and play referee during squabbles. That and watch the clock waiting for your husband to come home from work so you can finally rest.

stressed to the gills

Despite getting fabulous test results and having a fantastic weekend, I am stressed out huge. I have a 20 page paper that was due...oh this morning. Guess how far I am? Well I've started the outline... I also have a project (25ish slides) due that I have no farking idea what to even do it on. Also lots of housework (no surprise there...my family doesn't stop needing clean undies just cuz it's crunch time with school) to do. It's spring cleaning time and there's lots that needs my attention....some of it will wind up being more of a summer cleaning project instead.

I am also doing a favor for a friend that involves giving up my evenings every night this week. Not complaining by any stretch because I'm glad I can help, but it adds to the busy feeling.

Also I'm pretty much going it solo 3 nights out of 5 because my hubby also has a busy week.

And I'm soooo tired. Still fighting this virus...yuck. Also I have a dosage adjustment on my Synthroid and my doc has already warned me I will be tired during the transition. I am always tired when my TSH is wrong, but this is the first time she's actually said something about so that makes me nervous.

I'm also starting week 2 of being on a 1500 calorie diet. I love my progress, but not eating is making me a bit cranky. I feel angry sometimes about food. Thank god for Coke Zero, sugar free Starbucks and 100 calorie packs or I might really freak out.

So basically if I don't email you back or it takes an hour or so to get a response to your text message, this is why. I don't deal well with being busy like this especially when I'm physically feeling yucky too.

Nothing here: no voice and no results

I am on day two of barely having a voice. Today it's actually worse or less of a voice. It's quite frustrating. I was supposed to give a presentation in class yesterday but stayed home because how can you present if you can't talk?!? I think I may get together a powerpoint slideshow for what I was going to say to show tomorrow in case my voice is still not back. It seems this is the semester for nearly every odd thing to happen. First my back, then Evan who never gets sick got the flu, the school shootings, now no voice! I am trying to see what the message is in all this.

I still have no results from my neck ultrasound. I was really hoping to hear something by yesterday. My Mom says "no news is good news" but in my experience, doctors don't always rush to tell you bad or negative news. For instance my surgeon had my cancer diagnosis for 4 days before he told me. (I'm really grateful for that because it allowed me to enjoy Halloween with my kids). Also my last bad ultrasound, it took my doctor a week to tell me because she was consulting with another doctor about it. So, I am pretty nervous. Both times I got the news on a Thursday, so I am hoping for news today. News on Thursdays feels like a bad omen. :woah:

This is dead on...

I woke up today with a wicked headache and nausea. But I still had to go to class. I suffered through it and was so happy to finally get home so I could take some Pepto Bismal and Aleve for my headache and then wash it all down with ginger ale. Yuck, what a morning!

Life is mildly confusing right now. Trying to sort it all out.

My horoscope for today sums it all up.
Libra
September 23-October 22
Tuesday, Mar 18, 2008: You might be starting to think about making some changes where your professional life is concerned right now. You could be growing a little weary of the same old routine and might be ready for a few new experiences. Just remember that there's no reason to pretend that things are all right if they're not right now.

A few unexpected developments could test and challenge you a bit today. And some important people could be coming down on you and making your life a little more complicated than it has to be right now.

Please make it stop

You know how sometimes you are so miserable you would do anything to make it stop? That's how the past 24 hours have been for me. I have the flu. Somehow it's the coughing achey flu combined with the pukey stomach flu.

I missed class today. And of course I had a paper due. A paper that I was supposed to present. And I was supposed to get my hair cut...something I was really looking forward to.

I am so lucky to have such a caring sweet man as my husband. Josh took the day off today to take care of me. Although that basically entailed listening to a whole lot of "Please make it stop?". I am convinced he's a saint.

Also, please keep my best friend Amy and her family in your thoughts and prayers. Her nephew who is the same as age Evan lost his father to violent crime yesterday. My heart goes out to this young man who lost his father so quickly.

I had Evan home sick today with a nasty cold and cough. He never gets sick so I was quite surprised when Josh woke me up to tell me that Evan needed to stay home. The guys get up earlier than we girls do. If he doesn't wake up feeling better tomorrow, he'll be going to the doctor. Poor guy.

I'm feeling better. Today was only a 2 muscle relaxer pill instead of 3. Every other day I've been clock watching when it's nearly time for a new dose. I felt good enough to go to school and to get my hair cut. My sister recommended a fabulous guy she knows to do my hair. I am thrilled with my new 'do. Pictures soon, I promise.

5 Great things about today:

1. My fab new hair.
2. The snow. We are in the midst of a big snow storm. I love when it is snowing. It's so quiet and clean. It feels like you are insulated in a big white cocoon.
3. Hello kitty pajamas.
4. Snuggling in my bed with my husband and my pooch.
5. Hempz body butter...amazing.

Ouch!

We got Abby's first report card yesterday. Awww :-) They don't get letter grades yet just rated on how well they master things.

My back still hurts although I see some progress each day. I'd love to resume my normal life and jump back into my schedule: school, working out, seeing people. It's so frustrating. The really frustrating part is having to justify my absence to my professors. The thing is it's the school's fault I fell because they didn't take care of the snow and ice...at all. Grr. I am keeping up with my homework though so I don't get behind and keeping in communication with the professors so that they are understanding.

Back update

As the night went on my back got more tight and I was in much more pain. Knowing there'd be no I could manage the kids or going to the doctor on my own, Josh pulled an all-nighter at work to finish up a project. The judge had threatened him with contempt of court (sittin' in jail) if it wasn't done by this morning's court call. Yikes! That is love that he did that for me. My goodness....what a stressful situation for him.

So anyway, I went to the doctor this morning. I saw Josh and my sister's doctor actually (the sassy one!) and she said my lower back is strained. She prescribed me some heavy duty muscle relaxers and naproxen. The muscle relaxers make me tired and nauseous but at least I can now stand the pain better. I'm not supposed to drive while taking them which is nearly impossible but I'm going it to emergencies only.

To bend or not to bend?

So apparently I did hurt my back with all of my falling down and sliding yesterday. I had a general body ache yesterday that got worse as the day went on, but I assumed it was due to my cold. This morning when I woke up I had muscle pain in my back. The more the day has gone on, the more it hurts. Now I'm at the point where I can't stand straight up. I've tried Aleve, the heating pad and Icy Hot. The only thing really helping is the Icy Hot. This really sucks. I hope it's better in the morning so I can go to class. Otherwise I'll be going to the doctor instead.

If only Moms got sick days...

I have been feeling pretty bad the last couple of weeks because I've been first hyperthyroid and then hypothyroid. It's been rough on me but I've been making it through.

Early this morning I started feeling incredibly nauseous accompanied by a migraine. It was so tough to make Abby's breakfast. Then to compound matters, the dog got sick and I had to clean it up. It was a relief that Abby was in school so I could lay down after I took her. Unfortunately though as the day went on, I felt worse and worse. I got her a happy meal from Burger King thinking I wouldn't have to deal with food until Evan got home. Wrong! She seems to be going through a growth spurt and wants to eat constantly. I had to make her oatmeal, popcorn and get several drinks. Every trip to the kitchen was difficult for me and had to be followed by a trip to the bathroom.

It's hard for a 5 year old to understand why you just can't do things for them. It's hard because she can't do everything for herself. So today was a day where I was powered by love for my children because I didn't have the energy. If not for them, I would have crawled back into bed and slept all day. But I guess that days like today make me appreciate the other days more.

Monday Update

I did something dumb that I only realized now after the fact. My endo changed my dosage on Wed last week. I was taking 2.5 125mcg tablets of Synthroid 4 days per week and 2 tablets the other three. My schedule was to do the 2.5 Mon-Thur and the 2 tablets Fri-Sun. When she told me the dosage switch, I figured it would be easier to just reverse the days and take the new 3 days of 2.5 pills Fri-Sun and do the 2 pills Mon-Thur. So last week I wound up taking a whole week of 2.5 pills. I was wondering why I felt so crappy all weekend.

Neither Josh or I slept very well last night. I couldn't get comfortable. Then when I did fall asleep, I was snoring which bothered him. I usually don't snore but my allergies have been acting up lately.

So today I'm just chilling and watching tv. I feel too icky to do much else.

I finished my rough draft of my fieldwork project and I'm hoping to get some feedback from my professor or the TA. It's due tomorrow and it will be a relief to turn it in. I think my only grade left is the final. Hard to believe that the semester is almost over.

Spreading the germs

Abby stared sniffling on Friday afternoon and I thought it was allergies. Until I started feeling sick yesterday. I think we both have a cold now. Yuck. Mine is so bad that I stayed home sick from class this morning. On the upside, there aren't too many days that I get to snuggle up in bed, watch Oprah and baby myself.

Mommies don't get sick days

I injured my knee in January and then reinjured it again a couple of weeks ago. My doctor wants me to rest it as much as possible, which as a mom is a joke. Luckily my husband took a long weekend this past weekend and I did get a chance to rest a bit.

From Friday afternoon until now I've basically been doing nothing in an effort to rest my kneecap injury. And it sucks. I'm bored out of my mind. I have to sit with my leg straight out or it hurts. I have to limit going up and down the stairs (according to the doc) so I have to decide where I want to be. If I go to the living room, there's no computer and the kids control the tv. If I stay upstairs where I can control the tv and use the computer, then the kids are constantly fighting and tattling on each other. Gah! I've read 2 books and working on a 3rd plus 4 magazines.

The good news: I think it's actually helping. I'm in less pain.