...some form of letter from the Hubby. E-mail or snail mail. It's been 20 long days. :( It would really cheer me up.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Angels are surrounding me
OK. Here's some of the story I didn't tell you. A few days ago, *someone put a large amount of dead weeds in my driveway and along my walkway. I cleaned it up and went on. Well, the Angel mentioned to me that she could tell I was working hard on my lawn. I mentioned in passing that I was having issues with a neighbor and I was trying to clean things up.
Hence her helping out today. While she was helping, another neighbor pulled up in his van and asked her why she was mowing my yard, lol. She said I was having problems with a neighbor and apparently the man told her he knew, because the Full of Hate Neighbor had come down and told him all about me and my Evil Weeds and what I said. "That is was my preference." lol
Well, the neighbor came by later and I was out there pulling weeds off of my hump at the corner of my lot and he told me it was looking good and he was going to come by and pull the dead bush out for me. This one, the one on your right:
And remember, this is what the hump looked like in the beginning (only add an entire 30 gallon trash can full of weeds to it that grew since I took this picture, lol! I forgot to take a before picture of my weeds. Bummer):
There is a lesson to be learned here. A Neighbor came over and made me angry. He has been making me angry for 3 years. I always responded with sarcasm, spite, and rudeness. So, I swallowed my pride and set out to make my yardlook better, and Angels are surrounding me to help me. I am literally being surrounded by kindness in response to this one nasty neighbor.
I see. My eyes are open now. Lesson learned.
And an Angel came down...
...and rested her hand on my shoulder and said "Let me help you." And so it was.
An Angel showed up at my door this morning with a lawn mower. The Angel had hoped that I would be gone all morning, but I returned home right before she headed to my house. The Angel and I mowed down my Dandelion's together. We mowed all of it. The front, side, and back. When we had finished mowing, the Angel lent me some tools perfect for digging up weeds without breaking my back. All the Dandelions are mowed down in the actual yard. There are some along edges that I still need to do. I have borrowed tools to go out this afternoon and continue to get the weeds and Dandelions up.
The Angel is going to continue to help me until the Dandelions have roared their way of here.
Thank you, Angel. I know you have been blessed by helping. I know you have blessed me more than words can say.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
What is a Mom to do?
I am so unhappy. I was hoping for great insight on behalf of Jacob's new Psychiatrists. Instead, seeing him was creepy. Yes, creepy. I had been warned that this doctor liked to diagnose Tourette's Syndrome. Not only did he diagnose Jacob with Tourette's, it was like he had a list of Symptoms for Tourette's and he was just going down the list checking them off. Like he assumes every new patient has Tourette's unless he can't check off anything on his list. I was doing great big Mental Eye Rolls when he said "Tourette's." I couldn't help myself. There is NO family history of Tourette's, but yet, when I asked him the cause, he said "It's Hereditary, there is no cause." Um, OK...NO ONE in my family or Alan's family has Tourette's. "Well, your husband has ADHD, and I think reading a lot is obsessive." Um, hello? He was turning everything around into "You all have Tourette's." He was trying to CONVINCE me that Jacob has Tourette's.
I'm not buying it.
I don't know what to do. It was so hard for me to get Jacob to this appointment. It was so hard finding a Doctor in the first place. I don't know what to do. I'm not comfortable with this diagnosis. I'm not comfortable with the Doctor. The Doctor said "All you can do is Medicate him." I researched online and they said 'Tourette's is RARELY medicated."
I'm not comfortable with this at all. But I don't know what to do. He was very convincing even know I was doing Mental Eye Rolls. The entire time we were there, Jacob was walking around, taking off his shoes, causing problems with the other three boys, and on and on and on.
I'm so confused, and I know I'm going to get on the Internet and research until my eyes cross tonight. The medication the doctor prescribed has caused DEATH. The doctor himself said it was controversial. He's like "It's just like immunizations...1 in 100,000, I prescribe it all the time." Um, OK. So you have a bunch of patients that DON'T have Tourrette's that you are prescribing dangerous medications to.
I'm not comfortable with this. Have I said that? I didn't fill Jacob's prescriptions. I think I'll call his regular doctor, first. Getting a second opinion is going to such a huge hassle, but Jacob is worth it. Naturally.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
My day in pictures
"Smile, Alexia!"
Last game! Cool Trophy's! They are picture frames. LOVE them! The kids have asked me to take a picture of them (each alone) with their Daddy and put it in the frame and hang it in their room. I agreed.
Robby is oblivious to his chair mate. Chase is still there.
Ha! I did it!
Do you see that? I figured out how to post a HTML thingy. Of course, those weren't hard...I just had to c/p the code and pick "View at HTML" LOL But I haven't been able to do that in the past. Must have had my head on backwards. Hehe.
| You Have Your Sarcastic Moments |
 While you're not sarcastic at all times, you definitely have a cynical edge.In your opinion, not all people are annoying. Some are dead! And although you do have your genuine moments, you can't help getting your zingers in. Some people might be a little hurt by your sarcasm, but it's more likely they think you're hilarious. |
| You Are a Centaur |
 In general, you are a very cautious and reserved person.However, you are also warm hearted, and you enjoy helping others in practical ways. You are a great teacher, and you are really good at helping people get their lives in order. You are very intuitive, and you go with your gut. You make good decisions easily. |
| You Are Aphrodite! |
 A total shining star with a ton of admirersAnd no wonder: you live life to the fullest! When things get bad, you can easily take off to a happier place But occasionally, you need to deal with problems head on |
| You Could Be a Vampire... If You Had To |
 Like most people, the thought of being a vampire has crossed your mind. But you're not sure if you'd do it, even if you could.Living forever doesn't sound half bad, if you could live forever with the people you love the most. But do vampires even love? And would the vampire version of you even be you? It's all too much to contemplate. Luckily, the chances of you ever becoming a vampire are astronomically low. What you would like best about being a vampire: Living forever What you would like least about being a vampire: Blood stained teeth |
Disturbing
I keep finding dead birds in my yard. :( I found a sparrow and a Robin out front, and today my kids found a dead male Cardinal in the back yard. It's so sad. I hope against hope that the birds aren't eating the Dandelion seeds that I put the weed and feed on. I couldn't forgive myself. That is one of the reasons I didn't want to use it in the first place. :(
I also hope my cat hasn't been attacking birds. Usually, Cardinals are smarter than my cats. Plus, this was like in the middle of the back yard. Not sure why a Cardinal would just be passing through my back yard where my cat would get it. Usually my cats bring their "presents" for me to the front door.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Do you here that?
Just the hum of the fridge and the tap of the keyboard.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I'm lovin' it!
The two kids I sit for showed up around 6:30 and it was go, go, go until 10 when their parents picked them up. I had put the two of them on the couch with Robby while I went up to tuck in the others. I was just coming down the stairs when they showed up. Jacob hopped out of bed and announced "It's about time." Lovely manners, huh? :(
The kids brought "Leroy and Stitch" with them. I hadn't seen it yet. I think it was overkill of the entire "Lilo and Stitch" series, but I enjoyed watching it.
My kids fell asleep in five minutes flat. No kidding. They are exhausted! We had play time this morning, then off to the doctor's for me, then more playtime outside and cleaning time, then we were at the party for like Two hours, then two hours of flying kites at home, and then a movie. They were pooped. Lots of outside time in the afternoon! The day started out rainy but ended up being absolutely perfect. Not too hot, not too cold, and blue sky as far as you could see! Just gorgeous!
Here is my annual picture of our tree out front. I'm not sure if I have shared the pictures before. I took "better" pictures before these, but I had the camera on the wrong setting and over-exposed them. Bummer, because they were with Jake and I loved the actual pictures. :(
Birthday Party
So Alexia was invited to a Birthday party. It was at a park, so I took everyone and the family let the boys join in. That was really nice of them! I took about 60 pictures, so bear with me while I pick out my favorites. LOL
Alexia snuck off with the Birthday Boy!
Mommy got busted spying on her!
Alexia eating cake with the Birthday Boy. She was the only girl from her class invited...and they stuck together like two peas in a pod.
Robby was yelling at me to put the camera down.
Gold ball, anyone?
Because that is what is in my cheek. The pain is better. But I can't hardly swallow water. I'm going to my doctor just to make sure it's just the tooth before my doctor's office is closed, too. C'mon May 5th! I'm ready for my root canal. LOL
Don't mind the very unflattering pimple and hair do. But you can see the golf ball on (your) right. Yikes. I was actually smiling in the bottom picture. Funny, huh?
Friday, April 25, 2008
I am so tired of this
Something has got to give soon. I am seriously considering asking them to Hospitalize my son. So you know it's bad.
Oh wow
So, I got a note in Aidan's folder yesterday to stop by the school today and pick up some clothes. Well, I forgot, but his teacher called me and asked me if I wanted her to drop them off. I told her we were out, and we would stop by on our way home.
His teacher and Para Teacher came out with two HUGE bags of clothes for Alexia. Oh my goodness. Most of the clothes are from Old Navy and super cute! We are talking probably $400 to $500 worth of clothes, jackets, and shoes, and pajamas here. Most of them are one size too big, but Alexia will grow into those pretty quick. She's due for a growth spurt...she's been in a a 7/8 for 2.5 years, lol. Most of these clothes are 10/12. There are quite a few 7/8's though. My goodness. My goodness. I don't even know where to start. I could cry! (What's new, huh?) Alexia is going to go Ga-Ga. She's going to have so much fun trying clothes on. They have been washed a lot, so it looks like some of the 10/12 shirts will fit her now. What a huge, huge blessing! I was going through her summer clothes and most of them are too small. They are 7/8's, but they have shrunk.
In other news, I'm in agony. I've never had a toothache like this before in my life. I went to the Dentist for a cleaning and evaluation on Wednesday and I was fine. By Thursday afternoon, I was feeling a lot of pain. By late Thursday night, I was in agony. This morning I woke up with my left cheek all swollen, my neck and throat and jaw and tongue all hurt, and my tooth throbs. My Dentist isn't in today, but there was a number for another Dentist in case of emergencies. I called that number, because darn it, this is an Emergency! They can't do much for me because they don't accept my insurance, but they did call in a prescription for Penicillin for me. I was hoping for some Vicodin, but beggars can't be choosers! Not like I can sleep all day, anyway. LOL
I'm still in agony, hopefully tonight while I am sleeping, it will ease up some. I've been keeping the Tylenol going, too. It takes the "edge" off the pain so that it is bearable. This is a truly unbearable kind of pain. I hope I can make it to my root canal in ten days. Never thought I would be looking forward to a root canal. Haha!
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Not that I needed affirmation
But I got it tonight. Last night I gave Jacob his medicine 2.5 hours early because it was time to up his dose. I wanted to keep an eye on him for adverse reactions. We usually take it around 7 so that he can have an hour to adjust, etc. before bed. Well, at 6 PM tonight his medicine had definitely worn off. It usually lasts around 24 hours, and he was on hour 25.5. He completely lost it. One minute he was fine, the next he had his hands on Aidan's neck saying that Aidan needed to die. I calmly got him away from Aidan and told Jacob to go to his room while I put my body between him and Aidan to protect Aidan. Jacob went, but he threw things down the stairs (and they broke, and he blamed it on me). I kept my body in front of the other kids while calmly repeating for Jacob to get in his room and shut the door. That is what we agreed he should do when he is angry. I ushered all the kids to the back of the house and let Jacob storm. He screamed and yelled about how awful I am and how I don't care about anybody but myself, etc. etc. etc. The same stuff I was listening to nightly before he went on the Straterra. This is his first full tirade since going on Meds. And I know 100% his meds had worn off because I deliberately gave them to him early last night. Jacob was 100% calm again before I allowed him to come down to dinner. I gave him his medicine, and he has been fine since then.
So, if I needed affirmation that I am doing the right thing, I got it. But I don't like it. I hate this. I believe 100% that Jacob can control his temperwithout medication. I need to get him to believe in himself. But how?
Experiment
Control Yard #1
Weed and Feed applied 4/23 Picture taken 4/24
Control yard #2
Sugar applied on 4/24 picture taken 4/24
How I treat the front yard that the kids walk through every morning will be determined by which yard does better.
Outside play
Well, and one inside. :-) BFF
The water droplets are the sprinkler that they were running around without getting too wet, lol.
A day in a Scatterbrains life
What is with me lately?
Three days in a row I have gone to take clothes out of the dryer, only to find the clothes still wet with the Bounce sheet lying new on top. Why can't I remember to press start? It's putting my laundry behind!
Just now, I was walking through the house, and I ran into the wall. Who does that? Who just walks into their wall? I'm going to have a nasty bruise on my arm.
I went to get the kids breakfast this morning, and there were cheese sticks all over the floor. And my milk was in the cabinet, and I had dirty cups in the cabinet. Who does this kind of stuff?
I think I need to get my Noggin checked out. There might well be a "Space for Rent" sign in there. I wouldn't doubt it at this point. A few weeks ago a friend bought me a cup of tea. She set a cup down and took the other cup to get some sugar for her coffee. I open the cup, see that it's BROWN but was about to put my tea bag in anyway. It never even registered that I was about to try to make Hot Tea out of Coffee.
Phewweeee. I scare myself some times.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Hump day
The hump of what, I don't know. Days extend into weeks which extend into months....it's all the same to me. It is a humpy kind of day, though.
I got read the riot act by a Dental Hygienist. They are trying to work with me to get in to get a root canal and start filling up my cavities. My schedule is horrendous, though. Starting in June, I'll have six kids to bring with me. I'll have to figure it out. I'm not worried about the 4 oldest ones, but the two younger ones will be an issue. J kept Robby for me today and K was being so awful. I felt bad for her. He was hitting her and screaming for no reason at all. Jealousy? I told her I'd see her later and took off. He was behaving that badly.
So then I fed the boys and myself, and sat down to check e-mail. Jacob's teacher e-mailed me. I was like "Uh-oh" when I saw it, I was really like "Uh-Oh" when I read the first sentence, then I was like 'OH-NO" after I finished reading it. Yeah, one of THOSE e-mails. Good grief. Talk about bad behavior. Apparently Jacob was making faces and mocking the teacher behind her back, so another student told the teacher. The teacher gave Jacob a color change, and so what does Jacob do? He kicks the student who told on him. Lovely, huh? Apparently he told the teacher what he always tells people when he is caught doing something. "It wasn't toward you!" Yeah, right, Jacob. The Teacher told she would accept his words (even though she knows he was lying because she has seen him do it many times, apparently), but he had to keep the color change for kicking his classmate. So apparently he's in a lovely mood. I can't wait for him to come home. (note sarcasm) I feel bad for the teacher, though. And yes, Jacob and I will be having a talk. Tonight is the night we raise his dose from 25 mg to 40 mg. The doctor gave me the 40 mg a couple weeks ago, but I wanted to use up the 25 mg first. Plus I had to do research before I upped his dose. My goal is NOT to turn him into a zombie. I still don't like the idea of him being on Meds at all. After he sees the Psychiatrist next week, we will have more to go on. His need for retribution and his inability to control his temper are major concerns of mine. I did NOT know that these things are a huge part of ADHD. But in that workshop I went to on ADHD, they said that they were common aspects of ADHD. So I don't know. Maybe upping the dose is what he needs. It can be adjusted down again. I'm looking forward to getting more of my questions answered next week so that I am better able to help Jacob. It's all just a mess and my head spins from this. I know I'm doing the best thing for Jacob by getting him Evaluated by a Pyschiatrist. He has no impulse control what so ever. Which is not normal for an 8.5 year old.
So, my day is going along so well as you can see. We are staying home and going outside tonight before the rain moves in. First I have to deliver the bad news to Jacob, though. His computer time and video games are going under restriction again until he can sort out his attitude at school. He's gotten obsessive about the games again. He was in my room at 6 AM this morning nagging me about playing on the computer. I said no and he kept asking. I told him I would think about what I wanted to do about his game time while he was at school today. Little does he know that his Teacher and I always have an open e-mail going. We each save the last message from the other in our mail box and just hit reply as needed. Saves time that way. The subject is coded, so we already know what's up.
Ugh. Maybe I should try to get a nap in before the kids get home from school. If I can get my two boys to lie down with me. Wish me luck. It's hard doing all this by yourself. My Dentist is saying I need to get everything done ASAP because I have put it off (Which is true, it's my fault entirely), but my schedule is almost impossible to work with. After June 3rd, I'll have my fourkids plus two more to try to handle for Dental appointments. Fun.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Just one more thing
To add to my list of things I need to work on for the kids.
Robby's Pathologist and I discovered yet another thing about Robby today. He's a little bit tongue tied. We'ed never really noticed it before, because Robby had to be taught to stick his tongue out. Well, he finally did it on command today, and what do you know, the end of his tongue is heart shaped. It doesn't seem too major. But it could have a lot to do with Robby not eating/chewing properly.
So, I guess I make an appointment with our Doctor and ask about it.
*************************
I've been researching, and I see that it may not be necessary to clip in every child with a tied tongue. It probably would have been helpful with Robby when he was a baby....feeding was a nightmare for a while. Obviously we worked through it. But he *does still have eating issues. There are certain foods he is unable to eat and he chews and spits out. Like meat. And certain vegetables and fruits. He chews with his front teeth. I have no way of knowing if his tongue tie has anything to do with it. It will require some thought, research, and doctor's appointments. If I can, I would like to avoid surgery. We shall see.
Delivery
Thank you, My Tigger.
Happy Ninth Anniversary.
Wow, nine years.
Of course, by the time you see this, it will be over nine years.
::smile::
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Random Pictures
Goofy Boy. This hat really looks good on him, though, lol.
K came dressed in the same shirt as Robby one day. It was funny.
My Daffodils never stood a chance.
Some people have apple trees. I have a kid tree.
Just sweet.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
This is me
So, there I was, concentrating hard on getting my sink rinsed out. Then suddenly, my cat jumps up into my outside windowsill of the window I was standing in front of. I screamed and dropped my cleaning stuff. My neighbor was outside across from my window and he jumped when I screamed and spilled his wheelbarrow of stuff he had just cleaned up.
Oopsie.
So then later, I went out to water my lawn, and the kids turned the sprinkler on while I was trying to put the sprinkler on the hose. They got me right in the face.
Oopsie.
I then put my Fertilizer stuff in the hand held spreader down, and I knocked it over with the hose. Now I might have a dead patch in my yard. :(
Oopsie.
I came in from doing the yard after having to put all three boys back over the fence. They weren't listening at all. Well, I went potty and noticed the fish was swimming in SLUDGE. Someone had "helped" while I was outside by feeding the fish half a can of food.
::groan::
This is me. Gotta love me. :-)
Just my luck
I'm feeling 75% better today, but wouldn't you know it, I'm covered in an itchy rash. I'm allergic to the Antibiotic. That has never happened to me before. I guess it's true, when you get old your body metabolizes stuff differently, LOL. I think I got lucky, because I took an Allegra at the same time, so my reaction isn't too severe. Just covered with a rash, itchy, a little swollen, and a little dizzy. But I'm always dizzy, so that's not anything new.
At any rate, I called the Dr. Office after the doctors had already left, but a nurse was still in. She was going to call my Dr. so he could call me in a new prescription. And she wanted to make sure I was breathing OK and everything. I'm fine. Just itchy. And my face looks funnier than normal. LOL
Friday, April 18, 2008
Sleepy
And I'd really like to go to sleep, as it is almost 1 A.M.
But the neighbors are having a party. Singing and making a LOT of noise. They live right across from me, and the two grouchy neighbors. Amazingly, the grouchy neighbors aren't saying anything to them, because they like the loud neighbors. @@
How is that my dog (which I no longer have) can't bark, but the neighbors kid can have friends honking horns, blaring music, and attending parties at all hours of the night and it's OK?
I'm a really grouchy neighbor right now. :( If they wake up my sick kids, I'll be one unhappy Mama bear. It's too stuffy to shut the windows. It was 76 degrees in here. I refuse to turn on the AC when it's getting down to 50 or something tonight.
Just Shakin'
So I guess there was an Earthquake quite a ways from here this morning, but it was felt as far Southeast as Atlanta and has far North and West as Wisconsin and Michigan. I woke up during it because the windows were shaking, but I figured it was a plane and went back to sleep. LOL My friend in Indy did the same thing, she was shaking in her bed, but she figured a big truck or something was going by. Haha. My Doctor said it shook us pretty good here. He said some stuff fell off some shelves at his house. I wouldn't know if anything fell off here, there is so much on the floor already! LOL
At any rate, I finally did go to the doctor. Bronchitis. glad I went before it went into Pneumonia. I'm already miserable enough. Alexia has Strep. That got me out of the blue. I didn't even know her throat hurt until she told the nurse. LOL
I mowed down my grass really short again where the Dandelions are the worse, and hacked some down with the weed whacker, but otherwise I haven't done anything today. I am just not feeling good. Moving sends me into coughing fits. So resting was on my agenda today.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Bone Weary
I still have most of my to-do-list to do today. But I am bone tired. :(
I spent most of the day scooting around my yard taking out each individual Dandelion plant.
I let go my own anger. I let go of my pride.
And I decided to do it naturally, without chemicals.
I do have some grass seed to put down, because I have heard that grass chokes weeds.
But first I have to get out the weeds, right down to their tap roots.
It ended up being a cool science lesson for the kids.
Then E's mom drove by and she was in the tree.
Oops. LOL
The kids had fun at any rate.
My lovely neighbor walked by twice. Wouldn't even look at me over here taking out weed by weed. That's OK. I don't need him to. What I do need is to beat the dandelions and get them before they seed. I'll be busy tomorrow, too. LOL
It's official
I'm working full time this summer. Five days a week, but as far as I know, for half of the summer it's just K and then for the last month I'll have K and his sister. It'll be a blessing in many ways. Wish me luck!
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Oh man
My mind if flying away from me. I'm wondering what my neighbor will do next. If anything happens to me, my neighbor with the little white dog did it.
I think I have an overactive imagination, but man, I'm distressed. I don't know why this has been going on for the entire three years we have lived here. (the hate towards us by two specific neighbors).
I have decided to try to take care of my beautiful flowers non-chemically. First, I will be pick each and every yellow head off the weed. Then I will pick the leaves. I read if kept doing this, the tap root would eventually starve and the weed would die.
This is going to take a lot of time. But it's all I have got to offer. I don't believe in using D-24 and I can't find anything without it that works.
You know what upsets me? It upsets me when the neighbors have their lawns sprayed and the chemicals blow right into my house before I even know it's being done. No warning to shut my windows or anything. But I don't make threats to the neighbors. :(
Becky
Nope, No Home Owners. Just the city ordinances, and I already spoke with them.
I think they are pretty, too. My yard is so colorful compared to everyone else's.
So it begins again
It's warm out, my dandelions are in full bloom.
And my neighbors who are full of hate are back out in force.
Oh, goody.
I was outside trying to do yard work. I was mowing the grass at the particular moment he came across the street and stood and stared at me. So, being neighborly, but knowing full well this wasn't a neighborly visit, I stopped the mower. The very mower that took me ten minutes to get going in the first place. He started in his usual lovely manner. The conversation goes as follows:
Me: "Hi, how are you doing?"
Him: "Have you ever heard of something called Weed Be Gone?"
Me: "Pardon?"
Him: repeats
Me: (I can't believe he is even taking time out of my day for this) "Yes, and I've used it three times." (Which is true, I still have the mostly empty bottle in my garage).
Him: "Well, why do you have so many weeds?"
Me: (What kind of question is that?) "I don't know, since I have sprayed three times" (Which is true)
Him: "Why don't you spray?"
Me: "As I just explained kindly to you twice, I have. Three times. At any rate, it's my yard, my preference. I noticed that all of you have your yards treated, and your yards are fine because of it."
Him: He then turned around and pointed out ONE weed in his NEIGHBOR'S yard (not even his yard, but the other neighbor's yard that is full of hate) and said that my yard was making that yard terrible, and they did care.
Me: I had a lot to say, such as "If you don't like my dandelions, feel free to take up a collection and have my yard sprayed for me" but instead, I said "God bless you" and turned on my mower so I couldn't hear his hate anymore.
Him: He walks away, goes inside his house, grabs a bottle of Weed Be Gone, and goesto his neighbors yard and sprays the Dandelion. Then he looks at me like "Take that!" I gave him a smile and a thumbs up and kept mowing.
I finished mowing my grass, then I went out and hacked the death out of my bushes some more. I found beauty hiding among the ugliness. Unfortunately, it doesn't show up well in second picture. :( Remember, the before pictures are back in March, lol.
The entire time I was doing my yard work, the man was taking a spray bottle of "something" and a rag and cleaning his car. I sure wish I had time to take a spray bottle to wash my car.
At any rate, when I was finished with my yard work for the day (as I still am not feeling well), I came inside and called the City and asked them if there was an ordinance on Dandelions and left a message. Someone called back and said I couldn't have weeds or grass over four inches high, and I can't have "noxious" weeds such as poison Ivy growing rampant all over my yard, but I could have Dandelions by the dozens if I wanted them. So I thanked the man for taking the time to call me back, and I told him I would tell the neighbors they were free to spray their yards if they wanted to. The man said "There you go!" and he was laughing. I could tell he thought the entire thing was ridiculous.
The thing is, I am the ONLY one on my street to have Dandelions I don't know where they came from. We didn't have a problem when we moved in. They sprung up last year and have gone amuck. I had thought about taking away my kids "fun" money for the month and having my yard sprayed, but man, I would feel like I was giving into him. I know, pride is a sin. Man, what a pickle.
My lovely yard. Keep in mind the side where the man lives isn't nearly as bad. This is the only concentrated spot.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Update
Urgh, I typed it all out and AOL Journals ate it.
So an even shorter verion for the update.
The second $20.00 was found. It was turned into the Assistant Principal by another student after he started questioning every body. He called in every one involved and then even more to get the entire story. "Girlie's" parents were called in. After they were sure they had the entire story, they decided to give "Girlie" double detention instead of suspension. They went by the severity of what actually happened versus intent. But who really knows what an eight-year-old means by "torture." Ya know?
Jacob's teacher has e-mailed me and the Assistant Principal called me to let me know the situation was taken care of. Bravo to the school for taking care of it thouroughly and taking the time to get the entire story.
Jacob's story was solid. Bravo, kiddo. I'm proud of you! Apparently his teacher gushed over him, too. Good, he deserves a little gushing.
Update on the $20.00 situation
Jacob's Teacher turned it over to the Assistant Principal. He's questioning everybody and trying to figure out exactly what happened. Apparently someone is saying there was $40.00. I'll need to question Jacob about that myself. He has a really hard time lying to me. Which is a good thing. :P I can see right through him.
I've turned the money into the Assistant Principal. It's all in his court, now.
Monday, April 14, 2008
No, Becky, you didn't make me feel bad. :-) I just wanted to clarify and make it clear that I wasn't painting Jacob with roses in all of this. He accepted the money and he did the bunny ears. He will be apologizing to the little girl.
I'm still flabbergasted that it happened at all. Here I was worried about threats and guns and etc, and he's being paid by an eight year old to be mean to others. It's so not cool, and I hope I hear from the teacher, or things might get a little ugly. :(
Just a clarification, yes, I did talk with Jacob about the situation and gave him ideas about what he can do if it happens again and he agrees that the situation was wrong. I did not lecture him. He already had stated that it's wrong to hurt people's feelings, and he had already come forward about the situation. I wasn't going to demean him with a long lecture.
You have got to be kidding
Something happened to today that I never would have expected in a million years.
Jacob came home today and whipped a $20.00 bill out of his pocket and said he got money. I calmly asked him where he got the money. He proceeded to tell me a horrible story.
*I am changing names for his classmates privacy.
"*Girlie gave me $20.00 to torture *Shirley. All I did was give her bunny ears because I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but it was enough to get the money."
WHAT??????
A second grader is paying a classmate money to torture another classmate???????
I am PROUD of Jacob for bringing the money to me and letting me know his side of the story. He could have kept the money and I would have been none the wiser. I told him the only consequence would be returning the money with an explanation to his TEACHER (NOT the student, I believe a phone call to her parents is in order, but I'll leave that up to the teacher by letting her know what happened!) I'm not going to "punish" him for coming to me with the money. This is the second time he has come to me with a considerable amount of money letting me know how he acquired it. Bravo, Jacob. I'm proud of you, kiddo.
I was also happy to hear him say he just gave the little girl bunny ears because he didn't want to hurt her feelings. I hope that is all that really happened.
I am just beside myself that this happened, though. We are working SO hard at being kind to others, and then this happens. Man, there is a thing or two I would love to say to that little girl. It's all I can do to turn it over to the teacher instead of getting out the class directory and calling up her parents. I don't think I would be kind in the matter. I think it's better to leave it up to the teacher.
Any thoughts? I e-mailed the teacher already, and I'm taking the money and note in personally because Jacob said I couldn't trust him to give up the money a second time. I admire his honesty, and I'll take it in to the school office tomorrow.
Did I handle it correctly?
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Crud
So, I've been sick for what, three weeks now? Four? I can't remember. I lost my voice for a while, but it came back after two weeks. The cough never went away. It's gotten worse. And even more worrisome, it's "tight" now and my chest hurts and I'm wheezing a little.
Poop.
Poop, poop, poop.
Now what have I gone and done to myself?
Children's book recommendations
Books that both the children and I loved:
"Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock" retold by Dric A. Kimmel and illustrated by Janet Stevens.
"Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters" by John Steptoe
and...
"The Talking Eggs" by Robert D. San Souci
The children didn't enjoy the story of "Mufaro Beautiful Daughter's" as much as the other two books, but they really enjoyed the illustrations and the general idea of the story. I would highly recommend all three. The illustrations of all three were excellent, and so were the stories.
I can't wait to see which three books we will be reading this week. :-)
Friday, April 11, 2008
Jacob
So on Wednesday of this week, I took Robby in for his physical so I can get his paper turned in for Preschool next year. The first thing our Doctor said was "How is your oldest doing?" He's such an awesome doctor. I can make an appointment for one of my kids and have all of them looked at/talk to him about and he is so good about it.
So anyway, I had explained my difficulties getting an appointment for Jacob and he said that they would call and "poke" the Psychiatrist. Man, it must have been a big poke. I have an appointment time and date for Jacob now. LOL I called for THREE weeks and left SEVENTEEN messages. No response. I'm so glad our regular Doctor's office called to poke them. LOL I had gotten as far as to talking to someone long enough to give them Jacob's information, but they never called me back with an appointment time like she said they would. She is supposed to call me back after she talks to my insurance company (to make sure it's all cool), but I'm not holding my breath. I'll just go in on the appointment date. It's crazy...the appointment is at the worst possible time of day and day of the week, for that matter. I work, and it's at Noon. Aidan gets off the bus at noon. I'll have to pull him out of school almost an hour early (for travel time). I don't know what I will do with little boy I care for. I guess the good part is I won't have to worry about my daughter and the girl I care for...it's a two hour appointment, so us going in at noon takes away any worries of me missing the them getting off the bus. The woman I talked to promised me that future appointments would work around my schedule, but the Initial was always Doctor's choice because he has certain time slots that he reserves for Initial Evals. He does all of his own scheduling, so in the future he will pull out his planner and ask me when I can bring Jacob. Working full time will be tricky this summer, if it happens. But, my employers DOES have back up care. So that is good.
But still. I'll still have to take four boys with me to a Psychiatric Evaluation. Sounds fun, huh? I'll tell my employer this week so she can make other arrangements if she wants to. That gives her two weeks. I'm happy they are getting Jacob in this month. I thought I would have to wait until June, for as hard it as it was to make this appointment! And you know what, this works out. The 29th is when Jacob runs out of 25 mg capsules of his medicine. I have 40 mg capsules, but I wasn't sure I wanted to up his dose. So now I can confer with his Psychiatrist since he takes his meds at night. Cool, huh?
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Relationship thingy
1. Who eats more?
Probably me
2. Who said "I love you" first?
He did
3. How long have you been together?
Nine years and two months together. Our 9th wedding Anniversary is in 12 days.
4. Who sings better?
I do, but he thinks he does. We both stink.
5. Who's older?
That would be me, by seven years.
6. Who's smarter?
He's more intelligent in the areas of Math and Science. I am intelligent in living kind of ways.
7. Whose temper is worse?
That would be me.
8. Who does the laundry?
That would be me.
9. Who does the dishes?
That would be me.
10. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed?
I do. Although currently it's more of "in the right middle" lol
11. Who snores?
He does. I do if I'm sick.
12. Whose hair is longer?
That would be mine.
13. Who's better with the computer?
He is.
14. Do you have pets?
Franken, Chase, and Tiffany are the honorable Fur members of the family. Goldy is the goldfish.
16. Who cooks dinner?
That would be me.
17. Who drives when you are together?
I do.
18. Who pays when you go out to dinner?
He does.
19. Who is the most stubborn?
We are both mules.
20. Who is the first one to admit when they're wrong?
Wrong?
21. Whose parents do you see more?
I don't know. It's about the same for me, but he sees my Dad more since they live in the same town.
22. Who named your pets?
I named Franken, Chase and Tiffany came named. The kids named Goldy.
23. Who kissed who first?
I believe he kissed me first.
24. Who asked who out?
He asked me out.
26. Who's more sensitive?
I am.
27. Who's taller?
He is.
28. Who has more friends?
I have more IRL friends, he has lots of online friends.
29. Who has more siblings?
I do. One brother five sisters.
Hey, who put this answer here? I don't have one brother and five sisters. LOL I have one brother. Alan has Two sisters and tree brothers, so he does! I have some step-siblings, but I don't count them anymore. I haven't seen them in ages.
30. Who wears the pants in the relationship?
Depends on what day it is. I mean, if it's cold, I prefer slacks to a skirt. And I'd love to get him into a kilt, but we don't own one, yet....
Another phantom answer, lol. He does, in the end. I like to think I do.
31. Who sleeps naked?
I do when he is here, I don't when he is not here. He does when he is here, I do not know when he is not here.
33. Who has been with more ex-lovers?
Him.
34. Who has more money?
N/A, same account. He makes more, though.
35. Who has more tattoos?
Neither us have any, unless you want to count stretch marks.
36. Who eats more sweets?
I do.
37. Who is closer to their family?
I am.
38. Who has the older car?
Mine
39. Who has bigger dreams?
He does
40. Who cries more?
Me
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Mother Nature is such a tease
So it's supposed to be 72 today. Yup, we are playing outside LOTS today!
When I looked ahead, it will be raining but warm for the week, then raining and cold for the weekend and Monday? Monday it's supposed to SNOW. What the boogy juice.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Library
Went better today. The children stayed with me.
Not to say the day went great. My friend brought her Grandson over and so the boys were in the back yard. Aidan decides to open the gate and let the littles out. Not only that, he opened the garage door and let Robby in, then shut him in there. He could have been crushed! There was a huge ordeal with that. Then later, at the park, Robby runs away and runs out in the road. Man. It wasn't my day.
So I was happy that the Library went well. :-)
A good thing happened today. I received a note from Alan. Happy, Happy day for me. It was numbered 5 of 5, so maybe the others will make it one day. The bad news is that I also received mail from the Family Group that a Memorial Service is being held for one of the wives. I can only come to the conclusion that she has passed on, or is expected to, soon. She was in a terrible car accident this past Friday. I can only image the moral on the boat right now. I know the wives' moral is extremely low judging by things I have received via e-mail. It's very, very sad and tragic and I can't image how it was for her husband having to be pulled from the boat and told that his wife has passed on. :( Man, Sorry to be a downer. This has bothered me greatly, their anger, despair and sadness. I don't know them...but I can feel some of the pain. I know her Mom and Dad were with her over the weekend. I'm glad they were able to make it.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Random Pictures
What is it about baby powder and boys? I have a picture of the bathroom covered from Jacob playing with it whe he was a toddler. Daddy was in charge while Mommy took Alexia out for that one! lol Mommy, sadly, was in charge when this happened.
I bought a nice step stool for the bathroom. Robby has suddenly taken an interest in the fish again.
Aidan was in on the powder escapade. You can really see his nose here. This was the result of two different falls on different days. Poor kid.
Beautiful weekend
We spent most of the weekend outside. It was gorgeous this weekend. Today was so beautiful. Tomorrow is going to be the same, if not better. I think I'll call my friend and have her come over for brunch or lunch and ask her if she will help me re-screen my sliding screen door.
She slid in the mud and came walking around the corner when I was trying to get candid shots of the boys.
Mama got busted with the camera
I took this one today. I love this picture. I know his helmet isn't strapped, he was just goofing around. Notice his nose. He has been oh so graceful lately.
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