Woe is meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Holy good Lord I am sick. I can't remember a cold EVER kicking my ass the way this one is. I suspected I'd get one as Mike had been suffering from a small one last week and my little neighbor Baby P, who I simply cannot NOT pick up and smother with kisses, has been a little sick. I probably put the final...err..nail in the coffin seems a bit to melodramtic...how about "log on the fire" by camping out in the pouring rain, having only one change of clothes thereby spending several hours literally soaked to the bone and then sleeping on the ground. Like that didn't just scream, "Immune system down!!"

I even had to call in sick to work yesterday b/c I seriously couldn't move and it killed me to have to do that b/c I only have tomorrow and three shifts next week left. I was not planning on missing a single second.

Anyway, I've been a little short tempered in the mommy department (you could tell because I usually have sooooooo much patience. *please read sarcasm here*). But that being said, G had a couple good ones today that made me laugh out loud. First, is it just ingrained in us to sing in shower? I let him take his own shower today and was serenaded, as I cleaned the kitchen, by the sweetly made-up songs of a 4 yr old singing at the top of his watery lungs. The best part? He wasn't even aware I could hear him. He was just in his own little world.

These next two I'll just write in convo form:

Me: (exasperated) I don't KNOW, Grant. I'll think about it.
G: (super positive) But, Mama! I ALREADY thinked about it, and it's a great idea!!

(Watched previously mentioned, still sick, Baby P this morning.)
G: (grossed out, teenage voice) Mama? Baby P has the boogers.
Me: (distracted, as usual) Whatever, G. He's fine, he just has a cold.
G: (snotty AND grossed out teen voice) No. Mom. The boogers are weally big. AND he's coming by me. Please, Mom. Do something. Now.

All for now. Oh, and I've been totally neglecting my appreciation part of this blog. Tonight, as usual, my appreciation goes out to my hubby. Thursdays are the nights that he online games with other gamers and he really looks forward to his one night of release. Well, he walked in the door tonight, took one look at me and said, "I got bedtime, babe. You just lay on the couch and chill." Don't you just LOVE him???

What is Wrong with Me?

There are two activities that I really despise. Running and yard work. And for some reason, in the last two days, I've done both. Awhile back I publicly declared that I was never running another step again. I gave myself permission to quit, something I almost never do. But then last week via good old Facebook, my old running coach posted that she was going to run Monday at 6:15 and anyone could join her. Before I could stop myself, before I could remind myself that I'd quit and that it was OKAY that I quit, I found myself writing her to tell her that I would be there. And I actually went. And I lived. And dammit, I actually feel good. I'm going again on Wednesday. What has gotten in to me?

Tomorrow will mark 4 years since we've signed the next 30 yrs worth of our paychecks over to Chase Mortgage. And for four years I've wanted to clean up the brush that takes up, literally, two-thirds of our yard. And for four years anytime I've attempted to do yard work, the single act of picking up a rake or donning a pair of work gloves has been enough to make me turn around and march right back into the house. Yesterday, for some unknown reason, I got the urge to work in the yard. So with Mike's help and about two and a half hours of non-stop pulling, raking, cutting and tossing, we made enough progress for me to actually *gulp* be excited for the next opportunity to get out there. Really. WHAT has gotten into me?

Henry Vilas Zoo

As a general vegetarian rule, I technically hate zoos. But I have relaxed my hatred a little bit when it comes to the Madison Zoo. It sits on a beautiful piece of property, it's free and considering Grant is not likely to go on an African Safari anytime soon, it stands right now as the best place to teach him about animals he'd only otherwise see in pictures. And when he asks why the tiger only paces back and forth all day we are not shy about explaining what his natural habitat should actually be. But animal rights aside, here's a couple photo's from today.
Grant loved this guy and asked me to take a pic. He does look pretty relaxed and happy.

Just a little more to grow before he hits walleye status.

Cutest polar bear ever.

Suddenly 6 feet 3 1/2 inches doesn't seem so tall...

You can be my wingman anytime.

Today a former co-worker invited me to a matinee special 25th Anniversary release of Top Gun. I took my bff and we had an afternoon of the wonderful kind of reminiscing that only an '80's movie can bring. Seriously, it really was fun. Cheesy line after cheesy line, hilarious 'meaningful' closeups, and all of the fun that comes from a formulaic film that you just happen to know almost every line to. Plus, it was really nice to remember how hot and un-crazy the young Tom Cruise was. And who knew Tim Robbins was in it??

And of course, I'll pay matinee prices to watch the volleyball scene any day.

Mama, why didn't you baweeve me?

(WARNING: Contains graphic picture)

Everything was going so smoothly.

I was babysitting for my neighbor JK. Foster daughter, M, was in the shower, I had Baby P in a swing and NJ (3.5 yrs) and G were playing on the trapeze bar of the swing set. NJ and G are both too short to reach the bar so the two of them, without my help, figured out that by moving the kiddie picnic table under the trapeze bar they could reach. It was awesome watching them figure out how to move it themselves. There were a few moments of trial and error as one would lift an end but the other wouldn't creating a see-saw effect. But without my interference and through much giggling, they figured they needed to lift simultaneously. I was really proud! Especially since they both have very strong personalities and alternate between being best friends and mortal enemies.

NJ knew exactly what to do: Stand on table, grab bar, swing out, swing back, put feet on table, let go. G's experience went something like this: Stand on table, grab bar, swing out, let go, fall. After one particularly hard fall he started whining for me to help him. And no matter how much he whined I just kept telling him he could do it himself, be brave. (You can see where this is going, can't you? Mom-o'-the-year-award, right?) So he gets up, grabs on, swings out, lets go, falls super hard on his butt. He fell so hard on his butt that it actually forced his head back and he whacked a corner piece underneath the table. I jumped up thinking, "Ohh this is gonna need ice" only to see him take his hand away from the back of his head dripping with blood. Sooooo, I sent NJ inside for M while I took a sec to gather my senses. You know how in an emergency you sort of stand there for a second and it's like your brain is a slot machine and everything is whirring around until suddenly, bing, bing, bing, all the cherries line up in a row and you know what to do? Well, once my brain cleared, I decided the best thing to do was to call an ambulance b/c that, at least, would give me enough to time find out a) if Mike was home yet and b) figure out what to do with the kids I was supposed to be watching. M came out of the house and immediately her poor face went pale when she saw what was going on, b/c by this time G'd bled all over the porch step and all over the lawn chair he tried to sit in (the chair is still stained. Looks like someone was shot in it.) As calmly as I could, I told her to get me the kitchen towel and then asked her to run to my house to see if Mike was home, which, thankfully he was. We heard the sirens start up (b/c literally, we are four blocks from the station. They could have walked over.) Three of the nicest paramedics helped G out. And of course I had to repeat what happened over and over for each of them. Meanwhile I also had to call JK and tell her that I was leaving the kids with M b/c I had to take my kid to the ER. And poor M was kind of shell shocked. I sort of shoved the baby at her and said, "I'm so sorry, sweetie. I'll come back as soon as I can." Then I went home to get the car and Mike went w/ G in the ambulance even though it turns out he refused to get into it unless they promised to drive slowly and not turn on the sirens. :) Anyway, to the ER we go, where I have to recount the story four more times, feeling guiltier and guiltier with each telling. Soooo, to wrap up this long ass story, five stitches and one super brave little boy later, we went home and Mike ran to Culvers to get everyone strawberry shakes. :) And his stitches are out now and with the exception of every once in a while asking, "Mama, why didn't you baweeve me when I telled you I need you to catch me?" all of us have healed.

Here's before the stitches (but after he was cleaned up):

Phone vs Toilet: and the winner is....

The toilet, hands down. So no texting for me for awhile, which is probably good considering I am constantly over my monthly allowance anyway. My phone is currently in pieces in a bowl of rice b/c several people have recommended that method for drying it out. We'll see. It's hard to be w/o one though. Esp since our home phone is on the fritz and we had to unplug it. It dialed 911 for us. Wasn't that nice of it? Of course, it should have waited for an emergency. Or, you know, at the very least for us to be home at the time. I'm sure those poor firemen had better things to do.

So Hard to Say Goodbye

We knew it would happen someday. You can't have five pets and think that they're all going to live forever. But that doesn't make it any easier to accept. Today I had to make the decision to put Jasmine down. She was originally one of my parent's cats that Mike and I took into our home after my mom passed away. She was sassy and sweet and talkative and so social. She loved greeting new people, purred the loudest and chirped every single time you touched her. She was the most laid back girl and we loved every minute of having her in our life. I found this picture and it's unrecognizable compared to what she was today. This picture is of the robust, healthy 11 lb kitty. Two years of struggling with hyperthyroidism, left her at a skeletal 3.5 lbs. The vet was phenomenal. She's been working with me all this time to try the best combo of meds, we had every test possible done. But as most of us know too well, you can't win them all. I called the clinic today and left a message for sweet Dr. Kim. Within a half an hour she called me back and told me to bring Jazzy and she'd squeeze me in between patients. She took one look at my face and one look at Jasmine and said, "Sweetie, you are doing the right thing." She let me stay while she put her down and took my payment right there so I wouldn't have to deal with the front desk at all. She sent me on my way with a huge hug and a "it's all better now". Grant was with me and as this was his first real lesson on death, he handled it like a champ. While we're not overly religious people, I have found that using God as an explanation has helped him understand a lot of the little things in life. Through his own tears, he touched my arm and said, "Don't cry, Mommy. I think Jazzy will like God a lot. And she'll have fun while she's waiting up there for you!" My mom's birthday is coming up this Sunday the 6th and I've decided that she must have thought that having Jazzy join her was a good birthday present. As Dr. Kim wrapped Jazzy in a blanket and we headed towards the door, Grant and I both said, "Say hi to Grandma for us! She's going to be so happy to have you back."

Good bye, Jazzy. You were the most wonderful cat and we are honored that you chose our family to love.

And, Happy birthday, Mom. Give Jazzy a kiss for us.