To-Do Recap

Ok, so since I posted my To-Do list last week, I thought I'd 'fess up on what I did and did not get accomplished. As I fortuitously foretold, there were some unforeseen circumstances that prevented the 100% completion of the list.

First, what I DID get done:

I got both bathrooms mostly cleaned. This was aided when Zoe pooped in my bathtub, necessitating an immediate sound scrubbing with bleach and Comet.

I made it to the gym once.

I met Brooke for coffee along with all six of our children. During our relatively peaceful chat and snack, we were approached by an elderly Scottish-Irish grandma who told us we "had our hands full" and then asked if we had a whip. (Apprently we didn't appear peaceful to strangers.) She then proceeded to lecture the children about behaving "because your mothers are right here" and threatened that she would be back. This was all done very Mary Poppins-ishly with a smile and lilting accent, and as I told Brooke when the woman left, I wasn't sure whether to be offended or to hire her.

I made a dentist appointment for Sam.

I got Sam registered for swimming lessons, which begin on February 9th.

I got one of the quilt tops done (except for the border) for my cousin. Who is now 30 weeks pregnant with quadrulets and doing GREAT. I'm so proud of her.

I seem to recall leaving Hubby with dinner ideas and even making dinner for him to put in the oven at least once.

I definitely watched tennis. There were some EXCEPTIONAL matches, which demanded my undivided attention.

So, you see? I actually was very productive. Also, it was my week where I worked so I worked 5 of the 8 days, in addition to grocery shopping, laundry, house cleaning, etc.

Now, as to why things weren't 100% complete. Let me preface this by saying that I'm not placing blame or denying responsibility. Just stating the facts, ma'am.

On Wednesday I got some very upsetting news. The 2 year old son of a good friend started having some problems the beginning of January and long story short, he either has a brain tumor, seizure disorder or is autistic. The news really upset me, as it's any parent's worst nightmare, but my heart just broke for my friend. I spent most of the day fighting tears, praying for them and feeling generally lost, aching for my friend.

So it was really no surprise that I woke up throughout the night and Thursday morning with a migraine. I spent the morning in bed and even after getting the headache under control, I battled nausea all day. So Thursday was a complete waste.

It must have been some kind of bug because Friday the stomach cramps arrived. They weren't terrible but definitely uncomfortable and I didn't get much done except some shopping and the coffee date with Brooke.

So there ya have it. I've confessed. I feel so cleansed now, and actually realize that I was more productive that I'd thought. Instead of focusing on what I didn't get done, I'll concentrate on my accomplishments, give myself a big hug and sing Kum-by-ah now.

Amen.

Eat Pray Love

I just finished reading this book this morning. I very nearly finished it last night but my tired little eyes couldn't stay open for even one more page. I wanted so badly to finish it because I was SO enjoying it, much like I so badly want to eat an entire pizza because it tastes so good, but I just couldn't do it. Plus leftovers are always nice.

I received this book for Christmas after putting it on my wish list. I had very briefly seen the author and book on Oprah a while back, but like many books that I make note of, I didn't really know what it was about. Just thought it sounded interesting.

I'm not sure what I expected of the book, to be honest. I didn't really go into it knowing much about it, and even though Oprah loved it, there have been a few of her picks that really were a little too "out there". (Remember Gary Zukav? Ever try to read his book The Seat of the Soul? Agony.) So I kind of wondered if this book, which is about the author's quest for self-discovery and spiritualness, would be a little too "out there" for me.

I discovered from the very first page, really the first sentence ("I wish Giovanni would kiss me."), that I was hooked. The first leg of her journey starts in Italy, which I am in love with from afar, so naturally I devoured that section of the book. I wasn't sure that I would be that interested in the section on her experiences in India, but it was wonderful too and I came to admire her even more through her struggles and the honesty with which she wrote about them. And then she goes to Indonesia, specifically Bali, and that too was a thoroughly delicious adventure that I found myself wishing I could have a taste of. She is a wonderful story teller, and her personality totally comes thru in her writing. And while she does find the spiritual enlightenment and healing that she went in search of, the book is definitely NOT a heavy tome of religious wisdom that will bog you down. Her honesty and self-deprecating sense of humor saturate the book and make it immensely readable.

I'm very sorry that I've finished the book, but I'm so glad I read it. Alot of what she said and discovered rang true in my own heart, and I identified with her in a lot of ways. She honestly and humbly shares the lessons that she learned, yet you don't feel like you're being preached at. More like a friend casually sharing some pearls of wisdom, saying with a shrug of their shoulders, "This is just what worked for me."

If you've read it, or get a chance to read it, I'd love to hear your thoughts on it too.

The Chop Shop

Parenting Lesson #247: Don't take a long-haired little girl out in below-freezing temperatures when the wind is blowing and she has a sucker.

This is the lesson I learned the other day. I was in such a hurry to get into the store that I didn't even think about the sticky sucker Zoe was chomping on when we got out of the car. It took about 2.7 seconds for that sucker to become totally and completely stuck in her hair. We had to go into the bathroom at Trader Joe's and wash the sucker out of her hair and then de-stickify her face and hands. As I do everyday, I suggested to Zoe that we should put her hair up in a pretty princess ponytail to keep it out of her face. To which she replied, as she does every day, "No!"

The girl does not like having her hair in any form of barrette, ponytail, rubberband, etc. And it looks so cute when it is! (For the split second it stays in when I manage to do it anyway.) Her hair has gotten quite long - when it's wet it's down between her shoulder blades - and she's got some natural curl in her hair like I do. But she's always getting her hair in everything (i.e. food, toothpaste, etc.) because it's long and in her face.

We came home from the store and told Daddy about our sucker fiasco and I threatened that I should just cut her hair since she won't let me put it up. He wholeheartedly agreed, saying it would look very cute. But I waffled. I mean, I'd be cutting off her baby hair afterall. I tried coming up with a bunch of excuses NOT to do it, but in the end, I bit the bullet and did it. And if it is at all possible, she looks even cuter and sweeter than she did before.

Before haircut:

After haircut:

Danger Danger!

Over at Ree's site today she's talking To-Do lists. And since I'm a chronic list-maker, I thought I'd join in the fun. Besides, I like the feeling of accomplishment I get when I actually get to cross things off. Makes me feel like I'm making some progress in life.

So here's what's on the agenda for this week:

• Clean out the fridge
• Clean the bathrooms
• Go to the gym at least twice
• Meet Brooke for coffee
• Send out email to friends/family about participating in the Susan G Komen 3-day walk in September
• Make dentist appts for son and myself
• Register son for swimming lessons
• Work on baby quilts for my cousin (she’s pregnant with quadrulets)
• Come up with some dinner ideas for hubby so he and the kiddos can have something to eat while I’m at work Mon & Tues nights.
• Oh, and watch tennis. The Australian Open is on!

How many of these things will actually get done, you ask? Hmmm, probably at least half and maybe even all of them. I think it's realistic. Of course, you throw in all the normal daily stuff not listed (like bathing, eating, sleeping, wrangling kids, shopping, cooking) and you know that the whole list could end up completely ignored if the "daily stuff" develops a kink. Something like a sick kid, or a kid who wakes up earlier than normal and remains cranky, a mommy who doesn't sleep well, a snow storm, or an exceptionally riveting tennis match that prevents mommy from leaving the house, much less the couch. All of these things pose a very real threat to my ability to accomplish the things on my To-do list this week.

Yep, it's a dangerous life I lead.

Quilting Bee

I recently purchased fabric to start a new quilting project and I got things started yesterday. I got all the fabric washed and ironed and got the strips cut out and a few pieced together. Already I can see that it's going to turn out pretty well. I really like my fabric choices. It's been a while - almost a year, in fact - since I've done any quilting so I'm having to remember and try to employ the proper techniques I learned in the class I took last year.

Anyway, I got looking through my Photobucket account, where I have pictures of some of the other quilts I've made, and I thought I'd share them. Trust me, the camera hides many mistakes, but I'm generally pleased with them.

This is the one I made for my friend Michelle when she was pregnant with her son, Alex. It's flannel and was so soft and snuggly.

This is one I made for my sister Kelly. My mom helped me pay to have this one professionally quilted and it turned out gorgeous. I love the Irish Chain pattern.

This is one I made for my sister's annual Christmas party gift-exchange in 2006.

This is one I made for my cousin's little boy, Jordan.

I learned some basics of strip quilting a few years ago and was immediately hooked. I still have a TON to learn about it, but I figure by the time I'm a grandma, maybe I'll have it down! I'm always in awe of the quilts I see entered in the Fair and can truly appreciate and admire them, knowing the amount of work that goes into them. They really are works of art. Mine? Not so much.

AT LAST!!

We received some very good news yesterday.

After 3+ years of trying to get my parents' property short-platted and jumping through all the hoops that the County Planning & Development throws up, they've FINALLY signed off on it and it is officially 4 separate pieces of land! What does this mean?? It means we can finally, FINALLY, get started trying to build. Now that we have parcel numbers for each piece of property, we can use those to apply for building permits and hopefully get started in the next few months. We actually COULD be living out on our land, in our new house, by the end of the year!

It has been such a dream of our's for so long now, that I can't even begin to tell you how excited, relieved, and a little in disbelief, that I am that we may actually see some progress soon. I mean, I know we've got a lot of hard work in between now and then, but to be able to actually see some tangible results of our efforts will be worth it.

Not only am I happy for myself and my family, but for my parents. They have been waiting for SO dang long to live out there that I'm so happy to see things happen for them too. It's not just a fulfillment of a dream, but also a chance for them to slow down and just enjoy life hopefully. They're not getting any younger and the nagging thought was always in the back of my mind that if the County didn't hurry up, my parents may not be around to enjoy it, or not able to pursue living out there. I just hope that the next months go by smoothly and we can see some houses start to rise out of the ground. Dad and I have a lot of plans and ideas and I can't wait to get to work on them!

Mt. Washmore

The Good News? These were all clean clothes. The Bad News? They were waiting to be folded and put away.

I am proud to say I have climbed and conquered Mt. Washmore. Never has it loomed so large in my home. It nearly occluded my hallway and threatened my physical safety whenever I dared to pass, not to mention the mental anguish of my guilt-addled conscious. I finally wrestled all 142 lbs of Downy-freshness onto my bed, vowing that I wouldn't sleep until the job was done. Hubby, sensing that his slumber was also potentially compromised, jumped right in to help, delivering all the neatly folded articles to their proper dresser drawers. In no time at all, we had reached the summit and freed our bed. Eureka! What a great feeling.

My work here is done.

For tonight anyway.

Heroes

The other night at work was kind of a rough one. The entire hospital is about filled to capacity, our unit being no exception. We have 39 beds. Two rooms were out of commission and the other 37 beds were full. It was crazy. The phones were ringing off the hook, the patient call lights were non-stop and my chart rack was never empty. By 7:00pm I was already tired and still had 4 hours to go. And then, a patient started having problems. Breathing problems. He wasn't getting enough oxygen. Next thing I hear is a Code Blue being called in his room. Crap. That's not good. Everyone starts running around and various people start running in from throughout the hospital. (When a code is called people respond: an ER Dr., pharmacist, respiratory therapist, ICU charge nurse, house supervisor, stat nurses, EKG, etc.) I went and positioned myself outside the room, waiting to do whatever needed to be done.

It was quickly determined that the man wasn't breathing and needed to be intubated (where a breathing tube is put down the throat). Then suddenly his heart either stopped or went into a bad rhythm and they started doing CPR. Seeing CPR done in person is nothing like it looks on TV, let me tell you. It is almost violent; the force that is necessary to artificially pump the heart is astounding. And it is hard work. A person can't do it for very long at the rate and force that is required.

To witness even part of that situation is enough to get your adrenaline flowing, but then I had things to do: order a chest xray, find suction canisters, get towels, get someone to locate a Doppler, run down two flights of stairs and to the other side of the hospital to retrieve blood and then take it back. And all of this done with a very real sense of life or death.

This isn't the first Code that I've witnessed and probably won't be the last. I'm always in awe when I witness the teamwork and orchestration that goes into saving a life. Everybody knows exactly what to do, how and when to do it. I realize that the techniques and knowledge required are learned skills, but to have the confidence, the fortitude and the tenacity to carry those skills out in such a high-pressure situation....wow. Honestly, I think they're heroes. It really is such an honor and a privilege to work with such people. I truly believe they're doing the work of the angels.

My newest appliance

For Christmas, my sister Kelly got us a indoor grill. Kinda like a George Foreman grill, but bigger and nicer. Well, after having the thing take up space on my counter for the week after Christmas, I realized that I probably would never use the thing. I have a cast iron grill pan that I love and I just didn't think I would ever even take the grill thing out of the box. This theory was further supported when I cleaned out my pantry and actually found a George Foreman grill that I've never used. (The George Foreman went into the "donate" box for the next time the Blind or whoever comes by. See? I'm getting rid of stuff!)

So I lugged the thing back to the kitchen store at the mall where she bought it and exchanged it for this:

(It's a panini grill, if you didn't know.)

Tonight was our first visit to Planet Panini . I bought all the fixin's and made Reuben Sandwich paninis (because I love the ones from Haggens). First I slathered two pieces of rye bread with butter, then on the inside I smeared a little horseradish. Then I piled on the pastrami, which was of excellent quality (thank you Trader Joe's), some sauerkraut, thousand island dressing and some swiss cheese. The top went on and into the grill they went. It didn't take but about 4-5 minutes and our sandwiches were done. The outside was so crisp and golden brown and everything inside had gotten all toasty warm and melty. Hubby had taken his sandwich out to the living room to finish watching some show on TV and I kept hearing him say "Boy, this is good." Usually he wolfs down his food so fast I often wonder if he even tastes it so it was a treat to get positive feedback. And you know if he's stopping to comment during the devouring, it HAS to be good.

Already my mind is racing with the possibilities of what to panini next. The combinations are endless! I mean, think of all the kinds of bread that there are: different textures, different flavors, different crusts. Then there are the fillings: deli meats, cheeses, vegetables, spreads. A margherita panini? Fresh beefsteak tomatoes, creamy mozzarella, fresh basil. A pizza panini? Spicy pepperoni, olives, sauteed mushrooms, cheddar. A greek panini? Fresh basil, olives, feta, gyro meat. Oh holy night.

I daresay we're going to get a bit more use out of this panini grill than we would have the other one.

I'm a blogging dummy.

So I'm trying to make my blog all pretty and stylish and I really have no dang clue. Yah, it looks all easy and there are a zillion free templates you can use, but to get them to work? You'd think it'd be easy. It's not. Bear with me. If anyone's reading, that is.

Already something to look forward to!

As if a whole new year stretching out ahead of me isn't enough to look forward to, I just remembered that January starts up the tennis season! Yippee!! Wait...you think I'm kidding?? Oh no, my friends, if there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I LOVE tennis. I LOVE watching tennis and I swear someday I'm actually going to go to a Grand Slam. I cried - at work, no less - at the end of Andre Agassi's last match of his career (US Open 2006). I LOVE TENNIS.

And The Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the year, starts in approximately 11 days, 5 hours and 9 minutes in Melbourne. Ahhh, the Australian Open. If I had my choice of Grand Slams to attend, it just might be my first choice. For a variety of reasons. First, it's in Australia. Duh. Second, January in Australia is SUMMERTIME. Hot and sunny there when it's cold and crappy here. Third, it's the most laid-bad, almost raucous, Grand Slam of them all. It's really like a big party where people just happen to be playing tennis. Looks like SO much fun. Even if you don't like tennis, I bet you'd have a good time there.

So, starting on January 14th, my TiVo will start capturing all the action, my children will be wailing and gnashing their teeth because Mommy will be hogging the TV (for once), and my laundry be will be the most caught up it's been since August (the last Grand Slam). For you see, being the total ADHD person that I am, I can't just sit and watch TV. I have to be doing something else at the same time, and folding laundry is the perfect thing. That way my hands are busy and I'm doing something productive so I feel a little less guilty about all the hours I'll spend watching a fuzzy little yellow ball being whacked back and forth over a net.

T minus 11 days, 4 hours, 49 minutes.