After Turkey Daze

I was crabby for one more day after that last posting then snapped out of it. Thank god! I hate being in a bad mood. Such a waste of time. I missed story time at the library today - just too lazy. Instead I read Teddy 6 books and he played with our toys with our own germs on them. His attention span for books is getting better.

Thanksgiving was good. Since we spent last year's Turkey day with my side, it was Mark's turn. So we stopped at my mom's for about an hour for appetizers. It was also my sister's birthday - poor thing. Than we packed the kids back in the car and headed out for my SIL's house to spend the holiday with my IL's.

I cooked 2 side dishes and baked a cake for my mom to help her out. Then we picked up eggrolls and a yummy dessert to bring to my SIL's. My MIL and SIL are awesome cooks and I tried in the past but just realized it's not worth it (they like what they like are aren't open to try other stuff) so we just bring eggrolls and a dessert. No hurt feelings - less work for me!!

The food was great - the company was great. Our oldest nephew is home from college so it was fun to hear about college life from him. I felt bad for my SIL though - because her MIL invited their entire side to their house except for my SIL and her family - just to be a beeyatch. And they live 5 houses away. And just to be jerks, they ALL came over (my BIL's 2 brothers, spouses, kid, aunt, grandma, dad, etc), except her MIL, unannounced and uninvited for dessert and coffee. My SIL and I hid the expensive dessert we brought when the doorbell rang!! So they crashed our celebration. Not the classiest people.

Mark and I offered to host Christmas (are we crazy???) but it still seems like we won't do it. Mark's grandma has bad legs and is a big lady. She can't do stairs at all. A few guys would have to carry her up the stairs and she may not come to Christmas if we host (we have 7 steps into the house). I would love it if people could decide if she would or wouldn't and then decide if we're doing it or not so I can plan. I'll start whining that I need to know when I turn the calendar to December. The nice part is that we don't have to leave. We don't have to pack all the kids stuff - especially Teddy's blankie, pack n play, etc. And since Ricky is super allergic to dogs, he won't have to deal with the cough, runny nose, and not being able to breathe.

The sad part about hosting parties is that I never seem to relax and enjoy myself. Even our fun adult dress up Halloween parties are always a pain in the ass because someone has to answer the door, fill drinks, watch the food, make sure people are having fun dammit, etc. Or maybe I'm just too much of a spaz to be a good hostess. I don't know.

I don't do Black Friday. I hate crowds. We're not gift exchanging on my side of the family. As my sister says, 'My gift to you is that you don't have to buy a gift for me." but we will probably pick names on Mark's side. "Pick names" meaning that Mark and I will probably get our BIL and Mark's grandma because my MIL and SIL rig it every year that they get each other. I used to get annoyed but now I just don't care. Can you tell I've been with Mark for 14 years?? So we're just buying for the kids on both sides.

We had our last open house for the year yesterday and spent most of the weekend cleaning and moving stuff. All for TWO people!!! Now we aren't sure if we should take the house off the market or keep it on through the holidays. So I'm pretty tired today.

Mrs. Crabby Pants

Not sure why but I'm in a really foul mood today. I should be excited about Thanksgiving tomorrow - spending time with both sides of our family and all the yummy food I'll be scooping into my belly. But no, I'm just plain annoyed. Ever have a day when you're crabby for no good reason - just crabby? This doesn't happen to me often and I try not to let it happen. Today I find it kind of hard.

Had fun with the boys this morning here at home. Teddy had his speech therapy appointment (the therapist comes to our house every week - heavenly not to drive him somewhere) and I spent some time working with Ricky on his math and phonics. When Teddy gets up from his nap we have some errands to run and maybe tonight I'll get to see my sister and BIL and maybe bake a pie or two.

The speech therapy is good - Teddy sat with her for 45 minutes straight and played without losing focus or getting up to look for us. She is trying to teach him sign language ("more", etc.) and he signs here and there but not on a consistent basis. I listen to her play with him and do farm animal noises and car and truck noises and I think - this is what I do too - and it must not be enough - because we have to have someone come to our house and play with him and pay them. Kind of feel like a crappy mom about that!!

Had parent-teacher conferences yesterday for Ricky. He's doing well overall and is above average. Got every single math problem correct this year so far - his teacher says. He's great at phonics and mastered all the letter sounds and can read. He's not as interested in practicing how to write letters and numbers and this is where he may start talking to his neighbor and lose focus.

He will also tattle on other people when he is not involved - she said a lot of them do this. I told him to mind his own business except if a student is getting hurt. This tattling thing is so subjective!! I think it's okay for kids to tattle for other kids. Here is an example - the Big Bully took Ricky's Star Wars lunch bag during snack time and wrote all over it. This was when the bullying was still going on. Ricky was intimidated and didn't want to tell and the girl who sits across from him got up from her seat and told the teacher. Ricky was very grateful.

I have decided to stop being so grumpy. Starting now. I have a great husband and 2 adorable little boys and a family who loves me. Everyone is healthy, nobody is dying. We have a house and are renovating another. Fun family holidays are upon us. Lots to look forward to. So I'm slapping myself with the happy stick right now !!!! (*SLAP, *SLAP, *SLAP!!)

Spilling the Beans on Santa - Not Cool

Last week Ricky came home from school and told me that there was a first grader at recess who told everyone that there is no Santa Claus, no Easter bunny, and no tooth fairy!!!! At Ricky's school the kindergarteners and first graders have the same lunch and recess time.

My mind scrambled to find something good to say, and I was trying to control my face - all the while internally cursing this first grader in my head!!!!

I told Ricky that the boy probably is naughty so he doesn't get any presents from Santa, the Easter bunny, or the tooth fairy. I told him that these 3 (along with God and Jesus - we are Catholic) are all buddies and know what everyone is doing. So the fact that this boy has been going around telling all the kids not to believe is SUPER naughty and that boy probably won't make it on Santa's list this year.

I then told him not to tell this boy or anyone at school what I just told him. Also, not to talk about Santa, the tooth fairy, or the Easter bunny *at all*. I figured that no discussion is better.

The first grader who spilled the beans more than likely has older siblings and found out that way. I always figured Ricky would hear the truth at school at some point - just not soooo early!! I really hope Ricky believed what I told him. He was doubtful and I tried to restore his belief. I am hoping he still believes - that's the magic of being a kid - thinking things are possible. I really want him to really believe as long as possible.

I'm curious to know how other people found out as kids. I found out when I had the chicken pox when I was 5 and had to stay in bed while my family went to midnight mass Christmas Eve. I pretended to sleep but caught my grandma loading up my stocking. I heard all kinds of excuses, but knew better. My husband found out when he was little when his grandma said to him, "You still don't believe in Santa Claus, do you????" hehehhe.

Plastic Bubble Please

I decided to change the look of my blog because...well...I may be getting old but I found the font and layout hard to read. So if I am lazy to read my own blog, who in the world would want to also?? Besides, change is good. Even though it's just a blog, it's exciting - I'm a kid again and I feel like I just rearranged the furniture in my bedroom. woo hoo!

Just when things seemed to be getting better in the house, Mark came down with the stomach flu last night. Coming out of both ends. Lovely. He was supposed to go to the Bulls game tonight with a friend. So he's out of commission - in bed as I type this - passed out with a bucket next to the bed. So I really was not meant to venture out to that Kindergarten moms night out. What a convenient excuse - to myself!

I am a frantic housewife, lysol-ing and wiping every door knob and surface. I suspect he caught this from the hospital a few days ago - the doctors mentioned a stomach bug going around. The last thing I need is for the boys to catch this - especially Teddy who just got out of the hospital a few days ago. He is still coughing and is having loose, yucky diapers - probably from the antibiotics he's taking. I hope he and Mark don't have the same thing.

Poor Ricky. Stuck at home. Thankfully I took him to the library yesterday afternoon and we checked out a bunch of books and dvds. It's pouring outside, so I don't feel so bad about staying in. It's a great day for board games!!

The Only Good Reason a Man Should Lay on Top of Your Toddler

I was just reminded by The Captain's Wife that I haven't updated on my "friend" the cyst that decided to plant itself on my neck. The darn thing is still there. It's been a few months. I've seen 2 doctors who just shrug and tell me that it's fine to have an enlarged lymph node hang out. For years. I requested to be referred to an Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor and the last doctor I saw told me I was "not rational." She pointed to the freckles on my face and said, "Just accept it's there. You accept those black spots on your face, so just accept the lump in your neck. It's not hurting you and it's not cancer. It doesn't feel like it." While it's nice to know you don't think I have the Big C, thanks a lot for making me feel great about my sun damaged complexion lady!!!

So whatever. What I *really* need to do is get that mammogram I've put off!!

Anyways, the last week has been insane. Teddy just spent a few days in the hospital this past weekend and it really sucked. He had a fever (temps of 103+) for 4 days, and had a cough that would be so bad that it would trigger a gag reflex - which would lead to vomiting. If we would give him ibuprofen or acetominophen he would cough and eventually vomit too. Finally by Sunday he had thrown up 3 times in 9 hours and was still burning up.

He wouldn't drink anything and we worried he was dehydrated so we took him to the ER. They did a whooping cough/pertussis test (negative) and gave him a chest x-ray. The doctors on duty didn't hear pneumonia when they listened to him, nor did they see it on the x-ray. It was the radiologist who caught it. Thank god for that.

Meanwhile, before this hospital visit, Teddy had seen his pediatrician twice.

The speech delay really sucked in this instance because many times a doctor (there were many) would ask me things like, "Has he complained to you that his throat hurts?" Well, no, he doesn't talk yet - he's got a speech delay. God I wish he could just TELL me where it hurts or anything like that. Ugh.

Probably the worst thing about the visit was the IV. Teddy hates going to the doctor and hates painless things like the stethescope. He basically does not like anyone outside of family to be touching him at all. It made this visit difficult - the nurse would just enter the room and he would start crying. So you can just imagine how the IV insertion went.

It consisted of a large white sheet that they wrapped him in like a mummy. Then a large man had to hold him down by kind of laying on top of him to keep him still. Teddy was kicking and crying and downright hysterical. I was by Teddy's face and I hated seeing the look on his face of, "Mommy, how can you let these people hurt me????" He's only 22 months and doesn't get it yet, but it still sucks. I was trying to control myself and not be frantic, but at one point I had to ask to no one in particular, "Can he BREATHE under there?" to which the nurse (who was annoyed) said, "We're not here to hurt your child you know." I knew that, but I just wanted to make sure Teddy didn't pass out because this 250 pound man was on top of him. They tried his arms, his foot, and the nurse couldn't get the vein. So she brought in a nurse from the children's hospital who sounded like Marge Simpson - who finally got it after 2 tries. Poor Teddy. I was so grateful they got the vein though. I was amazed because I saw nothing.

Needless to say, they wrapped his hand and arm up like a huge cast so he couldn't remove the IV. He looked like he broke his arm. They even taped his fingers down. Considering he had a fit in the waiting room because he wanted to remove the ID bracelet, I was shocked he got used to this huge arm situation so well.

Ricky stayed with my mom and Mark and I spent the night with Teddy. We traded in the crib for a regular hospital bed so I could sleep next to Teddy. He threw up a few times more but with the IV we were out of the danger zone. They released him the next day. He's on an antibiotic.

It's been a few days and he's slowly getting his appetite back but he's still not the same. I keep wondering where the heck he got this virus that is totally kicking his ass. I've vowed to get the boys their flu shots next week - as well as my own. Being sick is so scary.

On another note, tonight is the Kindergarten Moms night out at a local bar. Am I going? Part of me thinks I should go and mingle but after I think of what happened to me and how the "popular kids" don't want to see me, I don't want to go. I ran into Jane at Jewel the other day (a good friend of Mandy) and she totally didn't want to see or talk to me. I say hi and small talk to everyone -even if they hate me- I cannot be an ass. She walked away from me while I was still talking!!! I don't need any more friends but this is all for Ricky. I figure that I can be friendly with the boys' moms at sports and stuff and that's all that matters. A few moms asked me to go and meet them tonight but I don't think I want to deal with it. Maybe the less people know you, the better. There is more mystery, and they think what they want. When there is nothing left to uncover, it is boring. I don't know.

Play Date Drama

Liam has a classmate named Kyle who we've known since preschool. His mom and I agree that they make good friends because she wants Kyle to pick up Ricky's good manners and behavior in school and I want Ricky to pick up Kyle's boyish roughness and physical abilities.

Kyle's mom and I have been trying to schedule an afterschool play date for a few weeks and during free play at school the two boys were playing with Legos. Ricky told me that Kyle took one of Ricky's "guys" and wouldn't give it back to Ricky. Ricky said he gave Kyle 3 choices.

1. Give the toy back to him

2. Ricky will tell the teacher - and then he will have to give the toy back to him anyways

3. No play date at our house

Kyle picked no play date!!!

I find it hilarious that Ricky gave his friend 3 choices (who does he think he is???). Yet, I was beside myself about what the hell I was going to tell Kyle's mom. Ricky didn't want the play date because he was still annoyed with Kyle for not returning the toy and he said that no play date was Kyle's decision. It was pretty convenient that Teddy's been sick since last week. I emailed her that I had to postpone once again.

Ricky asked me to call up Kyle's mom and tell her the story but I couldn't do that. I can't call up another mom and tell her how her son was mean to mine. I mean, I could - I should - but there's this hesitancy. I couldn't do it without feeling like an ass.

Anyways, Teddy is getting better so I will email her to play afterschool one day next week.

In another part of my life, we've been getting estimates from several painters to paint the other house. Then we have to get the floors done. I really want to be there for Christmas!!

The Best Treat

As a kid, do you remember the *best* treat you got for Halloween while trick-or-treating? Mine is a popcorn ball. It was yummy and just different. I believe Ricky got his yesterday - COTTON CANDY!!

This is Ricky (vampire) and Teddy (lion) trick-or-treating yesterday in a very nice, generous, Halloween happy neighborhood in Chicago. Our friends invited us to join them because their block goes CRAZY on Halloween - the street is blocked off and the people give out full-size candy, and the decorations are like Christmas-style - only Halloween. They were totally right. It was amazing and super fun for Ricky.

People and their friends were sitting on their porches giving out candy, the decorations were totally amazing, there are kids (like ours) who come from all different neighborhoods just to trick or treat on this block. The adults were dressed up too. It was a huge party. Our friends bought over 1000 pieces of candy and ran out by 6p.m. It was so over the top, that it's not surprising that Ricky got cotton candy as a treat. I just can't imagine how much that person spent!!

In fact, here is a picture of Ricky, posing with a neighbor who is dressed as Dracula. He was funny, he saw Ricky and said, "Come here, son of Dracula!!!" so Ricky went up to him and they posed for this picture.

I was super hung-over from a Halloween party we attended the night before. I was Snow White and Mark was Papa Smurf! I thought I was being a responsible parent by *not* getting drunk and sipping 3 small cups of Sangria throughout the whole night - okay, I had 2 buttery nipples in there as well. I also drank 3 bottles of water and was never drunk, or even buzzed the whole night. And yet, when I woke up Sunday morning, I had the most god-awful headache in the world - and felt like crap. So trick-or-treating was a haul for me - because I felt like crap but had to be fun for the boys. Thank god Mark was with me and took care of the boys all day and night.

The boys had a blast. Now it's time to put all our decorations away for next year!