Staying Afloat

It all started on Friday. Laura was scheduled to get her tubes in. That went ok. Then she was nauseous all Friday. We chalked it up to the anesthesia. She was able to eat a decent dinner Friday night.

Saturday morning at 4 am she woke up and puked in her bed. I was up with her until 6:30. By that time the puking passed. I again chalked it up to the anesthesia. She was fine the rest of Saturday, minus a slightly decreased appetite.

Sunday morning she was fine. She at cheerios all during church. She didn’t want to eat anything for lunch. We were going to get Warren a haircut and get groceries then put the kids down for a nap. I came upstairs at 12:45 (just about ready to leave) and found Laura doubled over and sleeping on the couch. We decided that naps were higher priority. We were going to wake the kids up at 3 so we could do the haircut and groceries before our Financial Peace class at church Sunday night. Laura woke up at 3:15. She walked out to the living room and said she felt like she was going to puke. I got her the bucket just it time. The rest of the afternoon she would throw up any water or anything we tried to get in her. I called the ENT on call, but he wasn’t helpful at all. He said that the puking wasn’t normal and we should take her to the ER if it continues. Gee… I would have never thought of that! We were going to have her stay home from the class at church, but that just made her upset. Since I was fairly certain she wasn’t contagious (was still thinking anesthesia since there was no fever), we took her with. She just sat on my lap and cuddled the entire time. She did throw up a few times during the class, or at least tried to. She ended up with the dry heaves. After our class was over at 7:30, we made the decision to take her into the ER. She got an IV for fluids in the ER. She started to perk up a little bit, but she was also tired from the puking and it being past her bedtime. We were given the option of going home or being admitted over night. I made the decision to stay overnight since she already had the IV in, and I didn’t want to have to start all over today.

This morning she woke up at 5. She was in very good spirits and was really spunky. We were discharged around 9:15, finally got out of there 9:45. I went to work for the day. I was signed up to take the state exam required for office support jobs (permanent positions). It was actually offered on my campus for a change so I didn’t have to drive an hour away on a Saturday morning. This will set me up to either get the job that I am doing on a permanent basis (if they don’t contract us out), or to get another permanent position. Laura stayed home with Robert and Warren went to daycare for the day. Tonight she is back to her cheerful self. Her tummy is still a little bit sensitive. She is a bit tired yet. The current plan is to keep her home one more day to make sure she is over whatever caused all this.

Halloween went pretty well this year.  Laura was Aurora again this year, same dress and all.  She wanted to wear the matching high heels, but I wouldn’t let her.  Too much walking at school and trick-or-treating.  Warren was going to be a monkey again this year (same costume as last year).  He was fine with it when he tried it on on Sunday.  Then Monday night, we pulled it out and he literally went running and screaming down the hallway.  It just wasn’t worth it.  Once we were all ready, we headed over to Helen’s development.  We met up with Paul, Miranda, Max, MacKenna, Pat, Sam, Peyton, and Robin.  Warren rode in the stroller most of the night.  He would get out to walk up to the door (sans costume, but with bucket) to get the candy.  We decided to call him the rebellious teenager.  The kids’ buckets weren’t big enough for all their candy.  We ended up with 1.5 gallon size ziploc bags.  I took some to work already, but we still have a lot.  I’ll raid it and take more again.

Other events include Toby’s second birthday party, Laura singing in church with her Sunday school class, Robert traveling to Stevens Point for work, and me getting sick.  I was hit with what I thought was the flu.  Turns out it was just a bad virus.  I’ve missed two days of work this week.  I am going to try to go to work tomorrow.  Thankfully it is our slow time.

Added to the illness, I don’t think my body clock has switched over yet.  I woke up at 5:30 this morning.  At 7:30 I was feeling like it was 8:30.  I look at the clock now (8:11 pm) and I feel like it should be after 9.  Makes for a long day.

Financial Peace University is going well for us.  We are examining our financial decisions.  We made out a budget and then planned week by week how the money will be spent.  One of the cars needs to go into the shop.  Rather than the attitude of “repair now, figure out how to pay for it later” that we used to take, we are delaying the repair until we can afford it.  Thankfully we have the option of being a one car family for the time being.  It is definitely an adjustment for us in some ways.

Our life is going through a few changes right now.  Robert and I have started the Financial Peace University program at church.  I am excited to try it.  I don’t like our finances being how they are.  If we are both committed to the program, it can work.  It is NOT going to be fun or comfortable at first, but the results will be worth it.

The second change is I have taken the Nuk away from Warren.  His first time sleeping without it at home was last night.  It took about an hour last night for him to give it up.  Naptime is a bit rough right now because he is also missing his daddy.  Hopefully it won’t take long.  EDIT:  It took him less than 10 minutes to give up.

I am a single mother now until Thursday morning.  Robert is in Austin, Texas, for a workshop/training for work.  I am not too worried about being on my own, but I’m certainly not looking forward to it.  I am hoping to get some cleaning done today and tomorrow.  Mom is coming to visit on Thursday, and it’d be nice to have a clean house for her.  Also, I am ready to have a clean house again.  I am also hoping to get caught up on some of my recorded tv.  I haven’t had much time to watch it lately.

Time to enjoy the quiet. 

Yes, I have returned!  Robert is off watching Ghostbusters in the theatre tonight with Joe.  I had swimming lessons with Laura.  I also had Warren with me since he cries nonstop when in the childcare area alone.  Warren did much better than I had expected.  We did walk one lap around the pool area.  It was quieter in there than in previous nights, which helped.

Last night we went up to Dallas for the annual apple pie dinner.  We ended up leaving for home around 8:15.  The kids didn’t get to bed until 9 or 9:30.  As a result, the kids were tired tonight.  With swimming lessons going until 7, we got home until about 7:30.  Then I had to finish making dinner for myself.  The kids were still hungry, so they ate some with me.  I finally got them both into bed around 8:15.  I am now enjoying a beer, have switched laundry, working on this post, and watching a recorded episode of Amazing Race.

Work is still going well.  I am working on improving various things still.  I hope that the changes are positive.  Time can only tell with some of them.  I would rather not go into too many details about work on here, just to be on the safe side.

This weekend we are going to Appleton to visit Liz and Corey.  Not sure what the plans are entirely, but that’s ok.  We enjoy just hanging out.  I will work until noon, then we’ll head over.

Not much else to report really.  Just working lots.

I struggled to even come up with a title for this post.  Work is work.  Things didn’t go quite how I would have liked this week.  Other things were successful though.  Overall I’d call it a good week.  Wednesday night Shirley and I went out to dinner with Jacky.  We got to the restaurant around 4:45.  We left the restaurant at 7:30.  We got into our cars at 9:00.  It was so good to just catch up.  Friday morning I was on my own for the drive in.  Helen closed for the day, so Robert stayed home with the kids.  I stopped at Kwik Trip to pick up donuts as a treat for the students.  Things are finally calming down, so I am enjoying the quiet at work.

I feel like Laura still hasn’t completely adjusted to me working full-time.  By the end of the week, she is very clingy and weepy.  Today she was not wanting to be very far from me.  By the time evening rolls around, I can hardly stand her because she is so clingy to me and weepy.

Today was a productive day.  I went through Laura’s pants and shirts to see what she had that fit and didn’t fit.  I have a large pile of clothes that I pulled out of her dresser.  She actually had a lot more left than I had expected.  We then went shopping.  :)  We picked up 4 pairs of pants for her (3 jeans, 1 knit), socks, and underwear.  She was so excited to get days of the week underwear, but I couldn’t find any.  She was happy with the ones we picked out though.  Warren got more socks.  Robert picked up a couple of shirts for work.  I found a pair of shoes that I liked for work in black and brown.  I also found a pair of tennis shoes I liked.  I ended up putting the tennis shoes back due to budget constraints.  I made the decision that work shoes were more important since I could wear those 5 days a week plus for church.

Warren has shocked me the last two nights.  He has willingly eaten green beans both nights.  Last night he picked out the hamburger and beans out of the hamburger soup.  Tonight I cooked up some green beans in the microwave for both kids.  They ate all of what I had prepared without any complaints.  I am so glad that he will at least eat some green veggies for me.

Time to pay attention to the Badger/Nebraska game.  Go Bucky!!

I ended up putting my blog on a hiatus while I was getting through book issue.  I’m sure that it would have helped to be able to type out my frustrations at the end of the day; however, I was either too tired or too worried about what I may post and get in trouble for it.  Hence, the lack of posts.  Things at work are finally slowing down.  I can say that all books have been ordered.  Some are still working their way to us, but the orders have been placed.  I had lots of frustrations, but I can’t really get into them here.  Like I said earlier, I don’t want to put anything out on the internet that may come back to bite me in the butt.  I do kinda enjoy having a job and steady income.

On the home front, adjustments are still being made.  The kids seem to be mostly adjusted to being at daycare 5 days a week.  I feel like I am struggling more than they are.  I am having a hard time finding the balance of being wife, mother, employee, friend, etc.  I feel like Liz was getting lost and pushed aside.  Last weekend we did a family getaway in the Wisconsin Dells.  John and Jonah were there along with Mom, Dad, Grandma Dorothy, and Grandpa Keith.  This weekend we were supposed to head to Appleton to visit Liz and Corey.  Corey’s grandpa passed away Wednesday, so plans were cancelled.  Instead, we had a nice quiet weekend at home.  Yesterday I didn’t do much at all.  I caught up on some of my recorded tv and cuddled with the kids.  I got in a workout last night while Robert took the kids to the park.  Today was a bit more productive.  Working together, we got the house clean.  The kitchen is back in order.  The only thing I didn’t get done like I had wanted was laundry.  I have 2 loads left (jeans and towels).  It isn’t folded yet either.  I’ll work on that tomorrow night.  I feel better starting out the week with a clean house.  I hope that we can maintain it.

Quick Warren story:  Yesterday afternoon the kids were taking their naps.  It was getting to be the end of naptime, but I was still watching my shows.  I thought that I heard some noise coming from the end of the hallway.  I paused the tv to investigate.  I hear “Old McDonald” playing on one of the toys in Warren’s room.  I figure that he was done sleeping and decided to get up and play.  That is only half of it.  The little stinker/monkey climbed up on to his bookshelf and was perched up there playing.  I walked in and he just gives me the biggest smile.  He was so proud of himself for getting up there and playing.  I really wish that I would have taken a picture.

So that Laura doesn’t feel left out, I have to share this one.  We took her to the doctor last Thursday evening.  She was diagnosed with an ear infection (we figure that was it).  She has a tendency to make cards for us when we aren’t feeling well.  In the car on the way home, “Can I make a card for myself when we get home?”  Gotta love that girl!  I also want to add that I was so impressed by her.  Ever since she was 2 when they took her blood pressure for the first time, she has freaked out at the thought of it being done again.  We talked about it on the way to the doctor.  We made the agreement that if she lets them take her blood pressure, then she could get a special surprise.  She was still afraid of it hurting, so I told her that if it hurts, she can tell the nurse to stop.  This seemed to be ok with her.  Then I told her that if she let the nurse take her blood pressure all the way, then she could get a super special surprise.  Robert looked at me and goes, “What are you thinking for the surprise?”  I told him that I would figure it out once we knew how big of a surprise we had to give her.  :)  I was thinking one or two pieces of candy that we had at home.  She ended up picking out a package of mini-Reese’s peanut butter cups at Shopko when we picked up her prescription.  She was happy with it, and I didn’t have to come up with anything else.  Life is good.

Time to get to bed.  This has potential to be a very long week, depending on how the meeting tomorrow morning goes.

‘Tis true.  I am a working woman.  I am now the manager of Textbook Services.  Jacky took a position at UW-Stout.  I had the option of trying to train in a new manager, or moving up and becoming manager.  Thankfully my boss had no issues with moving me up.  I worked frantically yesterday with Jacky trying to get in as much last minute training as I could.  I was also trying to get Shirley (retired, then re-hired assistant manager) up to speed on what was going on.  To say yesterday was crazy is an understatement.  I was a bit nervous about how today would go.  I was a bit apprehensive taking over on the first day we issued textbooks.  Thankfully, everything went really well.  *knocks on wood*  There were some small glitches, but that is to be expected.  We had some unhappy students because they couldn’t get their books due to holds on their accounts.  That is also to be expected.  Tonight I was able to work my way through the current shortages (not reported by students yet, but going by a report showing we don’t have enough copies to meet enrollment).  I’ll work on ordering more copies of the books tomorrow.  I am enjoying the challenge of the job so far.  I get frustrated with professors at times due to them not being real cooperative, but that comes with the job.

Time for me to grab some food to eat before heading to bed.  Good night!

I’ve had a hard time with Warren turning 2.  I never had issues with Laura turning 2.  I was fine with him turning 1.  For some reason, 2 is hard.  I think it’s because he is no longer my baby.  He is my baby, and now I no longer have a baby.  I was afraid that some switch would be thrown and I’d no longer get the cuddles.  Thankfully, that has passed.  I no longer worry about that.  I am still getting my cuddles. 

Warren has started talking more.  His words are always understandable, but I can usually figure it out.  When in doubt, ask a yes/no question.  He is very good at understanding and responding.  He makes his wishes well known.  I am sure he will talk when he is good and ready.  He does chatter in the backseat quite a bit anymore.  I don’t understand most of it, but he just keeps talking.

He is a typical boy in so many ways.  He loves balls, cars, Diego, and Elmo.  He is doing a stellar job of being the little brother and picking on his sister as much as possible.  They do play well together at times, but they also fight.  I try to let them work it out on their own, but I still intervene a bit.  A goal for me to work on.

I wanted to post Warren’s stats from his 2 year doctor visit:

Height:  32.5″  11%

Weight:  28.2″  50.5%

Head circumference:  49cm  81%

More posts to come!

There are times that I look at my kids and ask myself, “What was I thinking?  Why did I have them so close together?  Why didn’t I let Laura be the only child for a while longer?”  Then I have days like today and I don’t question at all.  I know it is right.  I have come out a few times and found both kids reading books on the couch.  Laura is such a great sister to Warren.  This morning the kids were playing in Laura’s room.  Laura has a small storage area under her bed.  Warren fits in very comfortably.  Laura can get in if she folds herself up a bit.  Watching them play together was just awesome.  That was one of the moments that I knew it was just right that they are 26 months apart.

Here are some pics of them playing: