My Crazy Life

I had some crazy things happen to me in the past few months. The first one happened on my birthday. I spent my birthday with my sister and two nieces on our annual Girl’s Retreat. We stayed in my aunt’s camper trailer that is parked outside of her house. It is hooked up to electricity and was quite comfortable. While we were getting the beds ready, I bumped into the dials on the front of the stove, but didn’t think anything of it. After awhile, the trailer started to stink. I had opened the bathroom door to hang my garment bag on it, so everyone thought the smell was coming from the bathroom. We opened the windows to try to air out the trailer, but it didn’t help a whole lot. After we got settled, we went for a walk. It was dark and we were in a very small town, so we could see the stars really well. We walked down past my grandparent’s house (my cousin lives there now) and to the pond that is on their property. It was one of my favorite spots growing up. It was so neat! After we got back, we got ready for bed. The trailer still stunk really bad. It was almost unbearable. I kept looking for some switch of some kind thinking that we must have done something to cause the smell because the trailer didn’t stink when we first got there, but I couldn’t figure it out. We stayed up late talking. While we were talking, my sister asked if there was a red light on on the stove. I looked over and it was just a red dot. I had remembered bumping into the dials earlier, so I checked to see that all the dials were off. One was turned a little bit, so I turned it off. My niece said that the noise went away. My sister and I are deaf enough that we didn’t know there was a noise. The gas had been on and we didn’t know it! We figured it had been on for about three hours! The smell finally started to go away and we could breathe more easily. Thank heavens we finally figured it out and didn’t light a match in the mean time! I doubt I will ever forget that smell!

The second one happened when we went to campus to go for a walk. When we got back to the truck, I asked Keith for the keys so I could put Riley in his car seat. I unlocked the passenger side door, hit the unlock button (so I thought), then threw the keys on the driver’s seat and closed the door. I then tried to open the back door, but it was locked. Sure enough, the truck was locked with the keys inside! We called campus police and they unlocked the doors. They wanted verification that we were the real owners of the vehicle, but neither Keith nor I had our identification with us. I guess they figured we were trustworthy enough and had car seats for all the kids, so they didn’t worry about it.

The third one happened when I put Reagan’s comb in the bathroom drawer, shut the drawer, then shut the bathroom door so Riley wouldn’t go in. Later when I needed to get into the bathroom again, I couldn’t open the door. Apparently, I had shut the drawer hard enough that it bounced back open after I shut the bathroom door. Keith finally got the door open by causing the drawer to fall out. He broke a piece of hardware on the drawer in the process, but that wasn’t too bad considering. When I told someone this story, they said that they knew of a situation where an 18 month old opened the drawer and climbed in. They couldn’t get him to get out and close the drawer, so they had to take the door off. That would definitely be worse!

The last one happened when I got out the chopping knife to cut something. It slipped out of my hand and I tried to catch it with my other hand. Not recommended! I cut my finger in the process and didn't catch the knife. The cut wasn't too bad fortunately. It kind of reminded me of the time when I stuck my arm in a moving dryer. Sometimes you just don't think before doing some things.

Update

It has been a little while since I posted so I will try to remember what has happened. I am feeling better, although I still have a cough every now and then. We played Wii Bowling for FHE a few weeks ago. I bowled a 226! Six strikes in a row! I just wish I could do that in real bowling. I finally was able to replace my black boots. They were in really bad shape. I bought my new ones on Nov. 3rd, exactly four years from the day that I bought my old ones. It was definitely time! I stayed home with Reagan on Veteran's Day because she threw up doing the night. She felt fine in the morning, so I took her with me to the Veteran's Day assembly at John's school. Keith and his father were both going to be there to be recognized with other veteran's from the area. I am so glad I was able to go. It was very good and emotional. I ran out of leave at the end of October, so I am working late on Thursdays and planning to work part days over the Thanksgiving holiday and most days over Christmas break to make up for hours that I still have to take off. Hopefully next year will be better and I can actually take some more time off at Christmas. The first year after having a baby is always more difficult for me to get my hours in. I haven't written much about my kids yet on this blog, so I thought I would give an update on how they are doing and what they are up to. First off, I love being a mother and cherish every moment that I am with them! I am very thankful for my three wonderful and adorable children!

John is really enjoying being in cub scouts now that he is eight. He has earned his Bobcat and is working on his Wolf. I have enjoyed attending his pack meetings each month and seeing him participate. He did an awesome job in the primary program today. His primary teacher told him that he should be in a children's singing group. I agree. John and I like to play games together. It is nice to have someone to play with. We have a good time. We also like to put puzzles together occasionally. Lately we have started playing catch in the living room with a miniature soft basketball and football. It is a lot of fun and I think it has really helped his throwing and catching skills (by the way, I am proud of the fact that I do not throw like a girl). Reagan and Riley sometimes join in as well. Riley mostly slobbers on the balls though. One of John's favorite things to do is to try and scare me. He fails most of the time, but sometimes he gets me pretty good. I think it is fun too. I get to scare him as well. John told me today that he wants to write a short novel. He said it would be a fairy tale mystery. He earned his Squire certificate at school for earning 100 points from reading and taking quizzes. He is doing great! I have started teaching him piano on Tuesday nights. I am sure if he ever gets a real piano teacher, they will probably curse me because I haven't taught him correct technique. Oh well, I am doing the best I can. Since we bought the piano from Keith's parents earlier this year, I have really enjoyed getting to play the piano more. This past week we bought a desk for John's room from one of our neighbors. He got an art kit for his birthday and has really enjoyed making home-made cards and gifts for birthdays. We figured it would be easier for him with a desk. It looks really nice in his room. John is still working on eating all of the candy from Halloween. I guess we should be thankful we have made it last this long.

Reagan is really into princesses right now. We got her two princess dress up outfits for her birthday and she got a Sleeping Beauty Barbie from her friend. That is her favorite movie to watch. She isn't potty trained yet, although that is mostly mine and Keith's fault for not putting forth the extra effort. We need to get it done soon though. We reward her with candy and a sticker when she does use the toilet, but they don't seem to be good enough incentives. Reagan is pretty assertive and sometimes bossy. I think that is great though. I always thought I would have to teach my daughter how to be assertive. Keith and I don't know where our kids get their personalities because we certainly weren't that way when we were kids. Reagan is at the age when she takes everything literally and only knows one meaning of a word. She will say the funniest things in response to things we say that she doesn't understand. My favorite is when Keith told John that he was free to choose. Reagan told Keith that John wasn't free, that he was eight. It took me a little while to realize that she thought Keith was telling John that he was three. She can't say "three" so she says "free." It was pretty funny. She calls me Mama and I love it. It sounds so cute when she says it.

Riley spends most of his time at home on my hip. I have pretty much figured out how to do most things while holding him. I just need an arm of steel! I don't mind too much though, he feels so good to hold and I love kissing his chubby cheeks! He was taking up to six steps at a time until Oct. 22nd when Keith called me at work to tell me he walked from the couch to the TV. He is all over the place now. I don't bother going to Sunday School anymore because he is so active and talkative. Once the three year olds move into Primary in January, I will probably start hanging out in Nursery with him until March when he turns 18 months. He is also a dare devil and a thrill seeker. He likes to climb and stand on things he shouldn't. He is the only child we have had that isn't scared of the vacuum at a young age. In fact he really likes it! He follows it around when we vacuum. One time when I turned it off he started to cry. When he was 11 months old, we tried him on regular formula, but after a week of diarrhea we started him on a formula where the milk protein is partially broken down. It seems to have worked well and is not as expensive as the completely broken down milk protein formula. Now that he will be 14 months this week, we are ready to try him on milk to see how he does. Riley was able to get his first dose of H1N1 flu vaccine, so that just leaves me that hasn't gotten it.

We were supposed to have Thanksgiving dinner with my parents this year, but since I need to work, we decided to host it at our house instead. I will work Thursday morning, then have Keith's parents over for Thanksgiving dinner in the late afternoon. I am pretty excited! It's our first Thanksgiving dinner at our house. My parents will have Thanksgiving dinner at my sister's house. I will work again Friday morning, then we will go to my parent's for the weekend.

Health

I am tired of being sick! I have been sick for two weeks. It's hard to say if I have had the same thing for the whole two weeks or not. Colds don't normally last for two weeks. I should probably see a doctor. Riley has been sick with one thing or another since we moved him from a home daycare to a daycare facility the first of October. It is nice to have him with our other kids, but he is now getting exposed to a lot more sicknesses.

I had a checkup with my ENT Dr. on Monday regarding my thyroid cancer. He had planned to do a scan, but my blood work is looking so good and it has been five years since my diagnosis, so he decided to just do a chest x-ray. It looked good, so I should be good that way. My Dr. lowered my thyroid medication at the beginning of May. I am guessing that is the reason I gained five pounds. I haven't been able to lose it, which is a little frustrating. I only have one pair of jeans that fit and a bunch that don't. I'm not quite ready to go out and buy some more just yet. I currently weigh the same as I did at my 6-week checkup after Riley was born. I guess gone are the days of eating anything I want and still staying thin! I have started exercising regularly again. We bought an elliptical earlier in the year and a big screen TV to watch while we exercise. I even got barbells for my birthday. (When I am not sick) I work out in the mornings while I watch Glenn Beck. He is a good motivator to get me out of bed in the morning. I find him entertaining and enlightening. Hey, isn't that his slogan? Oh ya, "The Fusion of Entertainment and Enlightenment." Keith had his annual physical yesterday. His readings are looking better than last year. He has lost weight and is in pretty good shape. His workouts are pretty intense. It's how he stays mentally sane.

Everyone in the family has gotten their seasonal flu vaccine and everyone has gotten the H1N1 vaccine except for Riley and me. Of course, we are the ones that are sick. We will keep our fingers crossed that neither of us gets the H1N1 flu. Hopefully, Riley can get the vaccine soon. It has been hard to get because the health department keeps running out quickly. Keith, John and Reagan were able to get the H1N1 flu mist the first day it was available. Unfortunately, Riley is too young to get the mist. I had gotten the seasonal flu mist the day before, so I couldn't get the H1N1 flu mist.

I am currently taking anti-depressants. For me it is a miracle drug. I went off them for awhile this past summer and felt exhausted and depressed. Of course this was while I was working a ton of hours too. That wasn't very good timing. Either way, I went back on them and am feeling good.

Halloween

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays! I had a hard time being very productive at work on Friday with playing pranks on people throughout the day. Friday night we attended a carnival at the kids' daycare. The kids had a good time. I took John and Reagan trick or treating Saturday night for awhile. John was a skeleton and Reagan was Snow White. I was a witch (standard standby). Reagan got scared at a few houses, but overall she was excited to get candy. After we got home, Keith took John back out for awhile and I hung out with Reagan and Riley (who was a bunny). Once they got back we all went trick-or-treating at Grandma and Grandpa's and a few of John's friends that don't live in our neighborhood.