Mondays suck

Let's just start with what today's prize was

Can you believe that crap? Nothing like a mid-April snowfall to make you really feel like spring is around the corner!

Today we had a birthday in my preschool class, so mom brought in cupcakes. Now as yummy as they were and as easy as it made snack time, cupcakes for morning snack = sugar high. Mid-April snowfall - snowpants that have all been taken home for the year = no recess. Sugar high preschoolers - recess = OMFG ARE YOU KIDDING ME? (I am actually shocked I have any hair left after today)

But, I survived. Somehow.

After work, I walked home...in the snow....uphill ;) About 100 yards from my workplace I hit a puddle that resulted in a soaked sock and jeans. Awesome. It wasn't freezing or anything. Sigh.

Now I am trying to help my husband figure out his final paper for the term. If you have never dealt with WGU and Task Stream, I just want to point out that it is incredibly vague when it comes to the directions, and they expect you to write 5-7 pages based on this hugely broad scope that they have given you. However, if you don't read their minds regarding what they want, they will kick it back to you. I despise Task Stream and I am SOOOOO glad that I am nearly done with this bullshit. As my husband gets closer to his degree, I am hoping that will mean more tests, fewer papers. Ugh.

Weekends pass so quickly

Especially when you spend a chunk of Saturday driving around trying to figure out where you are supposed to be.

I had to drive to Ypsilanti for my content exam. I was there once for the basic skills test but that was quite a while ago. I am fairly familiar with Ann Arbor but Yspi was not much fun. I am so glad that I left early because it took nearly 40 minutes to find where I needed to be. Google maps was useless. Thank goodness for the GPS on my phone.

I wish I could say I did well on the test, but I have no idea. It wasn't anything like my Bio II test which covered a lot of microbiology and cellular biology. This test had several questions which had more than one right answer, and I was supposed to pick the best one. We will see what happens. I won't know how I did until I get the results next month.

I should be putting together lesson plans for my class today. I was ahead for a while, but slacked off with the last two weeks being so busy. I have yet to work a full week. A day off per week for court, a day off this coming week for good Friday and my first week was only two full days. I don't know what I will do when I work a full five days. I think I will hope for good weather! I have learned quickly that outside recess is a sanity saver. We have 40 minutes outside before lunch and they need every little bit of it, or they start bouncing off the walls. I forgot how much movement 4 and 5 year olds require.

The flowers are starting to pop up and the trees are budding. I need to get my camera out. The girls keep taking off with my camera. They each have their own now, but since mine is "better", they have it more than I do anymore.

The down side to the warmer weather is kid A needs new pants. The jeans I bought her in the fall are all lined with fleece because it was the only way to get her into jeans. I was hoping it would desensitize her a bit so she could move on to real jeans but that isn't happening. Instead, now that the weather is warmer, she cycles through the three pair of yoga pants she has which means more laundry for me. She needs shorts too. At least kid B is set for shorts. Her legs got longer, but the rest of her remained steady so she can wear the shorts I got her last year. I don't even have to buy her shoes because big foot wears the same size I do now, so she has taken my flip flops like they were always hers. Little punk. Now I need new sandals. I can wait a while though. Kids are so damn expensive.

My apologies

I let my anger and frustration of the whole last year get the better of me in my last post. I am much more zen today. I won't delete it but I will admit the whole thing was unnecessary and a bit petty. I should be a bigger person than that.

I am looking forward to the upcoming months being much less stressful. I am back to work, with preschoolers this time which has been a blast. I won't even get into how much I do not miss changing diapers and wiping snotty noses. The kids are all super sweet - very energetic - but a lot of fun. It's nice to lead group and have them actually get into it with me, singing and checking the weather. We planted radish seeds last week and most of them have sprouted. The few that didn't I stuck another seed in because when they go home at the end of next week I want all the kids to have a sprout. Radishes are kind of a goofy thing to plant but I love them because they germinate really quickly and this age group needs as close to instant gratification as I can get.

The weather has been absolutely lovely. It is super windy today but it is still well above freezing which most definitely works for me. I am done with winter. It has been a long one.

I am trying to plan our vacation now. It always involves camping because it's cheap and it's a blast. We will definitely be doing some hiking again but I think this year we are going to stick a bit closer to home. Gas prices are ridiculous! Since I am only working until student teaching in the fall I am thinking it will be late August before we go. There is another big reason to stay in the land of more reasonable temperatures. Last year southern IL was 106 heat index. That does not make for awesome hiking and tenting weather. Thank goodness for the solar shower (if you tent camp, spend the $8. Worth every penny) and we planned every hike for early morning and evening to beat the heat, and that was in June before summer even officially started. This time the kids are coming with us. I know they had a blast with my dad and want to go back but I missed the little punks. The puppy dog needs to come this time too.

Content exam tomorrow. Wish me luck. I have to pass this (it's the equivalent of the PRAXIS II) in order to do my student teaching in the fall so I admit I am a bit nervous. Love the fact that once this is over I have nothing to really stress over for a while.

Things I buy while being sued

Because apparently, when faced with overblown lawsuits all life is supposed to stop. I did not know this so I wasted all kinds of money.

I paid for medical care. My younger kid had the bad manners to come down with a serious kidney infection that required three days of hospitalization. Anyone who has spent anytime in the American middle class knows that just because you have insurance doesn't mean the bills don't roll in. If only life were that simple. Of course, a kidney infection wasn't enough for her. This kid afterall spent 10 years of her life being extraordinarily healthy so she had a lot to make up for. A kidney infection led to complications that required her to undergo a procedure six months later. How dare she need to be put under when other people were waiting to get paid. The nerve! Then, mere weeks later there was the unidentified stomach pain the doctors could not find an answer for and were concerned was related. It ended up being an ovarian cyst. Completely unrelated but involved enough bloodwork to fill a mountain of mosquitos and an ultrasound to figure out.

This kid was completely determined to break the bank. Glasses and eye exams were chunked in there. She also failed a hearing test at school which led to follow ups with her doctor, a specialist and of course they want her in hearing aids. Despite what some might think, we are not made of money, so the $3000 hearing aid is on a back burner for the moment since the hearing loss is not bad enough to effect her schooling. We opted for preferential seating instead. At least we have a little common sense!

Then of course there is the other kid who refuses to grow like she should. I suppose we could have skipped the doctor, but I kind of like knowing that she is healthy.

I suppose her braces were just a cosmetic procedure and could have waited...you know...for her growth plates to close making braces later take 10 times longer and cause 50 times the amount of pain. Who really cares if she can't close her mouth properly because her facial structure is messed up. Oh wait. I DO! Damn mothers always wanting the best for her kids.

I also paid for stuff like my younger kid's viola. Ugh. Kids don't actually need music right? I also paid for her to swim for another year. Waste of time. She didn't need the ribbons she earned or the self confidence she gained.

Field trips? School expenses? Bah!

Speaking of school expenses, college is a total waste of money. I should settle for making $8.50 an hour like I do now and make the best of it. $1000 a month will pay for...groceries and gas at this point. What, that isn't enough? How dare I even think of spending money on text books and CPR classes and licensing expenses so that I can teach for real and triple my pay. Other people need that money more than I do!

And then I used this timing to pay for the inhaler I needed for years but couldn't afford since I was too busy slinging more money than I had into a house that couldn't be saved. Then there was the glasses I have needed for years but kept putting off.

Be sad for our money management skills. We don't have credit cards. We don't have cable or brand new cars (our fancy "new" truck is a 2003 we have had for years now and our MONTE CARLO is an 01 with 170,000 miles on it we bought cheap to replace the late nineties Malibu with a blown engine. Yeah. Ok then.) We just keep throwing good money after bad like kids and school and medical care. Irresponsible. Completely.

January overview

I can't keep up with blogs, so here is an overview.

We danced our way into the new year with some of the coolest people we know ;)

Kid two performs in her first ever choir concert

The kids enjoyed the Ice Sculpture Festival in town, despite the sub-zero wind chill that day.

Kid two swims in the only home meet of the season. She places 4th in the 100 IM, 4th in the 50 freestyle, and 3rd in the 50 Breast (and first for her team!) She has come a long way with her swimming!

Overview of 2010

I am a few days late on this, but I wanted to recap the year!

January:

I am contacted by the company I previously worked for and asked to return. I accept and plan to start work the first of Feb.

My grandma turns 90!!


February:


I come home from my first full day of work to a message on my answering machine that touched off our decision to move.

We find a place, and manage to move, store or get rid of 5.5 years worth of stuff in 3 weeks!

March:

My baby turns 10!

Warning!! Shit storm commences!


Kid two is hospitalized for 3 days, setting the new family record.

April:

Our 2nd year of college comes to a close and we scurry to get everything finished.


Things quiet down on the extended family front.


May:


We spend our days exploring the new town and gearing up for summer.

I give my notice for my job. Since we moved, I no longer have a backup plan for childcare, and daycare is expensive!



June:


Kids first vacation away! They ride down to Arkansas with their grandpa and spend two weeks having fun in the south.

We are served with a lawsuit! Let the fun begin!


We go on vacation and spend a week camping and hiking before grabbing the kids and heading back home.

July:


We spend several weekends camping with friends.

We find out kid two has mild/moderate hearing loss.



August:


Our lawyer gets us set up with future court dates. No chance of settlement.


I have to buy whole new wardrobes for growing kids. They just keep growing!

September:


The kids start school, both in middle school this year. No more elementary :(


Kid one turns 12!


I turn 30!

Swim season starts.



October:


Deposition time. Hours of my life I will never get back :(


Kid one gets her braces. She looks so grown up!

Junior year of college, semester one, complete.



November:


The year is almost over! Here we insert swim meets nearly every weekend, orchestra concerts, and other various busy school activities.

December:


Happy holidays. First year that neither kid believes in Santa, but had a great time in spite of it.

Kid two goes through all the xrays and whatnot needed to start her orthodontia treatment. Yeah. Two in braces. This will only hurt a little...


I know there is things that I am missing throughout the year, but it will be nice to come back to it later to be reminded of everything. I would like to start doing this every year.

Let's talk TSA: Trampling Societies Amendments

I am not anywhere near the first person to talk about this, and I should hope that I will not be the last.

For those who are woefully behind on the news, I am talking about the new procedures in place to "protect" us in the friendly skies. When I say friendly, I mean friendly.

Airports all over the United States have new scanners put into place to detect weapons that the metal detectors miss. We wouldn't want anyone on a plane with a non-metalic weapon. A good idea in theory. Maybe. There are two main problems with these scanners, dubbed by many as naked machines or porno-scanners. Yes, these scanners essentially strip search passengers as they make their way through. Remember when every boy's dream was to be able to see through clothing? We have made it a reality! These machines are capable of capturing every intimate detail of your anatomy. As if that were not enough to make the general public seriously uncomfortable, the way these scanners work is through ionizing radiation.

Now, the TSA insists that the radiation levels are so low, that these scanners are completely safe. I don't know about you but when my cell phone comes with a warning about using a headset when possible to keep radiation away from my head, I have to wonder how a whole body scanner is different. Now, since I am not an expert, I have been doing some reading. My favorite source comes from the blog of a biophysicist who was awesome enough to post the details of how they worked here. It has been pointed out to me that some scientists can be perceived as "wackos" but the information both in the blog posting and the linked letter of concern to the TSA seems on track to me. I will be watching for more thorough studies. In the meantime, you could not pay me enough to get near one. Without even acknowledging the complete invasion of privacy, as a woman with a history of cancer on both sides of her family, I would much rather be safe than sorry. I apologize for the tired cliché but it sums it up beautifully.

The good news is, you can opt out of the scanners. Great! Problem solved! Well. No. Starting November 1 of this year, the TSA began doing what it calls "enhanced pat downs"  Now if standard pat downs were not uncomfortable enough, they now reserve the "right" to touch your most private areas. That's right folks. We have given the TSA permission to molest us.

Now in the name of fighting terrorism, a surprising number of people are willing to accept this treatment. Many people feel that if you have nothing to hide, you should not worry about it. Hmmm. Why does this bother me?

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

That, my friends, is the fourth amendment. I am kind of fond of our constitution and our bill of rights. The fourth means that we cannot just be randomly searched without probable cause, or a warrant. So why are we accepting such treatment? What probable cause does the TSA have for these unreasonable searches? Well, you bought the plane ticket didn't you? Apparently, that makes you guilty of terrorism until proven innocent. Not good, people. Not good.

So what happens if you are selected for a pat down and you refuse? Well, you can't. If you enter the screening, you are forced to complete it, or they can put you in jail and charge you $11,000. I don't know about you, but I don't have an extra few thousand to just throw around, I don't want to be exposed to radiation, and I certainly don't want a pat down, that to me, would be akin to molestation. Not happening.

I have written letters, and I have opted not to fly at all. I will let my voice be heard and my dollars will not support such actions. Fortunately, I have the option to do this. As a stay at home mom, with family on one side of the country, it is fairly easy for me to avoid flying. For people who fly for work, this could be problematic.

My husband was supposed to fly to Florida in December for a work function/class/expo/training. It's a big deal and he was really looking forward to going. When the new procedures came through, my husband thought long and hard about how important this is to him. Personal liberties won out. He told the regional manager that he will not fly. Period. He is not afraid of flying. He doesn't so much care about having his danglies felt up. It all comes down to the principle, and one thing about my husband is that he sticks with what he believes is right 100%. I admire that in him. The regional manager? Not so much. He has repeatedly tried to pressure my husband into changing his mind. My husband is willing to take a train, take a bus, or even drive. He wants to attend this function. Just not by air travel so long as these procedures remain in place. It's still up in the air how this is going to go, as the RM has promised to talk about this again later. How sad is it that this should even be a fight?

I urge everyone I can - if you have a choice, opt out. We need to take a stand on this. I didn't agree with the patriot act of the previous administration, and I don't agree with the disgusting trampling of the fourth amendment with this one either. Write your representatives, your congressmen, and the president. Let them know that this is unacceptable. We have to make sure that we are heard.

Will you need a blue sky holiday?

I do. Sigh.

Today was supposed to be the day of younger kid's first swim meet of the season. Supposed to be. We had her best friend over to spend the night so she could go with us. We woke up, grudgingly at 4:45 this morning so that we could be on the road by 5:45. We made it not quite halfway when the little transmission issue we were slightly worried about started turning into a much bigger issue. We discussed it and made the decision to turn around. The swim meet was in Royal Oak which means driving through Detroit. I am not dying to break down in Detroit, especially with three kids with us.

We made it home. Obviously. Thing two was disappointed but has been spending time with her friend. I am disappointed too. Her coach said she has the potential to make it to state this year, and she has matured so much since last season that I really can't wait to see her.

As for the car, I guess we picked wrong. Should have taken the truck. The car is quieter, gets better gas mileage and is more comfortable for longer trips which is why we went with it. Oh well. Back down to one vehicle until we can get it fixed. Joy. We have only had this car for a little over 4 months. It is the replacement for the Malibu I loved that I had the misfortune of blowing the engine of. Hydrolock or some other mechanic head vocabulary nonsense. I guess you take the risk when you buy used.

To make things more fun, mother nature was shaking her dandruff on us last night. I refuse to use the S word, even if it is November. Still too warm to stick but I guess it is time to get out the winter coats.

This weekend had better be awesome from this point forward. We could use it.

You are beautiful, in every single way

Words can't bring you down....

My thanks to Christina Aguilera for allowing me to keep up with my lyrics as titles ;)


So I was discussing body image with some very smart ladies and it got me thinking about my kids.


My oldest daughter has been diagnosed with FTT as a 12 year old. This is an uncommon thing for children over 3 and I suspect it was the doctor being unsure why she is falling off her own growth chart. In reality, I have deep suspicions that she is borderline anorexic. It's not a body issue thing. It's an Asperger thing. She has cut her food choices down so much that she simply is not getting enough calories. I have come into the uncomfortable position of making her eat, even if she doesn't like it or claims she isn't hungry. That goes against everything I have ever learned about teaching self regulation. Our society's war against obesity has left me scrambling because when you are dealing with the exact opposite problem, you have to go against everything ever taught. 


To complicate matters even further, the same child is sensitive to dairy, which IS something she will eat but we have to limit it or cause a different set of problems. Furthermore, since she now has braces, that knocks out another chunk out of the things she prefers to munch on. Nuts, for example, are a favorite snack and a great source of non-saturated fat, but technically she isn't supposed to eat them as they could cause bracket breaking problems. It's immensely frustrating.


Then add in body image. I have heard the horror stories about women who spent their whole life hearing about how fat they were, even before weight was a problem. Can hearing "You're too skinny!!" over and over again cause the same kind of lingering issues?


Now add in the other kid. Kid 2 is perfectly healthy without an ounce of fat on her. She is also pure muscle and bone mass and outweighs her sister by a good 10 lbs. She is probably always going to be heavier, and by the looks of how things are developing, curvier than her older sister. I have heard her make the comparisons. Right now, it isn't a huge deal but her self esteem is so fragile. It doesn't help when her "friend" last year called her fat. That was actually really bizarre considering this so called friend is actually overweight. Kid 2 is not only nowhere near overweight, but is absolutely ideal. Assuming things continue on the same path, she is going to have the type of body that every woman envies. 


I try to keep my personal body image to myself. My husband and I try to make a big deal out of healthy diet  and exercise (although admittedly, we could both up our exercise) and my last physical brought to light that I have to be extraordinarily careful because apparently, family cholesterol problems did not skip my generation. It isn't high yet but it's up there. I am fairly thin and my diet isn't horrible, but I get to start being a little more cautious either way.


So the question is, how does one balance out the dietary needs of very different body types, and teach the kids involved to love those bodies, regardless of how different they are? It's an interesting conundrum. 




P.S.
To my secret readers, you can relax. As much as I hate the state of Michigan at the moment, my blog is merely an outlet. I plan on staying until all legal issues are settled. Quit getting your panties in a bunch over stupid blog postings. My blog is an outward expression and doesn't mean we are going to run off to Alaska next week. Good grief.

Doctor, doctor. Give me the news...

Assuming we can ever actually get in to be seen.

So my daughter is having a medical issue. Nothing to seriously worry about right now, but it does need to be addressed in the near future. It has been hell getting her in to be seen.

Last Friday she had an appointment at location B. Her ped. has two offices. Location A is where we used to go and is closer to where we used to live. Location B is closer to where we live now. I have been making her appointments at location B because 25 minutes is better than 40 minutes.  So we get there, and the doors are locked. I call the number and apparently there was a mix-up in the location for the appointment. She was supposed to be at location A and nobody filled me in. So I reschedule for today.

This morning, I come home to a message. Apparently the scheduler did not realize I was trying to have her seen by the ped. and made the appt with the nurse practitioner. Now, I have no issues at all with the NP but it was her recommendation that we see the actual doctor this time. They want to reschedule for Friday. I call and ask if there is any way that she can be seen. I set up a 2:15 appt in location A.

At 1:30 we leave because I was pretty sure it would take us 40 minutes to get there. I have only made the drive once before and that was back in March. We get there at 2:20. Oops. No big deal. Surely they can give us a 5 minute leeway right? No. According to their clocks we are 15 minutes late, not 5 and that means too bad for us. Reschedule for Friday at location B. OMG you have got to be kidding me.

Now, I don't know about you but in 99% of medical offices they have no problems at all making you wait well past your scheduled time. I think there was at least one who was almost an hour behind. They can't see her because of 15 minutes? Really?

I realize being late was my fault. I should have left earlier but I still reserve the right to think it absolutely asinine.

So we will try again on Friday. We have been using this doctor for 6 years, and I adore him. If something else goes wrong though, maybe it's a sign I need to find someone a bit closer to home.