Updates

Harry's labs all came back normal except his ESR which was a little high.  His cardiologist said the number was to be expected since we know he has inflammation-- in his pericardium.  Still, she is  comfortable saying this episode is viral AND referring him to a rheumatologist who is maybe interested in prescribing a long-term anti-inflammatory drug.  I don't know about that but will ave an opinion after the consult on 2-12.  We see the cardiologist again in a week because the effusion was a little bit worse, and Harrison has consistent chest pain.  Gah.

My dad is not good, you guys.  The pneumonia is not going away, and he had a bad chest X-Ray today.  This led to him being transferred by ambulance to a new, larger hospital where he may undergo a lung biopsy, which is kind of a big deal.  His pulse ox is really low, too, and he is going to need some rehabilitation after the immediate problem has been solved.

Not only do the constantly falling snow and the tiny person who needs me to eat but cannot go on the critical care floor at the hospital make visiting difficult, but Harry's cardiologist would like him to stay close to home while this episode is in progress.  I feel fairly helpless.

No real segue, but, um, Dorothy?  Is inches away from walking.  She takes 2 or 3 steps and collapses, but then she pops back up and tries again.  She can stand up all by herself without holding onto anything, and if we set her down on her little tiny feet (she has the TINIEST FEET EVER), she can stay standing, which is adorable.

I have read a ton this month and am excited to review my books, but I am holding out until tomorrow because I think I am going to squeeze in 2 more just under the wire-- but that means the kids and I will have to finish Wonder tonight, which is doable but just barely because I am EXHAUSTED.

Last week, Dorothy started sleeping so well.  She woke up around 11, just when I was going to bed, and ate happily in her room.  Then she slept until 5, at which point she came into my bed and snuggled happily until 7.  This happened for several days, and I felt like a million bucks-- most sleep I had in MONTHS. 10 months, to be exact.  But now she is back t her true self, and I have been awake for at least 2 hours in the middle of every damn night.  Blergh.

I hope she's getting a new tooth because this one has been all by its lonesome for quite some time.

Stuff and nonsense.

Ben and Jack went grocery shopping by themselves this week, and they came home with some pretty horrifying yogurt flavors. Like lemonade yogurt tubes, the memory of which made both boys angry after school when I asked them if they liked their lunches, and kale and kiwi kefir-- what kind of child-hating asshole dreams up that concoction?  I mean, really.

Dorothy, though, is a huge fan of pear-flavored yogurt and big people's oatmeal mixed into mush with whole milk.  Also she loves cottage cheese.  The stickier and the harder to clean off every substance in the room, the more she loves it, actually.

She truly hates getting dressed, even when the end result is adorable.

LOVES pushing her baby in her stroller and is so close to walking.  She takes a few steps by herself, and she can stand up without holding onto anything, but she's scared to really take off.

After meals, she loves to crawl around and eat her droppings off the floor.  Perhaps we need a dog.

Cooper has decided he no longer needs a high chair, but if you ask him if he is a big boy, he replies that he is either a baby or a pirate.  Erm.

MORE

Harry took this picture on his iPad yesterday at Dorothy's birds class at Little Gym, and I was surprised to see it in my photostream.

SHE HATES TO BE CLOTHED.  After bath is no fun every night.

Partners in crime.

Litany of complaints

It is so cold here that the kids had no school, and my university was closed this morning.

Last week, I parked close-ish to the godforsaken, across-campus building I teach in, and I scored a spot in an underground heated garage.  But then I lost my fucking car in the labyrinthian concrete rows and took an hour to find it.  So today I parked far away even though it is -15 right now.

My dad is still really sick.

In a terrible turn of events, Harry is also really sick with a brand new effusion and the same old answers from his cardiologist, which is to say NO ANSWERS.

I am getting fatter by the stress-filled day.

My brothers need help helping my parents because they have to return to work, but my 7 year-old is not cleared to leave the city until his Friday cardiology appointment, and my babies cannot come in my dad's hospital room.

I need a few more of me.

Until that happens, though, enjoy these pictures from 2009 of Harry and Jack that I found on my office iMac when I was trying to update iPhoto so I could access my streams and blog from my office because believe it or not this blog is the last item I need to check off the terribly ambitious checklist I made for myself yesterday.  That and prep the week after next's lecture, but I only have 12 minutes, so.  Choices.

I can barely remember them so small.

I put my arm around Harry this morning and he is so thick, his shoulders getting broader, denser.

Babies.

What a weekend!

On Friday, Jack's teacher sent home a class list and instructions that parents should NOT help kids write names on their Valentines.Jack immediately began asking us to take him to the store to buy cards.  We finally did today, and he immediately sat down and started painstakingly writing his friends names and signing his own.  He even got out his class picture so he could do the cards in line order-- looking at the picture helped him refresh his memory.  Adorableness overload.

Cooper is majorly into his trains.  He builds tracks and makes train noises ALL DAY LONG.  He was sick last week, and I took him to the pediatrician's office for a strep test (SO FUN) and a train went by while we were in the exam room.  Cooper lit up and started saying CHOO CHOO.  The doctor ran across the room to the window to give Cooper a stool and open the blinds so he could watch it go by-- highlight of Coop's day for sure.

Harry stuffed his pants with dogs.  Totally normal, right?  He has chest pains.  We went to the ER last night.  They did an ultrasound and didn't see anything-- we are going to follow up with his cardiologist tomorrow and hopefully get in for an echo.

Harry dressed Dorothy in this Build a Bear Harley jacket.

She dressed herself in cottage cheese.

We went to my parents' house on Saturday for the day because my dad is in the hospital with pneumonia.  He's terribly sick, and we are very worried. Blowing snow caused blizzard conditions on the highway, so the trip took 4 hours each way.  After 8 screamy hours in the minivan, I can happily report that we have bought plane tickets for everyone for Disney, and I am not one bit nervous about it.

I'll keep you posted, of course.

Gah! Getting busy here!

Here are some videos and pictures from Cooper's last day of Little Gym for the semester (the new semester starts next week). We missed Dorothy's last day because Cooper was felled by the Justavirus of Doom. He's still feverish, and we've been to the pediatrician for a throat culture which is always the best time ever.

I am really glad Ben took video even though he was just doing it to be a jerk since I looked so stupid.  I have been taking these classes since Harry was 4 months old, and now I can always remember them!

 

 

Last night of break

We're going to Disney World! In May. I have never been before, and Ben hasn't been since he was in high school.  Right now we are planning to drive and spend 2 days on the beach before we hit the parks because I am scared to death of flying.  But I am also scared of the thought of 2 days in the car with my children.  So, I ordered a book about overcoming my phobia, and Ben has found terrific flights.  Any advice?

Reading.  To himself.

She LOVES feeding herself yogurt.

Jack was sad because he wanted a very specific blanket and the eleventy billion other blankets in the room were not good enough how dare we suggest they might be

OMG she's so freaking cute

TANTRUM.

She woke up pantsless, which was adorable and made me want a picture, and Cooper wanted to come jump in her crib

I put Dorothy to bed at 7.  It is 9:26, and she has been up twice.  Long night in store for me.  First day of class tomorrow!  As if I could sleep anyway.

I have this terrible feeling that I should be doing something right now

Besides blogging, having wine, and waiting for my goat cheese and pesto pizza to cook, I mean.

I think I will have this feeling for the rest of the semester because the truth is, I probably should be doing something.  Working on my adjunct online class.  Emailing someone for the PTO.  Making Keynote presentations for my criticism class.

Which!  Holy hell.  I have been teaching this damn class since 2010, and I got a new textbook a few semesters ago and redid a bunch of presentations.  And never saved them because I made them all on my iPad. My iPad became the little kids' iPad. And then some kid with fat kid fingers DELETED MY KEYNOTE APP and with it, all of my damn presentations.  I had 6 on my email.  Grumble grumble grumble.

But the cool thing is that thanks to iCloud, all I need to take to class is my iPad Mini and a VGA adapter (and my textbooks and the binder of shit I carry around for my class and printed text of whatever speeches I am showing for the day and a million tubes of lipstick in varying shades of the exact same color.  BUT NOT MY COMPUTER is what I am trying to say).  And this is very, very cool because I am teaching all the way across campus up a huge hill in some building I have never heard of before.  And even though my school bag is called a "Neverfull" it totally does get full.  And heavy.

Drove my sweet new minivan today which was great. (I hadn't even driven it yet because I totally played the part of wifey on this purchase). I think maybe I could have achieved the same effect with new tires and wiper blades on the old minivan.  Erm.  And Cooper INSISTED on driving with the moon roof open even though it was snowing.

Taking both babies to Kindermusik tomorrow which is always completely adorable and I laid out a sweet little dress for Dorothy to wear and it is 12-18 months.  She went to bed in a size 12-month sleeper that fit perfectly.  Where did my tiny baby go?  She was just tiny, I swear she was, and now?  She talks!  And walks (holding onto things)! And is almost 1!  It goes too fast.

Cooper had 2 baths today because he had a diaper mess.  And then he had the second one because he is a creature of habit and can't go to bed without his bath.  Dorothy, as you can see, was interested in his solo-soak and wondered why she wasn't in there with him.

I dressed her like a kid today and instantly regretted it because she is so big already anyway.

Harry looked at those letters in the tub after all the water was out and said, "Oh wow.  The babies must learn a lot in their bath."

Kids.  Sweeter than chocolate chips and even more fattening.

Our car was really dirty and almost out of gas, so we decided to get a new one.

 Ok, that's not exactly true.  I mean, yes, it was really dirty and out of gas.  And yes, we did get a new one today.  But the cause and effect thing is not real.  Maybe subconsciously.  (It was also really scratched up because someone drives like an asshole-- hint:  IT'S ME).

After a brief period of infatuation with a Suburban (THOSE THINGS ARE SO BIG!) we went with another Sienna, because 3 years is my absolute limit on a damn minivan.  What's worse than driving a minivan?  Driving an old minivan.  Bleh.  I really did want a Suburban, but you guys!  Have you looked at the mileage on those things?  I feel like I would have to fill up on the way to the gas station.

This minivan is red. 

But yes, it is still a minivan.  Sigh.

And I refused to let the kids get the DVD package because the headphones are bluetooth and they do not need to be radiating their fool heads with that nonsense.  I barely want them to get dental x-rays. And plus also, they all have an iPad.  SPEAKING OF RADIATION.

Extra bonus:  Ben took the babies to the car dealership while I was at work today after bringing Dorothy to nurse on campus and bam!  New minivan.  Took 2 hours total.

I had to work today.  It was super fun.  I even ironed a tunic to wear-- I have not ironed in so long the boys all gathered around, shocked and awed by the technology.  I also work tomorrow.  Ben and the babies have big plans to ride around in the new minivan.  BUT NOBODY IS EATING A DAMN THING IN IT DAMNIT.

She tried to pick up a polka dot from her sheet for a good 2 minutes.  And she is 10 months old!

 New minivan!

 Look at that cute little tooth!

Night night

I should be in bed because Ben and I were up for 2 hours cleaning up carrot puke (thanks a lot, HARRY) last night, but I am pretty sure Dorothy is going to wake up any second, so I don't want to get too comfortable with my Jane Green novel.  Ben is already in bed, meaning I have once again been doing some late night shopping.  This is on its way among other things.  How could I resist?  Her name is Dorothy, after all, and she already has red ballet slippers and she has outgrown her 6-12 month dresses.  My hands were tied really.

I am so tired of not losing weight, but not tired enough to DO anything about it, apparently.  Seems like no segue, right?  But I swear I can feel my wedding ring getting tighter by the second from my salty steak taco and beer dinner, so I guess it was more of an internal transition.

It was 40 degrees almost here, which was a heatwave.  I wore rain boots and a fleece.  I took everyone but sickie Harry on a puddle-jumping walk, even.  See?

Ben took Cooper to ice skating today and got pictures that are cuter than a kitten Tumblr.
He's so shy he needed to bring his paci along.  Sometimes he needs it at Kindermusik, too-- I can relate because Kindermusik is also WAY outside my comfort zone

OK.  It's 10:00, and I haven't been this tired in years.  Want to bet that she wakes up the second my head hits the pillow?

The end of our lazy, lazy days

I have enjoyed a lot of downtime since, oh MARCH of last year.

But I am afraid all of that is about to change, my friends.

I am planning a huge school carnival for the end of March.  My online adjunct college is contracting me to redesign their pubic speaking class that I designed in 2011.  And school starts next week.  I have meetings this coming Wednesday and Thursday and then I return to my grueling schedule of Monday afternoon meetings and Tuesday afternoon classes.

Tongue in cheek, yes, but really it will be an adjustment for me since I have been out of the classroom since May 2013 and will be grading lots of essays again.  Okay, so I only have 25 students, but they are 25 really smart students who have to do a lot of writing.

Plus Cooper has ice skating and Little Gym during the week, and Dorothy has Little Gym, and they both have a music class, and I volunteer in kindergarten and am room mom for 2 classes.  Add all that together, and it's looking like a lot.

So tomorrow, I nap with Dorothy.

After nap these days, Dorothy insists on coming in Cooper's crib

He likes it too

Cooper, taking his baby to work

In Dorothy's shoes and bow

Okay, so maybe he doesn't like it as much as she does.

Dorothy figured out how to open that cabinet giving her unfettered access to library books and DS games, which are delicious.

The washer. Could anything be more interesting?