i was drawn to the ocean

The boys actually slept in a bit this morning - until about 9 - which was delightful.  Avery had a well-child/check-up with our beloved Dr. Kelly.  That went well.  Avery is tall and a bit thin for his age.  He had one shot and he yelped a little but he didn't cry!  After the appointment, we ran a couple of errands and met Milena for lunch.  When Milena got off work, we went to the pool which felt soooo good.  i did lots of leg exercises in the pool.  i also got a wee bit sunburned, despite using SPF 50 sunscreen, but not on my back, thank goodness--because i'm getting tattooed there on Wednesday!  i'm very very very very very very very nervous about it.  Yyyyeah.... this from the broad that likes to be beaten, has had an unmedicated childbirth, and has had 20+ piercings.  Yet for some reason i am so nervous about this.  The only other tat that i have was done 12 years ago and it is on my breast so it didn't really hurt at all.  i am so afraid it's going to feel like i'm being cut, like that dreadful neuro wheel thing that i have a love/hate thing for!  i'm getting it done at Acme, and i trust them -- i go there for all my piercings.  i'm just so nervous about this!!!  i'm getting an octopus on my upper back, centered.  Devin says it should take 2.5 - 3 hours.  Why am i so nervous???

Weekend update coming soon-- hopefully tomorrow.

For now, grats.

• Milena's love and helpfulness
• Got to go to the pool today
• A yummy and just-right dinner tonight -- sandwiches and potato salad
• Doing better (knock on wood)
• My children
• Talking ink (on messenger) with kaizenforlife
• spajunkie17
• Music

This morning on the way to the grocery store, Evan was totally singing along with Death Cab For Cutie.  It was so funny!!!  Then, later in the afternoon, Evan and Avery were both singing along with Bob Marley.  Awesome.

DitL from April 16 2008:


According to the stove clock, it's 6:30 a.m.  So far i am running right on schedule.

Hokay, so.

Halloween certainly did not turn out as i expected it to.  Right before time for the trick-or-treating to start, Avery, in a burst of excitement, was running in the dining room and somehow ended up across one of the chairs like a runner sliding into home.  He cried so loud and so hard that i later described it by saying "he put the 'howl' in Halloween!"  When he stood up, we were horrified to see that he had injured his head pretty badly.  There was blood everywhere--all over him, the chair, the carpet...  Milena got the wound cleaned up and got the bleeding to almost completely stop.  The gash was pretty wide and very deep, so we decided to take him to the Emergency Room in case he needed stitches.  He did.  He completely missed trick-or-treating and he was way more upset about that than he was the stitches.  He got three stitches and he didn't even cry.  (i guess he got all his crying out earlier!)  i was very pleased that they were so cautious in making sure he was numb.  The first time i ever had stitches, i was two years old and it was horrific and traumatizing.  Not the case for Avery.  He's just fine today, back to his regular self.  :-)

oracle0415 and her brood came over to do Halloween with us, but since Avery got hurt, they were so kind and helpful to take Evan trick-or-treating with them while Milena and i took Avery to the hospital.  Or hostabill as he says.

Evan was a puppy for Halloween.  Here's a picture of him in costume.  Milena did his makeup.

Word of the day is
formication - a tactile hallucination involving the belief that something is crawling on the body or under the skin

Grats for today:
~ a beautiful Autumn day
~ a beautiful Autumn day yesterday too
~ walking through rustly-crunchy Autumn leaves
~ the smell of Autumn leaves
~ being a sensate
~ exercising my brain
~ my friends and chosen family

Yesterday Milena and i met up with John and we took the kids to Burger Farm.  It was nice but i definitely like Huber's better.  Would you believe it was the first time i had ever been on a hayride?!  And it was Milena's first too!  We were hayride virgins!  i indulged in funnel cake and some of the most delicious hot apple cider i've ever had.  The weather was perfect... sunny and cool but not cold.  It was great.

i think i'm finally recovered from strep throat.  Now my allergies are driving me nuts!

Last week i met with people from Evan's preschool about his IEP.  They are confident that he will be ready to start Kindergarten next fall.  He really has made SO much progress.

And here's Avery's school picture!  He's getting to be such a big boy! 

ladyoceanstar, i don't know whether i love you or hate you for getting me started in Weff Riddles.  Man alive.  Seriously though i've been having a great time solving them.  And i think Milena has too.  ;-)

Word of the day is
rhombus - an equilateral parallelogram





There is a reason that i have chosen rhombus for word of the day today.  Avery, my five-year-old, knows what a rhombus is.

i am impressed.


So, yesterday's news:
i didn't do much of an update yesterday because i spent most of the day outside.  Which was WONDERFUL at the time, but which is probably why allergies have been attacking me for the past 18 hours.  i sat outside with my lunch - sun-dried tomato turkey breast  with pepper cheese on a square bagel and iced tea, did a su doku puzzle, and then got to work cleaning out the garage.  Understand, the garage was packed full.  You couldn't even walk in there.  i worked by myself in there for about 4 hours yesterday, even wrangling large heavy furniture and boxes out of my way.

Milena parked her car in the garage last night.  :-)

When i was finished in the garage, i played with the kids for a while.  They rode trikes, and enjoyed the froggy swing hanging from the oak tree.  We all blew bubbles for a long time.  It was fun.  It was beautiful.  My soul needed it, for sure.

My evening was kind of crappy though.  i got blown off more than once, including by my mother.  And i'm stressed out about an appointment that Evan has on Monday that cannot be rescheduled or missed, and i have no way to get there unless i take Milena to work at the buttcrack of dawn, pick up Aiden on my way back through, and then take Avery and Aiden with me to Evan's appointment, then load up all the kids again in the afternoon and drive back up to Forest Park to pick Milena up after work.  The only other alternative was borrowing my mother's car which would have meant dealing with Nick.  Which i am NOT going to do.  *sigh*

i did get a LOT done yesterday though, and i felt really good about that.  In addition to cleaning out the garage,  i made a few icons, completely changed out the litter box (GROSS), took the recyclables out to the curb for pickup, did some organizing, put the window fans in a couple of the windows, worked on laundry including putting at least 3 loads of laundry away, took care of pet dishes and human dishes, and still got to (finally) watch the season premiere of House that aired the other night.

More to come!

4 minutes ago, i put Avery on the school bus for his first day of Kindergarten.

4 years ago, i was in active labour (with Evan).

At 1:42 p.m., my baby Evan will turn 4 years old.



How bittersweet are the clutches of Motherhood.

Hokay, so.  Lots to say.  First, from the WTF, mate? files... Milena is currently asleep on the couch.  But that's not the wtf part.  Before she fell asleep she was watching The 700 Club.  Willingly.  See what i mean?  WTF, mate?

i hadn't planned a dinner for tonight because i thought we would be going to get Matthew from John's.  But Matthew has been at Don and Gina's all week and will be staying until Sunday.  So we ended up going out to Moe's for dinner.  Oh the burrito and tomatillo salsa verde goodness.  Heavy on the cilantro.  YUM.

Now let's back up a bit.


Now, some grats.

Friday Night Gratitude List:
~ the worst of the move is over and done-with
~ Milena's strength and helpfulness
~ our friends and chosen family
~ kerinda
~ oracle0415
~ malanai
~ box_o_spiders
~ doss
~ the cats, including Gypsy, seem quite happy here
~ helpfulness

Thursday Night Gratitude List:

~ Milena
~ kerinda
~ malanai
~ a lovely voicemail today from new_odyssey --didn't get it until too late to call though!  :-)
~ i like my new dentist and office so much!
~ the smell of rain
~ patience
~ self-control
~ practicing restraint
~ my teeth look so much better!
~ nitrous oxide
~ got a really cool email
~ BDSM
~ humour
~ talking in bed before we go to sleep
~ got to watch last week's CSI that we had missed
~ listening to Evan sing along with Da Da Da in the car
~ Avery's theory about the moon still being visible this morning--"I think it's a Morning Moon, mom."  :-)  that's my boy.

Word of the day is
tuberose - a tuberous perennial Mexican herb (Polianthes tuberosa) having grasslike leaves and cultivated for its highly fragrant white flowers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
and now for something completely different:

i drove Milena to work again this morning because i had an appointment at the dr. office/lab at 9 a.m. to have my lithium level checked. We dropped Milena off at about 8:05 or so and got back to Dr. L's office before 8:30. i wasn't expecting to make such good time. i signed in, and they went ahead and called me back, so i was in and out of there by 8:38. When we had first gotten there, Avery and Evan went back to the kids area and were playing with some toy cars while i signed in. As we were leaving after my blood had been drawn, Avery said, "Can we put those cars away before we leave?" So i stopped and waited for them to pick up the cars they had been playing with. i was very impressed.

Also, while i was having my blood drawn - which takes a couple minutes because they have to use the butterfly needle in my hand - Avery and Evan stood quietly and waited near me and were SO GOOD. They got some stickers and some lollies. Their lollies had numbers on them, and after i opened Evan's and gave it to him, he looked at it and said, "nine!" i looked, and sure enough, it was a nine. i asked him to repeat it and he did. i had no idea that he could recognize the number nine and that he could say it, too!

So we got back home in time for me to put Evan on the bus just like usual, instead of taking him to school myself which is what i had been planning to do. We sat outside together to wait for the bus. It is so beautiful out there today. Maybe i can get some outside-y stuff done today. Maybe.

First of all, a very very appreciative THANK YOU to whomever gifted me with the paid LJ...i hated only havingt 6 icons! That was very sweet of you and i really appreciate being able to be back on paid status. Again, thank you.

So i haven't been online in a couple days. Weekends are like that for me sometimes. We had all the boys this weekend, plus Steph came to visit.

Saturday we had an informal low-key little party to celebrate Avery's 5th birthday, which was back on Monday. It was nice, very relaxed, not a lot of people, and i didn't have to deal with my father!

i also went to the store on Saturday, and then again today to pick up a few things i'd missed. We also went to Ben's birthday party today. He turned 1 yesterday. i can't believe it's been a year. Funny thing is, i made homemade lasagna (2 varieties!) for dinner tonight, and i think the last time i made it was when i was cooking up a bunch of meals for V right after Ben was born last year.

The mushroom variety of lasagna had, obviously, mushrooms in it. i sauteed them in olive oil, garlic, and Merlot. It smelled so good.

My mom is really looking bad. i am worried about her health.

eyesofachild is here and she's doing some psychotesting on us for her class. Right now she's testing Steph, and Milena and Tara just got back from taking Matthew home.

i don't think i have much else to say, so i'll post grats...

Gratitude List:
~ Milena's love, compassion, and helpfulness
~ someone gifted us with paid LJ time
~ Tara's thoughtfulness
~ the lasagnas turned out well
~ the cute things my children say

i am so weepy and i am absolutely drained. i feel like a useless being today, not quite human.

( But i'm not going to just whine... )

Whew. Tara is all moved in and working on unpacking. We are all utterly exhausted. And hurting. Oh how i wish we had stopped and gotten some Icy Hot. Things are coming together quite nicely. The moving truck has already been turned in, everything that was to go into deep storage up in the not-so-crawl-crawlspace is in place. We still have a lot to do in terms of organizing and arranging, but the bulk of it is D.O.N.E. DONE!

Tara treated us to linner at Perkins on the way back down here after we loaded up the truck. Eric had been kind enough to offer to come over and help load the truck, so we had extra help during that phase of the move. It was bitterly cold, especially when the wind blew, but i am very grateful for the fact that it didn't rain!

Drank too much last night and have had a headache most of the day today. Steph is here again, she got here last night and she'll be here until Tuesday morning. She was a big help with the move too. Also, Milena's friends Jennifer and Renee from work came over last night. There was much drinking and laughter and staying up too late! Fortunately, Tara had the forethought to arrange to pick up the truck at 1 p.m. so we didn't have to get up at the ass crack of dawn. i had bought some Krispy Kremes yesterday so we could have quick easy human-fuel before we headed out and it was sugary yum.

Tomorrow, Avery will be 5 years old. i kind of can't believe it.

Also, i had a really strange dream last night about being on a houseboat and there was a tornado. i know that has a lot to do with emotions and with all the change.

Tonight's Gratitude List:
~ it didn't rain today
~ we got so much accomplished
~ helpfulness
~ patience
~ hugs from my children
~ hugs from Milena
~ hugs from my friends

i had written these on paper and hadn't gotten around to posting them here. So here's a massive amount of grats.

Sunday Feb. 5
~ Shaun got to play in the Super Bowl even though his team didn't win
~ malanai
~ Milena made yummy homemade salsa
~ my health and safety (knock on wood)
~ purple ink pens

Wed. Feb. 8
~ hearing birds outside on a sunny day
~ the birds having a party in the compost
~ malanai
~ sunshine
~ Avery talking about composting
~ humour
~ Milena's homemade salsa
~ spending time with Milena in the evenings
~ puns
~ hot water on my aching back (in the shower)

Thurs. Feb. 9
~ Milena's love
~ spending time with Milena
~ When Milena doesn't have to work late
~ V watched Avery and Evan while Milena and i went to the conference with Evan's teacher and SLP
~ Evan's teacher(s) and SLP
~ malanai
~ a good conversation with new_odyssey on the phone last night
~ my friends and chosen family
~ sunshine
~ Evan said a 4-word "sentence" the other day, unprompted
~ Evan is making so much progress
~ humour/laughter
~ eye candy
~ getting used to my haircut
~ nag champa

Friday Feb. 10
~ got a lot done this morning
~ my chosen family
~ Milena didn't have to work terribly late
~ my health and safety (knock on wood)
~ John's helpfulness

Saturday Feb. 11
~ the door looks good
~ made a delicious dinner
~ my health and safety (knock on wood)
~ my mom still loves me
~ having things to look forward to

Sunday Feb. 12
~ hangover wasn't too bad
~ lorazepam
~ intimate friendships
~ getting to see Steph
~ managed to do the grocery shopping with very little money

Tuesday Feb. 14
~ my friends and chosen family
~ creativity
~ baked potatoes
~ a beautiful day today
~ snow, the other day, that made it look like i was in a giant snowglobe
~ thoughtfulness
~ generosity
~ Idgie is such a good dog
~ getting to see Milena unexpectedly during the day today
~ having a full half (now there's an oxymoron) of the bed on which to sleep

Wed. Feb. 15
~ trust
~ knowing when to not trust people
~ warmer weather today
~ saving money
~ my resourcefulness
~ yummy leftovers for lunch
~ understanding
~ the progress that Evan is making
~ goals
~ unexpected surprises (i know, redundant) from friends

Thursday Night Grats:
~ the funny things Avery says, like calling the kitchen tongs a "hot dog grabber"
~ the juicy-crunchy sound of my children (and Idgie!) eating apples
~ big, fluffy, beautiful snowflakes on Wed, and
~ watching them fall
~ beautiful icicles
~ the somewhat bittersweet beauty of watching the icicles melt and fall
~ Mark fixed our sink
~ got a lot done Wednesday
~ everything i did on Wednesday didn't get undone on Thursday
~ a really refreshing beverage to quench my undying thirst
~ Tinkerbell shamammas
~ Kurt tries new foods when he's here

Wod of the day is

marge - border, margin, edge, verge [Poetic-Tennyson] as in, the river's stony marge

Tuesday Night Grats:
~ talking to good friends
~ soft yarn
~ got a good start on Gertrude's scarf
~ Evan's new morning bus driver is much nicer than the previous lady was
~ the cute and often hilarious things that Avery says

Word of the day is

rill - A small intermittent watercourse with steep sides, usually only a few inches deep.

When i walked Evan to his bus this morning, the sky looked downright wicked. Something about it just seemed so ominous. The wind was blowing really hard which made it feel a lot colder than it actually was. i felt really twitchy/uneasy out there.

As you may have (or not) noticed, i'm back online. i am so tired but i have soooo much i need to do today--take care of cats' box, do a TON of dishes, work on laundry--those things HAVE to be done at the very least. *grumble*

kerinda and her boys came over yesterday and it was great to visit with them! i hadn't seen V in two and a half weeks, and the last time i'd seen her was only for a few minutes!

doss may be coming over to visit tomorrow, which would be way cool because i haven't seen her in even longer! Not since we moved here at the end of July.

In other news, Avery no longer says "oarport." :-( But, he does still say "hostabill" for hospital. :-)

Evan has made a lot of progress already since he started attending LECC. He probably says at least ten new words. That means he's nearly doubled his vocabulary. Last night, i got him to say "cheese fries." It was so cute!

Well, i think i'm going to go try to rest for a little bit, and then take a shower before Evan gets back from preschool. i don't know why i'm so horribly tired today. *yawn*

This morning i took V and her family to the oarport (as Avery says). The boys were still sleeping when i got up, so i came downstairs and took a shower. When i got out of the shower, i discovered that Evan had come downstairs and fallen back asleep on the couch. i let him sleep and went back upstairs to get dressed and get Avery up. After i got dressed, i went into the boys' room to get clothes out for them. Avery woke up as i was standing in the doorway of their closet. Our conversation went something like this:

Avery: Are we going to meet Evan later when he gets home from school?
Me: Yes, we'll meet Evan back here at home.
Avery: Evan is going to be SO sad.
Me: No, he's not.
Avery (looking at me incredulously): Mom! Evan is going to be sad because we're going to Disney World and he is going to school!
Me (trying not to laugh hysterically): Oh, no, honey, *we're* not going to Disney World. We're taking V and her family to the airport and *they* are going to Disney World.
Avery (crestfallen): Oh.

So, i got the kids dressed and ready and put Evan on the school bus. Then Avery and i rode with V and her family up to the Dayton airport and then i drove their van back. The afternoon was pretty uneventful.

This evening i was going out to pick up some dinner and i fell down the steps outside my house. There were only 3 steps, but it hurt like hell. i didn't think i was going to be able to get up. Avery was with me and i told him to hurry and go get Benina. Well, more like sobbed at him than told him. He did, and she came out and helped me up. Once i steadied myself, i was able to stand and walk on my injured foot/ankle. It hurts like a sumbitch now but i know it's not broken or anything. No redness, no swelling. i imagine i'll have one heck of a bruise tomorrow though. i also scratched up one of my fingers on the rocks.

A little bit later, i took some ibuprofen because of how badly my ankle/foot was hurting. Just now, i was looking at common side effects of lithium online. i thought i knew the all the side effects of lithium. (Thanks, malanai, for reminding me about lithium side effects.) Turns out ibuprofen can cause lithium toxicity. Beautiful. And of course i don't think i have any acetaminophen to take.

Gratitude List:
~ Milena took care of Evan this morning to i could get ready to take him to LECC
~ the cute and funny things that Avery and Evan say and do
~ though certainly not totally well, i am feeling a LOT better than i was yesterday/last night
~ hope
~ when tense moments don't turn into major disagreements
~ a beautiful day today
~ the beautiful twilight sky this evening with Mars shining brightly and half the sky turquoise, the other half pitch
~ learning
~ exploring

Recent cute Avery-isms
~ Upon sniffing a berry-scented tealight candle that new_odyssey had given us in a Samhain goodie bag: "It doesn't really smell much like tea!"

~ Out with Milena, to a woman who asked if he was going to help his *mom* carry things to the car: "She's not my MOM, she's my BENINA!"

~ To me, out of the clear blue: "Mom, how many sides does a circle have?"
~~ to which i responded, " a circle doesn't have any sides, honey, it's round." And then he said, "oh. Well, how many sides does a square have?" i asked him how many sides *he* thought a square had. He thought about it for a minute and then correctly answered, "four." i was flabbergastedly impressed. Testing him a little, i asked how many sides a triangle had. Again, he produced the correct answer. He also knows that 10x10 is 100, and can correctly spell his name. By the way, he's 4 and has never been to preschool.

Evan update
Evan wasn't quite himself this morning when we went to LECC. i'm glad though, that this enrollment process is finally concluding. Not totally over, but starting to conclude if you will. Hehehe. Gotta love the red tape.

By lunchtime/naptime, he was one poor sick little boy. i told him to go potty before going upstairs for his nap, and i sat down at the computer to check email, etc. A little while later, it occurred to me that i hadn't heard him go upstairs, so i walked down the hall and checked the bathroom. There was Evan, sitting on the toilet, pants around his ankles, fast asleep.

Later, he only wanted me to hold him. That's when you *know* a preschooler isn't feeling well...when he actually WANTS you to hold him again! When Milena and i sent him up to bed tonight, he didn't want to go. i suspect he wanted me to hold him more because he wasn't feeling well. Anyway, some time later we heard a reallllly long sigh, and sure enough, there was Evan lying on one of the steps with his knees to his chest, little butt all up in the air, fast asleep.

Here's hoping the crud doesn't last long for him.

Matthew blurb
Matthew is doing SO much better in school this year. i know that it is largely due to the fact that he no longer has the psychotic unreasonable poorest excuse for a teacher you can imagine. He is doing well in general, actually. He's playing basketball and while he isn't particularly *good* at it yet, he is having fun and sticking with it. He is learning what it is like to be part of a team. i hated basketball when i was his age...personal space issues, panic attacks due to the fast pace, easily confused...

i went to his game last Saturday and he was supposed to come up here with me afterward to spend the weekend with us, but he got sick and ended up staying with John. He's coming up this weekend, and unfortunately the weather is supposed to be rainy, cold, and icky. i guess i'll tell him to bring some age-appropriate board games and maybe we'll check some DVDs out from the library. And colouring. Definitely colouring.

:::::::::
More later/tomorrow/sometime soon, as i have *got* to get to bed! If nothing else, to snuggle under the down comforter with Milena and get warm!