i was drawn to the ocean

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.

( AI spoilerly )

( Amazing Race spoilerly )

Wed. Night Grat List:
~ Milena took the boys to the park while i made dinner
~ The biscuits came out realllllly good and i had made some more honey butter
~ a pleasant evening
~ nice weather
~ writing

AVERYisms:
Yesterday: Mom, why do they call it a rollercoaster? i think they should call it a rollerCART.

Today: (whispered) Mom, your hair looks kind of like CATHERINE'S!

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!

Today I washed the dishes one-handed because I was holding Evan while I did it. It took a while, but I got them done. I just couldn't stand to look at them any longer.

Matthew had martial arts class this evening. oracle0415 rode up there with me so I had Amber stay here with Avery until John got home. Before I left, I put some chili on to simmer and put some potatoes in the oven to bake.

I am still uber impressed with Matt, the instructor. He is incredible.

My tongue still feels funny! Ugg!

Dr. Oak returned my call today, so I told her about my less-than-positive experience with P. I told her that I don't usually dish about people like that, but that I thought she should know.

Gratitude List:
1. my family
2. Matthew is taking martial arts classes with Matt Pasquinilli
3. Matthew's behaviour was pretty good most of the day today
4. my health
5. Avery's laugh, and the funny things he says

Mom took Avery to Bigg's with her this evening and she bought him a pair of mittens that happened to be red. After she put them on him, he held up his hands and said "Wow! Ho ho!" He thought he looked like Santa with them on. How cute is that.

Just a few of the hysterical things Avery is saying these days. Wobbles means Waffles. Aaaaa is Matthew. Avery also says Mama, Dada, Baba, Nana, Grammaw Donna, Blue's Clues, Duck, Ball, Baby, Evan, Book, Dot Dog...that's all I can think of right now.

Here's my impression of Grover from Sesame Street:
(walk walk walk walk walk walk walk walk)
"Near!"
(walk backwards, walk backwards, walk backwards, walk backwards, walk backwards)
"Far!"
And repeat. And repeat. And repeat again.

~~~~~~@@@@@@@~~~~~~~~@@@@@@@~~~~~~~~@@@@@@~~~~~~
Few things, if any, make me happier than hearing Avery laugh. I mean really laugh. Big-ole belly laugh, and giggle. He is so sweet! I dearly love my Avery Time, what little of it I get to have these days!

I met Suzanne for dinner this evening. Unfortunately the 2-3 preceding hours were sheer hell. Babies screaming, dirty laundry, dirty dishes, obnoxious television, ringing telephone, running late, ill-fitting diapers, uncooperative baby clothes...but anyway we had a nice dinner, got to catch up. I felt like Chatty Cathy! I was quite talkative! Evan went with me, of course, and he was awake almost the entire time. He cried quite a bit, and he wailed all the way home. Oy. John took Matthew to a Halloween activity at the library, and Mom took Avery out to eat at Bob Evans. Avery must be going through a growth spurt...he has been a little eating machine today!

Well, this sniper thing is just terrible. Just terrible.

Evan wants to nurse. Again.