book page wreath

I attempted this project yesterday, and I must say two things...

1. The town I live in has NO GOOD dollar stores. Where do all these bloggers live that they scoop up the sweetest stuff for one dollar??!
2. My wreath turned out to be HUGE. So big, in fact, that I ran out of pages. I need to fish another book out of the basement and finish. Then I'll show you.


On a heavier note, Ethan is on Prednisone for croup. I may not make it through the next 5 days...yet he is doing fine.

The fog is lifting.

I am pleased to say that everyone is on the mend. Avery and Erin are both home from school today, but no one has a fever. I am planning on hauling them into the doctor this afternoon to have their coughs checked out, but no worries. If we did have the *dreaded h1n1*, it wasn't as bad as I expected. At least no hazmat suits were involved. And, luckily enough, Owen never ended up getting sick, although he did offer to stay home from school today to "help me out with the other kids, since they are all sick." Nice try boy.

Tomorrow.....hair cut!!!!!!! I really think I am going to go funky. I have in my mnd what I want it to look like, but I'll cruise the internet today to see if I can find a picture. I am so excited!!!!!

i knew it.

This morning I felt pretty good. I got an acceptable amount of sleep last night. Avery is feeling a bit better and Ethan is hanging tough. I even got a bit of cleaning done. Heck, we cleaned out the lizards tank for crying out loud!!! We headed to Wendy's for a bite of lunch from the drive through. Then we came home and I loaded the dishwasher. I just sat down to make a shopping list for Avery's party when it happened. What I secretly knew would happen all along. Erin's teacher called and said that Erin has a fever and headache. This would be no problem on a normal school day, as I would just run over and pick her up. But today is no normal school day...you see Erin is with her class in CINCINNATI on a field trip. They don't plan on being home until 6:30 tonight. After a few phone calls to Doug and back to the teacher, Doug is now on his way to pick her up.
So what do I need? Perspective. My dad called me this morning and I was sharing with him about the kids being sick and how it's just hard to keep up during times like this. He reminded me that he is one of 8 kids. Twice as many kids as we have...I cannot imagine. His mother must have been a saint! And they didn't even have GermX back then. Yikes!
This too shall pass, right? Right?
Until it does, however, I will be in the fetal position somewhere.

Boy, that's the last time I even mention that my family is healthy...TWO days is all it took. The post on 10/19 "blah, blah, we're so healthy...aren't we cool..." and then the post today 10/21 "all hell has broken loose..."
okay, not really. just ethan and avery, and neither one of them are really super sick. But still, never again will I dare to brag about anything good again when it comes to health.
A few nights ago I had a dream that I was with a few friends and my head was super itchy. I asked my friend Crystal to check it for me, and she was like "oh my gosh, there is a dead head lice on you!" I woke up and was so freaked out that I had to get up at 2am to make sure I didn't have head lice. I have issues. Please note:: this is not bragging. I repeat...I AM NOT BRAGGING ABOUT NOT HAVING LICE.
The party count is steadily climbing. Avery's sweet teacher is coming. She called to rsvp today, even though she has been out of school for 2 days sick. When I told her Avery was home today, she said "tell Avery I hope she feels better, and I love her." Let me tell you, this woman is a blessing for Avery. ALL teachers should love their students the way this one does.
Hopefully Avery can rest for one more day, and then be back on her feet and head to school on Friday. That gives me at least one day to do the 10 million things on my list for the party. I still have no costume. Ideas, please???

I cry out...

Psalm 143:7-8, "Answer me quickly, O Lord; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." (NIV)

Two sick kids...one much anticipated haircut appointment now cancelled...one birthday party in jeopardy...plans for the week all amiss...yet I choose today to place my trust in Him. Even when I don't want to. Even when I am mad about something as trivial as a haircut. His ways are not my ways...praise God for that!

Wellness update.

I am pleased to report that the kids are on the mend. EVERYONE BACK TO SCHOOL TODAY. I am a horrible mom for even typing that in all caps, but that's how it feels. If I could get the Hallelujah chorus to play on this post, I would. Ethan got a clean bill of health from Dr. P. yesterday, and we are just waiting for the junky cough to crawl back into the hole it came from. Or onto the shopping cart handle it came from, which ever.
The dogs managed to sleep nearly the whole day yesterday, completely hung over from their t-bone binge the night before. That meant, of course, that they were snarling at each other in their kennel this morning at 1am. After much hushing from me, and a firm "no"...and then a subsequent spank with the newspaper from Doug, they settled down and went to sleep. They will be up most of the day today...no choice. Even Ethan slept all night last night, so the dogs, being much lower on the totem pole, had better wise up.

The icing on the nightmare cake. It's not buttercream.

In case you were wondering if we were all still here instead of having choked each other, the answer is yes...barely. Owen is better and back in school today, Avery continues to be well. Erin was home from school friday afternoon, and then seemed fine all weekend. Then this morning her stomach started hurting again, so she is home today. Ethan is back to the doc this morning with Doug because he has been coughing and trying to wheeze, although I have been fighting it off with treatments and telling him to cough the junk up. We like to shout..."Get out junk!" I am frazzled after not really sleeping good for eight nights in a row. Doug too. Someone has needed something each night since a week ago last Friday. Sick tummy, coughing, fever, drinks, headache. You name it. NO vomiting, though. Maybe that's the silver lining.
So the icing on this nightmare cake came last night. All kids were in bed sleeping, and so we went to bed too. Ethan had a crazy coughing fit at midnight so I went in his room to hold him upright and give him something to drink. I fell asleep in there and we were snoozing peacefully until the puppies came playfully bounding up the steps and into Ethan's room...at FOUR IN THE MORNING!!!! When I realized what was going on, I got up and came downstairs. Their kennel had evidently not been latched right. They had gotten into the trash and fished out the WHOLE T-BONE that was left over from dinner two nights ago. I had to pitch it because it didn't get put into the fridge, and sat on the counter all night. Well, they didn't care and the downed the whole thing and left only the bone. Then they pooped like you would expect puppies to poop if they had just eaten a 16 oz steak. Remember, four in the morning. I cleaned up the mess and kept my cool even though I wanted to throttle them both. They cried when I put them in their kennel, and so I just closed the bedroom door. This morning when Erin got up and let them out, she said that she wondered why they wouldn't eat their dog food for breakfast. I told her they had binged over night, and they spent most of this morning sleeping it off in their kennel.

Needless to say, they are on my list today. They better walk the chalk...or else.

sick of sick

Owen was given a "just a virus" label yesterday at the doc's office, and his fever is gone today, but now he is leaning more toward the rotavirus symptoms. *sigh* Ethan's head is so stuffed with snot he can hardly breathe, and Erin's school called today, she came home with a stomach ache and headache. I really am not trying to complain too much, and I know that there are people dealing with much bigger issues than this...but it's hard to have three out of four kids sick. I had to miss lunch with Avery today in her class because of this. I don't guess that Erin will be able to play softball tomorrow, and I was supposed to have the house cleaned today since I am having that jewlery party tomorrow. Guess how much cleaning I got done.
Then tonight the tornado sirens went off causing much strife in this house full of scardey cats {me included}. Doug is at work, and I didn't feel like I had adequate information on the storm, without tv. So down to the basement we went. It caused a lot of stress and tears. Mostly because I said I was not bringing the dogs down. If we headed to Oz, they were on their own. I guess I am just mean. Needless to say, we were fine. It didn't even really get that bad here. The bright side is that Doug is on his way home as we speak {or as I type} for back up tonight with the kids. I am so thankful, because I think I will need it, who knows what will happen...exploding poop, fevers, vomiting, coughing....