Would Everyone Just Take a Number

The past few days have flown by without much pause! My phone rings and no more than two or three words later call waiting beeps the line with the caller ID showing the next in turn for my much needed opinion or info. It's my oldest girl this time asking if I know of a full service car wash. I said, "I don't know of any, why don't you just go to a gas station and ask someone, or carry a yellow pages phone book in your car?" Dh's call is lost with the "flash" button. He is at the notary's office (1400 miles away) to sign a loan doc and needs an to answer some written questions before signing. I haven't even seen the papers yet, so am of no use. Of course, the loan officer is not in today and she want's this stuff signed and Fed-x'd back tonight. I'm multitasking with the land line and cell phones ... both BEEPING with call waiting! Honk, Honk the school bus pulls up, and I must either put Nathan on or take him off the bus. The dog needs to go out, get fed, go potty, get a drink of water ... There's piles of laundry waiting in line to be washed ... then folded, and I'm in the middle of exchanging summer for winter clothes in my youngest son's bedroom. While cleaning out Nathan's drawers, I notice the closet has clothes to sort out too; in and amongst new bedding I have stored still wrapped in the original packages ... this is for the new house. I might just sit down for a short rest ... but must remember to not take a snooze, otherwise youngest will escape once again. I WANT MY MOMMY! Oh, there's a knock at the door, Bye-Bye!

Photo: After the cleaning of Nathan's room. Notice no pictures, toys, etc. He removes everything off the walls or breaks too many things ... I've had to resort to a "bare-bones" room! He even learned that his floor heater vent (once removed) makes a great toy box and trash can!

Old Eyes ... And The Passage of Time

UPDATE 9/27: Here's a link to the Owl Optical Wallet Light My mom paid about $5-10 at a store, but you can get one at a decent price online.
I'm just nearing the end of my 40's and the 'ole eyes are starting to get fuzzy! I already wear bi-focals for my clear vision glasses ... that after trying the blended lenses and getting vertigo. But my sunglasses are a single vision prescription and make for a rather awkward fumble at the checkout counter as I can't see to write a check with them on. I sometimes forget to bring along my indoor glasses when shopping, so go around the stores hiding behind the dark shades. My latest purchase for a watch included the largest face and numbers I could find. No more little lines and dashes to signify the hours. I need the large numbers with a contrasting face for best use. My mom sent me the neatest little gizmo for my wallet the other day. It's the size of a credit card ... but a little bit thicker. In the center there is an area that is a magnifyer ... and a little place you can squeeze along the edge for an illuminating light. Have you ever visited a restaurant only to not be able to read the fine print on the bill or the menu with or without glasses ... due to the ambiance lighting? This little device solves that problem. Now my mid-vision is getting weaker ... trifocals are in the not so distant future. If my eyes are going ... the rest of me will start the decline in the next few years too. As my dh is always reminding me, as you age, your hair disappears, your ears and nose grow larger, you return to diapers and eating mushy foods ... sounds very appealing? Right!

HIVES ... NO MORE!

Finally, after a week of alergy meds, oatmeal baths, lots of prayers and drinking gallons of water, I'm finished with the hives. What started as a bad reaction to OJ was just the beginning of a domino affect from too much stress. Not that I'd ever think of myself as a stress case, but I sometimes heap on too much of a helping of life; after all, I'm not supermom! Last week, my dog was driving me crazy. Poor thing, she's use to a nice fenced-in backyard. Our rental home was "SUPPOSED" to have the fencing completed soon after we moved in ... but to date that has not materialized. So, except for the few walks around the block each week, she's on a yard line 99% of the time. She's a golden retriever that is just beginning to mellow out ... after nearly seven years! Anyway, last week around the time of the hives episode, she kept yipping, which forced me to put a muzzle on her ... which in turn only frustrated her even more ... it wasn't a pretty sight people. Me with hives ... and her with a muzzle and staked to the back patio post ... when she got too wired, I'd put her in her kennel. I would have traded places with her if my kids promised to throw away the kennel key :) They could fend for themselves, Nathan would probably have run away, and I'd have hives and fleas ... NOT PRETTY! Now that my sanity has returned (?), and I decided to put the kennel outside again, life is back to "normal" ... who defines normal? When my three oldest give me headaches, I proudly tell them that little Nathan is the only normal one in the family :)

Today I went to a beautiful local nursery to begin the task of landscaping plants. You say, but your house isn't even finished! ... Ah, but this is a good time to plant trees ... and there are some things that can be done now. So I leave you with a few of my favorite pictures from the garden. And check out the progress at This New House.

NEWS FLASH ... Go check out my friend's link at "Shallow Thoughts From Iowa" about Facing The Giants ... an actual God praising movie from Hollywood! Coming soon to a theater near you!!
Top photo: Nathan and Elizabeth posing for their dad 9/23/06

signed: Restored in Idaho

On The Mend

The past few days have found me driving myself nuts suffering from hives. Seem to bother me more at night, which makes me grouchy during the daytime from lack of sleep and overdosing on Benedryl (which makes me hyper too) ... not a pretty combination!

The rain has finally returned after I think 95 days of dryness. Now I have to figure out the sprinkler timer and cut down on the watering ... for now it's turned off.

I should resume blogging in a day or two when I'm feeling better. In the mean time, check out the progress on our new home at This New House.

Orange Juice - NO MORE

Friday night I enjoyed about 9 ounces of OJ throughout the evening. To cut down on the acidity, I mixed it with some diet lemon-lime pop. It tasted so refreshing, I never gave it a second thought, that is until my skin started itching. I honestly thought maybe something had bitten me ... then I took a nice hot bubble bath ... and suddenly broke out in HIVES. Well, to help alleviate the rash, I took a Benedryl, which knocked me out for the night :) ... I took another Benedryl yesterday which made me "goofy" ...last night while getting off the freeway, I thought I had dementia as I wasn't sure where I was??? (I think this is called DUI of alergy medicine)! Today, I still have some hives. This happened to me once from eating too many oranges as a kid ... only then I didn't have car keys so I wasn't a danger to other people :) ... Any home made remedies for hives would be greatly appreciated. At my age, hives and hotflashes together are lethal. Signed Miserable in Idaho

Back To School Night

Last night I attended Back to School Night at Nathan's school. He has quite a day and is mainstreamed for part of his socialization skills. There is a group of kids in his 5th grade homeroom class that has taken to him and watches out for him. Tonight when I took him to the library, I overheard soft whispers, "Nathan, Hi Nathan" ... some of his classmates were there and made a point of saying hi. He returned their greeting in his "jibber-jabber language and not one kid made fun of him. Seems wherever we go, there's someone calling out his name. Last month at Spokane's Children's Hospital, a man came up behind and said, "Hey, aren't you Nathan?" It was the uncle of one of Ann's friends that works there. I hardly know two people in town and am beginning to feel left out (sigh). Have a blessed weekend.

Ushering In The Fall Season

It's in the air and near the lake shore, in the busy little ants making preparation for what is to come. As I drive along the country roads, there it is again ... just starting to show its true colors. The colors of AUTUMN. One by one the leaves on the trees are painted in hues of crimson, burnt orange, and golden yellow. One, by one ... until the whole tree explodes in magnificent color. The lake and river gains more beach as man empties out some of the summer fun to make way for winter's snow melt. Once crowded streets busy with visitors will belong to the locals. The quiet time of the year is nearing. Each day is changing ... goodby my summertime carefree days. Goodby sandles, peddle pushers, and bright painted toes! Hello my old favorite sweater and toasty warm shoes. Hello hot tea and cider with cinnamon sticks. Hello chili with cornbread, my favorite soups and beef stew. HELLO FALL my favorite time of the year.

Feeling Better

My little man is feeling much better today! Thanks for the prayers. He just hopped on the school bus for a day of mischief, learning, and fun ... maybe not in that order. The weather has turned chilly and we're supposed to get some much needed rain. I'm off to run my errands ... or as my pop used to say ... "Make hay while the sun is shining."
If I have anything brilliant to write ... I'll post later :) ... otherwise your stuck with just this dribble. May you bless the Lord with the work of your hands today.

9/13
Update ... The pediatric nurse called this morning to say that Nathan's thyroid blood test recheck was normal. Thank you Lord!



Photo of Nathan 9/13/06

First School "Casualty" of The Year

Well, maybe that's a harsh title ... but little Nathan's tummy was not feeling too well last night, so I most likely will be keeping him home from school this morning. This from a mom that used to count ounces in ... and ounces out with the little guy. So I'm taking no chances that sending him will mean having to pick him up early wearing soiled clothes. Poor little man ... whenever I have the slightest suspicion about his GI health, I err on the side of caution and give him lots of TLC. He's the kind of kid that begs for food with a tummy ache! Prayers are appreciated.

My "Honey-Do" List Just Shrank!

Dh just left this morning. After getting up at 6:30 AM ... feeding and directing kids to school, dropping off the "new baby" for a thorough check-up, driving up to the property to meet with the builder, then driving to and from the airport ... I then met with a siding/roofing guy at 11:30, whew ... and the day has just begun. My Honey-Do list was tackled while DH was home. We filed all the paid bills (this is normally his job ... but since he's away most of the time, the PILE had grown), finished up varnishing the new picnic table and benches, washed and cleaned the van including carpet, changed lightbulbs, took delivery of the jeep, went out to dinner three times, ordered the gas/wood stove, ordered new windows and finally got Nathan back to the lab for another blood test to check for hypothyroidism! I had his week so packed with things to do that he was probably glad to go back to work (lol). Now that he knows I don't just sit on my thumbs all day ... I'm sure he appreciates all the hard work it takes to manage all I do. I assured him the list would g.r.o.w. again to greet him on his next visit home. I'm gonna miss that man!

Hurray!

School is back in full swing. Nathan began his life skills class at school and is mainstreamed for part of his day. So far, so good! He's taking care of "business" :) all by himself with his potty skills ... a great milestone for school life! He leaves at 8:30 with door to door bus service. Each little step is a giant progress of independence for him.

This has been a busy week. DH is home and we've been running here and there to place orders and get quotes for work to be done on the new home. Today the walls for the basement and crawlspace were poured. It's a good stress this building process ... unlike the bad stress trying to sell our old home. Things are moving quickly now.

One Final Sketch

Please look at one last sketch, just for my peace of mind. I morphed my two favorite sketches into one. What do you think of sketch 4? My other favorite is sketch 3 in the previous post. Thanks for your valued opinion :)

Help

Sketch 1
Sketch 2
Sketch 3

I need some help making a decision about how the front of the new home will look. Here are three "artistic" sketches I have come up with ... Sketch 1, Sketch, 2, and Sketch 3. Please let me know which one you think looks best. In case you can't tell what's what, the front gable will have cedar shingles with a small portion of metal (maybe copper) roofing, the roof will be a composite, and the front bay area and part of porch post columns will have rock facing. Cast your vote soon .... THANKS! (click on sketches to view larger)

My Summer of Job (as in Job in the Bible)

There was a time when all was well in my rose colored world ... then I had children ... reality smacked me in the face and I woke up! My worst nightmare happened about nine summers ago. To me it was of JOB porportions. As my name changed from Mrs. Mac to JOBETTE, friends were spouting, "God won't give you more than you can handle." I wished they would take their words back ... I had heard this line too often. Their intentions were good, but they hadn't walked in my shoes. To begin with, my days were long 24/7 shifts taking care of a very ill baby that had already had six surgeries his first year of life. Then the anticipated first day of summer arrived (with a bang). My older children that had been previously home schooled (until said baby's birth) had just finished up their first year of private school. Here's a rundown of how the summer degressed:
Day 1: Oldest boy gets hit in the left eye with a water baloon and goes blind,
Day 2: Youngest son (infant) gets hospitalized for a week with intestinal problems (this means I must stay in the hospital with him (sixty miles from home).
Day 2: Oldest son must spend one week in bed at a 45 degree incline, only able to get up to use the potty (did I mention he was 15 with lots of energy and had raging hormones?)
Day 3: DH picks up a nasty flu virus while visiting baby in the hospital and freely shares it with the other children at home.
Day 5: My mom arrives to take care of my sick children at home.
Day 6: Oldest daughter sick with flu passes out on bathroom floor with door locked ... ends up in the hospital, same week she begins her first menstral period ... I was at another hospital with sick baby (poor DH and Mom).
Day 8: Dog has cancerous tumor in eye "POP" and vet removes eye.
Day 9: Gang wars break out and DH is called to work for two weeks (away from home).
Day 10: Oldest son must undergo daily checkups at eye doctor for a week.
Day 11-30: Just a blurr, but I had to put dog down.
Day 31: I woke up at 2:30 AM with symptoms of a heart attack. DH calls 911 and within four minutes, five paramedics are standing around my bed. (My only thought was how glad I was to have stayed up until midnight cleaning the house.) They ask, "Have you been under stress lately ... your vitals look normal now." "Uh, just a bit" ... seems my heart attack was really a panic attack having same symptoms.

I have made it a point to never ever tell someone that "God won't give you more than you can handle" ... I believe this to be true but someone going through a rough time doesn't always appreciate hearing that message over and over from well meaning people. Yes, we did survive. Oldest son regained his vision ... and the baby eventually got better, and I learned a lesson about fastideously cleaning the house: When your world is falling apart around you, it's OK to let the dusting and vacuuming go... hire a housekeeper! And have everyone in your circle of friends pray for you. Only with God's strength did we pull through this ordeal.

The "Comb-Over" Revisited

I don't have much to post about this morning ... but if you haven't read my post from August 25, start here ... then go to wee little comb-overs here . What a riot. Seems we (everyone but me) are not willing to broach this subject with our loved ones. I'll be back later.