My little turkeys

I love, love, love Thanksgiving!  Being with family, time off work, cooking, the smells of said cooking & the kick off of Christmas that comes in our house the day after Thanksgiving.

 

These pictures have nothing to do with Thanksgiving, but are from Reese's actual birthday on the 14th.  Since her favorite food is pizza, that's what we made for her birthday meal.  Every single Friday in our house is pizza night & we normally heat up a frozen one since it's cheaper & fast.  With it being a special day/birthday, I decided I'd try to make Pioneer Woman's homemade dough & I could not believe how incredibly easy it was!  It took me less than five minutes to make & it's so inexpensive with just water, yeast, flour, salt & olive oil.  Click here for the recipe.  She recommends making it at least a day or two ahead of time.  By the way, I don't have a fancy mixer, but I do have some fancy hands & the dough turned out just fine the old fashioned way.

Anyway, I looked so forward to Thanksgiving week, knowing I only had to work Monday & Tuesday.  I remember saying Sunday night, "whatever this work week brings, I can handle it!"  Yeah, not so much.  It was overwhelmingly busy, I worked long, non-stop days & was completely burned out by last night.  Unfortunately, that meant that I was cranky, emotional & snappy.  That meant that my husband was not very happy with my poor attitude.  After realizing I forgot to send Cameron with the cranberry sauce I signed up for his Thanksgiving school feast, I was having a bashing myself party.  Just snapped at my husband, dropped the ball on my kid's party?  I suck!  Luckily Cameron's teacher was extremely sweet, told me they had more than enough cranberry sauce & gave me a hug after seeing how sorry I was! 

Sometimes when I'm overwhelmed, I just can't see the light when I'm in that moment.  If I give myself ten minutes to decompress & get some clarity, I'm fine.  Grocery shopping, getting ready for Thanksgiving & working while trying to tend to the family was apparently too much for my weak emotional state!!!  But, I'm all better after sleeping on it, it's a new day & I'm off for the next FIVE DAYS!!!  WOO HOO!

Mike's headed to work today, but will hopefully get out early & we'll be together the rest of the week.  My parents come up every year to spend the night the Wednesday before Thanksgiving so we're looking forward to their arrival too.

And this year they're bringing my nieces up for a sleepover, so Cameron & Reese are super excited!

I'm thankful for my family, time off from work & the cooler weather that will be here just in time for Thanksgiving.  I'm hoping you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families too!!

Cry me a river

Man oh man, I am so relieved that it's Friday!  This week has chewed me up & spit me into the sewer... well, at least that's how I feel anyway.  I've been dealing with a cold, insane fatigue, horrid cramps & an even worse attitude!  Both mentally & physically, I did not think I'd survive this week.  But as all of you moms know, we're not allowed to be sick because it's business as usual regardless!

Sick or not, the alarm goes off at 5:30am, work awaits, laundry awaits, dinner awaits & so do tantrums!!!  Reese's tantrums, not mine; although I seriously did feel like throwing a few myself!

I'm in a rut & feel like I could just use some downtime.. a vacation sure would be nice!  I'd also like to punch Facebook in the mouth & sometimes wonder why I log on since everyone's syrupy sweet, happy posts make me want to gag & then throw my phone in the trash.  See, told you my attitude was less than stellar!!  But, on the bright side, free movie Wednesdays are back at our local theater!  We smuggle in some popcorn & snacks & we've got a completely free outing under our belts.

We squeezed in a much needed haircut too!  My little man is looking even more handsome then ever with his new do!

And my sassy little girl continues with her shoe fetish.  Seriously, she is obsessed with shoes & puts them on &  takes them off all day long.  She's not satisfied with just messing with her own shoes either, she wants to make sure any shoe within eye sight is on the foot of it's rightful owner.   She's a goofball!  Well, anyway, I'm thankful it's the weekend, thankful that we'll be having our weekly pizza & family movie night & I'm especially thankful for the massive tub of ice cream in the freezer that awaits me!  TGIMF'nF!

Teething SUCKS

This is what we've been dealing with for the past couple of weeks...

An extremely unhappy, crying, cranky baby.  Poor little Reese is getting all four of her first molars as well as another two teeth here & there so she's been a pretty miserable little girl.  It's making life at home very stressful & loud.  By the end of the day I am so very ready for her to go to bed which makes me feel terrible.  But when she's up I feel like she's crying most of her waking hours & I literally cannot get anything done.  I'll be able to divert her for a few minutes but then she's right back at my legs wanting up.

We got out Saturday morning to enjoy the beautiful weather & a lot of our time at the park was spent listening to crying.  Better to listen to it in the beauty of nature vs. cooped up in our house.

Her brother joined her in the pouting & crying!  Poor Cam gets forgotten sometimes since I'm so engulfed in taking care of Reese.  By the time the night ends my shoulders & neck are so sore & tense from holding my 23# bundle that I could cry.

But we made the best of the morning & actually ended up having a really nice time.  We checked out a new park & then headed to the cutest place for coffee & pastries.  The owner of the cafe gave us a few slices of bread to feed the fish & the kids loved watching them devour it.

We had a very full weekend celebrating a 2nd birthday & visiting with friends from out of town.  Grammy flew in from Chicago yesterday morning & we're so happy she's here!  It's so nice to have the company & the extra help.  We're gearing up for Mike's birthday on Saturday & looking forward to a much needed night out with friends.

I'll be making mike his annual birthday dinner on Friday night; I can't wait!  I love birthdays & surprises!

In the meantime, hopefully Reese's dang teeth will finish popping through & stop wreaking havoc on our girl & the happiness of our household!  Here's to praying we all survive!

A Glorious Sunset!

Saturday night I enjoyed the gorgeous sunset from my parent's balcony & watched the sailboats glide through the Gulf. There were seven sailboats scattered throughout the water & I felt like I was watching Pirates of the Caribbean!





I missed the actual sun setting since I was busy playing with Cam at the opposite end of my parent's condo but at least I was able to enjoy the afterglow.





If I lived on the beach like my parents do, I could never grow tired or lose appreciation for this view!



Sunday Cam was able to spend time with his cousins who he loves so much! Maddy is always giving Cam some loving!



In other news, we got a call from Cam's daycare this afternoon, letting us know that he had a fever yet again. He's been battling a virus the past couple of weeks & randomly spiking a 101ish degree fever. When they see this at daycare, he's not able to come back until he's fever-free for 24 hours. And since we have no family nearby who are able to watch Cam, that means no work for one of us. So, tomorrow I'll be staying home & nursing my sickling back to good health.

As I notified work of the circumstances, I was reminded of the amount of "call-ins" we're allowed on a rolling calendar year. Mind you, I never call in sick for myself & I'm an incredibly reliable employee, if I do say so myself. And I do. With that being said, it stresses the crap out of me knowing that I have zero control over the amount of sicknesses Cam comes down with per year. Since January, I have been out of work three times due to Cam having a fever (the last one being exactly two weeks ago when Mike was away on business in Dallas). Just what I need is a little added stress & pressure when my child is feeling crummy! Oh the joys of being a full-time working mom! But, whatever, I'm going to enjoy spending the day, taking care of my little love tomorrow because being a mom is my number one priority!

Finding the Balance

The series we've been discussing at church is called @work which touches on a subject I think about often since like so many others, I spend much of my week at work. Although, I never did give work quite as much thought as I do now that I have a child. And as much as I do enjoy my work, I find myself resenting the fact that it takes me away from Cam so much of the time.

I'm trying to keep in mind that God has me doing what I do each day for a reason & that I am helping to touch the lives of people when they're at their most fearful, vulnerable moments. But it can be hard to remember that when I'm tired, having a bad day or choosing the wrong attitude. As I headed out of church yesterday I was handed a small piece of paper which was given to me as a reminder of why we do the things we do Monday through Friday & how God is truly at the center of it all. This morning I posted it at my desk & it really seemed to help me turn my attitude around when I found it heading down the wrong path.



I have to say though that I think Americans spend far too much time working & rushing around. It seems like a sick joke to run from the time our alarms ring early in the morning until it's time to basically go to bed at night. Work, work, work with nothing but a measly half hour break, possibly drag myself to the gym after work, fly to the store for whatever odds & ends we may need, grab Cam from daycare, try to connect with him in the hour & a half that's left before bedtime. And in that time it's making/feeding dinner, bath, pjs, bedtime. Then it's time to clean up any remaining dishes from dinner, get the coffee ready for tomorrow, take a shower, and whew, it's about bedtime only to go to sleep & do it all over again the next morning. And as basically any working person does, I find myself just trying to make it to the weekend so I can have some quality time with my family to do the things we don't have time to do Monday through Friday. But when the weekend actually does come, many times hours upon hours are spent cleaning and uh, doing the things we don't have time to do Monday through Friday.

And when I notice myself becoming overwhelmed, I try & take a step back & remember that God has me on this Earth to serve a purpose. I remind myself of this as I make my rounds & see my patients. And even when they're feeling angry at the world & wanting to take it out on anyone in their path, I'll stand there & listen & be there for them. So many times I see them smiling as I leave their room & that's what makes it all worth it.



And this boy of mine makes everything worth it. Even in my most down moments, I know I'll be coming home to my love at the end of the day. And that is definitely something to be thankful for. So each night as I snuggle with Cam in his room before bed, we say our prayers & tell God everything we're thankful for. And really, I have so much to be thankful for... it's just a matter of remembering those things when the madness of the day tries to take over. And speaking of this boy of mine, today was his first day back to daycare in over two weeks & his first day in THE PRESCHOOL ROOM!! When Mike told me he was dropped off in that room this morning instead of his usual Toddler Room, tears came to my eyes. My little boy is truly growing up too quickly. Much of his day will now be spent on the potty & he'll be with kids up to three years old so he'll be learning lots.

So much to be thankful for.

Sleep Woes

The first three or so months of Cam's life were a nightmare in terms of sleeping. He would go down for the night around 11pm, sleep until about 2 & then be up every 2 or 3 hours until he was finally up for the day at about 8am. I remember after his first week of life, he would sometimes refuse to nap until 4pm, rarely leaving me with a break in the day. But, soon his naps improved, as did his pattern of sleeping at night. It took about six months until Cam slept through the majority of the night.

By the time Cam was 8 months old, he was sleeping like a champ; 7-7:30pm to 7:30am. That basically continued until, mmm, about a week ago when he decided he would wake up at 5-6am, but not every morning & he would go back to sleep until his normal time. Then last night he wouldn't go to sleep until 8:30pm; a good hour after his bedtime. And this morning, bing! up again at 6am. But, then I come to find out as Mike & I sit, frustrated in bed, that he was also up at 1:45am!! What the heck gives?! Our only guess is that it may relate to the fact that Cam's second set of molars are coming through. The pediatrician said this was early for his age, but he has typically been ahead of the game with this teeth since the get-go.

I just cannot understand how after a year of sleeping wonderfully, Cam is suddenly waking up & having bad sleep habits. You may think, Oh, give me a break, you should be so lucky to have a child that sleeps as well as yours. Or, Give me a break, this has only been going on for a week or so, lighten up. But, we just want to nip this issue in the bud before it becomes an every day habit. I don't want to be sitting here a year from now at 6am, thinking, Gosh, I remember when Cam used to sleep until after 7:30... what happened?

Another problem? Once I wake up, it's extremely difficult for me to fall back to sleep. I could be in a dead stupor one second, hear Cam crying over the monitor the next & be absolutely wide awake. So imagine how terribly I was sleeping when Cam was up every 2-3 hours. And even though Mike & I shared nighttime duties, I slept like hell between his times of sleep.

I'm hoping that I'm jumping the gun & making a big deal out of nothing, but I couldn't resist venting my frustrations over a blog post. Anyway, guess I'll get back to watching some Baby Einstein & eating cereal with Cam! One good thing about this, I get to spend a bit more time with my love bug before he has to go to daycare. See, I am a glass half-full kind of gal. But, not really. But, I am at least trying. Hey, throw me a freaking bone here!

Anyway, happy Hump Day, hope everyone is having a great week!

Happy Valentine's Day!

This Valentine's Day we ended up making a very tasty meal of Parmesan crusted steaks, twice baked potatoes & roasted asparagus. We've often enjoyed steaks topped with tasty crusts while out to restaurants, but never prepared it at home. I based the recipe off this site, but didn't measure anything out & just used it as a guideline & mixed the topping until it looked right to me. Mike grilled the steaks rather than pan frying them & finished cooking them under the broiler to brown the parmesan crust. The meal was absolutely delicious!

We ended the night by watching The Time Traveler's Wife, sipping champagne & enjoying some chocolate covered strawberries that we picked up from the grocery store.




These are the flowers Mike sent to my work on Thursday. I was very surprised.







We even shared a dance in the kitchen as dinner was cooking. Who could resist dancing to the sound of Dean Martin's voice?

Friday Can't Come Soon Enough

This week seems to be endless. Tuesday evening I was absolutely exhausted & seriously felt like it should have been Thursday based off of how I felt. Most weekdays I'm somewhat motivated to get the house straightened up, keep laundry going & make decent dinners. This week I've had a headache & zero energy. And along with that, I've been very emotional & just feeling low.

It hasn't helped my mood that each morning as I ran out the door to get to work on time, Cam reached his arms out to me, crying, "Ma-muh!" I'd start my drive to work with a lump in my throat & a sad feeling in my heart. I'm very relieved that it's Thursday night & the weekend is almost upon us & I'll finally be able to spend some downtime with my family. Plus, Grammy (Mike's mom) is coming into town Saturday evening & staying two weeks which means Cam will get a break from the germs at day care!

This week is also starting to look up as I had some wonderful cuddle time with Cam tonight as he drank his milk & got ready for bed. That is, hands down, my favorite time of day. I get to kiss his soft, fluffy hair & take in his wonderful Cammy smell!

Here's to hoping that my attitude & mood keep on pickin' up!



This is my favorite sleeper that Cam wears; he looks absolutely adorable & so baby-esque whenever he wears it.





And this is the sight I get to see each morning as I get Cam dressed for "school." Of course, he isn't normally wearing navy blue socks pulled up to his knees; that was just me goofing around at his expense! Ahh, he won't mind. At least I don't think he will... only time will tell!

Feeling Blue

I found myself feeling very emotional at work today from missing my little Cameron. As I got ready to hop in the shower this morning, I heard a little voice enter the room, saying, "Muh-ma! Muh-ma!" and it absolutely warmed my heart until it felt like a puddle of goo in my chest. But later, as I gathered my things to bolt out the door, Cam stood at my feet, desperately wanting me to pick him up, when I felt my heart break into a thousand pieces. As I juggled my purse, lab coat & basket of things for his day care, I was unable to pick him up so I had to stand there watching him cry as Mike picked him up so I could give him a kiss good-bye.

It was not the best way to start my day.

I knew I'd be working late today in order to prepare for a meeting tomorrow, and all I really wanted to do was pick Cam up from day care, take him home and spend time with him. Instead I wasn't able to get him until close to 6pm and by the time we got him fed and bathed, it was basically time for bed.

Some days and weeks I get my work done without a thought, pick Cam up, come home and enjoy our evenings together. Other days I feel emotional and even a little bitter that I can't spend more time with my love. I guess it just hits me when I realize just how little time I actually have to enjoy him at this soft, pudgy, fuzzy age where he actually needs me and wants nothing more than to be with me. It seems that before I know it, all he'll want is to spend time with his friends and think it's no longer cool to snuggle up to his mom. And that's okay, that's part of life, but I just don't want these awesome baby years to pass me by and leave me with regret that I didn't spend as much time as I could with Cam.

Maybe it's because he had his 15 month check-up at the pediatrician yesterday and I'm seeing just how much he's already grown and changed. I'm so thankful that tomorrow is Friday and I'll have the whole weekend to be with my boys. I'll cherish the time I do have with him and deal with the low moments that will inevitably come.

Why, Why, Why?

It's not that I think that I am anything close to resembling perfect, nor do I think that females are the better gender. But, why does it sometimes feel like women have to be so on top of things because men just aren't? I'm not speaking for anyone here since I have no idea what goes on in other people's lives; this is just me venting. I know many people keep their blogs surface level & don't drag certain personal issues into play, but that's just not how I work. I like to keep it real! Because even when lives appear perfect in blog posts & pictures, we're all still dealing with similar frustrations.

I have definitely accepted the fact that I am a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to the appearance & cleanliness of my house, though I am trying to lighten up & relax a bit more. But, there are some days I feel that laundry would never be washed if I didn't take the initiative to do it & we'd be crawling over the rubble of baby toys & daily clutter if I wasn't here to pick it up. I sometimes tell Mike that I wish I could swap brains with him from time to time; things would be so much more peaceful & calm. Instead my brain is usually going a million miles a second, constantly processing what needs to get done next. It can get quite ugly in there!

I just wish that men would take a look around, see what needs to get done & JUST DO IT instead of asking, "so, what needs to get done next?" Uh, we both live here! In our home, we do end up doing 50/50, but I'm usually the one to initiate what needs to get done & keep things moving along. And this post is not written to bash my husband since in reality, he is an amazing dad & husband & would do anything for our family. This is just me blowing of a little steam!

Do any of you ladies out there deal with similar issues? What does your spouse do that irks you the most?

A Million Bucks!

That's how I've been feeling lately! Within 24 hours of getting that steroid injection at the walk-in clinic, the inflammation & sores in my throat were so much better! The doctor said that it would help for 2-3 weeks, so I'm hoping that whatever mystery virus that was/is lurking in my system is long gone by then!

Still Sick!

Since the doctor at the walk-in clinic on Sunday assured me that my throat would be feeling better within 24 hours of taking Amoxicillin, I was pretty sure I'd be feeling relief by Monday. Unfortunately, things were not at all better & if anything, I'd say my throat felt worse. At work yesterday, I was only able to eat a bowl of cream of wheat & an ice cream cup. For dinner, Mike grabbed me a milkshake from McDonald's but it burned my throat too bad to drink.

When I looked in the mirror last night, not only was my throat looking horrible, but I began to notice a rash forming on my hands, arms & stomach. As I searched the internet, I noticed Amoxicillin could potentially cause a rash which may be harmful & that a visit to the doctor was needed. When I woke up today, my throat was absolutely no better & the rash was looking worse, so I knew I'd have to pay another visit to the doctor.

Long story short, even though I tested negative for the Monospot blood test, the doctor is convinced that I have mono. Regardless, since mono is a virus, there is no treatment for it, so the doctor didn't feel that it was necessary to pursue additional work-up. I also tested negative for the in-office swab for strep, but since this test has a 15-20% false negative, he also sent a swab into the lab for a more specific test.

The doctor gave me an injection of Decadron in hopes of decreasing the inflammation in my throat for at least some relief. I've still only been able to eat a Nutri-Grain bar today & even that caused so much pain that tears were stinging at my eyes as I finished it. I also downed the rest of my milkshake from yesterday night.

But for any of you who may cross paths with me soon, please do not run & hide! I may not even have mono & even if I do, I obsessively wash my hands/use hand sanitizer & I'm not coughing or sneezing & even when I do, I use a tissue & immediately wash my hands. The doctor informed me that I can go about my schedule as usual with work, etc. I am convinced that if I do indeed have mono, that I got it from Cameron. I read that babies can carry the virus, but that symptoms are usually very mild for them. Either way, I have to be careful to not infect him since I know nothing for sure. I'm not sure what's worse... not being able to kiss Cam or having the most insane sore throat I could ever imagine?

Strep Throat

Friday after donating blood at work, I started to feel like my throat was getting sore. I ignored it & went about my day until it was later at night & I was at Lauren's wine/cheese party & I started to feel very achy & sick. By the time I got home, I had full blown chills & I couldn't stop my teeth from chattering.

Yesterday I never got out of my pj's & stayed on the couch all day long. My joints & muscles were so sore, I had no energy & I felt like I would pass out after five minutes on my feet. Thank goodness I have such a wonderful hubby who took care of Cam so I could rest.

This morning when I woke up I was in agony with a sore throat & felt like I would die each time I swallowed. When I looked in the mirror, my throat looked like raw ground beef with white spots dabbled about. I am certainly not one to run to the doctor & absolutely not one who takes antibiotics... I think this is the second time in my life I've taken them. But, I knew something was up, so while Mike & Cam went to church, I went to a walk-in clinic by my house. I had a 101 degree temperature & as soon as the doctor looked in my throat, he knew it was strep throat.

Apparently after fifteen years old, you no longer have to have your throat swabbed. So, I left with a prescription for Amoxicillin in hopes of feeling better soon. Thank goodness I got sick when I did because of this would have happened two weeks later, we'd be on our way to Chicago & I'd be one miserable traveler.