Eew!! Germs!!

Logan and I had a conversation about germs this morning.  Logan asked if germs walked and talked.  I got this image of our house being overtaken by little green germs wearing war gear, carrying weapons, and laughing at us.  They outnumber us and try as we may, we can't seem to fight them off or outrun them. 

 It all started last Friday when Alex didn't feel well.  He ended up with a fever and was sick with a fever on Saturday and Sunday.  Monday evening I was running a fever and feeling like a massive cold had just hit me on the head with a metal garbage lid.  I took the boys to school on Tuesday and when I picked them up they both had fevers.  Double ugh!  I kept them both home on Wednesday -- where they ran, jumped, wrestled, and were VERY loud.  I tried to get them to rest but my efforts were ignored.

On Thursday the roads were icy so there was no school.  Logan still had a fever but Alex seemed fine.  We had done NONE of Alex's homework for the week so yesterday afternoon was used to catch up on all of Alex's homework.  Alex was less than thrilled.   It was Kindergarten math homework so it was fun and creative, but I still didn't feel well and our goal was just to get it done.  Who enjoys doing homework anyway, right? 

Sometime in the night the germs regrouped.  High pitched, creepy, germ-y laughter filled the house as they attacked once again. I imagined them marching and chanting in small armies. Jacob woke up feeling sick to his stomach in the middle of the night.  He woke up this morning still feeling bad but hadn't gotten sick and had no fever so he went to work.  He is going to try and come home early so he can rest this afternoon. 

Somewhere in our house the germs are laughing. 

I have pulled out my automatic Lysol gun and plan to go through the entire house in hopes of eliminating all the germs in the house.  This respiratory thing lingers. (Did anyone else just have a Cranberries song pop into their head?  Oh no!  I hope it doesn't get stuck there . . . ) I feel like the germs are mocking us, playing with us, and there is laughter.  Hopefully we will all be better by Monday and life will return to normal. 

Until then, our lives will be filled with Vitamin C, Mucinex, Sudafed, Tylenol, Cough syrup, Halls, Germ-X, Lysol, and a lot of juice and water. 

Oh, yeah, and we hope to put an end to the nasty little germs.  They will NOT have the last laugh!  ;P

Adventures With A Basketball Goal

The basketball goal's current location -- in the boys' play room between the arcade game and keyboard and drum set!

My brother and his wife gave Alex and Logan this basketball goal for Christmas. The boys were excited about it -- Alex will stand and shoot the ball and make basket after basket. 

Because of it's shape (and like every other goal) it's top heavy.  The base is empty and supposed to be filled.  We filled it with water only to discover it had a leak.  We put a towel over the base hoping the leak would stop soon.  Nearly a week later it was still leaking so we thought, "forget it."  Jacob took it outside and dumped the water out.  He brought it back in and we tugged on it, shoved on it, did anything we could think of to be sure it wouldn't fall and hit the boys while they were playing basketball.  We decided that it wouldn't just fall over while they were playing basketball so we stopped worrying about it and went on with our lives. 

Last night we discovered that if a boy bends over and bumps it with their bottom THAT will make it fall over.

It was the boys' bedtime.  They had their pajamas on and we had just finished brushing their teeth.  We were in the play room looking through the numerous books to find a couple to read before bed.  For some reason, Logan was messing with things over by the basketball goal.  I didn't think anything of it.  He bent over and lost his balance -- his bottom hit the back of the goal and the goal tipped over.

I was still looking through the books and therefore had my back to him.  I remember hearing him grunt and make an "ohh" sound.  Suddenly I felt something hit me on the back of the neck -- HARD!  My reaction wasn't a pleasant one.  Not only did it hurt but I wasn't expecting it and didn't know what had happened.  I said, "What happened?" a little louder than I intended.  Logan started crying and yelling, "Momma!" I said, "What were you doing back there?"  He stood there looking at me with his mouth open wide and crying.  Then he ran out of the room.  When he came back he was still crying.  He asked if I still loved him and if I was okay.  He said he was sorry and that it was an accident. I started crying with him because first of all, it hurt, and secondly, seeing Logan so upset made me feel bad.  I sat holding him for a while.  Jacob eventually came into the room and said, "What happened?"  I told him and he figured out a way to prevent it from ever happening again. 

Later that night while tucking the boys in bed Logan told me he tried to save me by holding the goal and keeping it from falling.  He said, "I tried but my super powers wouldn't work!"  THAT made me smile. 

It left a mark -- a battle wound, if you prefer -- on my neck and I'm very thankful it didn't hit me on the head OR hit one of the boys.  It could have been a lot worse!  Jacob fixed it and once again we have moved on to other issues! 

I hope everyone is enjoying their week.

Beware of falling basketball goals!  You never know when they'll strike!!

Logan playing basketball!

Motherhood: It Really Is A Rewarding Job!

Alex is actually singing to Logan here.  This was back when Alex would sign his needs to us -- he didn't talk much -- but he did hum.  Humming was how he sang.  When I took this picture he started humming to Logan and Logan got excited.  Such a sweet moment!

Some one asked me if I had thought about getting a job.  Well, yes, I have thought about getting a job, but that old saying always pops into my head -- "the time just isn't right."  I had a working mom gig a couple of years ago.  It was a job I loved, but my two little boys come first.  Alex had so many doctor's appointments and I had to leave work twice a week to take him to one of his therapy sessions.  I would use my lunch break, which was only an hour -- we'd be gone and hour and a half -- so I would then have to stay 30 minutes later to make up the time.  That was more time away from my children and it got to the point where it just didn't make sense for me to work at that time -- and it still wouldn't work for me. Alex has therapy three days a week after school.  We also have to work with him on things at home.  Being there to take him where he needs to be and being able to stay in constant communication with all of his therapists is something that is very important to me.

I have been thinking about this today because I have spent a good chunk of my day trying to find medical information for an appointment Alex has tomorrow afternoon.  I found everything I need for tomorrow's appointment -- with one exception.  I couldn't find his most recent IEP information for his speech.  I found all of the old ones, but not the most recent one.  I looked everywhere I could think but couldn't find it.  I finally decided to just call Alex's speech therapist and ask if I could have another one.  It struck me as funny because I try to be an organized mother -- I try to keep all of the important things together, but sometimes it seems that is easier said than done.  My best friend pointed out that I might have left it sitting out and Logan might have grabbed it to color on or practice writing his name -- you never know with that boy! Or I possibly could have put it some place where I thought it would be safe and now I just can't remember where that place is! Alex's speech therapist said it would be no problem and she would get the copy to me today. 

I read a couple of books with Logan after lunch today,  we built a small house out of blocks, and I helped him with his homework.  I have a lot of work to do with Alex this afternoon and we are waiting to hear how he did on his sight words today.  I am feeling rather productive at the moment and thankful for my two little men! Here's to many more exciting and crazy days with two amazing little boys!

The Grass is Always Greener in Some one Else's Yard, Right?

I'm all for buying a can of green spray paint and painting my yard green.  It doesn't have to be natural, does it? 

I remember when Alex was a newborn my grandparents told me to cherish him as an infant.  I remember looking at my grandpa and saying, "What are you saying?" He smiled and said, "In a few years, you'll understand."  Well, it has been 6 years, boy, do I ever understand.  Life gets real crazy real fast! 

 I love this picture -- I get it.  I really do!  There are days I feel the way she looks -- LOL!

Today is a perfect example of this craziness -- a craziness that we should be getting used to in the Astley house but  for some reason it still catches us by surprise. 

The surprises started a couple of weeks ago when we learned there could be issues with Alex's insurance so we have been busy trying to figure out a solution to that problem.  We learned that Alex is struggling in school, but trying so hard -- Jacob sat down with Alex the other night and told him we were so proud of him for being such a hard worker. Kids today have to do more in kindergarten than we did 25 years ago when we were in school -- more is expected of them.  As if that wasn't enough on a 6-year-old boy's plate Alex has to work harder at it because of all his issues -- he has speech or OT after school most days of the week. We encourage him and we ARE proud of him but some days it's hard to watch your child struggle.

To add to the fun in the Astley house we have a pipe leaking under the sink in the boys' bathroom.
The computer we use the most freaked out on me this morning and started beeping (or yelling) at me and "saying" it had viruses.  I let Jacob know about the problem and then I slowly and quietly (as not to upset the computer) walked away and pulled out the lap top.

Jacob gets paid once a month and although it's hard to make a paycheck last 4 weeks we know we can do it.  The problem comes when December rolls around.  Jacob gets paid about halfway through the month -- before Christmas break -- and then he doesn't get paid again until the end of January.  Well, I'm not going to lie -- making one paycheck last 6 weeks is quite a challenge -- especially when you have two boys who want to eat all the time.

I sent a sandwich in Alex's lunch today -- only a sandwich.  He has stopped eating the healthy foods and instead eats the chips, fruit snacks, etc. I send for him. So, this morning I thought I'd outsmart him.  I'd just send a sandwich and he'd HAVE to eat it because that is all there would be.  I was so proud of myself.  Alex came home from school and I opened his lunch box -- he didn't touch his sandwich.  He said, "I didn't have time."  WHAT?  I threw the sandwich in the trash and thought about what a waste it was!  Alex shrugged his shoulders and said, "It's a sandwich, mom."  Right.

Logan has started following me around saying, "Mom.  MOM!"  when I'm on the phone.  I move from room to room trying to get away from him because I can't hear and he follows me.  I don't know if maybe it's a game and I'm not aware that we're playing a game, but when I saw this picture I thought it was fitting!

I keep reminding myself that there will always be days like this.  And even though other families appear to have it better I try to remember to be thankful for what we have because there is always some one who is worse off than we are.

And who knows, maybe tomorrow I'll wake up and look outside and the grass in our yard will be greener! ;) 

PS . . . if you want to follow the 30 Day Picture Challenge, it's on my other blog, now!

Challenge Day 2

Today's challenge is to post a picture of myself with the person I have been closest to the longest.  This was easy for me--I knew right away who that person would be.  The person who has known me for 32 years, raised me, and put up with me!  That person is my mother.

This is one of my favorite pictures of my mom and me.  This picture, obviously, was taken on my wedding day.  My mom and I had a lot of fun that day.  We made a lot of jokes and enjoyed spending the day at the church with our friends and family.  We showed up early and all got ready together. I remember my brother made a lunch run for us--burgers and fries.  I was so hungry and looking forward to my burger and fries, but never had time to eat more than a couple of fries, which for some reason struck me as being funny.  Then, when I did have time to eat I couldn't find my burger.  One of my friends said, "Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were done--I threw it away." I stood there trying to process that--I hadn't taken even one bite out of the burger so why would I be finished with it.  My mom rolled her eyes and said, "Oh brother!" and started laughing--then we all started laughing.  It was so funny!

My mother and I are two very different people.  We like different things and we act differently--and sometimes our personalities clash.  We can drive each other completely crazy--but the great thing about our relationship is that we have a lot of fun together too. We can go shopping and just hang out and we always have a good time--especially now that I'm older! (LOL) When I was little my mom was there to fix my hair, to take care of me when I was ill, she helped me with my homework, she did all of those little things that mothers do every day.  I think the thing that stands out to me the most is that she put up with me. I was NOT an easy teenager to live with and she never threw her hands up and said, "That's it! I'm done." 

Do you remember the scene in A Christmas Story when Ralphie has a fight?  Ralphie thought his father was going to kill him when he found out about it.  His mom didn't keep it from his father but she told him in such a way that it didn't seem like a big deal--and life went on.  THIS was our house.  My brother and I would do something--something we knew we shouldn't have done--and we knew when our dad found out we were going to be in a lot of trouble.  So, like any sane child would do, we would go to mom first.  Let's be honest, if you're going to get a spanking you want your mom to do it, not your dad, right?  Mom would tell my dad what happened but she would do it in such a way that it didn't seem to be a big deal.  If it was a big deal she would tell him when we weren't around and then talk to him and calm him down before we got there.  She was always our biggest ally and as I was growing up it never occurred to me to give her credit for that--or to thank her for all she did for me as infant, child, teenager, and even now as an adult.  

My mom had open heart surgery a little over a year ago and about a month after her surgery she ended up back in the hospital with an infection and had to have another surgery.  Through all of this I realized that not only is my mother stronger than I ever gave her credit for, but we are not promised tomorrow and our relationships with family are worth all the effort. 

So, here's to many more years of craziness with a woman I like to call "Mom."

A Challenge (Day 1)

I have been challenged! 

I have been given the 30 day picture challenge for my blog.  Every day, for thirty days, you post a different picture (it tells you what kind to post) and you either talk about that picture or the events surrounding the picture.  Some days ask you to write about other things.  Sometimes there just isn't a lot to blog about so I thought this would be fun. 

So, I accept this challenge! ;P 

Here we go . . .

Day 1
(Post a picture of yourself along with 10 facts)

This is one of the better pictures of me without one of my guys in the picture--LOL!

Now, onto the facts about me!

1.) I LOVE coffee.  I drink 2-4 cups in the morning and then have another cup or two later in the day.  If it's cold and winter-y outside I could drink it all day.

2.) I am addicted to spicy food.  I could eat spicy food every day--three times a day!  It's so good!

3.) If I get out of the car while it is still running (this usually happens when I pick up Alex at school and have to pull over to buckle him up) I roll down my window before I get out.  This started when the boys were little and I was afraid I was going to get locked out of the car.  Now they are old enough to unlock the door if I get locked out, but I still roll the window down--you never know, they may just laugh at me and not unlock it--LOL!

4.) I love books and art.  I enjoy reading and appreciate it more these days since I don't have as much time to read as I did years ago. As for art--there are so many different forms of art--I love anything that expresses creativity!

5.) I love chocolate milk, but HAVE to drink it with a straw.  I'm very weird about it--for some reason it just doesn't seem right to drink it from the cup.  A straw is a must for chocolate milk! 

6.) The first time Jacob told me he loved me it threw me off guard.  I smiled and said, "Thank you."  It was a total Rory & Dean (Gilmore Girls) moment.  After he left I felt bad for him and also felt like an idiot.  I guess it didn't upset him TOO much that I responded that way because he stuck around! (And I'm so glad he did, by the way!) ;P 

7.) I do NOT like juice.  Any kind of juice.  I'm just not a juice fan!

8.)  I am older than my husband (by 9 months) =)

9.) I love alternative, rock, heavy metal, 80s Pop, and a lot of R&B.  However, I'm not a big fan of country.  I just don't really care for 99% of it.

10.) While taking a creative writing course in college I had to write a story that was at LEAST 25 pages long.  I wrote a story about Snow White as the villain. It was a lot of fun and my professor really seemed to enjoy working on it with me! 

2011 So Far

The boys on Monday, the first day back to school after Christmas break.


So far 2011 has been busy, stressful, and tiring.  Alex was emotional about going back to school and I can't say that I blame him.  Reality can be difficult sometimes. Monday morning came and the boys were rested and a little more open to the idea of going to school--and they both had good days.

Jacob and I have been focused on doctor's appointments for Alex, appointments to deal with insurance issues, and I am trying to get back in the swing of school, speech, and OT--which isn't as easy as I thought it'd be.  I have been on the phone a lot trying to set up appointments, trying to talk to a human and not a computer, and trying to get information so we can get the ball rolling on things that will help us give Alex everything he needs.  I'd be lying if I said it hasn't been stressful, frustrating, and at times overwhelming.

I have also been thinking about my mother and grandmother a lot this week.  My mother calls to talk about things that go on--she has every right to.  My Grandpa Jack was diagnosed with cancer a while back--they did surgery and he was fine, but the surgeon made sure we knew this didn't mean the cancer could come back.  It did come back. I am old enough to know that life is not always easy.  This event isn't easy for any of us.  I remember the strong, laughing, happy, fun man my Grandpa once was. I remember having lunch with him and my grandma every Sunday, spending the night at their place on the weekends and grandpa giving us ice cream late at night after my grandma was asleep. I remember when Alex was born and he had beautiful curly hair and everyone said he looked like my grandpa--My grandpa smiled so big at that!  I remember the stories he tells--and I always want to remember these things.  I want to hold on to every memory I have of him.  It has been hard seeing him so thin and weak as we all just wait.  I love my Grandpa Jack dearly--always have.  He has always been one of my favorite people.  The hardest part for me right now is the questions Alex and Logan have been asking.  Alex keeps asking if his Great Grandpa Jack is sick.  On Christmas Eve my grandpa eventually had to go lay down and he didn't come out to open gifts with everyone.  Logan keeps asking where he was and why he didn't open presents with us.  He also asked why he didn't get to tell "Gweat Gwanpa Jack" goodbye when we left. Trying to explain it to my boys has been the hardest part in this whole situation.  I am, however, thankful that my boys were given the chance to know my grandfather and Jacob's Pepa.  I never knew any of my great grandparents and I love that my boys were given the chance to know all but two of theirs. 

Alex with his Great Grandpa Jack on his first Christmas.

Grandpa Jack coloring with my boys at Thanksgiving. 

I don't like putting "personal" stuff on the blog--and this blog was set up to keep everyone up to date on what the boys are doing. This has been one of the things on my mind this week so I thought I'd take a moment  to talk about all the great things about my grandpa.

 Grandpa Jack with Logan as a baby

Alex and his Great Grandpa Jack (Christmas 2009)

Grandpa Jack playing with Logan when he was 1-year-old

We are planning to go see him soon and the one thing I look forward to is the smile that appears on his face when he sees my two boys.  

One fun thing on my agenda is a fun baby shower for my best friend.  Planning it so far has been fun and I know she is going to have a blast when the day rolls around.  I'm also excited that she is having a baby and we'll have, yet, one more thing in common.

I hope 2011 is off to a good start for everyone!
Until next time . . .