Good morning Blog readers,
So. Here we are. In the stunned, worn out, holiday void between christmas and new years eve. For me, 'worn out' is an understatement. I am actually brutally ill. Too much craziness, too little sleep = upper respiratory infection, breathing tube infection and a left lung that 'doesn't sound good'. :( So it looks like I will ring in the new year in a drug induced, hacking, wheezing, feverish stupor....waiting for the antibiotics to kick in and kill these germs! I can't say I am all that sad. It is kind of nice to have a great excuse to not have to suck it up and find one last burst of energy just because it's 'New Years Eve'. I'm thinking some Thai take-out, popcorn and maybe the new Harry Potter with my favorite people is just the thing I need this year. Can't say I'm evening planning on seeing midnight. Sounds perfect, don't you think?!
I have to say, though, even being sick now, it was so worth it. 'It' being the christmas craziness of course. What a wonderful time we had. How lucky, blessed, spoiled I am to be surrounded by such beautiful people in my life. Even better?! The most 'beautiful' of said people? My own kids! How I marvel what fantastic little beings they are each and every day. While another year slips away, and I brush tears aside remembering what stages and memories are coming to a close with it, I can't help but smile, beam even, over the FUN, LOVE, LAUGHTER we have shared. To make such memories with such wonderful people is pure bliss.
MADISON - Girl, you ROCK. I am so proud of the lovely young lady you are becoming. Your thoughtfulness, humor, and huge heart are an inspiration to me everyday. You see, and appreciate, the little things. You take risks and challenge yourself. You are a great big sister AND great friend. I love your inquisitive mind, the fact that you question things, your zest for reading. I think it's great how you love to play games, and look forward to playing many more with you. So often I look at you and think, WOW, are you SMART. Continue to be you. To grow in, learn from and question the world around you. You are beautiful, inside and out and I couldn't ask for a more awesome daughter. 'To the Moon and Back' XO
LAUREN - My favorite 6 year old. You are the coolest little being. I love and admire how you take on life, 100%. My heart swells to hear and see what a thoughtful, helpful, kind person you are becoming. You have such a tough shell...who would know what a gooey center was inside?! Man are you a super cuddler! I am so proud of how hard you try at everything, even if you find it a challenge. That's an admirable asset. You are awesome at being the middle child. Such a great little sister AND a great big sister. Good job. You are fun, loving and add humor to every day. Keep on attacking life with such vigor, you will reap the rewards. 'As Big as a Mountain' XO
LANE - Dude, what a cool little man you are. 2 years old and so, SO smart. I marvel at your vocabulary and skills. Wow, are you learning a lot from your big sisters. They, too, learn a lot from you. You are an awesome baby brother, and so adored by the whole household. Your curiosity is contagious. Your memory amazing. I know I enjoy reading to, and teaching you, as much as you enjoy soaking it up. You are so FUNNY for a little guy. You just get it. That's awesome. I love that you have introduced 'big trucks' 'monsters' and 'tools' to our world; it is better for it. Continue thriving, wee man, you have only just begun. 'To Infinity and Beyond' XO
So, goodbye 2010. You have been good to us. We have blossomed in so many ways. We are so lucky and honored to be surrounded by such amazing people in our lives. To share, grow and experience this life together. I know I have it good. I know I am blessed. I am truly humbled.
Bring on 2011! Onwards and upwards.
Smiles, Be well,
Crystal
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
The broken finger incident....
Hello!
So...I have had a lot of inquiries about my broken finger. Yup, that's right, for those of you just finding out, I broke my finger. How would I sum it up? I'd have to say draining. About 24 hours following the actually incident and all the drama that followed, I was totally wiped out. (and, no, it wasn't just the pain killers!) Here's what happened....
*Disclaimer! It turned into a really LONG story...my apologies!*
I had all three kids in the van and was rushing off to the grocery store. (Note - I don't think we ever head anywhere NOT rushing) I was dressed for work, and had little more than an hour to grab something for Brad and the kiddies to have for dinner, pick him up from work, drop them all off and get to work myself. Not really a bad time frame under normal circumstances...as I said, I'm used to rushing! As leaped in the van myself I simultaneously went to close the door with my left hand and put my seat belt on with my right. Well, the seat belt got stuck. So I let go of the door and grabbed the belt near the top with that hand, giving it a good yank. As quick as a flash the seat belt let go, my hand (with thumb and first two fingers gripping belt and second two sticking out) shot up and out the door, and the door, which apparently was still slamming shut, did so on my ring finger. Wait....give me a moment....deep breaths....deep breaths.....! Okay. Obviously I instantly exclaimed (no profanities, I'm proud to say), opened the door, looked at my finger and almost vomited. Tears sprung to my eyes as my kids asked in worried voices 'what's wrong Mama?'. Said finger was bent backwards and to the side at almost a 90 degree angle. My first thought you ask? Funnily enough it was 'I don't think I can work'! I told the kids to stay put, hopped out of the van, my hand held up and to the side because looking at it made it so much worse. Quickly I ran inside, grabbed a bag of ice, a baggie and called work. My stoic calm evaded me upon having to say (sob) out loud 'I can't come to work, I think my finger is broken....(more gasping sobs)....it's CROOKED!' That dealt with I returned to the van, more composed, but tears still streaming, and asked Madison to 'put some ice in the baggie for me please'. She had the best view from the front seat and looked at me, quite pale herself, and said 'But Mama, where are we going? Your finger is crooked!'. To which I calmly replied 'Yes, I know honey, but we have to pick up Daddy'.
Needless to say, upon seeing Brad, any calm demeanor I was clinging to flew right out the window. I held up my hand and sobbed. He jumped out of the truck he had just pulled up in, looked at my finger and got me in the van, heading off to seek treatment. (I will mention our friend Brant offered, with a barely concealed grin, to straighten it for me, to which I declined in horror) We dashed off, me crying, Brad driving, Madison texting (upon my request) my Mom to let her know they (the kids) were on their way. By now the finger was basically numb, kind of pulsing, but nothing too terrible. Any time I looked at it, it brought on fresh tears though.
So, with kids dropped off, we headed for a walk in clinic. (Not until after Brad mentioned he was starving and hinted at stopping for food though! Needless to say, without so much as a word, we kept on towards the clinic!) Upon getting in to see the doctor he asked 'So what happened?' I told him and held up my hand for him to see. Do you know what he did?! Without a word of warning?! He grabbed it...and STRAIGHTENED it!!! Oh man did I cry, and scream, and cry. I'm pretty sure the words 'I'd rather have another baby than THIS!' escaped my mouth. lol After binding (more tears and whimpers) it to part of a tongue depressor, he sent us of to the ER. Cause guess what?! Not only was it certainly broken, he thought the tendon was off. Oh goodie.
Now we found ourselves at the Royal Jubilee ER. About 5:30 at night. With no hope of being there less than 3 hours. (It ended up being 5) :S Brad dropped me off and went to fill the T3 prescription from the first doctor for me and grab something to eat. After being admitted, and watching/listening to all the stories and characters only the ER seems to attract, I took a seat to wait. And wait, and wait, and wait. Happily Brad returned with the pills and I slept on his shoulder for part of it! Finally we were brought through the doors....to wait some more. Totally tricky. After being called into a room to see a nurse and tell my story again, we were sent to X-ray. Guess what I did there?! Yup...waited some more. By now my Mom was with me, since she and Brad had swapped jobs so the kids could get home to bed. Being a total Mom and seeing how I was starting to hurt again, but how loopy I was after the first round of pills, she went to get me a sub. After my X-rays, I again waited. What a group of people there were there! One old, likely homeless man kept asking for rolling papers claiming 'this place would be SO much better if we just got high'! Another young mom of a 2 year old kept yelling at the same man to 'stop talking to my son'! Ahh....good times. Finally! I saw the doctor. Guess what he did?! Unwrapped my finger while I stood there, in front of everyone and cried again! He then started trying on various splints....yes, as I continued to cry. Yes, still standing beside waiting room, in front of everyone. Eventually it was splinted and taped and he took me to see the X-rays. Want to know the good news he had for me?! He thought I may need surgery(!) and a pin(!) to put it back together properly, and was sending me to a plastic surgeon in the morning. Fack!
Round three. Next morning. Plastic surgeon's office. After more waiting, more X-rays and another drug induced nap in the waiting room, I saw the surgeon. Who had good news! The bones were lined up as good as he'd hope to get them with a pin! Prognosis? 3 weeks in a splint (awkward, but doable) then one more visit to him after 4 weeks. If all has gone well I should be good to go. Maybe with a little physio to regain mobility.
Whew! There you have it. Sorry it was an absurdly long story.
Smiles, be well,
(Mallet finger!) Crystal
So...I have had a lot of inquiries about my broken finger. Yup, that's right, for those of you just finding out, I broke my finger. How would I sum it up? I'd have to say draining. About 24 hours following the actually incident and all the drama that followed, I was totally wiped out. (and, no, it wasn't just the pain killers!) Here's what happened....
*Disclaimer! It turned into a really LONG story...my apologies!*
I had all three kids in the van and was rushing off to the grocery store. (Note - I don't think we ever head anywhere NOT rushing) I was dressed for work, and had little more than an hour to grab something for Brad and the kiddies to have for dinner, pick him up from work, drop them all off and get to work myself. Not really a bad time frame under normal circumstances...as I said, I'm used to rushing! As leaped in the van myself I simultaneously went to close the door with my left hand and put my seat belt on with my right. Well, the seat belt got stuck. So I let go of the door and grabbed the belt near the top with that hand, giving it a good yank. As quick as a flash the seat belt let go, my hand (with thumb and first two fingers gripping belt and second two sticking out) shot up and out the door, and the door, which apparently was still slamming shut, did so on my ring finger. Wait....give me a moment....deep breaths....deep breaths.....! Okay. Obviously I instantly exclaimed (no profanities, I'm proud to say), opened the door, looked at my finger and almost vomited. Tears sprung to my eyes as my kids asked in worried voices 'what's wrong Mama?'. Said finger was bent backwards and to the side at almost a 90 degree angle. My first thought you ask? Funnily enough it was 'I don't think I can work'! I told the kids to stay put, hopped out of the van, my hand held up and to the side because looking at it made it so much worse. Quickly I ran inside, grabbed a bag of ice, a baggie and called work. My stoic calm evaded me upon having to say (sob) out loud 'I can't come to work, I think my finger is broken....(more gasping sobs)....it's CROOKED!' That dealt with I returned to the van, more composed, but tears still streaming, and asked Madison to 'put some ice in the baggie for me please'. She had the best view from the front seat and looked at me, quite pale herself, and said 'But Mama, where are we going? Your finger is crooked!'. To which I calmly replied 'Yes, I know honey, but we have to pick up Daddy'.
Needless to say, upon seeing Brad, any calm demeanor I was clinging to flew right out the window. I held up my hand and sobbed. He jumped out of the truck he had just pulled up in, looked at my finger and got me in the van, heading off to seek treatment. (I will mention our friend Brant offered, with a barely concealed grin, to straighten it for me, to which I declined in horror) We dashed off, me crying, Brad driving, Madison texting (upon my request) my Mom to let her know they (the kids) were on their way. By now the finger was basically numb, kind of pulsing, but nothing too terrible. Any time I looked at it, it brought on fresh tears though.
So, with kids dropped off, we headed for a walk in clinic. (Not until after Brad mentioned he was starving and hinted at stopping for food though! Needless to say, without so much as a word, we kept on towards the clinic!) Upon getting in to see the doctor he asked 'So what happened?' I told him and held up my hand for him to see. Do you know what he did?! Without a word of warning?! He grabbed it...and STRAIGHTENED it!!! Oh man did I cry, and scream, and cry. I'm pretty sure the words 'I'd rather have another baby than THIS!' escaped my mouth. lol After binding (more tears and whimpers) it to part of a tongue depressor, he sent us of to the ER. Cause guess what?! Not only was it certainly broken, he thought the tendon was off. Oh goodie.
Now we found ourselves at the Royal Jubilee ER. About 5:30 at night. With no hope of being there less than 3 hours. (It ended up being 5) :S Brad dropped me off and went to fill the T3 prescription from the first doctor for me and grab something to eat. After being admitted, and watching/listening to all the stories and characters only the ER seems to attract, I took a seat to wait. And wait, and wait, and wait. Happily Brad returned with the pills and I slept on his shoulder for part of it! Finally we were brought through the doors....to wait some more. Totally tricky. After being called into a room to see a nurse and tell my story again, we were sent to X-ray. Guess what I did there?! Yup...waited some more. By now my Mom was with me, since she and Brad had swapped jobs so the kids could get home to bed. Being a total Mom and seeing how I was starting to hurt again, but how loopy I was after the first round of pills, she went to get me a sub. After my X-rays, I again waited. What a group of people there were there! One old, likely homeless man kept asking for rolling papers claiming 'this place would be SO much better if we just got high'! Another young mom of a 2 year old kept yelling at the same man to 'stop talking to my son'! Ahh....good times. Finally! I saw the doctor. Guess what he did?! Unwrapped my finger while I stood there, in front of everyone and cried again! He then started trying on various splints....yes, as I continued to cry. Yes, still standing beside waiting room, in front of everyone. Eventually it was splinted and taped and he took me to see the X-rays. Want to know the good news he had for me?! He thought I may need surgery(!) and a pin(!) to put it back together properly, and was sending me to a plastic surgeon in the morning. Fack!
Round three. Next morning. Plastic surgeon's office. After more waiting, more X-rays and another drug induced nap in the waiting room, I saw the surgeon. Who had good news! The bones were lined up as good as he'd hope to get them with a pin! Prognosis? 3 weeks in a splint (awkward, but doable) then one more visit to him after 4 weeks. If all has gone well I should be good to go. Maybe with a little physio to regain mobility.
Whew! There you have it. Sorry it was an absurdly long story.
Smiles, be well,
(Mallet finger!) Crystal
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Coyote Ugly.....Toddler Style...
Morning Blog readers!
Guess what? Wait for it.....! I have sick kids! Yup. Again. With 3 (notice I am kindly not including the hubby) it seems there isn't a lot of time between bugs. Add in this super hectic, extra activity, energy, angst time of year and consider yourself weakened. Especially if your 'self' is wee. It started with my 6 year old. Runny nose, mild fever, cough, sore throat. She is on day 3 home from school. (Although this morning she tried to INSIST she was okay to go. While simultaneously gasping she was going to throw up and coughing up a lung...very effective! lol) Saw the doctor last night. Been swabbed for strep. Fun times. :S Now, though, it has become worse. Little man is sick. Poor, 30 pound, 2 year old Laney Bug. :( Toddler sickness TRULY sucks. So far his, too, is the head cold kind. Not too bad you say? Hmmmm....maybe you should sleep over. He is too young for decongestants, to young to stay propped up on pillows to keep his head elevated, too young to even blow his nose properly. So guess where that leaves us? (and I do mean US literally) Together in MY bed, (snoring hubby is there too....but he probably couldn't tell you which two kids are sick if pressed), propped up on MY pillows, in the crook of MY arm while I keep a constant vigilance to keep his head elevated. Throw in the occasional boob fondling (Lane, not hubby!) and you can imagine I'm not sleeping much! Hey...while we have the 'boob' thing out there...what is with my now 2 year old's new found obsession with my boobs?! He has been weaned for a year, but is intent on slipping a hand down my shirt whenever he gets close enough to. He actually has SAID, while coming into my bed on some other wakeful night 'Me hold boobie....please'!!! Seriously?! But that is a whole other topic...lol. So, this morning found me slipping said arm out from under poor sickie #2, ever so carefully, covering him up, fluffing the pillows upright and creeping out of the room. Hoping to buy some time to get Madison off to school, Lauren settled on the couch and at least one cup of coffee into me before my day starts being dictated by my sick toddler. Should be a long one!
On the up side? Two out of five isn't THAT bad. Keep your fingers crossed that the germ spreading stays minimal!
Smiles, Be well,
Crystal
Guess what? Wait for it.....! I have sick kids! Yup. Again. With 3 (notice I am kindly not including the hubby) it seems there isn't a lot of time between bugs. Add in this super hectic, extra activity, energy, angst time of year and consider yourself weakened. Especially if your 'self' is wee. It started with my 6 year old. Runny nose, mild fever, cough, sore throat. She is on day 3 home from school. (Although this morning she tried to INSIST she was okay to go. While simultaneously gasping she was going to throw up and coughing up a lung...very effective! lol) Saw the doctor last night. Been swabbed for strep. Fun times. :S Now, though, it has become worse. Little man is sick. Poor, 30 pound, 2 year old Laney Bug. :( Toddler sickness TRULY sucks. So far his, too, is the head cold kind. Not too bad you say? Hmmmm....maybe you should sleep over. He is too young for decongestants, to young to stay propped up on pillows to keep his head elevated, too young to even blow his nose properly. So guess where that leaves us? (and I do mean US literally) Together in MY bed, (snoring hubby is there too....but he probably couldn't tell you which two kids are sick if pressed), propped up on MY pillows, in the crook of MY arm while I keep a constant vigilance to keep his head elevated. Throw in the occasional boob fondling (Lane, not hubby!) and you can imagine I'm not sleeping much! Hey...while we have the 'boob' thing out there...what is with my now 2 year old's new found obsession with my boobs?! He has been weaned for a year, but is intent on slipping a hand down my shirt whenever he gets close enough to. He actually has SAID, while coming into my bed on some other wakeful night 'Me hold boobie....please'!!! Seriously?! But that is a whole other topic...lol. So, this morning found me slipping said arm out from under poor sickie #2, ever so carefully, covering him up, fluffing the pillows upright and creeping out of the room. Hoping to buy some time to get Madison off to school, Lauren settled on the couch and at least one cup of coffee into me before my day starts being dictated by my sick toddler. Should be a long one!
On the up side? Two out of five isn't THAT bad. Keep your fingers crossed that the germ spreading stays minimal!
Smiles, Be well,
Crystal
Monday, December 13, 2010
A much needed battery recharging....
Morning readers!
First of all, please excuse any typos in this post. I am typing with a broken ring finger (a whole other blog!) and while I try to catch them....some do get by. :)
So....12 days 'til Chirstmas?! Yup. Wow. I sure feel out of it this year. Thus far we have no tree, no decor, no gifts. Yikes. I feel so much worse seeing it in type! Today IS the day it's coming to an end though. Lights are going up, decorations are out, going to buy a tree. Even have a baking/crafting date this afternoon with my cousin and her son. I'm also going to find our christmas dishes! So soon, my dear children, we will be feeling festive. Sorry 'bout my lack of enthusiasm to date. :S
Why? You ask? I think it's a combination of being drained, over whelmed, stressed and having a conflicting work schedule with Brad where 5 days a week we literally high-five mid day as one of us gets home and one heads out. Then through in dance, homework and day to day chores.....you get it, right?!
In the past week, though, we have been lucky enough to have not one, but TWO, perfect, re-charging evenings. No kids, no work, no chores. Just us, and some much loved adults in our lives. It sure helps put things in perspective and to feel in tune with your partner again. More appreciative.
Lovely evening number one saw us out to dinner with some dear friends we have made since moving to Victoria. It was filled with great food, great wine and great conversation (minus the iPhone googling of a couple nauseating phrases). A 3 hour check-out of day-to-day craziness, kids (we have 7! between us) and work. Of course, we talked about our kids, day-to-day craziness and work....but in the silence and calm of a candlelit restaurant. No 'Mommy' 'Daddy' 'No' 'Why' 'It wasn't me' or other random shrieks, screams or whines. Bliss. We came home happy, full, slightly drunk(!) and recharged. Content. Thank you, dear friends.
Lovely evening number two was a birthday party. A 'Party Like a Rockstar' birthday party. Where we left Brad and Crystal behind and attended as 'Brett Michaels' and 'Lady Gaga'. We joined a group of friends who have been part of my life for going on 15 years and Brad's since we have been together. Surrogate family for sure. A great time; ALWAYS! My awesome Mom took the kids to her house overnight. So we had a fantastic time dancing, eating, drinking until the wee hours of the morning. Then got to come home to an empty house (we still tip toed and shushed each other, it is such a foreign situation!) AND slept in. Not even just a little bit, as we feared might happen as we are so used to being early risers after 9 years of parenthood, but until after 11 o'clock!!!! Wow. What a treat. What a great way to feel re-connected. To remember why we are living the life we are in the first place. Thank you surrogate family and Mom. It was perfect.
So, now, I go into this week leading up to the holidays happy and healthy. Ready to decorate, bake and shop. Re-charged. Re-invested. All thanks to those special people in my life. I love you all.
~Happy Holidays~
Smiles, be well, Crystal
First of all, please excuse any typos in this post. I am typing with a broken ring finger (a whole other blog!) and while I try to catch them....some do get by. :)
So....12 days 'til Chirstmas?! Yup. Wow. I sure feel out of it this year. Thus far we have no tree, no decor, no gifts. Yikes. I feel so much worse seeing it in type! Today IS the day it's coming to an end though. Lights are going up, decorations are out, going to buy a tree. Even have a baking/crafting date this afternoon with my cousin and her son. I'm also going to find our christmas dishes! So soon, my dear children, we will be feeling festive. Sorry 'bout my lack of enthusiasm to date. :S
Why? You ask? I think it's a combination of being drained, over whelmed, stressed and having a conflicting work schedule with Brad where 5 days a week we literally high-five mid day as one of us gets home and one heads out. Then through in dance, homework and day to day chores.....you get it, right?!
In the past week, though, we have been lucky enough to have not one, but TWO, perfect, re-charging evenings. No kids, no work, no chores. Just us, and some much loved adults in our lives. It sure helps put things in perspective and to feel in tune with your partner again. More appreciative.
Lovely evening number one saw us out to dinner with some dear friends we have made since moving to Victoria. It was filled with great food, great wine and great conversation (minus the iPhone googling of a couple nauseating phrases). A 3 hour check-out of day-to-day craziness, kids (we have 7! between us) and work. Of course, we talked about our kids, day-to-day craziness and work....but in the silence and calm of a candlelit restaurant. No 'Mommy' 'Daddy' 'No' 'Why' 'It wasn't me' or other random shrieks, screams or whines. Bliss. We came home happy, full, slightly drunk(!) and recharged. Content. Thank you, dear friends.
Lovely evening number two was a birthday party. A 'Party Like a Rockstar' birthday party. Where we left Brad and Crystal behind and attended as 'Brett Michaels' and 'Lady Gaga'. We joined a group of friends who have been part of my life for going on 15 years and Brad's since we have been together. Surrogate family for sure. A great time; ALWAYS! My awesome Mom took the kids to her house overnight. So we had a fantastic time dancing, eating, drinking until the wee hours of the morning. Then got to come home to an empty house (we still tip toed and shushed each other, it is such a foreign situation!) AND slept in. Not even just a little bit, as we feared might happen as we are so used to being early risers after 9 years of parenthood, but until after 11 o'clock!!!! Wow. What a treat. What a great way to feel re-connected. To remember why we are living the life we are in the first place. Thank you surrogate family and Mom. It was perfect.
So, now, I go into this week leading up to the holidays happy and healthy. Ready to decorate, bake and shop. Re-charged. Re-invested. All thanks to those special people in my life. I love you all.
~Happy Holidays~
Smiles, be well, Crystal
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