And The Saga Continues...

Just as I have previously promised that this was not going to be an all political blog, or an all scrapbooking blog, or an all Maks blog; I also promise that this is not becoming an all family health update blog; however, under the heading of "who could make this stuff up," I feel that I have to share the details of my last week with you.

So when last we left off, Kelsie had the croup; which was just the latest of illnesses to afflict my household. SO Thursday morning I woke Nicky up at 530AM because he had to be at school by 615 for his Outdoor Ed field trip to Flagstaff. I had volunteered Luis to chaperon, but so many people had volunteered that they had to have a lottery; and Luis just wasn't that lucky; (or was he?) I was a little nervous about Nicky going on the trip because they were going to be doing a lot of hiking; and not only does he have asthma; but he's his mother's son; so he is a little klutzy. Nicky on the other hand was not nervous at all (thankfully,) and he was beyond excited to go.

A few minutes after Nicky came downstairs we were joined by Lyndzi, which was highly unusual because she typically likes to sleep as long as possible and she didn't have to get up for another hour and a half. I said "Good morning!" And immediately asked what was wrong. I'm sure that you can probably guess that she said, "My throat hurts." To which I LOVINGLY replied "Of course it does." I gave her some Ibuprofen and told her to lay down on the couch. We drove Nicky to school for his field trip and by the time 7AM rolled around, she was feeling well enough to go to school. At 2pm when I picked her up, she looked like she had been through the ringer. She was extremely congested but her biggest concern was that she didn't want to cancel the girl's night that (upon Kelsie's suggestion) we had planned with my friend Tina and her daughter Kristin.

Lyndzi, Kelsie and I sat outside Shane's BBQ waiting for our friends, all the while Lyndzi's nose was dripping down her face. I knew that Tina would not be able to believe her eyes when she saw Lyndzi because she was aware of all the illnesses that we have been plagued with during the past few months; and sure enough when Tina saw Lyndzi she was just amazed.

We were standing in line to order when my cell phone rang. I didn't recognize the number and I thought I heard Nicky say "Mom," but then no one was there. Two minutes later the phone rang again and the voice on the other end said "Is this Nicky's Mom?" My heart must have skipped a beat as I nervously answered "yes." The voice then explained that she was Nicky's chaperon and that their bus had broken down. Say it with me, "Of course it did." And they expected to be delayed about 2 hours getting home. WHEW! What a relief; but again Tina was amazed. I think that she may have even said "Who could make this stuff up" and if she didn't I'm sure she was thinking it. Lyndzi's nose continued to run but the promise of Cold Stone ice cream kept her going. We had a really nice girl's night with Tina and Kristin and as we got in the car to leave, I commented to my girls that I missed my Nicky and I wanted him to come home. They echoed that sentiment and then the phone rang - it was Luis asking if I'd heard from Nicky again and as soon as I said "No;" my phone beeped and it was Nicky. He said "Mom, I know I've been gone many hours and you probably missed me, but I'll be back at school in a few minutes." Were we in sync or what?

On Friday, Nicky and Lyndzi had the day off from school for a testing break and Kelsie stayed home with the Croup. I went to work in my office and Luis got a call from a friend our friend Russell, asking if he could watch his 2 kids because I had kind of said that he could. When I called to check on every ones health Luis' report made me feel confident that we could skip a Doctor's appointment for at least one day. Luis asked what to give the kids for lunch and I suggested that he run over to Little Cesar's pizza and pick up 2 pizzas for just $10. Shortly thereafter, Luis called to tell me that he couldn't go to Little Cesar's because the minivan was dead. Say it with me "Of course it was." I told Luis to wait for Russell to come over to pick up the kids and to get a jump. They followed my advice, took the car to Autozone, got a new battery since ours was under warranty and we were back in business.

Saturday morning Luis woke up complaining of a sore throat. (Do I even have to say it this time?) He tried resting, but he just didn't feel well. I kept telling him to take some Tylenol for his fever, but he put it off as long as possible. He rested most of the day; but he still felt lousy. He took a class until noon on Sunday and then asked me if there was someplace that was open to see a doctor on Sundays; so I directed him to Urgent Care, to which he responded, "And they're open on Sunday?" To which I replied "Yes, that's why they call it Urgent Care." I took the kids to a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese and Luis called to let em know that he did indeed have Strep throat. OF COURSE!

On Monday morning both Lyndzi and Kelsie woke up complaining of sore throats. I made appointments for both girls to be seen at the Pediatrician's office and even stopped by to see my friend who swore that she hadn't been thinking about me. Both girls endured throat cultures and both came back negative, though both had red throats and Kelsie still had a bronchial mess from the Croup. Kelsie was given yet another antibiotic after saying to the nurse practitioner "Can't we just get this over with already." I'd like to think that she meant being sick all the time, but I know that she really can be just that fresh; God help me. I'm still waitng for the lab to call back to confirm that neither has Strep; so please keep your fingers crossed.

Now the question that seems to be on most people's minds is how I've avoided getting sick myself; and my answer is, I just might be sick, but I am too busy to pay attention to it; so I just keep go, go, going. I am getting on a plane by myself on Friday though. I'm going to Santa Monica for Rachel K's 40th birthday weekend; and I must admit that although I don't want to have a self-fulfilling prophecy; I'm afraid that once I have 5 minutes to myself; i'll be sick as a dog.

Well, what more can I say? I wouldn't dare tempt fate by asking the most natural of questions. I'm just going to continue taking everything in stride and trying to make everyone as comfortable as possible. And hopefully next week I can move on from these dreary reports and finally share some other thoughts.

Please keep us all in your prayers.

Till next time...

Queen of EVERYTHING

You Know You Have A Problem When...#5

You Know You Have A Problem When you go to the pediatrician's office and one of (the many) receptionists tells you that she had been thinking about you, because you hadn't been in for a few days. (This was last Tuesday.) I responded by saying "You haven't seen me in a few days because my husband brought my younger daughter in on Friday."

So let me rewind. In my "Lyndzi's Advice" post, I regaled you with the details of Lyndzi's recent illnesses; but in light of the past few months I feel the need to offer a recap. For brevity's sake (yes, A new concept for me;) I'll only go as far back as January.

OK, so upon our return from beautiful, Puerto Vallarta both Lyndzi and Kelsie were suffering with their allergies and asthma, and ultimately Kelsie was diagnosed with pneumonia and Lyndzi with RSV. This stint brought us to the doctor's office every day for a week; and this one, kind, receptionist took notice of this fact, and just shook her head in dismay every time she saw me walk through the door. She shook her head again a few weeks ago, during spring break when I came in for Lyndzi who was diagnosed with Strep throat. She shook her head less than a week later when I came in for Nicky who had been running a high fever, and complained of a terrible sore throat. Because we were so convinced it was strep, I ran him in for the test but we didn't have an exam. Trust me when I tell you that this was not the exam to skip, because the culture was negative, but the next night we wound up in Urgent Care because Nicky had double pink eye. The doctor also gave him an antibiotic for Pharyngitis, and when all was said and done; Nicky had missed 4 days of school. 2 1/2 weeks later, Luis brought Kelsie in for fever, congestion and discharge from her eyes; and she was diagnosed with both a sinus and ear infections. AND then a couple of days after that; I returned to the pediatricians office, and this is when she shook her head at me and made the comment about thinking about me; when I brought Nicky in due to another high temp, headache and congestion; and he walked out with strep throat. On my way out the door, I reported to her that it was in fact strep this time and jokingly asked her NOT to think about me again. Nicky returned to school on Monday, after missing ANOTHER 4 days; but yesterday Kelsie started running a temp and she was really congested, and this morning it sounded like I had a seal take up residence in my house; so guess where I went today? Once again she shook her head and uttered the words "Oh come on; I just can't believe it." I asked her if she'd been thinking about me; but she swore that she hadn't.

Kelsie and I waited in the examining room and entertained ourselves with MANY games of Tic Tac Toe. While we were playing I noticed that Kelsie had really fat fingers below her knuckles. I LOVINGLY commented that I had never realized that she had such chubby fingers and she said "Everyone does." I said "No, not everyone ;"and I showed her my fingers which aside from my feet are the only thin thing on my body. When she realized that not everyone had chubby fingers, she said "I guess I'd better do some exercise;" and it was the cutest thing in the world. She followed that up with, "And you should probably do some exercise too Mommy." To which I replied "I would love to; if my children would stay healthy so that I could put them in the childcare at the gym or send them to school." The nurse practitioner then examined Kelsie an as I was leaving I stopped by the desk to tell "My friend" that Kelsie had Croup. Oh yes, it's not just for babies. My friend and I recapped that since January my household has now experienced allergies, asthma, Pneumonia, RSV, Sinus infections, ear infections, Strep throat, Pink eye and Croup. I said "What's next, pestilence?" And she kinda shrugged and said "well," like it wasn't an impossibility; so I swear I am totally considering scrubbing them all down with Lice shampoo, just as a precaution.

Now I honestly don't think it's enjoyable to read about all of my kids ailments and I have tried to spare you all the gory details; but of course I have a point and that is; now you know where the heck I've been. I have TONS of things that I have been thinking about writing about. I still want to share my Ass Burrito story, I have been dying to comment on American Idol and Dancing With the Stars; and I'm totally itching for someone to throw another Six Degrees challenge my way; however, instead I have been caring for my sick children and trying to balance my life.

I saw a book about Diablo Cody in Barnes & Noble the other day, and I looked at it longingly thinking, "now maybe if I become a stripper, someone will want to publish my writing." Then again, I'd really have to get back to the gym in order to make that happen, and given the health of my family, who knows how soon that will be. So instead, I am really going to commit myself to getting this blog out come Hell or high water or Strep, or Croup. I need to take a pledge like the mailmen; no rain or snow or sleet or hail ... will keep me from writing my blog; as God is my witness... Now there's gotta be some kind of recognition for combining the postmans pledge and a line from "Gone with the Wind;"... or not. But at least I feel like I'm getting my mojo back. Ya'know once I start rambling, "The Ride" is getting back to normal.

As for my kids, please send positive thoughts their way.

Till next time...

Queen of EVERYTHING

My New Weight Loss Plan

I haven't written about my weight loss in quite some time; because much to my dismay there hasn't been any news to share. Oh, don't get me wrong; I'm still going to the gym and I'm still sticking to my no carbs during dinner or after ,(for the most part) and for the most part I mean when no sadistic restaurant is introducing menu items such as "The brownoli." Oh yes, you've guessed it, 2 of my weaknesses combined into one dessert. Yes it's the brownie stuffed with cannoli cream - OY! This is while I'll NEVER be thin. Now don't get me wrong; when I went to the newly opened Meatballz; one of the reasons that I agreed to go was because my friend Shelly told me that in addition to being able to order a hero (sub) or an entree with pasta, you could also order an entree with salad. And then of course the second reason was that she told me about the brownoli. I just had to try it; so I ordered one (I mean I could have saved it for the next day; that's permissible,) but then what do you think happened? The place was packed so we decided that we would get our food to go. It was just over an hour when I finally got my order and was told that they had run out of bread (and of course Luis had decided to cheat on his diet and order the hero) and the guy wanted to know what I wanted him to do about it. YES, that's what he said, and I quote "I'm sorry, we've run out of bread; what do you want me to do about it?" To which, (after I gave a New York raised sigh of disgust,) I said "well what are my options?" And he actually replied "Well, I could give you your money back, or you can have anything else on the menu." Give me my money back, did I hear that right? I had waited for over an hour with not so much as a free cup for water and the guy thought that I might choose to leave WITHOUT food? Now, I'm sounding a lot more outraged here then I let on to him, which must be why he decided to reward me with an extra brownoli; but in the long run, they were so busy that they must not have been paying real close attention to my order because when I unpacked my order at Shelly's, I found THREE orders of brownoli. Maybe that's an indication of how they ran out of bread. Anyway, I still have brownoli in my fridge. I'll just say the idea of it, actually sounds better than what it is ~ at least these. So see, I really do have a bit of self control, and I have been trying to exercise it all over the place, since I can't seem to find the time to exercise IT, at the gym.
Now when I say that I'm still going to the gym; I should clarify and say that when I began my weight loss plan, I was religiously going to the gym 5 times a week; and then soccer season hit and in addition to that, my work load was enormous, (and I usually take a break from work to go to the gym;) so given these two factors, my attendance slowed down to 3 or 4 times a week. I know that these sound like excuses, but wait; I'll gice you more. The next thing I knew it was December, and I had extra things to do because of the girl's birthdays and leaving for Puerto Vallarta; so I was convinced that I would start the year off like gangbusters and get back to my 5 time a week routine ~ yah, but in the long run; not so much. Kelsie came down with pneumonia, Lyndzi's asthma was out of control and then she got RSV, and since you can't take sick kids to the gym, again I had to miss a few more days than I should have.

Every Sunday, my friend Lesa and I try to plan our out at least 3 or 4 days that we can meet up at the gym during the upcoming week. We then call each other Monday morning to check in and make sure that no one has stayed home from school. Lesa also works from home, and so there are days that she bails on me; but I STILL go; because it really is important to me, and even though it's more fun with her there; in the long run, I'm really no there for fun.
Fast forward to 2 weeks ago; spring break, and Lyndzi had strep; so again I had to stay out of the gym. So last week, I went by myself on Monday; got one day under my belt and was feeling optimistic about making a fresh start. Then Tuesday morning, Nicky woke up with a fever and sore throat, so that was another day gone. Wednesday morning; same deal, and Wednesday night, along came the double pink eye (for Nicky.)
Come Monday, I again went to the gym alone. Lesa joined me on Tuesday, and it was then that we realized that we should be filming a YouTube show from the gym, because this is where we have our very INTENSE discussions about important things like who we think is going to be leaving "American Idol" and "Dancing With the Stars." Lesa wasn't able to stay that long, because she had a haircut appointment, but I pressed on. I wound up having a REALLY good workout ; probably the best that I'd had in quite some time. And later that day I called Lesa and said "If I bought it for you; would you wear the men's cologne of my choice, to the gym?" She gave a hearty laugh and said a very loud "WHAT?" So I explained, that a few minutes after she left, a semi-good looking guy (who I'd never seen there before,) got on the treadmill that she had been on; and he smelled TERRIFIC! I think he was wearing Fahrenheit, or some cologne that I really like, and he smelled so good, that I actually added time to my treadmill; TWICE! We both laughed ourselves silly; and though she thought it was a good idea, she couldn't comply due to allergies; so I'm actually considering putting some cologne on my workout towel. Never underestimate the power of smell. With this new plan of action, I just may take off those additional hundred pounds within the next 2 years; or at least I'll be happy trying.
Till next time...
Queen of EVERYTHING