The Saga of the Doritos and a couple of other things.

Four years ago I went gluten free and at that time, Nacho Cheese Doritos were one of the many foods I gave up.  I liked them, but really didn't eat them all that often anyway.  So for 4 years, I have considered all Doritos products to be off limits.  When my son drove home from Mississippi last week, the only food he ate on the whole trip was a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos.  I thought he had eaten gluten and he disagreed, saying that he had read the label and they seemed to be gluten free.  I read the label and then Googled it and found out that they changed the formula a couple of years ago to eliminate wheat.  Oh Joy.  We got a bag the next day and ate Doritos.  Then later that day my stomach hurt, but I discounted it because I had taken an ibuprofen and sometimes that makes my stomach hurt.  Then we got some more Doritos because we were in the midst of our glorious reunion with them.  Then another stomach ache.  Hmmm.  This time I had not taken  any ibuprofen.  Of course being a homeschool mom I felt it was my responsibility to try the experiment one more time.  More stomach pain.  So my glorius reunion with Doritos is over now.  It was fun while it lasted.  :-P

Speaking of gluten, my oldest son got glutened yesterday at one of the family parties by, of all things, scalloped potatoes.  Normally, he would stay away from them because of the cheese, but he's been tolerating dairy products pretty well lately so he tried them, only to find out that they contained gluten.  He went home from the party and got a Gluten Digest pill, but it didn't work and he was in a fog all evening.   He's like me in that his gluten symptoms do not include any abdominal pain, but a headache, body aches and brain fog.

Speaking of parties, I got through them and had a good time as I always do.  After we went to church, then to a party, then to another party and got home at around 7:00 pm, my oldest son mentioned that he is bored at home and would like to "do something" because he is used to "doing stuff" all the time at school.  We've been to 5 parties this week, but apparently that is not enough.  I'm going to contact the homeschool group and see if they want to get together for New Years.   :-P

party, party.

We have 2 overlapping family parties today.  One with my extended family and one with my husband's extended family.  I, of course, am not looking forward to either for many reasons, the main one being that I am an introvert by nature (although I can fake being an extrovert quite well) and that being around that many people exhausts me.  Also, I'm in the middle of a personal pity party really and I'll have to answer the question "How are you?" many times today.  Should I say I'm "fine" or "okay" when really I don't feel all that fine or okay?  Wish me luck as I fake enthusiasm today and maybe I will fake it until I make it and have a happy day. 

Oh, I hope so.

Okay, now, I guess.

I need to get back to my normal life?  I really don't want to.  I'd like an excuse to keep on putting off all the things I don't want to do.  :-P    Here they are, in no particular order.

I need to go see about my arm, since I can't straighten it out.  ( I have an appointment today.)


I need to find Mom's VA application papers and take them to the assisted living facility person in charge of procuring VA benefits.  I'm really not sure where this might be????

My brother and I need to decide if Mom is staying where she is or moving to a different location.

I need to declutter my house. 

I need to get a new job.

I need to get an eye examination and new contacts.  Maybe some type of bifocal system.  :-(

I need to talk to my daughter and maybe enroll her in dual credit classes.  That has been the plan but as this is her last year of high school, she has things she wants to accomplish and really would it hurt to start college next fall?

I also need to take my daughter to get her driver's permit.

I need to try and lose the bazillion pounds I gained this year from stress eating, being sick and having all my joints hurt all the time.   (Most of my joints seem to be doing better thankfully, with the exception of my left elbow.)

I hope I can get at least some of these all checked off pretty quickly while still enjoying my son being home. :-)

We managed to have a good time.

Despite my concern over the changes in all of the plans, we had a good time anyway.  One of the highlights of the Christmas of 2013 was Christmas Eve when the 2 younger kids decided to watch Veggie Tales and then entertain us by singing every single word very quickly to all the songs, especially the Larry the Cucumber's song called "I love my lips" which was completely hilarious.
Another highlight was singing at church on Christmas Eve with my daughter singing with me and my son playing the guitar.  I'm tired now and glad it's all mostly over, but it was nice.

Getting there.

We managed to have a nice Christmas Eve yesterday, despite our change of plans.  We went out to Mom's assisted living apartment and hung some pictures up for her and sung her a song or two (She's our biggest fan) and then we went to church last night.  Then we slept for a short time and got up and gave gifts to the kids.  I'm kind of mad at myself for ordering the wrong size shirt for my oldest son.  His school bookstore was having a sale about a month ago and I had bought him a t shirt from there that was a medium, and this time I ordered a hoody.  I should have thought to get a hoody a size bigger because you wear it over other shirts, but I didn't.  I bought the medium.  Other than that, everything was a hit.  My husband did a good job with the shopping. 

Now we are off to have breakfast with my husband's family then come back home to have dinner with my family. 

Have a wonderful Christmas everyone!

" What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

A Different Christmas

Adjusting, adjusting, adjusting.  Everything about this year and this holiday season has been adjusting.   I would have liked for some things to stay the same.  The old routines are apparently comforting to me and so I have felt upset about all the changes this year.  I would like to be able to hold onto the usual Christmas stuff at least until my kids are grown, but it is not to be.  Our Christmases always involved going to Grandma and Granddaddy's house on Christmas eve, then to church, then coming home and staying awake half the night, then getting up early, getting presents from each other and Santa and then going to Mamaw's house for Christmas breakfast.  It's always been fun and exhausting and wonderful (and yes, I did whine about the lack of sleep!).  My youngest son especially has wanted to hang onto these traditions.  A few years ago when Mamaw's bathroom was being remodeled and was out of service on Christmas day and we went to my brother-in-law's house for breakfast, he was pretty upset about it.  Over the past 4 years, we have adjusted from it being Grandma and Granddaddy's house to just Grandmas. :-(

We knew this year was going to be different with Mom in assisted living.   Her house is in limbo, sitting there empty until we decide what to do with it so there is going to be no Christmas eve at Grandma's this year.  We had decided to host here on Christmas eve, same people, different house, but it is not to be.  My brother has made alternate plans and so we now have no plans tonight at all.   I probably will go spend some time with Mom but I am not sure.  We may move our opening presents from each other to tonight.  Again, not sure.  I feel really strange, not having a plan for tonight. 

So then tomorrow, my mother in law doesn't feel like hosting so we are going to my brother-in-law's again.  Sigh.  I guess I better just get over it.   A little warning on either of the disrupted plans would have helped me deal with it maybe a little better.   As it is, I am having a very emotional Christmas to end a very emotional year.    I am going to try and put a smile on my face, and make some new traditions.   One thought I had was trying to do some random acts of kindness tonight and we may do that. 

Oh well, I guess I'd better get to work.  

I hope that everyone has a nice Christmas this year.

   

It's Christmas Eve, Eve.

Our family has a lot of traditions, things we do every year.  The Christmas countdown calendar, hiding candy in the tree, going to the Christmas play at church, going to my parent's house at Christmas Eve and going to my in-law's house on Christmas day.  For me, it usually really seems like Christmas at the Christmas play at church which was last night.  Old friends attend and the church is packed, the play is always entertaining and funny and I see people I only get to see once a year and now, lately, their new grandchildren -- not that I am old or anything!   I also usually enjoy the Christmas Eve service at church because that is a time when anyone can share a song, a poem, a reading or a personal story.  It's very beautiful and special. 

This year's Christmas is a bittersweet because of my mom's condition.  She is so anxious and worried and the doctor will not give her an anti-anxiety pill of any kind.  Last night, I went and picked her up and my family met me at the church.  Because of our conversations on the 20 minute ride to church, I sat there and cried through half the service, finally, got myself under control during the middle and then took mom home and cried all the way back.  Then when I got home, I sat down with all 3 of my kids and watched Friends.  That is not a Christmas tradition, but it is what came from Netflix on Saturday, so its what we watched.  This disc had the hilarious song from Phoebe "I'm in the shower and I'm writing this song, stop me if you've heard it.  My body is soapy and my hair is wet and Tegrin spelled backwards is Nirget ... lather, rinse, repeat and lather, rinse, repeat ... as needed".  So we had some good laughs together. 

I think this Christmas is going to be a roller coaster of emotions for me.   I had better buckle up.  :-(

It's really getting close now!

Christmas time is here.  My oldest son is supposed to be on his way home today.  I haven't heard from him yet, but our phone is messing up.  It's doing this weird thing where it rings quite often, but the rings don't stop and then if you pick it up, there is a lot of static.  Then when you put it back down, the ring continues for a couple of minutes.  One long ring.  Every now and then, for kicks, it will do several shorter rings, but there is never anyone we can hear on it.  :-(  We've been yelling "Call us on our cell phones!" into the phone for days.  It did this this morning at 5:30 and at 7:00.  Loads of fun. 

We still have presents to wrap, things to bake, a house to clean (though it is mostly fine), cooking to do, and a Christmas spirit to get in.  We've also got an anniversary party, a Christmas concert and a Christmas play to attend this weekend.  :-P. 

Taking it a little easier today.

I was supposed to volunteer this evening, but I got up feeling very sore and stiff and sometime in the middle of the day, made the decision not to go tonight.  I really hate to miss it, but I had some things I needed to pick up and my daughter and I wanted to get our hair cut.  I got an inch off and she got 10+ inches off and donated to Locks of Love and then we did some shopping.  It was nice.  Afterwards, instead of rushing off to volunteer, I took a nap.  I do miss the babies but this is probably the calm before the storm.  We've got something going on every day for a while after this and so I think we needed this break.  We are going to spend the rest of the evening watching The Santa Clause 2, I think and maybe drinking some hot chocolate. 

Again. I spoke too soon.

Monday's visit with mom left me feeling reassured that she was doing better and then she called me yesterday to beg me to let her come home.  It's sad.  We have a couple of other assisted living facilities that might have more activities and we may be moving her.  We am not sure what to do, so please pray we will make the right decision.  I will go up and visit her tonight.  :-(

We are finishing up school and getting ready for the holidays.  My oldest son gets out of school on Friday and will be driving up, I suppose, on Saturday.  He's bogged down with studying right now (as he should be) and hasn't been in touch much.  The younger 2 have suddenly, last minute, gotten involved in a Christmas play.  The girl is doing the lights and the youngest son is playing 2 parts, one with 1 spoken line and 1 without.  They both seem to be enjoying it.  The boy, especially, is enjoying participating in this.   :-)

So on my blog today, one sad paragraph, one happy paragraph.  Middle age is so much fun.  I am counting my blessings.  I do know that my kid's paragraph could also be sad, and I am very thankful that it is not.

As to Christmas, all of the presents have arrived but one and it's a biggie, so we are hoping that will come soon.  My in-laws are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this weekend as well and I have ordered them a gift that is guaranteed before Christmas, but I really hope comes before Saturday.  I got in on the last hour that they guaranteed delivery by Christmas.  That was a close one.

Have a good day today and take some time, even if it is just a minute, to savor something about this season.  

Trying to Savor the Season. A little bit.

I enjoyed seeing my friends yesterday and my mom's nurse practitioner gave me some good suggestions for changing mom's medications without adding any, but just changing when they are given, that might help.  Also, when I picked mom up, she was sitting in the cafeteria happily chatting with some other ladies and when I left she was chatting them again in the hall, and she did not seem anxious.  That helped me a ton.

Amidst all the things we need to get done this season, I am trying to savor the season whenever I get a minute.  I got some peppermint bark and gingerbread creamers for my coffee.  We've been watching Christmas movies whenever we can, Elf, Home Alone 1 and 2, While You Were Sleeping, How The Grinch Stole Christmas (cartoon version) and the Charlie Brown Christmas.  We've been spending time with others, including the nice little break in the day yesterday with our precious wonderful homeschool group.  We're trying to be somewhat mindful of the season, playing a lot of Christmas music and making sure to turn the tree on, hiding candy on the tree and moving it around for others to find, changing the Advent calendar every day to count down the days until Christmas.   My youngest son also made me a Christmas music playlist for my computer and I have found that if I turn the volume way down on the music, I can hear my transcription and also hear the music in the background, which I enjoy. 

I guess I'd better get back to work.

Have a great day everyone.  

Monday a.m.

I am up early because I have a ton of stuff to do today.  I have to work and in the middle of my workday, I have to take the kids to their Christmas lunch, then go get Mom and take her to the doctor, with 2 teens in tow.  Oh, the fun of the sandwich generation.  Ironically I am taking someone else to the doctor when I myself can barely walk, cannot straighten out my arm, my eye is twitching continually.  It's fun.  Also, I need to finish up maybe some odds and ends of the Christmas shopping.  I'm waiting for my husband to message me back on Facebook and I'll know whether one more thing needs to be ordered.  Maybe 2.   I've already typed 2 priority/stat reports this morning and now I am going to go load the dishwasher, give Max the Dog his insulin injection, feed the outside pets (which I call the herd because there are 4 of them.), type some more, take a shower and go.  I've also been looking into alternative lunches because we've scheduled the lunch at Pizza Hut back when my girl was not gluten free, but now she is and she doesn't like salad, so she won't be able to eat there ... sigh.  

But the good news is that in the middle of this busy day, I get to see my friends from the homeschool group (some of them ~ I will miss the others terribly!) and maybe play a relaxing game or two.  

I just need to relax.  This can be done.  Just keep plugging away.

I'm off to feed the herd now. 

Christmas-y Celebrations.

I got up feeling pretty lousy and pretty sorry for myself this morning.  I admit it.  There would have been whining if there had been anyone to whine to.  I felt physically awful and just didn't know how I was going to put on a happy face and go to the 3 extra-work-ular events I had today, but I got ready and went to the first one.  My Sunday school class had our annual lunch at Cracker Barrel.  It was nice.  I got to talk to some really sweet people and have a nice lunch and I feel better.  Now I am back and working and this evening I will take the kids to a birthday party and then head out for dinner again, this time with some old friends, which is always nice, so hopefully I will be able to relax and enjoy myself this Christmas season and not be thinking about the bazillion things I need to do and decisions to make and how different this Christmas is than how I would want it to be and just enjoy it for what it is.

Last night's rush was not as bad but as my son says "Even though I am doing better this week, that's not the same as saying I'm doing good." and he didn't do as well as I would hope, so this week I am going to demand better.  We'll see.  If not, there will be grounding.  At Christmas time.  I'm mean and unrepentant.  :-P  Santa doesn't visit me anyway.  :-)

Friday the 13th of December.

I think with the new rules in place, there shouldn't be a terrible Friday night rush this evening.  I want the kids to go with me to see mom, so hopefully, they have gotten their school work under control and no one will have to ground themselves here less than 2 weeks before Christmas.  My oldest son has 1 more full week of school before Christmas, so they do too. 

I'm hanging in here, I guess.  As one would expect, I am struggling with some feelings of depression a little bit and some feelings of being overwhelmed with all we need to do for mom, whether to keep her where she is or to move her and the paperwork involved in trying to get VA benefits for her.  I'm still struggling with arthritis pain issues and can't straighten out my left arm and sometime I might need to go to the doctor for that. I don't know if it is from falling down the stairs 3 weeks ago or from 20 years of typing, but I suspect the latter and I really don't have time to rest, ice and elevate my arm right now.  It made it kind of painful holding the babies in the NICU last night where I volunteer but I persevered and went to hold them anyway and as usual, it made me feel better.  I'm not like some of the volunteers, checking my phone every few minutes while holding little ones.  I don't take it.  I simply go and fully participate in what I am doing.  Last night for a while I was sitting and holding a little guy while next to another one's isolette.  The baby in my arms was comforted by just being held and I found that I could also comfort the other one by just talking to him.  It was very cute how he would stop fussing and listen.  I don't know if he could see me or not but volunteering is the best, I know that.

Anyway, I'm trying to keep my chin up and hang in there.  I'm old enough to know that this kind of season eventually passes.  I just keep putting one foot in front of the other.  I am happy about the presents we get to bestow on our kids and others and happy about time we get to spend together as a family this holiday season.  I'm looking forward to playing the new board games, going to Christmas Eve service at church and seeing family members I don't get to see very often.  My son is coming home and that's always good. 

A Christmas Miracle and Other Things.

My husband did all of the Christmas shopping yesterday, in one day.  One fell swoop.  It took all day but he got it done.  We do our shopping on line for the most part.  At some point this holiday season, I will get some candy and stuff for the stockings, but it's done.  Woo hoo!  I'm kind of in shock, but very pleased.  I don't quite know how to act.  :-) 

Last night we sat down together and watched Home Alone.  It's still funny after all these years. 

While he was doing that, I worked and went over and cleaned half of mom's fridge.  The heat is off in her house and I was freezing and afraid of getting frostbite so I only did half.  Today I'll go try and finish and then we'll go up to the assisted living facility and hang up some more pictures and stuff.  My brother and I are thinking of moving her to a different faclity because they really don't have enough activities there for her.  She spends a lot of time alone in her room and that is so not what we wanted.  :-(.  Sigh.

Spoke too soon.

I spoke too soon about Mom doing better at the assisted living facility.  She has a lot of anxiety and apparently has been calling everyone but me.  Last night, we were going to play UpWords but she was too anxious really to play.   I'm going to call her doctor this morning and see if we can get her an anti-anxiety medication, at least for a while.  Meanwhile, lots of prayers and warm thoughts would be appreciated.

In homeschooling news, I've decided that if they are not finished with school by 10:00 p.m. on Friday, which is EXTREMELY generous, they are grounded for the whole weekend and also I am requiring a certain number of subjects every day to hopefully cut down on this procrastination which I realize has gotten ridiculous.  I've been distracted and they have been taking advantage. 

There's a part of me that so wishes that I had been homeschooled as they are so I could have had the time to read as many books as they get to, because that's pretty much what they do when they are procrastinating.  :-) 

In other news, it's snowing today, which is exciting after all the ice!  It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. 

Monday, week 3 of the new normal.

We moved Mom into the assisted living facility 3 weeks ago today.  I think it is getting easier.   The kids and I had a good visit on Saturday between the 2 ice storms (which were thankfully pretty minor here).  The only thing is, they only had a studio apartment open and so there's not a lot of room.  We have 1 upholstered chair in there, a single bed, a table and chairs and that's pretty much it.  There's a kitchenette, but the whole apartment is maybe dorm room sized.  The kids went down to one of the little sitting areas to watch Disney and work on their book and accidentally knocked over a lamp, getting the attention of one of the workers there .  In their defense, it was pretty precariously placed on a table, but then they came back to the room to sit on the bed and watch Disney.  It's not as comfortable there as it was in mom's house with a living room and a den, but I guess we have to adjust.  I'm not getting a million calls a day about the situation right now, which helps me feel more peaceful about it.  During yesterday's nap, I only had 2 calls. 

The current crisis involves her TV which is a new one we bought because her old one was really big and heavy.  She couldn't figure out the remote so we got another remote, but she couldn't cope with that one either and was unplugging the cable.  I put a sign on the wall for her not to unplug the cable, so Saturday when she was there, she had gotten behind the dresser it is on and unplugged the electricity.  (I had previously put a sign on the TV itself that said that the button for on/off was on the back of the TV and showed her where to look for it, but that didn't work either.  Also, why can't the TV buttons be more obvious and maybe on the front? )  I may have to ask one of the workers to come in each night and turn it off and come in each morning and turn it on.  Who would have thought that a TV could be a stressor?  My mom cannot remember anything about the TV, but can always remember how to use the phone and she uses it constantly to call her sister to ask her sister how to do everything and then her sister calls me. It's just frustrating for everyone involved, including my poor mom.  I mean can you imagine not being able to remember anything? 

Anyway, that's it.  The new normal.  Thankfully, my children have been raised well and they homeschool themselves and even ground themselves if they mess up.  My son was talking about not being able to sleep the other night because he had to ground himself from audio books due to not getting his school work done in time on Friday night.  :-P

  

Ice!

We are in the midst of an ice storm, hopefully a not very memorable one.  :-)  I am actually kind of glad that the ice storm is making me stay home.  I hope that the electricity does not go off, but since it hasn't yet, I have been enjoying myself this morning, watching How I met Your Mother, baking, running the dryer and browsing Facebook.  I've also been kind of looking for a couple of Christmas presents on line.  I really need to buckle down and get on that but I really, really don't want to.  If the electricity does go off (which it usually does during ice storms), I have 2 library books checked out and 2 kids to play board games with.  :-P

A break might be just what I needed most.

Volunteering.

I thought I might share what it is like to volunteer at the children's hospital where I go.  When I first signed up, it was much like applying for a job.  I had to fill out an application.  I had to have a criminal background check.  I didn't have to have a physical, but I did have to get some shots, a flu shot, a TB test and a whooping cough shot (which I think was optional, but the hospital paid for it and I apparently needed it, so I got it.).   Then I had to attend a general training/orientation session and list areas in the hospital where I might want to work and given a smock and ID.   I was assigned to the NICU which was my first choice and then I had to attend a NICU training session, which lasted maybe an hour, with a few discussions of what to do and a tour.  Next was my first day volunteering.  I felt a bit lost, but there was another volunteer who showed me a few things, where the linens and supplies are kept in case I would be fetching them and things like that.  The nurses have shown me a few things along the way like how to swaddle a baby, which is a trick I wish I had known 21 years ago (feeling old!), but my first baby was colicky and this might have helped. 

So now when I go, I know where things are and I really enjoy being helpful.  I'm getting to know the nurses.  I go in and wash and hand-sanitize, walk into the ward itself and listen for crying.  If a baby is crying that's where I go.  Sometimes their parents have them and sometimes they are crying because they are being disturbed by having their medicine or a diaper change, etc., but if not, I put on a gown and hand-sanitize again and sometimes then put on gloves.  There are rules about glove use which change depending on how many infants are in that particular ward, so I have to find out what the current rule is when I get there.  Then my first thing I do is start talking to the baby.  Some of them will stop crying and listen while I'm getting on my gown and sanitizing my hands.  Secondly, I find the pacifier and insert it and begin to adjust the swaddle situation.  Sometimes being talked to, re-pacified and re-swaddled is all it takes and the little one drifts back to sleep.  With others though, I do pick them up and sit with them in a rocking chair.  Some of the babies in our unit have health issues, most are simply a little premature and trying to grow and gain so they can go home, a few are born drug-addicted, (Those are the ones who need the volunteers the most.  They are so needy of someone to hold them, to help them stay calm) and some are just ready for their next bottle and don't want to wait.

After 4 hours of fetching supplies and giving out cuddles to tiny, tiny people, I come home each week worn out, but it is so worth it.  

I really

would like to get my Christmas shopping done today but that's not likely to happen since 2 of my kids haven't given me a list.  I am definitely not setting foot in a brick and mortar store if I don't have to.  :-P.  I want to just get it done and quickly.   My husband has offered to do it and I probably will let him.  Although I have a hard time letting other people do things.  I think a season of not obsessing over gifts for once would be kind of nice. 

Today is my day off work, but my daughter is babysitting and last time I checked, the baby was asleep (and my daughter was doing geometry proofs), so I am making myself scarce and not cleaning as I usually would on a Thursday morning.  The house is still pretty clean from Thanksgiving, but if I want to keep it that way, I'd better get busy this morning at some point.

I went to see mom last night and she seemed pretty content, though it may have been that my daughter and my brother were there - why she didn't ask to go home.  I hope she's settling in.  From all reports, Tinker (my mom's dog) is doing well with my cousin and he is enjoying her company.  That's a great relief.  I worried about the dog, knowing bringing a 5th dog into my household would not be fun!. 

Anyway, I'd better get going ... have a good day everyone.

Back.

After my little escape yesterday, I was back today, working, cooking and going to see mom.  My new normal, I guess.  I'm not thrilled with it.  Mom asked me about 10 times if she could go home now.  It's heartbreaking.  My brother and I keep saying that we are going to see how the winter goes.  Her home is rural and it is hard to get to in the snow, so she was always afraid of being stuck there.  She'll agree with that and then a few minutes later, ask if I didn't think she could go home now.  I pray that by spring she will be settled in and perhaps even enjoying where she is.  Miracles can happen, right?

Good day, nice change.

Today was our annual homeschool mom's shopping day.  We use part of the funds in our group to take ourselves out for lunch and shopping.  It was nice.  Those times with friends really help when other things in your life are stressful.  I talked to my brother during the day and he said that mom was doing pretty well today and was in good spirits, so that helped me enjoy the day more.  We went to Hobby Lobby and a bookstore and then went to O'Charley's and who did I run into, but my husband who was being taken out to lunch by his boss.  That was kind of funny.  :-P    While we were both out, the kids were homeschooling themselves and now that we're home, they are putting up the Christmas Tree.

Just one day at a time.

I am trying to get through this busy and stressful time one day at a time.  My mom is more forgetful at the assisted living facility and she wants to come home.  She kept asking me about it last night and I kept saying we'd try it for the winter.  I had to go by her house last night and get a bunch of things.  It's not fun.  I find that at her house I miss mom and also I miss Tinker, her dog, who is now living with my cousin.  If you had asked me a couple of weeks ago if I had any particular attachment to Tinker, I would have said no, but as it turns out, I miss her. 

So anyway, today we have a baby shower that I am helping with and church.  I will go get mom for church and ask for someone else to take her home.  Her brother has offered to help out so if he is there today, I'll ask him.  Last night I went to Walmart for the cupcakes and punch ingredients and came home feeling awful, all my joints hurting, so we'll see how I feel later.  Probably not good.  :-(   And tomorrow is supposed to be the homeschool mom shopping day.  We'll see. 

Today my son goes back to college for 3 more weeks and then comes back home for Christmas break.  Doesn't Christmas seem like it is barreling down on us now?  25 days if you count today and Christmas.  Eeek.  Of course I haven't started my shopping, my mother-in-law's shopping or my mom's shopping, which I will add onto my workload, on top of the housework, cooking, medical transcription and editing and taking care of mom. 

I feel a little grinchiness coming on.