So, I guess you can tell that I'm back finish off my previous post about #34. When I woke up in the recovery room, a familiar voice greeted me as my eyes opened, it was Dr. Dimitrov. He quickly asked me about the state of my "haircut" and if it was to my liking. This brought the panic back, but as I lifted my hand to the right side of my head I realized that he had done the best he could to only shave what was necessary for him to complete the surgery.
Then he proceeded to tell me that there was a reason that I was feeling bad as my shunt tubing had disconnected at my collarbone and could have also been leaking in several other locations. He also informed me that everything went well, but that I would need another surgery in 5-7 years to completely replace the whole shunt system. Great...just what I didn't want to hear...another surgery would be in my future. Now come on folks, I'm not dillusional. I realize that my body isn't normal and that occasionally I have to take the time to let the surgeons do what they must in order to keep this machine running. I guess after #34 you could consider me vintage as I have had more surgeries than my tender age of 30. Nope, this time I awoke with 5 incisions and feeling like a mack truck hit me, but I was determined to make it out of the hospital in time to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family and friends.
Wait a minute...a new panick has just set in.... Did I really just consider myself vintage?
Now you see, I'm not much a medicine taker so my hospital stay was short lived. I got only the required antibiotics and then I was off to spend Thanksgiving with my amazing friends. This couldn't have been better. I even told myself that I was well enough to do Black Friday shopping. I decided to head to Michael's that evening with a few of my friends when I realized halfway through that this "vintage body" doesn't bounce back like it did when I was 19 (the last time I had a similar surgery). After that experience I decided that I was better off sleeping in on Friday and letting the mass chaos of shoppers go on without me. Don't worry though, I'll be back on my feet in time to be in the mix of mass chaos next year. :)
This all leads up to the past few days and the reason that I haven't updated my blog. The past several days have not been in any way pleasant for me. My body takes longer to heal than it used to. It's days like those that I wish I had my 19 year old body back. Well those aren't the only days I wish for that, but those are the days that I seem to wish for it most, right along with days that I wish for my pre-baby body back. :)
Today has been the best day for me so far, as I have not had any headaches or any weird feelings in general. I am able to type this post without seeing double and questioning my sanity all in the same post. We'll see how tomorrow pans out, but I'm guessing that it is going to be even better than today. Now, if only those cleaning fairies stopped by my house. That would make this whole journey complete.
Ahhh....one can dream.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
#34
Hello! It's me again, you know your favorite Military Wife and Dis' Able Mom blogger. Like I said before, even if I'm not your favorite...lie to me. It makes for a much more pleasant exchange the next time we meet again in person. :)
So my last blog was on the 19th. I had planned on writing again the next day, but things got shoved into overdrive in my house with my impending surgery. I was going to write about how my emotions got the best of me again this time, but decided against it. I thought that writing about my emotional status due to my impending surgery (#34 for me) would make me seem more like a whiner and less like my super mom persona that I try to portray.
In hindsight, I now realize that writing about my emotional status of impending surgery #34 was exactly what I needed. It would have helped me to sort out my emotions and why I was so afraid to have these in particular. You see, after 34 surgeries I feel as though I should be an old pro at this and that fear has no place in this game for me, but this time was different. Nope, #34 (as I shall refer to it from now on), was different for me. It brought back the fear of the unknown for me. Number 34 was special in a sense that it was a surgery that in the past 30 years I had been fortunate enough to never have to have (since the initial surgery at birth at least).
For the first time in a long time, things were different when it came to #34. When I let myself stop and think about it, I had anxiety...serious anxiety. When I stopped to think about what made #34 different, it hit me like a ton of bricks...the difference was that now I had a husband and a little girl to think about. What if something had gone wrong? Would I still be around and able to take care of her? Would I be able to keep life as normal as possible for her if somethng would have gone wrong? And, then the worst question of all hit me; what if something went wrong, and I wasn't here at all?
This made me think about my own choices, and how #34 came about. For the past 3 1/2 years I have beeen battling with insurance and doctors alike to make me feel better. My hydracephalus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydracephalus) shunt had been stuck on scar tissue for so long that it was affecting my sleeping habits, which we all know can lead to a change in attitude, quality of life, and the commencement of daily activities. For those of you who have children, you know that this can't go on for long as our children are busy and stay that way. I had been told on several occasions that my shunt tubing was stuck on my collar bone, which was causing scar tissue to tear and pull every time the tubing got stuck. Not a pleasurable experience by any means.
Anyway, after 3 1/2 years I finally found an amazing doctor who was willing to get the job done. We scheduled surgery over the Thanksgiving weekend as that was his holiday to be on call and my husband's school schedule allowed him to be off during that time to help me with our daughter. (I had other help, but I'll elaborate on that in my next post as it deserves a post all to itself).
Wait a minute, this post is getting way too involved and informative....fast forward....
I was set to be at the hospital on Wednesday, November 25th @ 1pm for a surgery time of 3pm. The surgery that I had fought so hard for was finally going to happen, and feeling better was now within my sights. The night before, I was packing my bag when the fear suddenly hit me with a force that would have knocked me to my feet. For the first time in a long time, I was panicking about a surgery. This was new to me, and I in no way, shape or form liked the way it made me feel.
Wednesday morning when I woke up I felt panicky. I did as I was told though and had a clear liquid breakfast (broth and water...better known as prison food...not a clear liquid diet) thinking that I would soon let this panick feeling go. I would soon realize that what I was doing was best as I would feel better afterwards and life could get back to normal. James took Caylee to get something to eat before we were set to drop her off at the CDC. While he was gone, the hospital called me to see if we could be there early as the doctor was ahead of schedule. I quickly told her we would be there as soon as we could and hung up the phone.
As I dropped Caylee off at the CDC I had a hard time letting her go. I was terrified that if something were to happen to me that this would be the last time that I would ever see my little girl. That is not a thought that I would wish on my worst enemy, as it is a completely empty and dark feeling to have. I finally gave her a hug and kiss goodbye and walked back to the truck where James was awaiting my return. On the way to the hospital I had a hard time keeping the tears contained. They seemed to come no matter how hard I wished them away, and I remember praying for the first time in a long time. I prayed for God to see me through this and to watch over my family during my ordeal no matter how big or small it turned out to be. I prayed until the anesthesia worked its magic, and I was off to dreamland...
TO BE CONTINUED....
P.S. I should probably mention that before surgery I was also worried about the issue of my hair and the potential lack of hair that I could have when I woke up. So, to make sure that the doctors understood my worry, I posted a lable on the front of my hospital gown with this message.... "MY NAME IS NOT G.I. JANE!!! PLEASE DON'T SHAVE MY HEAD.
So my last blog was on the 19th. I had planned on writing again the next day, but things got shoved into overdrive in my house with my impending surgery. I was going to write about how my emotions got the best of me again this time, but decided against it. I thought that writing about my emotional status due to my impending surgery (#34 for me) would make me seem more like a whiner and less like my super mom persona that I try to portray.
In hindsight, I now realize that writing about my emotional status of impending surgery #34 was exactly what I needed. It would have helped me to sort out my emotions and why I was so afraid to have these in particular. You see, after 34 surgeries I feel as though I should be an old pro at this and that fear has no place in this game for me, but this time was different. Nope, #34 (as I shall refer to it from now on), was different for me. It brought back the fear of the unknown for me. Number 34 was special in a sense that it was a surgery that in the past 30 years I had been fortunate enough to never have to have (since the initial surgery at birth at least).
For the first time in a long time, things were different when it came to #34. When I let myself stop and think about it, I had anxiety...serious anxiety. When I stopped to think about what made #34 different, it hit me like a ton of bricks...the difference was that now I had a husband and a little girl to think about. What if something had gone wrong? Would I still be around and able to take care of her? Would I be able to keep life as normal as possible for her if somethng would have gone wrong? And, then the worst question of all hit me; what if something went wrong, and I wasn't here at all?
This made me think about my own choices, and how #34 came about. For the past 3 1/2 years I have beeen battling with insurance and doctors alike to make me feel better. My hydracephalus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydracephalus) shunt had been stuck on scar tissue for so long that it was affecting my sleeping habits, which we all know can lead to a change in attitude, quality of life, and the commencement of daily activities. For those of you who have children, you know that this can't go on for long as our children are busy and stay that way. I had been told on several occasions that my shunt tubing was stuck on my collar bone, which was causing scar tissue to tear and pull every time the tubing got stuck. Not a pleasurable experience by any means.
Anyway, after 3 1/2 years I finally found an amazing doctor who was willing to get the job done. We scheduled surgery over the Thanksgiving weekend as that was his holiday to be on call and my husband's school schedule allowed him to be off during that time to help me with our daughter. (I had other help, but I'll elaborate on that in my next post as it deserves a post all to itself).
Wait a minute, this post is getting way too involved and informative....fast forward....
I was set to be at the hospital on Wednesday, November 25th @ 1pm for a surgery time of 3pm. The surgery that I had fought so hard for was finally going to happen, and feeling better was now within my sights. The night before, I was packing my bag when the fear suddenly hit me with a force that would have knocked me to my feet. For the first time in a long time, I was panicking about a surgery. This was new to me, and I in no way, shape or form liked the way it made me feel.
Wednesday morning when I woke up I felt panicky. I did as I was told though and had a clear liquid breakfast (broth and water...better known as prison food...not a clear liquid diet) thinking that I would soon let this panick feeling go. I would soon realize that what I was doing was best as I would feel better afterwards and life could get back to normal. James took Caylee to get something to eat before we were set to drop her off at the CDC. While he was gone, the hospital called me to see if we could be there early as the doctor was ahead of schedule. I quickly told her we would be there as soon as we could and hung up the phone.
As I dropped Caylee off at the CDC I had a hard time letting her go. I was terrified that if something were to happen to me that this would be the last time that I would ever see my little girl. That is not a thought that I would wish on my worst enemy, as it is a completely empty and dark feeling to have. I finally gave her a hug and kiss goodbye and walked back to the truck where James was awaiting my return. On the way to the hospital I had a hard time keeping the tears contained. They seemed to come no matter how hard I wished them away, and I remember praying for the first time in a long time. I prayed for God to see me through this and to watch over my family during my ordeal no matter how big or small it turned out to be. I prayed until the anesthesia worked its magic, and I was off to dreamland...
TO BE CONTINUED....
P.S. I should probably mention that before surgery I was also worried about the issue of my hair and the potential lack of hair that I could have when I woke up. So, to make sure that the doctors understood my worry, I posted a lable on the front of my hospital gown with this message.... "MY NAME IS NOT G.I. JANE!!! PLEASE DON'T SHAVE MY HEAD.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
"I'll Help You If You Want Me Too Mommy! I Don't Mind."
Tonight I'm writing this post with a smile on my face and a flutter in my heart. Today I realized just how special my little girl is and just she understands her mommy's limitations. Here, let me start from the beginning so that you can get a better understanding of just how special my sweet little girl really is.
Today started out like any other Thursday, but it wasn't like any other day. Today was special. Today, Caylee had a Thanksgiving feast at school and parents were invited to attend. It was so much fun to see the kids sing songs and dance. It was somewhere between the singing and dancing and the dessert that one of the new students in Caylee's class said to her, "why does your mommy walk so funny?" My heart sank and my breath was caught in my lungs desperately planning its escape. Should I answer for her? What was she going to say? How were we going to handle this? I tried to speak up, but my mind was watching this in slow motion and my words were nowhere to be found. That's when my little girl looked at her friend and said, "God just made my mommy different. That's all!" And with that they began to play again, subject closed.
I couldn't have been prouder of her. She didn't even flinch. She knew exactly what she was going to say. So why then was I so worried about this exact moment? Maybe I was worried because I didn't want my little girl to have to answer these kind of questions. Maybe I was worried because I thought it would make her feel different than her peers. I now realized that this isn't something that I have to worry about right now. My amazing little girl knows how to handle herself.
When the festivities were over, we headed home to change our clothes and then we were off to the park to play with our preschool friends. Before I left the house, I went back in to get my camping chair since sitting on the ground is a little harder for me. Clearly, gravity is not my friend sometimes. Thus, making it hard for me to get off the ground with any kind of dignity left. So, to solve the problem I take my camping chair. When I put the car in park and opened the garage door, I looked behind me and told Caylee to sit still while mommy goes in the garage to get the chair. In that second she looked me in the eye with a big smile on her face and said, "don't worry mommy. I'll help you up from the ground, if you want me too. I don't mind." In that moment I was overcome with such gratitude and appreciate for my little girl. I was so proud of her. I kindly told her that it wasn't her job to help mommy get up from the ground and that sitting in my chair instead of the ground would be better.
On the way to the park, I asked Caylee how she feels when her friends ask her why her mommy walks funny. She didn't even think twice before she answered with, "I don't mind mommy. You're still my mommy no matter how you walk." The tears started to form in my eyes, and I was glad that she couldn't see me cry tears of happiness. For so long I have been worried about how my physical "dis' abilities" would affect my daughter's budding social life, but now I realize that there's nothing to be worried about...at least not for the time being." No, for now my little girl has it covered, and I couldn't be prouder of her.
So until we meet again, I'll be cuddling with my amazing little girl.
Today started out like any other Thursday, but it wasn't like any other day. Today was special. Today, Caylee had a Thanksgiving feast at school and parents were invited to attend. It was so much fun to see the kids sing songs and dance. It was somewhere between the singing and dancing and the dessert that one of the new students in Caylee's class said to her, "why does your mommy walk so funny?" My heart sank and my breath was caught in my lungs desperately planning its escape. Should I answer for her? What was she going to say? How were we going to handle this? I tried to speak up, but my mind was watching this in slow motion and my words were nowhere to be found. That's when my little girl looked at her friend and said, "God just made my mommy different. That's all!" And with that they began to play again, subject closed.
I couldn't have been prouder of her. She didn't even flinch. She knew exactly what she was going to say. So why then was I so worried about this exact moment? Maybe I was worried because I didn't want my little girl to have to answer these kind of questions. Maybe I was worried because I thought it would make her feel different than her peers. I now realized that this isn't something that I have to worry about right now. My amazing little girl knows how to handle herself.
When the festivities were over, we headed home to change our clothes and then we were off to the park to play with our preschool friends. Before I left the house, I went back in to get my camping chair since sitting on the ground is a little harder for me. Clearly, gravity is not my friend sometimes. Thus, making it hard for me to get off the ground with any kind of dignity left. So, to solve the problem I take my camping chair. When I put the car in park and opened the garage door, I looked behind me and told Caylee to sit still while mommy goes in the garage to get the chair. In that second she looked me in the eye with a big smile on her face and said, "don't worry mommy. I'll help you up from the ground, if you want me too. I don't mind." In that moment I was overcome with such gratitude and appreciate for my little girl. I was so proud of her. I kindly told her that it wasn't her job to help mommy get up from the ground and that sitting in my chair instead of the ground would be better.
On the way to the park, I asked Caylee how she feels when her friends ask her why her mommy walks funny. She didn't even think twice before she answered with, "I don't mind mommy. You're still my mommy no matter how you walk." The tears started to form in my eyes, and I was glad that she couldn't see me cry tears of happiness. For so long I have been worried about how my physical "dis' abilities" would affect my daughter's budding social life, but now I realize that there's nothing to be worried about...at least not for the time being." No, for now my little girl has it covered, and I couldn't be prouder of her.
So until we meet again, I'll be cuddling with my amazing little girl.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Commissaries, Children and Candles! Oh my!
Hi again! It's me your favorite blogger. Even if I'm not lie to me please. It's good for my ego. So I'm writing this post thinking about my hectic day and how quickly your day can go from such crap to simply amazing in such a short amount of time.
I started my day off by dropping Caylee off at preschool just like normal. Since we started the reward program 2 days ago, Caylee has miraculously remembered how she wrote her name by herself before and mornings are pretty much a breeze. That takes a load of frustration off of me...for now at least. We'll see if the reward program will keep her attention long enough or if she's only going along with it so that she can hold out for a bigger reward somewhere in the not so distant future. Let's hope this works for awhile, although the possibilities of hubby and I going broke raising her are pretty good odds these days. She's out little diva!
Fast forward about an hour. I've dropped Caylee off, and I'm now in the check-out at our local commissary. Notice I changed friendly to local as our commissary workers are anything but friendly. I'm in line and the cashier asks me if I want paper or plastic. Such a decision, but I think I'll go with plastic. His next question was whether or not I needed help out to my car with my groceries. I looked him right in the eye and said, "no thank you. Please just put the groceries in my cart, and I'll manage" in my most friendly voice.
Clearly he took that all wrong because the next thing I know, the bagger has all of my groceries loaded up in his niftly little cart ready to take them to my car for me. Any other time I would welcome this, but not at the Commissary. For those of you who aren't familiar with the workings of a government run / owned Commissary let me enlighten you. First of all, they pay cashiers to be there, but make the baggers work for tips. I don't have a problem tipping someone for helping me, but I don't feel as though I should be made to feel like a cheap ass for only giving a few bucks for their help. So I paid for my groceries and asked the cashier to kindly give me a $5 bill and 5, $1 bills so that I could tip my bagger. In my haste to catch the bagger who was now following someone else to their car with my groceries, I quickly grabbed the cash, thanked the cashier and ran out the door. When I got to my car, I quickly helped the bagger unload his nifty cart and proceeded to give him his tip when I noticed that the cashier had given me two, $5 bills. What the hell was I supposed to do now?
So I quickly thanked the bagger for his help, although I certainly didn't ask for it and hurried to the driver side of my car. I was going to pass on the tip this time and more than likely pay double if I ever received his help again. I was totally embarrassed by my lack of patience with the cashier in not making sure that I was given the correct change.
Well let me tell you, the embarrassment didn't last long. In fact, it quickly turned into anger, and lots of it as the bagger didn't walk away and accept the fact that I was not going to give him a tip today. Instead, he looked me straight in the eye, which is what I was trying to avoid in the first place and says, "what no tip for me?" I told him that the cashier hadn't given me the correct amount of change and that I was totally embarrassed about not being able to give him a tip. Afterall, no one in their right mind tips the bagger $5 for breaking your eggs and crushing your bread. He then looked at me and says, "you can just give me the $5 in your hand. That would be okay with me." I kind of chuckled, but soon realized that he was no where near kidding with me and was moving closer to me with every passing second. Finally, I gave in and gave him the $5 bill because I was getting nervous. After that, I quickly got in my car and drove away.
So I'll say it again, "I'm not responsible for paying the baggers at the Commissary. If the want a job that pays them well...go get one. Clearly working for the government is not so much working for them."
After my Commissary debacle, I decided that we needed a little break. So I picked Caylee up from school and we went to play at the park with the rest of her school friends. She had a blast as always, and I got to have adult conversation. Okay, I couldn't wait to tell my friends what had happened to me at the Commissary. That's pretty much what it boils down to. If Caylee got some exercise out of it too, well then that's great!
After a few hours at the park, we packed it up and went on home. I needed to get ready for my Scentsy show tonight and Caylee needed a nap...in a bad way. Okay, so did I. As we walked in the door from the park Caylee looks at me and says, "Mommy, sometimes I can secretly be a little naive." I looked at my child in amazement. I have NEVER said this to her, but I had to laugh a little as she didn't even know what it means. After my laugh (it sounded so cute coming out of her mouth) I started to think, who the hell thinks it's okay to tell my child this? What about childhood and her innocense. I'm not ready to throw her to the wolves in the real world (or my neighborhood) yet. This is one thing I'll be discussing with her teacher tomorrow.
I continued to get ready for my Scentsy show while I played what she said back and forth in my head. I still couldn't believe it. So I got myself ready and took Caylee next door to play with the neighbor until hubby could pick her up after class. When I got home, she greeted me with "Hi mommy! How was your Scentsy show? Did you make lots of money and smell lots of good candles? I hope you didn't have any naive customers." Tomorrow I think we'll be working on what the word naive means.
Until next time....
I started my day off by dropping Caylee off at preschool just like normal. Since we started the reward program 2 days ago, Caylee has miraculously remembered how she wrote her name by herself before and mornings are pretty much a breeze. That takes a load of frustration off of me...for now at least. We'll see if the reward program will keep her attention long enough or if she's only going along with it so that she can hold out for a bigger reward somewhere in the not so distant future. Let's hope this works for awhile, although the possibilities of hubby and I going broke raising her are pretty good odds these days. She's out little diva!
Fast forward about an hour. I've dropped Caylee off, and I'm now in the check-out at our local commissary. Notice I changed friendly to local as our commissary workers are anything but friendly. I'm in line and the cashier asks me if I want paper or plastic. Such a decision, but I think I'll go with plastic. His next question was whether or not I needed help out to my car with my groceries. I looked him right in the eye and said, "no thank you. Please just put the groceries in my cart, and I'll manage" in my most friendly voice.
Clearly he took that all wrong because the next thing I know, the bagger has all of my groceries loaded up in his niftly little cart ready to take them to my car for me. Any other time I would welcome this, but not at the Commissary. For those of you who aren't familiar with the workings of a government run / owned Commissary let me enlighten you. First of all, they pay cashiers to be there, but make the baggers work for tips. I don't have a problem tipping someone for helping me, but I don't feel as though I should be made to feel like a cheap ass for only giving a few bucks for their help. So I paid for my groceries and asked the cashier to kindly give me a $5 bill and 5, $1 bills so that I could tip my bagger. In my haste to catch the bagger who was now following someone else to their car with my groceries, I quickly grabbed the cash, thanked the cashier and ran out the door. When I got to my car, I quickly helped the bagger unload his nifty cart and proceeded to give him his tip when I noticed that the cashier had given me two, $5 bills. What the hell was I supposed to do now?
So I quickly thanked the bagger for his help, although I certainly didn't ask for it and hurried to the driver side of my car. I was going to pass on the tip this time and more than likely pay double if I ever received his help again. I was totally embarrassed by my lack of patience with the cashier in not making sure that I was given the correct change.
Well let me tell you, the embarrassment didn't last long. In fact, it quickly turned into anger, and lots of it as the bagger didn't walk away and accept the fact that I was not going to give him a tip today. Instead, he looked me straight in the eye, which is what I was trying to avoid in the first place and says, "what no tip for me?" I told him that the cashier hadn't given me the correct amount of change and that I was totally embarrassed about not being able to give him a tip. Afterall, no one in their right mind tips the bagger $5 for breaking your eggs and crushing your bread. He then looked at me and says, "you can just give me the $5 in your hand. That would be okay with me." I kind of chuckled, but soon realized that he was no where near kidding with me and was moving closer to me with every passing second. Finally, I gave in and gave him the $5 bill because I was getting nervous. After that, I quickly got in my car and drove away.
So I'll say it again, "I'm not responsible for paying the baggers at the Commissary. If the want a job that pays them well...go get one. Clearly working for the government is not so much working for them."
After my Commissary debacle, I decided that we needed a little break. So I picked Caylee up from school and we went to play at the park with the rest of her school friends. She had a blast as always, and I got to have adult conversation. Okay, I couldn't wait to tell my friends what had happened to me at the Commissary. That's pretty much what it boils down to. If Caylee got some exercise out of it too, well then that's great!
After a few hours at the park, we packed it up and went on home. I needed to get ready for my Scentsy show tonight and Caylee needed a nap...in a bad way. Okay, so did I. As we walked in the door from the park Caylee looks at me and says, "Mommy, sometimes I can secretly be a little naive." I looked at my child in amazement. I have NEVER said this to her, but I had to laugh a little as she didn't even know what it means. After my laugh (it sounded so cute coming out of her mouth) I started to think, who the hell thinks it's okay to tell my child this? What about childhood and her innocense. I'm not ready to throw her to the wolves in the real world (or my neighborhood) yet. This is one thing I'll be discussing with her teacher tomorrow.
I continued to get ready for my Scentsy show while I played what she said back and forth in my head. I still couldn't believe it. So I got myself ready and took Caylee next door to play with the neighbor until hubby could pick her up after class. When I got home, she greeted me with "Hi mommy! How was your Scentsy show? Did you make lots of money and smell lots of good candles? I hope you didn't have any naive customers." Tomorrow I think we'll be working on what the word naive means.
Until next time....
Monday, November 16, 2009
Reward Cards! Good Behavior! Oh my!
Yep, it's me I'm back. Are you glad to see me? Well even if you aren't take a load off and let me tell you about my day. As if you really wanted to know, but I'm telling you anyway.
Today, I dropped my daughter off at school in record time. Why you ask? Because today she woke up raring to go and in the best morning mood I've seen her in, in quite a while. So after we tackled the name writing task with gusto, I left her to entertain her preschool teacher. Actually, when I left, my child was teaching the teacher how to use chopsticks. I was cracking up, as I turned to leave and heard her say, "That's not how you do it...'Breathe Caylee Breathe.' " I couldn't get out of the room fast enough as I was in hysterics.
When I got home instead of relishing in the absolute silence that was my house, I decided to put together a reward chart for my sharp tongued little girl. It was actually a chance to see how much I could bribe her to do in order to get a small treat at the end of the week. It's not that my daughter has behavioral issues. It's just that well...she's a PRINCESS / DRAMA QUEEN to the hilt. She agonizes every day over what pair of shoes to wear with her outfit. Once she's picked out the perfect pair of shoes to wear then her day can go on as planned, but not until. She's a DIVA,what can I say.
Anyway, after I prepared the reward chart, I was so excited for her to see it and want to earn her stars. When I picked her up from school, her teacher seemed excited to tell me what a pleasure she had been today. I couldn't have been prouder. That is until I noticed that she got what her teacher's call a "Character Counts" card. This is a card that the teacher's can hand out to any of their students that they see following the rules, listening to directions, helping others, doing something extraordinary, etc. Oh, it's plastered to the fridge alright!!! Right next to her reward chart. What a concept!!!
So after day one she was only threatened twice to have her star taken off of her reward card for the day. All in all, I would consider that a successful day. We'll see what tomorrow brings. My sweet and loving child could wake up to be the spawn of satan and ruin it, but I'm crossing my feet, legs, arms and fingers that she stays just the way she is. I'm always looking for ways that we can get her involved more in our daily routine, but still make it fun for her. At four, everything has to be fun...doesn't it? So if any of you have ideas that you think have been successful then by all means please let me know.
Until next time....
Today, I dropped my daughter off at school in record time. Why you ask? Because today she woke up raring to go and in the best morning mood I've seen her in, in quite a while. So after we tackled the name writing task with gusto, I left her to entertain her preschool teacher. Actually, when I left, my child was teaching the teacher how to use chopsticks. I was cracking up, as I turned to leave and heard her say, "That's not how you do it...'Breathe Caylee Breathe.' " I couldn't get out of the room fast enough as I was in hysterics.
When I got home instead of relishing in the absolute silence that was my house, I decided to put together a reward chart for my sharp tongued little girl. It was actually a chance to see how much I could bribe her to do in order to get a small treat at the end of the week. It's not that my daughter has behavioral issues. It's just that well...she's a PRINCESS / DRAMA QUEEN to the hilt. She agonizes every day over what pair of shoes to wear with her outfit. Once she's picked out the perfect pair of shoes to wear then her day can go on as planned, but not until. She's a DIVA,what can I say.
Anyway, after I prepared the reward chart, I was so excited for her to see it and want to earn her stars. When I picked her up from school, her teacher seemed excited to tell me what a pleasure she had been today. I couldn't have been prouder. That is until I noticed that she got what her teacher's call a "Character Counts" card. This is a card that the teacher's can hand out to any of their students that they see following the rules, listening to directions, helping others, doing something extraordinary, etc. Oh, it's plastered to the fridge alright!!! Right next to her reward chart. What a concept!!!
So after day one she was only threatened twice to have her star taken off of her reward card for the day. All in all, I would consider that a successful day. We'll see what tomorrow brings. My sweet and loving child could wake up to be the spawn of satan and ruin it, but I'm crossing my feet, legs, arms and fingers that she stays just the way she is. I'm always looking for ways that we can get her involved more in our daily routine, but still make it fun for her. At four, everything has to be fun...doesn't it? So if any of you have ideas that you think have been successful then by all means please let me know.
Until next time....
Marraige Enrichment Seminar
Oh, hey...you're back! That's awesome! In this particular post I will be sharing with you an experience that I had with my husband over the weekend. Don't worry, it's PG so you don't have to send your kids (that can read) out of the room or hide the monitor when they walk by repeatedly asking you for something.
My husband is an officer in the United States Navy and I couldn't be prouder of him, but let's face it we've been married for almost 6 years and we've spent over 18-months of that away from each other. This is where it gets hard to keep marraiges strong in the face of being separated for months at a time.
When we came here to Monterey, they gave a New Spouse Orientation. I couldn't believe it. I've never heard of this before. Then again, it made me nervous. What were they going to talk about? This wasn't a typical indoc as I have been a Navy spouse now for several years. I guess I shouldn't say that it was typical because in many ways it wasn't "typical." During the 2 hours that we spoke with different vendors, offices at NPS, spouses' groups, medical, etc. I was intrigued by something that the Chaplain who was running the show had said in the beginning. Within the first 5 minutes of officially starting this meeting he told us all that he offers a Marraige Enrichment Seminar to couples who want to strengthen their marraiges. He was quick to explain that just because he's the Chaplain didn't mean that this so called Marraige Enrichment Seminar was anything about religion. He said that it was more based on spirituality and getting a better grasp on who your spouse really is.
This is where he had caught my attention. I began to think and realize that after 3 back to back deployments in 3 years that I might not know who my spouse even is anymore. So, I thought about it during the entire indoc. After the last speaker of the night, the Chaplain moved back to the front of the room and proceeded to tell us more about this Marraige Enrichment Seminar. I was definitely interested in finding out more. He told us that we could sign-up at his table at the back of the room as we were heading out for the night. At that moment it was like an avalanche of people racing to the table to sign up for this seminar. I was in pure and utter shock, not because everyone else thought it was a cool idea, but because so many of us felt that we needed it in order to reconnect with our spouses.
On the day that we were to be at the seminar my hubby and I were not seeing eye to eye several issues. He's a great guy, but as we would find out later in the seminar we are about as different as it gets. I'm an extreme extrovert and he's an extreme introvert. Over the course of the day we learned how to better communicate with one another, we learned why our spouses do the things they do and think the way they do. It was simply an AMAZING experience. My husband and I walked out of this seminar hand in hand and with a better understanding of each other.
This time I'll send my Thank You's not only to the Chaplain that lead this seminar, but also to the Navy who made him available to us. What a great experience. I'm thankful for having had this opportunity. So many times we chalk our differences up to being apart so much, but that's not always true. Sometimes we just need to learn how to read each other again. Deployments not only change those that are deployed, but it also changes those back at home. Spouses become more independent and involved, while those deployed see things that we will never hear about much less understand. This and so much more can lead to a bad ending for some. I'm just glad it lead me to my happy ending.
I encourage those of you who are military and military spouses to contact the Chaplain at NPS and see when your next opportunity is to be a part of this great experience. For those of you who are not military, I encourage you to find a couples retreat or take a mini vacation together. Even if it's just for the weekend. Even if it just means that you drop the kids off at Grandma and Grandpa's and you stay home together. I encourage you to make that time for one another. In the words of the late Michael Jackson, "if you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change."
Until next time...
My husband is an officer in the United States Navy and I couldn't be prouder of him, but let's face it we've been married for almost 6 years and we've spent over 18-months of that away from each other. This is where it gets hard to keep marraiges strong in the face of being separated for months at a time.
When we came here to Monterey, they gave a New Spouse Orientation. I couldn't believe it. I've never heard of this before. Then again, it made me nervous. What were they going to talk about? This wasn't a typical indoc as I have been a Navy spouse now for several years. I guess I shouldn't say that it was typical because in many ways it wasn't "typical." During the 2 hours that we spoke with different vendors, offices at NPS, spouses' groups, medical, etc. I was intrigued by something that the Chaplain who was running the show had said in the beginning. Within the first 5 minutes of officially starting this meeting he told us all that he offers a Marraige Enrichment Seminar to couples who want to strengthen their marraiges. He was quick to explain that just because he's the Chaplain didn't mean that this so called Marraige Enrichment Seminar was anything about religion. He said that it was more based on spirituality and getting a better grasp on who your spouse really is.
This is where he had caught my attention. I began to think and realize that after 3 back to back deployments in 3 years that I might not know who my spouse even is anymore. So, I thought about it during the entire indoc. After the last speaker of the night, the Chaplain moved back to the front of the room and proceeded to tell us more about this Marraige Enrichment Seminar. I was definitely interested in finding out more. He told us that we could sign-up at his table at the back of the room as we were heading out for the night. At that moment it was like an avalanche of people racing to the table to sign up for this seminar. I was in pure and utter shock, not because everyone else thought it was a cool idea, but because so many of us felt that we needed it in order to reconnect with our spouses.
On the day that we were to be at the seminar my hubby and I were not seeing eye to eye several issues. He's a great guy, but as we would find out later in the seminar we are about as different as it gets. I'm an extreme extrovert and he's an extreme introvert. Over the course of the day we learned how to better communicate with one another, we learned why our spouses do the things they do and think the way they do. It was simply an AMAZING experience. My husband and I walked out of this seminar hand in hand and with a better understanding of each other.
This time I'll send my Thank You's not only to the Chaplain that lead this seminar, but also to the Navy who made him available to us. What a great experience. I'm thankful for having had this opportunity. So many times we chalk our differences up to being apart so much, but that's not always true. Sometimes we just need to learn how to read each other again. Deployments not only change those that are deployed, but it also changes those back at home. Spouses become more independent and involved, while those deployed see things that we will never hear about much less understand. This and so much more can lead to a bad ending for some. I'm just glad it lead me to my happy ending.
I encourage those of you who are military and military spouses to contact the Chaplain at NPS and see when your next opportunity is to be a part of this great experience. For those of you who are not military, I encourage you to find a couples retreat or take a mini vacation together. Even if it's just for the weekend. Even if it just means that you drop the kids off at Grandma and Grandpa's and you stay home together. I encourage you to make that time for one another. In the words of the late Michael Jackson, "if you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change."
Until next time...
B-U-N-C-O!!!
Well hello again...it's been like what 30 seconds since my last post. You must really enjoy my company. Either that or your bored to tears and this is the lesser of two evils.
Anyway, I titled this post B-U-N-C-O because this is how I pass the time here in not so sunny Monterey, CA. You know when I'm not prodding my strong willed 4 year old to write her own name each day, cleaning up after said 4 year old plus 33 year old husband, running errands, doing the laundry, paying the bills, working my Scentsy business, etc. Geez, someone should pay me. Either that or change my name to Alice. Let me tell you though, this sure ain't the Brady Bunch. Well it could be as "Mike" is never home and "Carol" can be downright bitchy at times. Oh, and my 4 year old can sometimes feel like 6 kids wrapped into one.
Okay, so I'll get on with what this post is supposed to be about, B-U-N-K-O! What a WONDERFUL game I have discovered here in Monterey. It's what some of us military wives call "sanity in a box," although I've often called boxed wine that as well. The only wine I get around here is spelled whine and comes in the form of a very tired little girl most nights. So B-U-N-K-O is my release. It's my way of getting out of the house and hanging out with my fellow military spouses. As we roll the dice and add up the points we tell funny stories about things our kids have said and / or done lately. Some of them are doozies and make me worry about the state of this great nation when they're my age.
So as I was getting ready for B-U-N-K-O this past weekend, my daughter looks at me and says, "mommy are you going to play Bunko tonight?" I replied, "Yes, honey I am." She then looked at me with those baby blue eyes and said, "Good, because I think you could use a night of girl time. Next time will you bring me?" After I thought for a second I told her that B-U-N-K-O was just for mommy's and someday when she's a mommy she can go to her own Bunko group. She seemed to take that for what is was worth and carried on playing in her room. When I got ready to leave the house I gave her a hug and kiss and thought I would be on my way. That is until she ran full speed at the door and told me not to forget my "mommy juice," which happened to be a bottle of wine that I was going to share with my good friends. At this point I thanked her for reminding me and went on my way. When I got to B-U-N-K-O and poured myself a glass of wine I kept thinking about what my daughter had called it ("Mommy Juice").
This kind of bothered me, but I was only acrossed the street so I fought the urge to go back home and cuddle my baby. I shrugged the thought off as just "mommy guilt" and proceeded to have more fun than I have had in quite some time. When I got home that night my little girl lay asleep in her bed. I kissed her goodnight and left her room. My husband met me in the hallway at this point and proceeded to tell me a story that made me laugh when I thought I might cry. He told me that my little girl had sang the song "B-U-N-K-O" (to the tune of B-I-N-G-O) and she finished it off with "and that's where mommy goes." Then I realized that she's 1) too smart for her own good and 2) this might bite me in the butt someday in the not so distant future. I still love my B-U-N-K-O though.
Until next time....
Anyway, I titled this post B-U-N-C-O because this is how I pass the time here in not so sunny Monterey, CA. You know when I'm not prodding my strong willed 4 year old to write her own name each day, cleaning up after said 4 year old plus 33 year old husband, running errands, doing the laundry, paying the bills, working my Scentsy business, etc. Geez, someone should pay me. Either that or change my name to Alice. Let me tell you though, this sure ain't the Brady Bunch. Well it could be as "Mike" is never home and "Carol" can be downright bitchy at times. Oh, and my 4 year old can sometimes feel like 6 kids wrapped into one.
Okay, so I'll get on with what this post is supposed to be about, B-U-N-K-O! What a WONDERFUL game I have discovered here in Monterey. It's what some of us military wives call "sanity in a box," although I've often called boxed wine that as well. The only wine I get around here is spelled whine and comes in the form of a very tired little girl most nights. So B-U-N-K-O is my release. It's my way of getting out of the house and hanging out with my fellow military spouses. As we roll the dice and add up the points we tell funny stories about things our kids have said and / or done lately. Some of them are doozies and make me worry about the state of this great nation when they're my age.
So as I was getting ready for B-U-N-K-O this past weekend, my daughter looks at me and says, "mommy are you going to play Bunko tonight?" I replied, "Yes, honey I am." She then looked at me with those baby blue eyes and said, "Good, because I think you could use a night of girl time. Next time will you bring me?" After I thought for a second I told her that B-U-N-K-O was just for mommy's and someday when she's a mommy she can go to her own Bunko group. She seemed to take that for what is was worth and carried on playing in her room. When I got ready to leave the house I gave her a hug and kiss and thought I would be on my way. That is until she ran full speed at the door and told me not to forget my "mommy juice," which happened to be a bottle of wine that I was going to share with my good friends. At this point I thanked her for reminding me and went on my way. When I got to B-U-N-K-O and poured myself a glass of wine I kept thinking about what my daughter had called it ("Mommy Juice").
This kind of bothered me, but I was only acrossed the street so I fought the urge to go back home and cuddle my baby. I shrugged the thought off as just "mommy guilt" and proceeded to have more fun than I have had in quite some time. When I got home that night my little girl lay asleep in her bed. I kissed her goodnight and left her room. My husband met me in the hallway at this point and proceeded to tell me a story that made me laugh when I thought I might cry. He told me that my little girl had sang the song "B-U-N-K-O" (to the tune of B-I-N-G-O) and she finished it off with "and that's where mommy goes." Then I realized that she's 1) too smart for her own good and 2) this might bite me in the butt someday in the not so distant future. I still love my B-U-N-K-O though.
Until next time....
Military Housing or Wild Kingdom? That is the question!
Hey there! It's nice that you came back to visit me here. You might as well take a load off during this story as it could possibly make you pee yourself. So I'm a little behind in writing this blog. I think that I can send my Thank You's out to Pinnacle Management. They are the ones that rent this fine government owned property to us and all the crap that comes with it, i.e. internet that rarely works, Direct TV because we can't have cable...unless you live up the road, oh and who can forget the lack of cell phone service we get around here. Not to mention the vast amount of wild animals that run wild in our neighborhood.
Now I know you're all wondering what kind of a place I live in that has wild animals that run wild in a neighborhood. Some of you might even be thinking "this city girl would think that a rabbit was a wild animal. Well let me just tell you when I say wild animals I'm really not kidding. You know what I'm talking about, Turkey's that take their time walking across the road when you're late getting your kid to school, Coyotes that think you're front yard is the place to see and be seen and deer who run ramped in our front lawns in the early morning / late evening hours of each day. Yeah I know, you thought I was kidding anyway.
It's great that my daughter thinks the pretty (i.e. mangy) "dog" walking up the road is pretty and wonders if we could keep it in our house because well, "mommy that doggy has no where to live. I think it's parents PCS'd (code for military move) without him. He looks so sad." Ha! Ha! I don't think so.
Oh, and I'm curious to see how many turkey's actually stay around here since it's so close to Turkey Day. WOOHOO! You know you're thinking it...what's keeping me from "accidentally" hitting one? Oh, just a huge fine. That's it. These stupid turkey's are running ramped over the neighborhood and we're supposed to co-habitate with them. Not to mention if you get anywhere near them they'll chase you like there's no tomorrow. For those of you who have been pecked in the butt by a Turkey...you know it's not pretty. No thanks! I didn't sign-up to live in WILD KINGDOM!!!
Ahhh...I love military life. I'm so glad that they offer us such safe places to live and for our kids to grow up. They call it nature, but I call it something quite different. It begins with a Bull and ends with a shit.
I keep telling myself that we only have 9 more months, but just my luck my husband's detailer will get a sense of humor and we'll be stuck in Wild Kingdom longer than we should. Wouldn't that just be great! My hubby is supposed to talk to his detailer in the coming month so we'll see. Let's just hope that he doesn't suddenly grow a sense of humor. Trust me ya'll I'm an Indiana girl born and raised. This is NOT normal for California. Pray that we get out of here soon or else this blog could get so much more interesting. Either that or I'll be writing this blog from jail because I've mowed down a turkey or two. Hey, maybe even a coyote. Who knows. I hear they're worth more than pedestrians (500 pts.). Until next time my amazing readers. You know who the 4 of you are. :)
Now I know you're all wondering what kind of a place I live in that has wild animals that run wild in a neighborhood. Some of you might even be thinking "this city girl would think that a rabbit was a wild animal. Well let me just tell you when I say wild animals I'm really not kidding. You know what I'm talking about, Turkey's that take their time walking across the road when you're late getting your kid to school, Coyotes that think you're front yard is the place to see and be seen and deer who run ramped in our front lawns in the early morning / late evening hours of each day. Yeah I know, you thought I was kidding anyway.
It's great that my daughter thinks the pretty (i.e. mangy) "dog" walking up the road is pretty and wonders if we could keep it in our house because well, "mommy that doggy has no where to live. I think it's parents PCS'd (code for military move) without him. He looks so sad." Ha! Ha! I don't think so.
Oh, and I'm curious to see how many turkey's actually stay around here since it's so close to Turkey Day. WOOHOO! You know you're thinking it...what's keeping me from "accidentally" hitting one? Oh, just a huge fine. That's it. These stupid turkey's are running ramped over the neighborhood and we're supposed to co-habitate with them. Not to mention if you get anywhere near them they'll chase you like there's no tomorrow. For those of you who have been pecked in the butt by a Turkey...you know it's not pretty. No thanks! I didn't sign-up to live in WILD KINGDOM!!!
Ahhh...I love military life. I'm so glad that they offer us such safe places to live and for our kids to grow up. They call it nature, but I call it something quite different. It begins with a Bull and ends with a shit.
I keep telling myself that we only have 9 more months, but just my luck my husband's detailer will get a sense of humor and we'll be stuck in Wild Kingdom longer than we should. Wouldn't that just be great! My hubby is supposed to talk to his detailer in the coming month so we'll see. Let's just hope that he doesn't suddenly grow a sense of humor. Trust me ya'll I'm an Indiana girl born and raised. This is NOT normal for California. Pray that we get out of here soon or else this blog could get so much more interesting. Either that or I'll be writing this blog from jail because I've mowed down a turkey or two. Hey, maybe even a coyote. Who knows. I hear they're worth more than pedestrians (500 pts.). Until next time my amazing readers. You know who the 4 of you are. :)
Thursday, November 12, 2009
"Can't is NOT in Your Vocabularly Young Lady"
Oh hi! It's me again, Military Wife and Dis' Able Mom. I'm sure you're all wondering why I named this particular post "Can't is NOT in Your Vocabulary Young Lady," so I'll get right down to the nitty gritty and fill you in on my day with my oh so stubborn 4 year old. Okay, so maybe you're not ALL wondering, but I'll tell you anyway.
Yes, this mom may have a disability, but today it had nothing to do with my Spina Bifida and everything to do with my lack of patience with a VERY stubborn little girl, we'll call her Caylee. So anyway, on with the story.
Today started out like every other morning in my house, you know telling Caylee to get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, find her book bag, etc. All while I'm dragging her out of bed, dressing her, fixing her breakfast, finding her book bag and getting myself ready to boot. The other moms at preschool have to think that I'm some sort of ogre that just rolls out of bed, drops my daughter off and then returns to my cold, dark cave until time to pick her up again. You see, my lovely daughter is not so much a morning person, and well lets face facts...neither am I. I do shower and get dressed before running out the door to take her to school. In fact, most days we're actually early. Just not today!
Each morning when I drop my lovely daughter off, she is supposed to get her name sheet and write her name on the appropriate line according to the day of the week. If any of my fellow preschool moms are reading this, you all know the drill and maybe even my pain. You see, my very capable, yet very stubborn little girl sits down to write her name, which we have all established that she can do by herself, and proceeds to cover the page with a very large "C." Then it all went downhill. Usually, after she does this she'll at least attempt to write the rest of her name with a little prodding from me. Well ... not today. Today she looked straight at me and shrieked / whined in a very loud boisterous voice...."MOMMY, I JUST CAN'T DO IT!!!"
Pause...rewind....
Oh yes, she said "I CAN'T" in my presence. That is one thing that I do not allow her to say in my house unless it is followed up with "right now or until I get bigger." You see, the phrase "I CAN'T" puts limitations on us and we have enough of those without putting even more limitations on ourselves, even if they are just psychological limitations.
Fast forward ...
I proceeded to tell her that if she didn't think that she could write her name today, that was okay and that we would try again tomorrow. Afterall, if she wasn't going to do it right then we wouldn't do it at all today. She quickly changed her mind once she looked around the room and realized that all of her school friends were writing their names. So she opened her marker and tried again. When she did the same thing, I simply took the marker out of her hand and attempted to put the cap back on it. That is until Caylee got a little pep in her step and grabbed the marker holding the open tip in her hand getting brown marker all over her hand. When I pointed this out to her, she quickly remedied the situation by wiping it all the way down her pink sweater. Clearly, she was testing my patience today.
It is days like this that make me stop and reflect on the things that I'm teaching my daughter and the things that she's teaching me each and every day. I'll be honest, I was fuming at this point and ready to blow a gasket, but instead I took the advice of another wise preschool mommy when she said, "breathe, Courtney breathe."
When I got to my car and reflected on the things that transpired this morning, I started to think about how I could learn from this situation. You know, after I called my husband and my mom and proceeded to tell them what she had done, rather loudly. I decided that it wasn't worth getting so upset over. I also learned that when Caylee says, "I can't," I can always use that as a building block to teach her that we are only unable to do the things that our mind tells us we can't. We tend to build our own roadblocks along the way to self-discovery.
My final lesson for today was to write down all the "road blocks" that I have set for myself over the past few years. Then, I wrote down how I was going to break through those road blocks. Case in point, this blog. I set a "road block" up 5 years ago when I told myself that I was never going to be able to work as a writer as long as we moved every 2-years (or more often than that sometimes). By starting this blog, I'm working at breaking through this "road block." I may not get paid to write this, but maybe I will someday. Consider this a lesson learned. :)
In closing, consider what "road blocks" you have subconsciously set for yourself. Then decide how you're going to break through them. Until next time. :)
Yes, this mom may have a disability, but today it had nothing to do with my Spina Bifida and everything to do with my lack of patience with a VERY stubborn little girl, we'll call her Caylee. So anyway, on with the story.
Today started out like every other morning in my house, you know telling Caylee to get up, get dressed, eat breakfast, find her book bag, etc. All while I'm dragging her out of bed, dressing her, fixing her breakfast, finding her book bag and getting myself ready to boot. The other moms at preschool have to think that I'm some sort of ogre that just rolls out of bed, drops my daughter off and then returns to my cold, dark cave until time to pick her up again. You see, my lovely daughter is not so much a morning person, and well lets face facts...neither am I. I do shower and get dressed before running out the door to take her to school. In fact, most days we're actually early. Just not today!
Each morning when I drop my lovely daughter off, she is supposed to get her name sheet and write her name on the appropriate line according to the day of the week. If any of my fellow preschool moms are reading this, you all know the drill and maybe even my pain. You see, my very capable, yet very stubborn little girl sits down to write her name, which we have all established that she can do by herself, and proceeds to cover the page with a very large "C." Then it all went downhill. Usually, after she does this she'll at least attempt to write the rest of her name with a little prodding from me. Well ... not today. Today she looked straight at me and shrieked / whined in a very loud boisterous voice...."MOMMY, I JUST CAN'T DO IT!!!"
Pause...rewind....
Oh yes, she said "I CAN'T" in my presence. That is one thing that I do not allow her to say in my house unless it is followed up with "right now or until I get bigger." You see, the phrase "I CAN'T" puts limitations on us and we have enough of those without putting even more limitations on ourselves, even if they are just psychological limitations.
Fast forward ...
I proceeded to tell her that if she didn't think that she could write her name today, that was okay and that we would try again tomorrow. Afterall, if she wasn't going to do it right then we wouldn't do it at all today. She quickly changed her mind once she looked around the room and realized that all of her school friends were writing their names. So she opened her marker and tried again. When she did the same thing, I simply took the marker out of her hand and attempted to put the cap back on it. That is until Caylee got a little pep in her step and grabbed the marker holding the open tip in her hand getting brown marker all over her hand. When I pointed this out to her, she quickly remedied the situation by wiping it all the way down her pink sweater. Clearly, she was testing my patience today.
It is days like this that make me stop and reflect on the things that I'm teaching my daughter and the things that she's teaching me each and every day. I'll be honest, I was fuming at this point and ready to blow a gasket, but instead I took the advice of another wise preschool mommy when she said, "breathe, Courtney breathe."
When I got to my car and reflected on the things that transpired this morning, I started to think about how I could learn from this situation. You know, after I called my husband and my mom and proceeded to tell them what she had done, rather loudly. I decided that it wasn't worth getting so upset over. I also learned that when Caylee says, "I can't," I can always use that as a building block to teach her that we are only unable to do the things that our mind tells us we can't. We tend to build our own roadblocks along the way to self-discovery.
My final lesson for today was to write down all the "road blocks" that I have set for myself over the past few years. Then, I wrote down how I was going to break through those road blocks. Case in point, this blog. I set a "road block" up 5 years ago when I told myself that I was never going to be able to work as a writer as long as we moved every 2-years (or more often than that sometimes). By starting this blog, I'm working at breaking through this "road block." I may not get paid to write this, but maybe I will someday. Consider this a lesson learned. :)
In closing, consider what "road blocks" you have subconsciously set for yourself. Then decide how you're going to break through them. Until next time. :)
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
"Let's Get it Started in Here"
Ahh, my first blog entry. I felt it was necessary to give you all some background as to why I decided to start this blog and the reasons behind it's title. 'Misadventures of a Military Wife and Dis' Able Mom" will chronicle my life not only as a military wife, but as a mother with Spina Bifida raising an amazing little girl, and my triumphs and struggles with both.
I will let you all know ahead of time that this will NOT be a "poor me" blog, as that is simply NOT the way I see life. I see my life as a blessing, sometimes in disguise, but a blessing nonetheless. Since becoming a military wife and mom, I've overcome some pretty big obstacles, but I have learned so much from them and have grown as a wife and a mother in the face of each of those obstacles. I've even had some great laughs along the way.
This blog's purpose is to inform and uplift you, and hopefully make you pee your pants laughing a long the way. I'll be filling you in on everything that means anything to me, my family, my friends, and my life in general.
So sit back and enjoy the ride of life with me! It's a crazy one, but it's mine all mine.
Enjoy!
Courtney
I will let you all know ahead of time that this will NOT be a "poor me" blog, as that is simply NOT the way I see life. I see my life as a blessing, sometimes in disguise, but a blessing nonetheless. Since becoming a military wife and mom, I've overcome some pretty big obstacles, but I have learned so much from them and have grown as a wife and a mother in the face of each of those obstacles. I've even had some great laughs along the way.
This blog's purpose is to inform and uplift you, and hopefully make you pee your pants laughing a long the way. I'll be filling you in on everything that means anything to me, my family, my friends, and my life in general.
So sit back and enjoy the ride of life with me! It's a crazy one, but it's mine all mine.
Enjoy!
Courtney
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
"Thank You!" A Few Simple Words Means So Much!
Hey there! Yeah, I'm talking to you. Well don't just stand there, come on in! Get a snack and get comfortable. Fasten your seatbelt because this blog might be a bumpy ride, but we'll have a hell of a time getting there with lots of laughter along the way.
First of all, I want to start out by saying, "THANK YOU" to all the veterans out there who might be reading my blog. Also, a special "THANK YOU" to their families, the silent soldiers.
Some people have a problem with thanking soldier's families, although it always baffles me why they have this problem. I've heard comments such as "Well what are you thanking them for? They didn't do anything. They didn't go and fight for our country." That's where they would be wrong. Without the families supporting those soldiers who are fighting for our country, would those soldiers be so willing to go fight? What would life be like if we didn't have brave men and women step up to the plate. I'll tell you what would happen. The draft, that's what. So because so many brave men and women have stepped up to the plate, it gave that person the right to make that comment.
I, along with so many others call the families of military members the "silent soldiers," because they along with the soldier are fighting. They fight to keep their family together even when they are on opposite ends of the world. They fight to keep mom, dad, sister, brother, etc. as a front runner in the minds of their children and siblings. They fight to keep their marraiges alive when they spend so much time apart. Last, but certainly not least, they fight to keep their soldier supported so that he/she knows that they are loved and missed. Sometimes, it's this sacrifice alone that ensures that soldier's safety. There are so many things that a military family fights for that I'll never be able to list them all, but the next time I hear someone say, "They didn't do anything. Why are you thanking them?" I'll simply say, " I'm thanking them for allowing you to have the freedom to make such a stupid comment and ask such a stupid question."
So, after you're done reading this post and carry on with your day, PLEASE don't forget to tell a vet or a current member of the military "THANK YOU." They deserve it.
First of all, I want to start out by saying, "THANK YOU" to all the veterans out there who might be reading my blog. Also, a special "THANK YOU" to their families, the silent soldiers.
Some people have a problem with thanking soldier's families, although it always baffles me why they have this problem. I've heard comments such as "Well what are you thanking them for? They didn't do anything. They didn't go and fight for our country." That's where they would be wrong. Without the families supporting those soldiers who are fighting for our country, would those soldiers be so willing to go fight? What would life be like if we didn't have brave men and women step up to the plate. I'll tell you what would happen. The draft, that's what. So because so many brave men and women have stepped up to the plate, it gave that person the right to make that comment.
I, along with so many others call the families of military members the "silent soldiers," because they along with the soldier are fighting. They fight to keep their family together even when they are on opposite ends of the world. They fight to keep mom, dad, sister, brother, etc. as a front runner in the minds of their children and siblings. They fight to keep their marraiges alive when they spend so much time apart. Last, but certainly not least, they fight to keep their soldier supported so that he/she knows that they are loved and missed. Sometimes, it's this sacrifice alone that ensures that soldier's safety. There are so many things that a military family fights for that I'll never be able to list them all, but the next time I hear someone say, "They didn't do anything. Why are you thanking them?" I'll simply say, " I'm thanking them for allowing you to have the freedom to make such a stupid comment and ask such a stupid question."
So, after you're done reading this post and carry on with your day, PLEASE don't forget to tell a vet or a current member of the military "THANK YOU." They deserve it.
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