Our refridgerator is a sorry piece of equipment. It works great, gives us ice and water, keeps our food nice and cold or frozen, but there is one problem. It's covered in wood panels to match the wood in the kitchen. Wood panels are not magnetic. I've hated this fact since the day we moved in, well over a decade ago.
So around here, if you have something amazing like a report card you want the entire household and guests to see, or perhaps that school picture you look especially nice in, or like lately, the picture from the newspaper of LeBron, Shaq, and MO WILLIAMS.... well, you just get a tiny piece of tape out and mount your article/picture/letter/mean note like "AMANDA DO NOT EAT MY COOKIES"... you get the idea.
I found this in Sunday's paper and couldn't help but cut it out and put it on the fridge.
&
I have to admit, I smiled and was maybe a little bit surprised when Jonathan habitually walked to the fridge for some Mt. Dew and, reading something he realized was meant for him, chuckled. (But then again, you always feel special when the posted item is about YOU, dontcha Jonathan? lol)
Ahhh.... young love. It's so predictable sometimes, isn't it? Otherwise the "funnies" wouldn't ever be funny! ;-)
I've been so busy lately, but so much fun (and drama...) has been going on!
Nannying, as usual. Little M has stolen my heart - as I knew she would. The girl who would throw tantrums and scream at me now tells her mommy I'm her favorite babysitter ever. On Sunday I found out that I wasn't the only one sad about her going back to preschool in August. Mom told me she couldn't take me away from Little M and asked if I could keep her one afternoon/week. I think you know how the rest of the story goes. The list of kids who have stolen my heart is getting pretty long. Logical? Probably not. Predictable? Most definitely.
No new breaking medical news to report. Surprising, right? Just working on some big, tedious projects and lawsuits that involve record sifting and brain cramming and all kinds of fun like that. My insurance company owes me money, my car wreck has to be taken to court in less than 2 months (or otherwise it's too late to claim), my specialist and I are fighting my insurance company to appeal their denial of my transplant, and I have a few other similar things going on. Oh and there was yesterday. It started innocently enough... some lady on eBay decided she was going to go a little insane with the packing tape. Good packing isn't bad, I guess. BUT In my efforts to get through the tape and into the box with a big pair of scissors, I somehow managed to slice them into and across my left thumb. [Sidenote: Keep in the back of your mind that with my liver disease, I have an extremely low platelet (the stuff in blood that helps it clot) count, meaning when I bleed, it doesn't easily stop. Also because of the platelets, when I get a cut of any sort, it takes many weeks to heal. Because I have a very low amount of white blood cells, I'm at high risk for infection.] I hate to sound all exaggerating, but this cut was most literally just pumping out blood. Of course I applied pressure, and after a few minutes when it wasn't stopping, I called my mom. I was able to get a look at it through the blood, and it was a big half-oval kind of thing meaning there was a deeper gash underneath the flap of skin. I didn't get the impression it was going to stop without putting on a fight, but I didn't want to go to the ER over a tiny cut, so we called my primary care doctors office. They said they couldn't get me in for just over an hour. (Seriously.) They also said they didn't know if they did stitches there or not. (Seriously again.) So we called my insurance to see where we could go since they changed all the urgent care rules. After a disconnection and about a half dozen transfers, we finally reached a lady who gave us the name of an urgent care facility 10 minutes from my house. To make a long story short, we finally got the bleeding to stop (and with no extraordinary measures! yay!) and the doctor cleaned out my cut with betadine and then put Dermabond (a "Super Glue" for skin) all across the cut to seal it closed. He bandaged it up and I was good to go! I've never had real stitches in my life, and I'm thankful that there are so many stitches-alternatives for minor lacerations these days. Right now, my thumb is quietly throbbing a nice aching pain, but it's bandaged well, and I'm relieved I have Dermabond on it because my skin doesn't just heal on its own. Gotta love happy endings. :)
I've spent the last couple of weeks getting in touch with my great-uncle who has been hooking me up with all kinds of genealogy goodies, and last week, my grandma revealed her basement-full of albums that I'm scanning for her. I'm so excited about all of this since I've been meddling in genealogy since Nanna passed away. Plus I just love pictures! :) I must say... my dad was a pretty handsome looking young boy... (snicker snicker)
I'm SO missing my Nana. I think my mom is too because she's been talking about her constantly lately. Poppop comes over for dinner a few nights a week, and without fail, Nana comes up each night. Not that I mind - she has a beautiful legacy - but it still hurts so badly to even say her name. I especially hate when they talk about her last days on earth because I wasn't there. I had a flight all ready to go but my dad wouldn't pay for it thinking Nana would be gone before I got there. Well, Nana lived a few days after that and I never got down. If I had the money, I would have paid it anyways just for a chance to talk to her one more time. To see her face one more time. To touch the lines on her hands one more time. To tell her I loved her (and not on the phone), to tell her that her Mandy Mine was there with her.... one more time. Each day is getting harder, too, because her birthday is 5 days after mine... August 7th. My mom is wanting to make birthday plans for me, but every time I even think of my birthday, my mind instantly goes to Nana. When I see flowers, I think of her. When I go to Macy's and see an outfit she would have worn, I think of her, want to buy it, and then remember she's not here to wear it. Poppop was hoping her headstone would come in by her birthday, and I hope so too. We spent so much time making sure it was the perfect one for her, and as inappropriate as this sounds, I really am excited to see it. Nana deserves to be dignified in that cold ground with a lovely headstone on her birthday. It's really all we can give her, other than flowers. But trust me, there will be flowers. Lots of tear-stained flowers.
On a happier note, last Saturday I threw a graduation luau party for my bestie, Jen! I was trying to make it a surprise, but well, that didn't go over so well so I let her know at the last minute. It all worked out though and was so much fun. I am thrilled that she earned just enough gift money to cover her NCLEX fees! I was hesitant to throw her a party because of my health but all I could think of was how extra hard she worked for this degree, how huge an accomplishment this is for anyone, but moreso for her. She sacrificed everything to get to here, and she did it in 4 years and didn't give up once. I walked the journey with her and knew full well that she, of all people, needed to be honored. Plus, money was an issue with taking her NCLEX, and I wasn't about to let that happen. I figured if all of her friends gave a few bucks, she'd be well on her way to taking the licensure exam. And lastly, parties are just fun. Of course, the biggest reason here was honoring for her for her amazing drive and commitment and sacrifice though, so I talked with my mom and she agreed to help. She said we'd get catering and buy a cake, and my cousin Heather offered to help. A nurse at our church who knows Jen well offered to make food as well, and a few other friends pitched in. For the location, we were able to use (free of charge) the wonderful "clubhouse" at my Poppop's condo facility. Before long, we had a wonderful event coming together, and all of the pieces just fell into place. The party was a hit - everyone who came had fun, and I know for a fact that Jen was shocked and grateful and touched by what we were able to do for her. All of us are blessed to have amazing friends, and I love how we're always there for each other ... even when "being there" just means coming to have fun at a parrrr-tay! :)
On Tuesday, Jonathan and I went to the movies. 3rd time in a month or something, which is beyond a record for us. Before this run, we hardly ever went to movies! Anyways, I scored some advance passes to see "Orphan," and well, neither Jonathan nor I recommend it. It was slow and boring, predictable, and more of a thriller than a horror film. Oh well, screeners are always fun anyways, and who turns down a free movie?
You know what we did on Wednesday? Cleaned out his closet! We fought over a few things and had to do some item trades but overall, it went well and a lot of his out-of-style, have-way-too-many, and too-worn clothes are now being donated to our church yard sale. The Abercrombie & Fitch shirt from like 8 years ago is finally going away!! Fiancee is very excited about all of this. Here's the pile... And the run-down? 15 pairs of pants, 26 sweaters, 20 dress shirts, 15 tshirt, and 1 polo! Hooray!!
School started in full force on Monday. I'm in 3 online classes which are ending up being more like "busy-work classes." Since nursing isn't working out for me at the moment (but it will be... just not at this time), I'm working on Integrated Health Studies, and there's a few dumb classes I have to take to fulfill that - like Health, for example. It's my 5th year in college, Nursing major, and I have to take Health? Give me a break. Then the other 2 are Human Sexuality (it's actually more of a sociology class than anything) and Medical Sociology - 2 upper level classes. You have to have a certain number of "upper level classes" to graduate, and those were the only 2 that were online and applied to my major, so there you go. It's going to be a long 5 weeks!
Today I had Little M and the finger-cutting ordeal. I did have my first-ever chiropractor appointment, but I had to reschedule as I spent my appointment time going to the ER. It might have been a good thing I missed it though because my massotherapist did some intense fascial release on Tuesday and I'm still extremely sore from it. Tonight I have Baby L... my colicky screamer. Then Sunday I can breathe and Little M is going on vacation and my new nanny family (that I have yet to start with) is on vacation too, so Nanny gets a break!! (Aka, a few extra hours to do homework) Hooray! :)
Next week, lots of appointments, helping out at Shannon's VBC, a possible baseball game, then loads of babysitting over the weekend. Oh and school. Forgot about that. Blah.
But it's SATURDAY! No worries on Saturday! Happy Weekend & here's some funneh kittehs....
Jonathan sent me this next video... I told him the answer was NO!!
I haven't done my Saturday Sillies in a long time, but after a week like this, I think it's time to bring it back. And after all, who doesn't need some lighthearted kitteh (and dog... and celeb...) entertainment on a Saturday morning? Here's a few of my favorite recent pictures from I Has A Hot Dog, ROFLazzi, and of course, I Can Has Cheezburger. (And Heather sent me a few in an email - I love happy email!)
It's catch up time on the blog! Lots of stuff going on, and Baby Itty Bitty is finally taking a nap. So here we go...
To update you on the drama at my school, here's an email we all got from the President of our university (lol):
An event intended to celebrate the end of the semester grew out of control this weekend. While the event was a private party and not a university-sponsored activity, obviously many Kent State students were involved. Today, university and community officials are exploring what happened and making plans to prevent an occurrence like this from happening in the future. We are grateful that no one was seriously injured during the incident. And while the events are disappointing, they only strengthen our efforts to work hand-in-hand with the city to aid in the growth of the greater Kent community as we strive to be responsible neighbors. We have enjoyed an outstanding level of town-gown cooperation in recent years, and our successful work will continue. The actions of those involved should not taint the wonderful work being done daily by diligent and committed Kent State students, faculty and staff. Unfortunately, lost is the news of the great accomplishments this weekend by our students. One example is the student-sponsored Relay for Life event that again raised thousands of dollars to help fight the scourge of cancer. Let's all learn what we can from these events and work to move forward together as a community. President Lester Lefton
There, now that makes everything all better doesn't it? Oh, and we also got yelled at in our weekly email from him, and we got a "safety email" today on "being safe" this weekend. Haha
Down in Nicaragua, there's probably a similar stack of letters with mine to Julenia buried inside. People tirelessly translate these from English to whatever language they need to be. Then when the children write their letters back, they translate those into English and forward them onto the children's sponsors. Isn't it amazing?
Next, let's see... Oh yes, the swine flu. It was just a joke but now it's a reality. As of this morning, there have been cases of Influenza A H1N1, a respiratory flu found in pigs that is now viable in humans, as seen in Arizona, California, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New York City, Ohio, South Carolina and Texas. So why do we care? Well I care because I have a myriad of chronic illnesses that make me susceptible to things like this. And many of my readers share my struggle and are in the at-risk population as well. 51 cases alone have presented in New York City. Why? How many people travel in and out of that city each day? Exactly. Then they travel to their home states and bring it to people there. Then those people go on vacation or go out to eat or go wherever and send the nice little swine flu to some others. So please people, cover your nose and mouth when you sneeze. Then throw the tissue away or wash your hands for goodness' sakes. Gross. Keep your hands away from your eyes, nose and mouth. Don't bite those fingernails and spare the pretty mascara by resisting to rub those eyes. No picking your nose either. Gross again. Because the person with swine flu sneezes on their hand, shakes yours, and then you yawn and touch your mouth. See how easy this is? But now if you have a cold, no need to worry either. To have H1N1, you'll likely have a temp over 100* as well as a cough or sore throat. You'll also have done one of the following: been in contact with someone with swine flu or someone who was in contact with someone having swine flu, traveled to an area affected by swine flu in the 7 days preceding symptom onset, been in contact (within 6 feet) with someone who traveled to an area affected by swine flu, or are hospitalized with influenza or pneumonia. So just be careful out there, chronic chicks. If you think you're coming down with it, call your doctor immediately. Oh, and obey the Feds and don't go to Mexico! But above all, don't be too stressed over it. Just use common sense. My dad spoke with family friend and world-renowned physician Dr. Alan Chow (who is a MD, PhD, OD and is cofounder of Optobionics, a company pioneering an implanted chip that make blind people see... not even kidding) and he confirmed what I had been suspecting... H1N1 is not a bad flu - it's just the flu, people. You'll be better in a couple of days. The only deaths have come from Mexicans and other people who likely cannot or did not access proper, current medical care in a timely manner. Immunocompromised people, be extremely careful just as if you were around any other bug. Get to the doctor if you show symptoms, and you should be all right. Healthy individuals? Same for you. Either way, utilize the health-smart tips above just like you would for any other bug. It's going to be just fine.
Wednesday beganBaby Time at the local library. I enrolled Baby Itty Bitty and invited our friends Russ and Sam to do the same with their Madison. So Wednesday morning for an hour, I sang goofy little songs, clapped and did motions, and held Baby Itty Bitty as she listened to the stories. (Okay, stared at other babies, etc. while the lady read the stories...) Until she decided not sleeping during morning naptime was a bad idea afterall and began to squirm and fuss. (Don't worry, "Itsy Bitsy Spider" cured the issue...) Meanwhile, Maddie spent the morning stealing the show and determinedly eating her pacifier and drooling all over the place. The next several Wednesday mornings should be fun for sure. Next week, we get a new room and will add toys, more interaction, and a "water table" to our stories and songs. Yay! :)
My parents just got back from Chicago and I'm jealous. But I shouldn't be because I'm leaving for Disney World on Tuesday! Although I'm stressed because there's so much to do and not enough time!
Craigslist and Freecycle ROCK. And thrift and consignment stores, too. Just saying. For the past few months, I've collected a desk, books, clothes, fabric, toys, Easter and Christmas decorations, crafts, a dollhouse, a TV/VCR combo, things to redecorate, Ikea bookcase doors, and so much more.. all for FREE! I've given away toys, clothes, a vacuum, baby stuff, etc., and I've gotten absolute steals on lots of baby gear (swings, DVDs, a BundleMe, a Bumbo and tray...) an Ikea bookcase, Cavs tickets, books, clothes, and I could go on forever. I've sold a chair, baby items, craft items, and even my printer combo. I have tons of pending sales, too, including my parents' old pool pump. Crazy or what? Maybe... but definitely fun!!
Still reading My Sister's Keeperand re-reading A Grief Observed. 2 amazing books. I absolutely cannot wait for My Sister's Keeper's movie to come out this June! (Even if it has a different ending...) I started the book a long time ago and didn't get a chance to finish it, so this is the perfect excuse to pick it up again. You should read it too - this book will move you and shake you to the core. I don't really think I'm biased just because I'm sick and I have a sister and I've lived glimpses of this family's lives. I think it would be unimaginable and hard for anyone, not just someone partially living the life. Can you imagine being created to be a genetic match for a cancer-ridden sister... so your cells and organs and tissues could in many ways cure her most of the times she got sick? Going to the hospital each time she had to? In the book/movie, the girl essentially decides to sue her parents for the rights to her own body... all while she loves her sister. Wrap your head around that one. And of course Jodi Picoult is a master author. So just read it. And check out the trailer:
Oh and I must give a shoutout to my nerdy fiance. Jonathan found this funny video by College Humor called Twitter in Real Life. If you're into Twitter, you'll totally get this... it made me "lol" :)
Speaking of Twitter... you so should be following me....
K, so Grey's Anatomy last night??? Episode 99 was one of the best in a long time! And I'm so, so excited for Episode 100 - if you want a spoiler, click here. Shonda Rimes confirmed that Denny will definitely be in the episode, and she also added, "Just a reminder: He's not a ghost, and we should all remember what his appearance means." Interpret that one how you will... either Izzie's mets are back making her nuts, or well... he's come to take her... they will finally be together. But back to last night. Krista Vernoff came back to write and the scenes with Izzie and her mom, Meredith and little Maddy, Meredith and Richard... well, there were lots of amazing scenes. Even though lately Grey's has deviated from episodes with obviously resonating themes, throughout this episode, a few ideas were repeatedly apparent: acceptance, forgiveness, and making amends. I loved how Meredith risked her job to tell Maddy's mom, "You have to change her story while you still have a chance... for her, but for your little girl, you have to change her story." The whole idea of a little girl shooting her dad 17 times to save her mom from her dad, now that's controversial. For standing up for a 6 year old murderer, now that's Meredith Grey. I love how Meredith is all "dark and twisty," you never know where she's going next or how she's going to react. She's not afraid to surprise people, and she's not afraid to run or hide when it's the best thing she can do. I can relate to Meredith. But anyways, change their stories... Hindsight is 20/20 but I know my story could have been changed, and maybe yours could have been, too. Instead of letting that realization hurt (I'd never in my life thought of it that way), embrace the realization that all adults change the stories of each and every child they ever get to know, and you have the power to give a child a happier ending, a brighter beginning.
Oh and any Private Practicewatchers reading? How about that season finale?! I knew it from the time I saw that psychotic woman appear back on the episode... Chills!
I am 22 & currently spend my days nannying my itty bitties + going to college (working on my nursing degree, goal: pediatric oncology) & am honored to be a published writer in a nursing anthology & a contributor to many scrapbooking publications. i love hanging with my amazing friends, sister & family. i love my baby puppy haylie brooke and our silly doggie ri-ri. in my rare spare time, i read & get crafty. i thrive on organization, my mac repertoire, learning & absolute fabulosity. my favorite place in the world is paris. my favorite color is pink. i love being a nurse & i believe each one of my patients is precious. i'm a night owl & wish my lifestyle promoted such habits. i like lazy jammie days. i believe in god and am thankful for his hand on my life. i believe that life is too short to be anything but happy, & i’m thankful that a chronic liver disease + the effects of a car accident have taught me important values that most people learn far too late. i hope that the world will find hope, and my idea of a good day is one in which i made someone smile :)
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