Paige on Monday

Paige did not want to get out of bed this morning. I even let her sleep an extra 20 minutes. She was happily asleep & wanted to stay that way. When I went to get her she kept insisting there was no school today & that she was staying in bed. I finally convinced her otherwise. The entire time we're getting dressed she keeps saying there's no school, that we're staying home today.

Her imagination is getting better and better. Saturday when we went to the grocery store there was a leopard chasing us. We finally got away when we were safely in Walmart. I don't know where she comes up with some of these things. As we were driving to school she said we were lost. I played along. I asked her what we do when we're lost. I expected a reply that involved Map from Dora. I should never expect certain things from Paige. Her response? "We turn around to go back home. We get back in bed."

My child doesn't do Monday either.

What a weekend

Can I have another day to recover from my weekend? Do you ever feel like that? Like you did so much during those short 2 days that you need another day to recover? Knowing me I would probably pack more into that day as well.

My back was feeling much better by Friday afternoon. I was feeling bad about not being able to play much with Paige during the week. So, I stopped at Target & got a bubble machine. It blows thousands of bubbles a minute. It puts small bubbles in big bubbles. It's super cool. We were playing happily on the patio when Daddy pulled up. Ronnie got off work about 4 hours earlier than expected. She loved seeing her Daddy.

Saturday was the annual chili cook off. Ronnie has wanted to participate in this for the past 5 years. It was a long day for him though. He had to be up at 4:30 and didn't get home until almost after 6 pm. Paige & I joined him for a bit. We went to the cook off with Aunt Wii, Unc, Ryan & Jeff. We got to taste some good chili & hang out at their booth for a bit. Saturday night he was so exhausted we didn't do much.

Today was a bit more relaxed at least. Paige & Daddy went to the park to play. After nap they went to the mall. Paige has been asking to go to the mall all weekend. She likes to ride the pink horse on the carousel. While the rode the horse, I shopped. Today was the spring/summer consignment sale sponsored by our local Junior League. This is a great place to get clothes for kids. I did really good with the sale. Here's what I got:

1 pair of capris
8 pair of shorts
5 shorts/shirts outfits
7 dresses
9 shirts
4 skirts
1 nightgown
3 DVD's
1 Bob the Builder playset
1 Go Diego Go clothes hamper

All of that for $150. Not too bad. Mostly name brand clothes as well. Lots of Tommy Hillfiger, Childrens Place & Gap. The only thing I may still need to buy for spring & summer is more pajamas. I wish I could get a whole new wardrobe for $150!

Overall we had a great weekend. It was busy, but it was fun. There was the usual amount of house cleaning & laundry mixed in there as well. Next weekend things are up in the air. Not sure if we'll go up there or if Ronnie will come back home. It's a 4 hour drive for one of us. We'll just have to see later in the week.

Not all It's cracked up to be

Hi, It's Ronnie

Yea, I'm still traveling. I gotta tell ya it does not rock. I'm bored. Sure you think that one could go out and party it up, and I'm sure some do. Where am I you ask? Sitting on my butt, online, trying to avoid doing home work set up by my training program.


Just check out this party!!!

Anyway, going to bed soon. Watch our party! Here I come!

I'm going home tomarow and I will be working all day Saturday. I will spend as much time at home as possible on Sunday, but I will have to get back on the road by nightfall on Sunday. Two more weeks. Just hold my breath and I will be back at home soon. I miss my girls so much.

Thanks for checking in on Angie's blog, I know I do when I'm on the road.

Ender

Ender is the main character in a series of books by Orson Scott Card. (click here) If your not a reader, you can probably stop reading here. If you do like to read, and enjoy science fiction, keep going.

Ender is a 6 year old boy when he's chosen to save the world. Not asking much, are we? I won't tell you if he does it. That would spoil the whole book. Or maybe not. Anyway, I can't give away an ending.

Card does an amazing job of creating this world. The world is very similar to ours since it's Earth. But he writes it in the future, or maybe the past, he never says. The world he created goes far beyond our galaxy into other worlds as well.

There are 2 distinct sections of the series. There's Ender's World & the Shadow Series. When you pick these books up for the first time, do not read them as they were written. First, read Ender's Game. Then, read Ender's Shadow. How you read from there is up to you. Ender's Shadow completes Ender's Game. You don't even realize what was missing until you read it. Then so much more falls into place. The Shadow series follows Bean and returns to Earth. The Ender series goes into other galaxies.

I've treated myself to the latest in the series: Ender in Exile. I've been longing to read it and being forced to not do much around the house, I've definitely got the time. I've been sucked back into the world Card has created. It's like coming home to old friends. You haven't seen them in a while, but it's friends you really, really liked. Once you're with them again it's as if you never were apart.

If science fiction isn't your thing, try Empire. It's set in modern society & represents what could happen to us. Happy Reading!

What I learned today

First, daytime TV really bites. I kinda knew this before, but it was really obvious to me today. Mostly because I couldn't really get off the couch. There wasn't a lot of options out there. I did find a marathon of Law & Order SVU. I watched that most of the day. You would think with all the channels we get there would be something good on. Considering I don't like most of the prime time TV offerings it wasn't all that much of a shock actually.

Second, have you ever paid attention to drug ads? Oh my gosh! There was one today that listed cancer as a possible side effect. Cancer? As a side effect? No way. I would rather suffer from arthritis than arthritis & cancer. Wouldn't you? How desperate do you have to be to accept cancer as your side effect? I have arthritis in my knees, but I would rather have that than cancer. Another commercial says the FDA asked the drug company to clarify some things in a previous ad. Um.... ok. Makes me wonder what I missed the first time. I'm not opposed to better living through modern chemistry. I take a medicine everyday. I was willing to accept the side effects knowing they were minor, and that the overall medicine would help with the other issues I was having. I made the decision after speaking with my doctor & weighing the pros & cons. Do people really make their pharmacy decisions from commercials? That's kinda scary.

Finally, I learned that 3 is not too young to introduce your child to the joys of the clean laundry basket. Paige got dressed out of the clean laundry basket this morning. She was able to completely pick out her clothes with no help from Mommy. I hate folding laundry so much I would be content to live out of the clean laundry basket. Paige really enjoyed it. Gave me an excuse to not fold laundry again today.

Oopsie

OK, so part of the fun of Mardi Gras is lugging around your 30 plus pound 3 year old. Not really. But, I'm trying to pretend here. My back has been hurting since we got back home. I've tried every over the counter medicine I thought would help. I've tried Aleve, Motrin, Tylenol & Advil. I've tried ice packs & the heating pad. I finally went to the doctor.

I've pulled/inflamed the muscle that supports my spine. Only on the left side though, mainly because that's where I carry Paige. I've been ordered to not pick her up for a week. Yeah right. But I will keep it to a minimum. I've got 6 days worth of steriods. The doctor tried to talk me into a steriod shot. Dr. C saw the look on my face & how my heart rate accelerated, and decided I could do the pills instead. (He was taking my pulse at the time & said it jumped from about 75 to over 100!)

I'll spend tomorrow in bed with my steriods & my ice pack. My ice pack, to the untrained eyes, looks like a bag of frozen peas. Best ice pack I've ever had. It conforms to your body & is really cheap to buy. I'll have my book to keep me company. It's back to work on Wednesday.

And he's gone

We knew it was coming. Ronnie left at noon today. Paige was very adamant that she didn't want her Daddy to leave. She was extremely attached to him over the weekend. His leg if about 30 pounds lighter now that she's been detached.

Friday afternoon Daddy took his little girl shoe shopping, her favorite activity I think. She can clearly identify the mall. She knows where the shoes stores are & the carousel. Yep, the girl can already shop. They bought 2 new pair of shoes: Dora tennis shoes and pink sparklies. She recently outgrew all her shoes & needed some new ones.

Saturday was a birthday party during the day, then a night out for Mommy & Daddy. We put Paige down to bed & went out for a late dinner at a local seafood restaurant. (Thanks to his last job for the gift card.) The food was OK. It was nice to get out & have a quiet meal without having to keep a 3 year old occupied.

Today Daddy got up with Paige & they made breakfast. We spent the morning lounging around while Ronnie finished packing. He'll be 4 hours away for the next 3 weeks. Tomorrow he finds out his work schedule and whether or not he'll be able to come home during that time.