So Monday night, we waited, my Dad and I until the surgeon came to see my Mom before going home. I believe we finally left the hospital around 9:15pm or so. He comes after he is done doing surgeries for the day. This man has been done a lot of surgery on my Mom and I had not met him prior to Monday. It becomes harder to be there when you have your own family to care for. Well I had heard lots about VLR (Dr. Van Lier Ribbink) can you see why they use initials for him? I was curious after hearing his name so often and not always in a positive way, he is a surgeon you know... Don't make me spell it out for you.
Anyway, given the amount of times he has operated and the severity of the surgery this time, I know something has changed for him. All of sudden, my Mom is now calling him by his first name and he has really humanized her. I guess you can only maintain that distance for so long.
Regardless, it was nice to meet him and have him explain in detail what his expectations were for her recovery and his concerns. And he let us know that if he didn't deliver enough detail when he came to see her and we were there that we should give him a boot to the posterior and demand more info. I assured him sweetly that I could comply with that. lol. He seemed a little surprised but then I am sure he is not used to many people agreeing to those terms.
Yesterday, Mom had a ct scan and is looking better so we wanted to hear from the horse's, err lol, VLR's mouth what he had to say about the scan. We waited until 10pm and he was a no show. We were poooppped out. I am hoping that he did end up coming by and seeing her before taking off for the day so that we do not need to wait tonight.
Anyway regardless of what he would say, it is so nice to see her willing and wanting to get up and walk around more and more independently. She is walking a little further each day and slowly getting her strength back.
Heck, she is even talking about wanting the whole family to take a cruise. I put the kabosh on it being before the baby is born. I can't even imagine wanting to be on cruise ship when I am 7 or 8 months pregnant. Besides the fear that we will be in Mexico and I will suddenly go into labor or some such.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
My realization
It struck me yesterday that my life at home has gotten busier than I realized. Maggie has ballet now two days a week. She is in preschool one day a week. We usually have playgroup 1 to 2 days a week. Max is in school 5 days a week now that he turned 5. He has violin once a week and now on Fridays he is taking karate/gymnastics at school as well.
I know that it isn't actually a ton of things and they don't last for long periods except Max's schooling. It still is unbelievable that they are growing up and wanting to do more activities and be busy.
I keep calling and annoying my husband with the details of what they have going on. lol. I just want to keep them doing their things and give my mother in law a break at the same time so that she can have some time to herself. And thank goodness for my friend, Shelby, who is helping get Maggie to and from places and giving her a chance to be with her friends today and tomorrow. Who knew that a 2 yo would understand the concept of friends so well? I don't think Max did at her age. She is much more socially interactive unless the place is completely overrun with boys and then she likes to hide.
They drive me crazy but I miss them and I love hearing their voices on the phone.
PS My mom seems to be doing better and better each day. I am hoping today follows in the same vein.
I know that it isn't actually a ton of things and they don't last for long periods except Max's schooling. It still is unbelievable that they are growing up and wanting to do more activities and be busy.
I keep calling and annoying my husband with the details of what they have going on. lol. I just want to keep them doing their things and give my mother in law a break at the same time so that she can have some time to herself. And thank goodness for my friend, Shelby, who is helping get Maggie to and from places and giving her a chance to be with her friends today and tomorrow. Who knew that a 2 yo would understand the concept of friends so well? I don't think Max did at her age. She is much more socially interactive unless the place is completely overrun with boys and then she likes to hide.
They drive me crazy but I miss them and I love hearing their voices on the phone.
PS My mom seems to be doing better and better each day. I am hoping today follows in the same vein.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Talk about falling off the wagon
January has just about gone away and I don't believe I have posted much. It seems like it has been an incredibly busy month of trying to get back into the swing of things and failing miserably. I haven't posted any holiday pictures like I wanted to but oh well.
The kids are glad to be back to school and activities. We got Maggie started at a recreation center taking a few preschool classes. Shhh don't tell anyone she is not three if they ask. My friend who watches her for me was taking her older son and Maggie and her middle son would participate sometimes and we figured we would throw them in as well. She is enjoying it so far. Then on Mondays and Saturdays, she has ballet class. I, so, did not think that she would love it as much as she does. She truly enjoys it and listens enthusiastically. Max began taking karate and gymnastics at school on Fridays and is so happy to be doing that.
Last weekend, we decided to go to all the petsmarts and look at the rescue dogs to see if we could find our new dog. We ended our quest at the aspca, where we found Juno. He is a small lab/dalmatian mix. He is a pretty boy, black with a white tuxedo front and some white on his paws. He is a little over a year old and weighs about as much as Max. The kids love him and he loves to play with them. I think we knew as soon as we saw him that he was meant for us. Now we just need to do some dog training with him. hmmmm that should be fun.
Now to the heavy stuff. My mom had surgery in the beginning of the month. It was pretty major and I guess I didn't realize how major it was until I got here on Friday. She's a survivor. She's had cancer 3 times and this time it was a little tougher because they had to take much of her pancreas. She has pretty much been in the hospital since the surgery because of infection. Before the surgery she had broken her ankle and that did not help to have that added to her recovery. Today though was a good day. Her infection seems to be slowly clearing up and the pain wasn't quite so bad. But there is still a several roads to choose from once she has made it out of the hospital. I thank God for the wonderful friends and family that she has that care for her and are here for her. And I thank God for my friends and family who have made it easier for me to be here as well so that I can help relieve a little of the burden that my Dad and Sister have in being there for long hours at the hospital. Now if I could lift a little of that burden off my Mom. I am just hoping to get her home before I have to leave so that she can get a better night's sleep and feel comfortable in her own home.
So if you have wondered where I went this is kind of the story but I am hoping that February I will get more on board again with the blog.
I got an email today from NaPo whatever about taking up the challenge of writing about wants everyday for a month. The idea of that really appealed to me because there are so many ways to talk about wants and especially how it relates to my born and unborn kids. Just so you know there is only one boy in my belly right now, not two.
The kids are glad to be back to school and activities. We got Maggie started at a recreation center taking a few preschool classes. Shhh don't tell anyone she is not three if they ask. My friend who watches her for me was taking her older son and Maggie and her middle son would participate sometimes and we figured we would throw them in as well. She is enjoying it so far. Then on Mondays and Saturdays, she has ballet class. I, so, did not think that she would love it as much as she does. She truly enjoys it and listens enthusiastically. Max began taking karate and gymnastics at school on Fridays and is so happy to be doing that.
Last weekend, we decided to go to all the petsmarts and look at the rescue dogs to see if we could find our new dog. We ended our quest at the aspca, where we found Juno. He is a small lab/dalmatian mix. He is a pretty boy, black with a white tuxedo front and some white on his paws. He is a little over a year old and weighs about as much as Max. The kids love him and he loves to play with them. I think we knew as soon as we saw him that he was meant for us. Now we just need to do some dog training with him. hmmmm that should be fun.
Now to the heavy stuff. My mom had surgery in the beginning of the month. It was pretty major and I guess I didn't realize how major it was until I got here on Friday. She's a survivor. She's had cancer 3 times and this time it was a little tougher because they had to take much of her pancreas. She has pretty much been in the hospital since the surgery because of infection. Before the surgery she had broken her ankle and that did not help to have that added to her recovery. Today though was a good day. Her infection seems to be slowly clearing up and the pain wasn't quite so bad. But there is still a several roads to choose from once she has made it out of the hospital. I thank God for the wonderful friends and family that she has that care for her and are here for her. And I thank God for my friends and family who have made it easier for me to be here as well so that I can help relieve a little of the burden that my Dad and Sister have in being there for long hours at the hospital. Now if I could lift a little of that burden off my Mom. I am just hoping to get her home before I have to leave so that she can get a better night's sleep and feel comfortable in her own home.
So if you have wondered where I went this is kind of the story but I am hoping that February I will get more on board again with the blog.
I got an email today from NaPo whatever about taking up the challenge of writing about wants everyday for a month. The idea of that really appealed to me because there are so many ways to talk about wants and especially how it relates to my born and unborn kids. Just so you know there is only one boy in my belly right now, not two.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Time with family
So I have lots of catching up to do once I have a chance to write down all the things that we have done. At the moment, we are in all family all the time mode. The kids are having an absolutely wonderful time hanging out and playing not only with all their aunts and their uncle but also all their extended family of aunts, uncles and grandparents.
Max is learning new words and phrases that I am sure we will hear about at his school when he dares to repeat them there! Maggie is just loving all the love and attention that she gets and gets to give especially to her youngest uncles who are 10 and 12. She practically tackles them in glee to give them hugs and kisses. Thank goodness they are both indulgent, kind and gentle.
It seems that Max isn't the only one who has a birthday around xmas as we have celebrated 3 other birthdays with our relatives.
I am sure there is more to write but I am going to keep short for the moment. Hopefully at some point I will do an overload of photos.
Max is learning new words and phrases that I am sure we will hear about at his school when he dares to repeat them there! Maggie is just loving all the love and attention that she gets and gets to give especially to her youngest uncles who are 10 and 12. She practically tackles them in glee to give them hugs and kisses. Thank goodness they are both indulgent, kind and gentle.
It seems that Max isn't the only one who has a birthday around xmas as we have celebrated 3 other birthdays with our relatives.
I am sure there is more to write but I am going to keep short for the moment. Hopefully at some point I will do an overload of photos.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Snow Storm Las Vegas
Yesterday was a big day for me and the kids. I have seen snow here before in the north valley but never by us. I didn't really expect it and when Krismon called to ask if we had snow, at that point it was only rain. Around 2pm that changed to snow and it never stopped. It was the heavy, slushy fat snowflakes kind of snow. Maggie and I went out in the snow before picking up Max to take photos and then we hopped in the car and slowly drove to pick him up. He was excited to come home, get bundled up and play outside. He stayed out longer than Maggie before coming in.
Then this morning, Krismon and Max made a snowman to go next to our blow up Santa. It was great for the kids to have snow this year. I really hope we will get to have a couple of years of this so they can remember from year to year.
Love is a sense
Yesterday morning, Max was watching 'High Five'. They were talking about the senses. All of a sudden Max said that there was another sense, Love. He looked at me and said that it was another sense. It was really sweet.
Later I got some bad news about my mom and her cancer returning. She was clearly upset, I relayed this story to her and luckily it helped. Thank goodness for little boys with kind hearts.
Later I got some bad news about my mom and her cancer returning. She was clearly upset, I relayed this story to her and luckily it helped. Thank goodness for little boys with kind hearts.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Mapo Ramen
So today was an extra windy day. Airplanes are flying and landing in different patterns. There dirt storms galore out there.
Max had violin concert class today with other kids around his age. It was to go over how the kids would get on stage and at what point and what they should, or rather we as parents should, be listening for before getting them up and ready. On the way to class, I talked about how he is most likely going to be one of the older kids there with the most experience and to set a good example. He listened and behaved really well. I am thinking the eggs and bacon that we made a few hours prior to the class really did the trick. The protein seemed to allow him to focus better. Afterwards, we skedaddled to a birthday party which was to be a hiking party only to be redirected to the bowling alley because of the wind. The 5 minute conversation that we had outside the car really helped to clean my teeth because of the grit that scoured them.
We got to the bowling alley at Red rock casino, it was really nice, the whole place. We met up with his classmate and other friends. The kids had a great time and even we parents bowled as well. It was a fun hour or so. Then we went back in the car, Max took a brief nap on the drive home. We got home and couldn't keep him a sleep so he enjoyed some tv watching.
3:30, he went to another violin lesson. We were worried about the double practice in one day. He did well, even started a new song.
Today's temperature wasn't too bad but it is supposed to drop like a rock tonight and be cold for, I believe a solid week. They are even saying snow. I know, I know Vegas and snow doesn't compute but oh well. So to my mind, soup sounded really good. I thought maybe pho because then the kids could get noodles if they didn't want soup. Krismon was trying to think of other options when ramen came to mind. We haven't gone out for ramen in probably a year or two. So we headed out. We get there, get the kids food decided. Shrimp fried rice. I was looking at all the choices and under the ramen, I saw it.... Mapo ramen. Could it be true, could one of my favorite chinese foods really translate well to ramen? Should I even pursue something spicy when I know that I will have to take mylanta? Ummm heck yeah! So mapo is ground pork with tofu in a spicy sauce. It may not sound like much but it really is another one of those comfort foods that is so enjoyable. It tasted like heaven when it came out. Sooooo yummy and enjoyable. So that is my story of Mapo Ramen.
Max had violin concert class today with other kids around his age. It was to go over how the kids would get on stage and at what point and what they should, or rather we as parents should, be listening for before getting them up and ready. On the way to class, I talked about how he is most likely going to be one of the older kids there with the most experience and to set a good example. He listened and behaved really well. I am thinking the eggs and bacon that we made a few hours prior to the class really did the trick. The protein seemed to allow him to focus better. Afterwards, we skedaddled to a birthday party which was to be a hiking party only to be redirected to the bowling alley because of the wind. The 5 minute conversation that we had outside the car really helped to clean my teeth because of the grit that scoured them.
We got to the bowling alley at Red rock casino, it was really nice, the whole place. We met up with his classmate and other friends. The kids had a great time and even we parents bowled as well. It was a fun hour or so. Then we went back in the car, Max took a brief nap on the drive home. We got home and couldn't keep him a sleep so he enjoyed some tv watching.
3:30, he went to another violin lesson. We were worried about the double practice in one day. He did well, even started a new song.
Today's temperature wasn't too bad but it is supposed to drop like a rock tonight and be cold for, I believe a solid week. They are even saying snow. I know, I know Vegas and snow doesn't compute but oh well. So to my mind, soup sounded really good. I thought maybe pho because then the kids could get noodles if they didn't want soup. Krismon was trying to think of other options when ramen came to mind. We haven't gone out for ramen in probably a year or two. So we headed out. We get there, get the kids food decided. Shrimp fried rice. I was looking at all the choices and under the ramen, I saw it.... Mapo ramen. Could it be true, could one of my favorite chinese foods really translate well to ramen? Should I even pursue something spicy when I know that I will have to take mylanta? Ummm heck yeah! So mapo is ground pork with tofu in a spicy sauce. It may not sound like much but it really is another one of those comfort foods that is so enjoyable. It tasted like heaven when it came out. Sooooo yummy and enjoyable. So that is my story of Mapo Ramen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)