Myriad of things, really

Okay. Here are a couple of pics of the living room ceiling I've been telling you about and putting off posting pics of. The one at the top is of a beautiful corner piece in the crown molding. The other is just the plain drywall ceiling with our recessed lighting (without the finishing canister).

In other news...

I do have a few limited fall pictures of the covered bridge where we live. It is about the only "famous" thing around here. I took the kids out there on a cold, windy day and made them get out for a few quick shots. Needless to say, we weren't dressed nor make-up(ed) for the occasion. It was fun anyway.

And, last but not least, we are off tomorrow night for our big Turkey Day vacation. I'll take lots of pictures. And give all of your bests to the Big Apple!!!!!

Cosmopolitans here I come...

Our house...in the middle of our street...

This is a picture of the sidewalk in front of our house last fall. I love the colors of the trees. This year was different. The leaves didn't really turn colors. It was as though they skipped that stage and went straight to falling off onto the ground, already dead. Fall wasn't fun this year. We had an early frost so that all of the pumpkins were ruined before my family even got to go to the patch. I was literally heart broken. So, I drug this picture out to bask in the memories of last fall.

Our house looks so stauesque in this picture. It is a bit misleading as well. I mean, after all, it does have the white picket fence that is a symbol of the American Dream. Think about what the American Dream means to you. The white picket fence isn't really representative of it, is it? Sure, the house we have is gorgeous and the fence, too. But, even in this small midwestern town, there are the roots of evil among us. For example, the mailbox that is hidden behine the largest tree on the left is no longer there. A new mailbox had to be put up in its place because a local teen was driving along at noon on a quiet Saturday and plowed into it with his car. You see, he was high on multiple kinds of drugs. Thank God not one of my children were riding their bikes on that sidewalk you see. Because had they been, they would have died. That, my friends, is tragedy. Just three weeks ago I saw someone outside walking on this same sidewalk. I went out to get the mail and who was that person? None other than the boy who ran over our mailbox himself. He was walking as a free man, without a care in the world, it seemed. He hasn't even paid us for the damages to our property yet, but he is allowed to walk right past the crime scene as if nothing happened. (I use crime scene in loose terms, naturally...) It took all I had not to say something to that boy. But I didn't. I simply thanked the Lord that he didn't hit one of my kids or my husband mowing the yard that day.

Next week this time, I will be getting ready for a big trip with the Husband. It is a trip we have definitely earned, so to speak. I am trying to get over this flu bug and the whooping cough that I must have gotten from my daughter. It has kicked my butt, let me tell you. Today was my first day back at work and the first day out of bed (other than tending to the young) since Saturday. And Lord knows, if I am not able to get up to eat, there is definitely something severely wrong! My students missed me. The administrators probably did not. That's okay. I'm there for the students anyway, when you get right down to it. My time at that school is coming to a quick close. I am thankful in some ways, but in some ways sad. There are those certain students whom I hate to leave. And some fellow teachers I will miss. I just hope I have touched someone's life there and inspired them in some way. I digress...back to the trip...

So, the Husband and I will leave for NYC and spend Thanksgiving there. We have on the agenda the following:

Turkey Day: Macy's Parade, perhaps Letterman, and dinner at Tavern on the Green

Next day: seeing Broadway's The Color Purple, dinner at Sardi's, and probably a jazz club

Next day: matinee of A Chorus Line (tickets courtesy of a fellow producer who worked with Husband's uncle), a grand dinner somewhere, and shopping!

Sunday: stroll through Central Park, more shopping, an afternoon cocktail or three, and get ready to return to the rat race, relaxed and filled with great holiday memories.

Who can't love that? I am so excited I am getting to the point where I can't sleep. I think I'm gonna squeal...

It's my turn

It's my turn to be sick now. Since Friday, all I have wanted to do is simply lie down. Nothing else. Yesterday, I had the chills so badly I was dressed in layers and under two covers in my bed. Bad part? I can't relax enough to really rest well. I mean EVERYTHING hurts. I don't want to walk, bend down to sit on the toilet, nothing. And I have my bi-annual bronchitis cough with no voice. I have taken so much Advil and Tylenol that I think I feel my stomach lining peeling away.
And to top it off? The Husband leaves on his week-long Disney trip tomorrow. I am alone with the children all week. I have to work, and do everything here. Don't know how I'm gonna do it.
I'll write more later when I am coherent.
Could be days, naturally...

I swear.

I swear to you I had planned on uploading pictures of the remod. I sincerely do not have the patience to wait on my slow camera to upload the photos onto my computer, then transfer them, yadda, yadda, yadda. I just don't have it in me, folks. Isn't that sad and terrible? I thought so, too.

On a brighter note, the Husband and I are taking a trip to NYC for Turkey Day Holiday. Just the two of us. We have scheduled to see the Macy's Parade, the Broadway play The Color Purple, and Turkey Day Fixins at Tavern on the Green. If that doesn't sound like a rip-roarin' good time, I don't know what does. Plus, we will shop and root around for fun. A couple of clubs, a few drinks, good music (Birdland Jazz Club) and we'll be set. I simply can't wait.

The oldest daughter is still not feeling well. We are both over it.
Last night I had to move to the couch around 3am because the Husband was absolutely sucking in the roof with his snoring. I couldn't even wake him up. So, my night didn't go well. The couch just isn't the same sometimes, and last night was one of those nights.

I'm going to rant and whine for just a second longer, and then I'll allow the charades to stop... middle daughter, Cam, in fifth grade continues to bring home "busy work" from school. I have done more homework than I care to in the last few months than I remember ever doing. It's sickening. Like, what do they do all day at school - pick their noses? Work on building relationships? What? Even at the high school level (which I teach), I try not to send home much homework. Maybe I'm too liberal. Or maybe I am too realistic - knowing that it won't get done. Who knows. But, the antics can stop. I don't want or need any more homework this year. I already went through fifth grade. I don't want to do it all over again. Plus, it makes me red with rage. I don't need that, either. I have enough of that already.

Pass the Advil, please.

I am getting older. Not that I am that old chronologically, but in physical capabilities, I'm gettin' up there.
For instance, this weekend the Husband and I finished up on some of the remod projects. We wiped down walls, ceilings, baseboards, etc. with Murphy's Oil Soap. We also took everything off the living room bookshelves and wiped each thing down (that we decided to keep). This included books, books, and more books; toys, movies, and board games; and picture frames, pottery, and more. Did I say EACH item? Yes.
After that, the Husband primed, painted, and painted some more. (still having some left to do later on) See, I am not allowed to paint. He is an expert painter - one of those types that can freehand trim pieces and follow lines with the slight of his hand. I, on the other hand, wouldn't be able to paint a straight line. Putting on lipstick is about my extent. That is painting enough for me. So, while he painted, I continued on normal things like dusting, laundry, dishes, and such.
In the end, we also swept up the entire living room floor and mopped it from end to end, moving what little items still exist in that room. There were plenty, don't get me wrong. Couch, chair, table with four chairs for overflow of Christmas brunch, end tables, hutch, dry sink (antique), tv and entertainment equipment. I also had to vacuum out the furniture for the third time. Drywall dust consumes everything. Even if you cover it, it doesn't work entirely.
Back to my point -- I am sore as all get out today. My muscles hurt. I am a weakling like I have never been before. This proves how much my body has turned into the corpse I am letting it become. I'm decaying. My muscles are now merely pools of cellulite, unable to be used. If it takes more effort than walking a short distance, I'm out of the game. I could ingest more Advil than Wal-Mart can provide today, and I'd still be hurting. (not recommended, folks - just a figure of speech)
But darnit, the house looks and smells better.
I'm sure it reminds the Husband of the good ol' days when his grandmother lived here. She used to wipe down the kitchen cabinets with Murphy's Oil Soap every week. I'll never live up to that.

In other news...
The oldest daughter, Mak, reported that she slept all night at her dad's on Friday night. First full night's sleep in a while. Maybe we are on the road to recovery, finally. Today is her last dose of antibiotic, but the medicine is said to last another five to ten days in her system, acting as though she is till taking it. (Z-pack, it is called) So, let's hope so.
I sent for her homework from last week at school. Get this - only two teachers sent anything for her to do. Nice.

Gotta run - time to go pick up the girls from their dad's house. Can't wait to hear the familiar words, "We're starving!! We only ate breakfast then again at 4:00, so that was LUNCH!" Happens every other Sunday like clockwork.
I'll post pictures of the advancement in projects on the house soon...

Hello, edge. GERANIMO!

That's me, going over the edge; off the deep end, as they say. It's happening.

Daughter went to school with me today so that I could immediately take her to the doctor (hour and 15 minutes away from my school) on my prep, while someone covered my last class for me. Once the administration finds out, they'll probably nab me. Does it get any better?

So, doctor says that she probably has whooping cough. The one they vaccinate babies for? Yep. Seems as though there is now a resurgance of the illness, more common among adults, but can happen to anyone. In China, doc said, it is called the "100 day cough". There apparently is a window in which, if given the CORRECT antibiotics, it can be curbed. He believes we are still within that window. Good news? I guess. Bad news? Nothing you can do about supressing the cough. Absolutely nothing. The antibiotics just have to work (which takes days, you know). In the mean time, suffer. He could have taken an expensive, unreasonable blood test to be sure, but he said it doesn't make the treatment any different, so why not just give her this change of antibiotic to cover all bases. Sure, I agreed.
I pay the co-pay and move on to the pharmacy. I am called back to the pharmacy, which resulted in me being told my insurance said they cancelled us yesterday, and that the generic form of her medicine would be $55. I called the Husband. He was angered, but said pay it and he'll send it off manually. Enraged, I called the company Husband previously worked for (not more than 3 weeks ago). Yep, the benefits don't continue the full 30 days past the day of termination/resignation. They end on the last day of the month in which the employee still worked there, hence the benefits ending yesterday. Screwed. Plainly screwed.
So, now that the Husband is at a new, better company, we are uninsured until November 9th. And with my luck, who knows what the hell will happen. I said to my daughter on the way home: "God help us all that we don't have a car wreck or break a bone!"
Oh, the luck. I'm lookin' over the deep end, ready to jump. (no bungee cords attached)

It's 12:54 A.M., do you know where your children are?

That's right. That is exactly what time it is here, and I am posting on here. I am awake, alert, and cannot sleep. Why, you ask? Because my daughter is up coughing her head off. I have gone through an entire bottle of prescription cough medicine, almost emptied an inhaler, a bottle of Tylenol and Advil, and she is almost done with a heavy dose of antibiotic. I am at my wits' end. I have missed work, been pardoned there for one day (with much effort), and can't seem to find two hours to take her to a doctor who can help her further.
My mother took her to the clinic here in town. That, obviously, has not helped. So, now, I believe she needs to go to her "real" doctor in the town 35 minutes away. I can't take her there because they close before I can get home, get her, and drive there. Her real Dad can't do squat for her, so that's out. My Husband can't take off work at his new job; that's out. My mom is on vacation two states away; that's out. I wouldn't dare ask my mother-in-law; that's out. No Aunts or Uncles to do the duty; that's out. So?? Stuck. Period. I don't want to call the clinic where she went - evidently they don't know what they are doing. I'm telling you, these illnesses are taking over my life. My daughter can't sleep from coughing; I can't sleep because she can't sleep. We are both going insane.