Spinning my wheels..........

I was very excited about shelves I had planned to put up in the garage. I found these things at Lowes that you use with 2x4s cut to the length you want the shelves to be. I liked this idea because I could make the shelves to fit the areas on either sides of the door from the garage to the playroom, and they could be higher than normal because they would be behind the garage door runner, so they wouldn't be likely to fall over. That way, I could use space in the garage that was previously wasted, and I could also put seasonal stuff and/or items that I didn't want the kids getting into up high. I bought some 2/4s, brought them home, measured the first board, and as I was making the first cut, I saw a bright flash of light and cut straight through the cord to my new circular saw! I went to Lowes, bought some electrical tape, and attempted to repair the cord. And blew a fuse. That was in October. The boards are still in the garage, the shelf items are all over the garage, and today I bought a replacement cord for the saw. I must now tell you that what spurred me on to finally replace the cord was that last weekend I decided to rearrange and rehang the shelves on the playroom/family room walls. These shelves were there when we moved in, and used to hold the previous owner's beer steins. We have books on them, and I thought it would be less visually cluttered if the shelves were all at the same height on the same wall. One shelf needs about 8 inches cut off of one end to make it fit. There are books piled high on the love seat in the family room. It is very much visually cluttered! Since last weekend (8 days ago). Sigh.

While I was at Lowes, I also purchased a new programmable thermostat, after reading and hearing how easy they are to install, and how much we can save on our heating bill. I took the old thermostat off, labeling the 7 wires that came out of the wall, as suggested. I removed the new thermostat from its packaging, put batteries in the faceplate, set the time and date, and put the new base plate on the wall, after drilling new holes, since it was a different size than the previous one. When I started wiring it, I realized that there were receptacles for 5 wires, and that not all of the letters corresponded to the old thermostat. Argghhh! It was about then that I decided to take a break and attempt to fix the saw cord. I got four out of five of the screws out of the handle. I stripped the fifth screw. I went to the computer and googled "programmable thermostat replacement", and the most helpful thing I found was this:

Control wiring on hvac equipment while harmless looking and 24 volts ac wont shock you (it will bite) can cause very bad things to happen if connected incorrectly. You could destroy your equipment at best or burn down your home or business at worst. Among the control wiring can be high voltages from 120/240 volts in a residential furnace to 480 or 600 volts in commercial equipment that can kill you instantly or burn you in a flash.
So if you are unsure of what you are doing or your abilities please leave it to someone who understands control wiring and electricity. If you need to ask for a wiring diagram then it is a good bet that you should seek extra help because the knowlege required to do the job safely far exceeds the knowlege required to read and follow a diagram.

So, now I have a new, lovely thermostat on my desktop, reflecting the time and date, and the old one is back on the wall. I have a new circular saw that I can't use. I made cookies, since that is something I can do. And, can I just say that I don't think it is at all fair that you can gain 7 lbs in one week, when it takes so much longer to lose it?!!!!!

Merry Christmas! My perfect Santa will look like Bob Villa...........

Yay Me!

Last year I went Dollar Store crazy at Christmas time, and stocked up on Christmas mugs, tins, and gift bags. I also got some bargains after Christmas on items that would make good teacher's gifts. I am happy to say that I was able to locate all of said items this week and am well set with gifts for teachers, bus drivers, bus assistants, para-pros, etc. What a good feeling, and it didn't have to come out of this year's budget! I did just make some cookies, and some peppermint bark for Tim to take to work, and for the kids to take to their school parties, but that, and wrapping the other items was the extent of my efforts. How nice for me! The kids are out of school 2 hours early tomorrow, and Tim will be off for a week beginning tomorrow evening. Katie gets home late Saturday night, and I am so looking forward to having some quality family time. It would be great if we would get some snow..........

Ouch.

Do you know what happens when you apply your makeup, and then you spray hairspray into your eye? Besides hurting like heck and turning your eye red, the hairspray not only makes your mascara run, but it also glues it (in all it's runny-ness), onto your face. Just thought I'd share.....

The Great Race

My brother John just ran a marathon a couple of weeks ago. His first. He is almost 2 years older than I am. He has started me thinking about the Marine Corps Marathon, which is held here at Quantico in October. I don't particularly enjoy running, but was a little disgusted when I got winded yesterday running to and from my car to the Dollar Tree when I realized I had left my wallet in the car! I would have 10 months to train for the marathon, and how cool would it be to be turning 43 years old and be in the best physical shape of my life?! I asked Molly if she'd do it with me, and she agreed. We shall see. Will this become another one of those things I start and never finish, or might it be the beginning of a newer, healthier me?! Time will tell............

My boy

This evening, Jack made dinner (he does this by choice at least once a week), and Megan cleaned the entire kitchen, while bopping to tunes on herIPOD . Amongst my kids, I have great workers, and some who avoid work like the plague. Timmy is taking a warm bath in the hot-tub downstairs, because he was literally bouncing off the walls and driving me crazy. He has started seeing a new counselor, who, after reviewing his history and his medical records, thinks signs point to temporal lobe ADHD , but because of his sensory integration and motor difficulties, are also suggestive of either brain injury as a result of traumatic birth, or head injury. Timmy was by far my fastest and easiest labor and delivery, I had a completely normal and healthy pregnancy with him and I nursed him for 12 months - the longest of all the kids. He did fall and hit his head in the bathtub when he was 4, and required 17 inside stitches and 7 outside stitches to close it up. I remembered this after we left his appt , so I emailed the counselor with that information. When I told him that we have family members with epilepsy and manic depression, he made a note of that, as well, and said that often ADHD and bi-polar symptoms are similar. He also said that kids who have the symptoms that Timmy is displaying seem to have a miss-firing of circuits in the brain, similar to epilepsy. He recommended that Timmy be off of his Concerta so that any testing the counselor does is a true reflection of Timmy's abilities, without medication. The test results from the two tests he conducted yesterday supported his predictions of how Timmy would do, based on the information the counselor had, and this counselor is going to consult with a colleague about Timmy's case. There is so much about all of this that is frustrating. Timmy is really struggling with school, and one of his teachers told me that he reminds her of her own son, who is bi-polar and is now 27 years old. When I told her that Timmy doesn't display manic symptoms, she said her son didn't either, until he was put on medication. I will say that the closest Timmy comes to mania is when he is off the concerta , so it makes me wonder. I have also read that bi-polar illness often presents itself at the onset of or during puberty. Timmy is almost 13. I almost don't care what his diagnosis is, (it is what it is) as long as there is a way to help him. It is heartbreaking to see him trudging down the driveway to the bus-stop, dragging his feet the whole way. The only thing that makes school at all bearable for him is his tech class, the Hershey's kiss he gets in his lunch every day :) and having something tangible to look forward to on the weekends. It kills me to see him so unhappy (clinically depressed, I'm sure), when I know that it takes so very little to make him happy - like a vacation from school, or a visit with a friend, or a new book to read, a package of Starburst, or a Lego model to build. But, at the same time, life is hard! I can't make everything easier for him, nor would it be wise to let him skate through the things that are difficult for him. He will be an adult someday, and he needs to learn to control his temper, deal with his frustrations, and strive to be the best he can be, even if he has to try harder than most. I don't know what his best is, though! His tech teacher reminded me that often adults will accuse kids of not doing their best, when they might well be. I do know that he needs help. I don't like the idea of medicating him, although I've seen the difference it can make. The counselor said that concerta is not the best med for him because of his sensory integration component. He has suggested a couple of other meds, but Timmy needs to see a Dr for a prescription. If he is going to try something different, I think Christmas vacation would be an ideal time to start a new med, so that it will be in his system by the time school starts up again in January. He has an appt with a pediatrician tomorrow who is supposedly well versed in ADHD (that's what the ad in the phone book says). I am curious to see what his assessment will be, and if it lines up with the counselor's opinions. The counselor told me that this particular Dr isn't the best, but he's all I've got for now. And, I don't know if he should start taking a new med until the counselor is through testing him. If he is bi-polar, I am thinking his med would be different than for ADHD. If he is clinically depressed, some ADHD meds can make that worse. Sigh. I have so many questions. His next appt with the counselor isn't until January 5th. I do know that Timmy isn't likely to be depressed during Christmas vacation, but that those symptoms will return when school starts again. Report cards come out the first week in February. I'd like Timmy to have a fighting chance at pulling his grades up by then. I just want my happy boy back. I miss him! Tim has a magnet on his jeep that says "Life is Tough, Pray Hard". I am praying hard.

8 days till Christmas!

It used to be that I wrapped gifts from Santa in different, well hidden wrapping paper. I used to be very creative about hiding places for gifts, and never did anything remotely "Santa-like" in the presence of my children. I never shopped with them, or I at least was sneaky about making sure gifts were double bagged so the kids couldn't see through them, and I never brought shopping bags into the house in the presence of my children! Back in the day, I started my Walmart layaway on October 1st, and had it out on December 1st. They discontinued the layaway program for a few years, and I learned too late that they re-instituted it at Walmart this year. Oh well. I did well at the Black Friday sales this year, and got all of the pricier items then. Today, I brought out all of the gifts and stocking- stuffers to wrap, and to take stock of what I had and what I had yet to buy. I had it all out on the table with Kiley beside me, oohing and ahhing over everything. She spotted one of her gifts, a baby doll, and was quite angry when I wouldn't let her have it. I am fairly certain that she will not tell anyone what she saw today, since her vocabulary consists of "Mama, Dada", and her versions of the kids' names. I am sure that I'll have to do this during her nap time next year!

I had to sort some gifts that will go on Santa's sleigh, and had to buy a gift today for Katie to add to that pile, since you are never too old to get a gift from Santa himself! Some years ago, we told the kids that Jesus got 3 gifts on his birthday, so that was what they would each get, as well. Not including stockings, of course. This has simplified things somewhat, and I am ashamed of the pure consumerism we've participated in in the past, mostly due to my thinking that my kids had to have everything they wanted and then some. I remember one Christmas in particular, about 8 years ago, when I had a deal with the UPS man to put things in the garage without ringing the bell, since he always came at dinnertime. The kids probably had at least 10 gifts apiece that year, most of which they glanced at and tossed aside. I think we instituted the 3 gift rule after that. In my continuing efforts to purge my house of excess junk, I am a lot more choosy about what I am buying! There are only so many items I feel like picking up and putting away on a regular basis. And, the less the kids have, the easier it is for them to keep up with. Plus, they really think about what they want, since their number of gifts is limited. And, they are getting smarter about the tricks advertisers use to make things appear better than they are.

I'd like to say I have all the answers to making the holidays go smoothly. I've learned a few things, but I am not quite there, yet! Right now, Megan and Colleen are sitting on my bed and labeling and stamping the Christmas cards. I printed the labels for the kids' gifts before they came in here. The gifts I've wrapped are in my closet. I locked the door to my bedroom earlier, and my keys were on my bed. I had to climb in through my bedroom window, (Molly's suggestion.... gonna have to look at her window, next....) and was a little dismayed at how easy it was to break into my own room. Thankfully, the window was not locked, but I was wishing the screens at our house in Camp Lejeune had been so easy to remove and put back in, or I wouldn't have had to pay so much money to have them replaced when we moved out last summer!

Christmas craze....

I haven't written in awhile. Life has been busy! My mom and my brother Mark were in town for Jack's Confirmation last weekend. They arrived on Tuesday, December 2nd. I honestly never thought my mom would get here to see the house. She is 88 years old, and traveling has become increasingly difficult for her. She likes the comforts of home! We got her a room at the BOQ at Quantico so she could have her peace and quiet, and privacy at night. This turned out to be a good thing, because on Friday afternoon, Mark was rubbing Mick's tummy and singing him a song, and Mick threw up all over him. Nothing personal. Mark was up in the middle of the night throwing up, and again, early Saturday morning. Shane threw up as soon as we got to the church for the Confirmation mass. Kiley had diarrhea all day. We kept Shane and Mark away from my mom as much as possible, because this virus could make her very sick at her age. Megan got sick Saturday night, and Timmy got sick Sunday night. We had an early Christmas dinner with my mom and Mark on Sunday after lysoling the entire house, and ensuring that the sick kids kept their distance from Grandma. It was by no means the perfect family visit, but we did the best we could. I was able to sneak out alone and spend a couple of hours visiting my mom in her room on Saturday night. That was nice. There is never enough time, and it always goes too fast. Mark and my mom left on Monday morning, and so far, my Mom has not had symptoms, thank God! I had two poignant thoughts during and after their visit: (1) If I am blessed with my mother's longevity (her parents lived into their 90's), my life is not even half over! I hope to age gracefully, as she has. She has always maintained a positive attitude, and a kind spirit. She is a beautiful person, and a great example. (2) I know my brother Mark better now, after the three visits he made to see us this year, than I have ever known him. He is 16 years older than I am. He was always the fun, and funny brother. But he has a deep spiritual side to him that I didn't know existed till this past summer. I can't think of a better Confirmation sponsor for Jack - I am inspired by Mark's insight and wisdom, and his simple faith that, with God, all things are possible. I have found myself praying more, and praying differently since his visit. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have finally finished the Christmas letter - I usually pride myself with having the cards mailed right after Thanksgiving. I don't know what has taken me so long this time. Now, if I could just get my printer to cooperate so I can print the remaining 100 letters! The kids are out of school next Friday, so I have wrapping, labeling and hiding to do. We've also been recruited to help the neighborhood Santa on and before Christmas Eve. Molly and Jack will ride in the sleigh and pass presents up to Santa to distribute. We passed out fliers this weekend, and the neighbors say it is quite a production - they line the streets with luminaries to light Santa's way, and a police car with flashing lights and playing Christmas music over the loudspeakers precedes the truck which pulls the sleigh.

I have gotten to know Mrs Claus pretty well. She smells like cookies. Just kidding. She is a do-gooder, and apparently we have become one of her favorite charities. She volunteers at the base chapel, and she collects donations of clothing for the women's shelter and the young Marine families on base. I think she has a shed full of clothing, and she's always sending her daughter down to our house with stuff. Today there was a bag with two nice men's coats (I think she thought Jack looked cold in the jacket he wore yesterday while he was passing out fliers with Santa). Part of me feels sheepish - my kids HAVE appropriate clothing for the weather - they just don't always wear it! But, some of the stuff she sends is good stuff! And, why buy it if you can get it for free? For years, we have been fortunate to get perfectly serviceable and pretty nice hand-me-downs from various friends and neighbors. And, if we can't use it, or have outgrown things, we pass it on, as well. Some of the kids' favorite outfits have come in a bag from someone else!

Anyhow, I have much to do this week before school is out. I really want to have things done so that when the kids are out of school, we can relax and make cookies, and do fun Christmas stuff. Katie comes home in 6 days!!!!!!!