A Student, Again...

I am officially a student at Whittier College, again. I did find out, a few weeks ago, that I did not get a position with Broadoaks as a Graduate Fellow. That was a big disappointment, but has it's silver lining too. It would have been great experience, but I would have been working full time next school year and making slightly less money than I make now, working part time.

Yesterday, I had my interview at the college for the Teaching Credential and Masters program. It went great, and I have been accepted. I don't know that there was any real concern that I wouldn't be, but I now have, an official letter saying that it is so.

I have completed all of my financial aid paperwork and am working on filing out grant applications. I will start classes on June 24 and for six full weeks, I will have class from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Monday, through Thursday with Fridays "off". I plan to spend 9-4 in the library, studying my brains out.

I don't know how I will fit work into this schedule, but I have to bring in some money. Andy did get a summer school position, but it is half day and 4 weeks. This puts us at shortage to start with. We have saved throughout the year to cover August...we do this every year. We were really hoping to re-do our kitchen floors with the money coming from the government and our tax return, but have realized that it would be much smarter to set that money aside to cover the shortage that summer is going to cause. In addition to being short on income, our expenses will increase because I will be driving to uptown everyday instead of just twice a week, and the kids will be in full time summer school, Monday-Friday. We know that we will be provided for and are working on a "faith budget" right now. Prayers are welcomed...more for peace of mind than for cash...but hey.. .I won't turn down cash, either!

I am excited and nervous and worried about juggling everything but I figure, heck... I handled 36 hours of REALLY hard labor and delivered two babies with NO DRUGS... I can handle six weeks of chaos! Andy will really have to step up and do grocery shopping, laundry, and all of that other "stuff". He helps with it all now, but he will be the "man" in charge!

I worked on the calendar tonight, filling in every one's schedule of classes, workshops, school, swim lessons, sports camp and a couple of weekend camping trips and feel overwhelmed. I know that I just have to focus on what comes next and no further. Our minister tells us, "You can drive down the highway at night and your headlights only show you the next 200 feet in front of you, and that is all you need to see. You keep driving, having faith that the next 200 feet will be illuminated for you. Heck, you can drive yourself from California to New York by only seeing the next 200 feet!" I am off, headed for New York... 200 feet at a time!

Weight Loss continues!

Hooray! I FINALLY seem to have broken through my "plateau"! A while back, I said that I was "back on the wagon" and was counting points and doing Weight Watchers. I don't go to meetings, but I have all of the materials.

After I had Gavin, I weighed in at 230 pounds! I had gained 10 pounds in the year between getting married and getting pregnant and then added another 80 to it. I went on Weight Watchers and the weight really came off, but after a while, I got bored and took a break, but every time I started again, I lost. Until... I got to the last 15 pounds. Those did NOT want to budge and right before Gavin turned 3, I tried South Beach, dropped the weight and was back to my pre-wedding weight of 140. That is a good weight for me. THEN, I got pregnant with Ella.

Here I am after Gavin... whew... I was really big! Just check out how far my thigh goes, past Andy's hand! I don't have a good picture of me, after I lost the weight...

I fared better with my second pregnancy, "only" gaining 60 pounds instead of 80. I did really well until the holidays hit. I was 7/8 months along, already big with baby and unable to do much exercise and gosh darn it...Fudge just tastes GOOD! Oh, and so do cookies! And since we all know that when you are pregnant, you should eat healthy food to grow a strong and healthy baby, I ate that TOO! So... I had some weight to lose.

Of course, I started counting points and really slimmed down fairly quickly, until... I got to the last 15 pounds. Those did NOT want to budge (does this sound familiar). Three times now, I have tried to shed these pounds. The first time I quit was when Ella was just over a year old and I thought, well, I must still need the padding. The second time was last summer when I counted and measured and weighed and NOTHING happened. I did do South Beach but got discouraged when the weight did not come off as fast as it had the last time. I dropped 7 pounds in 4 months and then over the course of a year, put it all back on (and then some).

So... here I am again... 15 pounds to shed. (I don't like to say lose, because I really have no intention of finding them again) I really wanted to do Weight Watchers because I think that it is the most healthy and really, I can eat anything I want, so long as I am willing to pay for it! I lost the first 5 quickly and then, I stalled at 150.. ugh....almost 3 weeks went by with no loss. I stuck to the points and REALLY watched what I ate and I exercised too (sort of). At least I walk Gavin to school every day...and it is about 3/4 of a mile! (uphill!) (pushing a stroller!)

I was talking to a group about my dilemma when somebody told me about the "Wendie" plan where you change your point allowance every day going from your extreme low to a mid-range to your highest point level, plus ten and then back down again. After reading about it on line, I thought, well... that makes sense. I am such a rule follower that I don't normally vary my daily points, I eat in the middle of my range and that's it.. and I don't use up any "banked" points, EVER! This way of using points is supposed to help your body not notice the days that you "go low" by feeding it high on the other days, thus keeping your metabolism up. It still keeps you in your weekly range, but doesn't give your body a chance to go into "starvation mode". It is recommended (by Wendie) for people trying to drop that "last" bit of weight. I did it. It worked! I lost 2 more pounds last week AND I ate chocolate cake (that was my big plus 10 treat!). I hope that it continues to work... I am now down 7 pounds and feel so much better. It is amazing how big of a difference a few pounds can make.

Weekend Fun!

Whew.... are you ever glad when the weekend is over? Sometimes, I am! Like this weekend, where I was only home for a few hours and now, I am glad to be here to get back to a routine! Don't get me wrong... I had LOADS of fun this weekend, but I am beat!

Friday was really nice... Ella and I went up to Gavin's school to cheer for the Fun Run! The kids run laps and raised money for the school. Gavin ran a MILE! He was very proud of himself! Afterwards they all had popsicles and Ella and I headed home for lunch. After lunch, we hung out in the backyard, Ella in the sandbox and me on a lounge chair with a book. (I am STILL reading "Eat, Pray, Love" and I don't want it to end, but I am almost there...) I did some house work and prepped for the weekend and stopped by to visit with my in-laws while the kids played "Pokemon" around the pool. Later, Andy and I went out... on a DATE! It CAN happen!

Afton stayed home with the kids and we went for $15 massages! It is really very cool...you just sit on a little stool (with clothes on) while your feet are soaking in a tub of HOT tea. The guys work on your back, shoulders, neck, head, legs and arms. When you are done with that part, you sit in a recliner and get about 20 minutes of foot massage with reflexology. AMAZING!

We then went out for dinner at a great Thai restraunt that we have been wanting to try. Food and company were great. We ran into Gavin's kindergarten teacher and her husband and ended up chatting for about an hour before we went home to enjoy a HUGE piece of chocolate cake and an episode of "LOST". Ahhhhhhh.... so nice! (I should have taken my camera so that I could have taken some pics....but...I didn't!)

I was up early on Saturday to do my Snack Shack duty for Little League. I had to pick up the doughnuts (7 dozen in my car... can I tell you how good THAT smelled!) and be up at the field by 7:30. My shift officially ended at 12 noon, but I stayed to help the next shift get into the swing of things, and was done at 1:00. Then it was time for Gavin's game! He is doing so well! He is a great hitter and getting really good at staying and playing his assigned position. It was hot though and the kids were worn out. When we got home, we set up some lounge chairs on our front lawn, in the shade and chilled. I even took a lil snooze! Dinner, story time and some more time with my book rounded out my day.

Sunday was church and out to Pasadena to visit with my brother and his family. It was my Sister-in-law's birthday and we had a wonderful bar-b-que. There were lots of friends and family there, the kids played in the ball pit, kiddie pool, sprinkler and with bubbles. I sat in the shade, tried to stay cool and eat within my points and downed bottle after bottle of water. My lil niece is getting cuter every day and I love to see her toddle around and be goofy. She has a great fake laugh and likes to tell you "no" for every question you ask.

We got home pretty late, I read some stories to Gavin (The Frog Prince & Hansel and Gretel) and then, I promplty fell asleep on the couch. Weekend over.

Tummy Update

I AM CURED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At least, I think I am!!! I forgot to take my meds one night last week, and I had been feeling pretty good, so I thought, "Well, we will see how I do". I was fine on Friday and Saturday, but by Sunday I was feeling not so good and by Monday I was back to square one.

I went online, I talked to my mom, I thought and thought about how I FEEL. My step dad has had heart burn problems for a long time and after talking with him, I decided that maybe...it was acid and that I had "heart burn" from my esophagus to my colon!! I took a Prilosec on Wednesday and felt REALLY good...I had an "anti-feeling" in my guts, like I didn't even know that I HAD guts. (is this the way it is supposed to be?) By the evening time, I was a bit naseuous and went to bed.

Yesterday, I felt GREAT and today my guts are a non-issue. I also think that part of the reason that I over-eat is because I have been trying to quench the burning in my belly... I especially crave sugarary treats, like chocolate. THAT too would make sense considering that sugar is a base...my body craves it to counter balance the acid! As a result, I have had an easier time sticking to my points and not eating so much!

I am going to try the drug for the 14 day cycle and hope that I can get off of it and only take a cycle every now and again when I start to have a problem. I know that my step dad cannot stop taking it, at all.... and I hope that I do not have to do that, but if it keeps my tummy in check. I will. Thanks for your prayers and support, and hopefully, I will not have to spend another day, curled up in pain.

Spring Break wrap up...

I never did finish writing about our Spring Break.... We really had some fun days (mixed in with hard work on the kitchen...more on that in another post).
We went to the Discovery Science Center one day for Bubble Fest and saw a great bubble show with Fan Yang! He was on Oprah and has a show in Vegas and it was really cool....

We also spent a HOT day at the L.A. Zoo! We ended up getting passes because the deal was just too good! Afton joined us and we had a great time trekkin around. Gavin was a bit whiny, but he was hot and not feeling very good. While we were watching the Gorilla's, one of the big males charged the glass right where we were standing, it was a little scary, but very cool. We also got close up with the Giraffes, which was interesting. We met up with my sister-in-law, Jen and baby Jordan, so that was a treat too!

We spent an afternoon relaxing (yes, we DO that on occasion) at "the pool". Andy's parents have a pool and we hung out over there and had a LATE dinner, but were just enjoying the time together and even though the water was a bit chilly, the kids had fun getting wet.

I got to go to an all day scrapbooking workshop! From 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. and I worked on Ella's book, I am going again tomorrow to catch it up and put it away until next year. I am off to do "power layouts" so that I can be faster and more productive.

I will post about the kitchen later, it is "coming along"...

Tummy Troubles

Whoa.. have I got 'em! I have never had the strongest gut, it's where I hold my stress, my worries and my anxiety (of which I carry plenty, as well). As a kid I easily got an upset stomach from worrying about a test or a new teacher or a new school year. At one point, I even had to take medication for it when I was in 4th grade...unfortunately, the stress of being singled out and called down to the office for a daily dose of stomach tranquilizers made my stomach worse!

I have had problems off and on with my "gut"... gas, bloating, belching and pain... my mom will talk your ear off about constipation when I was little, but I will spare you all of the details. Let's just say, that some days are better than others for me and my gut.

After I had Gavin, I had REAL troubles! I was getting so much pain in my intestines that I would be doubled over and could do nothing but lie on the couch watching him roll around. Thankfully he was not crawling yet, so I really could just lie there. I got so sick that I could not even eat chicken broth and mashed potatoes without agonizing pain and upset stomach. The Dr. patted me on the knee and told me, "What do you expect, you just had a baby!". Um... I thought to myself, I expect to be able to eat and not have to call my mom to come and help me get up off of the floor! It got bad enough that I started to vomit daily and let me tell you THAT is not something that I do!!! I was pretty desperate to feel better, and even my milk supply was suffering. I tried herbs, aloe juice, acidophilus, changes in my diet, excluding foods, adding foods and NOTHING helped! EVERY afternoon I was struck with UNBEARABLE pain and cramping that would not subside. I could only lie on my side with a heating pad and sleep it off. I even had to take more time off of work, because I could not make it through a day. My mom took me to the E.R. after the day that I called her from work and was literally on the floor, writhing in pain. Gavin was with me at the office and was napping, but I could not get up. Of course, by the time the Dr's saw me, the "episode" had passed, as it usually did after 4-5 hours (the same amount of time that we were waiting). They did some tests and basically came up with, "I don't know". BUT, they did write me a refferal to a specialist.

Sometime earlier, Andy had similar symptoms and he suffered for quite a while before a Dr. "diagnosed" him with I.B. (iritable bowel syndrome). They put him on a very low dose of Elavil, which is an inti-depressent because it helps to shut down some of the nerve endings that are sending all of these wild messages from the gut. He seemed to respond well to it and after about a year and a half, was off of the meds and doing really well. We went on vacation and on the way home I was hit with an "episode"... we were driving all the way from Sacramento and I spent a good portion of the drive curled into a tiny ball on the floor, moaning. It was awful. When we got home, I had reached a point of desperation after suffering like this for nearly 3 months. I took one of Andy's pills. Now, I KNOW that you are not supposed to share prescriptions, but like I said...I was desperate! I knew that the drug would make me sleepy, so I took it on a Friday when Andy was home. I slept through the WHOLE weekend! I am not kidding! He would bring Gavin in to nurse and I would crash back out. I ate a bit of broth and lots of water, but I really did sleep for nearly 3 days STRAIGHT. So, the first thing that I realized was that I had really gotten myself exhausted. At last, I had finally gotten some MUCH needed rest.

I had my appointment with the specialist later that week and told him that I had taken the meds. He said, "Hey, if we found something that works, let's stick with it!". He also diagnosed me with "irritable bowel", which is really a big catch all for any kind of gut problem that they can't figure out. By the time I got to the specialist however, I was REALLY sick. He told me, "You know when your computer says 'fatal error', well that is what your entire digestive system is doing right now. I had a bladder and kidney infection and was slightly septic from being constipated." He prescribed a couple of other things for me to do, eat and take that would help me get straightened out and he told me to take the Elavil (at an even smaller dose than Andy) for at least 6 months. He explained that often times when a woman has a baby, her body gets "hyper aware" of all of the feelings and goings on in the belly. After the baby is born, the body continues to clue into feelings that it really shouldn't be. Your bowel is always moving and working, but you just don't feel it and you shouldn't. In my case, I did and then some. The discomfort at being aware of my gut, then made my gut react by clamping down, and that would make me upset and then it became a vicious cycle. What he hoped that the medication would do is quiet down those nerves and make them forget to send messages to my brain. Well, it worked!
I only had an episode or two after that period and those were mild enough that I could take a Gas-X and a Tagamet and muddle through. After I had Ella, I was wondering if it would hit me agian. It did. I suffered quite a bit because I was unsure of the effects of the medication, going into my milk, on the baby. I read a great deal about it and finally decided that it was going to be o.k. and better for everyone in the long run. I was able to catch it much sooner this time and did not get nearly as sick. I had a few really tough weekends, but got myself back on track.

Since then I have had occasions where I eat something that does not set right and sends me running for Tagamet and Gas-X. Oh, the Tagamet... I had another Dr. explain to me that when you get an irritation in your bowel from a food, your body makes histamines and then you can get a reaction from THAT. Your bowel will swell and get itchy and sensitive and that can be very painful. Tagamet is an anti-histamine that most people take to help the problem in the stomach (acid indigestion) but that it might be helpful for my intestines. It is... it is like my mini miricle and has saved me many times. Any way, I have been pretty healthy and had no real problems. Until now.

At Christmas time, I like the rest of the country was stricken with that horrible stomach flu. It set the wheel in motion and I have been struggling since then to get my system back on track. Last month, the stress and exhaustion must have finally done me in, because I got to that place where I could not eat without feeling horrible and it was daily. I knew that I would need to get back on the meds, but hesitated becasue I also knew that it would make me SO sleepy and groggy and fuzzy headed. I looked for a weekend that I could just be that way, but none were available so I went ahead. Last Thursday night I took the meds and was out cold by 8:00 p.m. I had a heck of a time waking up the next morning and struggled through my day feeling really out of it. Around 5 p.m. I finally felt like I had all of my brain power back and within a half hour of that, my gut was protesting. I took another dose, smaller this time and went to bed by 8:00 again. The next day I felt pretty clear headed and my gut was nice to me all day until just before bed time.

So, I am back on these meds that make my gut tolerate food and digestion but make me sleepy, fuzzy headed and feel like I just don't care much about anything at all. It is not the perfect solution, but it is the only one that I have, for now. Hopefully I won't need to be on the drugs for long and I can get back to life as normal.

So confusing!

So it did publish, but it put it below a couple of other posts....
I wrote it on Monday, but was not finished. I decided to put it up tonight, but the date is still saying the date that I originally wrote it.. not the publish date...
Does anyone else know about this?
Ugh...
oh, and don't forget to read it....

Have computers made our lives easier?

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
I have this mega post and it won't publish.......
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
the trials and tribulations of computers
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Taggers, humph!

I got "tagged"... hmmm.... I don't usually take the time to do this stuff, but Andy said that he would put the kids to bed and I have found myself with a few quiet moments to myself... Here is to you, Melissa!

4 “people” who email me regularly
1. vons.com
2. dominoes pizza
3. Oprah
4. Kate Bono
(now that I keep up with folks via blogs, I don't get very many personal emails!)

4 places I would like to visit (c'mon, only FOUR!!!)
1. Italy
2. China
3. Germany
4. Rusia

4 favorite restaurants
1. Chili's
2. Mimi's
3. Olive Garden
4. The Cat in the Custard Cup (very fancy and exquisitely delicious food...also expensive!)

4 things I am looking forward to in the coming year
1. Starting school
2. Going on aScrapbooking retreat in May...a whole weekend in a HOTEL and scrapbooking..
am I dreaming or what?
3. Losing the last 10 pounds of "baby" weight..can you still call it that when your baby is 3?
4. Fixing up our house, especially doing the new floor in the kitchen

4 things I am not looking forward to in the coming year
1. Starting School
2. Continuing to squeeze my kids, their stuff and clothes into one bedroom
3. I really can't think of anything else...
4. Home projects that never end, especially doing the new floor in the kitchen

I tag.......Valerie, it will keep your mind busy!, Mica and Kate... if you don't have a blog, send out a mass email! And don't worry, I won't give you a massive guilt trip if you don't do it!

A Day With My Boy!

Gavin and I had our day, yesterday. Boy do I love that boy! I really see how important it is for the two of us to spend time together. We really know how to rub each other the wrong way and we get awfully upset with each other, much more often than I would like. But, on the other hand we adore each other like nobody else does ....

The one on one time was so good because there was no other stress or pressure, just us, hanging out.

I thought long and hard about what we could do together, because I really wanted us to be TOGETHER...not just him, running off and me watching. I finally came up with the PERFECT thing! We went to Griffith Observatory! It was engaging, and old enough for him, and it was something that Ella would NOT have enjoyed, I love space and stars and all of that, and so does he. We had to go to the market first, before we could head out, but even that was really enjoyable, together. We drove out to L.A. and I told him that he could not bring his Game Boy, so we had to talk. We talked about our "favorite things" and he told me of his "plans for the future". (He wants to be the President of the United States, someday, he says.)

When we got there, we had a picnic lunch and then we checked out exhibits and talked and he asked so many good questions! We got tickets for the Planetarium show and had a great time seeing that. We shared a soda at the cafe before heading home. It was really cool!

Later that night, we read a couple of chapters from our latest book and then he snuggled with me to watch American Idol. I let him stay up late..it is Spring Break, after all - besides, I was enjoying the cuddle time! Yeah for one on one with my kids... and yeah for the chance to celebrate them!

Spring Breaks

Spring Break has been really wacky around our house! Andy had his first and he worked on the kitchen, (no..it is not done yet...let's not talk about THAT) next came Ella and now Gavin. I usually take a spring break also to help offset the expense for the church where I work. There is usually a three week pay period around this time, and I just take an extra week off instead of getting the extra money.

This year, I didn't know WHAT to do! I decided to take off a week that crossed over both of the kids weeks off, so I did not work last Thursday and I will not work tomorrow on Tuesday.

Last week I got to spend a special day with JUST Ella and we went to the Aquarium of the Pacific! We had a super duper time and I really loved being able to just focus on her. She wanted to see the sea otters the most and was delighted with their antics. It was really funny though, she got very nervous and aprehensive about the trip and was asking lots of questions about it. When we got there, she did not want to go inside and I noticed that throughout the day she seemed a little lost without her brothers lead to follow.

It was a great day and I am looking forward to tomorrow when I take Gavin to the Griffith Observatory!