Merry Christmas 2009

Today is Christmas, and believe it or not, we are having a white Christmas here in Texas. It snowed all day yesterday and accumulated an inch or two - enough to make it a white Christmas. It is truly a special year. The best present our family received this year was contact with Joe's son, Brent, whom we have never met but hope to someday soon. He is 17 and lives in Reno, NV with his mom and step dad and little brother. We always knew he was out there but didn't know how to find him. Thanks to facebook, Joe and I were able to connect with his mom and we've been exchanging pictures and messages ever since. The best things in life are free, and family connections mean more to me than any materialistic gift. We hope to be a part of his life from this day forward and have lots of catching up to do for lost time.

I am recovering from another ankle and knee surgery the other day (Weds 12/23). The surgery in August on my ankle was to repair my ATF ligament, and apparently I also had a tear in a tendon and tendonitis on the other side, but for whatever reason the surgeon did not fix them. So I never healed up completely. I finally went to see a specialist and he fixed up the tendons. I also had new tears in my knee meniscus and the knee specilaist fixed those. I have learned the very important lesson that I should have seen a specialist in the first place. Had I done so, perhaps I woudn't have needed this most recent surgery. But it is a moot point now. I can only hope that this time is the last time and that one day I will recover to full strength in my legs. I do accept the fact that I will no longer be able to run or play soccer, but I do hope to be able to mountain bike, swim, lift weights, and do yoga/pilates to stay in shape. I've been in a brace, cast, or boot since April, so I can't wait for the day to come when I can wear normal shoes again!

It's been so long since I've written in this blog and a lot of news that I have skipped over. Thomas's skull fracture healed up fine. He turned 5 in Nov and started preschool again. He goes three days a week now, MWF, and is in the same class with a little girl down the street. So far that is working out great. Sierra just got an iphone for Christmas and is on cloud 9 about that! She is working at a math/reading tutoring center and of course working hard being a junior at high school. She took her SAT earlier this month. Zoe just got her first cell phone today and already lost it within the first few hours! Joe found it outside in the snow...doh! Thankfully it still works. My mom is here visiting from VA. This is the first time we've had her here for Christmas eve/Christmas. Usually she comes on Christmas day and stays a few days after, but we decided to try it a little differently this year to bring more joy into her life. Joe is doing a great job taking care of everybody and everything while I am recovering. The timing of my surgery is awful, as there is so much work to be done around the holidays and usually it's the mom who is responsible for the cooking etc. I am very grateful to have such a helpful and loving husband.

Greenpeace Blog Action Day for Climate Change

www.blogactionday.org

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCEjg1Ej6QM

Greenpeace is calling on bloggers to blog about climate change today. Since they asked, I will oblige. It is time for the US to take action to make a real difference in the world on the topic of climate change. I believe the science. I believe the glaciers are melting, and temperatures are steadily rising over geologic time. I believe that humans use too many fossil fuels, and our carbon emissions are causing negative changes in the atmosphere. I believe that we as humans have the responsibility of using our big brains to do something to stop the destruction we are causing. The US and the rest of the world need to work together to reduce carbon emissions and to use cleaner energy. We have the technology, but politics and corporate greed often stand in the way of using cleaner technology. We are making small steps in the right direction. Even in my short lifetime, I have seen awareness and action increase over the past few decades. We need to keep up this momentum and increase our efforts and cooperation with the rest of the world so we can continue to make things better. The planet is what gives us life. We need to take care of it.

Homecoming, head injuries, and happy hour

This is homecoming weekend for the kids at the local high school. Sierra is at the game right now with her date and two other couples. We took pics before they left w/ the couples wearing their garters and mums. For all non-Texas people...it is tradition here. Girls wear 'mums' and boys wear 'garters' which are fancy personalized ribbon, teddy bear, charms etc. type things (see the picture). The couples wear them to school on homecoming Friday and to the game at night. Tomorrow is the dance and Sierra will also be going out for dinner at Jinbeh, a delicious Japanese steak house/sushi place in town. Great idea guys!

Wow has it ever been a long two weeks since Thomas fell down and got a hairline skull fracture. I just took him to Ft. Worth to see a pediatric neurosurgeon today at Cook Children's Medical Center to follow up on the ER and pediatrician visits. Luckily, he said the fracture is very small and won't require any follow up care, not even another CT scan. However, he also suffered a concussion, so for the next 4-6 weeks we need to keep Thomas calm and resting. Let me tell you this is no easy feat with a four year old boy. He understands his head is hurt, but he still wants to run and jump and play rough all the time. Thank God there was no damage to his brain. We just have to get through the next month or so without letting him hurt it any more and keep an eye on his symptoms.

Zoe is playing at one of our awesome neighbors' houses. It's nice she has a good friend right across the street to play with and such a nice way to start the weekend for her. She has gymnastics Tues and Thurs nights for 5 hrs/week plus school and mommy homework plus chores, so the school weeks are always long for her and the weekends are her chance to play and relax. Her friends parents, the Weathers, are hosting our neighborhood happy hour tomorrow night, and I can't wait!

We get together on an almost monthly basis for happy hour/parties with our neighbors, and different people take turns hosting every month. It is a great way for parents to socialize and for the kids to play. In the summers, people with pools host and the kids have lots of fun swimming. It's a great way for the neighborhood to come together and get to know each other. Have I mentioned yet that I love our neighborhood?

We moved to Texas in 2006 to take advantage of the housing market. Being a family of five, we were bursting at the seams in our 1600 sq. ft. townhouse in Burke, VA (a DC suburb). Joe transferred w/ his law firm from DC to Dallas, and we got a 3500 sq. ft single family home for less $$. The house is beautiful, and our neighborhood is awesome. I do miss DC and all my friends and my mom there, but living in such a nice house is definitely a trade off. Our lives literally changed overnight. Plus we have found that it is a great small town to live in . The schools are good, and there is a lot of school spirit. It's lacking a bit on restaurants, but there is plenty of everything nearby, and the weather is nice most of the time. All in all, my vote is 'don't mess with Texas!' :)

Gratitude

Today I am grateful for life. Thomas' life specifically. He suffered a hairline skull fracture this afternoon when he and Zoe were playing upstairs. It was not bad enough to cause any damage to his brain, thankfully. I was able to carry my little boy out of the emergency room alive and sort of well. When we left, someone else had been brought in by ambulance, and there were police officers and crying parents. The other people there had asthma, a bad rash, and the swine flu. I am grateful my son will be ok.

Isn't it Ironic?

Limits on social networking sites? You can't comment too much or request too many friends in one day? Shouldn't limits be relative to the total number of friends you have?

Sen. Ted Kennedy died yesterday. Everybody knew it was coming as he battled brain cancer for the past year. I think it's ironic that people don't get to live to hear what is said about them after death. Even in this case when it was anticipated, it's not until the person dies that the media makes a big deal out of them and airs programs honoring their lives and achievements. If I knew I was dying, I'd kind of like to hear what I meant to everybody BEFORE the fact. With that said, his passing marks the end of an era. The beginning of a new Kennedy generation as he was the last of three incredible brothers who tried to make our world a better place. Even though they called him the "Liberal Lion" he was known for having many close friends across the aisle.

summer is over, well kind of

It's the last Saturday of summer for the girls. Where did the summer go? Why does time always fly when you are having fun? I've been making them work hard on academics over the summer, so they SHOULD be ready to go back to school. Keeping my fingers crossed they will both behave in class and do their work to the best of their abilities!!

Thomas misses the cut off for kindergarten so he will be home with me for another year. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be home with him.

Listening to the news about 'pay to play' for sports in schools. Yup, it's pretty expensive here for that kind of thing. It wasn't that way when I grew up. If you made the team you made it and didn't have to pay anything extra to participate!

My ankle surgery pretty much ruined the last half of my summer. Good thing we live in TX and it stays hot and sunny here for a while, so I still have some nice weather to look forward to when I get better. Also, the pool at our gym stays open till the end of September, so hopefully I can have a little bit of pool time after I get out of my walking boot.

Kids say the cutest things

The other day, Thomas was watching Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. I came to the family room and sat next to him on the couch, and he said, "Mommy you want to watch with me?"

"Yes," I said.

"Well, you know how to watch it mommy, you just .... stare at the screen..that's how you watch it!" funny boy..

another day

Another day of healing. Another day lying around. I watched President Obama's town hall on health care today and thought he did a great job dispelling all the myths out there. I am hopeful people will come together and agree on something. It seems to me a public option is a good idea. I forgot to call my congressman's office today to express my support of health insurance reform. I guess I will have to do it tomorrow.

Haven't made any progress in either of my books, New Moon or Driftwood Summer, today but have been doing a lot of thinking and resting and playing around on facebook. Took care of all the bills on Monday. Listening to the news pretty much all day with a slight break for some comedy and some wife swap.

Sierra went to pick up her schedule today. Can't believe she is now a junior! We decided to let her drop out of the GT/AP versions of her classes so she can get more As instead of Bs and get her class rank up so she has a better chance of getting into the colleges she is interested in. Zoe and Thomas are w/ Joe's mom until tomorrow, so the house is quiet. At least they are not making a big mess as usual! But of course I miss them and look forward to seeing them tomorrow when they come home.

Am craving pad thai and wondering if they are made with rice noodles only - like no wheat or corn. Joe should be home soon so we'll figure out something for dinner.

Made an appointment to get my cast off next week, Tues Aug 18. Tutoring tomorrow, Thurs, and Friday. It will be a nice change of pace from doing nothing all day!

in the hospital

Here I am in a hospital bed, waiting for my next dose of pain meds. My ankle is throbbing again and the pain gets unbearable after about 2 hours. The surgery went well but the cast was too tight so I had to come back last night and spend the night and am here all day today for observation and pain management. In some ways, it's nice to have a break from the day to day stuff. I'm catching up on the news and brought my laptop so I can play around on facebook and watch the two chick flicks I brought with me (Atonement and Across the Universe).

I still haven't seen Sierra since she got home last night. We talked on the phone today. She is home watching Zoe and Thomas. I hope to go home tonight after the dr. comes to visit me and makes sure I am ok.

Today is President Obama's 48th bday, happy birthday Mr. President! I heard on the news today that he is planning to address the problem of texting while driving. I think that's a great idea. Too many people are losing their lives because they are texting while driving, and several studies have shown it increases your likelihood of having an accident and is actually more dangerous than drinking while driving.

The health care debate still continues. The Republicans are afraid our health care system will be socialized and government will take over private insurances. I really don't think that is the case. Obama has said in the past he supports a single-payer system, but more recently it's been my understanding that he wants to provide a public option as a competitor to run alongside private insurance and bring the costs down in the private sector. If you like your private insurance you can keep it. It makes sense to me that we should tax all the unhealthy stuff more to help with the costs of health care. People who are obese or who smoke all the time are very expensive to care for, and really they are just doing it to themselves. They don't take care of themselves and then expect the doctors and medicines to fix them. Same with sodas and fast food etc. Diabetes is a major health problem as is heart disease and cancer. People should have an incentive to take care of themselves, eat right, and exercise. Prevention is important.

Even though our health insurance is crazy expensive and has high deductibles and copays, I am so thankful to have it. This stupid ankle injury is going to cost me lots of $$ but at least I am able to get the care I need. I am so thankful Joe was able to take yesterday off to be with me and to bring me back to the hospital and care for the kids.

I think it would be cool to be a doctor. If I could go back in time and do it all over again, I would have started college on a premed program and become a doctor of some sort. I wish I would have figured that out earlier, but oh well. It is what it is, and I am happy with being a mom and a math tutor. I really enjoy working one on one with students and focusing on math since it's my favorite subject and I'm good at it! If I were to become a doctor, I'd be interested in being an ob/gyn or maybe a medical examiner. After I has Sierra in 1993, I worked as a midwife's assistant and was fortunate enough to experience more than 30 home-births with her. Hypothetically, I don't think I'd want to be a midwife because there is so much controversy about it. I'd want to deliver babies in a hospital or birthing center though. That would be really cool. On the flip side, I am also fascinated by medical examiners' jobs although it seems a little gross to be working on dead people. All in all, I think it would be interesting to work in those fields, life and death. If you could go back in time and change something, what would it be?

august is here

Where did July go? The summer seems to be flying by - which usually indicates you are having fun if time flies - but not sure that is the case this time. I can't wait to have surgery on my ankle tomorrow morning. I am sick of being injured. It sucks having to lie around and rest after a while. I want to be strong and active again.

Sierra comes home tomorrow night. I can't wait for that either.

books

I'm still trying to finish Harry Potter 7. I got it when it was first released and it didn't catch my interest like the other 6. I trudged my way through it until I was 2/3 of the way done and it was finally getting good. Then I left it at the gym...big mistake...because nobody turned it in. Somebody picked it up and took it home. Great. So, now I checked out the audio CDs from the library and am trying to finish it that way, although it takes so long to listen to the narrator read it, not sure if I am going to get through it that way. I just want to know if/how Harry dies...

I've also joined a book club in the neighborhood to help me build my pleasure reading habit. The first book we read, The Memory or Running, was ok. The Hour I First Believed was about Columbine. Good book. Then we read Good Christian Bitches, not so good. Now we are on Driftwood summer. Haven't started it yet..

In the meantime, I have started on the Twilight Series. Saw the movie and hated it. Everybody says the book is better, so I made it through #1, and yes I agree, the book was better than the movie. So, now I am on New Moon (#2) So far so good.

my kids and my food allergy update

I woke up late this morning (love sleeping in on the weekends) and cutie pie Thomas announced to me that today he has a date. When I asked with whom, he informed me his pillow (my king sized pillow that he always steals and he decided to draw a happy face on)...and not only is it a date..they are also getting married! As a consolation, he told me I could be his second wife. Nice of him to include me.

Zoe helped Joe with the dishes this morning. She is pretty good at emptying the dishwasher (Sierra's job) but doesn't like to load it. With Sierra being gone all week, we've needed some extra help getting all the chores done. I took Zoe to get a haircut yesterday to get it out of the way before my surgery (I found out from the dr. he doesn't want me to drive for six weeks - ugh) and before school starts in a few weeks.

Sierra comes home in two days...I miss her tons but I get it that she needs to spend time w/ her dad and grandparents. I have to share.

OK, now for my food allergy updates. The blood tests all came back negative, just like the skin tests a few years ago. It just goes to show they are not reliable (which the food allergist explained to me after charging me $350 for the skin testing). I don't know about the gluten intolerance but I do know that I get a rash whenever I mess up and have any wheat or corn products. So I will stick with eliminating them from my diet despite the test results. Just the other night, Joe was trying to be helpful and picked up a yummy rotisserie chicken for dinner. He put it in a brown rice tortilla w/ some lettuce and tomato and cheese and he forgot about mayo having corn syrup and put mayo on it too! I just can't seem to escape it. It seems like I am always messing up and having a little somehow. It takes a few days for the rashes to go down.

My Dad's book (I am the editor): Into the Vortex of War - A Korean Interpreter's Close Encounter with the Enemy

http://www.amazon.com/Into-Vortex-War-Interpreters-Encounter/dp/1434322610/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1221697544&sr=1-1

Obama's birth certificate and the health care debate

I'm listening to the news (msnbc) and I don't see why there is still a debate about Obama not being born in America. It's already been substantiated that he was born in HI. It's ridiculous. Let it go people. And who cares about the beer summit and what kinds of beer they drank. I think all the republicans who are complaining need to get over it and accept Obama won the election fair and square and get on board to try to find some middle ground.

Chiming in on the health care debate - glad to hear there has been some compromise on the ideas for reform and hopeful they will figure out a win/win solution. I think offering a public option in addition to private insurance is a smart idea. If you like your private insurance you can keep it. If you don't you can go to the public option. They have to figure out how everything will be paid for, but I am hopeful and confident they can come with some solutions.

The dow is up, we are losing jobs slower than six months ago, the recession is slowly coming around. I think we are headed in the right direction.

surgery update

I can't wait to have my ankle fixed on Monday. Got the great news today that whatever I did to my good knee yesterday - it's not torn, so they don't need to do anything to it...thank GOD! So just a few more days and I'll be getting my ankle ligament repaired and can start healing. No more high kicks for me - and no more playing soccer. I will be careful and stick to the bike and the pool for exercise.

Thursday

It started with a big fat thunderstorm. Loved it. Then it got worse when I hurt my good knee and am now facing surgery on both legs. Getting an mri tomorrow to find out about the knee...keep your fingers crossed it is not torn, and it will get better on its own so I can focus on fixing the ankle. That will be bad enough - talked to the doctor today and found out I shouldn't drive for 6 weeks. That's not going to be easy.

Sierra is still in VT, talked to her again today. Zoe went to gymnastics. Thomas played w/ a friend. I am loving the break from the heat. The cloudy, rainy weather makes it better to be staying inside and resting my limbs.

Rainy days and Mondays

Finally, we got some rain and a decent thunder/lightening storm. I am a big fan of storms, especially those that are loud and last a long time. These hot Texas summers beg for rainstorms to quench the parched grass and all the bushes and flowers we put so much care into planting in our backyard.

Figures after weeks of 100+ degree heat and relentless sunshine, today it storms, when Sierra had to take a flight to CT (and poor Sierra is already scared of flying). The storms delayed her flight a few hours, and thank goodness she called a little while ago to tell me she made it there safely. I hate it when she is gone. I just want this week to go by fast.

Besides the fact Sierra will return on Monday Aug 3, I also have ankle surgery scheduled that day. So, this week stinks for two reasons. One, my first born child whom I adore and enjoy being around is not here. Two, I am supposed to stay off my ankle. Do you know how hard it is to stay off your ankle? Thank god I work from home, but being a mommy and homemaker requires a certain amount of walking around to feed everybody and do all the chores, no to mention the task of entertaining the kids.

Zoe and Thomas did their homework this morning and then played imagination for a while, painted with watercolors after lunch, and now Zoe is at her friend's house while Thomas plays Wii upstairs. I guess I better take this opportunity to take a shower.

Joe has a late (and very important) meeting tonight, so it will just be me and the little kids home for dinner. I think I'll keep it simple.

Keeping my kids busy in the summer

Yes I am one of those 'mean' moms who makes her kids do homework in the summer. I have always heard the schools say to READ, READ, READ over the summer, but what about math? What about spelling and writing? When I used to be a teacher, I was chair of the math committee one year and implemented a summer math program to run alongside the summer reading program. Each grade level made up packets that reviewed the key objectives from that year. I am now a private math tutor, and I highly recommend that all kids study through the summer months. They should review what they learned last year and preview what they will learn next year. When school starts they can hit the ground running, and teachers don't lose precious weeks reviewing and reviewing because kids forgot what they learned last year. Every June, I go to the teacher store and buy "Summer Bridge" workbooks for my kids that span all subjects from one grade level to the next. My kids have to work for atleast an hour a day Monday through Friday in their books before they can watch TV or play Wii. The summer bridge workbooks stop after 8th grade. My teenager, who is a rising junior, works on PSAT instead. After all, knowledge is power, and after working for an hour or so a day they are free to do whatever they want and play around and/or be lazy for the rest of the long summer days. It's good for them. Knowledge is power!

Food Allergies

Can I say I am amazed at how many things I can no longer eat without the risk of being rashy? I'm not talking just any rash. I get rashy (eczema) on my lips, cheeks, eyes, forehead (basically my whole face) and neck. Upon the advice of my allergy shot nurse I started an elimination diet and took wheat and then corn out of my diet for two weeks at a time only to discover that the rashes magically went away. This is after an entire lifetime of symptoms. When I was growing up, my friends called me "Susie Chap Stick" because I always used chap stick on my itchy rashy lips. Only now do I also know that I was also allergic to the chemicals in the chap stick I was using. From several chemical patch tests it became apparent I am allergic to fragrances as well as several pages worth of chemicals that are found in fragrance free products.



So far here is a list of things I can't eat anymore:



Wheat Products:

bread

tortillas

pasta

crackers

soy sauce

beef jerky (wheat starch)

beer

whiskey (not that I was a big fan or anything)

anything with Modified Food Starch, which is wheat based (like alot of lunchmeats)

most gravies

MorningStar Farm Products (which I love) like soy sausages, blackbean/veggie burgers, and taco salad crumbles (fake ground beef)...I have been eating these products all the time for years thinking they are a healthy cholesterol alternative to meat.

vinegar





Corn Products:

Corn (duh)

corn tortillas

corn chips

anything w/ corn syrup (like sodas, gatorade, salad dressings, condiments like ketchup and mayo)

anything w/ corn starch (including some lunchmeats, enchilada sauce, hot dogs, canned chili)

popcorn





So far I have found some good alternatives thank God. If I eat at home, I can cook things like pizza with rice crust, rice noodles, potatoes, and just today I baked my first successful loaf of ric bread. It doesn't taste exactly the same but it's not bad, much better than the store bought stuff.