There is a point during summer that I am ready for it to be over. It's the teacher in me. I begin to transition into back to school days. Even though, I have been out of the Back To School Days groove for 3 years it never stops. I have noticed the change over starting to happen this week.
Sloane woke up Sunday from her nap without a noticeable temp. We both began to believe that her fever just a symptom of a summer virus. She spent the past few days catching up on sleep. I have been told, by a very reliable source, that sleep while a child has a fever isn't the type of sleep that allows them to wake up rested. This appeared totally true this week. Sloane has been exhausted, in spite of having slept all 3 days while she had the fever very well.
As of today, we are back on track to see Dr. Rahbar on September 17th with all status quo things to report. I wonder what this means. Is our Laryngeal Cleft journey ending?????
This week you could just call me Charlie. Not because Sloane has been watching Good Luck Charlie nonstop since be exposed to it during her down and out weekend. Not because my dad is a man named Charlie. Not because I've been munching on StarKist like Charlie the tuna.
Call me Charlie because Im going to the Chocolate Factory!!!!! Yes, folks, I got my Golden Ticket on Monday!!!! In one week's time, I had my first job interview in 20 years, resigned with a bittersweet heart from a profession and school district that I adored after 20 years, and landed a position to teach in a way I never thought I could.
Sloane's mom is now teaching at a local college!! I am completely nervous, yet over the moon with excitement. It was time for a change and with the help of friend, who has watched my 40 year journey, I am starting a new chapter in my life. This opportunity is one that fits into our family perfectly.
Sloane and I both have our first days at a new school on September 4th. It seems there are now 2 of us in our house who need to be Big Girls and play nice with others at school.
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Hunkered Down
Neither of us were overly concerned because tis' the season for summer viruses. I did have to laugh because the 102* fever showed up 2 hours before my first job interview in 20 years!! It was a quick dose of reality as to what happens when a mom works. I gave my hubby all the instructions and numbers needed to handle this unexpected medical pop-up while I pounded the pavement looking for a job! LMAO
Sloane's fever welcomed in its buddy of vomit by 7pm and we hunkered down for a quiet few days. By Saturday am, there was a trip to see Dr. Reibman. Its looking like a summer virus....was what she said. The diagnosis was a welcomed one, but I have to say the doom and gloom part of me wasn't convinced by Saturday night. Thoughts of pnuemonia came creeping into my head!! And from there, I jumped to a 2nd surgery. And then I just shut down.
Doom and gloom thought Sloane was breathing too fast and as soon as she said the words, my hubby said he thought the same thing. And so what does this mom do??? I took Sloane's pulse, counted the number of breathes she had in a minute, took a video of her breathing and sent it to all my go-to mommies at 11pm. Nuts I know!!!
It is Sunday afternoon now and Sloane is less miserable! Her fever has gone down. Miss Doom and Gloom is not rearing her head again unless Sloane is sicker tomorrow.
The one good thing about being hunkered down is that I am getting lots done around our house that gets neglected all summer. In the summer, we are a family of movers and shakers. Never really home! Small things, like organization and decorating gets put on the back burner. This weekend, I was able to do my favorite thing and my hubby least favorite. Move stuff around. LOL I love to move one piece of furniture from one place to another. Look at it for an hour and try it somewhere else. Actually, I love to move whole rooms around but my hubby nipped that in the bud as soon as I moved in with him.
This morning, I spent a few minutes straightening out our mud area cubby. And what did I do??? I hung up Miss Sloane's backpack and lunch bag. Sloane is going to school. For the next 15 years, a backpack will be hanging on this hook. That is unbelievable to me. Sloane is going to school. I hunkered her down as much as I could these past 3 years, but my daughter is ready to spread her wings.
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Wednesday, August 14, 2013
The Golden Ticket
At some point in the last week, Sloane has decided that she no longer needs a sippy cup and is ready to drink from an open vessel. We had been exposing her to open cups with gentle reminders of small sips. Sometimes, it goes well and other times there is a gasp with a quiet wide eyed moment until she coughs thru the next breath. Always, it is a volume issue. Too much liquid, too fast.
Lately, though, after Sloane has wandered off with her sippy cup, she pulls a 007 move! Sloane has been twisting the straw tops off her sippy cups when out of sight and drinking straight from the cup. My child is tricky. Always has been and always will be.
Monday, while we were driving in the car Sloane decided to turn her take small sips from a toddler cup into a toss your head back take a swig contest from an open jug. As all parents, I know that when Sloane isn't singing, talking or playing with a noisy toy something is up. Quiet, when you have a three year old, usually means trouble is brewing. So as we were driving along the highway, I noticed it ...silence!! It takes a minute or two to register and then I casually put down my visor mirror (otherwise known as mommy has eyes behind her head) and I see it........or rather hear it.
Sloane unscrewed the cover to her sippy cup and was chugging her water with her head tilted back. And then it comes.....water bubbling out of all the likely places. Her nose, her mouth and dripping off her chin. The coughs start, the eyes water and gasp for a breath follows.
Sloane drinking from an open vessel is acceptable when she has an adult with her to manage her sips, it is acceptable when she is upright in the proper position and it is acceptable when she is bright eyed and bushy tailed. None of these were the case as we drove home from another overnighter at the beach house.
I grabbed the cup out of her hands with a big fat No Thank You!!! Waited for her to process all the water that had been injected in all the wrong areas and then spent a few minutes explaining why we don't do take the top off our sippy cup. All while driving down 95. Sloane's response was "But, momma, I'm a big girl."
Sloane may be a big girl. I, on the other hand, am like a child waiting for Christmas to come. I have been waiting for a certain job opportunity to call. Each time, my phone rings with an in recognizable number, I think..this is it....the golden ticket! But it's not. Sloane maybe a big girl. Her momma may just starting throwing a tantrum like a baby as the days tick away towards the school year.
Lately, though, after Sloane has wandered off with her sippy cup, she pulls a 007 move! Sloane has been twisting the straw tops off her sippy cups when out of sight and drinking straight from the cup. My child is tricky. Always has been and always will be.
Monday, while we were driving in the car Sloane decided to turn her take small sips from a toddler cup into a toss your head back take a swig contest from an open jug. As all parents, I know that when Sloane isn't singing, talking or playing with a noisy toy something is up. Quiet, when you have a three year old, usually means trouble is brewing. So as we were driving along the highway, I noticed it ...silence!! It takes a minute or two to register and then I casually put down my visor mirror (otherwise known as mommy has eyes behind her head) and I see it........or rather hear it.
Sloane unscrewed the cover to her sippy cup and was chugging her water with her head tilted back. And then it comes.....water bubbling out of all the likely places. Her nose, her mouth and dripping off her chin. The coughs start, the eyes water and gasp for a breath follows.
Sloane drinking from an open vessel is acceptable when she has an adult with her to manage her sips, it is acceptable when she is upright in the proper position and it is acceptable when she is bright eyed and bushy tailed. None of these were the case as we drove home from another overnighter at the beach house.
I grabbed the cup out of her hands with a big fat No Thank You!!! Waited for her to process all the water that had been injected in all the wrong areas and then spent a few minutes explaining why we don't do take the top off our sippy cup. All while driving down 95. Sloane's response was "But, momma, I'm a big girl."
Sloane may be a big girl. I, on the other hand, am like a child waiting for Christmas to come. I have been waiting for a certain job opportunity to call. Each time, my phone rings with an in recognizable number, I think..this is it....the golden ticket! But it's not. Sloane maybe a big girl. Her momma may just starting throwing a tantrum like a baby as the days tick away towards the school year.
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Easy Peasy
My hubby and I were married 5 years last week. Marriage is like 2nd grade math. Milestones are based on increments of 5. Celebrating 5 years is a big deal. I believe the word I used and my hubby chuckled at was symbolic. LOL. We, unlike other couples around us, have celebrated our anniversary in a way that makes every other one seem dreamy. On our 2nd anniversary August 3rd, Sloane was in the NICU at day 14 of life receiving her diagnosis of a Laryngeal Cleft. It was a very dark time so any other kind of symbolic celebration in honor of our marriage is fine by me.
My gift from my hubby is a family trip. I had thought a bit ago that he might be scheming something and he was. As he said it Saturday night, "he is taking his 3 favorite girls away." That would be me, Sloane and "the machine", our babysitter. Nanna aka Lana is coming with us. I welcome the extra set of hands. I think it will give us time as a couple on our vacation. I am very excited to take Sloane on a plane. I know we would have done it already if it wasn't for our obsession with the feeding tube and germs.
Where are we going? No idea. I am seeing beach, water sports, and some relaxation. What do I know? I know that my daughter needs a passport. Now, this would be an easy peasy kind of errand you would think? Except for the fact that I had no idea where Sloane's birth certificate is???
I started thinking...did we get one? Where did I put it? I started looking in all the likely places. The baby book, the baby important paper file box, the safe. I come across piles and piles of medical paperwork that I can not even bare to look at. Discharge medical summaries, Early Intervention weekly goal sheets, followup instructions from ENTs, swallow study result summaries, and medical supply packing slips. I am not sure what bothered me more. Seeing the pile of those papers or not seeing a birth certificate?...
And then I started to panic. I had no recollection at all. Now, when Sloane was born it was not a peaceful time and the months that followed her homecoming were bogged down by paperwork, doctors appointments, and insurance issues so this document could be anywhere???
I decided to call my sister in law. She would surely remember since my niece is 9 months younger and her homecoming was far more peaceful. It seemed that as soon as I asked the question, I stumped her. Hmmmmmm, she said. I don't know. We must have it. And then as we chatted, she started looking in all her most likely places turning up nothing. We chatted about trying to recall the birth certificate process and nothing...we were both completely blank. She ends the convo telling me she is going to call my brother stating that he remembers things like this better than she does. So, I decide to call my hubby. He, too, like me has no idea. Which is a good thing in my opinion.
I, then, think this is a question for my go-to mommy. She has 3 kids. She must know where you get one of these ever so important documents. I am comforted by her answer. No, I do not have it. No, i did not misplace it. No, i have not blocked out receiving it. I need to head to City Hall to apply for it. Easy peasy!!! And we now have a birth certificate for our daughter 3 years later. On to filing for a passport.....
Today, I decided that if writing a cover letter for a job prospect was as easy peasy like writing a blog post than I would be a happier person.
Today, Sloane decided to add freakin' to her daily vocabulary. I heard "why is this freakin iPad not working?" and "look at this freakin toy, it is broken." If Sloane would magically forget the word freakin' I would be a happier person.
As a side note, we have no idea where she picked it up. My hubby and I use the bigdog f word if we are going to. Freakin isn't part of my daily chatter. Sloane could have picked up some not so nice words from us by now. Easy peasy....but not this one!!!!
My gift from my hubby is a family trip. I had thought a bit ago that he might be scheming something and he was. As he said it Saturday night, "he is taking his 3 favorite girls away." That would be me, Sloane and "the machine", our babysitter. Nanna aka Lana is coming with us. I welcome the extra set of hands. I think it will give us time as a couple on our vacation. I am very excited to take Sloane on a plane. I know we would have done it already if it wasn't for our obsession with the feeding tube and germs.
Where are we going? No idea. I am seeing beach, water sports, and some relaxation. What do I know? I know that my daughter needs a passport. Now, this would be an easy peasy kind of errand you would think? Except for the fact that I had no idea where Sloane's birth certificate is???
I started thinking...did we get one? Where did I put it? I started looking in all the likely places. The baby book, the baby important paper file box, the safe. I come across piles and piles of medical paperwork that I can not even bare to look at. Discharge medical summaries, Early Intervention weekly goal sheets, followup instructions from ENTs, swallow study result summaries, and medical supply packing slips. I am not sure what bothered me more. Seeing the pile of those papers or not seeing a birth certificate?...
And then I started to panic. I had no recollection at all. Now, when Sloane was born it was not a peaceful time and the months that followed her homecoming were bogged down by paperwork, doctors appointments, and insurance issues so this document could be anywhere???
I decided to call my sister in law. She would surely remember since my niece is 9 months younger and her homecoming was far more peaceful. It seemed that as soon as I asked the question, I stumped her. Hmmmmmm, she said. I don't know. We must have it. And then as we chatted, she started looking in all her most likely places turning up nothing. We chatted about trying to recall the birth certificate process and nothing...we were both completely blank. She ends the convo telling me she is going to call my brother stating that he remembers things like this better than she does. So, I decide to call my hubby. He, too, like me has no idea. Which is a good thing in my opinion.
I, then, think this is a question for my go-to mommy. She has 3 kids. She must know where you get one of these ever so important documents. I am comforted by her answer. No, I do not have it. No, i did not misplace it. No, i have not blocked out receiving it. I need to head to City Hall to apply for it. Easy peasy!!! And we now have a birth certificate for our daughter 3 years later. On to filing for a passport.....
Today, I decided that if writing a cover letter for a job prospect was as easy peasy like writing a blog post than I would be a happier person.
Today, Sloane decided to add freakin' to her daily vocabulary. I heard "why is this freakin iPad not working?" and "look at this freakin toy, it is broken." If Sloane would magically forget the word freakin' I would be a happier person.
As a side note, we have no idea where she picked it up. My hubby and I use the bigdog f word if we are going to. Freakin isn't part of my daily chatter. Sloane could have picked up some not so nice words from us by now. Easy peasy....but not this one!!!!
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Crunch Time
I am the type of person who gets quiet on all fronts when something is bothering me. The quiet falls at my mouth not at my brain. Unfortunately, when my lips aren't flapping, it usually means a bit further up my wheels are spinning.
It's all quiet here in our home on my end. Sloane continues to need to wear her "Talking 24/7" tee shirt. I need a shirt that says "Shhhhh...in deep thought." The thing is that it is crunch time. Crunch time for back to school....back to work....back to reality....back to hustle and bustle....back to bringing home the bacon...and in my case back to the bathroom because my nerves have hit me below the belt!! Basically, the school year starts in 3 freakin weeks!!!
Sloane is ready. She is enrolled and has the gear. Sweet Peas preschool will be graced by her presence 3 days a week starting on September 5th. I know our circle of trust thinks I am going to lose my shit when we drop her off the first day! We shall see! I do know one thing, no 3 year old has been more ready to hit preschool than my cherub!!! Sloane asks every day when she can go to school and then reminds me that she can't be late.
I am not ready. I have spent the last week tweaking my resume, writing cover letters and applying for jobs in a way I never thought I would. I have a job, folks! My classroom opens the last week of August. Whether or not, my name will be on the door remains to be seen. It's crunch time! I'm trying to explore all my options. I want to spice up my professional life some. Spending time vacillating between feeling as if I can renter the job force with flying colors and then feeling more vulnerable professionally than I ever have. Being away from a profession that identified me for almost half of my life has taken its toll.
My hubby, as we discussed my job opportunities tonight, made a statement that shook all 4 walls. He said " I like that one (position) best because it has the least time disruption to our home life." You could have knocked me over with a feather. I used a bit of a Jedi Mind Trick on him....using his own lingo back at him. I said "So if I am hearing you correctly, you would prefer for me to work the least amount of time I can?" And so the man says...."yes". And with that, the wheels started spinning.
It's all quiet here in our home on my end. Sloane continues to need to wear her "Talking 24/7" tee shirt. I need a shirt that says "Shhhhh...in deep thought." The thing is that it is crunch time. Crunch time for back to school....back to work....back to reality....back to hustle and bustle....back to bringing home the bacon...and in my case back to the bathroom because my nerves have hit me below the belt!! Basically, the school year starts in 3 freakin weeks!!!
Sloane is ready. She is enrolled and has the gear. Sweet Peas preschool will be graced by her presence 3 days a week starting on September 5th. I know our circle of trust thinks I am going to lose my shit when we drop her off the first day! We shall see! I do know one thing, no 3 year old has been more ready to hit preschool than my cherub!!! Sloane asks every day when she can go to school and then reminds me that she can't be late.
I am not ready. I have spent the last week tweaking my resume, writing cover letters and applying for jobs in a way I never thought I would. I have a job, folks! My classroom opens the last week of August. Whether or not, my name will be on the door remains to be seen. It's crunch time! I'm trying to explore all my options. I want to spice up my professional life some. Spending time vacillating between feeling as if I can renter the job force with flying colors and then feeling more vulnerable professionally than I ever have. Being away from a profession that identified me for almost half of my life has taken its toll.
My hubby, as we discussed my job opportunities tonight, made a statement that shook all 4 walls. He said " I like that one (position) best because it has the least time disruption to our home life." You could have knocked me over with a feather. I used a bit of a Jedi Mind Trick on him....using his own lingo back at him. I said "So if I am hearing you correctly, you would prefer for me to work the least amount of time I can?" And so the man says...."yes". And with that, the wheels started spinning.
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