Sick days

My older two boys came down with a flu-ey virus on Tuesday (not too surprising after our very social weekend). No tummy issues, thankfully, but chills, fevers and body aches were enough to keep them stuck to the sofa the last two days.

We read more "HP and the Prisoner of Azkaban," and some selections for Littlest, and watched "Narnia" and "The Never-Ending Story." Have I mentioned these boys like fantasy? Maybe someday they'll let me read "Farmer Boy" to them...

Middlest was content just to lay on the couch all afternoon looking at the butterflies who'd just hatched in our Butterfly house.


We have a new neighbor next door who happens to work at Insectlore. Lucky us!! She came by with a container of ladybug larvae and another of butterfly pupa a few days ago. We got caterpillars last spring and watched the whole process, which was very cool.

We've never hatched lady bugs before, and I'm not sure these are doing well. But four of the butterflies hatched yesterday. After a few hours of observing them explore the lavender, Eldest took them outside to set them free.

Littlest was feeling perfectly fine yesterday, which was a huge blessing. It could have been one of those days.

I've been obsessing a little about collecting preschool activity ideas for him, since he seems to be needing a new level of stimulation lately. He was disappointed when his brothers weren't interested in their daily game of Cow Wrangling on my bed, but after that he managed to entertain himself pretty well.

My almost-3-year-old is a puzzle fanatic like his oldest brother, so lately he's been pulling everything out of the puzzle cupboard in the playroom and dragging it to wherever he can find space.


On the phone with my neighbor yesterday, she suggested Tangrams. I said, "That's a good idea. We have them, but I don't think he can get the lid off."

Guess who found the pattern blocks yesterday without my help or suggestion? I think this kid knows he's an unschooler.


So, what was I doing while my youngest was destroying the house playing? Well, organizing something, of course!

The boys' clothes have been overflowing two dressers, and they only wear half of what's in there. Middlest's legs are growing faster than his hair, plus he has sensitive skin and he's picky about what he'll wear. So, the other day I had him pull out everything he likes and actually fits him. Then I did my own sorting.

I managed to fit both boys' summer and winter clothes into one dresser, leaving the second for pajamas and for Littlest to move into. The top drawers are for socks, undies and kung fu uniforms. I filled three trash bags with clothes to pass down or repurpose. They don't have a lot left. But at least they fit!


Last night Littlest and I both slept 11 1/2 hours.

Today we're lazing around some more. We were supposed to blueberry picking with our homeschool group this morning. I set up the field trip a month ago, and then had to let everyone we'd be quarantined.

Eldest Boy fights things off hard and fast, so he's already back to himself for the most part. But Middlest is slower to get over illness, and is still hugging the sofa. Funny how their recovery time reflects their personalities!

(And, in case you're wondering, we do have a few cases of the swine flu in town, but that's not what my boys have.)

Spring Cleaning: the junk drawer

I haven't started any real spring cleaning yet, but I've been meaning to post this for a month...

So, a few weeks ago, when I was faced with the need to empty my entire kitchen of stuff, I figured out a way to get the boys to help -- and think it was fun.

I dumped the entire contents of our junk drawer...

...into a plastic trash bag. Then, after the bug-killers were gone, I got out a bunch of wide-mouthed pint jars that would fit in the drawer.

I told the boys I had a sorting game for them! Yes, those boys love to sort. They actually think sorting laundry is fun! (I'm not sure why I don't take advantage of that more often.)


They sorted paper clips, screws, crayons, rubberbands, batteries, birthday candles, tacks, and all sorts of junk. They sorted until their little fingers could sort no more.


And I was left with a MUCH more functional "junk" drawer.

It's the little things that count, really.

This post is as overstuffed as our week was.

“Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.”
--Psalm 126:5-6

As a friend said to me this week, "My cup runneth over and spilleth all over the floor."

It's been a very full week. Full of celebrations and laughter, full of emotions and tears.

My oldest son turned eight years old on Thursday. EIGHT! He received his first pocketknife, his first analog watch, and his first Rubik's Cube. Scott took the day off work, and we celebrated simply with friends and cupcakes at the park.

I cried all the next day. Over clean socks on the floor and other such nonsense. I was trying to catch up on the house and the garden after two weeks of alternating busy-ness and tiredness, and it was obviously too much for one day.

Thank you for all the well wishes and inquiries. I haven't seen the doctor about my test results yet, so I don't know any more, but my hormones were certainly doing their own thing this week. And I've been trying to prepare myself for their next arrival.

After I let out all the yuckies, Saturday was a lovely day. The boys wore themselves out on two bounce houses, sack races, and an inflated obstacle course, first at another birthday party and then our church's spring picnic. They slept hard last night!


Yesterday was good, too. I didn't even mind being peed on during nursery duty. I had a friend to chat and commiserate with, and we always enjoy ourselves.

Later in the day, we took the boys and my parents bowling, since that's what my Birthday Boy had requested instead of a big party. That was so much fun, we wondered why we don't do it more often!


I also got to spend some time in the garden. It was warm, and everything needed a drink. The tomato plants are doing well, including two volunteers that popped up in the compost pile. The corn, zucchini and green beans have sprouted. And the potatoes are starting to come up, too!


I started basil and another batch of peppers and tomatoes in cups. It was 99 degrees last Monday, but it's supposed to be in the 80s this week. If it gets very hot again before they're up, I'll bring them inside. We planted cantaloupe, watermelon, Delicata squash and butternut squash seeds directly in the ground.


Now that the garden is basically planted, I'm ready to focus on the indoors for a while. As long as I water once a day, and weed at least once a week, the garden should just do its thing for a while.

But the house needs some serious decluttering, organizing and spring cleaning! We'll see how that goes... I'm trying to let go of the impossible and just abide in Him.

Hold me tight, Lord, and don't let me get away.

Gratituesday: My body and a good doctor

On the eve of my birthday last week, I made myself a promise -- a promise to take better care of myself during the next year. I wrote this little list in my daytimer...

Go to bed earlier.
Get up earlier.
Breathe.
Pray.
Stretch.
Listen.
Drink water.
Pee.
Move steadily.

Yes, I really do need such basic reminders sometimes. Have you ever noticed that putting off the need to pee can make a person really cranky?

Anyhow, I began my 35th year on my period, with a headache and swollen neck muscles, due to falling backwards on my noggin the day before. My throat was scratchy from what I assumed was allergies, but I wondered if I was fighting off a cold, too. I fell asleep on the couch two days in a row. Thankfully, the boys were happy to rollerskate up and down the sidewalk all week.

I finally gave in and called a doctor. I figured it was a good time for a thorough checkup. I haven't seen a doctor besides my OB and my kids' pediatrician in eight years. And I missed my last OB appointment. (Oops.)

Hubby's been bugging me to call his doc for months. My body has been struggling to keep up with the plans my head makes for it. After a year of PPD, I was doing relatively better the first half of 2008. But by the end of last summer, I was dragging myself out of bed again -- and having some very cranky days.

Sure, mothering can be exhausting, but is it normal to need need 10 hours of sleep at night, and to take another 3 hours to wake up?

Apparently not. Because when I went in on Friday to see my new doctor, an internist who specializes in hormone issues, it seemed pretty clear-cut to him: I've got a hypothyroid issue.

Did you know that the thinning of your lateral eyebrows is a sign of a lazy thyroid? Yep, I haven't just been overplucking. Doc checked my heel reflexes, and my left foot was sluggish. My right foot didn't move at all. That was pretty freaky.

Within an hour of getting home, my body decided it agreed with the diagnosis, and went full force into swollen gland lethargy. Whee! I spent the weekend mostly on the couch and in bed, getting up only to feed the hungry. (Scott was out of town.)

I must have rested enough, because I was able to wake up yesterday in time to go to the lab for my bloodwork, before taking the boys to rockclimbing class.

So, all that to say that I am REALLY grateful to know that I'm not just Mrs. Crazy-n-Lazy. My doctor's not going to send me to a shrink who will tell me I should stop homeschooling and put me on medication that'll make me kill my children. (Yeah, okay, so I'm not sure paranoia is a symptom of hypothyroid, but whatever.)

I am super grateful to have a good doctor who seems to know something useful, and believes he can help me feel better soon.

I am absolutely, incredibly blessed to have a husband who has put up with my mood and energy swings the last couple years, and still loves me.

And, I am grateful for my body. My poor, neglected, hypothyroid body. It's okay, Body, we're going to get better soon.

If you have something you're grateful for and want to share, visit Laura's blog.


Oh, and how did I miss that my Easter post was my 500th blog post?! My goodness -- a birthday, a medical revelation, and a huge blogging milestone in the same week?! I feel like I should have another giveaway, or something! Except that I have no idea what to give away. A box of Zicam? A prescription for Paxil? A good babysitter? I'm sure we could all use some of that!