10 on Tuesday

1. Don't faint but Sarah picked out a blue backpack for school. She needed it to match the lunch box. I'm still surprised that it's not princess/fairy/barbie and that it's not pink! I'm also super excited for the change. I love blue! I just hope that no one else has it at school.
2. Will picked out the Mystery Machine lunch box over Spiderman and McQueen. He really, really wanted the Nihao Kai-lan one but I just couldn't do it.
3. Is it bad that I enjoy the Barbie songs from Diamond Castle and Island Princess? We just got the Diamond Castle soundtrack from the library and it's actually pretty good.
4. Potty Training Update: Will's potty dance is the funniest thing or rather it would be funny if he didn't WHINE every time he does it. Then he can't figure out if it's poop or pee or if he wants to sit on the little potty or just have his pull up changed. I lost count of how many times I went into the bathroom with him yesterday morning. Today though, he decided that he wasn't interested. Oh, this is so much fun.
5. The family room was a mess. Sarah's room was a mess. I cleaned them up myself yesterday. While I want to have the kids clean up and learn that they have to help, I also just want to do it myself because it involves less yelling and directing and it's much faster.
6. I can't believe I only have a month left until Sarah starts school (5 days, almost all day!) On the other hand, I can't believe I have a WHOLE month left. It's hot and there's only so much to do inside.
7. I'm losing the tan I got in SD on my arms and shoulders. People always wonder why people from Arizona aren't that tan. Hello! We don't go outside during the summer if we can help it.
8. I'm sort of sad that our Basha's down the street closed. It was a bit run down but there was one checker who was the friendly grandfather sort and I hope he still has a job.
9. Will is in a Mommy, Mommy, Mommy phase. I think it's still related to the ER trip. It's kind of annoying and I really hope it doesn't interfere with preschool, assuming he gets to go and can go potty in the potty!
10. For some reason, our little dog KC has been hanging out periodically on the side patio in the shade next to our living room door. I think she's a bit nuts since it's still over 100 in the shade. I tried to sneak up to take a picture of her lounging on the brick with her tongue out but she spotted me and I got this instead (look how dirty our windows are!):

Will's Big Day

Well, tomorrow it is. Will's potty training begins. I have no idea how this is going to go. I really feel like he has no clue what's coming or what to do. I hope he surprises me. He wants to wear underwear but only because it has cool things on it like Thomas and Wall*E and Buzz Lightyear. I don't think he realizes that he will have to stop playing when he has to pee. I'm going to start him naked in the morning and see what happens. I'm prepared with yummy breakfast and am hoping I don't crack under the craziness of potty training on top of the heat on top of being cooped up inside.

Wish me luck.....

In honor of his BIG day.... a picture of Will enjoying Sarah's BIG day (side note - I forgot how bald he was as a baby!):

10

1. The bugs are out. I can hear them buzzing outside. It reminds me of summer in Oklahoma and I really don't think that's right. This is dry Arizona bugs, don't you know that?!
2. The crickets are here, too. Found 2 small ones inside yesterday. We've had a nice break the past few years from finding random crickets inside and I'm hoping it will not get worse.
3. I have about 5 weeks to fill until school starts. Hopefully cleaning will fill most of it. Ha ha! Wish me luck and good A/C.
4. We have been home for 2 days and I have managed to stay out of the heat with 2 early morning trips before it hit 95. So far, so good.
5. Sarah loves maps. She always wants to know how I know where I'm going and who told me how to get to that house or that store. She LOVES getting the maps at the zoo, Disneyland, you name it. Anywhere with a map, she'll take it.
6. Here's to hoping we haven't killed off any trees this summer. A couple are not looking too good.
7. We go through so much paper in this house from Sarah drawing pictures. I now have her starting with a pencil so she can erase mistakes and then coloring it in. It kind of works, except that she drew a T-Rex with lots of sharp teeth and colored over it so you can't see the teeth. Oh well.
8. I won a contest, a small one, FINALLY! I never win anything. A company called Rockabye Baby makes kind of odd lullaby CD's out of all kinds of music (think Nirvana, Beatles, U2, Bob Marley). They released a Queen version and asked people to post what Queen means to them for a chance at a free CD. I did and I was 1 of 10 to win. Only like 30-35 people entered but I still won a free CD!! YAY!
9. I bought my first flat iron. It's kind of fun. My hair is already straight as straight gets but it does add a nice sheen to it.
10. We (Sarah, Will and I) cleaned their rooms today. Well, I picked up Will's because he is useless when it comes to that and he just tells me I don't want to do that and crosses his arms. Sarah got off to a great start. We are not to the point where I can just say go clean which would be nice. Instead, I give her jobs such as put all your shoes away, pick up the doll clothes, gather all your books... etc. Job by job, she gets it done but today she started to slow down and not listen and it made me crazy! Both rooms are now clean and with only 1 time out for Will and 1 for Mommy and none for Sarah who really was being pretty good.

10 on Tuesday, the ER edition

10 things about the ER not mentioned with Will's trip

1. They offer gloves and masks for anyone wanting them. They are in dispensers like Kleenex. Many people chose to grab a mask, probably not the people who needed them.
2. I watched way too much Disney Channel. It was the only option and I didn't feel like reading. For anyone interested in seeing Another Cinderella Story with Selena Gomez - it really is a movie for young teens, don't bother. This coming from someone who enjoys cheesy movies.
3. What was up with the large gentleman who came in with his pregnant wife (not really showing yet, he told us) and his young baby (4 months maybe)??? He seemed very nice and chatted a very short bit before we finally went back. They were there for HIM and a possible broken thumb! Found out from my dad that you have to be under 18 to be treated at the ER at Children's Hospital. Hmmm....... He looked young but not that young and he was married with soon to be 2 kids.
4. Loved, loved, loved the toy paddle wheel boat in the waiting room. It was about 18 inches to 2 feet tall on a pedestal covered with glass - like on display. It was a bit like Noah's ark but a Mississippi River boat instead. The animals all over it were so much fun. The best part was that you could press a button on the front and a quiet little song played, lights came on and some of the animals moved. It was so detailed that Will, who was exhausted by the time we found it, stared at it for 20 minutes or more just looking at the animals and wanting to kick the button again and again. I made him press it with his shoe, not really wanting to touch a button that a hundred sick kids had already pushed.
5. Triage - checking to make sure you're not on death's doorstep and making you think for a split second that you have bypassed the line and are actually being seen to fix your problem. So disappointing.
6. Feeling bad for the nurse behind the counter who was not very nice, except to my dad who told her was a retired Dr. Who would want to deal with the complaining people, the not so sick kids and all of that every night, especially at 1 am? That's when the people started to get restless.
7. Time goes faster than you think in the ER which is good when sitting in a waiting room for 5.5 hours.
8. Being told you have to wait because we need a special room for younger kids that accommodates having to put them under should the need arise. We didn't end up getting it or needing it. Thank goodness.
9. Charge your phone before you go. Mine started to die and I was trying to send texts to keep Andy updated and could barely get one out on our way home before it died.
10. How come the DMV can sort its customers and has a PA type system but the ER has nothing like it??? Who knows how many people didn't hear the poor nurse calling their name quietly at the door to triage. Again.... CRAZY!

This concludes our trip to the ER. Thanks for joining us.

Will vs. The Ottoman

Never a dull moment for our little man. Saturday evening with some friends here at Gammy's house, Will decided to full on trip and hit a fabric covered ottoman at the exact right spot where there was wood. The result was a gash in his right eyebrow. After my dad, the retired Dr., called around a little bit so we could figure out the right place to go, we headed down to Children's Hospital fully prepared for a wait. We were hoping it wouldn't be exactly as long as we thought it would be. Too bad for us.

We arrived and signed in 7/11 at 7:45 PM. The waiting room wasn't too full so that seemed pretty good to us. We were well aware that a gash needing to be sutured would be low on the triage list but we had no choice.

We were called up for triage as soon as we sat down. They took his temperature and pulse, etc and looked at the cut. It looked even worse when they took off my Scooby bandaid. I felt better about bringing him in. I did have to rip it off a bit. The nurse offered him a clean bandage that won't hurt. Will said Yes! Then he turned to me and said Mommy, you did it wrong. Oops! After triage, we returned to our seats.

Slowly the people came in and filled the waiting room. We waited, and waited, and waited and waited. Will decided to stay up until 10:30, maybe later. I stopped looking at the clock.

We made friend with a couple and their daughter sitting next to us around 10pm. They were called back around 12:30 AM. By this time, people started to ask how much longer, so my dad went over to ask since Will was asleep in my lap. They seemed surprised that we were still there!! They told us that the people waiting the longest according to their system had been there for 255 minutes.... ummmm..... we'd been there longer than that! We waited a bit longer and complained again. This time my dad played the retired Dr. card and the nurse finally got us back in a room around 1:15 AM. It did seem to help or maybe she just took pity on us.

We waited in that room for 45 min to an hour. The Dr's and nurses came in and out looking at the wound, deciding what to do. They took a bit of time hunting down a strong nurse and the papoose board. I warned them ahead of time that he would, in no way, cooperate. The papoose board (see pic but without head band and he was shorter than that kid) is what it sounds like. They wrapped him up in a sheet and then wrapped the blue velcro pieces around him. The part on his back was a cushioned board. He hated it. I'm think it was a sure sign to him that what was coming was not good and he was right. Well, that and he was fast asleep when I put him down on the board.

They sat me down in a chair (in case of fainting!) to hold his feet and then numbed the area.... more than once. Watching that needle was awful. I looked and looked away and looked again. Will only stopped screaming for short bits the entire time they were numbing and sewing. I could tell it hurt and it was hard to watch him. I was squeezing his feet pretty hard. I sang to him a bit but was usually drowned out by screaming.

When it came time for stitching, they put paper over his face with just the gash showing. The nurse told him they were playing hide n seek. Will proceeded, for the next 30 minutes (it seemed long) or so that it took to sew him up, to tell everyone, in between screams, that he did not want to play hide n seek anymore and NO MORE HIDE N SEEK. He would scream and say all done or Mommy hold me. :( Nurses kept walking by our closed door looking through the window in shock and I nodded - Yes that screaming is coming from this room. The Dr.'s and nurse kept saying he really does have good lungs, no breathing problems here.

They let me move to right by his head with the paper rolled back so he could see me for the last couple stitches and because I think I convinced them that I wasn't going to faint. He got 5 in all and it seemed to take forever. It was so nice to hold and hug him when it was all done.

Our wonderful nurse, who had the horrible task of gripping Will's sweaty head, had to shake her arms out after she was done. She joked that she wouldn't have to lift any weights at her next workout. Good boy, Will! She also gave him lots of stickers and a beanie baby lion to take home. I named him Stitches the Lion. Now, when you ask Will about stitches, he immediately says Stitches the Lion. If you ask him where his owie is, he points to any number of spots on his face before getting somewhat close to his eyebrow.

We left the ER at about 3:15 and ER Door to Home, it was an 8 hour trip. We could have driven to Phoenix and been treated in that time I think. Will has yet to recover from the major upset to his schedule. I have been the paranoid mom, watching him as he tries to tackle Sarah and bounce around. I keep thinking he's going to bust open the stitches. It drives me mad.

So, I think the ottoman won this battle and I hope there is no Round 2!

10 on Wed

1. I'm a bit surprised that it took 7 nights for the kids to finally have a battle now that they are sharing a room at Gammy and Pa-paw's house. They've been great until tonight and it was miserable. Can't blame them though, we had a crazy day and Will didn't really nap. He ended up falling asleep on me while my mom and I watched a movie. Poor little guy.
2. You know it's time for a haircut when you don't do anything for weeks with it except put it in a pony tail. I have no idea what I'm doing with it today but I'm excited.
3. How lame is the new SciFi channel logo that launched this week.
4. I was thinking about all the stuff I buy for both kids and thinking that maybe in the long run, having 2 girls evens out to 1 of each. There seem like so many costs down the road for girls - prom dresses, weddings, etc. but right now I buy 2 of almost everything because I can't have my little boy roller skating in princess skates or wearing pink sweatshirts. 2 girls can share and hand stuff down.
5. Sarah is really enjoying her class this week at the Aquarium. She comes home telling me what she's learned. I was paranoid about picking her up late because I thought they charged you for each late minute but turns out (good to reread information!) it's only after 15 minutes that they charge you - $1 per minute.
6. My dad's Flair Hair was a hit at the park on the 4th of July. He wore it to the pancake breakfast and several people didn't recognize him. Pretty funny!
7. Sarah was talking about her friend Jackson to her friend Jack in the car yesterday. Jack thought she was talking about the only Jackson he'd heard about lately and informed her that he was dead. I had to jump in and say NO NO NO, her friend Jackson is fine, Michael Jackson, the singer, is dead. 2 different people kids.
8. Will has really enjoyed being at Gammy and Pa-paw's. I asked him yesterday if he was ready to go home and he shouted NO NO NO.
9. I reread Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince this past week. It was really good, even the 2nd time around.
10. My mom: Are you stinky Will? Will: I'm making noisy poo poo. Potty training in 14 days. Wish me luck. I'm dreading it.

Coming soon: 4th of July but for now a tease.