Strep...

If you've never had strep throat, I hope you never get it. I've had it three or four times now. My most recent bout started last Thursday. I was just coming off of a bad cold that took me out the previous weekend, and I was sad that I had to miss my boy's basketball games on that Saturday. But I was feeling rather smug in that I'd kicked it loose in less than a week. But then last Thursday, I woke up with a wee bit of a sore throat - worse than I'd had with my cold the week before. I thought nothing of it and went to work as usual. Got back from my morning meetings and sat down to what I'd hoped would be a very productive day of business planning and what not. But suddenly I couldn't sit still, my whole body ached. I spiked a fever. I couldn't concentrate. So I went home. The closer I got to home, the further it seemed. I jumped into my jammies and crawled into bed.

My first thought: Flu. I did not get a flu shot. I did not get H1N1 vaccination either. Nope, I decided to take my chances. Maybe that was a bad call. Maybe not. Doesn't matter now, though.

As the afternoon wore on, I was sure it WASN'T flu. No, I remember these symptoms, exacerbated by the inability to swallow anything at all. Later that night, fever was higher and lucidity was low. Hubby took me to the ER (only thing open after hours in our little rural county). Sure enough - it was strep. They gave me a shot, wrote me a scrip for some antibiotics, and sent me home. The fact that you can't swallow is one thing, but the all-over, relentless body aches are almost unbearable. Even tylenol and ibuprofen at their max dosages couldn't keep up. But the good news is, the worst part of it only lasts about 24 hours and then it slowly gets better. Any improvement at all is greatly appreciated.

So I've missed work 3 straight days....my fever is finally gone (FINALLY) and I'm feeling a ton better now. Fatigued, but I think I can go back to work tomorrow without any ill effects (no pun intended). Some people don't get hit by strep that hard. Guess I'm lucky that way. But at least it wasn't the flu. 'Cuz I didn't get a flu shot and I wasn't gonna.

Valentine's Day

It's snowing gently outside today. It's cold, but we're cozy inside. The boys are playing, Ryan is thrilled because it's Daytona, and the Olympics are on. It's a good day. And the best part - no out of control craziness as a "holiday" - it's just a nice day to spend with my sweeties (all three of them).

I realize it's been two months since I updated my blog...I guess I go in spurts. Since my last update, I have gone back to work. I've been back about six weeks now. Getting used to waking up a lot earlier is probably the hardest part! I enjoyed my three months off, being home when my kids got home from school and sleeping till 0630 - that was luxurious! I actually enjoyed my at-home time more than I thought I would - I didn't climb the walls or pine away for adult conversation; after all, my kids are older now and most the time they amaze me with their insights, ability for abstract thought, and their innocent, fresh viewpoint on things I've taken for granted. I've also found they both have quite a sense of humor and regularly crack me up. I also busied myself volunteering at school and such, not to mention getting all that unpacking from the move done.

It was a blessed three months. I couldn't have asked for more. When my sweet husband asked me what I wanted for Christmas, I told him I already got it. It's liberating to know that I work because I want to. I'm not forced to (though honestly I've never felt I was "forced" to work). I have a new job now - I'm a manager at the plant where I work. I never thought I'd go that route but sometimes the path lays out for you and you take it. I'm learning the ropes as it's a new area for me, but I'm fortunate to have a very experienced, enthusiastic, and hard working staff.

Life is good and filled with love and blessings. I saw this on another blog I love to follow, and with due credit to Nuclear Mom, here are but a few of the things I love:

My husband
My children
My family
My friends
Soft warm blankets
Smooth jazz music
Hard rock, alternative, classical....ok, music in general
The ballet (Carmina Burana is my favorite)
A cactus silhouette at dusk
Camping
Really good, hot coffee
A hot shower
Cheesecake
A baby's laugh
Ironing
Clean laundry
A hardwood floor
Disney
The beach at Hanalei Bay and the smell of plumeria
A sleeping child
The smell of the desert after a rain
An encouraging word from my dear friends
Pictures of my past
Dark chocolate
My laptop
Starbuck's Pumpkin Spice Latte (a fall tradition)
Harry Connick, Jr. at Christmas
Scrapbooking
new paper
Ribbon
Facebook
My 2001, 120000 mile Chevy 'Burb
My enV3 cell phone
My name
Laughing
The Flat Iron Cafe
Movies with my family
Girls' Night out (when and if it ever happens)
Game night with friends
Playing Tic
Harry Potter, Star wars....classic stuff!
My LL Bean flannel sheets and down comforter
Cuddling
.....
Life
.....
There are lots of things I love. I couldn't possibly list them all - these are just the things I came up with off the top of my head before I decided I can't sit here all day and write!

A Mom's Best Friend...

I've come to realize that a mom's best friends are a washer and dryer. One becomes acutely aware of this when their trusty sidekicks exit stage left, as mine did early in December. Good news was, I'd done the majority of the laundry. Normally fate doesn't work that way for me. So all I had were some half-washed bathrugs that I just decided to put in the dryer, which was itself on its last leg.

You can never be too prepared. My set was aging...and we had serviced both units so many times that we probably could have replaced them already. More than once. So this time, knowing that this day would be coming, I had my new set picked out. After much research and waffling, I landed on the Electrolux IQ Touch model. Massive. Energy Efficient. Massive. Has a Steam Setting. Massive. Has both quick wash and handwash cycles. Massive.

When that fateful day came, I was ready. I called my favorite store and asked if they had them in stock. Huzzah, they did! "I'll take them, please." Gave my credit card information over the phone and the next evening hubby drove the 1-1/2 hours with the trailer to pick them up. Funny thing was, even though I'd called the store directly, for some reason they listed pickup at their OTHER location, about 3 hours away. Unhappy hubby. Laundry beginning to pile up (it doesn't take long). Smart hubby, though. He went in to talk to customer service. I get the call, "Do you care what color they are?" "well, not really, but..." "Ok I think we have this figured out then." Hmmmm, what color was he going to come home with?

Well fortunately it worked out just fine, and now I have the behemoth washer and dryer set to end all washer and dryer sets....Heaven....