Hopeline

Most of us know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. But did you know that it is also Domestic Violence Awareness month? Eric is on the Board of Directors for the Albemarle Hopeline, a non-profit organization here in Elizabeth city that provides services such as an emergency shelter, a 24-hour crisis telephone line, and courtroom advocacy to victims of family violence, sexual assault, and teen dating violence.

Last night the Hopeline held their annual candlelight vigil commemorating the lives lost due to domestic violence so far this year in North Carolina. The vigil also celebrated domestic violence survivors who have begun anew. Jake and I were unable to attend since Jake is sick, but Eric and Megan did have a chance to go. The local newspaper covered the event, which had a turnout of over 100 people, and a photographer snapped a picture of Megan.

http://www.dailyadvance.com/photos-and-video/week-in-photos/week-in-photos-oct-9-oct-5-2009-92043.html

(the photo is copyrighted so I can't copy it here)

I'm sure that Megan did not understand the true gravity of the vigil, but she seems to have understood the sadness.

Megan's first day of school

Megan returned to preschool today....her third year at this school. She has the same teachers that Jake had a couple of years ago., and is so excited to be in the 4 year old class. Here's a picture of my big girl ready to go:

1st day of school

I can't beleive Jake is now a first grader! We met his teacher, Mrs. Wittington (the school's Teacher of the Year for 2007-2008!), last night. Many of his friends from last year are in his class again this year and he was quite excited to go to school this morning. Shortly before getting on the bus he asked me "are we gonna do some kind of new math today or are we just gonna do the same stuff I did in Kindergarten?" Funny the things kids worry about...

gotta show off that new

Star Wars: Clone Wars lunch bag!

Sometimes you just gotta improvise...

The beach house we rented in Emerald Isle had a great pool that the kids seemed to be in constantly. With Megan's near-white hair...the chlorine quickly turned her hair a lovely shade of green. One afternoon, I pulled her hair back into a ponytail and it seriously looked like someone had colored streaks of her hair with a green marker. Many washes with UltraSwim made it a tiny bit better, but still not great. Upon returning home, I asked a hair dresser friend and she recommended using Dawn dishwashing liquid. That also improved the hue a little bit, but did not eliminate it totally. So off to Google I went. I found a product - Malibu 2000 Crystal Gel Treatment - that got excellent reviews. So I ordered a couple of packets. Unfortunately, I didn't realize that the treatment required time under a heated dryer to be totally effective. Guess it would have been a smart idea to actually read the whole product description. Oh well. So last night - I improvised...Megan did not want her picture taken at first, but finally she acquiesced:

Yes...that is a chip clip holding a heating pad around her head. The good news is that it worked beautifully! Her hair is back to it's natural, white-blond color.

Finally....

After about 2 months of dealing with a very stubborn and quite horrible sinus infection, I finally got to see an ENT today. (His office was the most well-run medical practice I have ever been to...every single staff member, from the receptionist, to the nurse and to the billing secretary was efficient, organized, polite and friendly. Doesn't that make all the difference in the world? I think so.)

Dr. Keyes started by spraying some numbing medicine into my nose and then using an endoscope to check out the status of my sinuses. The camera on the end of the endoscope was connected to a TV and I got to see everything the Dr. was seeing. (I thought this was totally cool. Anyone who knows me should know that I love to watch the Discovery Health Channel!) As much as this guy was super nice and was obviously competent, it was a tad strange to hear him say "eeeewww....gross...you've got all kinds of junk in there". I asked him if "gross" was an official medical term, at which point he revised his statement to say "wow- you sure do have a severe sinus infection".

So, for the next month I get to take antibiotics, steroids, antihistamines, nasal sprays and decongestants. In mid-August, after ingesting approximately $1356 worth of pharmaceuticals, I will go back to see him in hopes that the sinuses are clear and no longer inflamed. At this point, he will better be able to determine if I will need surgery. I will also go through a battery of allergy tests.

Don'tcha wish you were me? (Didn't think so)

Dumbass

A few days ago, I was in my bathroom drying my hair when Jake comes running in, shouting "Megan called me a dumbass". Megan followed close behind and told me "I did NOT call him a dumbass. He called me a dumbass". Jake retorted "I did NOT call you a dumbass. Stop trying to get me in trouble". And last but not least, Megan responded "I did not say dumbass. Jake said dumbass".

My reaction: "The next person who says dumbass is getting their mouth washed out with soap!"

I can't imagine where they possibly could have heard that word.

Bizarro world

Every night before we go to bed (and by we, I actually mean Eric...but Eric is currently out of town) we get Jake up to go to the bathroom. So last night, I go into Jake's room to find him laying with his head at the wrong end of the bed, his foot on the bedside table and a tube of chapstick in his hand. What's up with that? I tell him I'm going to pick him up (easier said than done when dealing with 50 pounds of dead weight) and take him to the bathroom. I gently put him down in front of the toilet, tell him to go potty and step out into the hallway. I leave the door cracked as I always do to make sure he does what he is supposed to do. Jake stood there for a second then walked over to the sink and put his head down and tried to go back to sleep while standing up. So back in I go and steer him towards the toilet and tell him again to go potty. Instead, he turns around, closes the toilet and sits down, perching his elbows on his knees and resting his chin in his hands and closes his eyes. I give up at this point and just try to get him back to bed which is quite difficult since I am laughing hysterically. I get him back to bed, peek in on Megan and then walk down the hall to my room.

Five minutes later, I hear Megan sort of whimpering in her sleep which usually means she needs to go to the bathroom. Sure enough, I soon hear her walking across the hall to the bathroom. Normally, no matter what the hour, Megan announces "I'm goin' potty", but there was no such announcement. Instead of hearing the sound of the toilet opening, I hear the sound of the faucet going full blast. I walk into the bathroom just as she is pulling up on the stopper and dunking her stuffed horse into the pool of water. "My horsey needs a bath"" she tells me. I grab the horse, dry it off and ask Megan if she needs to go potty and she tells me she does, but she starts walking back into the hallway saying something about having to "get the thing and wash it". I redirect her to the bathroom where she finally goes potty and then returns to her room, climbs into bed and promptly begins snoring.

...at which point I look around for the hidden camera, head back to my room and hope that I will depart bizzaro world by morning.