Monday, April 28, 2008

And miles to go before I sleep

Today has been non stop it seems. Things started off early with an AM appointment with Geof's pediatrician to get his immunizations for school. That went more smoothly than I could ever have imagined. Geof was a real trooper and he made his mother extremely proud. He had to get 4 shots, 2 in each arm and he never shed a tear, flinched, or made a fuss. I could tell he wanted to though because his little chin was trembling ever so slightly. I've been dreading this day for a while, but apparently there was no need! He passed all of his exams and screenings with flying colors and has the all clear to attend school. That means I'm one step closer to letting him out into the world. After Geof's appointment I took him to McDonald's for lunch...as promised...and the rest of the day until about 30 minutes ago was spent doing laundry and packing up all the non-essentials. I think we have more non-essentials than essentials...how very American of us! Tomorrow we'll head down to my folks' and we'll get him registered for school and I'll hopefully get some utilities on and some cleaning done over at the new place. I really hate this part of moving, right now both places are disasters!

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Day Tripping with the Grandparents-in-law


Nathaniel's Grandparents came for a short 2-day visit yesterday. They got in late in the afternoon and treated Geof and me to dinner at the local Chinese restaurant...yum! Today we toured the Biltmore House during their festival of flowers. Grandpa is an avid gardener and toured the grounds while Grandma, Geof, and I toured the house. Afterwards we drove around to the barns, ate a picnic lunch, watched a chicken lay eggs, petted a few sheep, ate some ice cream and Geof got to churn butter! It was a great little day trip. I've been to the Estate maybe twice before when I was much younger and remembered being impressed with the size of the place then and still today. It's a bit on the pricey side to visit, but well worth it. It can be a bit overwhelming and you could easily spend a whole day or more there. I'm thinking about taking my Mom for Christmas. She's mentioned wanting to go for years now and Christmas is a great time...from what I've heard...because they go all out decorating it. If you ever find yourself in Asheville, NC you should seriously consider checking it out.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

The New Fort

I've been doing some long distance house hunting recently and the pickin's have been pretty slim in the area we wanted. However, luck was on our side and we've decided on the first (and only) house we were finally able to look at last Friday. It's located in what used to be my second choice school district but after doing a little more research I'm convinced it's the best by far. The house has bigger bedrooms and high enough ceilings to allow for ceiling fans. The house we're in now must have been built by acrophobic oopah loompahs because the ceilings aren't even 7' high. At least it's easy to heat, I guess. The new landlord seems super nice and helpful and has allowed us to keep out cat (not a big selling point with me, but I can make sacrifices) and he'll let us paint and do what we want with the yard. All major factors in helping us decide to agree to the lease. The neatest part of the house is the finished attic. It will be great for storage, it's cute, and Geof will have a great hideout. The only problems I have with the place is the fact that the kitchen and bathroom are hideous. Also the dryer is in the kitchen and the washing machine is in the bathroom. Weird. Of course we're used to odd washer/dryer placement because ours are both in the kitchen in our current home. I think it's a popular placement for homes built before Christ and then retrofitted for modern conveniences. All in all I'm very pleased and am looking forward to moving. First things first comes the cleaning. I'm estimating that I'll have a solid two days worth of cleaning to do before any of our belongings are relocated. I'm very anal in some respects about cleanliness but you wouldn't know it by looking at my house right now! Something about moving into a place that has been occupied by strangers gives me the willies, but it's nothing that a little bleach and elbow grease won't cure!

This will be the first time I've lived somewhere...other than my room at my parents house...where I can paint the walls. I'm very excited about this and have been losing sleep thinking about all the possibilities. The next chance I get I'll take and post some pictures of the place. I'm going to need a lot of inexpensive and innovative solutions for the kitchen and bathroom. You'll understand what I mean once you see the photographic evidence. I've even considered writing Oprah to ask for Nate's help! It's a bit overwhelming, but I like a good challenge!

Monday, April 14, 2008

Playing catch up

It's amazing all the different things that can transpire in a rather short span of time. As I mentioned in my last post which was..gasp!..over a month ago Geof and I ventured out to experience a true Midwestern winter. We had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed our time there. When we returned to North Carolina we stayed a night with my folks before heading home. What I haven't mentioned is that at that time my Dad was about 3 weeks post op from another amputation. That would put the current score at Diabetes: 24 My Dad: 0. This time it was the middle finger on his right hand. He had gotten a fairly deep cut on it right on the underside of the joint several months ago. His skin tears easily and he always has nasty wounds. It had finally begun to close up and heal when one morning in February he noticed it was red and swollen. He asked what I thought about it and I told him it was infected and he should see a doctor. He went a few days later, the earliest they could see him, and he was put on oral antibiotics. The doctor initially wanted him in the hospital but Dad refused. So the doctor gave him the meds and referred him to an orthopedic surgeon...the same one who also removed a toe and two legs for my Dad. This doctor took one look at him and told him to go directly to the hospital and prepare for surgery the following morning. He removed the entire middle finger and cut a wedge shape down his hand to also remove the bones and connective stuff and sewed up what was left. When we finally saw my Dad 3 weeks later I was pleasantly surprised how good his hand looked. It looks like a cartoon hand...Dad calls it his Mickey Mouse hand...3 fingers and a thumb but no real noticeable gap between digits. Dad is right handed and has had to relearn how to write and draw. He hasn't taken any occupational or physical therapy since the surgery, but he is adapting well, although a bit too slowly for his liking.

I guess the one lesson that anyone reading this could take away from the story is to take care of your health. My Dad lost toes in the beginning. Then he lost one leg, a year later the other. He has glaucoma and cataracts. He's lost all of his teeth now. The feeling in his hands gets worse every year. His skin is always extremely dry and tears easily. My Dad is only 53 years old. I don't want the same kind of life for myself and I don't want to set the example for Geof that it's ok either. That plus a not-so-gentle kick in the ass from Nathaniel has prompted me to once again reevaluate my own life and the choices I make. I've begun to move more eat less and feel better. My other "other" blog has been revitalized and I've once again been documenting my journey through and challenges in Changing Shapes....nice plug, eh? Go check it out I could use the moral support.

Let's see what else has been going on...Nathaniel has been going out on month-long runs on the road for the past several months now. It's been especially rough and our relationship has suffered. Not to get into too much detail the last time he was home we discussed divorce but have decided to stay together and work things out slowly and one step at a time. Neither of us wants to do anything to jeopardize Geof's health or happiness and we're trying to do what is best all around. We each get caught up in our own daily routines that we forget to say to the other "hey, I love you." It's a whole different dynamic from folks who see their spouse or significant other every day and definitely a learning process. Nathaniel is currently out on the road right now but is due home some time tomorrow. We've made progress this past month and I feel that things will turn out for the better and I'm hopeful for our future.

Geof's doing great. He has an appointment to get his immunizations for school this Fall the week after next. I'm so not looking forward to that. I've been talking to him and trying to prepare him for it and he's handled it well. How he'll react once we get to the doctors office is a whole other thing! He starts school this Fall and we're planning on moving within the next few months. We'll be moving to the town I grew up in and where my family lives. It will be nice to be closer but a part of me will miss the distance too! Plus, the weather where we are now is so much milder than what is at home especially in the Summer. We've haven't been able to find a decent house to rent yet because there just isn't much to pick from, plus long-distance house hunting isn't too easy either. This Fall also marks the end of my being a stay-at-home mom and it's very bitter sweet. Geof's growing up and becoming more independent and it's time for me to pick up my life where I left off and go back to school. Actually, I'll probably work for a year to save up the necessary funds and then go back to school. I'm excited about it and nervous, but I'm really looking forward to the next phase of motherhood. I feel so damn old sometimes and I'm only 25 I mean 26....see, I'm already loosing my memory!

So that's what I've been up to these days, but I'm still here, still truckin' along.
Page Rank Icon