Done

I am super duperly tired of winter! I'm ready for Spring and for the GREEN! Winter, Winter, go away and don't ever come back!

The Self Napper Strikes Again

The other day I came home from running errands to find this. At least she planned her nap this time! Not sure why the back door was the "perfect spot"???

Still questions

So, I took Zack to the specialist today. Unfortunately I had to bring the littles too....they did so good while in the waiting room. But after waiting for almost an hour..they were done. By the time we were in the room with the Dr., they were so terrible...yelling at each other and pushing each other. I couldn't really concentrate on what the Dr was saying....but this is what I got from it. He's could have either type 1 or type 2. For the next four weeks he will stay on insulin and he will start taking oral medication too. In four weeks we'll see how he's doing and go from there. I feel bummed that it wasn't more informative but I guess we'll know more in a month. And you can be sure those littles will not be going to the next appointment!~

Kitchen Kapers

When we were living in St George I worked at Dixie Regional Medical Center in the kitchen. I loved working there...loved all the people I worked with....I really miss them! So, when we moved to Lincoln, Aaron and I decided I wouldn't work and I didn't...for almost a year. In August we noticed things at his work started to get worse and worse..sales were just down and were going down further and further. In October I got on the internet and on a whim I looked up the hospital where we took Matthew for his broken arm. They were indeed hiring for a position in the kitchen. So, I filled out the application right then and there...didn't even discuss it with Aaron. I got a call 2 days later and went in for an interview shortly after that. I was told as soon as they checked my references they would like to hire me. I told them I could start when I returned from my trip to Utah. I started on November 5, my mother in law's birthday. On my first day I cried all the way home. I HATED it!!! I've not told many people about that day..it was such a terrible day and I just didn't want to complain. But now that I actually like my job I can talk about it. My first day I was training on trayline. This hospital is so much bigger than the hospital in St George. At Dixie we did a cold trayline and then took the trays upstairs to reheat them...and then delivered to the rooms ourselves. Here at Bryan LGH we send them up hot and the nurses deliver them. So trayline....imagine a large oval ( a real skinny, long oval) of metal trays with a clip thingy on them to hold the tray ticket (each person's meal list). There are six stations ( start, salads, desserts, beverage, cooks, and B and B)..on one side of the oval is what's called a cold deck, the big metal surface you serve from gets turned on and it becomes all frosty and cold. The other side of the oval is the where all the hot stuff is, lots of steam tables. You stand in your station and as each tray comes around you put the items in your station on the tray. My first station was the B and B (bread and butter) station. Where we toasted bagels, english muffins and bread. We also served up the hot cereal and added whatever muffin/donut/breakfast bread that was on for the day. I seriously thought there was no way I could ever become adept at this job....remember the I love Lucy where she and Ethel were at the candy factory? Well, that's what I felt like! After trayline (anywhere from 100-150 trays!) we clean up the mess left...fun fun! We also get interrupted umteen times to take late trays upstairs. Then we have a much needed break. After the break we go into the dishroom where the real fun begins. There are three of us and we get to unload the carts with all the trays we just sent upstairs. Now imagine an even bigger oval...called dishline. We stand at a spot that has a big trough of water running under the spot that the trays run along. We take off the dishes and silverware and then take all the trash and leftover food and throw it in the trough where the sea of dirty water takes it the "pulper" where it is pulverized and dumped into a giant trash can. The dishes are put into one of the racks going around the giant oval where they are taken to the giant dishwasher. They come around and someone from the dishroom takes them off and sorts them to be put away. This is by far my least favorite part of the job...this was the reason I cried all the way home. It is sooo gross! It's bad enough doing my own dishes at home..but having to deal with other peoples half eaten food...it's just yucky! After dishline..we go to lunch...at 1030! After lunch we come in and do another trayline. This time the B and B station does butter and margarine, soup, veggies, and bread. After that we have to deep clean the steam tables, make and run up late trays and restock the milk. Then we get to go and do another dishline...woo hoo for us! It takes a little over an hour to do dishline by the way...and it's so tiringbecause you are trying to move as fast as you can!!! One of us unloads the carts and takes off the plates and cups while the next one takes off the mugs and bowls and then the last person takes off all the garbage and the silverware. If you happen to be in the middle and run behind all those trays start backing up and it's just a mess....so you have to go fast fast fast!.....again...this was the biggest reason for my tears on the way home. After the second dishline it's time to take up snacks. There are two sides of the hospital...the hospital side (six floors) and the phych side...where they keep all the mental patients. So, one of us takes up the hospital side and one of us takes the phych side. After that the big whirl wind of a day is over. My legs usually ache and I'm so tired...but it does go by fast. That first day I got in my van and called Aaron and just cried. I thought I'd never be able to do this job! (I've written just about B and B but I also do the salad station and the beverage station and the Start station (my personal favorite...no dishline..but lots of paper work and lots of deadlines...very stressful...but again, no dishline!)) But, it ends up that I like it. I like the people I work with ( I will have to post about that another time), I like being so busy that an hour is gone before you know it, I like knowing that what I'm doing is helping someone who is sick, I like being able to provide good medical care to my kids through my insurance. I love my hours, either 630am-300pm or 5am-130pm. I still don't enjoy dishline a ton but it's better...I'm faster now and can keep up with those who have been doing it for years. I still don't like it when someone's milk flies up and hits me in the face but instead of wanting to cry over it...I tilt my head to the side shrug up my shoulder to wipe it off and move forward.

Conversations

Me: Joe, do you like my new glasses?

Joe: No!

Me: Why?

Joe: They look like old grandpa glasses.

Pay It Forward

The first five people to respond to this post will receive something made by me to you. My choice. Made especially for you. Of coarse there are some restrictions and limitations:
1. I make no guarantees you will like what I make.
2.What I create will be just for you.
3. It will be done sometime this year.
4. You have no clue what it will be. It may be a story. It may be an article on how to properly clean your face before a masque. I may draw or paint something (I pity the fool who receives that...) I may bake something and mail it to you....who knows?...not you, that's for sure!
5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange. The catch is you must post this on your blog and offer the same to the first five people who post it on their blog.
The first five people to do so and leave a comment letting me know they did will receive a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift from me!! Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it.

Guess What?

That's what.

Happy Birthday Aaron

In the midst of all the drama around here this past week......Aaron turned the big 3-9! He is now officially as old as I am!...LOL....On Friday we went out for a nice dinner and went to a movie...we saw Taken (very action packed but also upsetting). His actual birthday was Sunday. He made us all fish tacos for dinner....what a love for making his own birthday dinner. I did make the cake though....Happy happy birthday, honey!

Insight

We saw a diabetic counselor today..she's a RN and works with diabetics all day long...lucky girl. She says Zack's symtoms are typical of Type 1...not type 2. Hmmmmm......and she also suggested we see a specialist.....hmmmmm again. She even called and made the appointment for us. I've heard good things about this Dr...from more than one person. I actually feel giddy inside knowing we are on the right track to getting his blood sugar under control. Today his high was 491 and his low was something like 327....and that's with the insulin use. I'm thankful to finally talk to someone who seems like she knows what she's talking about and can explain it to me.....the medical terminology challenged person that I am. What I really want for my boy is for him to feel better......and be better. In the words Zack used in answering the question "How do you feel about having diabetes?".....IT SUCKS.

Second Opinons, attacking hot chocolate, and beach dreams

Zack is type 2...according to the blood test that took almost a week to get back. And....he's supposed to stay on the insulin shots????? I'll be trying to find another Dr....tomorrow!

I came home from work today...picked up the littles from the babysitter.....drove to the high school...picked up the biggies.......drove home dropped off the littles and one of the biggies.....drove the oldest biggie to an appointment........went to Walmart..........came home to find.....drum roll please......hot chocolate spilled all over my bed, all over the floor by my bed, all over the wall next to my bed, and all over the night stand................who, might you guess did this???? One of the littles...perhaps????........well, you'd be wrong! The younger biggie is the culprit here.

Man....sometimes I'm just so tired of it all......all the stress...all the struggles.....I just want to go lay on the beach and think of nothing and listen to the sound of the waves......

on a sugar high

So, we are still waiting for results to find out if Zack is type 1 or type 2 diabetes.....but again were told today that they are pretty sure he's type 1. He now has to check his blood sugar before eating and then again two hours after eating. He's on Lantus at night and and he started novolog 15 minutes before each meal today. His blood sugar has been 400 or higher after each meal..that's why he's starting the novolog today. Many things have run through my head today....why didn't I take him in sooner. He hasn't looked well...he's looked overly tired all the time and I just thought it was normal teenage stuff. I'm just feeling so bad for him...wondering how his body is doing after a couple months of consistently high sugar levels. I'm so glad that in time we can get him back on track and get him feeling better. I'm looking forward to getting a final diagnosis and learning what he/we can do to help him through this.

Last night was pretty comical....his first insulin shot. He is to put the shot in his belly. At first he thought it would be a piece of cake, giving himself a shot..then when the time actually came he was frantic..."I can't do it, mom. I can't do it!....you have to do it!!!"....I was thinking there was no way I could do it...but I did and he hardly felt it at all and it wasn't nearly as hard as I thought it would be to stick that needle in him. Today he is still too chicken to do it himself...I did it again. I know he'll be able to do it soon...but until then...I'll be the bad guy. Then there's the way we seem to deal with stress...humor! This morning I took the boys (Zack and Josh) to McDonalds for breakfast (a rare treat). I treated myself to a coke...yum! Zack asked me if it was diet...my reply "No...I don't have diabetes!"....LOL.....and then when I asked him to get the tray of garbage and throw it away..his answer...."I would, but I can't....I have diabetes."......I'm glad we joke about it...but it is so scary....I realize his life is going to be different for him. I must say how thankful I am for my job. My insurance is so so so much better than the insurance Aaron had through his work. I can look back and see how our struggles have led us to where we are. Had Aaron not been having a hard time at work...I would not of gone back to work....we would have had a HUGE out of pocket expense. I just feel so thankful that the financial part of all this will not be a giant burden. I'm thankful my boy is getting the help he needs. I'm thankful to my wonderful family and friends who have listened to me and will be listening to me...thank you thank you! Love to all!

ch...ch...ch.. changes

Things around here will be changing. I took Zack to the Dr. today. He had just about every symptom of diabetes...yes....he has it. We are waiting on all the labs to come back, but the Dr. is pretty sure he has type 1. I'm glad I knew what to look for....glad I have friends to ask questions to...thanks already Kim and thanks Angie and Greg for future questions!!! I will update when I know more.......

Conversations

Yesterday at church Joe was sitting on my lap and was playing with my necklace.

Me: Joe, be careful...my necklace was expensive.

Joe: What's it made of?

Zack (chiming in): It's black pearls from the ocean...you know like from Pirates of the Carribean.

Joe (after thinking about that for a minute): Mom, I didn't know you could swim.

Today

Today I spoke up when I didn't agree with something....
Today I finally felt like I had a backbone......
Today I felt like a real live grown up........

I Wonder.....

if my kids will ever discover that we have this wonderful thing called a garbage can...it's where the garbage goes.