Amber's meeting

I had a meeting earlier this week regarding Amber. This was a meeting with a team at the school to decide what measures we should take with Amber and her reading skills. They suggested we have her evaluated by a neurologist to rule out any learning disorders before we proceed. The first few phone calls I made trying to schedule an appointment were very discouraging. The only pedi nuero our insurance company suggested was not even scheduling appointments since she was booked for the next 5 months solid, but taking names for a waiting list. So I ventured off using my own resources looking for someone to take her. My second phone call proved to be successful. Not only do they see children, and accept our insurance, they are booking new patients in mid May. YES! Less then a 2 month wait. And our insurance company did not even mention this practice to me at all. Nice, huh? Don't get me started on my opinion of insurance companies. So this begins the lengthy process of figuring out how we can best serve Amber and teach her in a way she can best learn.
John and I did tell her there is a possibility she may have to repeat 1st grade again and she took it surprisingly well. She knows she is struggling a bit. John and I have talked a lot about this though and we understand 2nd grade only gets harder but we do not think her relearning the same things over again in 1st grade next year will benefit her at all, and I made the team aware of our opinion on the matter. So hopefully they will take what we say into consideration when making the final decision.
On a lighter note, today is National Make Your Own Holiday Day. Silly, huh? My holiday? National Nap Day! So what's yours?

And today.....

So this is how a stay at home mom/administrative assistant for her husband's business spends her days. With her Sissy Poo and the mascot of our local minor league baseball team The Lakewood Blue Claws, Buster. No really, an electrical supply house we use, Warshauer Electric to be precise, opened a fifth store, exciting news I know, and they had an open house so of course we had to go. I played the representative for Simms Electric since Mr Owner/Operator was working. I took Sissy Poo with me, because well since I broke her ankle I spend most days with her. (I secretly rigged the carpet to trip her so she would fall and be put out of work for this reason you know, but shhhhhhh, don't tell her.)

Amber Loves Giving

Amber's school has been collecting "Pennies for Patients." Every year they encourage the children to bring in their spare change to donate to children with cancer. This year Amber got to sit in on an assembly about cancer. A child was there who was now in review (what Amber called remission) who talked about cancer. Evidently this has all made quite an impact on Amber because she has new questions about cancer every single day.
Amber is a collector. No more like a hoarder. It is difficult with her to part with certain things. Scrap paper, rocks, and coins. She has a habit of doing something with one of those things every night before bed. Cutting the papers, sorting her rocks, counting her coins. So I was super impressed with Amber last week when she gathered up every single coin she could find and brought them into school to donated to pennies for patients. She even sacrificed the coins in her reward bucket. (A reward bucket is a small container that when the kids do something above and beyond what is expected of them that they get pennies for. When they collect 50 pennies they get something special.)
The other night, well I should say morning, there was a small knock on our bedroom door. I can always tell who it is by the knock. Amber knocks ever so softly which is so not her. Julie practically knocks the door down which is also so not her. Mommy I need you. I open the door and Amber is holding something in her palm. My eyes are not adjusted. What is it? My tooth, it fell out. Wow, you felt it fall out? No, I was awake. Alrighty. So we get her mouth rinsed out, get the tooth put in a safe place, I think it's too late/early for the tooth fairy and back to bed she goes. The following night the tooth fairy comes and brings Amber $5 which she promptly takes to school with her that day. I assume for the school store which she loves to shop at. Where in the world does she get such a shopping habit? :::looking around::::: Anyway, this morning I ask her what she bought at the school store yesterday and she looks at me weird and says nothing, why? I ask what she did with her $5 from the tooth fairy and she said I gave that to pennies for patients. OK don't cry, don't cry. I almost cried. My kids and John already think I am a weiny and cry about everything so it probably wouldn't have matter if I did cry but I am so stinking proud of her. She holds her money so dear and for her to give it away so willingly and get nothing in return, I am just blown away. I think I am going to give her a refill for her reward bucket and also give her something special to reward her, just so she realizes that she did something very good.

Here's Nixon!

Geesh it's been a trying day and that's putting it mildly. But good news, Nixon's in his new forever home! Yay! We were at the shelter at 1pm right when they opened and broke Nixon out and were on our way home by 1:22. I stayed at my sister's only a few minutes but he seemed to acclimate to his new surroundings fast. Kelly introdeced him to the rest of the house already too. He is such a lover, like his brother Reagan. I found out today that the other 2 siblings that were turned in with them were put down because their health wasn't as good as these two and they were not very "friendly." I kind of figured that was the case since they had only arrived there a little over 2 week before I adopted Reagan. I did not think that cats that old were adopted out so fast. At least these two had happy endings. Nixon had to be shaved a little and needs some cleaning up because some of his meds didn't agree with him, but he is a cutie! Surprisingly Nixon and Reagan are from the same litter.

Nixon is getting a forever home too

My sister is going to adopt my cat's brother. I am so happy. I knew getting the brother would totally be pushing John but now my sister is going to get him. I feel so much better, knowing he is 10 yrs old, hardly no one would want an older cat. I called the shelter Friday to see if he was still there and the boy who answered told me yes and it was a $55 fee, etc. Well I called today and the lady answered who did all the paper work for me and she was like I remember you, and I told her I called last week and they told me $55 for Nixon (Reagan's brother) but she waived the fee for Reagan, so she said she'd way the fee for me again. So I am going and adopting the cat in my name for my sister. I am so flipping excited!!!! I feel ecstatic we are giving these poor cats who came from such a loving home that had to give them up for reasons beyond their control and are practically un adoptable because of their age a second chance.

Pluerisy sucks.

I don't remember if I blogged about this but I ran to CVS the day before the storm and I was standing there totally still not bent over or twisted and got this intense burning pain in my back. I hardly was able to make it to my car let alone get in, I almost had to call John to come pick me up. I got home and was in tears I was hurting so bad, John of course wanted me to go to the ER but I just paid off my last ER visit literally last week so I said no way. Well then I started with these pains under my ribs as well. Both sides. I can't even sit straight in a chair there is so much pressure and pain. Now weeks ago I had a little bit of a weird feeling on the left side under my ribs, but just really thought nothing of it. Well stupid me I should have. That was the start of it, weeks ago. I have pleurisy, the membrane surrounding my lungs is in inflamed and most likely infected. Instead of the membrane sliding against my lungs smoothly basically they are rubbing against it and causing a ton of friction. She said it could have been pretty much contained to that small pocket if I went in weeks ago but since I waited it is pretty bad. I am on a bunch of meds and need to go get some xrays to make sure no ribs are cracked which is sometimes a cause of this, but she said most likely the cause is my asthma and chances are I will be prone to pleurisy now. I am totally in excruciating pain depending on what I am doing or the time of day. I can really tolerate pain, but this is just awful, So I am lots of drugs, I was hallucinating an evil spirit was lifting my blankets off last night and starting screaming NO NO NO, my house looks like a giant dump, I am just feeling really crappy. And I am wondering why they don't make ace bandages/compressions wraps like they used to. Plain stretchy material with a little metal hooky closure think, they now make these awful self stick ones which are disgusting feeling because they are sticky, and they make me itch like the dickens so I am wearing a shirt under it.

.........

There is nothing more fun then your child making you look like a slacker, NOT! My son hands me a stack of paperwork to be read and signed last night. I didn't get to it last night and forgot about it this morning. No biggie, not like they could possibly expect all this paperwork back the next day right? Well he calls me about 15 minutes after he leaves on the bus to tell me, "You didn't sign my course selection for last year so you need to drive it down here now for my guidance counselor or she is picking my classes." I tell him no way did he just get this yesterday and they want it today or else. "No mom I got it awhile ago, I just need it today, right now." OK that is my problem how? I mean if he had given it to me "awhile" ago and I forgot, but he has had it for "awhile" and now it's my fault he didn't get it back from me instantly. Oh man, I am just annoyed. So I tell him fine I will drop it off today, then I hang up and call his counselor to see if I can fax it and send in the hard copy tomorrow. She tells me no need to fax it she is glad to know I have actually seen it though since it was due weeks ago. OK so glad he is at school because now I want to just shake him. She said she told all the kids 2 weeks ago that was their last chance she needed it by the end of that week. Then yesterday she threatened them with her choosing their classes to really scare them. OK so my kid isn't the only slack, but geez I am annoyed and once he gets home tonight he is going to hear about it.

Tomorrow is my doctor's appointment and I can honestly say this is the first time I have ever been eager to see a doctor. Last week pain started in my bad that is seriously worse then labor pain. It is on both sides of my back, about mid way between top half and bottom half. I am also having a similar pain in the exact same locations on the front of my body, the actual pain is a little different. No fever, no problems with urinating. I have been super nausea though and have gotten sick on and off all week long. I am thinking it is a kidney issue, but I am no doctor I just play one for my family. I have been pretty immobile all week and it is killing me. Driving is a task, it hurts to sit upright, it hurts to lay down. The only time I am not in some sort of pain is when I am standing perfectly still. Twisting in any direction is killer, reaching backwards is almost impossible. I just want to know what is wrong cause 5 days into this I am really really getting worried. I have been avoiding the ER like the plague, but have a feeling I may be sent in for some sort of tests. I should be quite a site to see going out Saturday because I am walking and moving slower then an 80 year old, but there is not a snowballs chance in hell I am staying home.

Stepping Out!

We are going out Saturday night. How cool are we? Yeah not so much, especially since this night out has been planned for a month. But at least we are going out. Since the kids are getting older John and I do get out more often without them then we used to, but we don't do the things we used to. We have sort of calmed down a bit. I guess maybe we have grown up a little. This Saturday though is going to be the exception, we are going out to the bar where we met, and the band is playing that was playing when we met, and, and,and my SISTER is coming out. YAY! There are a few little issues about going to this particular place, this particular night that I am a little worried about, a few faces I may see that I am not thrilled about seeing. But it should be fun, lots of fun. OK not too much fun, I am a responsible adult and a mom after all.