July 28, 2011

Diagnosis 2 -OR- Lemonade out of Lemons

Chunky received his diagnosis about three months ago. Now Sassy has one. We definitely weren't expecting this.

Sassy has been having back issues for the past several months. The pain is mostly between her scapulae - thoracic region. She is in some degree of pain 24/7. It got really bad when she was in Europe four months ago and I made a Dr appt for her when she returned. They gave her high dose of ibuprofen, muscle relaxants and physical therapy. Unfortunately the therapy didn't make her feel better, in fact she felt worse so I told her to stop going after 8 appts. She went back to the Dr last week and they took x-rays. They called the following day to say they found something and scheduled an appt with orthopedist four days later (earlier this week). Orthopedist saw 7% curvature with a tool he used in office - one shoulder blade higher than the other (mild scoliosis), but was really fixated on what looks like left outside part of vertebra lower than inside (closest to spine) in a couple of places - causing "wedged" discs. He mentioned a condition I'd never heard of - Scheuermann's disease. She had an MRI later that day and two days later she was diagnosed with Scheuermann's disease, also known as juvenile discogenic back disease. We don't have all the details re: severity, if it could get worse, treatment options, etc. - orthopedist is contacting spine Dr to see if bracing will help her become pain free. Not knowing what's next is the worst. Dr did confirm no more competitive volleyball as they don't know if it will cause further harm and the pain alone is enough reason for her to discontinue. She's bummed her volleyball career is over - May 1st was her swan song after all. She has a positive attitude though - already been in touch with athletic director at her grade school about coaching opportunity for girls grades 5-8. That's my girl - making lemonade out of lemons!

July 25, 2011

Frown

Summer is officially half over :(

July 24, 2011

Two 1sts

Chunky's baseball team won their tournament and first place in the league! It was a very exciting final game with a hit from Chunky turning the tides in his team's favor in the fourth inning when they were down by two runs.


Here's my baby running home -


You made it!


I thought these shots were cool and I'm pretty proud of my typically poor picture taking self. In the first one the ball is just above the roof of the house. In the second one it looks like it's inches from his hip.


One of his coaches told us he should keep with it as he he's a good hitter. He needs to work on consistency and catching. We're going to look into one of the nearby batting cages for the off-season to get ready for next year.

Congrats Chunky Monkey and the Knights!

July 23, 2011

Gil been berry, berry good to me

Say the title with a Latin accent for '70s SNL nostalgia

Gil got me through one wicked winter and has been my commuting companion for three years. However, the times they are a changin' ...


Hello Dolly! and I don't mean Sassy's Tawny Kitaen car pose


Isn't she lovely?! She's a 2011 black amethyst Krom edition Rogue. I got an awesome deal and the dealer couldn't wait to get their hands on reliable, gorgeous Gil (evidently Altima's have great resale value). "Dolly" is probably not her permanent name - we're toying with "Adele", 'cause she's smooth, sultry and pleasantly PLUMp. I'm diggin' Dolly/Adele in a big way - she even has a back up camera which means I can't give MIL a hard time about hers anymore.

It's so nice to have you where you belong!

Too Cute

This post from The Spohr's Are Multiplying is too cute not to share!

I love this blog - tender, sweet, funny, real and stimulating. They lost their first daughter, Maddie, a couple of years ago so some posts are related to their loss and grief, honoring Maddie's life, wonderful insights and of course, the Amazing Annabel. Check 'em out - amazingness all around!

July 22, 2011

Out with the old ...

Our six year old dryer went to heaven. Good riddance!


They sure don't make things like they used to. Oh my gosh, I sound like my grandmother!!! Anywhozzle, we decided not to sink any more money into the old girl and went shopping for a new one. I didn't want the same brand as we've had many problems with our current washer/dryer so I knew going into it I would no longer have a matched set. What I wasn't prepared for was the lingo and new fangled options. I was very confused by the question, "Do you want front or top loading"? Did you know a dryer that's made as a companion to a top loading washer is called a top loading dryer even though you load it from the front? Mylanta! 6.7 capacity vs. 7.2 ... steam or no steam ... five cycles or ten or thirty-five? My head was spinning! Finally we went to our trusty appliance store and got a front loading dryer should do the trick.

Look - it has a window!


We have gas so hubby will need to hook it up tomorrow. I'm curious if it will be "level" with the washer. I'll get over it if it isn't (maybe), but it sure would be sweet if it were! Ah, the simple things in an OCD person's life I've never been so excited to dry clothes in my life!

July 21, 2011

Play Ball

Baseball season is almost over! Oops, did I say that out loud?


July 20, 2011

HP Recap

Saw this and had to share - http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43756803/ns/today-entertainment/

We're hoping to have a Harry Potter marathon over the weekend to get fully prepped for the final movie. Chunky has a baseball tourney - one game each day - so that and the weather will dictate our final plan.

July 17, 2011

Friend or Foe?

Sassy's boyfriend won her a goldfish at the county fair - Stefan I wanted Friedrich - I thought that was a better fish name but I lost that one. Sookie the cat is VERY interested in Stefan the fish.

Stare down -


I started to get nervous when she put her face in the bowl -


Then REALLY nervous when she stood up and looked like she was going fishing!



We put a plastic lid on Stefan's bowl (with holes of course). Sookie guards her new "friend" faithfully -

July 16, 2011

The Land of 10,000 Lakes

Has a new lake!


We have urban flood warnings from rain over the past two days throughout the metro area (which is in addition to the deluge of rain we've seen the last three months). Some spots have seen nearly 7" since yesterday morning. Overnight a complex of storms dropped an additional 1" to nearly 5"and our county was the hardest hit with 5.44" falling in a neighboring town in four hours.

This is the view from just a mile away from our home -


Look closely -

July 15, 2011

Summer in a glass

6 oz pineapple juice (1 small can)
3 oz orange juice (1/2 pineapple can)
2-3 oz Mango rum
ice

Shine!

July 14, 2011

Sweet Pea

Our favorite blonde munchkin stopped by for a visit along with her mom before we went on vacation. Isn't she precious?!


Sassy babysits her occasionally so she is really comfortable with her -


Not so much Chunky - he hasn't shown much interest in little people, especially girls, and can be so loud and boisterous that they aren't attracted to him either. But this visit was different. Chunky took the time to play with her and find some common activities (digging in the dirt, petting the dog, etc.) and they became fast buddies -


How sweet is this?!

July 13, 2011

Happy Wednesday!

New Word Wednesday is on hiatus for the rest of the summer (perhaps the rest of the year). While there are plenty of interesting words to discover and share ... I'm just not feeling it.

It's the week of appointments - eye appt today, hair appt tomorrow and two Dr appts Friday. The joy of it all. I ordered two new pair of glasses today - one "regular" and the other prescription sunglasses. I've never had prescription sunglasses - I feel so decadent.

We are officially caught up through season 3 of The Big Bang Theory. Season 4 doesn't come out until mid-September. How is that enough time to catch up before Season 5 starts? Hello DVD release people, get it together! Geesh

Sassy is working at Nordstrom for their big anniversary sale this weekend. She hasn't been working other than babysitting and Grandma jobs so will likely feel overwhelmed being on her for 9 hours a day. She will be an absolute joy to be around at home this weekend. Not!

Well, that's all I have to say about that. Happy Wednesday!

July 10, 2011

C is for ...

Cabin, Cupid and Concussion.

I would show you all sorts of lovely photos of our annual visit to the "cabin" up north, but I just accidentally deleted them all. Including all the stellar fireworks shots. I'm certain they were award-winning photos. Luckily the resort owners gave us a disc with photos from the week which included a few shots of our crew. We had great weather, good friends and lots of fishing. We also spent some quality family time getting my mother-in-law hooked on Glee. I always feel like we've been away for weeks on end and am so relaxed when we return. We were joined by our good friends the Zs for the first few days, Chunky's buddy D, and friends we met at the same resort during our first visit nine years ago. They're from Indianapolis and have been up a couple of times since - this time only husband, Nutty, and daughter, A, made the trip. They were only going to stay for a couple of days but it turned into the full week.

Sparks were flying and not just from the 4th of July fireworks. I have never witnessed a full-on love connection before, but it was obvious there was a magnetic attraction between Chunky and A. Cupid was in full force.

This is Chunky and A in 2005 -


Flash forward to last week -


They were inseparable and it was really sweet to watch. Chunky's girlfriend from home broke up with him via text message a couple of days before we left so he was a free agent. I could tell D felt a little left out at times, but the heart wants what the heart wants.

I can't resist then and now photos of Sassy too -


We brought up two borrowed ATVs and they were a big hit. Hubby, Nutty and Sassy took "the kids" on chaperoned rides as safety was our primary concern. Sassy wanted me to go out one day and I thought "what the heck, I'm on vacation". I was doing very well if I do say so myself until I overcompensated on a hill. I zigged when I should have zagged and there was a shift in the force as my head (and body) hit the ground. The ATV hit some shrubs and is no worse for wear. I on the other hand got my brains scrambled. Sassy was ahead of me and had just turned to check that I was (far) behind her so she must have thought I was good to go. It seemed like forever until she came back to the scene. Evidently I was more concerned about my shoe which had flung off than anything else. I made it back okay and started making dinner, but then Sassy and MIL got worried when I repeated things I had just said and was doing a strange head bob. They were concerned enough to take me to the ER (the others were all at a local gun range - we're such rednecks). I don't remember very much, it's all kind of a blur. I do remember feeling nauseous and feeling proud that I remembered my social security number ... until I started thinking about how no one would really know if that was the right number so maybe I was wrong. Then my head started hurting. A lot. They checked my vitals, confirmed I had a concussion, and told me to go home and rest. I would show you a photo of my ER wrist bracelet or the life saving helmet, but I deleted all my photos on accident. I blame the brain injury.

July 3, 2011

We thought it would never arrive ...

Summer!

We've been on our annual trek Up North this past week - see 2009 and 2010 posts for more Up North fun. I have so much to share, but will start with the pre-trip packing and staging.


I use oversize Ziploc bags that I cannot imagine living without. A friend works for the company that makes these and when she gave me samples of every size a few years ago my life was complete. I use one for beach towels, another for bathroom towels and washcloths, and another for "dirty" towels.


I use "old" laundry baskets (the ones deemed too small or unusable because they have holes) to hold all our shoes, cooking implements and paper products. These serve double duty - easy to pack up and transport plus they serve as our actual laundry baskets at the cabin.


Trust me there was a lot more. I don't have photos of all the food - adult beverages, lemonade & ice tea mix, canned goods, crackers, cereal, etc. We also brought up ATVs, a motorcycle and a lot of fishing gear in our trailer. More on the weeks' activities in the next post - it definitely had it's ups and downs! hint, hint

July 1, 2011

Lunch

Chunky is attending summer camp at the Y 3x/week and it's awesome. They hang outside, go swimming and have field trips almost every day. It keeps him active and gives a much needed break from video games. The only thing that's not awesome about summer camp is lunches. For me that is. I hate making lunches. Coming up with fresh items, some of them healthy, packing it all in and the chore of prepping is NOT my favorite activity. This is why I gladly fork over the moola for the decidedly unhealthy hot lunches during the school year. Here's a breakdown of today's lunch -

First position the ice pack so that it keeps the drinks cold as well as the sandwiches, yet doesn't take up too much room. Then add drinks and tuck in an applesauce or fruit cup with plastic utensil.


Then layer in TWO sandwiches (he's a growing boy afterall) - today it was PB&J, but it could be turkey bologna, salami, ham or turkey. I'm partial to this brand of lunch meat.


Add a snack such as a bagel, crackers, chips or today's selection, beef jerky.


Finally, more snacks like peanuts, fruit rollups, or something super healthy like carrots or grapes.


Ta da - all of that fit in this bag!