Hello, Hello Again!

Well, that was a quick 2 months gone by. Apparently I'm not going to be quite the daily blogger I once was. I guess a 9 month old will do that to you. To me, anyway. So, I thought I'd just sum up the previous 2 months with photos...Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas.

Very first pumpkin!

Cutie!

Let's Carve!
Rock Star!
Happy Halloween!

First visit to Santa
Christmas Party!

We are just about to walk



Decorating...
The tree!
Christmas Eve Party!

Just a couple of gifts...

Happy Holidays!!

Hope to post again soon!

erin

You Say It's Your Birthday

Okay, I will...

It's my birthday. Today I turn 27, which seems too old for me. 27 is not old, but I don't feel like I should be that close to 30 already! This is also my first birthday as a mom and my first birthday without my dad, so all in all...kind of a weird one, but also a good one. I went out to dinner with Danny and my mom (and Miss Eleanor, of course) last night and got a new pair of earrings from Mom, which I was really hoping to get. I'm the kind of person who puts in a pair of earrings and continues to wear them everyday, I never take them out. Well, I had a nice pair of studs for that, but Harrison ate them, so I was left only with large, dangly earrings and you can't sleep in those. But now I have another pair of studs, so I'm set! I feel that earrings give my face a much better look in some way.

Tonight Danny has something planned or at least a surprise for me, so I'm not sure what is happening there...guess I'll find out after work!

Tomorrow my sister and nephew are coming to town and she and I are going to dinner and to see Eclipse. We're not quite the fanatics of this series like other people, but we enjoy seeing the movies.

Tomorrow is also my very last day of work! This was sort of a birthday present to myself, I guess. And of course I'm looking forward to my new line of work - stay-at-home-motherhood.

This weekend is the 4th. It was this time last year that I unknowly but thankfully got pregnant (is that too much detail? Oh well, it's no secret). I remember feeling SO bad on the 4th of July, plus is rained all day so that didn't help, but actually I was feeling the early early effects of pregnancy. I didn't find out about it until the 19th. It's hard to believe I've gone through all that and now have a smiling sweet little girl to show for it. It really is a miraculous process!

So, here's goodbye to the last year, year 27, and here's hello to the beginning of my 28th year. Man, thirty is just around the corner!

erin

Push It

Here is the birth story...

Sunday morning, March 21st, I was bleeding (sorry for the graphics, but these are the facts) so I called my doctor and she recommended we go in for a "labor check" at the hospital. So, at 8am (I think) we headed to the hospital with hopes of returning home relatively soon. Danny had a big poker game scheduled for that afternoon and I, frankly, wasn't quite ready for the big show.

I got all checked in and hooked up and indeed I was having mild contractions, but they were pretty certain I was not in active labor...but wait around for 30 minutes while we monitor you and the doctor will come in and check you out. 30 minutes later, they decide to have me drink a bunch of water to see if my contractions are dehydration-related...so drink this water and wait another 20 minutes, meanwhile the doctor was nowhere to be seen as of yet. 20 minutes later the doctor comes in, checks me, I'm 1 centimeter dialated, so definitely things are starting, but it could be days until active labor starts. Let's have you hang out for another 2 hours while I go do a c-section and then I'll check back. Meanwhile, Danny is starting to go crazy just sitting next to me in a chair in the triage room which is not very large and our tiny tv that gets 12 channels is not that exciting and his poker tournament is 2.5 hours away. Fun for me to listen to him complain while contracting.

So the nurse has me walk the halls for 20 minutes to see if I progress at all...if I do, they will admit me, if I don't I can go home. At about 20 minutes, I run into my doctor in the hall who asks "What are you doing?" "I'm walking the halls," I say. "Why?" She asks. "Because the nurse told me to." I reply. "Let's just check you again so you can get the heck out of here." Fantastic.

Still at 1 cm. I go home. Danny goes to poker.

At 10 pm, Danny returns home, didn't win, and lies down. I remain in the recliner where I have been most of the day, well, let's be honest, most of the last 4 weeks. At 10:30pm, my water breaks. Off we go again!

Again we get checked in and I get hooked up and 4 different people were doing things: hooking up an IV, strapping monitors to my stomach, explaining the different medicines being administered, having me sign consent forms, and getting a medical history...it was a lot. Then, all of a sudden, we were left alone in our room. Danny got some sleep and I labored from 12 am to 5 am through contractions that came every couple of minutes. At 5am I reached 4 cm and got my epidural...it was wonderful. The nurses recommended I get some rest, but it's really difficult to sleep while you have a blood pressure cuff on that goes off every 15 minutes because you have an epidural. So I got no sleep. I was given pitocin to kick up the labor and within 2 hours I started to feel an odd pressure. I called the nurse to check it out. All of a sudden, it was go time! It was just after 7am and my Mom had just arrived to check on us and she was pulled in to help encourage the labor. I was having intense pressure and really wanted to push but the room wasn't ready and the doctor wasn't there yet so the nurses kept telling me to breathe through the urges. Yeah right, I was totally pushing. You tell me how not to push after you go through labor.

45 minutes later, there she was! 8:22am!

She really made it convenient for all involved. Danny got to play his poker tournament. Mom got to be there and get to her 8:45am appointment, she was born on my uncle's birthday, which I was asked to shoot for, she came on a Monday so my sister was able to come down easily and she was born in the morning so everyone was able to visit after work. What a considerate baby. Also she was born 1 day before my original due date which I always maintained was the correct due date and not the one a week and a half later that my doctor was sure of.

It was an incredible experience and you can only truly know if you experience it. Danny was fantastic, it was great having Mom there and now I have the cutest little girl on earth. 1 month old today!

erin

Oh Danny boy...

Gotta keep it festive...St. Pat's day right around the corner!

I've been a bit neglectful of the blog only because I'm tired and uncomfortable and trying to tie up loose ends here at work (where I do most of my blogging...sorry work) and really, until a birth a child, nothing is going on.

Spring is making an attempt here in Illinois! Warmer temps, some sunshine (not today, today is dull and rainy), my garden is beginning to grow also! Well, I think it still qualifies as Mom's garden. All the work put into is hers, I just inherited it with the house and all the years I lived there and watched her cultivate, pull things, transplant things, tend it and so forth, I never really got too interested. I watered occasionally, but that was about it. I reluctantly tagged along to buy flowers and it's not like I had a bad time, I just wasn't so interested then. Now, though, I have a growing motivation to take charge of it (with my mom's help though...mom.) and keep it going! I might even want to plant more things, vegetables and herbs and such! Ah spring, how you motivate me so...now the real trick it sticking with it. Add it to the list of projects I'm DETERMINED to stick to: lose the baby weight plus the weight I needed to lose before the baby, maintain the garden, raise a child, keep house clean, etc.

I guess we're about to find out how it all goes! Wish me luck!

Oh yeah, and let's just throw a shout out to Danny so the title of my blog is appropriate. Go husband! He really has been pitching in around the house lately. 2 days of laundry in a row, vacuumed the house, grocery shopped...he is ready for me to no longer be pregnant just as much as I am!

erin

That's an Irish Lullaby

A few things are on tap for this month:

-Annual pancake/sausage breakfast at work (joy)
-My mom's birthday
-A nice dinner out with family
-Taxes
-An evening work meeting
-The first Restoration Day of the year (which I will not be attending, thank you)
-St. Patrick's Day
-An all staff communications training (again, joy)
-Harrison's 2nd birthday
-My last scheduled day of work before maternity leave

and hopefully...

-A baby!

Bring on Spring!

Shower the people you love with love

Paint it Black

Oh Black Friday...

We went.  The "we" was my sister and me.  We hadn't been since she was pregnant back in 2006 (right?) and we had gone for a few years up until then.  And then we didn't go for a while.  I'm not sure if it was because plans kept us apart on Fridays or we just had enough of the crazies and needed a reprieve, but for whatever reason, this was our first venture back into the madness of the start of the holiday shopping season in a few years.

At first, I had no intentions of going.  Emy mentioned something about heading out, but I was unsure of my level of commitment and stamina due to being just about 6 months pregnant (tomorrow!).  But then, I got a second wind...first wind?  Was there even wind at this point?  Nevermind.  I got motivated to go and there were some deals Em wanted to score like the 32" flat screen at Target for $250.  I really had nothing pending I wanted, but Black Friday shopping is no one man task.  So I was all set to go!  Then she broke the news of what time we were heading out.  4am.

4am!

Also please note that we were doing Thanksgiving at Mom's later that day, so we still had cooking turkey, potatoes, green beans, etc. to accomplish that day.

So I reluctantly agreed to be up and ready and pick her up at Mom's at 4am so we could get to Target no later than 4:30am for the 5am opening.

When we got to Target, I first saw no line of people, though I did see plenty of cars.  Well, there was a line.  What I thought was a long line.  But, by the time 5am rolled around, the line had grown to at least 1 mile long, wrapping around the entire store.  Our goal was a tv, though being about 100 people back and hearing the store manager talk about no running, pushing, biting (yes, biting), we were skeptical of our chances on the tv front.  So we figured out what else we would shoot for ($3 toaster, blender for mom, husband gifts, maybe sheets?).  We got into the store and we were off.  No, there was no real running, though my sister did run about 3 steps in the end, rebel...but I was on cart duty and she planned on heading straight to the tv section, which according to our maps was to be located in maternity on this cold morning.  I lost her in the crowd in my attempts at cutting people off to get a cart (sorry) but when I caught up with her, she was smiling, and hauling a big tv box back through the racks!  SCORE!  We got one of the probably 25 tvs available, that literally were gone by 5:02am.

We also managed to pick up everything else on the list and got in the long long line by 5:20am (I was the time keeper) and by 6am, we were back at home with our loot, ready for the day!

Oh Black Friday, you may be crazy, but we former Evans' girls heart you so!

erin

It's Raining on Sunday

The title says it all.  Rain, again.  All week.

Not a bad weekend, all in all.  Had to work Saturday morning/early afternoon and then I got to spend a little downtime at home before going to dinner with my in-laws and then watching a movie with a friend of mine.

Today I was up by 7, did some housework, then went out with Mom for a little shopping and lunch.  Now I am home again, doing laundry and awaiting Sunday dinner, again at the in-laws.

Not too much is happening right now.  We find out the baby's gender on Tuesday and I've taken the whole day off work so we can register and continue to celebrate the occasion!  We're very excited at our house to finally find out who will be joining our family in March.  And how soon is March??  This pregnancy is flying by!

Have a good week!

erin

Working on the Chain Gang

Whew!

That's all I can say.

I think nesting mode is kicked in!

Now, usually when I "dedicate" a weekend to cleaning, it's a half-hearted thing. I have the best intentions, and then I usually scale back what should get done to what really only needs to be done to look passible until the next round of cleaning happens. And after that 2 hours or so, I'm totally non-functioning for the rest of the weekend.

Not so this past weekend.

I didn't even go into Saturday with a gigantic to-do list. I had somethings I wanted to accomplish, I knew my mom was going to be helping me, and that was that. I was even attempting to scale back as I made my way to the grocery store for the first time in about a month (yay for macaroni and cheese keeping us going).

But then I picked up Mom and her cleaning equipment, we made our way back to my house, put groceries away and it was on!

What we accomplished:
After I filled in at work from 7:30am-9:30am:
-I cleaned both bathrooms
-Mom vacuumed the MOUNDS of dog hair from the dining room
-Got a load of dishes washing
-Mom and I washed the dining room floor (this is a large floor, mind you)
-Followed by steaming the dining room floor
-Followed by polishing the dining room floor
-I vacuumed other rooms in the house
-We put clean dishes away
-Mom did more dishes. I swear dishes multiply while you do them!
-I promptly fell down on my bed for 40 minutes while Mom finished ripping down all wallpaper from my old bedroom to prepare for the transformation into a nursery.
-Danny finished painting in the hallway (so all rooms but the nursery have now been repainted).
-Danny fixed our fence out back so now there is a working gate.
-Danny and I both raked/swept leaves in the front and back yard (that 97 year old rake that we've had my ENTIRE life gave me wicked blisters because I did not wear work gloves...silly me).
-I participated in a very futile job of cleaning the back door of dog nose and paw prints. They will return shortly.
-I made dinner, which is not a big deal, but I totally wasn't planning on doing so and hey, it was a long day! Then I did dishes, again!
-I fell asleep at 8pm
End Saturday.

On Sunday, my entire plan was to do nothing but watch mindless television, which I did for a good while, but then I started a load of laundry, picked up drop cloth in the living room, attempted to move the piano (I thought I would just slide around, not so much), folded AND put away said laundry, started another load, and finally took a nap.

I did notice that soon I will need to vacuum the basement steps and change out the shower curtain in the guest bathroom, but I think those tasks will have to wait until the next nesting jag kicks in...which could be later today.

erin

What Have You Done For Me Lately?

Man, it's been a while and I've done many things...so here's a recap of sorts:

-"Bon Voyage" party for some friends who are going on a 4 week trip to Europe. Just the two of them. I don't know if Danny and I could handle that, but it sounds like a great time.
-Took dog to vet...1 year old, 84 pounds, she's still the most popular dog there!
-New front door installed, looks fantastic...way to go hubby!
-I made a kick-ass lasagna on Sunday that is still only halfway eaten...this probably isn't noteworthy, but I will post the recipe on the other blog (it's one I stole from Pioneer Woman).
-Danny defended my honor, such a good husband.
-Memorial Day=No Work!
-Moved a mattress downstairs to sleep because the upstairs was SO HOT and I won't turn on the AC. Turned out to be really fun to sleep on the floor in front of the big tv with Harrison jumping all over the place.
-As a result of the above, we basically just hung out all weekend together, watching Jon & Kate plus 8 marathons, relaxing. I have to give my husband props for sucking it up and watching that show with me, plus I let him bitch about Kate as much as he wants...compromise.
-Band practice has been really fun lately!
-Yogilates (this is the correct spelling) kicked my butt on Tuesday, but it was still fun.
-Personal day Wednesday = 12 hours of house cleaning with help from Danny, Mom, and Dad...things are really coming to the finish.
-Realtor came today, looks like we can ask more than we thought for the house...he'll let us know the official number early next week (yay!)

We're just rolling along with life. I'll tell ya though, I'm ready to be done spending money on this house, I'm ready for someone to pay me big bucks for it, and I'm ready to move! I haven't even started packing...that just makes me shudder. But it's right around the corner.

Let me hear your body talk...

Mine says...ouch!

So, Mom and I went to our yogalates class last night. It was the two of us, two other ladies who are regulars, and an older gentleman named Ed, also a regular. I was next to him. I told myself that if Ed can handle this stuff, so could I...or so I hoped.

The class was not at all difficult, nor did I go home feeling dead tired and over-worked. A lot of the moves I'd done before in other yoga classes and there was seriously like 1 pilates move. So the whole time I was thinking, I am not paying $80 for 3 months of this class (plus gym membership)...not worth it! But by the end of the 45 minutes, I was feeling stretched and worked and slightly rejuvinated. Mom is hooked, as she is Mrs. Flexibility, USA and was even the star of the class with just how far she could reach past her toes. I, on the other hand, can't even get to my toes, let alone past them. Anyway, today my body is sore and in all the right places, so I'm going to give it a whirl. The next 6 week class starts in June, so we'll see. It's better than nothing, which was my alternative exercise plan.

Plus, I'm a big fan of Ed.

erin

Let's Get Physical!

I am going to Yogilates class with my mom tonight. Yogalates? Yogilates? Whatever, I'm going.

Right now as I sit here at work I am so worn out! I had to help lead hikes today due to lack of volunteers and many many children. So I guess that little extra effort put forth by me today has completely worn me out! Lame.

Hopefully this will be a fun class, Mom and I are going to try to go every Tues/Thurs (after I join her health club that is). Tonight is a little preview to see what it's like. But I am looking forward to being a bit more active than I have been of late. Plus, it's only a 45 minutes class, so at least it won't last forever.

We'll see how it goes!

erin

Rock Lobster.

I am meeting the husband at Red Lobster for dinner tonight, thanks to a gift card and a couple of meetings we both have after the work day. So date night: quick little dinner, followed by a quick trip to Menards to pick out a new front door (swoon!) and then back to work!

But...I'm excited to see him! And very excited for either apple chicken walnut salad, or a pasta dish....you see, I am in no way a seafood fan, but I still get included in the gift card usage!

Also, I had to run to Kroger for foodstuff for this meeting of mine tonight (food handlers unite!) and I parked right next to my Dad in the parking lot! But, I never saw him inside the store and by the time I got to the checkout, I could see he was already gone! Mysterious!

So, mystery day, red lobster night...it's the little things, I suppose.

Saturday In the Park

Good news! I no longer have to work this Saturday! Hooray for rain!

Now, if only Harrison would learn how to sleep past 6:30am, I could actually sleep in for once.

What I am doing this weekend is going up to Chicago with my sister-in-law for her brother's dance show. He's a dancer/pilates instructer (aka in very good shape) and I've never seen any of his shows, so when she invited me to go up with her, I agreed. Should be a fun time!

And on Sunday, Danny's mom is making lasagna for dinner! Looking forward to that for sure.

Yesterday I had the day off from working last Saturday, so my mom came over and we FINALLY painted the dining room baseboards and other woodwork. Wow, that was only a year in the making? Then we did a little house cleaning and rearranging, trying to stage the house for when it goes on the market, hopefully in the next couple of weeks...please...I'm typing this to you husband...let's do this thing.

Danny finished his last class for this year of his apprenticeship. 4 years down, 1 to go! When we started dating, he was almost done with his first year and I was told that he would NOT be moving in/getting married until he was COMPLETELY finished with his schooling. And I just needed to understand that this was his LIFE PLAN and he would NOT alter his plans...it was the first time he really had definate life GOALS and no matter what, I just needed to get on board with THE PLAN. So, now that we've been living together for over 2 years and married for almost 1, I say...GOOD PLAN! This just goes to show us all, sometimes plans work themselves out the exact way they are supposed to, without us having to help them along. Also, if my dear hubby has any regrets about his wayward plan (which I'm sure he does NOT) I point out to him that this year's tax return was far better than his last year. Chalk one up for marriage.

Wow, isn't it weird how my blogs end up. I start out with one thought process, and then all this "stuff" just comes spilling out onto the page and you get an amalgamation of news and stories. I guess you can't have fun blog themes all the time.

erin

ps...I have seen the clock today at 11:11, 1:11, and now, 2:22. Told you!

It's raining on Sunday

My arms are sore.

And my hands.

I did a whole load of "outdoorsy" stuff this weekend.

On Saturday morning, I got up bright and early and went to work! Love that. I had to participate in a volunteer Restoration Day at one of our sites. Only like 4 hours of my day, but I did manage to work up a sweat chopping down invasive plants out in the woods. I also had to provide food and take pictures. I'm a multi-tasker, apparently. That reminds me, I still have the company digital camera out in my car...let's try to remember to get that out of there before something bad happens to it.

After all that choppin' n' sweatin', I ran home, took a shower, and Danny and I headed off to Bloomington for our nephew's 2nd birthday party. Not only did I partially, somewhat, kind of climb a tiny bit up a fireman pole (I've never been able to do that, and I really still can't), chase bubbles, and climb through a oh-so-slippery and somewhat small playground tube, I also took my turn on a giant teeter-totter you stand on, and got into a water gun fight with my husband, though not by choice. After all that outside business, I was tired! We drove home and I promptly fell asleep on the couch. I'm pretty sure I was in bed by 8pm that night.

On Sunday, I again got up bright and early and my mom came over and we did yard work. I dug holes (until I made Danny finish the job), trimmed hedges, pulled dead things, and eventually worked carefully to cut back a very thorny hedge! Why anyone would ever choose to plant such a deathtrap of a shrub is beyond me. It's hardly decorative either. However, we prevailed over said thornbush. We spend a good 3 hours working that day, in the rain even, and I did end up taking another nap that day, but not before I visited a friend for a bit while Danny did a side job for a friend of his.

So tonight, unless it's raining again, Mom will return with electric hedge trimmers and I will go to town at my house! It's all an effort to pretty it up so someone will decide to buy it! We've got to get in on the market soon. Danny's done a ton of work in the back yard, we have a whole newly landscaped portion with mulch and plants and all that. Harrison LOVES hauling ass through the new mulch. She also enjoys the fact, I'm sure, that it turns her feet red, especially when it's rainy and she's outside assisting with home projects. I know I do! But anyway, soon Danny will start on the few projects we have inside and then, hopefully, someone will be charmed by our house's unique qualities as we were, and buy the damn thing!

Call Me On the Line

Oh my goodness! What happened to my blogging?

Well, I'll tell ya what happened...my pesky job got in the way! Darn job.

Last week, I held the biggest event in my department...the annual Volunteer Recognition Dinner. I changed the venue this year, I scaled back on some things, I upgraded some things, I took heat for some things, and I disregarded opinions of those higher up than I on some things. It was a whirlwind! However, it came and went without incident, I got rave reviews from the volunteers, and now, it's over for a year! The next day I attended an all day volunteer conference away from my work and that was nice. I took Thursday off and Friday was a holiday, so I've had a lovely little break from crazytown, U.S.A. aka the conservation district. Don't worry though, I'm right back in the middle of ridiculous today. Seriously, this is a place where deer walk around like nothing and eat grass and squirrels prance around...what happened to all that serenity? It's like an ER around here and I refuse to participate in the absurdity of that.

Whoa...end rant.

Easter weekend wasn't too bad. I took many good walks with Harrison and my mom, I took naps, I made ham, and then ate ham, and then ate more ham. We had a big dinner at Danny's parents house with, ham, and lot's of other good food. All the kids (ages 25-30) got their annual easter baskets and we were pestered for not producing grandchildren fast enough yet again. But aside from the guilt trip, I had a lovely time.

I realize I have posted absolutely no pictures from various events I've experienced and I'm going to have to confess something here to blogland: I suck at documenting my life in photographs. If I don't forget the camera in the first place, then I forget to take pictures or, quite frankly, just don't enjoy taking them. I have a few from Harrison's birthday way back when that I could share and I completely didn't take any camera to the New Kids concert! Oh well, guess it lives in my memory!

The other big news of my time away...I have a new phone! Yes, I've upgraded from the old phone I've had for the past 3 years. I'm also not one of those people who gets a new phone every other week. I feel that my phone is sufficient and I don't need it play music or do my banking. However, I left the phone charger in Bloomington after the concert and after my phone died a mere 8 days before I could get my phone back, I faced a dilemma. So where did I turn? My technology-friendly, money-spending, loves-to-buy-new-stuff hubby. I altered him to my situation. He volunteered to go buy me a new charger. I agreed to that. I'd been putting him off for months on the "let's go get you an upgraded phone" front. I was just never in the mood to go get a new one. I think I have an unrealistic assumption that it is a way more undesirable process then it really is. So while I was out with Mom on Thursday, he went out and upgraded my phone for me! I didn't even have to go! I love that! After we send in the rebate, the phone (which is really nifty, by the way) will end up being less expensive than a charger for the old phone. I was presented with my upgrade after I got home. It had all my numbers and pictures all in there waiting for me! I have been tinkering with it ever since. It even plays music! But I don't use that feature. Again, I don't need my phone to entertain me.

So, right now I'm about to leave work and go home to eat dinner (ham) and fold laundry. One of these days I will realize that my house will need to be clean because one of these days, we're going to sell it, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Have a good one!

erin

Where in the World is Carmen SanDiego?

Well, we came in 4th.

We were briefly tied for third, but lost the tie-breaker question, so we, the 2 year defending champs, came in 4th out of 16 teams. We still had a good time, though I protested that the categories were not as well-rounded as in previous years. It really all comes down to categories and this year there were too many sports/James Bond questions for my liking. And the bonus round was naming game shows. We usually get if not all those answered, a good 99%. I think this time we left like 5 or 6 blank out of 20 (and this round included a correct answer to a kids' geography-themed game show...thus this blog's title)! I will say though, our team had the best snacks and the most enthusiasm.

The pancake breakfast was a HUGE success! We served over 400 people this year, the biggest crowd in many years.

So it was a good weekend, topped off with excellent mocha cake made by my mother-in-law and a nice Sunday brunch to further celebrate Mom's birthday.

And so we move on to yet another work week (though the boss is sick today...thanks to me and my germs...that's taking one for the team, I think).

erin

Mother Mary comes to me, speaking words of wisdom...

Happy birthday to my mom! (tomorrow)

I won't divulge age here, not that she is ashamed, but is it my place, really?

Anyway, Mom's birthday is tomorrow, the 7th, and I am officially wishing her a happy birthday week starting today. For the past few years, Mom has encouraged her family (mainly Dad) to celebrate her birthday in a weekly style, with some act of appreciation demonstrated each day leading up to her birthday. This year, I think we are celebrating for a week beginning with her birthday, tomorrow. My sister and her family are coming down next weekend for a bit of celebratory fun and since I don't think we are quite at the level of a 2 week birthday-fest, we'll start tomorrow.

So, once again, happy something something-eth birthday!

And don't forget we're gearing up for Trivia Night 2009 over here at "in my life." I'll let you know how the team does this year!

It's All About the Benjamins, Baby

Doing stuff to win money is fun!

This Saturday is a culmination of events. My mother's XXth birthday, our annual pancake breakfast here at work and the Meridian High School Trivia Night back at my old high school.

We will be celebrating the birthday at the pancake breakfast and then again the next day and then again the next weekend (man she really knows how to have a birthday, that Mom) when my sister and family come down for that weekend...we've also got a paying band show that weekend!

The trivia night, that is the social event of the season! This will be my fourth year competing and hopefully my third consecutive year winning that bad boy! And you win money! Like $250! However, you have a team of 10 people...and then you always donate it back to the school...so it's really just for the prestige. Even so, my team has won the last 2 years in a row, beating like 12 other teams made up of teachers, writers from the paper, other former students, etc. Our team consists of myself, my brother-in-law Ross and sister-in-law Susannah, my mother and father-in-law, Susannah's parents and 2 aunts, and another friend from said high school. We all have our specialty areas. Other friend is all sports and history, Ross takes care of obscure facts, math, music, and movies, I handle pop culture (I watch the most tv, apparently), a bit of history (it was my major) and music. I could name everyone's specialty, but just know, we cover a broad spectrum! We also have a good range of ages on our team to know random trivia from different decades and past and present "current" events. It's a pretty fun time and hey, it's how I give back to my school, because I certainly don't plan on writing them a check anytime soon! So even if it's not "all about the benjamins" it's still a really fun evening with friends!

I'll let you know how we do...I'm so accustomed to winning, I feel it won't be near as much fun if we don't!

erin

Coming Out of the Dark

Wow! What a germ-filled last week I had!

I spent the weekend in Bloomington with my sister, doing our taxes and trying to break her son's fever...I came home with a nice rebate and the plague!

I went into work on Monday doing just fine, but right around 3pm, I started feeling some soreness in my throat...I immediately took cold pills. It didn't quite work out.

I went home from work that night, put some laundry in and made dinner, but by the time dinner was ready, I was so down. Achy, freezing, sore throat, I felt horrible!

It persisted into Tuesday and I couldn't make it to work. Wednesday I attempted to go in for a few hours to get things done that had to be done that day and then I drug myself back home. Thursday was the worst! I woke up with such clogged ears! They hurt so much! I went to a walk-in clinic to get some antibiotics because this was ridiculous. 2 hours later I took my first pill and all I could do that entire day was lay around and moan. Friday was a tiny bit better, but again, I was out for the count. Saturday I felt better and got myself some Mucinex D...this is great stuff. It breaks up all that crap and allows you to breathe! I even felt good enough to go see my brother and sister-in-law in a community theater play that night and it was nice to get out of the house!

So, even though I am still a little clogged and my ears haven't yet popped back to normal quite yet, I am considering myself "healed" in that I can function and speak and am not blowing my nose every 3 minutes. Seriously, I used up the only box of kleenex we had and then proceeded to use the remaining 3 rolls of toilet paper left in the house and then when things got desperate and before anyone could get out for more supplies, paper towels. Ouch! My nose is very sad after all that. I've almost made it through 2 more kleenex boxes, but it has really slowed down the last 2 days.

As for Austin, he is still battling the sickness and will hopefully be on the mend soon! 9 days of fever is rough!

And my husband deserves a special "caregiver" award for how well he took care of me last week. Even when I looked liked death warmed over with eye puss, nose crust, unbrushed hair and teeth, and vicks vapor rub toilet paper sticking out of my ears (it was not pretty), he was still right there, cooking meals, shopping for supplies, bringing me whatever I wanted and sleeping on the couch. Love you, hon!

So, I am going to try to be a bit more productive in blogland for the next few weeks!

Avoid the crud!
erin