As previously mentioned this week, I have a new addiction to online swaps. Well, I have been able to get amazing deals on the boys' clothes. Last year, we didn't have to buy much clothing for them, but weren't that lucky for this upcoming Fall/Winter season. They needed new short and long sleeve shirts, pants, PJ's, and jackets. Since combing through post after post on Facebook, I am happy to report that the boys have a whole "new", large wardrobe except they need a few more pairs of pants. I have bought mostly Gap, Old Navy, Polo, Tommy Hilfiger, and Nike brand clothing. I also found a lined, hooded, water resistant jacket that will be great for Malachi this Fall. How much have I spent for all of their shirts, pants, jackets, hoodies? ... $45... I did not think that was possible! I am so happy that my hard work of finding bargains has paid off. If I don't find his size of pants soon, then I will have to buy new ones along with new shoes. But to clothe 2 boys for that amount of money, I will not complain about the few things I may have to pay more for!
As a side note, the boys have really been into "camo" clothing and I found a Gap hoodie and a long sleeve shirt both made of camo material. I was pretty awesome in their eyes when I brought them home.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Friday, August 5, 2011
What A Blessing!
I just had to share this really quickly before I head out for Girls' Night Out. Since the beginning of Summer, Malachi has been extremely apprehensive about starting school. So much so that he has begged me to homeschool him. At this point in life, I know that we are not suppose to homeschool so we have really tried to talk up school. He was a little excited to see the outside of the school when we drove past it, but other than that, he is resolved to not go to school. I have been praying for good friends and a wonderful teacher who can help with the adjustment period.
And part of my prayer has been answered! Tonight, I received an email from his teacher. She is the ONLY teacher we know in the district and he's in her class!!! She and her husband were in our Young Married's Sunday school class. She is an amazing person so I can't wait for her to teach my child. Now I just hope she won't have to call home this next year because he is on the naughty list ;-)
12 DAYS 'TIL SCHOOL STARTS!
And part of my prayer has been answered! Tonight, I received an email from his teacher. She is the ONLY teacher we know in the district and he's in her class!!! She and her husband were in our Young Married's Sunday school class. She is an amazing person so I can't wait for her to teach my child. Now I just hope she won't have to call home this next year because he is on the naughty list ;-)
12 DAYS 'TIL SCHOOL STARTS!
Just Had To Share
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
My Newest Addiction
In search of good deals, I have come across 3 "swap" groups on Facebook that are exclusively for the county we live in. There is an all encompassing group, a women's group and a kiddie group. People post things for sale and you can negotiate the price. Kind of like Craigslist except I love this format more. You can quickly discover the frequent buyers by their posts. People joke around on there so it is entertaining as well.
I am currently in the market for fall/winter shoes and jeans for the kiddos. I was a few hours too late for a pair of barely worn pink Nike Shox shoes for Samara. They were priced for $5. Uh, yeah. Bargain. I don't want to miss out on another bargain like that so I keep checking every chance I get for updated items.
Hope I don't lose a lot of sleep over these groups =)
I am currently in the market for fall/winter shoes and jeans for the kiddos. I was a few hours too late for a pair of barely worn pink Nike Shox shoes for Samara. They were priced for $5. Uh, yeah. Bargain. I don't want to miss out on another bargain like that so I keep checking every chance I get for updated items.
Hope I don't lose a lot of sleep over these groups =)
Now That's Just Plain Hot!
I was finally feeling back to my normal self yesterday; I can say that I have fully recovered from last week! The plan for the day was to clean the house top to bottom because it needed it. At 9:30, I was getting ready to start on the list when James texted me that we had a house showing at 6:15pm. Wonderful! I had plenty of time to get all the deep cleaning that needed to be done. I wasn't rushing around, but I wasn't going at a snail's pace either.
Then at 11:42, James calls. We have another showing for today. But this one is at 1pm. A little more than an hour away! I was pretty far along on the list, but still was not close to being finished. I rushed and got the basic tasks completed. James came home and was on dog poop removal patrol in the yard. I was so thankful for his help. Unfortunately, because of the time constraint, the kiddos did not get to eat lunch before the showing. Nor did I have time to get their swimming gear so we could go to the water park. I hurriedly packed a few snacks with water. At 12:40, I was in the process of finishing the vacuuming when the prospective buyers showed up. Are you kidding me?!? They really only gave us an hour to get ready. They all stood outside by the porch while I was finishing the foyer rug. I didn't get to do the "once over" that I normally like to do right before I head out.
Once everyone was loaded into the truck, we headed to the park. We are very limited to where we can go since George has to come with us. We sat in the gazebo while we ate and drank. IT WAS 115 DEGREES...no I'm not exaggerating. It was really 115 degrees. Of all days, why would 2 people be out house hunting in this miserable heat?!? The poor kiddos would play for a few minutes and then come back for more water. Their faces were red from the little amount of activity they did. I could not wait to get back home.
Since I had ran around for the first showing, there were just a few things I wanted to do before the 2nd showing. It was a much more relaxed atmosphere (well until I was finished and then the kiddos kept getting things dirty or moving something out of place!) For this showing, we made it to the water park. It was only 108 degrees now and for most of the time, we were the only ones there. Hmm...no one else wants to be outside when it's that temp??? The kiddos had fun splashing, I had fun cooling off with some water, and George roamed around the park in search of treasure.
We made it back home and then I had a sinking feeling. Because we were going to the water park, I didn't want to bring my purse. And I had forgotten to lock the door because we were rushing. My purse had my keys in it. My set of keys are the only ones that has our house key on it (James' is in the lockbox). We were locked out. GOOD. GRIEF. So James called our Realtor and she hastily came to unlock the door for us. Thank you Realtor Lady!!! To my dismay, the Realtor who showed our house was the same Realtor who came to measure carpet and thought our house wasn't stable and recommended we low-ball the price to get rid of it. So my hopes aren't really high for anything to come from the last showing! Oh well, life goes on =)
Then at 11:42, James calls. We have another showing for today. But this one is at 1pm. A little more than an hour away! I was pretty far along on the list, but still was not close to being finished. I rushed and got the basic tasks completed. James came home and was on dog poop removal patrol in the yard. I was so thankful for his help. Unfortunately, because of the time constraint, the kiddos did not get to eat lunch before the showing. Nor did I have time to get their swimming gear so we could go to the water park. I hurriedly packed a few snacks with water. At 12:40, I was in the process of finishing the vacuuming when the prospective buyers showed up. Are you kidding me?!? They really only gave us an hour to get ready. They all stood outside by the porch while I was finishing the foyer rug. I didn't get to do the "once over" that I normally like to do right before I head out.
Once everyone was loaded into the truck, we headed to the park. We are very limited to where we can go since George has to come with us. We sat in the gazebo while we ate and drank. IT WAS 115 DEGREES...no I'm not exaggerating. It was really 115 degrees. Of all days, why would 2 people be out house hunting in this miserable heat?!? The poor kiddos would play for a few minutes and then come back for more water. Their faces were red from the little amount of activity they did. I could not wait to get back home.
Since I had ran around for the first showing, there were just a few things I wanted to do before the 2nd showing. It was a much more relaxed atmosphere (well until I was finished and then the kiddos kept getting things dirty or moving something out of place!) For this showing, we made it to the water park. It was only 108 degrees now and for most of the time, we were the only ones there. Hmm...no one else wants to be outside when it's that temp??? The kiddos had fun splashing, I had fun cooling off with some water, and George roamed around the park in search of treasure.
We made it back home and then I had a sinking feeling. Because we were going to the water park, I didn't want to bring my purse. And I had forgotten to lock the door because we were rushing. My purse had my keys in it. My set of keys are the only ones that has our house key on it (James' is in the lockbox). We were locked out. GOOD. GRIEF. So James called our Realtor and she hastily came to unlock the door for us. Thank you Realtor Lady!!! To my dismay, the Realtor who showed our house was the same Realtor who came to measure carpet and thought our house wasn't stable and recommended we low-ball the price to get rid of it. So my hopes aren't really high for anything to come from the last showing! Oh well, life goes on =)
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Oh Nuts!
Last week James took Malachi to the Allergist to recheck his allergy to tree nuts. When he was 3 years old, I gave him one cashew and he immediately threw up and broke out in hives. Of course it happened at night so, after calling our PCP, I rushed him to the ER. He received steroids to counteract the reaction. A few weeks later we saw the Allergist who performed allergy tests on him. We found out he was allergic to all tree nuts.
By the age of 5, many kids will outgrow their food allergy so we were hopeful that this would be the case with Malachi. It's not always a fun trip to the store when you have to read EVERY label to see if not only they contain tree nuts, but also if they were manufactured in a place that also handles tree nuts. We couldn't buy many generic brands based on the latter. So we were hoping that it would make his life easier as well as cheaper!
But our hopes were dashed. He is still very much allergic to tree nuts. The Allergist also did an allergy panel to test for dust, mold, types of pollen and dogs/cats. He ended being allergic to everything EXCEPT cats! UGH! I have noticed that he rubs his nose a lot and his eyes are watery, but since I don't really like having the kiddos taking meds unless absolutely necessary, I have held off giving him Zyrtec. James and I are still weighing the pros and cons of him starting daily meds. I think we will wait to see if his allergies flare up more when he starts school. Who knows how many years of dust is in that building...we certainly don't want a miserable little Kindergartener.
So for now we will continue checking all the food labels and avoiding tree nuts. Next year he can have a blood test to check for the allergies so we will once again hope that he will outgrow this...
By the age of 5, many kids will outgrow their food allergy so we were hopeful that this would be the case with Malachi. It's not always a fun trip to the store when you have to read EVERY label to see if not only they contain tree nuts, but also if they were manufactured in a place that also handles tree nuts. We couldn't buy many generic brands based on the latter. So we were hoping that it would make his life easier as well as cheaper!
But our hopes were dashed. He is still very much allergic to tree nuts. The Allergist also did an allergy panel to test for dust, mold, types of pollen and dogs/cats. He ended being allergic to everything EXCEPT cats! UGH! I have noticed that he rubs his nose a lot and his eyes are watery, but since I don't really like having the kiddos taking meds unless absolutely necessary, I have held off giving him Zyrtec. James and I are still weighing the pros and cons of him starting daily meds. I think we will wait to see if his allergies flare up more when he starts school. Who knows how many years of dust is in that building...we certainly don't want a miserable little Kindergartener.
So for now we will continue checking all the food labels and avoiding tree nuts. Next year he can have a blood test to check for the allergies so we will once again hope that he will outgrow this...
Monday, August 1, 2011
I Survived Church Camp
A few weeks ago I was approached to see if I could be the elementary camp nurse. Last year James had thought about being a camp counselor so this wasn't a complete shock to think about going. The only down-fall was that it was the week after the kiddos were to get home from Grandma and Grandpa Dinkel's so I wouldn't see them for 2 weeks. James agreed to take off work so he could spend the week with them.
Sunday, after I got home from my high school reunion, I hurriedly showered and packed for camp. I only was home for about an hour and half and then left for the church. We were carpooling up to the camp site which was about 2 hours away. I was nervous. I had never been a peds nurse and this summer we are having such a long, severe heat wave and so I was afraid of what overexposure to the heat might do to the little ones. But, I put my trust in God that He would give me wisdom and strength (and I had a crew back home praying for me, too!)
The group of counselors and staff always go up the night before the campers arrive to get everything set up. We all stopped at Pizza Hut for dinner before making it to the camp. Once we got there, I took inventory of the first-aid tub and bag. From what I could tell, I was pretty well stocked up. I had brought my stethoscope along just in case (which came in handy later on). The pastor had been told that there was an apartment that was really nice for the staff so he arranged for me and the craft/music staff to stay there. We were in for a rude awakening, though. It was DIRTY, smelly and had huge spiders in it. While not wanting to complain, I just decided that I would spend as little time as possible in there.
Monday morning all the 3rd-5th graders arrived. They were pumped for camp. I went through each of their health history to make sure I had everything and also checked to see what meds they brought with them. There were several who needed meds given either in the morning, night or both. I made a daily check-list so I wouldn't miss anyone. The pastor had earlier warned me that I would probably be bored because,in the past, there hadn't been much for the nurse to do. Uh, this week was the big exception!
Monday morning started off with a male jr. counselor running a fever and was just feeling yucky. I gave him meds, sent him to get some rest and then set my phone alarm for every 3 hours to check on him, give more meds, if needed, and push him to drink fluids (well, not literally "push", but strongly encouraged!) There were tummy aches, headaches, every time I turned around someone was complaining of some medical issue. By the end of the day, I was tired. I thought that surely it wouldn't be so busy for the rest of the week. I was ready to relax and catch my breath. I was getting ready to leave the dining hall late that night when my fellow roomies came to tell me and the pastor that they killed a gi-normous brown recluse spider. They asked if they could possible move into the big cabin where all the other female counselors and campers were staying. The pastor readily agreed and so I moved into a cabin with 3rd-4th grade girls (they were super excited to have the nurse in their room!)
Tuesday morning was busy, but I was able to get away for a little bit and watch a group boys go through the obstacle course challenge. It was hilarious to see their little minds problem-solve. Early in the afternoon, I went with a group to go tubing. Now let me tell you, I am NOT a fan of lake water. I am repulsed by the squishy bottom of the lake and things floating next to you while you're in the water. I like my water crystal clear. But, I thought I would suck it up and go on the tube. After the campers and jr counselors had gone, it was a female counselor and my turn. We both kneeled in the tube and held on for dear life. We screamed, laughed, and had a great time. I was happy that we didn't flip! There was time for everyone to go again. When it was our turn, I stressed to them that I didn't want to get thrown off. That ride was way more bumpy than the first; I remember hitting a wave and then I was thrown in the water, but I was still hanging on. I pulled myself back on the tube, but was never able to fully recover from that wave. I eventually had to let go and was thrown from the tube. Somehow I lost my left contact during that incident. The female counselor was able to barely hang on and wasn't thrown off. What a ride! I'm still not convinced that there wasn't a conspiracy on board the boat to get me thrown off the tube =)
The jr counselor who had previously been sick felt better on Tuesday, but towards the evening, his fever came back and he felt really sick. He really needed to go home. The problem was that his mom was a female counselor and so someone needed to fill her spot. That's where I came in. The room I moved into the night before was this counselor's room so I volunteered to take her spot as the counselor so she could take care of her son. I was a little worried because I was still crazy busy being a nurse and I didn't know how I was going to manage being a counselor as well. The lady in charge of crafts had also moved into the room with me so we both decided that we would tag-team it when needed. I was also blessed with an amazing jr counselor who was a tremendous help.
The rest of the week was still non-stop. I would get calls late at night regarding campers who needed medical attention. The only really scary moment, though, came late Wednesday night when I received a call that a boy camper was having a hard time breathing and the counselor thought he heard some wheezing. I rushed to the dining hall to grab my stethoscope, first-aid bag and also the boy's home phone number so I could call the parents on my way to the cabin. They told me he had no history of asthma or allergies. Once I got there, I noticed his nose seemed pretty plugged up and when I listened to his lungs, I did hear some wheezing. He was talking a mile a minute, though, without needing to stop for a breath so that was reassuring. Since I was very limited to what I could do to treat him and many campers' allergies were acting up because of the dry, windy conditions, I gave him some allergy medication and asked the counselor to keep a close eye on him and call me if anything changed. I slept with my phone right beside me in bed that night and prayed that I wouldn't get a call.
The next morning this little camper came up to me right away and told me that the medicine I gave him worked and he was feeling ok. I listened to him and could not hear any wheezing. My heart was relieved!
Thursday afternoon was "Water Fun". We played a relay game, had a water balloon toss, and then the counselors/jr counselors started an all-out war with some buckets filled with water. I had just filled up a bucket and was on my way to get someone when a jr counselor asked if he could see it for just a minute. Not thinking too much about it, I gave it to him and he dumped the whole thing on my head. Absolutely frigid, but considering how hot it was outside, it felt refreshing, too. I got the bucket back, filled it up and got a male counselor soaking wet. He threatened to call my cell phone every hour that night. I think the teens and adults had more fun with the water than the kids!
One of the most moving moments was Thursday night. We were supposed to be outside at the amphitheater, but because of a storm, we had to be indoors. The pastor washed the feet of the staff, jr counselors, and counselors and then the counselors/jr counselors took turns washing the feet of the campers in their room. The lights were dim, a jr counselor played worship music on his guitar and everyone was silent. So powerful...
The next morning we packed up our belongings and headed home. But first, we all had to stop at the DQ and partake of a Dilly bar. What a great way to end a fabulously, tiring week!!!
I was greeted at home to 3 kiddos who talked non-stop for about an hour. I finally told them that I needed a nap so I went upstairs, but little Miss Samara would not let me out of her sight so she played in my bed while I slept. I took a 2 hour nap that day and went to bed early. Then on Saturday, I slept in until 10 which is amazing for me. I am still a wee-bit worn out, but I'm hoping I'll be back to normal by tomorrow.
This experience was exhausting, but uplifting at the same time. I want to definitely do it again!!!
Sunday, after I got home from my high school reunion, I hurriedly showered and packed for camp. I only was home for about an hour and half and then left for the church. We were carpooling up to the camp site which was about 2 hours away. I was nervous. I had never been a peds nurse and this summer we are having such a long, severe heat wave and so I was afraid of what overexposure to the heat might do to the little ones. But, I put my trust in God that He would give me wisdom and strength (and I had a crew back home praying for me, too!)
The group of counselors and staff always go up the night before the campers arrive to get everything set up. We all stopped at Pizza Hut for dinner before making it to the camp. Once we got there, I took inventory of the first-aid tub and bag. From what I could tell, I was pretty well stocked up. I had brought my stethoscope along just in case (which came in handy later on). The pastor had been told that there was an apartment that was really nice for the staff so he arranged for me and the craft/music staff to stay there. We were in for a rude awakening, though. It was DIRTY, smelly and had huge spiders in it. While not wanting to complain, I just decided that I would spend as little time as possible in there.
Monday morning all the 3rd-5th graders arrived. They were pumped for camp. I went through each of their health history to make sure I had everything and also checked to see what meds they brought with them. There were several who needed meds given either in the morning, night or both. I made a daily check-list so I wouldn't miss anyone. The pastor had earlier warned me that I would probably be bored because,in the past, there hadn't been much for the nurse to do. Uh, this week was the big exception!
Monday morning started off with a male jr. counselor running a fever and was just feeling yucky. I gave him meds, sent him to get some rest and then set my phone alarm for every 3 hours to check on him, give more meds, if needed, and push him to drink fluids (well, not literally "push", but strongly encouraged!) There were tummy aches, headaches, every time I turned around someone was complaining of some medical issue. By the end of the day, I was tired. I thought that surely it wouldn't be so busy for the rest of the week. I was ready to relax and catch my breath. I was getting ready to leave the dining hall late that night when my fellow roomies came to tell me and the pastor that they killed a gi-normous brown recluse spider. They asked if they could possible move into the big cabin where all the other female counselors and campers were staying. The pastor readily agreed and so I moved into a cabin with 3rd-4th grade girls (they were super excited to have the nurse in their room!)
Tuesday morning was busy, but I was able to get away for a little bit and watch a group boys go through the obstacle course challenge. It was hilarious to see their little minds problem-solve. Early in the afternoon, I went with a group to go tubing. Now let me tell you, I am NOT a fan of lake water. I am repulsed by the squishy bottom of the lake and things floating next to you while you're in the water. I like my water crystal clear. But, I thought I would suck it up and go on the tube. After the campers and jr counselors had gone, it was a female counselor and my turn. We both kneeled in the tube and held on for dear life. We screamed, laughed, and had a great time. I was happy that we didn't flip! There was time for everyone to go again. When it was our turn, I stressed to them that I didn't want to get thrown off. That ride was way more bumpy than the first; I remember hitting a wave and then I was thrown in the water, but I was still hanging on. I pulled myself back on the tube, but was never able to fully recover from that wave. I eventually had to let go and was thrown from the tube. Somehow I lost my left contact during that incident. The female counselor was able to barely hang on and wasn't thrown off. What a ride! I'm still not convinced that there wasn't a conspiracy on board the boat to get me thrown off the tube =)
The jr counselor who had previously been sick felt better on Tuesday, but towards the evening, his fever came back and he felt really sick. He really needed to go home. The problem was that his mom was a female counselor and so someone needed to fill her spot. That's where I came in. The room I moved into the night before was this counselor's room so I volunteered to take her spot as the counselor so she could take care of her son. I was a little worried because I was still crazy busy being a nurse and I didn't know how I was going to manage being a counselor as well. The lady in charge of crafts had also moved into the room with me so we both decided that we would tag-team it when needed. I was also blessed with an amazing jr counselor who was a tremendous help.
The rest of the week was still non-stop. I would get calls late at night regarding campers who needed medical attention. The only really scary moment, though, came late Wednesday night when I received a call that a boy camper was having a hard time breathing and the counselor thought he heard some wheezing. I rushed to the dining hall to grab my stethoscope, first-aid bag and also the boy's home phone number so I could call the parents on my way to the cabin. They told me he had no history of asthma or allergies. Once I got there, I noticed his nose seemed pretty plugged up and when I listened to his lungs, I did hear some wheezing. He was talking a mile a minute, though, without needing to stop for a breath so that was reassuring. Since I was very limited to what I could do to treat him and many campers' allergies were acting up because of the dry, windy conditions, I gave him some allergy medication and asked the counselor to keep a close eye on him and call me if anything changed. I slept with my phone right beside me in bed that night and prayed that I wouldn't get a call.
The next morning this little camper came up to me right away and told me that the medicine I gave him worked and he was feeling ok. I listened to him and could not hear any wheezing. My heart was relieved!
Thursday afternoon was "Water Fun". We played a relay game, had a water balloon toss, and then the counselors/jr counselors started an all-out war with some buckets filled with water. I had just filled up a bucket and was on my way to get someone when a jr counselor asked if he could see it for just a minute. Not thinking too much about it, I gave it to him and he dumped the whole thing on my head. Absolutely frigid, but considering how hot it was outside, it felt refreshing, too. I got the bucket back, filled it up and got a male counselor soaking wet. He threatened to call my cell phone every hour that night. I think the teens and adults had more fun with the water than the kids!
One of the most moving moments was Thursday night. We were supposed to be outside at the amphitheater, but because of a storm, we had to be indoors. The pastor washed the feet of the staff, jr counselors, and counselors and then the counselors/jr counselors took turns washing the feet of the campers in their room. The lights were dim, a jr counselor played worship music on his guitar and everyone was silent. So powerful...
The next morning we packed up our belongings and headed home. But first, we all had to stop at the DQ and partake of a Dilly bar. What a great way to end a fabulously, tiring week!!!
I was greeted at home to 3 kiddos who talked non-stop for about an hour. I finally told them that I needed a nap so I went upstairs, but little Miss Samara would not let me out of her sight so she played in my bed while I slept. I took a 2 hour nap that day and went to bed early. Then on Saturday, I slept in until 10 which is amazing for me. I am still a wee-bit worn out, but I'm hoping I'll be back to normal by tomorrow.
This experience was exhausting, but uplifting at the same time. I want to definitely do it again!!!
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