Ear Infections

When I was younger I was prone to ear infections. I remember laying my head on a hot water bottle, ear drops topped off with cotton balls and having to choke down (unflavored) pink medicine several times a year. By late elementary school my constant ear infections began to wane, and by middle school I was no longer having ear issues.  

Yesterday my no ear infection streak came to a crashing end. I woke up with pain in both ears and my childhood memories came flooding back. It had been over 30 years, but I instantly knew that my ears were infected.  

I tried to wait until Scott came home from work before going to the doctor, but by lunchtime I was miserable. I packed up Timmy and we headed to the walk-in medical clinic. My self-diagnosis was correct and the doctor prescribed antibiotics and ear drops to treat my ear infections.  

This morning I am still in pain and feeling miserable. Unlike when I was younger, staying in bed and laying on a hot water bottle throughout the day is no longer an option. Timmy is ready to play, and he isn't old enough to understand that Momom needs a medical time-out.  Hopefully the ear drops and antibiotics will start to work quickly, otherwise it is going to be another long day.

Forgiving

I have stayed true to my vow to exercise each morning before taking Robby to school. I don't love sweating, nor do I particularly enjoy mornings. The fact that both have merged in my life is an unexpected irony. I have discovered that my early morning "lounging" time is the easiest to swap out in my schedule and, while I don't eagerly put down my coffee to start working out, I do feel accomplished when I am done.  

In the month of September I have lost 11 pounds. I still have a long way to go but I'm trying to remain upbeat. At least I'm not as heavy as I was on Labor Day! I realize that 11 pounds is not an impressive feat, but I am feeling better and healthier already. My leg is fitting more comfortably, and I've noticed that my limb isn't nearly as sore at the end of the day. (It never ceases to amaze me how weight fluctuations have such an impact on my prosthetic comfort.) 

It turns out that working out and watching what I'm eating is not the most difficult part of this venture. Instead, I find myself struggling with feelings in inadequacy and self- hate. I am disgusted that I have allowed myself to gain so much weight. How did the pounds pile on without my knowing? Ugh. Every time I think about it I want to bang my head into a wall or hide my face in shame.  

Pre-occupied with caring for Timmy and worried about his health issues, I've allowed my self-care to be neglected. While I know the reasons behind the pounds, the fact that I am again in this situation frustrates me to no end.  Forgiving myself has turned out to be the most difficult obstacle on my healthy journey, but I am not going to allow myself to be deterred from my goal.

Cartoon Respite

My heart continues to hurt as more details of the tragedy in Las Vegas begin to emerge. In times like this I find myself oddly addicted to the news, almost as if walking away or simply turning it off is akin to being disrespectful to those whom are hurting. Logically I know that this makes no sense. I am better off emotionally when I tune out the endless stream of reports. Of course, I continue to have trouble walking away even though I know that it is the healthier option for me. I need to be reminded that sometimes ignorance is bliss!  

Thankfully I have Timmy to help me unplug from the news. He prefers to watch Disney Jr. in the morning and I was happy to tune out the tragedy for awhile. I found that watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse left me feeling better than Good Morning America, so I decided to follow his lead for the rest of the day. When we weren't watching cartoons we were playing with trains or outside. Spending a relaxing day with my mischievous little buddy was exactly what I needed yesterday. 
 
Timmy was delighted to be my distraction for the day and relished the attention. We played with his trains throughout the living room and around the yard. We tossed balls and jumped on the trampoline.  We played pirate in the playhouse and took turns sliding down the chute. He loved every single moment, and I found myself living in the moment and forgetting what was unfolding in Las Vegas. It wasn't until he went to bed and I turned off the cartoons that I was brought back to reality.
 
It turns out that reality stinks! I much prefer spending the day playing, laughing and exploring with Timmy to watching current events. I think I'll continue to avoid the news for the foreseeable future. I don't think my heart can handle anything but cartoons right now.

Tragedy Again

My Mom and I took Timmy to the mall over the weekend and comedy quickly ensued. I had planned to write about our shopping misadventure, but the news this morning makes writing that blog feel trivial. Another mass shooting happened over night, this time the deadliest in the history of our country. 

Like everybody else this morning, I am struggling to come to terms with the horror and carnage. Such a senseless acts of violence has left me with tears instead of words. I am going to be hugging my kids tighter, and longer, for the foreseeable future.  

When tragedy strikes, we try to find a way for Robby to feel as if he has some sort of control. I think we are going to resume our kindness challenge. We both feel better when we are doing random acts of kindness for others. We can't control what happened in Las Vegas, but we can do our best to improve some lives in our area.  

Toddler Time

Well my great farm hideaway never materialized.  As I was driving to school to drop off Robby I remembered that our car inspection expired at the end of the month.  Yikes! Instead of going to the farm Timmy and I headed straight to AAA to get the car inspected.  Luckily for us, our AAA center is next to our SkyZone and Toddler Time was starting. 

Timmy and I had a great time bouncing and playing. For the first 90 minutes we had the facility to ourselves. I was surprised that we were the only Toddler Time bouncers, but we took full advantage of the opportunity.  When you think about it, being alone in SkyZone is probably one of the best things in the world when you are a kid. 

We didn't get to go to the farm, but we did enjoy two hours of ToddlerTime bouncing while our car was being inspected.  Sometimes the stars align perfectly, and yesterday was one of those days. I had wanted to escape to the farm so that I could concentrate on playing with Timmy without interruptions. My goal was achieved, but I was able to multitask by getting the car inspection renewed at the same time. 

Hiding at the Farm

This week has been so hectic I feel as if I'm running on fumes. Between juggling a handful of work projects, trying to take care of Timmy and chauffeuring Robby to and from all of his activities, I am hitting a wall.  I've logged a lot of hours behind the computer, on my cell phone and driving over the past few days, and I'm ready for a much needed break.The unseasonable (and unwelcome) heatwave has come to an end, so today I'm logging off my computer for a few hours and escaping to the farm with Timmy.

Timmy adores going to the farm and it has become our happy place. I'm able to leave all my work and housework stress behind for a few hours while I concentrate all of my energies on having fun with Timmy. We jump, climb, swing and explore until we are both filthy and exhausted. When life becomes overwhelming, playing with Timmy reminds me of my priorities.  

Unlike other agrarian destinations, our farm is easy for me to navigate.  The steps to all of the tube slides are evenly spaced and boast sturdy handrails. Other than trying to squeeze my adult sized bum into a pint sized seat, I don't have any trouble climbing on the structures. There is nothing at the farm that I can't do because the obstacles have been seamlessly erased.  

After wearing out my little Hamlet, I'm hoping that we both sleep well.  We have both been experiencing significant sleep issues recently, and I think that a solid night sleep would do us both some good. I wish I could figure out why he has been waking up every few hours! Hopefully a little fresh air, sunshine and dirt will be the sleeping remedy we desperately need

Cartoon Distraction

With everything going on in the country and around the world right now, I find myself counting my lucky stars for having Timmy at home. Not only do I adore spending time with him, going on adventures and watching him explore and learn, but he has provided me with the perfect excuse to avoid the news. 

I am definitely better off watching the Disney Channel and Nick Jr. instead of regular daytime programming. Having a little one who is insistent on having cartoons streaming while he is busy with his trains and other activities has liberated me from the constant stream of bad news.  In this circumstance, ignorance is definitely bliss!

I am not completely oblivious to current events. I allow myself to watch the news once a night and again in the early morning. Other than those two times, I purposely avoid all news reports, talk shows and political debates. I started my limited news boycott a few weeks ago and I have discovered that I find myself feeling happier and more upbeat. I know that the world is still cluttered with problems, but I feel empowered by controlling how much I allow the negativity to intrude into my home.  

Now if I could only get the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme song out of my head..