Drive to Cheyenne

Well we got off to a bit of a late start on on drive to Cheyenne, because it took longer to pack than I thought. But, we picked got all packed up and picked the kids up at school and had a quick lunch and got some gas and then we were off. We got started on our drive a little before 2 pm. And Carissa and Gabe crashed within 15 minutes, they both slept for about 2 hours so the drive was quiet and uneventful for that part. Once awake they played with toys and then colored with crayons. Which coloring is evidently something that Carissa shouldn't do in the car, we already know that she gets car sick and that she can't look at books in the car but she had been ok coloring before. Anyway, she said that she didn't feel good in enough time that I could get out a bag for her and we saved her clothes and the car. Ben and I were both very proud of her for not making a mess in the car.

We stopped for dinner, which went really slowly, and we made it to the hotel just before 10 pm. Then we got changed and all went swimming. Swimming was a lot of fun, we haven't taken the kids swimming at a big pool for quite a while and they both had a lot of fun jumping in to us and swimming laps (while being held) and racing each other. Then we all put our legs in the hot tub to warm up before headig up for baths and bed. Overall, the kids did great with the drive, but I guess we have hit the "are we there yet" stage. Only Carissa mostly asked if we were still going to go swimming and how much longer until we get there.

Sweet and Sassy Party

Last Saturday Carissa went to her first birthday party and she had a blast. I wasn't sure if I needed to stay with her for the party or what it would be like for sure so I left Gabe at my parents house and planned on being there if I needed to. Within minutes of showing up for the party Jade's parents told me that it would be a couple hours long and it was up to me if I wanted to stay or not. I wanted to stay with Carissa just to be there with her but I also had a lot of homework to get done, so I debated in my head a little. Then I decided I would just see what Carissa wanted me to do, and she just told me to "leave." So, I felt a little sad that she didn't want me to stay but I was happy that she was comfortable enough that she didn't need me to stay. I left and came back a little bit before it was over, and Carissa told me all about it. She got to put her feet "in a little bathtub," and she got her toe nails and finger nails painted. And they did her hair and put a glitter shape on her face, and she got a ring, a toe ring, a bracelet, bubble bath and some lip gloss. I took a few pitures of her once we got back to my parents house before she had a nap.

Things to remember

I enjoy so many things that my kids do and say, but with life being as busy as it is I find myself forgetting things that I wish I wouldn't. So, a few weeks ago the kids and I were leaving school and headed to my parents house. Carissa noticed the almost full moon was out even though the sun wasn't set all the way yet. She told me that she saw the moon and that the moon was a planet. Then she asked me if it was a planet and I just answered, "kind of." But, I told her that Grandpa was a space guy and he could answer her question better than I could. Pretty soon I heard Gabe say, "Grandpa's a space guy,... cool." That just made me smile.

Then I told them that we had to drive by the post office so that I could drop off our tax returns, so that we could get money to help pay for our trip to CA in June. So we started talking about our trip to CA, that we are going to go to Disneyland, and also to Sea World. We started talking about what animals are at Sea World that we want to see, Carissa said she wanted to see a shark, and Gabe said he wanted to see a whale. We talked a bit more then Gabe said, "I want to see a chicken...nugget." I laughed and told him I'm sure he could see a chicken nugget if he really wanted to while we were in CA.

Then as soon as I drove away from the post office after dropping off the taxes, Gabe said, "Did you get the money?" Evidently the mail box outside the post office should work like an ATM when you drop off your tax return papers. I thought that would be great, but unfortunately it doens't. I told Gabe it will be awhile before we get the money.

Busy

I keep meaning to write more, but it seems like I'm always busy lately. It takes a lot of time to keep up with my classes and keep up with the kids and work. And I keep trying more and more to make every minute of my day count. I use my train ride to and from school to read, and I study/read while I eat lunch. And, I still feel like I'm just going and going. And then when I think about the things that I want to do with my kids that I'm not doing, it makes me sad.

This Saturday though, I'm going to take Carissa to her first birthday party. She has been invited to the birthday parties of kids in her class before, but this is the first one she is going to go to. So this is a first for me too, but Carissa is very excited. It is going to be a princess party at Sweet and Sassy so it should be fun for Carissa. Then, Saturday night is Kids Night Out at school again, it happens once a month and Carissa and Gabe really enjoy going. Usually, Ben and I go out together while the kids are at KNO, but this time Ben will be working until 1 am. So, I asked Alyssa if she wanted to go out with me to do something. Since having kids I really don't spend much time with Josh or Alyssa anymore, so I'm excited to spend the evening with my little sister.

And then I get to start getting ready for our trip to Colorado. We will leave here on Friday March 14, so I'm only going to go to school and work for 4 days next week. I'm really looking forward to spending more time with Carissa and Gabe and doing some fun things with them. Also I'm really excited to visit with family and friends in Colorado.

Kidney Infection Update

When I went to the doctor's on Friday. He agreed that I must just have a kidney infection, since I was starting to feel better. So I got another shot and a prescribtion of antibiotics. I'm doing much better now, and I'm hoping that if I ever get another bladder infection I will see a doctor before it gets to my kidneys.

Kidney Infection

Yesterday morning I didn't feel very well and within a couple hours I went from not feeling well to balled up in pain and throwing up. It was awful, I called my mom to pick me up and I called the doctor's office to get an appointment. The doctor's office couldn't get me in for a few hours so I waited at my mom's house going through waves of feeling well enough to move around and talk to being in so much pain that I just stayed in the bathroom on the floor. I also called Ben at work to tell him that he had to pick the kids up from school and that I was going to the doctor. The doctor said that my urine was full of blood, and because I don't have insurance he decided to treat me for a kidney infection yesterday evening and if it works then I don't have kidney stones. I would need a CT to see if there were kidney stones, and that is expense. I go back to the doctor today so he can check me again and decide if I need a CT. From how I've felt since I got the shot yesterday evening I'm thinking that it is just a kidney infection. I haven't had that severe pain since yesterday, and I'm very happy about that.

My Favorite Valentine

Last night when I finally got to opening the mail I found an envelope that was from the kids' school. I opened it to find out it was a valentine from Carissa. Her teacher wrote for her, "I love you because you let me sleep in your bed and call me princess." And then Carissa wrote her name on the bottom all by herself, a signature that is readable. I was very happy, because even though Carissa didn't do it all by herself it sounds like it was coming from her own words and she has only been writing her name on her own for about a week. I plan to keep the valentine forever. It also makes me feel good to get that valentine, because lately I've been feeling like a bad mom. I've been so far behind in school that on top of our normal busy weeks, I've had someone else (Ben and my mom) watch Carissa and Gabe the last two Friday nights through about 9pm on Saturdays. Followed by me doing mostly housework on Sundays. I haven't spend much time with them lately, but I think that in the long run it will work out. I knew it would be difficult to get back into the swing of going to school, but I still miss having more time with the kids.