Aporkalypse (Thanks Travis)

Aporkalypse is a term I read on Travis' blog today, and he claims he read it on Twitter. A comment on his blog says that it was also heard on The Colbert Report. Regardless of where it originated, I think it is a fitting term to replace "swine flu." Apparently, the pork industry irritated because the use of "swine" to describe this flu makes people leery of eating pork, which is bad for the pork industry.

The *really* big question everywhere is: "Are we overreacting? Is this just a bunch of media hype?" I guess technically, that's 2 questions, but essentially, they are the same. I have conflicting feelings about it. I think back to the Bird flu a few years ago, and can't help but think about how that never really got as horribly bad as they said it would. I remember in my graduate nursing classes being warned that we should stock up on gloves and special masks (not just the average face mask, but the special ones that we use to prevent being exposed to TB when caring for a patient with known or suspected TB). We were told we should go out and buy them right then, because the prices would soon sky rocket as the demand increased and the supply dwindled. Well, I never made those purchases, and you never really hear about the bird flu anymore.

But then this morning, on the radio (KGNC-AM), the reported made the comment that if they had jumped on the Black Plague the way we're tackling this flu, that perhaps it would not have been so devastating. Interesting notion. Did the bird flu never really live up to all the doom and gloom advertised because we took precautions. Who knows for sure.

For now, I guess I'll just be more aware of when I'm around sick people, and be more vigilant to make sure me and the family wash or gel our hands more frequently...

Now if only Washington would attack all the pork they put out on a regular basis in the same fashion the CDC is wanting the public to attack this aporkalypse, then we'd have yet another thing less to worry about.

44 Ounce Mess

Sometimes after school, me and the kids go to Sonic for Happy Hour drinks. So today we stopped there and ordered a Route 44 Vanilla Coke, easy on the vanilla (those people put WAY too much syrup in their drinks). While waiting for our drink to arrive, I moved an empty water bottle out of the drink holder and patiently waiting for the car hop to arrive.

She did arrive, pretty quickly, actually. Could have had something to do with her wearing roller skates. Who knows. Anyways, we got our drink, paid, and left. As I was turning right out of Sonic, I heard a crash, and looked back to see the coke spilled on the floorboard of the back seat. After making sure I had room in the drink holder for it, where do I set the cup? On the console, and as I turned, it smashed onto the floor, and spill 44 ounces of syrupy soda. I didn't even get one drink of it.

To be completely honest, I guess I can't say that all 44 ounces spilled on the floor. When I picked the cup up, there was still a little coke in it, and I sat in it my lap. Well, the remaining two or three ounces spilled right into my crotch... Apparently the fall to the floorboard cracked the bottom of the cup. So I got to drive the rest of the way home with ice cold vanilla coke soaked pants. Lovely day.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

First of all, I can't believe that April is almost over. In less than a week, the year will be a third gone...only two thirds left. Crazy. And as the end of the semester nears, everything begins to spiral into craziness. But at least I know that there are a limited number of weeks left of the craziness until summer break gets here. I know I only have 2 more days of lecture, and that really, the last day of lecture is mostly just time spent answering students' questions about the final. I know that I only have 3 more days of clinicals, plus one make-up day for students who have missed for whatever reason. I know that I will probably not be doing the make-up day :) I know that I only have one more test to write (the final), and that we only have a few more committee meetings this semester.

I also know that things will be picking up at school for the kids. We had the wax museum this past week, this week we will have Wonderland night. There will also be an open house for the Montessori. And lets not forget about the awards ceremony and field day. And I am sure there several things I am forgetting about...

But, there is that light at the end of the tunnel. The countdown can officially begin. Only 3 more weeks of school for me, and 5 for the kids. YAY! I wonder if I can re-program my kids to sleep in this summer???

The Wax Museum

Tonight, St. Mary's School had their annual Wax Museum. By "annual," I mean this is the 2nd year in a row that they have done this. This year, the 1st graders were presidents and first ladies, and Aaron was assigned to be President Thomas Jefferson. Each kid had to memorize 3 facts about their character and then recite those facts for anybody who "pressed" their button. Here are a few pictures from tonight...

Here is Aaron reciting his facts for us. He did a great job!

Then Toby ran into Jackie O and Eleanor Roosevelt. He couldn't pass up the opportunity to be sandwiched between these 2 first ladies.


Following in his Daddy's footsteps, Aaron snagged a photo opp too.

Not to be outdone by his son, Toby found another soon-to-be-famous character at the wax museum. This is Travis, who will soon be a famous author. You can read his blog (and he has a particularly humorous post today) at http://traviserwin.blogspot.com/ Check it out...the title of today's post is Nut Very Smart.

Something Aaron & Papa Have in Common

Yesterday, on our way to the soccer game, Aaron noticed a cemetery that we were driving toward (I think it was Llano Cemetery), and asked if we were going to drive into "those branches." Toby said, "You mean those trees?" When we explained that he was looking at a cemetery, he said "Why are there trees in a cemetery. There shouldn't be trees in a cemetery."

After this comment, Toby and I both looked at each other and smiled (well, Toby rolled his eyes a little too). This is a conversation we have had with my dad and with each other several times. You see, the Catholic cemetery in my home town has only one lone pine tree that is on its last needle. Toby has questioned multiple times why there are no trees in the cemetery, to which my dad (who helps keep the grounds and dig the graves) says that trees make it much more difficult to mow and to dig the graves (to get the equipment in, and because of the roots). Toby has said that if we ever move to my home town, he would make it his mission to get trees planted in that cemetery. My dad, on the other hand, is counting down the days until that solitary pine tree dies...in fact, he may be doing all he can to take it off of life support by whacking it with the weed eater for all I know.

Needless to say, it was funny to hear Aaron make the comment about trees in a cemetery...

Two Games in a Row!

Aaron scored again in his game this morning. That makes 2 games in a row that he scored in. He did a good job today of being aggressive for more of the game, and stopped a few goals when he was goalie or defender. The team we played were pretty rough (a few of them even threw punches at our kids) and I didn't like their coaches. It's a good thing that they have plexiglass between the stands and the field. I don't think Kids, Inc. likes for parents to yell too much. What will I do if Aaron plays basketball? How embarrassing if I were to get kicked out of my kid's game...

I was spotted at the game by one of my cousins. Her daughter plays soccer for one of the other teams in our league, and we will be playing them next week, I think. I hope the players on her team have better sportsmanship, or I may have to take it out on her ;) Maybe we shouldn't sit next to each other...Or maybe I will be able to control myself better if I sit next to her. Hmmm...

On a related note, Sadie will be taking ballet this summer. I wonder if they allow parents to yell at ballet recitals?

Do They Know?

Just curious...

Do people who are rude know that they are rude?
Do bullies know that they are bullies?
Do snobs know that they are snobs?

GOAL!

Today, Aaron had his 3rd soccer game of the season. It's indoor soccer, in a barn with florescent lighting and plexiglass around most of the field, so it is really tough to get a decent picture. Add to that the fact that these kids run all over the place, so even when I should be able to get a decent shot, my camera is too slow (thanks to having to use the flash) and I get nothing but backs &/or blurs. Anyways, Aaron scored his first goal of this season today. He missed the first shot, but stayed after it when it bounced back from the wall, and kicked it in. He wasn't even sure if it was him or his teammate who actually scored, so he had to ask his coach to be sure. Here are two of the few decent (not good) shots I got today.

This is Aaron hustling after the ball.

And here he is right after he scored the goal. I missed getting that shot because he was too far away from my, and I knew I wouldn't be able to get a good shot since my flash isn't powerful enough.

Other stats from the season so far...we're 2-1. We lost the season opener by a few goals, but during that game, Aaron played goalie quite a bit and didn't let any balls past him. He was the only one on his team that kept them from scoring.

Happy Easter!

Christ is risen! Alleluia!

That's the A-word that we haven't been able to say all Lent. I never knew that as a kid. I did notice that we would sing "Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ" instead of Alleluia before the Gospel, I just never knew that the A-word was banished from Ash Wednesday until Easter. But my kids have learned that in school.

So, this morning in mass, when we sang the Alleluia, Aaron looked up at me with a huge smile on his face. He noticed that we were getting to use the A-word again. It's times like this that make it easier to make the monthly payment to that Catholic school.

We spent Easter with my family. Ate a huge breakfast after mass, then hung out at mom's playing games, and the kids watched movies and played (and fought a little, but not too bad). Then the Easter Bunny left WAY too many eggs, and the kids got to hunt. It took them just a matter of minutes to find just about all the eggs (close to 250 in all, spread out over 3 yards). It would have gone even fast if we wouldn't have made the bigger kids wait so that the little ones could have a head start. I figure this will probably be Sadie's last year of being one of the little kids...:(

After the egg hunting, the kids examined their booty. Those big balloons with the rubber bands that you tie to them was the big hit this year. Good job, Easter Bunny! Unfortunately, not all the kids got to be here. Cody is back in the hospital with GI issues again, so please say a pray for him. Not that he would have hunted eggs, but him and his parents weren't there. Also, Jaden, Tyce, and Bayleigh were not here. Everyone was missed! Maybe next year, we can all get together for the hunt. And just to rub it in to those of you who missed...you missed out on some darn good enchiladas!

Here are a few pictures from today's festivities...(and for those of you counting, yes there are a lot more pix of Sadie hunting than Aaron, but that's because Aaron is too stinking fast for me to get a good shot of him...zipping from one egg to the next). The last picture is what Sadie looks like after a blue ring pop.

Conversation with Sadie

Sadie always has very interesting things to say, and quite often, it is difficult to understand due to pronunciation issues. One shining example of this happened Thursday on the way home from Granny's. Granny had given Sadie a Strawberry Shortcake book to take home. On the way home, Sadie was looking through the book at the pictures, and said "Everything is strawberries. There's even a strawberry clock." Now, keep in mind that she makes a T sound for C's and K's, and a W sound for L's. When she said this, I heard something completely different (and very inappropriate for a 4 year old to say). Can you figure out which word she mispronounced, and what word I thought she said?

The Power of Words

Words can be pretty powerful. When spoken in anger, they can cause irreparable damage. When strung together eloquently, they can whisk you away to places far, far away and help you to escape the burdens of everyday life. Certain phrases can change your life forever..."I love you," "will you marry me," or whatever words someone uses to tell you that a loved one has died.

But even with all the power that words can have, quite often, they are not powerful enough. "I'm sorry" is sometimes not powerful enough to heal the injury following words spewed forth in anger. It's also not enough to help comfort someone who is grieving. Right now, there are a lot of people in my life who are grieving, for a variety of reasons. And I want so badly to be able to put the right words together to make things better for them, to help them heal. But words, no matter how perfectly chosen, don't have enough power for that, or at least I haven't been able to figure out how to make them that powerful.

There is always the old saying that actions speak louder than words, but still, perfectly chosen words combined with actions still will fall miserably short. I know that it can show the people in my life who are grieving that I care about them, and that I am here for them, but it won't make their pain go away.

I guess that really, that only leaves one other thing that I can do...turn to the One who is powerful enough to heal and comfort the grieving. So, for those of you in my life who are hurting right now, please know that I will pray for you. I will pray for comfort and healing and shelter and peace...

Following in my Footsteps

I know that kids are suppose to follow in their parents' footsteps. Sometimes, it is neat for them to want to be like me. For example, Sadie always tells me that when she grows up, she wants to be a "mommy teacher." It's also neat to see some of my better qualities in them. However, Aaron is following my lead in a way that I wish he wouldn't...

He had his annual eye exam today. He has worn glasses since last year. We weren't surprised...Toby and I both began wearing glasses very young (1st grade for me). So today's check-up shouldn't have been surprising. He needs stronger glasses. Just like me...Seems like every time I went for an eye exam, my eyes were weaker and I needed thicker lenses. I got to where I hated going to the eye doctor because I always felt like such a failure...always got the answer wrong. I so wanted my kids to not have to endure the torture of being severely myopic. It breaks my heart. Maybe there's still hope for Sadie...

Prayer requests

I've got several requests for prayers...

First, a co-worker found out last week that she has breast cancer. She's only in her 40's, and the same mass was diagnosed as non-cancerous last year. Now, the mass is so large, they can't remove it and will be doing chemotherapy first to try to shrink it.

Next, another co-worker of mine found out today that she lost her baby. She was 12 weeks pregnant, and had difficulties getting pregnant to begin with.

Next, my sister-in-law's grandfather is sick. They are still running a lot of tests, and no one knows anything for sure yet...

And finally, one of my high school classmate's father passed away this past weekend, very unexpectedly. He was only in his 50's. He graduated with my mom. I graduated with his daughter, and his wife was my Girl Scout leader from kindergarten through my senior year. Please keep her and her 2 daughters in your prayers.

Outnumbered

Toby and I have known for a while that we are done having kids. Two kids works out well for us, and we have several reasons why we know that 2 is it for us. One of those reasons is that we aren't outnumbered. When push comes to shove, we can each take one child and separate them, each getting the full attention of 1 adult. Mass is one of the big areas where this comes into play.

Well, today I was outnumbered at mass. Toby got called out earlier than we thought, so he missed mass. That left just me to juggle to 2 kids. Either one alone would have been easy to manage, but together...they definitely feed off of each other, and in mass, I am limited in how I can manage the situation. Here's how it usually goes down:

Aaron starts off just fine. He's 7 now, and can be pretty well-behaved and pay attention for most of the mass (aside from constantly checking my watch to see how much time until mass is over). Sadie starts off wanting to be held. That's fine, but as soon as Sadie gets held, Aaron wants to be held to. When I tell him he's too big, whining commences about the fairness of the situation. If Sadie gets to be held, so should he. So, we have told Sadie that she can't be held anymore. Now, she whines when we won't hold her, and complains about being tired. She leans on one of us, whimpers, holds her arms up...anything to try to get us to pick her up. Finally, she'll give up and be content leaning on us, and sitting on our lap when we get to sit down. Aaron will usually sit on the other lap. Great routine when both of us are there.

But today...Today was Palm Sunday, and those of you who are Catholic out there know that Palm Sunday is torture for kids. Instead of the 1 hour mass, we get a good 20 minutes extra (hopefully that stores up some extra points in heaven for me). And all of that extra time is spent standing because the Gospel is so long. I really thought that I'd be okay in mass today, though, because it is the 1st Sunday of the month. That means children's liturgy, where the kids leave when it's time for the readings, and don't come back until it is time for the collection. I figured the kids would be fine those first few minutes of mass because the palms would entertain them, and then they'd get back with only about 25 minutes left of mass.

Well, I guess no one else wanted my kids for the longer mass. There was no children's liturgy today. Of all days, today was one where this service was needed. I got very little out of mass today because I spent the entire time juggling 2 kids, trying to keep them quite and separated. I guess it's a good thing that the Gospel is the same every Palm Sunday...I have the gist of the story down pretty well. I hope that Toby is home for the Easter Vigil mass. If he's not, I think we may opt to go Easter morning...