What's Going On

I visited with Brad (my social worker/counselor) today, and I realized that I have made some progress since I started meeting with him. I was in a really bad place mentally and emotionally, and I really am much better now. No, my life isn't perfect, and I don't think I will ever be completely satisfied with everything in my life. But I'm learning (slowly) that I'm okay to be where I am. My job isn't perfect, my family isn't perfect, my home is definitely not perfect. Oh well. I'm doing my best, and I can't do any more than that. One thing that has really helped me has been this book: It's called "The Four Agreements" by Don Miguel Ruiz. This is a good synopsis of what it says: I'm not saying that this book has changed my life, but it definitely has given me something to think about. I'm a pretty fast reader, and this short book (only 138 pages) has taken me more than two months to read. I'm still not done, either. It's also one of very few books I have paid full-price for at Barnes & Noble. I usually choose my books from what's available at the DI or on the community bookshelf at work. I recommend it, but you should only read it if you want to do some serious introspection. It's not an 'escape' book or a lovely story. Even so, READ IT. You won't regret it.

Things Can Only Get Better

Well, my bruises have mostly healed. My nose and my knee are still a little sore, but not too bad. I had a CT of my head done last week, and I have a deviated septum. The doctor thinks that I had it before, so it shouldn't be a big deal. Even so, I am having more difficulty breathing out of my right nostril than my left, and it wasn't like that before I bit it. I'm going to make an appointment with an ENT; I'll probably go with Dr. Child, the one who helped with the transsphenoidal part of my Mom's brain surgery, or Dr. Hunter, the one who took out Sarah's tubes. I'd just like to know who's going to pay for it . . . me or IHC. I think Intermountain should, but it depends on what the WorkMed doctor recommends. Either way, I really want to have a rhinoplasty at the same time. I don't think about my nose very often, but when I really look at it or see it in pictures, I really dislike it. I don't want anything drastic (no Michael Jackson-esque results); just so that it's not so bulbous. We'll see. General Conference was very nice . . . at least what little I heard of it. We did pretty well through the Saturday morning session, but as for the rest--I didn't get much out of it. :o( Like Allen said, "That's why they have it on the internet and in the Ensign and why the replay it on KBYU." True enough. I'm at work again today; it's not too bad at the moment, but I'm tired. I think we are all getting sick. Allen has been coughing and Benji has been waking up crying in the middle of the night. He woke up this morning about 5:30 a.m. (he usually wakes up between 8-9). I let him cry for a few minutes to see if he would go back to sleep, but he didn't. So I gave him some ibuprofen and held him for a little while. He would squirm and cry if I didn't sing to him, so I sang for probably 15 minutes (until the drugs kicked in). And after that, he was up. He slid off my lap and started walking around, ready for the day. I wasn't quite as ready, so I popped in a DVD for him and I crashed out on the couch. He's so funny. I wish I knew what was wrong with him; nothing seems to be abnormal, so I think he (a) must be going through another growth spurt, (b) has headaches or (c) bad dreams or something. Poor little man. I hope he gets over it soon!

Though I've Tried, I've Fallen

I haven't written for a few days because I have been a bit slower than usual. While I was at work on Tuesday, I was training a new Surgical Tech student in O.R. 8. We were turning over the room (cleaning up for the next case), and an orderly was standing at the door holding a wet mop. I walked out the door to get a face mask, and I slipped on the water that had dripped from the mop head. Things kind-of went into a fuzzy slow-motion, where I couldn't really believe or understand what was happening. I knew I had slipped, but I didn't think I was going to 'chew asphalt.' I tripped forward, and I'm pretty sure my legs and arms were flailing. I'm not exactly sure how I fell, but I hit my nose pretty hard, and I must have caught myself with my knee and hands with such momentum that I have bruises on all my extremities. My left knee was scratched up, and the muscles between my 4th and 5th carpals are pretty sore. The bridge of my nose is still a greenish purple color, and now that the swelling has gone down, I'm not entirely sure how straight my nose is. It still may be a bit swollen, but I'm having difficulties breathing out of one nostril, and it wasn't like that before. So . . . I'm going to have a CT of my sinuses on Monday. I'm fairly I sure I could benefit from sinus surgery anyway, so if I can get Intermountain to pay for it--so much the better. As a totally unrelated side note, I have downloaded Picasa 3.5 (and although Allen is asleep, I'm sure he's shaking his head subconsciously), which has a new face-recognition feature. It's basically going through all of my pictures, and sorting everyone into his or her own album. It's not 100% accurate (especially with Lily and Tess!), and I have to re-sort some of them, it will prove quite useful--I'll have nearly all of my pictures of each individual in one place! It's pretty cool! It is taking a while (because I have so many pictures . . .), but it will be worth it. :o)

If You Want To Destroy My Sweater

First off, here's a funny video from Noah's birthday party. It was funny to see Dave go after that piñata. And now . . . The Consignment Sale. Here's my booty so far: Here are the totals: 3 sets of footie pajamas 9 shirts 13 pair of pants 1 set of overalls 3 pair of shoes 5 sweaters 2 pair of snow pants 1 snow suit 1 hat 4 books 2 CDs 1 Halloween costume (isn't it precious!?) Yes, maybe it's a little excessive, especially since I'm not done yet, but it's such a great deal. How much do you think I should have paid for all that? $86. Not too shabby, since my goal was to keep it under $120. Rachael introduced me to it. The consignment sale at Hilltop Methodist Church in Sandy, Utah is held twice a year--in the spring and in the fall. I think I first shopped at it last year, and this spring was the first time I volunteered. When you volunteer to help out, you can go to the pre-sale, which is where I went tonight. IT IS CRAZINESS, reminiscent of Black Friday sales, except that a) you never know what you are going to find, b) it's not 5 a.m., and c) you can't use a visa (cash/checks only). But there are people lined up before hand, you may be forced to park illegally, the check-out line is insanity, and there's a lot of checking out what other people have found and debating on what you can and can't afford. What's funny is that you often pick up duplicates. At least 5 of the 13 pair of pants are blue, and 2 are tan corduroys. Oh well. Anyway, it is insanity, but you can find such great deals on really nice clothes for kids who will outgrow them soon enough. At least half of the clothes I picked up are from the Gap, including 4 of the 5 sweaters (the other is from Gymboree). Rachael is such a fan of this sale that she went through the craziness two days after she gave birth to T-rooney. Speaking of . . . here's a cute picture of Mach & Tess. So that's the story. I'm going to volunteer tomorrow, and I'll probably find more things. Even Allen says it's worthwhile. :o)

Don't Run Away, It's Only Me

I started writing this at work, and I was kind-of hiding out. Okay, not really, but a) I didn't have an assignment, because my room had already finished, b) I was logged in to O.R. resource on the Vocera (so I could hear if rooms were coming out and go help), and c) I was in the staff lounge. It was a little weird to be in there by myself, but oh well. At least I didn't have people looking over my shoulder. I usually try to make myself available, since I'd rather be busy and useful than lounge around, but sometimes I just want to sit in here instead. So sue me. We went to Logan this last weekend for Noah's 2nd birthday party. It was a good time, and we got to hold the sweet new babies.

From September 2009

From September 2009

Noah is so flippin' funny! That kid can wiggle his little tushy better than anyone else I know. Benji just adores him, and when Noah beats up on him, he just laughs and thinks it's great.

From September 2009

I watched Lily & Tessa (a.k.a. "The Divas") last week so Rachael could go to Bunko, and they were so good. Of course there was a little drama, and I think Lily hit Benji a couple of times. Don't worry--Benji does his fair share of 'beating up' too, but it comes mostly in the form of stealing whatever book/toy/snack/sippy cup someone else may let go for about two seconds, and he usually only picks on Tessa (since he's older than her, and she's big enough to fight back).but considering how attached T-Rooney is, she did very well. I can't believe she's going to be one next week! And she's already walking! I love that sweet girl. Lily was very good too. She is a little jabbermouth! She forms complete sentences and sings and refers to herself in the third person, i.e., "Get Lily down, please!" She cracks me up. After I gave the girls baths and put them in pajamas, I put Tess down . . . she was so tired, and didn't put up any kind of fight. Lily didn't really want to go to bed, but after I figured out that I was supposed to leave on the "Butterfly Light" (the lamp), and we said prayers and sang a song, I told her "Night, night, Lily," and she said "Night, night, Mary" in the sweetest voice. It just melted my heart. Can you tell how much I love my nieces and nephew? :o) Here's Lily with some exceptionally sweet bed-head.

From September 2009

I didn't get to see much of Ella-Boo or Mia-Babes or Baby Sabrina (thanks a lot, Beck), but we did have a nice visit. The kids were good in church . . . no real melt-downs or screaming matches or throwing of toys. I'm pretty sure I fell asleep a couple of times, too. At least I felt comfortable enough to be able to do so! And the weather outside was perfect for taking pictures, so I got a few good ones of Lily and Tess and Benji.

From September 2009

From September 2009

From September 2009

Good times, cute kids.