Summer, come out come out where ever you are!!!!

I know some of you are sighing at the very reading of the title of this post. While you bask in the glow of the sun or hide in the comfort of your AC, we are beginning to wonder if this will be the year that summer totally skips it's annual visit!! I know I seem obsessed but please understand two things about me that may explain this obsession. Firstly, the Chicagoland area only gets summer from around Memorial day to Labor day so the window is closing on our season even as we speak! Secondly, whether vitamin D deficient or just genetic, I suffer from SAD...seasonal affective disorder. I usually stave off the most profound symptoms with a trip or two to my Dad's place in Sarasota over winter and/or spring breaks. This year conspired against me and I never made it to the sunny realms and my mood has been negatively impacted as a result!!!! Then there are these little life events that piled on this year! Patrick's cancer diagnosis and treatment coupled with Julia's escalating allergic asthma/strep throat cycle have done nothing to lift the spirits. Now, today, I am suffering a simmering resentment of men!! Not all men, and especially not that rock I married but those men who try to satisfy their craving for sports glory by filling the ranks of children's sports leagues. I used to be a 'smart' Mom. I put my first darling into dance where one gets to play with make-up and pretty costumes. Dance is an INDOOR activity where Moms SIT IN DRY, WARM auditoriums. Mari loved to dance so it was all good..... See??? Stretching before a competition....INSIDE on carpeting where there are FLUSH TOILETS!!!

See??? Dolled up and relaxing between dances with quiet activities to fill the time. See the chairs in the back ground...the chairs INSIDE where Moms get to sit while waiting for the dear darlings to dance?!?! Then, in some pathetic moral stand in which I decided to show my daughter how one should never 'play politics' to win. Trying to show her that winning shouldn't be about ones beauty or connections but about integrity and hard work...I made her quit dancing. Now, I'm not completely naive! I know all competitive activities are filled with unsavory side affects. That is why we let her take up AYSO soccer. A learning league in which sportsmanship is valued over skill and where no official scores are kept. Many times the teams "lend" a player so that their competitors can field a team or, in the cases of skill mismatches, they may pull players to allow their competitors a chance at ball time and/or scoring. It's all been good....well mostly good.....

There's been this little problem with our WEATHER! There she is in the purple uniform, in a hoodie on JUNE 13TH, in the RAIN at 8:30 AM this morning! This is a make-up game. We were making up a game that got RAINED out!

The men that run this league are not playing with a full deck. This is not a competitive, travelling soccer league! This is not a collegiate soccer league! This is AYSO and notice how the guys had no problem standing at the sidelines under their umbrellas while the kids were put out on the field to play. So you ask, why didn't I just pull Mari and keep her home in the dry, warm house? All those years sitting at dance preaching about integrity actually worked!! Mari is a true TEAM PLAYER. Mari does not willingly ever miss a day of school, a soccer/volleyball/basketball practice or any of the games and for that I am extremely proud! I, on the other hand, am not quite so dedicated.....

Nope, I'm not one of the 'good' Moms who bundled up and stood side line to cheer on my daughter. As you can see from the zoom focus and the water drops in the pictures....I sat dry and warm INSIDE my car!! Today was the last straw for me. I NEED SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, rant over and moving on to a more positive subject...

the patient is showing signs of improvement. Like all the mornings since her surgery, Julia starts out the morning by making her 'throne' on the couch. Today's theme...Pooh of course! She's usually silent and sullen until I manage to prod, cajole, or demand she swallow the liquid medicines that are required. The behavioral changes under the influence of Lortab are striking!!

Yeah!!! A smile finally!!! Probably a drug induced smile but after a couple of days of the "I hate you" death stare I'll take whatever she flashes. A bit of Ramen noodles made it down and combined their caloric effects with the narcotic affects of the Lortab to give me my Julia back....

Up off the throne and into the kitchen with a big, happy grin! Then again, was it the aroma of bacon and bangers that lured her? What ever the cause, I was able to peel the casing off of the Irish sausages and she slid them past the wounds with the help of a little syrup. Gosh I hope this lasts! Hmmmm, wonder if I slid the Lortab into her syrup????

Singing the post-op blues...

Just a quick update to say that no one is in the mood for show tunes today! Once the marcaine and Lortab wore off Julia was one hurting puppy! Now I must point out that the Lortab wore off because a certain stubborn latina REFUSED to swallow the prescribed doses but by this morning the even more stubborn redhead hid it in the antibiotic liquid! There was a lot of written communication today due to the sore throat but she did manage to down some diced peaches and mac-n-cheese. We are all hitting a wall this evening so I'm headed up to wrestle the three different medications due at bedtime down the less than willing throat and crashing into my waiting bed...only to get up in the middle of the night to insist she take another dose of her most despised medicine. I'm aiming for a better tomorrow. This so better have been worth the pain and suffering I'm witnessing!!!

So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, adieu........

Julia's tonsils are GONE, here are pics for you! Okay, schmaltzy show tune knock off aside, we have survived the dreaded operation!!!!! Last night we went out for her 'final' supper. Since anything that goes crunch and anything spicy are forbidden for the next two weeks guess where we went? Come on, how's a girl to survive without chips and salsa for two whole weeks???? Our local, family owned Mexican cantina was just the spot to give the taste buds their fix. BFF/Cousin Deirdre just had to be at Julia's side during this momentous meal.

Ahhhhh, soft shell carne asada tacos....does life get any better? Julia is my 'foodie' with very sophisticated taste buds and has even entertained thoughts of being a chef if the horse trainer gig doesn't pan out.

Is there any better sign of the satisfaction in her choice than the taco sauce dribble decorating the happy grin? The rice and beans went down with gusto as well!

Julia had a significant amount of apprehension but managed to sleep like only a child can the night before surgery. Mom, on the other hand...and Auntie Peggy too, had precious little sleep!

The pre-dawn wake up alarm was unnecessary!

The admission process went very quickly! Could be that since it was performed in Auntie Peggy's hospital where Auntie Peggy is one of the pediatric nurses that we had some VIP treatment? Her first nurse (we arrived while it was still the night shift!!) was Mirna who decided that my cutie patootie looked more like her and should come home to be her little girl. Julia could almost give them lessons on how to use the pulse oxometer which was just out of the picture. Beyond a perfect patient is all I can say! Pleasant, mannerly, and co-operative through out the whole procedure!

Waiting for the transporters to come for the trip to the surgical suite. Auntie Peggy nudged her over and they took in a little Cartoon Network during the wait.

The 'little Elmos' have gone EVERYWHERE with Julia! Texas, Florida, California, New York, Ireland and now the hospital too. Small note here, the hat was the one thing she tried to balk...wonder why?

Mom had a huge sigh of relief to see this sight! Even if those two gorgeous eyes were shooting daggers at Mom and Dad at least she was back from slumber land safe and sound. The little Elmos were looking more refreshed.

Not quite the delightful child for our second favorite nurse! Nothing personal Auntie Lin but the anesthesia was still dictating her mood here. Hope she redeemed herself by telling you that you are 'cooler' than Mom and Auntie Peggy!

Dutiful patient downing the dirigour Popsicle. Gatorade has been going down better now that we are home....oh yeah, a few bowls of vanilla ice cream managed to slide down with ease too! Unbelievable how modern medicine has progressed in the tonsil/adenoid surgical protocol. The hospital has what Auntie Peggy jokingly calls a 'lojack' system which allowed us to monitor her progress through surgery and recovery. TWELVE minutes in the actual surgical suite followed by 28 minutes in recovery after which she was wheeled back into her hospital room!!!!!! Since the I.V. in her hand seemed to be the biggest problem for her and since she was assured it would be removed as soon as she consumed a set amount of liquids orally, Julia was single-mindedly determined to swallow that amount A.S.A.P.! Three hours after she was wheeled away we were driving away from the hospital!!!!

Here she is as she insisted she could dress herself!! Using one hand (because the I.V. site must be kept immobile at all costs...read sarcasm here!) while watching a DVD only impeded her progress slightly.

Now, several hours later, she is enthroned on the couch, with complete control of the remote, holding court with her stream of visitors. The prescribed liquid pain medicine has been deemed "GROSS" and has been taken very reluctantly only twice and we are in heavy negotiations to substitute her tried and true Motrin in it's place. I'm standing tough one more dose since it is just before bedtime and she could use the sleep at this point.

Now here's hoping that this was all worth it! Good bye strep throat swabs! We hope to never hear you mentioned ever again! So long dear companion antibiotic! Here's to a break from funding the pharmacist's luxury vacations!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rule of 3's

There is the old adage that bad things come in groups of three. Using advanced logic I can only surmise that also means that good things also come in threes! After feeling so gloomy about how little profit I'm clearing on all the hours in the salt mine, today proved to be filled with smiles! Smile #1- Besides basking in balmy temperatures pushing the 80 degree mark, today's first smile was produced by a trip into the city to sewer's nirvana! A non-descript warehouse in one of the most culturally diverse section of the city houses a cornucopia of fabric. Wish I had thought to take a photo of the front door with it's hand lettered sign in FOUR languages telling one to PUSH the door open! I know my friend Diane is smiling right now as she reads this description....jealous, I know, but by the way I found the fabric for the new dance school's costumes!!!!! Owned by conservative Jews and staffed by Polish, Mexican, Guatemalan, and African-Americans, it is the kind of place where one can still haggle over the prices while rubbing shoulders with costume designers from the theater district. After scoring on the fabric I was in search of I went home to switch the salt mine from a pleasure production center to costume central. Besides having some dancing deadlines bearing down on me, I have to admit I make a much bigger profit on the costumes and must do them for a while. I HATE working with the stage moms and dance instructors but they do open their wallets in a big way....... Smile # 2- Since Julia is on summer vacation and my best, built-in babysitter is not, I caved in to a plea to allow BFF/Cousin come for a play date.

These two will go far some day!!!! After a seriously intense game of "Animal Cops" they moved on to fighting with bears?!?! A full bin of material scraps and a full imagination led to this pair of invalids who didn't fare so well in the bear brawl...apparently!!!!

Smile #3-

More than a year ago I began collecting shoes for Guatemala. It started very small with just a few pair at a time from friends and family. Then Mari's Girl Scout troop decided to adopt the shoe drive as their service project for the year and one thing led to another and suddenly I had 1700+ pair of shoes in my dining room!!!! It was a huge relief to pack them up and ship them out and since then I've gone back to the few pair at a time pace. The thing is, the Girl Scout leader had placed a blurb in our church's Sunday bulletin which has caused some of the members of my parish to label me the "shoe lady" and periodically I find bundles of shoes on my front porch with the note, "for Guatemala".

Yep, happened again tonight!! Went out to take the girls for ice cream cones and there on my porch I find two baggies full of flip-flops "for Guatemala"!!! Come on, that's gotta make you smile!

Wanted- Frank Feedback!

Many of my family and friends will recall how fond I am of the movie "The Sound of Music". There is a line that I've tried to use in down moments to give me perspective and it is the one "When God closes a door somewhere he opens a window." Adoptive families often meet closed doors in their process and many once walked through get closed by the adoption! I'm the type that usually tries to batter the closed doors down rather than look for an opened window but sometimes I luck out! One of the difficult decisions many families with children adopted from Guatemala have is whether or not to search for the first family. There are huge emotional issues on the both the pro and the con side of the decision. Last year at this time we held our breath and decided to initiate a search for Mari's birth family. We got lucky and that window opened! Not only were they found alive and well but they verified the information we received about the reasons for the adoption plan. After much consultation with the searcher and others knowledgeable about cultural mores in Guatemala we developed a plan to supply the family with monthly baskets of food staples. An NGO working in the hometown was found to supervise the safe transfer of funds and to supervise the actual delivery of the food. Well, actually Mari's birth mother goes to the tiendita to pick it up every month. Many months we get only a factual e-mail confirming the date upon which the birth mother arrived to claim the food basket. Some months we get a short note passing along a message from the family that usually has to do with offering us blessings for this simple gift but imagine my surprise when this 'floated in the open window'... The birth mother brought this picture of her and her husband taken shortly after Mari's birth and asked that it be forwarded to Mari!!! It is kind of like the shutter of the opening window smacking me in my hard head. You see I've been raising the funds for these food baskets by sewing and selling clothes on eBay. The problem is that now, just as I need to up the cash flow for possibly adding Julia's birth family, the economy has people tightening their belts! I'm sincerely asking my readers who shop on eBay to check out the listings I currently have on eBay (under my seller name drsilk1) and give me some frank advise on how to improve the listings!!! Things are selling but by the time I account for material costs and eBay fees there's not enough left to justify the time spent in the salt mine. Lately I've been bummed thinking that I may have to give up these emotionally satisfying outfits for a more lucrative medium which is less pleasurable. Just to show how much fun I've been having, here are two of my latest creations.......

I love this little sundress pattern I found! That and the a-line were fun to play around with but now I need to get more serious about filling the food basket coffers!!! Am I pricing them right? What do you expect to see in a listing to catch your interest? Is there another niche were you think the action can be found? Be frank, REALLY I mean it in all sincerity. There is no point in recreating the same mistake over and over and often one cannot see what is in front of their eyes! Have at it!

FFF-Out!

As I was hopping on-line to do a quick post I noticed that today's Favorite Foto Friday theme was "Out". How serendipitous since most of my 'planned' post easily fits into the theme! For the entertainment benefits of those who are filling their sloooow work day by blog surfing I've made it a nice long post, okay? Yesterday was Julia's last day of school so she's now "OUT" for summer vacation! She just caught sight of me trying to sneak a snap of the skipping joy of a less than enthusiastic student sprung from her personal purgatory. Lucky for her that file she's holding contains a decent report card that ends with the line "Promoted to third grade." Wooo hoooo!!! She's also now "out" of her private school as she is enrolled in the public school for the fall. Mom now needs to go "out" shopping since that means no more uniforms!Wooo hooo for Mom! Note that on June 4th we are still needing jackets! It was only 48 degrees when she left for school and only 55 at dismissal.....but since it was only 10am and the weatherman was promising SUN all day and the hope of nearly making it to 70 we celebrated the last day of school with a trip "OUT"! Bet you'll never guess where we went by these next two pics! I just had to show all of you how very unique one our local landmarks is becoming.

A gift shop that features Dia del Muerte???? When you see where we went you will surely be surprised!! Now I know where to go for next year's Day of the Dead decor!

They soooooo never had these when I NEEDED low little potties!!! Given where we went it makes total sense that the establishment has installed banks of these in all their bathrooms. The warning is much needed because a Mom in a hurry could end up embarrassingly injured at the low height of the seat!! So you're wondering where we would go that would have skulls and tot pots?

Yep, we had some 'only child' bonding time at Brookfield Zoo!! Our family has a few of these 'traditional' picture moments in which we document the children and how they grow. Besides the 'big fish' picture down in Sarasota, we always pose the children on this lion that guards the entrance to the zoo. Julia felt very silly at first since she was the ONLY child for once but quickly beamed once she realized all the benefits! Tia Peggy inspired the trip and lucky for us she brought her camera along...as usual I should say. I'm the one hiding from the sun's lethal rays under Patrick's safari hat.

Tia Peggy spoiling her god daughter! One of the benefits of being an only child is the chance to get Dippin' Dots! At $4.50 for that little bowl, it's a treat not usually had when the whole gang is in tow! Note that Tia Peggy has shed her jacket! It did get 'warm' in the direct sun by the afternoon.

I love our zoo!! So many retired senior citizens volunteer as docents to give the children unique hands on learning moments making it more than just a run from exhibit to exhibit kind of outing. Here Julia gets to compare the same bone in an animal and a human...can you guess which bone from which animal?

The cervical vertebra of our FAVORITE animal! We love the Habitat Africa exhibit and the giraffe herd is majestic. While Julia and I did not get to see them using those long purple tongues rip leaves from the trees we did get to see last year's new baby out in the herd! That's her with another juvenile giraffe. Technically the giraffe is our MUTUAL favorite in Habitat Africa but actually Julia has a PERSONAL favorite...can you guess???

Duh??? Zebras....horses....close enough for her!!

Our resident walrus had to be moved to another zoo during the piniped habitat construction and was unable to be returned! So many children missed him that they commissioned this statue which has become another spot for picture taking. Those few minutes hatless had their cost! Not scalded but red enough to get comments at our "Night Out" event!

There are more pictures of the evenings "out"ing on Tia Peggy's camera since my lame model cannot zoom as close up as hers can! After dinner we headed off to Mari's school to be entertained by the 5th graders' big year end American Dreaming extravaganza!

There's my little colonist on the marquee 'out'side the auditorium. Since 6th grade is at the middle school in our community, this is the last big hurrah for the 5th graders at their grammar schools. Besides a big, costumed, musical production of the history of the United States the students had individual presentations. The audience was invited to move from the auditorium to the library to browse up and down the aisles where the students stood before their display boards and fielded questions.

Mari and her display board which covered the rigorous life for women during the colonial era. An era that Mari is very glad NOT to have been a member. This lady loves her creature comforts and bling! She is not "out' for summer until June 16th!! It'll be a very short summer vacation for her this year.

I've also pumped "out" a couple of patriotic outfits!

A little 2t halter and shorts set. I need to keep an eye out for a cheap 'baby' sized mannequin! Since I acquired the mannequins for my Irish costuming work there was really no need to have anything smaller than a size 5/6 as it is a rare child who was accomplished enough to be in competition before 4 or 5 years old. It was a struggle to get this 2t top on this mannequin!

I have to pin the bottoms on since it's too big! The shorts are an elastic waist denim to which I added a ruffle, applique, and a little back pocket.

Found an a-line pattern that I like better!! This is a little 3t dress that I appliqued some hearts on the front and back to go with the main print. I hope to have a couple more little dresses done by tonight so I can get them up on eBay by tomorrow. Sadly, I have a couple of Irish dance dresses that I need to get started on so as to keep the frantic stage moms at bay and will have to curtail my 'fun' sewing. I'm thinking I'll need to sneak one or two in between the dance dresses to keep my sanity :)

Lame excuse number 2!

Why haven't I posted lately? Had a few phone calls from some friends too shy to post on Blogger asking what's up with the infrequent postings. Seems one of them, not naming names, uses this blog as a diversion during lulls at work!! Well friends, Julia is sick AGAIN....sort of?!?! You see we had bunches of appointments this week starting with the pediatrician for her camp physical. He decided to do a throat culture to make sure the antibiotic worked last time to eradicate the strep. Then we had a follow-up with the allergy/asthma specialist a couple of days later who is in the same medical facility and he notices that the culture came back POSITIVE AGAIN! Really, I'm sure it never actually gets conquered by the antibiotic and has taken up permanent residence in the crypts of her tonsils...so today we saw the ENT! Drum roll please.................................................................................................................June 10th is the day that Julia and her tonsils part ways!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm sure I'll have plenty to blog that day since we are doing it at "Auntie Peggy's hospital" and Auntie Peggy is the camera queen. Meanwhile I've pushed out a bunch more outfits in a patriotic theme. While some of them have left with Mr. Postman to go to special girls in Virginia and Louisiana the rest are posted on eBay. A sized 36m/3T 'cutified' shortall....

tried an a-line style top but need to find a different pattern as this one goes too wide for my liking! "Cutified" some shorts to go with the top in a size 6x.

Another pillowcase style top and skirt combo in a size 5. And yes the sidewalk is wet in the background! I'm now resorting to running outside during breaks in the clouds to snap the pictures since I'm sure summer is never coming!!