It Really Works!

You know how you hear of things that sound just too good to be true?  Are you a skeptic?  Well, let me tell you about two things that really work.  Seriously.

If you got something in the mail that said, "never buy laundry detergent again with a snap-on washer attachment," would you believe it?  "Cleans and disinfects clothes without detergent, bleach, softener or even hot water."  You would probably think - yeah, right.  But I'm here to tell you that the pureWash works.  My dear grandfather orders (way too much) stuff from catalogs and television.  Because of this, he gets his fair share of advertisements for random things in the mail.  He brought some info to my parents and told them that he just knew it would work because he's bought stuff from this company before.  ha!  So, my parents bought one to test it out.  My mom was amazed when it got my dad's work clothes clean and fresh.  That was enough to make me a believer, so we ordered one.

This is it.  The info page says that the generator produces Hydroxyl Radical Molecules which are one of nature's most powerful cleansers.  It was developed for hospitals because detergents were causing many problems.  We know how detergents are filled with chemicals that can't be good for us.  So, no more chemicals?  Save on the cost of detergent and hot water?  Yes, please.  

The next thing that really works is essential oils.  They are becoming more mainstream these days, but many people still don't know much about them.  Essential oils are natural oils from plants that have great medicinal and emotional benefits.  I have to believe that God gave us what we need to keep our bodies healthy.  For the past few months after a friend introduced me to oils, my family has been using them on a daily basis.  I am not anti-medicine.  But I like knowing that I can do something naturally first!  I apply these oils, I diffuse them, and I even take them internally.  I have been very pleased with the results I've witnessed.  And even if they didn't work (but they DO), I love the smell when I diffuse them.

This is my growing collection of oils.  If you could read some of the labels, you'd see - lemon, lavender, peppermint, oregano, lime, cinnamon, frankincense, and more!  I use doTERRA brand because they are 100% pure and potent.  I could give you a whole lecture on this, but I won't unless you want more info.  doTERRA sources their oils from plants in their native lands to ensure potency that will reap the most medicinal benefits.  Please let me know if you want to know more - I'm happy to share!

So, anything you're using these days that really works?!

Let's Wrap Up the Day With a Little Bit of AAHHHHH!!!!

I mean, it only make sense for the rest of the day to end with a touch of craziness, right?  For those of you who read about my afternoon, you know what I'm talking about.

So when I say that my house is a disaster, it's no exaggeration.  The kids pulled out every crayon and marker and piece of paper they could find.  There is a car seat sans cover sitting in the middle of the walkway.  I left the house in this horrible state before going to church, because, well....my afternoon.  I tried to pick things up only to turn around to see that it had been destroyed.

Then the rush to get ready for church began.  I had just walked into my bedroom to change clothes when I heard a crash.  And then a scream.  I go to the kitchen to find that Harrison had pulled an empty jar out of a cabinet and it shattered into many little pieces.  I thought the cries were just from being scared.  I picked him up and took him to get dressed for church.  Then I saw blood.  Lots of it on his hands.  Looks like he cut himself in several places.  Thankfully no deep cuts, though.

We make it to church, and it was just as fun as you can imagine trying to feed two kids without any help (we eat dinner at church on Wednesday nights).  I got the kids' plates ready, up and down, up and down.  I finally sat down to try to eat a bite myself.  Before I knew it, it was time to move on to the next event.

Choir, AWANAS, time to go home.  Whew, glad to be going home!  Unfortunately, I knew Kris wouldn't be waiting on us.  Instead of Kris, a police officer was waiting on us at the front door.  Always gives you a warm fuzzy.

As I was pulling into the driveway, my phone rings.  It was the police department.  My alarm had gone off.  The officer comes up to my window and shines his flashlight into my vehicle.  Remember how I left a car seat in the middle of the walkway in my house?  Yeah, I let Sadie just buckle up to go to church (only because it's exactly one mile from my house on residential streets - please don't give me a hard time.  I never would have gone anywhere far away or on major roads without her in a car seat.)....but she'd unbuckled and was standing in the seat for the officer to see.  Great.

The officer on the phone was asking me questions - like make/model/color of my car, where are you, have you made eye contact with the officer, blah blah blah.  They finally let me off the phone and out of my car.  I go inside with the officer who got to witness the state of my house.  Harrison is crying in the car while Sadie is bouncing around turning on all the interior lights in the car.  The officer went outside to search the back perimeter of the house and said all was clear.  However, it didn't leave me with a good feeling.

I got Harrison ready for bed and nervously took him upstairs, just knowing some intruder was going to jump out and attack.  Had to go back outside to turn off all the interior lights of my car and move it into the garage.  But what if the attacker was hiding in the garage rather than upstairs in the dark?

What time is it?  Time for Kris to come home and for everyone to go to bed.  The End.

How a Peaceful Day Can Change in a Span of Twenty Minutes

Today was school day for the kids, which means I got to do things I normally put off.  I worked around the house a bit this morning before heading out to run some errands and do a little shopping for myself.  On the way to pick the kids up, I bought a milkshake to share with Sadie.  I "needed" just a little something sweet and thought I would take a few sips and leave the rest to surprise her with when she got in the car.

2:00 - I went to my boy's class to pick him up.  Along with my active child, I picked up his nap mat and bag.  His teacher told me that he had a big dirty diaper and his bottom was really red.

2:02 - Went to Sadie's classroom, but they weren't quite finished with show and tell, and she didn't want to leave.  That's fine.  You stay there while I chase your brother.

2:04 - I pick up Sadie's stuff out of her box - nap mat, lunch box, backpack.  I smelled something.  Harrison.

2:05 - Sadie is dismissed.  I told her that I could not carry everything and she had to help.

2:06 - I had to park far away, Harrison didn't want to be carried, he's wiggling so much I almost dropped him on the way to the car.

2:08 - Get Harrison into his seat just as he begins to throw a major fit.  He kicked off both shoes, pulled off his socks, and was screaming.

2:09 - Sadie gets settled and I give her the milkshake.  Sadie is happy, and Harrison stopped crying.

2:10 - on the way home we talked about Sadie's day.  She ate all her lunch, she played in the gym, she saw her best friend Candace, all is well.

2:12 - "oh no, Mommy!!"  She had poked the straw through the bottom of the cup - milkshake was everywhere.  EVERYWHERE!  Thankfully we were pulling into our driveway.  I grab the cup and it proceeds to drip all over me and my seat.

2:13 - I jump out, grab her, she's crying because she's soaked and cold and sticky.  I run her inside and strip her.  I hear Harrison screaming in the car.

2:14 - Sadie is naked and crying as I bring Harrison in to change his diaper.  Remember how I smelled something earlier?

2:14.5 - Everyone is crying while I'm cleaning Harrison.

2:15 - As I was wrapping up the diaper, he escaped (the boy is FAST).  I hear something.  He's peeing on the floor.

2:16 - I'm cleaning him AGAIN and putting clothes on him.  Sadie is still standing there naked and crying.

2:18 - Harrison is in bed, I put panties on Sadie.  Go to get the carseat out of the car.

2:20 - bring in the carseat and a bag of purchases.  In my haste, I just dropped the bag on the floor, forgetting about a mug I'd purchased in the bottom of the bag.  I have yet to check and see if it is broken.  Didn't sound promising when the bag hit the floor.

2:21 - I sat on the couch, let out a sigh, and looked at the clock.

Wow, that was a crazy 20 minutes.  Let's hope the rest of the afternoon isn't as exciting.

Goodbye, Sweet Shelli

Well, today didn't go as planned.  I had to say goodbye to my almost thirteen year old dog.  I knew the day was coming (and soon).  I just didn't realize it was going to be today!

Shelli.....that precious little dog who really knew how to drive me crazy the past couple of years.  That precious little dog who has been with me through a lot.  My first teaching job.  Lonely days.  Happy days.  Marriage.  Moves.  Children.  Always there.  Always adoring me, even when I didn't necessarily have the time or energy for her.

We've known for several years that she had a heart murmur, but it wasn't so bad that we had to be concerned.  A few weeks ago, I didn't think she was going to make it through the night.  We took her to a clinic first thing in the morning, they did tests that said her heart was enlarged with fluid on her lungs.  It was suggested that we try heart meds and an antibiotic.  She seemed to be ok a week or so later.

Then this morning I took her to the groomer thinking that this afternoon we'd have her home all fresh and clean.

It was not to be.

The groomer called about an hour after dropping her off saying that she'd had a seizure, but they had her breathing.  I guess it didn't register how bad she was.  She wanted to know if she should take her to the vet for me.  I said that I'd come get her.  I called Kris, he said to just pick her up and he'd take care of things this afternoon.

When I got there, it was a pitiful sight.  I knew she wasn't going to last much longer.  I was at a loss and couldn't think straight - how was I going to get her to the vet with the two kids?  Poor pup couldn't sit up or walk....I didn't want her to die in my arms.  The groomer asked if I wanted her to go with me.  YES!  She was a lifesaver.  She held Shelli the whole way - talking to her and petting her.  She was like - you know, this is like losing my own.  I hadn't thought of that.  She's known Shelli almost as long as I have had her!

I am also appreciative of the vet - they were so quick getting us into a room and not wasting time with lots of questions.  We were in and out of the office within fifteen to twenty minutes.  How strange to have a dog be part of your life for almost thirteen years and then only have a few minutes with her at the end to say goodbye.

She was an annoying dog, yes.  But she was MY dog.  And she will be missed.

What in the World is Happening?!

Life is busy.  Life is crazy.  But I'm ok with that.  I'm not ok, though, with the past two days.

Let me go back to last week, though.

Monday morning we had to take my car to the "car doctor" for regular maintenance.  Sadie goes to school on Mondays, and I had MOPS last week.   Got home, still had to get the kids and myself dressed - it was a mad dash.  I found myself saying over and over to Sadie to eat so she could get dressed.  We're late!  Finally got them dressed, bags packed, and almost ready to go.  I went outside to put all the bags in the car and came back to two crying/screaming children.  Poor Harrison was really screaming.  I looked at him, and all I could see was blood.....where is it coming from?  Inside his mouth?  Outside his mouth?  I did see blood coming from inside, but I also noticed a slice on the outside.  I called Kris in a panic - like he could help or something from his office.  Harrison finally settled down, I could see that his lip was still firmly attached to his face, so I got them in the car.  Took Sadie to her class (late) and had some ladies help me clean up Harrison.  I still have no idea how he sliced himself.  Then it was off to MOPS with a still bleeding child.  My friend and I were planning to go to lunch after our meeting, but the nursery workers said that Harrison was exhausted.  Yeah, he fell asleep almost as soon as we got in the car - no lunch outing for us.  Blah blah blah, the rest of the day was crazy too.

Tuesday I decided to take the kids to the zoo for Zoo Boo!  I got them dressed in Halloween shirts, got Sadie pumped about all the Halloween decor and candy that would be waiting for us.....we get there, and oops.  Zoo Boo didn't start until Friday.  Sorry, S.  Tuesday afternoon was gymnastics.  I picked up a pizza on the way home because Kris wasn't home.  I don't even remember where he was.

Wednesday - got kids to school, doctor appointment, errands.  Pick up kids, Harrison had not napped, home to put him in bed rather than taking them for ice cream like I had planned.  Back to church for dinner, choir, AWANAS.  Tired.

Thursday - Don't even remember.  Oh, yes I do.  Lunch with friends and then dinner with Kris and a work associate, had to drop kids off at a friend's because we couldn't find a sitter.  I think I contacted five people.  My kids are sweet.  Why is it so hard to find a babysitter?!

Friday - picked my car up from the shop, took my goddaughter to Chuck E Cheese for an early birthday celebration.

Saturday - early morning fun run, wedding, football game.

Sunday - church, naps, grocery store with two kids in the rain

Monday - and this is where is really gets exciting!  Because I know it hasn't been exciting enough.  Kris left early for the airport.  I got Sadie to school.  I got an email saying that his flight had been canceled due to mechanical problems.  He was searching for another flight.  No luck.  He called to say that he was going to have to reschedule his meeting and was going to work.  Another call - he was at Starbucks and his vehicle wouldn't start.  Thankfully he was close to home and not at the airport.  I picked him up, he called roadside assistance.  Took him back to meet roadside assistance.  Still won't start, so they called a tow truck.  Picked him up again, then he gets another call that the truck would be there sooner than they said.  He had to turn right back around.  I told him he got to pick up Sadie from school since Harrison was napping.  Everyone was home until I had to leave to go to Ronald McDonald House to serve dinner with some fellow members of my Sunday School class.  Oh, and since Kris was supposed to be out of town, I had to get someone from church to help me find a sitter to keep the kids while I was serving.  Since Kris ended up being home, I had to cancel the sitter that was such a hassle to find!

Today - Yesterday I asked Sadie what she wanted to do.  She wanted to mousekercize (go to childcare at the gym) and then to the park with her friends.  I emailed some friends asking if they wanted to meet us at the park for a picnic.  Great!  Get everyone dressed, in the car, and.....my car took a long time starting.  Something was weird.  Dropped off the kids and called Kris to warn him.  Class over, back in the car, car would NOT start.  Again, thankfully we were close to home.  I put Harrison in the stroller and we started walking home.  Talked to Kris, emailed my friend who was to meet us at the park.  Kris called the shop that we JUST got my car out of, he said to call a tow truck.  Got home, packed a picnic, back to the rec center to meet my friend who was able to meet us at a different park, tow truck came, my vehicle left, we walked back home.  And here I sit.  AAAHHHHHH!!!!!

Seriously?  Two dead cars at the same time?!  I asked Kris if we had any unconfessed sin that we need to address.

So, what in the world is happening?  Well, I guess life is happening.  And we have to just roll with the punches.  And laugh.  And figure out how to get the kids to Sadie's gymnastics class this afternoon when we only have a two seater vehicle in operation.

Dull Moments Do Not Exist

We all know the saying "never a dull moment".  That could not be more true for me, thanks to my dear children.  And dogs.  And just life in general.

(Warning:  the following snippets will contain the word poop more than once.  So, if that is too much for you to handle, stop reading now.)

Yesterday was going to be a chill kind of day.  With no definite plans, we were going to just hang out and do whatever pleased us.  However, by around 11:00, I thought we should get out for some fresh air.  Perhaps it would be hot and humid air, but we'd be out of the house.  Actually, it wasn't miserably hot yet, so I suggested to Sadie that we go to the park and maybe even take a picnic.  Or we could go pick up food and take it to the park to eat.  I figured I'd be killing two birds - wear them out before nap time and not mess up the kitchen with lunch.

Did Sadie agree to my plan?  No.  OK, Sadie, what would you like to do then?  Her response - go to the backyard and pick up dog poop.  What?  I just laughed and went on to the next thing.  She then comes to me with two plastic grocery bags and said "come on!"  To the back yard we went.  She didn't really pick up any dog poop, but she sure pretended to.  After our poop patrol was over with and the kids had played, we went inside and scrubbed scrubbed scrubbed our hands.

On to lunch and naps, no problem.

After naps, it was time for Sadie's first gymnastics class!  She was excited, I was excited, and Harrison was excited too!  At least he seemed to be.  This is my first experience with this sort of extracurricular activity.  I mean, she's had swim lessons at our neighborhood rec center, but it was very laid back.  Uhm, not this gymnastics place.  Oh my!  People everywhere!  Moms, dads, nannies, siblings - aaahhhh!!!  Sadie did a great job and went right in without looking back.  I had so much fun watching her, but not so much fun keeping Harrison contained and happy for an hour.

By the time we left, I was exhausted.  Not to mention developing a migraine.  I sort of felt it coming on earlier in the day, but it was really hitting me by the time we left.  Shame on me for ever leaving the house without my Rx.  In the car Sadie said that her tummy was so hungry for Chicken Away.  I love my child.  Who am I to argue with her, especially since daddy is out of town?  So to CFA we went.  Things were going well until we were almost finished.....

I knew this day was coming.  Sadie informs me in a voice loud enough for all around me to hear - mom, I gotta go poop!  Sadie, ssshhhh!!  I assumed she was just ready to get up from the table.  Wrong.  She told me to get Harrison and let's go!  She was at the bathroom door before I had Harrison out of the high chair.  And once I finally got to the bathroom door, she was in a stall with her pants down.  Oh dear, she's serious.  I have real issues with public restrooms, so this was sort of like a nightmare for me. She is taking care of her business while I'm chasing Harrison in the handicap sized stall, trying to keep him from touching everything.  I'm embarrassed to say we were in there a while.

Remember that migraine that I'd felt coming on earlier?  Yeah, it was really making itself known by this time.

No way we were finishing our meal after spending so much time in that public restroom stall.  And of course Harrison pooped while we were in there.  Did I take a diaper inside with me?  Nope.  And of course it was family night with a clown making balloon animals and making faces.  Sadie really wanted her arm painted.  But you know what?  You can't get everything in life, right?  I had just spent more time than I'm comfortable with in the bathroom (so sorry, CFA), my boy has a dirty diaper, and my head is killing me!  Sorry, Sadie, I'll let you put on some of my makeup when we get home.

My plan was to run into the grocery store for milk after we ate.  How did we go through two gallons of milk since Friday?!  Instead, I put two stinky/germy kids into the car and did what any person in their right mind would do.  I got back into the CFA drive thru and ordered two milks.  And an ice cream cone.  If anything was going to help my head at this point, ice cream would.

How do I wrap this up without it being too abrupt?  I don't know.  But I was lying in bed with Sadie, it was quiet, she was calm, all that could be heard was the a/c.  She whispered - hey mom, what's that noise?  The air conditioner.  Nope, it's my stomach.  Like I said, dull moments do not exist.

Who Am I?

Kris had to take a personality test for work.  It was fun reading his results, the majority of what it said was right on.  I told him I wanted to take the test also.  Then I changed my mind.  Did I really want to know that much about myself?  But then I changed my mind again.  Why not?

The test was geared towards those who work outside the home.  I decided to answer questions based on how I would have answered while teaching.  The first mistake I made was taking the test while the kids were awake.  I had them settled in front of the television (props to me, super mom).....so I thought. I finished the first portion of the test while yelling into another room to answer questions and respond to comments like - hey mom, where's Cinderella?  Momma, Harrison going up the stairs!  Hey, Harrison got the remote in his mouth!  Etc., etc., etc.  Just like I'm doing right now as I attempt to write this.

The second half of the test required seven minutes of my time.  That's asking a lot.  I waited until Harrison was in bed for a little nap before starting it.  Sadie can easily watch seven minutes of tv without getting distracted.  ha ha ha ha ha ha.  I laugh.  I began the test which was full of mathematical questions and questions I really needed to focus on.  I was about two minutes in when Sadie decided to join me.  She was crawling on me, talking to me, and doing things that required me to stop and say - Sadie, are you crazy?  Don't do that!  No wonder my session expired before I finished.  aaahhhhh!!!

I got the results a couple of days later.  There were some comments made that were very true and some that were very wrong.  Let's explore the depths of my personality, shall we?

- You tend to be comfortable making decisions

Uhm, that's a negative.  I have to get opinions/suggestions from Kris, mom, friends, and sometimes even strangers before making many decisions.  I buy stuff, I return it.  I don't buy stuff, yet go back more than once trying to decide if I really want or need it.  I make or don't make decisions based on how others might react and feel.  If it will hurt someone's feelings, it makes decision making that much worse.

- you tend to be more direct with your communications 
Just ask Kris how wrong this is.

- You tend to be more comfortable than most people with confrontational situations
- Your higher than average comfort level with confrontation may cause you to be more direct with others than they are comfortable with.
Could anything be more wrong?  I avoid confrontation at all costs.  Example:  My housekeeper.  I haven't been happy with her for a while.  We can't communicate because of a language barrier.  But I am able to translate things online.  However, I shy away from translating things that are confrontational.  Even if it is to tell her that I need her to clean something differently/better.  The thing is, she's a nice lady, never missed a day, always on time.  I have psyched myself up two weeks in a row now to tell her that we won't be needing her starting in September.  I chickened out last week.  And again this week.  I was prepared.  Until she walked in, picked up Harrison, hugged him, gave him a kiss, and said - I like him!  She would have been crushed if I broke the news to her.  What am I to do?!

There are more things that I do not agree with, but now let me see if I can find anything in the results that I DO agree with.....

- Tends to be friendly and sociable, but also able to work alone when necessary

I try to be friendly and sociable, but I do prefer working alone.

- Work environments that are highly team oriented and require Traci to continually collaborate with others in order to accomplish tasks will be less motivating

Yeah, I'm not good with team/group work.  I NEVER liked group work in school - I'd much rather do it myself.  And team planning at school was a killer for me.

- Tends to be distractible and easy going when it comes to details and plans
Yep.  Details?  Who needs 'em?
- Traci prefers an environment where they can simply react to what's going on versus planning ahead

Yep again.  My best lessons at school were the ones that just came to me in the middle of teaching that I was able to expand on.

So, based on this test, I'm not a very nice person at times - confrontational, doesn't work well with others, blah blah blah.  Perhaps I should retake the test when I'm not refereeing two kids, because I was totally confrontational with them during the test taking time!  So, the question still remains....who am I?  The world may never know.

I have no idea what happened to the formatting of this....this page and the preview page look totally different, and I'm not smart enough (nor do I really care - you know, details....who needs 'em?) to play  with it for fear of really making a mess of it.