Annoyed

So, it's midnight and I'm sitting at the computer. Why, you ask? Because this annoying cough is keeping me up!! I have tried to fall asleep twice tonight, but each time I try within a minute or two I start hacking up a lung. ARGH! I'm amazed that Jake has managed to sleep through the whole ordeal. This past week I've been downing robitussin like it was gatorade and munching on cough drops like they were candy... nothing helps. I even tried this Xopenex inhaler I got last time I had bronchitis, to relieve my coughing... doesn't do a darn thing. I saw a GI dr today and asked him about my cough and he prescribed me some cough medicine. Turns out the stuff he 'prescribed' is actually an OTC medicine and I already bought it yesterday and have tried it and, nada. Nice. The dr also proceeded to tell me that my lung still doesn't sound very good. His exact words "Wow. I'm a gastro dr and even I can tell you have pneumonia in that right lung." Then he kept asking if I was really 'okay'. Honestly, the pain is gone. My chest feels tight in the morning and this cough is driving me crazy, but other than that I feel fine (just a little tired from this cough keeping me up!) I don't feel 100%, but I'm so much better than I was 2 1/2 weeks ago. So, about my cough, any ideas to give me some relief? I would love to hear them!

I'm not the only one in the house taking medicine right now. Josh is taking antibiotics for a burst eardrum due to an ear infection (which I didn't even know he had!) Over the weekend I noticed yellow fluid coming out of his ear and yellow chunks coming out of his ear canal (I'm sure you all wanted to know that.) I took him to the dr on Monday and sure enough, his eardrum had ruptured. Then Ben came to us on Saturday night and said his toe hurt. When he took his sock off, Jake and I almost freaked out. His big toe was swollen and red, with yellow pus around the base and side of his toenail and the top layer of skin was coming off. I took him to the dr on Monday with Josh and the dr said he has an infected ingrown toenail and prescribed him antibiotics too. I'm just waiting for Emma to come tell me some body part is falling off or fluid is gushing from some orifice. (knock on wood it doesn't happen) Sorry if I sound a little pessimistic at the moment. I guess I'm just a little tired and grumpy... and worried my coughing is going to give me a hernia.

Black Friday Insanity!

Yes, I was one of the crazies out there last night/this morning, staying up all night to save a few bucks. This was my fifth year of being a Black Friday participant and I took it to a whole new level today, officially making me one of those insane people I always joke about every year. I found the ads a week or two ago on black-friday.net and spent days making my shopping list. Then I took it to the next level by going to Toys R Us, Target, and Walmart on Tuesday and casing the stores, mapping out in my mind where all my shopping items were stationed so I wouldn't waste any time once I entered the buildings. This year Toys R Us opened at midnight, a first I think. I heard a few hours before that the first 100 people in line get a Zhu Zhu hamster. I know this is the hottest toy right now and very hard to get (don't ask me why they are so cool, but kids seem to gravitate toward them). Thankfully, my kids have no clue what they are, but I thought if I could get a ticket for one, that would be a nice bonus to getting there early. I left our house at 10:20pm, with Jake shaking his head in disbelief. He asked me as I was heading out the door if I was sure I wanted to do this. I almost laughed out loud. I live for Black Friday and love the deals and the rush you get, running through the stores with a bunch of other crazy people like yourself. I got to Toys R Us at 10:50pm and was already about 80th in line. By 11:30pm the line wrapped around the store, out through the parking lot, and then almost to the stoplight on 13th East. I'm sure there were close to 1000 people out there! I became fast friends with a younger couple, and a mom and daughter from Tooele. It was nice to have some people to talk to while we stood in the cold for an hour. By 11:45pm it started getting insane. People were trying to cut in line and the security guards had to send them back. I was excited to actually get a Zhu Zhu ticket and thought that was worth the hour outside (if anything, I could sell the thing on eBay and make $35!) Right at midnight the doors opened, I grabbed my cart and headed down the main aisle. I ended up getting everything on my list and got into line to check out around 12:20am. I finally made it out of the store at 1:15am and then headed to Target. So, then I took the craziness to the next level and actually camped out from 1:40am until 5am, when the store opened. I was the 18th person in line, and I plopped my camping chair out, cuddled up with a blanket, heavy coat, and gloves, and munched on cough drops for 3 1/2 hours. There were 3 girls in front of me, Lacey and Brianna from Bountiful, and Nicki from Farmington. I think the cold and late night was getting to them because they were being very silly, talking about Twilight for nearly an hour, and about how they had to go pee but didn't want to leave the line. I was slightly entertained and have to be somewhat thankful for them, otherwise the 3 1/2 hours out in the below freezing weather would have completely overtaken me. At 4:30am a Target employee handed out maps that showed where the doorbusters were located. I was very thankful for that because the number one item I wanted from there was not where I thought it would be, so there was no guessing. When the doors opened at 5am I grabbed a cart, ran straight to the item, put it in my cart, grabbed Elf for $3.99, and a shirt for Ben, and then I was headed to the check-out. I was in Target a max of 7 minutes! Then I headed to Walmart and couldn't find a parking spot so had to park across the way at a car wash, and book it to the entrance. I walked in around 5:18am and already there were HUGE lines for the checkout. Thankfully, the things on my list there were not big 'wants' so if I didn't get them I wasn't going to be too crushed. I found a doll Ashleigh wanted me to get her, then I went back to find a FurReal Tuggin' Pup dog for Emma, regularly about $27, on sale for $9. I couldn't find them anywhere. Right in the middle of the toy aisle there was a lady standing by a cart with about 15 of the dogs in there and I went to grab one, thinking she was an employee because who in their right mind would load up a cart of 15 toy dogs? Well, this lady was very quick to tell me they were 'all hers' and they ran out about 5 minutes before. I searched another 5 minutes, hoping that someone had changed their mind and left one in an aisle, but no luck. So I got in line to check-out and there were about 40 people in front of me and eventually about 60 behind me (and this was all for ONE cash register!!) About 30 minutes into my wait I spotted TWO FurReal Pups discarded on a shelf and no one seemed to be going for them. I quickly asked the girl behind me to save my spot for 10 seconds and I ran over to the pets and grabbed them both! Oh JOY! The adrenaline was pumping and I was thrilled. I know, I know. Who cares about a dumb toy. But when you're shopping at Black Friday, it's those sweet surprises that make the whole day worth it. SO, all in all, I got everything on my list and I figured I saved an average of 50% on everything I bought today. Not too shabby. The best part is my Christmas shopping is 99% done! WOO HOO!

PS I ended up listing the Zhu Zhu hamster and the Fun House accessory I got at Toys R Us on eBay about an hour ago and expect to make at least a $50 profit. Nice! Black Friday, baby, it's addicting (and for crazy people like me!)

My Sweet Emma

As my mom was leaving on Sunday she told the kids to take good care of me since dad wasn't here. Emma took that job very seriously. She has been like a second mom these past few days, doing everything I have asked without hesitation (even with excitement), coloring with Josh and playing games with him, etc. Before my mom left, Emma and my niece Jayden drew pictures for me to help me feel better, then they secretly taped them all over my room to surprise me. It was amazing to see young children being so thoughtful. Last night I had a big talk with Ben and asked him to help a little more and to have a happier attitude about it (he's having a hard time with dad being gone and the kids' exciting lives of going to McDonald's twice a day with Grandma has stopped). Emma overheard our talk and I think that reinforced her willingness to help. I told all the kids that after FHE we were going to get all the garbage and put the can out on the curb and then put new bags in the baskets. While I was helping Ben with his homework, Emma went on her own and got all the garbage out of all the baskets and put the bags in the kitchen. She helped me bring them all out to our can in the garage. This morning she fed Truman without being asked, and then let him out to go to the bathroom. When she told me she had done it, she was grinning from ear-to-ear and then told me "And mom, you didn't tell me to do it, I just did it." She gave me a cute picture (below) that she says is me inside a rainbow of rocks, feeling better. Very sweet. Then before preschool today she asked how many minutes she had until Selena would pick her up. I told her she had about 20 minutes and then she said "20 minutes is a long time. I have a long time to help you with whatever you want. What do you want me to do, mom?" I could have cried, I was so proud of her. My sweet little 4 year old was trying to take care of me. I told her I was planning on doing some laundry and she of course wanted to help. She pulled all the pillowcases off the pillows and helped take the sheets off the bed. When everything was off I said, "Look at the great job you did! It's all done." Then she said "Mom, the bed is FREAKIN' naked!" I've never heard her say anything like that before and I busted up laughing. She can be so silly. Then she left for preschool. I feel so lucky to have such a sweetheart in our family. She definitely has her moments and can be quite feisty, but she is also very tender-hearted. Our family is lucky to have her. We love you, Emma.

Pneumonia... Take 2

My mom, sister Ashleigh, and two nieces Jayden and Ryleigh drove here Wednesday night. We have all been looking forward to having them here. Wednesday night I started feeling the chills. Thursday I had a 103 temperature and my cough I've had for 2 weeks was getting really bad. I woke up Friday with pain in my right lung and temps of 101-104 all day. Jake had a board meeting on Friday night and Ashleigh and my mom went down to Provo to watch my youngest sister (Whitney's) performance for Divine Comedy at BYU. So I was babysitting my nieces and had my three kids and felt like death. Last night I had a horrible sleep and today I had a high 105 temp. I felt horrible and thought it was bronchitis, like I have had 2 times this past year. I went to Instacare and found out I have pneumonia. I had it two years ago and the dr said once you get it, you are more prone to bronchial problems when you get sick. Jake has a conference tonight and leaves in the morning for DC. Thank goodness my mom and sister were here these past few days. I feel bad that I was basically stuck on the couch the whole time they were here, but thankful they were here to help take care of me and the kids. They leave tomorrow morning after they take Jake to the airport. I'm hoping I survive these next few days on my own. Right now I'm doped up on hydrocodone (a narcotic cough medicine) and I actually feel like I can function a little. Tonight I'm really thankful for narcotics.

PS No pics this time around but you can use your imagination from this picture Jake took of me the last time I had pneumonia.

Merry Christmas... I mean, Trick or Treat

We had a great time watching the kids trick-or-treat. It was a busy day/night. We had lunch with our friends in Lehi, then we picked up Whitney (my sister) down in Provo. Then we stopped by my cousin's house, and then got home around 5pm. We all had dinner, got the kids ready and headed out the door around 6pm. We went to Jake's parents' house first and the kids saw their cousins, Hannah and Isabelle. Then we stopped by my grandparents' house in West Valley. Then we got back to our neighborhood in North Salt Lake around 7:45pm and the kids trick-or-treated for an hour. The weather was perfect, a tad cold but we will take it over snow and rain! Jake and Whitney were getting a little bored half-way through so told the kids to say "Merry Christmas" when people answered the door. It was funny to see some of our neighbors' reactions (and we got a kick out of it too.) Josh finally figured out the whole trick-or-treating thing at the last house, so I'm sure next year he will have it down.

In case you can't tell, Emma is "Belle" from Beauty and the Beast. She wanted brown hair so our neighbor, Kristin, let us use some of her brown hair spray and it worked really well. Emma loved being a brunette for the night. Ben is a green 3-D skeleton and loved that his costume had bony fingers and toes. Josh was superman and could care less about his costume. He just wanted chocolate, and lots of it. (A boy after my own heart.) Aunt Whitney is Sue Sylvester from Glee, the new show on Fox. Overall, it was a busy, but fun and successful night.

Sickies, Snow, and Sugar Cookies

Ben called me from school yesterday in tears saying he threw up during recess. When I got to the main office the poor guy was sitting there with his jacket and backpack, and looked so pale. I gave him a big hug and tears flowed down his cheeks as he explained how he threw up in the stairs outside during recess... not just once, but twice. I took his temp when we got home and it was nearly 103. I gave him some tylenol, tucked him in and let him and Emma watch Scooby Doo during quiet time. Ben was lethargic all day yesterday and is still sick today, but his temp is lower so hopefully he will be back to school tomorrow. I told him last night that this is actually a blessing because he will be better by Halloween so he can go trick-or-treating. If he got sick on Thursday or Friday, he probably wouldn't get to go. (That seemed to make him feel a little better.) I took this picture last night. Ben was resting on the couch and Emma and Josh climbed on top of him and tried to make him feel better. Ben was a good sport about it and let them. Ben says he is making his 'sick face' in the picture. After I took the picture and put my camera away, Emma came up to me and said "Mom, I just tucked Ben in really tight with his blankie and made sure he is okay." She is my mini-mom and such a sweetheart.

And yes, we have SNOW! This is the first snow of the season and I can't say I'm too thrilled. Thankfully, I'm sure it won't stay around. It should turn to slush later on in the day. I just want the kids to have fun trick-or-treating on Saturday and snow would put a damper on things. Last year it rained and we had to go home early. Crossing my fingers we have decent weather and no sick kids!

On Sunday we celebrated our sister-in-law, Mallory's birthday. After the cake-eating and present-opening, all the women helped the kids frost and decorate Halloween cookies. Emma, Hannah, and Isabelle really enjoyed it. The boys seemed content frosting their own cookies, eating them, and then going back downstairs to play. Although, Josh did stay the entire time. He's no dummy. When he's around sugar and mom is letting him go to town, he will take advantage of the situation. I would frost a couple cookies, then he would take a bite of one, put it back, take another, lick it, put it back, then get another one, etc. After he had his way with 3 or 4 cookies, I had to stop him. Funny kid! Thanks Grandma Schip for making the cookies at 4am that day, just so the grandkids would have them later that day. You're super-grandma!


I have to laugh at this last picture. My mom and dad sent some really cute clothes for the kids they found at garage sales. It was like Christmas, opening up this huge suitcase filled with clothes, weighing 48 lbs. Emma was more excited than I was. She kept pulling them out faster than I could look at them. She helped me separate all the clothes into piles, "too big" and "just right", and then into Josh, Ben, and her piles. She tried on all her clothes and picked out her favorite outfit (for the moment.) Then she asked me to take a picture of her, and this was the end result. She is definitely our little Diva.

Daddy Tears

Ben came home from school yesterday and had this in his backpack. He said he wrote it all by himself at school. It's a letter to dad. After he had me read the note, he said "Mom, I think I spelled 'could' and 'want' wrong. How do you spell them again?" What a smartie! He's in the process of writing a little book for one of his homework assignments and it's pretty cute. I'll post it when he's finished. I'm just amazed at how much he has learned in just these few months of 1st grade. He can read basically anything and is getting better and better at writing. So, when Jake came home he read it in front of Ben and got a little teary eyed. It was very sweet. We feel lucky to have such a wonderful little guy in our family. Ben is such a sweetheart and a great helper and brother. We love you, bud!