without preparing for a trip!

Okay, I go away for for a few days... and now I owe myself eleven blog posts!  It would have been twelve, but in the middle of the getting back into the routine I was able to write one post.

Without further ado... The saga of the last day before my trip to Napa, California.  It started like any other day of the week.  I got the kids up and off to school, walked the dogs and fed them too... then I began to prepare for the arrival of my brother-n-law who was going to stay out our kids. 

In one of my many trips up and down the stairs to check on the status of the laundry, I began to smell dog food.  That's when I notice the small pile of dog food beside our girl Maeve.  She had thrown up.  I was not phased, I just went ahead and cleaned it up.  She seemed okay, she began to play with her sister Red.  So, I went back to running up and down the stairs doing what I needed to be done.

In about an hour though, I realized something was wrong.  On yet another trip through the kitchen, I was hit with that bad smell again.  She had tossed her cookies again, but it this time it was more like her entire breakfast.  It took me longer to clean up, but I persevered.  Maeve though, curled up and went to sleep under the kitchen table--I knew then she wasn't feeling good.  

Figuring she was wore out, I left her be.  It wasn't the end.   At the same moment I received a call from school nurse requesting I come pick up my youngest son because he was sick, Maeve threw up again.  This time she was so wore out, she laid still and didn't move.  I called the school back, asked them to keep my son comfortable while I had to handle the situation at home.  At this point, I was seriously feeling like fate wasn't going to let me go on my trip. 

Thanking Old Man Winter for giving me a 60 (yep, 60) degree day... I took Maeve outside and hosed her off.  Shampooing her and then rinsed her again.  Grabbing a towel, I dried her off; then I went back inside to tackle the mess again.  Once I was done, I hauled butt to the school to get my son.

Although, my day didn't end there.  Yes, Maeve was sick a fourth time.  But it was the text message telling me my brother-n-law's GPS had routed him through major city near us, that upset me.  I couldn't help him.  I began to feel truly at my wits-end.  But I plodded on, repeating a silent mantra... I am going on this trip!

The rest of that day is a blur... I survived and did make my flight the next day!  Have you ever gone through challenges similar to this, wondering why me?

with a gallbladder!

If you have been following my blog, you might notice something about this entry's title that differs from others.  I used the word "with" instead of "without."

I had my gallbladder removed after giving birth to our second child.  During that pregnancy I had a gallbladder attack that I thought was a heart attack.  I was so scared.  Seven months pregnant and I couldn't think why I couldn't breathe.  (Side note:  Always seek medical attention if you have ANY complications at ANY point in your pregnancy... as NO two women or pregnancies are every the SAME!)

Over the years I have had to change my eating habits.  Fast food I soon discovered was never to pass my lips without a gallbladder.  Did you know that this little organ helps you digest the "grease/oil/fat" found in various foods?  I didn't then but sure do now; since I haven't had mine for 14 years.

I love bacon and sausage but have to be careful how much I eat and what type.  Same goes with beef.  Chicken and fish are much kinder to me.

Then there is condiments... Mayo I can use, but limited.  Same with some salad dressings.  Others don't seem to upset my delicate system.

But too much of the wrong ingredients, and well, I've found myself down-and-out-for-the-count for at most a day or two.  Then there have been times when I wished I could stay in bed, and had to re-group in a matter of an hour and drag my sorry butt out of bed.  Why?  Because I am a mom and Moms don't get a "sick day."  Only when/if dad is working from home do I get a "sick day."

So, why am I writing about my gallbladder... Because Sunday evening I made the "wrong food choice" and thankfully dad was home!

Without kids, dogs and minions!

Today whizzed by at warp speed.  But I made a goal of writing a blog post daily and plan to stick to it!

The early part of today was lost due to everyone (including me) sleeping in because we stayed up late to ring in the New Year.  Another reason, was because son #2 is sick with a bad cough and high fever.  So checking on him every hour or so kept me running up stairs to make sure he was okay... preventing me from sitting, plugging into my muse and actually writing.

Now while I try to type this our two golden retrievers—who are 3 years old and may be around 80 to 85 lbs … but act like they are 3 months old and only weigh 8 to 8 ½ pounds—both feel the need to jump into my lap while I am typing.  Yes, even now.   

Sometimes Red, the trouble maker, tries a new trick—when nudging me with her nose doesn’t prevent me from typing—she nips the underside of my biceps.  Maeve, the good girl, likes to play with balls all-the-time.  She likes to drop a ball in your lap... especially after she takes a big drink water.  Even better, Maeve has learned she is tall enough to drop them on the table top or worse … my laptop keyboard.  Thankfully, the ball has been pretty dry tonight—only covered slightly with her saliva (Ewwweeeee).

Well, it’s time to crash but I wish to leave you all with another chuckle... because tomorrow it's back to the daily grind.  Here are a few video clips of a movie my youngest son loves . . .