Everything Good

Well my husband has turned a major corner in his recovery. He feels great and now only has to take ibuprofen when needed. His voice is almost back to normal and he feels great. He is still slightly exhausted from the whole surgery, a little weak. However, he sleeps better than ever and can feel more rejuvenated after a nights sleep. He had tried the cpap machine over the last several years and probably close to 5 different masks. His blockage was so bad that no mask would do the job because after he laid down his throat closed up. The Dr. explained that was why he would not keep a mask on his face because he felt like he was suffocating in his sleep no matter what type of mask he wore. Before the surgery he had another sleep study and the nurse brought in several different masks throughout the night none of which worked. He was wondering if he had made a huge mistake after the surgery because the pain was unreal. Now he does not question his decision and feels better than he's felt in years. He says, "I feel like a new man!" I am so glad. The sleep apnea really disrupted our lives, all of us, something had to give. He could hardly function being that exhausted (and cranky) all the time, us too. It really began to effect his thinking over the last year. Being tired, cranky, and foggy all the time is unacceptable especially when you are a police officer!!!!!

Baby is doing well. 4 teeth popped through just in January alone. He is walking and maneuvering around a little better every day. It's amazing how their little brains take so much in for so long then all the sudden, bang all these great things start happening. He still doesn't like falling though (can't blame him). We ended up going to the mall a few times this week so he could play and walk around where the play area has a rubberized floor. He loved it. He is an only child (so far), and stays home with mommy all the time so he was mesmorized seeing all the kids playing the kids playing. He couldn't take his eyes off all the people either.

I feel pretty good now that my husband is doing better. I have been sleeping in the baby's room so everyone could get maximum rest (if Momma's overly exhausted, the household falls apart, especially with a healing Daddy). My husband was up several times a night and set his alarm for pain meds. Now that he is sleeping better and feeling better I think I may try to sleep in my own bed tonight. Baby who has slept through the night for months has been waking up to nurse a lot since I have been in there with him. Maybe he smells the milk machine, perhaps I snore . . . . . . nah, I'm not even going to go there!

I have been on the Momma Val (not diet), eating less and better regimen. I lost 4 pounds in 2 days. Weird I know. Along with the regimen (not diet) I have been drinking a bunch of tea. Feels good and warms the soul. I like tea. I have been eating some of the Amy's frozen meals. I do from time to time but love them and want to eat them more and more. I am surprised how much I like them, they are vegan and loaded with lots of good stuff. Low in fat and nutrient rich. They are a little pricey and never on sale. My two favorites in the pot pit category are the shepard's pie and the tamale pie. YUM! I love food all around. All kinds, but I do know how to eat healthy and have no problem doing so as long as I'm not pregnant, pmsing, or at the height of breastfeeding which I'm not anymore (still breastfeeding but I am sure it's less production because of the solids). I think I was more hungry in the first 10-11 months breastfeeding than I was during my pregnancy. I just never felt full.

I turn 35 this Saturday. Sad I know. What the heck happened to 34, or 33 for that matter? I don't really mind it anymore. I feel like I've earned it now. I got so much done in my life and waited so long to have kids, I don't mind. I've arrived! Well, at least I've arrived to motherhood. Being a SAHM is a gift. It's the best and the hardest job I've ever had. I love it. Jobs and careers seem so trivial now. Yes, they pay the bills but honestly in a few years the work you do and the people you work with, well, will they ever matter as much as the little person you are raising? Not even comparable. The biggest plus, I can go to work in my pj's, somedays even my underwear (if I am doing laundry and have no clean clothes, or if the last clean outfit I have get's puked, peed, or pooped on, or baby food smeared on it). It's the only job that I could do all greasy, smelly, without a shower, and be overweight and my boss still finds me irresistable.

Despite the 4 pounds. I will eat cake on my birthday!

Yeah, We Got Gas!

And I'm not referring to the beans! Well, almost 4 years ago we bought this house. It's about 25 years old. One thing that we really loved about it was that it had a fireplace. It did look as though the fireplace needed some work though. We have very gradually remodeled the entire house mostly by ourselves but have hired contractors here and there when the job was beyond us. The house is pretty much done but we need to still do the laundry room, touch up around the new sky lights, and the fireplace. So around Thanksgiving my husband finally told me to just go ahead and order some fireplace doors. When we moved in the existing doors were trashed (glass shattered) and they were black and hideous shiny brass. There were beautiful ceramic logs set up in the fireplace but not connected. I figured this was to help sell the house. It worked. We carefully removed the log set and the old doors and the log lighter attached to the gas pipe. Then I cleaned out the fireplace it smelled like fuel so then I had a chimney sweep come to clean the chimney. Lastly, I applied river stones over the ugly red tile and filled in the crevices with grout. I also replaced the steel panels in the back with new panels and faux brick. That was 3+ years ago. The new doors would be a big investment and now that I am a SAHM and we have one income it just kept getting put off. So I ventured out to 3 different fireplace stores and finally found one that I liked and had them order some doors for me. I also asked if they could install the ceramic log set that came with the house but was never attached or used. The day finally came and the doors and logs were installed. The guy was almost done and then asked me if I knew where the secondary gas shut off was for the fireplace. I had never seen one and have seen just about every valve, wire, pipe, etc. in remodeling this house. He looked everywhere, I tried to help. We came up with nothing. So he said that he could complete the install but would not be able to test the fireplace for us. So $800 later, the fireplace still doesn't work. He recommended calling a plumber and said that we may have to rip some walls up to find the valve.

A few days later I called the gas company and asked them what to do. They also told me to call the plumber. I then called the plumber (who is in his 60's and not too eager to drive out for a hidden gas valve). He told me to call the heating and cooling company that we use. So I called them. They told me it would cost $75 even if they couldn't find it. Oh well, we wanted to use the fireplace and wouldn't be able to unless we solved this problem. So today the heating and cooling guy came and searched all over. Then he asked alot of questions. Then he disconnected the log set and cranked up the gas. Whallah, we had gas! He explained that the fireplace guy should have troubleshot to see if there was a problem in the log set. He then said that they should come out and fix it for free. I called the fireplace store and told them that we are up to $875 spent on this fireplace and it still doesn't work, and we're kinda runnin' out of money. They tell me that the installer can come out tomorrow and fix the problem for free. Now I spoke with my sister and my dad who both tell me that they should reimburse me for the $75. I am kind of scared to ask for that but think that it is fair.

I am excited to have the fireplace working. I don't know if I will mention the reimbursement of $75 when the fireplace guy comes tomorrow. I know that we won't use the fireplace that often (gas is pretty expensive and depleting) but it will be nice to actually have it working.