The Gifts That Keep Giving

Well, I have only worked one day this pay period, and I am lucky that it turned out to be a full day. I was scheduled for a half, and one of the teachers asked me to fill in for her instead. Meanwhile, the bills are coming in. I think each of the three credit cards will be about $500 more than I would like to pay. This means about $1500. That should take me until summer to pay off at the rate I am going. With all this talk of lower interest rates ... why aren't MINE any lower???

And so we survived the swim meet this week. Megan went in exhausted, but the other girl was in the same boat, having just come from practice herself, so the two of them dueled it out to the end. Luckily, it was a meter pool, so they cut the 500 down to a 400, and they only had to do 16 laps. They were pretty much neck and neck, but Megan pulled it off at the end. There's one meet tomorrow, but that team doesn't really have anyone. The Big One comes next Friday. At least it should be exciting, win or lose. Too bad there is no official timing at that meet. No Y National times there. Although she has one chance this weekend, on Sunday, at a meet at our own Y, in the 200. I don't know, though, the conditions are not quite right, and I have a feeling she will be the top seed. It's always better to have someone to chase when you're trying to make a time.

Brian pulled the old headache thing again. I hate when he does this so close to the neurologist appointment. He called me yesterday from school at 1:30 and said his ear and head hurt. The nurse said she looked in his ear and thought there was pressure on the eardrum, but no infection. I gave him some triaminic last night but it made no difference, so we went to the doctor today. Now he has rynatan, hopefully that will help. I also bought some liquid motrin so he can take that in the nurse's office and not get sent home all the time with headaches, since he still won't swallow even the smallest of miniature pills.

I took advantage of being at the pediatrician to ask if the neurologist has sent her a letter since our summer appointment. I am still anxious because the radiologist read the chiari area as crowded, so I wanted to see if he said anything to the pediatrician in his letter. Unfortunately, he has not sent a letter, either about Brian's summer visit or, she says, many of her other patients who see him. However, I did read the letter from August 2006, where he said that the brain tonsils, which used to be 8-10mm below the foramen magnum ("big hole") they are now just slightly below. He was happy about this in 2006, and last year I asked if there had been a change since 2006, and he said no, there had not.

My own headache has prevailed since before my birthday. Today, for the first time, I felt some lasting relief. I took advil this morning, but I am beginning to feel like an advil-addict. After lunch I noticed it didn't hurt at all anymore. I hope it lasts. We are going to a funeral for one of the swim girls' dads today, after Megan's practice. He died somewhat unexpectedly when he went for surgery for what has been an ongoing cancer battle for him. It's very sad, unimagineably so. I remember him going in for one of his biggest surgeries, and perhaps one of his first, just one week after Brian's chiari decompression.

Meanwhile, Brian is winding down his piano lesson. I must go without a creative afterthought.

New Car!!

I got it! I got the new car! I don't really know how I managed, but I convinced Kevin to let me get the Accord and keep the Explorer. Although I hate having to spend every third or fourth day at the gas station, filling up for $50 or so a pop, I am also not ready to give up the luxury/convenience/feel of having a big road-hogging V8 SUV either. So in a year that one will be paid off, and we will have it for virtually no additional cost.

The new car is a Honda Accord, and, so far, I love it! It's different in many ways, obviously, but it is so comfortable, cute, and fun to drive. I have driven about 70 miles in it already, and have used 1/4 tank of gas. The thing is that the pin may stay on the 1/4 tank for many more miles, as it seems to do. I will see the benefits when I first go to fill it up. I am so excited!

I took the Explorer yesterday and washed and vacuumed it, had it inspected, then pulled it into the garage and sealed it up there. I will still need it for times of bad weather, when I need to shuttle multiple kids, or if I am going to park it somewhere where I don't want people looking into the car. (Such as last night, when I was lost in Asbury Park! Would not want to be in that situation in a little Accord with the new car tags still all over it.)

And Puff is doing amazingly well. We went and had her stitches out yesterday, and she's happy as can be. All it took to get her over the trauma was a bit of sliced turkey. She stays out a lot more, she plays, she purrs - she is like a new kitten, and she is so beautiful. I tell her that every day. When the tech saw her dumped out onto the table, she even exclaimed, "hello, Beautiful!" Puff obviously knew that meant her, because I call her that every day :-)

So tonight we are going to Bahr's again, for my birthday. That is the best part of January, I get to go to Bahr's twice. But, alas, since we have to drive the Doll, we have to go there to get her - it's such a pain. Then we all cram into one car, which usually means SHE gets the front seat. I am hateful, I know. But it makes the trip twice as long for all of us, being packed in there and having to weave through the streets of the retirement Village to where she lives, nestled amongst the biddies.

Megan had another successful week at swimming, but she had to fight for first place in the 200 IM yesterday! The girl was ahead for the first 100 yards of the 200. When Megan ended up beating her, the girl was so mad she wouldn't even look at Megan, let alone shake her hand. Not good sportsmanship - my theory is that this girl would have been put in the 200 free, but they probably thought Megan would swim it, so they took her out, and she ended up losing the IM instead. I have been noticing no schools have been giving Megan any competition since counties. Her name is in the paper today as having the fastest 200 free time in the conference.

However, if you read a little deeper, you will see that she is no longer in possession of that title. One of the girls in the other county beat Megan's best time at their championship meet last night, by a full second. So Megan is relegated to second, which is also where she is with the 500. Two of the remaining three meets could potentially serve her up her first defeat of the season - either in the 500 at the meet this Tuesday, or in both the 200 and 500 next Friday, when she races the other county's champ. The conference meet on February 9 should be a challenge. If all things line up well, she could get her National times at that meet, with that competition, and probably a 3rd place seed in both events.

Brian continues to be difficult, with his homework retaliation and general belligerence. I have decided to remain hands-off for the rest of the marking period, which I think is only a week or two. If he can handle it, his grades will be unchanged or improved from last time. I already told him if I see anything below a B on there, he is out of luck, and will have to do it my way for the rest of the year. He agreed to that, but we'll see.

So it is not surprising that I am on the fourth day of a headache. And I don't expect my birthday dinner to make that much better. Sometimes, it's barely worth going.