The Halloween Festivities

I hate the smell of pumpkin guts, I hate the feel of pumpkin guts, in a nutshell, I hate pumpkin guts. But my child goes to school now and they tell her all of these things that a parent is supposed to do with their children on Halloween. So I sucked it up and took one for the team and carved the stupid pumpkin. She was supposed to help, but didn't. Cause guess what?? Like me, she hates the smell of pumpkin guts and hates the feel of pumpkin guts. There's those damn sensory issues rearing their ugly heads again. Only this time, it is to my benefit. Caitlyn said we should have just painted the pumpkin. So next year, that is precisely what we shall be doing.


And here is the finished product. At least it does in fact resemble what a pumpkin should look like. Those people that do all those fancy things with their pumpkins....well, they must have loads of patience and forearm muscles from hell. Because after scooping for only 15 minutes I thought my arms were going to fall off.

We awake this morning to screeches of glee that it is Halloween and there is a party at school and a parade at school and she FINALLY gets to wear her costume.



And I could understand why she would want to cause holy shit does she look adorable in it.

Of we go to trick or treating this evening. And of course it rains becuase it hasn't rained all day. Luckily the temperature wasn't too awful so we were able to stay out and play in the rain. Paired with begging for candy and getting it, what could be better in life for a 4 year old??

And on the second day, the Lord created...

Here is my confession of the day (or year). I can count on one hand the number of times that Caitlyn has been in a church. Not that I am against it or anything, but Sunday is a day of rest in the land of the Walshes. I just can never muster up the strength and energy to get up early to go to church. And to have to figure out an additional days worth of clothing for Caitlyn and I is really a task.

My 16 year old cousin has attended a church down the street from me for about 6 or so years. I really don't even know what religion this church is. Matt and I often refer to it as "The Cult." Not that they are like Jamestown or anything, but sometimes my cousin has some views on things that she has learned from this church that just strike me as odd. Granted it could be that she is now 16 and has her own views, who knows. Anyhow, she is there every Friday night for "group." Seems very similar to Awana when she has described it to me. Her younger sister, whom my mother now also has custody of, was going with her this past Friday. So naturally, Caitlyn wanted to go as well. After discussin it with the 16 year old, she assured me that there was a group of children there in the 3-4 year old group and that Caitlyn would have a wonderful time.

Off they went.

I get a call about 2 hours after they have gotten there from a luaghing 16 year old. Imagine my child, who again has very little exposure to any religion, sitting in a small group discussing religion. Here is the conversation my cousin tell sme ensues...

Teacher: Does anyone know what God created on the second day? (they had already discussed his very busy first day)

Students: raising hands in the air shouting I know I know I know, my daughter included

Teacher: Caitlyn what do you think God created on the second day?

Caitlyn: Well he created the sun.

Now, I know I am a teacher, and I know my child is brilliant, but who in the world has taught her some of the things that she knows??? Cause it sure as hell HAS NOT been me or Matt. I mean honestly, is this something that they are now talking about on Sesame Street? I am really at a loss as to where she would have gotten this info from and retained it no less.
Of course when she gets home I ask her about how she knew this information and who gave it to her. Her response is very clear and makes perfect sense to me (I think)

"I just thought about it in my brain mommy and knew that was the answer."

Needless to say, next Friday she wants to go again......and Matt and I are now part of "The Cult."

They actually did it!!!

Hard to believe but true. I am so excited that a Chicago team has actually won some sort of championship game. Since the Bulls stopped being "Da Bulls" we haven't had a decent team around here in quite a while. Witht he exception of the Cubs. Yes they have had a couple good season in the last few years....and well, that always ends poorly.



Matt and I decided that we were happy not to be living in our old neighborhood on the southside last night. I can only imagine how loud and insane it must have been down there last night!





GO SOX!!!!

3-0

WOW!!! I am so not a baseball fan. But holy cow, who would have thought that a Chicago team could actually make it to the World Series, much less have a 3 game lead (by the end of the 3rd game no less). I am amazed and so excited to think that they may actually win this thing.

Now, next year belongs to the Cubs (say it with me, maybe it will make it actually happen)

Survey says.....

All of the girl's bloodwork came back within normal limits. How this is possible with all the symptoms this kid is showing, I have no idea. And to be honest, I really don't give a shit. I am just thrilled to death that my little girlie isn't suffering from such a debilitating disease. And now my husband can stop beating himself up over the issue. I have been elated for the last few hours since I found out and pretty much plan on staying that way for several more hours. I have a sugared up kid to prove it too...LOL

The first thing Caitlyn said to me after I told her that her blood test came back perfect was.....

"That means I can have all the snacks I want and cookies too?!?!"

See we had the discussion about if we test her blood and the number is too high then she wouldn't be able to have certain snacks. What I thought was conversation that was over her head and would really take her a while to absorb and understand, it turns out that she "got it" the entire time.

Tough Weekend

Good news first....Matt's football team has won their conference and they are now in the playoffs. The goal is to win the next 4 (or 5 I can't remember) games and he will coach his team at Soldier Field. To say that he would be ecstatic would be the understatment of the year. I think if he were given the opportunity to do this, he would die a very happy man. So keeps fingers and all other appendages crossed that he makes it and his team does well over the next month.

Now on to Caitlyn's business. Lately she has been peeing like a madwoman and having some accidents and doesn't even realize that they are happening. She has also been wetting the bed every night and a few nights ago actually wet it twice in one night. And when I say accident and wet, I really mean saturate. It is an extroadinary amount of urine that she expels. She has also been constantly telling me that she is thirsty. Now normally this wouldn't bother me, but she actually uses that word instead of just asking for some juice or milk or whatever. The fact that she is telling me how very thirsty she is has led Matt and I to a very frightening thought.

All of these things are symptoms of diabetes. Because her father has it, she is obviously at risk. So on Satuday morning, we decided to test her blood sugar just to put Mom's mind at ease and prevent her from automatically jumping to the wrong conclusion. (as I sometimes have a tendency to do) Lo and behold, the number that appeared was one that about stopped my heart....156. Norm range for healthy person, 80-120. So although it is not much higher than the norm, it is high none the less. Meaning that there is something going on in that little body of hers. So on the phone to the ped's office to get an apoointment for Monday am so that they can run blood work. Down side to that, she must fast.

Fast forward to Monday, today, and a starving girl who has not been able to eat or drink for damn near 15 hours. The doc was visibly unnerved by the number that we got on Saturday (on Sunday morning when we tested it was 80 which has me thoroughly confused). He is also concerned with the fact that she is peeing so very much and asking for fluids. He has drawn some blood and will be running a host of tests on it. The most important test that he will be looking at is the A1C. This will basically give him an idea of what her blood sugars have been in the past and whether or not she has been having high blood sugars. It may also look for unusual lows, I'm not exactly sure.

So we are now in the wait and see stage. We have had to do that so many times in this little girls 4 short years that when I hear those words, I want to hot the person saying them. Hopefully we will have some answers by tomorrow, Wednesday at the latest. When all is said I done, I just want him to say that it was a fluke, but my gut is telling me something much different from that.

I am losing my Patients

You know, it's funny how difficult the English language really is. It is amazing to me that people manage to learn it as a second language and even more amazing that it just comes so naturally to so many of us. Things like bow...how many of you read that as bow as in something that goes in hair or bow as in bending your body in half? Yet, we all figure it out and it is simple for most of us.

Well, I am sure that for a child, the learning process that goes on while they are hearing and speaking all of these words, is tremendous. And every now and again, they show you that it really doesn't just come naturally. Sometimes they need to understand that there are words known as Homophones. Words that sound alike, but have 2 different spellings and meanings. But can you really explain a homophone to a 4 year old? No. They just have to take your word for it that you know what you are talking about despite the fact that what you just said has a completely different meaning to them than it
did for you.

Take for example the scenario in my house last night....
Caitlyn is being her usual self and driving me crazy before bed. Not wanting to pick up her toys, not wanting to come by me so I can bathe her, not wanting to basically do anything that I tell her to. Naturally, voices get raised and a pouting child is the end result with some whimpering (on both our parts).

Mom: "Caitlyn come over here now."
Caitlyn: "Mom I just....."
Mom: "Caitlyn, I am losing my patience."
Caitlyn" crying at this point "But you're not even a doctor."

Fight over, Mom laughs and hugs child and says come on goofy let's go take a bath. Does she know why I was no longer aggravated? No. Did I explain the difference between patience and patients? No. Why? Cause that probably would have ended up in another power struggle between the two of us and I just wanted to laugh at the moment. (and get her ass in bed.)

11 Rules to Life

I have seen this before. It has actually been passed around as some speech that Bill Gates supposedly gave. In truth it is from the book "Dumbing Down our Kids." Regardless of where it came from, I think it speaks volumes and should be given to all kids in school so that they could actually learn from it. Not like I am some wise parent or anything, but I think there are important things to be said in this.

RULE 1
Life is not fair - get used to it.

RULE 2
The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world
will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel
good about yourself.

RULE 3
You will NOT make 40 thousand dollars a year right out
of high school. You won't be a vice president with
car phone, until you earn both.

RULE 4
If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a
boss. He doesn't have tenure.

RULE 5
Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your
grandparents had a different word for burger flipping
they
called it Opportunity.

RULE 6
If you mess up,it's not your parents' fault, so don't
whine about your mistakes, learn from them.

RULE 7
Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as
they are now. They got that way from paying your bills,
cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about
how cool you are. So before you save the rain forest
from the parasites of your parent's generation, try
delousing the closet in your own room.


RULE 8
Your school may have done away with winners and losers,
but life has not. In some schools they have abolished
failing grades and they'll give you as many times as
you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the
slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.

RULE 9
Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get
summers off and very few employers are interested in
helping you find yourself. Do that on your own time.

RULE 10
Television is NOT real life. In real life people
actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

RULE 11
Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for
one.

It's Tough Being Her

I am not an ideal parent. I have had my share of screw ups with this child. Suffice it to say, that there are some things I have done that surprise me she has lived through them. Like the time that I hit her so hard in the head with my wedding ring that the child actually bled. This was of course on accident.

Not being the ideal parent, sometimes things come out of my mouth around her that really shouldn't. We all remember her favorite word for a while was none other than fuck. So when she is having a "melt down" or throwing a tantrum, I often look at her very unemotionally and say "It really isn't easy being Caitlyn is it." Of course there is a little sarcasm in my voice and I should probably talk to her to see what the problem is. But she always manages to pull this at very inopportune moments...like when I am in line at the grocery store or something.

The other day, she fell or did something else that caused her grief. I go into her bedroom to ask her what is wrong cause I can hear the ever famous I am acting like I am crying sound so that someone, anyone, will come to rescue me. She looks at me and says....

"Sometimes it's not easy to be me right Mommy?"

Busy Weekend

Seems we never really got a chance to relax all weekend, and I have the messy house and laundry to prove it.
Friday we went to Six Flags Great America. Every year, my brother's complany rents out the park for a private party. It is wonderful because all the lines are a fraction of what they normally are. This is the first time that we brought Caitlyn with us and she had an absolute ball. Of course, I forgot my camera at home, so I didn't get a single picture of her enjoying the hell out of the roller coasters that she was bog enough to go on. They have a roller coaster called "The Whizzer" and this child would have spent the entire night riding this thing if I would have allowed it. Thank goodness she has my genes and loves roller coasters. She was so upset that she couldn't go on the larger ones that went upside down.

Saturday we just ran around most of the day doing errands and such. Matt and I went to see The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Can I just say holy shit was that a good movie. And I will be haunted by the images of it forever, just like I am of The Exorcist. I hate those movies, but feel compelled to see them...must be the masochist in me.

Today we had our NICU reunion and it was a wonderful day. It is the first that they have had since our "graduation." It was so nice seeing all the doctors and nurses that took care of my wee one. And it was nice seeing them in a setting which didn't entail my begging and pleading for answers LOL. Today I remembered my camera and got some pictures. The best part of the day was that we saw some of the families that were there the same time as us that we have lost touch with. Here's a few snapshots from that. The first pic is a girl that is also a 25 weeker and about a month younger than Cate. The second is a boy that is a 26 weeker and is also about a month younger. Both of these families had a significant impact on ours lives in one way or another so it was wonderful to see them and the little ones again.

What job should you really be doing?

Took this right off of Cath's Blog

What Job Should You Really Be Doing?

Here's the answer it gives me with my married name....
Nancy Walsh, Your ideal job is a drag queen.

And for the maiden name....
Nancy Chirempes, Your ideal job is a Heavyweight Boxer.

Hmmmmmm....I am thinking a career change may be in order.

But on the flip side, if I put in Caitlyn's name with her middle name, she has the best job of all...
Caitlyn Mackenzie Walsh, Your ideal job is a God for everyone.
I always knew this child was destined for greatness, I just never imagined it to that extent.

Caitlyn had a wonderful first day of school.  She didn't sleep well last night cause she was so excited.  So waking her up this morning was no treat.  But once up and going, she was rearing to go!

Parents are encouraged to stay with the kids the first day, so it was really crowded in the room.  Caitlyn, being who she is, would have done fine if I wasn't there at all.  Seemed all she wanted to do was include me in the activities that they were doing and I had to keep telling her to just play with her friends and listen to the teacher.  She did everything that they told her to do and got in the swing of the routine very quickly.  She played in the sand table, on the computer, and "wrote" in her journal.  Which the journal writing thing I think is a very cool idea and may have to pass it along to some of the Early Childhood teachers that I know. 

They also have a program to encourage reading to your children.  The fact that a program has to be in place for this is something that I truly don't understand.  Reading to Caitlyn has been part of our day since she was in the NICU.Before she could even open her eyes, we were reading to her in her isolette.  So they give the kids a book from their library every day and it is supposed to be read to them.  Then the parent fills out a form to send back to school.  The teacher and aide will ask the child to tell them about the book the next day.  The only interferrence this is really going to have in our lives is that Caitlyn will probably be irritated that she can't pick out one of her own books to be read to her at night.  So essentially, I know that I am now going to be reading more than one book at bedtime with this child. 

She keeps telling people that she got "homework" because she has this library book in her backpack now.  And she is terribly excited about that fact.  Give her a couple years and she will be pissed off when she has to carry books home in her backpack.  But for now, I am letting her enjoy the hell out of it :)

And for the wardrobe for the day, Caitlyn chose to wear the rainbow sundress.  Which is one of my favorites so all was well...and she was one of the cutest kids in the class if I do say so myself ( not that I am biased or anthing).

Tomorrow is the big day

My wee one is starting PreK tomorrow. Makes me a little sad, yet I am happy that she is going. I get to go with her tomorrow. They have the kids come in groups MOnday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, with the parents. And then on Thursday, the kids are finally all brought together as a group....without parents. I am pretty certain that Caitlyn will be dandy while she is there. Though, she could always turn on a dime and flip out for all we know. So I have been prepping her all last week that she is starting school at the "big girl school" on Tuesday.

My baby is getting bigger and bigger and bigger. I actually bought her size 4T pants that don't fall off of her when she walks. And I bought her some new shirts and they were size.....5!!!!! Is it possible that this child's growth is actually catching up to her age??

Now on to the real dilemma at hand....what is she going to wear tomorrow and Thursday so that she is just the cutest kid in the classroom ROFL!!!

Gas Prices

I really don't think that any further explanation on this one is necessary.

TV or TB Test

Caitlyn needed to have a TB test done in order to start PreK in September. This irritates me as she had one done last August in order to start at her former preschool and the new school will not accept those results as they will be over a year old. Mind you, the pediatrician is about a 57 minute drive from my house. You may be asking why I don't have a pediatrician that is closer...well I believe I posted about the nutjob of a doctor that I ended up with the last time I tried to switch, so I am sticking with what works and dealing with the trek at the moment.

So as Caitlyn does NOT like surprises, I have been prepping her about going to the doc for this TB test for about 2 days. Finally, the night before the test, she asks me if she needs to get a shot. This is when I break it to her that the TB test is actually a shot. And then I wait for the wailing to ensue. However, it does not. Caitlyn very calmly says to me...

"Mommy, why do I need a TV test? I know how to watch TV."

Needless to say, all that prepping that I did, yeah that was thrown right out the window as she obviously had no clue whatsoever about what I was speaking of for the last 2 days.

She fell in the toilet....again

Onl this time it was face first. Through my tears of laughter I managed to tell her that she was going to be ok and that it happens to all of us. Though I think the only time my face has been in a toilet has been after an evening of embibing in too many spirits. Imagine a very tired girl, who has had no nap all day, and it is almost 1 am. We had just gotten home from my mom's block party and I was getting the girl ready for bed. I tell her to try going potty and as she is struggling to get her panties off, she falls forward...and, well, the arm splashed in, the head went into the bowl, and the screaming (on her part) ensued, the laughing on my part began as well. I can only imagine that she made the situation that much more terrifying by screaming INTO the bowl and the echoing off the ceramic must have been horrifying. Once she was taken out and cleaned up, she was off to bed.

The next morning when I mentioned it to her, I know I am a glutton for punishment, she told me "No mommy, only my butt fell in last time." SO needless to say, she forgot about it and thinks it never happened. I think we are all better people because of that.

She hates babies

Yeah, so that's a pretty harsh statement. But it is exactly what she told me last night as we were sitting on the couch watching some TV. Caitlyn is always telling people that she wants me to have another baby, and of course it must be a girl, there will be NO little brothers according to her plan. She has even gone so far as to tell people that I currently have a baby in my belly. So last night's comments were a shock to say the least.

I said to her that it wasn't nice to say that she hated babies, there is no reason to hate them afterall. And she replies:

"But they cry all the time and give me a headache." (hello child, welcome to the nightmare that is one of your tantrums)

So I then say that if she hates babies, what would happen if mommy had another baby, would she hate it?

"No mommy. I only hate other people's babies."

I tell her that it's really not a nice thing to say. Babies can't help it if they cry, that's really all they know how to do. Well, cry and shit.

"Mommy, stop asking me questions abotu babies. I'm just crabby and don't want to talk about it."

Alrighty then, enough said.

Have you ever fallen into the toilet?

Caitlyn did last night. For those of you who have seen my little girlie, she is skinny, and has a skinny little butt. We are working on staying dry throughout the night and not wearing a pull up anymore. She has done so very well and has made me awfully proud. Well every night before she gets into bed, I tell her to try going pee. Last night she was being goofy and acting silly as she was walking. She enters the bathroom still being silly with me, I turn on the running water as it helps the process along, and caitlyn gets herself up on the potty.

Mom hears a scream, looks down, the kid is folded in half inside the toilet screaming.

Yes I proceed to laugh my ass off as I am pulling her out of the toilet. She is now crying hysterical and I am certain that ALL progress we have made with staying dry through the night as well as the day are surely "down the toilet." I calm her down and tell her that it is okay and she stops crying.

Here's where Caitlyn went wrong. As she was being goofy, she forgot to put on the little Elmo seat that fits on top of the larger toilet seat enabling her to sit comfortably.

Again, I replay the event in my head and start laughing hysterically. To which, Caitlyn begins laughing as well. We call Dad upstairs and she relives the funny experience to him as well.

Off to bed we go, but first, I need her to pee. I tell her to try before going to bed. She marches in the bathroom and screams, "I am not going to forget my Elmo seat this time because my butt is too small and it will fall into the water again."

She pees and is off to bed with a dry butt.

(Side note, 4th night in a row that she has managed to stay dry throughout the night...woooohoooo for us!)

The vacation has ended

It is true. Sadly. After 5 weeks of lounging and convinicing myself that I still had time to complete all of the things that I had not yet completed, my vacation has come to an end as of yesterday. Here's a quick recap of what "my summer vacation" consisted of:
1. sleeping until just about 10 am everyday
2. lounging around the house
3. doing laundry in the middle of the day when I had the energy to do so
4. going to the mall to shop in the early afternoon hours when the majority of the people there are over 50 years of age
5. having Caitlyn all to myself all day long (this was both a good and bad thing for both of us)
6. hanging out on mom's pool deck knowing that I didn't have to rush home to do anything or worry about getting home to get Cate to bed so that she wasn't cranky as hell in the morning
7. staying up until at least midnight or 1 am every night.

Now, there was some more productive things accomplished over the vacation. For example, I finally got around to printing up some of the pictures off of my camera's memory card. Mind you they have been on there since before we moved into our new house. Ummmm yeah, that was May of 2004. So yes, it has been a really large task. I also managed a small vacation with some of my girlfriends. We ended up in Twin Lakes Wisconsin for the Country Thunder event. Basically this is the Woodstock of country music. 5 days to myself and my friends, pure bliss. Other than that, there really wasn't much more accomplished other than the mundane tasks of everyday living that I was able to complete without being so damn tired after a full day of working.

It was horrible waking up yesterday, horrible leaving Caitlyn, and horrible working all day. But I figured as long as I am able to get through that first day back, the rest will be gravy right?

Wrong.

This morning was even worse. I woke up 33 minutes later than normal. So that automatically sets you off on the wrong foot. Luckily Cate was still asleep when I left so I didn't have that hurdle to jump again. However, when I stopped for gas, well let's just say that the owner of the station will be receiving a call from myself tonight. I am pissed off enough that I have to pay around $2.60 per gallon as it is, then to have it spew all over my hand is enough to send me into a tail spin. I calm down and enter the station and ask if I can use the restroom to wash my hands. Now clearly it is evident why I am needing to wash my hands. Not is my hand shining from all of the gas on it, but I stink to high heaven now because of it. The gentleman, who is on the phone thoroughly engaged in his own life, tells me that I can't use the private restroom that they have due to insurance reasons. Now correct me if I am wrong, but if I happen to pass out or die from the smell of the fumes on my hand, how would their insurance company feel about a lawsuit?? I am thinking allowing me to use the sink is the wiser of the 2 choices. But the man stands firm in his decision and offers me a towel to wipe my hands. Ever had gas on you??? A towel really isn't going to cut it. Now completely enraged I know that I must think quickly. I must piss this man off more than he has managed to piss me off. AHA!!!

I go to one of the shelves (it's one of those quick mart stations) and pick up a bottle of Dawn dish detergant that is for sale. Walk over to the Soda fountain and begin washing my hands using the water that so slyly comes out of the back of one of the pops. At this, the other patrons in the station begin snickering. One of them even said through his giggles, you really should have just let her use the bathroom. When I am done and I am sure that there is only a trace of the scent of gasoline on my hands, I walk to the counter and hand him back his dish soap, thank him kindly, and tell him that the owner will hear from me.

So I am thinking that this week can't can worse....right???? It can't and if I keep saying to myself over and over (and over) again, I will eventually start to believe it.

The 4 Year Pictures

Here they are. How cute is she!!!