on to May :)

Mia left yesterday, she's already in Sweden. It was so nice having her around, she is a good helper and listener. On Thursday we went to Huntington Beach and had a very lovely time at Ruby's and walking around and "playing" in the ocean.

Today was pretty quiet. Marvin and I sat outside talking and looking at the birds, I found my binoculars and tried to guess who was a finch or a chickadee lol. I made tuna empanadas for dinner, and also pasta primavera for Marvin.

Here's my list of the books I read in April:

Sarah Strohmeyer – The secret lives of fortunate wives
Sarah Addison Allen – The peach keeper

Sarah Strohmeyer – The Cinderella pact
Nora Ephron – I remember nothing
Sarah Strohmeyer – Sweet love
Nancy Thayer – The Hot Flash Club strikes again

Wow lots of Sarah's in my list :)

I hope the month of May is a great one for everybody! Enjoy :)

Happy Birthday Marvin!!!

I wanted to write every day this month to keep up with all the happenings, but with going to the hospital and doing PD for about 7 hours everyday, by the time I get home I am so tired I feel like doing nothing.
Sandy and Tristan are here, and Mia too. They went to the Long Beach Aquarium and to see the whales at sea.
Today is Marvin's birthday and Mia cooked a delicious all Swedish meal, and she and Sandy also made a yummy strawberry pie for dessert. I was very hungry, hospital food is not that great ;)
The nurses that are taking care of Marvin and training us are very nice and helpful. Mazy and Ruth. They really go above their duty sometimes, and is very appreciated.
Tomorrow is Good Friday, Lizzie will be coming after work, and is also graduation day for Marvin and I!!!! We will do an exchange at the hospital and then 3 more at home.
Happy Birthday Marvin, and many more :)
Love you.

Sunday Barbeque

Another nice day weather wise. I didn't get much sleep last night so I felt kind of tired all day. I will be happy when M starts dialysis and hopefully gets to feeling better. Norbert came around 2PM and we all sat outside talking and looking at the birds :) He also planted some plants etc. I cooked asparagus for dinner, and we grilled some thick, juicy steaks. We also had a salad, and ice cream with strawberries for dessert. It was very enjoyable. Tomorrow Norbert and Mia will go do a scenic drive down to Newport, Laguna and Dana Point. I hope they have fun. Marvin and I will go to Kaiser, and I hope they get the dialysis started, then he has an appointment with the urologist. Sandy and Tristan are coming on Tuesday. Norbert and Mia will go pick them up at the Long Beach Airport :)

Hot day

Today was about 85 degrees, it was hot! Mia and I went to SFS to get a new cable box for the TV, happily it works OK now. Marvin is feeling a little better I am happy to report :) Mia and I went to Rite Aide and Marshalls and Taco Bell, later on we went to Costco. As you all know I am not a big shopper and I couldn't find things, Mia found where the stuff was and I followed her :) At night, with a gorgeous full moon, Mia and I had a nice relaxing time in the Jacuzzi. Tomorrow we will have barbecue steak, and have invited Norbert over. And this was the first day of my Spring Break :)

An ER run

Mia came to work with me today (Friday), she now understands what I meant by my having a "busy" class. Julio took a liking to her and kept coming back to her for help lol. We went to Jack in the Box for lunch. In the afternoon after library, we were getting prepared for the Easter egg hunt (we had tons of eggs), when Marvin called asking me to go home to take him to the hospital, which I did. When i got home, we rushed to ER because he had not been feeling well at all. We got there by 2:30 and got home by 9, long stay. He had a bladder infection which was hurting him and he was giving antibiotics and hopefully he will feel better. The doctor also told him he will need to start dialysis this Monday. thanks Nurse Ruth for your help.

Hello again

School was OK, we went on a walk about, from classroom to classroom, so every student K thru 5th can see how each class is doing. It's kind of fun. Today we basically did nothing much, it was an easy day. When I got home I found the TV not working. Mia said Marvin turned it on and only a channel was working, he tried to fix it but had to go to his doctors appointments. I try to fix it but nothing doing! Mia and I got to talking and around 5PM I wondered where Marvin was. His last appointment was at 1:30. I waited longer and was starting to get worried, then Lizzie called and I talked to her, after that I called the PD and asked if he had been there, the nurse said he was late getting there and had left not long ago. I was very relieved. When he got home he was totally tired, with reason, a long day and he is still very sore and in pain. Mia and I went to Stater Bros to get a few groceries, and then to Agrusa's for some italian dinner. Tomorrow Mia is coming to school with me, we are having an Egg Hunt. Marvin needs to get a couple of prescriptions, and then he will be home resting. I will stop by Verizon to get a new box, and see if we can get the TV going :)

Mia & Open House

Today was another busy day. Finished setting up the classroom. Norbert went to LAX to fetch Mia, she was supposed to arrive at 3:05 but there was a little delay, they got home to La Mirada by 5.

I was in school for Open House. It went well, had almost a full house, even a few surprises (ex kindergartners came to visit). Was home by 8.

Mia and I got a little bonding going and then we settle to watch American Idol. She went to bed afterwards as she was tired from the trip and the change of hours. It was very nice to see her again :)

Marvin is feeling pretty tired, he has another iron infusion tomorrow and a visit to his PD doctor, and a flush of his PD catheter, full day for him.

hello

A short note today...work work work...waiting for my sister to get here tomorrow....finished cleaning house and hanging the drapes ...M feeling a little bit better... still way behind at school getting things ready for Open House...I need help lol

Uber tired

Marvin didn't sleep much last night and consequently I didn't sleep that well either. When I went to work we decided he would call the urologist. At work, with Open House looming ahead on Wednesday, I wanted to clean and get things done, but it's almost an impossibility with my class :( I did what I could bit still looks a long way from being ready. I also left at 2:00 because the social worker was coming to inspect the house. When i got home, Marvin told me the urologist said the pain etc were to be expected , hmmmm. We talked about maybe going to ER or Urgent Care after the social worker left. The lady came and she was nice and looked around and asked a lot of questions, she seemed to like the house :) After she left, Marvin and I talked it over again, and decided since the most pressing issue was pain, maybe he should take one of the pain pills the doctor prescribed after surgery (which he didn't need). So he took one and lay down, and I went to the dry cleaners to get the drapes for his room. I haven't hung them yet because it's hard to do by myself. Maybe tomorrow I'll have more energy. Then I went to the store to get a couple of items and then came home to cook dinner, chicken and mashed potatoes for Marvin and empanadas for me (I used the dough that's supposed to bake rather than fry, but I didn't realize it until I had done them all. They were a little different, not that great. I then put the dishes in the dishwasher, took the trash out, and cleaned the kitchen. Now I think I will be in the computer for a while watching DWTS. Marv is feeling better from the pain, but still a bit out of it. I hope tomorrow will be better.

Sunday, Sunday

Today was a lovely day, weather wise. I made pancakes and bacon for breakfast, and then just kept on straightening things around. In the afternoon Norbert came over to help organize the garage so we could put the SSR inside. Marvin and I were outside helping as we could. We also cleaned the Jacuzzi and the fountain and filled them up. It was a good day's work. After that, Norbert and I went to put gas in the car and also stopped by Loews's and bought some flowers to plant. Back home, I got dinner ready...carbonades flamande over noodles, roasted vegetables, fresh French bread, and apple strudel. It was good, but I think he liked Marvin's meals better lol, but he ate quite a bit, as usual. Marvin was feeling weak but fine in the daytime, but as night time came, he was getting cold and was hurting. He's going to try to go to the doctor to have his catheter removed (not the PD one). And tomorrow, the social worker is coming over to check the premises, I hope she finds everything OK.

Merry cleaning

The Merry maids were supposed to come from 10-12, but at 7AM the phone woke me up and they said they would be there in half an hour! I was still half sleep so i said OK. I went to wake up Marvin and he was not too happy about it and later said it screwed up his whole day schedule. I got the little ladder and we took the drapes from his room down, just as I finished, here comes the 2 merry maids who were anything but merry. I told them exactly what to do and they kept asking, is that all? They started with the bigger bathroom, then they went to Marvin's room, then they went out the backdoor wtf? they said they didn't know where the other bathroom was although I had shown it to them when they first came in. OK so they did the little bathroom. In the meantime, I went to check the rooms they did and I was not too pleased, they didn't clean the windowsills, they didn't move things off the wall and I told them to please vacuum and clean again those spots. And so on. They finally left and we decided next time we'd use a different service. I went to take the drapes to the dry cleaners, they said they'd be done Tuesday. Went back home and did some washing etc and left for my hair appointment. I like my hair color, is warm chocolate with lighter highlights. It's cut in a bob style, I think it looks cute, at least today it does! Marvin is still feeling pretty tired and had a nap or two. We both had a light lunch and for dinner we had...McDonalds! Did I mention I have had mcnuggets cravings for the past couple of weeks??? Tomorrow Norbert is coming to help stack boxes in the garage, and to drain the Jacuzzi and fill it up etc. In exchange, I am cooking late lunch. Because it has been pretty chilly, I am making Carbonades Flamande. We'll see how it turns out :)

It's cold! brrrrrr

We are really having weird weather. Not as bad as snow in April like Tristan said, but quite chilly at this time of the year in SoCal. So far we've had record heat, record cold and record rain, and record winds. My kids come to school with tank tops and shorts one day, and with snow coats and hats the next. There is now snow in the mountains again and the air is chilly. Luckily by next week they are predicting nice weather :) Today has been a rather uneventful day, went to work and the kids were halfway OK, then I tried to organize my class for next week's Open House, but I always get sidetracked and end up with more of a mess than when I start. Then I got home and did more organizing, especially Marvin's room and the 2 bathrooms, so when the Merry Maids come they can get right at work. Marvin was not feeling too well. I think he's feeling the surgery more now that the area is getting more tender. It's uncomfortable to sleep at night, plus of course being severely anemic he gets very tired. Hopefully he'll be feeling better tomorrow. By the way, I looked in the computer for remedies for leg cramps at night, and one of the things I thought was easy to do, was to put a bar of soap under the bottom sheet. Strangely enough it seems to have helped a little because he said last night he didn't have any severe cramps. Or maybe is just a coincidence, but I hope it helps. Try it Mia, see what it does for you. Tomorrow afternoon I am going to have my hair colored and cut. I hope it comes out OK :) Have a nice weekend everybody.

American Idol and other reality shows

I enjoyed yesterday's Rock'n'Roll show, I think they all did well. Generally speaking, my top 3 would be James, Scotty, and Casey. My 3 low choices are Jacob, Stephano and Pia. Pia and Jacob are good singers but I don't care so much for their style. So today they had the results, I am not going to say who got the boot because Mia reads my blog and she doesn't want to know, but I was surprised. Another show I enjoy is America's Top Model, those girls are bitchy! Other reality shows I currently like are: All the cooking shows like Top Chef, Sharks, The Amazing Race, The Celebrity Apprentice (the current one is funny!), Undercover Boss and Secret Millionaire, Dancing with the Stars (sometimes). Oh I like Hoarders too lol. So yes, I like reality type shows better than regular shows. But I like Glee and Raising Hope and The Big Bang Theory too. I guess I am not crazy about dramas. In the home front, M went to have his iron infusion and he is doing well, unfortunately at night sometimes he gets leg cramps that are pretty painful. And I went back to school to find a note my sub left me, saying my kids hyper, disrespectful, didn't listen etc etc. No surprise here! He had written the names of the "worse kids" on the board. It was full with about 11 names out of 24 with comments like: he ran away, he lied, he pushed a girl, he kissed a girl, she wouldn't stop talking, they didn't listen to me.......grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Mini meltdown

Well, it's official: I am a wimp! Today we went back to Kaiser to get M's catheter flushed, and when it came time to put on a mask, I couldn't get it right and when I finally had it right I started to hyperventilate and felt like I was going to pass out. They sent me out of the room and I cried. It may have been stress, or maybe I was thinking about my phobia of masks (Tia Socorro). We went later to have another catheter placed for a different purpose. I have to say M is doing super well, he's sore and tired, but doesn't complain and everything is going well,. After all he's been through I am proud of the way he's taking it in stride :) And here's another anecdote about my being stressed (or being a dummy) lol. I went to the store to get some groceries after we came home from the hospital. I was driving the pick up and I have some trouble opening and closing the door with the automatic opener. So when I got to the store, I locked the door manually. When I came back with the groceries, I clicked the opener and it wouldn't work, I clicked and clicked and clicked some more and was getting upset. A nice man drove by and stopped and asked me if I had locked my keys inside, I said no, I had the keys but maybe the battery was low. It never occurred to me to put the key in the lock and try to open it that way. I kept clicking and was totally aggravated when I noticed....I was using my Mustang keys instead!!!!!!!

The longest day

We left home at 6:30AM on our way to Kaiser Hospital for Marvin's OP catheter laparascopic surgery, we had to be there by 7:3o for pre op. They said it would take about 2 hours, and they would call me when he was ready. I went downstairs to the cafeteria, and had a Pepsi and played with the iPad for a while. Went back upstairs and he was all ready in his cubicle waiting for surgery (scheduled at 10:30). Well the time came and went and still no surgery...I went to ask what was the hang up and was told the doctor was doing another surgery that was taking longer than expected. Marvin was having bad legs cramps and I was taught to grab his toes and push to relieve the pain. Around 12, they came to take him to surgery. They said it would be a couple hours and then the doctor would come and talk to me, then there was 2 more hours mandatory post op, and after that maybe an hour more to make sure everything was OK. At that time, rather than wait around the cafeteria, I decided to walk to Jack in the Box for lunch. It was quite a walk, for me, but it was good to be outside, it was a warm breezy day so it was nice. I had a spicy chicken sandwich and the 2 tacos for .99 cents. It had been a while since I had them and I enjoyed them :) I went back to the waiting room and they said he was still in surgery, the waiting room was quite crowded, so I went to the "Meditation Room" which was empty, and read my book (The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen). Later on I went back to the waiting room and they called my name and Dr Crabtree came to talk to me, he was very nice, holding my hand, taking a cursory look at what I was doing (playing "Angry Birds" in the iPad) that made him chuckle a little. He explained everything went well and he was doing fine. I like him, he's very nice and comforting. So he said he was in post op and I could see him after 2 hours. So I went back to the cafeteria because they have a nice outside area with tables and umbrellas, and had a chocolate milk and assorted nuts, and read some more. Finally I went up again and they let me in, and they said he was ready to go. He was still a bit drowsy and tired looking, so I went downstairs to the Pharmacy to get some pain meds and by the time I got back, he was all dressed and ready to go :) And now, back at home, after a delicious dinner of chicken broth and Jell-o, we are both ready for bed. It's been a long day!

Another day

Back to work today, I wanted to get a few things done since I am taking off Tuesday and Wednesday, and next week is Open House and Mia is coming and I don't have much time to prepare. However I got almost nothing accomplished. It's hard to try to clean and put things away with all the lil monsters acting up lol. I did write my lesson plans for my sub (good luck to him!)

I was tired when I got home so I had a nap.

Marvin and I talked after dinner (KFC) about tomorrow and what to expect etc. There'll be quite a bit of waiting around for me, so I am taking my iPad, I just learned they have wifi but I also have an Internet connection, I will also take a couple of books.

Marv is feeling a bit apprehensive -he's never had surgery before-. I think women are more used to it because of childbirth etc. I had thyroid surgery in Twin Falls, ID when Sandy was about 2 years old. I had a lump in my neck which I felt one night while I was reading in bed. We went to the doctor and he told Marvin that if I was his wife he would take me to the hospital right away, which we did the next day. Luckily the lump was benign, but I still have a scar around my neck. Of course I also was in the hospital when I had my two daughters. And then the last time was when I had a car accident, when the car turned over in black ice. I broke my left ankle and shattered the bones, I was hospitalized for a few days. I am posting a picture of me sitting at home with my leg in a cast :) That was about 30+ years ago.

I will let you know tomorrow how everything went with Marvin's surgery.

Sunday

We slept late today, then I made breakfast : waffles and bacon. It was good. After that I went back to my cleaning, this time I emptied some of the drawers and straightened up others. Later on I went to the Jacuzzi. I had filled the hummingbird feeders and was hoping I would see some feeding. Sure enough, I had been soaking for a few minutes when here comes a tiny hummingbird. After drinking for a while, it went to the fountain and had a little bath, I wish I had my camera because it was really cute. Other birds were feeding from the regular bird feeders, they are small pretty songbirds, some with red chests and yellow collars. I don't know what they are called :) We went for an early dinner to the Panda Inn. We had moo shoo pork and crispy fish with green beans in a spicy sauce. Very good. It was a nice day.

Spring cleaning

I got a new computer monitor, it's cool!

Today I decided I needed to make some room in the guest room closet, so when Mia comes to visit she has some place to put her clothes. That closet is the largest one in the house, and most of my clothes and shoes are there. The closet in my room is not very big, in it I keep my everyday school clothes etc.

Well I guess I am a little "hoarder". Marvin said that even though I say I don't like to go shopping, I have accumulated quite a closetful of clothes. My problem is I have trouble discarding stuff, Sandy and Lizzie are good at it, but I seem to keep things for a long time, to the point that I am surprised to find some stuff I even forgot I had.

One thing I know I buy a lot is shoes. Since the time I broke my foot in a car accident in Twin Falls, I have trouble finding shoes that are comfortable. I cannot wear heels, so all I have are flats. When I find a pair that fits right, I buy them. But then i keep on wearing the same comfortable pair until it falls apart.

Tomorrow I will tackle the chest of drawers drawers :)

April

Another of my beautiful roses

I noticed I had not written much in March, so I will try to post more often in April. Blogging is a very good way to keep in touch with family but also is a good way to keep track of events in one's life.

I am looking forward to meeting Mia, and then having Sandy and Tristan and Lizzie visit over Spring Break. Also I think Marvin's family will come over one day when everybody's here. On Tuesday, Marvin and I will go to Kaiser to get the peritoneal catheter surgery. After that we'll probably have some training and start the dialysis. The surgeon is very personable and explained everything really well. Another thing happening this month, is our school Open House, my last one. Sort of bittersweet, I have come to terms with retiring especially with the class I have this year, and with all the education budget problems (less pay, bigger classes etc.), plus the home situation and my age, it is the right time to retire.

And now, a list of the books I read in March :)

Jen Lancaster - My Fair Lazy

Jennifer Ross - The Icing on the Cupcake

Sarah Strohmeyer - The Sleeping Beauty Proposal

Caren Lissner & others - Scenes from a holiday

Steve Martin – An Object of Beauty (half)

Nancy Thayer – Everlasting

Judith Rossner – Olivia