Category Archives: Health

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: September 26, 2011

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY September 26, 2011

Outside my window… dark. I blanked on doing this until 11:45 p.m.

I am thinking… that I hate Lion Brand Homespun. Just sayin’.

I am thankful… that Daniel decided not to scream until 11 tonight.

From the learning rooms… Daniel is working on walking, fine motor skills, and some signing.

In the kitchen… kitchen? What kitchen? Oh yes, I got my copy of the book of breakfast food from Peggy and there are some recipes I’m dying to make from it.

I am wearing… charcoal shirt and boxers.

I am creating… this entry and some emergency crocheting.

I am going… to shut down the TV once Pauley Perette is done on Leno.

I am wondering… if there was a baby yarn that would have worked better for what I’m doing than Lion Brand Homespun.

I am reading… the Lumby books. What can I say? I’m not feeling A.J. Jacobs at the moment.

I am hoping… my joints hold up until my crocheting project(s) are done.

I am looking forward to… the zoo trip that got rescheduled to Friday.

I am hearing… Leno and the cats being nocturnal.

Around the house… next question.

One of my favorite things… mango-pineapple smoothies from McDonalds. (Hello breakfast for tomorrow!)

A few plans for the rest of the week… the insane Tuesday gamut of speech and physical therapy, occupational therapy on Thursday, and assorted errands.

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

7 Quick Takes — First World Problems, Sick Kids, Cats, and NaNo Prep

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7 Quick Takes

–1–

grumblegrumblegrumblegrumble Rachel the red-headed she-devil won Big Brother grumblegrumblegrumblegrumble. I’m sure she’s a nice person in her own right and she won it because she played her butt off but she was still obnoxious and catty.

–2–

I have a TV dilemma on Tuesdays. I just got addicted to NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles. The problem: it’s the same slot as The Biggest Loser and I don’t have the benefit of TIVO. I’m thinking that my Biggest Loser watching will have to be done online or something — I’m chomping at the bit for the season premiere of NCIS: Los Angeles to see what happens to Callen and Hetty. Yeah, I know… first world problems!

–3–

We had our one-month appointment with the pediatric hematologist on Monday. They discovered the clot was gone a month ago and the peds hematologist wanted to see him one month after. Daniel is fine and clot-free so the doctor told us that he was releasing us from his clinic — something that he doesn’t get to tell many of his patients because he gets the kids with leukemia and blood disorders. Still, it’s one less doctor.

–4–

The nurse practitioner who examined Daniel before the peds hematologist saw him confirmed that he did indeed have a stomach virus. He had a temperature of 37.9C (99.9F), was throwing up, and had diarrhea. It took him twice as long to trash the exam room as it normally does (and trash it he did — the doctor and his nurses were suitably impressed).

–5–

We have a gray tabby teenaged cat that seems to think our yard is their private clubhouse. I have no problem with this and leave water out for them as well as any other feline visitors that stop by. I don’t know whether this particular felix is a boy or girl so I call it “Tobias”. (If it would turn out to be a girl, I’d re-brand it “Tabitha”.) I’m sure there are some who would frown at us taking care of feral/neighborhood cats but it seems like something Jesus would have us do.

–6–

Speaking of which, the neighborhood cats (or at least those from across the street) seem to congregate on the wheelchair ramp of the church in the mornings. I need to get a picture of the “kitty coffee klatch” one of these days — it’s quite cute. My monsters haven’t learned this yet — there would be intense sentry duty happening if they had!

–7–

I’m starting my prep for my NaNoWriMo story this year. I don’t think it’s going to be a murder mystery this year because I’m not mortally pissed with anyone at the moment. (NaNoWriMo is a great therapy when parishioners are irritating me.) I’ve been reading a lot of chick lit/fiction stuff like Jan Karon and Gail Fraser lately so I’m probably going to go with that. I haven’t decided whether or not I want to set it in Montana or northern California yet — northern California would make some plotlines easier but it would make eventually publishing it harder because people would know the town on which I would supposedly be basing it. I have six weeks to decide before NaNoWriMo starts so I guess I have some time to figure this out.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: September 12, 2011

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY September 12, 2011

Outside my window… temperate. Maybe low 80’s.

I am thinking… that I hope I avoid Daniel’s bug.

I am thankful… that I was able to swerve and avoid the elderly woman who decided to cut in front of me and stop to re-apply her lipstick on I-680 on Saturday. (I kid you not. It scared the living daylights out of me. I was just lucky that I had an empty lane next to me.) Also thankful that Daniel never has to see his pediatric hematologist again EVER!

In the kitchen… probably ramen for me tonight. Jon has Men’s Night Out and Daniel has his stomach bug and fever.

I am wearing… grey shirt and navy running shorts.

I am creating… characters/plot/setting for my NaNoWriMo piece.

I am going… nowhere tomorrow morning — I cancelled Daniel’s therapies until his fever breaks and his stomach bug passes.

I am reading… The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible by A.J. Jacobs as I’ve already finished all the Lumby books and I have nothing else ready for me at the library. And seriously… what is up with Amazon.Com‘s new design?!?!?!?!?

I am hoping… laundry is done soon.

I am looking forward to… my massage on Friday.

I am hearing… Daniel babbling and “Winnie the Pooh” playing on the DVD player.

Around the house… clean thanks to Jon this weekend.

One of my favorite things… ranch chicken sandwiches from McDonalds (with the chicken GRILLED).

A few plans for the rest of the week… possibly OT on Thursday if Daniel is better and my massage on Friday.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing…Daniel while playing pattycake with my mom.

Daniel while playing pattycake with my mom.

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

7 Quick Takes — Things That Annoy Me on Other Blogs

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7 Quick Takes

Granted, I’m in a bit of a foul mood because I have to go in for a venous doppler ultrasound on my leg to check for a clot tomorrow morning. (Update: no clot!) However, I surf through a number of blogs here and on The Simple Woman’s Daybook each week and there seems to be some common threads about what irritates me each week.

–1–

Music players. Usually, I’m reading blogs after Daniel goes to bed, when he’s napping, or when I’m listening to podcasts so a blast of music tends to be ill-timed. They make the blogs load slower and frequently, it’s not even music I *like*. If I want to be listening to “Stronger” by Mandisa (which is on my list of favorite things right after having my fingernails removed with pliers), I’ll have it playing on iTunes.

–2–

Politically or spiritually-motivated counters. Yes, I’m fully aware that since I opened your blog, 123 babies have been aborted. (Actually, I highly doubt the validity of that number given the small number of doctors actually *trained* to perform abortions and the fact that not all Planned Parenthood clinic actually provide the procedure; but that isn’t the issue here.) I’m also aware that the national debt has gone up $1.3 billion dollars in the last hour and that you are of the opinion that 56 people have ended up in Hell. The problem is… I. DON’T. CARE. If I’m on your blog in the first place, it’s probably because I want to see what you have to say in that particular entry or what your Quick Takes are this week, not because I care about your opinions on the abortion issue, the economic status of this country, or your opinions on the salvation of others. And seriously… if I’m coming to your blog from ConversionDiary.Com or The Simple Woman’s Daybook, I probably agree with your pro-life stance or that Jesus is the Way, rendering your counter irrelevant. (Note: I am pro-life so do not leave me angry comments about how I should care more about the pro-life movement. Such comments will be deleted and you will be I.P. banned.)

–3–

Kitsch. It’s great that you have the Miss Sunshine Award, an adopted leopluridon from the Charley the Unicorn Site, and are a member of the Christian Cheerful Sisterhood. However, that schlock is making your sidebar look nasty and it’s contributing to the load time of your blog. Blogger allows you to make “about me” pages. Put all your affiliations and awards there. (Not objecting to a few well-placed images here — it’s the clutter that irritates me.)

–4–

Badly re-sized images. It annoys my inner balance when I see pictures on the sidebar that are obviously not re-sized correctly and are sticking off. It can also obscure the text and detract from your message (if you have one). There’s a great program called Irfanview that you can download for free here. I recommend it. This also goes for images in the main part of your blog.

–5–

LOL Speak. OMG ur blog lookz teh stupidz when u type liek dis. U R not 5teen. Speakz English plz.

–6–

“My Blogs List” on Blogspot sites. The long column of links with the last posting date is dumb and I do realize that it’s a Blogger issue. Still, would it be too hard to have a nice and simple list of links? I don’t care if they’re alphabetical or by type.

–7–

Country theme. It’s way too overdone not to mention that most people tend to overdo it on the kitsch factor. My idea of country simplicity is a white background with a picture of a farm or a window view of gingham curtains. Besides, the country theme is now “urban” because of all the people doing it.

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.Com.

The Simple Woman’s Daybook: August 15, 2011

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Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY August 15, 2011

Outside my window… clear and in the low 90’s.

I am thinking… that time cannot pass quickly enough until I see my massage therapist to work on the crud in my right leg.

I am thankful… that Dani is HOH this week on Big Brother though I wish it was Rachel and Brendon up on the block this week. Rachel needs to go… NOW!!!!!

From the learning rooms… no Arabic for me. Daniel is still working on walking and doing speech stuff.

In the kitchen… no clue.

I am wearing… my “We Will Not Be Silent” shirt and black shorts.

I am creating… just this entry.

I am going… to see my massage therapist in 45 minutes. After that, grocery shopping.

I am wondering… what exactly I did to cause the pain in my right leg.

I am reading… the latest Joan Medlicott books. Just finished Promises of Change and will start the Civil War one next.

I am hoping… Daniel goes to sleep this time. (It’s the third try at getting him for a nap. He fell asleep in my lap earlier and we had to cancel his Child Development appointment as a result. When I put him in his crib, he woke up again.)

I am looking forward to… the quiet time I get after Daniel goes to bed.

I am hearing… Jon listening to Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me.

Around the house… *shudders*

One of my favorite things… black cat cuddles in the mornings.

A few plans for the rest of the week… speech on Tuesday, physical therapy on Wednesday, Jon’s birthday on Thursday, Jon being in L.A. on Friday, and hopefully me getting to sleep in on Saturday.

Hosted by The Simple Woman’s Daybook

Commenting Quirk

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Welcome to all who have come over because of my article refuting George’s take on the myth of the whore of Babylon. Make yourself comfortable and help yourself to something cold from the fridge.

I wanted to let y’all who are commenting know something: if you leave me a long comment, it will automatically go to moderation because it’s one of WordPress’ settings for spam. I think it exists to filter out long posts with tons of links. However, it means that I am not going to see your comment until the next time I happen to open WordPress or the next time I check my email. So… if you’ve commented and aren’t seeing it, be patient. I haven’t deleted it — it’s just waiting for me to approve it.

I do need to respond to some of the comments but I haven’t had time — I was gone over the weekend and right now, I’m trying everything I can to manage the stabbing pain in my right calf until I can get myself to my massage therapist to have her work on it. (I woke up on Friday with what I thought was a pulled muscle. It is not, however, responding to anything conventional.)

That is all.

7 Quick Takes — House Panther Edition

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7 Quick Takes

I’m actually getting on my Quick Takes early this week — it’s only 9:45. 🙂 I also have a house panther at my feet. (She is a love.)

–1–

I am so happy that Brendon went home on Big Brother. I only wish it had been Rachel. I’m sure both of them are lovely in real life but Rachel comes off as a she-witch on the show and Brendon comes off as incredibly arrogant. Rachel was just nasty during the HOH competition and I’m hoping Kalia (who won the HOH competition) puts her up on the chopping block next week.

–2–

I was in the ugliest doctor’s office on the planet today. Daniel had a weird result on one of his thyroid hormones so his neurologist sent us to a pediatric endocrinologist. A lot of pediatric offices have themes and this one was basically a flower garden… except with pastel pink 70’s IKEA chairs, horrendous fluorescent lighting, three ugly flowers with over-sized stalks on one wall, and hot pink formica cabinets in the receptionists’ area. I should have taken pictures because words just cannot communicate how ugly this was. The exam room was somewhat better and the nurse told Daniel to go wild. I almost hugged her. The doctor was lovely and agrees that the result was probably a fluke. He did, however, order the tests drawn again because it had been 3 months. If the tests come back OK, we’ll just assume it was a fluke. If they come back weird again, we’ll go from there.

–3–

I apparently live in a cartoon world. I heard on the news last night that a cake with a shank was found in a Sacramento jail. Seriously… a cake with a file? I knew my life was Looney Tunes but something like this takes the cake! (No pun intended.)

–4–

I’m still trying to get the podcast going. I don’t have a lot of spare time except for the time after Daniel goes to sleep. I need to come up with some show notes and plans for at least 10 episodes.

–5–

I have a massage scheduled tomorrow afternoon. I’m seriously looking forward to this. It’s helping with the fibromyalgia and also lowering my stress level a bit. My masseuse is a former church member (before my time) and she’s an amazing believer.

–6–

I love my Trader Joe’s because they love up Daniel. Trader Joe’s is a great store to begin with and a company that I could totally work for (and have applied in the past to do so). The Trader Joe’s in Elk Grove, however, is just special. I’m in the store at least once or twice a week so staff knows us and they will go out of their way to talk to Daniel and interact with him. The guy helping us out to the car today was making car noises as he pushed Daniel in the shopping cart. it was so cute. Other ones will stop on their way to the back room and have conversations with Daniel. It doesn’t matter that he doesn’t respond back — they do it anyway. It warms my heart that they treat him like a person of worth because not everybody does.

–7–

Ladies’ Night Out was awesome this week. Metanoia Lutheran Church does Men’s Night Out and Ladies’ Night Out during the first week of the month and it’s been an amazing gathering. The women usually have twice the number of participants that the men do and we all go out to a restaurant in the community. Last night, we went to a pizzeria and had great food and great conversation. One person “hosts” by picking out the place and doing the devotion. The host for this month asked me to do the devotion so I did this one. It’s an opportunity to have bonding time with my ladies and it’s an evening where I’m not responsible for Daniel. (It means that Jon gets some bonding time with him.) I’m not a WELCA/Ladies’ Aid kind of girl so this lets me be involved in things without a lot of pressure. Our conversations can be educational — I’ve taught them some things and they’ve been great about helping me problem-solve things with Daniel.

For more Quick Takes, head on over to ConversionDiary.Com.