Hello, Friday. So glad you could make an appearance!

I really need the break that comes when you arrive. It’s been a crazy week. Not a bad week, just a crazy one. With all sorts of changes and alterations to our usual routine. And that is always a challenge for us… me, especially, being the creature of routine that I am.

It started off with a doctor’s appt for Little Bit to get her poor feet checked out by the dermatologist since the meds the pediatrician had prescribed were not working. Thank goodness we went to the dermatologist! Turns out the pediatrician had diagnosed it incorrectly and was treating her for something she didn’t have. The dermatologist said her feet are suffering from a genetic issue – something she will live with forever. Good news is that he gave us copious amounts of samples/medicines to use on her feet and they seem to be helping. Bad news is that she will likely deal with this off/on forever.

That afternoon we had Little Bit’s visitor’s day at her dance studio.  So fun to watch them dance. You can see more of that here.

Then, the GI doctor called about Big Girl’s test results and wanted us to come into the office on Wednesday. Again, not part of my plan for the week, but we adapted and went down to hear what he had to say. Good news here is that she has no ugly-scary-unpronounceable thing wrong. Bad news is that what is going on will take another couple months and more medicine to sort out.

The same day we had to head to the doctor for Big Girl, my work laptop crashed.  This SERIOUSLY caused me to go into a tailspin! I have a huge project going on right now at work and being without my laptop was most definitely not part of my plan!  After a few hours of trying to troubleshoot it myself I realized I needed to get the super-tech guys from the office involved. The good news is that they are on the way to the doctor’s office and they were able to recover my files and I will be back to “normal” next week. (I hope)

The rest of the week has been about triage and maintaining some sense of normalcy in what has been a non-normal week. I am really looking forward to the weekend – some time to scrapbook, clean the house, and a picnic on Sunday afternoon with good friends. Hopefully, next week will be a little less chaotic for us all (including my computer!)

Hope you had a great week and that yours wasn’t quite as “interesting” as mine has been!

Linking up with InstaFriday.

Whew! We made it to Friday!

This week has been a little better than the last two – not quite as hectic and definitely not as much drama. Which is good, because I think I wouldn’t have been able to take another week like that so soon.

I thought I’d share some totally random things with you today …

Are you with me?

Good!

Here we go:

New snacks/treats I’m loving:

Have you seen these adorable little guys?
Triscuit Minis? Seriously? Seriously dangerous is what they are.  SO good and crunchy with just the right amount of salt – perfect for sprinkling on a salad (like a crouton) or in soup, or just munching by the handful (not that I would know anything *ahem* about that) – Little Bit loves them in her lunches.

And I wouldn’t be surprised if some Girl Scouts have a hit called out on that little elf who lives in the tree over at Keebler – have you seen these?
Oh my.
They taste almost exactly like the Girl Scouts version. So yummy. Dangerous.

Other sweet things –  just not things to eat:

Can you stand it? SO cute!

This was at the Father-Daughter Dance a few weeks ago – I guess you can tell it was a 50/60’s Sock Hop theme. My mom made the poodle skirts and the girls were so excited to be on a date with Daddy.  They went to Steak & Shake for dinner and then danced the night away. I don’t even know how much of my various hair products SuperMan put in his hair to try to get it to look like a greaser’s hair – but I can tell you it was very fluffy the  next day. HA! (that’s what he gets!)

And the sweetness just continues – Sweet Treats from Sweet Friends:
If you follow me on Facebook, you may recall I posted a little note on Monday:

I am craving petit fours – what’s up with that? and anyone want to bring me some?

And then, not too long after that I received a text:

I felt like taking a drive. Go check your mailbox. Your mail has arrived.

I sat there a little perplexed, but given that this was a good friend of mine, I thought “Okay, I’ll go see what’s up.” and out to the mailbox I went.

Guess what I found?!?

You guessed it! Petit Fours from my sweet friend Leigh Anne.

I was just overwhelmed and thrilled (and I popped one in my mouth right away – that’s why there are only three here – hee hee)

(that’s supposed to be “so crazy” but I was too excited to catch the typo)

So, that’s the best part of my Friday Five. Sweet friends bearing sweet treats.

I’ll be busy today nursing my sick big girl – poor thing can’t seem to catch a break these days – now it’s a nasty virus (head cold type thing) that has her miserable and running a fever.

Looking forward to scrapbooking and maybe sewing some this weekend. Hope to have some things to share next week.  I’m also trying a couple Pinterest-inspired recipes for dinner this weekend. I’ll let you know how they turn out.

I was going to write a post today about the book I am reading – I was going to write a post yesterday with a new recipe I’ve tried. But, as you can see, neither of those things happened. I just didn’t have it in me.

It’s been a heck of a couple of weeks. Both girls sick – one almost constantly and the other one piping in with a couple things just to keep life interesting.  It’s been insane.  My body is tired and my brain is fried.  I’ve been in survival mode. Dug in and hunkered down.

But you know, it’s in the middle of the most challenging times that, I think, God reaches down and reminds us of the many things we have to be thankful for –

Things that we take for granted –

like waking up

and being able to get out of bed

and having a warm house and running water

and food to eat

clothes to wear

and beautiful children to love

And then, today, as I was backing out of the driveway to pick up the kids from school, I noticed something – something I’ve been driving by for at least a week and hadn’t even noticed.

Another one of those moments where He was reminding me to get outside of myself and embrace life –

Springtime, peeking out amongst the brown.

Life regenerating amid the wasteland of winter.

A good reminder for me today to take a minute and be thankful for the many blessings we have.

I was riding home the other day with the girls and we passed one of the cow pastures that are close to where we live.

The girls immediately started MOO-ing very loudly…

And of course, I immediately shouted, “Stop! Stop! No more MOO-ing! We don’t need any cows at home!”

Which caused an eruption of giggles and even more MOO-ing – even more loudly.

You talkin’ to ME?!?

You see, we have a tradition… one that was started many eons ago when my brother and I were children.

Whenever we would pass a cow pasture, we would start MOO-ing very loudly and with much gusto.  The  more we would MOO the more Mom would say, “NO! No MOO-ing! The cows will follow us home!”

And in our childish imaginations, the cows really did follow us home.  So we would MOO and MOO and MOO – until, well, until the cows came home. (sorry, I couldn’t resist!)

It became a great game to play.

The more we MOO-ed the more Mom would become “distressed” and tell us to stop. What kid doesn’t love that?

And, somehow, this tradition has carried over into the next generation. 

And so my girls now MOO at every cow pasture we pass. And I shriek in dismay and plead for them to be quiet so that we don’t have a herd of cows following us home.  And they MOO all the more.  All the while, I’m secretly rejoicing in the continuation of the tradition and thinking it might actually be pretty cool to have a pet cow… no matter what the Homeowners Association might think.

 

Hey, you got any hay at your place?

It’s been “one of those days” today.  The kind that sends the “I want to plan every second of the day” part of me into a tailspin and causes me to drop the plan and make it up as I go along.  Which, I can do. But I don’t like to do. I’m a creature of habit.  I like my routines.

So, after I got the mid-morning call from the school telling me I needed to come get Big Girl (she is sick) I envisioned myself as my GPS whenever we miss a turn along our route…

“Rerouting” it says.

Yep, that’s what my day has been like… actually, that’s what the past few weeks have been like – personally and professionally.  It’s been one of those MONTHS.

Rerouting…

But it’s OK.  I’m adjusting. I’m adapting. I’m surviving. (and sleeping really well at night. All this adapting makes a girl tired!)

So, today, I think I will focus on right now…

Right now: I’m nursing my sick one, making her favorite foods, keeping her hydrated and entertained (thank goodness for NetFlix streaming)

Right now: I’m enjoying a cup of a new tea I discovered at my retreat last weekend. Light and refreshing. Like Spring in a cup.

Right now: I’m wishing I had the luxury of time to curl up and read (or knit) and sip some of that tea for hours on end… and realizing I would probably be so utterly bored if I really did have that kind of time.

Right now: I’m thankful for the warm weather, tired of the rain and gloomy days, and wishing (at the same time) that we had some really cold weather and snow (Yes, I know that is a little nuts)

Right now: I’m marveling at my girls’ creativity – these are their pottery creations they painted last week on their day off.

Right now: I’m also marveling at the girls’ teachers and their creativity. Look at what Little Bit did for math this week – well, math and science. How cool?

Right now: I’m utterly hooked on Downton Abbey and watching the first three episodes of the new season over and over and over again. I can’t wait until the next episode.

Right now: I’m thankful for rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. I just don’t have it in me to cook dinner tonight. I’m thinking rotisserie chicken, rice and a salad works.

Right now: I’m trying to plan ahead, realizing that it is probably futile with a sickie in the house… but trying to plan nonetheless. I can’t help it. It’s genetic.

Right now: I’m listening to the 9,037th episode of Phineas & Ferb blaring in the living room and remembering to be thankful she is happy and occupied rather than annoyed at the sound of such a silly show.

Right now: I’m missing my momma and wishing we lived closer so we could sit together and enjoy a cup of tea and conversation whenever we wanted.

Right now: I’m going to go be with my baby.

I’ll talk to you tomorrow.

Rerouting…