Achoo!! May 30th, 2014

Yesterday my eye itched. Just the left one. It bugged the poo out of me, to say it sweetly ;) I asked Mike if he had itchy eyes with his allergies, because secretly I thought I was getting pink eye again and I was hoping against hope that I wasn't. Pink eye isn't TERRIBLE, but with pink eye I have to wear my glasses, When I wear my glasses I'm exposed to a lot more glare. Being exposed to more glare gives me migraines. It's a vicious cycle. 

This morning I awoke to a lovely crusty, red eye. Yeah, not so great. Called the doctor for an appointment, skipped book club, and went in to get an opinion. The weird thing was the eye didn't itch or ooze at all the entire morning. It felt great.

I love my doctor. Seriously, if you live in the area, and need a doctor, or even if you don't need a doctor, please, try to become her patient. She takes time, listens, and really, really, cares about YOU. You know how many arrogant, know it all doctors I've met in my life? Being a nurse exposes you to all sides of health care, and most doctors are pricks. Yep, I went there. But notice how I said MOST. Not all. I promise, I know there are good ones out there fighting the good fight every day. 

Anyways, my doctor (Dr Elizabeth Weston, for those of you taking notes) listens to my symptoms, checks me out, and declares that I have allergies. I was like, "who the whaaaa?" I mean, I was hoping it was allergies, but I never in a million years thought it would be. I tease Mike that my strong Scandinavian genes are better then his polite Welsh genes and that's why I never get sick and am allergic to nothing. Well stick a fork in that because that's done. I am now a proud member of the allergic community.

Looks like Allegra and I are going to become really good friends.

April Showers Bring May Flowers May 29, 2014

This girl. Oh this girl!! Super proud of the "braid" she made from the flower stems. Love her gap toothed grin.

Sweet Tooth May 28th, 2014

I spent part of the day in the kitchen. I love to cook, but I especially love making desserts! I think mainly because I like to eat them. Chocolate cake.....yum. Anyone with a sweet tooth, or with teeth for that matter, will tell you if you eat too much of something, you might find yourself in an uncomfortable situation. 

It's like this. I have friends I love. I would go almost anywhere with them. If they suddenly decided to take me to a Jehovah's Witness convention, I might be a tad uncomfortable (nothing against any JW's, I just have this traumatic door answering experience from when I was about 12 which made me refuse to answer any door unless I'm expecting someone, and even then I'm usually sweating). 

Somewhere, we got away from food. I think the comparison I was trying (badly) to make is that even though I love chocolate chip cheesecake, if I eat an entire cheesecake, I'll have a cheesecake tummy, and thighs, and maybe even cheesecake under chin wattle. Okay that last one is a bit of a stretch, but you get my point. 

The best way to eat my favorite foods while still being able to button my pants? I make them to take to/share with other people. Tonight I'm headed to a little girl's night out, and I'll be taking my lovely cheesecakes with me. Hopefully I'll get one or two before they're gone, they are THAT good ;)

Three pans of these little gems!

Aches & Pains May 27th, 2014

I am in pain. So, so much pain. I haven't said much about it on here, but I am taking a medication temporarily that causes muscle and joint pain. If I exercise, I make it worse. But I am stubborn. I refuse to let these transient pains stop me from being the athlete I want to be.

Today I went for a training run with my friend Maggi. We ran more than 6 miles, and I think we both felt great doing it. But now I'm paying for it. As I sit here I am fine, but every movement has me hunched over like an old lady, trying to loosen my joints to the point of tolerability. It's Tuesday, and I put on my workout clothes to hit the gym with Mike, but he saw through my brave front and said we were skipping class. Somehow, after 12 years of marriage, and when I finally figure out he CAN'T read my mind, he suddenly has the uncanny knack of seeing into my head. We went to the Kroc Center instead and signed up for the summer. I can't be in the sun much this year, but the Kroc pool area is inside, so the kids can swim to their heart's content. And I'll be on the side, stretching out my achy joints.

Curly Q May 25th, 2014

Clara and I went to church today, alone. Olivia is suffering some mystery illness and we didn't want to infect anyone else, so Mike stayed home and I went. I couldn't help but take a photo of Clara's hair. Oh her hair!!! I just want to eat it up. How these perfectly wavy/curly haired children came from my super strong straight hair genes is beyond me. But I'm really glad they get their hair from their dad.

Here's Clara in the parking lot. Remember, Clara despises light? If you forgot go back and read yesterday's blog. I ended up carrying her in on my back so she could keep her eyes closed against the offending light. Hey, I get it, I have sensitive eyes too. 

Germany!! May 24th, 2014

Here's Clara in her special shirt from Germany. Peter, Auntie Rachel's fiance brought it for her when they visited, and she loves it :) Plus I love it because I'm German! Well, actually, to be completely honest, I'm American. Bbbbuuuutttt....my ancestors were German and Norwegian, so I claim Germany as mine

Here she is just chillin' She has that squinty eye look because she's afraid there's going to be a flash. No matter what, I couldn't convince her otherwise today. If she were a Muppet, she'd be Animal. CLARA HATE FLASH!!!!

Delays! May 23rd, 2014

Tonight I have no dining out stories to regale you with. Mike was scheduled to return home at noon, and we had invited some friends over for a casual cookout. Well, I got the dreaded call from Mike in the morning that his flight was canceled. Again. See, it was canceled late last night due to fog, and then there were no planes at the airport to take people on their rescheduled flights. This seems like something the airports would have figured out earlier, but Mike still had to get up at the crack of dawn, drive to the airport, and THEN be told there was no flight. I would have probably lost it but Mike keeps his cool.

To keep our mind off Mike NEVER returning home, we kept busy. We were invited to a bowling party in the morning and it was so fun! Bowling shoes just look better on little feet. Plus, they put up bumpers and a ramp so the kids actually knock things over. Otherwise it'd be pretty boring. 

Clara Bowling

Even with our day occupied this still left the problem of the cookout. I can cook anything inside, but I am no grill master. In fact, I have no idea how to even use the grill since Mike likes charcoal and we don't have a gas grill. Luckily, someone stepped into the role of grill master and the evening was able to proceed. This was very, very, very good, as my friend made brownies that were TDF. Wow. Seriously, I could wax poetic about these all day. To spare you, since you didn't get a chance to eat them and never will because I'm not sharing, I'll just say they had chocolate, caramel, and nuts. Add that to Mike showing up around 10, and I'd say it was a pretty great day :)