Thursday, September 16, 2010
Cold Shower Anyone?
Last week our hot water heater died. Luckily it didn't explode or even leak, it just stopped producing hot water. So we bought another one and amazingly the hot water heater guy came the next day to install our brand spanking new source of non-cold water. He installed it in less than an hour and zippee do dah, we were on our way to hot showers and clean dishes once again. But.....
You have to have the installation inspected by the city government to make it "official". The inspection is not so important that we couldn't use our newly heated water, you just have to have a certificate on file somewhere in the boughs of city hall to say that your hot water heater passes inspection. You call, you choose a day for them to come, they come and if all goes well then they file it for you. For those reading closely, I said you choose a *day*. Not a time frame of 2 hours, not a time from of 4 hours. No, you pick a day and they will come with no advanced notice sometime between 9 and 4 on your chosen day.
Today was our day. I don't do much on Thursdays which is why I picked today, but I do usually leave the house at some point each day, if nothing else to walk down to the kids' school to pick them up. We were lucky, the water heater inspector came just after noon freeing up the rest of my day. He could not have been nicer chatting it up with Wes, remarking on our floor plan and my cute baby. He looked at the water heater for maybe 5 seconds and left. Apparently our water heater was installed correctly. Not that we were worried mind you, we paid a contractor $1300 for the heater and installation and it came with a 10 year warranty. But thank you City Hall for looking out for me.
Did I mention that we also had to add $100 on to the cost of our water heater to pay for that 5 second inspection and the certificate that is now making its way into a file somewhere in our government's big file drawer? I hope that is one pretty certificate, perhaps suitable for framing. Thankfully I don't work, so I didn't have to take a day off for the privilege of the inspection but gosh, for those who work and may have to take a day off (possibly without pay) to sit and wait for the kind inspector man as well as pay for the inspection and the actual water heater and installation, a new water heater is a pretty expensive proposition!
Taking a cold shower could have a whole new meaning!
You have to have the installation inspected by the city government to make it "official". The inspection is not so important that we couldn't use our newly heated water, you just have to have a certificate on file somewhere in the boughs of city hall to say that your hot water heater passes inspection. You call, you choose a day for them to come, they come and if all goes well then they file it for you. For those reading closely, I said you choose a *day*. Not a time frame of 2 hours, not a time from of 4 hours. No, you pick a day and they will come with no advanced notice sometime between 9 and 4 on your chosen day.
Today was our day. I don't do much on Thursdays which is why I picked today, but I do usually leave the house at some point each day, if nothing else to walk down to the kids' school to pick them up. We were lucky, the water heater inspector came just after noon freeing up the rest of my day. He could not have been nicer chatting it up with Wes, remarking on our floor plan and my cute baby. He looked at the water heater for maybe 5 seconds and left. Apparently our water heater was installed correctly. Not that we were worried mind you, we paid a contractor $1300 for the heater and installation and it came with a 10 year warranty. But thank you City Hall for looking out for me.
Did I mention that we also had to add $100 on to the cost of our water heater to pay for that 5 second inspection and the certificate that is now making its way into a file somewhere in our government's big file drawer? I hope that is one pretty certificate, perhaps suitable for framing. Thankfully I don't work, so I didn't have to take a day off for the privilege of the inspection but gosh, for those who work and may have to take a day off (possibly without pay) to sit and wait for the kind inspector man as well as pay for the inspection and the actual water heater and installation, a new water heater is a pretty expensive proposition!
Taking a cold shower could have a whole new meaning!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Yummy?
Summer is just flying by. Actually I find summer to be a strange mix of being really busy and being really boring. Maybe I am the only one who feels that way, but we either have a lot going on (vacation!, company! VBS!) or a lot of hanging out in the house doing mundane stuff and trying to keep the kids from killing each other. Literally.
Yesterday I had to call poison control because Wes fed Dalton hand sanitizer. I don't usually keep hand sanitizer on hand (we like germs around here), but I found some small containers of sanitizer and thought I could drain them so that I could then fill them up with sunscreen to legally carry in our bags when we fly this weekend. So the sanitizer was draining into my sink when apparently Wes thought it would make a good snack for little D. Turns out you have to drink A LOT of sanitizer to really see any bad results but that was certainly some excitement I could have done without.
Yesterday I had to call poison control because Wes fed Dalton hand sanitizer. I don't usually keep hand sanitizer on hand (we like germs around here), but I found some small containers of sanitizer and thought I could drain them so that I could then fill them up with sunscreen to legally carry in our bags when we fly this weekend. So the sanitizer was draining into my sink when apparently Wes thought it would make a good snack for little D. Turns out you have to drink A LOT of sanitizer to really see any bad results but that was certainly some excitement I could have done without.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Hanging In the Wind
Watching a few events going on in the periphery of my life has me thinking again about extended families... and how alone my family is. I have a friend whose daughter was in a near drowning accident and I have been following her blog. It is wonderful to read how the extended family rushed in and have moved heaven and earth to help with any and everything. Obviously it is a tragedy for all involved, but everyone is involved. I find myself weeping when I read the blog, not only for Claire but for the love the family has demonstrated to each other and quite pathetically on my part...how jealous I am of that support system.
Then last week the mayor of our town shot herself and her daughter. It is horrible, horrible, horrible. I don't think all the details are known and they will never be understood but basically the father/husband died of cancer two years ago, left them broke and grieving and mom decided to end her life and that of her only child...a 19 year old daughter. There was no other family involved...this mom and daughter went through everything alone and didn't come out the other side.
When I look at my life I have a lot more in common with the situation of having no support. My own mother died when I was a teen and so she will not be flying in to help. My dad remarried a wonderful lady, but she is completely caught up in her own issues to pay much attention to us, and for that matter she insists that my dad stay caught up in her issues too. In many ways I feel like I have lost my dad, and that is a huge loss because my dad is amazing. Thank goodness for my brother and SIL because they would pretty much be the only joining members of Team Pokluda if we needed recruits.
Then there's Super B's family...I believe it's probably best to not speak ill about one's inlaws, however I will just say his dad is in a nursing home and his mom hasn't come to see us in years, mostly because she won't bother to make the drive. Needless to say, they are not going to be coming to anyone's rescue when life makes a sharp turn.
I believe God will provide what we need when we need it, but at the same time, the whole thing with the mayor really has upset me. It seems so unnecessary...where was her family? Then I think, where would my family be? Probably not here. I can't imagine that I would ever, ever, ever shot my child and myself but I also can't imagine going through the grief of losing a spouse alone.
I am picking up valuable lessons in what to do when my kids are grown. These seem like no brainers, but my life experience tells me it must be easier said than done.
1: Never-ever-never put clean carpets before relationships.
2: My DIL/SILs may not like me, but I need to work to make those relationships happen. If bribery is what it takes, so be it.
3: I don't need to live next door (though sounds like a fantastic idea) but I do need to get involved in their lives. even if it is inconvenient and uncomfortable.
Then last week the mayor of our town shot herself and her daughter. It is horrible, horrible, horrible. I don't think all the details are known and they will never be understood but basically the father/husband died of cancer two years ago, left them broke and grieving and mom decided to end her life and that of her only child...a 19 year old daughter. There was no other family involved...this mom and daughter went through everything alone and didn't come out the other side.
When I look at my life I have a lot more in common with the situation of having no support. My own mother died when I was a teen and so she will not be flying in to help. My dad remarried a wonderful lady, but she is completely caught up in her own issues to pay much attention to us, and for that matter she insists that my dad stay caught up in her issues too. In many ways I feel like I have lost my dad, and that is a huge loss because my dad is amazing. Thank goodness for my brother and SIL because they would pretty much be the only joining members of Team Pokluda if we needed recruits.
Then there's Super B's family...I believe it's probably best to not speak ill about one's inlaws, however I will just say his dad is in a nursing home and his mom hasn't come to see us in years, mostly because she won't bother to make the drive. Needless to say, they are not going to be coming to anyone's rescue when life makes a sharp turn.
I believe God will provide what we need when we need it, but at the same time, the whole thing with the mayor really has upset me. It seems so unnecessary...where was her family? Then I think, where would my family be? Probably not here. I can't imagine that I would ever, ever, ever shot my child and myself but I also can't imagine going through the grief of losing a spouse alone.
I am picking up valuable lessons in what to do when my kids are grown. These seem like no brainers, but my life experience tells me it must be easier said than done.
1: Never-ever-never put clean carpets before relationships.
2: My DIL/SILs may not like me, but I need to work to make those relationships happen. If bribery is what it takes, so be it.
3: I don't need to live next door (though sounds like a fantastic idea) but I do need to get involved in their lives. even if it is inconvenient and uncomfortable.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Good to be Me
Today was good to be me, and I am going to brag about it, 'cause if you can't brag in your blog, where can you?
A few months ago I doula-ed for a sweet couple. The dad had cancer and was literally days away from having a bone marrow transplant when the couple delivered. He was dealing with the side effects of his chemo treatment and was generally not at the top of his game in terms of his ability to support his wife through birth. To top off the whole cancer thing, toward the end of the labor he got very sick and shortly after the birth (which was fantastic... great OB, great nurse, of course great doula...and most of all mom did an amazing job) he had emergency surgery to remove his appendix. Yowzers.
Anyway, what makes that a cool-to-be--me thing is that I got the sweetest mail today. It was a note in a pretty frame that reads:
Dear M,
Thank you for bringing comfort to me and peace to my husband during the birth of our son. My husband says that hiring you was the best decision we made for our labor. I especially appreciate your guidance throughout and your additional support afterwards, since my husband was unable to be with me. May the Lord bless you for your kindness towards us and continue to bless your ministry as a doula.
How cool is that? I have had a few tough births recently and have been feeling a bit guilty that I was away from my kids a bit more than I prefer (admittedly I prefer not to be away from them at all...). I am still planning to cut back, but receiving this note today really did remind me why I do it and to continue with my commitment to God to leave my doula gigs in his hands and allow him to use me in whatever way as he brings me expectant couples.
Why else is it cool to be me? I have been married to Super B for 14 years today. Yup, he has put up with me that long. We didn't do anything special for our day, we are often lame like that, but our kids were super cute. They made us a full dinner complete with napkins wrapped around our silverware, a table center piece, and name placards for the seating assignments at the "formal" room table. They also composed a special song and dance and gave us coupons to redeem for such things as "we will stop fighting with each other", "sleep in", "no chore day" etc. The dinner was good too, and they really did cook it all start to finish including some chocolate chip crepes for dessert. Oh, and we received a trophy (it looked suspiciously like a soccer trophy won by Reese...) for being the best parents. Not a bad anniversary at all!
A few months ago I doula-ed for a sweet couple. The dad had cancer and was literally days away from having a bone marrow transplant when the couple delivered. He was dealing with the side effects of his chemo treatment and was generally not at the top of his game in terms of his ability to support his wife through birth. To top off the whole cancer thing, toward the end of the labor he got very sick and shortly after the birth (which was fantastic... great OB, great nurse, of course great doula...and most of all mom did an amazing job) he had emergency surgery to remove his appendix. Yowzers.
Anyway, what makes that a cool-to-be--me thing is that I got the sweetest mail today. It was a note in a pretty frame that reads:
Dear M,
Thank you for bringing comfort to me and peace to my husband during the birth of our son. My husband says that hiring you was the best decision we made for our labor. I especially appreciate your guidance throughout and your additional support afterwards, since my husband was unable to be with me. May the Lord bless you for your kindness towards us and continue to bless your ministry as a doula.
How cool is that? I have had a few tough births recently and have been feeling a bit guilty that I was away from my kids a bit more than I prefer (admittedly I prefer not to be away from them at all...). I am still planning to cut back, but receiving this note today really did remind me why I do it and to continue with my commitment to God to leave my doula gigs in his hands and allow him to use me in whatever way as he brings me expectant couples.
Why else is it cool to be me? I have been married to Super B for 14 years today. Yup, he has put up with me that long. We didn't do anything special for our day, we are often lame like that, but our kids were super cute. They made us a full dinner complete with napkins wrapped around our silverware, a table center piece, and name placards for the seating assignments at the "formal" room table. They also composed a special song and dance and gave us coupons to redeem for such things as "we will stop fighting with each other", "sleep in", "no chore day" etc. The dinner was good too, and they really did cook it all start to finish including some chocolate chip crepes for dessert. Oh, and we received a trophy (it looked suspiciously like a soccer trophy won by Reese...) for being the best parents. Not a bad anniversary at all!
Saturday, June 5, 2010
LIfe in 200 words
I think the last time I managed to get on this computer to type anything in my blog I was bragging about how Dalton was sleeping so well. Hmmm, that will show me not to brag. Shortly after that post we went through a grueling period of sleeplessness. It seems to have abated quite a bit, but out of fear of starting another season of extreme sleep deprivation, I will say no more about how much better he (we) are doing.
So beyond learning to live on coffee, it really has been a fun few months. Let me recap, not in any particular order (except the lice and head shaving incident, those were sequential).
I turned a year older
kids finished school
Super B finished school (CPA stuff)
Wes started going to speech therapy
big boys had lice (should I admit that on a public blog?)
big boys got heads shaved
I taught a bundle of childbirth classes and attended a bunch of births
D got 2 teeth the day he turned 6 months and 4 more the day he turned 9 months
Ashby had her ballet recital
Ashby read all the Bluebonnet books
Ashby got a perfect score on her TAKS test
Reese's soccer team won 2 games (1 better than last season!)
We all flew to Greenville to celebrate Easter
Dalton learned to sit up, crawl, go up stairs and eat anything and everything
Dalton started solids right after he turned 6 months starting with avocados
I bought 50 avocados at the store b/c they were on sale and Dalton likes them so much
So you can see we have been busy, if not productive.
Summer is now here, kids are out of school, and I am hoping not to melt as Texas summers are not my favorite experience. Lots of fun on tap though for upcoming weeks and I am looking forward to time with kiddos, family vacations as well as doing a lot of VBS hopping.
So beyond learning to live on coffee, it really has been a fun few months. Let me recap, not in any particular order (except the lice and head shaving incident, those were sequential).
I turned a year older
kids finished school
Super B finished school (CPA stuff)
Wes started going to speech therapy
big boys had lice (should I admit that on a public blog?)
big boys got heads shaved
I taught a bundle of childbirth classes and attended a bunch of births
D got 2 teeth the day he turned 6 months and 4 more the day he turned 9 months
Ashby had her ballet recital
Ashby read all the Bluebonnet books
Ashby got a perfect score on her TAKS test
Reese's soccer team won 2 games (1 better than last season!)
We all flew to Greenville to celebrate Easter
Dalton learned to sit up, crawl, go up stairs and eat anything and everything
Dalton started solids right after he turned 6 months starting with avocados
I bought 50 avocados at the store b/c they were on sale and Dalton likes them so much
So you can see we have been busy, if not productive.
Summer is now here, kids are out of school, and I am hoping not to melt as Texas summers are not my favorite experience. Lots of fun on tap though for upcoming weeks and I am looking forward to time with kiddos, family vacations as well as doing a lot of VBS hopping.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
This apparently is not a season in my life where I get much time to blog. But that is OK because my little guy is growing bigger every day and one day I will be able to blog all the time but I won't have sweet (and sometimes not so sweet...) little ones wanting me to play or hold them. I am not really looking forward to that day!
Dalton got two teeth this week and thanks to a week of mommy/baby sleep bootcamp he is taking regular naps and sleeping better at night. So thankful for that! We were all on the edge of insanity until this week. Nobody... mommies, daddies, babies or their siblings were meant to survive on no sleep. What did boot camp entail? Well, it didn't involve plain 'ole cry it out because I don't like that method...though everyone and their cat told me that is what I needed to do, but it did involve some crying. Instead of just letting him scream, we started a consistent wake time and bed time and the rest fell into place pretty easily. Honestly, it was so easy that I feel like an idiot for just figuring this out on baby #4. We need to have another baby just so I can enjoy a baby that sleeps normally from the get go. Seems instead we have always "disordered" them at about 4 months of age which I have learned is the age parent can start to have an impact, positive or negative, on real sleeping skills. (see Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child for more details.)
Oh, and if anyone notices the day and time that I am posting....yes it is Sunday, and yes I am home skipping church...because Dalton is napping. :) B and the rest of the crew are at church though.
Dalton got two teeth this week and thanks to a week of mommy/baby sleep bootcamp he is taking regular naps and sleeping better at night. So thankful for that! We were all on the edge of insanity until this week. Nobody... mommies, daddies, babies or their siblings were meant to survive on no sleep. What did boot camp entail? Well, it didn't involve plain 'ole cry it out because I don't like that method...though everyone and their cat told me that is what I needed to do, but it did involve some crying. Instead of just letting him scream, we started a consistent wake time and bed time and the rest fell into place pretty easily. Honestly, it was so easy that I feel like an idiot for just figuring this out on baby #4. We need to have another baby just so I can enjoy a baby that sleeps normally from the get go. Seems instead we have always "disordered" them at about 4 months of age which I have learned is the age parent can start to have an impact, positive or negative, on real sleeping skills. (see Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child for more details.)
Oh, and if anyone notices the day and time that I am posting....yes it is Sunday, and yes I am home skipping church...because Dalton is napping. :) B and the rest of the crew are at church though.
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