Flat tire

Last Friday, our car was supposed to be ready to pick up at Maaco. Shannon called them in the afternoon and they told him that they would call him first thing tomorrow (Saturday). Well, it turns out that they are closed on Saturdays and when he called, it just rang and rang. He then called Enterprise to extend our reservation until Monday and they agreed.

Just to get out of the house, we like to go on short drives around the city.  It's nice to get out of the house considering we get bored at home and we don't have a place to go every day.  Today was just that, we wanted to go out for a drive.  Well, as soon as we pulled out of the parking lot of our complex, we noticed that the rental wasn't driving as smoothly as it should.  Then a yellow warning light went on and thankfully we don't live too far from a gas station and pulled in there.  Shannon saw that one of the tires was flat. Thankfully, I brought our pre-paid free government supported cell phone with us so Shannon could call Enterprise. 

I walked Kyle home.  He was fine on the way home until we passed the playground and we had to stop there to play.  It's freezing cold outside so I didn't want to stay out too long.  As we got closer to home, he started having a fit.  He was set on going in the car for a ride (he loves that).  When things don't go the way they're supposed to, he will have a tantrum and scream! 

Shannon called me a few minutes after we arrived home to tell me that he gave them our home number since he doesn't know the cell number.  This is just one of the times that I wish we both had our own cell phones to where we can communicate via text or phone any time!  I am just glad I brought the cell phone because I almost didn't since we rarely use it.  The only reason I bring it is "just in case."

Another week off of school

Kyle is off of school this week.  This past Monday, December 26th, I was feeling bored and decided to go for a walk.  I took Kyle with  me and he loved it.  We walked about a mile or so and then he wanted to go play on the playground that we have in our apartment complex. 

The next day, Tuesday, December 27th, I took him for another walk.  This time, we walked across the street to the park.  The little park has a playground and two tennis courts in the middle and there are walking trails all around.  It's not a huge park, but it's a nice place to walk.  Kyle also played on the playground at the park.

We couldn't go for a walk yesterday because of the weather.  It decided to rain throughout the day.  Today's weather looks promising.  The sun is out, but it's still cold! 

Merry Christmas

Last night, I was having trouble falling asleep.  My throat was hurting and I kept coughing.  I ended up taking some cold medicine just so I could fall asleep.  I only took half of the dose recommended because I hate taking liquid cold medicine. 

Kyle and I woke up this morning around 7am.  I did a few things for my blog and I also did 2 loads of laundry. 

I tend to feel tired in the afternoon time and I usually take a nap.  Instead, I opted to take Kyle for a walk and enjoy the fresh air.  We took a 30 minute walk and then he wanted to go on the swings.  We spent a good 45 minutes outside.  It was cold, but he was bundled up in his jacket. 

I think I will take him for a walk in the afternoon time for the rest of the week since he's off of school.  Plus it will give us some time outside!  Kyle loved it!   It is also great exercise for the both of us! 

Special Olympics ribbon

Kyle came home with his first ribbon!  Apparently he participated in the Special Olympics at school!  Even though Kyle had no idea what he was playing, I am pretty sure he had fun!  He loves being active, playing and running around! 

I've never seen the Special Olympics in action, but playing in this type of set up teaches the kids confidence, having fun, sportsmanship, and so much more! 

Pool, Bath, Haircut, Repeat!

Kyle had an eventful day yesterday!  The weather was sunny and warm enough for him to play in his pool!  He loved it!  Here are the videos I recorded:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPwseG_J2fk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-cNZoCuPZM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41aaKpQExz4

I believe it took 5 hours to upload all 3 of them to youtube!   I didn't go to sleep until about 11pm because I didn't want to start over.  Plus, I couldn't leave my computer because I would have to restart if I left it alone too long.

Kyle playing in the pool for at least an hour, if not more.  He always has so much fun.  After he got out of the pool, I gave him a bath.  Then my MIL wanted to cut his hair since it was getting so long (as you can see in the videos).  Kyle sits on the kitchen counter so my MIL can shave his head.  Shannon made sure he didn't fall and I held a mirror up so Kyle could "see" was happening (he loves mirrors).

After his head was shaved, he jumped into the pool and we let him play for another hour or so. Instead of giving him another bath, we just dried him off and got him dressed again.

Out of the Ordinary Monday

This is Kyle's last week of school.  I got him off to school with no problems.  He doesn't seem to like riding the bus or just doesn't want to go to school.  His teacher said he cries a little bit in the morning and then he's fine the rest of the day. 

Shannon had his LSAT test yesterday, the instructions said to be there by 12:30pm.  He left around 10am, since the test location was in Winston-Salem, which is about 45 minutes from here. 

Soon after Shannon left, my MIL and I went to the laundromat to do our laundry for the week!  This time around I had 4 loads of laundry!  I had to wash our clothes (darks and whites), towels, and bedsheets.  It took about an hour and a half to do all of our laundry, which is about the average time for us. 

When brought Kyle home from the bus stop, I made him a little "afternoon meal" since he usually eats and drinks when he gets home.  My MIL wanted to go to The Home Depot and then to the park for a walk.  Kyle loves riding in the car, so he loved it.  When we got to The Home Depot, I tried walking around the store with him, but he wanted to sit in the cart.  I ended up getting some toilet bowl cleaner, I bought the Martha Stewart brand of toilet bowl cleaner.  She has a line of cleaning products that are safe for the environment.  They are safe to use around kids, which is all I care about.  It seems to work pretty well and doesn't have a stinky smell. 

Our trip to the park was nice.  The weather was heating up for some reason, even though the rest of the day was sunny, but with a cool breeze!  We pointed out the squirrels to Kyle.  When he saw them, he would run towards them.  I am not sure if he wanted to play with them or try to catch them!  It was so cute!  The squirrels would run towards the tree on the opposite side so we couldn't see them and then run up the tree.  Kyle didn't know they would run up the tree so he would run around to the other side of the tree and look confused.  Then we pointed up in the tree and he saw that they ran up the tree every time.  He had fun trying to chase the squirrels!

Shannon got home around 5:30pm or so, much earlier than I expected!  He said the test was much harder than he anticipated!  He said it was intense and he felt rushed!  He said he felt like his brain was fried and it looked like the other test takers had the same look.  His test results will be available in about 3 weeks! 

Second Day of Spring Break

Kyle is feeling better these days.  Yesterday, the weather was nice.  I took Kyle outside to play and I took the time to soak up the sun.  I put sunscreen on Kyle and myself anytime we go outside.  There were times when the sun went behind the clouds so it wasn't as hot.  Shannon and I had a chance to sit in the shade, meanwhile Kyle still played near us.

In the evening, Kyle wanted his Dad to throw a soft frisbee, which Kyle loves!  Sometimes he'll want us to throw a softball to him.  He'll wait until the frisbee or ball falls on the ground and then he'll go to pick it up.  Then he runs it back to us and runs back to where he was standing to wait for us to throw the frisbee or ball again. 

I am not looking forward to today's weather, it's supposed to get up to 89 degrees today! 

Not Feeling Well

Last night and early this morning, Kyle coughed a few times.  When we woke up this morning, I could hear it in his voice/whine that his voice was sounding different.  When he was up, he lay down next to his Dad and just watched TV.  He seemed to tired/weak to get up!  I did take him outside for about 20 minutes.  He wasn't running around today, although it was much hotter outside! 

I am hoping he can go to school tomorrow since it's the Friday before Spring Break.  He won't have school all of next week.  Plus they are having an Easter egg hunt tomorrow.  His teacher also said the high school kids made Easter baskets for the preschoolers!  How cute!!!

He went home early

I packed Kyle's backpack with the 3 bags of candy and plastic eggs. He got ready and got on the bus without a problem. A little over an hour after school started, Kyle's teacher called and said he was crying, she wasn't sure if he had a temperature, so she took him to the office and he didn't. They weren't sure if he was coming down with something. Every time Kyle gets sick, it sneaks up on us and we don't realize it until we SEE it, since he can't TELL us he isn't feeling well. After I got off the phone with her, I decided to workout. About 15 minutes into my workout, the teacher called again and said he may have a toothache and he was still crying/whining. So we had to go pick him up!

When we got home, I gave him something to eat. Then we went outside for nice fresh air. I soaked up the sun and still trying to slowly get a tan. I put sunscreen on both Kyle and myself as well.

He seems fine now that we're home and he's eaten. We're just going to pay attention to see if he's coming down with something. His grandparents have been sick for the last week or so.

Shannon and I both talked about Kyle needing more one-on-one attention. We can't afford a special school, so I called his speech therapist from last July about setting him up with speech therapy again. We had to stop last year because our Medicaid was cut-off. Since we're back on Medicaid, we need to get him into speech therapy. He does have speech therapy at school, but it's only one day a week and it's in a group setting. Plus, we have no idea what they are working on!

Sunscreen, Easter Stuff, and Smoothies

We went to Walmart this [late] afternoon. I bought sunscreen for Kyle and myself. I also bought some to use on my face. Today I spent about 30 minutes outside soaking up the sun! It was nice and sunny, so I took advantage to hopefully get a little tan. During that time, Kyle had a chance to get some fresh air and play outside.

I also picked out a blue Easter basket for Kyle. We ended up getting 3 bags of candy and a bag of plastic eggs. Hopefully Kyle will have fun with all the other kids "finding" the eggs!

We saw all the Twilight merchandise such as books, clothing, CDs, and movies! It was tempting to look but I am saving my amazon gift cards to buy the books on amazon. I am looking at getting the 3 books in a "hardcover collection" package.

I've decided to start making "fruit and veggie smoothies" for Kyle. He's not really eating much these days. I bought bananas, strawberries, oranges, and spinach for the smoothies. I made a smoothie when we got home and Kyle took one sip and made the "eww" face! LOL I made it with fruit and spinach. I think I used too much fruit and it turned out too thick! But I'll keep trying.

School and Taxes

Shannon started college again earlier this month! He's already back in the groove of the school schedule. He is tentatively scheduled to graduate in July 2011. He's also looking at taking the LSAT test, which he needs to go on to Law School. I saw on the LSAT website that he can apply for a "fee waiver" in order to take the test, so we would have to go that route.

Kyle went to school for the first time in a week! As soon as he saw his school bus, I saw a little smile form on his face! He was so excited to get on that bus! The weather got up to 70 degrees today. Kyle doesn't have any short sleeved school shirts. It's definitely time to get him some Spring/Summer friendly clothes. The teacher sent him home with a copy of the incident report from last Friday. It explained how Kyle got hurt. It said that, "Kyle was on a tricycle, and another child came up behind him and PUSHED him on the bike. The bike went forward and Kyle fell face first onto the gym floor." The report also came with a note from the teacher saying she was glad to have him back at school!

Kyle was also sent home with a letter from the school. It explained that his school has teamed up with a local dentist to offer an "initial dental exam" free of charge to any students who sign up. The exam includes x-rays, cleaning, and fluoride. They also give us an option to have Sealants added to his teeth. I was all for this, considering Kyle has never been to a dentist and it is free of charge. But, Shannon and I were concerned that Kyle wouldn't sit still and he wouldn't understand what was happening. I tried calling the office to ask them how they would handle a situation like that and if they would put Kyle to sleep while they worked on him. I was unable to get a human on the phone so I looked up their website. Their website stated that they serve adults and children 0-13 and also offer "Sedation Dentistry." I filled out the permission slip to have Kyle go to the dentist but I attached a note asking for him to have the sedation dentistry!

I received my W-2 in the mail today! Our taxes are done and e-filed! We're getting a nice chunk back from Uncle Sam!

The weather is beautiful today. Shannon took Kyle outside to play this evening. It's supposed to reach 76 degrees tomorrow!

First Day of a New Job

Today is Shannon's first day of work with a new job! He was out the door right at 6 AM! He had packed his bag the night before.

Today was also my first full day of watching Kyle. It sure has been awhile. I think I will have to let Kyle play outside tomorrow because he got pretty antsy today. If the weather permits, he will play outside! I may even take him for a walk. Kyle is doing better with eating. He ate a good breakfast of cereal, had a corn dog for lunch, and tuna helper for dinner. I am making an effort to offer him milk and juice at each meal.

Shannon is hoping we can move as early as mid-February! We're open to renting a house or an apartment. Since I found his job on craigslist, we are looking on craigslist for rentals. We are aware of the many "scams" on craigslist, so we're being careful and cautious.

Same Snow

I had to call in to work yesterday and today. It snowed like crazy yesterday, some of it melted, but not enough for us to risk going anywhere. The roads are slushy and wet and cars are sliding around. I happen to have tomorrow off! This coming week will be exhausting. I have a few days of long hours and on Christmas Eve, I have to work 9 1/2 hours that I am not looking forward to!

Shannon took Kyle outside in the snow for about a half hour! He seemed to enjoy it. He wasn't sure what to make of it. He walked around a bit in the backyard and then I saw him kicking the snow off his shoes. Meanwhile, Shannon shoveled the snow off the deck.

About an hour after Kyle and Shannon came in from outside, we all took a nap. Shannon said Kyle was burning up but I didn't really feel it, he was warm, not burning up. We woke up from our nap a few hours later and Kyle was burning up! He had a fever, so we gave him some medicine. He fell asleep and is still lethargic. His fever is gone, but his stomach seems to be upset. He may have a stomach bug.

I've been taking naps throughout the day. I am just so tired! I couldn't sleep last night, my cramps woke me up at least twice during the night. Plus I've been having headaches here and there, I am not sure if they are from the cold weather or not.

Feeling Better

I was off yesterday and spent it relaxing! I treated myself to a homemade facial using green tea leaves, honey, and rice bran powder! I can't wait to do that again for myself.

Kyle spent most of the day outside playing. I also spent a little bit of time outside with him.

I decided to stop taking the over the counter cold medicine and I felt better, still sick without the foggy feeling. I am feeling much better today! I am just glad I didn't have to call in this time.

I have a full work day today of 8 1/2 hours! This week is the most hours I have ever had since I started, I have 33 hours! I do have to work Thanksgiving and the day after, which I don't mind. I do have to work a full day on Thanksgiving and I don't have to work til the afternoon the day after. By the time I get to work on Friday, the morning sales and craziness will be over!

I have a few loads of laundry to do, but I am going to have Shannon do that for me. Since he's home, he has the time.

I was also chosen as the Cashier of the Month by my managers!! It was quite a surprise! They took my picture and it is now hanging in the employee area across from the break room, plus they gave me a $10 gift card from Walmart!

Around Christmas, Walmart offers a little special for employees. This year, they are giving us a discount on regular food products too. Normally, we get a discount on general merchandise and fresh vegetables and fruits. But during the holidays, we get a discount on the entire store!

Back to work

I worked a full 8 hours yesterday, plus an hour lunch. I have the same schedule today too. I dislike being away from home so long. My back didn't hurt as much yesterday, I guess that means my body is adjusting to all this work.

I bought Kyle a pair of sunglasses! He played with them for a bit last night. We're going to keep them in the car, so he can wear them in there only. My MIL also bought Kyle a little sandbox from a nearby neighbor who had it for sale. I haven't seen him play in it but it sounds like he's getting the hang of it.

Speakability called for me yesterday and I told Shannon that he'll need to call them back. I am away from home for most of the day. When I am at home, I just want to relax. Plus, I get home so late that it's after hours. I also have to call medicaid, unfortunately they can't talk to Shannon, only me! So I will have to call them on my day off or when I go in to work later in the day.

I saw my schedule for the last week of the month and I only have 31 hours, which is a huge relief. These long days and hours are exhausting. I don't have much time for myself.

Fever, Thunderstorm, and more!

Yesterday was an eventful day! Kyle played outside and when he came in, he felt hot to the touch and we thought it was because of the weather. I tried feeding him dinner, which he did not eat. Little did we know, he was coming down with a fever. Shannon took him back outside later in the afternoon and had Kyle run through the sprinkler! Kyle had so much fun. He loves being in water or being sprinkled with the hose.

After playing in the water, we brought him back inside. He was sitting in the living room coughing, and it sounded like he was doing his normal "fake coughing." He tends to "fake cough" just to be silly or just get our attention. Kyle ended up falling asleep around 6:15 PM.

Then it starts raining and loud thunder starts roaring above. The thunder was so loud, it made the house shake a bit. We power went out a few times and even our cable. Kyle woke up around 7:45 PM and he felt hot to the touch. We gave him some children's tylenol and tried the cold compress. He ends up throwing up a bit. Shannon sat in a luke warm bath with him to help cool him off. I had to wash the sheets, so while that was going on, we hung out downstairs.

My FIL has been sick for the last 5 days. He's feeling better today.

I am hoping Kyle's fever is only a "12 hour" fever. He was feeling hot to the touch this morning at 4 AM. Shannon gave him another dose of children's tylenol, as I was more than half asleep. I even remember myself saying, "Wait the medicine to work," which translates to "wait for the medicine to work." LOL

Relaxing Weekend

We had a nice weekend. Kyle played outside for a few hours this morning, he was splashed with the hose and then he played in a little pool for a bit. I brought him inside and changed his clothes. After that, he stayed inside for the rest of the day.

For some reason, I was feeling really tired and took a 2 hour nap! I was surprised I was so tired. Thankfully Shannon didn't mind watching Kyle while I took a nap.

My MIL and I went to the grocery store, we needed a few things. Tonight, we had pizza and beer (I had soda). I do have to say that this was the first soda I have had in several weeks! I don't plan on having anymore soda for awhile.

I also bought some juice that has DHA in it (good for brain development) for Kyle. For the last few days, I've been trying to give Kyle some cod liver oil (lemon flavor), I try to "hide" it in his food and for some reason, he senses it everytime, and he doesn't eat it. This juice seems to do the trick! I even bought some vitamins with DHA in it and he doesn't like it.

New toys

My MIL and I went shopping today. First, we went to Kmart and she bought him an adjustable basketball hoop and two puzzles made of wood. The puzzles are the wooden ones (like the one below). The ones we bought have animals, planes, helicopters, etc.


Here is what his basketball hoop looks like ~



I also bought Kyle some sunscreen because he spends so much time outside. It's made for babies and great for sensitive skin. I bought a few other things that I needed as well.

Then we went to Walmart and I picked up some food that we needed! My MIL went to go look at bedding, she wanted to check out the new line of bedding called Canopy that they are now carrying. I have seen the commercials and it sounds like their products are made of high quality materials! While I was putting the groceries in the trunk, this lady pulls up right next to me and rolls down her window. At first it scared me, I am always aware of my surroundings. I took a step back because I wasn't sure what she was going to do. Then she says, "Hi, how are you?" She pulls out an Avon catalog and hands it to me. LOL I asked her for another one for my MIL and she gave me one. I don't have any plans to buy anything from Avon at the moment.

When we got home, I checked the mail and I received the samples from Monet Minerals! Instead of receiving 5, she sent me 6! I can't wait to play with the colors more. I did play with a few of the colors this evening, but I am looking forward to experimenting more!

Long Tuesday

I woke up really early this morning, I was excited to visit the preschool and wanted to make sure we didn't sleep in! Plus, we don't have an alarm clock and Kyle wakes up at different times.

I woke Shannon up at 9 AM and he really didn't get out of bed until about 9:40 AM (he went to bed around 3:30 AM). He didn't want to see the preschool since Kyle has to be potty trained. I wanted to go because I wanted to see the place and the director of the school was really nice on the phone and invited us to come visit. I also wanted to ask her if Kyle could go into the 2 year old class, since he's not potty trained.

We arrived a little after 11 AM. The director showed us the classroom and we stayed in there to talk for about 35 minutes. During that time, Kyle got to play with the toys and run around the classroom. He had so much fun! He played with the trucks, found an Elmo toy, and even found 2 balls to throw in the air. When we went down the hall towards the bathrooms, Kyle ran in the other direction, almost the entire length of the hallway! He was so fast, Shannon had to chase after him. She also brought us in to see the 4 year old classroom. She gave us the registration form and the school calendar. We told her our main issue was that Kyle is not potty trained and he's not even ready to be. She said he could be put in with the 2 year old class, which was great news to hear! We just want him to be able to play with other kids and learn! Shannon and I were both glad to hear that the preschool is so flexible with the kids.

Afterwards, we took Kyle to the playground and walked around a bit. He wasn't really interested in playing, just wanted to look. Shannon asked me again how much the tuition was and he asked if that was the weekly price and I told him it was monthly! It's super affordable and cheaper than daycare! Shannon seemed really impressed with the preschool, which was a huge change from this morning. He seemed so against Kyle going to preschool. We may look at enrolling him at the end of June (classes start in September). We are having issues with his unemployment, so hopefully they will work out in our favor.

We got home around 12 noon and I made Kyle a quesadilla and I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Our appointment with the bankruptcy attorney wasn't until 1 PM. It's been raining off and on all day. The water in the creek got really high, so Shannon had to bring in an outdoor lounge chair.

The appointment with the attorney went okay. We need a few more documents and after our third appointment, we should know if we can file or not.

Eventful Day

We tend to stick to a routine, mainly for our 3 year old son, but mostly because we got used to it! LOL Although, Kyle is the type to just roll with it, he doesn't care if our day doesn't go by the same routine.

For starters, Kyle woke up around 7 AM, which usually wakes me up. Soon after I took him downstairs for breakfast, he brought me his shoes, meaning he wanted to go outside to play - at 7:15 AM!. LOL He ended up not eating at all. I had to get dressed and get him dressed real quick to take him outside. Shannon woke up while we were getting dressed.

We had a DirectTV contractor came out to install our cable TV in our room! I feel so spoiled. It's been over 6 weeks since we've watched any TV. I was looking through the menu and was amazed. LOL It's been so long since we've had a TV to watch. Although, we don't have DVR in our room, so any shows I miss, I will keep watching on the internet. The DirectTV guys was really nice and talkative and he and Shannon seemed to get along, they were even talking politics! LOL Before he left, he showed Shannon that we have a storm coming our way. We have thunder, lightening, rain, and hail in our area!

My mother-in-law and I made brownies! My first time making brownies! It came from a box and not from scratch, but still! It was pretty fun. It was agony waiting those 42 minutes for them to bake! Boy oh boy, were they good!

This afternoon, we discovered that our internet was compromised. Apparently, when they went to a certain website and clicked on something, it downloaded a virus on their computer. In turn, it created an email address from their IP address and started sending out SPAM emails to random people. We got this notice on our screen saying one of our computers was infected and to call them to fix our internet. Shannon and I both try to protect our computers and run the anti-spyware, anti-malware, etc. It was his dad's computer that was infected. We downloaded an anti-malware program on his computer and it found about 200 viruses! Shannon and I were both relieved it wasn't US that did this! I am always running and checking my computer for viruses and spyware!

I am very excited that Shannon took the first step to starting college again. He had University of Phoenix call him and he has an appointment with them next Wednesday! They will request his transcripts from his high school and college for him! He's going to get his Bachelors Degree in Hospitality Management and then go for a law degree at another college.