B Loves Oranges

orangesmile, originally uploaded by Sandra Maynard.

Well I hope everyone's Christmas was better than ours!

It started out ok; we were going to fly to Athens last Saturday to visit with Nancy and her family before flying to Greensboro to have Christmas on Sunday with my mom. The weather sucked and we got a late start on driving because a good friend's dad ended up in the hospital and Jon went to lend some support early in the morning.

Se we got to Nancy's about 2:30 and we had a great time there. I'm glad Anthony likes his video game. I hope Nancy doesn't show up at my doorstep in 12 - 14 years with murder in her eyes because Anthony weighs 350 pounds and spends 18 hours a day online playing World of Warcraft.

So after a fun but too short visit, we piled in the van and drove to mom's in the rain relying on Jon's new tomtom's wierd directions. Despite said wierdness it led us straight to her door.

Then Christmas on Sunday was fun at first - I busted my ass this year trying to find everyone gifts. I tried to be thoughtful and I think I succeeded, so it was great to see everyone enjoy what we gave them.

But Sunday afternoon Brenden awoke from his nap in a terrible grouchy mood. That night after a particularly bad case of tears from him I heard his stomach rumble, and before I had a chance to get out of the way he puked.

We managed to drive home Monday and he ate a few crackers. But as the day wore on he had a fever that wouldn't stay down, and more and more he refused to drink anything. He wouldn't even swallow his spit his throat was so sore.

We tried to call the pediatrician but she never returned our page. Finally at about 8 I told Jon we had to get B to the emergency room.
To make a long story short, he tested positive for strep throat. One painful antibiotic shot later we drove home around midnight.

So Christmas morning was subdued, but Brenden started feeling better and was happy to rip open more toys. It's been a rough few days but B is feeling much better. I'm sorry I took no photos of Christmas I was just too exhausted to care.

I have more to blog about, including my nifty kewl new computer I got for Christmas, but I'll save that for later. Brenden is over at the babysitter's running around with 3 other kids. I no longer regret as much having someone else watch him as much because he loves playing with other kids. In the meantime I have coffee to drink, cinnamon rolls to eat, and BioShock to play. W00T!

Letter to Brenden Month 30

xmastree, originally uploaded by Sandra Maynard.

Sorry this is late, bud. I blame the drugs!

If I could differentiate this month from the last 35 months, I think I would have to say that I finally realized that when I talk to you it no longer feels like I'm talking to the cat.

What I mean is you seem to understand us! Your vocabulary is growing slowly, but your comprehension has improved a thousandfold.

For instance, your dad asked you to "throw the ice cream carton away and put the spoon in the sink" a few nights ago. You took both, ran to the kitchen, and hesitated. We waited to see what you would do. You had a false start, but then you threw the carton away and put the spoon in the sink. Hooray! Damn, the cat just stares at me when I tell him to move his fat butt.

Not that you always obey me - matter of fact you are 'asserting your independence' more than ever. Thus I have shifted the nature of punishments. I now confiscate your beloved trains and the agony you experience teaches you valuable life lessons. Either that or you plot revenge against me with kitty, I'm not sure which yet.

I love you honey.

He used a caulking gun

orly, originally uploaded by Sandra Maynard.

Dig Brenden's shirt - I bet you can guess who bought it for him.

To explain the title of the post: yesterday the plastic surgeon added 120 cc's of saline to the expander. He had to use a caulking gun to squeeze the syringe. Yeah, my chest feels a little tight. I have 3 more fillings to go before the 2nd surgery to complete my fake booby.

I have before and after photos and I'm going to take more as the process continues, I'm just not sure how to publish them or even if I should. I'm not ashamed but they are boobies after all. I'll think of something.

PS:

moar funny pictures

I made the mistake of catching up on 3 weeks of lolcats today. My side hurts.

Overcoming Inertia

bouquet, originally uploaded by Sandra Maynard.

Sheesh! I have been under the weather, of course, but not bad enough that excuses going this long without posting. I have no excuse, except the drugs. I've been conveniently blaming them for everything.

So what has been happening to me since me and my right-side mammary glands parted ways? A little sleep, some reading, a little computer gaming, and very little television. That's it.

Here's some highlights and lowlights, in no particular order, from that time:

1) Dad telling me "he's the most well-behaved little kid I've ever met". He was talking about some pod person, because surely he wasn't referring to Brenden! He and Ilu took care of B the night after my surgery so that Jon could stay with me. They also helped enormously the weekend following my surgery. Brenden did have a screeching meltdown when Ilu took him grocery shopping, so apparently the aliens who kidnapped him returned him pretty fast (I wonder why?).

2) Projectile vomiting the hour before I got out of the hospital. I'll leave it at that.

3) Discovering Brenden plays well with others. The others being friend Miranda's 2 year old daughter and 10 month old son. They kept me company the weekend following the weekend after my surgery. Miranda felt like she didn't do much, but I owe her big - time. If B hadn't had people there to play with it would have been Hell on Earth.

4) Nancy, Mark, and Anthony paying a visit last weekend. Again, B had someone to play with and it made a big difference. It was especially nice because the weather turned windy and cold. B was very upset with me Sunday afternonn when I wouldn't let him outside to ride his tricycle.

5) Flowers! I received lovely bouquets from a myriad of folks, including Helly and Alan. Jon wanted y'all to know it was the most beautiful flower arrangement he's ever seen. I thought it was remarkably lovely. Yes, we placed it in the bathroom, because Big Fat Kitty considers any plant material to be a tasty dinner salad. He's wierd that way. Anyway, I never realized how much a bouquet of flowers can cheer up a person. Thank you again, everybody. They were a constant source of instant warm fuzzies for me - and I needed them.

6) Pain meds. I received Demerol after surgery (Jon commented that I behaved like I was playing Jeopardy), and some Demerol-esque pill once off the pump which I took for about a week and a half. After I ran out, I experienced nausea and heavy-duty cold sweats. I thought this was withdrawl symptoms, but doc said I hadn't been on the hard stuff long enough. He told me what I was feeling was normal and prescribed me Tylenol with just a hint of Darvocet. They do the job, but I learned not to take them just before bedtime. I can't handle the funky-assed dreams.

That's enough for now. Everyone's support and well-wishes mean more to me than I can say.

I owe a 36 month letter to Brenden, plus a blow-by-blow of the reconstructive process I'm currently going through. As they say in the islands, soon come!

Hello

chinesefood, originally uploaded by Sandra Maynard.

I got out of the hospital Friday evening, and other than dizzyness from my meds, I'm doing good. I do have pain but it's not intolerable. That's it for now; I seem to have forgotten how to type.