Surviving Summer

The forecast for the next 7 days....
105, 100, 102, 104, 106, 108, 109......  The weatherman said we may challenge records held since 1936 - records for all-time highest temperature in KC, and also for most over-100 days in a summer.  1936 was the Dust Bowl, am I right?  Ironically, the old-timers that come in to my brother-in-law's store (he manages an Orscheln farm store) said that the really wet cool summers that we had a few summers back were just like the summers before the Dust Bowl.  I believe it now.  (Not that I ever doubted them.)
So we're just surviving.  We hide inside all day.  The boys do okay, but about 7 PM are dying to go outside.  They play, but get so sweaty, and their faces turn bright red.  When they come in, they drink and drink and drink. I'm pretty sure we've had a water fight on some scale for the last 5 nights.
We got some rain last night from the "chance" (which was only 20%, and was supposed to stay north of here) - 3/4 of an inch!  Everything feels so clean outside - it's been completely choked in road dust lately.  Normally the sound of rain is soothing and helps you sleep, but it's such a foreign sound lately that I don't feel like I slept at all.  I'm trying out coffee this morning.  I'm going with weak and partially decaf.  We'll see how if affects the little one.
Surgery to fix my hernia went GREAT.  I had never had surgery, so I was a little nervous.  But I know the anesthesiologist well (he plays bass in our praise band), and met the surgeon when we played in a band together for a worship night.  So that eased my mind.  It was pretty low-key.  I fell alseep and when I woke up, it just felt like I'd had a really great nap (the kind where you sleep really hard, and probably drool, and then wake up on your own, and not to an alarm or screaming child).  The whole surgery took 31 minutes.  I had no reaction to the anesthesia - we even went and got Sonic on the way home.  The day after was the most painful, but it's also the last day I took pain meds.  I had my follow-up yesterday, and they said it is healing great.  It is slightly sore right at the incision, and only really sharply hurts if I forget and stretch and twist at the same time.  My belly still pooches a little over where the hernia was, but it should go down as the skin shrinks back - it's been stretched over that for quite a while.  I took a "before" picture; I'll take an "after" pic in a month when the swelling and bruising is gone.
So two days ago, I got some styrofoam bowls out of the cupboard and noticed there were about 10 little cocoons with larvae in them in between the edges of the bowls.  I got rid of them, and didn't think a lot about it, until yesterday when I opened the cupboard and saw about 4 little moths and a larva dangling from a web attached to the bottom of the upper shelf.  I had Paul come investigate, because I don't do larvae.
OH.  MY.  GOSH.
SO.  GROSS.
There was a bag of cornmeal that was absolutely crawling with these moths and little larvae.  There was a jar that I have no idea what HAD been in it, but the bottom was a sponge of dead and molding larvae.  I seriously felt like I was going to throw up, and I wasn't even the one pulling stuff out.  The little cocoons were all over everything - the styrofoam bowls, hot cocoa and tea packages, boxes.  I just threw most of it away.   I don't think they're weevils, because I think weevils are a beetle, but they definitely have the same appetite (grains), based on where we found them infesting.  But the funny thing is, and the reason I didn't notice them earlier, is because they weren't on or in my flour (which I use several times a week) at all.  It was so incredibly disgusting. I still am getting that "I'm throwing up a little in my mouth" feeling when I think of it.
Well, I need to think about getting around and accomplishing something today.  Paul had to go in to work on his day off, and is helping a friend with a project this afternoon.  We'd also like to try to go to the fair this evening.... So it's going to be a busy, non-stop day.

One More Night....

Paul works this night, then takes vacation for a week!  (Which he only has to actually take off two days of work - one thing I do love about his wacky schedule.)  I've been having a hard time going to bed without him this weekend (hence the after-midnight post).... It's just easier to tune out in front of the tv or computer.
We didn't have anything planned for his week off.  His birthday (32!) is this week, so that's why he took the time off.  But then I went and scheduled a surgery for the day before his birthday, so there goes any plans he may have been thinking about having.
I'm finally having my hernia fixed.  I have what they call an umbilical hernia, even though it's not actually in my belly button, but rather above it.  It started when I was pregnant with Jacob, got worse and worse, and now after Zadie, something has to be done.  It sticks out further than my post-baby gut (see photo).  I'm ready for it to go away.
So I'm celebrating 30 by "having some work done."  We'll call the hernia repair a tummy tuck.  Then I'm going to get my veins fixed.  I also am going to have to get glasses, I'm almost sure.  After the episode with the eye my vision didn't fully recover.  I know I was headed for glasses, but I think the swelling and reaction sped up the inevitable.  Especially while driving at night, with reflective signs I have blurred and double-vision (very safe, I know).  So I've got to get that checked out.
Anyhow.  I'm rambling to avoid going to bed.  But it's time.

What I've Been Up To

Let's see......

• Turning 30.  My birthday was the 22nd.  Paul surprised me the day before with a trip to the Wichita Zoo.  It was a perfect day (in a string of overwhelming heat).  We loaded up the van - literally.  We tried out the 8-passenger seating (our family of 5, plus Paul's parents and sister), and it wasn't bad for a 2+ hour trip.  He further surprised me by taking the day of my actual birthday off work.  We went to see my niece play softball and had dinner and cake and homemade ice cream (!!!) at my sister's house.

• Garden.  I don't know how, with the extreme heat and almost complete lack of rain (less than an inch all month), but this is the best garden we've ever had.  Maybe because we've been able to control exactly how much and when the garden gets watered..... It seems like we'd get a complete deluge of several inches of rain in an hour, or a wind storm, or hail sometime in the spring or early summer to destroy my garden.  But we obviously haven't had any of that. 



Green bean totals.  Nearly 40 quarts of corn frozen as well.

• Grilling!  I told Paul last Monday, after watching the weather forecast - 100, 101, 98, 99, 100, 103 - I was not going to be using the oven or the stove at all last week.  And I didn't (and still haven't), except for breakfast a few mornings.  We have had some definite food WINS.  

Grilled Pizza!  This is the "kids' pizza" (pepperoni and cheese).

My pizza, with decidedly more toppings.

Vegetable Medley:  Potatoes, carrots, zucchini (all from my or my in-laws' garden) with butter, salt, pepper, and paprika.  YUM. (Would have been even better had I not forgotten the onions!)

Smoked Bread.  Oh my goodness......

• Hibernating.  (It's not just for cold weather.)  It's been near or exceeding 100 degrees for the last week, with it forecasting to be more of the same for at least the next 8 days.  (There is no outlook for rain for at least 2 weeks.)  Obviously it's too hot to take Zadie outside, at least until near sundown, and even then, she has to stay in the shade.  The boys want so badly to play outside, but they come in after 5 minutes, "Mommy, it's too hot."

Ugh.  It's bad when a big cooldown means temps in the low 90s.  And the rain "chance" is just to tease us.

• Sleeping.  The heat is just completely taking it out of me.  I feel like I'm doing the bare minimum to get by until I can sleep again.  I'm finally finding the house under the mess, but that's only because we're having company tomorrow for Independence Day.  We haven't done school for a week, though.  But Paul has vacation next week, so maybe we'll get caught up then......

Maybe I AM a Minivan Mommy

Okay, it seems like ever since we've gotten the van, we have been going NON-STOP.  Seriously, we're averaging one day a week of staying at home and not having to go somewhere.  And it has nothing to do with "Ooh, I got a new car.  It's to hip and trendy and I want to show it off!"  I'm tired of running!  And tired of filling up with gas!  I just want to stay home and be able to get it clean.
Some of it has been good running - time with family and celebrating.  But a lot has required spending money. Bleh.
So that's my excuse.  I'll tell you what we've been up to sometime soon.  After we harvest and freeze sweet corn tomorrow.

2 Months!

She's a little zoned in this pic.  It was HOT today, and we were gone all day (8:30A-9P).  She was ready to go to bed.

The little Miss is two months old today.... Where did the time go?

We had a special Father's Day service at church, because we had a baby dedication for Zadie and her little friend Karmyn, who is three weeks younger than she is.  It was a nice little service, even though our children were trying their hardest to make it stressful.  Zadie started fussing just as Pastor started the dedication message, then just before we were to go up front, Jacob started one of those Muuuuwaaaaah!!!! whining fits (over not getting more candy) and had to get hauled out by Paul.  (Apparently we can't have a baby dedication without a screaming child....)  But Zadie was good during Pastor's prayer, and didn't fuss at all - or spit up on his black suit. :)

Totally unflattering picture of me, but that's how I really look, folks. 

(In my defense, a lot of my belly pooch is a hernia, which will be getting fixed next month.)

Zadie is now sleeping through the night, from 9ish to 6ish every night.  Bliss!  I'm still tired a lot during the day, I think because this cold is kicking me.  Also, I am noticing the energy that nursing is taking out of me.  I think it's because of the heat.  I drink nearly 2 gallons of water every day just to stay hydrated... I crave that much just to feel quenched.
I don't know if it's just difference in personalities, or a difference because of gender, but Zadie is making lots of coos like she's talking to us.  The boys made noise, but when Zadie "talks" it's like she's saying something and will look at you til you answer.  I'm not saying she's a baby genius and trying to tell us what she wants at two months, but just that I think it's interesting.  I really do think it's just a "girl thing" - boys want to do, and girls wants to talk about it.
We started trying to get her to take a bottle this week, and she's actually taken to it pretty well.  I am having my hernia fixed in July, and I won't be able to nurse her for 24 hours afterwards because of the anesthesia.  So I've been pumping in the morning when I'm full (because she sleeps for 8+ hours!), and then giving her the bottle some time later in the day, just to get her used to it.  She drank nearly the whole bottle (4 oz) with my mom during church today!  Yay!  Not only a baby who sleeps during the day, but also a baby who will take a bottle!  Now hopefully I can get enough pumped ahead of time that we won't have to feed her formula that day.....
She's officially outgrown all of her newborn clothes.... It makes me sad.  Not that she's growing so fast - I'm not one of those moms that gets all teary at how big my kids are getting.  It's more like when you have to retire a favorite pair of jeans or shoes.... She had a couple outfits I loved, and were so cute, but she didn't get to wear them but a few times.
Our little girl has the prettiest eyes.  They are so big and blue, and have dark curly lashes.  She likes looking around at the world with her wide open eyes.  Her hair is a bit on the wild side.  I think she's going to have my hair.  Curly and unruly.  Oh well.... At least I'll know how to deal with it!  She also has the best gummy smile.  She likes smiling at her daddy, but will usually show off that bright smile and dimple for anyone holding her.  She also has gorgeous skin.  She's got darker skin, like Nathan did, and it's so clear and soft.  I love stroking her cheeks or her arms while I'm nursing her.
In case you can't tell, we love our little girl.  We're very proud of her, and she's definitely made her way into our hearts.

The Eye. It Gets Better. (And by better, I mean "worse.")

So I was wrong on my prognosis of my eye.  When I woke up Saturday morning, this is what I looked like.

Let me give you a closeup:

These are crappy-quality cell phone camera pictures, but you can kind of see.  The white of my eye was all swollen, swelling up around my iris.  It looked like clear jelly in the outside corner of my eye, swollen up and hanging over my eyelid.  

Gross.  Seriously.

As I sat in the chair nursing Zadie at 6 AM, I started praying.  I had no idea what was going on, so I prayed, "Lord, if I'm supposed to go see the eye doctor, let him be open today."  I didn't know if he was open on Saturdays or not.  So I called later.  Not only was he open, but he had an opening for an appointment.  I took it.

You know it's bad when you come in and the receptionist says, "Boy, you weren't kidding."  Doesn't even ask who I am.

I described my symptoms to the doctor, and I think he was baffled.  He would look at my eye, then walk away and take some notes, then walk back and just stare at it with his head tilted.  He went and washed his hands, came over and looked at it (without touching it), then went back and washed his hands again.

He said it did look like a "immuno response" (allergic reaction), but I think was confused as to why both eyes weren't affected.  He gave me some steroid eye drops, and told me he was going to check as to whether they were safe to take while nursing.  He called me later to tell me he'd checked with two pharmacists, and they all agreed they were safe.  I started using them every hour, then backed down to every two hours that evening.  It definitely made a difference.

Of course, we had all sorts of errands to do in town that morning as well.....  We hit all 3 county shopping Meccas (Orscheln, WalMart, and Country Mart) with my eye in all it's swollen, red, and leaking glory.  I got a lot of stares.

Sunday the doctor called to check in.  The drops were definitely working, so we kept on it.  But by then I was getting a stuffed nose.

By Tuesday, my good eye looked worse than my bad eye.  I had come down with a cold or allergies or something....  Stuffed nose, sore throat, the works.

All I can figure is that this is allergies or a virus, but instead of breathing it in through my nose or mouth, I rubbed it into my eye, and that's how it entered my body.

I'm feeling better today, except for a hacking cough....  Major ab workout - not the way I would choose to find my abs again after a baby, but oh well.  I'm only using the drops twice a day now (a week later)(Really?  Has it been a week?  Where did this week go???).  My eye looks and feels pretty much normal, but my vision in that eye is still blurred a little bit (like it's teared up).  I'm hoping it's not damaged.... I have been saying this is the year I'm going to get glasses, but I assumed it would be from age, not from illness.

Anyhow.  So that's what eye've been up to.

(har, har)

....And God is probably laughing.

So today is my 6-week postpartum checkup, and all you mommies know what that means.  I've been a good girl, and followed the doctor's orders.  And let me tell you, it's been a LONG six weeks in that aspect.

And this is what I look like today.

Sexy.  I'm not sure I've even washed my face this morning, other than my eyes.

I don't know what's going on with my eye.  It started Wednesday afternoon. I just thought something was in it, and that it would get better overnight.  I woke up yesterday with it crusted shut, but our eye doctor is closed on Thursdays, so I couldn't see him.  This morning it was again crusted shut, but really swollen - almost swollen shut.  Paul wants me to call the eye doctor, but I don't want to pay $35 to see the eye doctor if it's something the regular doctor can take care of, since I'm already scheduled to see her.  I'll go to the eye doctor after my checkup, if she thinks I need to.

God is probably laughing at the joke he's pulled on us.  Do you think my husband can even stand to look at me?

Oh well.  Maybe he finds the Cyclops look sexy.