I gave up

I went to the dr today for the poison ivy. I am NOT itchy, but my leg is weeping and I thought it was infected. I'll spare the details. My dr is on vacation so I had to see her backup dr. For once, I would love to see a middle aged dr without him treating me like a child. I am not stupid, nor do I want someone patting my head and giving me drugs and telling me I will be fine. Once he realized I was NOT drug seeking, he did change a bit to offer advice. I ended up accepting a prescription for topical steroids. Now the key is to control the weeping so I can wear pants. We'll see how this goes. The good news is the tea tree oil I got yesterday seems to have worked really well in drying everything else out. I just need to research how to get rid of this allergy forever. There has to be a way.

Trinks new clothes

Longwood and Winterthur

A picture is worth a thousand words, however, the pictures of spring at Longwood and Winterthur are worth a million each. This was birthday weekend. Hubby and his mother share the same birthday tomorrow and we spent this lovely weekend at the Hotel du Pont and hit Longwood on Saturday and Winterthur today. We have been to Longwood so many times over the years, but I never get tired of the beautiful gardens. They are never the same! It's been years since I last went to Winterthur. It's very different from Longwood, but the gardens are just as nice, plus the "house" is spectacular. I grew up with parents who collected antiques, so I spent many vacations touring historic houses. Winterthur is just plain spectacular. It is well thought out and gorgeous!



These are the fish that the kids pet. I swear S was going to fall in as he was trying to feed them.



Lovely dining room.

The winner is hot water

I scalded myself in the shower at the Hotel du Pont this AM. I have not itched once! I did have a problem with the rash weeping through my capris, but I am still itch free right now! I didn't have any banana peels with me, or I would have continued that experiment as well. Now I need to locate local honey and figure out how to be more aggressive after exposure.

Myth Busters, Posey style

I find it amusing how people who post "cures" know little about how poison ivy actually spreads. No, it does not spread from scratching. It takes three weeks for the whole reaction to come out. So last night I googled some cures. No, I didn't save the site, but I did 2 things this AM. I put my arms under scalding hot water for about 5 minutes. I have pink arms, but no itching. Amazing. Then I had S eat a banana and rubbed the inside of the peel on my legs. Again - instant relief. My stomach is itching like crazy! My last test is probably going to be vinegar and baking soda paste. If that fails, I will use Kosher salt.

I think I can get through this without steroids. I have 13 more days before this reaction is gone. In the meantime, I am going to track down some local raw spring honey. If it doesn't sensitize me to the poison ivy, at least it will taste good.

Poison Ivy

Yes, I know what it looks like. No, I'm not stupid. Yes, I am stubborn and thick headed. I want the damn stuff out of my yard!!! Hubby won't help me get it out of the yard because he might get a reaction. F that! He should suffer with me!!!! So since all my attempts to get the non allergic people to come help me have failed, I am stuck with getting this mess out of my yard alone.

So this time I decided to see how long I can take the itch. The last outbreak last year lasted longer than the steroids, leaving me to question if the steroids actually work, or if I should just wait the 3 weeks for all of the poison ivy to finish it's dastardly deeds. I turned down my first opportunity for steroids. I have 2 weeks left. And boy am I itchy! It's on my legs, belly and arms. I am now on my second glass of wine and I will finish the bottle before I go to bed.

And nope - haven't learned a damn thing from this.

When Facebook and real life collide

So I spent today in NJ hanging out with my grandmother. I'll probably post about what's going on at some point this weekend. But we had a lovely visit this AM, then my mom and I picked up my grandfather and met my sister and the Divine Ms M at Gus' Diner. After we ordered, my mom smiled and waved to someone. I turned around and it was one of my friends from Facebook, who I actually haven't talked to in real life in the last 15-20 years. But I know her sister is getting married, and what her results in all quizzes are. It was really strange!

Take your child to work day

I have one happy child, and one sobbing child this AM. Trinks is finally old enough to come to work with us, but S has 3 more years to go. It's going to be a busy day! I still have a ton of work to do, my book club meeting, and I am heading to NJ tonight. Phew! I'm tired just thinking about it!

Trinks update

I realized I never officially updated Trinks' condition. Her X-rays came back fine. So now we wait for her to outgrow this. I only had to call the idiots 4 times. I left 3 messages. When I finally got a live person, she said, "Oh, you called yesterday." I added, rather nastily, "And last week!" She proceeded to tell me she couldn't access the X-rays. I felt like asking why that was my problem when she told me Dave would call me. Dave seemed very confused by my voicemail, and sounded stoned. I called back Jennifer, and left a rather irate message questioning Dave's competence. Jennifer quickly called me back, gave me the good news and I assured her I was done.

Worms are eating my garbage!!!!

My worms arrived from Uncle Jim's farm in PA. I was not expecting them until tomorrow. Trinks and I got home from ballet and threw some bedding into the 2nd working layer, put the 1,000 worms on top of that, put the next layer on, and then added the veggie and fruit scraps.

Put some garlic on it

My dear sweet son HATES chicken. Passionately. But he eats it after whining about it. He only likes three types of chicken - my garlic chicken, chicken nuggets, and chicken strips. So I told him tonight we are having broccoli with chicken. If nothing else, this boy eats veggies by the ton. I mentioned he had to eat a little chicken and after he melted down demanded I put garlic on the chicken before he would eat it.

As annoying as that was, he later amused us by watching Wheel of (mis)Fortune and guessing recess when the word started with an R. He got really mad when the person didn't guess it. Then he declared the man wasn't that ugly. Oh my. He's really funny!

An umbrella

Hubby wants an umbrella for his birthday. Sounds simple, right? If you answered yes, then there is no chance in hell you have ever shopped for sunglasses with this man. Absolutely impossible! I spent a long time reviewing items at various online stores, while he played Goldilocks - too big, don't want the hook handle, a flower - are you serious? All this from a man who steals my Winnie the Pooh umbrella with no shame. I have a feeling we will go to the mall together, again and again and again. Why can't he want Rock Band 2? I offered to buy it for him and he said it was too much. By the time I finish scouring the whole freaking world for the perfect umbrella, shelling out the money for the game will be a fantasy.

Hubby shaved

Every once in a while, hubby shaves his beard. He decided he was sick of it last night. I just shake my head because he looks so weird with no facial hair - and I'm still not sure if I forgive him for shaving right before our wedding almost 13 years ago. I kept laughing this AM as the kids studied his still sleeping face. Trinks said she was freaked out by it. S kept asking why daddy looked so strange.

And the rain rain rain came down down down

And if you aren't familiar with the original Winnie the Pooh movie, you have no idea what I am talking about. So my day was very productive, running around in the rain. I pumped gas, got on the road and met Trinks and my mom at the hospital. Although the scheduler assured me that they NEVER ran behind, we waited 1.5 hours to see the f-ing dr. Don't get me wrong - I know specialists run late all the time and you are supposed to accept it because they know you need to be there. I strenuously object to the scheduler lying to me.

The dr and the students were great. They put Trinks through a bunch of tests and explained she's probably just growing incredibly fast and things haven't caught up with each other yet. She's 4'4" right now. She had to do some neurological tests because she's asymmetrical - both her left leg and left arm have issues when she walks and runs. So that's when the fun began. Hubs figured everything everything was under control and went back to work. The X-ray person informed me AETNA would not cover X-Rays at the hospital. AETNA sucks! They don't cover logical things, and I could go on and on about the substandard service we have to use because we have those assholes, but I will leave that for another post. So we piled in my mom's car, headed down the street to the place AETNA would cover and got X-Rays. By the time we returned to the hospital, the office was closed. So tomorrow I'll figure out what to do. At least the people in the X-ray lab were great and printed a picture for Trinks to keep. I expected the pictures on a cd, but I guess that was expecting too much.

So, Trinks is back in NJ enjoying dinner at Europa. I am exhausted, but happy to know her leg seems .

A rare occurance

I am home today. Later, I am taking Trinks to A. I. du Pont hospital to have her leg looked at. The poor kid turns her left leg in so much that she trips herself when she walks. But when she runs, it's straight. Hopefully we'll figure out a way to straighten it out!

So I am enjoying an empty house right now. This is perfection!!!

Hell has frozen over

click on Hortense's blog on the right.

Smart Talk for Women: Victoria Rowell

I just returned from the Hotel duPont where I enjoyed the Smart Talk lecture. Someone has to die before tickets become available, so if there is ever an available ticket, I jump on it. Tonight was Victoria Rowell. I was a huge fan of hers from the Diagnosis Murder days, but I never her story. This woman spent her youth in foster care and wrote a tribute to the women who raised her, and what she learned from them. She was a wonderful speaker who enjoyed interacting with the crowd. She encouraged everyone to follow their dreams and not wait. I placed her book on my library request list - can't wait to hear the rest of the story.

Hire this guy

Check out some college humor. He graduates in May and could use a job.

Sugar Honey Iced Tea

My son was playing in the house center at school when he told his friend Sugar Honey Iced Tea. Thank goodness he didn't say the real word, nor did he know what it really stands for.

Hold the worms

I received a wonderful phone call from the worm people. First, it was a LIVE person. Second, he apologized. Apparently the weather is terrible where the worm beds are and sending them next week will be dangerous to the worms' health. Now I don't really care when I get the worms, but this was really awesome that someone took some time from their day to call me instead of sending me an e-mail. Considering all the complaining I have done about other companies, I thought I would share how awesome Abundant Earth is.

Worms, worms, worms, worms

I ordered one THOUSAND worms today. They will arrive next week. I'm nervous and excited at the same time. In about 2-5 years, I should have 15,000 - 20,000 freaking worms!!! What am I getting myself into??????? Fishing, anyone???

Eventful day

While at work, I was presented with many interesting invitations. Here's what I am planning to do:

All the Great Books (abridged) - April 9, Wilmington DE

Smart Talk - Victoria Rowell - April 13, Wilmington DE

Charity walk for pediatric cancer - April 18, Pike Creek DE

MS Walk - May 3, Ocean City NJ

Walk across DE - November 1 - DE - Nothing major - it's only 14 miles. Since it's 2 weeks after the 3 Day, I'll be in great shape.

All of this just came together today. I'm not entirely sure about the show on 4/9, but I think we can make it to the theater after ditching the kids.

So here's the thing. We need people to walk with us in Ocean City. Please let me know if you want to walk. It's 4 miles on the boardwalk - can't get better than that!!! Ivy has been going through heck with getting her full diagnosis and has compiled impressive research on her blog. The way she explains stuff makes non medical people understand. And the MRI pictures she posts are pretty cool.

Can-O-Worms

This week we are opening a can of worms. Yes - we just picked up the worm composting system yesterday. My aunt gave me the composter and some books to help me get started. Trinks wanted to start composting so now we have two different types - the yard waste and the worm one. I saved all the veggie scraps from my egg dish and salads for the week. I saved the coffee grounds, too. Now all we need is the worms. Hubs will take care of that with S on Tuesday while Trinks and I are at ballet. Hopefully this will be as fun as it sounds.

******Ok - I just read farther down on the page I linked to - I am struck by the following: They can be bred easily at home or school. Hmmmmmm.

Hey it's good to be back home again!

Yes, I listen to John Denver. And it perfectly describes how I felt today. Yesterday was a great day, but it was a bunch of running around, DE to NJ, to Atlantic Highlands, back to Marlton NJ, to Philly before returning home. The four of us left DE around 7:30. I dropped hubs and S off in Marlton and headed to Freehold. Trinks and I had a nice visit with my grandmother. She was in the hospital until today. Then Trinks and I headed to my sister's house for my niece's birthday party. The party was a wonderful marionette production of Sleeping Beauty in Atlantic Highlands. I especially loved that after the show, the puppeteers came out and interacted with the crowd to answer questions. Trinks and I ran out after cupcakes and made it back to Marlton in time to pick up hubs and parents to go to a wonderful dinner at Kanella in Philly. Every thing was amazing! Then it was back home to collapse! The kids stayed with the in laws so we could sleep in today.

Today was a nice productive day. I worked in the garden, steam vacuumed our room - counting down the months/years until the cat dies, did laundry, watched (and loved) August Rush, made lunch and breakfast for the week and am finally relaxing. The kids came home all excited about their day, we ate, bathed them and tried to put them to bed. Trinks has springs in her bed and came out 3 times before finally settling in. I am now sitting on my unmade bed, procrastinating about putting the clean sheets on the bed. The clean sheets are about 3 feet away from me, but I am so comfortable right now. I've renewed the library book I've lost, paid some bills, and pet the cat - yes the one we are counting down the life expectancy for. Phew! Almost bedtime.

Two Gallons

I found out that I have donated two gallons of blood since I started donating blood in DE. And I am on my way to my third! I should be able to donate another 2-3 more times this year. I'd love to get to 5 gallons!

Look at me! I'm a Safety Monitor!

My flair arrived today. I am an official Training Walk Leader. I just need to schedule a few walks...

Free Mammograms

I just added the mammogram button. Kathi sent it to me, I checked it out on Snopes, and then I posted it. While it does NOT work the way it says it does, 1.3 women will get a free mammogram every day It takes 45,000 hits to get 1 free mammogram. Please start clicking daily!