Why I love my dad

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My dad is a one-of-a-kind. I definitely get my sarcastic side from him, and if I have any toughness or strength, I probably got it from him too. Recently he went to the doctor and had several tests done. I won’t give you all the details, but there could have been something to worry about. Luckily, that isn’t the case.

He sent me an email this morning with all his test results and it looks like he will be around for many more years to torture us with his biting sense of humor. As I am reading his email, I made the mistake of continuing to eat my breakfast and wound up spitting milk all over my computer when I got to the last two lines.

“He also gave me a prescription for Valium to help me sleep when the old arthritis pain hits at bed time. That works well. He also said I could take one every 3 hours and I wouldn’t be an asshole any more.”

Not that I believe this to be true, but if it is, I might try to get a prescription for Dan too.

WTF? Wednesday

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I’ve recently noticed a plethora of crap at the grocery store that makes no sense to me. Things flavored to taste like other things … to make really unappealing new things.

For example, potato chips that taste like ketchup. Really? Does anyone over the age of five like ketchup that much? Or “rib” flavored potato chips. WTF? If I want ribs, I’ll get ribs.

The one that really threw me was the pina colada marshmellows. That makes me throw up a little just thinking about it. I’m no baker, but I am pretty certain there is no good use for those nasty things.

Seen anything equally as crazy?

I miss you, California

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Cool weather and kid-free. That sums up my five days in California. It was heaven.

And now that I’ve been back in Houston for a week, enjoying the 100-degree days and 90% humidity, I wonder … why they hell do we live here again???

Happy birthday, Anabella

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My first born is 7 years old today. Old and wiser people are always telling me that children grow up really fast and today I finally understand. Seven years has gone by in the blink of an eye. And she is such an independent little girl these days … no longer a little mini-me who just wants to make me happy. (I’m going to miss those days!) But I’m looking forward to watching her grow into an amazing young lady. Smart, confident, independent … that is my wish for her.

The Good, the bad and the ugly – part 3

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The Ugly.

Crohn’s disease is an evil bitch.

I stopped getting my infusion therapy back in April and started Humira about six weeks ago. It hasn’t given me any relief yet, but I am hopeful that it will … I have two friends who have experienced tremendous improvement with their Rheumatoid Arthritis.

But that being said, the last two months have been hell. Not even the steroids seem to be helping me anymore, and I had a few weeks where I only left my house to go to work. I felt like I was developing a mild case of social anxiety disorder, so I’ve been doing my best to combat the desire to stay home all the time. (Don’t want to wind up a recluse with 50 cats and a home shopping channel addiction. Next thing you know I’d turn up on some crazy reality show, and it’s all downhill from there.) It’s so hard to stay hopeful and positive, so thank God that I have children. Sometimes they are the only reason I can get myself going.

One interesting part of this new drug is that it is self-injection. I am getting four hours a month back now that I don’t have to get my meds via infusion, but I had to mentally prepare to administer the shots to myself. The first dose was just too much to handle (four shots in the belly at one time), so my doctor’s nurse graciously offered to help. I nearly passed out, so thank goodness I didn’t do it myself at home. But now I am a pro … it’s amazing what you can do when you have to.

So help cheer me up … tell me about something that you now do that you never thought you could or would.

The Good, the bad and the ugly – part 2

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The Bad.

While I was in Miami, Dan took Deuce (my cat) to a “farm” (a guy Dan works with lives on several acres and has a barn). Yes, he had been pissing in the house, and we had discussed our options for dealing with it, but I didn’t expect him to vanish while I was out of town. (In Dan’s defense, he thought it would be easier on me that way.)

The girls had said their goodbyes, so I resisted the urge to demand Deuce’s immediate return (take him away and then bring him back, only to potentially take him away again if we couldn’t resolve the pissing issue?), but after a week I couldn’t stand it anymore. So they tried to retrieve him, but apparently Deuce didn’t get along very well with the barn cats and was nowhere to be found.

I’ve been back over there several times looking for him, and I’ve put an alert in with the local animal control facilities … but I am heartbroken. I feel like I failed him. And I will forvever wonder where he is and what is happening to him.

The Good, the bad and the ugly – part 1

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Today, the Good. It’s been a great month. The first week of May, I went to Mom 2.0 in Miami. For those who don’t know, it’s a mom blogger conference. I met a lot of interesting women and spent three days at the Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne, which was a much-needed treat on its own.

But, I also met Sam Bee, who was super funny and personable:

And I had Jenny the Bloggess sign her book for me:

With requested profanity, of course:

And I got to hang out at the Versace Mansion in South Beach.

We also went an Astros game for the first time as a family this month. The girls looked adorable in their Astros gear, and were excellent fans. Little Scarlett even has a superstitious side to her, telling me if we clapped 20 times before each batter, he would hit the ball. So cute. We ended the night with dinner at Vic & Anthony’s … a tradition Dan and I had long before kiddos came into the picture. Anabella had her first taste of their infamous crab cakes and Scarlett enjoyed some of the best mac & cheese I’ve ever had. (The blue box stuff might be out for good at our house.)

And the month ended with my birthday. A non-event really, but I had a lot of nice celebrations … ending with a birthday slumber party for me and my friend Kim with four of our dearest friends this past Saturday night at a fancy hotel. We brought in tons of food and cocktails, and just talked, played games and acted silly. (Some of us more silly than others, right Kim?) Through all the changes and the ups and downs of life, I am somehow lucky enough to maintain an amazing circle of friends. So grateful for that!