Suzy Q Homemaker

I see a trend.

I also don’t know what to write about other than the pain.  It has taken up most of my life these past couple of months.  Yesterday my physical therapist pushed me pretty hard.  There was one exercise I simply couldn’t  do because it hurt so bad.  I’m making steady progress but it is going so slowly that I’m getting frustrated.  The good part about PT is that the floor is slick enough I can work on pivots.  So long as my foot is right on the pivot point on the bottom of my shoe, my ankle doesn’t catch.  Just the slightest lip of traction sends a jolt of pain right through my foot.

The visible scars are healing well.  I have three.  The longest one is the scariest because you can see the holes where all the sutures were.  There are two small ones on either side of my foot.  I’m not sure but I think one is from the arthroscopic tenosynovectomy.  Doesn’t really matter.  Internally, I feel things starting to loosen up as my tendons are slowly learning how to do things again.  I suppose it helps to have a virtual obstacle course in my own house.  I’m also walking on uneven surfaces whenever I go down the driveway to the bus stop.  My foot gets a workout all day long.

I haven’t publicly admitted to being slightly depressed.  So I guess that’s what I’m doing now.  I hate that I don’t have the energy to do much more that sit with my foot propped up after getting the kids off to school.  Timothy has been watching more television than any toddler should be allowed to watch.  He gets food all over the place no matter how many times I make him take his snacks back into the kitchen.  The second I got up to go to the bathroom yesterday he took his spagettios into the living room and spilled most of them all over the carpet.  He also refuses to wear clothes for most of the day.  But that’s more amusing than anything.  And practical considering he is trying to make progress using the potty.

Wow I’m a Debbie Downer today.  I’m broken and I want to be fixed.  I miss that Zumba high I would get after class and the sweaty hugs from all my friends.  I know I’ll be back soon.  It just can’t seem to come soon enough.

Tell you what, though: I’m definitely looking forward to my first non-fat Pumpkin Spice Latte of the season. How did the weather know it was PSL time?  I might dig around in my cabinet and see if I have any cans of pumpkin left from last year.  I managed to make some really good imitation PSL in my crock pot last year.  So good.  On a similar note, the Samuel Adams Harvest collection is out and the pumpkin beer is really good.

Alright. I’m gonna see if I can muster up the energy to make myself some breakfast.

Happy Thursday, y’all.

In the world of Clan Grant, there have been many things to note this week.  My children are, as always, the center of the randomness but I would be loathe not to mention my own personal achievements.  So stay tuned.

Corey came home with a clarinet.  He had decided long before he even started middle school that he wanted to take band instead of choir because he already sings with the church choir.  Not being one to want to push him in directions he doesn’t want to go, I left all the decision-making up to him.  Even the choice of instruments was completely in his hands.  I didn’t suggest any particular family of instruments either (I played both the flute and the French horn throughout my school years so it didn’t make much of a difference to me).  Personally, I love the sound of the clarinet and I hope he sticks with it.

Simon has made excellent progress in Kindergarten.  Pre-K was an absolute nightmare and he came home at least once a week with referrals.  I was also called to come pick him up on numerous occasions because of his insolence.  This year, he has been so well-behaved that I honestly think someone may have switched our little Imp with an angel.

Aiden.  Oh, Aiden.  That child is chock full of imagination and mischief.  I have several stories to tell that I’ll get to in some later posts.  They involve socks, rockets, and singing feet. In the meantime, I must post this picture he drew last night. (Click to make it bigger)

Timothy is slowly learning how to use the potty. I think he’s taking a break this week because he’s been all sorts of snotty. Allergies are running rampant throughout the household and I pulled two boogers the size of peas out of his nose this morning. When he is feeling more himself he is actually able to make it to the toilet. I’m quite impressed.

Jamie is busy. Busy busy busy with school, both his own that he teaches and the classes he just started at ASU. He decided to go back to get his Specialist degree so he can earn tons more money. Feeding four boys has turned out to be more of a drain on our bank accounts than the current gas prices.

Lucy and I have been fighting about her sleeping habits.  There was a laundry basket at the foot of our bed that I used to keep all my Zumbawear in back when I washed it every other day.  Of course, it was just sitting there with a mish-mash of other clothes but she was sleeping in it all the same.  So yesterday I pulled out her laundry basket (the one with all her kitty blankies that she hasn’t been using) and I put it in place of the other one.  Then she went out into the living room and climbed into a different laundry basket!  The nerve!  I decided then to wash all the blankets and put them back in the basket as if they were freshly-washed laundry.  I win.

Finally, me!  As of today I am done with my big ugly Cam boot.  I graduated back into my lace-up brace and have permission to drive again.  This is fantastic news for pretty much everyone.  I was bumming rides off of everyone I knew to get to and from rehearsals and concerts, doctors’ appointments, and anywhere else I needed to go.  Jamie was tired of having to pack everyone up just to take me all the way downtown.  Frankly, I was too.  I miss driving.  The van is currently in the shop, though, so I’ll have to wait another day or two to actually get to it.  The air conditioning was dying.  I found it to be cruelly ironic considering this has been the hottest summer in eight years (according to one local weatherman).

I also took a break this week from nail art to get myself a set of gel nails with French tips.  My poor nails were looking haggard without polish.  Using a base coat was helping but as the weak, peeling, yellow part of my nails were growing out, they just kept breaking.  It wasn’t the polish that was peeling and chipping–it was my nails.  So I sucked it up and went for fakes.  I’ve tried acrylics a few times in my life but never really liked the way they felt.  I do like the gels.  They’re thick but just as thick as my natural nails are when I pile on all the layers of polish I usually use.  I’m going to give these another day or two and gussy them up a little.  Right now I’m enjoying the simplicity of this manicure.

This is a song the kids learned at Choir Camp this summer. Aiden can’t stop singing it. He also stands on his head for at least 50% of the time he’s at home. I say it makes good headstand music.

…that this morning was the last morning I had to wash my hair in the kitchen sink.
…that I can be well enough to dance at Arts in the Heart with CSRA Zumba.
…my pretty pink cast is replaced with a fugly boot cause it’ll mean physical therapy and more healing.
…it rains today.