Pink Eye, Strep Throat, Oh my!

Sorry for the lack of posting since last Thursday. (By the way thanks for all the great Vacation ideas!) So what has been going on? 

Well, ever since last Wednesday I have been dealing with some head cold symptoms (runny nose, congestion). Saturday, I woke up with a lovely surprise in that I couldn't open my eye without wiping out a lot of crud. Off to Urgent Care and diagnosed with pink eye and an upper respiratory infection. 

I was kind of surprised they didn't give me an antibiotic given the fact that I was congested as well. Instead I was sent home with eye drops and 2 cough meds which really didn't help much except during the day. 

I stayed home from the boys' basketball games on Saturday and church and teaching on Sunday. Yesterday I still felt like crap but life goes on when you are a mom. And honestly Bill was feeling worse than I was so I made him go to the doctor. He got diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection, lower respiratory infection, a throat infection, AND a bad ear infection. (He has been sick for like 3 weeks and his doc had put him on a z-pack for antibiotics but they did not work at all.) 

Well, late last night my throat starting killing me. It felt like someone was taking a fiery knife and stabbing my throat. This morning I took Rebecca to school and then asked Bill to take the boys to school so I could go back to Urgent Care. To let you know how much sickness is running rampant in this town, I got there at 7:55 (they open officially at 8). There were 3 people ahead of me and when they called me back at 8:20 the nurse said there were 10 people in queue behind me. Anyways.... the rapid strep throat test came back negative but I showed all signs of strep. 

So I am an amped up dose of amoxicillin for the next 10 days and a 5 day supply of presnidone to reduce the swelling in my throat. I took it a little bit ago and I already can tell a difference in my throat. It still hurts but not the stabbing pain. 

I just hope this medicine works and I am finally on the path of feeling better. I probably won't do any of my normal posts this week (goals post, etc). I am planning on resting as much as possible so maybe February can start out healthier. 

Hope everyone is having a great and HEALTHY Tuesday! 

Vacation ideas needed!

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So as I mentioned in my 12 goals for 2020, I would like to be able to go on a vacation with Bill and the kids. We are in the beginning processes of thinking about where we want to go. Basically some of our parameters are:

1. Within driving distance. We are willing to drive up to 12 hours from Columbus, Ohio. 
2. Family friendly-- remember we have Bill, myself, and a 13 year old, 10 year old and 8 year old. 
3. Budget friendly
4. Things to do like aquariums, zoos, nature hikes, etc would be great.
5. Timeline: Summer (after kids get out of school at the end of May and before they go back in the middle of August). Ideally we would like to go away for a week. 

We would love to go back to Indian Beach, North Carolina but not sure we can make the budget work. Some other places we have gone in the past include Gatlinburg (several times), Pittsburgh (several times), Indianapolis, Traverse City Michigan. I would love to maybe go to a state I have never been too--- Minnesota, Georgia, Alabama, New York come to mind. I am just not feeling inspired today. 

So I am asking for ideas. If you live in an area that you would recommend or have an area you have visited in the past that you would recommend could you let me know in the comments? Thanks so much in advance! 

Update #3 of 12 goals for 2020

Happy Wednesday! I am the midst of a cold, busy week but I thought I would pop on here for a few to do my update on my 2020 goals before I get to babysit "A". So how did I do last week? 

1. Read at least 5 chapters in a book a week. 

I am happy to say that I finished The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais. I started reading St. Rita of Cascia: Saint of the Impossible by Fr. Joseph Sicardo, O.S.A. (So far I am 68 pages in). I am finding time to read before bed instead of playing games on my tablet or watching T.V. And on another note, I added a page to this blog (up at the top under the header) to show the books that I have read this year. If you click on the heading it will take you to that page where you can see all the books I have read this year! :) 

2.Exercise 5 times a week. 

Um...back to 0 days :(   

3.Carb-cycle. 

I didn't do very well on this last week. By the end of the week I found myself snacking more and craving things like wheat thins on low carb days. Will try again this week.

4. Lose weight. 

I started at 256 pounds! Last week I was 254.4. This week I was back up to 255.6. :(  

5. At least 2 date nights with Bill each month. 

Nothing this week. Total for January 2020: 2 specific date nights so completed for January.

6. Self-care. 

Gave myself permission to rest on Saturday after waking up with a huge headache. 

7. Bake a treat for the family at least 2 times a month 

This goal was already completed for January entering this week. However, I did make a chocolate cake (which Rebecca decorated) and pumpkin bread for breakfasts. 

8. Declutter every room in the house. 

I decluttered and deep cleaned my desk on Monday. It looks so much better! 

Before

After

9. Go on a family vacation with Bill and the kids.

We have talked about this and may have an idea and dates to consider. Now to see if we can financially make it work. 

10. Be more social. 

I went out to dinner with a friend. I need to text another friend to find a date to have a game/taco night.    

11. Utilize Swagbucks to earn gift cards to help with gift giving costs. My goal is to get at least 20 Swagbucks a day. Last week I earned 505 swagbucks which averages to around 72 a day for last week! 

12. Write on this here blog at least 3 times a week. 

Including today I have written 4 times over the last week. :) 

So some good things and some bad things as far as progression this week! If you are working on goals for the New Year how are you faring? Hope you have a great Wednesday!

What we ate and what we will eat! (Week 3 of 52)

Happy Sunday! Today has dawned super cold-- wind chills are at -4 this morning. We were up and out early as it was my PSR classes turn to do the readings at 8:00AM mass. Then we had PSR class. After class, the kids and I ran a few errands-- Walmart to pick up a prescription, rubbing alcohol, and clorox wipes; Lowes to get a refrigerator light bulb; and Kroger to get milk, bread, hot dog buns and fruit. Now we are home and I made the kids mac-n-cheese for lunch. Later this afternoon, they will paint their pine wood derby cars and I will work on tutoring plans. I also hope to be able to do some reading and later watch the Packers/49ers game. But first I wanted to share our meal plan for this week. 

For those who may be new here: I mentioned in my goals post for 2020 that I wanted to lose weight this year and practice carb-cycling as one of the ways to achieve this. One of the easiest ways to get sidetracked from carb-cycling is by NOT making a menu plan each week. So I want to start keeping track of what we are eating and what I am planning on making for dinner for now.

I plan on carb-cycling my way. I am not counting specific amounts of carbs. Instead on low carb days I will be not eating processed carbs--ie. bread, donuts, candy, etc. I will also be limiting the amount of pop that I drink on those days. (ideally I would like to cut out drinking pop but I am being a realist!) I will not limit the fresh fruits and vegetables (with the exception of white potatoes) on low carb days. So with that in mind, let's talk about food. 

What did we eat last week? 

Sunday, January 12--Free Day--Soft tacos, corn, chips and salsa or queso

Monday, January 13--High Carb Day--Potato soup and crackers (got bumped from last week)

Tuesday, January 14--Low Carb Day--Alice Springs Chicken, salad, broccoli. Bill and the kids had leftover macaroni and cheese from Saturday night and mixed veggies instead of broccoli. I had leftover green beans from Saturday night instead of broccoli. 

Wednesday, January 15--High Carb Day-- Pasta bake (from freezer) and a veggie-- No photo-- I know the kids had the pasta bake. I think I had a sandwich. That was a really long day and I honestly don't remember.

Thursday, January 16-- Low Carb Day-- bratwurst, corn, french fries (for Bill and kids), sweet potato fries for me. 
This ended up being a LONG day. I cheated off the low carb day when I had a sandwich for lunch as I was feeding my niece and nephew. Oops. Also snacked way too much on m&ms and walnuts. Double oops! For dinner I didn't make the sweet potato fries as they had more carbs than regular fries. I just didn't eat any fries. 

Friday, January 17--High Carb Day-- Make your own pizza and salad. Kids and Bill had pizza. I went out to dinner with a friend at a local Mexican place. I had a chicken and sausage dish (which I didn't photograph) and a yummy frozen margarita.

Saturday, January 18-- Low Carb Day--Whole chicken in crockpot, sauteed green beans, stuffing (for Bill and kids), salad-- we had this without the salad as the bagged salad I had bought went bad :( I made corn instead. I was also craving chocolate cake, so I made one and Rebecca asked to decorate it! It was yummy! 

What we are eating this week....

Sunday, January 19-- Free Day--Chicken Tikka Masala, naan, and rice for Rebecca, Bill and I. Leftovers for the boys.

Monday, January 20-- High Carb Day--Chicken alfredo pasta bake with peas

Tuesday, January 21-- Low Carb Day--Hot dogs, baked beans and salad

Wednesday, January 22-- High Carb Day--Meatloaf, veggies

Thursday, January 23-- Low Carb Day--Sauteed tilapia, veggies 

Friday, January 24-- High Carb Day--Pizza and fruit

Saturday, January 25-- Low Carb Day-- ??? Not sure yet. 

What are you eating this week?

Gratitude Saturday #3 of 2020

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Happy Saturday!! 
Today I woke up with an humongous headache and ice everywhere outside. We didn't get the snow they were calling for but we got a nice layer of ice. It is supposed to turn to rain later today but it is a mess out there right now- although it is also kind of beautiful. The boys are supposed to have basketball games today but they have already cancelled the first 2 game blocks today so we shall see. They cancel in 2 hour blocks. I have a lot of things on my to-do list today so I would be perfectly okay if it were a stay at home day. :) 

In case you were new here or were wondering what "Gratitude Saturday" was all about: every Saturday I am going to come back here to list those things for which I am grateful. In today's day and age an attitude of gratitude is one way to fight against the feelings of hopelessness when you are watching news reports or reading about the barrage of horrible things going on in the world.  

So this week I am grateful for:: 

• People who step up to coach youth in sports. Jacob and Ben have some good coaches this year and for that I am grateful.
• That we didn't lose power last weekend when the winds came through. 
• Bacon.
• A good night's sleep.
• Spending time with my niece and nephew.
• Relatively healthy kids.
• A hubby who says he is sorry by bringing me a rose and a Starbucks frappuchino.
  

  

  
  
• Caffeine. 
• Gift cards received in the mail.
• Dinner out with friends.
• A good frozen margarita. 
  

  

  
  

What are you thankful for today? 

A rose, caffiene and LOTS of dust bunnies!

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!! This has been a long, busy week that at times seems like it has dragged on and on. I have babysat my niece and nephew the last 2 days as they don't have school. Then it is straight into babysitting A. Then tutoring. Then a late dinner. I am tired. However, it is all good.  

Today has been an okay day so far even though I am still tired. I came home from taking kids to school to find that Bill had bought me a rose and a frappuchino from Starbucks. He was in the doghouse, so he was telling me he was sorry ;) 

Then the mail came and we received a $5 gift card to Wendy's from Geico for answering a survey a month ago. 

One benefit of having Lacie and Ethan here is that it has forced me to get some things done around here. One of the things on my to-do list that I have been putting off is cleaning out our small curio cabinet in the dining room. I noticed when I went to get our fancy dishes out for New Year's Eve, that there was a lot of dust in the cabinet and it smelled like dust. 

So today I decided to take everything out and give it a good clean. Also I went through everything in there and if it didn't bring a smile to my face then it went into a donate pile-- I donated 2 dolphin figurines. If it was broken it went into the trash-- there were 2 ornaments and a couple of shells that were broken. 

It was gross. There were so many dust bunnies in it, beside it and behind it. 

It only took me about an hour to clean it all out, dust everything, Windex the glass shelves, move the cabinet away from the wall and sweep and dust behind it and beside it. 

Now when I come into the dining room from the kitchen I smile as I see it nice and clean! 

As for the rest of the day... well I will babysit "A" here in about 20 minutes or so. Then I have to pick the kids up from school. Tonight I am supposed to go out to dinner with a friend. Looks like we are also supposed to get some winter weather tonight too. *In fact they just issued a winter weather advisory from 9PM tonight to 3PM tomorrow for snow and ice. Lovely. Not. 

This weekend, the boys are supposed to have basketball games tomorrow.  I need to do laundry as it has piled up this week. I need to finish Benjamin's Reconciliation book with him as he has his first Reconciliation on Tuesday. AND the kids need to paint their pine wood derby cars for Tuesday. Nothing like waiting until the last minute. Oops. Just means life will continue to be busy. 

How's life where you are? Is there an area that needs some deep cleaning in your house? 

Update #2 of 12 goals for 2020

Happy Wednesday! This morning started out foggy, but the fog has lifted. Now it is just cloudy and gloomy out today. Yesterday felt so much like a Monday even though it was a Tuesday. This morning I made a quick run to the grocery store. I was going to go tomorrow but I happened to check my calendar and forgot that I have my niece and nephew tomorrow and Friday so I thought I would get it done. I have also done a few things on my cleaning to do list. With that being done, I thought I would pop on here for a few to do my update on my 2020 goals. So how did I do last week? 

1. Read at least 5 chapters in a book a week. 

I am happy to say that I finished reading Under Currents by Nora Roberts. I started AND finished reading The Return of the Dragon Queen by Farah Ommerbhoy.  

 

I started reading The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais yesterday and I am 3 chapters in. 

 

2.Exercise 5 times a week. 

I took a walk with Bill and the kids one day. I also walked the boys to school yesterday. So 2 days! Better than 0 days I guess.  

3.Carb-cycle. 

I did pretty good on this I definitely snacked less than on high carb days. I will say that that low carb day on Thursdays is proving to be a challenge. 

4. Lose weight. 

I started at 256 pounds! This week I weighed in at 254.4. So a loss of 1.6 pounds. I will take it. 

5. At least 2 date nights with Bill each month. 

I made a special steak dinner for Bill and I this past Saturday.

6. Self-care. 

Giving myself the permission to rest on Saturday instead of going-going-going. I also finished watching "The Crown" Season 3 this week.  

7. Bake a treat for the family at least 2 times a month 

I made chocolate chip cookie bars for the family on Sunday. So with the cookies last week and the cookie bars this week I have completed this goal for January! 

8. Declutter every room in the house. 

I decluttered our mud room closet and found a coat and several pairs of shoes that the kids outgrew to donate. I also pulled a couple things out of my closet to donate. I need to get them boxed up and drop them off.  

9. Go on a family vacation with Bill and the kids.

We have talked about this and may have an idea and dates to consider. Now to see if we can financially make it work. 

10. Be more social. 

Nope. Although I do have a dinner tentatively scheduled out with a friend.   

11. Utilize Swagbucks to earn gift cards to help with gift giving costs. My goal is to get at least 20 Swagbucks a day. Last week I earned 142 so I met that goal even though a couple of days I didn't get to work on it at all.

12. Write on this here blog at least 3 times a week. 
Including today I have written 5 times over the last week. :) 

So I am very happy with my goals progresses this week! If you are working on goals for the New Year how are you faring? Well, it is time to go make some lunch and get ready for my busy afternoon of babysitting and tutoring! Hope you have a great Wednesday!