Sick!

Yes, I'm still here, and thanks to those of you who inquired! I have the real-deal FLU! Figures, my appt for a flu shot was in 2 weeks. Luckily the headache is gone and I am just left with the aches and pains. I am up moving around today but will probably be another week before I'm back up to my old self again.

Hot baths, blanket, couch and books, that's all that has been going on here. The garden is a mess, we had 8 inches of rain yesterday, breaking a record, and to that is added another 5-6 inches in the 3-4 days prior so I guess I picked a good week to be sick if it had to happen.

The kids briefly ran a fever on Tues & Wed but seemed to slough off whatever it was and are fine, thankfully. I HATE being sick and being the only adult to care for the kids, I just want to rest and I wish hubby was home to pack lunches, make dinner, take them to lessons, do homework, etc! Not just wishful thinking, either - he'd do it!

Marley the wonder dog is still sick from whatever she ate during the BBQ last weekend. No obstructions were noted on x-ray but it has been 5 long days of problems for her so I am having to feed her a bland diet and shuffle outside in the rain every 20 minutes with her to analyze her bowel movements, or lack thereof! All night long! Needless to say I haven't been getting enough rest. If she doesn't improve in the next 24 hours we will have to go back in for another check and tests.

Funny story for you (not so much for me!) - Last night all I could think about was having a nice Minnesota-Finnish Sauna to sweat this out but I had to settle for a hot bath. The kids' room is where the deep tub is so I ran a nice hot bath, put some menthol oil in there, soothing music, and prepared to relax - it was not to be. CRASH! I was hit in the head with a suction cup basket that fell on me and suddenly I was relaxing with every McDonald's Happy Meal toy issued in the past 4 years!

Some days you're the windshield, some days you're the BUG!

I wish I had a laptop then I could read all the blogs I am behind on! I am a "desktop" girl, but during times of illness I can see the benefits of a laptop!

got pickles?

I've reached pickle critical mass in my refrigerator!

Just a random photo - there's all kinds of pickled "stuff" in my fridge!

Today is the 3rd day of complete downpours. Forecasters are saying 8-10 inches of rain depending on where one is in the "viewing area" - that's A LOT of rain!

Still dog-tired, didn't even manage to reply to everyone's nice comments yesterday. Although now I'm thinking it's a little more that just being tired since I woke to swollen lymph nodes under my arms, I've never had those swell up before - but I figured since it's doubtful that I pulled muscles knitting that's what it was LOL! Besides that just REALLY tired, with no other symptoms so I figure my body is valiantly trying to fight something off so I have given in and have not done anything productive in a couple of days. Today I went to the library and got a big stack of books to see me through the rain that is supposed to last several more days...

I survived!

The party, that is! Remember that scene from the movie 'Sixteen Candles' where Anthony Michael Hall wakes up after the party trapped under a glass coffee table? LOL, it was a little kid's version of that!

I was able to get the whole backyard and kitchen cleaned up by a respectable 10:30 p.m., however, I wasn't to notice the full gravity of the situation until the next morning. I fell asleep reading a book on the couch that night, but when I woke up in the morning, the dog got up from her sleeping spot under the coffee table and left behind a nice police outline of herself in dog hair... dog hair? This is when I had the flashback of a scene from one of my favorite movies. Upon closer inspection, the floor was covered in a nice lacquer consisting most likely of a mixture of soda, Hawaiian Punch, and juice boxes. Thankfully, my entire house is hard floors without a speck of carpet!

As I walked through the house I could see it was everywhere, the entire floor from the back of the house to the front was like this LOL! With the dogs outside and the kids donning flip flops, I was able to get the whole floor cleaned by about 9 a.m. If I haven't sung the praises of my steam mop before, now is a good time - my Bissell steam mop rocks!

None of this really mattered since I was prepared for a good cleanup evolution, and I think the kids had a great time! I think most of us moms don't allow our kids to have soda or even juice that isn't watered down most of the time, so when faced with unattended tables full of desserts and soda, what's a kid to do?!

Random sightings during the cleanup:

1. Dog eating a cookie under the hammock
2. Another dog eating a dropped hot dog
3. Nerf guns and assorted weaponry in the broccoli bed
4. A lone flip flop in the bird bath
5. A decorative bowl of rocks on my coffee table filled with what appeared to be Coke
6. Plate of mac & cheese casserole formed into a mountain with a Hot Wheels monster truck on top

Who knew the 12 & under crowd could party like rock stars?

My mom is probably laughing thinking "here's where the payback starts..."!

The fall temps I was looking forward to for the party were not to be, it was in the 90's that day!

Trying to get all the kids together for a photo!

My fountain before it was filled with Hawaiian Punch!

Kids' art project to send out to the ship so the guys can hang it up

My BFF has the "magic touch" with the grill - we don't need men for this LOL!

VFA-32 Wives! Look at all the new and expected babies this deployment!

Great group of gals!

Finnegan

It really was nice to be able to get together with all these gals, everyone at the party is dealing with the same stuff and we all just "get it"! We're all "in (on) the same boat" hahahaha.

After cleanup on Sunday morning, I took the kids down to the oceanfront for the Neptune Festival Art Show. They hated it, I'll be honest, but I love looking at all the crafts. This is the last big "hurrah" for the oceanfront season and we will get our beaches back afterwards and be able to bring our dogs down to the beach, park cheaply and close and just be able to enjoy being locals again.

The white tents on the boardwalk go on and on and on - these are the art show vendors.

Pausing for an ice cream

then to make up for dragging them to the art show...

"like a kid in a candy store"!

Below is what happens when you don't harvest yard long beans for 3 days! Yikes!

huge bean harvest Monday morning before the rain started

I spent all day yesterday blanching and freezing beans and catching up on laundry and starting a new knitting project. It has been raining for 2 full days now, and it's the kind of rain where you can't really get anything done, but we need it!

And today? Absolutely nothing! It's still pouring outside and I feel so self indulgent and lazy - after getting the kids off to school this morning I've been alternating between reading a book and napping on the couch. It's finally settling in how tired I must have been. Now that I have finally gotten up off my butt and blogged I need to get my act together before the kids get home, don't want them to know they have a lazy mama. Unfortunately first, I need to give Marley a bath... I'm not sure what all she ate at the party, but she is recovering from being pretty sick the past 12 hours and she's not such a pretty girl right now so I better go give her a "spa day". Poor girl has the same diet every day of her life and then is allowed to run "Golden Corral" style through a picnic for 40+ people...