The Week Before Halloween

Health-wise, this week hasn’t be TOO bad…  Miles got sick to his stomach Wednesday night and vomited 3 separate times.  The next day he was fine.  Then I had lots of yucky congestion which has gotten worse.  But so far it hasn’t developed into any infection (that I know of).

This week, as usual, I spent time studying for Statistics.  I really shouldn’t jinx it, but so far this has been a fairly easy class.  I also taught my first classes for the dance recital session (a total of 5 classes)!  Ella had her first ballet/tap class and tonight will have her first jazz/hip hop class.  I volunteered in her school class for the second time.  I also did a lot of cleaning and purging at home.  All the while, a little on edge from the gusting winds whooshing through trees and rattling windows.  Thursday night was Teen Mother Choices at which we had goal planning night.  I am so lucky to be able to spend time with my girl for the 4th year in a row helping her to plan her goals.  I cannot believe how much she has matured and how strong she is now.  I love our relationship and can’t wait to see even more maturity this year.  I am SO proud of her!

This upcoming weekend will be busy, filled with Trick or Treating, Ella cheering at a playoff game and lots more, I’m sure, but I hope to get some rest in there sometime!

Last week/this weekend was quite exciting with two sets of our friends giving birth.  The first was a planned c-section.  They added a beautiful 3rd girl to their already gorgeous family.  Welcome Shelby!  Next up was more of a surprise.  Several weeks before planned, another set of friends had some signs that the baby wanted to get out early.  The hope was to stabilize the pregnancy, but that little dude just wanted to be born!  Gavin seems to be doing remarkably well for his preemie status and for that we are very grateful!

Today I will attend Halloween Parades at both kids’ schools and stay to help our/enjoy Ella’s classes’ party.

The next 2 weekends will involve craft shows.  I feel tired already.

This Weekend in Revue

This weekend I have been feeling quite under the weather.  But it is weird.  At times I feel like I can manage participating in life’s activities (although still a little off and dizzy), at other times, I am O.U.T.  I had a fever last night before bed and I swear I had a fever today during the Poms portion of the Pom/Cheer competition that Ella was in today.

But let’s go back to Friday.  Killer headache all day and that feeling that “uh oh, I’m gonna be sick tomorrow.”  I know I should have stayed home for my own good, but an event was planned for Ella’s Daisy Scout Troop and earlier I had promised the leader I’d come.  Plus Miles was coming too (since Jason wasn’t home).  I was functional, so we went.

Daisies Fall Outing

There was some general free time and running around by the pumpkins and animal stables.

Group Picture!

A hay ride, which I don’t have a picture of.

S’more making, ghost stories and funny stories by the fire.

 

And a great full moon.

Saturday morning Ella cheered at a game.  It was raining, I was feeling out of it, so I stayed home.  I did, however, go off to a baby shower.  While I was driving (it is about a 1 hour drive), I felt dizzy and had pains shooting down my arms.  No fun.  Then I made a wrong “turn” at the fork in the highway and tacked on another 30 minutes to my ride.  I had to leave the shower early anyway, so I felt bad that I was barely there.

The Hair Party

Back home, I quickly glue Ella’s fine hair into a high pony tail and headed out to her “Hair Party” where all the cheerleaders and their moms/guardians gathered for pizza and setting the pony tail hair into curlers.  This was a first for me.  But it was kind of fun.

Ella and her good friend Tara goofing around after getting curled!

Curls all safe and sound.

Helping Mary hold her hair.

 

Sometime during that party I felt horrible.  But I waited until the gifts were passed out and the cupcakes were eaten before insisting we leave.  I went on home to find I had a fever and was feeling even worse.

Next morning I felt ok, still a little off, but not knocked out on my feet sick.  So we went to the cheer competition and Jason graciously agreed to take over the volunteer job one of us was required to do (by volunteer I mean we had to do it).

Cheerleading Competition

Besides a 10 minute episode in which I felt horrible and was burning up, I really was touched by the event.  It is very close to my heart as I used to be a baton twirler and went to many competitions.  I know how special you feel when you get all prettied up and compete.  It’s even better when people are there to watch you and cheer for you.  What made me even more emotional was the new division that they had for physically and mentally impaired kids.  To see the joy in their faces was priceless!!

The only thing I was not to keen on was the multiple-way 1st place ties for the younger girls.  At what point should you start learning that someone else is better than you?  Ella’s team got 1st, tied with another team.  Though she is still so excited and proud, I feel a little weird.  They didn’t really earn that 1st.  I started competing at an early age, I think it is good for kids to learn how to lose (and win).  Losing is often motivation to work harder.  Anyway… I made sure Ella knew where we were in the bleachers before they performed.  I knew that would be important to her.

P.S.  Here is the result of the curlers!  She wanted to keep her hair this way for school today.  I have to admit, it looks very sharp and I might do it like this for future special events.