A little bit longer.

I logged on to my blog today with the full intention of deleting the whole thing. I have had very little time and even less motivation to keep blogging, and I figured it was time to let it go. Then I started reading it. Even though I may be the only one still checking it, I just didn't have the heart to delete it yet. So here'e to hoping that I can update once in a while, because I still love reading the old ones!

i thought we were past this!

My sister and a couple of my friends have babies or very young children, so I get to hear the cute baby stories a lot. I also get to hear about the fevers, ear infections, runny noses, puking, etc... Thank goodness my kids are old enough to be past all that, right? HAHAHAHA!
Apparently not!
Maddie has an ear infection! She has had cold symptoms for a few days, starting with a sore throat, then the nasty cough and runny nose. It quickly progresses to and fever and "my ear is plugged!", then this morning it was "my ear HURTS!" Great. At least now she is old enough to tell me it hurts, and where.
My kids don't get sick that often. They get the sniffles once in a while, but they don't get really sick. I think Zack has missed a total of 3 days in the past 3 years of school for actually being sick (add in the orthodontist appointments and that number goes up a little). Maddie is right around the same, but now add another 2 days to that for the past 2 she was off.
Maybe I am just the mean mom, I always make them go to school and they are usually fine and make it the whole day. I have only had to pick Maddie up from school once (maybe twice). I admit, I know I am a lot less sympathetic to their little "owies" and sniffles. I tell them "you're fine! That's nothing! You can handle it." Because I have seen worse, and it's not life-threatening.
But my mom wasn't a nurse, and I don't remember any kisses on my skinned knees either!

my other hockey player

Maddie had her first hockey game this morning!

We went to Chicago last night to take her grandma (Rick's mom) to see Wicked for her birthday, and instead of staying and spending the day shopping or something we had to drive home at midnight so we would be here for Maddie's game. Oh, well. We didn't want to walk around Chicago in the 2 degree weather anyway.
That meant her grandparents were here for her game though. She had her own cheering section, even if most of us were inside the warming room! She did great, and since she was warmer when she was skating, she kept asking her coach if she could stay out on the ice when they changed lines.

They lost 3-1, but they had fun!

Maddie on the bench

she actually hit the puck a few times!

listening to coach

on the ice, waiting to play

the holidays are over!

Over the holidays the ER tends to have a problem with our FF's (frequent flyers) coming in even more often. I didn't think it was possible, but yes, they CAN come more often than usual. Maybe they are lonely, maybe their prescription drugs sell for more on the streets over the holidays, maybe they are hypochondriacs, or just the interesting ways all the other psych problems present themselves. So we have seen them all. Repeatedly. Over the past couple of weeks. Seriously people. THE HOLIDAYS ARE OVER! Go back to your usual crazy lives and leave us to take care of ACTUAL sick people!
Some of them are nice, or at the very least polite. They can be easy to care for, and once in a while they may even really be sick. And some of them are rotten miserable wastes of space.
My breaking point? 2 days ago, when one of my favorite FFs (NOT) has a hissy fit when we wouldn't give her a prescription for pain meds. It went something like this:
her: Why won't you give me some Tylenol threes?
me: Because you are on Methadone already, and if you need something else for pain control you need to follow up with your regular doctor. The ER doc told you when you came in that you would not get another prescription today. We treated your pain here.
her: So why you can't give me some motrins?
me: You can buy motrin at any drug store or grocery store. It is an over the counter medicine.
her: I can't buy no damn motrins, I ain't got no money. Why you think I come to the ER?
me: What made you think coming to the ER is free?
her: I don't pay!
me: So you're telling me you are not paying for this visit or the medicine you already got? That's good to know.
her: DO I LOOK LIKE I 'GONA PAY? I ain't gon pay nuthin! And Ima gon be back too!
....and she walks out mumbling about how horribly we treated her and how much she hates us all and how we don't do our jobs and take care of her pain and blah blah blahblahblah.
And of course that she will be back soon! Just hopefully not on my next shift!

we won!

We all got up early today to go and freeze at the ice rink this morning. It was for a good reason this time! Zack's team won! Last year was a really long season because they lost most of their games. He loves to play, but the season seems to last forever (and so do the rides home) when you never win. This season is much better, but the wins still aren't often enough. So today I have a happy boy, and hopefully the mood lasts. We play again tomorrow. Maybe we should go celebrate today. I think Maddie and I will treat the boys to lunch and a movie.

bah, humbug!

Every year I get something to try to entice Rick to hang lights or decorate outside for me. For the past 4 years our house has been the Scrooge of the neighborhood, and the only dark house on the block. I keep telling him that I decorate inside, he should decorate outside! Right? Last year I got a little tree that I put up in the front yard that lights up so we would at least have something! This year it lasted a day before it blew over and busted the lights in the star on top. Last year the star broke off entirely and I had to glue it back on so we could put it out again. Well, that worked out well. It is still laying outside on it's side because it is too COLD to go out and set it back up.
So this year I got this little pole that you can clip the light hooks to and hang those on the gutter, then it has a hook you can attach to put the light strings in the gutter hooks. See how easy that sounds? No ladder involved or anything! I think he was protesting me buying it because he wouldn't even carry it in from the car. So do I need to tell you that we have no lights outside again this year? I have all the lights and the hooks in a bag ready to go. I even bought one little extra string of lights to put on the little tree in the landscaping. It is a tiny little tree, and it wouldn't take more than a few minutes to put it up. It is still sitting in a box by the front door. I even tried to talk Zack into putting them on. Granted, I probably should have waited until it was warmer than 4 degrees and not snowing and blowing to ask him, but still! Either one of the guys could have done it by now! Christmas is in 3 days! What will Santa think?

got one!

We finally got a tree! After asking around and telling people about our Christmas tree problem, we finally got a tree. The place we got it from was pretty nice too! I did hear more than once "You don't have a tree yet?!" when I asked people where to go. And hopefully the place we usually go to is back next year, but if it isn't, we found a new place for back-up. The farm we went to today handed us a cart and a saw and said "the trees are that way". Sheesh! It was a little chilly to be walking far, so we picked one pretty quickly and not far from the barn. I forgot the camera, so I have a few hastily snapped cell phone camera pictures. I had to get a picture of Zack cutting down the tree that his sister picked out.

this is where we started,


and this is what we have so far.

But at least we have a tree!

This was the little cat that followed Maddie through the trees while we were looking. When she told the owner that the cat had followed her and was rubbing on her legs, he seemed surprised and said that he can never get that cat to come to him. Maddie attracts animals and babies. They all love her!

now what do we do?

We finally went out today to get our Christmas tree. It is difficult to get the whole family together to get one when the place closes at 5:30 on weekdays, and our weekends are pretty much booked. So we actually picked Maddie up a few minutes early from school and went out to the place we go to every year... CLOSED! The sign said closed for the season, see you next year. This shouldn't have been a big deal, but we have been going to the same place every year since we moved here because it is so great! They take us on a little hay ride out to the trees, we walk for a while until we find the one we want and then the guy driving the tractor cuts it. Then he drives us back to the barn where we all have popcorn and hot chocolate while they trim the bottom and shake it off and bind it to tie to the car. Last year we sat in the little barn and talked to the family for a while about how much we loved coming every year to get our tree, and they said it almost wasn't open last year because of health problems of one of the family.
So since we couldn't do our traditional tree hunt, we went to the lot on the corner that has the pre-cut trees. They were crap compared to what we are used to. I guess I have been spoiled, because we walked that whole lot and found nothing worth spending $45 on! And they were all between $40 and $50. Rick is now trying to talk me into a fake tree. It's just not the same! I love the pine smell, and the look and feel of the real thing.
But if we don't find something soon, we may end up with the clearance reject trees that nobody else wants on Christmas eve.
I guess I will have to get up early tomorrow and try again.
Any ideas? Where do you get your tree?

i am a hockey mom... again. but now i have pie.

Maddie and I got to go shopping today. For hockey equipment.

But this time it wasn't for Zack, my long time (and very expensive) hockey nut, it was for Maddie's gear. She starts on Saturday, and she is very excited about it. And mad at me for having to miss her first 2 practices. Her donna (grandma - long story about the name since her name is Joan) is taking her to her very first practice, and daddy will take her on Sunday. So we had to suit up tonight to practice getting dressed so she can do it herself on Saturday. She still needs help, but I think if we get her hockey pants and under armor shirt on before she goes it should work. Especially since she is supposed to suit up in the locker room with 15 boys (and 2 other girls). She looks so big with all that gear on, I wish I had taken a picture. I will have to get one this weekend. I am just glad she didn't want to be goalie. Those pads are huge! She could barely move with what she had on.

So then to counteract all the boy (looking) stuff we just had to get for my very girly girl, we came home and she baked her first pie. It was cherry, and I haven't decided yet if I will tell her what really happened with the pie. So the official story (for now) is that the pie was perfect and wonderful and we will share that pie - her pie - with everyone tomorrow at Thanksgiving. Really. It didn't have too much filling, and the sides were crimped together just right, and the filling didn't run out all over the sides and burn the sides of the pie while the center was still lily white and lukewarm. Her pie was perfect. And it will be the next time she wants to make one all by herself again. I hope. :-)

snow day!

Today was the first snow day of the school year. The kids got to stay home and play in the snow all day and play video games and hang out and just be kids. As much as I hate snow and winter and slush and icy roads... I have to say I love snow days. It is the best time for the kids to be kids and act like kids and just play. They throw snow balls and make snow angels and sled down the little mini hill in the front yard, and Maddie even got out the shovel and helped her dad shovel the front walk. (The snowblower broke today) Zack played video games and acted like a teenager, but in 2 months he will be a teenager. (Yikes!)

The bonus to having a snow day on a Friday, they get a nice long weekend and have nothing important to do tonight, and only hockey related stuff this weekend. The only problem? They were home all day while I was trying to sleep (I worked all night). I have become spoiled, when they are in school I can actually sleep in a nice quiet house.
So now here's to hoping they go back to school on Monday. :-)

ahhhh...

I feel like it is time to stop everything and just take a deep breath...

OK, now back to work. Sheesh!
I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off for the past 3 weeks. Now that I am done with SANE (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) training, I am hoping I can slow down a little. The training has been in Lansing for the last 3 weeks, Mondays and Tuesdays only. So it was broken up a little, but then I had to come right back home and still work my usual shifts in the ER. Maddie has been calling me crying every time I go, Zack has forgotten what I look like, and Rick - well he is stuck home trying to take care of the mess I left behind. I have been so tired when I am home that nothing has been getting done! My house is a disaster! I started to (try to) catch up on the laundry last weekend... so now I have a pile of clean laundry in the living room just waiting to be folded, and a TON of clean and folded laundry on the laundry room counter just waiting for my lovely children to pick them up and put them away! But instead they wonder why clean clothes don't just materialize in their rooms anymore, and I keep hearing "I need clean socks!" Well, go look in the laundry room!
It is (only) times like this when I think I should be working the day shift. It is hard to work for 3 nights, have one off and have to be on a day shift schedule for training for the next 2 days. Once you adjust to nights, it is easy to be up all night and sleep all day. But then I remember all the reasons I stay on nights. I do really like night shift, the clientele are definitely more interesting, and it works out really well so I can be home and sleep while the kids are in school and see them when they get home. Even if I have to go to work right after dinner, it is better than leaving before they get up and getting home just before they have to go to bed. Maybe in a few years when they don't want me around anymore I can switch to days. Just not yet. I have always been a night owl. I go back tomorrow night for 2 nights, then off 2, then back on for ..oh I don't know.
We start on call for the SANE program next month. It should be interesting getting this new program off the ground. It is exciting being in on it from the beginning and having some input on how it works.
But for now I need a few days to RELAX!

i solved it!

Can you?

I have gotten this e-mailed to me a few times, but never took the time to sit and try to solve it until today.. even though my dad e-mailed it to me this time about a month ago. I was cleaning out old e-mails and stuff, and figured I should actually read them. This was one of them. So now I am so very proud of myself, because it took me forever (I am not saying how long forever is), but I SOLVED it! Yay! I am SO smart! (heehee) Cause it was hard! So if you sit down and solve it in 2 minutes, shut up! I don't want to hear it! :) And if you can't solve it, THANKS!
If you ask real nice, I will give you the answer. And NO FAIR Googling it!

Einstein’s Fish Puzzle

Here’s a puzzle from Coudal Partners, titled "Whose Fish?" supposedly created by Albert Einstein:

This brainteaser, reportedly written by Einstein is difficult and Einstein said that 98% of the people in the world could not figure it out. Which percentage are you in?

There are five houses in a row in different colors. In each house lives a person with a different nationality. The five owners drink a different drink, smoke a different brand of cigar and keep a different pet, one of which is a Walleye Pike.

The question is– who owns the fish?

Hints:
1. The Brit lives in the red house.
2. The Swede keeps dogs as pets.
3. The Dane drinks tea.
4. The green house is on the left of the white house.
5. The green house owner drinks coffee.
6. The person who smokes Pall Malls keeps birds.
7. The owner of the yellow house smokes Dunhills.
8. The man living in the house right in the center drinks milk.
9. The man who smokes Blends lives next to the one who keeps cats.
10. The Norwegian lives in the first house.
11. The man who keeps horses lives next to the one who smokes Dunhills.
12. The owner who smokes Bluemasters drinks beer.
13. The German smokes Princes.
14. The Norwegian lives next to the blue house.
15. The man who smokes Blends has a neighbor who drinks water.

There are no tricks, pure logic will get you the correct answer. And yes, there is enough information to arrive at the one and only correct answer.