Yesterday I took my daughter to Urgent Care with a fever. No Covid. No Flu. No Strep. Instructions were to alternate Tylenol and Motrin. This morning the fever is still there.
No more puking for my son last night. He actually slept good. That was a relief. I stayed up working on transferring some files just in case.
My wife came home from work and she looked terrible. She told me that about two hours into her shift she got really warm and then began to be sick. She struggled through the rest of her shift, occasionally getting more sick. When she got home, she texted her boss to tell her she was not going to be there tonight and went to bed.
I’ve had a cough for a couple days, but that’s really it. I’m hoping and praying I can avoid whatever is going around. Pass the Lysol ….
You may recall that our jobs require my wife and I to drive 45-70 minutes to work. Then, the same amount of time back home – every day. My car just turned 93,000 miles, while my wife’s just turned 89,000. They are both a 2024 Chevy Trax.
We knew we needed tires. The last couple times we had oil changes they told us. Thankfully, we got a few buck back on our taxes and we were able to both get new tires.
I worked all night Thursday and after work drove to the tire place. They put in my tires and I was home by noon. So I was up about 19 hours. I was able to grab a couple hour nap before getting up to pick up my daughter from school. Exhausted doesn’t describe how I felt by 6pm.
We were all in bed by 7 and the kids were asleep by 8. We all slept in my bed last night, because I was too tired to get them in their own beds. Naturally, once they were asleep, I struggled to fall asleep.
I’m not sure when I fell asleep, but I wasn’t sleeping too long when I had a rude awakening. Andrew began to vomit on the bed, himself, his sister and me. I do NOT do puke well. 9 times out of 10, the smell alone will make me gag.
I shot out of bed and got him to the bathroom. Ella was crying because there was puke on her new pajamas. I was focused on getting the sheets off the bed and in the wash. I was able to get them off before the smell got to me.
We grabbed Andrew’s mattress and put in on the floor in Ella’s room. He slept there and she and I slept in her bed. I didn’t have my CPAP in there, so any sleep I did get was crap.
Total damage: a couple pillows didn’t make it. The puke soaked right through the pillow case. I tossed those right in the trash.
So we’ll be heading to the urgent care this morning to see what’s going on. Hope your weekend is off to a better start than ours.
I suppose I could have skipped the Friday Photo Flashback this week. I posted quite a few photos yesterday for my anniversary after all. However, I did find one photo worth sharing again. It takes us back to St. Patrick’s Day of 2022.
Ella is two here and Andre is about 5 months old. My wife always does such a good job getting them clothes for holidays. I’m not sure if we got pictures of them this year.
Ella had such natural and beautiful curls here. I love her little smile. It’s had to believe that Andrew ever looked like this. I miss those chubby cheeks.
Oooooh! A new graphic! Pretty cool what AI can do with very little instruction.
Anyway, did you know that today is National Earmuff Day? Honest. Here’s why:
Earmuffs were patented on this day in 1877. In 1873, at age 15, Chester Greenwood devised a solution for cold ears by having his grandmother sew fur onto wire loops. He reportedly came up with the idea while ice skating. He received a patent for his “earmufflers” on March 13, 1877, at age 19.
Greenwood went on to manufacture these protectors for nearly 60 years, with his factory in Farmington, Maine producing them for U.S. soldiers during World War I. Farmington was known as the “Earmuff Capital of the World!” Earmuffs are actually categorized as clothing accessories or(believe it or not) personal protection equipment (P.P.E), specially designed to cup and protect the ears from either cold weather or noise.
Greenwood received other patents, too. Those included a tea kettle, a variation of the steel-toothed rake, an advertising matchbox, and a machine used to produce wooden spools for wire and thread. He also invented, but did not patent, an umbrella holder for mail carriers.
Celebrate today by wearing your earmuffs (or as Greenwood called them, “Greenwood’s Champion Ear Protectors”).
My flashback photo takes us back only a week or two when my wife snapped this photo of my son in the backseat.
Earmuffs and an X-Box controller (with no X-Box in the car!) – only my kid!
I will be honest with you. I had no intentions of watching the new Muppet Show that aired on Disney. The reason for this was because I remember that terrible mockumentary style show that ABC aired in 2015. That was just painful to watch and many (including myself) were disappointed in how the characters were portrayed.
All I really knew about this new reboot was that Seth Rogan was the executive producer and that it was going to air as a special. When I think “special,” I think 2 hour movie type thing. I was surprised to see that it was simply a 30 minute show, just like the original. Then I began to see trailers which showed the original set. My interest was peaked, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to watch it when it first became available.
After the show aired and became available to stream, I started to see reviews and comments. The main complaint I heard was about how Kermit’s voice was different. Well, Jim Henson has been dead since 1990 and his voice (and other characters that he voiced) has been different since then. Ernie and many Sesame Street Muppets have had a different voice since 1990 and I don’t recall people ranting about that.
I digress. I began to see reviews of the show. I would say 98% of them were positive. Many raved about the show. Then a few of my friends reached out to ask if I had seen it. They were raving about it, too. So, I decided to check it out along with my son.
The show opened just like it did in the late 70’s – with Kermit saying, “It’s the Muppet Show with our very special guest …” followed by the instantly recognizable Muppet Show Theme. It is almost a shot for shot copy of the original opening. It was so close to the original that I got goosebumps. Kermit that comes out on stage and begins to talk about how it’s been awhile and how they have a great show. From there, it was standard Muppet Show. It easily could have aired along with episodes of the original run.
The show had the typical backstage chaos, Miss Piggy competing for more time than the female guest star, and of course, Statler and Waldorf shouting insults from the balcony. The show went from act to act and finished in a traditional Muppet finale. When it was over, I was wanting more. My son laughed a lot too.
The word is that this “special” was a trial run pilot. In other words, if the show does well, it might get picked up for an entire season or two. I really hope that they do make more. It was entertaining from both a child and adult standpoint – just like the original show. There are plenty of really great stars who I could see doing the show. I would imagine that they’d want to jump at a chance to be on the show. I know where I’d want to be if I was on the show…
The show did so well that it got 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. There were more positive reviews online than negative, and the negatives were nit picking at little things. Seth Rogan did the Muppets right! Jim Henson would be thrilled at the way the new show was presented. I am one of many who loved every minute of it. So all I can say is, “More Muppets, Please!!”
Friday night, Ella made her debut as a cheerleader. Their group of gals cheered at a basketball game. At the beginning of the game, they dimmed the lights and introduced the cheerleaders and the teams. The girls made a “tunnel” that the players ran through as they shook their pom poms in the air.
Before the game, I waiting with her as the team gathered. After taking a selfie with her, she said she had an idea for a pose. She gave me “hair” and that is funny enough, but her face in this pic is priceless.
In total, I think the girls have learned four cheers. One of them is a variation of one our high school cheerleaders used to do. It is a call and response cheer. “When we say fire, you say up” “Fire!” “Up!” I was not about to let the lame crowd ruin their cheer…so I made sure to yell, “up” as loud as I could. Now we weren’t that far from them, so after they finish the cheer, I can hear Ella say to her teammate, “That’s my dad. He’s loud!”
She did such an amazing job. I took a few videos, but the crowd noise drowned them out.
Andrew caught Sam and I both off guard. At the beginning of the game, they played the national anthem. I took off my hat and placed my hand over my heart, as did everyone. In the middle of the song, Andrew asks why we are standing. Sam says “This is how we honor America” or something to that effect. As the anthem is about to end, he asks in all seriousness, “What if someone doesn’t like America?” That kid is always thinking!
He can make some great faces, too. His teachers posted a few pictures from their classroom recently. Andrew is working on spelling his name. He was spelling it out with what looked like those magnetic letters. This cracked me up.
There is never a shortage of material to blog about as long as these two keep it up.
One of my blogger friends, Britta, is so good at finding joy in the little things in life. She often blogs about them and I love how she writes about their impact on her life. I tell you about that because all in all, this week has been uneventful for me. However, there were some little things that stood out for me.
At Least I Made The Top Ten
My wife Sam always goes through the kid’s backpacks after school. This week we had to chuckle at one of the things Ella brought home. “Ten Things That Make Me Happy.
In case you have trouble reading them,
Dolls
Barbies
TV Time
To Color
Tacos
Hats
My Nana
My Pa
My Mom
My Dad
Mom should be higher than me, I get that. What I don’t get is Hats and Tacos! They outranked every family member! In 6 months I will ask her to do this again and hope to rank just a bit higher.
Winter Walk
Andrew and I had a bit of time before we had to get Ella from school Monday. He really wanted to go for a walk with the dog, so that is what we did.
He led the way as we walked the neighborhood. He was talking nonstop for the whole walk. I hope he continues to want to do this. I miss my daily walks. I’ll just have to make sure I bring along those “poop bags” just in case.
Gimme and E! Gimme an L, L, A! Go Ella!
After watching my niece cheer at one of the football games last fall, Ella has decided that she wants to cheer. They have already had two practices and she’s loving it. This week, she hot her uniform and her pom poms.
Her coach sent us some video of the girls doing their cheers. I truly cannot wait to watch her cheer. I think this may be what she sticks with for a long time.
An Accident Waiting to Happen
Sometimes, when Andrew gets frustrated or angry, I ask if playing my video game will help. It almost always does. So while Sam was getting ready for work, he was playing my car/racing game (Forza Horizon).
I am watching him play this game, which he is really just driving around, and he’s taking out everything. He is crashing into trees, mailboxes, phone booths, trash cans, and smashing into other cars. I said to him, “Buddy, mommy is going to have to do Driver’s Ed with you, because dad cannot imagine being in the car with you.”
From the other room, Sam says, “Oh no. We have talked about this. Driver’s Ed is all you!” I began to object to this, but before I can, she says, “You’re closer to death than me!” At this point, I cannot even answer because I am doubled over in laughter. My wife sure can come up with a zinger when she needs to.
The Whole World In My Hand
On the nights when Sam and I are both home, I get to put Ella to bed. This usually consists of me reading from her chapter book, which is followed by a made up story. I will ask her what she wants the story to be about. Favorite topics are princesses and unicorns. I usually make them so silly and ridiculous and it makes her really laugh!
The other night she wanted to hear a story about a unicorn who ate healthy and a horse that ate unhealthy. Naturally, I had to put them in a grocery store and awkward situations there. We argued about whether a tomato was a fruit or vegetable, too. I love to give the characters silly names and give them wacky voices.
After the story, sometimes she will ask me to sing her songs. I will do my best and sing her Dean Martin songs, hymns, and kid songs until she falls asleep. Tucking her in is something I really miss when I have to work nights.
Anyway, this week, we were laying in bed and I was singing. She reached up and grabbed my hand and held it. She held it tight. She took her stuffed animal and held it with her other hand and smiled. It was such a special moment, I snuck my phone out of my pocket and took a picture. It was in “night mode” so it is a bit dark.
As I laid there with her hand in mine, I was reminded of something I read on social media a while back. It was basically about how fast kids grow up and how things they used to do kind of just stop. I’ll never know when I’ll be singing our song to her for the last time, so I always sing it as best I can. I’ll never know when she’ll be “too big” to want to hold my hand, so I won’t let go until she does.
I can’t believe she will be 6 in less than a month.
I’ve been meaning to write a little recap of post-Christmas happenings, and I just haven’t had a second to do it. So here are just a few highlights.
The boys and me. That Three Stooges poster behind us was a complete coincidence.
My boys and I got together the weekend after Christmas. The Christmas holiday was spent with their mom, so we got together for lunch.
They are now both living together in an apartment and sharing the responsibilities. I hadn’t seen their new place yet, so I met them there. It’s really a nice place. Two bedrooms and two bathrooms as well as plenty of room to entertain guests. After the tour of their place and some time in conversation, we decided to go to lunch.
There is a place right down the road from them. Nice place with a nice atmosphere and good food. They both grabbed boneless wings and an order of garlic parmesan French fries (delicious), while I grabbed a good burger. It was fun to just sit and laugh with them. They aren’t little boys anymore and it was surreal to be having adult conversation with them. We’re hoping to make it a point to get together more.
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New Year’s Eve was pretty quiet. Ella stayed at Sam’s mom’s house, so it was Sam, Andrew and me at home. How did we celebrate the new year? Andrew decided to have a date night with us and chose to get some Mexican food.
What was left of my chimichangas!
Then we made a trip to Meijer! Yeah, we really hooped it up! We stopped to pick up a prescription and then walked up and down the toy aisle with Andrew. Now, instead of having us take pictures of toys to add to his Christmas list, we add them to his birthday list!
Selfie in the toy aisle at Meijer
We were in bed and asleep long before the new year arrived.
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My dad made the drive up to give the kids their Christmas gifts this past Saturday. I had taken the kids to Home Depot that morning to do the kids workshop. They built a tow truck. My dad was already in the driveway when we got back home.
Due to schedules and such, we don’t get to see him as often as we’d like. The kids really were happy to see him. They both got remote control cars and watches that have games on them. Both of the kids had to show him what Santa brought and they talked his ear off. At one point, Ella just crawled up on the couch and started snuggling with him. It was so cute.
Ella and Papa discussing the Glinda doll he brought her.
I was so glad to get time with him.
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On Sunday, Ella had a play date with a friend. So Andrew and I spent the day together while Sam slept before work. We went to the Barnes and Noble because he wanted to look at books. We spent a good chunk of time there and had a about an hour to kill before going to pick up Ella. Knowing how much he loves tools, we made a stop at Harbor Freight.
I don’t think there was one thing that didn’t fascinate him. He thought vices were cool. He marveled at the many types of drills on display. His eyes were wide when he saw the amount of flashlights on the wall. Cement mixers, generators, hammers, crowbars, and even a bicycle pump all had his attention.
At one point, his love for the Three Stooges came out as he showed me what “Moe hit Larry with”…
That’s a big wrench! I was waiting for him to say, “Spread out!”
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Sunday night was a challenge. They had to be back in bed at their normal time because they had to be back to school. They were not too happy (or awake) when I woke them up. Honestly, I wasn’t happy or awake either!
As I mentioned in a past blog, the family didn’t get family holiday photos this year. Our schedules and budget did not allow for that. So when my coworker said her husband was playing Santa and that her friend was a photographer, I had to take advantage of this.
As the kids and I parked outside the photo studio, they both asked where the sleigh and reindeer were! I think I said they were on a coffee break. Lol
We were greeted by a large elf. He showed around and then we got photos done. Ella had drawn a picture for him. He was thrilled to get it. My coworker said he brought it home
I loved watching this. Andrew seemed a little unsure at first, but wound up having quite a conversation with him.
Ella never has a problem chatting with people. She talked about her Barbies, the new puppy, and whatever else came into head.
They both really had fun. The photographer got a couple solo shots, too
Santa was a giant compared to those two.
It wasn’t so noticable when he was sitting.
Of course, my kids told Santa that dad probably needed to be on the Naughty List .
Because they told on me, I had to plead my case.
I guess I will find out if my begging worked on Christmas Day!
When my wife decided that we were going to do the Elf on the Shelf thing, I wondered just how difficult it would be. When you see those funny videos of a mom or dad shooting up in bed at 5am saying “The Elf!” and then running to move it, that is not a joke.
There have been plenty of times this year where our Elf, Twinkles, is in the same spot as the day before. The puppy is a good excuse, “She must have been afraid to move because she thought the puppy would get her.” That only works a couple times. I knew I had to do something that would make up for those days of no movement.
So, last week, I told the kids I couldn’t find my phone. I had them looking around for it too. I finally “found” it by my work bag. Before I left for work, I texted the following to my wife’s phone:
“Hey guys. It’s Twinkles. I have your dad’s phone. I didn’t want you to worry about where I was, so I wanted to let you know. It’s our little secret.”
That text came with this:
When they called me before bed, I told them that something weird was happening. My phone kept moving all over the office. Throughout the night I planned on sending pictures one by one. However, it was a busy night, so I sent them all at one time in the morning.
Twinkles sure did have some fun …
Hanging out on the IV pole with my equipment Napping in one of the empty patient roomsMaking a mess in the shredderTrying to steal my co-worker Amy’s popMaking one of the front desk staff’s stocking her ownChilling in the employee freezerProbably my favorite of the night. Copying her butt on the copier!
These pictures were popping up in text messages as my wife and I were talking on the phone. Ella was in the car waiting to go into school. With each picture she would crack up . She was loving every minute of it. When my wife picked up Andrew from school, she showed him. He came in to wake me up for work and said, “Dad! Did you know Twinkles was at your work!?’
What was really funny was that two of my co-workers said, “Why didn’t you tell me? I would have brought mine in from home too! They could have had a real party. Maybe next year…
Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian 