Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Adventures on the CART bus with Grandma

When you don't have to pay attention to driving you notice all kinds of other things. Like the two guys skipping together in the Norman High School parking lot and the man golfing in the Sam's club parking lot. Also people on the bus are really nice.

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Rachel sent us more signing time shows

Now Rachel has lots of help in the office to get everything done but when we first got involved Rachel still answered the phone at Two Little Hands. Cam remembers that and because he has been to visit the Signing Time group a few times they are part of our family. Rachel is like that really cool aunt that you don't get to see a whole lot but who sends fun packages in the mail. We got another package today with the latest DVDs. Cam always says Rachel sent me a package cause she loves me.

We got series two volume 11 Once Upon A Time and volume 12 Box Of Crayons. Rachel even signed them for us. We also got a Signing Time coloring book and crayons to color with. Cam and Kay were very excited and as usual the DVDs have been running non stop. Cam says his favorite part is when Rachel wears the silly glasses and when it gets all dark when they turn out the lights and talk about the color black in the Box Of Crayons DVD. Also when Hopkins holds up the signs that say Kiss Please when he wants Leah to give him a smooch in Once Upon A Time.

His favorite signs he has learned so far are word and book from Once Upon A Time. He already knew how to sign book but Rachel talks about how you change the size of the sign to match if you are talking about a big book or a little book.

In Box Of Crayons his favorite signs are gold and silver. Kay likes all of the different parts of the shows. She laughs when she sees Hopkins and she listens when she hears Rachel's familiar voice.

As usual the new shows are a huge hit at our house. Anyone who is interested in learning ASL would benefit from adding these DVDs to their collection.

Thanks Aunt Rachel and everyone at Two Little Hands Productions!!

Visit www.signingtime.com for more info or to place an order.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Work

Back to work tonight after 2 days off. I would really love to be able to stay at home with my kids. I hate worrying about child care.

I am having a bit of a hard time on night shift. I get sleepy but I stay awake. I get up and work on cleaning projects. It is hard to fall asleep when you are up moving around. I was raised to believe you work when you are being paid for it and if you say you are gonna do something you do it. Some of my co workers are really good but a lot of them don't do much. In fact a lot of them sleep. It doesn't seem that they get in trouble for sleeping. Hey, I think it would be great to get paid to sleep. If I slept at work I wouldn't have to sleep as much at home and I would have more time to spend with my family. I can't do it though. I think it is wrong.

Last Tuesday I worked with someone I hadn't before. I had been warned about her. She shows up late, she sleeps for several hours, and she is a bit difficult. I tried to keep an open mind. I would just do my best to get along with her. She was late so I had already started laundry and cleaning the floor. I had checked all the kids and got paper work out before she even arrived. She quickly mopped her part of the floor then told a story about some other people who work there sleeping when she worked with them. She said she only rests her eyes she doesn't actually sleep. She then went to watch TV.

I cleaned the tables and chairs and wiped down the kitchen and the trash can. I checked on the laundry I had put in the dryer but it was still damp. A bit later she checked the laundry again and I helped her fold what was dry. She put away the dishes and changed out the laundry. She kept going in the laundry room and hanging out so she seemed to always get to the laundry first. Sometimes she would stay in the laundry room and fold the clothes so I couldn't help. I thought maybe she wanted to work on the laundry because she has a very particular way she likes things folded and put away. So I backed off.

Around 2:30 she started napping on the couch. I re-programmed the microwave because some of the buttons had quit working and tried to stay busy. There wasn't that much laundry to do. Around 4:30 she woke up and changed out another load of laundry. She then asked me if I had been told that only one person did laundry cause I hadn't done any all night. What!? I was so shocked that she woke up from a nap to tell me she didn't think I was doing my share of the work. I said I started the laundry and helped fold it I have been checking on it but it hadn't been ready yet. You just seemed to get to it first when it was ready. She said Oh so you started one load and walked off. Wow. I have never been accused of not doing my share of the work. Usually people tell me to slow down. She went back to watching TV and napping. I finished cleaning out all the cabinets in both laundry rooms and took out all the trash except for what was in her patients rooms because she had already told me to stay out of there. Then I cleaned my patients wheelchairs. She didn't help with any of that. She sat on the couch. She didn't clean her patients chairs, she napped. I can not believe someone would show up late for work, nap for a good part of the night and then accuse the other person of not getting enough done.

They get away with it too because we are short staffed so they hate to fire anyone. What ends up happening though is the people who actually work finally get fed up with it and quit. The people who are getting paid to sleep aren't gonna quit. They are gonna end up with nothing but sleepers and no one to get the work done.

Friday, July 11, 2008

More scary TV

New burger king commercial for apple fries. Scared the crap out of me. The king and his kids reacting to the new apple fries. The boy looks just like him but even creepier. I know it's hard to believe but trust me. I can't find this commercial online yet but while I was looking I found this one which will cause me to have nightmares as well.

http://videos.caught-on-video.com/recentvideos/2/11565dc5-16d3-4f8e-9053-985c014a5203.htm

BoohBahs. This makes Kay run and hide behind the couch and cry until we turn it off.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SUq51zVViA&feature=related

At the Beach Tanning Commercials. Cam is frightened by these. Her voice is quite unnerving.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jxjwip2cng

You can see more at the beach here:

http://www.atbtanning.com/tvspots/

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Cams first missing tooth and gymnastics class



We went and tried gymnastics class today for Cam and Kay. Cam had a great time. Kay did her own thing which I was fine with but I am not sure the teacher appreciated it. She had a hard time with the different surfaces on the floor and kept tripping and falling. They didn't want her to wear her shoes and braces. I understand they want to minimize wear and tear on the equipment but she has to wear them so its a moot point. The teacher tried to tell me it was OK for her to wear just the braces but I think the ortho is a little more knowledgeable on the subject and I choose to follow his advice.

I am going to look into dance classes next and see if we have any more luck there.

After gymnastics Cam lost his first tooth. It has been wobbly for a few days. He says he swallowed it when it came out. I told him the tooth fairy wouldn't mind. He looks so cute when he smiles.

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Finish painting for the love of God

In the middle of all this crazyness I am still working on the never ending painting projects. I finished Kay's room. I just had to finish the trim. It looks so cute and she was really happy with it.

So now I think I just have to remove the wallpaper in the hall bath and the entryway and paint in there. Paint Taylor's room, the closet doors in Kay's room, finish the top cabinets for the kitchen, and do the blinds in the dining room. I had also planned to paint the outside door and porch but I may wait and tackle that later. Then I do have some spots to touch up but hey I feel like the end is in sight. After I get that done I can help Mom with her painting.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Moving on BBQ


I have been saying all summer I wanted to have my co workers over for a BBQ at my house. Something always seems to come up though. Painting mostly, I wanted to finish painting before inviting people over.

Then I got my transfer papers to move to a different house on night shift which is 11 PM-7:15 AM. I knew if I didn't do it right away that BBQ would not happen. Besides I may never finish painting. So I invited everyone over on Friday the 27th. Only two people were able to come but it was fun. We ate and then we went to see Wall-E at the theatre.

It's been a rough couple of weeks. I am emotional. I don't like changes so moving to a different shift and house is hard on me. I have been having some trouble at home too so I am a bit stressed. Jeff is having some problems so we are having some problems together. We are trying to work it out but it is hard. He is spending some time staying at his Mom's house and away from us. I am hoping that being forced to spend some time away from us will make him want to be with us and encourage him to find a way to get healthy so he can come back. I am ready to put it all behind me though and hope that better things are coming in the future for me and my family.

I started nights on the 29th. My sleep schedule is so screwed up I don't know if I am coming or going. I miss the kids in good ol house 4. The kids in 3 are great too but sleeping most of the time I am there. It is slow and quiet but I am getting lots of cleaning done and reading. It is nice to be able to find a place to park and I love spending the evenings with my family. I am sure it will get easier once I adjust. I have a really hard time around 4 am. That is when I get up and scrub the kitchen. I get home around 7:30 am and usually eat a quick bite then shower and hit the bed. I try to sleep from 8:30 until 4:30. I am still waking up around 11:30 and trying to force myself to sleep longer.

My favorite little patient was looking for me. He noticed I was gone and kept saying "Poor Jenper" When I came in to work at 11 he was still up and he gave me a big hug and kiss and told me "Earl missed Jenper" Ahh he is killing me! I have been going by house 4 in the mornings so I can see everyone and check my mailbox. It is good to still get to see the kids.

It is kinda funny after all that time I have been working with the house 4 crew on my last day I didn't work with any of the regular people. It was just me and the new girl. Probably for the best cause I hate goodbyes. Tabitha and Kayla will miss me though. Kayla said when I am not there it is chaos and that I change the whole atmosphere of the place. I think because they all fight with each other more when I am not around. I try not to get involved with the fighting and just listen to what they have to vent about. I am good at listening and I don't like to fight. Tabitha is mad at me for leaving but I think she will be OK. They won't even think about me once I am gone.