Wednesday, January 31, 2007

The Cupboard Conqueror

J has figured out that certain cupboards in the house belong to him. Basically, if there isn't a lock on it, he can play in it. This pretty much means tupperware and ... um ... dish towels, maybe?

Tupperware makes a good toy.



It's 79%

Well, my FA3 marks were released. I passed. I got 72% on the exam, bringing my grade to a 79% overall. It's a lot lower than I'm used to getting in these classes, and certainly a lot lower than I would have hoped for before I'd actually written the stupid exam. And it means I most certainly will not get a scholarship for this year's studies. But it also means that I don't have to take the class again, and for that, I am grateful.

The exam was a lot harder than any of the past exams had been. Most of us didn't do terribly well.

My 79% is a pretty decent grade, really. I won't be terribly irritated by it.

The only thing that's a bit frustrating is that they round our grades to the nearest whole mark, and I got 79.4%. I'm a bit annoyed at missing the 80% by 0.1 of a mark!

In any event, that class is done. I'm way far behind in my current course, due to having been ill for a while (more on that later). If I can get caught up, I think I'll pass this class too. And that will put me at 8 courses down. Of course, there are a total of 25 courses. Quite a long haul in front of me still.

Sunday, January 21, 2007

More on "Love"

This morning, while having a cuddle:

T: I love you, J.
J: Love you, Panda.

I am really starting to take this personally.

**********

I had a very sore throat yesterday. Today, it is not anywhere near as sore, thanks to copious amounts of lemon with honey and chicken vegetable soup with garlic. But it has gone down into my chest, and I have laryngitis again. I sound just delightful, I assure you.

Lots of steam. Lots of soup. Lemon with honey. Halls cough drops. Cough syrup. Hot baths for aches and pains. Naps whenever possible.

I need to do some studying, but I'm too sick to be able to do much of anything. And tomorrow, I'm back at work. I can't afford another sick day, so I have to go in whether this is still happening to me or not.

At least J appears to be feeling better. He ate half a hotdog for lunch. This is more than he's eaten in days. Score!

Saturday, January 20, 2007

On Love

Driving in the car, on our way home from getting J's haircut:

H: I love you, J.
J: Love you, Daddy.
T: I love you, J.
J: Panda!

I am trying not to feel snubbed ...

Friday, January 19, 2007

Non sequitur

H and I were driving home tonight, with J asleep in the back. We arrived at the house. H got out of the car and opened the back door to get J.

H: Hello sweetie. Are you awake?
J: (Opening his eyes) Pink piggie. Oink, oink.

Thursday, January 18, 2007

My J is sick

Terribly stomach-flu type sick. Vomiting on the couch and in the car kind of sick.

Today, he threw up after trying a small taste of grape jelly. Refused Digestive biscuits and toast. Held down nothing but milk. Ate one single Cheerio for dinner. Had a 3-hour long nap, some nasty messy diaper issues, and is now in bed for the night.

Obviously, today was not good for daycare. So I was home with J. I am glad I have a job where they are so understanding about this stuff, but I really wish J weren't sick so often. I feel like I've missed an awful lot of time from the office ever since J started daycare. I've missed time because J's been sick. I've missed time because of my kidneys - stone still hasn't passed, in case you were wondering. I've missed time because of exams. I've missed time because of the furnace. Just generally, I've missed time. And I'm tired of missing time.

I'm off two days a week for the rest of January and the first couple days of February, because J's schedule requires it. I knew about it well in advance and am taking vacation days. That much is fine. But I wish I didn't have to miss all the other time leading up to it.

I'm a mom, a student, and I work full-time. It's a lot of stuff to juggle. I knew that. I know that. I think I can handle it. I just need for outside forces to stop interfering. And I don't know how to make that happen.

Work is busy. I have files to do. I need to be there to do the job. I want to do the job to the best of my abilities, to learn, and to advance. I'm good at the job, and I have a lot of potential there. I think they see that in me. I just need my life to come more in control so that I can exercise that potential and actually work my usual hours on a regular basis. It's important. But how do I make that happen?

I feel frustrated.

Friday, January 12, 2007

Feel the heat

Oh fudge!

I'll never get through everything I need to get through this weekend. We have appointments tomorrow. One that I forgot about until this very minute, and one which is repayment of a large favor that was given us. I am looking forward to both appointments (the afternoon one moreso than the morning, but whatever), and I have absolutely no desire to give up either of them. And I won't. But somehow, I need to get through a module and a half of really dry Economics readings by Tuesday evening so I can complete my quiz. And I'm just not sure I can do it with the time that is left.

H has been functioning alone at work all week, and will be by himself for much of next week again. He is very stressed out, and could really use a bit of a break. But he's going to need to be J's primary caregiver for most of the weekend while I try to do some homework, and he's not terribly pleased.

And to add to our current attitude problems, we're having some sort of furnace-motor problem. At least it's stll working. Trying to stay positive. Some days, it ain't easy.

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Updates 'n' stuff

J can say "Love you" now, among many other things. Sometimes, we can tell what he's saying, and sometimes it's so mangled we have no idea. But in time, we'll be able to understand it all. I can't wait! His chatting is really sweet, and we really enjoy all the talking. But while his speech is improving, he still doesn't eat well. At least, not for us; however, daycare says eating is his favorite passtime. I'm just glad he's getting nourishment somewhere! At least we know he'll always eat grapes.

J is rather accident-prone these days. He currently has two fat lips, from falling at daycare while reaching for various toys. At home, he'll run headlong 'til he falls down. He's a tough kid, though, and is never down for too long.

In other news, my car is still not working. But I am hopeful that it will be returned to working order shortly and I'll be able to get around a bit better.

H's foosball table (which ended up costing us only $15; score!) is assembled in the basement now. It's red with black legs and black and white graphics, and it has a beautiful high-gloss playing surface and the cool old-fashioned red and white foosball table rods, featuring players with faces and uniforms. What an amazing find!

I have had a headache for 3 days now. Tonight, I also have a sore shoulder and stomach/back pains. The back pain thing is starting to feel more normal now, and I suspect it will continue periodically until the whole kidney-stone extravaganza is done. But as to the rest, I blame the blizzard. We have a whole lot of snow, and really cold temperatures/wind-chills expected. And my body always responds negatively to weather fluctuations, so it's no wonder I feel a bit miserable just now.

I hope the weather stabilizes soon. Preferably, it will stabilize at nice balmy temperatures!

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

They say you are what you eat ...

... the other day, I saw you eating jerk chicken.

Coincidence?