Sunday, March 22, 2020

Day 9

It was rainy out today with a high around 50.  That makes more days of rain than sunshine during this quarantine. We all sat on the couch and watched church online from the laptop.  Then we broke out a 1000 piece puzzle of the old Yankee Stadium.  It really has been a lazy rainy day.

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Today was announced the positive cases have raised to 165.

There are good things in all this.
1. With no activities/sports we have spent all this time together as family
2. Saving money...its expensive traveling, paying those gate fees, packing a cooler and still eating concession stand foods.
3. After a week of AMI, you should all have a greater appreciation for teachers!
4. The community has come together to help all in need.
5. Hopeful more people are getting close to GOD and finding the time for prayer.

Stay home if you can!

Saturday, March 21, 2020

Day 8

Today was nice out.  We got up this morning and made a grocery run on the hunt for flour and meat.  We found both but it took 4 stores!  We made some Tik Toks, realized the light was coming in the window just right for some shadow animals, rode bikes until our legs hurt and finished the night watching the new Lion King.

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With every passing day I notice more strange things.  Today it was the lack of traffic. On our bike ride we literally did not pass one car. NONE. ZILCH. NADA.  It's very weird being on a high traffic road and there being no cars.

Today the Governor announced there are 118 positive cases in our state. He said we are likely to reach the peak in 6-8 weeks.

Wait!  What?!  6 - 8 WEEKS!!!!

Social distancing and wash your hands!!!!
We are all in this together

Friday, March 20, 2020

Day 7

This pandemic is crazy!  My kids have been out of school since March 13.  That means they have not seen the outside world in 7 days!  Yesterday it was announced that school would continue to be out thru April 17.  The grocery stores are bare.  No toilet paper, sugar, Chef Boyardee, Lysol, hand sanitizer, the list goes on. You get the point. I don't know about the kids but I am having withdraws from sports.  We have spent everyday at a practice or game and if one of my kids weren't at a practice/game then we went to watch a friend play.  Out of the last 7 days it has rained probably 5 of them but on the days with no rain we got out and did some practicing.

In the Governor's press conference today it was announced that...
There are 96 new cases in Arkansas.
As of today, dining in, bars, gyms and other indoor facilities are closed temporarily.
The US Dept of Ed is cancelling the ACT Aspire test this year. (The girls were really excited about this one!)
There have been some complaints on price gouging and they are being investigated.
Beware of fake COVID-19 websites asking for personal information. SCAMMERS!

PROM at our local HS has been cancelled and Graduation is still under decision.  This is super sad.  Think back to your Senior year. I can't imagine what these kids are feeling.  You plan for PROM and Graduation for many years.  On another note...Our District is doing a great job at meal distribution to those kids in need.  Y'all, the school buses are still running the regular routes daily and stopping at the normal stops to hand out food bags!  That makes my heart so happy!!!  Many of you may know I worked for the district for 5 years. Those kids in the halls become like your own.  There are a few I still keep in touch with.  They are furthering their careers, getting married and having babies.  I LOVE to see and hear about their new endeavors . Anyway, while working in the schools I became aware just how many hungry kids there really are.  It's sad to say the least.  That being said, if you are in a position to donate food or money to a local food bank, please do so.

Social distancing and Wash your hands

Sunday, March 15, 2020

We will call this Day 2

Today it was announced by the Superintendent that schools will be closed through March 20.  The week after is Spring Break so they will actually return March 30.  Arkansas Activities Association announced a dead period for all schools prohibiting any kind of practice, training, tryouts, etc.

Coronavirus COVID-19 may appear 2-14 days after exposure. Symptoms are mainly fever and cough but can be headache, fatigue, sore throat and shortness of breath
Also known as the China virus per the Pres.

Wash your hands
Don't touch your face

Friday, March 13, 2020

Friday the 13th

Time change, full moon and Friday the 13th.  What a week!  Today it was announced that the kids would be out of school Monday for cleaning and sanitizing of the schools.  The district is filing for AMI(Alternative Method of Instruction) days.  These days would not have to be made up at the end of the school year.  They got packets of homework which my girls have said they don't do that much work in a week, much less a day.

Chinese Coronavirus is coming they say....

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Ear Surgery

So today Lil Bit had a tympanoplasty* on her right ear.  This is a surgery we have known was needed for the last 4 years.  We have just been waiting for her to get bigger so that the surgery would be easier.  We had an appointment last Spring Break(as we have had every year for 4 years) to give the ear a look and decide if it was time yet for surgery or not.  This year she said she was ready so here we are.  We were on the road headed for LR before 6:30.

We arrived just over an hour later.  This is my "no picture mom!" look. Hahaha

The took her back around 8:15 to be prepped and questioned by at least 4 people as to what procedure was being done.  I get it tho....its a security thing.  I would be more than pissed if they operated on the wrong thing.  She was so calm and answered everything like a big girl.  She really was ready for this.  As she told me before "God's got this" and she really does know He is always with us.

Surgery lasted just over an hour before she was sent to recovery.  In the meantime, I read Bobby Bones Bare Bones book. Bobby makes so many references to things that really made me laugh out loud...I totally get it! I listen to the Bobby Bones show on KSSN every morning and just love the crew. If you don't listen, you don't know what you're missin!  Anyway,  I only made it to chapter 3 in the book but so far so good! 
So about 9:30 we were told we could go see her in recovery. Her face was splotchy red. Her little ear was swollen and bleeding and she had an iv in her hand.  She has very sensitive skin so every place there had been a lead or tape turned red. She looked rough!  She was still groggy and just wanted to sleep.  So here it is about 10 o'clock and I still haven't had anything to eat or drink.  Not totally unusual but I guess on days like these I should be sure to eat.   The nurse took Lil Bit's iv out and that's when I started to feel nauseous.  I asked Baby J to go get the peanut butter crackers out of the car as I went to sit in the chair next to the bed.  Next thing I knew, I was getting tunnel vision and the surrounding shuffling and beeps was going mute.  Dr G was sitting at a desk nearby so I called for him and said I think I'm going to pass out.....and then I was gone!  Not for long tho.  I was coming back to around the time J got back with the crackers.  Dr G said my diastolic was so low he couldn't feel it in my wrist. Uh Woah!   And then Lil Bit sits straight up out of a sleep to vomit.  I still cannot even stand yet but no worries, there were plenty more barf episodes to follow I could clean  up.  After a cold towel to the forehead, some coke and crackers I was back in business.  (Just for the record, if you hear I pass out all the time, I really don't.  I think I have only passed out 3 or 4 times in the last 10 years!) Lil Bit finally woke enough to get dressed and be moved to a chair.  Here she sits with her barf bag. Poor thing.
So by 10:30 we were headed home.  She really is a tough girl. 

*Tympanoplasty is the medical term for eardrum repair, to reconstruct a perforated tympanic membrane(eardrum). Tissue is grafted for the tragus(small cartilaginous lobe of skin in front of the ear. (She has 2-3 stitches where the cartilage was grafted.  This is where most of her pain is coming from I think.) An absorbable gelatin sponge is placed under the eardrum to support the graft. The graft is then inserted underneath the remaining eardrum remnant, which is folded back onto the perforation to provide closure. More gel is added on top to hold it all in place.
She had two sets of tubes so I suspect that her perforation is due to the hole not closing after the tube came out.

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Donation #4

This was Lil Bits 4th time to get her hair cut for donation.  So proud of her!