We're home, however

We moved back into our home two weeks ago. We are elated to be back! We worked so hard to get to this point. Even if our stuff is still in boxes and isn't quite in it's place it's (mostly) under one roof and back in our home. There's no other feeling of relief quite like it.....However we have a set back going on. We went to a minor league baseball game last weekend with N's boy scout troop. After the game there were fireworks and the scouts and their families got to camp out on the baseball field. It's such a neat thing for the kids to do. Daddy, N and L talked me into camping out with them. The stuff I remember was really fun, but things went south late in the night when I woke up with terrible stomach pain. I woke D up and I told him we needed to go to the ER. We were on our way out of the tent to head that way and I passed out. I stood up to walk and I kept on going and landed flat on my back. I really shook my melon. After extensive testing and a stay at the hospital it was determined that my head is full of nice healthy brains, but I sustained a severe concussion from my fall.

The first few days of being home were really tricky. I couldn't handle any noise, light, temperature or weather change. My appetite was less and I certainly couldn't do any chores or play with the boys. My head and neck were both very tender but I was also nauseous, dizzy, weak, fatigued and slow. Slow to walk,  think,  talk, comprehend. Just plain slow. I still feel slow in conversations, but I'm catching up in all the other areas. I'm getting to the point where I can handle stimulation from about two of my five senses at a time. A friend of mine works with neuro patients and she said it very well when she said to take one sense at a time. I feel like I am getting closer to handling the normal level of noise and commotion at our house but I'm not ready to go out into public and negotiate all that noise, motion, light, driving, etc. In fact, I think I've only left the house five times in the last nine days. I usually leave the house that many times in about two days. Ha!! I'll get there, but I've gotta take it slow. 

Today marks day number nine of life with a concussion and day fifteen of being back in our house. Over all today was both icky and wonderful. I felt pretty bad in the morning but this afternoon and evening were wonderful. It felt like our first true day of true life in our house. D got his tractor out (and got it stuck in the mud), the boys played outside, we opened the kiddie car wash for the season, D and L planted flowers, I got a few boxes unpacked, D made a trip to Menards and we ate a nice dinner. I'm really learning to appreciate the littlest things that I normally take for granted. I now realize how much we do on a daily basis that our bodies can handle without us even thinking about it.

We've made it through this week with a lot of help from family and friends. We really could not have done it without you! Thanks so much!

Be funny with attitude

Last night before we left the "big house" there was one last thing I wanted to do with the boys. I knew the carpet crew was coming the next day to lay down carpet, so I knew we better do it quick. I wanted to write quotes on our bedroom floors to put some good vibes in the house, so that's what we did. We know the quotes will be covered with carpet, but I thought it'd be fun to have messages in our rooms even if we can't see them. We wrote a few quotes from Pinterest in each room, but N came up with one on his own that I thought was really sweet. "Be funny with attitude." And you know what's funny about this picture? No matter what I do I cannot get it to rotate. So you'll just have to be funny with attitude and enjoy it the way it is!

We visited the house today and the carpet in the living room is done. It feels so good that N laid down on the floor and did carpet angels. Ha! (The first time we did carpet angels was in our hotel room in Nashville on spring break this year. That's another story for another time). The rest of the carpet is laid down in the house. The guys will return tomorrow to finish the install. Yay!! Woo-hoo!

Ants

We had ants in the house for a few days last week. I thought for sure those tiny little creatures were going to send my right over the edge! They could have very easily been the final straw that broke this camel's back, but I didn't let them. They were everywhere and they were smart! I turned on the vaccuum and honest to goodness they did an about face and started walking towards the front door as soon as they heard it. L and I (and the babysitter. She handled the ants very well. "At least they're just ants and not roaches.") sucked up those little boogers but as soon as we were out of the room they returned and multiplied. They started out by the front door, then worked their way into the kitchen near the stove, then up the wall, then onto the coutner!!! One morning I reached into our cabinet to pour myself a cup of water (don't drink the water! It smells. Poor it from the gallon jug) and the cup was swarming with hundreds of ants. Girl 'bout lost her ever lovin mind!! I threw the cup in the garbage, tied up the bag and put it in the garage. Because at least if the ants got outta the bag they'd be in the garage, right?  In the morning the boys like to bring their blankies into the front room when they watch tv. Well, the ants liked their blankies too. They got into N's blanket and took a ride to his room and got into his bed. Ahhh!!

Our landlord has been really good to respond to each and every issue  we've had and he's been really good to get things fixed ASAP. Before we moved in he was quick to replace the strap on the garage door opener so it wouldn't fall on top of my van. When the kitchen faucet wouldn't turn left or right, he replaced it. When the furnace wouldn't run, he got a repairman to fix it. When he noticed a dead tree was getting wobbly, he cut it down. When the bathroom faucet broke and leaked, he replaced it. After the kitchen window fell out onto the kitchen table one morning at three o'clock, he moved as quickly as he could to replace. When the ants came marching in, he sprayed 'em and set out traps and it worked. The ants have left the building!!

Mother's Day 2014

Every year we get together on a Saturday in early May with D's family to celebrate three birthdays and Mothers' Day (three Mothers celebrated at once). So, our Mothers' Day celebration started last weekend. Unfortunately S was sick with seasonal allergies, so she didn't make it up to see everyone. However, for those who were able to make it, we had a great time. We had played, visited and ate lunch. When the kids started getting squirrely we played in the back yard. It was a tiny bit chilly outside, but still warm enough to enjoy a solid game of "What time is it Mr. Fox?" After burning off some energy the kids dug in Grandpa's dirt for a little while. He gave them each a penny to bury. Next time we go back we're going to see if any money trees have sprouted. ;)

After visiting at D's parents' house we stopped by my Mom's house. The boys really enjoyed chilling out and watching a little tv while I visited with Mom and D got Dad's lawn mower running. We saw Mom's new counter top for the first time. It looks really nice. Dad actually ordered that counter top several weeks before he passed away, so the counter top project has been in the works for quite some time. The first time it was delivered the counter top wasn't the right size, so it had to be be remade and installed a second time before it was in place just right. The end product looks really nice.

Mom and Dad's neighbor, Randy has been a huge help to Mom since Dad passed away. We have so many questions we'd love to ask Dad and lots of them involve mechanical things that he used around the house. Before Dad passed away he bought a riding lawn mower at an auction. Dad had it running but after sitting all winter Mom couldn't get it turned back on and Randy couldn't get it to work either. So when D gave it a try he wasn't real sure he could fire it up either. After some tinkering and experimenting he got it going! Yay! We clapped for him. He mowed the lawn and gave Mom a lesson on how to start it. We visited a little longer before heading home. It was a such a nice, relaxing day. It was refreshing to have a break from our tornado to do list!!

Yesterday was the last day a local church held it's child care service. They call it Strong Kids. It's been a wonderful ministry to those of us in the community who've been effected by the tornado!!! Each Saturday we dropped the boys off at the church at nine and picked them up at noon. The boys played games, did crafts, did experiments, "ice skated" in the hallways (with wax paper) and played with friends. Almost all of our neighbor kids went to Strong Kids at one point or another in the last five months, so the kids have been able to keep in touch. It's been amazing. They even provided a meal every Saturday after Strong Kids free of charge if you wanted to eat with them. Yesterday we dropped the boys off, did some work at the house and returned for the meal. Afterwards Mom came over and watched the boys for the afternoon so we could get some work done. She stayed and treated us to Chinese food at the big house for dinner. She was there to join us in our first P.I.G. (picnic in the garage) since the tornado. We just love eating meals in the garage in nice weather. It was super sweet to do our first PIG and it was special to have Mom their with us. We shared gluten free dairy free cupcakes in celebration of Mother's Day and we gave Mom the pink Superhero card that L picked out for her.

Today, the actual Mother's Day, we had some fun, but we mostly worked. The boys let me sleep in until 8:45, D  made me eggs and ham and N served me. The boys gave me frames they painted with Grammy with their picture inside. They were super sneaky in making and wrapping them! I had no idea they did that!! So cute. They also made some really sweet cards. After breakfast it was time to get to work.

The first to do on our list was to remove the carpet and padding in our basement. Our dumspter is going to be hauled off this week. We wanted to take advantage of that before it's gone, so we put the carpet and padding in it Saturday.

Our painter is supposed to start painting this week. Yay! I needed to finalize our color selections, so that's what I worked on. I still have two more colors to choose, but the major paints are chosen. The foyer colors have been super tricky for me. I think we found two colors we both like. I like to buy sample sizes of each color and paint them on the wall before committing to them. I'm really glad I did that in our foyer because the colors have proven to look completely different in our house versus in the store. We have decided to have the painter put a fresh coat of paint on our laundry room, so I took down the things hanging on those walls and cleaned out some stuff that had been siting in their. I also took random nails and screws and wall hangings down from the walls all over the house so the painters don't have to mess with that.

We tackled our fridge/freezer this weekend. Ugh!! Right after the tornado hit we emptied the fridge and drained the hoses for the water and ice cube maker and we threw out all the food. We thought we were doing the right thing by keeping it unplugged all winter. We were afraid with all the snow and ice we got this winter that the electricity would go out and the fridge would get damaged by freezing temps or power surges. The fridge has been sitting unplugged for nearly six months. About a week ago we opened it and discovered mold. Ewww. We tried to claim the fridge and asked insurance to replace it but they won't because "the mold is not a direct result of the tornado." However, if we plug it back in and it doesn't work, they will cover it. So this weekend we cleaned it and plugged it back in and we are going to keep an eye on it to see if it is working properly....I doused that baby with clorox spray and took it apart as best I could. I still need to flush out the water line and check the ice machine to see what those things look like, but the rest looks pretty good.

As we plugged in the fridge D said he was going to turn on the AC to see if it's working. (He had to pull all the nails and screws out of it first) He cleaned out the AC, turned it on aaaaand nothing. Nada. Nope, the AC doesn't work. We got one thing (the fridge) half way working and have now discovered another thing that doesn't work. One step forward two steps back. Time to submit another claim.

We had intended on going out to eat this evening for Mother's Day but we ended up working kinda late at the house and storms were heading our way, so we ended up ordering pizza (our place offers GFDF!) and eating inside at the big house. The boys and I prefer to be at our big house when storms hit because it has a basement whereas our rental does not have a basement. By the time we ate dinner and picked up the house the storms were gone. So, we headed home and wrapped up our day. I'd say we worked hard and played hard this year for Mother's Day. Maybe next year we'll get a chance to relax a little more than we did this year.