I Kill Flowers/Plants

Not on purpose! It just happens. I either underwater them, overwater and drown them, or I look at them wrong and they shrivel up and die. I've always had a problem keeping flowers and houseplants alive.

Ex-bf revisited planted some sunflowers for me in April (my b-day; sunflowers are my favorite). There were five of them, with a fake sunflower in the middle. Within a week, all five sunflower plants were dead. I didn't take pics of them, or I would post them, but trust me when I say I have a black thumb.

After they died (the pot makes a good ashtray!):

Another example of my gardening follies: The husband and I have been "working things out", and a few weeks ago he bought me some garden mums. They also died shortly after that.

Dead/dying Mums:

Fake flowers are the only kind I can keep alive!!!

The Bah Feels Better, Other Good News, and a Complaint.

Well, the vinegar water mixture worked. Thrush is gone, thankfully. I was almost to the point of weaning because of it. It's all better now!

In other news, I finally got a job! I had an interview Friday and was hired on the spot. Granted, it's fast food, but we already spoke about working my way up in the company, since I have a degree in Business Administration... he was all for it. I have orientation Tuesday morning.

Complaint/whine: The transmission in my van went out Wednesday. This means I'm stuck with no vehicle until I get my student loan refund, which will take a couple of weeks. While Walmart is within walking distance of my apartment, it will be a giant pita to walk there with three kids and only a cheap umbrella stroller. I need a stroller with a basket!

DD1's self pic, too hilarious not to post:

The two younger kids were being so good
while I worked on homework last night:

The baby being silly (big sis took this pic):

Oh My!

I did it again! I let my real life interrupt my blogging. Darn it all. I've been very busy. I still can't find a job. Because of this, I am in the JET program, which requires 40 hours a week of job search. Add in that I'm in week 3 of a 6 week MBA class (the first of many), and I barely have time to sleep.

I can't believe I'm actually a graduate student! I also realized, as I was reading over my transcript from Ferris that I graduated 'cum laude'! I had no clue. The Master's program I just started at Cornerstone University is all online, and every class is accelerated (6 weeks per class). Whew. A lot of work in a little amount of time.

The kids are doing well. My oldest started 7th grade. While she doesn't hate school, she doesn't love it, either. The boy started kindergarten. He loved it the first two weeks. Lately he's been whining about wanting to stay home. As a result, I have been enforcing a strict 8:30pm bedtime and may end up backing it up to 8:00 if I need to. The baby is still nursing, and will turn 19 months on the 9th (two more days!). I can't believe it.

I had my first ever breastfeeding issue this week (aside from the sore/cracked nipples in the first few weeks of nursing my older two), which isn't bad considering I've breastfed about 3 years between all three kids. I have thrush.


TMI for some to follow; scroll past if you are offended by talk of breasts.

I'm lazy, so I will C&P my thrush story from where I posted it:

"For the past three or so days, nursing off my right side (which is a cup smaller than the left and not the "preferred side") has been painful. Yesterday, the left side joined the right. It even hurts when Anne stops sucking and is falling asleep at the breast with my nipple in her mouth.

The pain starts in my nipple and radiates into what I can only describe as a chest pain (sharp and stabbing), but only in my whole breast. It makes me want to crawl out of my skin. Normally I sleep through night feedings. Not so last night. I woke up the minute she latched on, and then laid there in pain until she broke her latch and rolled over.

Upon examining my nipples this morning, I noticed tiny red bumps on them. They look similar to small pimples, but aren't white.





Sometime this afternoon, they started burning and itching.


So... first I tried yogurt (plain, unsweetened, all natural). Because it was cold and I literally dipped my nipple in a spoonful of it, it felt good... til it dried! I put a nursing pad on and checked them about 20 minutes later. It had dried on and resembled a yogurt covered pretzel, except it was a nipple.

I wiped off the dried yogurt with my nursing pad as Anne Marie watched intently. She very loudly exclaimed, "EWWW!" I asked her if she wanted bah, secretly hoping she'd decline, which she did with a very loud "No!" and a shake of her head.

Then, I tried white vinegar. 1 TBS mixed in 1 C water, dabbed on with a q-tip. Let nipples air dry. It stunk (I hate the smell of vinegar), but I feel a bit better.


Tomorrow, I plan on buying some probiotics at the healthfood store nearby. I'm just glad my little princess has no visible signs of thrush in her mouth. I did start her on yogurt; she likes the stuff anyhow. "


Now, a recent pic of the "No!" girl:



A few other pics. None of my kids really want to have their pics taken anymore. I have to practically beg the boy to let me take his pic!