Tuesday, October 24, 2006

life, headaches, and other ramblings

just babbling so i have something on here to delight you poor souls that read this. i've been slipping a bit into the odd depression thing again. i've also had a few really awful headaches. they are similar to migraines, but, when i was tested for migraines in college, i was told that they are just muscle tension headaches. i guess i should try doing the exercises for those again...i think a little of it all could be hormonal, but it seems like it's more than that. i've never really been a depressed kind of person. i'm definitely a glass half full kind of girl. at least one person even commented on it saying that she'd never heard me sound low. i'm sure that much of it is the political state of our country. it's deeply upsetting to me. the amount of killing and dying going on in iraq, afghanastan, darfur (sp?), it's just awful. and so much of it just seems for naught.

ugh.

i have phone numbers of many people in our district to call and remind them to vote vote vote! don't listen to the ads on TV telling you that it doesn't matter, the Republicans are going to stay in power and even gain power in the house and senate. that gives me a bit of hope. here, they are haranguing (sp?) jack carter b/c he's moved around a lot - moved to different states, etc. um, didn't many of the bush's do that? and really, don't people MOVE?? my SIL has moved several times, to different states. rob's folks have as well. in fact, they also moved to a different country. rob and i have moved all over the place and to a different state, and we've both lived in different countries. so does that mean that if we wanted to run for office that we shouldn't b/c we've moved around? what's THAT about?? grrrrrrr

irene's investiture was this past weekend. she's officially a brownie now :) yea! she and i had a lot of fun at the GSSN (girl scouts of the sierra nevada) 70th b-day party. one service unit even had a fashion show of GS uniforms over the past 70 years. i got to show irene what MY brownie uniform and junior uniforms looked like. :) it was cute.

i've also been tearing apart our garage and getting things freecycled. there was a fair bit of fabric that i realized just weren't me and i wasn't going to use. they are now with someone who is going to turn them into quilts and blankets for little ones. i've given a lot of the children's books that just weren't beloved by my kids to someone who was so happy to have them. i've given away a number of baby things including a lot of little people stuff. that was hard b/c it's just one more thing that is telling me my babies are not so much babies anymore.

rob's really busy at work - IGT is stuff ready for the big gaming convention thing in Las Vegas next month.

thursday is the last day of school for irene - she has break from nevada day (being celebrated on 10/27 this year - although halloween is when nv became a state. funny that i know that but i have no clue when california became a state) until the monday after thanksgiving.

irene got her report card and is just shining in class. yea! her reading is just really amazing to me. and she's learning the joys of reading to herself when she's in bed. i LOVE that. i hope that doesn't come across as i love that she can read to herself so we don't have to - b/c, good lord! that's not even CLOSE to the case. we still read to her and with her and i hope to do that for a long time. i'm looking forward to sharing so many books with her. but now, she'll just pick up a book and start reading it.

we just took another step w/rhys and took down his high chair (he was eating at the table, not using the tray part - but we were getting him closer to the table) and he's sitting in a big chair now. we're getting ready to make another big kid step w/rhys - he has a queen mattress in his room right now (all the better for those that sleep w/him on occasion), but we're getting ready to put him in a twin bed. we'll use the frame/headboard/etc that was his gramps' bed and has also been used lovingly by his cousins.

i have a quilt i need to sandwich/baste/and quilt - don't think it's going to happen before the baby is born. damn. the house is still a mess b/c of all the tearing apart i've been doing...it's at times like this that i wish i had rhys in preschool - but so many of the ones i've seen/heard of/looked at the webpage - are WAY WAY WAY too religious for us. i want the preschools we had in petaluma and the one where i taught in point reyes. bleh. oh well.

we have brownies today. wonder what we'll have for dinner. hmmmm.....last night it was yummy pancakes (buckwheat, flax, chocochips, bisquick - kids love 'em). that means they have pancakes for the rest of the week in teh mornings. i LOVE that! it's something they love and it's easy for me to not have to fight w/them over what we're having for breakfast.

okay - gotta go.

7 comments:

Deb R said...

I'm so sorry to hear you're feeling down and headachey, kristen. Bleah. Lots of sunshine and walking outside might help with the depression, but if the headaches are actually migraines (and they could be y'know....college was a few years ago and your body may have changed!) the only thing I've ever found to help mine is to take the stupid pain meds and lie down ina cool dark room until it goes away. (MUCH more difficult to do when you're a mom, of course!)

Lydia Netzer said...

Awww, I'm sorry you're feeling the poops. Spectacular news on Irene's reading -- I know just what you mean about reading in bed! I read with Benny in Sadie's room and then he goes off to bed with his book and reads himself to sleep -- it's awesome! It's so cool that our kids are readers -- almost makes up for giving away those baby toys. We just switched Sadie to a big chair too... high chair is gone. More room in the dining room, right? I'm right now contemplating getting rid of the pusher toy -- you know -- the walker/mower/whatever. She loved it so. *SIGH*

:-D eirdre said...

Hugs and gentle squeezes - don't want to hurt your head. If it helps I think sometimes these headache things can be change of season - I know that most of us at work are having more than our share recently.

Congrats on the big steps that the kids are making - don't sniffle too much! LOL

Carrie said...

Sounds like you need to take a little time for yourself. I know what you mean about election stress. Poor Adam is just counting down the days. I am staying positive. I really feel this time, we are going to do it. As long as they don't mess with the voting machines.

I used to get headaches a lot when I was younger and it ended up being hormonal. Try not to worry so much and relax. Maybe some meditation could help.

You have to be kidding me about the preschool! In Nevada? I thought surely it would be more secular. That is going to be my biggest fight when I become a mother. I can't handle that kind of stuff.

Also congrats to Irene for becoming a brownie. I would have loved to see all the old uniforms.

One more question. Is she in year-round school?

Anonymous said...

If you're still depressed after the election I'm going to have to come out to Nevada and squash you with a big hug.

In the meantime, I have a little Brownie advice. DON'T attatch any of Irene's badges to her Brownie sash with staples. They tend to fall off one at a time during important ceremonies.

--Leslie, in Hiawatha

Kara said...

My headaches came with depression too, I think it's the pain. You don't really feel the headache at first and it gets you down, then you realize it's there and whamo...

Kristen said...

DebR - thanks. yes, i need to get out and walking more. i *do* feel better when i do that. and what's that you say??? college was a few years ago? giggle. yeah. it's been 13 years since i graduated and probably 15 since i had that appointment...bad bad kristen. yeah - the lying down thing doesn't work very well around here, but i can usually explain to irene that i'm not feeling well.

Lydia - thank you. i am SO thrilled that irene is a reader and that rhys is headed that way as well. i don't know what i'd do if they weren't! i was SUCH a huge reader as a kid (and when i can be as an adult). giving away the baby things -- it's really surprisngly hard. i don't care so much about the potty chair that neither of my kids really used at all except as a step stool. the highchair is about to be put onto freecycle b/c it's getting no takers on craig's list. the craigslist here in nevada is not quite as active as the one in the bay area...but when they are things that the babies loved...it is hard. i *still* have irene's little witzy (suzy zoo) that makes music when you pull it. it plays twinkle twinkle. i had it in the car and could reach behind me while driving and pull it for her. she LOVED it and it saved me on many a trip. why do i need it now?? did you see how brilliant rhys looks in his extra special halloween coat?

Deirdre - awww. fanx. the big steps. they are exciting and yet, a little sad too.

Carrie - yeah - perhaps. the thing is, i love being around my family when they are doing things. it's hard to get time to myself when i need it most b/c it's usually in the middle of the day when everyone else is working. ah well. i just voted today (10/31). i'm just hoping and a prayin' that things go well w/this election. there's already been a case of voter fraud w/one of the diebold machines. lovely, huh? at least the voter had the wherewithall to call the correct people. and yep, our part of nevada has a lot of very very religous people. i'm fine w/church. it's not my choice, but i'm fine with it. but why are there so many born again christians who have had abortions and slept with the entire world who now feel it's their duty to prosthelitize (sp??) to me and everyone else about the evils of using condoms and having abortions or even the right to choose. grr argh! i could go on, but i won't. irene is VERY excited about being a brownie. it's very cute to see her really trying to incorporate different ways of being a good brownie. and yep, she's in year round school, so she has most of november, part of march/april, and a wee bit of june/lots of july off. it's a modified year round single track school. last year she was in a 4 track year round school.

Leslie! **waves frantically** could you come out to nevada and squash me w/one even if i'm NOT depressed after the election? and thank you ever so much for the brownie advice! giggle

Kara - you know, i think you have the way of it. may we both suffer fewer and fewer of them.