That title begs a list, doesn't it?
1. I did end up going to my mom's to watch the inauguration on TV. Despite the fact that we did have snow--about 3-4 inches--and mom had none (a light dusting only) as predicted. I was still undecided in the morning, but Paul and Owen convinced me to try it. Paul thought I should go because, while he doesn't remember the Apollo mission per se, he said he does remember watching it on TV with his family and that it was something important and historic. He thought our children should have such a memory. So I asked Owen what she wanted to do. I even told her that if we went it would mean she couldn't go sledding and couldn't play in the snow. She said she wanted to go to Grandma's and watch the President. And later, despite her whines when I made her watch parts of it (the new first family arriving, the swearing-in), she reported back to Paul what the Obama girls were wearing, what everyone did, and what the President did ("He got out of the car and walked and waved at people and the mommy did, too. The lady in the yellow dress, his wife, she walked with him.") So I'm glad we went and I'm glad she got to see it.
2. I woke yesterday with a terrible, horrible, sickening headache accompanied by vertigo so severe that standing in the shower caused me to throw up. I'm guessing that it was a migraine. It was awful. I had to stay in bed for most of the morning; I called in sick to work; and I couldn't eat much of anything all day. Once the headaches passed, about mid-day, I still felt weak and drained of energy. I feel better today, but this morning Barrett had a fever, and woke with a full-blown cold, her face a puddly puffy mess. That's the second time this winter for her. And she's the child who doesn't really have interaction outside this family. We must all be bringing it to her.
3. Speaking of Barrett and interaction. The church where Owen goes to preschool is opening an Early Childhood Learning Center for 18 month-olds to 3-year-olds (where the preschool picks up). I've decided to enroll Barrett for two half-days a week. She will go the same hours and days that Owen is in preschool, and her classroom will be in the same building, right next door to Owen's classroom. This will be Barrett's first experience with child care outside of our home (except for the occasional hour in the church nursery on Sunday). But I think she's ready to have some interaction with other kids. She is almost two already. And she loves going into Owen's school, always wants to stay and play, cries when she has to leave. She will be in a classroom with 5-6 other kids her age (23 months to 35 months) with new toys and group activities. I think she's going to love it.
Plus, it will ease the burden on my mom some, I hope. She still comes to stay with us for much of the week in order to help with the children. She takes Owen to preschool, stays with Barrett, picks Owen up, and stays with both girls all afternoon while I teach. Now she will have to drop off and pick up both children (at the same place and time, though) and then keep them through the afternoon. But she'll have three hours to herself while the girls are in school and will only have to deal with them for 4 or so hours in the afternoon, during part of which, hopefully, Barrett will be napping. My mom is wonderful for helping us out the way she does and I completely trust her with them, which is a great feeling. But it's tiring taking care of these two all day and I'm certain it's wearing on her.
4. I have also hired someone to come in Friday mornings. Last semester I only taught three classes, so I had plenty of breaks throughout my teaching days and I could use that time to prepare for the next class day. This semester, however, I have picked up an extra class and so I teach straight through the day with only one short break for lunch. This leaves no time for class prep. And it's very difficult to do my class prep at home. I'm either managing my household or working on my own projects or caring for the girls. I was thinking about all of this one day when a former student of mine mentioned that her work-study hours had been cut and she really needed another way to pick up some money. She also mentioned her previous child care experience and credentials. I didn't want/need her for every one of my days off, so we agreed on Friday mornings. She comes to the house for about three or four hours and I can use the time to go to the office for class prep or to do some things on my own. I can get my class prep done without interruption (and sometimes even have lunch with my husband, imagine that). My student picks up some extra money. The girls get someone new to play with. And I don't have to ask my mom to extend her stay through Friday. It's win-win-win. (Of course, she didn't come today because Barrett is sick, I was sick, and my student is sick. Winter.)
5. Finally, if you've lasted through all of this brain dump of mine, I have a question for you. Are you on Facebook? As if I needed another reason to be on the computer, I seem to have developed a mild addiction to Facebook. My friend list is an odd assortment of cousins, distant family members; old high school friends I haven't seen or spoken to in more than 20 years; and blog friends. But I find myself throughout the day wanting to check status updates, wall posts, new photos. I've been able to chat with people I have not otherwise stayed in touch with. I was even able to arrange a get-together of some high school friends over Christmas. It's much more of a daily update into my life (although my status updates ate extremely boring, stuff like "doing laundry"), and if you're on there already, and you want to "friend" me, please do. You can find me as wesley satterwhite.
Okay, that's it. I think. Thanks for letting me get all of that out of my head and onto the page. Look for a new Soup Sunday post and maybe some more photos for the weekend.
Have a great weekend.