It’s all up to me

Today is our last full day in the hotel and b/c of parent-teacher conferences Justin and I don’t have school today.  We have nursing, so we were going to spend the day playing in the pool, running a few errands, going out to lunch, etc.  Our nurse was a little late, but she has 4 kids so sometimes she runs late and I figured there may have been an issue at the front desk.  Eventually she was 30 minutes late and I figured something was up.  I called our home voicemail (the phone is technically connected @ the new place but we aren’t there to answer to everything goes to voicemail) and there were 5 messages, all basically stating that she didn’t know where to go.  The agency didn’t communicate to her that we were in the hotel.  We finally got things straightened out and she showed up at the hotel but then we had time to talk and realized how crappy this company is that supplies our nurses.  The nurses are fantastic, which is why we stay with them, but we actually talked to our main nurse last summer to see if she’d be willing to switch to a different company.  She said “no” and we love her too much to leave so we have put up with their inability to communicate but this went too far.

Our nurse talked to the woman in charge who took full responsibility and said she would be reimbursed for her mileage and the time she was wandering out town.  Our nurse also mentioned that I was expecting a phone call (we were in the pool by that time) and that I wasn’t happy.  When I finally spoke to her she told me that the scheduler finally checked her email and saw that there was an email from me but that she hadn’t read it in time.  I lost it.  Before she could even complete her sentence I told her that this was bull b/c I personally spoke w/the scheduler on Tuesday when Kyle was admitted to the hospital and on Thursday when he was released.  I told her where we would be day by day and where she should send the nurses.  The head lady asked what they could do to make this better and I told her that she could “work w/her company to learn how to communicate effectively so this doesn’t happen again.”  I also remembered to tell her that one of the nurses showed up to work on Wednesday b/c she hadn’t been notified that Kyle was in the hospital.

I don’t want to be cynical but the more I’m around people the more I realize that common courtesy and common sense are increasingly rare commodities.

OK, I’m done griping.  Tomorrow I get a new house

What a week this has been.  I think I wrote that we took both boys and hubby to the doctor and learned that we had H1N1 in the family.  The doctor wasn’t too concerned about my hubby or Justin but of course was very worried about Kyle.  He told us that if Kyle started vomiting, having diarrhea, running a fever, being lethargic, etc. to call ASAP.  Tuesday I went to school and about 11:00 our nurse called.  She has been our nurse since May of 2008 and has NEVER called me.  Kyle projectile vomited across the room, was pale and lethargic and had had a runny diaper.  Called the doctor and we took him in to get checked out but I packed bags before we left b/c I knew we’d be in the hospital.  He was negative for Influenza A and B and we still don’t know about H1N1.  Part of me hopes he had it b/c he recovered well and if he had it he can’t get it again.  Two days of IV fluids and antibiotics turned him around and now we’re “home” at the hotel.

It’s probably a good thing we were in the hospital b/c I think our builder has called me 10 times in the last 2 days w/last minute questions.  The good news is the house will be done and we’re moving on Saturday

I just hopped on the scale after my healthy lunch of McDonalds and it said 224.  If that’s true I’m thrilled b/c it’s 3:00 in the afternoon, I ate an entire bag of Chex Mix yesterday (sodium, anyone??) and have lived off of animal crackers and peanut butter.  I’ll see what the scale gods say tomorrow.

Just checking in during my nomadic journey.  I’m currently at my parents’ house but this afternoon we’re moving into our hotel.  It hasn’t been too bad and amazingly my weight is pretty steady (224).  We are all moved out of our old house and it’s looking like we’ll move into the new one on Halloween.  We meet w/our builder this afternoon to approve the layout for the driveway (I didn’t realize we had to decide on anything other than have it come out of the garage) so I’ll triple check w/him that it’s going to work.

I think the H1N1 has hit our family but amazingly it’s not Kyle.  My hubby got it first and then yesterday Justin spiked a temp and slept all but about 2 hours.  He refused to eat, even when we told him he could have pudding and licorice (he needed something in his tummy for the Tylenol).  He still has a temp this morning but he’s awake so I think by tomorrow he’ll be a new man.  My mom isn’t feeling well now, so I think we brought it to her house.  But knock on wood, Kyle and I are healthy as horses.

I don’t know how regularly I’ll be checking in throughout the week but thanks for thinking of me and for the great tips!

Current weight: 226 (+ .5)

I called home today to pass along a message to our nurse and there was no answer. No big deal, she’s probably changing Kyle’s diaper and couldn’t get to the phone. I called back 2 minutes later and still no answer. I got busy for a while and about 2 hours later called again; still no answer. I figured the phone had been disconnected (our phone was disconnected last Friday b/c of an error) but a tiny part of me wondered if something had happened. Luckily I live less than 2 minutes from school and ran home. As I suspected the phone had been disconnected. I left my cellphone w/our nurse in case she needed to call me or 911 and went back to school. Several phone calls later I convinced someone @ the phone company that we didn’t ask to have our phone disconnected 2 days before we moved out and that tomorrow was not soon enough to get it reconnected. I shudder to think what will go wrong tomorrow!

Wasn’t happy w/the scale this morning but at this point what does it matter? I’ll do the best I can and then November is going to be my month to kick some butt and shrink mine.

Got up early and did pilates for my workout. I might as well get up early and workout b/c I have woken up at least 4 times a night for the last week or so. I have always thought that I handled stress pretty well but this is getting the best of me.

Thanks for all of your tips for hotel eating. I think we’re going to have some extra nursing in the evening hours so I should have more time to hit the treadmill which will help.

Progress toward workout goal: 131/300

The jerk buying our house won’t let us rent his apartment for another month so I’m moving on Thursday. It was a crazy last 24 hours but we finally have everything in place. My mom and dad are taking Kyle home w/them on Thursday after we move out the last of our things. My hubby, Justin and I are going to my MIL’s Thursday night. After school on Friday we’re going to my parents’ house for the weekend and starting Sunday night we’re going to the hotel for about a week. The mover came over tonight to see how much stuff we actually have and he said he should be able to move out our stuff this Thursday and store it until we move into our new house, which should be Halloween. This whole process is probably going to add an extra grand to the moving total but what can you do? It’s only money

My dilemma is living in chaos for the next 10 days or so. If any of you travel a lot for work have any suggestions for eating healthy while living in a hotel please let me know. There is a good sized dorm fridge and microwave in the hotel room so I’ll stock up on cheese sticks, yogurt, hb eggs, etc. I think every night for supper I’ll run to the grocery store (it’s a block away) and get something healthy so we don’t have to eat out every night. I know it’s possible, I just worry that I’m going to get overwhelmed and throw in the towel. It’s good, though, that we have our masquerade ball the night of the 30th b/c it will keep me from completely balooning up like a hippo. There is a fitness center in the hotel (aka treadmill and stationary bike) but it’s better than nothing. Justin thinks it’s so exciting to be living in a hotel, especially since there is a pool and hot tub. I just have to dig through our things to find bathing suits b/c I packed them awhile ago.

Today I got up early and worked out and food has been good. I’m vowing to workout every morning, even if it’s only for 20 minutes. While I’m punching and kicking I’m imagining the face of the guy who’s buying our house…definite therapy.

Minor drama today. Our builder emailed me b/c “someone” told him that I’m telling everyone all these bad things about him. If it was true what I said he should be upset but of course it’s not. We worked it out, and I’m glad that he brought it up instead of just being mad, but it’s not something I needed to deal with today. Plus, the guy who told him is a complete idiot, and the worst thing is he’s probably going to buy the lot 3 houses down from us and build so he’ll be in our lives for years to come. Oh yeah, he’s a teacher at my school, too, so I get to see him there. Egads.

Progress toward workout goal: 130/300

Current weight: 225.5 (+3, nice!)

Yesterday was not fun. Several of the people we were counting on to help us move didn’t show so it was me and my hubby, my 65 year-old dad, my younger brother who was sick and my hubby’s friend. That was it! We loaded up the boxes and stuff from the garage and it ended up filling up the entire rental truck, all 26 feet! The fun part of my day was bringing up 18 boxes of ceramic tile from the basement, carrying them down our steep driveway into the rental truck and then out of the truck and into our new basement. My arms are a bit tender today, but at least it was a workout! And yes, I’m counting yesterday’s activities as a day toward my workout goal.

When we got to the house there were guys working on the drywall which was fine. I was sent back to our house to get a push broom and when I got back my hubby was extremely angry and told me I needed to call Chad (our builder) “immediately”. We’re supposed to move into the new house on Thursday and the drywall guy said they won’t be done until Thursday which means there can be no painting, flooring installed, trim installed, etc. He said we’re looking at 2 weeks before things are done.

I called Chad and he said that the drywallers are there to do their job and that he’d take care of the contracting stuff. “That’s fine,” I said, “but you know our situation w/Kyle and I can’t be told on Tuesday that we’re not going to have a home to move into on Thursday.” The main issue w/the drywall is that it takes time for the mud to dry so they can paint over it and there’s no way to make it dry faster than nature allows. He can make guys work around the clock but I doubt he’s going to pay them to sit and blow on the mudded areas. I finally got him to admit that there’s a 60% chance that he’s going to go over “by a few days” and that we should have a backup plan in place but that he’s still going to try to have it done by Thursday.

So we figured out best bet would be to talk to the guy who is buying our house and pay his November rent. It might be $600 but by the time we pay movers to move our stuff twice, rent another storage garage and find a hotel it would actually be cheaper to pay his rent. That was the reason he gave last week as to why he couldn’t let us stay an extra couple of days so we figured if we paid the rent then he’d be ok. His realtor said she’d check w/him but she didn’t think he’d go for it. If he says no I am going to go apesh*t.

On the good side we did pick up my elliptical yesterday and I can’t wait to try it out. I have gained so much weight in this last week or 2 and the craziness is going to keep coming. Since we still thought we’d be in the new house yesterday morning I packed up my weights and sent them to the new house. I did keep out my TJ DVD so that I could do that since it doesn’t need equipment but I’m getting to where my pants are getting tight. And this is not the time to be feeling fat b/c I just found out we’re going to a semi-formal costume party on the 30th and I have no clue what to wear. I don’t even really know what “semi-formal costume” means so I asked our friend who is organizing it and it sounds kind of like a masquerade ball.

Is it Christmas yet?

Progress toward workout goal: 129/300

Current weight: 222.5 (holding steady)

Today is the first phase of our move so this will have to be brief. We are so not ready and I know it’s b/c we’re finishing our move on Thursday so we know that we can move the rest of the stuff then. What we need to remember is that it will just be my hubby and me, my 65-year old dad and my mom who has a broken ankle. We did hire movers for the furniture so that will be a big help but any boxes will be up to us to move. We can’t really pack up the kitchen and most bathroom stuff until the day we move so it is what it is.

Have I said how much I can’t wait until this is over????

Current weight: 222.5 (+1, I think)

I have reached my limit and I’m calling “uncle”. Isn’t that how it works when you’re little? You say “uncle” and all of the stuff goes away? I’ll try to spare the details but I’m still not certain if I’m going to have a home after 4 pm next Thursday, our district has to cut 10% from the budget for next year and I’m the newest member of the counseling dept so I could be out of a job that I LOVE, Justin got in trouble @ school today…and I have no desire to workout or eat healthy. I am going to get up early and workout tomorrow come hell or highwater and I would say I’m 90% on track w/food so it could be worse. I just want to get back to my regular routine and have a normal life. Sorry to complain, talk to you later.

Current weight: 222

My legs hurt. They felt pretty good this morning and for the most of the day, but by tonight I can definitely tell that I did a crapload of squats. I did pilates before school and 20 minutes of TJ after school, but now that I’m sitting down I’m stiffening up. It feels good, though, and reminds me that I’m back in the game.

I need to quit watching tv b/c I’m a bawling mess. I saw about 15 minutes of Oprah today and it was all about missing kids. We were considering allowing our 6 year-old to walk 2 blocks from school to grandma’s tomorrow but I took the show as fate telling me he’s not old enough yet. I wasn’t 100% comfortable w/it to begin with and after seeing that show I know I would be a nervous wreck.

Now I’m watching TBL and am all emotional, too. I do tend to cry easily but this feels different. I think the stress of finishing the house and the worry over H1N1 and Kyle is getting to me. We definitely have it in our community and my school and he started running a fever last night. Fortunately it went away and our school nurse said that he’d develop a cough w/i 12 hours (so far, so good and it has been 24 hours) but it’s not an exaggeration to say that I will be nervous every day until summer that he could get sick. Several neurologists have said that it could be seriously dangerous if a kid w/Canavan’s disease contracted H1N1. Let’s just say my hands are chapped from all of the hand washing

Progress toward workout goal: 127/300

I did the kettlenetics workout today and I’m guessing my thighs are going to be screaming tomorrow. At first I thought it was going to be a wimpy workout b/c the kettlebell is only 4 pounds. I am still skeptical that it’s going to do anything for my arms, but in a 20 minute workout I think I did a million squats. For about 5 minutes I thought I was going to die. I’m going to do the longer workout later this week…if I can walk.

Food has been ok and I’m ok w/that. I made some apple-rasberry strudel bars yesterday to take into work and had 2 very small pieces today. We grilled out yesterday and I’m having a leftover grilled porkchop w/cottage cheese and tomatoes for supper. I know it’s healthy but the porkchop is big and will have more calories than I normally eat for supper. Granted, I could eat only 1/2 of it but I’m not willing to sacrifice the yumminess for a couple hundred calories. I worked out twice today (TJ 20 minute workout this morning) so I’m going to enjoy my chop!

Progress toward workout goal: 126/300