Overwhelmed

Tonight I am completely exhausted - physically and emotionally...didn't see this one coming, and it hit me hard!

J got her upper palate expander put in this afternoon.  Our 20 min. Orthodontist appointment lasted almost an hour, putting us behind for everything else that came after.  She is not adjusting to it very quickly or very well.  I'm sure the thing is a pain in the tushy, and she is not my daughter that adapts well to change...just like her Mama.  She complains that she cannot chew or swallow.

Both girls went off the deep end in the van, causing goldfish cracker crumbs all down one seat, and 2 broken eggs in the dozen I was to deliver.

I put dinner in the oven before we left for appointments and piano lessons this afternoon.  It was not done when we returned.

JP was LATE coming home this evening.

I've just finished spending another hour (already spent 2 hours last week with the Lime-Away, rubber gloves and a toothbrush) attempting to scrub the hard water deposits off the tile and grout in our shower so that our contractor can fix a couple of places and seal everything.  It's hopeless - still looks awful.

On top of all this, I'm really stressing about my job, as it may be part of the overall downsizing going on right now.

Thankfully I had the foresight to excuse myself from this evening's Trustee duty at the Library ahead of time.  I am also cancelling soccer practice after work tomorrow evening.

After dropping off the girls at school tomorrow, I will go shopping for a variety of soups to feed J for the next 2 weeks, along with applesauce, yogurt, and pudding.

I have my fingers crossed, hoping for a peaceful evening tomorrow.  Maybe we can even re-institute Girls' Night and paint our toenails.  But I don't want to count on it.  If we can just eat our soup in relative calm, with no yelling or drama, I'll be pleased.

Brace Face

Here are before and after pictures of Miss J-Bird, who got her braces put on this morning. 

She looked at herself in the rear-view mirror as we drove away from the Orthodontist's office, and stated, "They are ugly!"

"They aren't ugly," I told her, "they look like braces."

"UGLY braces."  she muttered almost under her breath.

"You'll get used to them," I said, "and remember, you're not the only one in the world with them on!"

Big sigh from the back seat...

I came home and stopped next door to help out my Mom.  She is still having a significant amount of pain, but then again, it's only been a week since they did major surgery on her spine.  She is frustrated that she can't do much of anything, including get comfortable, in the hard cervical collar that she wears.  I didn't realize until last night that she hadn't been able to shower since her surgery.  She can't reach up to wash her hair, or to wash her back.  I helped her with all that today.

I'm not sure how to encourage her.  It does seem like a VERY long road to her recovery.  I've reminded her a couple of times that she has to take baby steps.  Maybe if we compare how long it took her to get to the point of surgery (several years), the 3-6 months recovery won't seem so bad!  I feel bad that I haven't been available more to help...this soccer schedule is sucking every last ounce of sanity out of me most evenings.  (Luckily, it has leaked back in during the night!)  So, I'll do what I can...that is why my parents are our neighbors after all, for me to help out in these kinds of ways.

In the meantime, I'll keep reminding my two braced and bruised ladies...baby steps...this isn't forever...you can do it.