Head Wound Harry

In an attempt to gather sympathy, here is a picture of me with my fashionable bandage. I couldn't just take a picture of myself, so had to include this cutie patootie.

After 3 attempts and 4 hours they finally got the SOB out of my ear. (sorry for the swear, but I have no fond memories of that chunk of tissue/cartilage and I am happy to have it gone!) Doctor said it was deeper and bigger than they had expected, so they ended up taking some of the cartilage on the outer edge of my ear. I have to wear this bandage until tomorrow so don't know what it looks like yet....I just know it's swollen and sore.....and the packing is plugging my ear canal so can't hear a darn thing.

I go back next week for a follow up and will become a twice a year visitor to the skin doctor for checks. The doctors office was full of senior citizens having surgery. Andy and I got quite an earful of everyone's ailments as they compared their stories of cancer/cardiac/arthritis problems......we even listened to stories about having boils lanced. We left feeling young and blessed! :)

God is good.

The Mayor thanks you for your thoughts and prayers.

Hello my name is Sarah and I am an addict.

I can't stop watching the Olympics! This will be the second week of unwatched shows saved on the DVR, we have two movies from Netflix to watch, I'm having to negotiate bedtime every night with Tess so she can see different events, and technically I'm supposed to be working on my Bible study lesson for tomorrow night. But what am I doing instead? Watching a crappy cable feed that is cutting in and out and making the picture all garbled up like I'm somewhere on a deserted island with a pair of rabbit ears for antenna. I can't miss the short program for women's figure skating!

Tonight there was an excellent teaching/learning opportunity during figure skating. As a young skater from Australia saw her score she screamed in excitement to see that she had posted her best ever numbers. Was it enough to win a medal? Not by a long shot. But it was something to spark conversation with Tess about how even though she came to the Olympics with no chance to win, she was able to have this personal victory.

I also have a confession to make that is a new character flaw for me.....I have such sympathy and sadness for all the skiers and snowboarders that are wiping out on the mountain sides. I also have to admit that it is the possibility of them biting it on the slopes that makes me want to watch. shameful, I know. But here is the weird twist for me. I have no tolerence for the figure skaters falling! This is the Olympics for goodness sakes! Suck it up and stick a landing!

My favorite part of the Olympics is, without a doubt, Mary Carillo, the witty and charismatic NBC correspondent with the silky smooth man voice. She usually visits with Bob Costas during prime time and does a piece on something interesting about an athelete or Canada. If you are a night owl, she also hosts the late night show that recaps the events of the day. It doesn't usually come on until 11p or after, and listening to her talk is like having a glass of wine before bed without the calories. Mary, you put the oooh in smooth.

Every night at 7pm it is automatic that we turn the television on to NBC. No one even dares to request alternate programming suggestions. The Olympics are on and we watch the Olympics....even when it's Ice Dancing.....although that's kind of embarassing to admit.
Although admitting there is a problem is the first step to recovery.

Snow Day? S'no Problem!

I just want it to be on record that Tess, Kate and Jane play well together and love each other.
Most of the time.

Turns out I've done something fairly right as a mother. My girls play well together. They also play really well alone. Yes, you heard me right. They play well alone. All three of my girls have been fantastic at self play. While they(and I) prefer that I play along with them, they understand that my sole job on any given day is not to entertain them....and they also know that I stink at scheduling play-dates.

Today was a snow day off from school, and we've only had a couple of mishaps. All were easily settled by themselves.....except for the one where I had to come in and give the "c'mon, really?" speech. I firmly believe in kids learning how to entertain themselves, and especially to try and referee their problems themselves. If it turns ugly, then I don't mind being the third party to keep it fair. In real life there are no referees, and as mothers, we can't go around settling disputes on behalf of our kids. Well, we can, but that's years of expensive therapy......

Thankfully I'm still learning something new about being a parent every day, although I'm pretty sure I've caused several "issues" that will need psychotherapy later. That's one of the problems with being a mental health nurse....everything that is said, and left unsaid, in this house I wonder if it will "cost" them in the future.

We have no problem admitting to Tess that she is our practice kid.
We will be SO much better at this with Kate and Jane.

Add My Name to the Millions

The thingy in my ear turned out to be a basal cell carcinoma....fancy words for skin cancer.
I will have a simple(I hope!) surgery next Thursday morning to have it removed. The procedure is called Mohs surgery. It allows the surgeon to remove the tissue, examine it under a microscope to make sure he took enough, and also know that the cancer is gone, before I ever even leave his office. It also keeps the surgeon from taking too much tissue....for which I am thankful as I have smallish ears and a short hair style! :)

No real recovery time, just a big awkward bandage and a sore ear for a while. I'm going to take the next day off from work simply because I'm worth it!!
While I know that this is a simple, easily treateable, low ranking on the severity scale, type of cancer, I can't help but feel bummed........and a little freaked out.

Skin cancer is for old people. (sorry for the blatant sterotype) Not 35 year olds! I've been a sunscreen freak since having children, can't remember the last time I had a bad sunburn(I've never blistered), and haven't used a tanning bed since our early married life....easily 10+ years. I'm figuring the damage was done many, many moons ago.

So while I try and wrap my mind around this diagnosis, I have come to the real gut-punch about being told I have cancer. It makes me one of the millions. And it is especially disappointing to know that my body has the ability......the audacity..... to create cancerous cells.
It leaves the open ended question of........Now that my cells know how to be naughty, will they like it and do it again some where else?

God is good. All the time. God is good.

The Mayor is fine...so don't worry that I'm spiraling into a huge funk. I'm just taking my allowed funkalicious time to be slightly worried, a little pissed, and a whole lot grateful that I have a simple cure.

You Choose the Title.......

Soooo many title options for this post.

1. Where is this kid's mother?

2. Tattoos

3. Somebody call DFS

4. At least she's eating fruit...

5. Are her teeth and lips black too?

6. Arts & Crafts day in the Martens house

7. And the Bad Mother of the Year Award goes to.....

I swear to all that is good that I was sitting right beside her at the kitchen table when this happened.....yes, I had my head buried in my recipes trying to figure out something new to serve my family........just please don't tell me I deserve the Gold medal for bad mothering.

I would graciously accept the Bronze though.

*No children were harmed for the purpose of this post. That is a non-toxic, washable, black magic marker and so far it has washed off Jane's face/neck/mouth. However, the beloved Dora shirt is still in critical condition.

Music Appreciation Class

After having a frustrating time counting out the rhythmns in this song, I realized it was only because she HAD NEVER HEARD IT BEFORE!

Time for a teaching opportunity! This is one of Andy's favorite subjects.....music appreciation....so he found his Beatles cd and enlightened our daughter.

My Funny Valentine

Happy V-D!
I remember saying that years ago and thinking it was soooo darn funny. That was way back when Sexually Transmitted Diseases weren't called STDs like they are now...they were Venereal Diseases.......or V-D.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
I totally just dated myself there, didn't I?

There's no VD here in Crazytown.......
ah-hem....
What I mean is we aren't celebrating Valentine's Day in Crazytown!
We got gifts for the girls, but Andy and I started celebrating Valentine's Day on March 14th several years ago.
Lame? Maybe. But it works for us.
We are a pretty romantic-ish couple every day of the year.....so in years past, we would tend to put extra expectations on Feb. 14th. However, as a couple, we would always cave under the pressure and end up having a crapper of a time. I'm not kidding. We would fight. Or we would over-plan and get stressed out. Or we would under-plan and be sadly underwhelmed.
So.....we decided to take this already hyped up holiday and focus(spoil) on the kids! Then, on March 14th, we can actually find childcare, avoid the crowds, spend some tax return money, and focus on US.
Time spent with my LOVE makes any day Valentine's Day.

Happy Valentine's Day from the Martens 5.

Kate's Valentine's Day prayer

Tonight at supper was Kate's turn to pray.
"Dear God, Thank you for the love in our hearts. We love you God....and we just love each other so much. We love each other so much that I wish we could marry each other...but we just can't. Amen."

We've got alot of love here in Crazytown.

SPF 1,000,000 please.....

Today I went to a dermatologist to have a spot on my ear checked. I had been to see my PCP twice last fall about it, had it frozen twice, and the third time he recommended a derm. doctor. I went in with a totally positive attitude that it was just some "thing" that was being a pest in the inner area of my outer ear. Even my PCP had stated he didn't think it was a big deal, but sometimes people just form these nodules, and if they get big enough, they have to be cut out.
yes, I said CUT OUT!
Well, the doctor did do some cutting.
But also used the words C-A-N-C-E-R and B-I-O-P-S-Y.
poop.
I wait up to 2(!) weeks to hear the diagnosis, and figure out what to do from there. Worst case is I get the cancer CUT OUT of my ear. Best case is.......the opposite of that, I guess.

I don't like to be a drama queen, but I do ask for your prayers.

My Legacy

Yesterday we finished up the "30 Days to a Regret Free Life" sermon series at church. The topic was one of my faves....."What is the Legacy you will leave behind?"
Call me a nerd, but I think about this A LOT.
My senior year of nursing school at William Jewell was the catalyst. We had to create a Legacy Project that matched an component of nursing with the world around us. My project was to get an AED installed in our church. Not exactly a life long dream of mine, but it got me the "A" I wanted, and did a good thing for my church family.
Fast forward to 2010. This idea of leaving a legacy for not just my family, but for people I have yet to meet, or may never(!) meet, is something I want to work on every day. Pastor Fred asked us "What will people say about you when you are gone?" Meaning......How will people describe your contribution to making this world a better place?"
It's stuff like this that keeps me awake at night!

-I want to be a living example of compassion for all of God's children....no matter what....God doesn't make mistakes.
-I want to be an example of servant leadership. Giving of my time in diverse areas of need, in my church, my community, and my world.
-I want my girls to grow up knowing that it is the little things that can be a BIG deal.
-I want my girls to grow up thinking they have some big shoes to fill to follow in my footsteps :)

This prayer from church on Sunday was just waaaaayyyy toooooo gooood to not pass along.

"Gracious God, our lives are a gift from you alone. What we make of our lives is our only way of returning thanks to you. Help us to measure our success, not by how much we take from life, but by how much of ourselves we give back. Teach us today that it's not the duration, but the donation of our lives that determines the legacy we leave behind."

Amen.

What kind of legacy are you workin' on?

TGIF

whew.
Am I glad that's over. This work week has been looooong.
In my profile it says I love love love my job.
After this week?
I only love lo my job. (that's only one and a half loves if you didn't notice)

For the last few weeks I have been having "It's Friday and I'm Fired Up!" moments during my work day. Today was no different.

Today's difference was that I(along with my fellow co-workers) finally(!) had the full attention of hospital administration.
So today I got to vent.....and yes, I did get fired up.......
while wearing my smiley face t-shirt.

Even the mayor gets fired up sometimes.

Fun Times in Crazytown

Kate dressed herself this morning, and went ahead and prepared herself for our shopping trip to Target. She has on her ipod/headphones, both a purse and a bag, a pink cellphone case, a miniature gun in a holster on a bolero tie around her neck(from Great Aunt Jean's house in Colorado) a small green water spraying fan clipped to her belt loop and a green sweatband on her Rt wrist.
Don't even ask about the group of Barbies doing push-ups on the fireplace....you don't want to know.

I am sorry my lame brain turned the camera sideways......I hope you can still enjoy the video without having to turn your head. I love how Kate just cannot stay out of the picture.

It was a fun day in Crazytown!

No Call No Show

The tooth fairy was a No Call No Show lastnight.
Tess lost her other front tooth yesterday (Yes! Finally!) on the bus ride home. Her shirt is stained with the blood to prove it. So why didn't the tooth fairy come to our house?
Possible excuses our family came up with include:
---The tooth fairy was so busy last night collecting teeth that she just didn't get to our house by morning? (that's a good one, I like that!)
---The tooth fairy ran out of money just before getting to our house (that one is pretty realistic)
---Andy suggested that maybe there were so many kids that lost teeth over the weekend that Mondays are her "busy" night....which prompted my reply "Is the tooth fairy a union worker? Does she not work weekends?"

I think the tooth fairy just got comfortable watching late night television and forgot.