Post surgery we've had a revolving door of loved ones coming to help us out with life. Along with my dad and mom, Grandma Gini came, my sister Anna and now, my brother Joe is here. Julia has just basked in the attentions of all these people, and I have basked in letting her soak up attention from someone else. I've felt really physically good the whole recovery. Progressively, I need to spend less and less time laying around resting, but still find that I need at least a little bit of a afternoon rest to get through the evening. It's been especially good to have the help in light of having extra hours that needed for EMT class, with an extra saturday class and 8 hours of ambulance ride-alongs. Auntie Anna did a lot of babysitting to make that all possible. I have noticed that I'm more emotionally unhinged, which I guess shouldn't be a surprise, but in between family members, I had a few days of just Julia and I, and we were both kind of emotional wrecks. She would have a marathon tantrum and I would get just furious at her. It took me a little time to step back and realize that I was handeling her somewhat normal behavior in a pretty poor way. Since then, I've been researching cancer support groups and trying to figure out how to not compartmentalize my emotions about it so much. Not sure if I've figured that out very much, but I have been able to be a lot calmer about Julia's rages.
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| Loving the Grandma Gini attention. |
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| finding daddy's glasses |
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| putting her new baby inherited from Great Grandma Olive to bed |
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| more packages in the mail! |
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| Cookies: chocolate and white chocolate and mint chip! She's got a unreal expectation of the post office now, after 2 care packages, dolls from her great grandma, pretty cards for 'julia' (me), and new shoes she doesn't understand why some days there's no mail and that I can't just make there be surprises when there is mail. |
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| We've been getting out on some walks with Michelle and Louie! I can do short walks pushing Julia and feel fine after. Today we went out for about an hour and that was fine! |
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| We started letting the chickens out to roam about the yard a bit. They LOVE it! So do I. |
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| And so does Julia. They are wonderful to watch, and stay somewhat contained to the yard. |
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| Though less so now that the fence has fallen down. Major bummer. |
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| It's been beautiful weather around here. 40's and 50's, most days for weeks now. Bulbs are blooming, birds are chirping, the sun is shining occasionally. We've been making some treks down to the river to throw rocks. |
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| Lots of playing with dolls. putting them to bed has been a major fascination. So has fixing their boo-boos with bandaids. |
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| More chicken watching. Julia's favorite is the 'baby' silkie, who just started laying little white eggs. Julia adores these eggs! |
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| Hanging out with Auntie Anna |
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| there is a napping house where everyone is sleeping. |
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| I stopped forcing the idea of nap and instead, after lunch I read her two books and then give her a huge stack and say "quiet time, you don't have to nap but you can if you want. You do need to stay in bed and have quiet reading time" 9 times out of 10, she falls asleep! |
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| We took Auntie Anna to Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. Julia loved the Gemini II shuttle. |
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| She asks me often when we get to ride on a rocket ship. |
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| I tell her that when she's a great big girl, if she studies hard in school, then she can go learn to fly rocket ships. |
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| she was also pleased with the flubber, though she didn't want to touch it too much. She's a little prissy like that. |
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| Also a fan of the water play area. |
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| but had a meltdown when it was time to go. |
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| loving on Auntie Anna |
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| After we said goodbye, Julia commented "I way miss Auntie Anna" with the most forlorn expression on her face. |
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| And opening a present of two pairs of new shoes that came in the mail! She has a bit of a hard time deciding what ones to wear. We have to switch them back and fourth a lot! |
