Our Week - The One with Allergy Testing, Dinner with My Girls, and Retainer Woes

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Happy Thursday, y’all!  I’m patting myself on the back for finally getting this post up!  Haha.  It’s just a little late, but I’ve been on the struggle bus for the last couple of weeks thanks to my new retainers and a terrible allergy flareup.  Let’s get to the recap!

 

Monday, January 26

Monday morning, the kids had a two-hour weather delay.  It had rained all weekend, and the temps dipped well below freezing overnight, so they were worried about black ice.  Unfortunately, Jacob had an appointment at the allergist at 8 AM, so he and I had to get up and get out anyway, but thankfully, the roads were just fine.  I did get to sleep 45 minutes later than usual, so that was a nice little treat.  ;o)

At the allergist, Jacob had a patch test.  He’s been having issues with dermatitis around his eye since July, and the next step was to test for all the ingredients that can be skin irritants.  Patch testing is a days-long process, and on Monday, he had to have the patches applied.

The appointment was quick, and we were done in time to go home and hang out for a little bit before the kids had to be at school.   I made the bed, tidied up from the morning, and we did our devotional together, and then we hit the road.  Originally Jacob was going to have to miss school Monday for his appointment, so it all worked out well that school was delayed because he ended up not missing anything at all!

After the kids were dropped off, I headed home and tackled the laundry.  I alternated between washing, drying, and laying out three large loads of laundry and working on my blog post for the next day. 

Brian and I had lunch together and then I got dinner in the slow cooker.  After the late start and a few other things that went wrong, I was flustered because I knew I wasn’t going to be able to get everything done that I needed to do, and I also wasn’t feeling well at all Monday because my retainer had my whole body spiraling into tension and dizziness again. 

On the way to pick up the kids from school, I dropped some books off at the library along with my friend’s son’s jacket that he’d left at our house over the weekend.  I also had a couple of books to pick up which is always exciting.

I ended up getting to the car line late, and Olivia had an eye appointment right after school, but thankfully, we rolled up in there right on time.  The eye appointment took foreverrrr, and my retainer was literally making me ill, so the second we got into a room, I washed my hands at the doctor’s little sink and I took it out. 

We got home around 5, and Brian had just left to pick up Jacob from e-sports.  I grabbed some hot tea, a snack, and some Ibuprofen, and I did my quiet time in my office. 

It was 36 degrees and the windchill was 23 degrees, but I wanted to get out for a walk and get some fresh air since it usually makes me feel better, so I bundled up really well and went for it.  I only made it one mile, but I did feel a little better when I got home!

We had chicken tacos with all the toppings when I got home thanks to the slow cooker, and then I took a shower and got in my pjs.  I put the rest of the laundry away, the kids got ready for bed, and then we watched some more of the movie Ready Player One that we’d started. 

After the kids went to bed, Brian and I made Manhattans and we watched another episode of His and Hers.  We usually don’t drink during the week, but alcohol typically helps with my tension, and I just wanted some relief.

 

Tuesday, January 27

Tuesday, I got the kids to school and then I went home to finish my blog post for Wednesday.  I had an appointment with my therapist mid-morning, and then I headed back home to do some more laundry, catch up on emails, and catch up on blog reading. 

I picked up Olivia from school when she got out, and Jacob stayed behind for e-sports.  I hung out with her for a bit and then left her to do her homework while I did my Bible study.  I got the laundry put away, watered the plants, and then it was time to take Olivia to dance.  I also finally remembered to share my metal-free mouth on Instagram!  ;o)

I had dinner with my girlfriends at a local restaurant that wasn’t far from Olivia’s dance school, but I had some time to kill before I got there, so I swung by Hobby Lobby, which was also close, just to do some browsing.  I rarely take the time to just walk around and browse at stores anymore, so it’s always a treat to just walk up and down the aisles and take my time.  Usually when I go shopping, I run in, grab exactly what I need, and leave.  All the florals had me thinking about spring!

Before meeting at the restaurant, I also had to fill my car with gas, and then I met up with the girls.  We went to one of my favorite places, and I hadn’t been there in soooo long, so it was a nice treat.  I had their steak tips, mashed potatoes, and mac n cheese, and it was all delicious.  We also remembered to snap a selfie on the way out, which was a win, since we forget to take pictures half the time.  I just love these ladies so much!

Brian had picked up Jacob from e-sports, picked up Olivia from dance, and then taken the kids to eat at Culver’s, so I ended up getting home right before they did.  I got into pjs, tidied the house, prepped for Wednesday, welcomed them home, and then signed field trip permission slips for Jacob while the kids got ready for bed. 

It was bedtime for the kids by the time they’d finished getting ready, and then Brian and I watched half an episode of His and Hers before going to bed.

 

Wednesday, January 28

Wednesday morning, I drove the kids to school and then headed home for a bit to tackle a few things before Jacob’s follow-up allergist appointment.  I got caught up on both email inboxes, I worked on some stuff for the Daddy / Daughter dance I’m planning for the school, and I took some time to get my life together.  February is always soooo busy for us, so I planned all the important dates and got them down in my planner. 

I had to check Jacob out of school mid-morning to get his patches removed at the allergist.  The appointment was super-fast, and he was back at school within the hour.   He was so relieved to have those things off, too.  They covered his back from top to bottom, and he said they were so itchy by the time Wednesday rolled around.  The doctor had to monitor him through Friday, so the nurse marked the edges where each patch was with marker, and then we were on our way.

After Jacob got back to school, I headed home and started my blog post for Friday. It was time to pick up the kids from school before I knew it, so I headed to school to grab them.  On the way home, they got to wave at Jacob’s old piano teacher again on the road… they always love seeing him. 

It was Catholic Schools Week, so the kids got to do some fun activities every day, and Jacob’s class had played hallway Bingo so he came home with a big box of candy that he’d won.  Their version of Bingo involves a lot of running, and he said it had been really fun.  The drive home from school is always one of my favorite parts of the day because the kids are always bursting to tell me everything that happened at school.  I don’t take that for granted, and I pray that they always want to share their days with me.  :o)

When we got home, I left them to do their homework, and I did a Bible study in addition to reading my devotional for the day. 

When the kids were done with homework, I spent some time with Olivia to look over the birthday party invitations that she’d designed.  She downloaded Canva and designed these all by herself from start to finish… are they not the cutest?!  I was blown away at how great they looked.  (And obviously, I blocked out some of the personal info, so that’s why they look weird at the bottom.  Haha.)  She loves designing stuff like that… she is her mother’s daughter. 

I went out for a two-mile walk/jog after that, and when I got back home, I took Olivia to dance.  When I got home from dropping her off, I put dinner in the oven, and then I showered while it baked.  I made some muffins to have on hand for breakfast and snacks for the rest of the week, and then Brian, Jacob, and I sat down to eat barbecue chicken, mashed potatoes, and steamed broccoli. 

We all cleaned up the kitchen, and then I spent some time unpacking a delivery and putting it away.  The rest of the evening was spent hanging out with Jacob.  He wanted to download some new music, so we did that, and then we worked on our puzzle together.  I also spent some time working on our One Second a Day video for 2025 while he was getting ready for bed.

When Brian and Olivia got home from dance, Olivia got in the shower, and I did my nightly meditation while she got ready for bed.  After the kids got into bed, Brian and I made Manhattans (again) to give me a break from the awful tension I was still having from my retainers, and we finished the show His and Hers.  I was so excited because I guessed the ending.  I rarely guess the endings of those kinds of shows, so I was proud of myself.  Haha.  And it was SO good, too.

 

Thursday, January 29

Thursday morning, I dropped the kids off at school and then I headed home to tackle some tasks on my to-do list:

 

-       Finish blog post for Friday

-       Start and finish blog post for Monday

-       Clean another set of blinds in our primary bedroom

-       Catch up on blog reading

-       Tidy the whole house

-       Sign up for Turbovote so I will receive all election reminders in my area

-       Delete 3,000 pictures from my camera roll

I still can't believe how well those dusting gloves work... look at the difference between the left side of the blinds and the right side!!

I did have to lay down and rest for about 20 minutes at one point, too, because I literally couldn’t function with the retainers. 

While I sat in the car line, I did tons of research about the Invisalign retainers and there were soooo many people saying that they experienced the same things that I did with them.  There were also multiple sources that said if you experience any of those symptoms that you should stop treatment immediately and call your doctor.  I ended up taking the retainers out in the car and I didn’t put them back in the rest of the day.

On the way home, Olivia told us about the Minute to Win It games they'd played at school, and I was excited to see that the school had posted a picture of her!  I always love to see what they're up to at school!

The kids had music lessons after school, and it was my turn to sit in with Jacob.  He practiced a couple of songs that he’s been working on for a while by a composer that we both love, and he also worked on a song in his lesson book.

When we got home, I did a Bible study and then went for a long, cold walk.  When I got home, Brian and I made breakfast for dinner, and then I sent out all of Olivia’s birthday party invitations.

After that, I got showered and into pjs, and then after I was prepared for Friday, we worked on the puzzle a bit more.  We finished the evening by watching the rest of Ready Player One, and then Brian and I started the first episode of the new season of Shrinking.

 

Friday, January 30

Friday, I dropped Olivia at school, and then Jacob and I headed to his final allergist appointment to get the results from his patch test.  We found out that he’s mildly allergic to shellac, which is used in a lot of beauty products, and also some foods – especially the ones with a shiny coating (Skittles, Gobstoppers, candy corn, Junior Mints, apples, lemons, oranges, etc.).  The doctor said his allergy is mild, and that it’s likely not the culprit of his dermatitis since it’s not in any of the products he uses.  He said eating the foods with shellac wouldn’t be causing dermatitis around his eye (it would be causing it around his mouth instead), so we’re back to square one, not knowing what’s causing it. 

It’s definitely a good thing that he’s not significantly allergic to anything, but it’s frustrating that we still don’t have answers after eight months of seeing doctors.  My gut is telling me that it’s hormones causing it since the start of the dermatitis around his eye started at the same time as a major growth spurt, and it has died down somewhat now (although not completely) now that his growth spurt has slowed.  I guess we may never get answers, so we’ll just have to continue treating it with the cream that we’ve been using.  Thankfully, multiple doctors have told us it’s safe to use around his eye long-term. 

We were done there quickly, and I was able to get Jacob to school before first period ended so he really didn’t miss much class.  After I dropped him, I headed home and immediately called my orthodontist’s office.  I tried to power through to see if my body would adjust to the retainers, but everything continued to get worse to the point where I was horribly dizzy and unsteady again, so I’d had enough at that point.  They weren’t able to get me in Friday since they close early, but they scheduled an appointment for me first thing Monday morning.

They were concerned my teeth might shift over the weekend, so they told me to try to wear it as much as I could tolerate it and just take it out when I needed breaks, but unfortunately, it’s not that simple.  While I get a little bit of relief when I take it out, my jaw fights constantly for hours/days to try to get back in its position so I still have to deal with the tension.  And as I type this, the orthodontist came up with a new solution for me, so I haven’t been wearing the bottom retainer at all, and I’ve been wearing the top one sparingly, but I’m still experiencing all the dizziness and unsteadiness… it usually takes days/weeks/months for everything to resolve once it’s set off.  I think my atlas may have been pulled out of whack again from the retainers, too, but thankfully I have an appointment with my UCC on Friday to find out.

Anywayyyy, I spent the rest of Friday trying to get my life together – catching up on emails, paying bills, shopping for Olivia’s birthday, updating some spreadsheets, getting some tax documents ready, sending Olivia’s wish list to the grandparents for gift ideas, etc. 

On the way home from school, both kids chattered nonstop about their day.  They’d both ended Catholic Schools Week with fun events – Jacob got to go to a local trampoline park and Olivia got to have a silent disco.  They both had the best day!  And on the way home, Olivia pulled out another one of her loose molars, so she was pretty excited about that, too!  ;o)

I usually don’t work out or walk or anything on Fridays, but we had some crazy freezing weather coming in Saturday and I still needed to walk two miles to meet my goal for the month, so I went ahead and got it done Friday even though I just wanted to be lazy and stay inside. 

After my walk, I showered and got into pjs, and then I had some lazy time in my office.  I enjoyed a cup of tea while I finished the book I was reading, and then I did my quiet time. 

I had a few more things I wanted to check off the list before kicking off the weekend, so I tackled those next…

 

-       Sending a couple more emails for the Daddy / Daughter and Mother / Son dances

-       Fixing some blog typos that Brian had sent me (he’s my unofficial editor!)

-       Syncing a few new songs I had downloaded

-       Updating some album artwork in my iPhone music library (I’ve been working on that for over a year now and it’s taking foreverrrr because I have so many songs)

 

I shut down my office for the day while Brian headed to pick up pizza for dinner, and then I put away some groceries that Brian had picked up earlier in the day.  I whipped up some cocktails for the two of us as he got back with the pizzas, and then we all enjoyed dinner together.

After dinner, I cleaned out the refrigerator and freezer while the kids showered, and I finally said goodbye to the jar of bone broth that we’d fed to Maui in her last days.  She stopped eating the last few days that she was here with us so we fed her bone broth and water and baby food in a syringe until we could get her to the vet for the appointment to euthanize her.  Thankfully, she ended up passing away on her own the day before her appointment, so we didn’t have to do that.  But I just couldn’t bear to get rid of that jar that sustained her in her last days.  I know it’s silly, but it was hard to let it go.  And yes, I cried tears when I threw it out. 

Once the kids were ready for bed, we finished Ready Player One and then we started live action Mulan.  The kids went to bed and Brian and I finished the episode of Shrinking that we’d started the night before and then we started The Studio.  I did sneak a picture of Olivia working on her French lesson for the day, too.  She decided she wants to learn French, so she downloaded Duolingo and has been working on it for a couple of weeks!

 

We’d seen the news that Catherine O’Hara passed away earlier in the day, and I was devastated, y’all.  Her character, Moira Rose, from Schitt’s Creek is one of my favorite characters of all-time.  I loved her so much and I still can’t wrap my mind around the fact that she’s gone.  I’m still not over the loss of Diane Keaton, so this hit really hard.

 

Saturday, January 31

Saturday morning, we slept in, we had waffles for breakfast, and then we all watched the windows for snow.  The cold front had come in overnight, and we were supposed to max out in the 20s, so there was a small chance for snow.  We did get some snow flurries throughout the day, but they never turned into anything more. 

We spent the day inside.  The kids got their laundry done and they both stripped their beds and washed their sheets.  I washed the sheets in our bedroom as well, and then I worked on a few things in my office…

 

-       Started and got all caught up on my end-of-year blog post

-       Finished our One Second a Day video for 2025

-       Purchased party favors for Olivia’s birthday, with her input, of course ;o)

-       Restored my old iPad to its factory settings so we can sell it

-       Put new rug tape under the rug in our primary bedroom (that took forever and it wasn’t fun at all)

-       Did my quiet time

 

It was a slow, cozy day with nowhere to be until church, and all of us were happy just hanging out at home.  At one point, Olivia came up and wrapped her arms around me and said, “I love our family,” and it made me tear up.  It meant so much that she had those thoughts on a day when we weren’t doing anything special or extra fun… it’s good to know that her little heart is content even on the most mundane of days. 

We all got ready and went to Mass in the early evening, and the windchill was seven degrees.  That is COLD for Georgia, my friends.  I also snapped a picture of my watch band since a few of you wanted to see what it looks like in real life.  Soooo pretty, right?!

After Mass, we went to Mex with our usual group, and then we went straight back home to cozy up by the fire and finish live action Mulan that we’d started the night before.

Brian and I started Run Away on Netflix after the kids went to bed, and then he and I went to bed, too.

 

Sunday, February 1

Sunday, we slept in and had cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and then we all settled in to watch our One Second a Day video from 2025 that I’d finished the previous day.  2025 was our last year with Maui, so the first two months were very heavy with clips of her, and I tear up every single time I watch it.  Grief over losing her has been hitting me hard again recently, likely because the one-year anniversary of her death is right around the corner.  :o(

The rest of the day was spent washing towels, tidying the house, getting my planner ready for February and the week ahead, and listening to the sermon I listen to every Sunday.

I felt awwwwful Sunday – extreme dizziness and tension – so I barely wore my retainers.  I got in two hours and then I just couldn’t take it anymore.

After lunch, I took down all the Christmas cards (I always leave them up through January because I love them so much), and then I got showered and ready for the day.

I moved photos from my phone to my computer and got them organized and I did a few other menial tasks, but my heart just wasn’t in it because I felt so bad all day. 

We went to my parents’ house for Sunday dinner, and we hung out over there for a couple of hours. 

When we got home, the four of us settled in to watch the Grammy’s and we let the kids stay up a little later so they could watch some of them, too. 

Happy Thursday, y’all!