Our Week - The One with an ENT Appointment, Date Night, and TA Kickoff

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HAPPY FIRST UNOFFICIAL DAY OF FALL, Y’ALL!  Yes, yes, I know fall doesn’t technically start until the end of this month, but September 1 kicks off my favorite four months of the whole year, so I’m celebrating over here today!  Bring on the crunchy leaves, the earthy colors, the pumpkins, and COLLEGE FOOTBALL!

Last week was another good one and I wrote a whole book about it, so let’s get right to it! 

Monday, August 24

Monday, I snoozed an extra time and then rolled out of bed to get ready for the day.  After dropping the kids off at school, I put gas in my car, and I headed to my annual appointment with the eye doctor.  Everything went well, and he tweaked my contacts prescription for the changes my eyes have gone through this past year.

I headed to Walmart and Publix next to shop for groceries, and then when I got home, I got everything put away.  Brian had been working from home all morning while I was gone, and he’d let Belle stay out with him (she was confined to the kitchen), and he said she’d been good the whole time.  He said she even went in her crate on her own once, so that’s progress!  She still whines a bit when we put her in there, but sometimes, she doesn’t whine at all anymore.  And when she does, it’s always short-lived.

After the groceries were put away, I took her out to potty and then we put her in her crate for naptime.  I grabbed a cup of coffee and a leftover pumpkin donut from the weekend and headed to my office to work.

I spent the next couple of hours working on my blog post for Tuesday, and then Brian and I ate lunch together.  After lunch, I decided to take Belle up to my office to try to get her accustomed to being in there, and she was awwwwful.  Haha.  She peed on the floor almost immediately and then she started chewing on literally everything – the basket where I store my blankets, some of Olivia’s artwork that was waiting to be filed, my acrylic shelves, some shipping bags that are on a lower shelf, my plant, my trashcan – literally every single thing within her reach.  Haha.  The puppy phase is not easy.  (Get a dog they said… it’ll be fun they said… hahahaha.)

Since she was misbehaving so much, I finally gave up and I took her back down to the kitchen so I could finish up with everything I needed to do in my office.  On the way out the door to pick up the kids, I got dinner in the slow cooker, and then when we got home, I grabbed some tea and a snack and put the kids on Belle duty.

I still had to finish my blog post for Tuesday, and I wanted to get a start on my blog post for Friday, too, since I had a few extra minutes before I had to get Olivia to dance.

While I dropped her off, Jacob stayed home with Belle, and she slept on the couch next to him like a perfect little angel.  Since she was occupied, I did a Bible study and my devotional for the day, and then I went outside with Belle for a long time.

It was soooo hot Monday, so that part wasn’t ideal, but it was nice to get out there and play with her for a bit.  I’ve touched more grass in the last two weeks than I have in the last year.  Haha.

I finished getting dinner ready after that and then I got Belle’s dinner ready and Brian headed to pick up Olivia from dance.

When they got home, we ate dinner together – barbecue chicken sandwiches, chips, and fruit, and then we all cleaned the kitchen.

I went out to walk after dinner while the kids showered, and then I showered and got in my pjs when I got home.  We watched two episodes of Friends after that, and then I meditated after we got the kids in bed.  Brian and I finished the night watching some more of Scarpetta.

And this is how Belle slept while we watched TV... first in my lap (which is rare) and then she sprawled out on the couch... reminds me of how my childhood dog, Bill, used to lay!

Tuesday, August 25

Tuesday morning, I was up at 6 AM, I got the towels in the wash, and then I got the kids to school after my usual morning things.  I had to swing by the library and Target on the way home to drop some returns, and when I got to Target, there were at least 30 people lined up outside the store.  They all went to the returns desk when we got inside, and I was wondering what the heck was going on.  Turns out, there was a squishy release that morning, and they were all there for that.  Thankfully, another employee let me cut the line to do my return since I wasn’t waiting for squishies.

When I got home, I played fetch with Belle for a while and then I tidied the kitchen.  We played fetch again and snuggled for a while after that, and then I put her in her crate for her nap around 9:30 AM. 

I grabbed my last pumpkin donut and a cup of coffee, I flipped the towels to the dryer, and then it was time to tackle my to do list.  On the agenda for Tuesday was:

 

-       Catching up emails in both inboxes

-       Sending several emails about Grandparents Day that I’m chairing.

-       Working on my blog post for Wednesday

-       Finishing my blog post for Friday

-       Starting my blog post for Monday

 

My neck was killing me most of the week again and it was causing all kinds of other issues, so I lay down after that to rest for a bit since that’s the only way to feel better (aside from massage) when it acts up.  One of these days, I won’t have to mention my neck on the blog anymore and I’m really looking forward to that day!  I know y’all are probably tired of reading about it, and I’m certainly tired of dealing with it.  Haha. 

Speaking of my neck, I recently found another Facebook group with 50,000+ people in it who are all experiencing issues just like me, and it has been soooo helpful.  While some people heal with just upper cervical chiropractic care, it’s sounding like there are many like me who are having trouble holding adjustments, but the good news is that many people said that they have had success with the use of their upper cervical chiropractor in conjunction with massage and isometric exercises that you can find on YouTube.

My UCC has been telling me for months that I need to strengthen all the areas around my neck and shoulders to give my bones the support they need, but the problem is that traditional strength training is actually making things worse as it seems to pull the bones right out alignment and also irritates all the muscles surrounding the area.  The isometric exercises strengthen all the areas around the bones gently, and that in conjunction with the adjustments and massage sounds like it could be a winning combo. 

Soooo, I’m going to ask my UCC about the isometric exercises the next time I see him, and I’m going to look into getting massages with my adjustments again, too.  Back in November and December last year, my adjustments were holding for longer periods of time, and I had many weeks where I felt almost totally normal, and looking back, I realized that all those normal weeks I had where I felt good were when I was seeing their in-house masseuse in addition to my adjustments.  So, we will see where all this goes!

I let Belle out of her crate at lunchtime, and we went outside for a bit.  I fed her some lunch while I ate my lunch, and then we went back outside for a while longer so she could burn some energy.

I photographed our guest bathroom after that since I shared our guest bathroom refresh last week, and then I talked to Olivia’s dance studio director on the phone for a while to chat about all the changes for the coming year.  Now that Olivia is in the senior level classes, she has a lot more that is required of her, but of it doesn’t fit into our schedule, so I wanted to discuss it all.  We ended up getting everything worked out, but the next four months are going to be a LOT as she has to add a bunch of extra rehearsals and class time for the Christmas recital in addition to the nine classes she’s taking already.  She wants to do it, though, so we’re going to roll with it! 

When I got in the car line, I popped on to Instagram to see that Dolly Parton had passed away and I couldn’t help but tear up at the news.  The sadness that I felt for someone who I didn’t even know personally was profound, and it was especially shocking because she was so young.  I know 80 isn’t technically young, but y’all, I honestly thought she was going to live to be 100, so I had always assumed we all still had many good years left with her.  I hate that wasn’t the case.

The tributes and outpouring of love for her all over social media this past week were the silver lining, though.  I haven’t seen a single negative thing about her anywhere from anyone because she was truly someone who everyone looked up to because she was such a good human. 

She did so many good things in her life from starting her Imagination Library program to donating $1 million to Covid research to help fund the Moderna vaccine to advocating for the LGBTQ+ community and other marginalized groups to donating millions of dollars to various other charities and natural disaster relief funds… she was a true philanthropist in every way.  And even though she was a multi-millionaire, she never forgot where she came from… she was always humble, always kind, she was always supportive of ALL human rights, and she always rejected judgement.  Not to mention she was incredibly talented, hilarious, and, well, magical. 

Dolly was GOALS, y’all, and I wish we could all take a page from her book.  I have always loved her, and I will miss her forever.

When we got home, Olivia was on Belle duty so I could finish my blog post for the next day, and then I had to make dinner for Olivia since she had one of her long dance nights. 

After I dropped her off, Brian and I made breakfast for dinner, and he and Jacob and I all ate together.  After the kitchen was clean, I went for my walk and then did an arms workout (to further aggravate my neck – ha!), and then I went outside with Belle at dusk to get out her zoomies. 

Brian was picking up Olivia from dance and Jacob was in the shower, so it was just the two of us, and we had the best time frolicking in the yard together.  Haha.  It’s SO nice being outside and not feeling like I’m going to burst into flames.  Too bad we have to wait until it’s almost dark outside to do that.  Haha.

When Belle and I came inside, I got showered and then Olivia showered, too.  We had time to watch one episode of Friends and then I meditated while the kids finished getting ready for bed.  Brian and I ended the night with some more of Scarpetta before going to bed, too.

 

Wednesday, August 26

Wednesday, Brian worked from home because he was under the weather.  I took the kids to school and then came home to give Belle a bath because she’d pooped in her crate overnight.  She wasn’t messy, but I wanted to give her a bath just in case.  I’ll be so glad when we’re done giving her this antibiotic because it’s making her stomach yucky and I think it’s the reason she’s had a couple of accidents in her crate.  She was completely accident-free in her crate until she started the medicine.

She ate breakfast and we played fetch for a while after that, and then I put her in her crate for her nap and headed to do some work.  But first, a cup of ambition in my Dolly mug.  <3  (Some fun ones here!)

I had to send a few more emails and text messages about Grandparent’s Day after that, and then I cleaned out both email inboxes, did some blog housekeeping, and finished my blog post for Monday.

Once all that was done, Brian and I had lunch together and then I fed Belle and played with her outside for a bit.  Brian stayed with her after that so I could finish up in my office.  I still needed to add a few dates to my planner, and I wanted to get my Bible study and devotional done for the day since I had somewhere to be Wednesday evening.

When the kids and I got home from school, they were on Belle duty for a while, and then we put her in her crate so everyone could get everything done that they needed to do.  I had quite a few things lingering on the list for the day:

 

-       Fill out paperwork for Olivia’s Christmas recital and submit it

-       Catch up a few things in my planner

-       Clean off my computer desktop

-       Fix some blog typos

-       Water the indoor plants

-       Fold and put away towels

-       Sign another syllabus for Jacob

-       Water outdoor plants

-       Label a few of the kids’ school things that I’d never gotten around to labeling

 

Then, I ate an early dinner since I had to be at the kids’ school Wednesday evening.  It poured down rain while I ate, but thankfully, it was done by the time I had to leave.  Before I left, I popped a pizza in the oven for Brian and the kids, and then I hit the road for high school parent night.

High school parent night is similar to middle school parent night in that parents can walk the kids’ schedules and meet their teachers.  We start in first period, spend seven minutes there, and then we have three minutes to get to the second period and so on.  It’s always well organized and we get a lot of good information, and I love that the school does it every year. 

I was also excited to spend a few minutes in his chemistry teacher’s room… she is a HUGE Harry Potter fan and she’s been working there forever, so her classroom is unreal.  It’s like stepping right into the movie.  She keeps the lights low in there (my phone made it look way brighter than it actually is) and she has candles hanging from the ceiling + water features + twinkly, magical lights + all other things HP and it is just fantastic.  I couldn’t even concentrate when she was talking because I just wanted to look at all the details in the room.  Haha.

That was over just before 8 PM, so I headed home.  The kids had just finished getting ready for bed, so we all watched a couple of episodes of Friends.  I had wanted to do a stair stepper workout, but mine has been squeaking lately, and I didn’t want to use it while we watched TV, so I just walked in place, did some high knees, and various other light cardio moves while we watched.  I was determined to get my 10K steps!

After the show was over, the kids went to bed and Brian and I made hot toddies and watched Scarpetta.  Brian needed his because he was full-blown sick, and I had one as a preventative measure.  I figure that the whiskey might kill the germs, right?  And it never hurts to have immune support hot tea.  Plus, the lemon and honey felt good on my throat because I’ve been having all kinds of allergy issues since the ragweed started blooming a couple of weeks ago.

At one point, I looked over at Belle, and she had just rolled half out of her bed and stayed sound asleep.  Hahahaha.

I meditated right before bed, and then it was lights out.  I was exhausted.

 

Thursday, August 27

Thursday morning, I was up at 6 AM and Brian announced that Belle had pooped in her crate again.  Sigh.  This time she’d definitely gotten some on her, so I got ready uber fast so I would have time to give her a bath right away. 

After her bath, the kids played with her while she had her after-bath zoomies, and I scarfed down my breakfast as fast as I could since I was running late.

I got the kids to school and came back home, spending the next hour with Belle, playing fetch, trying to feed her breakfast (she doesn’t get excited about eating), and trying to brush her hair after her bath.  Another great thing about having a puppy?  3,000 steps before 9 AM!

A little after 9 AM, I made my cup of coffee and grabbed a protein bar, and then I put Belle in her crate for her nap.  I flipped her bedding to the dryer and then headed to my office to cross things off my list:

 

-       Start and catch up this blog post to present

-       Go through my emails

-       Respond to blog comments (I didn’t want to get crazily behind again like I was the last time)

-       Order my vitamins

-       Work on some blog housekeeping

-       Catch up on a few things in my planner

-       Catch up on blog reading

 

After all that, it was time to get Belle out of her crate and feed her some lunch.  She wasn’t interested in eating, and she wanted to play instead.  After that, she ate a little while I ate my lunch, and then she went and found a stick outside to chew on for a while.  That girl LOVES sticks.

While she chewed on her stick, I packed dinner in a lunchbox for Olivia (we had a verrrry busy evening ahead) and then I cleaned up the kitchen.  I played fetch with Belle for a bit after that and then tried to coax her to eat.  One thing about her – she is not remotely interested in food of any kind.  She just doesn’t get excited about it – not dry food or wet food or even her treats. 

After I tired her out, I brought my Bible and devotional downstairs to read those at the kitchen table.  Bellie goes nuts in my office, so she’s been banished for a while until she chills out.  Haha.

I freshened up after that and then packed the car with all the things, and then I took Belle out to potty one last time before putting her in her crate so I could pick up the kids from school.

After school, we had a very busy afternoon – music lessons, an appointment for Olivia, and then dance for Olivia.  On the way to music lessons, we saw a bad accident happen right in front of us.  We were sitting at a red light waiting to turn onto the highway and a semi-truck smashed into the back of a little car smashing it into the back of an SUV.  It was scary seeing it happen, but thankfully, it looked like everyone was okay from what we could tell. 

A police officer happened to be sitting right next to us at the light, so he saw the whole thing happen, too, and he was able to get out and get over to them straightaway along with many others who stopped and got out.  Since there were so many helpers / witnesses who pulled over, we decided to go ahead and go to music lessons as planned.  We had to take an alternate route since the wreck had blocked our route, and we ended up rolling up to music lessons right as they were starting.

I sat with Olivia in her guitar lesson and she started a new song – Hate That I Made You Love Me by Ariana Grande.  That’s her favorite song right now, so Mr. Steve wrote the chords for the first few lines for her, and she started learning that one.  It’s a bit more complicated than the other songs she’s tried to learn, but she’s determined to try!

After music lessons, we hightailed it straight to our ENT doctor’s office for Olivia’s semi-annual thyroid checkup.  If you’ve been following along for any amount of time, you may remember that she developed a nodule on her thyroid when she was four, and we have had to have it monitored ever since.  One day when she’s older, it will be surgically removed, but she’s still too small for them to do that.

Olivia changed for dance while we waited for the doctor, and then she had her checkup.  The doctor usually does an ultrasound to measure the nodule to make sure it’s not growing, but he recently retired from operating on thyroids, so he no longer has the ultrasound machine in his office.  Since he has no ultrasound machine, he manually checked it and he said that it doesn’t appear to have changed in size or shape.  He said it still feels soft, so he’s not worried about it since it’s been benign every time they’ve tested it, and he wants to see her back in six months.

In the meantime, since he recently stopped operating on thyroids, he is going to order a diagnostic ultrasound at the hospital so we can get a baseline for the doctor who she will ultimately be referred to for the surgery (most likely in Atlanta).  We will continue to see her current doctor every six months so he can monitor it, and we’ll do one diagnostic ultrasound per year until it’s removed. He said the bigger Olivia is, the better for the surgery, so we’re just waiting patiently for her to hit a big growth spurt and reach an adult size.

Her ENT doctor is also my ENT doctor, and he’s the one who has been right by my side through all my vertigo / dizziness / cervicogenic issues.  While I was there, he asked me how I’ve been doing, and we had a long discussion about my recent issues (adjustments not holding, dizziness even when my neck is aligned, etc.) to which he was able to shed some light. 

When I mentioned to him that my adjustments won’t hold longer than a month or so, he looked concerned.  I went on to tell him some of my other symptoms and then I mentioned to him that my upper cervical chiropractor recently told me he thinks I may need to eventually pursue testing for Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and he immediately nodded his head and told me that he was just about to suggest the same.

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome is something that causes chronic pain due to overly flexible joints, stretchy skin, and fragile tissue.  It can cause many issues in the human body, and it’s often linked to POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome) which causes a plethora of other issues in the body as well.

He went on to ask me several more questions and after I answered all of them, he told me that it sounds like I could possibly have POTS, too.  He told me that one of his children has POTS so he’s well-versed in all the things for it, and he said that I have all the classic markers of it.

He was able to give me contact info for several doctors here in town (namely a cardiologist and the endocrinologist who diagnosed his child) should I want to pursue testing for it.  And this is why we love him so much.  He is truly the BEST doctor I’ve ever had in any capacity because he loves each and every one of his patients and he will not rest until we get the answers we need.  He is the only doctor (aside from my upper cervical chiropractor) who didn’t give up on me during this whole vertigo journey and I’m so grateful for that. 

I did end up spending some time researching POTS later in the evening, and it’s insane how many of the weird markers I do actually have:

 

-       I almost pass out every time I stand up from laying or kneeling or crouching or being low to the ground (this has been happening my entire adult life and even as far back as when I was a teenager)

-       I feel like I’m going to faint in hot temperatures

-       I often feel faint in the shower

-       I have an irrational fear that I’m going faint while I’m driving because of all the other times I’ve felt faint

-       I have had edema in my feet and ankles for years

-       I have super low blood pressure

-       I crave salt and eat a ton of it, though my BP is still low

-       I have dizziness, brain fog, headaches, and fatigue sometimes even when my C1 and C2 are aligned (and it’s a different kind of dizziness than it is when my C1 and C2 are misaligned)

-       I have a weird heart fluttery sensation every now and then

-       My anxiety has always been physical first, and then my brain reacts (true anxiety is the other way around)

-       My symptoms get worse if I go too long without eating

-       Standing still is a major trigger for my dizziness / boat rocking

-       I have had bad allergies / allergy symptoms since early adulthood (POTS can trigger histamines in the body to overact causing allergy responses)

-       I feel like my head is going to explode from the pressure every time I’m upside down (I can’t do downward dog or anything else where I would have to hang upside down)

 

And the list goes on and on and on.  I won’t bore y’all with the details of why POTS causes all the weird issues above, but basically, it’s a condition that affects the autonomic nervous system, which controls, well, everything, and it can cause profound whole-body disruption.  The one thing that I read that really hit home with me (and made me tear up, if I’m being honest) is that people with POTS often face years of doctors dismissing them and telling them their physical symptoms are “just anxiety” before they are finally diagnosed properly.  And the same article also mentioned that people who don’t experience POTS don’t realize just how debilitating it really is, and they often think that people who do have it are overreacting / dramatic.

That’s my entire adult life in a nutshell.  I just couldn’t believe it because this is all the stuff that’s been happening to me my whole life, but I always assumed most things were “normal.”  I always thought it was normal to feel faint in hot temperatures but apparently, it’s not.  And I always thought it was normal to nearly pass out if you get up too fast after laying down or sitting, but y’all, it’s not.  My mind is blown.

Anywayyyy, after Olivia’s appointment, she ate the dinner I’d packed in the car, and we dropped her off at dance (only 10 minutes late).  Jacob and I headed home and, thankfully, Brian was able to get home to Belle before we did since we’re still not wanting to leave her for too long. 

I immediately started on dinner since it was getting late, and an hour later we sat down to cheesy chicken and rice casserole with green beans and garlic cheese bread.

We cleaned up the kitchen after that, and then Brian left to go to Aldi and pick up Olivia from dance.  Jacob stayed home with Belle, and I went for my walk.  It was only 79 degrees Thursday evening because it was so cloudy, and it was just GLORIOUS!  When I first got outside, 79 degrees actually made it feel like there was a chill in the air which is absurd, but that goes to show you just how flipping hot it’s been here lately.

After my walk, I did a short strength workout, and Jacob went upstairs to shower.  Then, I took Belle out to run around the backyard.  She always gets the zoomies around 8 PM every evening, and then she crashes.  Haha.

After her zoomies wore off, I put her in her crate so I could shower, and then I got her back out just before Brian and Olivia got home from dance.  Olivia was starving as she always is after dancing for three hours, so I made her some chicken nuggets per her request.  She showered while they baked, and then we all watched one episode of Friends while she ate. 

The kids got in bed late, so Brian and I only had a few minutes together.  We made hot toddies again and watched a little bit of Scarpetta before heading to bed.

 

Friday, August 28

Friday morning, I was up at 6 AM to get ready and Brian told me Belle had pooped in her crate overnight again.  Y’allll whyyyy.  Haha. 

Since I had to bathe her, I sped up my getting ready process again and I headed downstairs as quickly as possible to give her yet another bath.  After that, I ate breakfast quickly and the kids and I hit the road for school.

I went straight back home and hung out with Belle in the kitchen for a while.  Brian had her out the whole time I was gone, so she’d been up for over two hours at that point, and she was very sleepy.  I tried to play with her and feed her, but she ended up falling asleep on the doormat by the garage door (which she never does), so I transferred her to her crate, made my coffee, and headed upstairs to work.  When I put her in her crate, she curled up and went right back to sleep (which she also never does).  She usually sits in the corner closest to the door and looks at me longingly before breaking out into a whine.  Haha.

I spent the morning working on this blog post, reading up and researching POTS, reading a few blogs (on time for once!), starting my blog post for Wednesday, catching up on a few things in my planner, going through emails, and texting with a few friends. 

Late in the morning, I got Belle out of her crate and took her outside, played with her, snuggled with her, and fed her lunch and then Brian and I had lunch together.  After lunch, I went back outside to play with Belle a little longer, and then I had a long conversation with my parents on the phone so I could tell them about potentially having POTS and Ehlers-Danlos.  My doctor had told me to doublecheck with them to see if anyone in our family shared similar symptoms or ever had either of those diagnoses.

After my 30-minute phone call with them, I left Bellie in the kitchen and I went upstairs to finish a couple of things in my office and get ready to pick up the kids from school.

When we got home from school, I did my Bible study and devotional for the day and then I got changed for daaaate niiiight!  My friend, Jeannine, invited both kids to hang out with their kids Friday night, and she told Brian and me to go on a date.  We hadn’t been on one in forever, so we happily accepted.

We made a reservation at our favorite restaurant in the entire world (we are fortunate to have the best restaurant of all-time right here at home!), and we headed that way after we dropped the kids off.

The meal was perfection from start to finish as it is every. single. time.  Brian and I both started with cocktails – a South Italian Buck for him (Makers Mark Bourbon, Amaro Montenegro, Lime Juice, and Fever Tree Ginger Beer) and I got an Old Thyme Fashion (Old Forester 86 Bourbon, Honey-Thyme Simple, Orange and Angostura Bitters).  They brought out some of their delicious garlic bread and Brian and I both ordered their famous filet that’s topped with fried garlic and an herbed butter sauce.  It’s accompanied by roasted garlic mashed potatoes and grilled broccolini and every single bite was delectable. 

We both ordered a second cocktail, and then we sat around for a while, finishing up and enjoying being out alone together.  We do go on dates throughout the year, but it’s typically for concerts where we don’t really get to chat too much, and we rarely just go to dinner, so it’s always nice when we do.

After dinner, we walked to our favorite local craft beer bottle shop and tasting room to pick up some craft beer and a couple of bottles of wine to take home.  Football season is starting soon so we wanted to be well stocked!  ;o)

And it wouldn’t be a date night without us running an errand!  Ha!  I had placed a Target order earlier in the day to pick up, but instead of getting them to bring it out to our car, we decided to pick it up in-store and then browse for a bit.  I’d hoped they would have the fall stuff out, but our store was only about half-stocked.  We walked around and looked to see what they had to offer and then I tried on the $28 viral jeans that every influencer has been sharing.  I have to say, the jeans are amazing and they are true-to-size, but I needed them in the short length, and they didn’t have them in the store.  I do see why everyone says they’re so great, though!  They have lots of stretch, they’re SUPER comfortable, and they’re very flattering, especially in the booty.

After that, we headed back to Jeannine and James’s house to pick up the kids.  They’d been watching a Pokemon tournament on TV, eating pizza, and playing darts, and of course, they weren’t ready to go. 

Brian and I hung around to chat with Jeannine and James for a bit and then we loaded up and headed home to Bellie.  She’d been in her crate for nearly four hours at that point, which is the longest we’d left her, and I didn’t want to leave her for a second longer. 

When we got home, we let her out and she’d eaten all her food that we’d left with her in the crate, which was great.  We all put on our pjs, and then I did some walking in place / high knees / random other exercises to move around for a bit and get my food to digest while we watched two episodes of Friends. 

After the kids went to bed, Bellie snuggled up on the couch with us, and we watched Ted Lasso.  We were going to start Silo after that, but I promptly dozed off, and that was our evening.  And y'all, look how this sweet girl fell asleep... she was originally facing out toward the TV, but she turned in toward me and put her little paws on my chest.  Gah, it's the best thing ever.  I have missed this so much.

Saturday, August 29

Saturday morning, I woke up at 8:15 AM in a panic because Brian was still asleep next to me.  He’s usually awake way before me, so he’s been getting up with Belle on the weekends, but somehow both of us had slept in, and I was worried about Bellie being in her crate too long. 

When I got downstairs, Olivia had already gotten her up and taken her out and she’d been up with her for a while.  Unfortunately, Belle had pooped in her crate AGAIN (SOS, SOMEBODY COME GET THIS DOG, LOL) so I had to clean out the sink, give Belle a bath, clean out the sink again, clean out her crate, and throw her bedding in the washing machine.  *Get a puppy they said… it’ll be fun they said*  Hahahaha.

Once all that was done, I got started making waffles for breakfast, and then we all ate together when those were done.  I cleaned up the kitchen and played with Belle for a bit while Brian went outside to mow and the kids played video games for a bit. 

Then, I put Belle back in her crate for her nap so I could do a few things around the house.  Olivia and I ordered this set of yarn and this crochet hook for her since she’s starting her crochet club after school on Tuesday (and she also ordered this bedazzling kit with her own money), I went through emails that had come through overnight, I worked on this blog post for a bit, I ordered a gorgeous new planner for 2027 (!!!!), I updated a couple of spreadsheets, I downloaded a new Christmas album, and I flipped the laundry when it was done and then threw some sheets in the wash.

Olivia had the first of her Saturday rehearsals for the Christmas production on Saturday and she had to be there at 11 AM.  Brian dropped her off while his lawn mower battery charged, and I did another load of laundry while Jacob showered.

Olivia had to be picked up at 12:30 PM, so I swung over there to get her and then we all ate lunch together when I got back.  College football started Saturday, even though it was a bunch of smaller team and Georgia didn’t play, so we had that on in the background while we ate and it sounded like heaven!  I’m SO ready for fall!

After lunch, Belle settled in to nap on the floor in the living room and Brian stayed there with her.  I put our sheets back on the bed, folded and put away a bunch of clean towels, and tidied upstairs while the kids cleaned their bathroom counters and toilet, tidied their rooms and the playrooms, and Olivia got showered.

I settled in at my desk for a bit later in the afternoon and I updated some album covers in my iTunes library.  I’ve been working on that project foreverrrr and I really want to have it done by the end of the year, so I’m going to try to be more diligent about it these last four months.  I worked on it for about an hour and then it was time to get ready for the day!

We went to 5:30 Mass and then, instead of going out to dinner, we all picked up takeout and went back to Mama Cass’s house like we used to do every Saturday evening when I was little.  Our fam picked up pizza, and then we spent the evening around Mama Cass’s kitchen table like we’ve done a million times.  My Daddy came over to capture the moment because some things never change.  <3 

We left just before 8 PM and stopped by… Dairy Queen, of course, so Brian and the kids could get their fix, and then we headed home to Bellie.  We all spent a few minutes with her in the back yard so she could get out her zoomies, and then we all settled in to watch three episodes of Friends, one of which was my favorite episode of all-time – The One Where Ross Got High.  It’s a Thanksgiving episode and it is just perfect in every way.  Pure comedy gold. 

I meditated while the kids got ready for bed, and then after they went to bed, Brian and I watched the newest episode of Silo.  Bellie curled up next to me on the couch, and every time she does that it makes all the puppy chaos worth it.  She isn’t a lap sleeper yet, but she always has to be touching me in some way, and I love it soooo much.

We decided Saturday night to leave the door open to Belle’s crate, put a puppy pad outside the crate, and then put up the baby gate in the doorway of the bathroom so she would hopefully not poop in her crate and sleep in it again.  I was worried the extra freedom might freak her out and that she might cry, but we never heard a peep out of her. 

 

Sunday, August 30

Sunday morning, I slept until 8:45 AM which was later than usual, but Brian had gotten up with Belle, and I never heard him stir, which is what usually wakes me up, I think.  When I got downstairs, Brian and the kids were already up, and our crate situation had worked like a charm.  She had indeed, pooped in the bathroom, but she didn’t do it in her crate, and she was perfectly clean which meant we didn’t have to bathe her or do extra laundry to wash her bedding and her Biscuit!!  We’ll be doing that going forward and hopefully that will avoid all the mess!

I put cinnamon rolls in the oven and tackled the dishwasher, and then after breakfast, I spent some time with Bellie while Brian and the kids went to do other things.  We played fetch outside for a bit to tire her out, and then I coaxed her to eat some breakfast since she just totally doesn’t care about eating.  After she’d had breakfast, had some water, played for a while, peed, and pooped, it was time for her nap, so I put her in her crate and headed upstairs with a cup of coffee. 

The kids were busy stripping their beds and washing their sheets and Olivia had to do her laundry since she hadn’t done it Saturday.  Brian worked out in the yard for a bit, and I did my usual Sunday morning things.  I prepped my planner for September and the week ahead, I transferred my photos from my phone to my computer, I caught up on emails, and I also watched the Taylor Swift interview from the Icon Sessions from the Grammy’s Studio about songwriting.

It was released several days prior, so I was excited to finally get to watch it.  Y’all, it’s no secret that I am a HUGE Taylor Swift fan, but as much as I love her, she always somehow manages to make me love her even more.  Her interview was just captivating, and I could have watched for three more hours.  She is truly an icon and a master at her craft.  She ended the interview with a mashup of three songs – two of which are in my top three of all-time favorites, and one that was her new single from Toy Story 5 (which I adore) – and it was just the most beautiful performance ever.  I cried through the whole thing. 

If you’ve never understood the hype over Taylor, and you’ve always wanted to understand why so many of us love her, this interview would explain a lot.  She’s funny, she’s brilliant, she’s humble, and she’s self-deprecating… one of my favorite qualities in a human!  Just so lovely, y’all, and this interview showcases all of that.

We all had lunch together and then I got showered and ready for the day.  Jacob had his first Teen Advisors meeting of year Sunday afternoon, so I drove him over to his meeting and walked him in to make sure he was all checked in.  Then, I headed back home.

Belle was sound asleep when I got home, so I grabbed a cup of hot tea and went to my office to get some work on before I had to pick him up.  I was nearly done organizing my photos from the week when he texted to let me know they’d finished early. 

Brian had a tennis match at 4 PM, so Olivia and Bellie rode over with me to pick Jacob up, and then when we got home, Olivia spent some time with her while Jacob showered, and I finished organizing my photos.

I played with Belle in the backyard for a few minutes and then I put her in her crate for 30 minutes so I could finish getting all the things done for Monday. 

Jacob had started having a sore throat and a headache Sunday afternoon, so we thought it was best that he didn’t go to Sunday dinner just to be safe since Mama Cass was going to be there, so I made him some cheese enchiladas before we left, and then Olivia and I drove to my parents’ house.  Brian wasn’t home by the time we had to leave so he met us over there.  Olivia’s bedazzling kit had arrived just before we left, so she immediately got started on bedazzling all the things.  She is so my mini me with all her crafting!  I never had a bedazzling kit, but I used to wrap colorful string around my pens and pencils and add feathers and other baubles to the ends to make them all pretty.  Haha.

Momma made a new recipe for Sunday dinner – Swiss cheese chicken casserole and brown sugared green beans + an ice cream sandwich dessert.  Oh, my word, it was all so delicious.  I’ll be getting the recipe from her because we all loved it.  The casserole tasted just like Thanksgiving and the green beans were some of the best I’ve ever had.

Bellie was the BEST girl over there and she didn’t have any accidents.  She wouldn’t pee outside over there, but she did poop outside and that was a huge achievement because she has to go outside on her leash and harness over there and she still hasn’t figured out how to use those yet, so it was a big deal.  Haha.

We left around 7:30 PM to get home to Jacob and we brought him some of the ice cream sandwich dessert.  We then ran around with Belle in the back yard and then watched three episodes of Friends before the kids went to bed.  After that, I did my meditation and Brian and I watched some more of Scarpetta before bed.

Happy Tuesday, y’all!