Road Trip!

Cha and I are headed out on our first solo road trip tomorrow. We're waking up bright and early and heading West.

The September Moms are getting together for a giant birthday celebration in Cincinnati. Eight moms will be meeting up at the Cincinnati Zoo followed by a fabulous cookout with BFF Dr. Coonhead. I can't tell you all how excited I am to spend time with these ladies.

Four of the moms were born the last ten days of May, ten kids who were born in September 05 and six September babe siblings. That's going to be a big crew!

I'll post pictures after the big event. There are sure to be plenty of laughter and tears.

Can you handle the truth?

: 0

You want to know how crazy my mind is lately?



Make sure you can handle it.



This is how I've been walking around all day at work.



It took me SIX hours to notice.



Crazy or old - you decide!





Seriously! How could I not know that I was wearing TWO different shoes all day?? And I'm wearing shorts so it should have been even more obvious, right?

I am losing it! I hope that I didn't dress Cha in a ballerina outfit with ski pants today.

Coolest Thing Ever - Winged Cats!

Cats with Wings!

: )

speaking of friends....

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter

Socially appropriate

I saw the following article on Yahoo today and found it very timely. Last week in therapy I told my shrink about an incident at the park with Cha. One of her friends found a caterpillar and all the kids sat around and stared at it. Cha found it so fascinating that she reached down and grabbed it and took off running. All the other kids were screaming for her to come back but she shrieked and smiled. Then she squished the poor thing in her hand and threw it over the slide. My therapist mentioned that that was the perfect opportunity to teach her about what is socially appropriate and what is not. Killing an insect in front of a group of friends has to be socially inappropriate, right?

Therapy has been good lately. I've been examining many of my different relationships with people. There are many in my life who are not good for me or who require much more energy than they are worth. Some friends make me feel bad about myself or cause me to kick and scream. I spent a half hour one day talking about a woman who really, really, really irks me. Ugh, I can go on and on about her and how she drives me insane. Why is this woman in my life? Well, because she's a friend. Huh? Why the heck is she a friend if she makes me feel so awful?! Hmmm. That's a good question. Time to trim the fat.

So, here's an article on toxic personalities. Interesting read....

Here are the worst of the toxic personalities out there and how to spot them:

1. Manipulative Mary: These individuals are experts at manipulation tactics. Is a matter of fact, you may not even realize you have been manipulated until it is too late. These individuals figure out what your 'buttons' are, and push them to get what they want.

• Why they are toxic: These people have a way of eating away at your belief system and self-esteem. They find ways to make you do things that you don't necessarily want to do and before you know it, you lose your sense of identity, your personal priorities and your ability to see the reality of the situation. The world all of a sudden becomes centered around their needs and their priorities.

2. Narcissistic Nancy: These people have an extreme sense of self-importance and believe that the world revolves around them. They are often not as sly as the Manipulative Marys of the world, but instead, tend to be a bit overt about getting their needs met. You often want to say to them "It isn't always about you."

• Why they are toxic: They are solely focused on their needs, leaving your needs in the dust. You are left disappointed and unfulfilled. Further, they zap your energy by getting you to focus so much on them, that you have nothing left for yourself.

3. Debbie Downers: These people can't appreciate the positive in life. If you tell them that it is a beautiful day, they will tell you about the impending dreary forecast. If you tell them you aced a mid-term, they'll tell you about how difficult the final is going to be.

• Why they are toxic: They take the joy out of everything. Your rosy outlook on life continues to get squashed with negativity. Before you know it, their negativity consumes you and you start looking at things with gray colored glasses yourself.

4. Judgmental Jims: When you see things as cute and quirky, they see things as strange and unattractive. If you find people's unique perspectives refreshing, they find them 'wrong'. If you like someone's eclectic taste, they find it 'disturbing' or 'bad'.

• Why they are toxic: Judgmental people are much like Debbie Downers. In a world where freedom rings, judgment is sooo over. If the world was a homogeneous place, life would be pretty boring. Spending a lot of time with these types can inadvertently convert you into a judgmental person as well.
  

5. Dream Killing Keiths: Every time you have an idea, these people tell you why you can't do it. As you achieve, they try to pull you down. As you dream, they are the first to tell you it is impossible.

• Why they are toxic: These people are stuck in what is instead of what could be. Further, these individuals eat away at your self-esteem and your belief in yourself. Progress and change can only occur from doing new things and innovating, dreaming the impossible and reaching for the stars.

6. Insincere Illissas: You never quite feel that these people are being sincere. You tell a funny story, they give you a polite laugh. You feel depressed and sad and they give you a 'there, there' type response. You tell them you are excited about something and you get a very ho-hum response.

• Why they are toxic: People who aren't sincere or genuine build relationships on superficial criteria. This breeds shallow, meaningless relationships. When you are really in need of a friend, they won't be there. When you really need constructive criticism, they would rather tell you that you are great the way you are. When you need support, they would rather see you fail or make a fool of yourself.

7. Disrespectful Dannys: These people will say or do things at the most inappropriate times and in the most inappropriate ways. In essence, they are more subtle, grown up bullies. Maybe this person is a friend who you confided in and uses your secret against you. Maybe it is a family member who puts their busy-body nose into your affairs when it is none of their business. Or maybe, it is a colleague who says demeaning things to you.

• Why they are toxic: These people have no sense of boundaries and don't respect your feelings or, for that matter, your privacy. These people will cause you to feel frustrated and disrespected.

8. Never Enough Nellies: You can never give enough to these people to make them happy. They take you for granted and have unrealistic expectations of you. They find ways to continually fault you and never take responsibility for anything themselves.

• Why they are toxic: You will spend so much time trying to please them, that you will end up losing yourself in the process. They will require all of your time and energy, leaving you worn out and your own needs sacrificed.

All of these personalities have several things in common. 1) the more these people get away with their behavior, the more they will continue. 2) Unfortunately, most of these people don't see that what they do is wrong and as a result, talking to them about it will fall on deaf ears, leaving you wondering if you are the crazy one. 3) Most of these people get worse with age, making their impact on you stronger with time.

Frankly, life is too short to spend your time dealing with toxicity. If you can, avoid spending mucho time with people who are indicative of these behaviors and you'll feel a lot happier.

May 24

This was my birthday weekend and I had a wonderful time. It started Friday night with drinks and Quizzo with girlfriends at Fitzwater Station. We stayed out much longer than I thought we would but we had to stay to the end of Quizzo to see how we fared. I wish I could say we won, but oh well.

Saturday Cha and I got to ride on a firetruck, complete with sirens blaring. It was a program at Limerick Fire Company. They did a fabulous demonstration for the kids (Don't Fear the Fire Gear!) and allowed all the kids to buckle up in the trucks and took them for a short ride.



Saturday afternoon we met up with Cha's BFF Kenzie for some playtime in the park. They ran and climbed and chased each other time they practically fell over.

Sunday we had a breakfast playdate with friends. It was a beautiful morning and very relaxing.

(this is the dog i am dreaming of)

Sunday night Matt grilled some fish and then we had the cake that he and Cha baked for me. It was yummy and the perfect ending to a great birthday.



For my birthday I upgraded my old phone to the Blackberry Pearl that I've been drooling over. I've been thinking about it for over a year but wanted to wait til Verizon offered me a free upgrade. I picked it up last week and was actually afraid to turn on the service. The phone is so intimidating! I'm still trying to figure it out but I love it!

Yesterday was a house day. We hung around at home, played in the sprinklers out back and did some cleaning. It was a bonus day to a great weekend.

I got her this time

Today is election day. Well, the primaries at least, but that's still voting. Since Matt is a (D) and I am an (R) little miss Cha is going to have a fun time when she's old enough to vote.

Our polling place is right across the street so we usually walk over together. When we're out in public Cha tends to stick by Matt. His shoulders are a much better ride and there's something special about little girls with their daddies. So when we vote she usually follows Matt in the booth and I have a stinking suspicion that he's filling her head with all sorts of liberal nonsense.

Tonight's plan was to vote on the way home from picking Cha up from school. The three of us were in the car but Matt decided he didn't feel like voting so he dropped us off. We walked up to the front door past all the volunteers shoving paper in our faces and Cha said 'No thank you' right along with me. Such a pro. We stepped up to the A-L table and I told Cha to give the woman my name. She said it loud as day and then I signed the book (I was #218, not a great turn out). I opened the curtain and she and I both stepped inside. I told her what buttons to push and she voted for me. I was so proud of her. It will be interesting to see who she takes after when she's old enough to decide for herself.

On the three minute walk home she picked up a half dozen rocks 'for her collection'. This kid has a thing with rocks. She loves carrying them, hiding them in her pockets, putting them in the kitty dishes, and bringing them to bed at night. She's a bit odd.

Feeling icky this week

I think it's a stomach bug and a sinus infection caused by allergies. I was taking Zyrtec every day for allergies but stopped taking them last week when the pollen was behaving. I guess I should just take them every day.

I stayed home from work today. My body ached, I was exhausted, my tummy was a mess and when I went out to pick up Cha from school the weather felt like it was compacting my head. The pressure was immediate and the sun didn't help.

Cha would go to bed Sunday night. She wouldn't nap during the day and zonked out on the couch around 7. I tried to dress her and sneak her up to her room around 8 but she was having none of it. She became a demon child and wouldn't go to bed for anything. I tried to lay with her, Matt tried to lay with her, she climbed into bed with us but nothing worked. I was feeling crappy and finally left her crying in her room around 11. I was so wound up and tossed and turned until 230. That was the last time I looked at the clock so I'm guessing that's when I finally fell asleep.

Tonight was easier. Matt put her down but not without screaming protests from her. She eventually stayed in her room and was asleep around 9. I wish I had a better sleeper.

Ginger for Nausea

My SIL's second chemo session is scheduled for next week. Her first treatment went well but she said the nausea was the worst. Maybe I'll suggest she try ginger....

Ginger cuts nausea in chemo patients
May 15, 2009

New research shows that ginger appears to reduce nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy treatment for cancer.

As many as 70 percent of cancer patients who receive chemotherapy experience nausea as a result of their treatment, even though many take anti-nausea drugs.

A study of 644 patients with a history of chemotherapy-related nausea found that those who took capsules of ginger twice daily before starting a round of chemo were less likely to feel queasy on the first day of treatment than those who took a placebo. All participants in the study were also given standard anti-nausea medication on the first day of chemotherapy.

Taking the equivalent of a quarter to a half teaspoon of ginger daily was particularly effective at controlling nausea, researchers found.

It's not clear, though, why ginger might have this effect. One theory is that it acts as an anti-inflammatory agent in the gut, said the study's lead author, Julie Ryan, who presented her findings Thursday at a news conference by the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Though ginger supplements were used in the study, eating or drinking foods with ginger in them might work, too, as long as it's the right dose and the ginger isn't artificial, said Ryan, with the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Previous studies suggest that ginger also reduces the severity of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.

In other research presented Thursday:

• People with oral cancers containing the human papillomavirus (HPV) fared better than those with tumors not associated with the virus. Patients with HPV-positive tumors responded better to treatment, were less likely to develop a second cancer and had less than half the risk of dying after five years, compared to patients with HPV-negative cancer, according to a study led by Dr. Maura Gillison, with the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center-James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. Heavy smokers, especially those who drink alcohol, are at the highest risk for oral cancer. But more than a quarter of people who develop this cancer have no known risk factors, and the number of cases among people under 40 has grown dramatically. The HPV virus appears to be the culprit in some of those cases.

• An experimental drug shows promise in preventing potentially deadly recurrences of neuroblastoma, a rare cancer of the head and neck that affects young children. The drug uses antibodies to stimulate the immune system to attack cancer cells. In a study of 226 children, 66 percent remained cancer-free two years after getting the new drug along with standard therapy, compared to 46 percent of kids who received standard therapy alone. Side effects of the drug include pain, allergic reactions and blood vessel leakage. As of now, the drug is only available through clinical trials.

Race for the Cure

Happy Mother's Day everyone!

Team Route 422

I walked for Robin R, Lisa J, Jen, and Cari

The Survivor Parade - Parade of Pink!
(yes, I chopped all my hair off)