Will This Week EVER End?

This has been one of the busiest and most stressful weeks I've had in a while. Long days, lots of crisis at work, and trainings out the wazoo. My partner at works father passed away, which was simply gut-wrenching, especially because she found out about it at work during a meeting. I felt utterly helpless, having only known her for a short time, but completely heartbroken for her. It also reminded me of last year when my own dad had a heart scare and I found out during work. So lots of emotions have been stirred up, needless to say.
On top of that roller coaster is the fact that I had to do all of our back-to-back appointments today by myself. And wouldn't ya know it, my second appointment goes up in flames when I find out he brought 2 knives to school yesterday, tried to slice his mom's tires, and then when he punched his mom during our meeting when she tried to get the RAZOR BLADE FROM HIS HANDS!! So yeah, we restrained him, retrieved the razor, and then he ran away for a while... I'm a GREAT therapist. I also had 3 cancellations...AFTER I drove all the way there for the appointments. And yet, even with the cancelled meetings, I still managed to work an 11 hour shift, only to have to be back in tomorrow at 8 for a 12 hour shift.
Ok. I'm done complaining. My family is alive, I didn't get cut with a razor, and the cigarette smoke will eventually wash out of my hair. Life could definately be worse!

Train, Train, Go Away

I think I have finally found the trick to blocking out the trains! (well, at least every other night, and usually only once a night do I hear the train, as opposed to the multiple awakenings from last month.) If we keep the window above our head closed (easier now that it's getting chillier in the evenings) and we turn on our humidifier (which sometimes makes a repetitious sound that makes me have to shut it off... hence hearing the trains on those nights) AND if we turn on Pat's alarm clock that makes ocean noices (waves, wind, sea gulls... although I have to keep it at just the right volume to sufficiently block out the annoying birds but still be able to hear the waves crashing), then.... THEN I can get some sleep..... half the time.
Piece of cake!

Good Wifey

I must admit, I was an excellent wife today. Afterall, my hubby did deserve it. He finished putting the hallway floor in for me and didn't even leave me a mess for when I got home (all the dishes he used were even put in the dishwasher!!!). So I rewarded HIM with a romantic rendevoux for 2 (complete with candles and everything.... but they made the room stifling hot and we almost suffocated.... he also took 2 phone calls, but hey, if that's how he wants to spend his reward time, that's his choice!). Then, on top of the romantic encounter, I gave him full control of the television (even if it WAS to watch yesterday's Steelers game)... he even offered to turn on House, but I told him that it was his night. I was very impressed with our give and take today. Job well done, Costas. Good game :)

Two Months or Too Much?

haha, ok, that title has nothing to do with today's blog, but Pat was commenting on our time together and asked how long we've been married. I said "two months.... or too much, however you wanna look at it ;)". Needless to say, he thought that was a great blog title, so I used it, just for him:)
We had a great weekend of working, movie watching, Halloween fun, and a fun 6-year-old's party! I got to spend time with my Mexican for the 2nd year in a row, and he enjoyed my disco attire (actually, I think he just liked the fishnet stockings, but oh well:). So, not to completely embarrass myself (but it hardly seems fair to only embarras him day after day), but we had a great time last night with the party and good conversations there and back.... so I decided, sure, let's allow the fun to continue (if you catch my drift). The only problem was that the combinations of foods I'd had throughout the day didn't lend itself nicely to my tummy... (can you see where I'm going with this???) Just as he's nearing me with that "happy boy" glint in his eye, I gave him a quick warning (but not quick enough) and just ripped one right on him. We're talking baby diaper quality gas. It's not like I did it on purpose, but the man acted like I had just shot his dog and then spit on his mother! He got all sulky, shut off the lights, and refused to get back "in the mood", despite my many apologies (ok, so I was laughing a little bit too, which may have made my apologies seem a bit disengenious...). This morning, however, I was plagued from 3:30 until about noon with a case of the runnies. THIS caused him to realize that I really wasn't just being a jerk and farting on him for no good reason, and yes, my stomach was truly upset. He has decided to forgive me, but promises to never let me live it down. So I'm beating him to the punch and telling everyone myself. My name is Shivonne Costa, and I am a Bed Farter.

Call A Doctor!

I came home today and found my husband very sick today. The poor man looked healthy enough, but on closer examination of the house, I realized that only a very sick person would dare to leave the house in the state that it was after his wife had been away at work for 10 hours. I didn't detect any couging, sneezing, or bleeding sores, but I'm pretty sure my husband is suffering from a case of the I-don't-see-it-therefore-it-doesn't-need-to-be-picked-up-itis. (Some people have referred to it in layman's terms: lazy.)
I love my guy. I really do. But I'm wondering if his illness is causing him to have a lapse in memory of his love for me.... or the fact that I thoroughly cleaned the house last night before going to bed (despite the hives, exhaustion, and allergies I'm dealing with) so that today when I got home from my long day, everything would be nice. In his defense, I suppose that there are truly some people out there that do NOT know how to operate the modern-day dishwasher. I bet in some cultures, it's considered a compliment to leave dirty dishes in the sink, or to walk past trash that has been strategically placed by the door (for days on end), or even to leave bread crumbs and coffee grinds as a trail to find your way from room to room. But in this case, I really do have to take into consideration his ill-health. Because only someone with a severe diagnosis would allow rice to harden into a pot on the stove for hours, despite being reminded to put it away. I better call a doctor fast, because if this doesn't clear up quickly, I'm afraid my husband may die.

Family Basted

I work as a Family Based Therapist in New Castle as my new line of employment. What I find truly amusing is the fact that my fingers REALLY have a hard time typing the word "based" while I'm typing up my notes after sessions. Despite knowing this, I consistently have been typing "basted" into my notes instead. When I proof-read my logs before hitting submit, I giggle each time I forgot to catch my mistake, because it sounds like I'm prepping my clients and their families for Thanksgiving dinner. I've decided that some of my clients (and their families) could probably use a good basting with soap and water, nevertheless, it shouldn't be in my professional notes.
The other option is to simply type FB for Family Based.... but all I can think about with that is Facebook, which really shows that I'm tremendously pitiful in my preoccupation with facebook if simple initials are bringing it to mind so quickly. Eventually the new job title will win over facebook, but until then, I'll just have to continue to baste my clients and type my work notes into facebook.

What a Stinking, Awful, No Good, Crap-Filled Day

Well I'm going to count the fact that this blog didn't post the last 2 that I wrote as being totally how the rest of this day has gone.... So if you've missed me for the last few days, it's not my fault. I blame blog-world or whatever this thing is called!
Today was ridiculous right from the get go. Tell me, have you ever started your day cleaning up 8 piles of diarreah from brand new carpeting? Then, in the same day, did you have one of your dogs (I know which one) chew up an ink pen on your ONLY OTHER large area rug, completely ruining it? AND did you work a 10 hours shift, naturally being late due to the before mentioned dog poo? Oh, it's also super improtant to mention that while running 15 minutes late (causing problems at work since I had our work van key....) cleaning up dog crap, I got it all over my clothes too? Plus, this is AFTER I barely slept last night, due to being able to smell said crap throughout the house? Then, my husband has the nerve to get mad at ME for not wanting to clean up the mess with our shop vac. Really. He actually yelled at me because I didn't want to get bacteria and turds all through my vacuum!! I was also double flipped off today by a man refusing to go over 30mph in a 45 zone (one hand out of the sun roof, the other flipping me off out of the driver side window... how he did this without crashing was so impressive that I honked at him to show my level of awe), I was stuck behind 2 busses, 2 semi's, a man that was approximately 467 years old, and a bull dozer going less than 5 mph.... all that leading up to the construction that I hit once I entered town. And wouldn't you know it, my entire body broke out in severe hives; we're talking the ones that look like I'm a red head covered in freckles. They're on my scalp too, making it insanely hard to put hydrocortizone cream on them. So I took a bucket of benedryll and feel like I'm looking at things with beer goggles on, including this computer screen.
Did I mention my email account got a virus it's sending out, too? I quit tody. Period.

Everyone Needs a Date Night

Last night we decided to go out. We had worked hard Friday and Saturday, so we thought, hey, let's use a gift certificate and go to the Log Cabin. Unfortunately, Saturday night at 7:30 (ON SWEETEST DAY) is not the time to randomly choose to have date night. Ugh. Well, we were left hungry and wanting to try something new (aka me wanting to try something new, Pat wanting to try the same Mexican restaurant we ALWAYS eat at, ordering the same meal he ALWAYS orders). So we compromised and chose something I wanted. The food was good, a bit overpriced, and we were seated next to a horrendously chubby family with less than satisfactory hygiene (as they ate their 11 course meal). However, we still had a nice time laughing and talking (even if there WAS still paint in my hair).

Then we watched Star Trek.... not the awful show, the new movie, which was actually very good, despite the fact that it's totally NOT a date night movie. But once again, it was a compromise... until our neighbor came over and hung out with us during our date. It's a good thing I don't have high standards for Sweetest Day. Overall, the date was a success:)

It's Finally Here!

This is it. Tomorrow is the big day! Tomorrow I get to say goodbye to the furry friends and creepy crawly ickies that reside in our basement. Tomorrow I won't have to strip down in the cold, dank cellar, using the same razor for the 9th week in a row (I honestly haven't been able to find the new pack I bought just before the wedding), and try to shave in a dark corner. Tomorrow I won't have to wear SHOWER SHOES!!! Do you want to know why? Of course you do or else you wouldn't be reading this crazy blog of mine. Tomorrow, folks, is the day that I get to shower in an actual tub!!! It is in, the sealant should be dry, and it (will be) clean! Let the heavens rejoice and the woman shout with glee.

(Now, who would like to take bets that I go to get into the tub tomorrow and there's a huge, nasty spider in the tub? Any takers?)

Potties, and Snoogies, and Drool, Oh My!

I was under the impression that I was going to be able to have a short work day today. I only had one scheduled appointment, then some more orientation and paperwork, but then I was going to call it a day. Well, the first house my partner and I went to was filled with dirty children and a very pukey mommy. Needless to say, we cancelled that one and went back to the office. For the last few days, both of us in the room have been fighting whatever bug is going around. The one with the sore throat, stuffy/runny nose, headache, and exhaustion? yeah, that's the one. So we're lysoling EVERYTHING and using hand sanitizer like it's water.
I thought I was in the clear and that I would be able to leave without encountering any more sickness for the day... that was before I was asked to provide "respite" aka babysitting for 4 children while their parents received couples counseling upstairs. So there I was with a 10 year old, 9 year old, 3 year old, and 2 year old playing with puppets (which the little ones were putting in their mouths), making meals in the fake kitchen (which the little ones were putting in their mouths), and building towers with blocks (which the little ones were putting in their mouths AND wiping their VERY green snot on). Then, the 2 year old (who is apparently being potty trained) had the "urge" every 10 minutes or so, causing him to whip his diaper off while in the middle of peeing, me trying to "aim" his little boyhood in the direction of the bathroom (not even the toilet, just trying to get it on linoleum instead of our work carpet). I am pretty sure that every single inch of me has been infected by little boy grossness. When I have my own kids, they will be better raised than this. Everybody with class knows that you put your boogers on your own toys, not someone else's.

There's a Toilet Im My Bathroom!

Perhaps all of you modern folk have taken your toilets for granted. Those of us that have been remodeling for 2 months are aware of the emotional lows that come when you technically have a bathroom, but you can't use it. In fact, we didn't even have a toilet in our bathroom for about 5 weeks. And now, we have it all!
Today, my man told me that he was only going to be able to seal the underboard. Then, he sends me an exciting text that we would indeed have linoleum today! THEN he sends me a picture of our vanity, light, and countertop in! Finally, I get home and there's a toilet coming into my house!!!! I was ecstatic! Tonight, when I get up for my usual urine-break, I won't have to stumble down the stairs and get the dogs all excited, thinking they're going outside. No, TONIGHT, I will pee in peace. I love my husband:

Project Bathroom = Minty Fresh

Today we did in with the Shamrock Shake green. I went back to Busy Beaver (yes, that's really the name of the store) and purchased the lightest shade of green you could get. It actually looked white-ish to me, only noticable when held up to a white sample. I get it home, filled with hope. As I began painting, I realized that it definately does NOT look white, rather like Mint. Now, don't get me wrong, I like Mint... I like it a million times better than Shamrock Shake. However, how in the world do people actually buy the color of paint that they want when those samples in the store are completely NOT the same color?
There has to be some sort of paint-department conspiracy to keep customers coming back, spending more and more money trying to get the right paint hue. Well this customer isn't buying into their games. This customer is going to be a quitter! I'm going to learn to live with my minty fresh bathroom if it kills me, and I'm gonna LIKE it, too. Busy Beaver, you will not win, for I refuse to paint that dang room one more time.
On a brighter note, Pat gets to lay the rest of the flooring tomorrow and then it's just the tub, vanity, mirror, lights, and shower head:) Oh sweet bathroom, it will be so good to finally meet you. I'll see you in my minty dreams....

One Room Down, One To Go

Well we finished the living room this weekend! After 3 days of continuous work and very, VERY long shifts, we finally finished a room! The living room looks lovely with it's Acorn Nut and Barely Beige walls, Olive patterned, stain-resistant 12x12 rug, new accent pillows, wall hangings, and cool new table and benches:) Unfortunately, the "aqua" color we chose for the bathroom made it feel like one was drowning in a Shamrock shake.... so we added a gallon of white paint to the mix to try lightening it up some. And now it looks like a slightly-lighter Shamrock shake. It's ridiculous the physical reaction we all seem to have upon walking into the room! So a new color will be chosen immediately. However, kudos to my man for working like a slave all weekend, asking what he can do to help ME, and then not telling me how much he hated the bathroom wall color until I mentioned it first, just in case I liked it. Very sweet, very needed:)

I Can Suck My OWN Thumb

Early this morning, I was awakened (after being repeatedly elbowed all night) to my husband poking his index finger in my face until finally shoving it INTO my mouth, somewhere between my upper teeth and lip. Um, excuse me? Can I help you? Unless you are a dentist, get your wood-choppin', dog-pettin' hand OUT of my mouth. After being elbowed in the face so many times, I should've bitten his finger, but his not-so-subtle snoring told me that he was still, in fact, asleep.
Thankfully, we had a productive day of painting (I'm loving my Acorn Nut colored living room!) and getting rid of old appliances in our basement. Then we went to dinner for some Mexican food with a group of friends, with Pat putting the moves on me the entire time, just like we were on a real date:) Hopefully tonight he remembers that although I do like the occasional Lady Finger, I am generally NOT in the mood for a Chubby-Italian-Man Finger, and to keep his hands, digits, and elbows on HIS side of the bed and out of my mouth.

A Night In

We decided that after a long week, me with the new job, Pat with mudding and sanding, that we would spend the night in watching funny zombie movies and snuggling. It was going wonderfully until my lovely husband decided to let the dogs in without wiping their feet. Again. So the evening turned into a wonderful time of cleaning up mud from the floor and the furniture. Apparently we are now "taking space". It's a good thing I like cleaning. Because that's obviously what I'm going to be doing. For the REST OF MY NATURAL LIFE. I sincerely hope God has a special jewel for my crown entitled "World's Best Husband-Picker-Upper-Afterer". And Pat's jewel can be entitled "Ew. Gross." But those are just options. I'm open to other titles.

Mono of the Heart

I am honestly and downright sad about leaving my old job and the families that I worked with for a year and a half. All day I find myself thinking about the meetings that I'm missing with the insurance company, school observations that I want to follow up on, and brainstorming with parents to come up with new ways to work on target behaviors. I'm stressing about the new job, feeling incompetent and fearful for what lies ahead. There have just been so many recent changes, and I think that it's effecting my physical body.... I thought I may have mono; super tired, weak, fatigued, nauseous, grumpy, runny you-know-what, not to mention the allergies. But I'm thinking it's more emotional stress than anything that is causing these mono-like symptoms. Heart Mono.
On the plus side, my observant husband noted that our one dog had become ill (also runny you-know-whats) on the new hard wood floors and tarp we had down while mudding the dry wall. But have no fear, he tells me. He's taken care of it. Ladies, if your husband has ever told you he has taken care of something, you too, may have found yourself with poop on your arm as you were walking out the door for work after he's left the soiled tarp outside of the door instead of washed off and put back in it's place. "I didn't see it!" he claims. But you and I, we know better. I'm probably going to get Mono of the Arm now, too.

First and Last Day

It was the first day at the new job, but the last day for my parents. They leave in the morning, Project Master Bath not yet completed, but further along than we could've expected considering all that's gone wrong. With a few mental breakdowns, several major fights, and a zillion house catastrophes, it's a wonder we're all still speaking (or living) at this point. But I was alive enough to drudge through the first day of work, consisting of signing a trillion papers, attending meetings, and reading massive amounts of literature regarding the company. I think after a 6 weeks of every possible change known to man, I need to hibernate (just for a few months). I will miss my parents, though. And eventually my bathroom/living room/stairwell/hallway will be complete. It's an exhausting miriad of emotions going on right now, and I know that all will eventually work itself out and be wonderful... hopefully sooner rather than later, because first and last days are never the easiest, especially when they are the same day.

Project Light-It-Up!

Today was a super good day as far as being productive on a bunch of little things around the house that were really starting to get frustrating.... and strangely enough, they all had to do with lighting. The overhead light in our bedroom now works (thank God, cause my makeup was starting to look overly-"fierce" since I couldn't really see myself until I got outside), the outlets in our bedroom now work, we hung our chandelier and our outside lights for the front porch (which my mom completely cleaned and spider-sprayed for me:)), and we hung our living room light.
Additionally, my man did a great job installing a second shower head downstairs so we can spray the dogs off, replaced piping on the hot water heater that had gone bad, and he merged our hot and cold hoses so they equal warm water now in the basement.... I'm actually really impressed. I knew he could do plumbing, but the initiative he had and just beautiful job he did was very exciting (and it was all without being asked, which I'm more appreciative of than he realizes...) and all he asks for in return is something about white thigh highs..... ;)

Possibly A New Low

It's not like I plan to have temper tantrums, they just happen. And it's not like I try to have impulsive thoughts of murder, violence, and blowing things up, but hey, like you've never been there? Perhaps my anger at this house (and my husband this week) has gotten a little out of hand, but (like there's really a justification for throwing things and screaming that you'd rather die than hear a train again) seriously, I've been teetering at that breaking point for 6 weeks and I think I finally tottered on over the edge this morning.
Thankfully, God saw fit to send me an angel in the form of Ace, the lovely man that works at our local Busy Beaver. He was the correct amount of helpful, encouraging, and lighthearted that I needed in my time of insanity.... that and the large amounts of chocolate I shoveled into my blood stream upon leaving the store. Ace gave me helpful hints about bugs, gardening, home improvement, paint colors, and the relationships. He has become my Dear Abby.... "Dear Ace, Today I tried to throw myself off the second story of our farmhouse and onto a strategically placed pair of hedge trimmers. What do I do to succeed next time? Signed, Tired of the Train"
"Dear Tired of the Train, just remember that if you die in the yard, the spiders will carry your body off and eat your remains. Do you really want to let that happen? Of course not. Next time, just eat more chocolate, change the paint color, and remember my soothing voice as the train screams in your ear at night."
Thank you, Ace. Thank you.