Middle of the Night Mom Duty.

Imagine be lulled to sleep after a very long day by the music of The Canadian Tenors.  Then imagine be rudely awakened by the sounds of a young man having trouble breathing.  Once the meter hit 92% I personally did not care how low it wanted to go, it was time for a breathing treatment.  I risk injury to myself when his oxygen level is so low.   He fights the treatment in shear panic.  Then it’s time to do a bit of knitting while I am waiting to give round two.  I got a good 3 inches knit, yes I am using bulky yarn and U.S. size 17 knitting needles.  Some child is going to enjoy this alpaca/ nylon blend scarf.

Then it is time for round 2. It is not a very good sign that he is just as combative.  But at least his oxygen level is up.  He did manage to tweak my left wrist on the second round. So what’s a mom to do?  Go to the kitchen and grab a soup spoon and the jar of Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter and dig in. A little late night snack and some unwind time.  With any luck Eric will be breathing well and fast asleep by the time I finish my peanut butter. Just maybe I will be ready to sleep again.  Although I am not counting on it.  There is too much noise coming from Eric’s bedroom. A second spoonful of peanut butter and I will head back.

I really hope that I don’t finish my scarf tonight.  Wish me luck. I really want to sleep.

The New Shawl Design

I just froged the new shawl design for the second time. Even feeling as awful as I did today, I just did not like the design. So try number 3 has been cast on. This time the yarn is really telling me what to do with it.

Both Eric and I are both sick right now. I have a feeling that his eyrpy night was do to breathing issues. My allergies got so bad that I lost my voice for a few days. I now sound like a frog. I also went to Urgent care on Sunday and have a bunch of stuff that is suppose to make me feel better.

I am really hoping againt hope for some early rain to cut the pollen levels. Until then we will be indoors as much as possible. Breathing is good. High pollen levels and particulate matter are not.

I Am Happy

Today I actually got some knitting done on U.S size 19 knitting needles. I still have to weave in the ends. I even have the perfect outfit for it. Things ended well today.

Eric is feeling better, but his asthma kicked in with vengence. That is manageable.

John even got the roof fixed and finished a new prototype for me to try. I just have to warp the loom.

Bored, Nothiing to Do

I honestly can not say what I did for all those years before I leaned to knit, spin yarn and weave. My hand is still  too sore to knit. Spinning takes no more than 30 minutes a day. Is it any wonder that I have had tension headaches since Eric got sick. To make matters worse they start any time after 3:30 am. I think that I am in a whiny phase.

An important note to myself is not to schedule and hand surgery 8 weeks before a holiday. Why? You may ask. Have you ever noticed that Eric gets sick around every holiday. The question is how do we break this habit of his and when can I start knitting again?

On the Eric front, he is doing a little better. His eyes are not glassy with fever any more and he is getting more responsive. Don't tell Eric, but he is also making a lot less laundry. I did not have to wash any of his laundry today. Just don't go and tell him. However, the post viral asthma has kicked in. Life with Eric is never boring.

Sleep

This weekend was spent catching up on sleep. With at least 12 hours of sleep on both Saturday and Sunday.  I can say that my body feels a little better. The house looks a little worse. I am behind on laundry and changing out linens, there is always tomorrow for that.

Eric had a very late night asthma episode, so I am trying to relax so I can get to sleep. I think it would help a lot if Eric decided that it was sleep time instead of play time. This always happens when his treatment happens after 10:30 pm. Timing is everything in life. 

John spent the weekend designing 2 new drop spindles for me. I know, who would have thought that he would ever design and 3-D print drop spindles for me. He is now enabling my fiber addiction. I will have two new spindles to play with. Tomorrow I need to find time to do an alpha test on the first model.  I wonder how thin I will be able to spin the yarn, the spindle is very light.  Since the spindle design is his, all I will be able to post is the finished yarn for now.

It's Official

I can say with out a doubt that I hate post viral asthma.  I was already to go to bed when Eric flared up.   Meds were give. Eric was cuddled. 90 minutes later he is finally asleep. So to unwind I picked up dishes, washed a pan and started the dishwasher.  I also started a load of Eric's laundry.  

I was also pondering the idea of making the parents who send their young adults to day program when they are sick, to be required to do the night shifts with Eric so I can get some decent sleep.  I know it will never happen.. It's always just allergies, even with a fever and throwing up.  If I had a nickel from every parent who sent their kids to program sick, but saying it was an allergy, I would have some real money for Local charities.  

The house is turning off the lights so I guess it is bed time.  

Sunday / Monday Morning

As I write this, I am waiting for the asthma meds to kick in for Eric.  I am hoping that it is only post viral asthma, so that I have time to clean Teri's room this week. Not to mention make a few rugs, some spinning and other knitting.  Possibly even weaving a few scarfs.  Maybe even a few errands.  

Today I almost finished one rag rug and was disappointed that I still have enough supplies for one more rug.  So I will warp the loom as soon as I get this rug off the loom. Hopefully I will be finished and deliver this project before Friday.  

I am also hoping to have another cabinet mostly emptied sometime this week.  We are getting a little closer to getting the kitchen project started with each passing day.  We don't have the new cabinets and drawers yet, but plans are being made as to what each one will hold.  So my hope is that with more storage space and less stuff, I will become more organized.  

Since it is almost 2 am and Eric appears to be settling down, just maybe it is time for a short nap before I start my day at 6 am. I am not sure weather to say good night or good morning so take your pick.  

Feeling Better

I am feeling better today. I even got out of the house for a few hours of fun.  I went to Grandmas Spinning Wheel for the Thursday afternoon spinning group. I even learned a new way to hold the roving to get a different response from the roving.   I think I may have to read a few books to learn some of the technical side of spinning.  

I finished 2 more hats today to bring my total to 15 hand knit hats so far this month. I have hat number 16 started, I have the 1st 1.5 inches of the brim done.  I like to make the brim between 2 and 3 inches wide. Then add 5 to 6 inches for the body of the hat, before I do the decreases.  

I am giving Eric his last breathing treatment for the night.  When I am done I will call it a night too.  Eric and I are hanging out tomorrow, his day program is closed for the last day of Passover and I will need the rest to keep up with him.  

50/50

Today was wonderful until 3:15 this afternoon.  Then catastrophe struck.  I lost my Fitbit.  Then that was followed by a call from Eric's new formula company saying that they could not confirm that he had a g-tube. That was the head desk moment of my day.  My only question that I asked the supply company was how many years did he have to have a g-tube in place before their company would finally file the paperwork with the insurance company.  They have only had 6 weeks to get their act together.

So my solution to the Fitbit problem was to order a new one online. I ran down to the store when they said the Fitbit was ready.  After waiting for 15 minutes for the overflow from customer service to clear the item pick up only line, they could not find my order.  Apparently in this store they send out the emails saying that the item is ready for pickup when they get the order at the store.  It took a manger, a customer service representative and the warehouse guy another 15 minutes to find the 2 items. I went straight home to get it set up.  I did not need John's help to get it up and running.  All I needed to do was charge it and type a code into my app.  That connected everything together, computer, iPhone and iPad.

On the formula front I will call the insurance company in the morning and ask for a manager. I will explain that this is the company that they sent me to when the other company did not renew their contract. I will explain how the new company will not send in the paperwork because they can not confirm that he has a g-tube. I will then ask them to look in the special notes section of Eric's file and explain that he has had the tube for more than 10 years. I have not decided weather to ask them if they have any interest in Eric's health or if they would just take care of it first. I will give them until 5 p.m. CST to solve the problem. If I do not get a reply by then, I may have to scrounge for the right formula for Eric as we are almost out.

John had only heard about the Fitbit before he offered to bring in dinner.  He is so wonderful.  Just as I was almost relaxed it was time to help Eric with an extra breathing treatment and manual percussion. He is finally asleep. My hands are getting stiff from doing percussion for 20 minutes, I hope that my hands are usable tomorrow.

Now I just I just need to get to unwind again before I try to sleep. So I guess while it is quiet I will get some picking up, laundry and other chores done. I hope to tire myself out by midnight so I can get at least 6 hours of sleep before tomorrow.

No Rhythm

Today was one of those days with out rhythm. Nothing was in sync. Although we did manage to get to Eric's therapy appointment on time. After that it was all rocky.

I got the newsletter I was suppose to have mailed out on Monday out today. It took me over 3 hours to figure out the the e-mail addresses I used last time were locked out of the system. Someone had put it in a mode of no data retrieval allowed. So I could not just copy and paste the addresses in the e-mail. Once that was resolved the e-mail went out in under 30 minutes. As a plus, I only had to print 3 copies to mail the old fashion way. Yes I screwed that up too. I picked the wrong printer setting. I am so glad that I have in house tech support. John fixed the whole mess up in less than 5 minutes including printing.

I also have to design 2 unique patterns by mid June with specific yarn requirements. This is something I have never done before. So On the 1st one I have been mulling over the shape since yesterday. Today was spent doodling and making newspaper cut outs of the approximate size and shape. Yes I did try on the newspaper mock ups. Then I wrote the beginnings of what I though would work. 2 inches in it was not looking good. So it got tinked. I got a new sheet of paper and tried again. Yes 2 inches in and it got tinked too. With the help of 4 stitch markers I think I finally have something that will work as summer wear in Tucson.

Something I can't figure out is why when some of Eric's aides do not like a particular body wash they feel the need to pour the contents of the bottle into the trash. There is nothing like finding a half of a bottle of Lush body wash poured into the trash can. I really like the smell of that one too.  That is just so wasteful. If they don't like the one I have out would it not be easier for them and cheaper for us if they just asked for a different bottle? After all we do have a few different body washes under Eric's sink. I am still shaking my head at that one.

Then Eric had an asthma attack followed by a headache tonight. So I was with Eric a little over an hour. 30 minutes to make sure his breathing got better and to do some percussion. My hands were not to fond of the percussion. Just a I began to unwind from the asthma attack Eric's headache kicked in. I took me about 15 minutes to figure out what was wrong. He held my hand tightly until the Tylenol kicked in.

I finished the day by going head to head with a white spider about the size of a quarter. Lets just leave that as Sheri 1 - Spider 0. It is time to throw the last load of laundry for the day in the dryer and see if I can get to bed before tomorrow.

Poor Eric

Poor Eric had a very bad night last night. The high pollen counts have flared his asthma. We were up until 2:30 am today before he could breath well enough to sleep. As soon as Eric was asleep I went to bed for a few hours before it was time to get the day started again.

Eric was doing well enough to go to his day program. So John dropped Eric off at his program then went to work out. I would have love to go back to sleep, but I had an appointment across town. The appointment went well. Since I was so far across town I stopped by Whole Foods to pick up a few things on my way home. After an early lunch, it was time for a nap.

John volunteered to pick up Eric from his day program so I could pick up a few things at the mall. I also decided to walk around a bit to see if that would help me feel better. I did not realize how pale I can look during a flare up. The nice sales woman at the Clarine's counter gave me a quick makeover. It was amazing what a little blush and some lipstick can do. She was also trying to sell me the latest miracle serum at $85.00 a bottle. She said that now that I was in my 40's it was time to step up the amount and type of face creams that I use. I think I will keep to my current routine of sun screen with moisturizer and continue to wear wide brim hats outside. After 2 miles of walking I was beginning to feel better so I headed home.

Eric just seems to know when my flare up is a bad one. That compounded with me not picking him up to day left him sad and anxious. When I walked in the door he had on the saddest face you can imagine. He was afraid that I was upset with him about his asthma flare last night. I told him that I would never be mad at him for keeping me up when he was sick. You should have seen the huge smile that he gave me. Followed by Eric's version of a hug. Then it was time to watch some PBS with Eric.

Well it is time to get the red pot out of the fridge and warm up dinner.

Spinning Baby Alpaca

I am beginning to think that spinning 4 ounces of baby alpaca in on secession just might have been a bit too much for on sitting. My shoulder is sore, and after a few minutes of range of motion I think I have release most of the tension in my shoulder tonight. That does not mean that it is no longer sore. Quite the opposite, sore with more movement and less funny noises when I move it. Even better news is that the yarn is off the wheel, skeined, washed and has been moved from outside to Eric's bathroom to dry a lot faster. I am hoping that it will be dry enough to wind up by tomorrow. I know it usually takes 2 days to dry on cold damp days, but I can at least hope. By the way this is skein number 4 for Teri's shawl.

Just in case you wanted some of this super soft and squashy alpaca for your self here is a link to NorthStarAlpacas . Did I mention that it spins up like a dream. Just in case you don't spin Maple has some hand spun baby alpaca ready to buy. Also a selection of hand knit items.  Please consider supporting our small family farms.

All this spinning was my treat to myself for taking one dental appointment instead of 4 to do the same amount of work. The good news here is that I don't have to go back for 2 weeks. Even better news, I can still eat and need no pain meds.

Since Eric stayed up until the wee hours of this morning and is now almost asleep having an asthma attack. I think the prudent thing for me to do is to follow suit. So much for my early night.

Asthma & Allergy Health Fair

This is an event for those in the D.C. area next week.

Asthma & Allergy Health Fair

Wednesday, May 5, 2010


11:00 am-1:30 pm,

Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill

Rayburn Foyer (2nd floor)

50 Independence Ave. SW

Washington, DC 20515


Just one block from the Capitol South Metro station, on the blue and orange lines.



FREE

Asthma screenings for all ages

Lung-function tests

Products and demos

Exhaled nitric oxide testing

Consultations with allergist

Children's books

Sign up for The Great American Asthma Challenge!

See you at AANMA's Asthma & Allergy Health Fair and Free Asthma Screenings!



Share the goood news -- forward this e-mail to friends and family, or paste this link into a Twitter or Facebook status update:

www.aanma.org/advocacy/aadch
...founder of The Chris Draft Family Foundation and The Asthma Team -- special Health Fair guest!

For more information, call 800.878.4403 or visit www.aanma.org. Follow AANMA on Twitter and Facebook and on the Take A Weekly Breather blog.

Special thanks: ExxonMobil, Teva Respiratory, Novartis, American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (ACAAI), Aerocrine, Phadia, Pharmaxis.