Today I Wanna Be

Jack is always telling me what he wants to do when he "grows up". Everytime I hear him say that, I always think of the Toys R Us jingle "I wanna be a toys r us kid". Anyway, for the longest time the boy wanted to be a "race car driver". Seriously everyday, about a hundred times a day, he would say I wanna be a race car driver just like my cousin Chad. (Thanks Chad!). I always told him he had to go to college first, so after awhile, he would add the little caveat to his dream - "after college" and then he would ask me again "when is college". I would again go through all the schools he has to finish before becoming that race car driver (preschool, elementary, junior high, high, and then college).

Well in recent weeks, Jack's fascination has moved from race car driving (thank goodness) to being a rock star (oh geesh). And I have the Disney channel to thank for this latest obsession because of their non-ending promotion of the movie Camp Rock. He will go around the house strumming his imaginary guitar and say "I am a Rocking Star Mom!". Even at church he will stand up during the kid's song worship and pretend to play the guitar. At this point I am really not sure which is the worst idea - race car driver or rock star. But of course, everything is "after college".

So yesterday, he went to the doctor to have his hand checked out, which by the way is looking really good. I am no longer feeling faint when I have to change the bandage. The doctor thinks it is going to heal up very nicely with probably no surgery (yahoo!). But we have to give it another couple of weeks to make sure. So that was good news.

Anyway, while at the doctor's, I guess he had the sudden inspiration that doctors were as cool as race car drivers and rock stars because he now says he wants to be a doctor, which is something I can live with a lot easier than the previous two career choices. There is just the little matter of how to pay for med school is all.

I just think it is so great to be young and have your entire future ahead of you and a blank slate as to what you are going to do with that future.

In other happenings, our Vacation Bible School started last night. After last year's first night chaos, I was fully prepared for that same chaos. However, it ran so smoothly and I think the kids enjoyed it very well. This year, I am helping out in the science "discovery" room where we are doing science experiments to demonstate God's love. It is really fun to see the expressions on their faces when doing the experiments. My friend Nichol, who is a pediatrician, is my "lab partner" and she even brought lab coats for us to wear. All very cool. I will take the camera and get some pictures of the church all decorated. We have been working hard getting ready for this. We were at the church until 10:00 on Friday night and then again on Sunday night. But I think it is going to be a successful VBS this year.

Bob 1991-2008

Today I had to put to sleep my dog of almost 17 years. Bob, my wire-haired dachshund that I picked out when I was only 24 years old, which was about 3 lifetimes ago. Through a marriage, a divorce, a bad relationship, my single years, meeting Jim and having Jack, Bob was there as always. My faithful friend who stuck with me through it all. He lived in three different states, 6 houses and 3 apartments with me. And today I had to say goodbye to him. In the end he was completely deaf and almost blind, but when he knew that he was getting a treat, he still pranced around like a puppy. I knew this day was coming and I thought I was ready for it, but I still cried like I lost a dear friend. He was my first son before I had Jack and he will be missed.

I love you Bobers.

The Finger Saga Continues

We are still managing with burnt fingers here at the Jackaroo house. The boy is such a trooper. I am completely impressed with him and his pain management. It makes me think I am a total wimp to pain, because if I had the same injury, I would be complaining about the thing all the time. But not Jack, he just goes about his day and doesn't let the fact that he has no use of his left hand get in his way. He even has accomplished the taking his pants off to go potty quite well with the one hand.

The actual injury is looking better than it did on Saturday when I almost lost my lunch. I changed the dressing yesterday and I can see the healing process going on. The human body really is quite amazing. I am actually going to take him over to a nurse friend today to have her look at it and see what she thinks and let her change the dressing for me. It will be nice to have a professional do it rather than me who about faints away. Yeah a medical career was never in the cards for me.

I also have such a great group of friends. It really was quite amazing that I only told one person about the incident and before the night was over, I had like five phone calls from friends wondering how he was doing. I feel very blessed to have such great girlfriends who I know I can count on in times like these.

Oh and the other day at Walmart, the boy did not get a video game system. One big reason was because I just don't want to have one in my house and well he couldn't play anyway. But we did end up getting a couple of games - Hungry Hungry Hippos and Candy Land. We have been having fun playing those and Chutes and Ladders and Sorry. There isn't much else the boy can do besides watch tv and I really don't want him to watch tv all day long. Unfortunately the pool is out for at least two or three weeks, along with the beach, and the waterpark, and playing outside. But he is taking it better than me! It just goes to show you that you can learn something from your kids.

The Boy Has Me Wrapped Around His Finger ...

especially the bad fingers. Today I changed the dressing on Jack's hand. I got out of it yesterday by pushing the job off onto Jim, but since Jim is sleeping today, I had to do the deed. Let me tell you, I am by no stretch of the imagination a nurse. I cut off the bandage as gingerly and gently as I could, but it still hurt a lot, I could tell. When I took a look at the fingers, I literally felt like throwing up and my knees got weak. They are ugly and look horrible, much worse than the day it happened because now all the skin is falling off like the doctor said it would. It is basically a very bad burn. When I had to put the antibiotic ointment on, he yelled and howled. I can just imagine how much it hurts him and I kept telling him not to look at the hand, but to look out the window at the birdies. I just wish I could of looked out the window at the birdies too! Anyway, I could not wrap that hand up faster, both for the boy's sake and mine own. Yuckie! I am thinking I am going to take him to a nurse friend's tomorrow and have her do the daily job of changing the dressing.

So because I have been basically feeling guilty and sorry for the boy because he has no use of the hand, I am going to take him to Walmart and let him pick something out. I asked him if he wanted to get a new movie or toy and he comes up with this: "I know. I have a great idea. Let's get a video game! One that you play on the tv! Isn't that a great idea?" Now I really do not believe in video games at all. I think they are a huge time waster and once they come into the house, the kids don't want to do anything but that. But because the boy has me wrapped around his very badly hurt fingers at the moment, I actually thought seriously about getting some video game something for him for a second there. We'll see. Who knows, I may just be worn down, but then again, he can't really play with just one hand very easily.

As I said before, this mother thing is not easy at all!

Mother of the Year Moment

First off I want to apologize for going two weeks with no post. It has been extremely chaotic around here with juggling schedules and having one car syndrome. We also have had sporadic internet, which has caused me to start to twitch from withdrawals. I admit that I am an internet junkie.

Now on to the Mother of the Year Moment that happened yesterday afternoon. We just got a new (well new to us) treadmill which is in our family room and I have to trip over the thing to get to the kitchen. Something I seriously need! Anyway, Jack loves to "exercise himself" on the thing. I do let him walk on it at the slowest setting and he thinks it is the funnest thing in the world at that moment.

Well yesterday afternoon, Jack was walking on the treadmill and I walked away just to check on the laundry in the laundry room. I remember thinking to myself that I should not have let him alone on the thing, but he was just walking and seemed safe for a minute. It was hardly anytime and I heard a blood curdling scream come from Jack and I went running. I saw him with his hand caught in the track and stuck and he was screaming. I pulled the cord to stop the track and pulled his hand out and there before me was his hand with fingers with no skin left on them! Literally I saw the tendons on his index finger. It had in essence burnt the skin off in a matter of seconds. I thought that he had fallen, but he told me that he put his hand in there on purpose. Boys! Never did I think he would be that stupid as to put his hand in a moving track.

So anyway with him screaming at the top of his lungs, I went into crisis mother mode. I threw some shoes on him and me and ran for the car. As I backed out of the driveway, I called Jim who was in training to give him the message that I was on my way to Keesler AFB emergency room. It was a long 20 minute drive with Jack screaming in back.

Anyway to make a long story short, we made it to the hospital. His fingers are pretty messed up and right now we have change his dressing everyday with antibiotic ointment. He also has to take oral antibiotics and has a pretty strong pain killer for a four-year-old. There wasn't much they could do there. The doctor said just like a burn, the rest of the dead skin will slough off in the next few days and we have to watch how it heals. It maybe that he will need skin grafts or some type of hand surgery if it doesn't heal right. I am praying that it will heal good, but we won't know for a couple of weeks.

And I have to say that he is such a trooper. He hasn't complained once about being one-handed. He has no use of his left hand and he does a really good job working around the problem. He has played with his blocks all day today and totally compensates for the loss of his hand. I know it still hurts because he will look up and just look at me saying "ouuuuuccchhhh". I feel so bad for him and I have run the what ifs over and over in my mind. I didn't need to get the laundry out at that moment, or I should have made him get off the treadmill. I am just glad that it wasn't any worse than it already is. And after an internet search last night, I realized that we are not the only one out there with hand injuries on treadmills. It seems quite common in fact, unfortunately. So just a warning for all of you out there with kids and treadmills. The two do not mix well.

It was funny because I literally had four places to be last night with the Finance committee meeting taking top priority. Never in a million years did I think I would be in the ER with Jack's fingers mangled. Of course I didn't get to any of the places, but stayed home. Lately it seems that I have a hard time living in the moment as Oprah would call it. I am always thinking ahead of what needs to be done and when. I tell you when I saw Jack hurt like that, I was definitely in the moment and every fiber in me was concentrating on getting him to the hospital. Nothing else mattered. If nothing else, maybe this taught me that I do need to be more in the moment, especially when it comes to Jack. Lesson learned.