Apparently Brady is moving up in the world! In the way that he has a lot more sales meetings these days, and the staff decided he needed his own office space. Staffing positions have shuffled a bit recently, and a man who used to have his own office moved to a much more mobile position, so he no longer needed all that space for himself. So he has a desk in a different office for when he is in the store, and Brady got his office for himself!!
I only just popped in on him the other day for a second, but the kids really wanted to see it! And that turned out to be a possibility today!
The kids have today off school, I believe in lieu of interviews. Did anyone else entirely forget to book their kids interviews? 😳 Me neither. Cool cool cool… But because of that, school is out today, and Laela and Solomon’s new lenses came to our eye care clinic yesterday, so I booked them in to have their lenses switched this morning. It was only a ten-ish minute wait for their glasses before we were out the door, so we jogged over to Zak’s to see Brady’s new office.
It was a pretty sweet scene.
Brady had been working on a HUGE house design project on his computer, and the kids were enthralled with the layers and details. Rowan exclaimed that it was such a CUTE house, and Brady laughed so hard, because its a monstrous mansion and nothing about it is “cute” but very grand!!
We didn’t stay for long, because unfortunately, the kids were just not on their best behaviour and listening was proving to be a fun challenge. So we left and went home, and the kids went outside to play.
Lunch time and rest time is next! Enjoy your Friday, friends!
*Firstly, I just want to thank you guys for laughing with us yesterday when I talked about Brady taking drug bags of laxative to work. Not a single person made either of us feel any semblance of regret for sharing these things about our life, and that says a lot. Thanks for being in our corner, guys. Its pretty awesome. And in case you were wondering, it was a good setup for him! I will be loading a lot more baggies up!*
Onto todays blog!
Yesterday I made a Costco run with Waverly! I have this grand idea in my head where I want to be someone who makes a big grocery run once a month, and Brady hits coop once in a while to restock our fresh stuff. But man. I think yesterday was the day I gave up on that dream, haha!
Not in a big bad way though, I promise!
My first reason is based on the fact that Wavy LOVES grocery shopping.
She does SO well and is VERY cute and obedient. She stays close to me, and loves to help and chat and dance through aisles (I’m not kidding) so she gets a bunch of attention from strangers and she positively lives for it, haha!
The biggest part of the reason for the change, though, is that it is a BIG cart full when I’m on my own. I know I can organize to bring someone with me. I definitely have willing participants! But I also want to have a system that works for me if I am without help, and I think going more often would just be helpful. For instance, yesterday, I got some bagels out of the bakery, a stack of fruit and veggies, toilet paper, and milk, and my cart was quite full. I hadn’t touched the coolers, aisles, or toiletries yet. I actually had to leave things behind that were on the list because my cart was too full.
If you remember, right before covid, we confidently became a two-cart family. Brady actually grocery shopped a couple of times with the big orange flat deck cart, and that worked amazing! However, I don’t if I’m just inept but I cannot push those things to save my life. They NEVER go where I want them to! What is the trick?!
Anyway. Wavy and I got the most important stuff, and we’ll probably try to fill in the gaps another time at Coop. I’m not worried.
Right before we reached the checkout area, we passed ONE sample stand. Jelly Bellys. A person cannot pass up such a great treat! So we didn’t.
It was really the best way to wrap up a successful shopping morning.
We got home and Wavy helped me unload the van until it was completely done. She was AWESOME.
I don’t need a babysitter, but if anyone wants a cute little shopping buddy, I’ve got your girl!
Here is my disclaimer. I’m going to mention *gasp* POOP in this blog. Beware if you don’t want to hear about it. Please feel free to skip it. Also, this post is about Brady, and I have his confident approval to talk about this. Because its a) not taboo, and b) hilarious, in part. So. Consider yourself warned.
Education time!
Most people who are paralyzed don’t have as much use of their muscles as the rest of us. This is all pretty logical, right? But you maybe haven’t thought about it in this way, so I’m going to take you there.
In Brady’s case, much of his feeling is lost, but he has lots of strength left. Many of his muscles below his ribcage still have lots of strength. Thank you Lord!! However, he has completely lost his lower abs. Completely. They will atrophy and disappear, if they haven’t already. He cannot physically do a sit-up anymore. They’re just gone. And as you can imagine, that affects his intestines and some of the inner workings!
Just about every person we’ve encountered in the world of spinal cord injury has a “bowel program.” This sounds very official, but it isn’t. It just means they have a system to make sure they poop. Everyone’s program is different. Some are very difficult and complex. But they have to be done. We are incredibly fortunate that Brady’s bowel program is not complicated at all!
Brady’s bowel program consists of a daily stool softener, and a dose of laxative. Because, I’m sure you can imagine, his muscles don’t really “push” as much as they used to. So there needs to be very little work involved in making things move in there. You get it. We all get it.
Recently, instead of carting his water bottle back and forth, Brady leaves a bottle at work and has his bottle at home. He used to drink his laxative powder in his water bottle, but not anymore, because he doesn’t bring it in his bottle. He tries to remember to drink it in a glass of water when he gets home, but it doesn’t often happen. So we were thinking he needs to take it at work. Because he’s missing it. And he’s not pooping regularly anymore.
But no one wants to bring a giant bottle of laxative to work. It would be ok. He would live. But it would be a little extra vulnerable, and he’s already vulnerable in enough ways, so we tried to find an alternative.
We discovered you can buy single doses, but they are OVER A DOLLAR A DOSE!!! This is absolutely bananas, and there is simply no way we could justify it. So we opted to order a million little ziploc bags off of amazon and make our own single doses!
The bags arrived yesterday and I set to work making a handful of doses. Not a ton, just in case the system doesn’t work well and we try something else. As I worked, I realized what exactly I was preparing for Brady.
Sketchy little drug bags of suspicious white powder 😂 Whoops!! We had a good laugh, and he is definitely still taking them to work, lol!
He’s giving it a go today! Hopefully this helps things get a bit more consistent in the coming days!
Thanks for being a comfortable enough group to talk about this stuff with 🙂 I like knowing no one will be judging us. Nothing about this is taboo. Its just the way of life over here, and Brady is making it work! We are SO fortunate.
And the (not so) itsy bitsy transit, drove in the cold again! 🎶
How bonkers is it that this morning it was -30 (with wind) yet it got too hot in the van when I drove to Warman today?? Because the SUN is out!!! Its blasting beautiful warmth, and greenhousing the heck of of my vehicle. I am so happy to have more sunshine these days! Can you tell?
I accomplished the bulk of what I was aiming to do yesterday, which feels pretty good 🙂 I’ve done a couple of the things I didn’t complete yesterday already this morning, and some will have to wait until this evening or another day. And thats so ok. I got the biggest stuff done. I need Bradys help for one of the things. I keep saying I need to make granola bars, because I really do, but on our recent Walmart trip, I bought a schwack of off-brand nutrigrain-ish bars, so no one is missing out on food or anything.
This mornings errands are done enough, and I am spending the crafternoon with Cher! We both committed to doing a spring craft this month, so we have a good excuse to make time to craft and watch true crime together. I’m very much looking forward to that!
I will leave you with this incredibly cute picture of Dekker and Laela.
These two both have jobs in the upcoming school musical, Laela as an actor and Dekker as stage crew. As I added their latest schedule into our calendar, I felt such pride for my children 💜 Laela has been doing lots of practices already up to this point, but Dekker will join in very soon, and he will be there for long stretches, working hard. And best of all, he is excited about it!! He did not get the position he wanted, and while he was disappointed, he took it incredibly well, and he has maintained a really good attitude! It is evident that he is not harbouring bad feelings, and I am so happy for that. His life will be so much easier if he learns to do that young 💜 These kids are hard workers, and I am so impressed. Their April and early May will be LOADED with Frozen, and they are HERE for it!!
As am I. I think a big part of me missed this busyness 💜 I’m happy I can hack it again. Thank you Lord!
Finally getting a decent sleep makes it easier to have a productive day!
This morning, the kids and I sorted, folded, hung, and put away two loads of laundry, and I have another load going. Laela and I did a little bit of figuring about Frozen while Rowan and Solly did dishes, and then everyone went off to school! Cher came for coffee shortly thereafter, and we enjoyed each other’s company (and coffee) for an hour and a half ish. It was a really nice restful time together 💜 But now she has headed off to accomplish her things, and Wavy and I moved downstairs so she can play toys and I can accomplish some of my things.
While Frozen II is pumping, I’m doing this blog up quick, and then I have a handful of things to work on. I have some homework to do. I have to run downtown for an errand or two. I have two doctors to contact today. I need to fill in the latest Frozen Jr schedule into the calendar. I will need to hang this load of laundry thats humming next to me, as its not an easy “straight into the dryer” kind of load.
Conveniently, Wavy was invited out this afternoon, so I can use that time to do some of my work if I so desire! I really need to make granola bars, and I have a big list to compile for a large Costco shop coming up. Yet, those things could also be bumped to tomorrow if need be. I also really want to organize some paperwork into binders. But that doesn’t have a timeline on it, so it may wait. Or I may work on it later if I want some downtime, because I can definitely do that relaxedly.
Aaaaanyway, thats the day! I feel like its definitely doable 💪 So wish me luck!! I hope you have productive, happy days yourselves, friends 💜
Rowan and Laela’s new patches came in the mail yesterday, so they were oddly excited to get them on this morning!! Laela’s face doesn’t show just how jazzed she was about it, but she was actually quite amped up!
Our kids don’t like the busy patterns. They both wanted solid colours, and for some reason, they are SO hard to find. There are basic tan ones out of just about every drug store, but they are SO rough on skin, and we will never ever use them again. These ones came off of Amazon. Blue, green, pink, and yellow. They are cheaper in price and also in quality, but since the kids wear them for shorter stretches of time rather than a full day, they don’t have to be super beefy. They aren’t as sticky, but they stay on as long as we need, and then removing them doesn’t hurt at all! Both of the kids are really happy with these! So we’re going to have to find some more and stock up! We go through four a day (before and after school), so the 80 we just bought won’t even last a month! Whew!
When it was time for church, off came the patches, and off we went! It was a decently peaceful morning. Brady and I sit in the centre of our bench, and we both manage the kids on each side of us. Its a really nice way to split the work and also sit together 💜 I had the pleasure of sitting beside Laela today, too! She’s a peach. She coloured quietly, and when she was done, we held hands. It was really nice.
After church, Brady and I visited with friends while the kids ran around in the gym with their friends. It was a really nice, relaxing stretch. For us, anyway. The kids were not relaxing. They were sweaty from all the hockey and tag.
Everyone lunched, and had some quiet time. And now all the jobs we didn’t get to yesterday have to get done!! Sooooo wish us luck!
We had some plans for the day ahead, and in preparation for the busyness, I had a VERY bad sleep. Because why not, right? Lol! Ah well! Onward and upward we went!! Brady worked on taxes through the morning, and we coffeed with Cher. Somehow, the kids played peacefully and happily together, downstairs, all morning. It was bananas, and I LOVED it.
We all ate a quick lunch before loading up in the bus to do a handful of things!
We stopped first at Value Village to drop off a few boxes of things. Of course I totally lapsed and forgot a garbage bag of clothing I meant to bring. I even went specifically into the right room to grab it. I wonder where I sidetracked… Anyway.
Then we stopped at Giant Tiger where I bought a decorative viney trellis on a whim. I’m sure you’ll see it in the months to come, but for now, this is it in its packaging, hahaha!
One more stop before I took Dekker to his friends birthday party!!!
Have you heard of the Stoked Centre? That place is crazy, and overwhelming, but a RIOT for kids!! Its attached to Wilson’s Greenhouse and has all kinds of things to do. In today’s case, they raced go karts! SUPER fun!
Once he was settled and dropped off, the rest of us hit the nearest Walmart for a big ole restock of a lot of things we can’t get at Costco! I won’t lie. It was a bit like herding cats. And it didn’t help that it was a beautiful day and everyone was out, hahaha! It was SO lovely outside, and I LOVED it. The sun. The puddles. People in hoodies instead of jackets. It is so much nicer. But man that store was FULL.
We needed to restock some of our basic med stuff. Magnesium. Omega3s. Probiotics. Tensor bandages. Extra strength Voltaren. Boost. I needed toothpaste. There was more but I forget. Wavy ripped her new leggings so we found some for her. Chatted with a drag queen. Picked up some binders. Notebooks. Dividers. We hit the spring section and bought some new cold cups. We use them a decent amount, and ours are all peeling messes.
When we moved to food, it was our more standard stuff. Salad dressing. Some canned goods. Oats. Cereal. Frozen veggies. Ham in a hunk. Gravy packets. All that stuff.
I don’t do too many impulsive things, but I very thoughtlessly grabbed two giant bags of store brand corn dogs. They were dirt cheap, and I figured the kids would love an easy yummy supper almost as much as I would enjoy not fighting with them to eat.
We grabbed a few fresh things, paid, and left. I didn’t even go into the yarn aisle!! See me? See my restraint?
We retrieved Dekker and had a very quiet ride home. I took a picture of the one who was sleeping, but I realized her chest clip was in the wrong spot and I don’t desire to give anyone an outlet to come for me 😅 I fixed it, I promise.
We got home at the same time as Tom, and he happily made his way over across the street and helped us carry in our groceries 💜 Because he’s like that. We love you, Tom!
We unpacked and put away groceries while our corn dogs cooked in the oven. Kids ran all through the house, bringing things up to our room, down the furnace room, into the big freezer in the garage, and finally, into the pantry. Man, if we can ever build a new house, ALL the food is going to live on ONE level!
See my pretty cold cups?? 😍 No more weird peeling pieces!
I can confirm that the trash super of corn dogs was a total hit.
I even threw together a new dipping sauce that almost everyone preferred to the standard ketchup or mustard. That rarely happens, so I’ll take that win!
Laela did supper dishes, and the rest of the kids played or read until it was time to start bedtiming. They were all visibly tired, but its that good kind of tired that feels accomplished and happy.
I’m very happy with how today turned out. After one of my worst nights in a long time, I feel peace and contentment. Thank you Lord!
You know the funny things kids say when they’re just learning to talk. Or the funny pronunciations? I love that stuff. I never push to change them, because I know it’ll happen eventually and I will really miss them. For instance, right now, a couple of our kids call the junk drawer the drunk drawer. I definitely really enjoy that one. Though I promise, the drunk drawer is well out of reach! Lol!
When Laela was really little, she would lay on the armrest of the couch with her head hanging off the edge, and say she was “side up down.” I LOVED that one.
Aaaaanyway.
Today, Laela put her glasses on side up down, and it became a trend.
Dekker was too cool for it at first, but I talked him into it.
Solly was all over it. And also an easy target.
And Rowan already had his contact in, but could not be left out! So he took the hit of having a wild prescription for a few seconds to join the fun!
Once everyone had adequately played with their glasses, they all got a GOOD clean, and I sent them out the door.
Moral of the story is that the kids are cute. Period. And that there are some funny pros to them all having glasses, the biggest being that Rowan and Solly’s progress reports spewed amazing improvements on their reading and writing since getting glasses! Thank you Lord for technology and information and guidance!!
Today for lunch, Wavy and I both ate an apple, and when I went looking for further food, I came across some leftover KD in the fridge. Lately, I’ve been really enjoying leftover macaroni. I’ve always been willing to eat it, but we can all agree its best fresh, am I right? Well, these days, I fry the leftovers, and its been a total game changer.
I put a little butter in the pan and wait for it to sizzle before I unceremoniously dump the square block of noodles out of the container, and throw the lid on. Now I tend to helicopter parent the food I’m cooking, but with KD, I neglect it fully. When I start to hear it, I flip it around a bit to see if I’m getting a little bit of color. At that point, I throw on a handful of bacon bits and put the lid back on. Again, I wait until I hear it before going back to it. At that point, its pretty done.
Today, as soon as I pulled out the frying pan, Waverly excited asked for some. Our kids love their macaroni to be juicy (or as Wavy would say, doucey) so I warner her that it might not be her jam. But still, I dumped in enough that would allow her to have some, too.
And she LOVED it.
Yes, I promise, I know its trash. She eats very well, and she is more than welcome to indulge in some greasy leftovers with me once in a while.
She went down for a nap with a full warm belly, and I’m doing much of the same, hahaha! I’ll sit up and do something of value soon enough, but first, I’m going to just rest and let my belly be happy.
Some of you may know, and some of you may not, but Dekker has been working towards a goal for almost a year. He LOVED his little kayak, and it became clear early on that he needed to size up. So he has been collecting bottles and cans for months in order to earn money to buy his own kayak! All summer, he would go around the campground once a weekend, wagon in tow, to collect bottles from his regulars. His friends tipped off their families, and certain groups would save for him. One of our friends even brought ALL of his bottles and cans from home to give to Dekker!
My mom was a real asset in this area, taking Dekker to Sarcan multiple times, as well as taking him out for drives to look for recyclables that had been discarded in ditches or out in the country. I really appreciate that, mom. And to our friends who have saved for him and dropped them off to us one way or another, we are SO grateful. A couple of months ago, a loving family member sent Dekker a cheque “in place” of the recyclables they had saved for him, and it officially pushed him over the edge into kayak purchasing territory!
Brady began checking our Zak’s online stock, and finally, kayaks showed up! Dekker had a budget, and he was not buckling on his few stipulations, which I actually think was awesome! He did NOT want to just jump at the first thing he could afford. He was intentional 🙂
Dekker wanted an adult sized kayak. Somewhere in the 10-12′ range. He wanted to like the colour, lol! Something darker, he figured. Blue, maybe. He wanted compartments to bring things along with him. And he wanted it to be a sit-in kayak rather than a sit-on kayak.
And the right thing finally showed up 💜
Dekker is the proud owner of a 10′ Pelican blue/green sit-in kayak! And he is THRILLED!
Yes, its wrapped in a bag. And it still is, haha! So there isn’t a better picture of the kayak itself, but Dekkers face is really all you need to see here! He is SO HAPPY.
He loved going to pick it up at Brady’s work. It seemed like everyone knew it was happening, and they were all SO excited for him. They beamed almost as brightly as he was. He was so proud to hand over his wad of cash to the cashier, and she chatted him up, saying she had seen his kayak in the back earlier and was excited for him to be able to bring it home. He was a star!
All of this being said, its not quite over! Dekker has a bit of money left over, and he’s still saving for a bit longer. Not a single one of us thought about a paddle 😅 So we laughed about that, haha! They’re not super expensive. He’ll get one soon!
Beyond that, his plan has always been to get set up with a kayak, and then a music player. He wants to go for kayak adventures and listen to music. Which I can completely get behind! We found an awesome little device called a Mighty, which is basically an iPod shuffle, but for Spotify users, which we are. Its meant for kids, can hold a bunch of songs, and doesn’t need an actual device alongside it to make it play. No wifi or bluetooth necessary. Just a battery. Its perfect for what he is looking for! So he still has some saving up to do, but this was the BIG part, and he is SUCH a happy guy!!!
I thank you again, friends, for putting into him and his excitement this way! He is learning a lot about money and working and responsibility. He’s thinking smart, and making good choices, and I am SO proud of him. And he couldn’t have been this successful without everyone’s help 💜 So thank you. Very much.
