The answer to your maturing problems!

I subscribe to a Daily deal on-line. Everyday, they send me a new deal good for that day only, and here's what was waiting for me in my in-box!

Do you ever wake up in the morning, look at yourself in the mirror, and say, "When did I get so old? What happened to my face in the last five years?" Instead of looking five years older, it's more like fifteen. There are fine lines creeping up on your forehead, laugh lines framing your mouth, crow's feet encroaching on your eyes, and a fatigued dim topping it off. You miss the supple skin, fresh eyes, and youthful glow of previous days.
If you are aging exponentially, don't panic. Although Enlighten Laser Cosmetics can't skim the last five years off your age, they can certainly remove the damage done to your complexion, with a variety of services that will help you recognize that young, sprightly, woman in the mirror again. Today's deals are an answer to your maturing problems.

Whatever... I don't think I call those "maturing" problems. "Maturing" problems for me always meant having a period at the most inopportune time, or a flat chest while your friends are all sporting C - sized bras, or a zit-covered forehead from using too much hairspray to achieve my "bangs to heaven" look. I mean let's call it what it is... we are getting old!

Steve and I recently ran the Ragnar with Steve's coworkers and spouses. Our team name was "Hard Assets" - they are a bunch of accountants. It is a 195 mile relay race where there are 12 runners in 2 vans. Basically the two vans leapfrog from one exchange to the other and it took our team about 32 hours to complete. I was runner number 12. In our van, Steve and I were the older ones. We had a couple who just barely got engaged (she ran, he drove) and then another guy who has a 6 month old child and another couple who have a 15 month old. When we got in the car to drive down to the race (it was in Vegas) Steve was driving and I was in the front seat and one of the guys goes, "You guys are like the Mom and Dad of the trip." Which ended up sticking, they referred to us as Mom and Dad quite a bit. Then at one point, we were at one of the exchanges and a lady comes up to the van and asked which one of us was runner 12. They said that it was me, and we began talking about the previous run which was an 8 mile up hill run on a rocky trail at 2 in the morning. When we were just about done talking, she goes, "Well, I'll see you at the finish line Mom." Seriously...

I used to look forward to being in my thirties. It just didn't seem like anyone took you seriously as a Mom when you were only twenty-something. However, now that I am here, I wouldn't mind just slowing them down a bit.

I must admit, I am looking old these days, and I swear in the last five years, I have aged exponentially. Those fine lines, crows feet, laugh lines, and fatigued dim topping it off? Check, check, check and check! Having kids will do that to you, but I certainly wouldn't trade any of the last five years for anything, so tonight vefore I go to bed, I am going to look in the mirror, slap on a bunch of age-defying cream and then whatever is left in the morning, so be it! Just sayin'.

Bedside manner matters!

In our quest to get this girls feet fixed, we decided to seek a second opinion on her bunions. And boy! what a difference a doctor can make!

This time, we took her to a podiatrist. We actually talked to a podiatrist in another state to see if he had an opinion about what kind of a doctor would be a better fit for bunions (now that we knew they were bunions). He gave us some good things to think about, as far as what to look for in a good doctor, what kind of questions to ask, etc. So I called my neighbor across the street who has yet to steer me wrong when it comes to doctors. She suggested a podiatrist that has actually seen her daughter, so I made an appointment. The crazy thing was, when I went and checked Melissa out of school for her appointment, my neighbor was at the school checking out her daughter for an appointment (I know, what are the chances) her appointment was with an orthopedic doctor because the podiatrist had recommended that's what they should do. So, there's sign one of a good doctor, they aren't so full of themselves to think that they can solve it all. The other good thing about running into them is her daughter was able to tell Melissa how much she liked the doctor, so it put Melissa's mind at ease a bit.

The doctor came in and first examined her foot. He actually held it, bent it looked at it, measured her pain, felt the bones, etc. It hadn't donned on me before that the first doctor didn't actually LOOK at her foot. He just looked at the x-rays, and made a suggestion. This doctor looked at her foot from all sorts of angles, and measured her arches. And then was able to come up with a plan of action that will be the best for HER. WE (Steve and I) were sold on this guy.

However, that wasn't the best part, Melissa is sold on this doctor as well. All throughout the exam, when he was talking to us, he was talking directly to her as well. Explaining everything to her in ways that she would understand. He even asked her about her interests. He found out that she is really into dance. So, when he was dicussing her options, he made mention to how it would affect her dancing, what kind of recovery time was involved, and how when all was said and done, she wouldn't have to give up dancing. At one point, he looked at her and said, "What kind of questions do you have for me?" And then when she said she didn't have any, he said, "Well, let me tell you what kind of questions you might have as soon as all of this soaks in." And then proceeded to tell her all sorts of good stuff that probably are or will be concerns to her.

So, to end an already long story, Melissa will have surgery in the summer after her dance competitions are over and then most likely be able to begin dancing again in the fall. This doctor is also suggesting a different kind of a surgery that will hopefully mean less recovery time, and also not as much joint stiffness. He also doesn't seem to think that she will need the surgery again any time soon. He said that if she does need the surgery again, it will be well into her adult years. So more good news! Just sayin'.

I'm bugged

... or so I think I am. Well, actually, I KNOW I'm bugged, I'm just trying to figure out if I should be or not. I posted on our family blog, (or at least I think it posts tomorrow) that Jenna has this new found love of reading. Her class has had a contest this past two months to see who could read the most minutes in month. Jenna won the first month hands down, and won this last month by a landslide as well. At parent teacher conference her teacher asked Jenna if it would be alright if she gave her a different prize other than the giant Mr. Potato head that was the prize she already got. Jenna said that would be just fine. And I am totally fine with that as well, however I am totally NOT fine with what she came home with yesterday. And no, I am not referring to the prize she got because honestly Jenna would have been happy with a sticker. I am bugged that she came home with a 2nd place certificate. Because clearly, she was not in second place. She read the most minutes, and now her certificate states otherwise.

Now don't get me wrong, I don't care about the recognition or whatever, but I am bugged at what it represents. It is as if her accomplishment has been down graded. I am sure the teacher was just thinking that perhaps the other kids might become more motivated knowing that they could have a chance to win the prize the following month. However, don't you think she could have said something like, "This month's winner was Jenna Gardner, however since she's already gotten the big prize, this month it is going to go to so and so." Don't you think the kids would have been motivated that they too could win the prize still.

It just leads me into the entire problem with schools. Why do we have to downplay what others do just so that we don't hurt people's feelings? Why can't kids just be inspired by greatness? Why have we downplayed grades? Our old school had gone to a 1,2,3 grading system. 1 means they don't really know the concept, 2 means they know it and 3 means they've mastered it. The kids new school actually does letter grades, so when my child comes home with anything but an A, I know there is room for improvement. And no I don't require my children to have all A's, I understand that some struggle, however, I also feel that when they don't get an A, I know better where I can help them.

I know that Utah is the lowest when it comes to how much we spend on Education per student, and somehow that needs to be addressed. However, why are we making matters worse by dumbing down the standards? It is so irritating. When I taught HS, the first year I had a normal grading system: 90% and above an A, 80% - 89% a B, and so on. However, the second year, as a department we decided to raise the standards, 92% and above was an A, 84% - 91% was a B, and so on. And you know what? Statistically, the number of students getting an A or a B or a C was essentially the same. Kids knew what they wanted, they knew what they needed to do it, and they acted accordingly. So why aren't we giving our kids higher standards? Why are we doping it down for them?

Argh! I feel my blood beginning to boil, so figure I should stop. However, my main delema now, is what do I do with the stupid certificate? I usually keep those things and scrapbook them, but I just don't think I can actually scrapbook this one. I'm just sayin'.


{So really, I am interested in knowing what you think on this one. Am I wrong for being bugged? How would you handle it?}

A follow-up

After Melissa's foot doctor dealio, I had my own Dr. Appt. Like I mentioned before, since we have almost met our deductible for the year, Steve thought it would be a good idea for me to go in and see if anything needs to be done for me this year. So I go into be measured and weighed, and the nurse does my height and says, "So you are 5'8"." I said, "No." And she goes, "that wasn't a question, but I can do it again to make sure." So she checked again and said, "Yeah, maybe slightly under 5'8", but I would call it 5'8"". I told her that the last time I was checked height-wise, I was five-seven, is it possible to grow after you are an adult. And she asked me when it was that I was checked and I told her right before I got married when I was 19. And she said, "Yeah, especially if you were a late bloomer..." Twice in one day...

Seriously, I hate doctors sometimes. Just sayin'.

Did you say Bunions?

Yesterday we took Melissa to an Orthopedic Doc to have her feet looked at. With all of the "extra" medical stuff this year, we are close to our deductible and figured why not. They have been bugging her quite a bit lately and so figured now is as good a time as any. After filling out the paper work at the desk and giving a brief explanation of what has been going on, they showed us into the exam room. Shortly thereafter, a nurse comes in and says I just wanted to come in and see if we are going to need x-rays of both feet or just the one. Then she took one look at Melissa's feet and says, "Oh, you've got Bunions, I think we have to do both..." and walks out.

Um what? Did you say Bunions? Bunions are for old people. And isn't a bunion just a growth on the bone that just sticks out like a big bump? But she wasn't there to ask (the nurse). The next thing we know, the X-ray tech comes in to collect Melissa and off they go for x-rays. Long story short, yep, she's got bunions. Only they aren't actually a "bump" on the bone, her big toe is all sorts of deformed. The PA comes in and starts the exam goes over all kinds of information and actually ended up being just as thorough and knowledgeable as the actual doc himself. They were telling us that they have found that by having the PA come in first and look over the patient, there are some things that he can just take care of completely by himself and then send the patient on their way, or the doc can come in at the end if the patient is insisting or requesting it, or the doc will come in for a second opinion or a more specialized opinion. That way the doc can get some other stuff taken care of and they actually see more patients that way. That's kind of a long explanation and not really pertinant to the story, but on a side note, if they can afford to hire a PA to kind of "double" up like that they must be making all kinds of money. (just sayin')

So anyway, back to the story. I don't know how many times the doctor said that he was shocked after "peeking" at the x-rays that Melissa was only 12. He said that in his 20+ years of being a surgeon, he's only had 1 case of juvenile bunions. So here's the kicker. Melissa needs surgery. Ony we have to decide when. The doc says there are several kinds of bunion surgery. The kind that Melissa needs now is a somewhat "simple" procedure. However since she is not skeletally mature yet, she most likely will have to have it done AGAIN when she is "mature". So we could wait until she is "mature" and then do it. However, the draw back to that is if we do wait, it will get worse and may get to the point that she will need a different kind of bunion surgery that entails dislocating her big toe from her foot and cutting into the foot bone from the top, rearranging a bunch of stuff and then putting the toe back on. So basically it comes down to making a decision and not knowing for three more years if we made the right decision. That stinks. Just sayin' (agian).

On another side note, I asked the doctor how long until she is skeletally mature. He said, "Oh probably in about 2 to 3 years. Generally they say 24 months after you have your first period." The PA starts to laugh and says, "If you could only see your face right now." And it's true because I was in some sort of a shock. I am not prepared for Melissa to be starting anything of whatever anytime soon. Do the Math! 2 to 3 years from now means she could start any time now. After I explained my shock to the doctor he said that generally nowadays, the average age is 12! TWELVE I tell you! as in one two. As in not even an official teenager. Then he said, "Well how old were you when you started?" I told him (I'll spare you all the details- you're welcome). And he said, "Well, then you matured with the boys." And yes, that stinks too. Just sayin' (again).

One question...

How am I supposed to be a good Mom when my kids drive me crazy all the time?

Take a Chill Pill People!

Can you feel it?

Or maybe it's just me...

Today I have been a witness to several people, just losing it...

First of all, there was the lady at the grocery store yelling at the checker that the "kind" of treat she likes wasn't all sale. "All of the others like it are on sale, why not the one I actually like." {Cause maybe the kind that you like are the same kind that everyone else likes, and they are trying to even out their inventory... duh!} Only the lady didn't say it so nice. And as if the checker had anything to do with it!

Then there was the lady in the carpool line at the kids school... Who pulled her car in front of another, gets out and proceeds to yell at a Dad for not following the proper "carpool protocol". Seriously? It was probably his first time ever doing it, and give him credit for actually being around to pick his kids up from school. Not to mention he wasn't even in the carpool area, he was parked on the side of the street waiting for his kids to walk to the car. I do the same thing.

Then there are my kids, losing it over the tiniest thing... Jayden looked at me... Yeah, you are quite a site to see when you are throwing a fit! But he wasn't looking at me very nice... How was he looking at you? He was smiling! Yeah, that isn't very nice is it? You know, that kind of stuff.

But I have to admit, I'm not in a very good mood today either. I think you could even say that I'm a little mad today too. Not sure why, just am...

As I have been observing all this kind of stuff, I couldn't help but think that perhaps we are all being inundated by some negative thoughts from unseen "forces". And perhaps we would all be better off if we just "chill out". Don't allow the negativity to get to us. We are better than that. So I am telling myself that I refuse to give in to the negative thoughts, and I am going to choose to be happy. Right now. And so should the rest of you. Just sayin'.