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Tuesday, March 28, 2006A Slice Of My LifeI haven't fallen down any steps, broken numerous bones, or wandered into the nearest Asylum for Bewildered Writers. I'm just.....engulfed by life-as-I-know-it. Like today. It was Day Number Four of Spencer's come-and-go earache. I was convinced that it wasn't an ear infection. After almost fourteen years of motherhood, one tends to simply "know" these things. Besides, I'm anti-antibiotic unless absolutely necessary. But around 3:00 today, I snapped. Spencer's ear was hurting right through the Ibuprofin suspension (that smelled like a creamsicle, I kid you not). So I called the doctor's office and snagged the 3:40 spot that had just opened up due to a cancellation. There was a slight problem, though. My dad had taken Jonathan fishing -- in my van. So it was a matter of calling his cell phone and asking him to please come home as quickly as possible. I dialed. It rang. I got his voicemail. "He's not answering!" I shrieked to my mother. "Oh, he's probably left the phone in the car." Great. That's just what I wanted to hear. "I'll try again," I said, pushing the button on my cell phone. As I stood listening to the ringing in my ear, my land line started to ring. In a flustered moment of panic, I handed my cell phone to my mom, figuring that she could explain things to my dad, and grabbed the other phone. "Hello? Hello?" There was no answer. "Um, Jilly...I can hear you saying, 'hello, hello' on here." Okay. I had just called myself on the cell phone. "Take a deep breath." What are moms for, if not for giving advice that nobody's capable of following at the moment? I took my cell phone in hand to give my dad's phone another try. While I waited for the call to go through, I exploded through my front door, looking frantically up and down the street and muttering, "Who can I call? Who can I call?" to myself. "Hello?" "DAD!!!" He hadn't left the phone in the van, after all. True to his Original Prince Charming In My Life form, he hustled Jonathan, the fishing gear, and himself home faster than a 72-year-old ought to. He's really an amazing guy. I got Spencer to the doctor right on time, and only cringed a little bit while I watched the man remove a brown, mutant wad of ear wax from Spencer's right ear. Then he pulled out a second chunk. "I wouldn't be surprised if this wax has been the source of the pain," said the brave doctor. I was right about there not being an infection, though. Fluid from Spencer's slight cold, yes. But no "angry redness" at all. Which makes one wonder why the doctor proceeded to prescribe a 10-day run of amoxycillin. Nope, I haven't filled the prescription. My little guy is rip-roarin' ready to go for his birthday tomorrow. His spunk and energy returned as soon as that God-forsaken chunk-o-wax was removed from his ear. I'm going to dose him up with Benadryl and tuck him in bed. All told, blogging is definitely more fun than watching the removal of disgusting body matter. So maybe I'd better start blogging more. Thanks for missing me. Saturday, March 11, 2006LogicSpencer and I were hanging out in the girls' bedroom, watching them open the boxes that contained the brand-new outfits they'd ordered for their American Girl dolls. (I know, I know -- not exactly a "boy-type" activity, but what almost-seven-year-old can resist watching a package be opened?) Once I had sufficiently "ooo-ed" and "aah-ed" over the wee sweatpants and jeans and socks and jackets, I motioned to Spencer. "Okay, dude," I said. "We need to leave now so that the dollies can have some privacy." Surely Felicity and Samantha would want to try on their new clothes, sans Little Brother. Spencer met my gaze as he walked toward the door. "But Mommy. They don't have any private parts." And I, the ever-talking wonder, had no response. Thursday, March 09, 2006The Definition of ChaosPlain and simple: Chaos equals taking on two redecorating projects at the same time. Yes, we really are doing just that. We're painting the girls' bedroom and completely re-doing our family room (paint, carpeting, windows, the works). Ugh. Double ugh. Actually, I'm a redecorating junkie. I love painting rooms fresh, new colors (though I vastly prefer watching Eric painting rooms fresh, new colors). I love the look and feel of new linens and the crispness of new curtains. I adore taking before-and-after photos. Heck, I'm known to sit in the middle of a freshly redecorated room and just...grin. For some reason, though, this two-projects-at-once thing has got me in a tailspin. My family room is fractured (do you know how disturbing it is to sit on pieces of a sectional that aren't lined up properly? no? ....is it me?). My girls' bedroom is a life sentence of spackle-the-walls (I swear they have jousting matches and throw thick shards of metal around in there when I'm not looking). And my annoying mental list of things-to-purchase, such as curtain rods and floor lamps, is pressing against the inside of my skull with increasing force. Do people have nervous breakdowns over things like this? Okay, I'm being a little dramatic. Or maybe I'm just making excuses for not blogging or doing any "real" writing for way too long. Fact is, I'm frustrated because I don't have enough mental energy to do everything that I want and need to do. It isn't about a lack of time; I live a relatively simple life and my schedule is far from overbooked. It's seriously a problem of not-enough-energy-in-my-mind. Am I weird? Or is this just another "artiste" thing? I think I just need more chocolate. Eric, are you reading this? I. Need. Chocolate. In the meantime, you can all contribute to my insatiable need for fine chocolate by visiting The Cocoa Tree and ordering me as many truffles as your hearts desire. Sorry, your gift of chocolate is not tax-deductible. Instead, your name will be scratched into the bare drywall of my third-floor office. I will gaze thankfully at your name while I eat the chocolate, and I will think fondly of you when, some day, I am busy spackling the carved-up walls in here, in preparation for yet another redecorating job. (I broke out in hives just then.) Till next time! Friday, March 03, 2006Jill....Who?My apologies. I've been on a Blog Strike. I'm not sure why, really. Maybe it's just one of those female hormone things. Then again, maybe it's just life in general. Spring is in the air, and I've been getting the "nesting and organizing" itch. You know what I mean -- fling the unwanted clothes to Good Will, clean out the homeschooling closet, buy frames for all the unframed photographs lying around. I've also been reading Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages. I am probably the only person I know (besides Eric, whom I think is slightly allergic to books) who hadn't yet read the Love Languages book. Truly, it's fascinating. Potentially marriage-saving. Aren't you dying to know what my Love Language is? Actually, I've got two. (I know, nothing is ever simple when it comes to me.) I'm all about Words of Affirmation and Physical Touch. Now Eric thinks that all he has to do is pat me on the shoulder and say, "Nice dinner," and I'll be in Nirvana. Men. On the writing front, I've finally begun to move forward again with my new novel. There's nothing quite like being stuck in the middle of the same chapter for weeks on end....and then suddenly it all comes flowing out. You know how I know when one of my chapters is good? Jonathan rolls up the manuscript pages and whaps me over the head with them -- many times. That's his way of saying, "Dang, this is so good and it just STOPPED!" I wonder if that's the way the New York editors respond to good stories. "Hello, Ms. Boehme. I'm Gimme A. Deale from Lotsaschlock Books. Could you come over here a second?" WHAP! WHAP! WHAP! WHAP! Hmm. Aren't you glad I'm back? A big thank you to those of you who checked up on me. No, I wasn't lost. Well, not physically lost, anyway. One more thing. I'm giving CheezWeezil a WONDERFUL PERSON award. But if he wants to know why, he'll have to ask. In the meantime, pop over to his blog. He's a good writer and he adores his wife -- two gold stars in my book! |
About Me
I am: Mother to five stunningly individualistic children... Writer of young adult fantasy... Passionate advocate for Women At Home... Madly in love with my husband... In need of Organic Gourmet Chocolate on a regular basis. I've got a Paypal account if you'd like to contribute to the cause....
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