I would have posted this yesterday, but I was plain not up to it. My son's first injection at the allergist was FINALLY accomplished yesterday. It went well, by the way, so don't worry about bad news there. Actually, everyone kept telling us how great my son did for as long of a wait as we had AFTER getting a shot in each arm. And he WAS super good, so I was happy about that.
By the time the appointment was done, though, my husband and I were completely shot. We were so scared that something bad would happen, even though the odds were astronomically small, that we sat on pins and needles until like the last 20 minutes or so. So we came home just exhausted. And then helping to haul all kinds of stuff to keep the son occupied for two hours (closer to 3 by the time the shot got mixed up and all) and helping to hold my son down while they gave him the shots...I was rewriting the book on pain yesterday. Lots of spasms in my left arm after that, swelling and me in so much pain on and off I wanted to cry. Biceptal tendonitis is, by far, some of the worst pain I've been in. I'm really trying to take it easy on the arm today as a result, but yesterday I wasn't even up to typing.
Today, I'm mainly trying to SLOWLY clean the house as it's terrible around here right now, but a nap is on the agenda too hopefully as I didn't get but two hours of sleep last night due to my son and his cold and now I have a sore throat, so I'm praying hard I don't get sick (it's vitamin taking time!).
When it came to goals last week, I got canning stuff done (yay!), got the cantaloupe in the freezer (double yay), but didn't get to dehydrating the potatoes. By the way to the person who asked, I dice and/or slice potatoes up, blanch in boiling water for 3 minutes and then dehydrate them. You can use the sliced potatoes to make potatoes au gratin with and the diced potatoes you can add to casseroles, soups or stews. I've heard of people smashing them into powder after dehydrating them to make instant mashed potatoes, but I haven't tried that yet, so I'm not sure how well that would work.
I actually did get a Christmas gift accomplished this week. I took the alcohol I got for free and some other alcohol I had around the house along with a couple of bottles of juice and things and made Peach Pie Moonshine (seen up top). I didn't follow the recipe exactly. I scabbed as much peach schnapps from around the house that I had (we had a bunch of mini-bottles that came with our bar downstairs that are goodness knows how old, but they got the job done) but only had about 1/2 of what I would need, so I filled the void with peach flavored vodka instead. I used a container of peach, apple mango juice I had around here instead of the peach grape juice and then 3/4 of a container of apple juice from the fridge and then just made up the rest by adding two big cans of peaches instead of two small cans. The left over peaches from making the moonshine I used to make peach crisp for dessert last night (you remove the peaches before adding the alcohol, just in case people are like "WHAT???" *laugh*), so I can safely say nothing went to waste here.
The mix, since mine is a higher alcohol content than the original recipe was (vodka definitely has a higher alcohol content than the schnapps) , kind of tastes like peach flavored burning right now, but it gets sweeter and better tasting as it sits, so I just waited until the heated mix cooled down to about 115 or so, added the alcohol and then poured it into cans/jars leaving 1/2 inch headspace (the pretty bottles, by the way, you can get at Target and they are indeed canning jars) and then just tightened the lids down good. Every one of them sealed without issues, so at least I won't have to worry about them leaking should they get bumped or something :). They are curing in the pantry until Christmas. The pretty bottles will stay here to give as gifts to my husband as I'm not giving those up for anything, but others will be given at Christmastime to some of the adult couples in the family who drink. Not bad for like no monetary investment and a bit of thinking on my part on how to make it all work.
So, this week's goals are...
1. Take it easy on arm as much as possible. Remember to ice it.
2. Clean house as much as possible without overworking arm.
3. Work on goals for September.
4. Work on shopping goals for September.
5. Work on Christmas gifts.
And that, my friends is it for goals this week. I'm trying to keep it realistic and simple at this point.
How about you? What are you up to this week?
Ohhh your poor arm!! I can just see you guys trying to hold him down for that shot and when a kid doesn't want a shot, they have the sudden strength of Hercules!
ReplyDeleteWell done on your creative front!!
This week, I am just trying to survive. That's my goal. I was picking up my oldest at school yesterday, and just before I walked in, the eye dr I work for on occasion called and said his girl who had done some light bookkeeping and recals and general tidying had retired, would I be interested in 6-10 hours a week. Funnily enough, it's during my youngest's preK hours. So, I called the prekm talked ot my husband, called back the doctor and so to my surprise and a little bit dismay, I am starting next week, 2.5 hours on Tuesdays, and 4 hours on Wednesdays for starting, with the odd Thursday for 2 hours if he needs more. I'm shocked because the hours are perfect, but dismayed because I wasn't sure how PreK adjustment is going to go, and I didn't think he would need me so quickly, so now he HAS to adjust to school. ASAP. Wednesdays, I will pay for an extra hour there, and he will bring his lunch box, but I'm hoping this all works out. The PreK is in the opposite direction of the office I'll be at, and I'm nervous in general, but I'm trying not to worry about it too much. Part of me is worried because this was NOT my plan, I wanted to start working at a school in two years, but I guess it's not a big deal, I just will give pleanty of warning. The tricky part is the doctor and his family are also friends, and our kids are friends, so I don't want to jeopardize that in any way by one day being ok, i'm done! Or, risking upsetting them if say, we get snowed in and I can't make that drive. However, I could just be ultra tired and that's why i'm worrying so much. For no reason at all, my youngest last night about 1am was coughing and qheezing, and sniffling and was up all night. He managed to do school today, but he was tired and cranky and not feeling well. I think it's allergies, but he is still awake since he took a nap this afternoon and I'm praying tonight goes better because I'm SO exhausted. It's NOT fun trying to get two kids out of bed, bathroom, dressed, breakfasted and pack lunches for them and my husband play get myself ready to go. I'm even getting up like 20 minutes before everyone else but those boys just drag their feet...ugh!
I hope to get a few Christmas gifts done myself soon, and baby shower gifts. i'm just about done with a blanket I've been loom knitting. Only a zillion pull aparts and it's almost done, i'm quite pleased, even if it's not perfect. Also trying to make a fancy scarf for a friend's birthday, and finish up scarves for kids gifts, and teddy bear scarves with the leftovers. I lucked out and found all 6 or 7 seasons of a Star Trek show at Goodwill for $10 each, so that will be for my mom, she's going to just love that. Since I shop all year, I'm about 2/3 done, just the ones left are the hardest to buy for.
Oh, this week I also want to try and make pizza again. I used a recpie in my bread machine cookbook to make pizza dough. Its been a LONG time since I've made dough, and I never liked it, but this was amazing. My picky kids actually ate most of the pizza, so next time I need to make more so we all get as much as we want. Since the machine did the dough work, my portion was less than 5 minutes for putting the pizzas together. It was super easy!
I use a great recipe for pizza dough at budgetbytes.com. No need to knead the dough. Her posted recipes makes two crusts for me, we don't like thick crust. If I double the dough I use pie pans since I only have two caste iron pans. Cheryl
DeleteMaking moonshine in Alaska...too funny! I hope your husband and family love your alcoholic mix this Christmas, Erika. Those canning jars are pretty cool, though. I don't blame you for wanting to keep them.
ReplyDeleteGlad your son was well behaved for the shot. Sorry you hear you had to wreck your arm holding him down though. I'm sure that was very painful. I think your plan to rest as much as possible is a very good one for this week. Otherwise, you might be dealing with this problem for a lot longer. Hope it feels better soon.
My plans for this week are just to survive. This is our last week of work for my summer position. It's been a very long, extremely hot summer for all of the interpreters this year. Glad it's almost over. I will be working into the fall, but not full time hours. I have to admit, I'm looking forward to getting some things done at home...like canning, gift making, etc. All in good time, though. Good luck with your goals and have a great week!
I understand your worry with the shots. We had to have my ds tested for an allergic reaction to penicillin when he was small. They did it in the hospital in case the reaction was severe but I worried just the same. Cheryl
ReplyDeleteIce is your friend! That was very hard to find the time for when my arm was in such bad shape, but it really, really helped. The good part was that you can only do it for a short time, or risk getting your skin too cold, so it worked out. It was nice to have an excuse to sit down and rest! I made my own ice packs by putting rubbing alcohol and water in a double ziplock bag and freezing it. I made 2 and rotated them. I also used a rag towel as a buffer for my arm and to also catch any drips. I can't remember the exact proportions, but I'm sure it's on the internet somewhere.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad your son is ok from his shots. Shots are never fun and that sound nerve wracking. We occasionally have a child ask for a shot, as the tradition around here is that there is always ice cream afterwards, but it's rare!