riding the tide

Last night, I crashed hard. I was so chilled when I went to bed that I just slept in the yoga pants and turtleneck I'd had on all day. I slept pretty much straight through to almost 10 this morning, which is definitely the longest sleep I've had since the surgery. Maybe it's because I didn't have a late cup of tea, and so I didn't need to get up to pee? Could be. It has been pretty annoying waking up consistently at 6:30AM lately. I don't need to be up that early, pretty much ever.

I also find it ironic that I'm having trouble sleeping when everyone says I should be doing nothing but sleeping!

Getting up was a little tougher, as in I really didn't want to move at all, but once I got up I was fine. I concocted a new coffee additive: coconut milk+Designer Whey, and it was actually good! I enjoyed my coffee this morning, and drizzled some maple syrup over my apple pancakes, and it was lovely.

I declined to leave the house today. I have a sense that at any moment I'll just drop like a stone, and I didn't want that to happen in public. After the way I crashed last night, it really is not that unlikely. Plus, I am in no shape to drive. My reflexes are shot. If I were ever in an accident, God only knows how my my poor body would deal with it! No, better safe than sorry, so I spent the day alternately puttering and lying around, although there really wasn't all that much lying around.

DH went on a tear and vaccuumed the whole house. I feel guilty about that, but I also know I shouldn't. I'm glad he did it, though. I helped the kids clean up the playroom a bit this morning, so that was some help. And DH stripped all the beds, and I fished out the new lines for them so he could remake them, too -- I wasn't up to that, either.

I did, however, do about 6 loads of laundry today, including all the sheets from all the beds, including the guest room. When I'm done here I'll go fold clothes, the sheets I'm folding as they come out of the dryer. Creased sheets are one of life's most easily avoidable unpleasantnesses.

I made some whole wheat bread today, and while it tastes pretty good, my overall assessment was: meh. Nothing to write home about. Not all that different from the harvest whole wheat we get from Trader Joe's, for that matter. I need to pick up some King Arthur Unbleached AP White Flour from Trader Joe's on the next visit -- all I have now is the whole wheat, so I really didn't have a choice when I decided to make the bread. But it is bread that I can eat while on this diet, and I did enjoy the pieces I had of it. It was short work as I used the KitchenAid for the kneading. It will take some getting used to, that machine. I've had it for almost 10 years and am finally coming to terms with it!

This afternoon I showed the kids two ways to make card houses. DS1 was fascinated and pursued the multiple-teepees style, while I persisted at the three-card-start technique. But all of our cards are very slippery, which of course makes it really hard to build a good card house. For a good card house, you need baseball-type cards. My Irish twin brother went through an extended card-house-building phase when we were in our early teens, or maybe a little younger. He was freakishly good at it. I used to do it, too, but couldn't ever compare my efforts to his. He was much more patient and creative. I will have to mention to him that DS1 was wanting to build card houses and see if he has any advice for him.

I packed DH off to Trader Joe's and Sam's Club with my shopping lists, but all the cleaning plus trying to catch up on the finances combined to make that trip a bit too late to have the chicken for dinner. As things worked out, I ended up cutting up the two chickens and roasting them anyway, so I will have something to eat tomorrow: the kids finished off the leftover flank steak for dinner, along with some of the fresh bread and apples and pickles... yeah, we assemble some weird meals. Weird, but nutritious.

Then after dinner, I worked with DS1 on his Sacrament of Penance packet work (also credit for reading time, I love double-duty homework), while the peewees played on computer. When DD went up, I switched over to a Reader Rabbit game for DS2, and he played so sweetly and competently by himself. When DD came down, we read some more of "Little House in the Big Woods." We're almost done!

Nightly prayers now get said "on the big bed", our four-poster that is so tall the kids have to haul themselves up with great effort. I love that bed! Well, not the mattress so much, but bed itself is just wonderful. It's a King, so there is plenty of room for us all, at least while the kids are still small. And it is really lovely to say prayers together as a family.

Speaking of praying as a family, DS1 is still confused about what grace is, because he thinks it's just the prayer we say before dinner every day. I need to work on that with him.

So after they were all tucked in, DH headed back to work so he can get in a few more hours and have a whole day in the bag, so to speak, because tomorrow is looking like it might be a washout. I put away the chicken and took my shower. Then I folded a bunch of sheets, now I'm here.

At some point today I did some good work on my book, drafting out the illustrations. I think I will be able to work on them during my isolation -- it won't matter if I have to throw them all away, because I'll be working on them until I get them just right, anyway. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to have some uninterrupted time to work on my illustrations. I suppose it's a bit cocky of me to think I can do them myself, but I have ideas for each one, I know exactly how I want them to look -- the question is, do I have the skills to produce the image that is in my mind's eye? If not, can I develop it? I think I can, even if it will take a while. I did a very simple pencil sketch of the "Mom" for the book, and I have to say, it evoked exactly the feeling of a slight, weary sadness I wanted it to:



DD thought the Mom looked "a little sad, a little tired," when I asked her, "How do you think she feels?" So I think it works. Ultimately, the illustrations will be watercolor washes with black Sharpie outlines, but it will take some experimentation to get the look I want. How cool to have a project to work on during my isolation!

Eating today was not as nicely scheduled as other days, because my hunger is hit-or-miss, and I slept so late and got so distracted by kids this morning that I didn't have breakfast until after 11:30, and then had a way-late lunch at 3:30, dinner finally at around 7:30... yikes!
Breakfast: coffee with Designer Whey/coconut milk "cream", cinnamon, Splenda; 1/4 apple pancake drizzled with sf maple syrup
Lunch: a few slices of flank steak sauteed with a handful of green beans in garlic, red pepper flakes, olive oil, salt and lots of freshly grated black pepper. It was awesome.
Snack: Fuji apple
Dinner: 2 chicken thighs; the rest of the green beans tossed with o&v&s&p; a few bites of steak the kids didn't finish off; about 1/2 a Granny Smith apple
dessert: 2 squares of organic dark chocolate

I'm realizing I'm quite thirsty as I write this...chug chug chug, will 12 ounces of water do it, or will I need to go back again shortly? We'll see.

I'm just a little bit "puffy" today. I was still in freezing mode this morning so I didn't bother to weigh myself. My weight before my shower was up about 5 lbs from my usual morning weight, but that's not all that unusual. I know I'm retaining some fluid, I have permanent sock marks around my ankles.

And I'm warm now. Sometime around mid-afternoon, my thermostat readjusted and I stopped feeling chilled. That was good because there's nothing like having to shiver through a shower and the subsequent, can not be skipped under any circumstances, applications of body lotions and what-nots. If I skip the lotions, then I really itch... I remember the days after I discovered the Olay body wash stuff, I didn't have to use lotion anymore! It was wonderful. I hope to go back to that state, once my thyroid meds are re-optimized.

I'm about 100% certain that I'm experiencing the greatest case of adrenal compensation for hypothyroidism ever witnessed. I'm also scared that those poor little adrenals are going to burn themselves out, and I'll be left with Addison's on top of everything else. Wouldn't that just do me? Yet, I'm so hyper about adrenal fatigue and I do everything I can to support those little guys... the nutrition and supplementation I'm getting right now are excellent for them, and there's really nothing I can do about the hypoT situation. It should only be for a few more days! Hang in there, little guys!

One of my bros called me today to check in and heartily endorse "Polar Express". Eh. I'm waiting to see what my sis has to say; she's perhaps the only one who could persuade me to go (and take the kids) after reading Walter's lukewarm review, especially after the NYT's reviewer, with whom I am not familiar, was similarly left cold -- as was our local reviewer, who will not hesitate to tell it like it is. Ann Althouse had a great post on it, too. She just cracks me up.

Whoa -- just realized I never even glanced at the paper today! So you see, I have been busy!

I'm very hopeful the NucMed doctor will let me stay home... please please please? I'll be so very good and stay in the guest room as long as ever I need to, please don't stick me in the hospital! And I washed up all the linens for the guest room today so I'm all set to just move right in there!