issues: driving, ROTC, turd eating - it's a family thing

First off, thanks for your good wishes.  I slept better last night.  Sometimes things look better once the ordeal is out on paper - or in this case the blog. 

Another teacher from the high school emailed me.  His daughter is 3 years old and she might need childcare next school year.  I also met a mom on Facebook today who is looking for 2 days a week for her 15 month old.  We have a shared friend on Facebook, so I could reach out to 'shared' friend and do a little 'is she normal' digging before I accept a job.  Nothing set in stone, but this helped me to take a deep breath and look forward instead of backward. 

This morning Coach found out that his co-worker spiked a fever.  He is now covering her patients and his.  Fingers crossed that she doesn't have corona, but scary.  She is young.  Had to cancel her wedding last month.  (I refuse to share how long it took me to figure out what day/month it is).

In other news, a few weeks ago the transmission blew on the kids' car while Mini was out practice driving with Coach.  This extra time to drive has been just what the other drivers in our area ordered.  No one should share the road with this kid of mine.  Unlike her brothers, Mini hunches forward and rotates the wheel back and forth in a death grip in like a 2 inch back and forth frenzy.  It is most unpleasant.  

** Curly's friend from Irish dancing had a drive by surprise/honk birthday 'event' this afternoon.  Mini drove Curly and I there.  I wanted to take a photo of Mini behind the wheel, but I feared it would throw off her concentration and she would drive up on the lawn and pin the celebrating family members to the ground.  Mini was wearing her twisty turban because she was fresh out of the shower - no one ever knows what time of day this girl is going to shower.  We got some looks from other drivers as one does while driving with Mini, but they all did a double take with the turban thing happening.  It was a riot.

Anyway, I babysat for a family with 8 kids when I was a kid.  I feel like their parents kind of raised me right along with them.  They are like family, which is amazing .  They still look out for me and my car needs.  The sons, whose diapers I once changed, now own their own dealerships.  The one son, who I nicknamed Baby Face when I was a 7th grader, found us a great used car.  His brother was only turning up used cars with 149,000 miles.  Yikes.  So we said, yes.  Pick it up Saturday.  Friday night Baby Face called to apologize.  He failed to remind his guy at the dealership to hold 'our' car and they sold it to someone else.  Bum.MER.

Now the search continues for a decent car with decent miles with some elevation so the kids have a decent line of vision.  Fortunately, we are not in need of 3 cars right now.  We are getting by with 2 cars.  Wish I had a crystal ball so we would know if a used car with lots of miles will last.  Or better yet, if we could be confident Mini isn't destined to rear end someone.  Her actual problem is timing left turns and merging.  A car is 1/2 mile away and I say, OK turn left.  She freaks out and then hesitates and then I shout DON'T TURN NOW.  She might have tendencies like that Zoo-lander character.  What was his deal - he could only turn right on the runway or something?

Oh, back to my sleep issues.  Trying to determine if it is celiac disease related or stress related.  Both?  Most likely I will never know.  I had been sleeping late - unheard of for me.  I got fed up on Easter when everyone enjoyed my egg casserole and pumpkin bread and Coach's pancakes.  My sad little plate only had a helping of the gluten free version of the egg dish.  

Since I feed everyone most of the time (Coach grills), someday I want someone in the family to surprise me with a gluten free recipe just because they think I should eat something awesome like they all do.  ** not holding my breath**

Day after Easter when I was about to re-heat
 it in the microwave.  The pancake looks like
 a turd.  I cooked them in a cast iron skillet
because the griddle was all gluten-ed up with
Coach's delicious looking fluffy pancakes.
 Honestly they tasted better than they look. 

I quickly googled a recipe for gluten free pancakes made with bananas.  I made them early on after my celiac diagnosis.  They weren't great but I like a little sweet, OK a lot of sweet, at certain meals.  With syrup they were edible, isn't everything edible with syrup?  OMG, I sound like Tank.  I found a version with almond flour, which I had on hand.  Whipped up a batch.  I now wonder if the almond flour didn't agree with me.  

Have I told you that I am essentially a little old woman?  If I eat almost the same thing every day, I do just fine.  I change up dinner most nights, but it is just a rotation of approved meals. 

I also decided that it was OK for me to have a tablespoon, or three, OK four -at times, of Kirkland Trail Mix here and there over the last week.  I stopped eating that a few years ago because the dietitian suggested that cashews are tough to digest adn that might be what was throwing off my sleep (and by throwing off, I mean I really was NOT sleeping other than like 3 or 4 hours or less).  Plus this trail mix is from a place where they handle wheat.  Damn that wheat.  Or is it the cashews.  

Well, I am trying to eat healthy and I am working out a lot so I figure a bite of trail mix could hold me over between meals.  I should be smarter than this since I really value a good night sleep.  Add in there my fear of replacing Lurch's baby and ingesting leftover banana gluten free pancakes that are not part of my old lady diet and I have been a hot, not-sleeping mess. 

Last night, I slept better.  No trail mix.  No banana pancakes - sometimes I have to go off the rails to remember I have issues.  I chose to relax a bit about the babysitting deal because my blog friends told me everything would be fine.  And I took some melatonin.  Beautiful.

Just as I was about to climb into bed Tank came unglued.  He is fixated on getting into a ROTC program, but he is worried that his ADD will prevent him from being accepted.  I have tried to suggest that he come up with a backup plan he could live with.  Still:  fixated.  Last night he decided that they might look at EVERY medical appointment he had in his entire life.  What if they see that one ADD med made him develop OCD tendencies for like 2 weeks? 

Me:  You were 11.  I told them to get you off the medicine.  Then you were fine.  No one is going to dig that far back in your medical history.  You weren't diagnosed with OCD.  You just reacted badly to a medication.  Your ADD is not really an issue - you barely take your meds.  You have good grades and your teachers are going to write you amazing letter of recommendation.  SETTLE YOUR ASS DOWN, MOMMY NEEDS TO SLEEP!

So, I am not the only one with issues.  It's a family thing.