Mommy Life: What's happening at my house - update on Mohs surgery and redecorating blitz

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January 6, 2007 11:11 AM

What's happening at my house - update on Mohs surgery and redecorating blitz

Started at 9am, posted at 11:10 after everyone woke up and came home. More later. . .

I am sorry not to have updated you sooner. I have been so busy! Sometimes I wish you were all right here and we could just talk. As I told my kids at dinner the other night about Instant Messaging and test messaging: If that was our only form of communication and someone told you, "Wow - they have this new invention where you can actually talk to the person instead of sending a message!" we'd all think that was terrific!

Still, the neat thing about blogging is that you get to meet people you would never have met, find answers to your questions immediately - or at least a lot of food for thought - and get inspired and revved up to fulfill your calling.

I receive many emails saying people are thinking of me and praying for my family. I so appreciate that. This morning, the first thing that popped up in my email was this from Eva:

After reading through all the wonderful information at Blogging Basics 101 I decided to comment for my first time here! I just wanted to thank you for your transparency and the grace you share here. It is truly the grace of our Lord that shines through on your blog. I wholeheartedly agree with you about the blessing that blogging is. Not only has it helped me connect with other moms but it has also allowed me to learn from wiser mommies. I know no one in "real life" with twelve kids! Ha!! As a mother of six (and this NOT being the norm in my community) it is nice to come here and feel "normal") Barbara, remember the Lord sings over you and rejoices in you!!!! (Zephaniah 3:17) Blessings on you and yours.

I can't tell you how much I needed that affirmation this morning - well, I will probably in the next post as we had an unexpected conflict at our house last night and it has triggered so many ideas I'd like to share with you on how we can do a better job at building our kids' character - and why it's so important.

In the meantime, a quick update as Sophia had three friends spending the night last night and will be waking soon. I set up a breakfast for them - bagels, cream cheese shaped into a heart, strawberries and other fresh fruit (yes, I'm proud of myself because I'm feeling hyper-domestic lately - could it be the apron?) - the Downzers are all at Special Olympics basketball practice with Tripp and I am letting the Big Boyz sleep in to reward them for their wonderful work yesterday. Maddy's been sick for the last few days - watching Abbot and Costello movies in her bedroom, trying to stay out of everyone's way so we don't get sick (we don't usually get stomach flu, thank God!) and throwing up everything I feed her - so she is asleep too.

So while it's just us:

They surgery on my face went well, but of course they never prepare you for the aftermath. They got everything on the first scoop (my word), so I actually got to go home after 2 hours of sitting in the waiting room with a half dozen people with bandages on their faces (remember I told you that with the Mohs surgery they take a piece the squamous cancer area and then biopsy it while you wait to make sure that there are no cancer cells on the margin so you go back to the waiting room for over an hour to wait – I had just received the fifth season of 24 in the mail so I watched the first episode on my laptop – whew! what an adrenaline rush! I haven’t talked about my 24-come-lately thing this year, but suffice it to say that I have enjoyed watching the shows back-to-back and commercial free – and I hear the fifth season is the best. But I digress).

So the good news is that they got it all and it was a small elliptical incision involving four stitches which will leave a scar right on my laugh line that probably will be unnoticeable. I appreciate the skill of this type of surgery. The bad news (but not really that bad) is that I have to look forward to biannual exams because squaumous cell carcinoma, while not as deadly as melanoma is more aggressive than basal cell and needs to be dealt with quickly. It is the same kind of surgery Laura Bush had last fall on her shin and it is probably due to my years of sun worship with baby oil back before they even had sunscreen or knew we needed it.

So I came home to find the Big Boyz hard at work, prepping three rooms for my decorating attack: the laundry room, the guest bathroom and the bathroom they share with the Downzers. I have to admit I was worried that they would do a sloppy job – plus the last two days have been broken up by their dentist appointments, rugby game, and another doctor appointment for me (arranging my colonoscopy next month – yuck! But I am getting older and if Katie Couric can do it on TV I can certainly handle it in private.

But my worries were unfounded. Last night we finished the laundry room and it is just plain beautiful – painted a sunny yellow color with creamy molding and a rooster border at the top. Every surface has been freshly scrubbed and I’ve ruthlessly thrown out clutter that has just been hanging out on my folding shelf. I am a happy Mom! I even took apart a framed picture Samantha had given me that said “Just Say no to Laundry,” x’d out the No and wrote Yes!

I’ll post more pictures later. . . .

(By the way, I know I posted last summer that we were going to sell our house and downsize since 4 kids have grown up since we moved here, but the market is just not doing well enough to make that a sensible option right now. I love our house - though I would like a smaller one so I don't have more to take care of than we need, but for now we are here and I want to make it as pleasing as I can so we can enjoy it.)

Today when Tripp comes home from basketball with the Downzers and the Big Boyz get up, they will start on the bathrooms – wallpaper and new fixtures and lights (what’s here are the ones put in when the house was built almost 20 years ago and because we have a well these things look pretty bad after and our water is high in mineral content, these things are looking pretty awful. I am also using a heavy duty product to restore the sinks and toilets and shower.

I am so excited! When we first moved into this house over three years ago, we were in a hurry and just painted everything the same. I’ve written five books since we came here, so obviously my mind has not been on decorating. But now it is and I am really enjoying it – especially while my Big Boyz are here because they can do so much more and so much faster than I.

I do have other things I want to talk about and will try to find a few minutes to sneak into my office today – or maybe tonight. I always have more to say than I have time for. But am grateful for the time we have.

Love,