The Week in Review

A couple of years ago, several fellow bloggers and I did a weekly Top 10 List. 

Actually, it was a Friday Top 10, but since today is Sunday, I am giving myself a little wiggle room.

I miss the Top 10 Lists.

Some were funny, some were sad, some were silly, and some were....well....odd.  But they were always entertaining.

So, for old time's sake, the chaotic thoughts running around in my head will become a Potpourri of Thoughts Top 10.

The Week in Review:

1.  We got my son's lab results back.  Every three months he gets his ASO titers checked to see if his levels have continued to decrease since his PANDAS diagnosis 6 months ago.  The answer: negative.  His levels went up.  Nearly 100 points up.  Higher than when he was diagnosed up.  This fact is sending this mama into a bit of a tailspin.  More on this in another post.

2.  The last week of class is always C.R.A.Z.Y.  No matter how hard I work to stay ahead, there is just no getting around this fact.  When this week is over I have to reintroduce myself to my husband and children, rediscover where the kitchen is located, and recover this very messy house.

3.  Speaking of this very messy house, my mom took off Friday afternoon to come help me.  Granted, she had to use some PTO or she would lose it, but the fact that she came over to help me clean is way above and beyond.  I hope to pay this forward some day with my own children.

4.  My computer crashed on me this week.  Twice.  The first time was Tuesday, and was fixed by Wednesday.  The second time was Thursday.  Our school's computer guy said, and I quote, "This is quickly going from bad to worse.  You need to back up your entire system before I do anything further."  Those are never words one wants to hear.  Too bad my computer would not read any external drives AT.ALL.  That makes backing up a bit tricky.

5.  Speaking of said computer guy...He deserves a huge shout out for all his work.  This guy VOLUNTEERS his time to help with the technology.  I'm guessing he spent at least 15 hours with my machine this week.  He is amazing.

6.  Yesterday we went to 2 weddings.  Both were beautiful.  One was a fairly traditional church wedding.  The other was outside in a pasture by a picturesque red barn.  I am guessing they weren't planning on it being 40 degrees, but seriously, an outside wedding with popcorn, toasted almonds, and hot chocolate is totally the way to go.  We wore jeans and wrapped up in blankets.  So fun!

7.  People around me this week have nicely insinuated that I have spent some extra time climbing up on soap boxes.  I didn't realize I had so many.  This weeks line-up included quality education, whining/disrespectful children (my own), and sportsmanship at games.  It may be best not to get me started on these issues.

8.  This week I discovered Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip cookies.  I love them.  My hips don't.  So far, I have won.

9.  We watched The Vow last night.  I had heard tons of people who were upset with the movie.  These were also the same people who had read  the book.  I figured I would like the movie since I had not read the book.  Overall, the movie was fine.  The ending was not.  Therefore, I now have to read the book!  My husband is highly regretting our decision to watch the movie.

10.  At this very moment there is a cat sitting outside my front door meowing his head off.  It is so loud that we thought there was a cat in our house when we first came home tonight.  If this keeps up, there are no guarantees what my husband will do to this cat.  However, the last time we had an animal on our front porch that wouldn't shut up or go away, we ended up adopting it.  I'm worried.

The outlook for the upcoming week doesn't look any less stressful.  I'm hanging on for the ride, finishing up class, hoping to get some medical answers, praying over my computer, and maybe even starting a new book....right after I finish cleaning the house.

Week Three - Action Research

Done, DONE, D.O.N.E.!!

I am finished with this little project.

Well, I am finished with the data collection part.

I also had great intentions to be finished with the paper part of this project (which is definitely not little), but alas, I am still plugging away with that.

As much as I am making it sound like a ton of work, honestly, this class has been great.  It is not uncommon for me to love my classes, but it is a rare find when one is so incredibly applicable to both education and "real life".  (In my world, education is "real life", but you know what I mean...)

So....week three. 

As far as data goes, unfortunately there was really no change in anything this week.  My pain/discomfort is still off and on, but I would say reaches to the same level as last week.  My energy level is better than the beginning of the project, but I saw no improvement from last week to this week.

Several reasons for this run through my mind. Of course, they are all just guesses.  This week has been high-stress, low-sleep, and mentally draining.  In addition to that, I am wondering if the diet is causing me to feel somewhat lethargic.  This would seem odd since I am technically eating so super healthy, but I have been so busy this week, that I have not taken the time to put much variety in what I am eating.  It is the same whole foods over and over, which makes me wonder even these "super healthy" foods are not giving me a wide enough variety of nutrients.  One more factor that would contribute to that....those of you who know me well know that when God distributed taste buds, He did not exactly give me a wide variety.  So much of what I should be eating simply tastes awful to me. 

So....if I am going to continue this strategy in my world, which I should do because it obviously made me feel quite a bit better in just a short time, one thing is obvious.

I am going to have to finally grow up and learn to like those weird foods.