Birthday Boy

We celebrated George's birthday this weekend. It went well. Friday was a bit bumpy and we weren't sure that the party was going to happen. We got a call from Day Care that George had been crying for about an hour. Not like him at all. They took his temp and it was 100.4, so not really a fever, but he wa acting out of sorts. Ms. Ranjana couldn't even calm him down and she is his favorite! He had been really clingy that morning and I told Eric that I was half expecting to be called. I really should have known.

At any rate, by the time we cleared everything with work and headed to school, he was sleeping on the cot. Sleeping through lunch, which is also not like him at all. We took a few minutes to talk with the teachers and see what they had to say. Then we got him up and sat with him at the itty bitty table while he ate. By the time he finished and we loaded into the car and headed to the Dr. office it was about noon. I couldn't remember if walk in hours ended at 11 or at noon. they end at 11. So, we made an appointment for 1:15 with Dr. Bush and headedback home. George took another short nap and then we went back to the Dr.

It was not a fun appointment. Dr. couldn't see in his ear due to wax build up...so they put a cotton ball with Hydrogen peroxide in his ear and let that sit for a bit and then the nurse came in with warm water and I held George down while she tried to flush the wax out of his ear. Not fun at all. Dr. came back in and still couldn't get a really good look, but he did see some red and inflammation and so decided to go ahead and put George on antibiotics. We have another appointment for his two year shots on Thursday, so Dr. Nelson will be able to take another look then. Hoping it will all be cleared up.

At any rate, but the time the appointment was over and George was calmed down and we were home, there wasn't too much time left at the end of the day, so I did what work I could from home. I hope I don't get into too much trouble...but no one was in the office on Friday and we carpooled, so ther wasn't much of a choice.

After we got George down for the night (or something resembling down for the night...he's been up every morning at about 4:15am ready and raring to go) I started working on the birthday cake. I found everything Ineeded on the Nick Jr. website. I ended up using the yellow Wilton's candy melts for the arms, legs and tail. The hard part was trying to get the yellow frosting to match the yellow arms, legs and tail. I think I did a pretty good job. George knew immediately who it was!

Saturday was a fun day. DayCare had a special Christmas event and we were able to drop George off for 3 hours. Mommy cleaned house and wrapped presents and got things ready for everyone to come over. Daddy went shopping for Christmas and birthday presents for all of the boys...Charlie and Henry both have birthdays coming up very soon, too! George played with the big kids and decorated cookies and got beads and got his picture taken with Santa! When Eric picked him up he was asleep on Ms. Erin's lap. We lovedonhima bit when he got home and put him in bed for a nap.

When he woke up, the house was full...Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt and Anne and Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Becky and Uncle Chris and cousins Henry and Charlie and friend Becky were all here to wish him a happy day! He was a bit overwhelmed at first, but made the adjustment quickly. We ordered pizza, opened presents while we waited for the delivery guy to come. And then we had the Wow, Wow Wubbzy cake. It was a wonderful time.

Then today, we had pizza again! We went to Tim's Pizza inIndependence for Great Grandma Donner's birthday. More pizza and more cake! :) The kid is going to think that pizza=cake! That is it for now.

So excited to get through this week so we can get home to see Grandma Ruth!

One helluva week...

The first part of the week was okay. Busy, but okay. Work is getting piled on heavy and thick and I'm trying to get through the reading and homework for school. The first half of my thesis is due on Tuesday and I'm nowhere near ready...and so I procrastinate by updating my blog.

Monday night, George does not sleep well...it is typical for a Monday night, because my Tuesday's are long. He just likes to make mommy miserable. Tuesday night, class runs over...not by much. New module, new instructor. I like her. Get home, unwind try to find something to eat. Go to bed.

I know full well that my go-to person and right hand at work has applied for a position in a different department...and I know they are going to offer her the job. It's a waiting game to see when. On Wednesday I contact those who let me know that she will be hired and asked when they would be contacting her because I can't go full on with training and discussing the division of tasks without giving away the fact that she is leaving. They told me that HR had to approve and that she owuld let me know when. Wednesday right before leaving, I get the note that HR approves. Waiting on Thursday for the official call.

Soooooooooooo....in the meantime, we have a study closing early and nearly 20,000 pages to try to work through Data Entry and about 3200 pages as day coming into imaging. Trying desperately to keep my head above water and at the same time learn the new job I am doing. Found another study that doesn't have their system build yet and so they are having us to a pdf work around. It isn't going very well. I have so many e-mails in my inbox that I am not able to send...so I have to delete and remove attachments periodically throughout the day.

Thursday arrives. The call comes. I am notified. So, very, very excited for my coworker. She is a hard worker, bright, determined and just an all around fantastic employee. I know this is a great opportunity for her and that she will thrive. So, as we walk the minefield of her telling a couple of people who she wants to tell in person and me trying to figure out the timing and whatnot we focus on what I need to learn and be told about so that I can keep things running smoothly. The news is shared on a limited basis. Very. Toward the end of the day, another coworker comes to her and says that he received a call about a job in yet another department and that he accepted. Half of the things out of this guys mouth are of questionable veracity. She asks him if he has told me. He says no...he doesn't know enough about it yet to get me involved. She tells him that a heads up might be a nice thing because he doesn't know what I have on my plate. (He doesn't know she is leaving.) He starts talking about how it's going ot be so rough in on everyone without him. Um, not quite as difficult as he probably thinks it is!

So, Friday comes. I am prepared for him to ask to speak to me. (To be fair, she thought I already knew about his being hired because I had told her I knew about her in advance...it's just that her hiring team saw fit to consult with me prior to making the offer and his did not. Another word of note: Her's was a recent interview for a new opening. His was an interview that happened 4 months ago on a position that was frozen prior to hiring. Obviously, they opened it up again.) So, several e-mails and a I am down 50% for one division of my staff and they will be leaving within a week of one another.

Surprisingly, I do not have a pit in the bottom of my stomach. I am not highly stressed. I am more cncerned still with my new job tasks. The two who are leaving are doing tasks that had been done by me previously in one form or another. Yes, they do them better, but that is hardly the point.

So, I was at work until midnight last night trying to solve a problem with the study with the workaround. I still have a thesis to write and I am tired.

Brain tired.

A bowl of ice cream and Christmas Crunch on Face Book tired.

Going to bed before 9 on a Friday tired.