Spring Is Here... Almost

I really want to jump up and down and scream in excitement that spring is finally here, but the sleet and random snowfall that happened yesterday is holding me back a bit.  Nevertheless, temperatures this week are actually supposed to be right around average, and that is making me happy!  I'm ready to open up the windows, get some fresh air in the house, and hopefully put the germy season behind us.

As some of you know, I substitute teach here and there to pick up some extra cash.  I have to say, that before I had a child with CF, I knew to take some additional precautions to help prevent the spread of germs, but didn't notice a lot of other things.  Now?  I notice EVERYTHING.  I had a couple subbing days last week, and knowing all of the crud that's going around, it made me go into overdrive with precautions!  At the same time, I'm realizing that Judith's going to be going to kindergarten in a few years, and I start thinking about all of the things we should look into for a 504 plan.  Being a music teacher, I know that in the general music classroom stuff is shared all of the time.  It never made me think twice before unless there was an accommodation need for a student, but now I think about all of the things we'll need to try to get in place for Judith to help minimize exposure.  Things like requesting a separate set of materials that aren't handled by everyone, requesting sanitizer be used frequently and encouraging good hand hygiene, that sort of stuff.  Of course there are a host of other issues that we'll have to look at as well.  It's pretty overwhelming thinking about that kind of stuff right now, and we're not really that close to having to work on a 504 plan!

I know the other factor that has my mind racing is Judith's next clinic appointment.  We're only a couple weeks out, and I'm finding that I still get nervous for appointments.  It's the unknowns that kill me: is this the appointment where she'll culture pseudomonas again, and on top of the MRSA?  What's the MRSA doing, and has it become resistant to the bactrim?  Did she gain or lose weight?  What else can we try to get her to eat more than 1 bite of anything?  And on, and on, and on.  It's kind of a weird set of emotions.  Every time I go into an appointment or check feeling really good about stuff, something new pops up.  Every time I go in worried that the other shoe is going to drop, things are just fine.  One comfort is I know I'm not alone with this, because there are other CF moms in a group I'm in that have mentioned they have the same feelings, so I actually feel normal with something for once.

Anyway, back to spring.  I am so, so, SO glad that the snow is finally gone!  There are still some isolated piles that look absolutely disgusting hanging around, but not many, and I'd be willing to bet that the weekend's heavy rainfall took care of a lot of that.  We're going to be able to start going to the playgrounds again, and won't be forced to be cooped up in the house as often.  Easter is also coming, and that means egg hunts!  Last year Judith did relatively well at the hunt at my parents' church, and I'm excited to see how she does this year now that she's starting to understand things a little more.  Her Easter/spring shoes for church are ordered and shipped over the weekend, and I need to get her Easter dress from last year out of the closet and check the hem on it to see if it needs to be let down so it's ready for this year.  I'm sure I'm probably more excited about a lot of this than Judith is, but I think this year is going to be a really fun year because of how animated she is most of the time!

Outstanding Weather!

I cannot get over how insanely awesome the weather is right now!  Considering it's only mid-March, and we've gotten nailed with major Nor'Easters/blizzards around this time in the past, it makes me glad that spring has sprung!

I've had the windows open and airing out the house for the last couple of days.  Judith and I took a nice walk this morning, and she gave her new sunglasses a whirl - I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but this kid absolutely refuses to keep anything on her head for more than a few minutes.  My parents got her some cute sunglasses at Target the other week that have a strap that goes around her head so they stay in place.  They kind of remind me of Doggles, but for humans ha ha!  After Judith realized that the glasses were wonderful for keeping the sun out of her eyes (and probably once she realized how cute she looked since I kind of made a big deal about how she was "rockin' her new shades"), she left them alone.  They stayed on the entire walk!  Makes me feel a little more confident that once she gets glasses she won't be ripping them off of her face within .5 seconds of putting them on.

The dogs are enjoying the warmer weather as well!  Buster can be so poky when he goes out to do his business (his foster mommy always said he was a "good pooper"!), but lately he's taken some extra time to sniff everything.  Poor guy is having some problems with his allergies, and he's itchier than normal, especially when the air is super dry on top of it - much like it was today.  Even Lady, who is very much a run-outside-and-do-your-thing-as-quickly-as-possible girl, has been sniffing the air and enjoying having the windows open so she can bark at all of the neighborhood hounds walking by.  Both dogs have been slowly moving back to their favorite spring/summer/fall positions in the dining room, into the favored spot where the sun angles in and warms the floor.

I really hope this gorgeous weather holds out until Easter - it'll make for a very nice holiday if it does!

Spring Fever!

Considering the bulk of this winter so far has felt more like spring, I don't understand why I'm getting antsy for warmer weather.  I think looking at the spring lines of smocked clothing is doing it though - I can't wait to get some new, cute outfits for Judith, and I want it to be warm so she can wear them.  I pretty much have her Easter dress picked out, in addition to a small handful of other outfits that will be absolutely adorable for church and stuff!  I really want to shop for shoes, but I know that's something I'll have to wait on - I feel confident that she'll be walking by Easter, so she'll need shoes with a decent tread or grip on the bottom.  And I'm not quite sure what size she'll need either, so there's that.

Personally I'm ready to break out my cute sun dresses and sandals.  I really love to wear sweaters, but I'm ready to put them away until next year.  I'm sick of bundling up, and I'm ready to open the windows and air out the house.  I miss fresh air.

Maybe if it snowed a little more, I wouldn't be quite as antsy, but until winter decides to act more like, well, winter, I don't see the drive for wanting spring here now leaving anytime soon.