Ear ye! Ear yikes!

On Tuesday, October 8, 2013, Heather took the first meaningful step (of three) toward having "normal" hearing for the first time in her life. Instead of treating the symptoms of poor hearing, her new ENT discovered the cause of her hearing loss and is aggressively addressing it. Hopefully, within the next two years, Heather's hearing will be better than ever - literally.

Here are some pictures from days 1 & 2, to help anyone who has been imagining any gruesome images: 

  No, that is not a blue "YES" tattoo under her left ear, although I told her she looked hot.

 At home 90 minutes or so after the 3-hour operation. She was the last one at the surgery center, which had locked its doors hours beforehand. I suspect her departure was rushed a little more than one typically experiences, so the staff could go home. She really could have used another hour to stabilize the pain and nausea.

The ice pack was to prevent nausea. As were the open windows, moon roof & air conditioning in the car on the way home that night, and the open windows in our bedroom and bathroom upstairs since. Even I was cold. Maybe they wanted to distract her from all the other pain she was experiencing, since Heather really does not like being cold. And the advice to not eat or drink anything after midnight the previous night was very wise advice, indeed.

Day 2: Self Portrait - Van Gogh-style

Two more to go. At least this one is now behind her.

Thank you to all the well-wishers out there and for the flowers, fruit and help at home.

Spooking up the place

Halloween is just around the corner and the girls spent the morning making sure our house is ready. 

 Rest in pieces. 

 It's nice that the fine print is legible. 

 Worst hairpiece ever. 

 We're going to need more Scotch tape. 

 Hanging out in the cemetery. 

Chillin' with the artists. 

The indoctrination continues

Yesterday Stanford took on the Washington Huskies. We headed up to campus early enough to catch some of the pre-game FanFest--and the incomparable Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band.

The woman in the Bo Peep outfit is our drum majorette.  

Walking to the stadium. 

I don't know what this thing was called, but Amalia had to strap on a harness attached to a bungee cord and try to get the baton as far down the line as she could. 

 The girls checking out one of the Palo Alto Fire Department engines. 

 My favorite part of the FanFest were the free Red Vines they were giving away (not pictured). 

 And here's Amalia with Stanford bomb-sniffing dog, Red. She's 10 years old and still hard at work. 

 Once we finally got to the stadium, Lily settled in nicely with her book. 

 Amalia was a bit more interested in the game. Or maybe it was the chips keeping her occupied. 

 My bookworm still reading. 

Checking out the band at halftime. 

Argh! She drove them nuts!

A few posts ago, Heather mentioned Krispy Kreme had a promotion during national "Talk Like a Pirate" day, where they gave out a free glazed doughnut if you spoke like a pirate, and a dozen glazed doughnuts if you came in dressed like a pirate. But when we arrived four hours before closing time, Amalia all pirated up (her class had just done a unit on pirates), they were out of glazed doughnuts and even had the gall to charge us for two mini doughnuts.

This shivered our timbers.

Enter Heather's golden quill and razor-sharp wit and you get an apology and 24 doughnuts:

Next time they walk the plank.

Monday Edition

I managed to get the girls to school and home on time and as planned. I even went to Target with them and returned home to make them dinner.

Yes, this is almost the dinner I sometimes complain that my mom made for me: artichokes, brussel sprouts, and cheese tortellini. Again, everyone ate very well. As a reward...

 Target cupcakes!

But don't tell Heather. It's our little secret.

Daddy Steps Up

Heather left for DC early Sunday, and I was delighted to discover how pleasant my girls are when they know I am completely desperate to keep them occupied for an entire day. We had a great breakfast at Hobee's, where we all ate what we ordered, which is rare. Then we went to a nearby park I had been wanting to visit. There was no parking anywhere close by, but it was a lovely green space, which was good since the playground equipment is for the very young, so we did some creative play.

 

We then went home, where the girls continued to trash our house with a massive arts & crafts project that has been ongoing and growing since the grandparents visited over two weeks ago. I took advantage of the distraction and quickly mowed the lawn. We wrapped a birthday present and got ready for Amalia's classmate Jessica's birthday party at Pump It Up, a massive warehouse full of inflatable jumping things way too intricate to call bounce houses or jumping pillows. It was impressive.

Impatiently waiting in line after watching a safety video.

 

Bizarro Lily.

 

 

They even had a tiny clown car with giant children in it.

 

Then things got serious.

 

Even more serious was the half-dozen or so times Lily scaled the wall from both sides.

 

 

Note the green button at the top. It got its bell rung quite a few times.

  

 A final group pose with funny faces.

 

 Jessica got to sit in the giant inflatable chair where she blew out her birthday candles. This photo makes me want to call her Jessica Rabbit.

  

The chair was very popular. Here is Queen Amalia thanking her sister's Greek gods for her moment of triumph.

Because I was having such a great day, decided to push my luck (No whammies!) and go straight to Home Depot with the girls to buy some shelving for the garage. Amalia wanted candy at the register and I denied the request, so she refused to budge. I asked an orange-vested checker to ask if she shoplifted any candy, which got her out the door, where I frisked her (no joke). What looked like an impasse melted away fairly quickly. Hmm. I was puzzled.

Of course, when we got home, Lily hit the computer and Amalia helped me assemble the shelving. We finished up, spoke briefly on the phone with Heather, took a bath, and wrapped up our day with a chapter of Harry Potter.

~Fin~

Sneak peek

 A Despicable Me Minion, naturally.

The "hooded huntress," in keeping with her new archery lessons.