Saturday, November 28, 2009

Here and There

Sorry I've been MIA over here. Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and is enjoying the holiday weekend.

We're visiting the in-laws and at this very moment Lucas and Abel are getting haircuts from the guy who cut Abel's hair growing up. I'm thankful that we've already taken (and ordered--woohoo!) our Christmas card photos because 1) I've generally found that small-town barbers leave something to be desired and 2) if this man cut Abel's hair as a child that means that he's been cutting hair for at a minimum 25+ years. Now, there is a possibility that he's remained current and has even improved with age and experience. Or, Lucas and Abel are both going to come back with boy/man haircuts from the 70s or 80s. Luckily, Abel isn't shy about telling the person cutting his hair exactly what he wants so hopefully everything will turn out just fine. We'll see.

It has also been a Thanksgiving/Birthday/Christmas extravaganza for Lucas. Since we won't see this side of the family again until they visit after the new baby is born, they had birthday and Christmas presents ready. He's pretty much opened 1-2 gifts each day since we arrived. I am thinking this may dash the excitement over my idea of actually putting together a little advent calendar this year with mini gifts (like stickers) each day. But, it sure has been fun for him. Plus, he's actually playing with and enjoying his new gifts instead of them getting lost in the big pile of Santa/parent/other grandparent/other aunts, uncles, etc. gifts.

Also, I've got a post up over at DC Metro Moms if you're just dying to read something new. Click here.


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Monday, November 23, 2009

Their marketing works but they're missing the mark on their demographic by approximately 30 years

Lucas is obsessed with the Touch and Brush. Have you seen the commercial? He's only seen it a handful of times but can almost recite it word for word. "Now your sink's a mess!" he exclaims. "The Touch and Brush gets the last drop!"

He recently told his uncle and grandmother (in two different phone conversations!) that he wants the Touch and Brush when they asked what he wanted for Christmas. We had to translate, of course, because they had NO IDEA what he was talking about. What? Their 3 year old nephew/grandson is asking for a toothpaste dispenser?

When Abel gave me the old tube of toothpaste to put into the recycling the other day, Lucas was seriously alarmed. He said, "Oh no! If we had the Touch and Brush we could get the last drop!"

When we do watch channels with commercials like this (which is rare because I usually keep it on PBS or Nick, Jr.) he tells us that he wants pretty much every toy he sees. But then he promptly forgets. The Touch and Brush obsession, however, has now lasted for almost two weeks!

If he's still talking about it in December, I think we'll have to seriously consider getting it for Lucas for Christmas. It might just be his favorite gift ever.

And, hey, I do like the idea of using up the last drop!


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Friday, November 20, 2009

Favorite Things Friday: Tech Savvy Mama's Holiday Gift Guides


In my personal opinion, one of the most fun times to be a blog reader is during the holidays. It seems like almost everyone is writing about holiday gift ideas and holiday craft ideas. Even thought I know I'll never get my act together to hand-make an amazing advent calendar or bake most of the amazing recipes I come across, just reading about what others are doing inspires me to step up my game a little bit and gets me into the holiday mood.

And then there are the holiday gift guides. Who better than a parent of a child who is a little older than yours to suggest great gift ideas? There are many, many gift guides out there but one of my absolute favorites is the one put together by Leticia over at Tech Savvy Mama. I'm already a huge fan of Leticia's blog and of Leticia in real life (it's a crazy coincidence that we actually knew each other and worked together in what seems like a previous life before we reconnected as DC Metro Moms!) but I'm an extra-super-duper-huge fan of her Holiday Gift Guides!

Seriously, you have got to check them out. Not only will you get great ideas for every person on your holiday gift list, you can enter to win many of the gift ideas! I will admit that I happen to be incredibly lucky in that I've won a few several numerous prizes from Tech Savvy Mama in the past and now I'm crossing my fingers and my toes for pretty much any of the amazing items included in her Holiday Gift Guide giveaways.

So, here are the links. I highly recommend you check out every single one of them, but at the very least, look at (and enter to win!) the gifts matching the demographics of the people on your holiday gift-giving list. (I'll link to the final guides as they go live, please check back or add Tech Savvy Mama to your reader so you don't miss out!)

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for TODDLERS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for PRESCHOOLERS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for TEENS & TWEENS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for ADULTS

Tech Savvy Mama's Tech Gear Gift Guide

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for TEACHERS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for DVDs

Tech Savvy Mama's Holiday Gift Guide for CDs

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Giveaway over at Out by Ten

Do you have any kids on your Christmas list? Do you love books? Are you an elementary school teacher? Head on over to Out by Ten to read a review and enter a giveaway for four free books from Pretty Please Press.


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Answers to all your questions

When someone has a BIG event happening in their life, it seems like conversation revolves solely around that BIG event. For example, your friend gets engaged. ALL you can think to ask her about every time you see her is how the wedding plans are coming along. Same for a new house, job, and, of course, for a new baby. Lately I've been getting the same few questions over and over and over again from friends, acquaintances and strangers alike. So, here are the answers.

1) I am feeling okay. Very big and very tired but nothing out of the ordinary for the 3rd trimester.

2) No. We have NO IDEA what we're going to name this little bambino. Do you have any ideas?

3) Right now Lucas is very excited and loving toward the baby (often giving my belly kisses and hugs). He even said "my baby brother" at school when the teacher was writing down what each child is thankful for. But, I suspect this will change when Lucas realizes how UNFUN little babies are and how much of Mama and Dada's time, energy and sanity the baby will suck away.


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Nursery Update


Slowly but surely my vision for the nursery is coming together. As you know, I already purchased this lovely print and continue to just adore it.

My mom offered to sew a quilt and some changing pad covers. So, last Friday I purchased the above fabrics for the quilt. We decided to use the first four (left to right) for the front of the quilt and the bottom fabric for the back. We ultimately decided the blue to the far right doesn't go with the other blues so we'll save it for another project. She'll use the fabric to the far left (and maybe others, depending on what yardage is left) for the changing pad covers. I think we're going to skip a crib skirt and bumper pads this time around.

This officially confirms my color scheme as light blue and brown with green accents. Not only will this go with my plans for Lucas's big boy room, it will look nice with our nursery furniture which is cherry.

Overall, I'm not thrilled with the cherry, but the crib was a hand-me-down and you can't beat free. A few months ago, I briefly considered painting all the nursery furniture (crib, changing table and dresser) white but ultimately decided that would be crazy. Now that we're at less than 10 weeks and counting and still have to finish the details on the closet project, get Lucas moved into his new room and paint the nursery, we couldn't possibly add that project to the mix.

I just can't wait until the quilt is finished. Pretty soon I'm going to get antsy about getting some boxes of clothes down from the attic. January 21 is fast approaching!


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Friday, November 13, 2009

Favorite Things Friday: Apples to Apples

For today's edition of Favorite Things Friday I bring you a guest post from my sister Sarah who blogs at Sorry Sarah. I, too, LOVE this game and I'm not sure why I didn't think of featuring it earlier.

I am absolutely in love with the game Apples to Apples.

If you have played it, I'm sure you understand why. I don't believe I have ever had as much fun playing a "board" game as I do when I play Apples to Apples. The things that make this game so amazing are:

1) If you don't laugh while playing, you were born without the fun gene
2) It's not competitive. Which is important. Because I am competitive, and being competitive often ruins the game experience for me.
3) It requires no real skill. Yet, it's still (shockingly) educational. In fact, I have used it in my classroom many times. And, every single student from grades 5-8 is completely in love with it. Case and point, they will sometimes even borrow it from me so they can play during lunch recess. It's that good.

Here is the gist of how to play the game. There are two types of cards: red cards that have the names of people, places, and things on them (nouns) and green cards that have descriptive words on them (adjectives). Each person playing is dealt 7 red cards. Players take turns sitting out a round and playing judge. The first person to be judge turns over a green card. For example, the green card might say cranky. The players then each need to put down a red card that they think best exemplifies the word cranky. Some red card options might be: toes, Al Pacino, the Eiffel Tower, having a baby, etc. The judge must turn each red card over and decide which red card he or she thinks fits best with the green card. The person whose card is chosen gets to keep the green card for that round. The first person to 6 cards (the number varies depending on how many people are playing) wins.

It is a blast.

As far as being educational for the students, they get acquainted with a lot of words they are otherwise unfamiliar with. The great thing about this game is that each green card lists at least 3 synonyms of the word and each red card from their hand that includes a short (usually humorous) explanation about who or what is named on that card.

For example, today some 5th graders who were playing turned over a green card that said virtuous. I'm 99% sure than none of them knew what virtuous meant before today. But, somehow, I have a feeling that after a particularly humorous round of Apples to Apples they're more likely to remember the meaning of that word in the future.

Truly, though, the best part of the game is the laughs. To be honest, when I am judge, I always choose the red card that is the most absurd or makes me laugh the hardest. For example, if the word "exhausting" was turned over and someone put down "peanuts" I would laugh my butt off and choose peanuts for sure. I mean, you have to admit, that's funny stuff.

With the holiday season fast approaching, I recommend you buy this game. Buy it as a gift; buy it for your monthly game night with friends; buy it for your Christmas family get-together. Just buy it. Buy it, play it, love it, and thank me later. Or, you know what? Don't even worry about thanking me. We can skip that step and move straight to, "You're Welcome!"


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

More Good Things

1. Our little old Plymouth Neon just crossed the 100,000 mile mark. We got this car used for a great deal right after we got married. I truly can't believe it's lasted so long without any major repairs. Not to mention that it was stolen and then found when we lived on Capitol Hill (a funny story for another day!). Let's hope it keeps on chugging for another year or more! (Furiously knocking on wood right now!!)

2. We got new windows! Yes, in addition to the closet project craziness, we had new windows installed on Tuesday. They look fantastic and I'm very much looking forward to a winter where I can't feel a breeze from the closed windows as I lay in bed.

3. Today is my little sister's 28th birthday. Hop over and wish her a great year! (And doesn't she look absolutely BEAUTIFUL in this picture?)



Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Good Things

1. I can still shave my legs. (I'm not doing it very often, but I still CAN.)

2. I don't have any new stretch marks. (I got lots with Lucas, but there don't seem to be any new ones...yet.)

3. I have not developed gestational diabetes. (I had it with Lucas but have now successfully passed not one, but TWO, times drinking that foul glucose drink.) The thing is that I really can't believe that I haven't developed it again. Would it be crazy to try to talk my OB into having me take the test again in a few weeks? (Yes.)

4. I've been treating myself to pregnancy massages. AMAZING. I think this should be standard prenatal treatment. How can we work that into health care reform? (You KNOW if the Senate was 86 women and 14 men--instead of the opposite--it totally could happen.) I've had two with a woman in town who is a massage therapist and getting them in her home is almost half as much as what the fancy spas charge (she also works at a fancy spa, too, but her house is so convenient!). I plan to have at least two more before this baby arrives.

5. Some friends in town are throwing Abel and me a baby shower on Saturday! I didn't think I'd have a shower for baby #2 (especially because it's another boy) but this is a group of friends who didn't know me when I was pregnant for Lucas and two ladies very generously offered to host one. Fun!


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Why I've Slept on the Couch for the Past Three Nights

No, Abel and I aren't in the midst of some sort of fight to end all fights. Not at all. Rather, our upstairs is pretty much a complete construction zone. We started emptying out the guestroom literally months ago and completely emptied it (even giving away several pieces of furniture including the guest bed) a few weeks ago. Abel pulled down the twice painted over wallpaper, leaving behind some really ugly paste residue. (Think: poop smeared walls.) And then we, er, he demoed the closets. In a war of attrition (the attrition of my ability to say "no" one more time) Abel won in his quest to demolish and rebuild the closets in the guest room and "master" bedroom. (Master in quotes because it's only unique characteristic is that it is slightly larger than the guest room.)

So, here's a brief summary of the project. Which, by the way, everyone, agrees with Abel is a GREAT idea. Everyone, that is, who DOES NOT have to have their life disrupted and sleep on the couch for five nights while it gets completed. Ahem.

Basically the guest room closet was approx. 1.5 times larger than the master closet. Thus, since we moved in, I've kept all my clothes in the guest room and Abel has kept his in the master. Now that Lucas is moving into the guest room, however, that won't work so well. I suggested that the solution was an armoire. Abel suggested that the solution was a sledgehammer and drywall.

The two closets shared interior walls. Abel tore all of these out, including the metal door frames for each closet door. (Metal door frames! Who ever heard of such a thing!) Currently, three very nice men are re-building these walls and door frames, etc. so that the guest room closet is small and the master closet is bigger. (I hate to say large because we're still talking about a house that was built in the 1940s and we didn't discover any hidden rooms or anything so the closet is still relatively small.)

Make sense? I didn't think so. Here's a visual.



See? The guest room closet is now small and the master closet is bigger. Or, they will be. In several more days. After I've slept on the couch a few more nights. And after dust and debris have left a fine film over the sheets currently covering all our upstairs furniture.

(And, also? I think this clearly illustrates why I am not an architect. Or designer. Or, even, why Lucas has to take my word on it when he asks me to draw a dog and he gets some sort of animal with four legs and a tail that doesn't really look much like a dog at all.)

I hate home improvement.



Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Monday, November 9, 2009

Fun Fall Activity: Hot Dog and S'mores Roast


We had a fun gathering with neighbors on Saturday night--a hot dog and s'mores roast! It's the perfect time of year for an event like this and it was so easy to throw together.

My brother and sister-in-law got us one of those free-standing fire pits a few years ago for Christmas and we've really enjoyed using it several times each season to make a nice little campfire. After I proved my mad fire-making skillz to Abel earlier this summer, he readily agreed to put me in charge of building the fire this time. It turned out great!

We made hot dogs on the grill and the rest of the menu consisted of chips, pretzels, french onion dip, celery, carrots, animal crackers and baked beans. See, totally low key! Friends brought over a yummy squash dish and Portabello mushrooms to grill for the vegetarians in the group. (Yeah, overall the entire concept was a bust for vegetarian friends who also don't eat marshmallows. Oh well!) We had beer and soda in one cooler and juice boxes in another. Then, of course, we had the marshmallows, chocolate bars and graham crackers for the s'mores!

We asked friends to come dressed warmly and bring an extra folding chair. We also put out several extra blankets. Everyone enjoyed hanging out around the fire and the kids had fun roasting their marshmallows (and were also quite content to simply pop a few unroasted ones into their mouths as well!).

There's absolutely nothing like sitting next to a fire while looking up at the stars on a chilly evening!


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Friday, November 6, 2009

Sand


The art room at Lucas's preschool contains easels and paints as well as a sand table. In yet another example of why I could never run a daycare or be a preschool teacher, I just can not imagine having a sand table inside. But, they do and he loves it. Obviously I'm thrilled that he loves it but I am not thrilled that he loves it so much that he often comes home with sand in his hair. Have I mentioned that Lucas has incredibly thick hair? He does.

Two weeks ago, we got a note that someone in the class had head lice. AHHHHHHHHH! I kind of freaked and felt certain that if one kid had it that certainly meant that every kid--or at the very least, my kid--would soon get it. Also, I immediately started itching.

The night after the note came home, Lucas asked me to scratch his head. I scratched and little hard white things got under my fingernails. Lice. Damn. I knew it. Abel was on his way home and I met him at the door to tell him to get right back in the car and drive to the store and buy that special shampoo. Not fully buying into my hysterics, Abel came up to take a look for himself. We re-read the paper with the explanation of just what lice and their nits do and look like.

After approximately 10 minutes of inspection, Abel declared that Lucas's head was full of sand.

SAND?!

We asked, "Lucas, did you play with the sand table today?"

"Yes! A. and I were going like this!" (gestures handfuls of sand up to his head)

THANK GOD.

Two nights ago, Lucas's head was again completely full of sand. I gave him a bath and it took two shampoos and many, many rinses to get all the sand out. We--again--talked about not putting sand in your hair.

Abel came home toward the end of the bath and I told him how hard it was to get all the sand out. I also indicated that while I didn't intentionally make the washing and rinsing experience uncomfortable, I wasn't necessarily as careful as I always am about not getting water in Lucas's face and eyes.

Abel: So you basically water-boarded our son?

Smiling Mama: Hey, if that's what it takes to get him to stop putting sand in his hair, then yes.


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Favorite Things Friday: Teacher Notes Template from Teach Mama

Teach Mama is my go-to blog for learning how to incorporate reading, math, sorting and all kinds of other educational techniques into our every day lives. The blog is jam-packed with wonderful, creative and fun ideas.

Recently Amy posted a "quick trick" which included a down loadable template for teacher notes. Brilliant! It was perfect timing for me as I had just penned a note to Lucas's teachers on the notepad I usually reserve for our grocery lists. You know, one of those long skinny notepads which happens to say "Too many chocolates too little time!" on the top of hot pink and brown paper. Maybe not the best choice, but it was the easiest thing to grab as we were walking out the door.

Next time, however, I'm prepared (all thanks to Amy!) with these simple, yet cute, personalized teacher notes. Click here to read more about this quick trick and then follow Amy's link to download the free templates for yourself!


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Handwriting


(Click the text above to enlarge or simply read the translation below.)

TRANSLATION:

Dear Internets,

So Beth and Swistle and a few others have posted their handwriting on-line and I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon. Last night, Abel was looking at my grocery list and mercilessly making fun of me. It's not that bad, is it? Well, maybe it is. I think it used to be better...you know back in the day before I typed everything. I do love a hand-written note and write them often. Hey, people appreciate mail even if they can't read the message, right??

xoxo Aimee

EXCUSES:

My mom often quotes my grandmother who used to say, "It's a piss poor mother who can't come up with an excuse for her child." I adore that quote. So true, right? He's cranky at the park and you rationalize (at least out loud to the other mothers) that he didn't nap that day or he woke up too early or he went to bed too late or he's teething. There's always an excuse!

Such is the case with my handwriting. I have excuses. First, I am left-handed. (Abel is, too, but Lucas appears to be right-handed. Strange, no?) I was never taught/never learned how to properly hold a writing instrument.

Also? I didn't go to Catholic school.

I am insanely jealous of women (pretty much all women) who have that perfect Catholic school cursive handwriting. And, I'm especially jealous of my good friend in real life (who I'm pretty sure doesn't read this blog but if she does she should take this opportunity to comment), Stephanie, who also didn't go to Catholic school, has the most beautiful handwriting ever. So beautiful, in fact, that I conned her into hand-addressing our wedding invitations! Maybe I should get her to write something for you. Not only would I not have to translate it, I wouldn't even have to give excuses.

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Monday, November 2, 2009

Operation Commence Disney Education

Thanks to Tech Savvy Mama and Feld Entertainment, we had the opportunity to see Disney on Ice at the First Mariner Arena in Baltimore on Thursday night. Since we had four free tickets we kidnapped one of Lucas's best princess-crazy friends to join us.

The evening started out a bit rocky as Abel, Lucas and I didn't get very good nights' sleep the night before. Abel was having some mouth/jaw pain from a dental procedure and traffic was, well, rush-hour traffic. Not to mention that both kids decided they needed to go to the bathroom at the one swath of road without any gas stations near the exit.

But, we persevered and got to our amazing seats with about 5 minutes to spare before the show began. The evening did a 180 degree turn the moment Mickey Mouse entered the ice. The kids were beside themselves with excitement. And, I'll be honest, as someone who always dreamed of going to an ice show when I was young, the excitement was contagious. Even Abel later commented that he actually really enjoyed the show. Now, that's success, folks!

What really struck me, however, was how little Lucas knows about Disney characters. His little companion was yelling for every prince, princess and character who entered the ice. But Lucas had absolutely no idea who they were beyond the classics: Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy and Pluto. He did recognize Pinocchio, Captain Cook and Ariel but not a single other prince or princess was familiar to him at all.

How could I have let this happen? Well, he is only four and we don't watch that many movies. But, trust me, if Wall-E or any Cars character had skated out, Lucas would have been intimately familiar with them. There just seems to be something Un-American about him not knowing Snow White or Cinderella, doesn't there?

Hence: Operation Commence Disney Education. It's starting now. (Um, does anyone have a copy of Cinderella we could borrow?!)


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

H1N1 Clinics in DC

Worried about Swine Flu? Yeah, me too. Lucas and I got the H1N1 vaccine last week and I wrote all about it over at DC Metro Moms. If you live in the greater DC metro area and can't find the vaccine in your own city or county, I highly recommend going to one of the DC clinics. We had a very positive experience last week; since then I've heard from several friends and neighbors who had equally good experiences. The lines seem to be shortest at clinics in the NE and SE. Here's the schedule.

Please note, these clinics are not just for children and pregnant women. Caregivers of children under 6 mos, health care provides and anyone with an underlying medical condition such as asthma and diabetes is considered a priority group by the DC government. Off the record, I'll also tell you that they seem to be vaccinating anyone who shows up. Several parents of kids older than 6 mos were told they could be considered "caregivers" and get the vaccine along with their kids.

Recent news reports seem to indicate that the supply may open up this week and so the vaccine may be easier to find through your own doctor, but if it doesn't, or if you are anxious, go to DC. And, let's give them huge kudos for doing this really, really well. (Because you know we all give our capital city enough grief on the many ways they mess things up!)



Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

I Got the H1N1 Vaccine

"We do not currently have the H1N1 influenza vaccine. If you are calling about another matter please remain on the line for a scheduler."

"Has anyone found the H1N1 vaccine anywhere?"

That's the message on our pediatrician's phone line and the question that has been asked dozens of times already on our local parent listserv, respectively.

Everywhere I turn people are asking about and looking for the H1N1 vaccine. A few months ago, I was on the fence about getting the vaccine for myself and my 3 year old son. Because I'm pregnant and he's young, we're both in priority groups. I'm not sure exactly what changed between then and now but I recently decided that we both should definitely be vaccinated.

Maybe it's because between the CDC, the media and my doctors, it seemed like everyone was telling us to get the vaccine. The problem was that it was no where to be found!

I've been calling our pediatrician, my OB and my other specialist weekly. The answer is the same each place: we are hoping to get it in a few weeks. The word on the street listserv is that our county health system has it and you can call to make an appointment. Unfortunately that appointment line has been busy each of the at-least five times per day that I've called over the past week.

So how did we get vaccinated? Surprisingly, through the DC government.

I say surprisingly because, as a DC resident for almost a decade before moving to the inner Maryland 'burbs, I've endured my fair share of DC bureaucratic frustration. The DC DMV? Don't even get me started.

But in this case, they really pulled through. H1N1 vaccination clinics are taking place in each Ward of the city for priority groups. That includes those ages 6 months through 24 years old, pregnant women, health care providers, caretakers of infants younger than 6 months, and people with underlying medical conditions such as asthma or diabetes.

I decided to give it a shot (pun intended!) and prepared for the clinic like I was going to war. We had an iPod filled with kid-friendly music and shows. We had books, stickers, crayons and paper. We had rain gear and extra layers (in case the line was outside) and plenty of snacks.

We arrived at a clinic at a middle school in Ward 6 about 15 minutes before it opened and were numbers 36 and 37 in line. It was run in a professional and efficient manner and we were out within an hour. I truly was impressed. Kudos to Washington, DC and the Red Cross.

Now, maybe, just maybe, I'll let up on the hand sanitizer. (But probably not.)


Original post to DC Metro Moms. When Aimee Olivo isn't stalking health care professionals to track down the H1N1 vaccine, she's writing at Smiling Mama and Out by Ten.


Stimey said...
Good for you for getting the vaccine. I can't find it in Montgomery County anywhere. But it's really important. My 38-year-old healthy sister was just hospitalized for complications from H1N1 and it was really scary. It caused her blood pressure to drop so much she was unresponsive for a while. And she's not a high risk group.

Get the shots if you can find 'em, people!

Aimee Olivo said in reply to Stimey...
Stimey - if you can make it into DC sometime soon week, I highly recommend it. Their clinics are very well run and residency does not matter. The lines seem to be shortest in the NE and SE. Good luck and I hope your sister is doing a lot better!!

ShallowGal said...
I took my 4 year old on Friday to a Fairfax county clinic. We arrived 15 minutes before it started and got number 193. We waited outside for 4 hours.

I'm not sure I would have bothered but we're headed to Central America and I don't want to end up in a foreign ER.

annie said...
We didn't have the vaccine in the area until last Monday and I didn't even know about the first clinic until someone told me about it while my daughter was at dance class. I was on the fence. Didn't go to the Thursday clinic because the lines were hours long and if you didn't get there before 4PM, you wouldn't be seen anyway. As it turned out, she has been sick since mid week anyway and now I am pretty sure she, me and my husband have it.

The clinics in our province are not being run well and we are being told that they will be out before this week is too far gone anyway. The schools in our town have teetered on closing a couple of times in the last two weeks. By the time there is enough vaccine or access to it, the fat lady will have sung and left the building.
Reply November 01, 2009 at 09:17 AM Aimee Olivo said in reply to annie...
Annie -- hope you all feel better soon! News reports around here seem to indicate that the supply will increase in the next week or so. I hope that's the case for you as well.

BananaBlueberry said...
Good for you!!!!!
stay well :)


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!