Weekly wrap up

I'm finding no time to blog, and even when I do, I am laden with guilt for not spending that time studying up on Freud and his theories or working out the significance of Covalent and Ionic Bonds - Riveting stuff.

But, right now I'm having a break. I'm giving myself an hour off the study and an hour of pure luxurious Internet time - doing the stuff that used to happen BS (before study!) So it'll be sporadic lines of blogging, interspersed with regular facebook checking, blog checking and e-mail checking!

I'll start with last weekend. On Saturday Wendy and I went to the workshop to finish off our felt sewing case. I've cut all my inside out, now just waiting for the time/motivation to sit down and sew it all up. The afternoon was spent lazing round inside, watching movies with the kids. After rushing around all week, trying to get out the door in time, it was nice to just be at home.

Sunday morning I was woken by 2 very excited little children, with beaming smiles and sweet little voices wishing me a Happy Birthday. They then gave me my present, which was a brand new phone! Very good timing too, because my old relic was starting to be unreliable in the ringing stakes - only working sometimes. I was hesitant at first, not entirely sure what to do with the new fancy phone that had a whole keyboard, but after a few days of getting to know each other, I am converted. It is especially handy when faced with a very boring psychosocial lecture, and having the ability to hook into the schools wireless network and browse. I'm also loving the calendar function, now everything I need is only one click away!

The kids had also picked out a present each. Grace chose a rather lovely and very fancy Bic flick pen, with stock standard red and black options. Xav, also chose a very practical gift - post-it notes. Thanks children, they will both come in very handy.

Wendy came up nice and early, and we had a lovely decadent breakfast of wholemeal pancakes with fresh fruit and maple syrup. I was very spoilt from the in laws this year, and they generously gave me a new Brother sewing machine!! It is so lovely, but due to time restraints is still sitting all pretty in it's box. I'll get it out in the next week or 2 and give it a test run, it's just a pity that it doesn't go itself!

Duane was wanting to have a bbq/party for me to celebrate, but I really couldn't be bothered. It had been a busy week, and the thought of having to clean and organise was just too much to think about. I really just wanted to spend the day as a family, which is what we did in the end. Nicole and Trude came over for a quick visit and to give me their lovely gifts. The Truets gave me a lovely blue butterfly top to wear over tights, which I really love and now just need somewhere to go to wear it! The Dews gave me a lucky four leaf clover Pandora charm for my bracelet, which is jangling along with the other charms (mostly from Trude and Nicole!) Trude also did up a dvd of all the footage she had of my kids, which was lovely to watch over.

We also have a great little mothers groups tradition, we all through in $10 and get the birthday girl a voucher to this spa, so I can't wait to use mine and get some pampering!

Duane cooked a very low key dinner, but surprised me with yummy apple crumble cheesecake from the Cheesecake Shop - My absolute favourite! It was a lovely, relaxing and lazy day. I also managed to fit in some sewing, and finished off 4 of the cloth books that I had been asked to make. There was a little bit of study fitted in somewhere too.

Monday was another lazy day at home. I was going to head up to craft, but the weather was terrible and the appeal of staying at home in my Pj's was all too much. We did pop out for a little bit, doing the rounds of the op-shops, hoping to find a lab coat to avoid buying a new one. No such luck, but the kids picked out some books which they were happy with.

Tuesday was to be the day that I was dreading. It was the day that me, who is petrified of rats, had to dissect one. I had been in slight denial that it was going to happen, but as the day came around I really had to acknowledge that I was going to have to do this, and work out some strategies to keep myself upright and not smacking my head on the lab floor. I thought that I'd take deep breathes, focus on the main bit and try my hardest to ignore the big sharp teeth and long slinky tail.

Tuesdays are my busy day, I have all my tutorials and labs crammed on to it. I start at 10am and have only 10 minutes after each class to rush to the next one. I then finish up at 6pm, hungry and exhausted. I had the 2 tutorials before the lab, and quizzed everyone else on how bad it was. Most people said it was fine, but a little smelly. We got into the lab, all looking very official in our stark white lab coats. I'll just note here, that the whiteness of the coat doesn't sit right with me, so I'm going to be dying mine purple. It's just one of the many ways that I'm pledging my allegiance to Midwifery and subtly putting it out there that's where I am headed.

Anyway, back to the rat. After going through all the safety precautions for the laboratory, being shown where the emergency showers/eye wash stations are, gas shut off and being instructed where to put the pins and sharps after the dissection, it was time to start. The tutor got her rat out, put it under the magnifier so we could watch on the big screen. She showed us step by step how it was to be done, stressing that we had to be very gentle so not to pierce the bladder or bowel, and hopefully avoid the real bad smell issues. I listened intently, hoping not to be the one that stunk out the room.

Then it was time for us to get our own rat and start the procedure. We had been put into groups of 2, so I kindly offered for my partner to go up with our dissection tray and get our rat whilst I busily prepared the area. I was prepared for cutting, but not for actually having to pick one up. After thanking the rat for letting us learn on it, I went in for the first nick. The first cut was the hardest. I was probably being too gentle, so it took me a few goes to break through the skin. I'm not going to go into all the details, but after cutting through the skin layer and stretching it out, we then cut into the muscle and virtually had an open flap exposing all the organs.

The smell wasn't very pleasant, and we were advised that breathing through our mouth is the best way. I couldn't do that though, the thought of all those smelly particles in my mouth was enough to make me light headed, so I continued breathing through my nose and just stepping back and taking a rest when it got a bit much.

So once Mr rat was all open, and his organs where all exposed, it got very interesting. It was fascinating identifying all the organs and realising how similar our organ systems actually are. They are obviously so much smaller and harder to locate in the rat though.

All in all, it wasn't too bad an experience and I did learn a lot from it. It certainly helps to remember what quadrants each organ is in and the general whereabouts of each one. I'd had enough after about an hour though and was ready to dispose and move onto the written work.

I'm still waiting for the rats to get their revenge on me though. We've had some larger than mouse poo around the chook house, so Duane has layed some baits out. I nervously venture out into the yard everyday, expecting to find a dead rat right in my path. I can't stand them, dead or alive. I heard a rustle the other day as I was heading out to close up the chook house, so cowardly sent the kids to close it instead.

Wednesday was another early start as I was heading to the hospital to meet with a friend who had asked me to come along to her Ob appointment with her. I dropped Grace at pre-school at 7.45am, poor little poppet was the only child there, but because of this she had undivided attention and got to play with some of the very special toys. I dropped Xav at off Nicole's house, then only just made it to the hospital in time for the appointment.

My friend is pregnant with her 2nd child and is planning to vbac, and has asked me to be her support person which I am super excited about! Her first C/s was under a general anaesthetic and she was deeply traumatised by it, so she is doing everything she can to make this birth experience more empowering and positive. I'll write another entry later about all this.

Thursday and Friday have kinda blurred into each other, both days I was at uni from about 9am till 6pm - listening to some intensely interesting and some brain-numbingly boring. It's very hard to keep your mind focused on listening and not off wandering, thinking about everything else but what you are supposed to be listening too.

I've been so tired of a night. The last 3 nights, I've had good intentions of staying up and studying, but crashing on the couch before 9pm. The night time is my only real study time, so I'm hoping that the fatigue doesn't stick around for too much longer and I can actually get some things done!

The kids are coping fantastically with being shunted around the place. They seem to be enjoying all the extra time with Grandma and getting to visit her house a lot more. Duane is being fantastic and making sure that washing, cleaning and groceries are getting done if I haven't had time. He's been exhausted too, but I'm hoping that they better rhythm we get into, the easier it will be on everyone.

Xav is being a bit challenging lately. He has always been quite specific with how he likes things, but it seems to be getting worse lately. He only likes to use plates etc if he is wearing that colour and is very particular about where the milk or honey goes on his weetbix of a morning. If these things aren't done how he requests, the tantrum is horrible. I try to accommodate his likes/dislikes but sometimes his requests are just so unreasonable, he has to suck it up. He's not even that bad, it's just these things seem to happen of a morning as I am hurriedly trying to get everyone ready and out the door. Look, I think that I may of just given myself the answer. Maybe the problem is I am rushing him, and not properly listening to what he wants? He's probably a bit out of sorts from not seeing me as much, and these little bits of routine are what he is grasping at. I don't know, but I think I'll make more of an effort to make the morning more leisurely and enjoyable.

Xav always used to ask for Daddy to take him to bed, but over the last few weeks he's been wanting me. I love it though, it's our special time together, just reading the stack of books that he's picked out and cuddling. I really enjoy our wind down time together, and hope that every night I'm home for it.

Grace is fine. She is a very adaptable little girl who is just so excited that her and Mummy both go to school "Just the girls go to school Mum, not the boys!" She has been nagging since the day I started to come visit me at school. So this Friday Duane bought the kids to come pick me up, and I showed them around. I think Grace was expecting to see the plastic dummies like we did on the orientation, and was quite disappointed when she was just given a tour of the library!
She had her 4 year old needles on Wednesday and was surprisingly fine with it. I coudn't go, so poor Duane had to take both kids along by himself. I was a bit worried how Grace would go, considering her little needle ordeal in hospital, but she seems to have not remembered anything from her stay. For being such a brave little girl, the nurse gave her a voucher for Hungry Jacks. I couldn't believe it when Duane told me, so much for all the health promotion they are banging on about at Uni. I just find that so bizarre that in a Dr's surgery, they give a 4 y/o a meal voucher for fast food. It is totally unnecessary, and she would have been just as stoked with a sticker or colouring in book.

Xav had his heart checked again, and the murmur is still there so the Dr wants us to take him for an echocardiogram, just to double check that it is ok.

I'm finding the subjects at Uni quite interesting, and already have a fair idea of what ones I'll need to spend my time on. Anatomy is definitely going to be occupying most of my study time, it is just such a large and complex subject. We had chemistry this week, and being that is something that I've never learnt, it was very difficult to follow. I've been going over and over it, and slowly it seems to be sticking, just hope it's the right bits. The psychosocial subject is mildly interesting, but I'm confused my all the theorists and their takes on how we all develop. It is so open to interpretation, and I'm just finding it hard to wrap my head around all the different theories.

Our first essay isn't due until the end of April, but it has been advised that we spend about 50 hours on it!!! I'm going to get started in it next week and at least have a rough draft done by the end of March. I've booked a camping trip for 4 nights in the week after Easter, which also is the week before 2 of my mid-semester exams, so no doubt there will be lots of lazing on the banks of the lake revising chemistry and development theories.

This weekend has pretty much been the same as last, just at home spending time together and getting things done around the house. The kids and I spent Saturday making some hand-felted Easter eggs, which we are going to pass onto the Easter Bunny to fill with special treats. Xav got bored after half hour, preferring to grab some matchbox cars and play with them. Grace loved it though, really enjoying the rubbing and massaging of the fleece as we worked hard to get it to felt. The eggs turned out beatuiful, and as soon as I get some more fleece, we will make some more.

Sunday we spent in the yard, taking a few loads to the tip and a trailer load to the op-shop. I gave the house a big clean, as it was starting to get quite messy after a week of just quick tidy ups. It has been raining on and off all day, which is playing havoc with my washing schedule!

I'm really looking forward to no cleaning tomorrow, and just spending some quality time with the kids. We are planning on some craft and baking, with a special request for muffins and biscuits.