Bits and pieces

Last week, Dan was interviewed by Liz Crenshaw from NBC 4 news. She’s the consumer reporter that gets the scoop on whether products are as good as advertised. Dan was filmed for a segment about hybrid cars, and he’s a great spokesperson for the Prius, because he loves it. He figured out that by switching from the Ford Explorer to the Prius he saved about $100 a month in gas, and he has the spreadsheets to prove it. The segment is scheduled to air July 16 at 11:00pm.


This week, Dan starts his sabbatical. Every ten years, his company requires employees to take a month off. This is his 20 year anniversary, and July is his month. I’m encouraging him to lay around the house a lot.


So much for Roxanne being off the anti-seizure drugs. While we were weaning her off her previous medication, she had a follow-up EEG in early June to see how things looked. Dr. P, her top-notch, but overburdened, neurologist just got around to reading the EEG, and called us last weekend. He saw brain waves coming from the surgical area that had the potential for causing seizures. He put her back on anti-seizure medication, but explained that it is one of the mildest drugs available, and shouldn’t cause any problems. I had been feeling so elated that Roxy hadn’t had seizures and was off the drugs that this news hit me hard. Just the idea that she could still have seizures is depressing. But I’m adjusting to the idea of the drugs as a preventative measure, and so far, I haven’t noticed any ill effects in Roxanne. Fingers crossed.


Happy 4th of July! Independence Day is one of my favorite holidays and yesterday was Roxanne’s first! Her initial exposure to fireworks wasn’t a great experience. Dan lit a few in the backyard, and the one that sounded like a “burning bag of screeching cats” (as noted by an observer), made Roxy cry, so I took her inside. Still optimistic, we took her to the local fireworks display, where we’ve gone several years in a row. (We used to go downtown, but the crowds and traffic weren’t worth it, and we sit right under the fireworks at the local show.) Dan held Roxy in his lap during the fireworks, and for the first half, he had to keep up a cheerful banter to keep her from getting upset (“Yay! There goes another one! Fun!”), but toward the end, she seemed mesmerized. I’m sure the fact that she was up waaaay past her bedtime didn’t help. But we all made it through. I think I watched her face almost as much as I watched the display. She looked really cute, lit up in reds and yellows. It’s funny how having a baby changes everything.


This weekend we have nothing planned. Really. Nothing. But last weekend, we had very little planned, and spontaneous get-togethers sprung up. It’s been cool and strange like that lately, so I’m open for anything. If you feel me thinking about you, go ahead, call.