A normal week

I just noticed it's been over a week since I last posted.

Obama is now the president-elect. I waited almost two hours (between two different polling places--don't ask!) to cast my ballot. I was so proud to be standing among so many others who were eager to have their voice heard, no matter which candidates they support or which views they hold sacred. I am not going to wax poetic about the historic significance of this election and results; I leave that to professional writers. I'm just glad we didn't have to wait late in the night to know who our next nation's leader will be. Although, here in Minnesota we have to wait until December 19 to learn who will be our Senator for the next six years. At least we won't have to endure additional political ads while we wait for the election judges and others to work through the recount process.

We woke up to the lawn being coated with snow Thursday morning. Cate wanted to wear her snow boots to school. She also wanted to know when we were going over to Grandma and Papa's house to sing Christmas Carols and open presents. "Not yet, my dear."

As I was in Urgent Care on Thursday, I recounted that someone in our family has either been to the doctor, urgent care or minute clinic nine times in the past six weeks. A lot of money has been dropped on co-pays and prescriptions. While this has been an incredibly frustrating time, I have to look on the flip side. I am grateful we have good health insurance and that while we all may be having a bit of a bump in the road health-wise, all in all, we are fortunate our illnesses are minor and that we will recover soon enough. This phase is a good call for us to take advantage of the health care spending account benefits offered by our employers, so least we can minimize some of the little medical expenses that eventually pile up.

Speaking of illness, Max is the newest one to be sick in our house. T'is the season with the weather change, I guess. He's a sad, limp noodle who had been cuddling with me this morning until Kyle came home from Mass this morning. As soon as the back door opened, he perked up a bit and said, "Daddy!" So he crawled out of my lap and waited for Kyle to pick him up in his big, strong arms. They sat together for a bit, but then Kyle and Cate took off to watch the Vikes / Packers game at Jeanine's house, so he returned to me. Max sat with me for a little while, but after a while he slid out of my lap, grabbed my hand and walked me to his room. I pulled back the blankets so he could climb in and has been sleeping soundly ever since. Poor guy.

At least the Vikings seem to be holding their own against the Packers so far into this game. But of course, we haven't entered the 4th quarter--that's when we typically implode. I guess I was denying the fact that we have been 0-5 against the Packers under Coach Childress. It's time for a win, so then we've got a little something to be excited about.