Eve decided to attend prom this year with a group of friends. She rented a partial tux (vest, shirt, pants, shoes) and added her own flair. We all met for photos by a lovely river, then the kids went to Panera Bread for dinner and the moms went to a much nicer place. 😂
The kids had a great time at prom. Afterwards they all went to Simon’s house, built a huge pillow/blanket fort, and watched movies all night. I think a good time was had by all.
Ever since we built the house we’ve been talking about making in a fenced in backyard for the doggo. This summer Eve worked out the plan, mostly, and talked me in to taking action! Last weekend we bought creeping thyme ground cover and ordered some easy-install wire fencing. The plan was to buy fencing local and do the work last weekend, but we couldn’t find any so we had to order online and wait. So far only one box has arrived, so we put that up and planted ten thyme plants, along with some morning glories that Eve started indoors last month.
The goal is to have a 6′ x 30′-ish fenced in area with low-grow ground covering that’s native and doesn’t need to be mowed. I hope it works out!!
Once the other fencing arrives we’ll put that up. I think we are going to do the ground covering in stages and not tear up the whole back yard right away. In theory the creeping thyme will overpower the grass and spread. We’ll see how that goes!
Another quick post about Eve, for documentation purposes.
For years she has been complaining of joint pain, and random other stuff. We (me, Alan, school nurse, doctors, etc.) told her it was probably growing pains. Last summer she had some blood work drawn that showed she had low iron and B12, so she started taking supplements. She didn’t notice any difference in the joint pain, or anything else really. This spring we went back to the doctor, then a different doctor, who started her on a low-dose anti-anxiety medication, unrelated to the joint pain, but something she feels she needs. She has been experimenting with different anti-anxiety meds, plus various hormones to help regulate her cycle, but still the joint pain continues. Finally the doctor referred her to a rheumatologist, whom we saw this week. After about two minutes, the rheumatologist diagnosed her with hypermobility, based on the way she was sitting cross-legged on the examination table. While this might seem like a good thing, or at least a diagnosis to move forward with, I have two reservations. First, the doctor said right near the beginning of the appointment that there are very high rates of hypermobility in “this area” (not sure what that means exactly), especially among teenagers, and that she and some colleagues were conducting research on it. It felt very much like the old adage, “when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” My other reservation is that we have Googled hypermobility in the past and Eve really don’t meet very many of the criteria. The doctor even gave her a printout to read over, and Eve didn’t find anything, except joint pain, that matched her situation. The doctor said one hip wasn’t as mobile as the other and was concerned, so she sent Eve for a hip x-ray and more bloodwork. I checked the hospital portal yesterday and the x-ray had come back normal, as did most of the blood work. Some things looked a little low, so I’m waiting to hear back from the doctor on that. Or Dr. Rosy if I get around to texting her. :)
I think Eve is pretty flexible, but I’m not sure hypermobility is the answer to her problems. We’ll keep thinking.
LOL. I think this will be our last tour. Unless another friend (or aunt) of hers tells her about the *perfect* college that she should check out. :)
Today we dropped my car off for service at the new Tesla dealership, and met Alan for a drive to SUNY Plattsburgh, “Set in one of the world’s most spectacular regions — the Champlain Valley.” (according to their website) It was a beautiful sunshiney day. The trip to Plattsburgh requires a 15 minute ferry ride, which is fun on a beautiful sunny day. Not sure what the experience would be in December though. 😬
We had a great tour around the Plattsburgh campus, despite the high winds! (My co-worker, who also attended SUNY Plattsburgh, said that wind is par for the course and he has “visceral memories” of the wind during his time there!) The campus is large (about 300 acres) but it is all within a narrow triangle shape and has several really nice green spaces mixed in. There was a beautiful fountain, some old buildings, some new buildings, and a great library!
Eve liked the campus and the tour, but didn’t get the same vibe she got from Farmington. She’s decided that Farmington is (currently) her number one, with Plattsburgh and New Paltz coming in a tied second. She’s going to apply to all three this fall, plus J&W, then see who takes her (everyone, I’m sure!) and what the costs are. She’s got a whole spreadsheet going and was texting with Lex on the car ride home about creating a decision matrix. LOL. Glad to see she’s taking this decision seriously!
Yesterday we hit the road before the sun even woke up, and headed into the sunrise to visit the 4th college on Eve’s list. Fourth in order of visiting, first in order of preference. It was in the top two, but after spending the day there I think it has jumped to #1 in all categories.
University of Maine at Farmington (NOT Framingham, as I keep accidentally saying) is a “premier teacher education and liberal arts college for the state of Maine.” (according to their website) It’s a very small college with a tight connection to the local town, Farmington. Eve loved everything about it.
We were there for a “Junior Visit” day with a group of maybe 2-3 dozen other kids and their parents. They had a few sessions, lunch in the dining hall, a campus tour, and a resource fair (that was too crowded and loud so we went to the bookstore instead!). All of the student ambassadors were really friendly and outgoing. Eve brought King Gerald, who happens to be a great conversation starter! I’m trying hard not to take over that King Gerald Instagram account. I would have fun with it. LOL.
I have a few reservations about the size of the college and academic rigor, only because of the amount of time she spend complaining about the people and academic rigor at her high school. I think this college is only a small step up from high school. The graphic design program there is also very new, which could be good (she could be part of the cohort building the program) or bad (if they don’t really grow the program).
In a funny little trivia session I won a prize by knowing what the name of the mascot. Can you guess what I won?
We have one more college visit scheduled for next week. Then it’s time for a vacation from college campuses for a few weeks! (Unless I’m the one picking Lex up in early May, still TBD).
Day three found us at SUNY New Paltz, “in the stunning Hudson River Valley.” (according to their website)
While Johnson & Wales* was very urban, and Purchase was very closed and artsy, New Paltz seemed a really nice in-between. The campus was large, but filled with tress, flowers, and lots of green space. The buildings were a mix of architecture and many were visually interesting. New Paltz has a fitness center and a pool, which Eve liked. We had a very nice tour guide and only one other family on the tour with us. The tour was pretty comprehensive, which was great. Eve likes the wide variety of academic options, perfect for her Liberal Arts heart. :) She thought the campus was too big, but was eager to do our own little walk after the tour for a King Gerald photoshoot. She found her way around campus with no trouble and seemed confident.
So far this is my favorite of the three we’ve seen so far. She is still very undecided, but feeling comfortable with the process so far. She’s eager to see the other two on deck. We’ll be vising University of Maine at Farmington on Wednesday and SUNY Plattsburg next week.
On our way home last night we stopped to visit Joyce at her new house. It’s a lovely little house, and will be even lovelier when the rain stops and (unrelated) when she’s fully unpacked and settled. We all went to the Olive Garden to celebrate the end of this trip. Then E and I drove home through awful rain, fog, and wind. We were both VERY ready to be out of the car by the time we got home at near midnight!
* Johnson & Wales University is abbreviated to JWU and pronounced “J-Woo.” Whenever E talked about J-Woo (and she says it smoothly, like it rolls right off her tongue), all I can think about is “woo girls” from How I Met Your Mother. Young, usually drunk, party girls who yell “woooo” about everything. Every time she said something about JWU, I had to stop myself from yelling “wooo!” 😂 I guess if she ends up going to JWU, that’s something I’ll have to work on! LOL.
Today we visited SUNY Purchase, a very artsy school in “Westchester County, one of the oldest and most well-established destinations in the scenic Hudson Valley.” (according to their website)
The area is beautiful and expensive, but the college is all Brutalist architecture and Eve didn’t love it. It is very much an art focused school and it seemed like you would need to declare a firm major (graphic design, sculpting, painting, etc) when you enroll. They say they have sciences as well, but it’s clearly an art school.
It seemed like there was a lot to do on campus, but there was nothing within walking distance off campus. The tour guides said most people live on campus for all four years. They showed us all of the art studios and spaces, and a dorm room, but not the dining hall, underground tunnels (between dorms and the dining hall), or the library. We were struck by how few people were out on campus. It wasn’t as sunny and beautiful as the day before, but it was pretty nice for a spring day and we only saw dozen or so students out and about. I asked the tour guide about it and she said that people spend a lot of time in their studio spaces, working on their projects, especially now that it’s close to the end of the school year. She said they have regular events on campus and everyone comes out for those, but otherwise what we were seeing is pretty standard.
Eve loves art, as we know, but while we were discussing the visit over lunch (at a delicious pub!) she decided she didn’t want to be at an ALL art school. She wants some sciences and some variety. She also liked the area, but not the campus itself.
Tomorrow we’re off to New Paltz!
Johnson & Whales University, Providence, RI
Big “small” school, right in the middle of the city. Cool dorms (pet friendly, AC, high ceilings), energetic tour guide, beautiful day (no thanks to JWU). We had a nice tour, but it’s definitely a city college. The green/quad is very small and surrounded by three buildings and a road. All of the other buildings are within a several block radius and many are old buildings with local “charm.” The building Eve’s classes would be in was the newest building, but it looked like a pretty small department. She liked the tour, but isn’t sold on the location. (I agree, but it’s not up to me. 😉)
Baby Eve turned 17 today! Not such a baby anymore, but she’ll always be my baby.
I had lots of celebration ideas, but she vetoed them all this year, so instead we’ve had a really nice low-key day. We had presents and cake in the early afternoon, with Lex joining us via Discord. :)
E decided she wanted to spend some time in nature, so we took a walk along Mink Brook, a Connecticut River tributary. It was a beautiful day. We brought Huxley along for the outing and we all had a lovely time.
We had dinner at Molly’s and now we’re home, watching The Simpson’s, E’s favorite show to watch with her daddy. Overall it was a beautiful day for a beautiful girl.
Also, it’s Easter! I totally skipped it this year. We put up a few tiny decorations, bought some jelly beans last week, and that was it. No eggs or baskets or anything. Oh well. Happy Easter to those who celebrate it better than I do. Happy Birthday to those who celebrate today (both E and my bestie Lisa!). Happy Sunday to all. 🐰💖
Eve woke up on New Year’s Day with stuffy ears that progressively got worse as the day went on. By the evening they were pretty painful and she couldn’t hear very well. She went to sleep that night with hot packs on her ears. The next morning she stayed home and I took her to the doctor. We couldn’t get an appointment until late morning though, so I gave her pain relievers in the morning to help. By the time we got to the doctor she was feeling less miserable, of course. The doctor said that Eve’s right ear canal was so swollen she couldn’t see the tympanic membrane (eardrum). Her left ear looked a little swollen, but not as bad. The doctor prescribed ear drops and sent us home. By the evening Eve was in major pain again, in both ears, and it continued through the night. She barely slept at all, was up and down heating up her hot pack, getting meds, crying in my bed, throwing up in the toilet, etc. Neither of us got more an two hours of sleep the whole night. I took her to Urgent Care this morning and the doctor there said both ear canals are extremely swollen. He prescribed amoxicillin and said to continue with the ear drops. He also prescribed anti nausea medicine since she had thrown up five times already that morning. Poor girl was throwing up in the Urgent Care bathroom. :(
We went to CVS for the prescriptions, another hot pack, and some Saltines. Then I left her home with Lex for the afternoon while I went into work. She took all the meds (appropriate doses, of course!) and said she had a pretty ok afternoon. When I got home we both fell asleep on the couch for awhile. She just woke up again in major pain. She’s sitting on the couch with hot packs on both ears and tears in her eyes. This post as taken awhile as I go back and forth between her and the computer. Fortunately, so far, she’s no longer feeling nauseous. That makes a big difference! Hopefully the rest of the meds kick in soon and reduce the swelling. The doctors said they don’t know what’s causing the swelling, but the first step is to get it down enough that she’s comfortable and they can see her eardrums. Hopefully that happens quickly!