Mixed Monsoon Emotions.

Our house is hot.  In planning this blog, I had planned to use the F-bomb to clarify just how freaking hot our house was at that moment.  Pretty f-ing hot--our crappy thermostat gauge was reading 90 when Elena and I got home today... There was no relief from the heat when we stepped into the house, and as soon as the sun started to go down, it really felt cooler outside than in.

For those following our swamp cooler drama, it took nearly two weeks for someone to come fix the stupid thing.  We had gone through our home warranty company, who contracts with various companies that come and evaluate and fix (if appropriate) the problem.  It's worked out well for us in the past--we got a "free" dishwasher out of the deal, for instance.

This incident, however, really made us crazy.  Like, really crazy.  Or at least it made ME really crazy.  And yelly/snappy, mostly at Elena, which is totally not fair but given her unpredictable meltdowns, there has been no fairness for anyone lately.

So, two weeks staying at The Vortex, followed by a repair on Sunday which I really don't think fully addressed the issue.  Sunday Elena and I sweated out the afternoon at home as opposed to seeing a play in air conditioning.  The guy who came was nice enough, and I giggled when Elena said, "He's back!" after the repairman went to Naughton's to get us a new motor.  But that night didn't feel particularly cool to me (Josh may disagree), nor did last night.  Only this morning felt a little comfy, but we also had near-record lows in the 70's last night.  This evening, however, it was clear that all was not right in the Malo-Pettit swamp cooling world.  Josh found a faulty pump, which has led to yet another claim to American Home Shield... so we shall see.  Luckily there are two pumps that contribute to the system, and we'll just be getting cooled by old water air for a day or so due to his switch-er-oo.

But let me just put this whole thing in perspective:
--Me: Worked 13 days in a row, just had Sunday off which was spent 10:30 am to 3:30 pm in a sweaty house with a non-napping child who was sleep deprived, 8 months pregnant
--Josh: Still working his three weeks in a row... We haven't really spent time together in...?
--Our family: Staying with Josh's parents for almost TWO WEEKS during this mess
--Elena: Not responding well to sleeping away from home; missing out on 1-1.5 hours nightly of her usual sleep; melting down at drop offs, pick ups, and lunch/pre-nap time at daycare; creating her own entertainment at Grandma and Abuelo's by opening all drawers and messing with their Flavia packets, fondue skewers, stone drink coasters, hitting the dogs
--Tonight: Cooking dinner in 90 degree house, Elena steps in dogs' water dish AGAIN after being asked not to, water gets spilled, two minutes later she runs towards me and slips and falls and hits the back of her head on the floor

I've had it.  I cursed at Elena, "reasoning" with her that she only slipped because she spilled water after doing something I asked her not to.  I really hope she doesn't start to incorporate the F-bomb into her vocabulary as a regular adjective--I fear that if our cooling situation doesn't resolve, it might.  I think she said to me tonight after getting a diaper change (mega poop) and bath, "I did a crap."  What?  I don't think I use that word regularly.... Anyway--a caution to be extra careful near sponges.

I feel a bit better after working on a breastfeeding project.  (Yes, I'm changing the subject--I'm done with our hot house.)  I did some content work for DynaMed on their breastfeeding section last year, and they e-mailed me today saying that based on that content, they've written a bullet point type refresher for clinicians that they would like my input on.  Since I edited/contributed to the content, they are naming me as an author, AND there is a "small stipend" associated with it.  Sweet!  I love how this passion just keeps on giving and creating its own opportunities.  Also today a colleague emailed me to let me know someone had e-mailed him about some grant funding availability that had to do with breastfeeding.  Since I'm so crazy over nursing, I tend to spend a lot of time with moms/babies on the postpartum floor when I am attending our Maternal Child Health service.  I got a nice e-mail yesterday (which was also cc'ed to my department head!) from one of the UMC admin people thanking me for my care on the postpartum floor, which was noted by one of the nurses.  Anyway--all of this has been really refreshing and has helped me not lose my mind.

So back to my mixed monsoon emotions.  This time in Tucson is so magical--we've had some great storms already this month, and I hope the rains continue (though not too much on the fire-ravaged so now flood-prone areas of the state) to cool and nourish the desert.  One of Josh's buddies from intern year who had lived in Tucson for a long time said June was the most depressing month due to the incessant sun that had been present for the several months before that.  I get it now.  The rains are just wonderful, as are the clouds that dance across the sky.  I love the stringy gray clouds that fade at the edges, the puffy white ones, the low hanging clouds that cover the mountains, the lighter ones that dance above the peaks... and the soaking rains that sent Elena and me shrieking into the house as the rain came at us under the Malo's patio are just delicious.

I just wished evaporative cooling worked better during July and August!