Update: Life in General

This is just a little update about our little Bubs.  

Notice something...

no oxygen in his nose.  

Yesterday he went to the heart doctor which is every other week and they said no more oxygen, except at night right now but begin the weaning off of it.  He still has a heart monitor but said that needs to be weaned off (mostly the parents need to be weaned off of it!)  PLUS, he doesn't have to go back for a month.  I knew that would happen.  He is just doing so very well and just keeps progressing.  Now we tackle the food thing and he will have it made, till the next surgery.

MIGHTY MAX

Last week I scooted off to the cabin on a Wednesday and stayed till Sunday!!!  I figured I had nothing else going on and I'M RETIRED!!!  The Hubby showed up Friday afternoon.  It was absolute bliss.  I sat on my screened porch with a fire, my book and then I painted a bit.  Absolute bliss.  

I painted a still life...

"Fall is in the Air"

and...

"Big Red"

which I already sold.  Yes I have painted him before, in fact this is the third time, but they sell almost immediately.

Back to reality (meaning to town) and I hit the ground running with a 1-1/2 hour visit to the dealership for "required maintenance" and to get two nails out of one of my tires.  Glad I didn't have a blowout on the drive to the cabin.  Tuesday was our annual review on our retirement accounts, and finally Wednesday a bit of time at the easel.  I finished this little jewel and really like it.

"Fall Hay"

16x20

Monday was also back to cooking for us.  I had some frozen shrimp, feta, tomatoes, asparagus and rice.  I decided to do the feta back with the tomatoes then took out the immersion blender and whizzed up this to pour over a 1/4 cup of rice.  The asparagus I roasted in the oven and halfway through put the shrimp on top.  All seasoned with salt and pepper and I think Italian seasoning.  It was pretty yummy.

The week before I had my annual Medicare physical.  Don't mind telling you I was jittery about it.  I'm kind of a white coat-syndrome gal, my blood pressure tends to be high at first.  I was worried because I've again put a few pounds on ARGHHHHH!  But when the nurse put the cuff on I was amazed it was pretty perfect!  Then of course he harped on my weight and was again trying to push the Monjaro like diabetes drugs that people are taking to lose weight.  I AGAIN explained that first of all several of them, if not all, have warnings about a rare thyroid cancer.  I have thyroid issues in my family, me included, benign tumors on brother and my father's thyroid (his removed.)  My great-grandfather on my mother's side DIED of thyroid cancer.  So I am not inclined to be a test subject on that crap.  Also, many years ago there was FenFin that everyone was doing to lose weight and I was one of those that was put on it.  I lost weight, yes.  I stopped it (not sure why) and boy am I glad because the bad side effect was heart damage and open heart surgeries!!!!!  HOLY CRAP!  So I will continue on with eating fairly well on my own, ESPECIALLY after my labs came back.  To quote my doctor, "your labs are EXCELLENT!"  Well, that answers a lot about how I'm doing on my food.  I probably, know I should be exercising.  I'm going to take some steps in that direction...LOL.

Giggles and Smiles

It was a great day yesterday.  He giggled and laughed, grabbed my hair and jabbered.  It was a good day!

 

Happy Labor Day Weekend

Happy Labor Day Weekend.  

I've chosen to stay in town this weekend while The Hubby is on a guy trip to Colorado.  Good for him.  Yesterday I decided to do a figurative workshop in town, a one day event.  Frankly I was quite disappointed in how it turned out.  The morning "instructor" came in looking like the cat dragged him in and complained he didn't sleep much, up late painting for a show, he said!  He started to talk, kind of hem-hawing around and sketching a model that sat for him.  He was using an extremely light pencil, so light I could not see ANYTHING he was marking and I was sitting close.  Half the time he just tentatively drew without talking.  I nearly went to sleep.  Then the last 30 minutes of the morning we drew the girls head.  I didn't do too bad, and it looked like a girl, just not that girl.  LOL!  He never looked at what I did to critique it, not once.  The time was up and he was out of there.  Lunch, which I brought then we were to have a "long pose" with the same model.  She models like this for a living, nude modeling, all over the country and actually world.  WOW!  Back from lunch she was set up on a chaise lounge like thing, nude for an entire pose but the bad part was it was the same view I had from 3 hours of the morning!  BORING!  I started over and over again and really got too bored from it all.  The last hour and a half I just did her head, even left-handed as I nodded off then finally I just packed it up and looked at my phone.  I really like the quick poses that make you make marks.  I don't think I am a long pose kind of gal really.  Or could be the set up was just not inspiring me at all.  Oh yes, I'm glad I did it, got to hang with artists, but, probably not again.  I'll still do the Thursday evening gathering, I love that, but taking an entire Saturday, maybe not.  I don't even have anything to show for my trouble. 

Life carries on.  I cannot believe they are all in their happy little home and trying to get back to the new normal.

 

MOMENTOUS DAY!!!

This is from our daughter about our dear Mighty Max!!!

We’re going home in the morning! Seven weeks since our initial admit with Max vomiting blood, the discovery of a blood infection, a clot, and an open heart surgery. We’ve spent 161 days in the hospital this year and only 75 at home. That’s about 2/3 of a year inpatient, not including the multitude of doctor’s appointments since that first anatomy scan a little over a year ago, with many more to go. Here’s Max with his two surgeons, Dr. Burkhart and Dr. Nakamura. We cannot thank them enough, or the whole team for that matter (you know who you all are

). We will miss everyone terribly (but not being inpatient, that’s for sure)! We are praying for a long home stay, a cozy holiday season, much music making, sibling bonding, snuggles, and a healthy Fall/Winter. Thank you EVERYONE for all your prayers, donations, fiery emails to the car dealership, meals, messages, and love. There’s no way we would’ve survived without this outpouring of support. And eternal thanks to my incredibly hospitable cousins, Jack and Dee, for housing us for months on end. And thank you once again and especially to the Pediatric Cardiovascular Program at Oklahoma Children’s Hospital. Thank you for saving our son’s life. You all do incredible, invaluable work and we are so grateful.

FINALLY he is coming home after a very long time but doing so very well.

He is such a happy little man, even after all he has gone through this past 8 months.  He will officially be 9 months old in a week.  BUT he will be home to celebrate and to celebrate this dumpling's 4th birthday.  

So very much to be thankful for.  She is celebrating and so is Snicklefritz the day before hers.  The week before is her Auntie Biff's.  I try to  have a family gathering in September mainly for my mother-in-law's birthday but since she has left us I continue to do it.  We have so many birthdays in the month of September and the first two days of October, it just makes sense to keep the tradition up and honor her. Not even sure when I will be able to do it as they have their own little parties to plan.  We will squeeze in there somewhere.

Max & Min #2

Well, yesterday is in the books...DONE, DONE, DONE!  And according to the doctors it went very well.  Little Max is resting, not so much comfortably but resting with a lot of meds onboard.  The new blood flow to his brain will cause some intense miserable headaches for a few days but they will pass.  Now we PRAY that the healing keeps up and he can go home soon and WITHOUT OXYGEN!  We need to him to be able to be a normal, or somewhat normal little boy.

Min is also doing great, although the 5 am wakeup call two mornings in a row has got to stop.  Today she started preschool again and she was just so excited to go.  I do hope she gets a nap like yesterday but with her class.  

Here's to the future and whatever it holds, only good stuff please.

Max and Min - PRAYERS

Good morning.  It's 7 am, yet I've been awake since a bit before 6, along with MIN!  Yup, she is once again our house guest.  Her daddy came to get her Thursday and The Hubby and I had some alone time till yesterday evening.  Her daddy headed back to OKC to be by Af's side and Max's bedside.  Today is his surgery day, the 2nd of 3 he will have.  This one, the Glenn, shouldn't take but a few hours and he will not be left open like the Norwood, the was the day after his birth.  He will also be extubated before he is out of the operating room, again unlike last time.  His recovery should, SHOULD be about 7 days, unlike the last time of 90 days.  Please pray all goes according to plan and expectations.  It's very nerve wracking for his parents and all of us who can't be at the hospital to support.  Little Max is 8 months old now and such a bright light. He loves to sit up in his bed, watch cartoons and play with his toys.  He's ready to move on with his life!!!

Min got her cast off last week and is getting around so good now.  She even rode around on her tricycle on the back porch last night.  Today I take her to meet her teachers at her preschool and tomorrow she starts school!!!  Eventful week.

 

Weekend of Fun, Week of "Here We Go Again!"

 We scooted off to the cabin this weekend for more R&R and a bit of friend time.  Our little group was sparse but Lesa was there to do the chit-chat Saturday evening along with her hubby.  We were thrilled by the rain on the roof all weekend and even last night here at home.  

Art, oh how I love creating art.  The drawing group is going to have to be put on hold for at least a couple of weeks (hope it's not 3!)  Today begins my stretch of watching Min full time again.  Little Max is supposed to have his next surgery Friday as he has outgrown the shunt that was put in the previous surgery in January.  It is just time.  He's been in the hospital since I think June 8 when all HELL broke loose for his family.  Honestly, I've only seen her twice since then as their parents have been taking turns being back in town with her, which I must say was a welcome respite from it all.  It allowed me to finally get rested and well.  Last week was the turning point for me with the glands in my throat to finally settle down and recede in their swollenness! I'm so thankful for a full nights sleep without pain and not taking Tylenol forever.  I actually had someone say to me that maybe it was all in my head.  Don't mind telling you I was pissed by that statement as it was not in my head, the pain was quite real.  Oh well, onward to the task at hand today.  THANKFULLY little Min got her cast off last Friday but I'm not sure she is using the leg yet.  I don't blame her it is scary to start walking again after a cast has been taken off.  With me I had a walking cast so I was used to walking again, she is not.  It is still green in healing so she does still have to be careful.  Not sure I can carry her around all day long though, she's nearly 4 years old and my back is 67 years old!!!

Hopefully, HOPEFULLY I will be able to go to the studio and paint but not sure at this point.  With her around it's kind of iffy.  You know when Snicklefritz was young she would either paint at her easel or sit in a chair or windowsill and watch me endlessly.  She loved to watch me and still does.  Min is a different story.  She wants to touch and be in the middle of it all, different child for sure.  I'm hoping on Wednesday to get back to this little jewel I've been working on.  I'm taking my time trying to make it happen.  In fact, this is my second attempt at painting it.  It's bigger of course with her smelling roses and holding a Victorian lace parasol.  Definitely a challenge, a challenge I'm willing to try.  Hard to do with a 3 year old in the mix.  

Have to tell you I'm extremely apprehensive about the week and how long it will be having Min with us.  This week alone I have something every night so I've already canceled two of them, mainly because The Hubby won't be here to watch her either.  I'm hoping to make it to my book club because he dances that night and I've asked B to come but Snicklefritz's first day of school is Thursday and they have a ritual of the night before school starting.  Lesa said she could watch her and I may take her up on that at this point.  I'm only gone a couple of hours and frankly The Hubby could watch her an hour of that time.  I'll make it happen.  IF the doctors DON'T do the surgery on Friday and want to wait a bit longer then I'm going to have to insist that one parent come home to care for her.  The long term thing I can do just so long before I cry "UNCLE!"  It's just too much on me.  There comes a time when you realize you are too old for this kind of thing.  

Big Blue Eyes

Good morning.  Look at those bright blue eyes.  Max is doing good and just biding his time till surgery.  Can't wait to hold and snuggle him again.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/MaxMancini

You will NOT believe what happened Sunday.  They got a "new-not-new" car for both of them to replace the crushed ones.  Nick got his two weeks ago and Sunday he was heading back to OKC to be with Max while Af stayed with Min.  He didn't even make it out of the city when the "new" car made a huge banging noise, and started spewing fluid and multiple warning lights started to light up!  Catastrophic Engine Failure!!!  Something to do with a water pump.

Can the heavens please give them some better luck PLEASE!  It is absolutely crazy what is going on with their life right now.  I'm taking it that there is something more, greater for ALL of them in this life.  

The past few weeks Snicklefritz has been coming in the mornings to stay while her parents are at work.  We've done things like paint, clean up paint, clean out under my sink, my makeup drawer, get donuts, out to eat for breakfast, etc.  Monday (I've been telling we would do this for weeks) we dug into my trunk.  My trunk or as it used to be called "Hope Chest" is in her room when she comes to stay.  I have all kinds of junk in there.  My mother's wedding dress and veil, my wedding dress and veil.  I have letters from friends and pen pals over the years, collections of poems I collected in high school, trinkets, clay work I did in art class over 50 years ago.  Just plain junk.  I even have the back pocket of my bell bottom jeans that I wore completely out.  It was my initials I embroidered but some called it initials for Cute Butt!  

She kind of got bored with some of it and that is totally okay.  I also collected sayings and hung them on my wall.  I loved this one:

and especially loved these.  The last one would have been my mother's mantra.  

Today she is going to spend the night because this getting up early during the summer is getting to her.  HA!  I will totally let her sleep in as long as she wants tomorrow.  Today we will go to the studio again and paint.  Yesterday I spent so much time paying bills and running to the post office and bank that I was not in the mood.  Today is paint day.  Need to finish a landscape and another I've started.  

This is the second day in a row that I have not been awakened by my glands swollen in my throat!  I think I have finally overcome whatever was happening in my body.  I still feel a tiny twinge in the gland and will take some Tylenol to head it off from getting started swelling but I think the tide has turned, only 2 months later.  WTF!

A Little Bit of Life

Good morning all.  The rains have certainly cooled off of those 100 degree July days.  They are saying the over 100 days are over for the summer, but seeing is believing.  The weekend we did skip off to the cabin again for some R&R.  It was nice to hear the rain on the metal roof Saturday/Sunday morning.  Our usual weekend group all got together on Friday evening for a Mexican dinner and chit-chat in the cool of a cabin.  It's been awhile since we had nearly everyone together, and everyone, I mean who's left.  In our little gathering group we've lost 3 in the past three years, two just this year.  It does not feel good and brings me to tears a lot.  The past couple of weeks we've had two funerals one of our cabin friends and one long time friend who lost her battle with breast cancer.  I guess as you get older this is bound to happen but really they were all too young.  It's a bit scary, especially since I've been battling this unknown throat monster and not sure what is actually going on with it.  If it's allergies then good, nothing more, but there's always the nagging thing in the back of my brain that says, "could be more!"  Honestly so tired of not having a voice most of the time and the pain in my glands causes me to lose sleep a lot.  

Painting has been not been the forefront of my mind but did get this little gem done a couple of weeks ago.  I'm working on some more things but I've had the older grand, Snicklefritz a lot with me the past couple of weeks with a couple more to go before she is back in school.  It's just been so hot I've not wanted to get out much and I've been avoiding the air, just in case it is allergies that are being triggered.  I did finally have lunch a long awaited lunch with my sweet brother on Friday and we plan on doing it sooner than later again.  It was nice to visit with him.  

Just not a lot on my mind yet there is a lot on my mind.  We have the impending surgery coming up with our baby Max and that is on everyone's mind.  He's doing well in the hospital where he will be till the surgery and after a bit.  Sure do want him home and life to get into a regular life routine for EVERYONE! Soon, very soon.

1915-1979

This guy, my Grandaddy would have been 108 years old today. Sadly he lost his battle to lung cancer at a very young age, 63, the same age as sister Dana was last month. DAMN cigarettes!

Jamie Sangster (1915-1979) passed away a few days after his all time favorite actor, John Wayne, and a few months before his first great-grandchild was to enter this world. He was really excited to meet her and saved his change for nearly my entire pregnancy for her. When he was gone Granny gave me that gigantic jar of money and I started her college fund with it. Grandaddy was an incredible businessman and all around person. He and Granny moved to the BA area when my mother was young, living in the Alsuma area-61st & Garnett, where mother graduated from Union High School (our daughters too.) They had a turkey farm, orchards and farmland. After they quit that life they moved to town to the house on Main, which my parents bought from them and I grew up. He had the Purina Feed Store for many years and went from there to a used car lot and finally real estate. The real estate was where he shined. He was a master in selling land. He was very involved in the area sitting on several boards and even the Kerr-McGee Lock and Dam project.

He had a twinkle in his Paul Newman-blue eyes, a giggle that made you want to join in the laughter. He was smart, fair, honest and the best granddaddy ever. I miss him everyday and know that he watches us and approves how we have led our lives.

STOP IT

 I thought I made myself clear, STOP IT with friends who are leaving this world.  Found out that a dear friend, Kellie Slade left us after a lengthy and brave battle with breast cancer.  DAMMIT!!!  I don't know if I can take this.  Kellie was an absolute hoot.  Her husband Jim has known The Hubby since they were toddlers.  Their mothers were best friends.  Kellie was a whirlwind of fun and laughter and she will be greatly missed.  I'm just heartsick over this loss.  Her birthday was the same as my sister.  She passed 3 days after her birthday.

Quick note:  I went to the ear, nose and throat doctor today and after he asked questions, looked around my mouth and scoped my nose down my throat declared it was allergies and acid reflux.  WTF!!!  How do you explain an excruciatingly painful sore throat for nearly two months!  CRAP...CRAP...CRAP!  He did prescribe a steroid, allergy nose spray and acid reflux medicine.  This is simply crazy.  I am glad he prescribed the steroid as I think that will help but allergies and reflux!  It's true then that I maybe stressing so much over everything I'm making it worse.  The brain is still such an uncharted thing.

Broken Leg

I'm sharing the latest from our youngest daughter about her oldest, Min.  This is ABSOLUTELY the craziest thing.  They CANNOT catch a break.

"Well…I can’t write this s***. Minerva broke her leg.

She went to a birthday party this morning in Tulsa…one of only two parties she got to go to this year. And within two minutes of being there, she broke her leg in the bounce house. I wasn’t there, Nick was, but they called right after it happened. Apparently a bigger kid landed on her leg. Hard to get a straight story. It was hard to gauge the damage because she wouldn’t let us inspect it and was very upset. We thought she was just shaken up by all the chaos of the party/our life right now. So they left and started to head down here to OKC like we had planned. (I’ve been in OKC since Thursday). She wouldn’t straighten out her leg or walk on it. By the time they got here she was pretty inconsolable and it was clear that it wasn’t just emotional upset. No (almost) four year old would commit to such a show for so long. So we took her to the ER at the same hospital Max is at (again, if you’ve been following along since her pink eye last month). After many pain killers, screams, and X-rays we saw that she had indeed broken her tibia, straight across. Nothing displaced, thank God, but she will have a cast for four to six weeks. She’s in fairly good spirits, but the multiple pain meds make it hard to judge her state at the moment. At least we got some good laughs and video for the archives. These will go in a scrap book for sure.

I don’t know what to say at this point other than we are hanging on by a thread. Our GoFundMe is still up, we need all the prayers, and a stiff drink or two.

Thank you all."

https://gofund.me/1a5415de

I've written here before about MY broken leg at age 11 so I can totally sympathize with them, with Min. Weirdly the week I got my cast off was when my grandmother broke her ankle in Hawaii!

Loss, Yet Again

June was a horrible month, should have been a good month (my birthday you know!)  

We lost Dana on June 20th.

This is the last photo of us three.  Daddy is gone, Momma is gone and now Dana is gone.  Heartbreaking.

We also lost our sweet friend Tom a few months ago.  

July 15 would have been my best friend Gail's birthday.  It went by without a blip in most minds.  Then July 18 would have been Dana's 64th birthday.  

This week we lost yet another friend that we've know for 21 years, dear Maggie.

She had a massive stroke on Friday morning and was gone by Wednesday.  Man, she and I were messaging a month ago talking about stopping by to visit her but I just didn't feel well enough to be around her.  DAMMIT!  Wish I had just gone to see her.  

This stuff is just happening too often, I am damn tired of it.  I need a few months, no a year or two without losses.  I miss my sister, my momma, my daddy, everyone.  Doesn't help I have been sick for over a month now.  

Honestly today I actually feel like I am getting better.  Can you imagine having a sore throat for over a month, well, I don't have to imagine as I have been dealing with that.  Every swallow has been excruciating but today it is finally where I am not eating Tylenol or Advil.  Of course, it is just before I FINALLY got an appointment with an ear, nose and throat doctor on Monday.  I bet by the time I go in there will be no pain whatsoever.  Just my luck.  It honestly feels like a throat infection.  At least I am on the mend, I feel it.  The past three nights I have slept better than the past month.  My voice is a tad better but I'm trying not to use it much which seems to be helping.  

The babies are all home in their respective homes.  I've had Snicklefritz every morning so her mother could go to work.  She really is quite wonderful to have around.  Next week she goes to horse camp and she is so very excited.  I'm pretty sure I will have her in August before school starts too.  Her favorite thing to eat at my house is breakfast, scrambled eggs, cinnamon toast or waffle.  I taught her how to make the scrambled eggs and now she gets all the stuff out and makes it all by herself, I just supervise.  She LOVES my scrambled eggs.  We've eaten out breakfast a few times too this week.  Yesterday I had both girls as there was a car shuffle with Min's parents as they are still trying to make do with one car.  I think they've got the second one now.  Anyway I had her yesterday too so I took them for breakfast at a place here in Tulsa, Big Baby Rolls that specializes in vegan donuts and cinnamon rolls.  OMG, absolutely delicious.  It was fun on a rainy morning and then a grocery pickup, some watercolor painting, granny napping, yes Friday stuff.  I love having them but I do need some rest this next week and will totally take it.  

So my week is a doctor appointment, which is absolutely NOTHING!  Then delivery of paintings for an art show that opens in Broken Arrow on Thursday.  I've had to enlist my friend/former studio partner, Linda to deliver the paintings on Monday as I will be at the doctor.  We'll having the opening on Thursday and I hope my voice is better by then.  Lunch with my brother on Friday (missed this week because of my gaggle of children in tow) and hoping to head to the cabin after that.  I'm going to try and enjoy my free time the next few weeks, rest, paint and act like I'm retired before August 31.  That is when our little Max has his next surgery.  He is doing very well and even got his first tooth with another one on it's way.  We are hoping that he breezes through this next surgery and will be home quickly, just in time for Min to start her preschool classes again of which I'm sure I will be her taxi driver.  This time next year things (praying) will be more on the normal scale.  

Sketching (and that nagging SORE THROAT)

Thursday night I took my first life drawing class.  I've been in a class that painted from real life but not something like this!  I will tell you as time drew near to go I was almost in the flight stage of just skipping it and losing the $20 but I knew I HAD to go.  I wanted to go.  I NEEDED to go.  I packed up my stuff and headed out to an old house in the south part of downtown.  Out of the car, up the steps and into a whole new world for me.  The first person I saw was a guy named Randy O. that I knew from another art group.  Nice guy. There was another much older guy who I was introduced to but immediately forgot his name.  In fact I barely remembered anyone's name because I was so nervous.  The lady whose art house this was popped around the corner and immediately welcomed me by name and got me all set up to begin.  There were I think 6 or 7 of us set up in a two room area and in the middle a lady, in a robe was getting all ready for us to draw.  I heard some mumbling in the front room about 3 minutes, 10 poses but it did not register in my brain and all of a sudden at exactly 6:30, the lady in the robe, dropped her robe and we were on.  I knew it was a nude model life drawing class but it is still a shock to be in mixed company and have that happen.  She posed and I started slowly to try and make some marks on my paper.  I guess 3 minutes had passed in that short time and I had barely made a mark on the paper when I heard a beep and she changed poses.  CRAP, I quickly shifted to the other corner of the paper and started again but was met with the beep I would imagine was 3 minutes.  Paper shuffling I changed paper and my determination to get more than a few marks on the paper.  I started drawing quick marks to just get the bare minimum of marks on the paper to look like the pose.  This continued for another 7 poses at 3 minutes each.  Every time she changed and I started another one I got better and better and faster and faster till the end of that part of the session I actually had forms on the paper.  Then we had 3 sessions of 10 minutes each.  There I got better again with a bit more time to fine tune the figure on paper.  Then we 2 sessions of 20 minutes and it was so much better but you know I felt like I was better at the mark making at the 3 minute times.  All in all I LOVED IT, absolutely LOVED IT!  I cannot wait to go next week.  I'll miss the week after that but I hope to make this my weekly drawing class.  It was such fun and a great drawing exercise.

The few days before the class I worked on these in my sketchbook/watercolor journal.

And this one at the studio, yes I got some time at my actual easel!

This sketch is from a photo I’ve loved forever. It’s me at the sink doing dishes for the first time as a wife (47 years ago) after cooking my first meal as a wife. I know, I know, little did I know what that meant at the time. Still I was blissfully happy here. It was also in our first apartment that we loved so much.

Now on to my body.  I am STILL battling this sore throat thing and it has really got me in my head with worry, to the point my blood pressure is up.  All kinds of things are going through my head, throat cancer, leukemia (bloody noses-2), who knows, but I am DAMN TIRED OF HURTING!  Every night is a struggle to swallow because of the pain.  My doctor last week said lets see how it goes but over the weekend I decided I'm done with this pain.  Yes it is a tad better but not enough to ignore it.  My glands a swollen a bit too and there is sinus drainage.  I think I still have a sinus infection and unfortunately think I NEED another antibiotic and maybe a steroid, but who am I, not a doctor!  But I know my body and I need something.  It has been since June 8 that I have been sick and fighting off something.  It is time to get serious and stop the pain.