Category: March

Spring Break 2019

Spring Break was a week earlier than usual this year, and with as much time off in February as we had by the time it came to Spring Break I felt like we had already been having a Spring Break.

Ryan and I talked about doing something further away like maybe Chicago or Gulf Shores. Neither of us got around to planning it though and we had asked our friends the McDonald’s to do something with us. By the time we did get around to planning it we decided to do a long weekend in St Louis with the McDonald’s and spend the rest of the week at home.

Monday was my catch up day. I told the kids that I was going to be checking as much off my to do list as I could then we would have more Spring Break like activities the rest of the week. Monday was actually the first sunny day with temperatures in the 40’s instead of teens so it felt wonderful to be outside. I ‘made’ the kids go to the park for 30 minutes at least. Three hours later I had to drag them home with sun burned faces. After a quick refueling they were back outside playing baseball and riding bikes, playing tag, roller skating, digging in the dirt, and having a great time being outside. It definitely gave us all Spring fever. It was just a teaser though because the rest of the week was cold windy and rainy.

Tuesday was cold and rainy so we decided to go swimming at the Olathe Community Center with the rest of the people in Olathe. Despite the large crowd the kids still had fun. Emilee in particular can’t wait until it is swimming weather again.

Allison picked our activity on Wednesday. A few weeks earlier she had gone to the Johnson County Museum with her girl scout troop. She loved the kids area and has been begging to go back again. We invited our cousins to go with us. The boys stayed behind to play some video games and the girls came with us. They played at the museum until we were all hungry and then we went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch. We topped the day off with a sleepover.

  • Johnson County Museum
  • ‘modern art’ toys
  • Spinning chairs at the museum.

Thursday we played around the house and packed up to get ready to go on our weekend getaway. Friday morning we followed the McDonald’s to St Louis and spent the weekend there. We stopped for lunch and then went to The Arch. We had all seen it before but we had never been in it, or seen the museum with it. It was cool to see the view from the arch. The tiny round 5 person pod that takes you 600+ feet into the air was a little claustrophobic but bearable. After the arch we checked into our hotel and then went to Dave-N-Busters for dinner and to play in the arcade for the evening. Matthew figured out the timing on one of the ticket winning machines so he scored a bunch of tickets for everyone. It almost took longer for then to ‘shop’ with their tickets than it did to play the games. It was a fun night.

Then next morning after breakfast at the hotel (one of the kids favorite things about staying in a hotel) we went to the City Museum. It is an incredible place. It is an old ten story building that they have converted into a giant play area. We went a few years ago and it was a little nerve racking trying to keep track of the kids. They can crawl in a hole and come out in a completely different room. It is almost impossible to keep track of them. They are older now so I was a little less worried. We set a meeting spot and split up to explore. There is caves, and a catacomb area with a ten story slide. There are basically just mazes and places to crawl around all over. There is an outside portion the has tunnels and paths leading all around that is literally attached to the side of the building so you are hanging in the air. Everything is made with recycled material too. It is hard to explain but it is a pretty amazing place. We spent most of the day there exploring. When we were worn out, we ate lunch and then stopped at a well known ice cream place that I can not for the life of me remember the name of now. It was yummy though. We were meeting our long time friends the Schellman’s that night so we had about an hour to kill before we were supposed to meet them. We all decided to stop at the park and play because the weather was pretty nice. After dinner and visiting with the Schellman’s for a few hours we met back up with the McDonald’s at the hotel and the kids all swam for a few hours. The second best part about staying in a hotel. Sunday morning we went to church with the Schellman’s and then drove home. It was a fun weekend. It was nice to get out of town for a few days and enjoy some fun time with family and friends.

  • Fortune cookie at dinner on Spring Break
  • We went to St Louis with the McDonald’s
  • Top of the St Louis Arch
  • Entrance to the pod that takes you to the top of the arch.
  • The McDonald Pod
  • The Terry Pod
  • Riding up to the top of the arch in our five man pod.
  • looking out the tiny windows
  • Top of the Arch
  • Top of the Arch
  • View from the top of the Arch
  • Top of the Arch 2019
  • Lined up against the outside of the Arch
  • City Museum in St Louis
  • Allison crawling through a tube above me.
  • Emilee peaking out a castle window.

Mystery Lunch with the Girl Scouts

Emilee and Allison both went to the red carpet mystery lunch that another Girl Scout Troop put on. Neither of them had been before so they didn’t quite understand what it was. They are given a menu with items to order in four separate courses. Each course has three choices from the menu but you can only pick each one once. After a course was finished they took your plate away so that you didn’t have anything to start the next course. The entire meal was macaroni noodles with spaghetti sauce, meatballs, and Parmesan cheese, lemonade, a bread stick, salad with ranch, and a Ding Dong for dessert. Emilee was not amused when they brought her the first course she had ordered. It was a knife, fork and meatballs. She lightened up and enjoyed it when her next course included a Hostess Ding Dong. Allison and her troop were swapping and trading their food so they could all get a good course. One of her courses was ranch, Parmesan cheese and a fork. After they finished eating they let all the girls walk the read carpet in the fancy dresses or whatever they wore and get pictures taken. Emilee was mortified, Allison ate it up. Overall it was a fun activity.

  • Girls Scout Mystery Meal
  • Mystery meal red carpet walk
  • Mystery Meal Red Carpet
  • Mystery Meal Red Carpet

Spring Break Part 2

Wednesday was our beach day. As I mentioned it wasn’t really hot while we were there.  We went to the Ft Desoto Beach. It is a beautiful beach, white sand, blue water. It was freezing though. It wouldn’t have been to bad but it was windy so once you got wet it was even colder. The kids still got in and played for a bit. The wind made some bigger waves so they thought that was cool. There wasn’t really anyone else there which meant the sea shells hadn’t been picked over for a while so the girls found some nice sea shells. We finished our beach day by building a sand castle then hurried back to the car to get warm. We were only at the beach for about an hour so we had time to go to the power plant by the ocean called TEKO. It pumps out a lot of warm water so it attracts hundreds of Manatees. They have put in a really nice boardwalk area to see them and the Mangroves. We saw lots of cool fish, a couple sharks, and tons of Manatees. They look like giant potatoes floating in the water. After we got home and cleaned up and ate dinner we watched the movie Coco together and called it  a night.

Thursday was another one of my favorite days we were there. We went to a place called Weeki Wachee. It is a natural spring that they have made a big swimming area with slides and a beach. They have a live mermaid show we went to first when we got there. Alli especially was very excited to see it, she loves mermaids. We all decided it was a big flop though. I think it is the same show they have been doing since it opened decades ago. They could make it really awesome but it was not that good. We went over to the swim area afterwards and once again had the place pretty much to ourselves. Once we got in the water it wasn’t bad at all. We had goggles so we could swim and see all the fish and other animals that were in the bay. When you held still for any period of time  dozens of fish (we called them zebra fish because they were black and white striped) would come and surround you and it looked like they were just starring at you. There were lots of other fish, including a very active flying fish that much to our delight liked to show off his flying skills. There was a turtle or two swimming around too. We all were pretty impressed and thought it was awesome. The girls took turns burying each other in the sand too which they had wanted to do at the beach but didn’t.

After we played at the beach area for a while we walked over to the kayak rental area. Sherri and I and my kids rented two tandem kayaks and then went down the  river on a 5.5 mile float trip. It was BEAUTIFUL!!  It was breathtaking. The plants and trees around the water were thick and it felt like you were floating through a gorgeous jungle. The  water was clear so you could see the bottom and all the plants and animals in between. It varied in depth from a few inches to around 20 feet deep.  There were many places along the way where a little beach area opened up so you can pull over and stop for a bit if you want. We did it once or twice to stretch our legs. The hope is to see some manatees but there is a lot of other animals to see too. We saw a raccoon, tons of different kinds of fish and birds (the ones we knew the names of was a wild turkey, black vultures, crane and an Egrit) a snake (gross), far to many spiders and other bugs, and the last mile or two we saw two manatees! We paddled along side the first one for about a half mile or so.  Against Matthew’s protests and best attempts to sabotage our efforts those of us that wanted to were able to touch him. They feel like potatoes too.  It was pretty awesome, we just followed him along and he swam back and forth and underneath us. Eventually he slowed down and we went on ahead. When we started out it was about 70 and nice and warm, it took several hours to get down the river so it got a little chilly by the end. We were very glad to get home and take a warm shower. It was a pretty awesome day though.

 

Friday morning it was time to pack up and restock snacks and load the car up. We took our time getting ready. Kenny put new brakes and rotors on my car too. We left early afternoon and drove to Nashville the first day. We got home about seven on Saturday. I was supposed to pick Ryan up from the airport at midnight but his plane was delayed and I didn’t pick him up until 3 am. Today has been our recover from vacation day to be ready to get back to real life tomorrow.

It was an awesome Spring Break. We did a lot of fun cool things but I love just getting to see my sister and her family. I felt the same way when I went to see DeAnna. I love staying up late and talking about whatever and being there and seeing what their lives are like. I don’t know if we will ever live by each other which makes me sad because we would all  love it. For now I have to take advantage of the times we do get to see each other and enjoy them as much as possible. I always have a bit of a mourning period after I leave from seeing one of them. We of course talk on the phone and text pretty often but it isn’t the same. We always pick right back up like we saw each other yesterday when we do get together. I am glad that all of our husbands are pretty good about helping us work out opportunities to see each other. It will never be often enough though.

Spring Break Florida Part 1

Our first full day in Florida was very nice and relaxing. We slept in and then played games and visited with each other. Kenny grilled up some burgers for lunch and we at those and played in Sherri’s yard. She has a swing set, hammock, plenty of room to run, and the biggest hit was her zip line. It is about 90 feet long and everyone took a couple turns. The kids took an uncountable amount of turns. They loved it. We played outside most of the afternoon. It was in the mid 70’s so the weather was perfect. That night Kenny started a fire in their huge fire pit and we roasted hot dogs and smore’s for dinner. We finished off the day with a game or two of Kick The Can.

Monday was one of my favorite days while we were there. The morning was a little chilly and rainy so we went to the Florida Aquarium. Alli got to pet some sting rays which was on her must do list so she was happy to get to do that. By the time we were done with the Aquarium we grabbed some lunch and went to the zoo. The rain had stopped and the sun was out. It was perfect weather. Almost every animal we saw at the zoo was up and about and active which the kids loved. We have been to lots of zoos but we saw a few animals we had never seen before, one of the most memorable was the sloth bear. The Orangatans were really active and there was three new babies the kids loved watching play. We fed the Lorikeets too. When we have done it at the KC zoo they have feeding times that everyone does all at once. At this zoo they just had you buy some nectar and you can feed them so it wasn’t as crowded and you could take your time.  We told the kids they could pick a souvenior while we were in Florida and they usually pick a stuffed animal for their souveniors. They decided to get one at the zoo. Alli got a sting wray, Emilee got a clouded leopard, and Matthew got a leopard. There was a little kid area with some rides that the kids tried out after we looked at all the animals. It was a really nice day.  That was that was the tone for the whole week. The weather was a little cold for Florida so there wasn’t a lot of people everywhere we went. It made it feel even more relaxing and fun to not have to fight crowds. We got a babysitter for the kids that night and the four of us went out to a Sushi/Thai place.  Kenny and Ryan got their sushi and Sherri helped me order some Thai Curry food that I loved. We are wanting to get a RV rental business going so we talked a lot about that too.

We slept in on Tuesday again. Kenny is a morning person. He pops up like a daisy between 6-7 every morning.  Not going to lie, I’m a little jealous but it is not in the cards for me. The rest of us are not morning people and enjoyed getting a little extra sleep. We packed a lunch and went downtown to a park by the river. After we ate and played a while we went to the Children’s Museum. Matthew is getting a little old for them but he found some fun things to do. Everyone else had a good time. After that Kenny’s parents had invited us to come over and swim in their pool so we headed over there. I took Ryan to the airport to catch his flight to his annual friend get together in Las Vegas for March Madness. The kids were done swimming when I got back so we went home and had dinner then played outside. We ended the day with a game of Kick The Can again.

 

Spring Break! Here we come Florida!

A few months ago it dawned on me that we had never gone to see my sister Sherri in Florida so we planned a trip for apring break and made it happen.  I love family vacation road trips.  I like having the whole family stuck in a car and having no real schedule. Just a week of hanging out and having fun together. As the kids have gotten a little older and more self sufficient it is even better. We have our fair share of arguments, tiredness and emergency potty breaks, but overall I really enjoy our road trips. We have made a few guidelines for our trips over the years that make things go smoother for us.

Rule #1- Talk it up before hand and dicuss things they can watch for and look at on the way. If you miss these things as we are driving because you are sleeping or have your nose stuck in an electronic you can not throw a fit about it. 🙂

Rule #2- If we will be traveling over 12-13 hours we will split it up and take two days. Then the drivers aren’t exhausted and the kids don’t have cabin fever when we arrive.

Rule #3- When staying at a hotel, pack a small overnight bag ahead of time with pj’s, clothes for the next day, swimsuites, and toiletries for everyone. Then when we get to the hotel we will be staying in for maybe twelve hours we grab one bag to take in with us and don’t have to haul EVERYTHING in and repack it. So much easier.

Rule #4-The kids are in charge of picking the movies and toys they want to bring. I used to try and pack the toys and movies and other things that I thought the kids would want. Then get frusterated when they weren’t interested or never used half the stuff I brought. They bring so much less stuff and play more with it when they pick what they bring.  Even if it is a broken piece of a toy that does nothing…???

Rule #5- Everyone has to give me a treat and healthy snack idea to pack for the same reasons that apply to rule #4

Rule #6- When we make a stop, everyone has to use the restroom whether they think they need to or not. NO exceptions. If mom is driving without dad this rule includes limiting your liquids because I stop a lot less than dad does.

We like seeing the different parts of the country as we drive too.  This trip took us through the Smokey Mountains. They are so beautiful and literally look like they are smoking with fog. There were lots of trees starting to bud for Spring too. We added Alabama and Georgia to our list of states we have now traveled through on this trip. Alli had a brief relapse of the flu right before we left but it only put us a half day behind our original schedule. We left Friday afternoon and stayed at a hotel in Mt Vernon MO.

Our kids are pretty good travelers thanks to electronics, snacks, and toys. One of the highlights of any vacation for the kids but especially Emilee, is staying in a hotel. She asks me to go on vacation to sleep in a hotel all the time. Sometimes we go swimming (I don’t, hotel swimming pools gross me out big time) but not always. They love going down to breakfast in the morning and picking whatever they want to eat.

We drove the rest of the way to Florida on Saturday, and got to the French’s about nine that night. The last hour or so we did another one of our favorite car ride activities. We play a bunch of our favorite songs and sing along while we rock out.  Our songs change pretty often but these are the current top 20 of our favorite rocking out songs for this trip. We pick songs that everyone knows so we can all sing.

  1. Fight Song-Rachel Platten
  2. Good to Be Alive-Andy Grammer
  3. How Far I’ll Go- Disney’s Moana
  4. Sweet Caroline-Neil Diamond
  5. Let It Go-Disney’s Frozen
  6. HandClap- Fitz  & the Tantrums
  7. Just Give Me a Reason-Pink
  8. Sweet Baby James-James Taylor
  9. Demons- Imagine Dragons
  10. Cecilia- Simon& Garfunkel
  11. Believer- Imagine Dragons
  12. Thunder-Imagind Dragons
  13. Stitches-Shawn Mendes
  14. Defying Gravity- Glee Remake
  15. Carolina In My Mind- James Taylor
  16. We Are the Champions-Queen
  17. Happy- Pharrell Williams
  18. America- Neil Diamond
  19. This is Me- From The Greatest Showman
  20. I See the Light- Disney’s Tangled

 

 

Matthew plays…Futsal?!

About the same time that winter baseball conditioning got started, Joaquin, one of the boys on Matthew’s team asked the kids if they wanted to play on an indoor soccer team- or actually it is called Futsal.  He has played for a while and is pretty good. The head coach (Jimmie) of our baseball team and a friend of his said they would coach any of the boys that wanted to play. Jimmie thought it would be some good extra conditioning for the boys.  It wouldn’t be to much of a time commitment. They have a practice and a game every other week.  The kicker is that the practices are usually Friday nights and the games start between 6-8 on Saturday morning.  Barf! But of course as soon as Matthew heard it could help his baseball conditioning he was all in.

About five of the boys said they would play and then a few younger siblings that play soccer joined giving them a team of about 8-9.  They had there first game before they had any practices just because of how the schedule worked out. So the coaches and Joaquin were literally telling them what they were supposed to do as they were getting ready to head onto the field. This is where it got entertaining. As I mentioned, only one player on the team has ever played soccer on any regular basis. The younger siblings have played but they are 1-2 years younger than everyone else. All the other boys from our baseball team have never played soccer (Matthew played for six weeks when he was four). They are all athletic kids obviously, but their soccer knowledge and skills are pretty limited.  All of this was pretty obvious between the two teams in the three minute warm up time they have before the game starts.

There are seven players on the field at a time so we only have 1-2 subs and once they start the clock it doesn’t stop for 45 minutes except for a 3 minute half time time in the middle. No time outs, no breaks. If you want to switch a player you have to do it really quick while the ball is somewhere else, including the goalie position. We got smoked the first game and the boys were red in the face, gasping for breath, wiped out. Since then though we actually have won a couple games.  There is marked improvement each game. The cheering from the parents is pretty funny. We don’t really know how to cheer for soccer. We don’t know the names of the positions and the exact rules (especially since it is Futsal, not soccer). We keep it pretty generic and laugh at ourselves when we goof up. The boys try their hardest and do a great job. It is a little ridiculous sometimes when they get a little out matched. Some of them take a few minutes to warm up and not be intimidated by the ball. Joaquin is a machine and plays the whole time with enough energy for two players and helps his less Futsal savvy baseball buddies the best he can.

The main reason I wanted to write this post is to remember this particular event in one game. It was hilarious, it has been a few weeks now and every now and then it pops into my head and I start laughing again just as hard. One game, a boy named Frankee was goalie and was really struggling. No matter how many times his dad ‘encouraged’ him to use his hands because he was the goalie-he wouldn’t. I think from the gestures he was making at his dad he was concerned about getting kicked in the face.  Before you start thinking I am making fun of a 12 year old kid. I’m not.  Frankee is one of our best players on our baseball team. He is a great catcher, and third base, and a pretty decent hitter. He has a little flare of drama and humor to him too. Anyway, we started getting pretty behind on points which further frustrated him and he asked, then begged, then insisted that someone replace him. “Coach! Can’t you see I suck?! Take me out!” The problem is we don’t have extra players so there isn’t a lot of wiggle room for moving people around, or time. Eventually he got switched and was a forward ( I think). While all this was taking place his dad (who Frankee gets his humor from) had been getting frustrated with his performance from the stands as well  and was keeping us laughing with his own comments and suggestions. His first play with the ball after Frankee switched positions he was running at the ball and went to kick it and totally missed and caught his foot on the ground and fell on top of himself and a few other kids on his own team, leaving the ball in the middle of three players from the other team to take off with. Oh man, it was so funny!! I wish I had it on video because I would send it to AFV. His dads reaction of shock and shaking his head and putting his head in his hands while muttering something about “I thought we had walking mastered” made it even funnier. Probably more of a had to be there moment to appreciate the full hilariousness of the scene, but like I said, weeks later I still start laughing out loud when I think of it….yep, still makes me laugh.

Fast forward a few weeks and Frankee was goalie again for today’s game and did a great job.  Matthew scored two goals today and is getting some pretty nice footwork skills going. Kudos to all of them for not only trying something new and hanging in there, but doing their best and showing improvement each game, AND doing it at 6am! Blah!! They are a fun group of kids and parents. I am excited for baseball season to start.

 

 

Goodbye February! Part two.

Since I’m talking about being sick I will give a little summary of sickness tolerance of our family. I don’t like my kids to be sick obviously but I do have a little extra nurturing mom side that comes out when they are sick. I love that I can take care of them and I know all of the little things to make them feel better. When Ryan reads the last few sentences he is going to…react…so I will start with the reason for that and get it cleared up.

Ryan and I didn’t really have to many big adjustments to each other when we got married but being sick and the expectations of the other person was one of them that we bumped through a few times. So here are our pre-marriage expectations.

Me 2002- Life needs to continue whether you are sick or not so suck it up and keep going. Colds don’t even count as being sick, they are just a nuisance. If you are sick you are a wimp. Take care of yourself if you are sick.

Ryan 2002- When you are sick, you get in bed and rest and get over it. You don’t go to work, or church or anything because no one wants to be around you anyways and get sick.  Your wife takes care of you and sympathizes with your sickness.

With those expectations in mind…

Many, many, many years ago Ryan was sick. At the time I think I was working every Monday at an office. We had someone that watched Matthew for us.  I came down the stairs to go to work and Ryan was on the couch and said he didn’t feel good so he was going to stay home from work. Unbeknownst to me,  not only was he sick but he had been throwing up or coughing all night or something so he was extremely tired on top of his illness. I asked him if he was going to keep Matthew home with him or if he still wanted me to take him to the sitter. He said, “No, I’m sick” I said, “Ok” and for the next ten plus years I have been labeled as the ‘cold, unsympathetic, heartless wife’ that was  ‘disgusted that her poor sick husband  wouldn’t watch their son when he was sick’ basically almost dying.  That is Ryan’s version. My version is,the first time I had to work when Ryan had a man cold  I asked if he was still taking Matthew or not so I could let our sitter know. He said he was still taking him and I went to work.

Ryan, right about now I sense your desire to come tell me your version of the story AGAIN. Keep reading.

Fast forward a few years of practice and you now have our adjusted expectations. These are of course ideal situations and sometimes adjustments have to be made but this is the general idea.

Ryan 2018- When Ryan is sick he wants to be left alone to sleep or play a video game, but he likes to be checked in on occasionally so see if he needs company or a refill or medicine. The longer he is sick the more he likes to be checked on because he gets lonely. He likes to be in his room with the door closed so it is quiet and the blinds closed so it is dark. He likes ice water with a little ice, and lemon lime Gatorade. If he has an appetite he prefers some kind of chicken soup. He will not be doing any other tasks until he is feeling better.  After years of proving my nursing abilities I have almost redeemed myself from my original blunder.

Me 2018- When I am sick, I get to be sick.  Many times Ryan has stayed home from work to take care of the kids so I can rest. I get to have the door closed and be in my bed and sleep. He will check on me and see if I need anything. It is almost like a little vacation-except I feel like crap. I will still probably go to work if I am scheduled but I do realize that people don’t want to be exposed to whatever I have when I am sick so I am getting better at staying home. Colds still don’t count as being sick (for adults), however, they are a reasonable excuse to go to bed early if you’re a wimp. 🙂

Where our kids are concerned we also made a lifetime arrangement due to each others stronger than usual aversion to vomit or poop. When possible and reasonable Ryan is in charge of clean up and assisting in areas of vomiting. I have the same agreement when poop is involved.  I think I got a pretty good deal because vomit has the potential to appear for years to come, hopefully poop doesn’t.

Ok, I veered a little off topic. I may sound like I am joking describing some of our sick traits, and it can be overwhelming sometimes, especially when there are multiple people sick but I love my family and I love nursing them back to health when they are sick. As long as they don’t throw up on me.

Emilee-  She stays true to her typical snuggly, mommy loving self but kicks it up a notch. When Emilee is sick she feels best when I am physically touching her and devoting all my attention to watching her be sick. Sitting by her reading a book, or watching a show, or doing anything else is not good enough. She wants me to make her a sick bed on the couch with her fridge cold water in a sippy cup so I can help her drink it without her having to lift her head. Then lay next to her and look at her and say that I am sorry she is sick while stroking her hair. She will take medicine if it is bubble gum flavored.

Matthew- He is changing to more of the sit in front of the tv/play video games until he is better but he has some things he likes too. Matthew likes to be waited on hand and foot when he is sick. He likes to be checked on regularly and have the option of having a sick bed on the couch or staying in his room. He wants a sprite and water to drink. He also loves orange jello that is stirred just before it is all the way set so it is like a soup not a solid jello.  He is the best at taking medicines (even if they are disgusting) and will ask for medicines for specific things-like a throat spray or cough or headache. He used to have night terrors at random times when he was little. Now they are just when he is sick, and his asthma always gets worse towards the end of his sickness, which means he usually takes the longest to get better.

Allison- Alli is our lock it down don’t mess with me sick person. She is by far sick the least amount of anyone. She has only had to take antibiotics twice in her life. The first time was Penicillin and we discovered she was allergic to it.  She has never even had an ear infection. She is usually sick the shortest amount of time too.  When she is sick she wants a sick bed on the couch with her blanket. She wants a throw up bowl and ice water within arms reach. Then she pretty much lays there and sleeps until she is better. She will get up and go to the bathroom when she needs and she likes to be carried up to her bed at night and then carried back down in the morning but otherwise she wants to be left alone. She will not take any medicine. She is just now starting to occasionally take Tylenol but most of the time she will have nothing to do with it-not even a cough drop.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Goodbye February! Part One

Well this month gave us a nice kick in the pants on its way out.

Last week Ryan came home from work Thursday afternoon and was not feeling well. By that evening he was quickly going down the full fledged flu path. The kids went to school Friday-first day back in a week.  Sunday night Matthew was down and out. One of the worst parts for him when he gets sick is that he has night terrors. He is not awake but he is walking around talking and acting like he is awake and he is usually literally terrified out of his mind and thinks his life is in immediate danger. It sucks. He will be screaming and begging us to help him, but there isn’t much we can really do until he wakes up. I am scared to death he is going to give himself a heart attack. We have several ways to try and wake him up but it can take a good 5-10 minutes sometimes. So he had a few of those Sunday night. I was up with him because Ryan wasn’t doing any better and then I went to work and he and Ryan stayed home sick together. Monday evening Emilee joined the unfortunate sickies. Matthew had more night terrors but upped his game. He woke me and Emilee around 1 in the morning. I  told him we were going to go downstairs and get a drink I started to follow him down the stairs and stopped just long enough to tell Emilee everything was fine and go back to sleep. Matthew went downstairs, unlocked the front door and walked right on out! I heard the door open and took off to get him. He was at the bottom of the driveway by the time I got out the front door. I was really thinking I was going to have to chase him down and tackle him to get him home. Luckily when I called him  he stopped and I was able to coax him back. Holy crap! So the positive side to these night terrors is that when he finally does snap out of it and wake up he doesn’t remember it. Like I said most of the time he is terrified for his life at the very least his safety, so it is nice that he doesn’t remember those feelings or stress when he wakes up. But, now I am worried that he is going to get out of the house sometime and I don’t hear him and walk to some location before he wakes up and have no idea where he is, no frame of reference on how he got there. Sheesh! I did not sleep very well the rest of the night. I kept jumping out of bed at every little noise and Matthew had another night terror around four. At that point he didn’t think he could go back to sleep so I boxed him in ‘my house’ with a blanket on the couch so he would wake me up if he moved and we watched a show/dozed together until I had to go to work. I called Ryan over lunch and he said Alli was now home sick. I was supposed to work Wednesday and Thursday but I asked them to find a sub for me (who was the sub for them already) and I stayed home the rest of the week. Emilee bounced back and was back to school Wednesday. Ryan said on Tuesday that he ‘just felt sick, not like death’ so he went to work Wednesday and Alli and Matthew made it back Friday. Knock on wood I have had a sore throat and felt run down but hopefully that is the extent of if for me. This Winter has been a rough one for our family. We occasionally have one or two of us get sick but we have all had some bug or another multiple times this Winter. Yuck!

 

Daddy-Daughter Dance

Tonight was the Girl Scouts Daddy-daughter dance. Alli was pretty excited. You can make it as fancy as you want so she wanted Ryan to wear his suit and she got a new fancy dress. She loves it when she braids her hair and then takes it out and it is kinky so we braided it last night and she wore it all day  until it was time to get ready for the dance. It was really fun helping her get ready and finding her dress. Especially since I know she is on a date with a pretty awesome daddy, instead of some dumb boyfriend. She will know the girls from her school that are there including her bestie Carlee and her friends Aliya and Cambrie she has known since birth. They are having it in a hotel ballroom so it is pretty official.  I told Ryan to get lots of pictures of her dancing and having a good time. She looked very pretty tonight. He asked her if she wanted to go to dinner first. She of course was all for it and said Pizza Street was her choice (bottom of the barrel pizza buffet). Ryan said for a fancy date he had to take her to a little fancier place and convinced her to do Pie Five instead (made to order, fresh ingredients pizza place).  Then it was off to dance the night away and when dad is all danced out he plans to end the evening with an extra big ice cream dessert.

I am really glad she wanted to do girl scouts. They have had a lot of fun activities together that help fill her social needs. Last weekend and this weekend she is helping with a cookie booth. Who knew standing in front of a grocery store selling girl scout cookies for 1-2 hours is a fun time!?

This is a bit of a tangent but  I really love that we have been here in the same area since Matthew was two.  It is fun to be somewhere so long that you start to have connections and people you see as you are just out walking around.  Whether it is running into someone from the gym at the grocery store or Matthew’s school teacher buying cookies from Alli’s cookie booth, or knowing someone that used to be in your ward at church when you take your kids to their gymnastic class. I just like that I feel connected and so familiar with where I live, roots I guess is a good way to sum it up.  Moving around a lot growing up I never really felt that. I like that my kids point out places as we drive by that they remember going to so and so’s birthday party years ago, or going to play at the park and seeing a friend you used to go to dance class with. Matthew runs into a lot of his friends from his old school when he is playing sports too.  Its fun.