Benson

The first part of the week was spent of coming up with dog names.  Many, many, many names were suggested over the course of 3-4 days.  Josiah really wanted "Dog."  Henry's favorites were Rocket, Blaze, and Dash.  Caroline liked Cuddle, Snowball, Cinderella, and James.  (Todd really wanted Starsky, but I vetoed that.)  Finally, I wrote down a list of the top fifty (yep, 50) names the kids, as well as Todd and I, liked.  The kids got different colored pens and put a colored dot next to the names they liked.  Only three names had all three dots from the kids: Cuddle, Buddy, and Blue.  That wasn't good.  I actually liked Blue, too, but Todd vetoed that one.  So Todd and I decided to narrow down the list with names that we would actually use.  From that list we were down to Hutch and Ravi.  There were literal tears from more than one child because they were on opposing sides of names.  It got so bad that the night before our appointment at the SPCA Todd and I ditched all the names and came up with two more that they had to chose from:  Cannon and Benson.  It was another 2:1 situation, with Henry in the Cannon camp and Josiah and Caroline rooting for Benson.  When we had our appointment and saw the dog, Henry said it looked like a Benson.  So Benson stuck.  But at some point when we told the kids the two possible names, Henry had misunderstood the name Benson and thought it was the dummy's name from Toy Story 4.  Todd reminded him that the dummy's name was Vincent.  But when you say Benson quickly, fifty times a day, it sounds like Vincent, so now I've almost called the dog Vincent and while it's a wonderful name, it's not the dog's name.  I think we should have gone with Tux or something because he has a black coat with white paws and a white front. 

We all masked up for our SPCA appointment.  They brought the dog out and it was scared to walk outside, so the woman carried it to a crate so we could interact with him.  He was very friendly once in the crate and she said that he was found in a lumber yard with his mother and two siblings (and ten dead puppies).  He was only in the shelter for a little over two weeks before we got him.  He is about 4 1/2 months old and over all he's been a good dog.  He was excited in the car on the drive home.  We had a box to put him in with a blanket on the bottom in case he peed.  Of course it took the kids a while to get their seat belts on so while they were fumbling with those, Benson jumped out of the box and then proceeded to pee soon after we had gotten on the highway.  I told the kids to put the blanket under him so the pee would go on the blanket.  Then after the peeing was done, Josiah starts to open his window because he was going to throw the pee soaked blanket out the window.  Meanwhile I'm driving 70 on the highway asking him what the heck he's doing opening his window.  Put the blanket back on the ground!  When have we ever thrown anything out the window?

My biggest issue with getting a dog was potty training.  Not a fan.  Been there, done that, not looking to do it again.  The first day he peed in the kitchen.  That apparently marked his spot, because he peed in the same spot the following day, and again the day after.  Finally I wised up and put our big recycling trash can in the exact spot and he hasn't done it since.  However, I've been on high alert since the first pee incident.  Whenever we're awake, I'm always on the lookout for where he is and what he's doing.  Not looking to have more accidents.  He's improved a lot just in the few days we've had him.  He barks when he needs to go outside to do his business and doesn't bark much more than that.  He's been accident free today, so we're (I'm) really happy about that.  He also sleeps in his crate at night with no problems.  Lays down and sleeps all night.

The boys were really excited to get him.  They have enjoyed playing with him and having a dog of their own.  They're on board with the feeding and watering and giving treats.  They bring him outside and toss the ball.  They've done well.  Keeping an eye on him while he's potty training hasn't been their cup of tea, but once he is totally trained in that department, we can relax on the constantly watching him.  (I can relax on making everyone constantly watch him....)

Caroline, however, has been a different story.  Caroline wanted a dog....before we got a dog.  She has really, really struggled.  Just watching her as we drove home from the SPCA with him, she was holding back tears.  I could see her little chin dimpled trying to keep it in.  She was really upset that Benson peed in the car.  She does not like accidents.  We have had lots of one-on-one conversations and she's said that his barking scares her and that he follows her when she's downstairs.  Sniffing and licking her feet.  She has asked (more than once), "Can we bring him back where we got him?"  She has spent most of her days upstairs, which we told her cannot continue.  She told me that if we (she and I) take a walk in the mornings then she would feel more comfortable with the dog.  It would make it easier for her to come downstairs.  So now I take her for a walk in the mornings instead of the dog.  I asked her to give it two weeks and she's willing to do that.  We're praying she comes around.

Caroline has been very good at directing us about what to do with the dog.  Every time he drinks from the water bowl, she announces, "He's drinking.  You need to take him out."  (Do you pee after every sip of water?)  She keeps track of where he is and what he's doing.  She's quick to tell the boys how to handle him.  All from the safety of her counter-height chair with her legs tucked firmly under her.

Todd took the dog to the vet on Saturday morning for a complimentary check-up courtesy of the SPCA.  The vet told Todd that he thought the dog would get to 70 lbs.  That's a big dog.  He also gave us the clearance to bathe the dog on June 30th.  We've had to wait since he was neutered, yet to the olfactories, he is in desperate need of a bath.  We also picked the wettest week possible to adopt a dog.  We have had thunderstorms for much of the week which made the potty training all the more fun.  He had a strong dog odor when we first got him and the rain only made it that much more pleasant.  Fortunately we've had a dry weekend, which has helped in the smell department.  That or we're just getting used to it.

It is amazing how the dog has taken to Todd's commands.  He knows that Todd's the alpha.  He sits the best for him and uses the bathroom the best for him, too.  And Todd's the best at poop patrol.  He's picked it all up.  I, for one, am very, very grateful.

And just like that, we're a dog family.

Caroline has been asking for days (weeks?) to go to the pool.  This weekend I told her that I had made it a goal to go on Sunday.  She kept asking me what that meant.  A goal.  It means that we'll go if we really have to, but I'm silently praying for thunder.  But after we got a lot of yardwork done, I took both she and Henry to the pool.  Josiah was off at the neighbor friend's house and didn't show up at the appointed time so we left him.  (There's been a lot of "I forgot" from said child when we have asked him to do things around the house, so when he missed the time I just figured he forgot.  Then I thought that maybe if he forgot something fun then he'd work on remembering.  I don't think my logic transferred to him at all, but that's how it went in my head.)  Plus, we have to do the pool at specific times because of how they're only open for 90 minutes before shutting down to clean.  Caroline was really happy to go.  Super excited.  I was pleasantly surprised by how much she remembered from her swim lessons. She remembered how to do the freestyle, but, like Henry, tired quickly.  It was really encouraging that she remembered the skill though.  We had a good time and stayed the full 90 minutes.  Then, as we are driving up to the house, we passed Josiah walking over to neighbor friend's house with his swim trunks on and a towel in hand.  He was going to their backyard pool for a while.  Caroline went from having a pleasant afternoon to "that's not fair" in half a second.  Immediately tears and anger that Josiah got to go to their friend's pool and she didn't get to go.  Sometimes you're durned if you do and durned if you don't. 

Happier times.

Father's Day

On Monday, the neighbor friend was at camp.  He got home late afternoon and immediately came knocking on our door.  Josiah hugged him as if he hadn't just seen him 24 hours before.  So it was the rest of the week.  He came over nearly every afternoon to hang out with the boys.  He brought a project with him which kept them busy for a few days.  They made a giant rubber band ball.  Then he didn't go to camp on Friday solely so he could stay home and play with our kids.  Throughout these many weeks of hanging out (nearly daily) Todd and I were sure that they must tire of each other at some point.  That point hit our kids Saturday afternoon.  They were done.  So they stopped playing early Saturday afternoon and then we took all of Sunday as family time.  It was a welcome change for us all.

We got our pool access reactivated so the boys and I were able to go one morning.  Poor Caroline has had a cut on her foot right at the fold where the leg meets the foot.  Several weeks ago it was a fairly large cut, which had been healing well, but then she cut it open again, and it was again healing well.  Then earlier this week she busted open the exact same area for the third time.  It was too fresh to go swimming.  Each instance of sustaining the injury occurred because she was wearing jelly shoes while riding (and ultimately crashing) the scooter.  It had been suggested that she wear tennis shoes when scooting.  Now that she's missed some pool time she's on board with compliance.
The pool felt really nice.  They have COVID restrictions in place which limited the number of residents allowed in at one time.  They also are only open for 90 minutes, then close completely to clean for half an hour.  They reopen again for another 90 minutes and so on all day long.  We did not know this prior to coming, so we only swam for about 45 minutes before they closed.  But it was a nice, refreshing 45 minutes.  Henry practiced swimming and it was a relief to see he remembered his skills.  He has to build up endurance again, but he practiced a lot while we were there.  Josiah remembered some skills, too, but he was more interested in playing.  The pool has also taken away all the chairs, so we had to sit on the cement.  It wasn't a big deal, but it was sort of strange to have no chairs anywhere.

The kids spent one entire morning being shop owners.  Josiah created Noodle Burgers, Caroline spun shakes at Caroline's Smoothies, and Henry had a full menu restaurant which specialized in Mexacen torteas and tacos.  They put a lot of time into it, but Caroline did note that business was slow.  It's tough when I was the only paying customer.  I can only buy so many smoothies.

Henry's Menu

You couldn't ask what the flavors were.  You had to order by color only.

We've made the decision to get a dog. (Ahhhh.)  The kids are very excited.  Todd wants to get a puppy so it knows us as its only owner.  The process to get a dog has been a bit different that we anticipated.  Todd has been researching all the local rescues and pounds and SPCAs.  They all have different rules and expectations, especially with COVID.  Some rescues say they will not house any pets with families that have children.  So we crossed off some places right away.  Another place had a litter of five very cute German Shepherd puppies.  We loved two in particular.  Todd inquired with them about adoption and they sort of interviewed him over the phone about his prior pet history.  Todd told them that he had a dog as an adult and how long that dog lived and so on.  Because that dog died quite a number of years ago they asked Todd to call a vet so they could explain to him about how to take care of a dog.  (Really?!!)  Then the vet had to contact the shelter to say they had spoken to Todd.  Todd actually called a vet but the phone just rang and rang.  By the next day the two dogs we liked were already adopted.  A different facility we contacted this weekend said that they wanted us to take pictures of the interior of our house as well as our fence and backyard.  Their application had many questions which included their desire to come and do a home visit.  It really has been eye-opening.  All I could think of was when Josiah was born and the hospital just let us bring him home.  They just let me out of the hospital with a baby and I have no idea what to do.  But apparently not the same with dogs...  Finally Todd found the Houston SPCA which seems much easier to work with.  We've done the application and are just waiting for a call back.  Since it is COVID times, you cannot go into the facility to look at all the puppies.  You have to sit in your car and they bring the dogs out to you.  So it's a little different, but hopefully it'll all work out.  We check the website daily since dogs appear and disappear on it all the time.  I am really eager to adopt a dog NOW because Todd is working from home and can help train it.  I'm not too keen to do the whole potty training again, so the more hands we have helping the better.

Today was Father's Day.  The kids all made Todd really nice cards.  Josiah's was quite impressive.  He put a lot of work into it and had the whole Muppet theme going.  (For a while after he got his puppet Al Dente, he watched a bit of Sesame Street and the Muppets to see how they handled their puppets.)  The kids masked up because they all wanted to go get Todd's breakfast.  We got a box of breakfast tacos which were really good.  This is the first time the kids have been out in a store so they were excited to wear the masks.  Of course, Al came, too.  We had a nice lazy, quiet day which was really nice.  Henry helped to make pumpkin bread for Todd this afternoon and since I didn't get the planned dinner on early enough (crockpot mac and cheese), we had pumpkin bread for dinner (and salad so it was a legit meal).  And since it was Father's Day, I didn't even say anything to Todd when he defiled the bread by putting butter on it.

Front [Five minutes, Mr. Cockrell, to curtain.  Nice hair Mr. Cockrell.]

Middle

Back

Learning to Type

We started typing lessons this week.  There is a free website that does a good job of teaching the kids the keyboard.  On the first day they learned where to place their hands as well as the 'j' and 'f' keys.  They typed jjj fff jjj fff jj ff jj ff jf jf jf jf and many other j's and f's in different combinations.  They each commented how hard it was, which was pretty funny given it was only two letters.  The site compiled their words per minute as well as their accuracy.  They obviously had no clue what words per minute meant because they would start a round and then turn around to have a conversation with me.  They were getting 7 wpm and 11 wpm.  They did keep an eye on the accuracy, but they mostly looked out to see the number of stars earned.  Three stars per round meant they had two or fewer errors.  The boys were all about getting the three stars.  By day two, with the addition of four more letters and the space bar, Henry was getting very frustrated.  His hands are still small and every time he tried to hit the 'i' key with his right middle finger, his right index finger would accidentally hit the 'j' key at the same time and he'd get an error and get all upset.  We kept telling him that he just needs to practice more and grow longer fingers.  He can't expect to be perfect from the outset.  We'll keep it up every day and see how much they can type at the end of the summer. 

They have played a lot with their neighbor friend again this week.  A lot. A lot.  Basically from 11:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. they are together.  (And even at this point they would play longer if we didn't cut it off.) This kid liked Josiah's puppet so much, that he bought the same one for himself.  So now they have two chefs talking to each other as they roller blade around outside.  They play a ton of Legos and Nerf battles.  Unfortunately, their friend is off to camp for the next three weeks so our kids feel that their world is sort of ending.  They don't know what they'll do all day.  They'll be sooooo bored.  Hopefully we'll be able to get to our neighborhood pool.  The HOA deactivated everyone's key fobs until we signed a new waiver saying we won't sue if we die of COVID.  We've turned in our forms and are awaiting reactivation.  Ideally it'll be early in the week and we can make use of this time.

One evening the kids worked on their Supa Girls comic together.  They have a really good system going.  Josiah draws the pictures, Caroline inks them with a Sharpie and then Henry colors in the pictures.  With this system they don't step on each other's toes and they get along really well.  It's a breath of fresh air to hear them working together.  The younger two seem to be at each other's throats all day long.

That was our week.  There isn't much to write about when the kids are off playing all day.  But I suppose that makes for a fun summer to have some independence outside with friends.

Monopoly, Money, and Maleficent

This week we began our summer schedule.  To the kids that meant they could wake up and watch TV.  TV during weekday mornings screams summer to them. Everything gets turned off at 8:30 so that they can eat, dress, and do a little learning.  We read the Bible, do a math lesson or flashcards, and I read aloud to Caroline while the boys have their own assigned books.  We're currently reading through the Little House series, which all three kids have been enjoying.  We also plan to start typing lessons, which the boys are interested in learning.  In reality, this should only take an hour at most.  Basically we try to finish by 10 a.m. because that is also the time that the neighbor boy tends to ring the doorbell.  Then they spend most of the rest of the day playing outside with their friend.  They had been eating all of their lunches at a card table in our garage.  By the end of the day there has been a mess of chips and salsa, Gatorades and popsicle wrappers everywhere.  On Saturday I told them they needed to move the card table out under the tree to keep the crumbs and popsicle drippings outside.  They didn't mind doing that because all week the kids had been complaining about an odor in our garage.  We weren't sure if it was rodent or what.  So today we took everything we could out of the garage, swept it, and had Todd do a rodent sweep, though he found nothing.  Then, as if the kids weren't happy enough to clean out the garage, I made them even madder by only allowing bikes that worked back in the garage.  We had three bikes that were all missing one pedal each.  I made them write a giant "FREE" sign and put the bikes on the corner.  To our hoarder children that want to keep everything from their childhood, they were quite upset.  We kept telling them that they were bringing joy to other kids who would be able to ride them (assuming their parents' could fix the pedals).  But we have a clean garage...and still a little odor.  Hopefully it goes away...

Last weekend Henry wanted to play Monopoly with just me.  His strategy has always been to buy up every property he possibly could and then buy houses for them just as quickly.  I spent countless moments in the game telling him that he should save a little money in case he landed on my properties.  I, too, had monopolies and houses, albeit I had conservatively put just one or two houses on my properties while Henry was working on hotels.  All my money saving advice went in one ear and out the other.  I ended up landing on his St. James Place property with hotel five times in a row and that was the end of me.  He won.  As soon as that game was over, Josiah and Caroline wanted to start up another game with me.  Typically Josiah plays in much the same way as Henry - buy, buy, buy.  But this game his strategy was to buy one property of each color.  Once he had a rainbow of properties he was content and didn't want to do much else.  When that happens, we just go around the board over and over paying each other $26 here and $12 there.  The game never ends.  Finally he caved once he got Boardwalk and had the opportunity to trade for Park Place.  Currently he has hotels on both properties so now the game will end.  Thank goodness.  We've been playing it for six days.

Rainbow of property.

While Monopoly has not taught the kids much about saving their money, Todd has been teaching the kids about money management.  He has been reading one chapter a week from the Money Matters book with the kids.  It is a really good book and has a lot of interesting information.  Unfortunately this week's topic was banking, not the most interesting.  Todd taught them about savings accounts, interest, compound interest, etc.  They were enthralled.  I seriously had to walk away because their faces were cracking me up. 

Caroline got a new lamp for her desk this week.  She said that it was too hard to read in bed with the overhead light on because when she got sleepy, she didn't want to have to get out of bed to turn off her light.  So, she picked out a pretty white lamp with a pretty pink shade and she's a happy little girl.  Todd caught her reading Waldo one night.

Yesterday afternoon she was also reading to her Monkey.  She's still at the age where she reads out loud most of the time, so it was really cute to watch her.  She read really well, too.  She's getting much more fluent in her reading.  It is an exciting thing to hear her read.

Josiah's puppet, Al Dente, has been a regular fixture in our house.  We have lots of puppet shows in the evenings and Al spends the days with us chatting us up, talking about cooking.  Whenever Josiah is not playing outside, Al is on his arm inside.  We got pizza one evening and Josiah drove with me to get it.  He had Al hanging out the window waving to all the cars we passed.  Josiah said he wanted to "spread a little joy" during the pandemic.  He's a good kid.  At a red light, a lady in the pickup next to us asked us where we got the puppet.  I told her and she said she needed to get one for her granddaughter.  Then she proceeded to talk like a ventriloquist to us.  It was funny, but at the same time I was thinking, Come on green light.

This week the kids went over to their friend Bobby's house to do a special CC video.  Usually we do a CC practicum each summer and while I would listen to speakers, the kids would have been in camps.  With COVID, they cancelled all practicums in favor of an online version.  So, CC created a sort of summer camp video-style for the kids.  This past week they learned about South America.  The camp is six weeks, so the kids are very excited that they are guaranteed to go to Bobby's house for six weeks in a row.  He's their favorite person ever.  We have also set it up that Bobby gets to come to our house once a week as well, so the kids are thrilled.

While they were at Bobby's learning about South America, I was running to pick up a pair of roller skates I got for $5.  They were practically brand new and Caroline had been asking for her own pair of roller blades since Josiah had taken over her other pair.  While these were roller skates as opposed to blades, I thought she may like the way they felt better.  Roller blades always look hard on the ankles.  She has been riding them every day since and has grown to really liked them.  Of course the only picture I have is Josiah wearing them.   

Henry has had a bit of a rough week.  One afternoon their neighbor friend invited the boys over for pizza and a movie.  They were having a great time until the start of the movie.  It was Maleficent which is about the evil witch that curses baby Aurora (from Sleeping Beauty).  Henry cannot do scary movies.  Not even a little bit.  He's been scared for days now.  It's been rough, especially at night when a big 9 year old comes into our bed and moves for the next 30 minutes trying to get comfortable and then that comfortable is holding onto my arm rubbing the inside of my upper arm which tickles at the start before the chaffing sets in.  No scary movies!  My arms can't take it!