Mom School

Benson started the week with a good bit of coughing each day.  We were expecting his medicine to kick in a little quicker than it did, however he did have both kennel cough and a respiratory infection, so he had a lot going on.  For about five days I was so impressed with the ease at giving him his medicine.  He was a model medicine taker.  I would wrap his pill up in a slice of deli turkey.  I'd let him get a good sniff and then he'd gobble it up, usually without any chewing.  Ideal.  But then the fateful day happened - he crunched into the turkey and hit the pill.  He spit that meat out so fast.  I got a new piece of turkey.  Tried giving it to him again.  Again he spit the turkey on the floor.  That was not good.  I improvised and through a little trial and error discovered if I used half a slice of bread, no crust, hid the pill in the  peanut butter, he would gobble it up without chewing.  He's finished all his meds now and for the most part his cough seems to be gone.  But as the week progressed, the cough was no longer our greatest concern.  Because one day our house started to smell.  Really bad.  I could not identify the smell, but it seemed to be everywhere.  We checked for dead rodents.  We checked the gas stove.  We looked for any 'accidents' Benson may have left.  We checked the attic, the vents.  Nothing.  One night I prayed for clarity as to where the smell was coming from so we could take care of it.  The following day it really seemed like it was coming from Benson.  He definitely stunk.  So this weekend we gave him a very thorough bath.  We washed all his bedding in hot water.   Todd changed the air filter in our attic.  We've sprayed Lysol.  There is still an odor, but it does not seem as strong.  I feel like an animal (not a skunk) sprayed him or he got a stink bug or something.  He does go after frogs in the backyard a lot.  I don't know if he got the wrong type that sprayed him with something.  Whatever it was, it has been a retched smell.  

The kids decided to have school for me mid-week.  (See...they miss school.)  They spent a lot of time planning their subjects before coming out and sending me to art class.  Josiah had me follow him in drawing Marvin the Martian.  

Next I went onto math class with Prof. Henry.  He had raided Josiah's suits to dress the part.  I purposefully missed three problems to see if he'd check the work.  As soon as he got to the first missed problem, he looked at me, dropped his head to the side, "Did you miss that on purpose?"  

After math I went to PE.  Caroline had me doing jumping jacks.  Then she wanted me to run around the couch, but I told her it'd be better to walk since Benson would get riled up if we ran.  (That's the excuse I told her.)  

After PE I went back to art where Josiah and I painted abstract art using watercolors.  Then it was back to Professor Henry.  He started with geography by spinning our globe, abruptly stopping it on a random country, covering the name and asking me what country it was.  Fortunately, the only one I didn't know was Angola, but I got a peek of the name before his finger got it covered.  Ace!  Then he gave me a history quiz about Abraham Lincoln.  He asked his parents names, wife's name, kids' names, and lots of dates.  I missed five of those.  I was a little disappointed about that because I just finished reading Killing Lincoln a few weeks ago.  

After school we headed to the library.  While there, Josiah and Caroline picked up their summer reading trophies.  Caroline had to read 20 books to earn it.  That proved easy when she got into the Cam Jansen books.  Josiah was in the middle school program and he had to read 2000 minutes.  He reads at least an hour every night so that didn't take too long for him to accomplish.  Henry's still working on his 20 books.  He's been reading very long books so it's taken him a little longer.  He likes to remind us that he has read at least 2000 minutes.

Henry did earn a new stripe on his jiu-jitsu belt.  This time it was a red stripe, so this was a big deal.  The next step is a new belt.  He is really excited to earn that.  He has a competition going with another kid at jiu-jitsu, although he has not told the other kid about it.  While we were on vacation, this other child caught up with Henry so they earned their red stripes on the same day.  Henry is not too happy about that because the other kid is only 7 years old.  So, Henry has been trying to go to as many classes as possible to get ahead of him in their belt rank order. 

The next jiu-jitsu class was Caroline's 12th class, which also meant a new stripe.  However, it happened again that the man at the desk wasn't there, nor the main instructor.  She was not a happy camper to have to wait until this week to get her stripe.  I think she takes it as a personal offense.  Upon entering the dojo, she noted the man at the desk was not there, and in protest, she did not exactly put forth her best effort in class.  We talked about that later.  Always do your best!

We made it to our pool this week.  The temperatures here are really hot, so it was quite refreshing to get in the water.  Caroline started her swim lessons this week, so she practiced her skills a lot.  It was good to hear her talk about what they do in swim because I can only watch from behind a fence.  I cannot hear any of the instruction.  She has been working on freestyle, backstroke, and breaststroke kick.  This weekend we were watching the Olympics.  Swimming was on and they were doing the 100M freestyle.  Caroline watched and exclaimed, "Hey!  That's what I do."  Yep.  Just at a slightly different pace.  She was amazed at how long they could go between breaths.  

We have lived somewhat close to The Grove Donutz for about six years now.  They have been featured on television shows for their crazy donuts.  Todd decided we were going to try them this weekend.  What we didn't know was that the donuts were made to order.  They all start with the basic glazed style donut (Krispy Kreme style donut).  Then they add to them.  From top left, Caroline ordered a Reese's Pieces donut.  Top right is Josiah's Red Velvet.  Below that is Henry's Death by Chocolate.  Finally I ordered the Chocoberry - it had creme and strawberries inside it.  They were giant sugar bombs, but very, very tasty.  Todd showed self-control and didn't order one for himself.  We don't know why.  

They had a lot of funny signs in the shop, but Caroline told Todd this was her favorite.  

We have a crazy busy week coming up with swim and jiu-jitsu, VBS and school orientations.  And I have a major task ahead of me to get the school room back in working order by the end of the week.

Machetes, Weedwackers, and Dance Parties

This week Josiah served with the student ministry for their mission project.  When we lived in a covid-free world, the different grade levels (6th-12th) would each go to a different city to serve.  The youngest grades would stay in Texas and all others traveled out of state for the week.  Last summer, in the height of covid quarantines, all service projects were cancelled.  So, to combat that, they decided to have all grade levels work in a local neighborhood.  They did power washing and painting of houses, tons of weeding and mowing and mulching, some laid sod and gravel.  One group put on a VBS for the kids in the neighborhood.  Josiah was in a group of nine 6th grade boys.  When we picked him up the first day, he walked out with a big smile on his face.  The first words out of his mouth were, "I got to use a machete."  Oh?!  Tell me more.  He happily told us how he used a machete to clear out thick weeds in one yard.  After that, he manned the weedwacker for an hour.  He worked really hard and had a great time.  They worked from 8:30 a.m. til noon.  Then they ate lunch together before heading home.  They had their afternoons free, but there were evening activities.  Monday evening he was told to wear something that could get wet.  We dropped him off at church and saw a waterslide and obstacle course inflatables.  At pick-up, he said he wasn't feeling too great.  He had downed three hot dogs and countless snow cones, but he was quick to point out he only ate the tops because of his braces.  He'd eat a top, toss the bottom in the trash, and go back for another.  He came home, showered, and went to bed.  But he didn't stay in bed.  At midnight he said he wasn't feeling well and promptly threw-up all three hot dogs and countless snow cones.  We didn't think he was sick with a virus.  He was just sick from overeating and then bouncing around for two hours.  He felt better in the morning.

So day 2, he went back to work.  This day was not nearly as fun because he didn't get to use any of the fun equipment.  He basically weeded all day.  He was hoping to use the lawn mower.  By the time we picked him up, he got in the car very wiped out.  But that didn't stop him from the evening activities.  I kept asking him if he felt up to it and he was adamant he wanted to go.  When I picked him up two hours later, I walked in the building and saw a teenage girl I knew.  She said, "Are you looking for Josiah?"  Yes.  "Well, he was outside, but I think he's back on stage leading the dance party."  Ok then!  I met up with one of the pastor's wives and she said Josiah was up on stage dancing for almost the whole time.  He had a blast showing off all his dance moves.  This night they had pulled pork sandwiches, with sauce on the side.  Josiah happily ate his dry.

Day 3.  There were those on his crew that got to paint on Day 2.  Josiah was hoping he would have an opportunity to paint and today was his day.  He spent all 3 1/2 hours staining a fence.  At pick-up he was covered in stain splatters.  He said he didn't want to paint ever again.  There were no evening activities that day, so he showered, went to the library, and relaxed.

Day 4.  The last day.  Josiah was assigned to do more yardwork, but this time it was a bit more fun.  They laid gravel and smashed it down with tampers.  They filled a big hole with dirt and they did more weeding.  When we drove home that afternoon, Josiah was quiet.  I asked him if anything was wrong.  He yawned and said he was just tired.  We were really proud of him working so hard all week.  He told us we had to get to church early on Sunday so we wouldn't miss the compilation video they would show of the KSM mission week.  They captured Josiah's weedwacking and his painting.  He was happy!  These are stills from the video:

At the beginning of the week, we had some friends who were in the middle of their Staycation.  The mom was planning a surprise Road Trip Day to visit friends' houses.  The idea was, they would stay for only 30 minutes before heading off to the next house.  We were tasked to teach them about something or show them something.  Anything really.  I was very worried we'd be the lame house, because I could not think of anything to do.  Enter jiu-jitsu.  I asked the kids if they would give a demonstration of the moves they knew and they were totally game.  Caroline started it out by showing them how to tie their belts so they do not come undone.  Then Henry showed them triangle chokes and arm bars.  They demonstrated flips with Josiah always the one being flipped.  We had a really good time and were laughing hard.  The dad knows MMA so he was explaining all the moves they were doing.  It was fun.

Also, last week, Josiah earned his second stripe at jiu-jitsu.  Yay!

After our road trip back to Texas, I made the kids have a few media-free days.  They complained they were bored, and were delighted with my response, "It's okay to be bored."  But they always found something to do.  This time they decided they'd give each other piggy back rides.  They did this a lot.  At one point, Henry had Josiah on his back and he told him that he could pat his pecs to tell him which direction to turn.  Right pec pat, turn right.  Left pec pat, turn left.  It was such a Henry thing to say.  When he was done with that, he spent a little time trying to do a pec pop, but he doesn't have pecs yet, so there is nothing to 'pop.'

Nana sent the kids back with little lights that they have each strung up in their rooms.  Josiah named his, "lying under the Christmas tree."  

Henry's is entitled, "lying under the stars."

And Caroline made a 'C' followed by a rectangular space for her favorite picture, and then carried the lights over to her work space.  She loves it.    

We had a rough weekend with Benson.  It seemed like he had caught a cold once we got him home from his Pet Ranch.  His nose seemed a bit runny.  After a few days, I thought he was turning around, getting more energy.  Until yesterday.  He woke up at 5 a.m. and started vomiting.  That turned into vomiting and heaving All. Day. Long.  It would happen every few minutes.  He would try to drink water, but he'd start heaving minutes later.  It was horrible.  Every time he laid down, he'd heave then puke.  Todd sat outside with him nearly all day because he couldn't stay inside in that condition.  Both were miserable.  Finally, when it was getting no better, Todd took him to a 24-hr vet.  We couldn't imagine having to get through the night with him constantly heaving.  Todd left at 4:30 p.m.  He got there and there was one other person in the waiting room.  They told him it would be 4-5 hours.  Todd said he looked around the waiting room and said, Really?  It ended up taking 5 hours.  He said Benson vomited so many times in the exam room that it reeked.  They determined he had kennel cough and a respiratory infection.  We were surprised it was kennel cough because, for one, he'd been vaccinated against it.  And, two, we never heard a cough.  However, now that he's had medicine in him for 24 hours we can hear the cough.  It was masked by the heaving on Saturday.  They gave him two injections that night to control his vomiting and when he came home he just collapsed on the floor.  The poor dog.  He had been awake all day and he is used to taking a lot of naps.  He was up again at 2:37 a.m. coughing.  I let him outside in case he threw-up, but never did see any action.  Just coughing.  He stayed outside for the next three hours to the minute.  After that, he has spent a lot of the day catching up on his sleep, eating, drinking, and resting.  He's had some coughing fits, but no more vomiting.  But now he's in quarantine for two weeks because he's probably contagious.  

While Benson was having his rough day outside with Todd, I took the kids to a birthday party at Urban Air.  This was our first time there and they had a lot of trampolines and Ninja Warrior type obstacles.  The kids had a lot of fun.  Then they came home and promptly got their swimsuits on to swim at the birthday boy's pool.  We were all wiped out that night. 

Caroline could not get on the net the traditional way because it was too high, so she improvised and was pretty proud it worked.

And the current situation here:

Traveling East

The big trip east.  We left our house at 4:00 a.m. to a steady rain and a ton of really big lightning.  For many miles the lightning was in front of us, so the expectation was that we were going to drive through it.  And then at one point we noticed the lightning was to our left and we were driving around the storm.  That was a little blessing at the start of the trip.  The rain finally ended somewhere in Louisiana.  This year we were unsure of what would be open due to covid, so we planned gas stops at Costco's and Sam's Clubs knowing we could use their facilities (and get a cheap meal).  Because we knew where we were stopping, it seemed to make the trip much easier.  That and the kids getting older, with larger bladders, it felt like this was our easiest trip yet.  We reached our hotel the first day earlier than expected, so we took the time to walk around Books-a-Million.  The boys asked for sticker-by-number books and Caroline wanted a squishy toy.  We ate, we slept, we got up at 3:30 a.m. the next morning.  I woke up the kids one at a time.  Upon waking them, I said, "Please go pee and brush your teeth."  Each dutifully went into the bathroom and it was assumed they did as directed.  We left the hotel right at 4 a.m.  Our goal on the second day is to always get through Atlanta and beat the traffic.  We were right on track until half an hour into the trip, a child piped up, "I need to use the bathroom."  Said child never asks to stop to use the bathroom and is usually the one to grumble when others do ask.  So I knew he definitely needed to go.  Curiously, I asked, "Did you go at the hotel?"  No.  No he didn't.  He didn't have to go then.  Grrr.  Since the hotel is close to the time zone change, it was already 5:30 a.m. and amazingly there was a Chick-fil-a open, but it was six miles in the opposite direction.  We turned around.  All children were told to use the bathroom.  We did buy breakfast since we couldn't exactly hide the fact that we were the only customers in the store especially when the bathrooms are directly across from the registers.  Back on the road.  In South Carolina, we stopped at their welcome center and the kids were given free maps.  They kept asking where we were and then they found it on the map.  Just before reaching Grandaddy and Nana's house, we pass through a bridge-tunnel.  It is always a sign that the end is near.  Windows were opened and we were ready to get out of the car!   

The kids were thrilled to be at Grandaddy and Nana's.  They were thrilled to wake up and have waffles and bacon nearly every morning!  We didn't stay for long as we hopped back into the car the next day and drove up to see Great Grandma.  We had lunch together and she treated us to very delicious ice cream cones.  The kids had questions they wanted to ask about how she met Great Grandpa and other questions about her younger years.  We were able to see her paintings and family pictures and she showed Caroline all her breakables.  It was a wonderful time together.  We got to see our aunt and uncle, too.  The time together is never long enough!  It was a quiet drive back to Grandaddy and Nana's.  The kids were playing games on their phones and about halfway into the trip back, Josiah piped up that he was hungry.  He quickly went back to his game and seemed to forget about it.  I decided to see how long we could go before another child asked for food (we did have snacks in the car - they had access to food, they just chose not to eat what was around them).  Josiah piped up about an hour later, but by then we were too close to home and so dinner was at 9pm that night.  At least I didn't have to stop!

The next day the kids were able to do some of the fun around Grandaddy and Nana's house.  They worked on their pool skills, billiard style.  Josiah was a very big fan of using the chalk before striking.  They played baseball and frisbee and cornhole in the backyard.  Grandaddy and Nana gave the boys RC cars which they drove all over their circle.  Caroline got a giraffe she named Sophie that has been a constant sleeping buddy ever since.  

He got his beanbag in the hole.

That second day we also met up with some friends at a trampoline park.  We first met these friends at our church nursery when our oldest boys were only one.  They had a good time at the trampoline park.  They had a Ninja Warrior section of obstacles as well as a dodgeball arena.  For quite a while the kids were just running around playing tag.  We reminded them that they could play tag for free outside.  We paid a pretty penny for them to jump on some trampolines.  So please jump.  After our jump time was over, we ate lunch together.  It was a fun time.  The minute we got in our car to leave, Caroline asked what we were going to do with them next year.  

Our third day we headed up to the beach.  We rented a new house this year complete with air conditioning and a washer/dryer.  It didn't really matter what else the house had.  Those two things completed it.  The kids were so, so happy to reunite with their cousins and grandparents.  And we were all crazy excited to meet their newest cousin.  The first morning at the beach, the kids got right back into it.  Henry was drawn to the water.  He loves boogie boarding and body surfing.  No matter how often we put suntan lotion on his face, he stilled burned because he was always going right back in the water.  Caroline was into boogie boarding for a few days and her cousins really helped her out in the water.  Josiah tested out the waters, but his love has always been the sand.  In particular, he loves digging holes in the sand.  Not wee little holes, but ones big enough to fit a child or two.  He got to working on one, and as he dug his siblings and cousins helped him out.  We snapped this picture of the finished hole minutes before Bob from Code Enforcement walked up.  Apparently, this was against the rules.  Too long, too deep.  And in addition, the umbrella on its side is considered a tent and is also against the rules.  Thanks, Bob.  At least Josiah got in one good hole.  We filled it in and then spent the next few hours watching Bob go up to other families with tent-like umbrellas and canopies and tell them to take them down.  He's a joy-bringer, that Bob.  (Although we did learn the reason why and it was a good reason - so parents can see the ocean to watch their kids, which we are clearly obstructing in the picture.)   

The beach is always a good time, but this year was particularly fun because we got to play with a one-year old on the beach.  Really, we just watched him explore and play.  The big kids were smitten.  

One day, they even got to babysit while his parents went out to dinner.  Caroline has always wanted a younger sibling, so she was in baby heaven.  

The Cousins!

We did all the usual things at the beach.  Putt-putt.  The kids went with their oldest cousin - how nice to be able to pass the torch!  Grandpa took the kids to feed the ducks near his house.  It is a peaceful place to look at...as long as you do not inhale the stinky water smells.  

A highlight this year was flying their cousins trick kite nearly every night.  Everyone got a turn.  It has two handles and it swoops and dives a lot.  To fly it, it takes constant adjusting of arms.  They all got better at it as the days went on.  By the last day, Caroline was able to keep it up for quite a long time.  She was really happy to have had a successful flight.  

We did our trolley ride and Henry fell asleep.  It was a blast from the past - the trolley used to always put him to sleep when he was younger.  Our 40 minute ride still only cost us a quarter each.  

 

There were fries on the beach and ice cream every night.  Josiah opted for funnel cake and funnel fries a few nights, but the last night we got double scoops and waffle cones.  

Caroline chose a tie-dyed shirt with a sea turtle decal as her souvenir.  The following day, Josiah went back to the same shop and got a dog decal on his t-shirt. 

In the evenings, when we were back at our place, we played a Pictionary/Charades game.  We have no idea how the kids had any energy left, but we played til 9 most nights.  Instead of drawing out the clues, we acted them out.  It was a lot of fun.  Very simple, very easy.

On our final day we said good bye to Grandma and Grandpa.  They gave each of the kids sticker-by-number books which provided a lot of entertainment on our drives.  Henry, in particular, has really worked through his books.    

Then it was back to Grandaddy and Nana's for a few days.  The boys put together a Hex Bot crossbow and a ball shooter.  

They renewed their love for the Radio Flyer red wagon.  The wagon beat out the bikes this year in miles on the road.  Caroline's goal each day was to get her parents out of the house.  She asked us to leave and not come back.  One day, Todd was going to take a nap.  She asked him to take a seven hour nap.

Grandaddy took the kids on their annual lawn mower rides.  

I think this was the first time in a long time that we were there for the 4th of July.  Uncle Will and Aunt Meghan gave the kids sparklers at the beach, so we saved them for the 4th.  The kids had never done them before, so they were slightly scared at first, but then got into it.  Unfortunately, at one point, Henry dropped his sparkler and picked it up on the lighted end.  He burned two fingertips, but they were feeling better by the next day.  We'll definitely do them again.  They were a lot of fun.  

Soon it came time to drive back to Texas.  We did our usual 3:15 a.m. wake up.  We doubly confirmed everyone had used the bathroom before leaving.  We left right at 4 a.m. on the dot.  And then, instead of taking a left out of Grandaddy and Nana's neighborhood, we took a right.  And by going right, we got on the wrong highway going through a bridge-tunnel.  Knowing our exit was a low two-digit number and noticing that all the exits were high three-digit numbers, I asked "Was that the right bridge-tunnel?"  Nope.  It wasn't.  We turned around.  As we came back through the bridge-tunnel to get back to the other highway, Josiah commented on how much he loved going through bridge-tunnels when it was dark.  Good.  Because there's another one coming up.  We ended up losing 40 minutes, but with our stops marked out we made good time.  We made such good time that we reached our hotel at 3:30 in the afternoon (only because the time change right before the hotel). 

The second day of driving is always the worst.  We made great time all day until we got to Houston.  It took us 90 minutes to get from one side of it to the other.  In the end we drove 3840 miles.  And to recover from that exhausting trip, Henry woke up at 4:30 a.m. for the next two days.  He said he couldn't help it because he was so used to waking up early.  Benson, too, woke up at 4:30 a.m. looking for his morning walk.  By 10 a.m., both early birds were napping.