It's a Profit Deal

The proverbial 'we' (i.e. the two small people) in this house are struggling with turning off lights, flushing toilets and picking up shoes. In a fit of total frustration a couple of weeks ago, I announced I'd be charging a quarter each time I had to do it for them. Wyatt is extremely motivated by cash and the plan is working well in keeping him motivated. Natalie only half cares about money, which really means that she has minimal understanding of what it can really do for her but she does like the shiny ones! By the way, that difference in their motivations could explain why yesterday's piggy bank counting shows Wyatt has his sister beat by $265, but I digress.

This week it has become apparent that Wyatt understands the concept of clearing his dishes but takes great delight in leaving them on the counter instead of putting them in the dishwasher. I'd love to give him the benefit of the doubt, but after watching him look for a reaction a few times when leaving them out instead of in the dishwasher, I can confidently say that he's just choosing to ignore the request to put them where they should be. Therefore, I decided that the quarter-per-infraction should be implemented for dishes, too. It's been a day and Wyatt is already reformed.

Natalie is a different story. She has been great about taking care of her dishes all along, so I was ill-prepared for what occurred tonight. Dinner just ended a bit ago and, as my parents and I were still sitting at the table chatting, Natalie asked to be excused and went straight upstairs. She reappeared in short order with a quarter, handed it to me and smiled. When I asked what it was for, she informed me she'd like for me to take care of her dishes and said it with a giant smile on her face. All three adults cracked up and it seems a whole lot like I'll need to work on a different plan for Natalie, or maybe just open a new bank account.

Opening Weekend

As many people already know, camping is a big thing here, so big that we own a travel trailer. It's not exactly a life event I would've seen coming. We had a great time camping our way across America to get here but promptly parked the mighty Passport at the storage lot on base within 24 hours of our arrival. However, you can tell it's spring in Alaska when all the driveways in the neighborhood start having RV's parked in them. Ours is no different since Memorial Day weekend marks the start of the unofficial-official Raptor camping season. It's kind of great the way it works: sometime in the dark of winter, a couple of Raptor reservists (read: longtime Alaska residents) set up a summer schedule and reserve bulk spaces at designated locations. They then release the schedule to all the pilots and anyone who wants to go just tells them which trips they want in on and voila - summer rolls around and we have pre-planned camping trips with masses of friends. 

Camping season traditionally commences with a trip to Homer, which is at the tip of the Kenai peninsula. Homer is famous for its halibut, the Homer spit (which prompted one of my kids to say, "I'll Homer spit!"; they're so darling, these kids of mine), cute stores, tide pools and a brewery but is infamous for its windy, cold weather. It's one of only camping locations that has a hotel associated with the campground, so Homer is traditionally a big push for those who don't own campers and this year there were more than thirty families in attendance, spread across two campgrounds and the hotel, all within a five-minute walk of each other. The kids stayed up way too late running in packs with other kids, the adults stayed up even later just hanging out. Despite wearing long-sleeve layers, fleece hats, gloves and coats, we had a great time exploring most of what Homer has to offer. We've been home 24 hours and Wyatt has already double-checked that Homer will be on our list next year, too. 

view from our spot

post-bike ride Saturday night, 10:30 pm

exploring the beach with friends Sunday morning,
notice how the beach looks at high tide

out on the spit

apparently halibut are sometimes bigger than my kids

the marina at the spit

if we saw one bald eagle, we saw a hundred
but it never gets old!

any Deadliest Catch fans out there? It's the Time Bandit!
I think that's the equivalent of an Alaskan celebrity sighting.

going to check out the tide pools Sunday evening

the beach an hour past low tide

have to get them used to pictures again - it's been too long
since I made them suffer through lots of "look at me's"

cool sand patterns

kelp grows on rocks

there's an anemone to the right of the white clam shell;
we found (and touched) lots of them hidden among the rocks

we found it pretty fascinating - also, the smallest
rocks you can see in the background are covered at
high tide

tide goes WAY out

searching for critters

dead crab - not too exciting

they love exploring!

the same beach at 'sunset', roughly 11:15 pm, with tide coming back in.

Back to Business

I kind of doubt my absence has really bothered anyone but me, so I've made a pledge to myself (incidentally, at about 2:15 am when I was struggling to go back to sleep) to write more. About whatever. That's my way of warning anyone who's stumbled across this that you might not get much that's interesting. I kind of feel like there's a lot of 'whatever' to cover and someday maybe I'll be glad I didn't completely forsake the blog.

So today it's a list, and at some point I might choose to elaborate on any of these things. Or not…we'll just have to see. In no particular order:

1. We live in Alaska now and it's kind of awesome. It's also strangely like living anywhere else, which, after all these moves shouldn't surprise me but somehow does. I ran errands yesterday (kid-free - hallelujah!) in Anchorage which is all of twelve miles from my house. It's just a city, but after being someplace that only existed in my mind it's kind of weird to see that it's like so many other places with its mega-stores. It's just that I keep my eyes peeled for moose and think the mountains are pretty great.

2. Today's April 7th and it snowed all morning. And I'm not bothered by it in the least. Yes, I see all of my Facebook friends talking about the 80 degree sunshine and I see pictures of people enjoying the beach, but I'm content. Quite honestly, that surprises me. I love warm weather, I love the beach. I know that if we were still in South Carolina, we'd be wearing shorts, grilling out, riding bikes, enjoying flowers and leaves on trees, etc. But we're not. Instead we're glad we can at least see the grass that's still brown and I'm a little nervous because the bears are going to wake up in the near future. My house is cozy, the sun is warm (and already stays up almost later than I do) and the people here are nice, so I'm content.

3. We're back in a squadron and after three years away, it feels amazing. I haven't even been to an official function yet (unless you count a ladies' crud tournament) and it still feels like coming home. Ite doesn't hurt to have so many old friends and acquaintances here. Some of our favorite people live here and we seem to finally be reaping the benefits of being the old people in the squadron. 

4. Millie is getting so old and, even worse, really showing it. It's the bell-curve of life, I suppose, but she's up multiple times every night to go outside. I think she aches all the time, her back is shot, we know she has arthritis in her hip and now she seems to be favoring a front paw, too. It's not a good time for us to be living in a two-story house because it seems to be really hard on her. It's so annoying to wake up so much but it's also so sad to think that I can't remember the last time she sprinted across a yard or chased down a frisbee. 

5. Natalie has suffered the brunt of this move. She's not enrolled in school up here for lots of reasons, not the least of which is that there was so much other stuff to figure out and preschool fell by the wayside and the options are few. Therefore, she's stuck with me all day every day. We're making the best of it, but a five-year old really shouldn't be having to help unpack a house. I feel kind of cruddy about it, but it is what it is. The house is close to being settled-ish so hopefully we can make up for lost time with some fun outings pretty soon.

6. Speaking of Natalie being five, she's been pretty funny since her birthday. She woke up that morning and asked if she looked bigger, she's told me that there are words she didn't know when she was four but now she does and she truly believes that she was instantly bigger, smarter, funnier, etc. on March 15th. I wholly support that notion because, why not? It also marked the first time ever that I had to buy my kid's birthday cake. We'd been in Alaska for 36 hours when her birthday rolled around, so no baking was happening. She was upset until we went to the store and I let her get the one that was completely coated with sprinkles. To quote her, it had at least a thousand hundred sprinkles on it and was awesome.

7. Wyatt is kind of awesome, too. We yanked him out of a class he loved in a school we all loved and dropped him off in a brand new place with brand new people and a different way of doing things and he has flourished. I think the first few days were hard on him but he kept a (very) stiff upper lip until he really felt good about his new school. I'm not sure I would've been brave enough at his age to do what we asked of him and I'm really proud of how he's handled it. 

8. Moving is hard. We've moved three times in as many years and for the first time this one has kind of kicked my tail physically. It doesn't help that something about the ferry seems to have triggered a serious round of migraines that I can't quite shake, but I almost feel like I'm getting too old for this. I'm really hoping Alaska turns out to be a three-year assignment as promised because we all need some time to actually settle in. 

9. South Carolina was the first assignment I was ever mad about. It wasn't a place we wanted to go, it wasn't a job Jeff wanted to have and (surely you know where this is going) it was so good. I'm slow to learn! It's always the people that make a place, and Sumter was no different. It stretched us in new ways, specifically teaching us how to put ourselves out there a little more to make friends since we didn't have a squadron, and it was just so good. I don't necessarily miss the place, but I sure do miss the people.

10. America is amazing. Not as in 'America is the best country in the world' but it is, geographically, amazing. Our driving adventure through 13 states was a huge bonus to us. Rest assured, we realize that we're lucky to be afforded the opportunity to spend nearly three weeks traveling and we made the best of it. I hope the kids remember some of it but moreover I hope we're raising them to appreciate the diversity of our country and its people. All four of us are already plotting the return trip to the lower 48. So as much as this lifestyle is challenging and, at times, exhausting, it is also full of unique opportunities that I never would've imagined for myself.

11. This is the first time we've rented a house sight-unseen. It's also the first time we've moved someplace without having visited first. It's worked just fine, which is great. What's even better is that our landlord gave us permission to paint the kitchen. I know some of you enjoy red walls but I never have and probably never will. It's just not me. It's even less me when the adjoining walls are verging on mustard. With exception of having our entire house painted in Virginia, it's the first time Jeff has suggested hiring a painter. I'm delighted to say that a funny little gentleman named Mark is hard at work in my kitchen, eradicating two red walls and two mustard walls while I'm going about my day.

12.  Like a mullet, our house is business in the front (normal neighborhood) and a party in the back - a forest that quickly drops to the river. I love the sense of living in the wilderness but I'm a little sad we can't have bird feeders because of the bears. I'm also a little paranoid that I'm going to look out and see a moose on the deck, but until then it's good. It's also a little ironic, because as I was unpacking our pictures I came across the woodblock print from Japan that my parents bought me for my 30th birthday and it looks strikingly like the view out my current back door. Maybe I was subconsciously choosing this for myself way back when.

13. It's been nearly a decade since we moved to Japan. How can that be? I'm plotting a return visit courtesy of space-a travel and the assignment gods who've placed a handful of good friends in Okinawa for the next few years. Wyatt is pretty excited to see his first home, too, and to visit said friends. I really hope we can make it happen.

14. I saw this quote by Gabrielle Zevin last summer and it summarizes my life, and my kids' lives, so well. It's so perfect I might have to redesign the blog header.

They should tell you when you're born: have a suitcase heart. Be ready to travel.

The Fair is a Smorgasbord!

Does anyone else remember that song from Charlotte's Web? Or at least I think that's where I learned it…that's a prime example of why I can't remember to take chicken out of the freezer for dinner, by the way. My brain is full of useless lyrics and random information that has no bearing on real life. But I digress.

So. The fair. While it is, indeed, a smorgasbord, we didn't partake of the food this year. Much to my dismay, we didn't time our visit well so I wasn't hungry for any deep fried goodness or even the homemade salt and vinegar french fries. We did, however, make multiple appearances at our county fair and started with opening night. As we whizzed around on the ferris wheel, I wondered if maybe we should've let a few more people ride first to make sure the kinks were out.

The kids' expressions might tell you a little about the speed.

the view from the top - it's a humble little fair but packed with fun!

I was smart enough to pre-purchase our all-you-can-ride passes this year so we wouldn't be shell-shocked at the gate. The kids got our money's worth out of their handstamps, maybe on the giant slide alone which Natalie did at least five times in a row.

Both kids remembered this roller coaster from last year.

Natalie was really excited to ride the bumblebees but Wyatt declined.
I think he'd had enough of the 'going around in circles up and down' by this point.

Ah, the beloved frog hopper that takes them up, up, up and then 'drops'
them from varying heights.

Horribly blurry, but I love that Wyatt's just a flying, wide-armed, green-shirted blob in this.
Nat's right behind him.

They had so much fun! Natalie also took a turn on the bumper cars with me as her driver and Wyatt and Jeff took a couple turns on the hang glider. We rounded out the evening with a stroll through the swine and equine barns. Piglets are cute! I was humbled when a percheron (whose owner was there, tending her horses and telling us about them) stuck her head out over the rail for me to pet her. We had a great night and thought that was a pretty great way to do the fair, but then….

Wyatt came home from school on Wednesday afternoon saying he had art at the fair. And I had already remembered a note coming home saying something about art, the fair, etc., yadi yada, with his name on it. I kind of thought every kid got a note home about art at the fair, quite honestly. I had already done a little research of my own on Wednesday morning questioning other first grade moms if they'd received such a note, so let's just say it was no surprise when Wyatt said his name was called on the announcements and that we'd missed his art debut. As any guilt-ridden mom with a husband working ridiculously late would do, I decided to take the kids back to see Wyatt's art. And no, for those wondering, it was not well-received that I didn't pony up for rides a second time.

W's art is the top left. 

We missed the poultry house the first time, so it was fun to go through
and look at all the chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, quail, guinea hens and pigeons (weird, right?).
The kids were delighted when offered a chance to pet a baby chick.

Last but not least, Wyatt went a third time with his friend Xavier yesterday afternoon. Lucky kid! Natalie was crushed, of course, that her brother was getting to go ride everything without her so I did what any self-respecting mom would do and bribed her. Between that and some back-to-back episodes of My Little Pony, she was good to go in no time. Xavier's mom reported that both kids had a great time; Wyatt convinced Xavier to go on the hang glider (no surprise), they apparently rode some things we missed on our visit and Wyatt was still laughing about the pig races today (his favorite part: pig #1 was named Kevin Bacon). My personal victory is that despite all these trips to the fair, we managed to leave without a fish! Both kids have already asked about the fair situation in Alaska, so I think it's safe to say we'll be looking forward to the state fair next year. I can't wait to see what animals are on display there!

Uncle

I am so slow on the uptake. Clearly there are some lessons for me to learn that I'm too dense to receive. How do I know? Just when I was basking in the glory of all in my family being well, Millie had to make a trip to the vet. Now, she has a long and fascinating medical history, but yesterday was the first time we had to acknowledge her age (nearly 12-and-a-half) and the thought the vet would bear devastating news. Thankfully, we have a guarded diagnosis of spondylitis which means her spine is swollen/irritated/maybe infected and we have a treatment plan. The prognosis is okay, which only means that the damage can't be undone but we can, hopefully, prevent more damage and get her some relief. She's such a good girl and is getting a little more attention from all of us.

So let me say this: I am thankful that all of our illnesses have been those which run their course or can be treated. I am thankful for the days we all feel good. I am thankful for my littles, including my four-legged one and for the medical care available to us. Maybe that will do it.

UPDATE: I wrote this yesterday and then didn't post it because I wanted to find a picture of Millie girl. I realized I haven't taken a picture of her since October (!). Also, the vet says her labs look good so he's optimistic about being able to aggressively treat her. Finally, I'm glad I've adopted this thankful mentality, otherwise I'm sure the guy who pulled out in front of me tonight on my way to a fundraiser at Natalie's school would've have completely crushed Nat's side of the van. Instead, I came to an abrupt stop with maybe an inch to spare and no one was hurt. Shaken, but not hurt. I wasn't even mad about the giant pan of homemade mac and cheese landing in the floorboard because lo, I am THANKFUL.

Absence...

Has it made your heart grow fonder? Let's see…When we last met, it was early February and I was amused with Wyatt's steam drawings. Shortly thereafter, February fell apart. We began with a weekend family trip to Atlanta only to have it cut short by a puking kid (W) in the amazing Georgia Aquarium. Seriously, that aquarium is beautiful. I hope we'll make it back and actually see all of it on our second go. I also hope that our next visit doesn't involve anyone making an abrupt exit from the dolphin show. That was awkward.

The next weekend had us celebrating Wyatt's final basketball game of the season. He played on a church team through the Y, and our last game was against the other team from our church. In other words, they played their friends. It was great fun to be cheering for both sides and it cannot be said enough how much we love our church here. Everyone headed to the church activities center afterward to eat lunch, get trophies and play. It was during the play part that Natalie tripped over a basketball and knocked herself out. She was airborne for a brief moment before landing on her head, so she got some style points but the part where she passed out cold took all the joy from her gymnastics abilities. So, we spent the next few hours in the ER where we learned that she was technically okay but needed to take it easy for the next ten days. I thought she was going to tell the doctor where to put it when he said she couldn't ride her bike.

I think it was the Monday following that little escapade that I reminded the kids we'd be meeting my parents in Hilton Head for the coming weekend. I was even so brazen to say something along the lines of, "so no one can get sick, no one can get hurt, we just need a good long weekend at the beach." I'm so freaking brilliant to call out the universe like that. So we all know how this ends (spoiler alert: not well) - Wyatt got sick for the weekend. He rallied enough (while well medicated against his ever-present fever) to visit the beach, play in the hot tub and do a little exploring in the area. He did not maintain that rally, though, and by the middle of the next week we were at the doctor's office where we learned he had the flu. Ugh. So then Natalie got the fever and we started her on Tamiflu. She, thankfully, never got very sick. I, however, thought I might not ever feel well again thanks to testing positive for flu and getting a raging sinus infection (I'd like to give a special shout-out to the flight doc who thought I needed to let it keep 'running its course'. That didn't quite work out and after 13 days of fever I found myself at urgent care on a Sunday afternoon, pretty sure I'd never participate in real life again.) In the midst of all that, my parents visited us in Sumter and despite our hopes that they would escape the misery, we infected them too. I'd like to give virtual awards to Jeff and my mom for being the only two who didn't require medical intervention.

Here's the best part: I started this post two days ago, thinking that I could finally look back on all this and laugh. LAUGH AT THIS, said the universe! And so Wyatt came down with a high fever and sore throat on Sunday evening which brought a diagnosis of strep yesterday. I have never, NEVER, been so glad to hear a doctor say that it wasn't a virus. I'm super-impressed with my kid for getting strep without having tonsils, but I'm even more impressed with how fast cephalexin kicks in. He'll be back at school tomorrow, praise be.

So that's it. That's where we've been. I have many pictures to share from all that time (always taking pictures, just never posting) and more importantly have a little someone's 4th birthday to share. But I had to get all of that out of the way first. Next post will be picture-heavy, I promise. My final wish to anyone who's still reading: may you never, ever, for the rest of your living days, get the stomach flu, a concussion, the for-real flu, a sinus infection, or strep throat. And Universe? I hope we've paid our dues for the entire calendar year.

This Explains the Water Bill

I guess it's pretty important to get all that steam generated. Can you guess which small person was in this shower?

All airplanes, all the time. That's my Wyatt!

…And Here Comes Tuesday

Good news: Natalie's illness was short-lived and, after a nice nap this afternoon, she's doing great.

Bad news: she's entertaining herself while she's supposed to be going to bed…by playing harmonica.

Best quote goes to Jeff: If I hear anymore harmonica (pause) -ing, I'm taking it!

Just another night in these parts.

Well Hello, Monday

Today is Columbus Day, which is a total non-holiday unless you're expecting mail or work for the government. Imagine our surprise when we realized Jeff was actually getting the day off (it's par for the course here that a "down day" doesn't usually include his office) and that both kids still had school. Can you say, "date morning"? We were kind of excited and planned to go for a little hike nearby. As so often happens, Life had other plans.

It turns out Natalie is sick in the toss-your-cookies way, the day is rainy, windy and about twenty-five degrees cooler than yesterday and now Orange Flipper  - who was doing so well all weekend - just died. In an attempt to make the best of it, I'm making lunchbox napkins for the kids, Jeff has cut the grass so I won't have to and he's going to go eat lunch with Wyatt;  Natalie is holding down the couch and catching up on Nick Jr.

I guess I just have to prepare myself to hold another fish funeral as soon as Wyatt gets home from school (sidenote: Natalie told Wyatt that Natalie Sarah Fish is in heaven but had to go through the toilet to get there. Hmmm….) Monday. You have a bad reputation for a reason.

That Went Well

We've been observing the fish hourly, just waiting for Orange Flipper, the fair fish, to swim to the tank in the sky. We've been open about the fact that he doesn't seem long for this world and Wyatt has been okay with it. I mean, I guess if your parents are telling you your fish is awesome but will probably die soon, you guard your heart a little.

It turns out, though, that if you're the one whose fish seems to be doing well and no one talks specifically about your fish dying, it's a little harder to take. Yes, that's right, Natalie's fish (she who was called Kangaroo, Fish and toward the end of her life was simply Natalie Sarah Fish) will be getting the giant flush just as soon as I get Wyatt out the door for school. She's a little upset, though now that it's been fifteen minutes since the discovery, she's only really sad when it seems convenient. I think she'll be okay.

Looks like I just added Petco to my list of errands today.

The Good, The Bad & The Funny

Good:
1. My kids are loving their respective schools.
2. Natalie is really enjoying gymnastics, but is disappointed they don't do every apparatus every time.
3. Natalie is such a good bike rider now that she rode a couple of miles around the neighborhood this morning while I ran. Pretty soon she'll outpace me, but for now it's perfect.
4. Jeff's back after having been gone for a while. Life is better when he's here.

Bad:
1. Wyatt had a repeat EGD scope last week and still has issues.
2. Wyatt has now been diagnosed with an allergy to both milk and eggs.
3. Milk and eggs are in a LOT of things. Lots of label reading and modified recipes happening over here. Feeling fairly overwhelmed, but the panic of it is decreasing by the day.

Funny:
1. At Natalie's gymnastics last week, the teacher told us all we could (should) leave for the 45 minutes and that if there were any issues, we'd get a call. That's when one mom piped up about her daughter and said, "okay, but just so you know, if she falls at all, she'll hold her breath until she passes out. So either don't let her fall or offer her a band-aid as soon as she does; usually that distracts her enough that she won't pass out." I'm thinking maybe gymnastics isn't the best choice for that three-year old?

2. Our local paper ("The Item", that in itself is a funny name for a newspaper) is thin, to say the least. So thin, in fact, that they don't even produce a Monday paper. No news Mondays, I guess. Anyway, I suspect it's filler, but they print details of every crime report in the county. Today's favorite:  a woman was caught on surveillance video stealing a bottle of bleach and some cleaning supplies. The value was four whole dollars. The best part? She'd filled out a job application at the store immediately prior to her petty larceny. Super smart.

3. My other favorite crime report from recent weeks: a number of items were stolen from a home out in the county and the list read something like this: a handgun, a shotgun, an xbox, a playstation, cash, a television and a bag of chicken nuggets from the freezer. Those must have been some fancy nuggets.

Design Theory

I've heard it said that your home - your space - should really reflect who you are. While I'm constantly trying to pin that down for myself (see: rearranging photos and furniture with alarming regularity, an addiction to swapping out throw pillows and excessive tagging on houzz), it seems my kids are pretty darn accurate at making their rooms show their true selves. Please note, these were taken after they'd "picked up" and nearly all damage decorating was accomplished during quiet apparently-very-busy time.

Exhibit A: Natalie's room. Be sure to catch the accessorized ceiling fan and the ever-present tea party set up on her table.

Exhibit B: don't miss the chairs,  3/4 of which are overturned in some fashion. My favorite is the one by the bookshelf, resting on one leg and covered with…I'm not sure what. And then, of course, the dress-up bin that's pulled out and emptied. That's just one big pile of princess dresses, silky scarves, fairy wings, jewels and purses. The heels, normally contained in that bin, are actually all piled on a (not pictured) chair in the corner. The dresser is decorated with a musical hot air balloon and some more random piles of jewelry while the window seat is home to a cash register and a small menagerie of plastic animals. I'm not really sure what, or who, is buried on that couch.

Moving on, we have Wyatt's room, which is actually a little better…ish. It's just different because he's gotten most of the big chunks picked up but the pieces, parts and bits remain. They're my favorite. In this photo, you'll want to make sure you see the random cardboard trash treasures he's rescued from the recycling bin - a wrapping paper tube that he uses like a didgeridoo and a molded piece from our new coffee pot's packaging which he insists on keeping for "making something, like a ramp or a craft or an airbase." And of course every boy needs a pool noodle near his bed for safekeeping.

 
Then there's this, wedged against the closet door. It's some marvel of 6-year old engineering that is designed to roll, jettison hidden aircraft and store pirate loot all at the same time. There's pretty much always some version of this in his room that is to be held sacred, whether it's blocking the closet door or not.

And yes, my kids are going to sleep tonight with their rooms looking just like this. Yes, I could go pick it up or we could fight the battle to have them do it themselves - again - but it's been a busy day, so we'll let it slide tonight. Mostly when I look at these I just realize that THIS is why I'm tired by 8:30 every night (and it's no wonder they are, too). I also have faith that they'll grow up and keep fairly normal houses, seeing as how my mom's probably flashing back to my childhood bedroom when she sees these.

But man oh man, what I wouldn't love to do with a few hours to myself and a trash bag.

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My Wyatt is six years old today and I can't wait to write about him. But right now, I'm too worn out from our spontaneous, amazingly fun day involving whole-family water fights, a cookout, lots of cupcakes and fabulous friends. This was a pretty great day in little ol' Sumter.

Rock Baby in a Tube Top

I can't quite figure out what it is that's keeping me feeling so busy and then, last night as I was putting Natalie to bed, listening to the ever-present verbal stream of consciousness coming from her lips it occurred to me: I'm just trying to keep up. I'm trying to keep up with getting our bearings in a new town, trying to get a house to feel like our home, trying to keep my kids happy, trying to figure out the rhythm of our commissary so I stop finding myself there on busy days, trying to figure out how to politely send neighbor kids home at dinner time (they just keep showing up to play, which is awesome but also challenging at the must get-dinner-going time of day), etc. You get the picture. Mostly I'm trying to keep pace with two really energetic small people.

The only time Natalie's not talking these days is when she's sleeping. I'm not kidding. People who ride in our car remark on her constant chatter, strangers in stores remark on it and visitors get to experience it every waking moment. Most of her observations are awesome, as two-year olds tend to be (only she would interrupt me right now to tell you, "I two and a half. Silly mommy!") and sometimes we can't figure out what on Earth she's talking about. There's a strong tendency to run events together in her mind - things that happened a year ago might be mixed in with events from last month and today. It requires a fair amount of mental acuity to keep track of it and just as soon as I think I can tune it out, she calls me out for not listening. She loves to sing Rockabye Baby, but tonight I started laughing because she was saying "rock baby in a tube top" instead. She's also very busy parenting a herd of baby dolls and begging me to find her a playdate.

The only time Wyatt's not building increasingly intricate trio block airplanes is when he's building legos instead, or creating a new air force base with twenty of his favorite airplanes somewhere in the house. The ottoman, the hearth, the tables in the living room, his train table in his room, the bar, the table in Natalie's room - they're all fair game for remote bases. Fort-building is a really popular activity with both kids, though I'm often not a fan. I get the allure of forts, but I also find a dismantled couch in my family room with two small people who fight about cleaning it up to be a little frustrating. If he's remotely bored with what's happening inside our house, he starts asking (every thirty seconds) if we can please go door to door to find him a playdate. Lots of little kids in striking distance make this seem very possible.

We've been happily busy for the last month. Jeff's parents came for an overnight to return Millie, who they generously kept for us while we moved/travelled/etc. My parents were here for a week, went on a cruise for six days and are back for another visit before they head back to Kansas tomorrow. We've been to one neighborhood party, I've been to one OSC function, Wyatt's been to a birthday party which wasn't a drop-off, though we sure thought it was. I'm learning that a lot of stores are closed on Sundays and some retail establishments are also closed on Mondays. I miss Target, but not a day goes by that we're not grateful Jeff's commute is all of 15 minutes instead of the hour it would have been if we'd chosen to live in Columbia.

So there it is, life in a nuthouse nutshell.

From the Mouths of Babes

Wyatt & Natalie are adjusting amazingly well to our new life here and our unsettled life but two things have cropped up.

1. Natalie keeps wanting to plan things for "when we get to Souf Taroyina."

2. Wyatt announced on our way to school that "this place is funny." When I asked why, he said, "because I keep seeing houses that are on wheels!"

Annnd, there you have it.

Hey Y'all

I left off by sharing with you my delight at the prospect of a Sumter winter, and now I'm back to tell you we've made it to our new home. We've covered a lot of ground - literally and figuratively - in the last month, but first you need to know that the weather doesn't seem as though it will disappoint me in the least (I know you were concerned). We've stopped by the house and, indeed, there are quirks we failed to notice when we looked at it so long ago. I'm not sure I ever recounted the full house hunting story on the blog, but it could be summarized by saying it was a difficult trip without many options and, after being accused of being "too analytical" by our realtor, we followed up on a rental we'd briefly seen. We've spent the interim months laughing about how little we could really remember about the house. It was the details of things like the master bathroom, the size of the bedrooms and storage areas that really escaped us. So it was with great amusement that we went through the empty house tonight. It's going to be fine; that doesn't negate the fact that there's no coat closet, the master bedroom and guest rooms are a little smaller than we remembered and the garage is going to be really full once we get two cars and all our bikes, strollers, mower, etc. in there. Oh well.

On the upside, the kitchen is as good as I remembered, the family room is a nice size and the playset in the backyard will atone for many other shortfalls. The kids are really excited about their rooms and it's going to be home just as soon as we can get our stuff delivered. Wyatt starts school in the morning - we're all excited for that for multiple reasons. And thus the new chapter begins: we are residents of South Carolina, officially another place that I never thought I'd live.

Singing a New Tune

I'm dreading our move. For a jillion and seven reasons, really, but in an uncharacteristic way I'm really negative about this one. I'm a spin it positive, find the bright side, pick out the good stuff, focus on what will work kind of person but for some reason this move has continued to vex me in that arena.  Maybe it's that we're moving at Christmas, again. Maybe it's that we're leaving behind family and old friends. Maybe it's that there's no instant network waiting on the other end. I don't know, but I'm not even a good liar on this one. So to all of you who've encountered me regarding this topic, sorry. I'm trying, really I am. It just keeps getting the better of me.

Or at least it was, until today. You see, it's cold today like it was yesterday, except that yesterday was also rainy; Tuesday is supposed to be really cold. I've been internally chilled since sometime around Thanksgiving. I've been wearing at least three layers every day and still, I find myself with blue-tinged fingernails and shivers at the dinner table. I was outside fifteen minutes ago and I'm still wearing my down-filled puffer coat while I type this because, well, it's cozy and I like cozy. So I got a wild hair and checked the forecast for Sumter, my new home come January. You guys (or should I say y'all), it's supposed to be 72 there today. 74 tomorrow; ranging from the upper 50's to the lower 70's for the next ten days.

Ahhh, yes. All of a sudden I'm feeling more prepared to move. Now who wants to come visit?

A Break that Isn't

I'm glad to say that it seems I've finally caught a break and it isn't in my foot. In other fabulous-to-me news, it's also not a torn tendon in there. My orthopedist called tonight (yes, at 5:30pm on a Friday night, I think that makes him kind of awesome) to tell me my MRI shows nothing irreparable. He sees fluid around the small bone (that we all have) and acknowledges that something has made that small bone very irritated, but suggested I start weaning myself out of the boot. Yahoo! Time to go kick up my heels though very gently at first.

Kickin' Booty

I told you back in March that I had an extra bone in my foot and that it was broken. Because I'm an idiot or maybe because I'm stubborn or possibly both, I've been living with constant pain since that diagnosis. I followed the doctor's orders to wear good shoes and put orthotics in the bad ones; I've given up running and pretty much every other form of exercise, yet I've seen no improvement. I kept saying I'd go back to the doctor, but then we started making lots of appointments for Wyatt so I wanted to get those straightened out and finally, I made it back to the podiatrist for round two. I left with a referral to an orthopedist for a second opinion and a ticked off podiatrist who was sure he could fix me with a shot of cortisone into my foot. I declined.

I received that second opinion today and it turns out I'm not unique and do not possess any bones the rest of the world doesn't have. I'm a little sad about losing my unique status. The podiatrist apparently just didn't know exactly what he was looking at (that's awesome); the bone he thought was extra is one that you have, too, but it is quite small in all of us and the orthopedist agrees that mine looks like it might have suffered a stress fracture. However, the potential of a torn tendon was also thrown into the mix today since the doctor was able to just about send me out of the chair by gently pressing on a particular tendon. Double awesome. After all these months of me just dealing with all of this, I'm now the proud owner of one fancy new boot. It's almost as cute as the ones they sell at Zappos.

I'm glad I waited until we were home from the beach. Now let's just hope for no snow in at least the next three weeks, okay? Thanks.

Just Write

There's been so much going on here and every time I think that I should sit down to document it, either something else pulls me away or I'm overwhelmed by the thought of where to start. So it occurred to me that it's time for a list in no particular order and I'll even toss in some pictures for added interest. I'm pretty awesome.

1. Wyatt loves school and loves going every day. 

2. I love Wyatt going to school every day. We were all desperate for some structure to our days.

3. Natalie is firmly undecided about Wyatt going to school every day; in fact, yesterday in the car, she specifically told me she misses him, she wished he were there to play the foot game with her (it involves them kicking each other and always ends with someone screaming or crying, yet they continue to do it) and that she needed a big hug from Wyatt when we picked him up. She proceeded to demand that hug from him at the library after school and it turned out a hug wasn't sufficient. She, instead, required that he pick her up and wasn't satisfied until he did it. I think they love each other.

4. Without Wyatt around for three hours every morning, Natalie is allowed to speak with no disturbances. My ears are so tired and I'm not sure how there's anything left to talk about, yet somehow there is. And she's funny.

5. We went house hunting over Labor Day weekend with the goal of choosing which city to live in: Sumter versus Columbia.

6. In a surprise victory (even to us), Sumter won and we will be calling it home come January.

7. In an even greater surprise, we think we've even found a home to rent. Oh sweet relief to have that settled. We think. And we will have a guest room so please plan to visit (unless you're a lurker that I don't know and then that would just be weird.)

8. We took Wyatt to the doctor right before we left for some ongoing gagging issues. He was diagnosed as most likely having reflux, just like his dad, his grandpa, his aunt, his great-aunt, and a smattering of cousins. You could say it runs in the family. It was also noted his tonsils are the size of my fist and that perhaps he's, um, not as regular as he should be. You might recall a certain young man didn't enjoy that part of potty training and it seems maybe it created some lasting effects. Or maybe there was always something at play that made that part of potty training more challenging. Who knows.

9. From that one appointment, we received two new daily medications and referrals all over creation to a pediatric GI, an ENT and to X-Ray for a picture of his innards. Last week was chock full o' doctor's appointments and ended with a colon cleanse. Whoo boy, that was a good time.

10. Next week will bring us a barium swallow and an endoscopy at our local children's hospital, where we have the utmost confidence that they'll help us figure out what the heck is going on. When the GI asked me when the symptoms started, I was flummoxed. I mean, they never started. This is just who Wyatt is. He's always had a hair-trigger gag-reflex; he's always needed water on hand, just in case he gets that gaggy face; we've always known a cold means that he'll toss his cookies because he can't handle the drainage that comes with it. It's just him; it's how he's made.

11. Today we met with the ENT, who was awesome. In all honesty, military healthcare often (and in many cases rightfully so) gets a bad rap. You never know who your provider will be, you never get a choice in that, so you just have to hope for the best. We just can't say enough good things about our experiences here. The PA we saw today was fabulous, just like the PA we saw two weeks ago who sent us on these referral rabbit trails to start with. Anyway, the exam today lasted for about five minutes before he provided the kids with two otoscopes, tongue depressors and rubber gloves so they could perform an exam on Natalie's baby doll while he delivered his findings to me. His verdict: Wyatt's tonsils are actually the size of my fist. In doctor-speak they call it a 4+, they touch each other, they touch his uvula and leave very little space for anything to pass. He said anyone would gag with that at the back of their throat. He said a lot of other things that were very, very insightful also but in summation, Wyatt is now scheduled for a tonsillectomy in mid-October.

12. Perspective tells me that we are so very, very fortunate. I have a very healthy little boy for whom we are able to seek medical care for outpatient procedures and we have insurance that is covering them. We are geographically fortunate that right now we can (and are) leaning heavily on my parents for help with Natalie during these appointments and have already booked them for the tonsillectomy morning. But seriously, I'm capped with the medical drama right now and I need this to be the end of it for a little bit, okay? And yes, I'm furiously knocking on wood as I type that.


13. We took the kids to the KU football game last Saturday night and I'm telling you, that was a top five reason we chose Leavenworth for this school year. The weather was perfect, we sat three rows off the track, the kids were totally into the spirit of it, Grandpa and Grandma were there with us, we were all decked out in our Jayhawk gear, the 'hawks pulled out the win, we waved the wheat over and over, it was simply perfection. I sincerely hope the memories seared into my brain from that night never, never, never leave me. Funny moment? Wyatt's initial concern that he couldn't see the dancer girls when we first arrived.

14. We woke up bright and early Sunday morning to meet  Jeff's cousin and his wife at a local vineyard (yes, in Kansas) for their annual grape-picking. Liz signed us up for it months ago and we're so glad we went. The kids had a great time. Wyatt even got his own little pair of clippers with special help from Liz and Natalie was granted permission to eat as many grapes as she wanted, so she too was a happy camper.

15. There's a building in town being demolished and it is proving to be quite entertaining for the kids (and who am I kidding, I find it fascinating, too). So far we're at about three hours of time sitting, just watching the digger claw its way through the walls.  Good small-town fun.

16. We had a little lesson in economics a few weeks back when I took the kids to our local paint your own pottery place to paint plates and discovered they wanted $28 for each plate. I just couldn't do it. For $56, I could go buy a few place settings of white dishes that are on my perpetual wish list! So I made us leave. It was awkward since the owner had already started getting the kids all set up at the table while I picked out the pieces for them to paint. Fortunately, the cousins were available and willing to paint pottery in Lawrence just a few days later (where plates are $12 - I knew I wasn't crazy) and we had a grand time. Fast forward to this week, when Wyatt is invited to a birthday party at the local studio. Wyatt wanted to know if I was sure he could go since it's expensive. I assured him he could and then please asked him not to mention that I made us leave. We'll see how that goes; I have a sneaking suspicion it will come up again.

17. We got a new puppy. Natalie's in love with it, though her fascination is already waning now that it's been here for a month. The puppy is pretty perfect since it doesn't really require anything from us other than a small space to stand. It's the cutest cast iron Boston Terrier door stop a girl could hope for, but that hasn't stopped Natalie from talking to it or from introducing our guests to it. Turns out this has been a good lesson for me - we're definitely not in the market for any small living things around here as I don't think they'd be safe in Natalie's overly loving arms!

18. The weather has been nearly perfect so we're trying to take advantage with lots of park and trampoline time. Hopefully it will hold for a while so we can continue to enjoy it because I love a happy, exhausted set of kids at naptime.

19. Soccer season has begun again and we're off to a slow start. For some reason, the city is struggling to get the schedule set (heaven forbid we should be able to plan our Saturdays) and it's the same 4-6 year age range as our spring team but apparently many of the older kids moved up. That means there are a lot of four-year olds so Wyatt is now one of the more experienced players on the team. My friends, he is an enthusiastic young man but he is not what you would call focused on the sport of soccer. There are a couple of little guys who are, perhaps, more aware of what needs to happen to actually score a goal, but we'll just have to see how this season pans out. He likes it and that's all that matters for now. But there's an awful lot of this jumble-of-kids type of stuff at practice:

Natalie is, however, a huge fan of soccer. HUGE. Because there's a playground. So you'll find us doing this: 

That girl can ride the not-so-springy duck all day long.