Favorite Boy's First Day

Okay so I have been very very bad about keeping up with the blog. I don't know what has happened to me. I have become this very fat lazy blob for about the last month. All I want to do is make dinner, and go straight to the couch to watch CSI reruns. I guess it comes from not having cable for the past 8 years and now I'm playing catch up. Anyway I will play catch up on the blog now.

Favorite Boy had his first day of preschool on Thursday August 23. It was a very bittersweet day for me. My brother left for Iraq (AGAIN) the night before which is always so devastating for our family. I went to bed that night thinking how crazy is it that I am laying here praying that my baby boy will be brave and that he will get peaceful, restful sleep and wake up well-rested ready to face his BIG day. And my poor mom was laying in her bed thinking the exact same thing but on a much grander scale? Then I started bawling, rolled over and eventually cried myself to sleep. But I had to wake up and be happy, happy, happy. Favorite Boy woke up full of empty threats. He told me, "mommy if you don't stay there with me I will be sad", "I won't play with any of the other kids if you don't stay and play with me", "I will just sit at a table all alone and listen to the other kids having fun" Okay so he pretty much tore my heart out and handed it to me on a silver platter, but I just kept validating his feelings, telling him it was okay to be scared and that he would eventually want to play with those other kids and they would want to play with him too.

We arrived a little early so he was able to play outside on the playground equipment for awhile. Then I took him in and did just as they taught as at "parent orientation" I bent over gave him a kiss (and this big bottom lip stuck out and the water works started to flow) I told him he was going to have a great time, handed his tiny little hand to his teacher and turned around and sped out the door. AWFUL! My waterworks didn't start until I turned around which was a very good thing.

I went back to pick him up and he was full of smiles and wonderful stories! He loved it! He was even ready to go back the next day! Too bad he would have to wait 5 days until Tuesday.

Preschool Open House

We have been busy so the journaling kind of was pushed to the way side. I will try to be better for Favorite Boy and Favorite Girl's sake!

Mommy and Daddy attended parent orientation for preschool on Tuesday night (without Favorite Boy). It was pretty exciting! Each of the teachers introduced themselves and told about their family. Then each parent was asked to say their child's name, something about their child and what their favorite ice cream flavor is. I of course did the talking, while choking back tears...I said that Favorite Boy absolutely does not know a stranger, he is quite fond of the grandparent types and anyone slightly older than Daddy and I are automatically "grandma" or "grandpa" which can be quite embarrassing out in public when he runs up and throws his arms around anybody's leg and yells "hi grandpa"...everyone giggled as if they could relate. I said that he will eat just about any kind of ice cream but his new favorite this week is Blue Raspberry Mr Misty from Dairy Queen (which we frequent quite often) and again everyone giggled. It was fun to hear about all of the kids personalities. I can't wait to hear about the kids.

Next we went thorough the parent handbook, schedule of events, and policy and procedure. It about broke my heart to hear that they don't get to go on many field trips since each child is required to be in a carseat and they just don't have transportation accomodations. I think my all time favorite memory from preschool was going to the pumpkin farm and apple orchard. They do get to go to the firestation and learn about the fire trucks. Favorite Boy will love that!

On Thursday Mommy and Daddy got to take Favorite Boy to preschool for one hour. We introduced him to his teacher, checked out his classroom, showed him where to hang his coat and bag and where the bathroom is located. He really enjoyed himself. Daddy took the rest of the day off work for a Favorite Boy day! They visited a toy store, came to the hospital to eat lunch with mommy, took a nap together and then went to a water park and swam the rest of the afternoon. Favorite Boy was on cloud nine all day. He strutted around like he was King! It was the cutest thing. We can't wait for Tuesday when he goes to preschool all morning by himself.

Corruption

Favorite Boy came with me to the office the other day. I had to go in to my boss' office to take care of a few things so Favorite Boy went and played with some of the other ladies in the office. They thought it was really funny to let him put this terrible mit on his hand and take pictures!

Lion vs Little Boy

This is a funny conversation Favorite Boy and I had the other day. The conversation reminds me how little he still really is. He is a little sponge but everything is still very literal to him.

He loves how the power button glows on the computer, he cannot help himself, he pushes it each time he walks by.

Me: Favorite Boy did you turn off the computer?
Favorite Boy: No mommy
Me: Favorite Boy are you sure you did not push the button and turn off the computer? It was on just a minute ago?
Favorite Boy: No mommy, I didn't push any buttons?
Me: Favorite Boy are you lying to mommy? It is better to tell the truth.

He looked at me a little confused.

Favorite Boy: No mommy I'm not a lyin' (I hadn't caught on yet what he was talking about)
Me: Favorite Boy when you don't tell the truth that is lying. If we lie we can't go outside and play when mommy is done with her work. Are you sure you didn't push it?
Favorite Boy: Mom, I am not a lion...I am a little boy!

Duh!

Favorite Boy Preschool Papers

I know many of you will read this on August 1. I promise not to dwell on this for the next 28 days but I just thought I would share how bittersweet this day has been for me. We received Favorite Boy's preschool orientation papers in the mail today. His first day of preschool is Tuesday August 28! We are very excited. Although I did pull out Favorite Boy's first photo album and of course I am sitting here typing away through very blurry tear filled eyes. Not to seem too cliche but it certainly feels like "just yesterday" when I brought this itsy bitsy teeny tiny little baby home. I remember the nurse walking us out to our car and checking the carseat to ensure it was properly installed. Once she gave us the okay Daddy and I just looked at each other dumbfounded like what do we do now? Are they really going to let us take this baby home with us?! We instantly decided I would sit in the back seat with him. Daddy started up the car and the Dixie Chicks started playing on the radio...well at least I thought it was the radio so the water works started flowing. (For the duration of my pregnancy I had been working in Waterloo and we lived in Cedar Rapids. I would listen to three different Dixie Chics cds on my drive back and forth everyday. I would sing at the top of my lungs and talk to Favorite Boy (in utero) to keep myself awake. Of course I thought it was quite a coincidence that Dixie Chicks was playing on the radio for our ride home). Daddy looked at me and kind of smiled and then told me it was the cd. During our ride home I remember us talking about how small he was. We talked about the mistakes we would probably make as parents. Daddy asked if I could imagine putting our little baby on a bus in five years saying "bye love you please come back safe, remember to get off here...at our house...we'll be waiting for you...right here... at 3:30" I think it goes without saying that the waterworks continued to flow. Although five years have not yet passed us by it certainly seems amazing that three already have. All we have to provide for daycare are 2 bottles of antibacterial hand soap and 100 drinking cups (seems like a weird combination). I think it's best that we don't have to go full fledge-school supply shopping quite yet. I already bought him a Cars backpack and bawled from the back of the Target store all the way to the checkout register.

Forgot where they were

It is not so much that I lost my children but just forgot where they were. It was a hectic week last week and we are praying that this one is a little less eventful. This is what happened...We originally knew that daycare would be closed on Tuesday. That was easy enough. We lined up two high school girls to come and take care of the kids on that day. I feel much more comfortable with two girls since the kids can be a handful. We also play volleyball on Tuesday night. So I lined up a babysitter for that. I knew I had to work late on Wednesday night so Aunt A planned to come to my office, trade me vehicles, go pick the kids up from daycare and Daddy would meet her at our house at 6pm. Still easy enough. Daycare called Monday morning and said she would be closed because her daughter had ran a fever all through the night. I quickly called one of the two high school girls to see if she would be available on Monday as well as Tuesday. She was not interested in doing it two days in a row so I called Aunt A. She was available and came right over. That night when I got home she explained to me, while the phone was ringing and both kids were at my ankles begging to be held, that Wednesday night she was planning to go eat dinner with her grandma but that she would just take the kids with her. I told her she didn't have to do that. I would just have Daddy come home from work early. She said it would be fine her grandma would enjoy seeing the kids, so it was done. Aunt A would pick up the kids from daycare, take them to her grandmas and daddy would pick them up there at 6:00. I answered the phone, picked up Favorite Girl, wrote Aunt A a check and waved goodbye.

Tuesday-Daddy got rained out at work and was sent home by 8am so I called the high school girls and cancelled on them. I waited until Daddy got back home from work and then I went to work a few minutes late. One high school girl still babysat Tuesday night while we played volleyball...of which we lost 2 and won 1...and this has never happened before so we were bummed!

And then Wednesday came. I called daddy at 6:30 to make sure he made it home, paid Aunt A, and started some dinner. He said the house was empty, no kids and no Aunt A. I figured I must have locked the door so Aunt A took them over to her house. Daddy called over there but there was no answer. He called me back and said we need to find them and you need to get home from work because I have to be at a Union meeting at 8pm. Ugh! I asked him to come to the hospital and pick up Aunt A's truck and take it over to her house. Then he could drive my car home and I would meet him there at 7:45. He came to trade me vehicles and headed to Aunt A's. He called me from her house and said nobody was there. Oh yes, I forgot this part of the story, my cell phone died so I did not have Aunt A's cell phone number, and of course my husband didn't have it in his phone so we couldn't even call her to find out where she was.

Panic was starting to set in. I had been locked away in a conference room all afternoon conducting first day orientation. I wouldn't have been able to hear the overhead page if the emergency room was trying to page me! Where on earth could the be?! I hung up the phone and sat there a minute. Finally it hit me...now that it was 7:00! I called Daddy back and told him they were at Aunt A's grandmas and he was supposed to pick them up at 6:00. Imagine how happy he was with me. All I really remember from the conversation is "Woman, how on earth do you forget where your kids are?!" click!

I don't really know how on earth I could forget such a thing?! I know I have been a stress monkey lately. I know I am feeling a tad bit sleep deprived because I have this baby girl who has had countless ear infections thus we are up walking the halls most nights and it's finally taking it's toll one me. We have already had two full nights sleep since her surgery. Despite my husband working 7 - 10 hour days and never being home I was able to sand all the woodwork for our bathroom, clean the house, including scrubbing all the floors, yippee. It's 5:30pm on Sunday and I have two more loads of laundry, the front yard to mow, dinner and baths. I am feeling all caught up so I just know this is going to be a better week! I vow to know where my children are at all times!

Oh yes, and while I was sanding the woodwork my "husband's dog" decided to chase a rabbit. She has done this before a time or two but never to her advantage until of course today! The neighbor guy across the street yelled at me to get my attention and told me Dog went after a rabbit. I wasn't too worried because the dumb dog always comes back home, but he went running after her so I felt obliged to do the same thing. The only thing holding me back was the fact that I was in my SWIMMING SUIT!!! Okay, I don't even feel comfortable wearing a suit in my own backyard, so I definitely did NOT want to go running down the street in one, but I followed him anyway. The neighbor stops dead in his tracks in front of a house around the block from ours and says, "oh no she got it" and all I can do is stop and say to myself "why me?" I was so afraid she was going to bring me her prize. What on earth was I going to do with a half dead rabbit? Thankfully, Dog came running out to the street empty-handed (our empty-mouthed I should say). The neighbor guy goes running into the backyard and yells, "she got it, it's dead!"

Thanks! I drag my butt up to the people's front door and ring the doorbell. A man comes to the front door and I tell him "um my dog just killed a rabbit in your yard, can I send my husband to get it when he gets home from work?"

He tells me, "yes, please do" ohmygod! does he think I want it for dinner or does he really just want us to pick it up out of his yard? I can't believe it. Daddy got home and I took him to their house with a Target sack and we brought home the damn prize!

Favorite Girl's Surgery

Favorite Girl had tubes put in this morning. We were scheduled to arrive in the Pediatrics department at 6:45am. (I am so thankful the hospital schedules the peds patients in the morning since they cannot have anything to eat or drink after midnight). Of course Favorite Girl has a cold right now so we have been up the past two nights fighting a very nasty cough. The poor girl was up at 2am absolutely miserable (wanting a bottle and needing cough syrup) and I couldn't give her anything. I finally broke down and gave her some Robitussin so we could get a few more hours of rest before her big day. I was afraid they would reschedule her because of the cold but the anesthesiologist told me that when kids this age need tubes they will likely continue to be sick until they get them. He said as long as her lungs sound okay they would move forward with the surgery. She sounded great so they came and took her from me at 8:20 and by 8:35 the ENT doc came in to tell me everything went great. I was back in recovery with her by 8:40! She is such a little trooper. She came out of the anesthetic without even a whimper! But boy was she ready for a bottle. She drank two bottles of sugar water before they would let her have milk. Since she kept the water down they let her eat some graham crackers and cheerios. We moved back to a room in Peds to be monitored for one hour. Of course she was a little show off. She kept wanting to walk out of her room to "talk" and wave at everyone. The nurses thought she was absolutely beautiful, they are just sure she should be in movies. I wonder if they tell everyone stuff like that or if I just have exceptionally beautiful babies :) I know what you're thinking! Perhaps I'm a tad bit partial. They are probably the smartest kids on the block too! It's probably because they have the greatest mom in the whole wide world, you know the one who is up for mother of the year, the one that LOST her children this week. And also (this week) taught her son to say, "my frickin damn shoes dad" It's been an awesome week! Anyway enough about me. I just wanted to let you know Favorite Girl made it through surgery and, as if you haven't already guess, I'm ready for a vacation!

Favorite Girl, a little groggy after surgery, ready to go home for a nap!

We stopped by the hospital pharmacy for some tylenol and ibuprofen on our way home.