Sparkly legs

Violet had herself in a tizzy while getting ready for bed. Her routine is "three things" which consist of going potty, brushing teeth, and putting on PJs. She sat on the toilet for a longer time than usual, and then got off and fell to the bathroom floor. She started laughing and said her legs were sparkly. I tried to help her stand up so she could climb her stool to get the toothbrush out of the holder, but she could barely take a step. She just kept laughing so I picked her up and then realized that her legs must have gone numb from sitting on the toilet for so long. She giggled and giggled, she was making ME laugh! Feeling eventually came back to her legs, but she'll probably be talking about her sparkly legs for awhile.

Our short trip to MN

Dave found out last minute that he had to attend a two-day training class in MN at the Calix HQ MN office. So...since we missed him so much last week when he was gone, I decided to take the kids along and go with him for this short trip. We made reservations at a hotel with a big water park, so that made things much easier for me. Both mornings we spent 2 or 3 hours at the hotel kiddie area splashing around. They had so much fun! Right now I'm typing in a very dark hotel room. The kids are trying to get themselves calmed down to take naps, but its proving to be difficult today. It may be because they're in bunk beds! We booked a room that had a separate walled-off area for kids that has bunk beds in it. Violet is on the top (and extremely excited about it, actually. The first thing she said is "Its a bed just like Ivy's!!! And like Evan's!! I get to sleep on the top like Ivy, and Calvin, you get to sleep on the bottom like Evan!") She could barely contain her excitement, she was jumping and screaming around the hotel because she was so excited to sleep "wayyy up on top"! We decided to brave it and let Calvin sleep on the bottom bunk. I rolled up the comforter the bed came with and formed a long rolled up barrier against the edge of the bed and tried to tuck it in on both ends. It seemed to hold pretty well, so we hung a big thick blanket across the opening so it seemed more like he was closed in like the crib he is used to. Dave was confident he could sleep in it so I tried it. When we arrived on Tuesday night late we got them in bed pretty quickly and they both fell asleep. The night went well, and Calvin stayed in his bed the whole night. I was pretty proud of him, I didn't expect that. And he must have learned a thing or two from bunk beds at camp. He didn't stand up at all and smash his head on the top bunk, he was careful not to. Dave took off for his class on Wed morning and I went to the pool. The kiddie area has three slides - and Violet went down all three of them constantly. Calvin crawled around the water most of the time and was too scared to go down any of the slides. He's such a cautious kid. For lunch we ordered a pizza, and then I got them back down for naps. They slept well - for maybe 2 1/2 hours. I took them for a walk outside the hotel and checked out some shopping. We wandered around a kid toy store for about a half hour, then Dave got back from his training class around 4:30. His cousin Jeff came over to hang out with us for the night. Jeff just got engaged, and you could tell. He was just beaming the whole evening, and couldn't stop talking about the wedding plans, his fiancé Denise, and just the whole thought process he's going through about being engaged and planning a wedding in 2 months. Dave is going to be his best man in the wedding. We went to Buca di Beppos - an italian family style restaurant (where the servings are large and everyone eating shares). Violet ordered mac and cheese (of course, the girl could live of that and that alone if she had the opportunity, lol) and Calvin shared it because the serving was so big. Jeff, Dave and I split some prosciutto-stuffed chicken with a creamy sauce, mozzarella caprese (fresh tomato slices, fresh mozzarella slices, fresh basil leaves, and olive oil), and a dish of baked sausage rigatoni. Everything was really good. We walked over to Coldstone Creamery across the street and enjoyed some ice cream creations. Calvin was all over the ice cream, begging for bites from everyone around the table. Violet didn't want ice cream...she isn't a big ice cream fan yet, apparently it is too cold for her. Oh well. She started getting REALLY whiney, so we called it a night and got the kids back to the hotel so they could get to bed. It was nice to hang out with Jeff. He is always enthusiastic and great company. Violet picked up on his friendly energy - she sat next to him and ended up crawling all over his shoulders and didn't stop talking to him. Normally she isn't so friendly with "strangers". Jeff isn't exactly a stranger but she doesn't see him more than twice a year or so. She must have a memory of seeing him earlier in her life, who knows. So..the kids finally fell asleep, and Dave, Jeff and I went down to the pool area. Jeff left b/c he didn't really want to swim (plus, he had to get up at 3 am to head to work the next morning!) so Dave and I stayed to swim for awhile. Somewhere in the middle of the night, Dave heard a noise. He got up and checked the kids to see what was going on. Poor Calvin was sleeping on the FLOOR. Somehow he had pushed his way over the comforter barrier and through the sheet that was hanging over the opening. Dave almost stepped on him. He picked him up and put him back in bed and Calvin seemed to be very happy about it. He snuggled into his blanket and went right back to sleep. Maybe we'll keep him in a crib for a little while longer after that episode. This morning we hit the pool again after another pancake breakfast in the hotel restaurant. I decided to brave the deeper pool with the kids. Violet and Calvin were in my arms the whole time, splashing and kicking. I ended up in the shallowest end of the pool (3 feet deep) and found out Violet could touch the bottom and her whole head was sticking out of the water. She was SO excited to find out that she could touch. So she didn't want to go back to the kiddie pool - she was determined to walk from edge to edge while touching the bottom, and she did multiple times. She can't swim, so I was watching her like a hawk. She was so proud of herself. She said "You didn't realize that I could touch the bottom! This is so fun!" She said she can't wait to tell daddy about it. Then we all had to get out and deal with a dirty diaper from Calvin, and Violet had to use the bathroom, too. I decided Calvin was done swimming so I put a regular diaper on him and strapped him in the stroller with a towel wrapped around him so he could just watch us swim. I could finally enjoy letting Violet swim/walk by herself with out having to worry about what Calvin was doing. He was getting too fussy anyway. So she then jumped off the edge of the pool multiple times into my arms. She insisted on doing it herself because she knew she could touch, so I went ahead and let her - she soon found out that means she could still go under water, haha. That was the end of that...I had to catch all subsequent jumps into the water. She said she was done...so both kids got good and tired by the end of that swimming experience. After a crazy time of me showering and bathing both kids, they had some left over pizza from yesterday's lunch for lunch today. I'm glad we have a fridge in our room. It has kept Calvin's milk cold during this stay here and allowed us to eat lunch in the room with out having to go anywhere. I put them down for naps about 30 minutes ago but Calvin is still kicking the wall and humming. I hope he falls asleep soon! That's about it...we'll head home tonight when Dave is done working. He said he's really enjoying the training class he's taking and is glad we came with him.

Getting a little better, I think

but time will tell. She woke up begging for food and pretty much refused jello...so Dave and I agreed to give her a piece of plain dry toast. She wanted it cut up in pieces, and served on a plate with a fork (lol), and she sat and ate the whole thing and claimed to feel better. After she threw up last night's supper I was hesitant to give her anything, but so far she's keeping the bread down.

Ugh

As if things couldn't get worse, she woke us up at 2 am. She walked into our bedroom and before I even opened my eyes, I could smell it. She whispered "Mommy, there's something all over me and its really stinky." She had puked. I stuck my hand out to wake up Dave - and he dutifully got up to help. I stuck V in the bath tub and washed her hair and her body again and Dave changed the sheets on the bed and put the puked on things in the washing machine. I had even put a diaper on her knowing that she can't control her runny diarrhea and I'm glad I did, because when she woke up in the morning, the diaper was full. Poor kid. I called the doc to see if I could bring her any relief with anything and they told me it was a tummy virus and it just needs to run its course. Liquid diet today and BRAT tomorrow if she stops vomiting. So I just got back from the store with some powerade and some popsicles...she seems to be happy with the popsicles so far. Calvin is ticked that he can't have any though!!

Another mess....

Poor Violet - she is sick. She had issues yesterday and I thought she'd get over it, but this morning she woke up and took one bite of her cereal and threw up. Dave stayed home with her this morning, and she ended up falling asleep on the couch for two hours. And she took a nap later in the day, and woke up screaming because she had a runny BM in bed. What. A. MESS. And stinky. I bathed her and Dave rinsed off some bedding and threw everything that got stained into the washing machine on the hot heavy cycle. Ew, ew, ew! The room is being aired out now...windows open, fans on....that should help. I'm praying that Calvin doesn't get sick. I think it was something she ate...a tummy virus or something. She doesn't have a fever, so hopefully once everything "passes" she'll be better. She's so sweet though. She whimpers a lot and wants to watch Elmo on TV. She told Dave "Daddy, I think I'll just get up and use the potty next time. I think that would be better."

What a mess!

Violet says to me today "Mom, it hasn't been a long time since I ever painted." meaning: "I haven't painted in awhile!" So...I got out her paints, paper to paint on, and a smock (an old messy T shirt of mine). She carefully used the brushes for the first 5 minutes, but then decided that wasn't fun enough and dug her fingers in to every color possible. I just let her go at it and it entertained her for about an hour. Calvin woke up while she was working on it and he was so jealous he couldn't do it, too! So he got strapped in a high chair with some snacks while she finished up. I wasn't going to risk him swiping the paint from the floor - he can reach, and I know he would have! (never fear readers: She was using water based washable paint...came right off!)

Adjusting

This week has been especially interesting and challenging. I think the kids (esp Violet) are getting used to being home again after being gone for such a long time. She's been extra whiny at bed time (crying and complaining that she can't even climb the stairs to her room, or climb on the toilet herself), and Calvin has been a mess. He is such a touchy kid. He gets upset if something doesn't go exactly the way he expects it to, and lets me know. He throws his body onto the floor in a full-out throw down and screams for awhile. Something as simple as not giving him the sippy he expected when asking for a drink. Everyone in the family is still recovering from our colds. I'm still coughing up stuff and blowing my nose every 30 minutes, and I'm wiping the kids' noses every hour. Dave said he feels OK, but he's just so incredibly swamped with work. Taking a week off is a big deal for him. His lap top computer crashed the day before we left -- it wouldn't start. So the day we got back from camp he called the help desk and he had to wait a day for them to mail him a part. He is responding to over 300 emails and is back downstairs tonight working to try catch up for tomorrow. Even in the midst of all this craziness, I'm thankful for my little family and how much love I feel for them and how much they give me in return.

Contacts

I went to the eye doc last month and got my eyes checked. I had to, since I was running out of contacts. I got my new Rx, ordered my contacts, and when I started wearing them, it seemed like my eyes were starting to fight each other. I couldn't focus on one thing clearly, but each eye individually could see really well. Weird. I had a hard time focusing on the speaker at camp last week. He looked clear and blurry at the same time. So, I called my eye doc yesterday and he told me my right eye naturally was just a little sharper than my left, so my contacts should have been adjusted accordingly, but he wrote my Rx for both eyes to have the same strength the first time. He gave me a couple free contacts to try out on my right eye (they were both -4.25 and now my left eye is the same and my right eye is -4.0) and today I've worn the different Rx, and it seems to be much better. Silly eye. Now I have to order more contacts. *sigh*

Calvin's canine

A new tooth sprouted while at camp. I was brushing his teeth one night and my finger felt a new sharp bump. Its one of his upper canines. No wonder he had been sucking so hard on one of his fingers that week. I think now that is came through his gums there is a little bit of relief.

Thunder

Violet has developed a real fear of thunder. Today has been a really stormy day. The Sunday School session was interrupted by a tornado warning (one touched down in Hudson) so everybody in the church building went to interior rooms until the warning lifted. There was lots of thunder and lightning. She was terrified to go to bed for her nap hearing it pound in the sky. Dave laid down her her until she calmed down. As we left VBS tonight, there was more thunder. And its still lightening and thundering outside. She is scared to go to bed, so she's waiting until its all over. I told her I'd play Candyland with her before bed, so I'd better quit blogging and get the game started so our kids can get to sleep at a decent hour.

Pictures from camp and visiting Hardinger grandparents

Our humble abode, room number 19 in Cedar Lodge:Calvin learning the art of checkmate: Violet and her friend Katie - they called this "the spider": Poor Calvin was bound to his stroller most of the week. He was pointing at the horses in this pic. Two very tired campers: Waiting for the parade to begin: My grandpa Loren is in the black hat facing away from the camera: The one picture I got in for the whole week:

Back from camp / Camp review

We got back on Saturday afternoon. I am not really sure how to start this post, I feel like I have a hundred things to record. We were with out phone or internet for a week while at camp since the location is so far in the woods. We could occasionally get cell phone reception on the top deck of the registration office building, but it was not a consistent signal. We made the drive down there in one day. It took about 7 hours of driving. We went to Ozark Family Camp and the location was at Turkey Hill Ranch Bible Camp. This camp runs all through the summer with kids mostly, and the last three weeks are dedicated to families. Turns out this week we went was family reunion week. Our friends Randy and Kim Costello invited us. Randy is the director of that week of camp, so he got us in. I guess its tough to get in since the camp is 100% packed with in a week of the registration letters going out in the mail. THRBC is located 4 miles east of Freeburg, MO. The road to get there is only 4 miles long, but it takes 10-15 min to navigate through the hills, tight curves in the road, and over the rough gravel. The hills, oh my, the hills!! They don't call it Turkey Hill for nothing. The registration office/eating hall is the highest elevation. Everything else is downhill from there. The cabins, the chapel hall, the park, etc...was all down hill. Not very stroller friendly, and made a good work out for the legs that week. All the cars park at an angle, making good use out of a parking break! Violet complained about the hills a lot. Calvin got carried almost everywhere. Violet was especially excited about camp because her friend (Randy and Kim's daughter) Katie was there, too. When we finally got there and parked the vehicle, I knew we got in right at dinner time, so we went straight to eat. Violet and Katie caught eyes and ran towards each other with so much speed I thought they were going to collide...it was like a scene in a movie. Two little friends running at each other with the biggest grins on their faces. They were all giddy and laughing the rest of the night. I don't think either of them ate a bite of their dinner they were so excited. The "camp" was more like a conference. We didn't really expect that. And I don't know how to come across like I'm NOT complaining, because I'm not, because the meetings were great and the teaching was solid and encouraging. But we had certain expectations, and it was very different from what we thought, so we had to quickly adjust. We knew there would be meetings/devotionals since it was a Bible camp, but the entire morning from 9-noon was filled with meetings. The first hour was singing and classes where the kids went somewhere and the men and women split up. Violet went to class, and Calvin stayed with Dave or I - there was no nursery or anything for him to do. He wasn't really thrilled about that, but we got through it. He's really at a difficult age - 18 months. He wanted to run and explore every corner of every building. The afternoons were free to do whatever activity you wanted, but we had to stay close to our cabin since the kids both slept for naps from around 1-3:30. Dave and I went swimming in the pool a couple times, played ping pong one time, and went on a tube float down the river one time. A neighbor offered to keep an ear out for crying while we were gone on the tube float. The one time we allowed someone else to be responsible for our children was the time that Calvin woke up screaming - so she went in to discover he was mad about a dirty diaper - so she changed it and some how got him back to sleep with out disturbing Violet's sleep. The evening was occupied with another meeting. One guy (Warren Henderson) did the majority of the teaching. He covered Exodus 14-16 for the week. The rooms were really like camping. A tiny room, a little bathroom, bunk beds with fiberboard bases and flimsy mattresses. We rearranged the room so that Dave and I could share two bottom bunks put together and we arranged all our stuff on the top bunks so nothing was on the little floor space available. Calvin was in a pack and play crib in the corner, and Violet was in the other corner against out bed at a 90 degree angle in the bottom of another bunk. She wet the bed one night, so I had to haul all her bedding to the laundry room and borrow someone else's detergent. We found an air conditioner that nobody was using and put it in our window, so that brought a little relief to the hot sweaty days and nights. It was also a little challeninging being "the new ones" at the conference in the midst of a bunch of extended families using this week as their family reunion. Everybody was really welcoming and warm, but we still had to meet everybody new for the first time (everybody there already knew everybody and had been coming for years) and learn names every time we turned around. That got a little tiring. But we did meet some great couples and families that we connected with. On Monday night Dave and I had gotten the kids to bed around 9 or so, then didn't really know what to do. Most of the families would go to places they could hang out and talk together, we didn't feel like we fit in much. We ended up sitting on a bench on the deck by our room that night, and a guy from the room on the opposite end of our lodge invited us down to their side of the deck to hang out with his wife and some other friends. It turned out to be pretty fun. They brewed some fresh ground decaf coffee and handed out snacks. We talked for a couple hours and enjoyed some kid-free adult conversation. One of the couples was Randy's brother Mark and his wife Rachel. They are "the farm" that Randy and Kim visit often. They live in southern Iowa. The other couples we talked with were Mike and Julie and Glen and Joy. Dave exchanged information with Mike. He said his sister lives in Waterloo and if they ever came up to visit, they would call us. I think the highlight of the camp was seeing Violet blossom and open up to so many people. Its still weird for me to have a kid who can talk clearly, convey her thoughts and intentions, and handle herself for the most part. She listens pretty well. We still have to work on all the whining! I guess its all part of growing up! She loved running around with Katie, of course, but she became friends with almost all the kids in the class she went to. Julia is Katie's cousin (Mark and Rachel's daughter) and she is 5 - she played really well with her. People seemed to enjoy her silliness. Violet got to go swimming a few times. She clung to her fishy floatie and was all over the pool. Her favorite thing was jumping in the pool with her floatie on. I think she even got her eyes wet a couple times, which is a pretty big deal to her. Calvin took a long time to warm up to swimming. He fussed and cried for almost an hour before he was comfortable playing in the kiddie pool. I think his week was slightly frustrating. There was no where for him to go and play during the meetings, and the playground was totally not suited toward kids his age. He got scared on the slides (they were really rickety and steep) and plenty of dangers. Everyone ended up catching the same cold before the week was over. Stuffy noses, congested sinuses, runny noses, and a cough. All the kids were sniffling and coughing all over camp. On our way down we realized how close we drove past Albia, IA where my grandparents live. We called them as we were driving down and proposed a visit on Friday night on our way home. Grandma Rowena thought that was a great idea, so we stuck to the plan. I am so glad we visited them. Its always nice to see them. She let me do ALL my laundry from the week using her soap and machines, so I got to come home with completely clean packed clothes. Unpacking was easy! Nothing went to my laundry room. We got to see a little parade in the little town of Albia that honored the vets who fought in the war. My grandpa Loren wore his infantry hat and waved to use from his float. Next post I'll include a few pictures.