Things I learned on Fall Break this year

(In no particular order .....)

1. I am really friggin' out of shape.

1a. There are a lot of stairs at Great Wolf Lodge. Most of them go up, which is unfortunate for people who are really friggin' out of shape.

1b. Don't complain about lines to get on water slide rides, because that might be the only chance you get to catch your breath in between the exhausting treks up the stairs, over and over and over.

2. You should check to see if your swimsuit bottoms have a hole in them BEFORE you wear them on vacation.

3. The weight of four ("well-fed", in the words of one of my friends) adults on the Tornado makes an AWESOME difference in the amount of sweet air you catch in the funnel.

3a. Remind me next time I go to Great Wolf to only invite people who are much larger than me ..... its a tad embarrassing for the skinny-minnie lifeguard to place you in the "fat" seat in the tube each time, and put the tiny children on either side of you to "balance out the weight of the tube" ......... whatever.

4. If you get thirsty enough, you will drink regular Dr. Pepper instead of diet, and not even bat an eye at the extra calories, because you know you will burn them off on the stinking stairs.

5. After leaving Great Wolf Lodge, and driving to visit friends in Dallas ..... A friend who has two boxes of Milk Duds waiting on your pillow at her house, and a case of Diet Dr. Pepper in her fridge, is a true friend, indeed.

6. Texans take 7-yr old football very seriously.

7. 8-yr old, too.

8. But when your friend's sons both win their games, and the sun is shining and the temperature is perfect, it is an awesome way to watch a football game. And although I realize the coaches take it very seriously (and maybe some of the parents, too, I'm just saying) and I doubt they would agree with me, I still say at that age, "cute" is the appropriate adjective to describe the game. Although "undefeated" is a nice adjective, as well.

8a. Much better than being at the Cotton Bowl yesterday, anyway.

9. Don't kid yourself that "who cares what I look like on the drive home, it's not like I'm going to see anyone I know."

9a. When three young men stop you at a gas station on I-35 and comment on your sweatshirt, telling you that they graduated from the same high school, that will be cool.

9b. Then they will tell you that they graduated in 2004, and you will abruptly and hurtfully realize that you are older than dirt and be quite depressed about yourself for a while.

9c. Then you will eat the two boxes of Milk Duds and not be so depressed anymore.

10. Halogen headlights should be outlawed.

(I realize that number 10 kind of came out of nowhere, but my gosh, those things are obnoxious shining into your eyes on the highway ---- obnoxious!!)

11. "I Love You, Man!" is just as funny the second time around.

(Yeah, number 11 kind of came out of nowhere, too, but who doesn't love Paul Rudd?)

12. More than Paul Rudd, I love mini-vacations. How many days until Fall Break 2010? And who wants to join us at Great Wolf Lodge?

And you thought the melting of the polar ice caps was slow

Blaine, the kids, and I, are happily ensconced in our room at the Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine, Texas. This is our second annual "Fall Break at Great Wolf Extravaganza", and we've got five (six?) other families meeting us here tomorrow morning. We drove down the night before on purpose, so we could have a relaxing, soothing evening in the hotel and then hit the water park first thing in the morning. If your definition of "relaxing" involves me getting angry with my children in the parking lot because they didn't want to help schlep the suitcases into the hotel, then our evening has indeed been that.

Further inspection revealed they only sell diet Pepsi products at this hotel. Help me.

And, do you remember how slow the aol dial up of years gone by used to be? Like, dinosaur slow? Well, it appears the free wi-fi service provided by the hotel is run by a provider called "Stayonline", who is apparently the younger, slower, more frustrating step-cousin to aol dial up.

Connecting, logging on, loading this page, and sending this update has taken almost twenty minutes. I haven't been able to access my e-mail at all. I clicked "connect to webmail" and went to the bathroom to change into my pajamas and remove my makeup. When I returned, the page still had not loaded. It's almost enough to make me flash back to the days of "You've got mail!"

It's ok, though. Blaine didn't get to visit Great Wolf with us last year because he was having radiation, so tomorrow morning we have the fun of introducing him to the infamous "toilet bowl" slide. I will call my sister and beg her to bring me some Diet DP, we will spend all day playing, and all will be right with my world again.

At least until I try to get online tomorrow night. Then, if the service isn't any faster than today, I will quite possibly have a stroke.

The Rules

Rules for enjoying Fall Break at Great Wolf Lodge and Indoor Water Park in Texas:

Rule #1: When you invite your mother to go with your family, since your husband can't go (pesky darn radiation treatments ....) make sure she actually realizes you are staying three days, and not two. Otherwise there might possibly be a clean underwear dilemma.

Rule #2: There is no graceful, lady-like way for climbing into the back half of a two-person float tube. Just spread your legs, pull down your swimsuit, go for it and enjoy yourself without shame.

Rule #3: When your brother-in-law climbs the stairs to ride the same toilet-bowl slide that you are already in line for, and he's four or five people behind you, do not turn around and say "Hey, good looking" unless you want the gentleman in between you to assume you are talking to him. (Funnily enough, he didn't appear to know whether to be flattered, or horrified.)

We have 48 more hours to go .... I'm sure plenty more rules will be forthcoming.

Travel Tip #8

Less of a travel tip, and more like an open letter to God:

Dear God,

Please, please, please, please .... don't let Blaine and me die in a fiery/watery/terrifying plane crash on our way to Phoenix/Seattle today. You know how I usually cover my bases by flying us on different planes, and I did that today, as well, but then Continental changed my flight time by over four hours and I had no choice but to book myself on the same US Airways flight as him. And while I know I listed a "100 Things I Love About You" list for our 20th anniversary, "plunging to our deaths together" is NOT what I want on the list for #101.

Please, please, please, please ..... let this sick, nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach be nothing more than the fact I haven't yet eaten my TJ Cinnamon's cinnamon roll that Blaine bought for me, and not the mounting guilt and fear that we are about to leave our children as parentless orphans with our selfish and greedy all-adult trip to Alaska. Because although I know my mother loves them, and would take good care of them for the rest of their lives, quite honestly, I don't think she has the mental fortitude to survive the non-stop, 24/7 Disney channel obsession that is my children's lives. Love them she might, but withstand the constant barrage of Suite Life and Hannah Montana? No, sadly, I don't think she's quite tough enough.

Please let us not only survive the flights, but please let's also keep the ship afloat, and not sink in the lake on our floatplane adventure, or be capsized by a whale, or eaten by a polar bear when we dogseld across the glaciar. Do they even have polar bears in Alaska? I don't know, but my point is .... as much as the little hooligans annoy me at times, I would very much like to return to them in one piece, ready to resume my role as parent.

Sincerely,
Kristie
PS. Thank you so much for the kind, helpful US Airways curbside attendant who not only helped dragged all six suitcases from the van to his check-in counter, but who weighed two of them because he was worried they might be over weight (Whew! Just made it! Two pounds to ) and helped with our ID tags and everything. Too bad he worked for United.

Travel Tip #7

And if you continue in your vain, shallow, organized manner, you might decide in addition to the clicky fake nails, you would like to get your hair styled while on vacation. If you wear your hair straight and {sometimes, unless it's a thousand percent humidity like it has been every day this week in which case I resemble Leo the Frizzy Lion} flat like me, that means getting your hair blown out and flat-ironed by a professional. A concept your husband will find totally bizarre .... "You're going to **pay** someone to blow dry your hair??? If *I* do it, will you give ME twenty bucks???" But you will do it anyway, because you want to look pretty for the humpback whales and bald eagles you will be seeing soon.

And while you are in the salon, getting your hair done, the shocking and depressing realization will come to you ..... that the girl styling your hair, the girl who is not only a high-school graduate but also a cosmetology school graduate, who is telling you about her upcoming vacation with her boyfriend and the house she just bought ..... is your best friend's daughter. Your best friend's TWENTY TWO YEAR OLD DAUGHTER. The guy whose ass you saved in sixth grade, who helped you learn to drive a stick, who double-dated with you, and who taught you how to shotgun a beer in high school. And if HE has a 22 year old daughter?????

That makes you officially old.

So afterwards, you will decide to take the pampering all the way, and treat your OLD skin to some quality skin care products .... or at least a higher-quality than the Clearasil brand cleanser you normally buy at Kroger. So you will find yourself sitting at a Clinique counter, confessing to the counter-girl that you'd really like something to help you obtain that elusive glow that (younger)women with beautiful (younger)skin seem to have.

And she will recommend cleansers, and moisturizers, and refiners, and you will be encouraged.

Then she will bring out an anti-wrinkle creme ...... "just in case you're interested". And then she'll dab on a little under eye gel .... "to help with those bags and dark circles."

And after you get done running her over with your car for daring to suggest such a thing, and then forking over your credit card because my gosh, she's right, I need every one of those products, you will realize ....

I am officially, seriously, depressingly old.

But! My hair looks fabulous! If only I could swoop it all the way over to cover the wrinkles and bags under my eyes, I'd be all set.

Travel Tip #6

There are certain vain, superficial, organized things that a girl such as myself likes to get done before going on vacation. Things like cutting her hair, buying new shoes, and getting fake nails put on. Because nothing says "Hey! I'm ready for an Alaskan Wilderness Adventure!" like a nice french manicure.

Just remember, however, that prior to your Alaskan Adventure, you might possibly spend a few days doing fun activities with your children. Activities where half-inch talons on the end of your fingers, although shiny and pretty, and definitely handy for opening those cans of Diet Dr. Pepper, will actually NOT be helpful .... like bowling.

And although you will have the highest score of the afternoon, you will be forced to admit that the only reason you had high score is because two of your spares happened when your ball flicked off your long nails, bounced off the kids' bumpers, and technically should have been gutter balls. And that knowledge, that you won because of the BUMPERS, will make it hard to clap your beautifully manicured hands in celebration.

Travel Tip #5

Driving cross country, even only part-way cross country, is a wonderful, educational opportunity for you to enlighten and teach your children about the beauty, geography and history of these United States of America. A great chance to fill their eager little minds with trivia and knowledge about the very states whose terrain you are traversing.

Proof that I am doing a good job with my own kids? Kendrie's plaintative wail, as she dropped her head into her hands, about hour sixteen into our journey, that .....

"Arkitado is the longest state EVER!!!"

See? See what a good job I'm doing?

I should probably homeschool.

Travel Tip #4

When traveling Hwy. 78 between Birmingham and Memphis, keep your eyes peeled for the absolute BEST name ever invented for an (ahem) adult establishment:

The Boobie Trap

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Get it? Boobie Trap? BOOBIE Trap????? Woooooweeee! {slapping knee, wiping mirth from eye}

{usual disclaimer about demeaning to women, and not appropriate, and should be ashamed, yadda yadda yadda)

(boobie trap, hee-hee ..... still giggling)

I am very immature.

Travel Tip #3

ps. those of you who've made it clear you don't like bad language can skip this one. It's only a word or two, but consider yourself warned.

******************************************************

Once upon a time, there was a charming, sweet, lovely, even-tempered, beautiful (and extremely modest) princess who lived in a wonderful land, far, far away. And although she loved her beautiful land, with its blazing hot temperatures and sweltering humidity levels, she wanted to visit other beautiful lands, also far, far away, preferably with much less sauna-like climates.

So she contacted the dwarfs at the Department of Travel and was told as long as she applied for a magical piece of paper known throughout the land as a "passport", she could travel. In fact, her "passport" would be like a golden ticket of admissibility to any land or foreign shore. And so, she applied. And she was happy.

Sadly, the dwarfs were not aware of their own limitations, or that many other beautiful princesses from all over would be applying for passports of their own, all at the same time. And the dwarfs failed in their issuance of the magical passport. And the beautiful princess was very sad.

But then! Friends of the princess told her that the dwarfs had decreed a new Department of Travel edict, and she could still travel far and wide, as long as she had the certificate of her noble birth, and her current, photo-ID Carriage License. Which she had. So she was happy once again.

The first day of her travels, she loaded up her carriage with all sorts of travel goodies, including three midget people who insisted on traveling with her, and the royal dog, and began her mystical journey. And she drove, and she drove, and she drove some more. And at long last, after an innumerable amount of carriage jams and road construction that brought her to many dead stops near a curious village called "Atlanta", she was able to continue, and finally arrived at a shithole motel wondrous palace where she could rest her weary head, and the heads of the midgets and the royal dog.

And so she crossed the moat into the entry way of this beautiful palace, where one of the serving-maids helped process her paperwork. And asked to see her magical credit card, and her Carriage License for security sake.

And this is when, the beautiful princess realized, to her total and utter dismay, that she had lost her Carriage License. For it was not located in the magical compartment in her magical royal handbag where it is held. Where it is *always* located. Where she keeps it, every royal day of her ROYAL DAMN LIFE WHERE THE HELL IS THE CARRIAGE LICENSE THEY WILL NOT LET ME INTO THE MAGICAL LAND OF CANADA WITHOUT THE FUCKING CARRIAGE LICENSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And the beautiful princess, although not normally suffering from respiratory issues, began to have an asthma attack right there in the lobby of the palace. The serving wench looked on in boredom as she frantically dumped her royal handbag out on the counter in a desperate and futile attempt to locate the carriage license. And then she paced back out into the carriage lot, where she beseeched her man-servant with pathetic pleas for help, because "Oh my gosh we've planned this royal trip for so long and I've made sure every royal detail is covered and now it's ruined ITS ALL RUINED BECAUSE I CAN'T FIND THE FUCKING CARRIAGE LICENSE AND WON'T BE ABLE TO GO!!!!!!"

And her handsome and incredibly virile man-servant, who she hired in the first place for his level-head and calm manner, reminded her she still had her Government Issued Magical Military Land photo ID and that would certainly suffice for the remainder of the journey. But the princess was still not happy. For she had the rest of a long journey ahead of her and wasn't happy about the thought of guiding her noble carriage without proper licensure. Plus, she was pretty sure the knaves at Tire Plus had stolen the Carriage License out of spite, when she refused to let them do an additional forty-seven gold coins worth of work to her carriage earlier in the week when the were replacing the wheels of her golden chariot.

So began her verbal barrage against the dastardly deed of these knaves and their irresponsibility in forgetting to return her carriage license and how first thing Monday morning, she would use her royal cell phone to call those bastards and they would send her license to her at their own expense, by the fastest runner in the land, and they better hope for their own sake it got there in time.

And this entire time, the midget people who had been traveling with the beautiful princess were looking at her with fear in their eyes, for the histrionics and drama of the situation seemed forthcomingly extreme. But the princess was obsessed, and could not be calmed down as she once again searched her royal handbag and shook her dainty fist to the heavens and showered dark curses down upon the heads of the Tire Plus license thieves and their children and their children's children.

Then, she noticed the envelope velvet pouch that the teller elf from the bank Building of Wondrous Donations had given her the day before. An velvet pouch filled with gold coins ...... and with her Carriage License stuck inside.

And the beautiful princess practically wept with relief, and said a prayer of thankfulness to the Patron Saint of Lost Things (Andrew? Augustine? Bob? What was that guy's name?) that she wasn't actually losing her mind. And that she would be able to enter the Magical Land of Canada after all.

And although she probably should have retracted her dark thoughts and comments about the knaves at Tire Plus, she didn't, because the midgets were still watching, and they need to know *someone* is to blame for this emotional display of ginormous proportion, and the princess sure as heck isn't taking the fall for for her own temper tantrum.

And they lived happily ever after the end.

Travel Tip #2

When traveling by car with the family pet, you will discover that it is not difficult to find a dog-friendly hotel.

What you *will* discover is that it is next to impossible to find a dog-friendly hotel that:

a) allows pets over 25 pounds
b) does so without charging a $75 pet fee
c) is not at least twenty miles out of your way

You cannot help it that your pet is not a yap-yap lap dog, and that he weighs way over the limit, but to pay $75 for the privilege of letting your arthritic, geriatric canine, who is way past the point of chewing on things or urinating on the sidewalk, sleep placidly in the corner of the room on a blanket you brought from home, seems a bit excessive.

So when you finally DO find a hotel that allows pets of all sizes, for only a $10 charge, and that it is located only half a mile off the interstate, you will do a little dance and praise the Gods of Google and make your online reservation.

Then, you will discover that the rooms are only $54.99 a night.

Red Flag.

And for good reason.

For if the rooms at a motel only cost $54.99 a night, there is a reason why. And you are not actually getting a great deal by booking two rooms side by side. You're simply getting double the dose of shall we say, less than stellar accommodations. And you will remember why there is a difference between a hotel and a motel. And you will come to the conclusion that by charging these cheap rates, management is quite obviously skimping a bit in both the housekeeping and maintenance divisions. And you will vow to yourself to pay the damn $75 fee on the return trip home.

Shower curtain? Held together with DUCT TAPE?

Not so charming.

Travel Tip #1

(Because you know there's going to be about a billion of them, right?)

Prior to leaving on your very long car ride, do NOT believe that you will save any time or effort by taking your children out for a quick fast-food lunch.

You will tell them you don't have time to run back home and change clothes, plus all the clothes are already packed away, and ask them to please eat carefully and not spill their food down the front of their shirts.

And they will listen.

You will remind them to drink their frozen cokes carefully, and not play with the straws, so as not to dribble on their pants.

And they will listen.

When they ask to go outside and play on the play land, you will remind them to avoid mud, grass, or anything that might get their shoes dirty or sticky or nasty.

And they will listen.

Then, they will find a tree frog on the slide, and squeal and make exclamations about how much they love it and how cute it is and grab hold of it. And in its efforts to free itself, the traumatized tree frog will pee all down the front of your 7-yr old's favorite t-shirt.

And you will realize that no matter how well (or sporadically) your children listen to you, your best-laid plans will ALWAYS lose to the ways of the urinary-challenged tree frog.

All Night

Dear State of Virginia,

Thank you for the perfectly timed, albeit quick, warm front that came through while we were visiting you on vacation earlier this week. The warm sunlight on our faces was the perfect accompaniment to our sightseeing.



The cherry blossoms were beautiful.



The sunshine was just warm enough to make my kids whiny for drinks, and cause me to sweat like a pack mule while I carried my youngest child up and down the mall. Obviously, her legs are broken, and no one told me.



But all told, it was a lovely visit and the warm temperatures were cheerful indeed.

*********************************************

Dear State of Pennsylvania,

You are beautiful, to be sure.

The rolling hills, picturesque green farmland, cattle and horses grazing, scenic old barns ….. it was the wonderful sort of Americana scenery that makes me smile inside with happiness.

Granted, it was a little chilly the day we toured your historic downtown district,





but the Cinnabon stand at the train station made everything worthwhile.




However, while I certainly enjoyed my time in your fair state, I do have one observation …… your toll roads are in a tragic state of neglect and disrepair. While I understand the $17 I spent on tolls is certainly not a lot of money, and most likely wouldn’t go far, I do respectfully suggest you spend every penny, every single penny, on blacktopping. My spine thanks you, as does my van suspension.

**********************************************

Dear State of Georgia,

The hell?????

When we parted ways a mere seven days ago, it was 82 degrees and we had packed away our winter clothes, except for those we (thankfully) took to Pennsylvania. When we arrived back home, at 4 am this morning, it was 41 degrees and hasn’t warmed up much since then. Please do something about that. My cold fingers and toes will thank you.

Yes, that’s right. All night. I drove all night to get home. Or at least as "all night" as 4am. At 8pm, when we *should* have stopped, I couldn’t bear the thought of facing another eight hours in the van the next day. At 11pm, when I *almost* stopped, I couldn’t bear the thought of dragging three sleeping children into a hotel.

It wasn’t a bad drive, just long. Especially at 1am, with three hours to go, when my iPod battery died, I was the only one awake in the van, and the thought of eating one more Twizzler to stay awake was enough to make me retch.

Other than that, though, a nice drive indeed.

Vacation Thoughts #3

Philadelphia.

The Liberty Bell.

Independence Hall.

The home of Betsy Ross.

The life of Benjamin Franklin.

History. Patriotism. Pride.

Three whiny, obnoxious, ungrateful, ill-mannered, rude, argumentative children.

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Vacation Thoughts #2

Because you care about your children, and want to broaden their horizons and expose them to culture and history, you will schlep yourself onto the metro, with the gazillion other families also on Spring Break, and take them to the mall. And walk them up and down the mall, covering approximately twenty seven miles, pointing out monuments, and discussing the founding fathers, and what it means to be inspirational and a hero. You will enrich their little minds with details about the Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Monument, and the Declaration of Independence, and the Gettysburg Address, and talk about the Vietnam War, and World War II, and the Capitol, and the White House, and the beauty of cherry blossoms. And you will try to impress upon them the significance of the things they are seeing, and to appreciate the ideals and beliefs upon which our great nation was founded, and the amazing men and women who made these things possible.

And your children will gaze upon the monuments. For about five seconds.

Then child number one will complain about how hot she is and how none of the vendors near the Lincoln Monument sell ice cream.

And child number three will complain about how much her legs hurt and demand to be carried the second half of the twenty-seven miles, and whine until you give in, never mind that she weighs 55 pounds and is giving her mom and dad both hernias as they swap off.

And child number two will simply ask, in a bored and unimpressed tone, how much longer? Because they are in the middle of a Pac-Man contest on the computer at the hosts' home and that is much more important than looking at a bunch of buildings.

And you? Well, you will suddenly realize that the vacation you are taking this summer? The adults-only, no-children vacation? The one where Grandma Betty will be babysitting while you and four adult friends will be seeing grown up things that don't involve ice cream (well, maybe a little ice cream) or Pac-Man contests or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. That despite how much you love your kids ...........

That vacation cannot come soon enough.

Vacation Thoughts #1

I have experienced the beauty that is a SuperTarget.

There is no need for me to leave the state of Virgina.

Ever.

ER, DID I SAY *QUALITY* FAMILY BONDING TIME???

Well, I have no doubt that those of you who have read this journal for awhile, or at least through our last two or three family vacations, have come here tonight, expecting to read an entry about obnoxious children, ill-mannered, disagreeable, quarrelsome, ungrateful hooligans, and the hazards of traveling with such social boors.

You will not be disappointed.

Is it ALL children on the planet, or just mine, who somehow lose their brains when they travel? Who forget common niceties like saying please and thank you, let alone keeping their hands and rude opinions to themselves ….. who lose the ability to ride in the car more than two miles without fighting over the dvd player ….. who turn their noses up at all planned activities …. who, despite the plethora of fun things to do and neat things to see, declare themselves bored every five minutes, declarations accompanied by huge, aggrieved SIGHS just in case we didn’t believe how bored they were …. who decide picking fights with their brother and sister is the only activity worth doing …. and who somehow manage to become deaf to the requests and threats of parents? Parents, who, I might add, have vowed in the past NEVER to take said children on another vacation, BUT THIS TIME WE MEAN IT, YOU BRATS, WE’RE NOT EVEN KIDDING AROUND!!!!

There. I feel better already.

At last year’s Quiet Heroes Luncheon in Atlanta, I bid on and won a three-night stay at a villa at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia. The villa was part of the silent auction, serving as a fundraiser for CURESearch, and I was so excited to be high bidder. We waited until now to use our stay, hoping to enjoy autumn and the beautiful fall weather, and picking this weekend, as the 3rd anniversary of Kendrie’s leukemia diagnosis. It seemed like a great time to make a fresh start as a family. To come together and make happy family memories. To make good times out of bad, and hold hands 'round the campire singing Kum-Buy-Ya together .....

(SNORT!)

They whined, they argued, they fussed, they complained. Mainly, it was the complaining that annoyed me. We took them to a nice restaurant for dinner; Kendrie griped that they didn’t serve macaroni & cheese. We let them pick souvenirs at a gift shop; Brayden griped that we didn’t give her enough money. I rented movies from Blockbuster and even BOUGHT A NEW DVD PLAYER WHEN OURS BIT THE DUST ON THE DRIVE THERE, DAMNIT; Kellen griped that all the movies I chose were dumb.

But hands down, the two highlights of the trip were when Kendrie dropped her fishing pole in the lake and cried for ten solid minutes because Blaine couldn’t go back and get it off the bottom of the lake with his Magical Fishing Pole Retrieving Abilities, and when Brayden proclaimed, halfway through our five hour bicycling trip around the lake (let me repeat that, in case it’s not clear --- I rented a bike and pedaled my fat ass FIVE HOURS around that lake) that she was bored (SIGH!) and I said, trying hard to be the happy, positive, encouraging mom that I am …. “Brayden, honey, the weather is beautiful, the sun is shining, we’re having a nice ride on a gorgeous day, couldn’t you just enjoy nature for a moment?” to which she replied, “They're just leaves” in a totally snotty voice.

At which point I told her to shut up. Me, the mom who doesn’t allow anyone in our house to say shut up to anyone else, told my 9-yr old daughter that if she couldn’t think of anything nice to say, THEN. JUST. SHUT. UP.

Go ahead and call DFACS now.

Despite their constant grumbling, I do have them trained properly (most of the time) to smile for the camera. And Lord knows I always have my camera. So I’ll give you the gist of the weekend, in pictures (those of you with dial-up, forgive me):

The beginning of our bike ride; still smiling.





Hey, it wouldn’t be a fall festival without a little happy requisite pumpkin painting. Yes, happy times. Afterwards, I put all three kids’ pumpkins in the basket of my rental bike and rode them all the bumpy way home, looking like stupid ole’ Miss Gulch from the Wizard of Oz, balancing Toto in my damn basket. All the bumping caused the pumpkings to rub against the basket, and some of the paint to flake off, which brought about a huge temper tantrum from Brayden, who claimed I didn't care about all the hard work she had put into the pumpkin. Did she thank me for hauling those frickin’ pumpkins all the way back to the villa for her? Or express any thankfulness that I managed to ride that entire way on a rental bike without killing myself? No, of course not. But she sure carped on the fact I let her pumpkin get scratched. You know. Happy times like that.





This was a pretty scene. No children to ruin it with their whining.





"Zip it and smile or I swear you’ll be grounded all weekend. I don't care if you're bored. Look like you're having fun."





Hey, wait, now he's actually starting to have fun. Of course, Kendrie hadn’t started in on her temper tantrum to end all temper tantrums about the fishing pole at the bottom of the lake yet. But it's coming, never fear.





This was Brayden’s favorite part of the weekend, the drive-through animal safari in Pine Mountain.





We rented a zebra-van and hit the road. We were the first family in the park that morning, and let's just say those animals have the entire Pavlovian response to the zebra vans down pat.





Kellen really enjoyed it, also, when he wasn’t squealing like a girly-man.






This was the view we had most of the hour-long drive. I felt pretty much the same way when I realized, the next day, that I had left my spare camera battery in the damn zebra van. Of course, no one turned it in. Why would they?





Kellen’s favorite part of the weekend, the bike rides.






The first day, I didn’t have a bike, so we headed over to the bike rental place, with Blaine and the kids riding and me walking. That’s why I’m still smiling at this point. I hadn’t yet begun the Buns of Steel Eternal Never-Ending Bike Ride Around the Lake. Did I mention it took us five hours??? Natalie, *how* does Eamon do it???? Better yet, WHY??? My ass STILL hurts!






Naturally, the kids complained that my walking to the bike rental facility was taking too long and slowing them down. So I got on Blaine’s bike. And he got on Kendrie’s 18-inch Rhino Booster. And pedaled her on the pegs. He is such a stud.






Actually, this was one of the (FEW!) spontaneous happy moments of the weekend. After visiting the Butterfly Center, we let the kids goof off on the grass, and they laughed joyfully and wrestled gleefully with one another. Until Kellen poked Kendrie, or Brayden hit Kellen, or some other calamity, who can even remember who was mad at who which time with these kids?





Requisite butterfly photo.






Requisite flower photo.




And lest you think the entire weekend, 24/7 was horrific ….. well, it pretty much was. No, I’m kidding, we did have a few pleasant episodes mixed in amongst the squabbling. The best moment of all? Saturday night, while Blaine and I hung out in the guest bedroom watching the Florida/Auburn game, and the kids were in the guest bathroom, mixing up “potions”, which consisted of emptying every shampoo, conditioner, and mouthwash container the villa provided and pouring them and arranging them in various ways with every utensil found in the kitchen, then calling those concoctions “inventions” and declaring they were in a “Science Club”.

You know what? Fine. But we could have done that at home, for a LOT cheaper, don’t you think? And my ass wouldn’t have been near as sore.

HAPPY FACES (AND OTHER KINDS, TOO)

What, exactly, constitutes a happy face? Well, here are a few examples from our vacation, in case you aren’t sure:

PS. I'm sure those of you without high speed internet do NOT have happy faces right about now, as you realize this is less of a journal entry and more like my own personal vacation photo album. And you dial-up people are basically screwed.
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Although you can’t really see it, Brayden has a happy face here, since she is enjoying her life’s passion -- collecting every single solitary water bug from the pool:





The happy faces here are pretty evident:





But just in case you can’t see them, let me show you a close up:





And not to be outdone, here are a few more happy faces:






Here, we’ve pretty much crossed the happy line, into “gleeful” territory (Well, the girls anyway. I think their cousin was getting a little bored):






Here, not so much. This is more of a “Crap, now that I’ve gotten up, how do I keep from falling?” sort of face (and on second thought, the look on my face right now is pretty much horrified, as I realize I've just shared a photo of myself in a bathing suit on the internet):






Here, the face isn’t happy, but trust me, the spirit was. Overjoyed, in fact. But the face was concentrating, really really hard:






Here, there is slight anticipatory happiness because we think it will be fun. Quickly, we (and by we, I mean ME) realize our error:






Ok, this was basically a look of sheer terror that my brother in law was going to flip me right off the innertube. I wasn’t worried about my daughter at all. At this point, it was all about self-preservation:




Oh, wait ….. now I remember, this is fun!





And here is the happiest face of the entire vacation. You think she isn’t proud of herself? Think again. Neither her brother nor sister had gotten up yet in their attempts, and she wasn’t about to let us forget she was FIRST TO SKI, BABY, FIRST TO SKI!!! Essentially, we didn’t need to worry about a life preserver, because her head was swelling up so big I have no doubt it could have served as a flotation device in the event it was necessary. Which it totally wasn’t, because not only did she get up, she didn’t fall either.






And here’s another close up, in case you had any doubt:





Two thumbs up, everyone!!! (Which is sign language for "I totally rock, people!"):





And although there is no picture, you should see the smile on MY face, now that it appears I have (finally!) figured out the webspace/host issue and can once again play music on this site. Not only play music, but store both music and pictures on a site with plenty of bandwidth. The happiness I’m feeling has no equal. Picture me doing the cabbage patch around my office, spinning in happy circles, arms outstretched, throwing myself a ticker tape parade, giddy with joy …. No, wait, that’s certainly not an image you need burned into your retinas. Just trust me that I’m SO glad to have it all figured out finally. And if you’re here, and not hearing music, and not seeing any of the pictures above, then just forget the whole thing, because I will formally give UP!!!!!

Kristie

PS #1: Close your internet ears, please.

&**$#^$(^$#^$#^$&#*^$*&#^$&#^$ !!!!!!

IHATETECHNOLOGY!!!! I spent hours, HOURS, figuring out (and by "figuring out", I mean "harrassing the tech support people at my new web host server") until I got the music to work. So you'd think, wouldn't you, that the pictures would be done the same way? But apparently they are not. Or maybe they are, and I'm just too dense to make it work. Because heaven forbid it make sense, or work in a logical fashion. NO, that would be too easy. Because then what would I complain about, if not for the level and depth of my hatred for internet technology that is over my head??? But I can tell you I'm not wasting another minute’s sleep trying to understand it. Oh, no. Now, granted, I'll waste all the sleeping time in the world, logged on here, bitching about it, but as soon as I'm done loading the photos up the OLD way, it's off to bed for me!!!

PSS. Really? There are that many of you that watch The Real World? Well, ok, if you say so. I have no idea who it was, since I stopped watching MTV about fifteen years ago, when they stopped showing music videos!!! :) But according to the guy next to me, it was a male participant (sorry, I just can't bring myself to say "actor" or "celebrity") from the San Diego series. (Was there a San Diego series?) He looked to be medium to big build, with short, curly dark hair. From the back, he totally looked like Peter Brady. In fact, I'm going to go out on a limb and say, YES, it was Peter Brady!!! (except I think he's on a VH1 reality show, so what the heck do I know?)

A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE

141 Days to Go

I find it hysterical that at a beach/lake/water-park place we visited in Ohio, with all kinds of slides and monkey bars and play equipment in the water, my kids enjoyed digging holes best. I’m not quite sure what type of architectural masterpiece they were going for, but I’m pretty sure it involved a moat and someplace for the plastic alligator to rest.




My perspective: Look at how creative my children are and how nicely they are playing with their little friend Anna.

The lifeguards’ perspective: Those damn kids got out every damn shovel and pail on the beach. It’ll take me HOURS to clean up tonight!




My perspective: Look how beautiful my son is.

Lifeguards’ perspective: Wow, doesn’t she ever feed that kid?





My perspective: I love to see my children learn about nature, even with an act as simple as letting wet sand slide through their fingers and enjoying the messiness and happiness of being a child.

Lifeguards’ perspective: First of all, Rogaine, anyone? And secondly, she dragged out all those buckets and shovels and now she’s happy playing with mud? I swear I am never having kids.





My perspective: Our last photograph of the day, showing us enjoying our vacation with all our friends in Ohio. They are such a cute group of kids!

Lifeguards perspective: Thank God, I think I heard that lady say it was the last picture of the day. Maybe that means this group of kids is going home now!





Kendrie’s perspective: Yep, that lake yesterday was fun. But this water park today? And particularly this wave pool? This is where it’s AT, baby!

Lifeguard's perspective: Ma’am, you cannot stand at the exit to the lazy river, trying to get a photo of your child, without being knocked down by the waves. If I have to blow my whistle at you again, I will remove you, and your zoom lens, from the pool.






Kendrie’s perspective: Wheeeeeee! Can I do this again??? Fun, fun, FUN!!! I bet if I take off my shoes and wear only my socks, I can go down this slide even faster!!! Wheeeeee!! Hey, wait, it’s getting dark. Does that mean giant mutant bugs will be coming out soon?

Kristie’s perspective: This isn’t really a perspective as much as it is a piece of advice. If you ever find yourself in a public park after dark … don’t. Beetles the size of Texas will attach themselves to your child’s foot and you will have to deal with a hysterical 5-yr old, try to figure out some way to get the beetle off her sock without knocking her to the ground (which I managed to do anyway), a 7-yr old who is, I swear, about to hyperventilate from fear of the giant beetle, an 8-yr old who starts crying just because everyone else is …. And I thought taking Kendrie to use the port-a-potty in the dark would be scary, geesh. I am not exaggerating, though. That mutant-freak bug should have been in a museum somewhere. My girlfriend Kim will vouch for me! But at least she and her kids remained calm!

One last perspective:

The little, bitty, stubble-like hairs I saw coming from the chest of the man at the public pool yesterday … when I realized he must shave his chest and was a few days past due … very funny looking.

The little, bitty, stubble-like hairs I saw coming out of Kendrie’s scalp yesterday, in between the huge bald patches she has …. Beautiful.

We are making the most of our last full week of summer and taking the kids to do a few fun things these next couple of days. I’ll update, and include pictures (imagine that) in a few days. Hope all of you have a great week in the meantime!



Kristie
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KENDRIE’S PERSPECTIVE:

WORST PART ABOUT HAVING CANCER TODAY: I’m sick of my mom spreading what little hair I have left around to look for new growth. For pete’s sake, you’d think she’d laid down sod or something, the way she keeps checking!

BEST PART ABOUT HAVING CANCER TODAY: It’s really going to happen on Thursday, although to be honest, I’m not even sure what it is. Something to do with the Atlanta Braves, and me getting to help cut a ribbon, and the great folks at CureSearch. Hmmm, when I know more, I’ll share it with you!

TRAVELING FOOLS ….. WELL, FOOLS, ANYWAY

144 Days to Go

We are back from Ohio, safe and sound and in one piece, all persons accounted for. The kids and I had a great time visiting our friends and I think Blaine enjoyed the five days of peace and quiet around the house (although since he knows what’s good for him, he keeps insisting that he’s glad we’re home again.)

Something I don’t think I mentioned was the weekend we spent in Atlanta prior to driving to Ohio. We attended our first-ever CURE Family Picnic and certainly saw what all the fuss was about! We missed last years when Kendrie was in Delayed Intensification and too sick to go; I was so glad that this year’s picnic wasn’t ruined by her hospital visit earlier in the month …. although it *was* almost ruined by steroids. Certain moments were trying, to say the least, and my patience span, while short to begin with, became embarrassingly shorter during our two-day stay.

I found it ironic that in February, when we attended the Camp Sunshine Circus and stayed the night with our friend’s Brandon and Ryan, Kendrie was on steroids and acted obnoxiously. This time, it was definitely S.S.D.D.! But that’s ok, luckily Ryan and Brandon’s parents are understanding, and we all managed to have a great time. So to Mike and Kristin, thank you once again for having us in your home and looking the other way when necessary!

The CURE picnic was lots of fun, with plenty of activities, games, prizes, food, and music.


Kendrie enjoying one of her favorite activities, mini-golf.

These Atlanta cancer get-togethers are starting to feel a little like a high school reunion, only instead of “there’s Joe from math class” or “there’s Rachel from the swim team”, it’s “Hey, there’s Chandler, who we’re supposed to go to the Lighthouse with!” and “Look, there’s Keegan, the new Atlanta ALL kid who moved here from another state!” and “Wow, everyone, look how big Camp Jack is getting!” It’s a bizarre little club, but what truly outstanding club-mates we have!


Kendrie hanging out with our friend and fellow ALL patient ... who recently finished her treatment ... way to go, Madie!

The next day, after staying with Ryan and Brandon, eating all the food in their house and playing with every single toy under the roof, we attended a birthday party and had lots more fun. The BEST kind of fun, in my opinion as a parent --- the kind that wears kids out and leaves them in a state of physical exhaustion! Especially since after the party I packed the kids up in the van and started the drive to Ohio. I’d much rather tire the kids out with good ole’ fashioned exercise before a road trip, as opposed to whipping out the Benadryl, which I have been known to do on occasion.


Exploring at Jump Zone .... what a great place! And happy birthday, Ryan!



"Can I help it if I'm so cute? It doesn't even matter that I stink at air hockey, at least I look good when I'm playing!"


Kendrie had only a few days of steroids left after that, so the last half of our time in Dayton was definitely more fun. And more peaceful. And less stressful and exasperating and infuriating. I’ll put Ohio pictures in the journal in a few days. To close, for now, I thought I would share with you a few of the lessons I learned while driving from Georgia to Ohio, and back again, by myself with the kids. Especially with a kid on steroids.

TOP SEVEN ADVANTAGES TO TAKING A VACATION AND DRIVING TWELVE HOURS IN A MINI-VAN WITH A KID ON STEROIDS:

1. There is no better way to see all the scenic side roads and beautiful images of Kentucky than desperately searching for an exit off I-75 that has a Pizza Hut. We never found any pizza, but saw a lot of pretty trees.

2. Pulling off to buy a McDonalds Happy Meal every third exit gives you the satisfaction of knowing you are doing your part to boost the local economy. A LOT of local economy’s.

3. Attending a cancer event like the CURE picnic with a sullen, disagreeable, unfriendly child who refuses to make eye contact or talk to anyone? Nothing more than a quick “Sorry, she’s on steroids” explanation is needed and fellow cancer parents everywhere will nod their heads in sympathetic understanding.

4. The steroids will give the child the steely, stoic, brave, courageous attitude they need to survive an attack from a mutant lobster-beetle thing in a public park at ten o’clock at night. (Don’t even ask.)

5. When steroid-child refuses to get in the pool and play at the water park, she can sit in a chair and save the “good” table with the umbrella and shade. Pouting and saving at the same time ... great time management skills in action!

6. Nothing says to a waitress, “Hey! Come spit in my food!” quite like a child who orders double entrees and double glasses of milk and then refuses to eat anything because the chicken is too crunchy and the mashed potatoes are too spicy and the macaroni & cheese isn’t cheesy enough and the chocolate milk isn’t chocolaty enough.

7. Truly, can you think of any way to make happier family memories than stopping at every gas station within a five-hundred mile radius to use the restroom? Again and again and again?

And can you believe that despite my groaning and complaining, I’m still upset and sad about the Lighthouse retreat being cancelled for this week? But hey, Kendrie would have been off steroids by the time we took *that* road trip!

Thanks for checking in,
Kristie

PS. These links actually should have gone at the top of this journal entry, as we have some online (and in person) friends who could use some extra prayers and happy thoughts right now. Please take a moment to visit their websites and drop them a note of encouragement. The messages in the guestbook do a lot to brighten our days .... and even more for families who are facing an extra-tough time. Thanks!

Our good friend, and Kendrie's buddy, Catie, who found out this past week that a "suspicious" spot on her scans in indeed the same cancer she was diagnosed with two years ago. NOT a relapse, which is a blessing, but still a challenge for the doctors (and parents, our friends Jenny and Tre') who now have to make treatment plans for Catie with no clear path blazed before them. Hell, forget "clear" ... no path at all. Jenny, Tre' and Catie, we love you guys and are praying for Catie every day!

Our online ALL friend Cameron, who is headed for his second transplant for his second ALL relapse. Once again, his older brother Chad will serve as his donor and our hearts and prayers go out to both Chad and Cam for a smooth process and total healing.

Another online friend and fellow ALL patient, Clare, who is only days out from her transplant for ALL relapse. The transplant went well, but Clare is feeling pretty crummy right now (normal, but not fun). Adding total insult to injury is the fact that today is CLARE'S 7TH BIRTHDAY!!! and she's spending it recovering in the hospital. Please drop by and wish her a happy birthday!

An Atlanta friend and fellow Scottish Rite ALL patient, Jake, who relapsed in May and is back at the "beginning" of treatment. We got to visit Jake in the hospital two weeks ago and understand that he is doing HIS part to boost the local McDonalds economy as well!! :) Jake, (and Elle and Brent!) we are thinking of you!

I've kind of gotten away from posting so many links to these great kids, and to some amazing social service organizations, since Caringbridge cracked down with their new policies. I'm feeling a little bit rebellious tonight and want to be sure and remind everyone that you can still get a Monster Links Page link from Julianna Banana's site and visit about a bazillion kids thanks to the ENORMOUS efforts of her dad, Terry. Another great site is Share the Love, a website that lists hundreds and hundreds of links to kids' sites.

Please take a minute to make a new Caringbridge friend (or two or three!) in the next few days .... tell 'em we sent you! :)

Thanks, Kristie

“CALIFORNIA DREAMING”

(or) “How I spent my Thanksgiving Vacation”

Week 16 of LTM

Wow, what a wonderful week we had in sunny, southern California! So many thank-you’s to send to friends, and friends of friends, who were willing to host us during our stay. I have to say, we took the tourist world by storm and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves every single day. Normally, it’s not a vacation until someone gets the stomach flu or we lose our luggage --- this time, pretty much everything went according to plan. What follows is a photo timeline of our eight days, with captions. If you have dial-up, you might want to go get a sandwich right about now …. This could take a while.

“THE GOOD (AND HARDLY ANY BAD) OF OUR THANKSGIVING VACATION TO CALIFORNIA”

Day 1: Leaving Georgia in 60 degree weather and arriving in Los Angeles in 60 degree weather, yet getting to see snow during our layover in Denver. Pretty cool, huh? Unless you live in Montana, and you’re probably thinking, “big stinkin’ deal.”

Later in Day 1: Arriving at the home of our dear friends Kim and Kenny and their boys Jacob, Nathan, Austin and Dylan. Our kids hadn’t seen each other in almost a year and a half …. that’s like a billion dog years to kids at this age! Luckily, they picked up right where they left off and were best buds again within minutes. The boys have been friends since they were five months old, and my girls would have been happy doing nothing but sitting and holding the twins the entire visit. Too bad the twins, at twelve months of age, had different ideas.


“No, they’re not gay. They’re six, and they’re best friends. On second thought, at least we hope they aren’t gay.”

Day 2: Going to the tidal pools to play, and getting a chance to meet Alex and his family. My only disappointment is that I was so busy taking pictures of the kids “enjoying” nature, I forgot to take a picture of Alex and his family! It was great to meet them, though, and hopefully next time we are in Los Angeles we can visit again. (Next time, without coming home with creepy crawly things in Brayden's pocket!)











Day 3: Hanging out on the pier at Redondo Beach.

When Blaine and I lived in Los Angeles from 1996-1998, this was one of our favorite places to spend an afternoon, feeding the pigeons, watching the sea lions, and feeding ourselves. Mainly, feeding ourselves.



As you can see, not a lot has changed! I realize this photo isn’t one of my own children, but I thought it turned out great ….. and no, I’m not stalking total strangers’ children; this is our family friend Nathan, getting up close and personal with his cotton candy. After getting all the kids loaded on a sugar-high, we hit the beach for some shell-collecting, aka ... more creepy crawly things in Brayden's pockets.

Evening of Day 3: We spent the evening having a nice dinner (no kids!) and watching the stand-up comedy routines of Jay Leno and Kevin Nealon. Unfortunately, the Comedy Club of Hermosa Beach doesn’t allow cameras during the show ---- because this is where, if I had it, the photo of Blaine laughing so hard he spit beer out of his nose would be.

Later in the evening of Day 3: This is where, if I had it, the photo of me in a total state of nirvana would be. Cheesecake Factory; chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake. Need I say more?

Day 4: First official “Tourist” day in Los Angeles --- Knottsberry Farm. We spent pretty much the entire day in Camp Snoopy, letting the children ride rides to their hearts content. My only regret of the entire day is not getting a photo of Kendrie on the Pirate Ship ride. You’ve heard the term “squealing with glee”? She took sheer joy to a new level, and wants to know why we can’t have one in our backyard.



"Not as much fun as the Dragon Ship, but still a pretty good time! Blaine and Kendrie enjoy a roller coaster."



"l-r, Jacob, Kellen, and Brayden. Not sure if this was the first, second, or fifteenth time they rode this. It was one of those, "Again, again!" run-around and hop on again rides."


Day 5: Second official “Tourist” day in San Diego --- Sea World. Now, I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I’m 38 years old and I had never been to a Sea World in my entire life. Maybe I just didn’t realize how cool Shamu really was. But we had a great time.



“So, just whose mouth is bigger, a giant whale, or mom’s?”

The extra-cool thing about our California vacation, and Sea World in particular, is that it gave us a chance to spend the day with another of our online friends in person, Andrew and his mom, Kim. Having corresponded via e-mail for over a year, it didn’t take long to make that “in person” connection to them both (and rumor has it that Andrew has a little crush on Brayden, so all told, I’d say it was a successful afternoon!)



"Enjoying the Shamu show. Enjoying spending time with Andrew. Mainly, enjoying the popcorn."

We stumbled upon the dolphin tank at just the right time for public feeding. Brayden was a bit miffed when a pelican, or some other sort of aggressive, flapping sea-bird creature, flew right at her and stole a sardine out of her hand (and at a dollar apiece for each sardine, I was a little miffed, too!) but otherwise the dolphin feeding was a huge hit.




And by now we had figured out the fall weather in California --- shorts and t-shirts during the day, and jackets and mittens at night. You’d think, after our Easter-weather fiasco in Washington DC, that I would have learned my lesson and packed a better variety of clothing options. Nope, I’m still just as ill-prepared, so we wound up borrowing t-shirts from our hosts and buying stocking caps from Target. (I’m just glad they *sold* stocking caps in Southern California!)

Day 6: Thanksgiving spent in San Diego with Kim & Kenny’s family. We slept in their beds, ate their food, drank all their soda, used up probably more than our fair share of the toilet paper (but definitely not their soap, since my kids didn’t bathe the entire time they were there!) and were made to feel right at home. Thank you so much!


“Our combined gang, working on Year Six of a life-long friendship”

Day 7: Squeezing one last tourist attraction into our week, LegoLand! I don’t know who was more impressed with the statues and mini-cities and creatures built all out of Legos at this park (30 MILLION Legos used in all!); the kids or me. Mainly, the kids wanted to know where the rides were. I was a little hesitant, until I discovered they used actual steel and metal, and NOT Legos, to build the roller coaster. Because for my kids, it was aaaaaaalllll about the roller coasters! But I still made them pose in front of the cool Lego-statues.



Evening of Day 7: Being invited back to Andrew’s house for dinner (thank you so much, Doug and Kim!) and s’mores. My kids would have been willing to skip dinner and go right to the s’mores …. They obviously get their lack of will power from me.



Fortunately, Andrew's mom Kim had the forethought to pack three baggies full of marshmallows for the plane ride home the next day, so we were able to leave without full-blown tantrums.


"Have you ever seen such happiness from a graham cracker and chocolate? Wait. Who am I kidding? That's what I look like when I eat graham crackers and chocolate, too"

Day 8: And here’s the only place where the vacation didn’t go as planned. Thanks to inclement weather in Chicago, our flight out of LAX was delayed by two hours. I would have paid a kagillion dollars to have our portable dvd player with us, but we had to entertain ourselves with coloring and endless games of “Mercy” (until the guy next to us gave us several dirty looks and an indignant "hurrumph!" for having such unruly children ….. come on, man, they’d been in the waiting area for over two hours!)

Then, at 1 am, after traveling for over twelve hours, a mere half - mile from our house, Blaine was stopped and given a speeding ticket. I have to take the blame, since he had just asked me what the speed limit was and I told him wrong. I’d offer to pay the ticket, but what with me being a stay-at-home mom and all, I’d have to borrow the money from him and that just seems silly now, doesn’t it?

So there it is in a nutshell. A week of fun and friendship; good times, good food, good friends and great memory-making. Blaine spent today putting up our Christmas lights, the kids “supervised” and I actually got all the laundry done. Tomorrow it’s back to our school routine, with a chemo appointment (and the start of a five-day steroid pulse …. Ick!) thrown in on Wednesday for good measure. Kendrie’s got some serious looking red circles under her eyes; whether it’s being tired from our whirlwind week of activity, or from playing outside all day today, or from crying for thirty minutes when she found out she was given the position of LAST in the bathtub tonight, I’m not sure.

I hope everyone else had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday, as well.

Take care,
Kristie
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KENDRIE’S PERSPECTIVE:

WORST PART ABOUT HAVING CANCER TODAY:
It’s the weekend. Which means more Bactrim. Sigh.

BEST PART ABOUT HAVING CANCER TODAY:
Remembering how much fun I had making s’mores at Andrew’s house! And holding the twins ... when they weren't frantically crawling away from me. And wrecking Nathan and Jacob's playroom. And going to all those cool places ..... wow, I guess I had a pretty fantastic week!