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August 5, 2003
Rachel’s birthday weekend:
Rachel’s preschool class celebrated her 4th birthday at school last Friday. We sent two trays of cupcakes. The kids sang happy birthday to her, and she got to wear the birthday crown for the day. When I picked her up, she was really excited. We stopped to pick up Mitch. The kids asked for suckers. They enjoyed their lollipops on the ride home. We talked about our plans for Rachel’s birthday weekend. As I looked in the rearview mirror, I could see Rachel had bubblegum stuck in her hair. I realized that the kids would need baths as soon as we got home. I had a million things on my mind that day. (1) did Fed Ex deliver Rachel’s doll house? (2) could I still get the Wiggles tickets online for Saturday’s concert? (3) if I picked up the balloons on Saturday, would they still be in the air on Sunday or would they be sagging to the floor? I wiped Mitch’s hands off before getting him out of the car seat. Oh! The damage he can do with his sticky hands. I got out the peanut butter and smeared a glob in Rachel’s hair working it through the bubble gum. What a mess! I got the kids into the tub and let them play for a while. I towel-dried them and got them dressed fresh clothes. That night, Jerry had a night out with the guys for their fantasy football league. Stephanie called earlier and I invited her over with Avery so the kids could play. I made a quick pass through the house, getting the house in decent shape as quickly as I could. The doorbell rang. It was the Federal Express man with the doll house. Yippee! I met him outside and asked him to just prop it by the front door, all 55 pounds of it. I didn’t want Rachel to see the package because the label had many pictures of the doll house. Stephanie & Avery arrived. The kids got busy playing in Rachel’s room. I let them jump up and down on the bed, to Stephanie’s dismay. (She said she doesn’t let Avery do that at home.) Stephanie and I kept one eye on the kids while we got caught up. She recently miscarried and is anxious to get PG again. I loaned her my fertility monitor and my TCOYF book. She took them home with her that night. They left at 9:30. It was way past Mitch’s bedtime. He was rubbing his eyes and yawning. After getting him to bed, I let Rachel watch Fox & the Hound (one of her new favorite movies), while I got online to buy Wiggles tickets. I bought 4 tickets for $112 for Saturday’s 10 a.m. concert. I guess that’s not too bad, considering we don’t go to concerts that often. I went downstairs and laid down with Rachel to watch Fox & the Hound. I was falling asleep, but Rachel was wide awake. It was over at 11 p.m. I wrote a note for Jerry to tell him we were going to the Wiggles in the morning. Then we brushed our teeth, I read a book to Rachel and kissed her goodnight.
A bum knee…
The next morning, Jerry told me about his day on Friday. He finally went to the doctor for an evaluation of his knee. He injured his knee a few months ago when his foot slipped on the pavement of an Eckerd’s parking lot. He twisted his knee and it has never been the same. He has been limping along since then. The doctor examined his knee and ordered x-rays. She said he will likely need an MRI to see any significant results. But, the insurance company required that he jump through all the lower level hoops to rule out other things. He has an appointment on Wednesday, where he will find out more about his knee. In the meantime, he has to take anti-inflammatory meds, wear a knee brace, and apply heat and elevate the knee. I think he will need an MRI and knee surgery. Knee problems don’t just go away. You don’t just walk it off!
The Wiggles (a/k/a The “iggles”)
The kids woke up. We got them dressed, had breakfast and got in the car. It’s a 45-minute drive from our home into the Reliant stadium/arena. No need to add additional time—no tailgate parties for the Wiggles show. We parked and got in line only to find we had to walk all the way around to the other side of the building because that’s where our tickets were located: at Will Call. I felt bad for Jerry, but we didn’t have a choice. We had already parked, and we had 10 minutes until show time. After a long hike around the building, we got our tickets, went to the bathroom, and found our seats. Reid & Tina & Cole (our friends) spotted us walking across the main floor to our seats. When Jerry got up to get popcorn & drinks, Reid followed him to the concession stand. The Reliant Arena was just the right size for a Wiggles crowd. All the seats were considered good. We sat just left of the stage in the 7th row. We were so impressed with Mitch. As soon as the Wiggles appeared on stage, he said, "Oh boy!" He sat perfectly still the entire show with his attention focused squarely on the stage. He loves the Wiggles (he calls them the “iggles”). Rachel danced in the aisle, and overall we were impressed with the show. I was disappointed because my favorite Wiggle (Anthony, in the blue shirt; I can’t believe I even have a favorite wiggle!) was not able to attend. A replacement was sent in his place, and no one seemed to notice, except me. The funny thing (to me) is that the replacement guy was a dead ringer for my friend Cindy’s husband—James. I could not get that idea out of my head. James is such a country, good-old-boy, and it just made me laugh to imagine him dressed as a Wiggle dancing all around the stage. We sang along, without embarrassment, with the Wiggles as they performed. Fruit Salad, Another Cup of Dorothy’s Tea, Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport, and so on. It seems like yesterday I was holding my lighter up at a Don Henley concert. Quite a change for me. We did not buy roses for Dorothy, but we enjoyed seeing Dorothy, Henry, Wags, and Captain Feathersword. The show was very entertaining and enjoyable. There were no encores, so we made a speedy exit. We stopped to eat lunch at the Black-Eyed Pea. Mitch chowed down on meatloaf, corn & rolls. Our picky eater Rachel ordered a grilled cheese sandwich, but wouldn’t eat it because the bread was too thick and it was toasted too brown. Oh brother! At home, Mitch took a nap. Jerry & Rachel relaxed and I ran errands for a few hours to the library, JoAnn’s, Target, Beauty Brands & Kroger. I picked up the cupcakes and balloons. I hid the balloons in the garage. When I got home, there was a message from Stephanie. She called to say that she stayed up to finish the entire TCOYF book in one sitting and they would be over later to drop off a gift for Rachel. I snuck upstairs to finish wrapping Rachel’s presents. Jerry & Rachel checked the mail. There was a package from Grandma Orma/Papa Jerry with more gifts. A package came from cousins Carly & Peter in CA. After the kids were bathed and in bed, Jerry started to put together Rachel’s Barbie doll house. I put up the decorations and tied balloons on the back of the chairs and down the staircase. I arranged her presents on the table with party hats and plates and napkins. Then, I finished sewing buttons on the two new dresses I made for Rachel. It was a long day. Jerry was still putting the finishing touches on the doll house when I went to bed.
Sunday, Aug. 3rd: Rachel’s 4th birthday:
Our plans for the day were to go to church/Sunday school, eat lunch, and then take the kids to Splash Town for a day of fun in the water. I was really tired, but I got up early to shower and dress for church. Jerry showered and got dressed too. Rachel woke up and from her bedroom doorway, she spied the pink and white balloons tied to the staircase. She wanted to wear one of the new dresses I made for her. She put on the green dress and I fixed her hair before we went downstairs. She was really excited to see the balloons and presents on the table. The doll house was not on the table, so she didn’t see it at first. When she did, her eyes got huge and she said, “daddy, look at that Barbie house,” as if he hadn’t noticed it. She was so excited about it. I told her that she could play with it after church. Rachel really enjoyed her new Sunday school class, and I didn’t want her to miss it so we attended the 9:30 service. We were home just in time for lunch. The kids wanted PBJ sandwiches. We sang “happy birthday” to Rachel and she opened her presents. Mitch got her some of the furniture that goes with her doll house: the kitchen set and bedroom set and the Piglet’s Big Movie. She got a Princess snow cone machine, an Ariel Barbie and crayons/drawing set from Carly & Peter; a Polly Pocket play set from Avery; Grandma Orma sent her some clothes for Ken (no more naked Ken!); some dress up shoes and a makeup set. Mitch got a bubble blower gun.
Splash Town…
We packed our bags and were on the road by 12:30, not bad at all. This was our first visit to Splash Town as a family. It was a hot day in the high 90s. Rachel & I got in line to buy tickets. I thought the tickets were rather pricey, at least the adult tickets were expensive ($27.99 for adults; $20 for kids; kids under 3 = free). I had a coupon for $5 off each ticket, so we “saved” $15. I think a lot more people would/could go if the tickets weren’t so expensive. Our 3 tickets came to just under $66 just to get in the gate. I wish I had changed into my suit before I left home. The dressing rooms were so disgusting. There was a dirty diaper lying open on the floor. There was no privacy at all. We walked in on three large naked women changing right inside the door. No privacy curtains or doors. I think privacy is important, not only for those who are changing, but for those walking in on naked people. No one needs to see that. I didn’t want to touch anything and got out of there as quickly as possible. Jerry said the men’s changing room was no better. He was smart to have worn his swimsuit to the park. We found a spot under a shade tree to place our towels and shoes and bags. I put sunscreen on the kids and myself. We found our way to the kiddie lagoon area. Oh what fun! Mitch is so unafraid of water, so willing to try anything, including all the water slides, running under all the sprinklers, climbing up the water gym and into the tunnels. We had to keep our eyes on him. We were walking through a lagoon and suddenly we were being sprayed by freezing water. We looked to see two kids manning cannons that shot water at us. We laughed, but in that short span of time that we looked away, we looked back and Mitch was lying in the water, floating face down in 18 inches of water. We quickly scooped him up. He coughed a bit, shook it off, and then just took off running in the water again. He scaled the ladders and sailed down the slides landing with a big splash in the water. His head went under the water many times that day, and he loved it. He kept going back for more. There was a water wall that rained down in a sheet of water. He would dunk his head under it, get soaked, and then laugh and do it again and again. Rachel was more timid and fearful. She loves the water but on her own terms. She climbed up to the top of the slides but was afraid to slide down. Jerry and I each rode down with her even though we were way too big to ride down, but we wanted to reassure her and show her it was fun. She spent her time playing in the water tunnel, riding the tire swing over the water and walking under the sprinklers. She enjoyed climbing up and sitting upon the pretend alligators in the lagoon. We took a break and got some snacks. Jerry had a beer, I had a margarita, Rachel had a cherry snow cone. Mitch sipped on a snow cone. A regular bag of chips was $2.79. Highway robbery. We spent about $100 at Splash Town. We had a ton of fun, but I think they should make it more affordable for more families to attend with their children. How many parents can afford to fork over $27.99 each to enter the park simply to baby-sit their kids? I think they should charge a more modest fee and allow the parents to wear bracelets identifying themselves as parents escorting toddlers. Why should a set of parents have to pay $56 just to get into the park? We simply watched our kids (one-on-one coverage) and did not use any of the park’s adult facilities like the wave pool or any of the tube chute rides. Enough grumbling. Who am I kidding? It was a fantastic day.
The water, the sun, and the heat got the best of me & Mitch. We both “rested our eyes” on the drive home. As soon as we got home, Mitch and I took 90-minute naps. He woke up crying and a bit grumpy. He was out of his routine. His cheeks were a bit sun kissed. When we came downstairs, we noticed that Rachel had been busy playing with her new toys. She put her new furniture in the doll house and she was busy dressing her dolls and combing their hair. We fed the kids and gave them their baths. They chased each other around and fought over the balloons. They settled down to watch Piglet’s Big Movie before bedtime. Jerry & I moved the doll house upstairs to Rachel’s room. It takes up half the wall, but it looks really nice up against the pink walls of her room. Very girly indeed.
Warmly,
Megan
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