It Happened in May

One Sunday afternoon we went to the Capitol building to see a couple of Adrian's former players officer commissioning ceremony.  It was a really neat event, low key and serious for all of five minutes.  Their moms cried a little.  I remember when these boys were just boys in high school and now they're serving our country.

On Mother's Day my sister Erica was visiting family in NC for a flash.  She only brought Dean with her since he is still at a very portable age.  We met up at the children's museum in Greensboro so the boys could have the freedom to run around.  I definitely recommend the museum, it had an airplane cockpit, a real fire truck and police car, a race car, and big garden outside with rabbits and chickens.  It was a great way to celebrate being moms together.

Dairy is for wimps

Nicholas has been placed a on a non-dairy diet and twice daily dosages of zantac for the next month. 

He was battling a recurring stomach bug since Thanksgiving and complaining of regular stomach aches.  We were armed with a food journal and pain diary.  But after a night of him crying in pain, we went back to the doctor's office and saw a different doctor.  We didn't get a firm diagnosis, just a new plan.  If this doesn't work out then there's more testing.

So far the plan is working.  He's been eating and playing with no real complaints.  The zantac apparently tastes like total crap.  He developed a trick to deal with it.  Sip of water, bite of food, shot of zantac, sip of water, bite of food.  When it's time for college and taking shots with chasers at the local bar, he's going to be a champ.

We've been down the non-dairy diet road before.  He's always been on soy milk for what seems like forever.  Some ice cream, yogurt and cheese was allowed in moderation.  He is mourning the loss of the grilled cheese at his favorite restaurant and trips to the frozen yogurt place.  But he will stay strong.  Hopefully things will return to normal so he can have those on special occasions.

This is Why

we have kids.  So we can put their in pigtails and have a digital image to last forever.  Travis makes a cute little girl, I think.  Nick, not as much.  Also, Travis was quite taken with this style.  Over the past week he has asked for the single ponytail with a headband several times.
I took them for haircuts so these shenanigans have gone to the wayside for now. 


Editor's Note: Adrian does not condone this activity.

And So It Begins

Lesson # 1:  The school cafeteria allows students to set up an account or pay by cash.  I created the account and placed some money in it.  At $2.00 per lunch I thought it would last a while.  He went through spurts of wanting to bring lunch everyday, and the occasional school lunch.  Lately he's been buying lunch most days.  It probably depends on what his friends are doing and not what's on the menu.  He doesn't ask me to look it up for him ahead of time. 

I logged into his account last week to see the balance.  I ran a report of the last 7 days, the maximum look back on the site.  That boy was buying cookies and extra snacks almost everyday with his lunch!  And one day he only bought a cookie, meaning he made the extra effort to go stand in line just to buy a cookie to go with his lunch.  And he bought lunch on a day that I know he took lunch with him.  How dare he, we discussed the rules.  We agreed to treats only on Fridays.

When confronted that evening he responded with a "how'd you find out?" and "it's my account".  I explained the website and that I was putting my money into it, and so on.  I set a spending limit of lunch only on his account.  And if he wants to buy a cookie he could plan ahead and take fifty cents with him.  He understood, I think, and has continued to buy lunch this week with no complaints of missing a bag of chips or a cookie.


Lesson #2:  The school PTA fundraiser of the month was some crazy shoelace things called Y Ties.  They're coiled and do not have to be tied.  The order form promised that they would save my life and only cost $4 with some unknown amount going back to the PTA.  What the hey.  I bought two.  Camouflage for Nicholas and black for Travis.

Nicholas came home a week or so later with his camouflage Y ties in his shoes.  A counselor at after-school put them on for him. 

Where's the other pair, the black ones?
I gave them to a friend.
What?! Those were for Travis.  So you could each have some.
Commence the water works and run away.

After we got him to return there was a talk about asking parents before giving things away.  Then a talk about if people are truly your friends it's because they like you and not because you give them things.

What's your friend's name?
I don't know.
Is it a boy or a girl?
A girl.
How old is she?
Nine.
And you don't know her name?
Her name is Evelyn.

No big deal, let's think of a solution.  The game plan - talk to her and let her know that he wasn't supposed to give them away, they were for his brother, he'll be in trouble.  If she's really a friend she will understand.   I don't know the child and who knows if her parents would question how she got them.  I had to hope he wasn't coerced into giving them up by an older child, a girl no less!

I picked him up from school the next day.  He was so proud and happy.  He got the Y ties back.  Evelyn had been very understanding.  She even wrapped them in a piece of purple paper and wrote his name on it so he wouldn't lose them.  We agreed that she was a true friend.  (I think she might have a thing for a kindergartener.)


The real task of parenting is here.  We need our game face on.  And a strategy for teaching him how to be responsible, caring, and independent.  He will make mistakes and we will all learn from them.

Tracked Out Together

Nicholas is currently tracked out.  With year round school they get 3 weeks off between quarters.  He goes to the Y for the day, pretty much like your standard day camp.  I took the day off work (to recover from my race, which surprisingly wasn't really needed) to spend quality time with just him.
We started the morning at It's A Grind - the coffee shop Nancy Botwin goes to in Weeds.  Pumpkin latte and hot chocolate, yum.  Then off to Durant Park.  Travis and I went last weekend and it seemed like a place that should have lots of geocaches.  I checked the site earlier this week and of course the park was loaded with them.  And some clearly marked as kid friendly.
Nicholas and I made our way to three caches.  The GPS I have is sucky at best.  One time I was 40 feet away and standing practically on top of it.  Another time I was 400 feet away.  So either the coordinates are off or I need a better GPS that can handle tree cover.  I have found more than a few over the years and have a general idea of standard hiding places. In a nature park a clue of "near a fallen log" is kind of cruel.  There are 8 more in that park that we will tackle another day.  No sense in rushing through them.  Nicholas was very happy to leave better prizes than the ones he took.  He hopes the next finder likes it.
Next we went downtown for lunch.  We went to Adrian's favorite restaurant, Spize, to make him jealous.  And it didn't disappoint.  We attempted to go to Marbles Kids Museum.  Um, it was closed.  What?  I never thought to check.  And Nicholas was not pleased.  We decided to go to the state museums instead.  We walked around the Capitol.  Nothing makes that boy happier than old canons.  He ran from one to the other.  Checked out statues and the veterans memorial.  Over to the history museum.  Luckily NC has a lot of history.  We started in the NC Sports Hall of Fame.  Then through military section.  He loves weapons and uniforms almost as much as canons.  By the time we got to the recreated old pharmacy he was getting creeped out by all the old stuff.  That can only be cured with retail therapy in the gift shop.  I made notes to myself for lots of Christmas ideas.
We had a great day spending time together, just the two of us at our own pace.

That's my boy!  He's picking trash out of the lake.

Whale Rock.  The creek has carved a channel over a bazillion years.

Yummy lunch.  I heart sweet chili sauce.

Doesn't everyone do a mirror pose with a statue?

A Civil War dude.  First fallen, I think.

WW I, WW II, and Korean War memorial.

Never Give Up!

Did you know football jerseys used to be onesies?  That gave us a big laugh.

Three Years

I still call him my baby.  And he likes it.  He snuggles a ton more than he did as an infant.  When he is alone he is a perfect angel.  When he is with his big brother he is an instigator and fighter.  Food is one of his great loves.  He doesn't always like to go to bed or take a nap.  He likes to get up early.  Can't miss a minute of action.  He is discovering some independence.  And maybe one day he will use the potty, hopefully before kindergarten.
Happy Birthday Travis!

Pumpkin Patching

Today's weather was ideal for an outing.  Sunny, mid 80s.  Plus Debbie and Bill were visiting for the weekend.  We went to breakfast at Courtney's and then headed to Youngsville's Hillridge Farms.  We fed the goats, saw some bunnies, ran around a fort, played in a hay mound, went on a slide, rode a hayride, and finally picked out some pumpkins.  Three for painting, one for carving, and one for baking.  It was a lot of fun with good company.

#300

Time for a Travis update.  He will be 3 years old in about a month.  Still that perfect stage of still pretty dependent but almost a big boy.  He continues to be in love with his fifi, kitty cat, and passy.  He is extremely goofy and takes a lot of pride in making people laugh.  Of course he also loves for people to make him laugh too.  Trav has his moments of aggression and irritability.  Okay, more than moments actually.  He's more like bipolar.  "Haha, Mommy look at me!" with a cute grin on his face.  Two seconds later he's chucking a toy at your head and growling like rabid dog.  He chases Nicholas around and a cloud of chaos follows.  Thankfully he has improved at school.  The biting has ceased, there's no more hitting and yelling.  Instead he tells them what to do and what not to do, imitates a teacher and holds court in the home center.  At least he's using his words to express himself, right?
His vocabulary has grown by leaps and bounds.  He loves to sing.  The best is ABC's.  A B C D E F G H I SHAKE SHAKE L M N O P Q R SH T U B W X Y ANZ.
We talk about potty training.  He knows what it is and what should happen.  The action just isn't there yet.  He will ask to go but can't do it.  "It's not working", he says.  Hopefully soon he'll get it figured out.  You don't hear about kindergarteners wearing diapers, so I'm confident it's around the corner for him.
The biggest milestone is going to daycare alone.  Now that Nicholas goes to kindergarten they are no longer together for the commute.  The first few weeks Travis was very quiet in the car and almost looked sad and depressed walking into daycare each day.  It was like his other half was missing.  The other half who made all the song requests and led the charge.  Finally he found his footing and is loving being just Travis, not Nicholas' little brother.  He has blossomed even more.  Requesting songs, pointing out all the trucks on the road, the horses in the pasture on the way to school.  He went to a birthday party for a classmate, the first party for one of his friends and not a tag along to a party.  I think he's really happy being his own person. 

That's a cute looking happy meal.

He loves to put his blanket over his head.  It must be comforting.

Wearing Nick's lucky hat and jacket.

His greatest loves: fifi (dirty, stinky blanket), kitty cat (beanie baby), and passy.

The day he stops napping, I will go bizonkers and hide in a closet.

The Big Day

Nicholas started Kindergarten!

The rest of us were still on vacation following our NY trip.  I woke him up bright and early.  He got dressed and ate breakfast.  I drove him the whole three blocks to school, a real long ride.  If it wasn't for the 5 lane road in the middle, we'd definitely walk.
I helped him walk to his room the first day.  He had lots to carry.  25 boxes of crayons, 37 glue sticks, 56 yellow #2 pencils, 3 boxes of tissues, 10 containers of clorox wipes, you know the usual school supply list.
He put his stuff away and sat right down to begin coloring a picture.  I was all good...until the teacher handed me a ziploc baggy with a tissue, a tea bag, and a little note.  She's so sweet.  She understands that we are entrusting our children with her all day.
I am reminded of how much trust we put in these teachers and other faculty each day.  I've dropped him off a few more times.  Nicholas gets out of the car with his stuff and walks into school.  Each day I worry that he will get lost and wander the halls or end up in the wrong classroom.   I worry that he will have problems opening his juice box or forget to eat his snacks.  Or that he'll accidentally get placed on a school bus at the end of the day instead at the after school program in the gym.  I have to trust that there are people looking out for him.  And trust that he does know where he belongs.  And that he will ask questions if he isn't sure.  He is a smart kid and ready to face that big world of elementary school.  When you see that little guy with a giant backpack and little chicken legs sticking out from his shorts.  You realize he is still my baby.  And those adorable 5th grade safety patrol kids who help at the carpool lane.  They think they are so big, but really they're not.  I know their parents have some of the same feelings about how quickly they grow up.

Class of 2010

On June 5, Nicholas received his diploma.  He successfully completed Pre-Kindergarten.  These are his awesome teachers, Mrs. Tammy and Miss Jenna.  They helped him learn so much to get ready for the big world of kindergarten.  Plus they maintain their sanity dealing with wild pre-schoolers who so much want to act like superheroes and princesses all day.
The graduates performed a song set to sign language, and "Make New Friends".  If that wasn't cute enough and had people's hearts melting, they brought the big guns.  Another teacher (who is a darn fine singer) helped them with Whitney Houston's "I Believe".  Everyone got out their tissues.  How can you not cry and laugh a little when 20 five year olds sing way off key "if I fail, if I succeed, at least I live as I believe" and "I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadow".
After receiving their diplomas, each graduate said what they wanted to be when they grew up.  A lot of kids want to be doctors, police officers, and teachers.  Nicholas had been debating what he would say for a few days, lacrosse player or archeologist.  He proudly announced to everyone that he wants to be a lacrosse player.  Way to make your father proud!

This is Mrs. Fran.  She is a retired teacher and works part-time.  She was there when Nicholas started there as a 2 year old helping the toddlers take their naps on a mat.  She invests a lot of her energy into these kids and she is so proud of them.  Lucky for us she lives nearby and likes visitors.

Each graduate was given a balloon to carry outside.  They made a wish and released them together.

After graduation we were starving.  Nicholas got to pick the restaurant for his graduation lunch.  We went to the pizza place near school, which happens to make the best pizza in the Triangle area.  We shared chicken tenders, fries, and a cheese pizza.  Yum!
Then we took our big graduate and his tired little brother home.  We are so proud.  And completely amazed that our first born is ready for kindergarten.  They really do grow up too fast.

Play Time

One of Nicholas' classmates celebrated her 5th birthday yesterday at a local play place.  We've gone to each other's birthday parties the past couple years and it's been neat to see the kids interact outside of school.  The party was held at an indoor play place with a bouncy house, slide, and assorted playground clubhouse deals.  The company's primary business is selling the playground equipment and they use party place to show it off to potential customers.  Pretty smart concept.

Without further ado, here are photos of the boys having a ton of fun.

This is Nicholas with Rubel, his best classmate since they were 2.

Celebrating Independence

The favorite breakfast item for the boys during the week is an Eggo Chocolate Chip waffle.  (Trust me, when the Eggo plant was flooded a few months back, it was a rough time around here.  Thankfully Chocolate Chip was one of the first flavors to return to store shelves.  We're still waiting on the Flip Flop to come back.)  It's an obvious choice because it is hand held, minimally crumby, and transportable.  Travis is pretty impatient when it comes to food preparation.  He prefers instant gratification.  "Hungry...Food NOW".  The waffle was the first step in understanding and waiting for food.  He dances in front of the toaster with a plate.  And when the toaster finally dings, he yells "DING!". 
Nicholas has learned how to toast waffles.  He has waffle duty in the mornings now.  Such a time saver.  And he likes the role of big brother - waffle provider to Travis.  It makes him feel proud, and very grown up. 
Soon I'll teach him how to pop popcorn, and open cans of soup.  He already had the water dispenser on the refrigerator under control.  He will be able to feed himself or his brother in no time.  And I can get back to updating my blog and checking Facebook more often.
Not to be outdone, a couple of weeks ago we came back from the Y and it was dinner time.  Travis went to the kitchen, got a plate, and went to the freezer.  He got the box of chicken nuggets and arranged three nuggets on his plate.  So obviously this is what he wanted for dinner and we had to go with it.  Of course because it was so amusing and I was so proud of him.

Sooner Than I Thought

A few weeks back I signed Nicholas up for the Y's after school and track out programs.  I still envisioned the start of school being several months away.  Growing up we were on a traditional school calendar and the first day of school was right before Labor Day.   My mom would take us to Ocean City to visit our grandparents.  The water was so warm in August.  We'd come back right before open house for school.  In my mind school still started then.  And things don't change ever, right?
If you're in a year round school, like our neighborhood school, it follows a 4 track calendar.  This allows 3 tracks to always be in school and 1 to always be out.  45 days in, 15 days out.  All tracks have the same holidays off.  It appears to be a delicate science of dividing up the expected class sizes and accommodating track requests.
We got our official track assignment letter in the mail recently - and it's going into the previously mentioned yet to be constructed scrapbook (Amanda - we will have to get together because I need professional guidance).
Our assigned track starts on July 9, 2010 and ends the school year on June 30, 2011.  Holy cow!  July 9!  That's like right after Independence Day!  That is so much sooner than I had planned for in my mind.  My baby is going to start kindergarten in just a couple of months.  Whoa.

Sunshine Report

We recently went through another phase of Travis biting his classmates.  He was doing it in the late fall when he first transitioned to the two year old classroom.  We got regular phone calls and had to drive down to school to talk to him.  We tried to narrow down the root cause.  Most commonly it was because he was hungry or tired.  This was also when they recommended hearing tests to which we got a diagnosis of select hearing.  Duh.  He just didn't like the words coming out of their mouths.
Things improved and we were on a roll for a few months.  Then he was back at it again.  This time though it seemed directed at one particular little girl.  She liked to join him in whatever he was doing and also thought it was a good idea to take toys from him.  And really he just wanted to be left alone.  With a not-fully developed vocabulary, he opted to make his feelings known by acting like a vampire or a cannibal.   The teachers tried to keep them separated since she seemed to be the antagonist most of the time, and eventually she moved to the next classroom a few weeks earlier than planned.  On the days I had to go talk to him about his biting or take him home early I was extremely embarassed.  It felt like I was treated like a bad parent who was raising a bad kid.  I tried talking to one of the directors about why the other kids involved were not having their behavior addressed.  Are they being allowed to take something from another child and think it's okay to not share or wait their turn?  I know he's a good kid and can be really sweet.  But if you make the Hulk mad, you'll pay.
His vocabulary has picked up and he is expressing himself and his needs much better.  And we have proof!  Travis earned a Sunshine Report.  This is going in his yet to be created scrapbook.
Date: 04/28/2010
"Travis did an excellent job sharing today!  When he was done playing with the car outside, he got out and offered it to his friends: "Have a car!"  He was also a great helper, holding the trash can open as his friends threw away their snack.  We are so proud of him."
The report is also decorated in magic marker smiley faces and "Fantastic" and "Awesome".

As I finish writing this he is sitting behind me in the chair.  He draped his blanket, Fifi, over my lap.  And he is attempting to brush my hair.

Fully Recovered

Last Monday, the 12th, Travis started the evening with a deep hollow cough.  By Tuesday evening it had turned a more congested sound.  No big deal.  I noticed he was breathing heavy, but he seemed happy and otherwise fine.  Wednesday morning rolled around.  When I was dressing him I could see his stomach going in every time he took a breath.  And the breaths were fast.  I took him to school and asked them to watch him closely.  I was still unsure how much I should be concerned.  He seemed fine otherwise, no fever or runny nose.  I called the doctor's office on the way to work so a nurse could call me back.  And of course I promptly Google'd rapid breathing when I got to my computer.
The nurseline called me back.  After talking to her for a few minutes scheduled an appointment for as soon as I could get back across town with him.
The nurse took his vitals, got his O2 levels.  Then the student nurse practitioner came in, followed by the nurse practitioner.  We did one round with a nebulizer.  He was not happy with the idea at first, but eventually relaxed and let me hold it to his face.  After the first round he was pretty sleepy.  His O2 levels weren't up enough and he was still working really hard to breathe.  A doctor came in to check him too.  Another round was ordered.  I think Travis agreed this was a good idea and didn't fight the mask.  After that second round he was feeling much better.  Running around the room, moving the trash can, playing in my purse.   It was only 2 hours in the office, and various nurses going in and out, nurse practitioners and doctors.  That was more medical attention than either of my kids have had since they were born.  His stats were good enough to go home.  We got a prescription for albuterol, and our very own nebulizer to keep.  We had a strict schedule written out for the next 5 days that slowly tapered off the frequency of the treatments.
The first couple of days Travis was very agreeable to the treatments.  He would sit still the whole time and even wear the mask with no help from me.  The last few days he had had enough and it was tough to have him sit the whole time.  He seems to have recovered fully, but I still watch him closely.  Because he didn't have a fever or many other symptoms, they don't know exactly what triggered this.  It could have been a virus, or allergies.  It might happen again, and it might not.  I'm glad we got through it safely and we'll have a better idea of what to do next time.

Five Amazing Years

It's easy to remember the day they were born.  Almost like it was yesterday even.  That moment is etched in your mind.  Here I am at his fifth birthday.  He has grown so much.  There are so many moments that aren't etched in my mind.  I wish they were.  I have lots of photos to help me remember the little things, trips we took, people we saw, new experiences.
Let's take a look back and some that I almost forgot about.

He has grown up before our eyes.  Such a sweet, caring, emotional little creature.  I think we'll keep him around.  Even when he acts like a moody teenager, I know it's because there's a lot going on inside him that he just doesn't know how to process it.  We are very proud of the big boy he's becoming.