Snow Day

I'm sitting here watching the bottom of the tv screen, knowing that Madison County will never announce "No school" the night before but still hoping. We will probably go back tomorrow and in my mind I know we should because I don't want to be in school all summer but I was able to get such a good start on our Disney vacation scrapbook today that I would love another day to work on it!! Last winter I declared every snow day a day to work guilt free on my scrapbooks. My logic was that I wouldn't have done housework if I had been at school so why should I on a snow day?

Can I just say how awesome the new text messaging system that wlex has is on snowy mornings!! They text message you if your school is out for snow so around 4:30 this morning I get a text message that there is no school. I turned off my alarm and went right back to sleep without having to get up and walk down a cold hallway to the computer.

Shannon got a new cell phone this past weekend and as we are looking through all the options we come across an option that says "Reject List"...for some reason this struck me so funny. I can just think of all the people that I would put on my reject list. I know that is mean but how many times do you get calls and just wished you'd had the good sense not to answer the phone? I would love to have a voicemail message that simply says "You are on my reject list today, you suck, try again later."

Fall Break

Back to the real world today...fall break just wasn't long enough! We went camping on Saturday, just down to Boonesboro but even though it's close we feel like we are a hundred miles away. I LOVE it down there in October. If we were wealthy and there was no school for Jacob I would spend the entire month of October there. I would definitely have a nicer camper though. They go all out decorating for Halloween and at night it is just awesome. One of the hosts has several hundred pumpkins on his site with lights strung in the trees and on the grass. We are hoping to go back down this weekend (maybe next weekend too). If you haven't driven through the campground during October you need to...it's almost like Southern Lights at Christmas. They decorated the rec hall with lights, spider webs and ghosts that are set to blink in time to music that is playing over the loud speakers. Nothing creepier than hearing the Michael Myers theme song in the dark across a campground :-) We will be the campsite with the ghost car (spooky voice here) so stop and say hey.

Contraptions

A few months ago we saw a neat item in a pet magazine. It was basically a pole that you attach to your bicycle that kept your dog from getting to close to the wheels and kept them going in a straight line. This may sound strange but when we camp we like to ride bikes and often have Abby with us. Last time we went camping we decided to put her in a soft-sided kennel and leave her in the camper with the air conditioning running...after a short ride we came back around by the camper. The camper was on the lower road and I see Shannon take off down the hill (through someone else's campsite). I thought he was just playing with Jacob until I see the kennel rolling end over end down the road!! Our silly dog had wiggled herself to the door of the camper, tumbled out the door and was hamster ball walking down the road! It was actually a hilarious site but it terrified me that it would happen again and she would get hurt so for the rest of the trip we couldn't all ride at the same time.

Anyway, back to the pole...in the magazine it cost around $40. So this weekend, Shannon came up with the bright idea that he would make his own pole so that when we camp this weekend she can go "bike riding" with us!

She really wasn't sure what to think about it and after going for a short trip down the road she was exhausted. You can see her bad leg in the picture and I think it was hard on it. Needless to say, she got a doggy tylenol that night and lots of cuddles. Hopefully she can ride with us some this weekend and then the rest of the time we will take turns going.

A More Serious Note

I'll have to say this has been a rough week. Around 5pm Wednesday night I get a phone call that a dear friend of mine has shot herself in the head and is being rushed to UK. I immediately get sick to my stomach and my head starts to hurt as I start frantically calling mutual friends in the hopes of finding out it is all a mistake. It wasn't, but the good news is that she will live. At this time we don't know why she did it...what had made her so desperate that she felt this was her only way out? What is so bad that a person forgets the good things she has...3 beautiful children, a good husband, strong family ties. She has always been such a strong person that I never would have believed she would do this. Do we all have that breaking point in us that we could turn to something so extreme? I hope not.

Today at school I see two coworkers rushing to the side of another in her time of need...when I was in that position 8 years ago this friend was the one who stood strong beside me. She visited me in the hospital...brought me food while I was on bedrest and called to check on me when I came home. It's horrible to think that now that she needs someone there is nothing I can do for her. There were three of us that worked together and were very close...now the two of us are struggling to figure out what went wrong. I'm trying to be strong for my other friend but I have so many questions that I just can't sort out in my head...she does too and I guess we will have to realize we may never know exactly what happened. We both feel so helpless thinking about the desperation our dear friend felt Wednesday afternoon and that she didn't feel she had anywhere to turn.

At this point all I can do is say a prayer for her family and the hope that she will recover from her wounds, physical and mental. I hope she knows that she has so many people that care about her and will be here for her when she comes home.

Practical Joke

My Dad played a great practical joke on Jacob tonight. Here's a little background first...we see my grandparents at least twice a week. Each time we see them my grandfather puts $5 in his shirt pocket for Jacob to "find". Last year, my Dad started giving Jacob $5 on Friday if he had done well in school that week...good grades, not getting his name on the board, etc. He even gives him an extra $1 for each green card he receives. Well, for some reason Jacob has started checking Dad's shirt pocket every day. I guess he thinks if my grandfather gives him $5 every time he sees him then Dad will too...keep in mind though that Dad sees Jacob every single day.

Anyway, back to the practical joke. Tonight Jacob walks over to Dad and reaches in his shirt pocket...he pulls out a scrap of paper that says "Why are you checking my pocket??? It isn't Friday and there is no money in here!" The look that went across Jacob's face was hilarious! Mom, Dad and I laughed so hard we almost fell out of our chairs! Sad thing is...I bet Jacob checks Dad's pocket again tomorrow night!

Experiments

Jacob loves science and experiments. One of his favorite shows on tv is Mythbusters...this would be his ideal job. If he could be on tv, blow things up and make things he would be on top of the world, lol. The things he learns and repeats back to me days and even weeks after he has seen a show just amazes me. Not too long ago, the guys on Mythbusters did the Mentos and coke experiment and Jacob has been wild to try it so last weekend I bought a cheap Big K coke and a package of mentos. He, of course, wanted to try it last Sunday during those wild winds we were having from Ike and I couldn't talk him out of it. Needless to say, we didn't get the super tall geyser he was expecting so I promised him we would try again this weekend. I bought a tube this week at school that made it easier to get all the mentos in the 2-liter of coke at the same time and surprised him with it on Friday. We tried the experiment again today and it went much better. I videotaped it and will try to include it in this post. We also had gotten an email about making a "camping lantern" with a Mountain Dew, baking soda and peroxide. During our Saturday night campfire we tried this one and was very upset that it didn't work like the video we saw but upon further investigation on the Internet at snopes.com we found out the video was a hoax. Too bad because it was pretty cool they way the mountain dew was suppose to glow!

I have just about drove my family crazy this weekend...especially Shannon. I am trying to decide whether or not to go back and get my Master's degree. EKU has discontinued the elementary program so I could only teach middle school or high school. I know I don't want to teach high school. I am so torn...it is a huge commitment and expense. I am never away from Jacob except the few hours he is in class...even then I'm usually just a few doors away. The thought of being gone from him even one night a week gives me feelings of guilt. Friday night, after spending time looking around EKU's website (again) I put down my laptop and sigh loudly...

Jacob says, "Mom, if you need help just ask."

I say, "Help with what?" not realizing that he had paid attention to what I was looking at.

He says, "About if you should go back to school or not."

I say, "ok, help." I'm very curious to what he will say.

He says, "I think you should do it, I will miss you but I'll be fine. I'll help you study and I think you'll do great."

Oh, if only adult decisions were that easy.

He wasn't too hip on the idea when he thought I would teach English but since I could be teaching science he is all for it. I think he secretly thinks we will do experiments all the time and he will have access to a cool lab. Not sure how cool a middle school science lab is but to an 8 year old it would be awesome I'm sure.

Another great Jacob moment...Shannon was spraying some wasps today that had built a nest on our porch. Jacob says, "Jamie and Adam (mythbusters) always say that when all else fails, use C-4 explosives."

Shannon told him that would be a bit of overkill to lose our house in an explosion just to kill a few wasps.

Jacob's Pet Peeves

Jacob has several pet peeves I guess you would call them. I would have to say that #1 on his list is chewing gum. He hates it. He won’t chew it and doesn’t like anyone else to have it either. I love chewing gum. This is a constant problem in our household. If he is tired or in a bad mood the sound, smell or sight of someone chewing gum can reduce him to a crying mess. I have repeatedly told him that if he would just try chewing a piece that he might change his mind about it. About 2 weeks ago he finally gave in and put a microscopic piece in his mouth. Thirty seconds later…he threw up his supper.

When he was 3 years old we put him in occupational therapy on the recommendation of his preschool teacher. He would throw up or at least gag at the sight of a band-aid, hole in a shirt, scratch on someone’s skin…basically anything that disrupted the surface of anything. We think it stems from him being a preemie and being on a ventilator in his first few days. He has a really strong gag reflex. The OT improved his sensory problems but every now and then something pops up. The last year it has been chewing gum. I can’t wait until this phase is over…it’s really hard to stop chewing the moment I see his head turn, lol.

What brought this topic to mind today was a lesson in one of the classroom’s I’m in…the teacher was discussing the way laws are made and about the process of how we would ban chewing gum from the US. She commented that in Singapore chewing gum was banned. I came home tonight and told Jacob about this and he promptly asked “When can we move there?”. I’m fairly certain he was serious.

What's wrong with this picture?

This is my bed. Jacob is on Shannon's side and Abby is on mine. This is how I found them when I got out of the shower tonight. I'm not thinking it will be easy to remove either one of them.

Puppy love

Jacob found out tonight that his “girlfriend” is moving to Ohio after fall break. She had evidently tried to break the news to him a few days ago on the playground but he thought she was just playing. I talked to her Mom tonight and found out the details then broke them to Jacob after the phone call. Needless to say, he is very upset and hates to see her go. Her Mom and I have both told the kids they can email, write and call anytime they want to but sadly they probably will lose touch before long.

Immediately after finding out about this we start watching “Great American Dog” and are both very stressed that our favorite dog will be sent packing tonight. I think if Presley and Travis had went home, Jacob would have completely lost it! Presley reminds us of Abby and how silly and goofy that boxers act. The owner, Travis, is very sweet and good natured...I bet his mother is proud of him right now. I hope there is a 2nd season of this show because we both have enjoyed it so much.

Reflections

Okay, tonight we are in the kitchen, Jacob is sitting at the table and I’m cooking supper.

Jacob is talking and says “Mom, can we have a family discussion during supper tonight?”

I say, “Of course, is something on your mind?”

He says, “No, not really, I would just like to reflect on our weekend. I think it’s something we should do every Sunday night. Each of us just mention a few things that we liked or didn’t like about the weekend.”

My husband walks into the room and I tell him that Jacob thinks we should have a weekly reflection…he just looks at me. Like me, he is never sure what is going to come out of Jacob’s mouth or where it comes from. He agrees though and asks if Jacob would like to start. Jacob replies, “No, Mom is still cooking and I’m afraid she will burn herself if we start before she is done.” Translation - he is afraid that Mom will burn his tacos.

After we settle at the table, he politely lets me begin. I mention that I am sad that he is growing up so fast (today is his birthday) but that I am very proud of him. I also go through a short list of things we did over the weekend that I enjoyed.

Jacob goes next. He tells us how much he enjoyed going bowling, his family birthday dinner, quality time with the family, playing Clue and swimming in the pool.

Shannon follows and talks about how happy he is to have spent so much time with us this weekend. When school starts we only have about 30 minutes a day with him so weekends are precious.

This is just another example of how unique Jacob is…how many 8 year olds do you know would want to start having a weekly reflection as a family?

My baby turns 8 years old tomorrow

My baby turns 8 years old tomorrow. I can’t believe how fast the time has gone and it breaks my heart. He has come so far since he showed up 2 months early weighing in at 3 lbs 11 oz. People look at me like I’m crazy when I tell them he was a preemie…can’t tell it to look at him now! We tried for years to get pregnant and my pregnancy was a nightmare but he is worth every second. He is one of the sharpest children I have ever met and has such a unique view of the world and the people in it. I was the total opposite of him as a child…life would have been so much easier if I could have been more like him growing up!

I just went and tucked him into bed and told him about the night he was born. I had been in the hospital for several days with pre-eclampsia. That morning the doctor had told me that my body was starting to shut down and they were going to induce me. They also started giving me that wonderful (sarcastic voice here) magnesium sulfate to control seizures. The doctor told Shannon to go on in to work that night because nothing would happen before Saturday…it was Thursday.

At 10pm that night, Shannon called me to check on me and I told him that everything was fine. My dad had went home for the night but my mom was staying with me. Around 10:30 the doctor came in and said Jacob’s heart wasn’t responding well to the inducing medicine and they were going to have to do an emergency c-section immediately. She told me to call Shannon and tell him not to speed (yeah, right) but to get back to the hospital as soon as possible, she would try to wait on him. When Shannon got there they had already taken me into the operating room. I told him that no matter what happened to stay with Jacob. After he was born, they lifted him above the curtain for a split second so I could see him and then took off to the NICU with him. Mom told me later that Shannon had minded me very well and if the nurse had slowed at all Shannon would have become one with her because he was following her so close.

One of the really neat things was that Jacob was born right at midnight and they asked me if I wanted them to put midnight on the birth certificate and his birthday would be August 31st or did I want them to put 12:01 so that his birthday would be September 1st. I picked September 1st because no one else in the family was born in September and I wanted him to be unique. He definitely is.

I didn’t get to see Jacob until mid-morning the next day and even then I could barely see him…another wonderful side effect of mag sulfate is that it blurs your vision so badly you cannot focus at all. It was another couple of days before I was allowed to hold him. When I finally got him home I don’t think I put him down for an entire year.