Warmer Days

This weekend's weather was perfect! We stayed outside nearly the entire time. Ethan had a soccer game on Saturday morning. His team won 8-0. It was a much needed win as they lost their first game of the season. After his soccer game, we had lunch at Mi Mexico and then hung out on the beach for a bit. We came home, picked up the dogs, and headed over to the Eagney's. Chris and Ethan helped Mike and Melissa do some yard work and I brought my laptop over and got some work done for school.

Today we went to the beach for a couple hours. It was actually fairly crowded. There are a lot of tourists here right now. The beach was huge though so we had gobs of space. It is nothing like Ocean City crowded! After the beach I went for a nice, long bike ride. Chris got the boys ready for his soccer game and they headed out when I got home. They brought their Ripstick, skateboard, and Power Wing with them. With all the outdoor time they had this weekend, they fell asleep right at 8:00 even though it should have felt more like 7:00.

Will, Noah, and Paige brave the cold water to test out the waves.
Will decided to feed the seagulls which he knows makes me crazy! I do NOT like birds flying around my head. He got a big kick out of it.

Emma and Noah chat and share a snack.

Ethan stuck with Chris most of time and kicked the ball around.

Noah

Well, I was home again with Noah today. He has had an on again, off again fever since last Monday. This weekend he just kept complaining about how tired he was. Yesterday he said his throat hurt a little so I called this morning for an appointment. His strep test came back positive so at least we know why he hasn't been feeling well! Poor guy.

On the Road to Recovery...Again!

Today was the first day this week that everyone managed a full day at school and/or work! Hopefully everyone is better and that is it for the time being! Noah's fever vanished and the only other symptom he had the entire time was a headache. Ethan's fever and headache also vanished quickly. Will is being treated for MRSA. She wasn't entirely sure that was what it was since she didn't do a wound culture, but treated him for it to be on the safe side. His cut/infection already looks a million times better!

Thankfully, nothing else exciting to report! Ethan has his first game of the spring season on Saturday. I'm sure Chris will update with some pictures then.

It is Definitely Monday!

We'll start with yesterday. Will cut his leg last week while playing with the girls in their backyard. He had no idea what cut him. We washed it off and it barely bled. Well, he wore pants all last week since it was so cool. Yesterday it was finally warm enough for shorts and I saw his cut and it was totally infected! I'm not sure how I didn't notice it since he has a bath every single morning! I feel awful. So, I sent him up to the school nurse who also works at the hospital to have it looked at. She said it was definitely infected and looked like it needed stitches but now that it was infected it was too late for that! Well...I promise it started as a small cut!!!! I called the doctor and they are squeezing him in at 1:45 today to look at it.

This morning Ethan woke up and said his stomach hurt. I offered him some Children's Pepto, but he didn't want it. He had no fever, so off we went to school. He came to my room at 8:30 and said his stomach was hurting and he had just rested in Donna's room because Pamela, his friend, also was sick. (Donna is a 2nd grade teacher and Pamela's mom.) I sent him back to class and told him to go to the nurse if he felt worse later. After seeing Will this morning for his cut, the nurse calls and says that Ethan is up there. She sent him back to my room and he rested on the mat. I sent Ethan to go pick up his lunch from his classroom and while he was gone Noah came into my room and said he couldn't stop shaking and broke into tears the second he saw me. He didn't feel too hot, but I took him up to the nurse to check for a fever just in case. Well, of course he has one! At that point we all just packed up and left school. Now Chris is on his way home to stay with the sick children while I take Will to the doctor, whatever sense that makes! I just took Noah's temperature and it is up to 103.4! He can't stop shaking and is super pale. I'm not even going to bother to ask the doctor to squeeze him in today since they gave me such a hard time about getting Will in today!

Saturday!

Today was absolutely gorgeous. It was nearly 70, breezy, and sunny! We started off at the MOAS. The kids spent quite a bit of time cooking pizzas for us this time. They even went to that station twice.

There was also some roller coaster building.

And of course the pull center! Will loves to prove how strong he is!

Sophia was getting ready for Bike Week on her Harley!

In the Sculpture Garden where these random kid looking sculptures.

After the science center, we had lunch and went on a bit of a shopping spree. The boys didn't think that was much fun. I tried to convince them to go check out all the hot deals at Circuit City with their dad, but they insisted on coming with me to look at clothes. Hopefully there was a lesson learned today.

When we got home from all of that, the boys went out in the yard to golf, play soccer, ride bikes, and do whatever else they could drag out from the garage! Melissa and I walked miles with the dogs. After the dogs were exhausted, we took the kids up to the park to exhaust them!

Skipping rocks is just good timeless fun!

Valentine's Day

We decided to treat the kids to a special Valentine's Day. They definitely had a nicer dinner than we did! I made up some menus earlier in the day. Each kid got a decorated menu including starters, entrees, and sides. I dressed up like a waitress and took their orders. They just thought it was the coolest thing ever! Paige even threw a bill at me! I guess I made an okay waitress.
The kids looked over their menus carefully before making their choices.

Drinks and appetizers were served first.

The main course followed. From the menu, 4 kids picked pizza, 1 picked grilled cheese, and 1 picked chicken nuggets.

Sophia was posing for the camera.

Paige was lucky enough to get the pretty purple roses that Melissa snatched up in her picture.

Emma was chewing in every picture I took of her!

Later in the evening they had dessert. They had chocolate fondue (or fundue if you ask Noah), chocolate, chocolate cake, and ice cream.

Noah enjoying his cake.

The boys were thrilled with their practical Valentine's presents. Chris was SURE they wouldn't like their stuff. Of course, mother knows best! Ethan got a new bedding set for his bed. He was super excited. I was even more excited to find a set that he liked 75% off at Target! Noah got a singing throw blanket. Will got one of those singing Jonas Brothers toothbrushes that he really wanted. They all got sidewalk chalk and stencils to share along with some candy.

It was a great day for me. All the kids enjoyed the festivities and that always makes me incredibly happy.

Back Into the Swing of Things...Sort Of!

Ethan taking advantage of the nice, warm weather on Sunday. He decided to paint out by the pool.

Noah passed out on Benadryl!

Noah finally returned to school. He continues to show bizarre symptoms. Just when his cough was getting better, he broke into a rash yesterday. The first dose of Benadryl did nothing. After the second dose, his rash faded as did he. This morning he woke up cheerful and ready to go to school. He made it through the day just fine and even went to soccer practice with Ethan. They got home from practice late and as I was putting him to bed I noticed a rash around his face, behind his ears, and on his neck. This time, it is not raised and does not look like an allergic reaction. I know there are a lot of viruses that end with a rash. I'm guessing it is just that. Noah is the only one in our family that could drag out an illness for this long.

The weather was warmed up nicely and it is only going to get warmer and warmer as the week goes on! We are back to beach weather. I just realized today that this weekend is a long weekend! I completely overlooked President's Day. Woohoo!!! Even more time to fit in beach trips.

Tomorrow starts state testing season. Here they call it the FCAT. So...if anyone with sewing skills cares to sew a cat using the shape of F, I would be forever grateful. I think the kids would get a kick out of that!

Still sick!

Mr. Noah is still sick. He has missed quite a bit of school, but he is just not well enough to go yet. Last night was a case of "Mommy knows best, but Daddy won't listen!" I had a girls' night out and Ethan had soccer practice. I told Chris to drop Ethan off and take Noah somewhere indoors during practice and then go back and get Ethan. I got the ol' nodding of the head agreement. Well, of course that didn't happen. Chris made Noah stay out on the freezing fields which of course aggravated his cough even more and he coughed and coughed until he finally started throwing up. But, hey, what do I know? Last night he was moaning and twitching in his sleep all night so he was not at all ready to go back to school. He has not been sick today outside of his continuous cough.

This afternoon we ventured out to Blockbuster and Publix. This is how we had to dress to get from the car to the store. Ridiculous!
The dogs have certainly enjoyed Noah being sick. They have had someone home with them all week and have been getting lots of treats from Noah. Here Abby checks out Noah's Chex Mix snack. Noah just fed her one after another and they were best buds!

Hanzie has been cuddling on the couch with Noah. Noah and I just had to let him stay up there. I mean, Noah is sick and Hanzie is the perfect heater. Hopefully by the weekend our days aren't filled with cough syrup, Halls, thermometers, tissues, hot tea with honey, etc.

1/2 Days to Days Off

Poor Noah has been sick since last Thursday. He has had a terrible cough and has only made it through half the day both on Friday and yesterday. This morning he sounded so awful that we didn't send him. He really wants to go to school so it is hard to convince him to stay home. Today is the 100th day of school and they have a celebration. He was trying to convince us that he was fine and needed to go. In the end, he decided it would be best to stay home. Will started to lose his voice yesterday so I think it is just a matter of time for him!

Ethan's spring soccer season has officially started. He had a few practices for the last few weeks leading up to a tournament. The practices were all on Saturdays. This week started the full schedule of practices which includes hours at the field each week. Last night was rained out! I don't think he minded! They played four games on Saturday at their tournament so I think he was happy to have a break.

This weekend brought some sad news. My sister's dog, Cedar, passed. He was a 10 year old golden retriever. He was the last remaining member of Hanzie's original crew. It reminds me of my grandma saying, "You know you are old when you are crossing off everyone from your phonebook because their dead!" Cedar was such a sweet dog. It will be strange walking around my parents' without him there to follow us on our hikes.

Abby Fiona Schrader

The puppy days are over! Or maybe not, the kids just caught her licking the icing container.

"I'll teach my dog 100 words. I think I'll start next year." - Michael Frith

WHAT?!?

I had to walk on icy sidewalks this morning! I kid you not, ICE!!!! Even my car was covered in ice. The ice wasn't even caused by anything falling from the sky. It was all caused by everyone's sprinklers going off.

Day Off???

I thought today was supposed to be a vacation day, but I got put to work by the boys. We went on quite an adventure looking for the perfect Webkinz. Ethan found one at the first store we went to. It took Will and Noah to the SIXTH store to find a suitable one. The real kicker is that they found the perfect one at a local beach shop that also carried the one Ethan got so it should have only be a 15 minute trip!

We did get to see the eagle flying around its nest. You can almost always see him sitting in there when you go by, but today he was stretching his wings and flew circles around us. For once we were happy for a red light!

We have seen a bit too much police action lately. Tonight while I was walking Abby, there was some serious action happening at a house that we had just past. We walked past a house and within a minute of passing, there were 5 police cars, an ambulance, and a fire truck there! I have no idea what happened. I just started walking quickly home! It is not the nicest street, but I have never felt unsafe on it. I just walked the last mile home as fast as I could!

Rocket Launch

After 4 days of delay and countless stopped countdowns, the Delta (Mike would want to be sure I mentioned that) rocket finally made it to space last night. It was crazy loud. Normally, rockets aren't as loud, but this one shook our entire house! Of course the nerds went out and took pictures of it.

The swelling in Noah's eye went down considerably today. Now it looks like he is wearing blue and purple eye shadow!

What the Morning Brings

Rise and "shine"!

Tree Huggers Beware!

Today was a teacher duty day so students did not have school. The staff kids run all around and play together. Well, Noah was getting chased by a 4th grade girl and ran smack into a tree. What you see below is the result!

6:30 Update: The swelling has increased significantly since the above photo was taken.

Morning Fun

How much can fit on one couch? Well, at least six kids and one 110 lb dog!
Do they look tired? Well they should! They decided to get up at 5:30 this morning and play in the dark! Who does that??? This is after staying up late last night. 7:00 bedtime tonight. (PS- I think Hanzie was happy to be camouflaged since he isn't actually allowed to be on the couch.)

Chris' Favorite Couple

Tonight while I was out on my bike ride I ran into Chris' favorite couple. These sandhill cranes keep Chris entertained whenever he sees them. This "couple" has been living around our house for the last 18 months or so. They are absolutely enormous and make the loudest, strangest call imaginable. Their wingspan is between 6 and 7 feet. Between their size and odd call the boys are sure they are some sort of dinosaur!

Beach Blunder!

I guess I shouldn't have let the kids play with this guy at the beach today.

New Year's Day

Yesterday was a bit chilly and windy here in Florida. We went to the city fields to ride bikes, Ripsticks, scooters, etc.
Sophia was flying high above the fields!

Ethan

Noah

Will

Emma taking a shot.

The kids gearing up to play. The excitement didn't last long and they started dropping like flies.

Self portrait time!

Last night we had perfect weather for the spa! Abby has trust issues with the boys and couldn't decide if she wanted to stay inside, jump into the pool, or hang out by the spa. Once I got in, she hung out with us.

The boys toasting everyone and everything for the New Year.

The boys in the spa. Ethan and Will had big plans to go jump in the pool. They stepped onto the first step and it all ended there! It was way too cold!