We're finally getting a semblance of routine here, now that the highs are only in the mid-90s and I can think again.

Cotton is talking more all the time. Yesterday she climbed up onto the bed and sat herself on my pillow and said, " I did it!" She can almost ride a trike, and loves to sit on the swing and be pushed. She's very bribable--if you need to get her into the car, you can tell her you'll give her a cookie to get her to come happily with you. By the time she's gotten there, she'll have forgotten about the cookie, which works out great since I've rarely actually got a cookie.

Seph and Rone have a lot of interests they'd like to pursue this fall. Rone wants to learn to play the drums. I don't have the heart to tell him that the bit of peace residing in my brain just can't allow for a kid's drum kit in the house, so I pretend not to hear him say this. Seph would like to learn to play guitar, and take fencing lessons. And yes, it turns out that if you google 'austin kids fencing', you'll find out she's not the only one!

Cotton has a nap in the afternoons, and that's when the kids have lesson time. It's working out pretty well, and I hope Cotton doesn't decide to give up her nap anytime soon. Mornings are pretty full, with a co-op, Campfire, and field trips. Right now we've got a few projects: making raisins, birthday party planning, and garage sale plotting. And somewhere in there we're supposed to have a lemonade stand.

Pix soon.

The bane of my existence:

The only fun thing about lice was the microscope. I should get a better one.

Our 50c Stand! Lemonade, Popcorn or Rice Krispie treats, all 50c! And as the sign says: Free Origami Frog with $1 Purchase

Our play!

Well, as Aunt Ida helpfully pointed out, it's been over a month. In my defense, I was melted for part of that time.

We've been busy here in the insane heat. To help, I'll be grouping the updates by topic:

Travel

Our summer trip went well. We had a good visit to B'ham, and then headed down to Chance's high school reunion. In Montgomery we got to visit a lot of his friends, and had a night on our own while the kids were with Nanna and Papa. Then Chance and I got to drive to the beach alone, which seems dull, but was actually very fun. We like driving together, and it really is a lot easier without people hollering and dropping critically important tiny things all the time. After a day alone at the beach, Nanna brought the kids to us, and we all started the last part of our trip. Cotton liked the beach once she figured out that she can play with sand. This took longer than you'd think. The older two were happily bodysurfing in short order.

Seph and Rone tacked on a week with Nanna and Papa to the end of their trip for NannaCamp 2009. They went to zoo camp, played tennis (mostly Rone) and took horseback riding lessons (mostly Seph).

The trip back without the older two was surprisingly difficult. Cotton, while reaching an age of a generally disagreeable nature, was spectacularly awful for the entire evening. I spent more than a few minutes pondering what we'd do if we were kicked out of the hotel at 1am. Once we got home, she was a little better, if convinced that if I'd just go look for them we'd find Seph and Rone.

Medical

Seph has had strep, and was a giant swoop of dramatic pain until the worst of the sore throat was over. She also hit her foot with a shovel and now her toenail is a really dark purpleish blue. She's so scared of losing it that I keep lying to her, telling he it'll probably be fine. But it really doesn't look like it's going to last long.

Rone had a bloody nose so bad that I nearly brought him to the emergency room. You probably would have, if you'd seen the size of the clot that came out of his head. You know those pencils you get at the library? or at putt-putt? Its was that big. It was his fifth nosebleed of the day, and it just would not stop. After a call to the preposterously-long-hold-time after hours call line, a nurse helped us get it stopped. Turns out you really can stop bleeding with pressure, but sometimes it takes a half hour.

Coming soon: School, Work and Pictures.

Chance and I survived his 20 year reunion, and the beach is going well.  We had two whole days to ourselves, and it was extremely odd, just getting up and doing things I wanted to do.  I wanted  to go to the beach, so I just went--I didn't have to make sure anyone went potty, or pack snacks, or rub lotion on people who hate lotion. I wanted to go to the grocery store, and I didn't have to figure out which subset of kids would be least unhelpful. For this relaxation time, I owe my Judimom, who took the kids so we could have a break.

Cotton is getting over her hatred of sand and waves, which is good.  We're all enjoying the beach and eating far too much macaroni and cheese. It was 10 boxes for a dollar at the Winn Dixie. Part of the fun of vacation is that I get to go to the Winn Dixie, which is just fun to say. And last time I went, there was a thunderstorm and the power went out briefly.  I think if the power goes out and you're in a grocery store, you should get your groceries free.

The water has been pretty rough compared to other visits so far--only red and yellow flags.  The kids are bodysurfing and getting the hang of catching a wave just right. No jellyfish, yay!

Now that we're here and I've had two showers and food that didn't come from a drive through window, I can file a brief report regarding the advisibility of driving 800 miles with three kids, two being unable to entertain themselves.

Just don't.

If I didn't know I was going to get to go to a beautiful beach, I would have turned around shortly after Tyler.  When I realized I'd missed the second of the five important turns of the entire trip.  It's difficult to focus on the driving when you've got yowling, crabbing and pouting aimed at the back of your head.  Of those 5 turns, I only made one on the first try. One.

I also didn't even get out of Austin for nearly two hours (if you're counting Round Rock as Austin, which a lot of people do. Normally I don't, but it makes for a more dramatic effect here.), because they'd shut down the first road we needed--I35.  It had opened about an hour before I got on it, so what I thought a a brief bit of leftover morning traffic turned into a slow moving cocoon of 18-wheelers that lasted long enough for me to consider calling a do-over and trying again the next day.

Then we got to our traditional stop point, Monroe. Generally we stay right off the interstate, and visit the zoo in the morning before heading on.  I get to the hotel, and notice a school bus, and think, "Hm. I wonder if it will be noisy."  This isn't what I should have been thinking, as you'll shortly realize.  Faster than I did, I bet.  I ask for a room with two beds, and am told that all they have is smoking.  I picture the kids complaining about the smell for hours, and decide to try next door at the other hotel.  The one that seems to have a softball team in the parking lot.  When I get to the desk, I'm behind two men, who are asking about another hotel down the road.  I still don't twig to the problem I am about to face.  They leave, and the woman at the desk answers the phone while I wait.  She begins what is clearly a personal call while I stand there. I decide to plow on ahead and just speak over her, asking, "Do you have any rooms with two beds?" "Oh, we don't have any availability at all."

Finally, I see the problem and run to the car to scoot back to Hotel #1.  Just in time to see the salesmen from Hotel #2 get the smoking room with two beds.  The last smoking room with two beds.

We'd been in the car for 7 hours at that point.  I think about the zoo, and the long stretch of nothing between Monroe and Vicksburg.  And my brain just froze.  So I ask the kids--stay or go?

They vote go. So we slap The Muppet Show in the DVD player and press on.  We got to the hotel in Vicksburg about 9:30pm, 12 hours after setting off for errands in the morning, and more than 500 miles from where we left.  The last two hours were the best driving--everyone happy, pretty sunset and then a hotel with rooms.  And Dominos delivery. 

The next day was a snap. How could it not be? A dragon could have tried to eat the car and it would have been simpler.

Rone, on whether tigers should be out in the wild: But they're eat-meaters! They'd eat us! Why aren't they all hunted except in zoos?

Seph: O I C U 8 ME. Her latest sort of joke.

Chance has found another small way he will eat vegetables. We went to supper at a friends' home , and no kidding, Chance ate something that had: spinach, artichoke hearts, onion, and sundried tomato in it. Do Not Tell Him. It was all hidden in a great orzo salad.

I'm so glad to find a vegetable dish he'll eat this year! Last year's was butternut squash soup. Also yummy.

Cotton has a kung-fu move, which is hysterical. Rone read Green Eggs and Ham all by himself. This is a pretty big feat for a 5 year old boy, and I'm so proud of him. Seph is going to a Scottish Country Dance ball this weekend, and she knows she will have to dance with a partner that she most likely hasn't met, which is a pretty big deal.

Granma's last night:

We went to the library today, and made a total shopping score. Which is about the only way I can have a great shopping score, since I hate to shop. I got a 2006 World Book encyclopedia for only $30! And Seph is reading it.

We also went to swim and have burgers at the Elks with friends, and then stopped on the way home at Sonic for Free Rootbeer Float Night. The kids will now like me for about twenty minutes before resuming their normally scheduled whining, pouting and moping.

Today Seph asked me, "So. If I want to be a rock star, how would I do that?"

Since that had to be written down, I figured I'd better get back to the blog.

We've had ballet class wrap-up, a piano recital, a month-long visit from Grandma and t-ball finally ended. The pool at the Elks is open, so we've been swimming. With Granma we go to do quite a bit--McKinney Falls State Park, the Children's museum, the crepes trailer (yum! and how can one city support 4 food trailers that sell crepes?) and lots of eating out. For Mother's Day, Chance smoked ribs and chicken, then later in the visit we went to Rudy's. There were also to trips to ChuckECheese, which I mercifully did not have to go on.

Rone had a big leap in his reading, and is now reading his Level 1 readers on his own. I'm very excited for him--it's a big step. He also has a slightly better grasp of baseball now, but both Chance and I found t-ball really frustrating. I think we'll do soccer in the fall, but somewhere else. He's swimming well, and is still a very doting big brother.

Seph did wonderfully at her piano recital, and finished up her year of being an assistant teacher in her ballet class. At the Campfire Grand Council Fire (the end of year ceremony) Seph lit a candle and said a few words. She's also been to two social dances with her Scottish Country dance class, and there is a ball later in the month. One of the organizers of the group made kilts for everyone in the class, which makes them even more fun to watch.

Cotton is coming into her own personality, which is fun to watch when it isn't a force for total chaos. She makes many funny faces, and laughs a lot. Much of her day is spent in pursuit of markers, which she uses to draw on her body and anything else she can reach. You can get her to do most anything if you promise her a cookie or ice cream. She says "Ro" for Rone, and "SSsss" for Seph. She also has noises for dog, bird, pool, noodle, sock, and car. They sound almost like the words they mean, but not quite.

And now, a lot of pictures, to make up for the drought.

We can hope this is the first and last time we see Cotton doing this:

And we remembered this year!

Seph's birthday party, and our trip to NASA day on the UT campus.