Save the Poison Control Center!

So, school is out for summer. We had a rather uneventful week, to my great relief. It was nice to have a week to unwind from the crecendo of preformances, tests, school parties, etc. We got onto a sort-of summer schedule, and it is was actually sunny a better part of each day (It has been a record-breaking streak of rainy days here in NJ lately).
Part of this schedule includes a chore schedule for the kids. No more free passes for them. What is the point of having kids if they can't help out a little, right? For the most part it has been great--laundry is actually getting done, the bathroom downstairs is presentable most of the time, and the dishes have even been completely done at some point during each day. All of this comes with its own price of course. Clothes are not folded like I'd like, Paris sprays every room he cleans with copious amounts of Lysol spray, and then there was the the dishwasher incident. Can you believe it happened again? Yes, another one of my children, which shall remain nameless (TRITAN), used dishwashing soap in the dishwasher instead of dishwasher detergent. I was in the middle of trying to cook dinner, when the bubbles started. This was day 3 of having the kids all day, and Brian, of course, was out of town this week. Let's just say I wasn't happy. But I swear, the thought of killing my kids never entered my mind.
However, later that night, that is just what I almost did.
It was finally 9pm and I could legally put the kids to bed. Dinner had been later than usual (gee, I wonder why) and the kitchen was still a mess (though the floors were again spotless). After prayers, it was vitamin and Zyrtec time. I couldn't find the Zyrtec dosing cup (though I didn't look all that hard--I was tired and wanted to send the kids to bed as quickly as possible), so I pulled out my measuring spoons and doled out the allergy juice.
Fast forward to midnight. After catching up on So You Think You Can Dance (I have to rewind and watch each dance at least twice before I can responsibly vote for my favorite dancers), I cleaned up the kitchen, and then fell into bed. I was exhausted but suddenly I was wide awake. In my mind, I could see the measuring spoons I had just cleaned up and it suddenly hit me that I had given Tritan and Athena 2 Tablespoons of Zyrtec, not 2 teaspoons. I ran into their rooms and checked to see that they were still breathing. Relieved that they were not dead already, I raced downstairs to check the bottle. Maybe, just maybe, it called for tablespoons? Crap. Nope--teapoons, and a warning to call poison control center right away if over dosed. I took a deep breath, and I'll admit, tried to rationalize not calling. No one likes admitting to poisoning their own children. They were alive, Tritan had even woken up (rather startled) when I bent over him to make sure he was still breathing. But I called, and May at the Poison Control Center was very nice. She did ask me 3 times if I had given them the medicine or if they had gotten it themselves, seemingly amazed that a mother could be so distracted. But luckily, she thought they would be O.K., I just needed to wake them periodically throughout the night to be sure.
So I woke them before I went to bed (at 1am), then again at 4am, and again at 6:30. Luckily, they were fine and ironically Athena complained about her allergies the next day.
May from Poison Control Center called the next morning to make sure the kids were fine. I have to say I find this service so useful: I have had to call them more than once in my life. The kids have eaten Desitin (twice) and once I found Paris with an open bottle of kids vitamins. They have always been prompt, helpful, and non-judgemental. My sister said that CA is considering not continuing the PCC service and that if they don't several other states may follow suit. I hope not. Apparently I need them!!

Just the facts, ma'am

Master Apollo graduated from preschool June 12, 2009. He will be attending the all-day kindergarden class next year, giving him ample time to learn his ABC's while continuing his speech therapy.

Two days after officially turning 9, Paris Wortham received his Wolf badge in Cub Scouts.

Athena Wortham performed in the Rice Elementary Talent Show the day before school got out. "It was fun," she said in a post-performance interview. "But now I'm glad that's over with."

Tritan, Athena, and Paris were promoted to their successive grades. Their parents expressed pride and some relief. Tritan will be going to Middle School in the Fall. Their parents feel old.

This is why I have a hard time letting the kids do chores

Athena accidently put dish soap in the dishwasher instead of dishwashing detergent. At first it was kind of funny...

Then it wasn't...

Birthday de ja vu

Nostalgia isn't something you would expect kids to have. They are more concerned with what's ahead of them than what's behind. No one epitomizes this state of mind more than Paris.
When he was born, he was almost inconsolable in the hospital. I remember checking his diaper, trying to feed him, wrapping him and unwrapping him, trying to figure out what was wrong. Finally, I just held him, looked into his red, screwed up face and asked him what his problem was. I got the distinct impression that he was just pissed that he was a baby. One minute he was running around in heaven, hanging with his peeps; the next he was in this tiny body that couldn't talk, couldn't walk, couldn't even sit up. And he was as mad as a hornet about it.
That theory was only validated by the fact that he didn't stop screaming until he was about 5 months and could sit up and crawl. He was the first of my kids to walk--at 9 months; and I honestly can't remember his first word--it seemed as though he woke up one day, speaking whole paragraphs. He's considered himself the same age as T and Nina ever since. (For some reason, I even got literature in the mail for him to be entered into the Who's Who book of outstanding high schoolers, and have even gotten recruitment pamphlets from colleges--this was when he was 5.)
So imagine my surprise when he asked to forgo a birthday party for his 9th birthday. Instead, he wanted the whole family to go to Sesame Place--an amusement/water park in PA that we visited when he turned 4. It was our first vacation that we took as a family that didn't include a visit with other family (or a house hunting trip), and it happened to coincide with his 4th birthday. Apparently, it was a very good memory: In fact, the only gift he wanted this year, he claimed, was a stuffed Ernie--the same type he got as a souvenir the first time we went and somehow lost a year or so later when we moved from VA to AL.
I don't know what prompted this fit of nostalgia, but honestly, I couldn't have been more relieved. Two-three weeks before his birthday, when I should have been nailing down his birthday venue and sending out invites, I was in over my head with dance rehearsals and recitals, visiting teaching conference plans, and deadlines for summer camps. (Plus Brian was not scheduled to be in town for more than a handful of days during the entire month). A family party at a water park sounded like a lot less work than putting together a party.
I still felt guilty, of course, so I let him invite one friend. (This was before I checked out the prices--perhaps not the smartest move). Then looking at the calendar, already stacked with events, we decided to move it up a week to last Sat. (This was before I checked out the weather--again, not the smartest move.) Still, despite the cloudy day, we had a great day. A storm did roll in after lunch, which shut down all of the rides and water attractions. But we were able to get a free "rain check" ticket to come back another day. And we had been there long enough to get in most of the attractions. We bought Paris a Ernie doll and Paris proclaimed it the Best Birthday Ever. So maybe we made some new good memories.

The boys: T, Paris, and his friend.

Grey Day

Now that Apollo has finally taken the inititative to pick out his own outfits, he has come up with some interesting combinations. But one day he picked out an outfit that definitely matched--all grey, even down to the socks. He was very proud of himself.

Another week, another blog

Another busy week; I have resorted to using bullets because I am tired.

Tritan's class had a Book Buffet. Each kid picked a book to read with another family member and then we made food that went with the book for a buffet. Like for Charlie and the Chocoloate Factory the girl brought Wonka candy. Tritan and I read The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. It was a really great book--you can read my review here. We made a cupcake cake decorated like a graveyard with white ghosts. This had to be my favorite family project ever--books and food!

• Athena had her ballet recital. She looked like a fairy in her costumes and did a great job. I was really pleased with the whole school. The high school dancers were beautiful. She is going to start pointe this fall so I am glad to have found a good ballet school.


• Donna and Phil were sealed this weekend in the Twin Falls temple. We are so excited for them. Brian was able to attend, and I know he was happy to see so much family.




• We had our Visiting Teaching Conference on Sunday. I decided to go for a labor intesive handout, which I instantly regretted. I blame it on the internet. I would never have gotten the idea for these on my own. I asked several sisters to share their thoughts on VT and they did a great job. My secretary put on a skit and our choristor sang a beautiful song, so all in all it was a success.


• Our nephew Garrett got baptized this weekend, too. Congratulations, Garrett.

Mistakes, Mishaps, and Unmentionables

When you highlight the comings and goings of your family, you tend to gloss over the rough stuff. Believe me, we need a lot of gloss. Here are some of our bloopers:

Mistake
June 1st landed on a Monday. That is not good for the calendar-challenged. I have a planner and I use it--though not always effectively. I have shown up to school on the wrong day for D.A.R.E. Graduation; I have forgotten until the last minute that Tritan needed a snack for his Health Enrichment group--(let me tell you trying to find a "healthy snack" in our house 10 min. before the bus comes--Not Easy. Somehow there was a bag of unopened pretzels in the storage room); I have even completely spaced a birthday party Paris was supposed to attend, that I RSVP'd even, only to remember when there was only an hour left (yeah, we skipped that one). But June 1st was probably one of the worst gaffes--that was Apollo's Kindergarten Tea.
I had to RSVP and everything. It was written on the calendar and I was really excited about it. But when June 1st came, I hadn't gotten around to turning the calendar page and forgot completely about it. I could have gone--I was running right past the school at that exact moment, for Pete's sake--but I totally spaced it. It wasn't until Apollo got off the bus and had a name tag on that I remembered.
"I am so sorry," I said, frozen at the foot of the school bus looking at that accusing name tag. Apollo could have cared less. "That OK, Mom" he said, and though I said "I'm sorry" like a thousand times, he kept telling me everything was alright. He made a new friend named Brian and his new class was really neat and he had lots of friends from preschool in his class. He is over the moon about kindergarten. I just feel so bad that he was that poor little kid whose parents were too busy to come; not a very good first impression. I think I might have shut myself in the sun room and cried a little.

Mishaps
We get our mulch in big bags (as opposed to a mound delivered outside our yard). We do this for 2 reasons: a) we don't have a wheel barrow and 2) it's cheaper. The only thing is, you have to open the bags somehow. I suppose you could go for the scissor method; but the bags are plastic and our scissors are dull and who can ever find scissors when you need them, anyhow? No, I go for the hoe method. (And by hoe method, I mean the gardening tool, not the street walker). Just take the sharp corner of the hoe, slash a couple of holes in the top of the bag, and the plastic easily rips from hole to hole. It's quick and easy--painless, really. Unless you happen to hoe your toe. Which of course is what I did. Just whacked myself good. I think I saw stars. I felt like I was going to throw-up. And according to my daughter, apparently swore some ( In the words of Bill Clinton, I don't recall doing that). Luckily I'm not very strong--nothing was broken though I did have a nasty bruise.

Unmentionables
O.K. This event will hereafter be referred to as The Incident That Shall Not Be Named.
I came downstairs one Saturday morning to have a quiet breakfast. Tritan was the only other one awake. I told Brian he could sleep in since he had gotten home late from a trip the night before.
After breakfast, I stepped into the downstairs bathroom. I glanced at the toilet and saw something in there. I know what you're thinking. I thought it too. I thought, "Seriously, what do our kids have against flushing the toilet?!" But then I did a double take, and though it was dark and long, it definitely wasn't poop. So my next thought was, "Seriously, how old do our kids have to be before they stop putting toys in the toilet?!" But then I did a triple take, and that Thing was no toy. Oh, no. It had ears. And a tail. And fur. And my next thought was Screaming Like A Girl, shutting the door, and yelling for Brian like there was a fire.
I have heard of people having mice problems. And honestly, I just feel for them because after all, we lived in the Cockroach Apartment from H***, and I know that pests come despite living like germophobes: bleached counters and weekly pest control sprays and food only kept in the fridge or the oven. When people tell me of their mice problem, I just think, "How awful! Yeah, so how did you get rid of them?" because you never know when it might be you who has the problem. I just didn't realize it would Freak Me Out so completely.
So for the last 2 weeks, I have analyzed every dark crumb, every stray bean, every mysterious piece of lint hanging out in the corner for any mouse dropping characteristics. I have turned off my music and sat in my kitchen, listening for any scratching or scuttling sounds. (After making toasted bread for bread salad, I have learned that bread coming out of the oven continues to pop and crackle while cooling on the rack--did you know this?).
No signs of life have shown up, so my paranoia has lessened somewhat. Brian and I have discussed it, and we have decided that they must have been flushing the pipes that night/day and left us a present. I don't even know if that is feasible, but it sounds like a good story and I'm sticking to it. So now the matter is closed (until we find evidence to the contrary), and I have to warn you, if you bring this up in conversation, I will pretend that I have no idea what you are talking about.

Weekend warriors and Recipe of the Week

This weekend was a laundry list of things to do.

• Tritan and Brian went fishing. Tritan has always wanted to go, but because we took so long to register our car, and thus get a fishing liscense it became a quiet obsession for him. When Brian finally got the liscense and fishing poles at Wal-Mart on Friday, Tritan responded with "Cool. Thanks Dad." Which is his equivalent of jumping up and down, and screaming around the house. They went to the lake early Sat. morning, worms and donuts in hand, and actually caught a fish. They didn't take the camera, and threw the fish back in, so we'll just have to take their word for it.
• Athena's jazz recital was this weekend. She did great. Brian and I both wish we could find a studio as good as the one we happened onto when we lived in VA--and I know that it probably doesn't matter, maybe doesn't even exist, but I feel like I MUST find the perfect studio for Athena. Apparently, this is my quiet obsession. I am crossing my fingers that her ballet recital is good.
• Tritan and Brian went to another soccer game. The boys lost this time. I don't think Brian will lose any sleep on switching alliances when Philly finally gets thier team. Tritan has the distinction of being The Loudest Cheer-er. Who knew?
• We bought summer clothes for the kids. I put together cute outfits for Athena to try on, she dutifully tries them on, and then buys the outfits she puts together. Ah, well!
• We got invited to some friends for dinner. We had a really good time and the kids played well with their kids, even though they are much younger and so we could actually have a conversation with the parents.
• We cleaned the church. Our group leader arranged for a potluck breakfast before we started to clean--which I thought was counterproductive--but it actually turned out really fun.

Recipe of the Week

Here's a fun quick dish: mix cooked, shredded chicken with bbq sauce (honey bbq is my favorite), layer it on a tortilla with cheddar cheese, chopped tomato and green onions. Fold over tortilla or put another tortilla on top and broil til toasted. Flip and toast the other side. BBQ Chicken Quesadillas--everyone loves them at our house.