A Really Fun Weekend: Labor Day Weekend

Wow-wow-wow-wow.
I really can't believe all that we did in ONE weekend.  Wow.  Matt had a 4 day weekend and the boys had a 3.

Matt and I had known about the upcoming Boise State vs Ole Miss game in ATL for a while.  We talked a bit about going, but never made any real plans.
I started looking into tickets, and then Matt was able to score some free tickets through the Moral and Welfare department at his base… "Well, now, we should go!"  And then a really dear friend of mine worked it all out that should could keep the boys for us over night and send them to school the next day.  "Holy smokes!  We could really go to the game!"   And so we did.

On Thursday I checked the boys out early for school, then a friend came over and watched them while Matt and I headed to ATL.   We checked into our hotel around 5, then headed downtown to get to the Georgia Dome.
We had some pretty fun seats in the end zone, but what was really fun was having my parents meet us there (from B'ham) and watch the game with us!  Like I said, Matt had free tickets--A LOT of free tickets, haha.   We screamed our heads off, enjoyed talking to other fans, meeting some of Matt's friends who came from other areas in the South to watch the game, and just really had a great time being adults together without the worry of children's needs… Make sense?
BSU ultimately lost, and Matt was ultimately devastated.  Poor guy.

Matt and I left ATL the next morning (Friday) and headed back home.  Had to get back to coastal GA before the boys got out of school.  Once they were picked up and we were home we just took a really chill afternoon.  I decided to try and start making new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle shells, and then we probably went to the pool!

Saturday morning I went into Savannah to pick up a few more items for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle shells, and Matt took the boys into the woods to shoot their BB guns.  Titus knocked down a small tree and called it his "bo staff"… Ninja Turtle mode all the way!  
The afternoon was spent having family time, hanging out, trying to escape the heat, and playing games.  Titus was really into the idea of learning to play chess!

Sunday was church.  Again, lots of family time afterwards and lots of sewing of Turtle Shell sewing.  Oh, and lots of heat escaping.  August heat and humidity is awful.  Blah.

Monday we went to Hilton Head and had such a great time!  We've gone to a few beaches around here, but we're pretty sure Hilton Head is our favorite place to go.  Really nice time, I tell ya.  The boys are getting to that age were I don't have to worry about them all the time.  They can jump and swim in the waves almost without us being right next to them.
And this time the waves were a really nice size but the under-toe (or "ripe-tide") wasn't strong at all.  MAN!  We really did have a fabulous time!  However we lost 2 sets of googles, Titus almost lost his shorts, and I lost my pair of sunglasses.  Those waves were kind of strong!
That evening when we got back and were all showered and rested, I finished the Ninja Turtle shells.  I did all four this time.  Fun stuff!

Wow.  I still can't believe that was ONE weekend.  Goodness.

 

SCHOOL STARTED! FOR EVERYONE! IT'S AMAZING!

The boys started school on Monday, August 3. 

The night before, on that Sunday, Matt had personal interviews with each child and then administered Father's Blessings with each child.  It was pretty special, for this was the first time that Matt had been around for the "First Day of School".  

Anyway, they were all very excited to start school, but maybe not as excited as I was!  They are all in full school, going from roughly 8am to 3pm.  (Oh, and did I mention that they are all in DIFFERENT schools?!  Yeah, that's a headache, but it's been pretty easy to navigate… Just the car-rider line is for.e.ver.)

The day of the first day of school Matt had been able to stay home in the morning and help all get everyone ready, and then walk each kid into school.  It was pretty easy to drop everyone off, just a bit of a walk for Eli and Isaac since the parking was awful and we had to park in a neighboring neighborhood.  

Isaac is in 2nd grade.  Was really easy to drop him off since he is now a pro.  He was excited about school, but knew that it was going to be work.  However, on his first day home he exclaimed, "Wow!  Second grade is really easy.  We didn't do any work today!"  But he changed his tune a week later when real homework came home and it took him almost an hour to focus and get it done. (Homework time is now closer to 15-20 min, but it took a while for him to get in the groove.)  

Eli is in Kindergarten.  Holy shmoly, he was pumped to be a Kindergartener!  Had been talking about entering Kindergarten since the beginning of preschool of the previous year.  When we walked in that morning he couldn't keep the smile off his face, no matter how hard he tried!  The first week back he was excited, but after the weekend break he was pretty much broken hearted to realize that he had to go back.  Poor guy.  

On the second day walking him in to school (for again I parked, since the car rider line was a disastrous  mess), he was half-way down the sidewalk and turned to me, "Mom, I don't need help walking in."  I was like, "Okay…???"  Then two seconds later, after two steps, he half turns and mumbles: "Mom, I need you to come with me."  

On the third day of school he grasped my hand, saying, "I need you to walk all the way with me."

On the fourth day of school he was just content to walk in with me beside him.  

Eli and Isaac are now mostly bus-riders to school.  Eli thinks he's really grown-up now! It's hard to let these kids do such big things…. The older they get, the more and more I realize how little they are.  Make sense?  

Titus is in Pre-K.  It is a full-day program at a montessori school.  Georgia has their preschools (and other education) funded by the Georgia Lottery.  Since it's state run, the state requires the preschool to be all day and 5 days a week.  At first I hated the idea of him, or the other kids, gone all day for 5 days, but I quickly got over it!  Hahaha!  Anyway, Titus LOVES being in a school and having his own class with his own backpack and his own friends.  I think he felt like he was missing out last year when his brothers were in school.  But he's now set, and a real "big kid."  

I drive him to school.  It's nice that it's just two minutes down the road.  

Memorail Weekend

Once again, we spent our 4 day weekend in Bama.  I mean, not that I'm complaining.  Actually going to Bama is pretty awesome!  And we've never lived this close to my side of the family--so going to see them once very other month doesn't seem too often enough.  And heck, when will we live this close again?  I'm not sure what that military's plans for us are... So... To Bama!

This had been a pre planned trip for a while.  It was also nice to get over and visit with Dad.  This was the first time he has seen me, Matt, and the boys since his stroke.  Family time = good medicine.  (Also, Dad continues to improve with amazing strides!  Not using the cane very much!)

One of my best friends in high school was married that weekend, and Matt and I attended.  It was like the most amazing and beautiful Southern wedding one can imagine.  Ceremony was in an old historic chapel, with an amazing string quartet, and georgeous flower arrangements.  Both sides of the families were impeccably dressed, and the groom's father (the groom being my bf) was his best man.  So sweet!  

The reception was at one of the fanciest old historic clubs in Birmingham, named The Club.  There I was able to meet up with other lost friends whom I haven't seen in years, and introduce Matt to practically half my home town!  

On Sunday we drove to the Hunstville area to visit Dad's mother's grave.  It had been a decade since I had last been, and we figured it was a good family trip to make on Memorial Weekend.  (Dad is still not up for going to church--totally understandable!!)

It was nice to replace her flowers, dust off the head stone, and talk about her.  She had dies when I was nine, and my dad was only 35.  A lot has happened in 19 years since her death, but she continues to hold a special place in all of our hearts.(Breast cancer... It's awful.)

Sunday evening, after returning back to my parents' new home, we spent our time playing in the gravel piles.  Oh man, the treasures that come with living in a developing neighborhood!  

The popcorn and M&Ms with the movie Tangled.  

Monday we headed out the door early. We wanted to get over to Atlanta early enough to catch some of the Braves vs Red Sox game. And we actually managed to do that--even scoring some free tickets from a guy at the gate who had extra!  We had gotten some fan gear at a Target earlier in the day, and we were set and ready to enjoy the game... Until the hear made it miserable for like the first 4 innings.  But we stuck it out till the 5th, and that's when the thunderstorms came and we had to high tail it out of there!  We would have loved to have stayed thru the rain delay, but we really did have to get home--and ATL is a 3.5 hour drive to Savannah.  

I guess that good that about that game is that we happened to see "the play of the game," when Big Papa Ortiz hit a home run with the bases loaded, tying the game!  Which allowed the Red Sox to win.  (Wait, which team am I routing for?! I'm a Sox fan, who dressed as a Braves fan to ease my boys' hearts.)

         (Pit stop at our fav rest area)

We made it home around 9 that night.  And we've been enjoying our Summer Break these last two days.  

SUMMER BREAK!! 

 

We Went to Universal. In December. Also, Titus Busted his Head Open.

Well there is one AMAZING adventure that I have not written about.   It's been almost too big to tackle, you know?

But I'll try now:


Matt's sister Marcie, her husband Tyson, and their son Jaxson, spent Christmas with us.  And then after the 25th we went down to Orlando and had three days of Universal Studios and Universal Islands of Adventure.

It was A LOT OF FUN.  However, it was REALLY busy.  We happened to go during the busiest time of the year.  Did you know that?  That Christmas time is the busiest time of the year for Orlando's theme parks?  I mean, we knew that it would busy, but we had no idea it would be THAT busy.

……

We drove down, but instead of just taking 4 hours, it took like 6 hours.  I wanted to show them the oldest city in the United States and the cool fort at St. Augustine, but I had a major fail.  Instead of the large fort at St. Augustine, I took us down to a small fort 15 miles south of St. Augustine, and by the time we got there a storm had come in and they were no longer showing tours.  BOO!

But we got to see the ocean, and play in really cool Live Oak trees.  And I love trees, so I shouldn't complain :)

……

Our first day seemed kind of like a bust.  Every "cool" ride had like a hour to 2 hour wait (so it seemed).   We basically walked around, checked shows, and did a lot of little things.

We were kind of disappointed.  Harry Potter World was so packed we couldn't even get in!

But back at the hotel room we had a lot of fun.  I mean, all of us shared one room, so there had to be fun.  Like swimming at the pool, and sharing one bathroom, and learning the effects of humidity on everyone's hair.

……

The second day we woke up early, got to the park early, and got into HARRY POTTER WORLD!  YES!

Marcie and Tyson were able to go on "The Forbidden Journey" with a 20 minute wait.  Me and Matt, meanwhile, took the boys on the Hippogriff roller coaster, which all of them loved.  (Jaxson was too small, so me and Matt took turns watching him.)

After exploring Harry Potter world all morning we went back to the hotel room and took naps.  We got back to the park in the afternoon.

It was a rainy day so the park wasn't too bad.  We did a lot of things, including everything in Dr. Seuss's Landing.  The boys loved it.

We stayed at the park till it closed.  The boys were basically exhausted, the adults were exhausted, but it really didn't matter.  Wait times for all the rides were just minutes.  Awesome!  That's the way to do it, man.  Close out the park and have the place to yourself!

……

The last day was my birthday.  We were slow getting to the park.  And as soon as we arrived, Titus split his head open… Great…

Basically what happened is:  Titus was running, I was telling him not too, and then he fell and smacked his head on the corner of a small wall/bench.

I picked him up and saw two deep holes, really, in his head.  I started to pinch them together, but blood was already pouring all over the place.  Then Matt came, and he pinched one hole closed and I pinched the other.
With all the screaming and blood, and worker found us quickly and took us back to the clinic, and an EMT was called to help asses the situation.

He came, bound Titus' head, and said, "He'll need stitches." (And Matt was like, "Can someone just get me superglue?"  Yeah, babe, the situation was much more serious than what superglue could do!)
It was decided that we would take an ambulance to a children's hospital, Marcie and Tyson would stay at the park with the other kids, and have the car incase we didn't get back at a decent hour.

At the hospital we were quickly seen.  So grateful!  It was a children's hospital so they had all the little things that help little people deal with trauma.  And the numbing agent for Titus' "holes" was this gel. Seriously cool.  He got 4 stitches.  2 on each hole.  Also no broken bones, eyes checked out great, and the ears had no excess fluid.
(AND an Universal Studios representative met us at the hospital.  He got us all snacks, wrote down our testimony of what happened, called and paid for the cab back to the park, and got us reimbursements for all of our tickets for that day.)

Once we made it back to the theme park we met up with Marcie and Tyson and the boys.  Titus showed all of them his stitches, and we headed back into the parks.  We kind of bounced back and forth from the Studios and Islands of Adventure.  Matt REALLY needed more of Harry Potter's Butterbeer--he couldn't get enough.

……

The next morning Marcie, Tyson, and Jaxson flew home to TX.
And we headed back home to coastal GA.   We spent that night (which was New Year's Eve) eating popcorn and playing chutes and ladders.

……

You know, I really didn't think that the boys had a good time.
But seriously, they talk about Universal all the time!  Which ride was their favorite and what they are excited to ride when they're older.

Also, a big bonus, they are all really into Harry Potter now!  And we watched all 8 movies within like 2 weeks.  Again, not complaining :)

AND WE CANNOT WAIT TO GO BACK!  But hopefully during a lot less busy time.

……

::DRIVE DOWN::
-- Takes 6 hours
-- Crazy side stop south of St. Augustine, FL

::DAY ONE::
-- I took the kids on the spin-cups (since Matt can't stand spin rides)
-- Matt took the boys on a water splash adventure, and Eli got soaked!
-- We met Megatron!  Eli and Titus were scared to death.
-- We went on a lot of little rides that weren't long waits.  Isaac went on the Mummy with Matt and Marcie.  Me and Tyson took Eli, Titus, and Jaxson on the Twister.  It scared them, of course.

::DAY TWO::

-- We were able to go into HARRY POTTER WORLD first thing in the morning!  YAYAYAYAYAY!

-- We went back to the hotel for naps and swim. 

-- We did everything in Dr. Seuss Landing, including attending a theater show of the Grinch. 

-- We closed out the park, and were able to do a lot without any waits. 

-- Isaac was really patient with Jaxson has his stroller buddy. 

::DAY THREE::

-- Wanted to take a chill day, since the day before was so busy.  

-- Too bad Titus busted his head open. 

-- ER visit, while Marcie and Tyson had Isaac and Eli at the park. 

-- We closed out the park once again. 

-- And we bought a lot of Harry Potter wands :) 

::DAY FOUR::

-- Travel back home.

-- Play board games to celebrate the New Year