Our trip to the beach

Last week Summer, my dad and I traveled to Fort Walton Beach for a much needed vacation.  About an hour into the drive, she started with the "how much longer?" question.  "How many more minutes?" was a another of her favorite questions.  She played her Leapster some, but did not really play the iPad like I thought she would.  I figured she would be glued to Fetch with Ruff Ruffman like she had been the week before, but I guess that did not interest her.  After about seven and a half hours, we made it to our destination:  Island Echos on Okaloosa Island.  She only slept for about thirty to forty minutes the whole way down.  We were not at the condo long before she was ready to head to the pool.  After a little time there, we headed to the beach to build a sand castle.  We were almost finished with it when a rain shower blew over and cleared the beach.  We headed to our unit to get our things settled in and relax.  We were tired from the long day on the road so we decided to eat in instead of going out like we did for supper the rest of the week.    


On Sunday when we woke up, a tropical storm had blown in.  The waves were huge, but the rain had not arrived yet so we headed to the pool.  Summer and Paw Paw swam together while I watched.  It was a little cool out for me with no sun in sight.  While they were swimming, it started sprinkling, but that did not bother them.  When Summer was chilled to the bone, we headed back up to the room.  That was when her vacation took a turn for the worse.  She started running a high temperature so I ran to the store to get some medicine.  On Monday morning, she also had developed a sore throat so we took her to an urgent care clinic.  They gave her a strep test which was negative, but since she also had a painful sensation at the end of her peeing, they put her on amoxycillin to be on the safe side.  Her fever continued to spike over 102 for the next few days and added to the sore throat were body aches and a sore mouth.  On Thursday, we returned to the doctor for more tests since she did not seem to be improving.  After another strep test, urine culture and a trip to the hospital for a blood test, it was decided she had a virus.  They called her in a prescription of nystatin for the thrush that had developed in her mouth.  


Her week pretty much consisted of watching DVDs on the couch.  Blues Clues and Barney kept her quite entertained.  We met some nice people on the beach who loaned us some of their movies.  Her favorite was "A Bug's Life."  We also watched "Ant Bully."  On Wednesday night, she asked me when she was going to get to have some fun on vacation, but the poor thing just did not feel like doing anything.  It broke my heart that I could do nothing to make her feel better.  Her mouth was so sore we could not brush her teeth and pretty much the only thing she consumed all week was yogurt drinks. The pool was not even appetizing to her.  I did manage to get her to take a trip to the beach twice where she sat under the umbrella and buried her feet in the the sand.  She did seem to enjoy that some, but it did not last long before she was ready to head back up to the couch or bed.  She went through lots of ibuprofen trying to manage her fevers and slept quite a bit too.  


On Friday morning, she still did not feel great, but she did want to do something fun.  She begged me to take her to the water park. So, after getting her to take her medicine (that was a struggle the entire trip), drink a glass of Gatorade and gulp down a yogurt smoothie, we headed to Big Kahunas.  We had lots of fun going down water slides.  It was great to see her finally having fun.  Her favorite was the one where she and I got to ride double down an enclosed yellow slide.  We rode most of the slides two or three times.  We enjoyed the wave pool for a little while until hunger hit us, and we headed to the snack area.  We ordered a philly cheese steak to share, but her mouth was still her enemy and she could not eat.  Her fever also started rising again, so we left the park and headed back to our condo.  We had about two and half or three hours of fun though so it was worth the trip.


Saturday morning we packed up and our vacation was over.  On the way home, she slept more than the first down so her "how much longer" questions were not quite as bad.  We were all ready to get out of the car when we got back to Chattanooga.  The not so great vacation was over, but the sickness was not.  The main thing bothering her is her mouth.  She is so hungry, but she it just hurts too bad to eat.  She's hoping we will get to go back to the beach later this summer or maybe for fall break.  We'll see though.  Our life has gotten pretty complicated in the past week, but I'm sure in the end we will be fine.  The next few months will probably be rough for us both, but at least at the end of the day we still have each other.  

The weekend is upon us and it was another full, but fun week. Summer loved her vbs that she attended with Giada and Brody. They were excited to see each other every morning. She got to learn to cook something diffent everyday. At the end of the week, she got to bring her cookbook ( a white folder with recipes inside) and apron home with her. She was so excited to get to keep the apron! She actually cooked some 1-2-3 cake yesterday after she got home from bible school. I got to try a bite. She may try to surprise her dad with breakfast in bed tomorrow. We'll see if it turns out that way or not. She learned how to make eggs this week so maybe he'll enjoy her microwaved eggs. I'm sure he'll eat them. :) She also learned to make smoothies and pizza and how to cut fruit "with a sharp knife." I am glad she went, but I am thankful we don't have to go anywhere five days in a row next week. Just aerials and Adventure Club which are in the afternoon so no need to have to get in or out of bed early. She also has a dentist appointment. I am anxious to here what he says about the dead tooth. She has one loose tooth on bottom, at least that's all I know of. So far she still has all of her baby teeth. I am getting a little more used to the idea that a tooth will be coming out soon. Maybe by the time it happens, it won't be too traumatic for me.

We've been getting to spend the past few days with Lexie which has been nice. We have missed her since she returned to living with her mom. The girls play pretty good together for the most part, but of course they are not always perfect angels. I believe they have Trixie wrangled up in whatever they are playing in the basement this morning. Poor dog! Last night we were reading a book Summer picked from the library and it was about how to make friend with dogs. It's amazing how many of the don'ts she does. I reread one part a few times about how they don't like to be chased, hugged, teased and more. I still don't think she gets it. She really wants a hands on dog who wants to be carried around like a baby. It's kind of funny because she won't really have anything to do with babies - real or toys. She does claim that she likes to play with Vayda Mae, but that is only with a balloon on a string. I don't think she has ever held a baby. She has no interest in holding her newest niece Roxianne. Maybe she feels threatened by them? I don't know. Well I'm off to enjoy the weekend with two of the most adorable girls on this earth. They are such a blessing!

2nd week of summer break

This week is going by fast, just like the first week of summer vacation did. Last week, Summer and I attended VBS at our home church. This week she is attending one with two school friends. I believe this will be the last VBS of the summer as it has not been a very relaxing Summer with all these activities we have been involved which require attendance on a daily basis. We have been having fun though.

For the past two weeks, we have attended Adventure Club at the library. Summer has over forty books on her summer reading log so far. She loves picking out books and playing on the computer at the library. This week we left with 20 books! She also enjoys the craft time they have at the end of the story time. Yesterday, she let me help her on her watercolor owl. The week before they made light switch covers, and she did not ask for my help with that one. I never know when she's going to need me, but I always try to be there just in case. She didn't need my help finishing her cake batter ice cream from Cold Stone before our trip to the library. I remember the days when she did....

Right now she is in her aerials class which she still loves. This is her 2nd month of lessons and next month she has a week long camp. Her friend Willow will be joining her for that which will be a great time for them both I'm sure. They may even get to have a few sleepovers with each other that week. I'm not sure Summer will stay with them. She still does not like the idea of spending the night with anyone other than my mom or sister. But, that's cool with me. I know before too long I'll have a hard time keeping her home.

Last night, I took her down to Riverbend which is a music festival that they have once a year in Chattanooga. It was hot outside, but she enjoyed it. She got to do a bungee jump activity so she was happy about that. She was an inch too short for the Tilt-a-Whirl and the hang gliding simulation ride. She didn't have any interest in the ferris wheel so we didn't even check to see if she could ride it. After jumping and flipping, we went to get her a snack. She picked nachos and water. We walked down to a friend's boat and hung out for a bit then cut out before any of the good bands even got started. It was enough time spent there for us both though. We tried to get home and get in the bed early, but after getting showered up, she was not sleepy. So, we watched a few episodes of Dragon Tales and snacked on kettle corn and cheese to top off our day. I am hoping next week will be a little more relaxing and we can spend more time at home. Of course, if we find something fun to do, we probably will not pass it up.

Sleeping in rocks!

I was a little afraid of what time Summer would be waking up now that school's out. She usually gets up sometime during the 6 a.m. hour. Now that school is out, she does not have her 8:00 bedtime anymore. I usually put her to bed whenever she is tired or I can't wait to get in the bed myself. I am hoping that will allow her to sleep until 7:30 or 8:00 at least. Today she made it to 8:30; I think yesterday it was 7:30. I actually beat her out of bed this morning which is hard to do unless it's a school day or we have an early appointment. Next week is VBS in the morning so we will probably stick to an early bedtime that week. Summer and I can't wait until vacation time. We are so ready to be at the beach. Summer wants to build a sand castle, and I can't wait to hear the roar of the ocean. I'm sure the pool will be her favorite activity at our destination, but maybe her daddy and I will be able to coax her into a few games of tennis. Deep sea fishing is also a must do for me, but Summer will probably stay with her daddy while my dad and I go out to sea. Of course if we just fish off a pier Summer might be game, but boats are not her thing. We are trying a new destination so I hope we will not be disappointed. But, with a beach and pool I'm not sure we could be. I think there may be a water park nearby which we will have to visit I'm sure if Summer hears about it. I can't wait! We've made it through our first books from the library and will probably return them today on our way to VBS at our church. Summer has really enjoyed it, as have I teaching the Imagination Station. Every night we do a different experiment with the kids. Last night we made fizzy fliers explode which really wowed the kids. Summer has done great branching out from being my cling-on, but she did get a little flustered yesterday at church when she couldn't find me. I got there early to work on my lesson and went off to get some supplies leaving her in my room. When she finally found me in the kitchen, she was close to tears. It made me sad to see that I had upset her, wathcing as she tried to fight back tears. When I asked her what was wrong, she said she was just upset for no reason. I told her that I do that too sometimes. I knew it was because she couldn't find me though. :( So, I took a minute to stop what I was doing and took her up to where the sanctuary where the kids meet up everyday. She was still trying to fight back the tears as I left her, but she said she was fine. I love that sweet girl! When she made it to my station that night she was all smiles and having a great time. I'm sure it didn't take long for her perk up after I left her and some of her friends got there. Next week she was invited to join some of her friends at VBS, but she has never been to the churn before so I'm not sure how the drop off will go. I hope she will see them and be excited and not hold tight to my arm, but I'm not going to count on it. This morning has been a cartoon filled couch morning. Love all this good snugly time with my baby! I love summertime!!!!!!

School's out for summer

We are on our second day of summer break, and Summer is on her way to Camp Lookout with her daddy.  She is wearing the tie dye shirt she made last year when she went to the camp.  I'm sad that I cannot be there with her this year, but I am glad her dad took off so he could go with her.  They need some extra time together.  Last night, Summer and I made rice crispy treats to take and share with the other kids from church.  It was the first time she has made them, and I think she enjoyed it.  She kept wanting to taste the melted butter and marshmallows.  Of course, once it was melted it was a little too hot for that, but she happily took my stirring spoon when I gave it to her after it was all mixed up. 

Our first day of break was mostly spent at home which makes Summer and I both happy because we like to be at home.  She played for hours with her Paw-Paw dragging him from one side of the house to the other.  She showed him some things on the iPad for quite a while until I had to literally make her get off of it.  I felt kind of bad him sitting there watching her play with it for well over an hour. I was also hoping she would get up and do something active, but it was a little too cool for her outdoors and she kept saying she was cold.  They played Candyland, and he got to watch her do some math from one of the workbooks she rescued from the recycle bin on the last day of school.  I got to get all prepped for VBS and Sunday school, take a hot bath and also had a short nap while they played.  After he left, it was my turn and we played Twister and Candyland.  I won both times at Twister, but she beat me at the other.  Another favorite game of hers right now is Sorry, but we did not play it. 

After deciding to head downtown for the evening, we ran to the mall to pick up a few things.  One thing we got that I did not intend to was a pair of high heels for Summer.  We ran in the shoe store to make sure there weren't any better shoes for her to wear in the wedding next weekend and what did we find???  Silver high heels!!!  They've got sparkles on the heels and a sparkly flower on her toe straps.  I was amazed at how well she walked in them.  And, despite my better judgement, I bought them.  She wore them out of the store and all the way through Walmart.  However, when we got to the condo, she was happy to trade them in for a pair of flip-flops before we walked to Cheeburger Cheeburger for supper.  We shared a chocolate peanut butter milkshake as we ate our food.  It was so yummy that Summer declared she was going to drink the rest of it and didn't want to share.  Of course, in the end she didn't drink it all and I got to have a few more sips.

I don't want to fail to mention her Kindergarten graduation which was Wednesday at 2:00.  It was very sweet and the kids sang:  Apples and Bananas, You're a Grand Old Flag, and some other song that is totally slipping my mind right now.  :(  Oh well, I've got it video taped which also means I wasn't taking pictures with my camera, but thankfully a friend got a pic of Summer with her camera.  The kids were called up one by one and handed a picture they had drawn of their favorite thing about Kindergarten.  Summer's was art.  I'm not surprised.  The kids then stepped up to the microphone and said what they had drawn/written.  Then they were handed their diploma and given a hug by their teacher.  After all the kids had been called, Ms. Tracy (Summer's lead teacher) read something she had written called 15 reasons she loves Kindergarten with each reason being a child and a special quality about that child.  Again, I am drawing a blank as to what she said about Summer.  :(  Guess I'll revisit those videos and possibly update this post when I have time.  The other class had a similar presentation by their teachers, but it was a song they had written about the kids.  Both were very touching, but no tears were shed by me.  I guess I have just come to accept the fact that she is growing up whether I like it or not.  Or, maybe they will come next week.  Who knows??  But, I've officially got a first grader on my hands now.  After graduation, Clint, Summer, myself, Mom, Tre, Dad, Amanda and Lexie headed to Longhorns for an early dinner (Summer's choice).  Summer had steak which is one of her favorite foods.  She also loves their bread and does not eat the crust like her daddy.  Instead, they just eat the soft bread off, leaving a big pile of crust on their plates.  Let's hope she doesn't acquire his hefty appetite!!  LOL 

The day after graduation, she still had to go to school for a half day.  To her dismay, it was not an out of uniform day like we had originally thought.  Although when we got there, quite a few students were not wearing their uniforms.  I almost let her just skip the day altogether since they were just going to spend their time playing, but then I thought it would be good to go see her friends once more before summer break started.  I ended up staying there too and watching her until about 10:00 when we decided to call it a day.  After saying goodbye to her teachers, we got in the car and headed to the library to sign up for summer reading.  At first, I told her to pick 5 books and I would pick 5 books for her too.  We both ended up with 6, but I'm not complaining because reading is good for her.  I've got a goal of 100 books this summer, but I may be pushing it a little.  Oh well, 50 for sure!!!  I'm also going to try to work in a few books that she will actually be reading to me.  She is so close to reading.  She can read some beginner books, but she gets frustrated easily when she comes to a word she doesn't know and just wants me to read it to her.  I'm hoping she will start using the sounding out method her teachers taught her in Kindergarten, but I'm not pushing her too hard.  I don't want her to dislike reading altogether.  I do love that time with her anyway and am not anxious for her to be a totally independent reader.

After checking out our bounty of books, we headed to the condo to see about going to lunch with Clint.  Summer really wanted to try the new sushi restaurant that replaced our old favorite which moved about 12 blocks away.  Although Clint had already tried it and was not a big fan, he let her pick it and we walked the meager 1 block to get there.  Convenience!!!!  It was pretty good, but the sushi is definitely not the same.  Summer loved their sesame chicken which was actually what I ordered.  She also like the beef on a stick that Clint had.  In her books, it was great and she may even like it better than the old restaurant.  To celebrate the end of school, we headed to the movies to see Mirror Mirror which is a rendition of Snow White.  We all liked it, even though I think Clint almost fell asleep at one point.  Afterwards, Summer had her 5th aerials class which she still loves.  It is such a blessing to get to enjoy life and to see her enjoying it too.  I just hope one day Summer realizes how blessed she truly is!

3.5 days and counting

It's hard to believe that Kindergarden is almost over. The year has flown by as the years do when you get older. I really don't remember them going by this fast when I was still in school. Summer and I are looking forward to the summer. Vacations, camps, trips to the pool....what more could you want? Me possibly a boat ride or two, but I think Summer could do without that. The nose dives the boat took last year along with our bad luck getting it started at times has pretty much scarred her for life and given her a negative view of boating. :( Another perk of summertime is NOT having to get up and go to school every day. That will be awesome! Summer may still get up early, but we won't have to leave the house everyday by seven forty five a.m. Today was her end of the year party. The kids got to celebrate at the Warner Park Spray and Play. It was a blast for them and such a beautiful day too. Summer led her friends in a few made up routines while playing in the fountains that had them all mesmerized. It was fun just to watch them smiling and giggling and enjoying the time with each other. The ice cream bar was also a treat for the kids. What kid doesn't like ice cream? Tomorrow we have some early scans (one month) due to some insurance issues. I'm happy to go ahead and get them over with so we won't have that cloud over our summer. She will probably end up missing all day tomorrow so technically she only has 2.5 days left of school. :D She will have a chest x-ray, ultrasound and bloodwork to make sure she still looks to be cancer free. I'm soooo ready to have the results already. I remember she we first found out she had cancer it was via ultrasound in the same place we are going tomorrow, and it was one of the worst days of my life. I don't know what I would do if I got that news again, but I'm sure we would cope. I am thankful beyond what words could describe for my baby and the way she has recovered from her bout with cancer. I pray she never has to go through it again! Now if only we could get the rest of our clan cancer free..... The holiday weekend is going to be spent with friends and family swimming and and having fun. Then we will finish up the school year with graduation on Wednesday afternoon followed by a half day on Thursday. Let the good times roll!

6 years and counting

Summer turned six years old last Sunday.  After a delicious lunch with our friends Selena and Willow at the restaurant of her choice, Olive Garden, she celebrated with friends and family at the North River YMCA.  The kids played several games, including stick the tail on the donkey and a relay passing an object with their elbows, while we waited for everyone to arrive.  Then we sang "Happy Birthday" and ate cake.  Summer tore through her presents because everyone was anxious for the main attraction:  the pool!!!  She got more than she needed, but I guess that's what happens on birthdays.  The kids had a great time swimming in the pool.  Before the party, I had Summer go take her swim test so she could get it out of the way.  She swam the whole lenth of the pool with no problem and got her green bracelet to show she was okay to swim without a life jacket.  She did a good job making her way around the pool at the party.  It was a pretty big pool and she made her way from one end to the other mingling pretty good with her friends.  She was sure to get herself a goody bag at the end of the party as she said goodbye to her friends and they got theirs.  It's so funny how important the little things in that bag seem to kids....for a few minutes anyway.  I don't think she's seen it since we got home from the party.

After we got home, she wanted to play with her new things.  She ended up playing with the water guns first, followed by the flip flops you decorate yourself.  She LOVED those!!!!  She also got her first sets of Legos: the girl ones.  Crazy how they are gender specific nowadays!!  She really enjoyed them and as a result I was able to get her to let me leave school the next day (without her following me down the hall) by reminding her of the Legos they have to play with in the classroom.  The boys are the ones who generally play with them.  But, after several attempts to tell her goodbye that Monday, I spotted the Legos and when I mentioned them she ran over and started playing with them.  I wonder how long it lasted and if she actually built something, but I never asked.  Yes, I still walk her to class every morning even though it is almost the end of Kindergarten (only 14 days left).  I still sit and watch her do her notebook sheets, answer the question Ms. Tracy writes on the board everyday, and move her apple up.  We haven't done the "Rock-a-bye Baby" routine in a month or two, but we do still usually have an extra huggy hug every morning before I leave.  I'm thinking I'm going to have to give all this up next year when 1st grade rolls around.  I really hope she still wants me to walk her in, but I know she is going to outgrow it one day.  :(

She enjoyed most of her other gifts throughout the rest of the week, but there are still some that she has not gotten to yet.  She got a big bag of crafts and creative type things from my aunts yesterday.  I know she is going to enjoy them over the summer.  We should be all set on things to entertain ourselves with for quite a while.  She got 3 Wii games, including Just Dance 3 which we have been wanting for a while.  She also got a little money and a gift card so maybe she will save up for something special.  Or maybe, she'll just see something she can't live without one day and spend it. 

It's hard to believe that six years have passed since she came out of my belly.  It has been such a joy to watch her grow.  She has yet to lose any teeth which is probably the next big milestone for her.  Her two front teeth are dead and grey as a result of a fall a month or so ago, but they are barely loose and don't seem to be in a hurry to go anywhere anytime soon.  Last week, we discovered she can tie her shoes.  Usually she does not wear shoes with laces because I have made a point not to buy any, but she does have a few pairs.  Well, one morning after dressing herself and doing her own hair, she came in the kitchen with her shoes on and tied too.  She was so proud of herself.  It's bittersweet to see her becoming so independent, but it's got to happen sooner or later.  I miss my little baby, but I wouldn't trade my big girl for anything in the world.  She is truly one of the greatest blessings of my life!