The kids are almost all over their colds. Yay! And I still didn't catch their cooties which is amazing. I've been washing my hands like I have OCD, but usually that only helps fend it off for a day or two. When a snot nosed kid sneezes in your face, washing your hands doesn't make a difference.
Fenna asked her mom if she buy a new laptop while they were on sale over Labor Day weekend. While discussing this with Keith, Fenna says to him, "you could buy a new laptop for Mary too". Ba-da-bing, I have a new laptop! And Fenna didn't get one! She can have my old one while she is here, it works fine (usually). It's led a long rough abused life, but she is more careful than I am with the electronics so I'm sure it will work out this way.
The new washer and dryer are awesome! I cannot figure out how much soap to add to the washer though. All of the instructions say "a measured amount of detergent". Sure, I can measure it, but how much should I measure? I've just been winging it and the clothes are coming out great. It would be nice to know if I'm using too much or not.
Our trips to the doctor, lab and pharmacy in San Diego have been really fun. Well, not as much fun for Fenna as the rest of us, but we've been making sure to have a good time each time we go. Also, I know my way around much better now. I hope that once Fenna kicks this infection and finishes the treatment for it, we can go other places and limit our outings to once a week or so. In the meantime, we're having a blast!
The medical community at UCSD in San Diego and La Jolla is the friendliest place on earth! I am just amazed each and every time we go or get a phone call, the folks in the clinics, hospital and pharmacy are sweet as can be. They truly care about Fenna and that just warms my heart. They've all been very accommodating and helpful. The facilities are beautiful too (And, they have an awesome playground). I am more in love with San Diego now that we've had this experience. The hospital where Katie had her baby in SD was also very nice and friendly.
Homecoming is in two weeks! We have a closet full of formal dresses but Fenna hasn't "shopped" in our closet yet. She's pretty sure nothing that my tall skinny daughters wore will fit her, but I think she will be pleasantly surprised. Hopefully the dresses are still in style.
She's actually more excited about Halloween than Homecoming. I took out two big Halloween boxes and the girls had fun digging through them, trying on costumes and giggling.
Libby's birthday is coming up quick. Her real third birthday! I was feeling confused about what to do since Libby already celebrated her birthday back in May, and she is convinced that she is already three years old. Finally, the calendar is catching up with her! Keith said we need to have a party for her though because Charlie's party was a lot of fun. So, we'll have a party! I have to hussle up and get it planned because her birthday is soon! Not sure how we'll explain it to her, but it will be fun anyway.
We've been learning a lot about Holland: The flag is red,white and blue but the royal color is orange. Kids and teachers smoke on the school grounds, even right by the doors. People in general smoke a lot more there than here and so there is a lot more second-hand smoke to deal with. The Netherlands, specifically Amsterdam, is known for drugs. Katie and Lexie both knew that and Keith and I didn't. Hmmm. We are learning about each other too! Kids sing a song when they trick-or-treat in Holland. We've been discussing how the education systems work there and how they differ here. The food there is the same, but it is cooked and eaten differently. I'm still not sure what that means; I might have to go to Holland someday and find out. They do not have Starbucks on every corner like we do, nor do they have fast food everywhere.
We've also been learning a lot about Cystic Fibrosis. The condition affects respiratory and digestive systems which in turn affects everything else. I thought it was just a constant cough and you hawked up a loogie once in a while. I had no idea it was so involved! It is really eye-opening to learn so much about CF and it makes me count my blessings. A lot of people have asked me if I have to pound her on her back every day. The answer to that is No. Fenna has a lot of medications she takes daily and with her infection she had a picc line placed (an iv that goes in the upper arm and a tube is in the artery all the way into the chest) and she "shoots up" some iv medications three times a day. It's amazing to see her manage everything with so much ease and grace. The picc line is supposed to come out next week. Whew! Just in time for homecoming!
Keith is teaching two evening classes this term, back to back. And he's teaching 63 miles away in Azusa. 63 miles doesn't sound like a lot, but it can take him 90 minutes to get home depending on traffic. After teaching middle school all day and then college, that drive is a long one. Poor guy is pretty tired by the end of the week. But, he's still running the Champ or Chump game at his school! This silly game takes up a lot of his time, but he enjoys it and it helps bring the staff together in a friendly way at work. It's a good thing even though it drives me nuts.
I finished the Belle dresses a couple of days after starting them. I love my serger! And I finally hand-sewed on the little red roses for embellishment. The Belle doll the girls have has red roses on her dress, but most Belle dolls don't and most Belle costumes don't. But, I really like the red touch! I will take pictures when they both put the dresses on. Gracie tried her dress on and it fits, but she said it was itchy and she wanted to take it off. Libby loves hers. I went to JoAnn Fabrics to look for Rapunzel fabric but I didn't see anything in the right color that cost less than $12.99 a yard. I'll have to wait for a sale. But, I did buy a ton of fabric anyway! I got Minnie Mouse red polka dot fabric, I couldn't resist! And I picked up a lot of baby boy soft flannel prints to make receiving blankets for a nice lady at Keith's school who is having her first baby. Now, if I could just find some sewing time I'd be set!
I will briefly blog about our latest outings on my outing blog, with pictures. In the meantime, I will leave you with some of the questions that Gracie has been asking me at the most inopportune times but she thinks every question requires a thoughtful intelligent answer. I usually do not have one.
What are teeth made out of? Like what's inside them and what's the outside called?
What are hippos afraid of?
Are there more kinds of talking like Spanish and Dutch and English? What are they?
Where do farts come from?
Why do we call brown people black?
How do airplanes fly?
What's an exclamation point?
Why aren't there any girls on Mount Rushmore?
Why are the clouds gray and yesterday the clouds were white?
What's under the carpet?
Why aren't there more red cars?
OMG I LOVE Gracie's questions! I would love to know some of the answers to those questions myself. Could you go onto Ask.com and see if any of those questions could be answered?
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