I'd Like to See a Study on How the 7 Year Old Brain Works

As I was telling my mom this story this morning, she said "Why do I get the feeling this is turning into a blog post?" She's right, it's too funny not to share....
We had to have a serious conversation with Darby last night over dinner. A lot of valid points were raised during our discussion but, I really feel like the matter is settled as of now.
Darby informed us that she wants to join the circus. (We got 3 free tickets last week and so I sent Scott and the kids for some Daddy-bonding time.) Apparently, the allure of the circus was just too much for Darby and she has found her calling. We educated her on all of the pitfalls of joining the circus; lots of road travel, no school, always practicing and performing, you know - the specifics. She told us that she's okay with all of that. She can jump off of things "real good" and besides, she WOULD look "really cute in those outfits." I thought we may be fighting a no-win situation and we'd have to send our daughter off to join the circus. Hey, don't they get paid for that? We COULD use the extra income.
Anyhow, we knew our logical explanations started to sink in when she asked me about going to the bathroom while traveling, you know, would they stop if she needed to go? I told her that probably they would have scheduled bathroom breaks and she would only be able to go when they stopped at those times. She didn't really like the idea of that so much. So, we made a mutual decision that since she's 7 - Mom and Dad would make all of the life-altering decisions for her and that once she's an adult we'll revisit the issue and she can make a decision at that point. I can't wait to revisit this issue like, say, when she's 20 and sitting here with her boyfriend.

A (Not-so) Funny Thing Happened on the Way Home

To all of my (10) faithful blog fans, I have to apologize. You, who have faithfully checked in on our little life have been let down day after day after day. There is a purpose to my madness and I can finally explain......
I try to be very careful what I put out here, what with all of the bad guys running around these days. Not that I think bad guys really have time to sit down and read a blog to figure these things out, but I'm the girl who sleeps with a cell phone in case a bad guy cuts the phone lines in an attempt to get into my humble abode. So, I'm a little bit of wimp - I'm okay with that.
Scott has been out of town for the last 4 weeks. Yep, 4 weeks. He's been in the booming town of Phillipsburg, Kansas. It's about 4 and a half hours north and west of here. He's faithfully traveled before the sun rises every Monday morning and trekked home every Friday afternoon (on top of putting in full days at the office in Topeka on Saturdays.) He's worn out, I'm worn out, and our kids have separation issues now. This really is nothing new to our life, but it is a hardship and I learn a lot about myself during these times. 2 years ago Terri (Scott's mom) arrived to find all three of us on the couch crying. She kicked me out; fed, bathed and put my kiddos to bed (and had my house picked up) by the time I got back. You know what I did? Sat in a grocery store parking lot. In peace and quiet. Some days you need that and I wasn't strong enough to admit that at that time I really, really needed that. The kids really are very well adjusted and for the most part handle these times very well, but this week especially, they've totally freaked out if I have to leave their sides for even a second. Does this mean I'm responsible for their therapy when they are older?
Last Friday Scott was traveling with 2 of his co-workers along I-70 without realizing that a 21 year old man from Fort Riley (a military guy, nonetheless) had robbed a bank in Topeka and taken the cops on a wild chase down I-70, crashed his car, jumped out of the car and shot at officers and then ran into the woods. This created a major speed bump on the interstate and forced Scott and others to navigate small highways the rest of the way home. It took them 4 hours to get 30 miles. So, what normally takes them 4 and a half hours took almost 9 to get home. The man who created this disaster actually ended up shooting himself in the head and died this week.
There have been stumbling blocks in the last month. We've gotten through them, not without a TON of patience and wisdom and strength, but we made it. So, if you've been blessed by my silence, I'm sorry. If you've missed me, you're in luck. As we readjust our family life, I'll have more time to take pictures, to tell you funny stories, or to bore you with my thoughts! Thanks for sticking in there with us!

A Five Year Old's Prayer.......

Aidan knelt down by the bed last night and prayed the following........."Dear God, Thank you for making the world and the things in my room. Thank you for mommy's boots so I can play cowboy. Thank you for my mommy and my daddy, even when they're mean. And, thank you for letting me bug my sister all the time. Amen"

Where have I gone wrong?

Rah, Rah, Rah!!

I went into Darby's room to put a couple of things away and found this. I love how even the Bitty Twin Boy (Collin, I think his name is?) is in the splits. This child has too much time on her hands.

For Every Action.......

......there's a reaction! Darby started new medication last night and this morning woke up to thighs swollen to twice their normal size and softball size welt-looking spots (hives?) and her entire lower half of her body was covered in a rash. I called the pediatrician's office to confirm that this was an allergic reaction and made sure I knew what to do for it. So, we loaded up on Benedryl and I told her that she had to take a bath. I told her I was sorry that it was going to have to be a little bit chilly to get the swelling down.............she looked at me HORRIFIED and said "You're making me take a bath in CHILI?!?!?" I love her.

So far, no more rash, no more hives, and no more chili-baths! :)

Teenage Angst

Aidan and I went to McDonalds today for lunch. He's totally obsessed with their "fishburgers" (filet-o-fish) and they advertise the heck out of them during lent season. So, I rewarded him for his great behavior this morning while I was super busy trying to get things done.
School must have been out for one of the districts because the place was FULL of kids from Aidan's age to high school. While we were eating I noticed these 3 teenage girls talking SERIOUSLY around a small table - and I mean SERIOUSLY. I watched them (to keep my vision averted from my 5 year old horking down seafood between a bun slathered in tartar sauce - blech!!) The girls were obviously dealing with something MAJOR! and I was hit with memories of MY high school years and all of the "drama" that seemed to be happening everyday. Isn't it amazing the difference in what's important - what hurts - what the BIG DEAL is when you're 16-17 as opposed to 29 and 50? I imagined that they must have been dealing with some boy or some gossip or some parents - yuck - and I thought "Man, it must be nice to have THOSE issues!" But, when you really think about it, it's just as hurtful, just as important, and just as big of a deal at that time. The only thing that changes is the scenery! So, we finished our "meal" and left and I said a small prayer for those girls that whatever they're dealing with (I hope it's just their parents, just a boy, or just some gossip) they'll get over it quickly, because once they ARE the parents, married to the boy, and STILL dealing with gossip (all the while trying to pay bills and keep a house clean)? Oh, man, it doesn't get much better! :)
Please keep Darby in your prayers right now. We have an appointment at Children's Mercy Hospital in KC on March 10th to check her out. In the middle of all of this we're trying to decide if our neurologist here in Topeka is really a good fit for her and for us or if we should look into the neurology team over at Children's Mercy. Right now, she's great and active and mostly happy (except for when Aidan's in her room). And, we can't ask for much more than that!!