Road Rash

Last week, Vera fell on the sidewalk as she walked from school to daycare in the afternoon.  I got a call from the daycare stating that she hit the sidewalk face-first.  Her gloves saved her hands, but her glasses took the brunt of the fall.  The teacher at daycare ended the voicemail saying, "Just giving you a heads up, you might want to call the eye doctor."  I didn't get too concerned until Adam sent me a text and said that Vera was a wreck.  (He happened to pick her up that day.)  He sent me a picture of her glasses and said there's no way they can be salvaged.  Large, deep scratches on both lenses.  Frames were also scratched and finished scraped off.  :(

We started asking Vera some questions later.  Wasn't icy.  Didn't run in to anyone.  No one ran in to her.  Didn't fall off the sidewalk.  She just fell.  We're fairly certain that she simply wasn't paying attention and fell.  Her nose and forehead were very sore with road rash.  It was really heartbreaking to see her so beat up.  Throughout the evening, I caught her hiding saying that she had to keep her face hidden.  She cried big tears as I tucked her in to bed that night.  In between sobs, she said she didn't want to go to school because everyone will laugh at her face.  I assured her that people will not laugh and they will be happy she's ok.  Honestly, Adam and I were thankful she didn't get hurt worse.  She could've lost teeth, broke her nose, had a concussion...  But it was so hard for us to see her so shameful and worried.  She was terrified that we'd be mad about her broken glasses.  Bless her heart!

We salvaged an old pair of glasses and made an appointment for the eye doctor.  In the meantime, her face started to heal well.  We ordered some new glasses and moved on.

Until yesterday.  I picked her up after school to immediately see a bandage on her nose and more road rash on her forehead.  It happened again.  She fell.  No ice.  No pushing or shoving.  Just fell.  Face first.  This time it happened in the morning on the way to school.  She told me she had a bigger band-aid on earlier and it looked like a duck bill.  lol  Can you imagine this!?  Her back-up glasses had bent nose pieces and a few scratches on the lens, but not nearly as bad as the first time.  Again, she was terribly embarrassed and so apologetic.  I assured her that I wasn't mad, but I just hate to see her face get hurt all the time.  She was almost healed up.

We had to keep it covered for a while.  It was seeping and bleeding a little.

Later that night, after her shower, I was cleaning the wound and helping her get dressed.  She started crying big tears again.  She looked at me and said she was so sorry.  Shamefully, she asked if I ever fell and hurt my face when I was a little girl.  I assured her I did, and it sure did tug at my heart!

Adam and I are trying to be encouraging and reassuring. This is one of those (many!) hard times as a parent.  We just want to keep her in a bubble where it's safe, but we know we have to let her go.  I'll admit that I cried a few tears to myself, just because I feel so bad for her.  I know what it's like to be the clumsy one with embarrassing injuries.    It's just so hard to see your child struggle, and not be able to do anything!

Christmas Break

Perfectly describes Christmas Break 2016

Christmas break went by in a flash, as it always does.  I had intentions of accomplishing so much while the kids napped each afternoon, and though I did complete a few small projects, nothing major was accomplished.

Like all years, we enjoyed all of the new Christmas toys.

Meet Matt, named after Matt the Barber in town.  Vince named him and he loves this new dog.  He's slept with Vince at night.  We had to pet him, tuck him in for a nap, and be quiet while he slept.  Here, Vince is giving Matt a checkup.  

Waitress Vera, serving hot coffee and sweet treats.

Vera received this cool plush craft from Karen, and she loves it.  For the first 3 days after completion, she carried it everywhere with her - all day long!  This owl gets as much love as Matt the dog.

It took her 2.5 hours of deep concentration to complete.  She was so excited about her finished product!

I caught Annie dancing along to her new alphabet fridge toy.  Everyone else was asleep and she was playing nicely on her own.  It was so cute to watch her dance and jabber along.

The new farm equipment and trucks have kept Vince really busy.  They've been harvesting hundreds of square feet of the basement.  Vince is fascinated with the auger on the combine and grain cart.  There's so much grain to unload!

Somewhere, perhaps in the bottom of the toy box, the kids found these teeth from Halloween.  After cleaning them, Adam helped Vince wear them and it was hilarious.  The big teeth were a challenge for his little mouth, but he roared excitedly as he chased Vera through the house, nonetheless.  

Vera had 2 little friends over for an afternoon.  The girls had fun playing together.  Vera was so excited to have them!

Anxiously waiting by the front door for her friends to arrive.

There was finally an opportunity for her to play some age-appropriate girl things without her brother sabotaging them.  Vince had a fun afternoon with Grammie while the girls painted and decorated their nails, played Barbies, made a craft, and ate a snack.

We spent New Years Eve with the Homan family watching the Buckeyes, playing in their awesome basement, and eating delicious food.  The kids were tired from playing so hard!  We left for home around 10, and I was certain everyone would fall asleep on the ride home.  How dare I hope for such a thing!  Annie was the only one who fell asleep.  Vera yacked most of the ride home, and Vince whined and cried due to being overly tired.  The last hours of 2016 were a true snapshot of our life.

Some of my favorite memories of this holiday break:

*Upon leaving my parents house on Christmas Night, we all exchanged hugs and Merry Christmases.  As we walked out the door, Vera looked over her shoulder and said to my parents, "And to all a good night!"  :)

*Vera made up her own verses and words to popular Christmas tunes.  "Balize Navida" for "Feliz Navidad"  and some other hilarious gibberish for songs words she doesn't know.  Surprisingly, she did know all 12 Days of Christmas in their correct order.  

*One day over break, Vince kept telling me something was wrong with his tooth.  We brushed his teeth, looked at his teeth, and assured him that everything was, indeed, ok with his teeth.  Yet, it kept surfacing.  Finally, after some questioning, Vince pointed outside and communicated that his tooth was outside.  Wait, what?!  We questioned him further.  He was so serious and adamant that, "Papaw's dog dot my too."  (Papaw's dog got my tooth!)  He said it over and over in such a serious and persistent way.  We laughed and laughed.  He did not share the humor.  Finally, we assured him that Papaw's dog, in fact, did not get his tooth and that all of his teeth were just fine.  He wasn't satisfied with that and insisted that Papaw's dog somehow got his tooth.  Later that evening, we called Papaw to find out what in the world is going on with his dog & Vince's teeth.  He had no answers for us.  haha  

Our break also had it's moments: fighting over toys, failure to nap, refusal to eat, and crying.  By Thursday of break, I was feeling somewhat defeated and ready to go back to work.  Maybe not so much ready to go back to work, but ready for a routine again.  I don't mean to sound ungrateful for the time off, because it really was great to enjoy my kids and a change of pace.

I am hopeful that this year will bring much happiness and health.  I know it will be busy.  As Vera grows older, more activities and opportunities come along with her.  Karen & Riley get married this year, which will bring a busy and fun-filled summer.  We have preliminary plans for a summer vacation and hopefully a few camping trips.  I also have hope that life will get a twinge easier.  One of these days Annie will learn to walk and Vince will potty train.  But, when one thing gets a little simpler, something new takes it's place.  I'm sure our year will be no exception.  C'est la vie!  Happy 2017!

Merry Christmas 2016

Christmas is always multiple days of non-stop parties, food and gifts.  This year did not let us down.  In fact, I felt like it was even more crazy because Christmas fell on a Sunday.  We missed out on the weekend to get the last minute details ready and/or regroup from the busyness.  Like most years, all of the excitement happened in just a few consecutive days.  It was, however, a wonderful Christmas.  I loved watching the excitement in my kids as they unwrapped their gifts and marveled in the magic of this season.

Because Santa knew we would be so busy on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, he paid us his visit on Friday, December 23.  We went to McDonald's for supper and came home to find presents under our tree.  Vera was jumping up and down and screaming with excitement as she realized Santa came!  Everyone was so, so good as we opened gifts.  I have to mention that my heart was so full as I watched Vera patiently wait for her turn to open a gift.  She even decided who would go first, and she made herself last in the rotation.  She was so good about sharing her gifts and helping her younger siblings just enough.  Gosh Vera, you just keep growing up!  Though I love the person you're becoming, I wish you'd slow down just a little! :)

Santa left this huge present upstairs.  We snapped a really fast picture before the rippage started.  A trampoline was inside this giant box.  Cool!

Santa brought this recliner.  Annie quickly staked her claim.  She's super speedy at getting in and out, and we're constantly telling her to sit down.

A huge barn!  Vince crawled inside immediately.  Then, he ran to get his tractors and animals and put them inside right away!

Look at the excitement!  A nail kit!

Love the smile!

Everything had to be taken out of the box pronto!  Vince is so excited for new farm equipment.

Hooray for new bath toys!

The Easy Bake Oven was a fun surprise!

Mr. Fix It.

I just love it!

Genuine excitement.

So pretty!

Teamwork to open this one!

The next day, Christmas Eve, we celebrated with Grammie and Papa.  It was a fun day with many fun gifts.  Vince knew just what to do.  He quickly flipped his gifts over and began tearing.  He was so excited to see what was inside.

So pretty!

A cool projection flashlight to go with the Doc story.  This provided lots of entertainment for Vera & Bailey throughout the day.

Woohoo!  Big truck!

Hurry, Papa!  Get it open!

Brrroooommm!

Pickles, of course!

Vinners kept sticking his tongue out.  This is so him right now.

Adam & I sported our ugly Christmas sweaters that we wore a week earlier.

Good pictures!

 The next morning, we got ourselves ready for another day of fun at Grandma & Papaw's house.  It wasn't as wild as last year, but still fairly chaotic.

Vince was so much fun this year.  To say he was excited about his gifts is an understatement.  He was so, so thrilled about opening every gift.  He squealed with delight, ran to show everyone the gift, and couldn't wait for it to come out of the box.  It actually brought tears to my eyes to see his absolute excitement.  He definitely left lasting memories for everyone as they shared in his excitement and appreciation for each and every gift opened.

His face!  He loves this gift!  

Vera loves her pillow craft from Karen!

Such a special picture.  Vera is thanking grandma for a special ornament.

Vince received an awesome skid loader as well.  Notice the dog right beside him.

Resting on the new sleeping bag.

Vince showed Papaw every single one of his gifts.  I remember him asking Papaw to pet his dog.  Papaw also had to check out the skid loader.  Here is a Tonka truck ornament from Mandy & Jeff.

In keeping with tradition, we took the Christmas PJ picture with grandma and grandpa.  It went a little better than last year.  There were still plenty of outtakes.

Snapping a pic of my 3 kiddos wasn't much easier than the whole group photo.

Merry Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas this year.  I love the innocent excitement and joy of all of the kids, the many wonderful memories and precious time spent with our family.