Chase celebrated turning 9 with his buddies at the bowling alley. They had tons of fun and I thought it was so much easier than cramming a bunch of kids into my house and then having a big mess to clean up afterward.
Yes…Chase’ is much shorter than all his friends. He doesn’t mind being small in case you were wondering. Really I think he kind of likes it. It makes him different than everyone else and girls his age have a thing for cute little boys apparently.
A couple of weeks ago my hubby started having some really bad stomach pains. Of course this had to happen the same night as our football banquet. He was able to push through the pain and last through the banquet, but immediately as it was over we headed over to the Emergency Room. They ran a few tests, but couldn’t come up with anything concrete. He was sent home with some meds and he actually started feeling better for a few days.
Then the morning before Thanksgiving he had even worse pains and we headed back to the ER. This time they did a CT scan and found the culprit. Ken was diagnosed with diverticulitis and a perforated bowel. At first we thought he was going to have to be rushed into surgery and I was a complete wreck. Just not what you want to hear even if it is the best course of action. Luckily after several physicians came and asked him the same questions over and over again they finally decided that several days in the hospital on a restricted diet and a high dosage of antibiotics would do the trick.
Thanksgiving was spent with Ken in the hospital sipping liquids. The kids and I visited him before heading over to my parents for dinner. The only humor of the situation was when Ken said he got me out of cooking Thanksgiving dinner. It wouldn’t have been the same without him there. Also I had spent the entire day before Thanksgiving at the hospital so the last thing I wanted to do was wake up and stuff a turkey. Besides Ken is always the one to make the yummy dressing!
Thankfully he is now home and feeling better. He is still watching what he eats and taking antibiotics multiple times a day. I guess it’s pretty much trial and error when you have diverticulitis as to what will cause a flare up. I’m just happy he is home and life is back to normal.
It’s hard enough to believe that my oldest son just turned 16…let alone swallow the idea of him attending school dances with a date. I swear I can still remember my own awkward moments of having my date pick me up and waddling around on 3 inch heels and smashing down my dress hoop skirt as I got in the car. Remember those things? Despite my nostalgia, it’s pretty clear it’s 2011 and not 1990. For one the dresses are much much shorter now. And two everyone has long flat bangs. Back then it was all about poof of your dress and the height of your bangs.
This was Andrew and Ali’s first dance together. They are adorable as a couple I must say so myself. Andrew makes me so proud in moments like this. He always has these proper old fashioned ways of doing things. He had to meet Ali’s parents first before he asked her to the dance. He also made sure that both myself and Ken and his dad met her as well before the big night. He said that he didn’t want her to be nervous about meeting us for the first time the same day as the dance. He is such a gentleman. Okay, now I am probably just embarrassing him like crazy.
Now for the photos…
Andrew made this one on his phone.
They met a bunch of friends for a group shot before dinner.
My dad has always said that Andrew is a special kid and I wholeheartedly agree. I couldn’t be more proud of the young man he has become. He continues to amaze me and I couldn’t ask for anything more in a son. Well except for growing up so fast…he’s making me feel old!
My parents got Andrew some fishing equipment. We got him an iPhone and I was even kind enough to give him my unlimited data plan since Verizon isn’t giving out any new smartphone owners unlimited plans anymore. He also got a bunch of money which I have no idea what he is going to spend that on.
To celebrate his birthday with friends we took him and his buddies to play paintball. After begging and pleading for him to have a big 16th Birthday Bash, he finally compromised and agreed to my idea of playing paintball. He has always been one of those kids who doesn’t like people making a big fuss over things. They all had a blast at paintball and some walked away with battle scars. I just watched, which I am glad I didn’t give it a try after seeing some of the welts they received.
Geez, when did they all get so tall?
Highlights of the evening:
– Tried a different recipe for chilli and it wasn’t very tasty.
– Burnt the cornbread because it wasn’t done when the timer went off and then forgot about it.
– Painted Chase’s face for his vampire costume and he looked in the mirror and smeared it all off – he went as a football player instead.
– Listened to Blake say “I’m not wearing my shoulder pads!” about 50 times…ha, look who won.
– Laughed as my 16 year old son decided to paint his face and go trick or treating with some buddies. Still not sure what he was supposed to be.
– Enjoyed walking with the kids AND my husband for the first time ever! He has always stayed home to pass out candy, but this year the grandparents handled that for us.
– Kids actually went through the entire neighborhood without taking a single break- first time ever! Only took 75 minutes!
– Chase ended the evening with a belly ache.
– Karli ended the evening with cutting a huge chunk of hair off the top of her head because her rubber band was stuck. Why do kids do that?! Ugh!
BOO!! Did I scare ya?
Our plan for the day: Chilli and cornbread for dinner and hopefully the rain will be gone by trick or treating time. My kiddos usually last a little over an hour and then they are ready to go home and pick out their favorite candy to devour. Luckily this year Tuesday is a teacher in-service day so no school tomorrow! A day of sleeping in for all, yippee yay! Their school is only having a Harvest Party today, no costumes- so we didn’t go buy expensive costumes. The kids made do with what we had on hand. I’ll share those pics tomorrow. Have a safe time tonight!
Halloween’s Past…
Karli had her first all friends birthday party a few weeks ago. We decorated a little bit with a luau theme. Since it was beautiful outside we were able to keep everyone outside, which was nice. They all swam, ate cupcakes and took a shot at the pinata. Everyone got along great, had fun, and didn’t want to leave. Karli constantly keeps asking now to have all of her friends over to swim! Also this weekend she gets to have another party with all family…lucky her!
The funniest moment of the party is when I heard one of Karli’s friends ask her, “Does this swimsuit make me look fat?” LOLOL!!!
Today we did a lot of cleaning up around the house. Cleaning out junk drawers, my office, and trying to get organized. Guess what I found? My Canon Digital Rebel camera filled with a bunch of photos that I never downloaded. So, even though this was a month ago… Happy 11th Birthday to my middle son Blake!
