So let's see... it's a good thing that I keep an outline of points of interest, otherwise I wouldn't remember what's been going on as there are constantly new things coming up that take all my attention.
July 25 - Jason stained the deck. This has been something that he has been wanting to do for some time. It made quite a difference as you can see.
We attended 2 baseball games at the end of July (23 & 28). The first game was at the Nationals Ball Park to watch the Washington Nationals play the St. Louis Cardinals. I spent a bit of time trying to decide who to root for... but since the Nationals didn't really provide much competition for the Cardinals, I ended up just wanting the Nationals to get on the board. Luckily, they got 1 run before the game was delayed and later cancelled due to the storms... storms that actually delayed the game twice.
The second game was at Camden Yards in Baltimore to watch the Baltimore Orioles play the Kansas City Royals. This game ended up being extremely similar to the one we went to last summer... extra innings with the Royals winning it in the 11th. Although I think the kids like the idea of going to the games, I'm not sure how much interest they truly have in the game itself. The first game, Eli sat in my lap the entire time but throughout the second game he was up and moving wanting to explore and climb into and out of every empty seat. Clara's form of entertainment remained fairly constant throughout both games... peanuts! She would eat the peanuts, then proceed to lick the salt off the shell and then place them on her fingers... repeatedly. Lucas snacked and snacked and snacked. I was so disappointed that I didn't bring more snacks to the first game because that is all Lucas wanted to do.
Aug. 1 - We spent a day at the beach, Clara's favorite summertime activity. Originally, we were going to spend a weekend, but decided that might be too much sand and sun. The weather was perfect for our day and the kids absolutely loved playing in the sand, Eli included this year. As previous years, though... Eli still did not enjoy the water (which I thought he might since he acclimated so nicely at the pool). He was thoroughly enjoying himself as long as he stayed on the sand, shovel in hand. We've been to this beach before and have always had a good experience. We like that it's not crowded. However, this year was a little different... it was crowded (not with people) with jellyfish! The jellyfish were being washed in by the tide (I guess), because they were quite numerous in the shallow area. We all ended up getting stung, but it wasn't bad... it burned for a bit at first and then nothing. Lucas was the first to get stung and I was just shy of panic mode when he came out from the water crying. I had heard stories of people getting stung and how bad it was, so I was really expecting the worst. By the end of our day, many of the jellyfish had washed ashore. I wish that I had had my good camera... that would have been a picture. Clara became focused on burying the beached jellyfish in the sand. Poor Jason came home from our fun day with the only real sunburn and what we originally thought was a broken toe. He kicked a stump or rock while moving quickly through the water, but didn't realize how bad he had injured himself until we got home and his toe (next to the littlest toe) was dark purple (almost black) and swollen. It's been almost 2 weeks and the toe is still a bit swollen and the coloring is almost back to normal. Poor Jason is paying for our day of fun in the sun.
Aug. 4 - I took the kids in for their portraits. This is Clara's yearly portrait (at 6 1/2 years) and the first time I've taken the kids in together. I thought they turned out pretty well.
Aug. 7 - Clara and Lucas both had dentist appointments. Lucas is always so good at the dentist... he just follows the directions so well and isn't afraid of anything. It took the hygienist half the allotted time to clean his teeth. She told me later that with young kids, they schedule more time and he was done with enough time that she could have also done Clara! Clara, however, is usually just the opposite... afraid of everything. When they tell her to relax and open her mouth, you can just see every muscle in her body stiffen up. The last time we were at the dentist, she had to be held down by the hygienist while the dentist examined her... it was painful to watch. This time she went back with the hygienist all by herself and even got bite wing x-rays!! I couldn't believe it when I talked to the hygienist at the end of the visit. What a change!! She just made me so proud. As far as results go... both kids came out with good results. Clara's permanent teeth look like they are coming in crooked, but the dentist said that he'll just keep an eye on them and see how they look once they are completely in.
Aug. 10 - Clara had her first doctor's appointment with the doctor at the new practice. I have to say that once again I had my expectations set high. I had just heard so much about this doctor (same practice as the doctor that Lucas sees now, just different doctor) that if I had had another bad experience, I would have literally been heartbroken. Finding that perfect doctor has proven to be quite an adventure for us. Well, immediately I knew that things were good when it wasn't a nurse that came out to greet us in the lobby, it was the doctor! She was so personable and completely on top of things... I just felt like she really had Clara's interests in mind as we talked. We talked about the Asperger's and how to approach it from a medical standpoint. Right now, her thoughts are to let the school handle it and if it starts becoming a hindrance to Clara's education, then bring it up again and we'll look at other options, such as a behavioral specialist or medication.
Eli has discovered the word "no" and it has preempted most other words now. It can be super frustrating. It used to be that when asked a yes/no question, he would respond with the typical "mm hmm"... not anymore... now it's "no". He used to respond with his version of a real answer to non-yes/no questions. For example, when asked "what do you want to drink", he used to respond "meew" (milk, of course)... and now, it's "no". I know this is just a phase (a phase that none of my other kids went through), but it is a highly frustrating phase... grumble!
I just wanted to include this little tidbit (I know some of you will appreciate this)... we went to the thrift store on Saturday and as usual came home with a load of books. The biggest find, though, was a near perfect jogging stroller for... wait for it.... wait for it... $7.50! Can you believe that?? When we bought it, the tires were flat, but Jason pumped them up and he's taken Eli for a ride every night since. I'm really excited to see how it rides this fall when we walk around Lake Accotink.
This weekend we are off to Shenandoah National Park for a long weekend of tent camping and hiking. Keep your fingers crossed that Eli is a good camper or it could be a VERY long weekend!
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