Play-Learn-Grow-Repeat

From Friday Mom – Erin:
Rory’s teachers had the brilliant idea to bring part of the large foam play-structure obstacle course they keep in the larger play area into their classroom on Tuesday morning.  The goal was to help the boisterous group of toddlers release some extra energy.  When I dropped him off that morning, one of his classmates was busily coming within an inch or two of disaster by jumping off the padded structure towards a nearby shelf.  I watched his teachers explain the need for caution as I gave Rory a hug and kiss and wished him well for the day.

My phone rang at work about an hour and a half later.  I couldn’t answer because I was on the other line.

The text from daddy followed a few minutes later.  Rory’s teacher had called.  He had knocked his head on the shelf jumping off the obstacle course and hitting the very shelf I’d watched come within a whisker of injuring his classmate that very morning.  Luckily, there was no blood, just bruising and swelling.  They were icing it, Rory had bounced back, and there was no immediate need for concern.

Thank goodness.

When his daddy picked him up, we realized just how close we had come to a visit to the pediatrician for some stitches.  His whole left eye was swollen partially shut and a tiny blood blister had formed just under his eyebrow at the point of impact.  He had bruising on the bridge of his nose and the ridge of his eyebrow, swelling of his eyelids, and a deep red circle forming under his eye.  Fortunately, he was his happy self, pointed out his boo boo, and went about his evening as if nothing had ever happened.

When I dropped him off the following morning, his teachers felt noticeably badly that he’d managed to do such damage on their watch.  Apparently he had gained a running start from across the classroom and launched himself off the play structure at the very moment his teacher was standing up from her seat in front of the offending bookshelf.  She’d been looking away a mere second when she heard the loud thud of Rory’s face on the shelf.

He’s healing now.  The swelling has subsided.  And we’re counting our blessings that it wasn’t worse.  And looking for options for getting the wiggles out over the weekend that involve fewer obstacles.

From Wednesday Mom – Janelle:
After two wonderful months visiting PA, we packed up the van and headed south back to our home in Mississippi. Before arriving home we made a quick beach visit to see our friends who just moved there. They were still waiting for their movers to deliver their home goods. We all slept on air mattresses and ate on paper plates, but we didn’t mind at all. It was nice to enjoy one last family vacation, and a chance to visit with friends whom we haven’t seen in a couple years. We enjoyed the nearby beach and their backyard pool. We left sunny Florida and drove our last leg of our return trip to Mississippi dreaming about sleeping in our own beds for the first time in several weeks.

While on our last leg of the drive, a logging truck kicked up a large rock that shattered our windshield. It is an expensive annoyance, but ultimately something we could have replaced. When we finally got home, we pulled into our driveway and inspected how bad the windshield was. After over 16 hours of driving we walked into our home, carrying a vanload of bags, bikes and luggage, only to discover that our air conditioner was dead. It is August in Mississippi and we have near record temperatures flirting with 100 degrees and 100% humidity. Our home thermostat read 90 degrees. At this point, we were tired, hungry and ready to fall on the couch for a nice afternoon nap, but instead we were scrambling to find a company that provided HVAC service on a Sunday afternoon. Ultimately, we had to spend the night with friends. It took two repairmen, two days, and nearly $1,000 to fix the system. Last night we finally got to sleep in our own beds for the first time in months. Our kids slept until 8am. That is a record for our early-risers.

Our life is finally getting back to “normal,” and I am trying to get the boys into our daily routine. Looking back on the last few horrible days, I can only pat my kids on the back for their flexibility on handling the situation. They were happy to take a few toys to a friend’s house and entertain themselves. They played with plastic cups and paper plates. They assured me our house would be ok. I know the problems we dealt with are pretty small compared with some other people face around the world. I try to tell myself this over and over again. Life is full of curve balls. I can only hope to teach my children that life isn’t easy; but you can always adapt and overcome.

From Mondaya Mom – Neetika:
We are on our highly anticipated summer vacation. Our first adventure was a weekend at our friends’ new house. It is the home of my husband’s childhood best friend. Luckily I get along great with his wife, too. Our eldest kids are the same age and hadn’t seen each other since they were each months old. Within hours, they were holding hands and creating elaborate pretend play. Our families have added three more children since our last get-together; it was so fun to have little ones of all ages running (and crawling) around.

Haley loved experiencing staying at a big house with a pool and a backyard—a far cry from her city living. I think often kids don’t worry if a new situation is different—they just appreciate it being new. Going to a zoo, a playground, and a Mexican joint—it wasn’t particularly fancy, but it was family fun with nice people. Haley was adorably enthusiastic about the simplest moments.

Spending intimate time with other families also adds much needed perspective to how you view your own kids. For example, I always thought of Hudson as a happy, laidback baby. But being around other children with varying temperaments, I finally realized—he is phenomenally easy. He only gets upset if you really push the limits of his tiredness or hunger—but don’t we all? Our friends were stunned by how “chill” he was. Haley, too, is a pretty well behaved kid. She has her moments, but she definitely tries her best to listen and respect what her parents ask of her. I’m pretty proud of them.

I look forward to what else our first family vacation as a foursome teaches us about ourselves! Stay tuned.