Frogmore Stew

Since 2009, we've been on a bowling team. Team Spam.

Until this year, we've been in a league that has an end-of-year banquet. Here is some of the team at this year's banquet:

Every summer, the team gathers for an end-of-summer/pre-season barbeque. This year it was at our house.

This group has become such dear friends. I love when we can all be together!

Brian talking with Elizabeth

Karen, with Chuck pointing in the background

Keith, Steven, and Chuck. I'm sure Chuck is telling a fish story. Steven looks dubious.

Lynne, me & Victoria, Donna, Karen

We don't have food normally found at a Minnesota barbecue. Instead, we go Cajun style: Frogmore Stew.

It's made in a big pot over a burner outside. Crab legs, shrimp, spicy sausage, potatoes, corn, onions. Spread on large platters.

Elizabeth and Suzanne

The weather cooperated, so we got to eat outside.

Victoria makes herself at home picking on Brian

Alex loved the "lobster claws" used to break open the crab legs!

The kids are so fortunate to be surrounded by this group of friends.

Brian and Suzanne had just returned from an epic trip to Alaska, and had a video made of their photos. We gathered in the living room to watch.

Victoria has long had a special bond with Elizabeth.

Alex was riveted by the video and had to have his own special spot on the couch.

The gang :)

Casting Day

Three weeks after Alex's surgery, the long casts came off!

They showed Alex the noisy cast cutter and he was totally fine with it. When it actually started cutting, though? Not a huge fan. Not sure if it was the noise or the vibration, but we had to do a LOT of distraction (me, and the awesome child life specialist).

The first thing I noticed was the healing at the incision site. Not a great photo but the best I have ...

The second thing I noticed (and again the pic doesn't do it justice) was all the HAIR on his legs! Long, thick, blond hair. The nurse and doctor confirmed that casts encourage hair growth.

Erin, the orthotist who has worked with us since Alex was a baby, came to make a mold of his feet.

The mold will be used to make "AFOs," hard plastic braces that he will wear for six months.

At this point Alex was pretty happy and Victoria decided to take advantage of the child life specialist's iPad ... and lap:

Alex cared way more about the light-up spinny toy than the iPad:

We had a break in the action. I took a washcloth and soap and scrubbed off icky layers of dead skin cells between his toes. And then ... Alex was enamored with his FEET!

He helped pick off the remaining fuzz.

I hated to cover them back up again, but we knew casts had to go back on. Thankfully this time they would be "short casts."

Alex watched the little sock, then the layer of soft fuzzy stuff, then the "wet stuff," followed by the "orange stuff."

Yep, orange was the color this time!

By the time the second one was going on, he was telling the nurse and doctor which one came next. They were charmed by his good nature. The doctor said some kids they have to really struggle with to get the casts on: "trust me, he is amazing at this!"

The final step: little blue shoes to enable him to walk without slipping.

I used the wheelchair to get him back out to the car. I tried to get him to walk a few steps from his wheelchair to the car, using Mommy's hands for support, and I had to stifle a giggle -- he reminded me of the way the dogs reacted the first time we put snow boots on their paws! Big, high steps, goofy limbs flying everywhere. He was also wobbling side-to-side, almost like his hips didn't have the stability to hold him up.

Over the weekend, we tried several times to encourage him to walk. He refused: "no, you cay me" (carry me). He asked us to get things off the floor for him, fetch things for him. Over a couple days, we finally got him to crawl places. Being able to bend your knees is a good thing!

Last Saturday, a week after getting these casts, Alex was in the dining room playing Legos. I was in the kitchen. He got off the chair and WALKED into the kitchen, proudly announcing, "hey! I can walk now!" I have no idea what made him change his mind, but I guess it had to be on his own time. For the last two days, he has walked on pavement and rocks, on grass and up hills, even climbing. And, he is very happy about it. It feels funny to be cheering his walking -- the same way we did when he was a baby -- but we were! We are definitely proud of this little boy, of all that he has gone through while still maintaining his good spirits and determination.

silly Adam

My brother likes to snatch my phone when I'm not looking, take a goofy selfie, and then - most annoyingly - turn that selfie into my phone's wallpaper.

Gah. Little brothers are so annoying!

Somehow, I still love him.

Is it because he reminds me of GARFIELD?!?

My kids love him too. Check out this sweetest rendition of Happy Birthday that we sung to Uncle Adam back in July:

Just wait til they get old enough for Adam to teach them how to put selfies on each other's phones!

party animal

Here is a story for the ages.

One that I can't wait to share with Alex when he is older. As in, old enough to embarrass :).

Earlier this summer, the kids and I went to the party supply store. We needed to get balloons filled. While we were waiting, we decided to walk around.

Of course, we had to walk by the end cap that had bachelorette party supplies.

Feather boas. Banners. Balloons. Games involving penises.

And penis-shaped water bottles. In a variety of colors, of course.

And -- of course -- as we walked by (me trying to distract the kids from commenting on the bright pink stuff right next to them), Alex's elbow accidentally caught the corner of the display of water bottles.

Yep, penis water bottles, strewn across the aisle, (three of them!) with my toddler looking at me, horrified that he had knocked something over and worried he would get in trouble.

Deciding in-the-moment that me acting horrified and embarrassed would be worse, and that drawing attention to the items by trying to whisk them away would only lead the kids to ask a bunch of uncomfortable questions ... I simply looked at Alex, shrugged, and said, "well, pick them up."

Dutifully, he grabbed a penis bottle with two hands and put it back.

And that is why my son appeared to be playing with the penis water bottles at Party America.

Sheesh.

with our daycare friends

You all know that we love our daycare, right? 

Sure, there are days where the kids want to stay home and play with their Legos. Or are tired and don't want to get out of bed. And on some of those days they tell me, "I don't WANT to go to daycare!" But, there are just as many days that they tell me at the end of the day, "I don't WANT to go home!" So - when they say they don't want to go to daycare, I take it as a comment on how kids sometimes don't want to stop what they are doing in the moment, not as a sign they don't love daycare. 

How do I know their true feelings? Because most days, I drop them off and they go running in to find toys and friends.

Recently, after Alex's surgery, I brought him to daycare after he had been gone a few days. We were one of the first ones there, and he walked into the empty building and complained, "where all my frens? Where dey go?" Yes, there are lots of friends at daycare. And toys, and fun, and silliness. Here are some recent pics...

First up, Alex being ALEX -- carrying guys, a truck, and wearing a goofy (Mickey Mouse) hat.

Then he added another hat on top!

One of Victoria's favorite things is to play outside in the dirt on the driveway. She collects rocks, scrapes dirt into piles, makes patterns ... many days I arrive to see dirt everywhere from her cheeks to her toes! ... and I love it. Kids need to play in dirt! Here she is with Maycen behind her.

Also outside is the brand new, still-in-progress MUD KITCHEN. Seriously -- what kid wouldn't want to play in a mud kitchen? I think this is just awesome. Lou's husband Dave is constructing it out of old pallets. The kids and Lou have scoured rummage sales this summer looking for an old sink (connected to a hose) and dishes. Here is the picture I took one day.

A few days later, I arrived to see soup and cupcakes being made -- out of leaves, water, rocks, anything the kids could find. I gave V my camera and asked her to document the mud kitchen. I love how she focused on details that were important to her, giving the kids-eye view on things. So here are Victoria's photos:

Let's switch to Alex again. The place he most frequently scurries to in the morning is "under the loft" -- where there are bins of cars and guys and blocks!

It's also where I look first when I come to get him at the end of the day. I love how on this particular day he lined the cars up according to size.

One day, it was all about dress up. Alex put a purse around his neck (filled with cars), and had on a knight's armor and fire hat.

Here he is with friend Leon:

Here he is, playing with Didi on the teeter totter:

And here with friend Hadlie:

As you can see, the kids spend a LOT of time outside. It makes me so happy. One day this summer I showed up and V insisted on taking me to see the fort in the woods. It was pretty impressive -- you might think the mucky path would deter most people from venturing there, but the boys must've been worried, because they also booby trapped the entire length of the trail with invisible strings and falling logs. Thankfully they escorted me through without fail.

Back at the main camp, Victoria has also been known to show me her skills on the monkey bars. I often hear, "mom! watch me! watch me!" the instant I step out of the car.

I love all these kids, and Lou, and the fun they have. Lots of fun memories at daycare!