Broken Bone, Bunco and the Barrows (okay, Darrows, but for this title, a "B" is Better). Oh and FOP

I am trying to blog at least three times a month (ideally, I would like to do at least once a week). Sometimes, that feels really hard. It just seems like not much is happening. Of course, when I really think about it, lots has happened. Well, maybe not lots, but not nothing either.

So, since Jack and Anna's birthday...

Well, here's the big one--Jack broke his wrist! Thomas was outside grilling and I had just gotten home from work when Jack came downstairs with tears in his eyes to tell me he had fallen on his wrist and it really hurt. It didn't look too bad, so I told him to just let me know if it got any worse. A bit later, I gave him an ice pack when he said it was still hurting. The next morning, it was definitely swollen and he couldn't make a fist or rotate it. Dr. Google said that it can be hard to tell the difference between a sprain and a break and if after 48 hours there has been no improvement, to bring the patient in. Since it had only been about 14 hours, I gave him another ice pack and some ibuprofen. We had an old bandage lying around, so I also wrapped it up, which he said really helped. I wrote a note asking him to be excused from PE and sent him to school.

That night he said it still hurt, but was feeling somewhat better. Jack is not a complainer, so I was definitely getting more concerned at this point. And, the next morning, it was still really swollen. So, we decided it was time for the doctor. I did a quick Google search and discovered there is a walk-in orthopedic clinic a mile from our house. Score! I dropped off Luke and Kara and off we went. We got there at 7:55, they weren't supposed to open until 8, but the doors were already unlocked and people were inside. We signed in and about 10 minutes later, got called back. They brought Jack into the x-ray room and took me to a waiting room. Then, the x-ray tech came and said, "actually, I am going to put you in another room." The next room was full of cast-making supplies. So, I figured he could tell from the x-ray it was broken. And, I was right.

While we were there, I got the whole story from Jack: Anna came into his room asking (yelling) for him to return her Taylor Swift cd. He didn't feel like he needed to do this and asked her to leave. She grabbed the cd, out of his cd player, and he blocked her from leaving. More yelling ensued and she ultimately shoved him. He fell down, using his hands to break the fall, causing a buckle fracture.

So, he got it wrapped up and we were out of there by 9. Unfortunately, the bus comes at 8:50. So, I drove him to school and headed to work. He didn't miss a minute. I told one of my coworkers the story and she was shocked I made him go to school, she asked if I at least stopped and got him a donut or Egg McMuffin on the way. None of this occurred to me. Why would he be rewarded for breaking his wrist? Obviously, I felt bad for him. But, is that a reason to miss school?

sad Jack

On to the second "B," Bunco. As I've mentioned, it has been difficult making friends in Florida. I recently made myself go out of my comfort zone to attend a neighborhood bunco night. It ended up being at my Realtor's house, so I actually knew one person there, but it was still hard to do. I had a good time and got to meet 10 new neighbors, all of whom were very nice. And, I met a woman who lives kind of catty corner from us and learned that she has a fifth grade daughter (like us!) and a sixth grade son (like us!). This was amazing news and we exchanged phone numbers. A few days later, she and her daughter knocked on our door and we introduced the girls. The next day, Kara went and knocked on their door to play, but no one answered. However, they have a Nest camera, so when they came home, the kids came over and then they spent the day running in and out of both houses. It was very exciting!

In other exciting news, on Friday night, the Darrows came to see us! They were starting their Disney vacation on Saturday and drove in on Friday. They spent the night at our house and it was just like old times. We stayed up until 11 (late for me :) chatting and catching up. Everyone woke up happy on Saturday, the kids were excited to be playing together again. One perfect thing about their family is they also have 4 kids so each kid has a friend. They will all play together, but there is someone distinct for everyone and it works out really well. We were all very happy to see them and sad to see them go. The kids said it made them miss Maryland more. But, we pointed out that if we were in Maryland, the Darrows wouldn't have spent the night at our house.

Luke got mad because I asked him to sit on Kara's lap and refused to be in the picture. Kara is holding a picture of him :)

And, in final news. We scored fast passes to Flight of Passage, so the boys finally got to ride! It is the hardest fast pass to get and the only one we hadn't had so far (well, we haven't had Slinky Dog either, but we've got a system for that one). I liked it much better the second time around. To be fair, I liked it the first time, but didn't think it lived up to the hype, I still don't think it is as amazing as everyone else seems to think, but I can at least see that perspective now. We went to Sea World in the morning and got a bunch of free samples from their Beer and Food Fest (they gave all passholders 3 free, so we had 18!). We ate a lot of good food, and then went to Animal Kingdom, rode FOP and left. It was a very touristy day. But, we were home by 3, plenty of time for Kara and Jack to play with their new friends.

Wait, one more final news! Poor Anna is sick. She has had a stomachache since Sunday night. Her throat also hurts a little, but it isn't red at all, and there's no fever so I don't think it's strep. She hasn't thrown up, but also hasn't eaten anything substantial in two days. I took Monday off and we did a Netflix marathon, watching a fun design show. Thomas took yesterday off and I don't know what they did. She seemed significantly better last night, so I am hoping she can go to school today. If not, a doctor's visit will likely be in order.

And that, my friends, wraps up what was original entitled "October #2". Maybe, I should just sit down and write more often!

But, wait, there's more! Bonus pictures! I saw these on my phone when I was looking for relevant ones. We went to SeaWorld recently and I finally grabbed a picture of the penguins. And, Kara rode Manta! She loved it! I think she is ready for anything now, but, she still says she doesn't like big hills, so maybe not.

Can you find Kara? She's on there somewhere.

We love, LOVE the penguins.

Jack and Anna are Twelve! (and a date night)

Jack and Anna turned 12 on Thursday! Twelve seems so much older than 11 and it is crazy that they are now middle-schoolers. Time is definitely going by quickly! It is fun to see them getting older and watch their more adult personalities develop.

Last Saturday, we had (most) of our local family over. Kim, Dave, JD, Amanda, my dad, Frank and Marta were all able to come. Unfortunately, Kevin and Maggie could not. They got here around 1130 and we had pulled pork for lunch. The kids swam and had fun together.

Kids hanging in the pool. Anna thought it was too cold and got out pretty quick (it was 90 degrees out...)

She went in and got dressed. Thomas told her he would give her $10 if she cannonballed in the pool with her clothes on. She's no fool, she jumped right in! But, it wasn't a cannonball, so Thomas made her do it again, then paid her $10.

Luke thought it looked fun, so he jumped in fully clothed too! (and, no one even offered to pay him).

My dad had ridden with Kim and he hadn't slept well the night before, he was tired so half our guests left after cake. Marta offered to take JD home, so he stayed and we played Harry Potter Clue and hung out for a few more hours. It was a really nice day and we enjoyed having everyone over.

Publix makes amazing cakes!

Kara loves Harry Potter Clue (and Grandma Marta)

On their actual day, we let Jack choose dinner. He opted for Wendy's and Jeremiah's (an Italian Ice place). I forgot my phone, so no pictures. Sunday, we had Anna's chosen dinner of cheese fondue and Jack's chocolate birthday cake. Anna also wants to go to Busch Gardens. We were going to do that over the weekend, but it was still over 90 degrees in Tampa, so we convinced her to wait a week or two (I hope!). Instead, we went to Sea World. Thomas, Anna, Jack and I all tried Manta, one of 3 big roller coasters. I did not like it; it lays you on your stomach and it was too disconcerting to have all my body weight on the restraint the whole time. But, the others enjoyed it. We also got to ride Mako, which I love.

As a family, we did Journey to Atlantis. Kara was scared to try it, but I made her ride and she was glad I did. I would never force her on a major roller coaster, but sometimes she needs a little push on the medium kind of rides (which she always likes!). We also did their river raft ride--three times in a row! We were all completely soaked. That line really builds up later in the day, so we got lucky. However, our favorite thing was probably seeing the penguins. They are just so fun to watch! Maybe next time I will actually take some pictures (but, probably not). Finally, we did the trick-or-treat trail, which was cute. It was a fun way to spend a few hours, even though we didn't see any shows. I definitely want to do that soon. But, it is hard to tear people away from the rides. We only live 20 minutes away (coming home, 25 to get there), so it is super easy to just go for a few hours.

Only picture I took all day (and, only because Kara asked)

So, it was a fairly laid-back birthday. As mentioned, both kids are definitely maturing. I am not sure I like all the changes. They both seem to be becoming more quiet as they get older. I still think of Jack as the little kid who would talk to anyone and everyone. Now, he is far less outgoing and a definite introvert. He loves to read and play video games. He still enjoys History, but I am not sure he is as passionate about it as he used to be. Anna is also quieter and enjoys reading. She has made several friends in Florida, enjoys being part of a group, and is always ready for an adventure.

In other news, Thomas and I had our first date night since moving to Florida! We actually found a babysitter through the YMCA. She is one of the counselors there and a senior in college. It was nice going through the YMCA, because she knows the kids (from summer camp and before/after care) and we know she has been background checked and trained in first aid.

For our date, we went to Howl-O-Scream in Tampa. We got there around 3 on a Friday afternoon and the park was empty. We rode a few rides and walked around while waiting for the nighttime events.  We bought a dinner package, which had all-you-care-to-eat food from 6-7 then, from 7-8:30, included front of the line passes for all the haunted houses! That was the main reason we bought it and it worked out perfectly. We had our dinner and then did all 6 haunted houses without waiting in any lines. The park got much more crowded as the night went on. Fortunately, we also had a few front of the line passes from a promotion a month or so again, so we rode three more rides without waiting. My favorite was the back row of Cheetah Hunt in the dark. It was really fun to feel like VIPs all night. I enjoyed the haunted houses, there was nothing super scary, but the scenes were elaborate and well-themed. I had a great time. Thomas doesn't really like those kind of events, but went because I wanted to. I don't like scary movies, but I do enjoy a good (fake) haunted house and it was so nice to spend time together in a fun environment (we spend lots of time together at work, but that's not really fun).

I took this picture to send to the kids. Also, the only picture of the night.