A Fun Weekend, Luke's Surgery, and Report Cards

On Saturday morning, we had Luke's baseball game. We bought him a new bat and it has thrown off his game a bit. He still managed to get on base for 2/3 at-bats, but they were little hits. Not much came to him in the field and his team lost. They have now lost 3 or 4 in a row. But, the other team did what I don't like--put all their best players in the hardest position. Luke's coach rotates players around, which I appreciate. They are 7 and 8 years old, in my opinion, they should be learning the game, getting better, and having fun, not just focusing on winning. So, I don't care if we lose (or, at least I try really hard not to, but in two of the games we have been ahead until the very last inning, that is harder to swallow).

Saturday afternoon, we went to Islands of Adventure. We wore clothes we didn't mind getting wet and sandals and did the water rides. We also rode Hagrid's, Spiderman, and other rides. We had tater tot meals (green eggs and ham was my favorite) in SeussLand and had a super fun night. They closed at 8 and we stayed until closing.

A fun Saturday night!

Sunday, we did Jack's birthday request and visited St Augustine. We left around 9 and stopped at Buc-cees on the way. That place is a destination in and of itself! I think I wrote about it before, but it is a massive gas station. We got gas and everyone picked out breakfast. The food was really good.

They even have their own mascot and lots of merchandise to prove it!

We got to St Augustine around 11 and toured the Fort, we let Jack pick out some souvenirs, then got ice cream in the old town area before starting the drive home. We stopped at Buc-cees again for a late lunch. 

Hanging out at the old Fort!

Ice cream!

Monday was Luke's oral surgery. We scheduled his appointment a few weeks ago and it was hard news to hear. Then, we went on our cruise and I basically put it out of my mind. Some family members were a little hurt that I hadn't told them about it beforehand. And, I understand that, but I honestly just didn't think about it. I don't know if I was compartmentalizing or what. But, it didn't really hit me until Saturday. Then, I spent the rest of the weekend feeling nervous and worrying. When I couldn't sleep on Saturday, I decided to ask for prayers on Facebook for Luke. It felt a little hypocritical, as I have not been very religious for a lot of years, but I did it anyway. And, of course, I prayed too. The operation itself was relatively minor--30 minutes outpatient. But, Luke is little and he's never had anesthesia and we don't know what the cyst is and I just hated the idea. But, of course, it had to be done. 

They only allowed one parent to attend, so Thomas took him to the appointment. It was very sad watching them leave. Luke wore his pajamas and brought a squishmallow for comfort. When he arrived they gave him a relaxing drink. Thomas said he was nervous at first, but once the drink kicked in, he was pretty funny and would randomly giggle. 

Once it was time for the procedure, Thomas had to wait in the car. They called him when it was over and he basically picked Luke up at the door and came home. Luke was incredibly out of it, he couldn't sit up straight in his car seat and asked about 100x if they did the surgery. He would also randomly cry. When they got home, he couldn't walk and his pupils were just darting around everywhere. It was freaky. He stayed loopy for a few hours, asking the same questions repeatedly. We tried to get him to sleep, but he couldn't fall asleep and was very chatty (mostly just the same questions--did he have the surgery, did Dad drive him home and did Dad take the day off from work).

He was in pain by the afternoon and we gave him medicine. He tried eating ice cream, but it made him nauseous. He finally ate one scrambled egg. That was it for the whole day. We played card games in the afternoon, including Love Letters, Dos, and Phase 10, which is new to us and really fun. Slowly, Luke turned back into himself, which was a relief.

Closed eyes never lasted long.

Today (Tuesday) he woke up feeling much better but his jaw is very swollen. He ate a little more (a smoothie, soft noodles, eggs, and ice cream) and spent the day doing electronics. Because of how swollen he is and his limited diet, we are keeping him home from school. Hopefully, he will go back on Thursday, but we will see. He has to be careful that he doesn't do anything to injure the jaw until the wound heals.

Swollen face.

We go back on November 1st for a follow-up and to get the biopsy results. They should be able to tell us what kind of cyst it was and how likely it is to come back. Obviously, the biggest fear is cancer, however, that is very, very unlikely. So, we aren't even considering that a possibility. Hopefully, it was a random cyst that will never come back. 

We were super grateful for the prayers, texts, phone calls, and even gifts received! Luke (and I) felt very loved and supported.

And, to end with some more happy new: the kids got their first report cards. All three middle schoolers had straight As! We are super proud.

Cruise Conclusion

Sunday was our third and final day. It was also Jack and Anna's birthday. Anna really likes Starbucks and of course, there was one on the ship. So, that was how we started the day.  

Kara got one too. And, check out the view--CocoCay!

It was my favorite day--CocoCay. We were among the first off the ship, got our floating mats, and found some nice lounge chairs. We had brought our own snorkel gear and saw tons and tons of fish. We snorkeled, swam and played in the sand. We explored a little. Kara bought herself a shell bracelet and both girls got their hair braided. 

I agree with the "Perfect Day" hype.

Obligatory "ship in the background" photo.

I think we were the first group in the water for the day.

Thomas and Luke playing catch while Jack builds.

Both girls said the braiding hurt.

We had lunch at the island buffet. It was really good and everyone liked the food.  Then, Anna and I took Luke to the play structures. 

This was one of the play structures. The other was a fun pirate ship.

Jack and Thomas did more snorkeling. They found a buried marble banister and canons with huge fish. They said they were bigger than Luke! Kara was ready to go after lunch, but stuck it out with us, she said she doesn't like sand, therefore the beach is not her favorite activity. We got back on the ship around 3, took some balcony pictures and showered and changed. Then, the older kids and I met up with Marta and Frank to play some games before dinner while Luke and Thomas rested.

I love the water in the Caribbean

Anna and her fancy braids

Jack was not interested in posing. He was sitting right next to Kara enjoying a book while I took the pictures.

Sunday was also Jack and Anna's birthday. They brought out pieces of cake with a candle and we sang happy birthday. We saw the ice skating show, which had great skating but a weird storyline. Again, we called it a night around 9:30. 

Happy birthday, Jack and Anna!

Monday morning, we got off the ship around 8. Debarkation was a lot faster. We were home before 9 and able to drop off our middle schoolers for an on-time start. Luke's school starts earlier, so he was about 30 minutes tardy. 

It was a quick trip, but still nice. I was worried that the 3-night would feel too short and rushed, but it was pleasant and everyone had a good time. I am still in a little bit of shock that my first-borns are 14. But, I am enjoying seeing them grow into amazing young adults. I sure do love this family of mine! 

Birthday Cruise, Days 1 and 2!

On October 3rd, Anna and Jack turned 14. I know that 13 is officially a teenager, but 14 has always seemed so much older to me than 13. Maybe because it is the age you start high school? Regardless, to celebrate, we decided to do a weekend cruise. Cruises are pretty cheap right now and the port is only 45 minutes from our house. We booked on Mariner of the Seas and departed on Friday, October 1st. They have somewhat stringent Covid protocols. We had to all test negative before the cruise and then Luke had to test again at the port (because he is not vaccinated).  The kids had some tests at school, so we sent them in morning and worked a half day. 

We got to the port around 1:45 and the check-in line was looonnnngggg. Luke's Covid test took 45 minutes for results. And, from car to ship, it took us over 2 hours. We weren't prepared for the long waits and people were kind of grumpy. Our friends who got there at 11 were on in 15 minutes. So, next time we will get there earlier. Once onboard, we found our rooms and then met up with Marta and Frank and had a snack. 

We played miniature golf, which was a fun 9-hole course and watched as we pulled away from port. 

Main dining room

Pointing at the puffy clouds

Saturday, we were in Nassau, but didn't get off the ship. If you are unvaccinated, you could only leave the ship if you were on a paid excursion and we did not have anything reserved. So, Luke went to the kid's club in the morning. Kara, Jack and I did trivia. We were bad and only got 6/16 right. However, we weren't the worst! Everyone "won" a highlighter, so we took our participation prize and were content. Thomas grabbed Luke and we met up at the buffet for lunch and then did the top deck activities--the sky pad, water slides, and flow rider. 

I didn't do the skypad (I don't do well with virtual reality). But, everyone who participated said it was fun. They got to pick a virtual reality scenario. Thomas and Kara did a hop through time where you had to jump through portals to get to different times and also had to jump to avoid hazards (like two ships shooting canons at each other). Anna did candy crush, where you had to jump to get the candy and she said it looked just like the game. Jack and Luke did music. Luke said you had to shoot music cubes to earn points.

Birthday buddies!

Kara loved the Flowrider!

Waterslides were also a big hit

Waiting for the entertainment to begin!

That took up most of the afternoon. We had another delicious dinner and then saw a funny juggler (world record holder) and called it a night around 9:30.