Quick Before I Get Sidetrack'd

I know there are a few of you anxiously (or not) awaiting an update post on baby girl. Sorry, but you’re going to have to wait a bit longer for a couple of reasons: 1) I want to post this first, and 2) we have to take some pictures of the baby. Poor thing is seriously going to have third child syndrome; she’ll be a month old tomorrow and the only pictures we have of her are the ones we took in the hospital. Yes, I do feel Mommy guilt, so let’s move on.

Little is all about snow this winter. She talks about snow, asks when it is going to snow, and plots the things she will do when she finally gets to play in the snow.

Imagine her disappointment when our first snow of the winter left us with barley a 1/2 inch dusting (in fact, I think the layer of dust in my house is deeper than the snow was on the ground). When she looked out and saw the “snow” the following conversation ensued:

Little: Mom, can I play in the snow?
Me: Little, there really isn’t enough snow to play in.
Little: Can I make a snowman?
Me: No, baby, there isn’t enough snow.
Little: Can I make a snow angel?
Me: Sorry, sweetheart, there isn’t enough snow.
Little: Well, can I at least make a footprint?

Fortunately, there was enough snow for her to make some footprints.

So, that was our first encounter with snow this year. Then, a couple of weeks ago, the weather people started forecasting a big snow headed our way. We were supposed to get 6-8 inches, and everyone was very excited (and very anxious to get to the grocery for bread and milk). This is the South, people!

There was enough for the little people to go out and play, which they loved.

check out the tiny snowman; that’s all the snowman they could build

And the next day the ice made it perfect for sledding. They loved this too!

Little was much more impressed with this snow, but since it was mostly ice it posed challenges of its own.

She couldn’t make a snow angel because she couldn’t push her arms down hard enough to break through the ice crust.

And poor Boo had trouble walking in it. Just about every time he took a step he lost his balance as his foot broke through the ice crust and fell on his bucket. I so wish I had been filming him when he first went out; he stepped over the transition point between our concrete patio and the grass, lost his balance, and went sprawling face forward into the snow. It was hilarious!

That was the first of our two snows in a week and a half span. I’ll post about this week’s snow soon.

About three weeks ago our vacuum (which has served us pretty well during these 8+ years of marriage) died a smoky death as it cleaned out the dryer vent. With a preschooler and a crazy toddler roaming around this place we really can’t do without a vacuum for even a short period of time, so the search began.

Matt did some research, and we did some shopping, and we settled on a small canister vac that would serve our needs. All the while I dreamed and drooled over the Dyson vacuum that I would love to have but just wasn’t in the budget.

Then…a week after we purchased our vacuum I was notified by 5 Minutes for Mom that I was randomly selected as the winner of their Dyson DC25 giveaway. I was so excited! Matt, being the resident skeptic, was, well, a bit skeptical in the “I’ll believe it when I see it” sort of way.

The following Tuesday our new vacuum arrived. We excitedly opened the box expecting to put together the new toy vacuum and try it. We were unpleasantly surprised to find that the box did not contain the vacuum attachments or, more importantly, the front part of the vacuum (you know, the part that touches the floor and picks up the dirt).

On Wednesday morning I set out to find a way to remedy the situation. I e-mailed the prize coordinator at 5M4M and she got in touch with the PR rep for Dyson. I expected to receive an e-mail saying that they would ship me the missing parts and we would live happily with our new, fully assembled vacuum. When the PR rep contacted me, he was extremely apologetic for the problem and offered, not to get me the missing parts, but to upgrade us to a DC28, Dyson’s most powerful vacuum!

Our new vacuum arrived on Tuesday, and Tuesday night we put it together and tried it. From our first run, I think this is a great vacuum!

God is so good! A super-dooper vacuum was not something we had to have, but is definitely something for which we are thankful. God knows all of our wants and needs, the big and the small, and provides for us in ways that we couldn’t even imagine.

A few months ago MomSelect sent me an offer to receive 4 tickets to the Thomas and Friends Live! On Stage show that is touring this year. Little loves her trains, so I thought it would be a good opportunity to take her to the show. Unfortunately, the tour did not come to West Tennessee, so last weekend we loaded up the kids for a quick trip to Nashville specifically to see Thomas.

The show was cute, and both of my kids seemed to enjoy it. It was definitely corny, but what do you expect from a kids show? It took several minutes before the trains first made their appearance, and Little got a bit antsy waiting for them to come on stage, but once the trains were there she pretty much sat enthralled for the 45 minutes prior to intermission. Boo, on the other hand, clapped and sang and grinned and cheered all the way through the first part. There were several times where they asked for audience participation (make the sound of the train whistle, sing along, call for Thomas, etc), but Little would not participate (while Boo was too young to really understand).

Here are a few things I learned from taking my little people to see the show:

1. Seats in the first tier are better than floor seats (at least at our venue). We were able to get good seats with our passes.

2. An hour seems to be about the extent of my children’s ability to sit still and watch something. They both did great up until intermission, but the 30 minutes after intermission were harder. By the last 15 minutes, Little was asking if it was time to go yet.

3. I will never again drink the fresh-squeezed lemonade at Sommet Center. At least not while eating blue cotton candy. Let’s just say that the kids were fine, but apparently wee babe #3 was not to keen on the combination.

It was a tough weekend for Matt and me, but I’m really glad we had the opportunity and made the effort to take Little to see Thomas. She may not remember going since she’s so young, but she was very excited about it and seemed to really enjoy seeing the trains live on stage.

A few weeks ago my SIL posted a list of her top ten favorite things about Fall.  I’m feeling inspired by the cooler, more Fall-like, weather that has finally settled into our neck of the woods, and thought I would do likewise.  Here are ten things I like about Fall (in no particular order):

1.  The sound of crunching acorns underfoot and the fact that it always makes Little giggle.

2.  Baking yummy things with apples; especially our favorite apple cake.

3.  The smell of wood fires on the air.

4.  Wrapping up in my favorite quilt and snuggling in on the couch to read after the kids are in bed.

5.  The feeling of crisp, cool air on my skin after months of heat and humidity.

6.  Opening the windows.

7.  A return to playing in the cove in the mornings and afternoons without fear of heatstroke.

8.  Drinking hot beverages (coffee, chai, cocoa) any time of day.

9.  Wearing jeans while maintaining a comfortable body temperature.

10. The approach and anticipation of Thanksgiving and Christmas, my favorite holidays.

And the one thing I hate?

Having to wear real shoes instead of sandals or flip-flops (and the disappearance of sweet baby feet into socks and shoes).

We spent two days of our vacation enjoying the sights and rides of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay.  Matt, my brother, my nephews and I are all big roller coaster fans, so we were excited to try the five big coasters in the park.  We were excited, that is, until we saw this…

Meet Sheikra.  Or, as we came to refer to it, Shriekra.

All day we eyed this bad boy.  All day it taunted us as it towered above the lesser rides.  All day we alternated between giddy excitement and terrified respect.  All day we tried to work ourselves up for the ride.

When the time came to suck it up or go home all four of us decided to throw caution to the wind and climb aboard.

Now, let’s get a bit of perspective that might be missed when seeing this beast in pictures and not in person.

First, there’s this:

and from a different angle:

a ninety degree (that’s straight down) vertical drop of 200 feet.

Then there’s this:

what’s known as an Immelmann loop, or, in layman’s terms, a loop where you go upside down.

Then, there’s this:

a second vertical drop.

Also notable about this ride are the facts that: 1. it reaches a maximum speed of 70 mph; 2. there is no floor to the coaster “car”; and 3. at the top of the 200 foot drop the coaster pauses to dangle you – yes, dangle you – over the edge before letting the car plunge down the track.

Let me just tell you, that plunge was like nothing I’ve ever experienced before!

So, here’s how it played out…

The four of us boarded the car, pulled our safety harnesses as tight as possible, and set off to see if we’d live to walk off the ride.

Up the ascent.  clack.  clack.  clack. All the time seeing nothing but the clouds.

Around the bend.  brake.  release.  brake. Ease forward until we are hanging over the edge of the precipice.  pause.  pause.  pause.  RELEASE!

Into the descent that pushes you out of your seat up into the seat restraints; forces that require you to think about breathing; an adrenaline rush that makes you question whether or not your heart just stopped.

Quickly into the Immelmann loop, around to the second vertical drop, skidding across water, and back into the coaster station.

My brother left the park with a tee-shirt that said “I survived the five”.  After riding Sheikra, he deserved it.