Head Rush

The company I work for acquired another court reporting firm in northern Indiana last week which means I've been working some long hours recently.  Never in my life have I picked my kids up later than 5:30 and twice last week I was close to 6:00 and once it was 6:03 (they start charging by the minute after 6:00).  Needless to say, the moments I've been able to relax at home (before I get back to work after the kids are in bed) have been sweet relief.  They absolutely just make my day.

Phoebes sporting her first set of french braids.

Don't be too impressed - this is what they actually looked like and one fell out before morning came.  Regardless, she likes having wavy hair and each attempt has been more successful than the last so maybe one day I'll have it down!  Until then, you won't see her out in public like this!

Thursday, I headed up I-65 for a day of training with the new office.  I will NEVER get over this site.  I actually got a little dizzy trying to get a picture of them (I know, I know - NOT safe!) but the pictures just don't do it justice.  Miles and miles of monstrous, white turbines slowly turning as far as the eye can see.

And as the hours passed, it became apparent that I wouldn't be home in time to pick up the kids so Ryan loaded up my parents' car seats into his jeep and got them just in the nick of time.  And for the record, Phoebe never wants to leave when I pick her up anyhow because they always end their day on the playground so at least it's not a completely awful experience for them if I'm not early!

I ended up having to unexpectedly stay the night to continue training the next day.  I handled it fairly well - until Ryan sent me this photo via text with the word, "I got this."  And of course talking with Phoebe before she headed to bed had me crying (just a little) before I went into Wal-Mart to grab a few essentials before an oh-so-glamorous dinner from the Taco Bell drive-thru.

Needless to say, we made up for time apart big time over the weekend.  Maverick woke up at 6:00 Saturday morning and since he'd been up at 12:30 and then up for good at 5:30 when Ryan was parenting solo, it was the least I could do.  By the time Ryan woke up, we'd piled all the pillows and boppies we could find and were jumping off the couch.  Maverick discovered he really loved walking off the armrest of the couch - no hesitation at all.  I warned Ryan about this new talent before heading to the shower but he wasn't quite fast enough.  Maverick also made a beeline for the door frame before we headed out for the day.  If two bonks on the head weren't enough, while we were at Target after his nap, he arched back when Ryan bent down to pick him up and made direct contact with the hard floor.  However, third time is a charm, right?  He sort of convulsed and then went a bit limp immediately after this last fall and it freaked me out a lot.  I was thinking along the lines of a seizure and then it all went downhill in my head from there.  About 30 seconds later, he seemed to regroup a bit and instead of leaving, we headed to the toy section to see how he'd react.  He acted fine and seemed to have made a full recovery so we went about our day. 

Next on the agenda was Greek Fest with YiaYia and Papou.  This little guy thinks he's big enough to sit by himself. 

Yes, our kids split a hotdog at Greek Fest - but they also ate feta and kalamata olives - we're working on them - next year they'll be wolfing down spanikopita!

And the reason we all attend - loukoumades (aka "honey puffs").

Maverick got his first tattoo.

So did Papou!

Phoebe sat with YiaYia and Papou for quite awhile watching the kids dance.

Ryan and I kept a tight grip on our little one.  We were fearful what one more fall would mean so we did what we could to distract him.

On our way home we ran to Costco and then decided to call the 24/7 nurse line just to make sure we didn't need to wake him up every 3-4 hours or watch for any warning signs...  Long story short, the nurse firmly suggested that we head immediately to an ER and gently scolded me saying I should have called 911 immediately if there was any question of seizure-like activity.  Luckily, we were passing Riley Children's Hospital on our way home so made a quick left and landed in their emergency room.  Between yogurt melts and leftover potato chips that came with the kids' hot dog at lunch, we had two happy kiddos in the waiting room.  90 minutes and four people later, we were discharged.  The diagnosis?  He probably got the wind knocked out of him on that last fall and was a bit shocked by the experience.  AND he has an ear infection which explains why he's not been sleeping well recently.  That's one expensive ear infection, no?

After a good night's sleep, we headed to church and were in the rotation to teach Phoebe's Sunday School class that day.  Teaching the kids about the parable of the lost sheep was a good reminder that God loves us and cares for us, no matter what.  After church, we headed to Zionsville's Fall Fest.  We had crazy, cool temperatures over the weekend so it almost felt like fall outside!

There were quite a few playgrounds that we had to try out.

Guess I was getting a little too involved in the teeter totter experience...

...but if it makes this guy happy, I'll look like a fool every day.

Phoebe enjoying her $3.50 cupcake in which she decidedly ate ONLY the cake and declared she doesn't like frosting (anyone recall the green tongues from last week's post!?).

Maverick devouring Ryan's $3.00 ear of corn - this kid will try anything when he's in the right mood!

They had a little petting zoo.

And then it was time for the train!

Maverick had a blast turning the steering wheel! 

We promised Phoebe one bouncy ride - there were too many big kids running around to let Maverick in as well so we watched from the outside.

And of course, the house update.  They've got almost ALL the hardiplank siding up on the house.  I accidentally deleted the picture Ryan took tonight of the front of the home so you'll just have to wait a bit longer for that shot.

Maverick loves picking up wood scraps and ducking under 2x4s.

Phoebe posing in front of her own bedroom window!

The water heater is in, the bathtubs/showers are in and so is the fireplace!  All the electrical and plumbing are installed as well so we'll have two inspections this week and were told that by next week, we'd have a closing date!  We are SO excited - just don't ask us if we've started packing yet...