Summer Ends

Sunday I tried doing a fishtail braid for the first time on Penny and it turned out pretty cool. It's been fun discovering that I can do some fun hairstyles.

Here are some pictures of our Henna tattoos that we got done at the Renaissance Festival because I don't think I shared any in my last post. Penny's is stil going strong a week later but Lucy and mine have already faded. I don't think our artist used as much Henna. 

Monday was the boys first day of school. I woke up early with them so I could snap a picture. Of course Steven gave me grief about it, even though it only took 30 seconds of his life. Then he proceeded to get grumbly with me because I had to take Ruby's car seat out of his car. I get the impression that he only sees me as a nuisance these days.

Also Monday, I called the dentist about my tooth and told the office lady that my tooth was still hurting and I also told her that the dentist had said I would need a root canal if it was still hurting. She told me to come in so I did. I then told him what I had told her and without any xrays or looking at anything, he asked if I wanted a referral to an endodontist. I was fustrated that I had driven all the way out there and he had looked at nothing and was just going to give me a referral. Why had I had to come out just for that? So in my frustration, I asked him if he did root canals and he said he could try. And not thinking I said ok and then began to panic in my mind because I did not want someone to merely "try" a root canal on my tooth but I did not know how to cancel that request. Anyways, he numbed me up and tried and he did not succeed. Which meant I just went through more discomfort and a trip there for nothing. Super.

When I left, I called the endodontist and they said they couldn't get me in for 2 weeks and so I was even further upset because I really was over all this tooth pain. The endodontist ended up calling me the next day, just as I was checking their practices google reviews, which were not good. I was spiraling as they called and when they asked for more insurance info I said that actually I was going to go somewhere else because my tooth was hurting and I didn't want to wait 2 weeks. And wouldn't you know, they suddenly had availability that Thursday? Because I don't know how to say "no" I changed my appt to Thursday and continued to worry because seriously- their online reviews were not great.

Tuesday morning the girls had the back to school picnic. It was a lot more low key than previous years. It was literally just a get together with no activities or food. I hung out with Mimi's mom most of the time and we basically just chatted and followed Ruby around. Nahoko is a good friend to me. The girls seemed to have a good time with their friends- I had brought Claire so Lucy had a built in buddy the whole time.

Tuesday afternoon I went with Poppy, Lucy and Penny to see "Freakier Friday". I love going to movies, it's nice to escape from reality and eat junk food. The movie itself was ok, it was entertaining enough, but it did have some cringe parts- I just think the young boy crushing on the mom is super weird. It was weird in the first movie too. 

Wednesday morning Ruby and I went over to Julie's so Julie and I could plan our toddler class that we are teaching. Ruby and Asher played pretty well together but Asher had some drama with his trains. Julie and I got a pretty good plan for our class- it will be bug themed. We're going to read the Hungry Caterpillar, sing Itsy Bitsy Spider, freeze toy bugs in ice cubes and have them use salt to get them out, make paper plate bugs...and other fun bug things. The class will just be Asher, Ruby and one other toddler so it should be the easiest thing ever. Julie also took us down into her basement when we were there and it was cool to see her set up. She has a climbing wall, monkey bars, a slide...lots of cool stuff. But Ruby's favorite thing was a small trampoline. She really loves to jump and I might need to buy a little trampoline for Ruby to get us through winter.

Wednesday evening the young women had an activity at our beach. The weather was cold again. The weather has been so weird this summer. Since last week all the activity day girls got in the lake despite the cold, we kind of assumed the young women would get in too. So we got there a little early and Lucy, Penny and Ruby got in the water. I refused to go in and told Lucy she would have to look after Ruby. Well, only one other young woman ended up coming and she did not even bring a swimsuit- she was not going in. It was super awkward so after a bit I had my girls get out of the water and then I suggested that Lucy and the other girl come to my house to play games on the Nintendo Switch. It was a good suggestion because it seemed to break the ice and they had a lot of fun playing on the Switch. Meanwhile I chatted with the leaders. One of them has a daughter that just got engaged so we talked about the wedding planning. And the other one has a kid on the soccer team so we talked about the frustration of our kids not getting play time (even though her kid gets more time than mine).

Thursday morning all us girls plus Poppy and Grams went to Ikea. There were a couple things I wanted their for Ruby's sensory table and there were some things that Grams and Poppy wanted to look at. Ruby was being very much a toddler and causing me grief because she did not want to sit in the cart- she wanted to stand. Ruby was also in love with laying down on all the toddler beds and did not want to leave that section. Poppy spoiled us and bought us all lunch at Ikea and then he spoiled Ruby and got her a bumble bee doll that she had grabbed- it will be a nice addition to the bug themed class Julie and I are doing. Penny and Lucy had fun posing at the Halloween themed selfie spot.

After our trip to Ikea, I had to go in for my dreaded root canal. It was probably even worse than I expected. It felt very aggressive when he was cleaning out the roots- more like he was sawing down a tree than dealing with a delicate root. There were several times he said I would feel a pinch and it was more like a stab wound. I also had the joy of nasal drainage the whole time which made me feel like I was going to suffocate, choke, die...At one point I started coughing which is really difficult when they have your mouth propped open with a wedge and a rubber cover behind your teeth. It was the longest hour ever BUT on the bright side my tooth has made a marvelous recovery and felt brand new by the next day.

That evening we went to Ben's soccer game. It downpoured right before the game so we thought we were going to get soaked but thankfully it stopped when we got there. It is so hard for me to go to Ben's games and not feel frustrated by how little time he put out on the field. The other people that play defense are really not that much better than him and they are always playing freshman over Ben. I have tried to talk to Ben about asking his coach what he can do to get more play time in games but he says he can't do that. I really wish he would because I don't think the coaches have a good enough reason to not be playing him but I really don't want to be "that" mom and go talk to the coaches myself. All that said, he got to play the last 5 minutes of the game (they always put him out in the end) and this time they put him out as a striker- a totally new position for him. I am not sure what they are thinking in general about Ben but sometimes I really want to go all Karen on them. Oh well, Ruby had a good time. Ruby had refused to eat the dinner I had made that night and then was hungry at the game so Tyler bought her pizza which totally made her night.

Friday the boys had no school and no work in the morning so I decided to use our Dave and Buster gift cards that we had gotten for Christmas. Steven gave me grief about going which was really frustrating- I was trying to create some positive memories with this kid, and it's a fun place for teens. I wasn't asking him to go shopping for Pete's sake. Anyways, 10 minutes before we were planning to head out, he hopped into the shower. Further frustrating me because it felt like he was trying to get out of going. Surprisingly he only took a quick shower and made it out in time to go with us. Each kid got $33 to play with. Steven blew through is card in like 40 minutes but the other kids took at least a half an hour more. They all seem to gravitate towards games that give them big wins- they like racking up tickets. Lucy and Ben are really good at knocking down the clown pins.  The only game there that Ruby really played was Skeeball and even that, she basically just threw the ball on the ramp and then had me rethrow it for her. At the end they wanted to put their tickets together to get Ruby something but we do not need any more stuffies so I told them to just get their own stuff. Of course it was all just junk...Ben got a rubber chicken, Ruby got a squishy llama, Steven got candy, Lucy got a squishy ball and Penny got some candy. Ruby wanted a lollipop but I didn't have enough tickets for one. The lady was nice and just gave it to her. 

Saturday morning Poppy, Grams, Penny, Ben, Ruby and me went to Yates Cider Mill. We got some doughnuts and cider and then went and sat in the car to eat them so we didn't get swarmed by bees. Then we went on a walk down the river. It was a beautiful morning and Ruby was excited to see some "quack quacks" in the river. Afterwards Grams and Poppy went to get some treats to take home and Ruby, Penny and Ben went to look at the goats. Ben and Penny helped Ruby find goat food that people had dropped so she could feed them without us having to buy food. We are cheapskates, lol.

 

By the time we finished at the cider mill it was lunchtime so we went Culvers. Ruby has been such a toddler lately and just wanted to eat french fries and ice cream, but I did manage to get her to eat some of her grilled cheese sandwich. She is spoiled.

Saturday afternoon we had a bbq at the Bloomfields. It ended up just being us, the Bloomfields and a few people from the May family. The Eakins had flaked out and half the Mays were out of town at a bagpipe competition. It wasn't the most exciting bbq but the food was good. Ruby fussed most of the time because she wanted to play on the trampoline with the big kids but they did not want her there. I miss the days where I could just sit and chat with adults while my kids play. Toddlers are exhausting.

Renaissance Festival

Monday I spent the morning running errands with Grams and Poppy and the girls tagged along. First we went to Hobby Lobby so Penny could pick out her birthday gifts from my parents. My mom also got Ruby a mini waterbottle because she couldn't resist. It's cute to watch Ruby drink from it.

 

Then we went to Walmart so my parents could get various household things and groceries. Lucy also found this really cool Harry Potter Potions set on clearance and bought it and then spent the afternoon making it.

Our last stop was Costco. By that time it was lunch time so I picked up some pizza slices and hot dogs for us. Thankfully Costco wasn't too busy while we were there but it was still busier than I like. 

That evening Ben had his first soccer game of the season. It was an away game so only Tyler went. Unfortunately, Ben did not get any play time and his team lost. I was hoping as a sophomore he might get a little more time but it's not looking that way. I am a little frustrated that the freshman are getting more time than him but I am not allowed to say anything to the coaches.

Tuesday was busy with baking and making things. I was bringing food to a family in the ward and getting things ready for Penny's party. So I baked a cake and some cookies and put together a Candy Land "game board" in my parent's garage. I hate bringing food to other people because I doubt my cooking/baking abilities. I made meatloaf because she said her kids loved it but then I worried that it was too greasy and possibly undercooked for the rest of the night. Anxiety is stupid.

Wednesday was Penny's Birthday. She opened her gifts first thing, as per tradition. It was nice to have Grams and Poppy there to watch her open them. From us she got a kid's Kindle and some Stitch clothes for her doll. From my parents she got a Lilo and Stitch bracelet kit, a doggy fashion book, and Lilo and Stitch lip stuff. From Lucy she got slime. And from Tyler's parents she got 2 silver coins. 

After the present opening, I was able to go on a walk with Grace and Ruby to the library. The weather cooled off this week so it felt good to be outside and therapeutic to vent about life with my friend. Then for lunch my parents and I took Penny to Wendy's. We left the other kids at home and let it be her special outing. I think she appreciated the extra attention and she certainly appreciated the frosty.

After lunch we had Penny's party. She had 6 friends come- Lyla, Anna, Lara, Geli, Luna and Mimi. It was a candy themed birthday party. I figured it was going to be loud and the activities would go quickly and both those things were true. The girls all colored pictures of candy as they arrived. Ruby joined them in the coloring but then it was time for her to take a nap.

After the coloring we made a candy salad. I had the girls say something they liked about Penny as they put candy in the bowl and then Penny said something nice about each of them when she put her candy in. It was one of my favorite moments of the party. Happy and always smiling seemed to be a common compliment from them to Penny.

The next activity was a matching game. I put Dum Dums under bowls and they had to try to match flavors. It went super fast in the first round and the matches were actually all mixed up. It was like they all had peeked under the bowls or something. We ended up playing another round but then they started helping each other so it still went pretty quickly. 

Our next activity was taste testing Skittles. They were blind folded and had to guess what color Skittle they had. They each took 2 turns but in the end only a couple people guessed correctly- and only once each. It is interesting how hard it is to guess a Skittles flavor.

After that the girls used candy to make art on a graham cracker. Some girls tried hard and made beautiful things and some girls just threw candy on a graham cracker. Surprisingly my girls were more in the realm of throwing candy on a graham cracker.

When we finished making candy art, we went over to my parent's house to play my "live action" Candy Land game. I failed to take a picture of my set up but I had taped construction paper in a path on the ground and had lollipops (made from paper plates) in a few buckets around the path. The girls each had a die with colored sides and they rolled it to determine where they went each round. If they landed on a red square, they got candy jewelery (bracelet, necklace and ring). It was very chaotic but I think they had a good time. Lyla made it to the end first so she got a real giant lollipop. I had the girls do a group pose in my parent's garage before we went back to my house. 

 

At my house we had cake and ice cream and then Penny opened her gifts. She got skincare stuff from Lara and Anna (I don't know why 10 year olds think they need skin care but she loved it). Lyla gave her an awesome Stitch hat and her favorite candy. Mimi got her various Stitch themed things. Geli and Luna got her Target giftcards and stuffies. She loved everything. 

 

After the present opening, I had no more activities planned so they had about an hour to do what they wanted. They played a card game, played on the Switch and ran outside doing who knows what. Then parents came and I got to chat with them for a bit before they all headed out.

Wednesday night we had Activity Days at our beach and it was much too cold for a beach day in my opinion but the girls still got in. One of the leaders was brave and got in with the girls. I was so grateful for her. I really did not want to get in. Another mom had her toddlers there and was forced in...fully clothed. Such a bummer for her. Near the end Penny started feeling sick and wanted to go home. I think she had had a bit too many sweets for the day and maybe a swim in cold water did not help her tummy. It was kind of a bummer way to end her birthday.

Thursday morning I got a call from Sharon. Her car had broken down at the hospital (she had taken her husband there for an ultrasound). She was hoping Tyler could come look at it but he had gone in for work that day. Instead she asked if I could pick her up. I was a little anxious about giving her a ride because she is super judgy and my car is a mess, but it turned out ok. I could tell she was really down and I was glad I could help. I ended up waiting about a half an hour with her and then a waited a little longer with her husband while she talked to the company that came to tow her car. Her husband rarely talks to me but he was actually pretty chatty about pain meds of all things but it was a nice change to the quiet.

After helping out Sharon, I ran some errands with my mom and the girls. Our first stop was Salvation Army. We dropped off some things from my parent's home and then went inside real quick to look for a sweatshirt for Lucy. At check out we had a worker that was obsessed with trying to get Ruby to smile and say hello to her. Ruby would not cooperate and it sure made things awkward. Then we went to Home Goods and Bath and Body Works. Grams was nice and spoiled the girls with some lotion and got me a candle. We are grateful for her sharing her gift cards with us. After that we went to the girls school to pick up their books. I felt really silly because I didn't see their bag of books at first and thought it was missing. It was really me just being dumb and assuming that the books behind one bag belonged to the same family so I didn't even look. I felt like an idiot but glad it got sorted. Claire's mom was there and I talked to her about the volleyball program Claire is in because Lucy has talked about wanting to do it with Claire. It involves travel and I don't think that we have time for that because the volleyball season coincides with soccer. She suggested another one that is from Jan-April but it costs $1200 so I think not. 

That night Ben had another game and we all went to that one (except for Steven). I ended up getting a family pass so we can attend all the walled lake games and Grams and Poppy get in free because they are old. It was another bummer game. His team did not win and he only got like 7 minutes of play time.

Friday morning I ran the girls to Target so Penny could use the giftcard she got for her birthday. She ended up buying a "live" bunny which Ruby immediately wanted to steal for herself. She also bought some blue tooth headphones so she can listen to audio books on her Kindle. 

Friday night Ben was working at Dairy Twist so Grams, Poppy, me, Tyler, Ruby and Penny went to get ice cream there (Lucy and Steven were at the temple). Ben actually made me and Poppy's banana split so I felt pretty special. It is always fun to see my boys working. Ruby shared a banana split with Tyler and made a big mess of both of them. 

Saturday we went to the Renaissance Festival as per tradition. Steven had to work so he didn't join us and Poppy wasn't interested in going but the rest of us went, including Grams. The weather was overcast which actually was perfect. It never got too hot, although Grams thought it was a little too cold at times and almost needed to buy a cloak. We did get a little sprinkled on a couples times but nothing serious. The boys enjoyed looking at expensive weapons and eating turkey legs. The girls enjoyed all the girly things- they made fairy wands, fairy potion, got sprinkled with fairy dust and got henna tattoos. Lucy got a mushroom and Penny got a sea turtle. I even got one- a Christian fish on my wrist. I am just so religious. We also saw the mermaids, and caught pieces of various variety shows, the kids all played a turtle game (which I had to help the girls cheat a bit so that they could finish it), we walked through a viking village and we watched the jousting. It was a good time as always.