And July takes off in full force...with chicken pox

We got the chicken pox at our house. The older 4 kids already had them all at once years ago, so only Penelope and Sebastian need take a turn this time. Penelope had a easy time of it. She calls them 'bug bites.' She didn't even get a pox on her face! And only 1 that I could find on her head. She mostly got them on her backside. Sebastian is still in the throws of a high fever and hasn't broken out yet. Poor little guy. He's resting in the crook of my arm right now dazing in and out of reality. I do give fever reducers, just not continuously. I usually give it only if they can't get comfortable. It's also amazing how much you can reduce a fever by cool rags and a light fan in the room.

The older kids recently finished a 3 part art class at the library. Over the past week Ricky had a birthday, cousin Echo came to town, we lit fireworks, we went to six flags, we watched some family themed movies, we had a nice cool rain storm and unseasonably cool days, and we also ate lots of ice cream and homemade apple pie. Ricky took a few days off work so he actually was home 5 days in a row. Now that it's Monday it sure is hard to get back into the swing of things. Oh wait... was I ever in the swing...?

The older kids are at their theatre camp this week (with their cousin). Luckily I have wonderful family taking them to and from the majority of the camp so I don't have to go out with sick kids. Sebastian seems miserable. It's going to be a long day. A long week. I have a mountain of things to tend to. Really.

I can't wait for Charlotte to call and tell me how camp was today. I told her, "I want the full, full, full report."

Science, Art, and the Bead Incident

THE BEAD STUCK IN THE EAR
Last week was interrupted with a bead that got stuck in Ethan's ear. Sage "accidentally" dropped it in his ear (they had been playing and throwing the beads). It did not hurt or bother Ethan, and the bead was clearly visible. We tried for 6 hours to retrieve it the first night before giving up. The next morning I called three hospitals and two doctors offices trying to make the right decision about where to take him. All but one place told me to take him to the ER. I wasn't convinced that the emergency room was appropriate action. It wasn't an emergency first of all, second who wants to go sit in the ER, third I don't want just any on call doctor digging in my kids ear (I had done enough digging already haha)! The children's hospital in St Louis suggested I contact a ear, nose, and throat specialist. Ah, brilliant! So we made him and appointment ASAP which actually coincided with my 30th birthday (at 8am in the morning no less)! What are the chances? I told Ethan I'd surely always remember what I did on my 30th birthday now! The specialist was nicer than we could have ever hoped for. We were in the exam room for all of about 7 minutes. She had the lighting, special tools, and skills that we lacked. She painlessly removed the bead with a smile and we were on our way. What we couldn't achieve in 2 days, she did in no time at all. Thank you specialists!

SCIENCE WITH DAD
Tonight at the dinner table the kids brought up and discussed the following; oxygen, hydrogen, iron, copper, zinc, the periodic table of elements, flammable elements, the basics of space travel, space craft construction and the use of asbestos. They learn a lot of things from http://www.brainpop.com/ and then discuss them with us and we fill in the blanks. I just love when they bring up so much science and social studies out of the blue, and they do it all the time.

ART
The kids have been playing with modeling clay and sculpey a lot. Charlotte made a fairy from sculpey and we baked it. Everyday the kids have been getting clay out. Even Penelope gets in on the fun.

SHOWS
On my birthday (after bead extraction took place) we saw a fun show of visual comedy which included some magic, juggling, imagination, and hilarity. Watching the kids laughing was as much fun as the show. Then we ate a late lunch and picked up a luscious ice cream cake.