Monthly Archives: September 2023

We are settling into being back to school and re-establishing our routines. This week was our 2nd week of school and swimming, and we are all adjusting to being back to “normal”. As expected with back to school, Gussie brought home the sniffles, which I caught, and then by the end of the week passed onto Xander. Gussie was over them quickly, I had 2 days of not feeling great, Xander stayed home from school on Friday. Hopefully that’s it for sickness for a while. Years of being sick from daycare should have bought our family some health at this age….

Gussie has been wearing his patch regularly- with or without special pirate activities. We did have a special pirate dinner on night- I used food coloring markers to draw pirate maps on quesadillas, gold luster dust to make golden oreos and special skull shaped cups.

The boys tried taking school lunch on Tuesday and it didn’t go very well. They were very spoiled last year and it’s a hard change. I actually think once they settle into school and are more comfortable, school lunch might not be such a big deal. But for now, I’ve been making their lunch every day. We tried french toast sticks, eggs, sausage and fruit- “breakfast for lunch”, chicken nuggets, sushi, and mini-meatloafs. The containers I bought work pretty well at keeping food warm. I fill them with boiling water for about 10 minutes, dry them out and put the hot food in them. The boys tell me their lunch is hot, so I will continue to experiment.

The boys had swim practice on Tuesday and Thursday nights. They both really enjoy it and they are getting faster and faster. It’s really fun to watch them grow every week.

On Friday, Nate went golfing at a course he has wanted to play on for a long time. He played well and despite a rainy morning, the weather cooperated. He had a great day. Xander stayed home from school sick and spent the whole day resting. Unfortunately that meant he didn’t get to take part in the mini meet for swimming that evening. They swam relays and it was a really fun, causal event. Augustus swam with the other little ones and then there was a relay with 2 little guys and 2 big kids (15 or 16 year olds). At the end of the event, there were just teens left- a bunch of big boys and Gussie hanging out with them chatting away. All of a sudden, it looked like he was going to jump in the pool during the relay. But it was all teenagers, so of course not…. but this is Augustus we are talking about, so he jumped in and swam in a relay with 3 16 year olds. When he finished, we said, “what happened?!” He said, “oh, one of the guys forgot his goggles, so they said I should fill in.” I don’t know where this little baby gets his confidence, but he is unstoppable.

On Saturday, we woke up and got ready for our camping trip!

One of the articles I wrote for the upcoming magazine (dropping Oct 2!) was about Camp Icaghowan’s treehouses and I found out that not only do camper groups stay overnight in them, but other people can rent them out! I wanted to sleep in a treehouse! We didn’t tell the boys we were going to a treehouse, just that we were going to go camping for a night at a camp.

me- “On Saturday, we are going camping! It is going to be so fun! We’re going to cook over the fire and run around the woods!”

X- “Why?” (teenage angsty face)

me- “Because it’s fun!”

X- “Maybe you should go with some of your buds.”

Gus- “Is there wifi there?”

me- “You’re my best buds and we’re going as a family and it’s gonna be awesome.”

X- (under his breath) “this doesn’t sound fun.”

When we arrived at camp, we checked in and followed the director through the woods, driving past the other treehouse. Both boys were so excited and said, “OH! A treehouse! Can we go in it?!” Nate and I both said, “no, I don’t think so” and we kept driving (it was so mean). But one minute later, we arrived at the bigger treehouse and oh! Their faces were amazing. Did I have my camera ready? No. I was swept into the moment of Xander’s face lighting up, and Gussie yelling “whoa!” and both of them losing their minds when I said, “here’s where we are going to stay!” They jumped out of the van and ran to the treehouse, climbing the rope and jumping and exploring their whole thing. It was so fun and so exciting! Xander kept saying, “I can’t believe this!”

We got the air mattresses blown up and beds made, unpacked and set up. I handed the boys swords and let them go free in the woods. I sat quietly and relaxed and played with my watercolors. Nate took a nap. It was so relaxing.

Then it was time for exploring. We walked all over camp, stopping every time the boys said, “I want to climb on top of those logs” or “oh look, a mushroom” or “can I throw a rock at that tree?” We found the archery range and used rocks and sticks for target practice. We played basketball. We climbed on the bouldering wall. We spent a lot of time in the skychairs- Nate and I relaxing, the boys spinning and swinging and kicking each other. We explored the other treehouse and walked all around camp.

When we got back to the treehouse, we ate snacks and played in the woods. Xander claims he’s an indoor kid, but he was so content to climb up and down the rope on the treehouse, explore, get very dirty, pee in the woods, and help with the fire, so maybe there’s a little outdoorsman in him after all.

The boys spent about 45 minutes collecting and smashing acorns, organizing them, peeling them apart. It was one of those magical kid activities that makes no sense and wasn’t planned, but is, for some reason, captivating. I love to plan activities for my kids, but whenever they find something to entertain themselves with, I am careful to stay out of their way. Nate and I were both sitting around the campfire chatting and chatting with them. But they were completely engrossed in their activity without any guidance or intervention from us. I love to watch them create and explore and work together and come up with ideas.

Dinner was hot dogs over the fire- Xander claimed they were the best hot dogs he’d ever had. We had fruit and veggies and snacks and afterwards, made cherry pies. Nate was skeptical, but they were delicious!

We played yahzee by headlamp and then snuggled into our beds. The treehouse didn’t have electricity, but we had a very bright lantern and lots of flashlights. The enclosed part of the treehouse was small, but still, at bedtime, the boys were a little nervous. So instead of sleeping next to Nate in our very comfortable queen sized bed, I pushed the two twin mattresses together and slept on the edge of Augustus’s air mattress, part of my butt on Xander’s mattress, with my arm over Xander. Luckily I only needed the 6 inches of space I had to squeeze into for a snuggly night of sleep.

We were up with the sun this morning. Xander helped me re-start the fire and then we cooked french toast and sausage for breakfast. We went back to main camp for more bouldering and sky chair time. I had a chance to chat with the executive director and 2 of the camp board members who were with her. They have a lot of exciting plans for the months ahead and I’m excited to be involved!

We packed up our gear and headed home- Nate and Xander both rated the overnight a 7, I gave it an 8, Augustus gave it a 10. It was a really fantastic little getaway.

Week #3 of school and swimming are ahead!

It was the first week of school and we are off and running!

Xander started 2nd grade and Augustus started in kindergarten! We took photos at home and then I attempted to take a photo in front of the school sign and my 6-going-on-16 year old said, “we already did this!” …Ok cool kid.

When we got to school, we dropped Augustus off at his classroom first. I said, “give me a hug and a kiss” and he gave me a LOOK. So I said, “or a high five” and he high fived me and went into his classroom without a second look! We dropped off Xander and as we were walking out, there was a mom sobbing in the hallway. I thought, “kindergarten mom!” and then I thought, “wait, I’m a kindergarten mom! Am I supposed to be crying?!” I was imagining spraying champagne bottles everywhere like a winning race car driver.

The boys are at a new school this year. MPA was a great school and had a great 2 years. But the drive got to be a lot and the tuition was outrageous and while there was a lot of good, the vibe wasn’t quite us. It just didn’t feel like the right fit. We found a school that is 5 minutes away from our house. The class sizes are small and tuition is FREE. This is an outdoor education focused charter school- kids have one hour per day of outdoor ed, plus recess. The curriculum is play-based and child-led and so very in line with summer camp. I could talk for hours about how much I believe in this type of learning style. I didn’t the boys to have to change schools and leave their friends, but I think this is such a good switch. I am very hopeful about the change.

The first day was ok. Both boys came home complaining about the school lunch. “The chef is awful“. Well sweet boys, that is because there is not a chef- the lunches are catered and re-heated. I was very excited about free school lunch, but thus far, I’ve been packing lunches each day.

They are adjusting and exhausted and we’re easing in. Week 1= pretty much how I expected.

Tuesday night was our first swim practice. I was not thrilled that the first day of school and the first day of swim practice were the same day- that felt like a LOT, but the boys were amazing. They went to school and after dinner were ready to swim hard! The boys will swim Tuesdays and Thursdays and it’s a lot and I’m a little nervous about it, but they both seem to like it so far. So we’ll see how it goes.

On Wednesday, Gussie’s new glasses arrived. He was very excited to pick them up and very impressed by the “fancy” case. Together, Gussie’s eyes work great- his vision is clear. It is only the left eye that is an issue. So whether he has the glasses on or not, he sees the same. Which means that once the novelty wore off (after a day), convincing him to wear the glasses has been tricky. In the long run, wearing the glasses (plus patching) should make his left eye stronger, but right now, the glasses have been a bit of a battle.

Pirate time began on Monday (as I described in the last blog). He needs to wear the patch for 30 minutes a day to exercise his optic nerve. I am trying to make it fun. Every time he completes pirate time, he gets a piece of treasure that he can use to buy prizes from my prize box.

The patch annoys him, his glasses annoy him. Xander is jealous of pirate time and thinks it’s unfair Gussie gets to earn prizes. Gussie is obsessed with the rewards attached to pirate time. I am concerned that I am somehow messing both boys up. Am I supposed to shake my fist at him and tell him, “wear the patch… or else!…” That’s not exactly my style of parenting. Thus far, I am hustling to create daily “pirate time” activities that are fun, but not too fun, include both kids, and keep him busy while he wears the patch. It’s going to be a journey. We played pirate bingo with Sam and Abby (winner of each round got a skull shaped ring pop). We had tv time and “walk the plank” after school snack- graham cracker planks, swedish fish swimming in blue jello, and plank-walking pirates made of (the target was a ship wheel surrounded by pirate swords). We played pirate themed memory.

He is getting more and more used to wearing the patch and his glasses. So hopefully it will get a little easier as we continue. That, or I will need to have 360 more pirate-themed activities up my sleeve…

On Friday, we had a neighborhood pizza party to celebrate the first week of school. Melissa and Kelly are both teachers, so we had a lot of back to schoolers! We gathered in Melissa and Aaron’s backyard for pizza, drinks, kids playing, grown ups relaxing and gorgeous weather. What a way to end the week!

On Saturday, we slept late and relaxed all morning. Then we headed to Sarah and Grayson’s house for the Iowa/Iowa State game. There were SO many amazing snacks and good food. There was a kids vs. dads dodgeball game. The kids played incredibly nicely. The weather was gorgeous. Iowa won. We laughed nonstop. It was a perfect day. I wish we could get together with this group more often- it was just so wonderful.

Today was a low-key day. The boys played. I grocery shopped. Nate did so much laundry. We are rested and ready for week #2!

And that, my friends, concludes 12 weeks of summer fun. I am wiped out. It’s been a blast. I love the summer so much and I don’t want it to be over. But also, we need to get back into a routine, our children need to socialize with other kids and adults, they need to be challenged in different ways and it is time for school!

This final week of summer wasn’t exceptional, but it was a respectable final week of a summer of nonstop fun. On Monday, Nanny Shyanna was out of town, so I took them to a nearby park that had 2 entirely separate playgrounds with a wading pool in between. We were there the entire morning. The weather was lovely and Gussie made severarl friends that kept him busy the whole time.

On Wednesday, Shyanna took them back to the skate park, which they loved. In the afternoon, Augustus and I went to the ophthalmologist to have his eyes tested. We’ve never noticed an issue before, but the early childhood screening, and a second screening at the State Fair both indicated that he needed to be checked out.

On Thursday, Grandma Debbie took the boys to Como Town where they rode unlimited rides and ate a lot of snacks. One of these days, I’m going to leave them at home and go in their place, because Grandma knows how to have a good time!

Thursday night was back to school night where we got to meet the boys’ teachers and see their classrooms. On Friday, we had one on one meetings with the teachers. Both boys are very excited for school to start and their teachers both seem awesome!

On Friday afternoon, my CYC camp besties Shayla, Meghan, Abby, and Abby’s friend Sarah all traveled (Indiana, Illinois and Iowa) to my house to load up in the party van and head to Unglued Summer Camp. Unglued is one of my most favorite weekends of every year!

Friday-Sunday, it is an intense weekend of crafting, relaxing, reminiscing about our days together at camp, a fierce color war camp battle, a rocking dance party, 4 different specific craft sessions, cabin life (top bunk for me every year), swimming, laughing, amazing food, fancy drinks with every meal, snacks, and so much camp swag. It is amazing. I am counting down until next year already.

Random story from on the way- I’ve been known to have a little bit of a lead foot, so it wasn’t a surprise to anyone when I got pulled over. The officer was very nice, but was absolutely about to lecture me when he stopped mid sentence, stuck his head all the way inside my window and said, “what… what is happening in here?” Apparently he wasn’t expecting a van load of moms with a lot of luggage. My party van passengers all helpfully yelled, “grown up craft camp! Moms’ weekend!” He said, “ooooookkkk?…” And walked back to his car. He returned a few minutes later with just a warning and a short lecture to do better. Yes sir. But seriously, who can drive slowly when you’re trying to get to craft camp?!

While I was away, Nate took the boys for back to school haircuts, and then the boys had a slumber party with Grandma on Saturday night. Nate had a night to himself and golf on Sunday morning. So really, all of us had a great weekend!

Today was the last official day of summer. It was a low key day and that’s and ok way to end. It is ridiculously hot outside, so we stayed in most of the day. The boys had screen time, organized pokemon cards, played with Sam and Abby, and we went out for after-dinner ice cream. We laid out backpacks and water bottles and new shoes. We’re ready for tomorrow.

We also had our first “pirate time” and it was a success. At the ophthalmologist, we discovered that Augustus’s right eye is basically normal vision, but his left eye is BAD. Like, the letters were about 6 inches before he could make them out. And so our baby is getting glasses (they have been ordered and we are waiting for them to come). But glasses are not enough, we need to strengthen his left optic nerve, and so for 30 minutes a day, he has to wear a patch over his good eye.

I immediately decided we were going to call this time of day Pirate Time and it was going to be fun and exciting. He was excited about the new patches and this morning, he said, “let’s do pirate time!” But, as I 100% knew the moment the doctor told us about the patching, when I attempted to put it on his face, he burst into tears and refused… Way ahead of you dude, I was already expecting that reaction. I let the issue drop and said we’d try again later. That was first thing in the morning and I needed a little time to prepare.

I have been pinning pirate themed activities and figure I just need 365 unique fun pirate themed activities to get us though the year. No problem. This is gonna be fun and magical and we’re gonna get that eye strong and everyone is going to be happy.

Pirate time #1- I printed out 24 small pirate symbols and attached them to bright post its and hid them all over the house. I introduced the activity and for each completed activity (and 30 minutes of patch time), he will earn a gold coin. He will get to use the gold coins to “purchase” prizes from my prize bucket.

He was very excited once he knew the activity and about the prizes. He let me put them patch on him and he was excited to hunt for symbols. I was a little disheartened to see that it was NOT easy for him to see with just that eye, but he was a trooper and enjoyed himself and made it the 30 minutes. One down, 364 to go.

And that concludes summer 2023. Bring on the school year. Kindergarten and 2nd grade here we come!