Staple in the head

Sweet Z-Bird, that poor child had to get a small staple in his head on Tuesday. Not to worry too much … it’s the kind of staple that is used to bind a laceration, used in place of a stitch or medical glue, and Zeke’s cranium should be completely healed by next week.

It all started when we were getting ready to head to NSC for an omnisphere redo with Miss Christie and her brood. We had attempted to see a movie in the high-resolution domed-projection theater the week before, but it had sold out due to field trips en masse.

(Despite our missing the show, we did, of course, manage to have tons of fun with Asher, Jackson and Piper that day — especially outside in the sunshine with all the cool critters.)

So, Miss Christie and I decided to give the omnisphere another shot, but this time with Miss Jessie in tow. Lunches were packed, bags were stuffed with necessities, and we were ready to roll into town a couple hours pre-showtime as to ensure our ticket purchase.

Why we went to Texas: to see our pal, Ryan, tie the knot with his sweetheart, Amanda.

Miss Jessie was grabbing a few things and I was about to lock up the house when we heard Zeke screeching. By the time we made it out to the driveway, we saw that the back of Zeke’s was bleeding. It wasn’t gushing out, but anytime you see blood coming from your kid’s head or face, it definitely strikes the fear of God in you.

Turns out that Houston had pushed Zeke down and he hit his head on a some gravel. Zeke says “Houston was being mean” and did it on purpose, while Houston maintains his innocence, insisting that “I was helping you and Miss Jessie.” See, the best-behaved boy was going to ride with Jessie, so I’m guessing there was a mad dash for her car that resulted in some overzealous policing on Houston’s part.

I was able to stop the bleeding quickly, which lessened my worries. We sadly headed back inside, I canceled our outing, and Jessie and I proceeded to tend to Zeke’s wound. I used my trimmers to remove hair from around the gash, making it easier to apply medicine and enabling us to get a better look at the short, but deep cut.

I got Zeke in to see Dr. Gay, and she decided a staple would work best. Unfortunately, it took two tries to get one in flush with his head, but Zeke handled the trauma extremely well, as he always does with medical-related stuff. And as of today, our boy with the bald spot is doing just fine, thank the Lord!

The Pasadena boys reunite in Dripping Springs for Ryan’s wedding.

I’m still working on getting my health in working order, most notably healing my crunched-up core and its adverse affects on my left hip most specifically. In fact, I had my first orthopedic appointment last Friday with the physical therapist who gave me that free screening at the Y back in February.

The appointment entailed electro massage (painful), firm hand massage (a little less painful), and a forceful bend/snap of my quadratus lumborum muscle back into place (surprisingly not painful). The orthopedist gave me a regimen of home stretches to do, and then I’ll be going back to see him in a few weeks.

After a two-week hiatus, potty training resumed on 4/18. We are using pull-ups this time around, which has decreased some of the stress and mess. We are also pitting the twins against each other in the hopes that competition will motivate at least one of them to master the life skill. So far, there have been no huge breakthroughs, but things are indeed moving along, albeit very slowly.

There have been other (more enjoyable) things going on, besides medical visits and dealing with pee and poop … like another “date” Stephen and I had a few weeks back. We kicked off the romance with a trip to Costco, while Jessie watched the kids. Yep, lame, I know, but a necessary to-do that we both find more enjoyable when done with the other.

Check out this old married couple! (Click to see part 1 pics from our Texas trip.)

Luckily, the fun didn’t stop there. After unloading the perishables at home, we headed back out to a nearby sports bar for cheap eats, drinks and some adult conversation. It was a nice evening of both business and pleasure.

Similarly, Stephen and I took the kids with us downtown for early voting in the NC primary on 4/20. Once we were done with the errand, we treated our well-behaved “guacamole heads” to Mexican for lunch at an authentic joint they had not been to before.

That night, the kids had soccer practice, which was their first in a while because of time off for Easter and spring break. The next morning, it was team picture day and a game. The twins held their own, and Houston scored the only goal for the Marvels. The 3 Amigos were thrilled that both Mommy and Daddy were there to cheer them on, as well as Miss Jessie and Kaylee.

A couple weeks ago, I stumbled upon my old copy of Charlotte’s Web. (Thanks, Lisa, for passing down these treasures to me and my kids.) On the inside cover, you see my name scribbled in elementary penmanship, along with the name of my first-grade teacher.

The cool find inspired me to read the book to the boys. And despite its lack of pictures, they absolutely love the classic and have even gotten into acting out the story — stellar dramatizations that are replete with pig oinks and squeals.

Gathering @ the Salt Lick w/ some of our favorite Lone Star friends. (Click to see our part 2 photos.)

I was notified earlier this month that Houston wasn’t picked in the lottery drawing for the one charter school in which I was interested. Hes currently 154th on the waiting list.

No worries, though, because I’m increasingly optimistic that I can pull off this homeschooling thing. The book I’m currently reading on what the author calls family schooling is helping me become more confident. Apparently, we’re already doing so much of what needs to be done. Our practice by home-preschooling has readied us for the big leap into official kindergarten instruction.

I don’t have any illusions of grandeur. I know there will be some great days, some awful days, and even days I wonder, “And why did I want to homeschool?!” But I know we can meet the challenges by learning from our mistakes, and repeating and growing upon what works for the kids as individual learners and for the family unit.

I already enjoy the flexibility of homeschooling. For example, when our St. Patrick/Ireland/Viking lesson went a little long due to other curriculum and time restraints, I told Jessie, “We shouldn’t really stress about it. After all, we are not only the teachers, but we are the school administration and the school board. We run the show!”

This Ron Paul portrait, entitled “2012,” was on display in the Austin Airport. Man, you just gotta love Texas!

Likewise, in addition to Mommy, wife, family manager/planner, nurse, housekeeper/chores supervisor, and light gardener/landscaper, I would also include curator in my resume. The boys are so overflowing with creativity and artistic expression that I am constantly changing up their beautiful displays.

Sure, my house looks like a preschool, but I guess it really is. And some of the noted lovely art as of late includes tissue-paper/clothespin butterflies, egg-carton caterpillars, cupcake-liner lillies, popcorn cherry-blossom trees, and origami dogs and foxes.

The latter was from this week’s Japan theme. The dudes like learning about different countries through presentations and activities, but I do believe their favorite part of these lessons is the food.

Just like devouring the meat pie Houston and I made during our Ireland studies, the kids’ Japan highlight was eating a homemade stir-fry and fish feast and drinking tea from saki cups. They say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, well, perhaps the best way to his brain is the very same path.

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