Sat. 2/3--Karcyn and I signed up for a Fun Run 5K at her intermediate school. I thought it would be "fun" for me and her to do this together. More importantly, I wanted her to have the experience of doing something hard and to learn it's not about winning. It's about staying the course and finishing. HOUGHS CAN DO HARD THINGS!
It's been a long time since I've participated in any kind of "run." So I probably wouldn't be much faster than her. She's jogged a mile around the neighborhood before without stopping, but that's it. The day of the run, we woke up to hard rain and cold temperatures. Man, running in nice weather is not especially pleasant. I certainly didn't want to run in the cold rain. Yuck. I thought I left this Portland weather behind! I prayed we'd get an update that it had been canceled. We did not. Dang. We were committed.
Our BEFORE pics.
As we began our third and final lap, Karcyn and I were some of the last runners on the course. A few minutes into it, there was a girl that came up and said hi to Karcyn. She had already passed us a couple of times, more or less dancing circles around us. She didn't seem too serious about the run--she was having fun. :) I don't know how this girl knew Karcyn, but she ended up staying alongside Karcyn so she wouldn't have to trudge the rest of the way alone.
Calvin having creative fun with his pretzels.
Monday, 2/5 at 6:50am--Calvin reading the Book of Mormon stories to JJ before they leave for the bus stop.
2/6--I started volunteering at the elementary school library. I really enjoy reshelving. I applied to be a substitute teacher, but the orientation for that was always during a time I couldn't be there (usually after school) so I'm not sure when that will happen.
I also volunteer each week in JJ's Kindergarten class. When I showed up one day, she told me a funny story. She called on him to answer a question, "Yes, JJ?" to which he responded, "The name is Jared." :) We had no idea he wanted to be called Jared. He started to write Jared on some of his papers, but for the most part, it's still JJ.
I just realized I am a mom to students in jazz band, high school choir and orchestra. Can't span the musical arts any better than that!!
2/7--Karcyn came home and said she cheated on her math test. I was stunned. Learning comes pretty naturally to her. I don't know why she'd feel like she needs to cheat. But I was grateful she was so forthright in admitting it. She said she didn't know why she did it. She was using a calculator on her lap. The teacher caught her and was deducting 5 points from her test grade. I told Karcyn she was darn lucky she didn't get a zero on it. This just doesn't sound like Karcyn at all. She has never been affected by her grades. Hopefully it was just a "moment."
Cooper trying out the elasticity of the mat. It's pretty bouncy!
Jake just hanging out on the rock wall.
Now it's Cooper versus JJ.
Face first.
JJ seeking protection behind Jared.
Jared was tired when he woke up the next morning (haha!). As he was making his hot chocolate, he added the cinnamon like he usually does, but he told me that something seemed and smelled amiss. After retracing his steps, he realized he added cumin not cinnamon!
This is a picture of the kids watching the Altitude videos we captured after church the next day.
Jake playing around with JJ before going to a church meeting.
Mon. 2/12-- Karcyn brought home a packet of papers. She had been nominated for Gifted and Talented by her teachers at school. I was actually really surprised. She gets great grades, but she's going into 7th grade...when it's a lot harder to qualify for Gifted and Talented. I guess I don't see her everyday compared to her peers. This is her first nomination and I was proud of her for standing out that way in school. I don't expect her to make it (none of my kids have) but it was enlightening to see her from the perspective of her teachers.
Tues. 2/13--This was Jared's last day working at the express care in Brenham. He was being moved up to Bryan. Finally!!! No more nasty commute. Jared is NOT, I repeat, NOT a hugger of people outside our family, but the girls at the office completely ambushed him. Haha!!
Wed. 2/14--This is the inside of my washing machine drum. This is what happens when you wash a book that was in a certain child's laundry basket and they just dumped the contents of the basket in to the washer without checking.
JJ's note to her (transcribed by Jake). But JJ drew, colored and labeled the picture himself.
Cooper's note.
Calvin's reluctant note.
Walking to Nothing Bundt Cake to get a Gluten Free Chocolate Chip cake for Sis.
This was what I found when I went to tuck Karcyn in later that night. ;)
Thurs. 2/15--Cooper "licensed to drive" with his permit. Oi.
Karcyn auditioned for the school musical "Peter Pan, Jr." mostly for experience. There was only 1 Wendy and many kids tried out. She's great at memorization and can definitely project her voice. She didn't make it, but good for her for trying!! My kids have more guts than I did at their age.
Later that night, Jake had his mission interview with President Sharp. Turns out he was missing my signature, so I drove back to the church (just having returned home from my own temple recommend renewal interview) so I could sign it. Which felt very similar to when Jake tried to get his Eagle paperwork approved, but was deficient a signature. I waited while he was in his interview for 90+ minutes. When he and President Sharp came out, Pres. Sharp said Jake was born to be a missionary and what he (Pres.) loves most is that Jake wants to go on a mission for all the right reasons. Our former 1st counselor in the bishopric (Bro. Hickson) was talking with us, too, and he said he thinks that Jake will serve in a branch somewhere since he can play the piano and lead with the priesthood. "He's got all the right skills." The button pushing date to submit Jake's papers is 2/21! Jake and I walked out of the church building together and I took the time to ask him why he wanted to serve a mission. Jake said it's because HE knows that it's right--to the very core of his soul and wants to share that with others and help them make the connection--because it will be familiar to those who are prepared because their spirits are recognizing truth. Right at that moment Jake spotted a shooting star behind me. And he made a wish. :) I caught the last two seconds of it.
Fri. 2/16--Jared flew to Arizona the third weekend in February. His sister's youngest daughter Karyana was getting baptized. But her dad couldn't do it and Grandpa Hough isn't with us anymore. So Jared stepped into that role. It was his honor of course. It was a doubly good weekend, because Jared just happened to ordain Nicole's oldest son, Daniel, to the priesthood on Sunday as well.
Mon. 2/19--Our A/C kicked on upstairs at 6pm because it was 79 degrees!
Tues. 2/20--Calvin got to enjoy an evening with reptiles at scouts!!
Wed. 2/21--It was freezing cold at 34 degrees and there were thunderstorms as the cold front blew in. Texas weather can be unpredictable in the fall and winter. But you can count on blazing heat in the spring and summer!
Meanwhile, back in College Station, I got a call from JJ's teacher that Friday afternoon. She said that JJ had thrown up at school. The nurse couldn't reach me with the school phone so Mrs. Neidig tried calling on her cell. Apparently, JJ felt it coming on and made it to the garbage can. (As a former teacher, I'm so grateful my own child could do his teacher a favor by making it to the garbage can before getting sick!) He was out cold, sleeping, on the cot in the nurse's office when I got there to pick him up. I took an empty ice cream bucket with me just in case. It had been about twenty or thirty minutes since he had gotten sick (around noon) and it was only about a five minute drive home. As we entered the neighborhood, though, he threw up again. I'm so grateful I grabbed the bucket! I gave him some zofran and had him lay down on my bed so I could keep an eye on him. As is the routine, I starved the virus of all liquids and food, but this poor kid threw up once every hour or so for eight hours. Zofran didn't touch it. He started feeling marginally better that night so we (he) watched a lot of cartoons between 9-11pm. I dozed off and on with an uneasy, heightened sense of my own stomach and wondered about every little gurgle and movement I felt. I didn't eat anything myself since picking up JJ...just to be on the safe side.
A few hours later at 3:30am, Jake wandered into my room. I startled awake and asked, "Are you okay??" He said, "Yeah, I'm fine, but Cooper's puking his guts out." Lovely. So upstairs I went on this never-ending day and night. Fortunately, he had one of my bowls by his bed for who knows what reason, but at this point, I was super grateful he hadn't cleaned up the growing pile of stuff by his bed. His vomit was brown though. Which made me a little concerned. I would have to ask Jared about that when he contacted me. I cleaned out Cooper's bowl, got him zofran and told him to just rest. No eating, no drinking. I checked in on Calvin while I was up there. He said he had thrown up three more times. And it fit the pattern--about once an hour.
This was Cooper later on Saturday when he decided to join the living. Each of these boys threw up every hour for eight hours. We have never had such a volatile bug that hit us that close together. I wasn't convinced the rest of us were spared. I just waited. And kept my own stomach empty. I did tell Cooper I was worried about the color of his vomit. We hadn't eaten anything that color and I worried about dried blood or something worse. After a few moments, Cooper said he probably knew why it was that color. He decided to pour some of the Hershey's chocolate syrup into his mouth and drink it earlier that night. Yup. That would explain it!
Jared got home late Saturday night, thankfully! Though, since he was gone, I could have my own little nurse's room, so that was handy. I was supposed to visit the Brenham branch as the 2nd Counselor in the Stake Relief Society on Sunday, 2/25. Karcyn was starting to feel puny, so all the kids, except Jake stayed home. Jake and Jared went to our ward (though Jared went home after Sacrament meeting) and I went to Brenham. Karcyn complained of cramps in her gut. The location of her pain indicated it wasn't her stomach. She was almost 12 years old and Jared wondered if perhaps she was getting menstrual cramps. Those weren't completely out of the question, but considering our wonderful weekend, I highly doubted it. Before he went to church, Jared gave her some motrin and a heating pad. When he got home she said she was feeling a lot better. Maybe they were cramps.
But at dinner, she wouldn't eat. And she looked kind of pale. We told her to go lay down so she did. We went up to check on her. She was on the floor reading a book when we found her, said she couldn't sleep because she hurt too much. Jared had her get on the bed so he could examine her. He pressed on her abdomen in several places. The one spot that was extremely sensitive was the lower right side--the same area as your appendix. And it wasn't so much when he pressed down. It was when he let up that it was painful for her. "Rebound pain." She didn't have a fever, but that wasn't a deal breaker. If it was her appendix, we really needed to know that. So I got ready to take her to the ER that night. I packed a bag for me with some overnight things and materials to read and work on. I put a few things in there for Karcyn. She got her shoes on. We said a family prayer. And she and I started walking toward the front door. I just happened to turn around and her face was sheet white. Without even thinking I asked, "Are you going to be sick?" She said yes. I quickly pushed her towards the half bathroom toilet just in front of me and she had barely gotten the lid up when she threw up and filled that toilet bowl. Eck. Well, the good news was--we wouldn't need to go to the ER! And amazingly enough, Karcyn just threw up the one time. Thank goodness for small miracles. That is the nastiest bug our family has ever had. It hit hard, but was over fairly quick. I'm glad it didn't drag out over two to three weeks. Jared, Jake and I never got it.
Tues. 2/27--Blue and Gold Cub Scout Pack meeting and cake decorating. This design was all Calvin's idea for the "space" theme. I thought it was very creative.
Sadly, I was so concerned about getting everything ready for the Blue and Gold (and being there alone with the kids) that I COMPLETELY spaced that it was Karcyn's last day with the Activity Day Girls. *sigh*
Wed. 2/28--Cooper performed in a quintet at the Solo/Ensemble competition in Bryan. They earned a 1 rating and are going to State!!! He was asked to participate in a group with four other students...two juniors and two seniors. He was the only freshman and only tenor! They were asked to come to the competition in their Sunday best. Cooper was in his suit and tie. One of the other young men saw Cooper. He was wearing some dockers, loafers and a hooded shirt. He jokingly smirked and said, "Thanks a lot for showing all of us up, Cooper." Then he opened his hands up in Cooper's direction and acknowledged, "Mormon Sunday dress" then pointed to himself saying, "Baptist Sunday dress." Haha! We all got a kick out of that.
New Beginnings in Young Women. All the incoming Beehives (12 year olds) were invited to attend. (Karcyn's birthday was just two weeks away). Three of the four girls were originally from the CS3 ward before we were realigned into the CS1 ward.
Just a great reminder!!
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