Andy & Jessica

When the @reply from Andy’s Twitter feed popped up on the iPad while he was playing a game on it, “Twitter stop bugging me.  I’m just  a 5 year old boy.” 

After I told him, “Jude, I love you so much.  You are so special to me” he just said, “I know, Mom.”

After I told him to throw away a half full can of pop, but then added, “pour it out first.”   He obediently went to the garbage can, poured the pop into the garbage can and then threw the empty can in too.  When I expressed my surprise at what he had done and told him I meant that he should first pour it out in the sink and then throw it away, he said he had wondered why I wanted him to do it like that and then laughed and said, “I was kind of like Amelia Bedelia.”

We had another busy weekend.  On Saturday, we traveled to northern Kentucky, near Cincinnati, to visit the Creation Museum. We were there 3 years ago with our friend from Germany when Jude was just 2 and the other boys didn’t exist. It is a great place to visit. I especially enjoyed visiting the petting zoo where I got to introduce my boys to my old friends, Zonkey (half zebra, half donkey) and Zorse (half zebra, half horse). Jude got to ride a camel with one hump and to hold a really long snake. Levi was terrified when he first saw the animatronic dinosaurs in the museum.  Later in the day he got braver and said, “bwoom, bwoom” while making shooting motions at the dinosaurs.  After the creation museum, we went to the hotel for some swimming.  Andy nailed it when he described Jude as “clingy” and Levi as  a “dare devil.”  Asher takes after Levi and loves the water.  I didn’t put him in his suit since he was sleeping in his car seat when we arrived at the pool, but he kept trying to jump in the pool, fully clothed, after waking up.

On Sunday we spent the day at the Cincinnati zoo.  It was supposed to one of the best in the nation.  It was nice, but not my favorite.  I enjoyed seeing 2 more manatees, but was pretty surprised by how small their tank was.  I wouldn’t want to be that big and crammed in a tank that small.  One of the highlights was watching a Looney Tunes 3D movie, complete with squirts of water, pokes from the back of our chairs and stuff thrown at us at the appropriate times in the movie.  Jude enjoyed it.  Levi was freaked out at first but calmed down and kept his 3D glass on when Andy held him.  Asher enjoyed it, but wouldn’t wear the glasses.

At returning back to Jill’s House, I went to work packing.  We’re so excited to be heading home soon! 

 

Our little Asher turned 1 today.  It’s so hard to believe that our little baby is already walking and practically talking toddler.  We have so many nicknames for him (Asher Basher, Ash, Bobo, Bobz, etc.) that the other day I actually had to stop and think for about a minute as to what his middle name is.  That’s right, he’s Asher Austin. 

I like to think that Asher is about the most loved little boy in the world.  Of course Andy and I are crazy about him (as we are about Jude and Levi), but what’s super special is that his brothers Jude and Levi are also crazy about him.  They are constantly hugging and kissing him and protecting him from himself.  So, he’s one blessed little baby.

Asher celebrated his birthday today by an afternoon trip to the Exotic Feline Rescue Center near Terra Heute, Indiana.  It is a non-profit center that rescues lions, tigers and other exotic felines.  There was just a chain link fence separating the 230 large cats from us.  We were told that Rule #1 is that if we touch the fence, we are kicked out.   It was pretty cool to get just inches away from the amazing felines.  We even had to dodge some tiger pee.  All the animals came with the sad stories of abuse or neglect at the hands of breeders, the circus or individuals who thought it would be cool to own a tiger cub, but then couldn’t take care of it when it got big. 

Now we’re off to pick out a cake or cupcakes for Asher’s birthday party tonight.  If Jude has anything to do with it (and I know he’ll have everything to do with it), Asher will get Angry Birds or super heros.  Jude also suggested that Asher likes what he (Jude) likes so Jude should pick him out something, like a Transformer.  Maybe we’ll let Jude and Levi pick out something small for Asher, but I think the oblivious little boy will just get a generous 529 Plan contribution from us this year.

2 treatments left after today and we can’t be done soon enough.  I sometimes feel like I’m kind of a prisoner at the proton center.  They are always running so late and there is just nothing I can do about it.  It’s not like I can just take my business elsewhere or something.  And, other than that (and the little issue of them waking him up), we are super happy with their services.  Jude’s still holding up well.  The bald portion of his head is really tan and he was a bit nauseous after treatment today, but that’s it.  After treatment today, Jude got a $10 Target gift card, which he has not yet redeemed for a toy.

 

 

3 treatments left after today!  Today’s treatment went just fine but was quite delayed and Jude didn’t get in until noon.  I got a call this morning shortly before we were to leave for his 10:15 a.m. appointment that due to “a computer difficulty” they were running an hour behind.  I thanked them for the information, but was immediately skeptical and annoyed.  I figured they just gave our appointment away to the family that had requested an earlier appointment (when I wouldn’t voluntarily give up the earlier slot).  I soon learned from another Jill’s House resident that there really was a problem with the computer running the proton beam and that it delayed the treatment by an hour.  However, remained skeptical and I think rightly so, since Jude’s treatment was delayed by 1 hour and 45 minutes.  I noticed the proton center snuck a kid who is always immediately after Jude in front of him today, probably hoping I wouldn’t notice since they could hide behind the computer difficulty.  Can’t fool me since I can’t help but overanalyze everything (probably one of the side effects of being an attorney).  However, I didn’t make an issue out of it (except in my own mind).  At least Jude was able to hang out with the other Jude at the proton center while waiting for treatment so I never heard a word about him being hungry/thirsty.  Looking forward to the finish!

29 down, 4 treatments to go after this morning’s treatment. After my chat with the CFO of the proton center yesterday with my suggestion of them buying another bed so that Jude and other patients aren’t rushed out the door, I noticed they made extra efforts to let Jude sleep today. They had the lights half off and even shut the door while he was in the recovery room sleeping. So, Jude slept and slept. After the patient after him was wheeled into the adjacent recovery room, I knew they would be itching for Jude’s bed soon because the 2nd patient after him would need it shortly. The nurse came in Jude’s room several times to get stuff, making noise and probably hoping to wake him up. It didn’t work, to my secret delight. Finally, the nurse told me, “A few more minutes and then we will need the room.” (They only have 2 recovery rooms.)  So, eventually she woke Jude up and we were out of there.  After we were back at Jill’s House for awhile, I got a call from the proton center saying that the older patient scheduled behind Jude tomorrow asked if we would switch appointments with them since they had a physical therapy appointment to juggle.  Jude is scheduled at 10:15 tomorrow (which means 11) and they are scheduled at 11 (which means 12).  I didn’t want Jude to suffer from hunger/thrist any longer than he had to (and I didn’t want to listen to the whining) so I didn’t take the trade.  As my brother would say, I’m “making friends, making friends.”  Andy took the boys to art therapy class at the proton center this afternoon.  The boys had fun.  I’m hoping the boys have inherited their dad’s artistic talent since I have none.  Time will tell.

 

After today’s treatment, we are down to the final 5.  We’ll be done a week from today.  Today’s treatment was a little more interesting than normal.  I’ve been getting a little irritated that the nurses keep waking Jude up before he’s done sleeping that a few treatments ago, I asked why they do that.  The nurse said they needed the bed for the patient who was scheduled 2 patients behind Jude.  In other words, they only have 2 beds and they need to get it cleaned up and ready for the next patient.  Seemed ridiculous to me that they would wake up a kid who needs his rest while undergoing radiation treatments.  So, when I saw the CFO in the hallway today while waiting for Jude to wake up, I pulled him aside and said, “I have a suggestion for you.”  I went on to describe how they should consider investing in another bed so the kids can get the rest they need without getting rushed out the door.  I didn’t get the impression that they were very sympathetic to the circumstances.  It was inadequate explanation after inadequate explanation, but I pretended to be satisfied with the response since I really didn’t want to make waves.  I then saw and heard the CFO and our nurse in the next recovery room over talking about me.  There is a glass wall and glass door separating the 2 recovery rooms and the door was cracked open an inch or so.  The nurse said, “If it were my child or nephew, I wouldn’t want him to sleep more than 10 or 15 minutes.”  But, they didn’t wake him up this time.  Jude kept sleeping and sleeping (and I kept working and working at his bedside).  Then the CFO came in after Jude had been sleeping for about 1-1/2 hours.    Of course I was tempted to tell him in only half jest that while he was at it  to go ahead and order a thicker door to go along with new bed because I just heard what he and the nurse had been saying.  But, I exercised restraint and didn’t.  He said that they had never had a patient like Jude before.  He said that the patients normally wake right up and that they would schedule Jude for a longer appointment so that they don’t have to rush us out the door.  Not that it really matters for us at this point since all appointments have been scheduled for this week and we only have 2 appointments next week.  But, maybe it will help some kid down the road who is like Jude and wants to roll back over and go to bed after the nurse checks him over after getting out of treatment.

As usual we called the proton treatment center before treatment started today to see how they were running.  They said they were running on time, which  of course meant they were running a half hour late.  Not too bad.  After treatment, Jude got a Happy Meal.  27 down, 6 to go.

“Sometimes I make friends that I only play with for like one day.”  [My reaction — how sad is that?  Jude just lives to play with other kids.  It makes me wonder if we’re doing the wrong thing by homeschooling him since I know he’d love to be with kids.  At least he has his brothers.]

His reaction to a large chocolate race car that our friends from Germany sent: “Nummy.  I wish it wasn’t hollow.”

His reaction to learning that one of the parts of his shoe is called a “tongue”:  “Ha!  It’s licking my foot.”

It was a jam-packed weekend.  On Friday night we drove to Louisville, Kentucky.  We arrived a couple hours before the hotel’s pool closed.  Jude, Levi and I went swimming (or, more accurately, I went swimming while they clung to me like newborn monkeys).  We had such a good time.  The boys especially enjoyed jumping into the pool to me.  Levi would go first and, after catching him, I would quickly attach him to my neck and then back up and then Jude would jump to me.  Levi is fearless and, after we had all gotten out of the water to get a drink, he jumped into the pool’s deep end alone.  I quickly jumped in and rescued him and he was barely phased.  Jude is now comfortable in the water but cannot swim (even though just 6 months ago he could swim 10 feet independently at swimming lessons).  I think we’ll need to get Levi  in lessons since he’s a natural and loved practicing kicking and blowing bubbles in the water.

On Saturday, we headed to the Kentucky State Fair.  The most memorable moments were an acrobatics show, a dog trick show, learning I was too young for a free mammogram (yeah!), watching Andy eat a donut burger (with 2 Krispy Kreme doughnuts for the buns) and sampling Andy’s deep fried Kool Aid (which tasted like bad doughnuts).  I also learned at the Skin Cancer booth, to my dismay, that my beloved freckles are skin damage.  So, maybe I should stop wanting a red-headed freckle-faced little girl.

After the fair, we went to Chuck E Cheese’s.  It was the boys’ first time there.  Andy and I had remembered how bad the pizza was when we were there 7 or so years ago so we were a little nervous, but thought we’d give it a shot.  It turns out, they got a new recipe and the pizza it was good, or as Andy would say, “edible.”  We got Jude 35 tokens.  The owner of the store saw Jude and stopped by our table to give Jude 7 free tokens because he has “such a good attitude” (in other words, there are some perks to being a cute boy who is 1/2 bald with a 6 inch scar on his head).   One kid told Jude some stuff including, “Your hair is missing.”  Later his friend came up to me and said, “I’m sorry for what my friend said to yours.”  Jude and Levi had a blast playing games.  We even splurged and spent $1 to let Jude go in the Ticket Blaster booth where he had to wear goggles and try to scoop up/catch as many tickets as he could in 30 seconds.  Andy and I coached him like it was a high stakes event.  We had him tuck in his t-shirt and told him to scoop them off the ground where they like to congregate and stuff them down his shirt for safe keeping.  In the end, the worker told him before he entered the booth not to scoop them off the ground and our this time obedient little boys walked out almost empty handed.

After 4 hours at Chuck E Cheese’s, Jude and Levi and I went swimming again at the hotel.  It was super fun and when we went to sleep Saturday night, it really felt like Sunday night since we’d been so busy.

Today (Sunday) we planned on just going to the Louisville Slugger factory/museum.  Since it didn’t open until noon, I suggested we do a drive by of the home of the Kentucky Derby (Churchhill Downs), which I thought was closed for the season.  I was pleasantly surprised when I learned it was indeed open.  We bought the general admission tour, which wasn’t too impressive.  I sure would have loved to see some horses race.  The boys’ favorite part was sitting on some plastic life sized horses and pretending to be jockies while playing some horse racing video game.  After the tour, Jude and I were in the gift shop and I was planning on buying Jude an argyle-pattered t-shirt with a pair of jockey goggles pressed on it and Levi a t-shirt that said “Hold Your Race Horses.”  But, after Jude used some shelves as his stairs to try to reach some toys on a top shelf and a shelf and all the t-shirts on it came crashing down, we cleaned up the mess and made a quick escape without making any purchases.   Guess he saved me some money.

Then we went to the Louisville Slugger factory/museum.  The boys loved the giant baseball glove made of limestone and taking swings in the batting cage.  We really enjoyed learning how baseball bats are made.  At the end of the tour, we were presented with 5 free mini bats and the tour guide told Jude, “no fighting with it.”  It was as if he had known Jude forever.

After touring the baseball bat factory, we walked around downtown a bit.  I realized how ridiculous I must look toting around my bunch of boys.  I had Asher in the Baby Bjorn and was pushing our sit-n-stand double stroller with Levi in the front and my backpack diaper bag on the back of the stroller and Jude was taking a break from standing on the stroller and was dancing along side me as we walked (Andy was 10 feet in front of us carrying only the camera as usual).  A guy who was pushing one of those jumbo, double wide BOB Revolution strollers actually crashed his stroller with 2 girls loaded in it while gawking at me.  He explained his crash to the people he was with by pointing at me and saying, “She is loaded down.”  Ha!  At least I got a good workout in today pushing around my bundle of boys.

Even after a fun weekend, it was great to get back to Jill’s House.  The boys had fun playing with Sofia from Ukraine and some new friends from Alabama tonight.