Cousin Hayden

Thanksgiving of 2011 John, Virginia, and I (Horatio was in utero) went to Jacksonville and stayed with John's grandmother. Other family members made the trip as well and John has even more family also in Jacksonville.

There Virginia met Hayden, John's cousin. He is a few years older than Virginia but he really enjoyed playing with her. He would read to her or build things for her to knock down. The age difference didn't bother him.

One of the last days we were there we got back from a walk on the beach and Hayden had come over to play again.

On this trip I had begun to feel tired and a little overwhelmed. Even though the adult-to-child ratio was much greater in the house than it usually was when we were at home, somehow watching Virginia seemed harder. There were things she shouldn't touch. Someone always had to be near her, whereas at home I was comfortable with her walking between rooms on her own. And, as on any vacation, there was a lot of waiting around time. You know, maybe I don't want Virginia to take out a million toys just now because we might all be leaving for lunch soon. But when you are waiting for several people to get ready, you don't know how long the wait will really be. And kids don't like to do nothing.

So I was tired and it was hard and after we got back from the beach I told Virginia to get in the shower with me because we were both covered in sand. When we got out it was almost time for Hayden to go. He and Virginia both seemed disappointed that they wouldn't really get to play again. I was a little sorry, but mostly thought that doing what was best for me in that moment was still ultimately the best thing to do.

Last year Hayden's mother died. We were back in Jacksonville in spring of 2013 and he and Virginia got to play together again, but it wasn't the same. A light had gone out of him - understandably so. I began to feel worse about not letting them play together that day. I had had an opportunity to bring more joy to his life and I had been selfish instead.

Earlier this week Hayden stopped breathing due to an asthma attack. He also had a cold. The doctors do not know how long he went without breathing. He is in a coma and things are not looking positive right now. I really wish he and Virginia could play one more time.

We love you, Hayden.

***UPDATE***

Probably around the same time I was writing this Hayden was being declared legally dead. I don't know when exactly he died or when life support was ended. His family has donated his organs.

Old-Timey

In a third-grade class today I mentioned gameboys. One of my students came up to me afterwards and said, "Just one question, what is a gameboy?"
"Oh!" I said, genuinely surprised that gaming technology from my adolescence is now unheard of. "You know, like a hand-held video game."
Another student added, "Like a DS."
"Yes," I said, "Like a Nintendo DS."
She said, "Okay, good. This book I'm reading also talks about gameboys. It is kind of an old-timey book. I'm glad I know what they are now."

Second Summer Adventure

After only about a week and a half back at home, we set out on a second road trip on the last day of July.

We were headed to the National Storytelling Conference, which was held in Richmond, Virginia this year. Having so much to do during our days at home, we did not dedicate an entire day to the drive. Instead of waking up early and getting it over with, as we had for most of the drives on our last trip, we planned to leave after John's work was done for the day and arrive late.

A little north of Charlotte, North Carolina the digital readout on the dashboard alerted me to the fact that one of our tires was losing air. I got off the interstate, found a gas station, and called OnStar. They sent road-side assistance to put on our spare, but they couldn't fix the flat tire. By that time at night, we couldn't find any place in a 40 mile radius that would fix the tire. So, we were forced to change plans and stay in a nearby hotel. In the morning John got the tire fixed and we drove on to Richmond.

As for the conference, I found all the workshops informative and storytelling enjoyable. I met lots of great people, who were quite friendly and easy to talk to.

I gave my long-awaited fringe performance. Feels good to have it completed and completed well!

Now we are all back home, getting into new routines with work and school (daycare). I'm back in the real world. But I hope some of the storytelling magic of the summer will carry over!

Vacation in the North

Before I can tell you about the storytelling conference I'd better write a post about our July vacation!

On our drive up to Buffalo in early July our first stop was a McDonald's with a play place for breakfast. Virginia got a rash all over her arms and legs after playing here that she had for the rest of the trip. Boo!

We spent the night in Cleveland to break up the drive a little bit. Horatio found a ball.

We were in Buffalo for my cousin Ben's wedding. Horatio dressed as a young Doctor Who. 

And my children love dancing. Especially with Aunt 'Manda! We stayed at the reception until Horatio fell asleep in my arms. 

We went to the butterfly conservatory on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. Uncle Tony attracted a butterfly!

My boys on the Niagara shuttle.

And, of course, the Falls themselves!

That is a baby toddler on my back trying not to get too wet. 

After Buffalo, we went to London, Ontario to visit my friend Amy and her family. Horatio had a "ball" at the indoor playground. There was a heat advisory in effect, which meant we had to be careful about spending time outside. It was 86 degrees. ;)

From there we drove to Philadelphia to spend time with the Foremans! It really was hot in Philly, so we spent outside time getting wet. 

All the cousins!

Painting. (Aunt Mary knows how to entertain children!)

Funny story from Philadelphia: Virginia and Horatio shared a room. Virginia was on the bed, and Horatio was on a trundle bed on the ground. One night, Virginia fell out of bed onto him! He had a hard time sleeping after we came home and I had to wonder if it was because his worst nightmares had been confirmed. There was a monster in the night trying to get him!