Well, today was the day that was supposed to be equal parts fun and work for me, but it turned in to almost all pain. It started out well and as planned, I started going threw the stuff i still have at Mom’s to decide what I was bringing home and what I was getting rid of, turned out there was more than I thought there was. I thought everything went fine, even got rid of some things that I realized I didn’t need, then I jumped in the shower to clean up for the family picnic and when I reached to adjust the shower head my back went out. Apparently I moved something wrong and that last reach for the shower head was all it took. How awesome is that? Second day of my vacation and now I’m in a lot of pain. Oh well. Pushed threw to the family picnic, it went really well and it was great to see everyone again. After the picnic we took Kylie and Tyler to the playground, watching them run around and play was great!
Uncle Sonny’s Camp
We weren’t sure if we were going to be able to pull this one off due to the shortness of our visit, but man am I glad we did! Because we arrived earlier than planned we were able to go up to Uncle Sonny’s camp ground tonight and listen to some live music, sit by a fire, and spend time with a lot of family and really nice people. This is the second time that Daddy and Melissa have been up to camp, having come out briefly last year for another event, and I have to admit that if I lived out here I would be spending a lot of time up at camp with everyone! Kylie was playing with her cousin Shauna for a while but then found some new friends closer to her own age to play with, she really does make friends quickly! It was actually really kind of cute, one second Shauna and her boyfriend Mike were playing with Kylie, the next they were sitting on a piece of play ground equipment while Kylie was off playing with other kids. Then all of a sudden Shauna and Mike were back, and Kylie was still playing with the kids, I looked at Shauna and she said “Kylie said I could go now because she was playing with her friends.” It was a great night and I really wish we could do it more often, living so far away does tend to make some of life’s little joys much more difficult.
We’re Here
Turns out the Inn had a free breakfast in their lobby, so we were able to eat there this morning before getting back on the road. It was the type of breakfast you would expect from an Inn; donuts, cereal, toast, juice, coffee, etc. It was enough, however, to ensure we had something in us and could start right out on the road. We just missed my goal of 7am but only slightly and only because when I tried to check us out there was only one clerk working and he was getting a family from Germany checked in. Even so we were still on the road by 7:30 with no rushing or issues, so it was a good start.
We go to Mom’s (Nana’s) apartment about at 2pm, we would have been there a bit sooner but I stopped first at the cemetery so Kylie could see where Papa King was buried. I explained to her that this was a monument where we could come to visit Papa King’s name and remember him. When she gets older I will further explain about cemeteries, but at the time I did not want to try to explain all of that. In any event was a very solemn moment and Kylie asked if any of her other family was here, so I should her Great Grandpa’s and Cousin Darrin’s markers as well. She got very sad and said she missed her family, so at the point I felt it was time for us to go on to happy places.
When we got to Nana’s Kylie was very excited to see her and Great Nan and everyone else she knew she was going to get to see. When Nana opened the door the happiness, joy, and excitement made the long trip and the tinge of sadness more than worth it!
Start Your Engines
Our NY trip began a day earlier than planned as we decided to leave tonight as opposed to waiting until tomorrow morning. We are already packed and ready so leaving tonight and getting a hotel and an early start tomorrow means getting there earlier and spending more time with the family. Seeing as this is going to be a very short trip anyway, the more time we get to see everyone the better. The plain was to get a hotel out near Buffalo, making half of the trip today and the rest tomorrow. Kylie is very excited about spending the night in a hotel and can’t wait to get there. We ended up staying at a Rodeway Inn just east of Buffalo getting there at about 11:30pm (6.5 hours into the trip) and it wasn’t bad for the price ($80) but I have definitely stayed in better, then again I have also seen much worse! Tomorrow I hope to be back on the road by 7am.
Eye Doctor Results
Mommy took Kylie to the eye doctor today and it turns out that she will need glasses. The optometrist said that Kylie is +4 farsighted (difficulty in seeing things that are nearby) and so she will need glasses. When Mommy told me this information I was very upset. I had to start wearing glasses when I was young for the same reason, and I remember being picked on a lot growing up because of the magnifying effect the glasses had on my eyes. After speaking with Mommy though I don’t think Kylie will have the same issues I did; Kylie is much more outgoing than I was and her personality is very loving and kind, additionally Kylie seems to make friends very easily, so I am sure she will be fine. Kylie, on the other hand, was very excited today because she got to pick out two pairs of frames for her new glasses, and as usual, she is very stylish! Now we just have to wait a while for them to come in.
Kindergarten Prep
Today we took Kylie to the doctor for her 5 year and pre-kindergarten check up. As of today she is 43.5 inches (3 feet 6 inches) tall and in the 50th percentile for height, she grew 2 inches from last year; she currently weighs 48 lbs and is in the 90th percentile for weight. Today they also checked her blood pressure and that was 92/50, which they told us was good. She received 2 shots today as well, her last MMR and last chickenpox, which are required for kindergarten. Overall everything checks out perfectly normal, however they did suggest that we take her in to an optometrist to have her eyes checked as it appears she is having some issues. Mommy has had a suspension that she may need to have them looked at because Kylie appears to have trouble reading her sheet music for her violin. We will get that looked at as soon as possible and hope everything is fine.
Last Day of Summer Ballet
Today was the last day of Kylie’s summer ballet class, and continuing with the schools policy, we were allowed to come into the room a few minutes before the end of class and see what they have learned so far. During this session of her class they learned fifth position and how to tie it in with all of the rest of the moves they have already learned in previous sessions. I am really looking forward to see her next recital in the spring. I am sure they are going to learn something new in the next session of her class and seeing everything come together is amazing. Some pictures of her and her class can be seen here, additionally a video of the end of class can be seen on the video page.
First Violin Lesson
Kylie had her first violin lesson today, and it went very well. She is taking lessons at Marshall Music in Allen Park, her teacher’s name is Ariel. Once a week (Monday’s) she has a half hour long private lesson; for the first 20 minutes Kylie and Ariel practice what they have already learned in the previous week and add something new to the lesson that builds upon it, and then for the last 10 minutes we can come in to see what she’s learned.
At the end of today’s lesson Ariel came out to get Mommy to bring her back to listen and said Kylie did fantastic and that she was already ahead of where other kids her age typically are. Ariel normally doesn’t teach the bow until about the second month because the child learns about the strings, the parts of the violin and how to hold it and looking at music before they throw the bow into the mix, however this is not the case with Kylie. She said she can really tell that Mommy has been working with Kylie, because she was able to use the bow today and her hold is just about perfect. Kylie is able to use the bow properly for the most part and she will get better with practice. So today Kylie learned what a 1/4 rest was and what the repeat bar looks like; she also learned how to pizzicato (to pluck the string). We also got a book for Kylie to use and practice with both at home and during lessons. Ariel is excited that Mommy can help to reinforce the lessons at home because she also plays the violin; Ariel said that Kylie will learn faster that way and she really looks forward to watching her grow musically.
Much Needed Ride
So far this summer I feel like I haven’t really had the opportunity to ride the Motorcycle as much as I would like to, either due to unfavorable weather or general life conflicts. Today though we got to take a nice ride out to Melissa’s parents’ house. Round trip it’s about 115 miles, which I know is not really a lot but it is better than nothing. This trip is always a nice one to take on the motorcycle because we ride along a lot of back country roads, so there is typically light traffic and some really nice scenery. My ultimate hope though is to one year be able to go on one of the extended motorcycle trips that my friend Chuck goes on. This year i might have tried to join him if not for work not allowing me the option to join, he will be riding around Lake Michigan with a few other guys, camping along the way. He estimated this trip to be about 1200 miles. That would be one hell of an experience!
Emergentcare Follow Up
Today we had our follow up with Kylie’s normal doctor to check on the status of her strep and to find out if they think it might be time to potentially have a tonsillectomy. After they reviewed what the urgent care doctors had seen and done (the urgent care had faxed over their records to Kylie’s primary care’s office) they decided to run a check to see where Kylie’s strep was at. This time the test came back negative, Kylie has been on antibiotics for two days now they think that this might be the reason; she is still to finish the rest of the dose just to be sure. We asked if they thought it might be time for her to have a tonsillectomy and after they reviewed her history they said it is not time yet, however, if Kylie gets another case of strep before November it would then be a serious possibility that we may need to see a specialist and have them removed. At this point we are just keeping our fingers crossed that she doesn’t get strep again before then, but with her starting kindergarten in September (WOW! that came a lot faster than we anticipated!) there is a high probability that she will come down with strep again. Let’s just keep our fingers crossed.