Miami Homecoming 2009

Things have been very busy around here and I just haven't sat down to blog about our past weekend.

We returned to Miami for Homecoming every year, but this year was different for a few reasons. First, we had a hotel room in Oxford. Second, we kept the kids with us the whole time (usually they spend some time with Rita and Darrell in the morning and then they bring them to us at the game) - so that they could participate in the Miami Munchkin Marchers. And it was the 200th year celebration - so we tried to get 200 marchers there (we ended up with 153, still our largest alumni band ever).

Overall, we had a great time. It was so much fun to get together with great friends, especially ones we haven't seen in a while. The kids got to see old friends we have visited in the past, like Dan and Pam (Staunton, Virginia), and Todd Nahigian (Chicago), and they were amazed at how grown up the kids have gotten. Marching with a large band was cool too, although the music was too hard (yes, I faked a lot) and the weather was crappy (wind, rain, and cold). Right after pre-game, I took the kids back to the hotel to swim until the reception after the game.

The Munchkin marcher program didn't do much, and the kids were pretty bored in the morning during rehearsals. Not sure if we'll do it that way again. And since we had to get up and out of the house at 6:45 Saturday morning, the kids were tired and grumpy fairly early in the evening, which caused all of us to head back to the hotel sooner than we would have liked. But it was nice not to have to drive back Saturday night.

Pumpkin Carving 2009!

Maria drew and carved her own pumpkin, Sam drew his but let Ben do the carving. Ben also fried pumpkin seeds, and as always, I had the glamorous job of scooping out the guts.

The picture with Sam and the monkey is for Sam for school. He was chosen as "Student of the Week," and part of the privilege is to bring home the "Class Pet" and take a picture of the child and the class pet doing something together. So we thought it would be cool if the monkey helped Sam carve the pumpkin.

The cool Jack-o-Lantern lights that Grandma K. got for the kids change colors in the pumpkins.

Random Thoughts

I know I haven't blogged in over a week. A combination of not many blog-worthy activities going on and no time - between Ben's band schedule, the kids' evening activities, plus helping Sam with homework each evening and trying to work out 4 days a week, sometimes there is just no time. I did get out by myself for Book Club this week, which I really enjoy and am so happy we continue to do even with everyone's busy schedules. So here are some of my random thoughts this week:

1. A great book - The Help by Kathryn Stockett. A recent book club pick and all three of us thoroughly enjoyed it.

2. Speaking of entertainment - a new show Ben and I like: Modern Family. Probably the only comedy that causes us to laugh out loud, and a great stress reliever.

3. H1N1 flu is getting scary. Sickness in our district is better this week than last, but rumors and news reports can really worry me. Wish this vaccine for otherwise healthy children would hurry up and get here.

4. I've hit the wall on marching season - and I'm not even the one spending all the time in the cold rain. Won't be over until November 7 with the band going to state contest.

5. Miami Homecoming is tomorrow. The kids get to play kid instruments on the field with us for the first time ever - Maria is excited, even wearing her Miami sweatshirt to school today. Sam is indifferent, and will probably ask where we are going when I get him up at the crack of dawn tomorrow morning. (Sam's lack of attention is starting to concern me sometimes, but that's another topic for another day.) And it'll be the biggest Alumni band in the history of Miami Alumni band, although we didn't quite make it to our 200 marchers (for our bicentennial) goal.

Back to Normal

Everyone's back at school today, finally. Maria missed three school days, Sam only missed two. But it was a pretty predictable virus - cough, headache, and fever for the kids - not much of a fever for Ben and I. Sam got sick starting Sunday and lasted through Tuesday, Maria Monday through Wednesday. (Ben had it Thursday through the weekend, and mine was pretty much Sunday-Monday.) Maria's never missed three days in a row at school before, and she was going crazy by yesterday afternoon. Really, for everyone being sick, it wasn't too bad. No stomach issues meant much less cleaning up to do, and when on fever reducers the kids didn't feel too bad most of the time. They managed to finish Sam's Double Duel K'Nex Roller Coaster and we all played lots of board games in the last three days. And with no one going to evening activities it almost felt like we were snowed in.

But it sure is nice being back to normal!

Health Update

Both kids stayed home again today, with Ben this time. Since they both had fevers (Maria 101, Sam 102), he called the Doctor's office and they said they needed to come in. Verdict: No strep throat, no flu (no body aches and fevers are too low), so just some virus. He said they can go back to school as soon as their fevers are gone. Maria's is under 100 now without Advil, so we bet she may be able to go. Sam's fever is still creeping over 100, so he had more Motrin, and we may have to wait until morning to make a call on him.

But I picked up all of their make-up work tonight, so we have a long evening ahead of us.

Keller Health Update

For the first time in a very long time, all four of us appear to be sick with the same thing. I just wish we knew what this "thing" is.

Ben started coughing and feeling blah on Thursday, but he was able to go to work and the football game, with the help of sinus drugs and Advil. He also had a slight fever, where he feels hot and cold and can't easily regulate his temperature. Saturday morning, which was when he decided he needed to go to Urgent Care, he started to feel better, and was able to go to the kids' activities, although he still didn't feel great.

Friday night I started to feel congested, but didn't really start coughing much until Sunday. And by last night I was pretty miserable. Sam was acting funny at the movie and lunch Sunday morning, and by late afternoon was on the couch with a fever of 101. He and Maria were both coughing a little by then.

Ben and I decided that I would stay home with Sam Monday, since Ben had band practice after school, then he could stay home Tuesday, and repeat as needed (kids are supposed to be fever-free for 24 hours before returning to school, with all of the swine flu going around).

Sam got me up at 4:30 Th's morning- his fever was back and he threw up a little. Got him Motrin and back to bed - he ended up sleeping until 9:30. Meanwhile, Maria got up with her alarm at 6:30 and showered like normal, but then didn't eat much breakfast. Turns out she had a low grade fever now too. So the three of us stayed home. We're all coughing, but when the kids are under the influence of fever-reducers they are fairly active and spent a lot of the day putting together one of Sam's K'Nex roller coasters.

Then late this afternoon Sam got sick again, and his fever was back even though his Motrin hadn't worn off. Which makes me think his fever would be fairly high without the Motrin. In the meantime, Ben feels that he may now have a sinus infection. So he'll stay home tomorrow and go to the Dr. with anyone here who is still sick. Except me, I have to go to work to get caught up and set up to miss Wednesday.

And of course, with all the swine flu panic, especially the number of children who are dying, it does make me worry more. It just seems that even healthy kids who get medical care, who get admitted to the hospital in plenty of time, can still die of complications. And that is very scary. I've done a lot of reading, and Sam has symptoms that are in both the "cold" and "flu" columns on the charts. And it's not like we're not being careful - we fully plan to get the kids vaccinated this year, but the Health Department clinics for seasonal flu are this weekend, and no word on when the H1N1 vaccine will be available for healthy children. So it's just very frustrating.

Maria the Triathlete

This afternoon Maria participated in the kids triathlon held at our YMCA. She received a flyer at school several weeks ago and really wanted to do it so we signed her up. The kids had to bike for 2 miles, run for 1 mile, and swim 100 yards. Most of her training happened this past week and only consisted of running - her biking is pretty good as we bike several miles fairly often in the summer, and we didn't have the time or facilities to work on swimming. So we really had no idea how she might do.

There were two age groups for the kids - 5-8 year olds, and 9-12 year olds. And girls only completed against other girls, boys only competed against other boys. There were 4 boys and 6 girls in Maria's age groups. The race was run fairly slowly - first the young kids biked, then the older kids. Then the young kids would run, then the older kids. And then swimming took even longer since there were only four usable swimming lanes in the pool.

Biking was first. And right off, we noticed that most kids in Maria's age group had bigger bikes, with more speeds. And that did hurt Maria. She was 5th (out of 6 girls) in the bike race, and very frustrated at the end because her bike just would not go as fast as most of the others (we were planning on getting her a new bike for her birthday in May, and had no idea it would make such a big difference in the race).

Then came the running. She's been running/walking a mile with Ben a few nights this week, and she worked on pacing. So we reminded her it didn't matter who started off the fastest, and sure enough, she was one of the last ones passing us near the starting line, but she was able to jog most of the way (walked a little), and came in 2nd of the six girls in the run. We knew that made up for a lot of lost time during the bike race, because she beat some girls by a lot.

Last was the swimming. They did the girls in Maria's division in two groups, three girls swimming at a time. Maria came in 2nd of the three, but all three were spread pretty far apart. . After her race, I took Maria to the locker room to change so we didn't see the second group of girls race. I was thinking out of 6, Maria probably came in 3rd or 4th overall. And they only award medals to the top three.

But we were surprised during awards. Maria got the silver medal - took 2nd place out of 6 girls. She was really surprised - I think the stress of the bike race at the beginning really made her feel like she didn't have much of chance. We are so proud of her!

So Ben started running races in the spring, and Maria is now racing too. That means I'm next - I plan to run a 5K in the future, but possibly not until spring, mostly due to the weather. I haven't run on the road, but am doing about 2.5 miles on the treadmill four nights a week. So I'm pretty sure I could do a 5K. We're very happy with how physically fit our family has become!

One Down - RIP Sheldon the Hermit Crab

We have experienced the first hermit crab death. Sunday evening I was cleaning the cage, and when I picked up Sheldon (Sam's crab) to move him to the other side one of his arms fell off. I was grossed out, so Ben came in and confirmed that he was dead as his limp body hung out of the shell.

The kids were pretty matter of fact about it. Actually, I'm not sure it bothered them in the least. That's our current trouble with pets - since they die frequently, the kids don't become attached to them. But since they're not attached to them, they're not really eager to take care of them either. And other that getting a more permanent pet, that would require a much larger commitment which we're not willing to do, I'm not sure how to change their attitude. I already don't know who will take care of the crabs (they have to be sprayed with water a few times a day) when we spend the night in Oxford in a few weeks. I just really like the freedom of having no pets to worry about - it's enough with the kids.

But since Sheldon had a 30 day guarantee, we put him in a Ziploc and Ben took Sam to Jack's to replace him last night. He picked out one in the exact same shell as Sheldon (it looks like a baseball), and then decided to name him Sheldon 2. But already, this crab seems more healthy - immediately started climbing around the cage like Larry did on his first few days at our house. Sheldon 1 never moved around much and I doubted his health from the beginning.

So we'll see how long this one lasts.

New Opportunities

In the last week, Maria has had a couple of very cool opportunities that I wanted to share. Last week, she received a letter form her Gifted and Talented coordinator about participating in 2010 Northwestern University's Midwest Talent Search (NUMATS). Basically, it consists of taking standardized tests years before most students take them, and then completing with other students in the same age group. But it's also good experience, espeically for students who score high on the standardized tests that they take at school - this will give a better idea of where her abilities are. It will also open the door for many other gifted and talented programs she will have the opportunity to particiapte in, which is important since our small school does not do much with their Gifted and Talented program. She'll be taking the EXPLORE test in January, which is a standardized test usually given to 8th graders.

Today she brought home a letter stating that she has been selected to participate in the schools Destination ImagiNation team. They selected three fourth graders and three fifth graders. Basically the students work together to come up with "solutions" to different challenges, and then complete against other schools on a Saturday in March. (There's a lot to it - if you're interested you can visit the website at www. IDODI.org.) It sounds like a lot of fun and should help her build some great teamwork and leadership skills, among other benefits. She's pretty excited about this and happy that her friend Lydia was invited to join the team as well. It will be a pretty big time commitment, though, having meetings every Monday after school for two hours and sometimes on Thursdays too if they need the extra time. But she should be able to handle it.

Boy Scout

Sam's been participating in Cub Scouts for a month now and likes it a lot. He is more interested in the weekly activity much more than the meeting, but he really looks forward to going. He was especially thrilled to get his shirt - doesn't he look cute? Ben has been a trooper - takes him every week (which is a huge pain because you have to stay and participate too), and he even sewed all those patches on his shirt last night. I had to go once when Ben had another meeting, and all of those little boys in the same room made my head spin - I'm so thankful Ben goes to the meetings.

Car Seat Dilemma

Yesterday I knowingly ceased to remain a law-abiding citizen. And I will probably stay that way until September 22, 2010.

Last spring, state legislators decided that all children ages 4-7 MUST be in a booster seat when riding in a car. And this law went into effect yesterday, October 5. Until then, booster seats were recommended, not required, for 4-7 year-olds. And Sam stopped riding in a booster seat sometime before his 6th birthday. And then when we were spring cleaning in April, Ben and I decided to throw away both booster seats, knowing Sam was our last child and he would never agree to sit in one again. Our doctor was always very matter of fact about it, admitting that it is very difficult to keep a younger child in a booster seat until they're 8 years old, and so that made me feel better about our decision as well.

So now, we are required to buy two new booster seats for our cars, and convince Sam that even though he was a "big boy" who could finally ride in a car like a normal human being and not be tethered to having to sit in a specific place every time he rides in a car, now he has to go back to riding in a booster seat. And no more "Hey, let's ride with Grandma and Grandpa" on a moment's notice (especially since we told Ben's parents it was OK to get rid of their booster seat too).

Sometimes I feel these car seat/booster seat/backseat laws are a little over the top. Maria has started to sit in the front with us when it's just her and one of us, since even though it's recommended for kids to sit in the back until they're 13 years old, it's allowed when they're 10 years old. And now when she sits in the front, we have the best conversations during car rides. She plays what she wants on the radio, and it's not like she's in a separate room like it is when she's in the back seat. And honestly, kids can drive when they're 16 but not even supposed to sit in the front until they're 13? Seems a little much to me.

My main problem with this new booster seat law is not grandfathering in those kids who used to be "safe" and are now not. Telling Sam he has to go back to a booster seat after over a year of not sitting in one doesn't seem fair. And I'm not sure that there is enough difference between a 7 year old and 8 year old body to make him that much safer in the car. There is a height requirement - a 7 year old that is 4 feet, 9 inches tall does not have to ride in a booster seat. Sam is 4 feet, one half inches tall so I don't think he'll fall into that category in the next year.

So we have decided, for now, to not do it. If you're caught without your child in a booster seat, warnings are issued until April 7, 2010. After that, if we get caught between then and Sam's birthday, we pay a fine of $25-$75, which is still less than what it would cost for us to buy 2 new booster seats. And we'd have to get pulled over for another offense in the first place. I'm not saying it isn't possible, I'm just saying it's a calculated risk we're willing to take, for now.

I just hope that it doesn't cause trouble when Sam rides with a friend somewhere and they need to borrow our booster seat for him, which we won't own. But I guess we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

UPDATE: Upon further research, apparently the main reason for the booster is so the seat belt hits kids in the collarbone and hip bones, as opposed to the neck and abdomen, which is where it hits if they are too short for the seat belt. Our van belts are adjustable, and lowering ours allows - Sam's belt to hit at these safer points.

Fairbanks Marching Band Goes to State Contest

For the first time. Ever. And it only took Ben 16 years to get them there. Seriously, though, it is so much harder on small bands. With only 43 kids on the field, individual mistakes are so much easier to spot, and getting a big sound is tough too - impossible to compete with the bigger bands.

This year, after band camp, Ben even thought it might be a rough year - more of a rebuilding year. He finally got rid of the flag corp, having decided in the last few years that a bad flag corp was worse than no flag corp. And those girls (and their advisor) have always proved to be way more trouble than they're worth. So finally this year he just didn't have very many interested girls and it was fairly easy to kill.

The kids love the show this year, too. It's based on Tim Burton's "Nightmare Before Christmas," and to get those general effect points that they won't get from an absent flag corp, the entire band wears face make-up and black shirts/pants to look like Jack Skellington. And the drums actually twirl flags during part of a song where there are no percussion parts. Also new this year, an assistant director that is a music teacher - our new elementary music teacher, who marched in the University of Dayton band.

Yesterday was the first time I've seen the show fully completed. And other than a rough beginning, I thought it was the best show I've ever seen them do. I told Ben that on the phone that afternoon - that maybe this would be the year they go to state. And he was down-playing it, but of course he didn't see the show from the stands like we did. The kids and I were so thrilled when he messaged us that they had, in fact, received their first "I" ever.

I've included a link to a video of the show:

FMB Contest Show 10/3/09 from Fairbanks Band on Vimeo.