Ode to the Best Nap Couch Ever

Ah, the memories we share. I'm not sure life will be quite the same without you.

You were the first couch that Ben and I picked out together, and I have never been able to nap on any couch as comfortably as I napped on you.

I'm pretty sure I spent almost half of my entire first pregnancy lounging on your cozy cushions, and you never did completely recover after all of those hours of 175 pounds of pregnant lady laying on you.

Many nights we spent together after Maria was born and would only sleep in her car seat - you were my bed while she cat-napped through each night.

I thought I could live without you when we got new furniture and you were covered in stains. Your new home was the basement, where I visited you from time to time, but our relationship was not the same.

On my birthday a few years ago you again were invited back upstairs (now draped in a slipcover to mask the stains), and again we enjoyed many afternoon naps together.

Whenever I couldn't sleep at night (which really wasn't that often), I would move from my bed to you and I would be able to fall asleep.

Last year you once again were banished to the basement when the slipcover became too inconvenient and we got some new hand-me-down furniture for the front room. I missed you, but it was time for Maria and Sam to enjoy your comfortable cushions.

I never expected it to end like this - a flood that you (and your cushions that the kids left on the floor) just could not survive. I will miss you dearly, but will always have the memories.

Normal Day?

Why can't we have just one normal, uneventful day around here? Really, is that too much to ask?

Around noon Maria started complaining about ear pain. It seemed to be on the outside of her ear, so I assumed swimmers ear - she's prone to get ear infections. My only option was to take her to the open hour at the end of the day at the Dr. office, and after waiting an hour, we were told that she has such a build-up of wax in there that the Dr. can't tell which kind of infection it is since she can't see the ear drum. She did say its definitely red in there, so we have an antibiotic for the infection and ear drops to soften the wax. (I'm supposed to use the ear drops until that piece of wax softens enough and falls out. Not sure how I'll know when that happens - I'll just go on when she tells me it doesn't feel clogged anymore.) Ben and I leave for Marathon Key Saturday, so Ben's parents will have to give her medicine while she's with them. Not a big deal, just one more thing to have to remember.

We are still working downstairs, and made some calls today. We have a recommendation of someone to get in touch with to look at the yard and the drainage system - we're calling him tomorrow. And we called the trash company to pick up the oversize stuff Thursday. Stay posted for a picture of the huge trash pile.

Norm's Wedding

Wow. What an awesome weekend. A beautiful wedding, lots of old friends, and our beloved Miami campus - what more could you ask for?

Friday night started with the rehearsal, then the rehearsal dinner, followed by a few hours at a bar and a Bruno's pizza at the wee hours of the morning. It was so great to see everyone, and we felt so free after worrying about the basement during the previous 24 hours - something about not being able to do anything about it just then took the pressure off. And of course, there was no responsibilities since the kids were at Ben's parents for the weekend (Thank you!)

Saturday the wedding was beautiful. The weather was stormy and threatening, but the sun came out just as Michelle walked down the aisle. It was almost unbearably hot, but we were just so pleased that it didn't rain. (Of course I wasn't the one is the very hot black tuxedo.) The reception was great too - we were stunned by the number of Miami friends that made it to the wedding - so great to catch up with everyone. We enjoyed another Bruno's pizza with Jenny and Chris in the lobby of the Hampton Inn at midnight, then finally went to bed.

This afternoon we met Ben's parents with the kids at the Harshman family picnic. Then we took the kids home - the reality of the basement problem crept back into our minds and we were anxious to see how much had dried over the weekend. We got here around 4:00 and found that the basement was still wet in places, and the house smelled quite musty. With the cooler weather we have been able to air everything out, and Ben has continued to move furniture, pull up carpet, wait for that area to dry, and repeat. We think maybe the couch cushions will not bounce back, which would be the biggest loss that we are aware of so far.

We are looking forward to slowing down a little bit this week, at least until Red, White and Boom on Thursday and leaving for Marathon Key on Saturday. At least I don't have to pack any suitcases for a few days.

From Ben:
Family and friends can see all the pictures from the weekend at http://gallery.mac.com/kellerclan#100022. If you don't know the user name and password, please email me and I will send it to you. It's our little safeguard so any of our students don't peruse through our personal photos. I hope you understand.

Update on Flood

Looks like the basement will survive, finally. Ben worked almost straight through from when we got home at 1:00 to 9:00 last night. I took time off from the basement after dinner to get other things done, like laundry, dishes, etc. We are leaving town for the weekend this morning and some things just had to be done. Plus the kids needed some attention after being completely neglected all afternoon.

We got rid of a lot of stuff. Much of it we needed to throw away anyway (that's the only good part about this). Lots of toys that we're pretty sure the kids won't miss. I'm concerned about the furniture - the kids had left some couch cushions on the floor and they were pretty soaked - just not sure they will be the same. Even if they dry - the water was dirty, so they will look (and possibly smell) pretty bad.

We still have the garage floor covered in stuff drying - it was outside in the wind, which was great, until it was supposed to rain again so we had to move it into the garage.

Most Christmas stuff survived - all of the boxes for all of the ornaments had to go. I always write inside the box for the kids - who got them the ornament and what year, so that when they move away they can take those memories with them. So before I threw the boxes away I made a list for each kid with the same information. Bright side - putting up and taking down the tree should go faster - Ben always complains to me about putting everything back in its box. A few of the things that we had to throw away I didn't really like anymore and am happy to have an excuse to get something different (at least that's what I tell myself).

And the most important part - now we have some possible explanations as to why our basement had flooded. We knew that we had gotten a lot of rain, but according to the paper, the county got between 3-5 inches of rain in one storm. We also noticed that Ben had not replaced the hose to the second sump pump - it sits on the deck steps so he takes it down when we have people over. He just forgot to replace it. That means that when the second pump runs, it shoots water back out right where it was coming in, instead of several feet out into the yard. So we think that the pumps just couldn't keep up. If we had been here, we could have put the hose out. Also, Andy and Lisa had a leak in their attic, which they've never had before. They said it was raining so hard and so fast that it was leaking down next to their chimney. So at least that tells us that this was an exceptional rain.

We're going to call a plumber next week and check out our sump pumps - the top one is looking pretty bad and wouldn't hurt to be replaced. We're also going to ask about a more permanent set-up for the second sump pump hose and what suggestions he may have. I'm hoping this event has been a wake-up call to get this finally done.

Water Everywhere!

We came home from Dayton around 1:00 today to find that our basement had flooded with heavy rains overnight. The power did not go out, and the sump pump was working because the water had already receded quite a bit. So we don't know what happened, although we haven't had a flood like this in over 10 years. Two weeks ago the neighbors started digging around and got a new septic tank put in. Seems like quite a coincidence.

So we are going to have to call in a professional and have them tell us what to do so we don't have any more problems. Honestly, it almost makes me want to move.

Anyway, most of what we have lost so far is toys that Ben and I are not that sad to see go. Much of the furniture we will have to see after it dries out. Two of our boxes of Christmas decorations got soaked, and we have everything laid out on towels in the front room. We lost several, but not any of out very favorites. Ben has been using the Smith's shop-vac and I am trying to stay ahead of him moving stuff out of the way and getting rid of it. Its a real mess!

The kids are staying out of the way. It's too emotional for Maria down there - when she saw all of her knitting books ruined, she was pretty upset.

I have to get back down there - just thought I would let everyone know what's going on.

Sam's Last Game

Tonight was Sam's last T-ball game of the season. To celebrate, they play under the lights and have an announcer. Sam did great hitting, but didn't see much action in the field as the ball really never went to him. We've enjoyed watching this year, and seeing how much he has matured since last season. Sam really liked it too, especially since he was on a team with many of his Kinder Paws buddies. And he is very excited about the medal he got at the end of tonight's game.

I have mixed feeling about the season being over. It will be nice not having to go to two games a week. But it means that summer is progressing, and before we know it we'll be heading back to school. And I do think Sam will miss seeing his friends.

The rest of the week is crazy. Maria continues at Golf Camp in Dayton. Tomorrow we are joining her and going to the Planetarium so Sam can see a planet show, and swimming after that. Thursday we'll head home after camp, then back on the road again Friday to Oxford. Norm is getting married and Ben is a groomsman, and we will be enjoying a kids-free weekend in our college town. Can't wait!

"Oh, THIS is Sam"

Sam had a birthday party today for a little girl that was in his Kinderpaws group. I had never met the family before, so when I dropped him off I introduced us to Emma's mom. "Oh, so THIS is Sam. We've heard so much about him! Emma, look who's here?"

I don't know how to take that. Of course, I want to ask what she's heard, but not only is that weird to say to someone I've never met before, but she was a little busy getting ready for the party. So I just exchanged the usual information, said goodbye to Sam, and got in the van and left.

I'm choosing to believe that Sam has such a sparkling personality that Emma couldn't help but share stories at home about him. And I'm hoping that the stories don't involve his burping at the lunch table, making sounds with his armpit, or other talents I know he has but hope he doesn't display in public!

What Maria Does During Sam's Games

Play Date

This afternoon we invited Heidi and Lily Pearson over for a play date. Lily was in Sam's preschool class, and her Mom Heidi was Maria's 3rd grade teacher. We ran into them last week at Wal-Mart and thought it would be fun to get together. We got out all of the water toys - beach ball sprinkler and kiddie pool, and they brought us a Slip'n Slide. Add in strawberry margaritas for the adults and snow cones for the kids and we had a great afternoon.

Golf Outing

The first-ever Ben, Maria, and Sam golf outing happened tonight at Marysville Golf Club. I had no idea what to expect with both Maria and Sam along in the cart with me but I was pleasantly surprised. Here's how it works:

I hit from the mens tees, then the kids hit from the 150 yard marker on par 3's and 4's and from the ladies tees on par 3's. It was a logistical challenge all night as I was trying to keep the right club in each kids hands, moving the cart to the next spot, and jockeying for position between the group ahead of us and groups coming up behind us and playing through.

It took us 2.5 hours to play nine holes, which wasn't too bad considering how many shots were being taken. Maria's swing is really coming along and she's hitting her real driver off the tee and getting it up in the air more frequently. She has a picture-perfect swing and is really improving around the the greens and is taking more time with her putts. Sam is becoming more controlled in his swing and is taking a full practice swing before he hits. His swing thoughts were "arms straight and knees bent."

The final scores? Well we weren't going to keep score for Sam since it was his first time out, but after two holes he was upset that he didn't have a score, so I put down his real score on each hole whether he liked it or not. Grand totals: Sam - 84 strokes. Maria - 61 strokes. Maria got a bogey 5 on the final hole and Sam got a 7 on the same hole.

Without having a chance to think about my own golf game on this trip, I shot a 41 with five pars and a birdie. The kids will be coming with me much more often!