Just Another Day Back Subbing

Coffee is presently making its way into my system.  I am waking up.  I am on my first day back to subbing since March 28.  I did a long term as a music teacher at an elementary.  I really enjoyed it. The people I worked with, and the kids, were all really great.  Now I'm back to the normal scheme of things, but that is still okay with me.

I might have more time to snap a few pictures between where I am and home.  Seems I've taken the camera with me nearly every day lately, but not had the opportunity to unlimber it for use.  There simply hasn't been enough time.  Not that I haven't gotten ANY shots this month.  I'll share a few.

Much has happened lately.  We bought a new vehicle.  We bought a travel trailer.  We still haven't done anything to the master bathroom lately, so it remains a walk in closet.  I really MUST do something about that.  I think this weekend.

Of course, this weekend, we plan on filling the trailer with all that good camper stuff.  I can't wait to try it all out.  Maybe tonight we will finally sleep in it and break it in.  It definitely seems easier to keep clean than the house!  The neat thing is it seems to remain cool most of the day.  It does pick up some morning sun, but there is a tree on the afternoon side and it stays comfortable.  I am looking forward to taking it somewhere fun!

Chloe, whose bedtime stories seem to run from books we've read a hundred times to, lately, retellings of the infamous coin swallowing of '13, has even requested stories about what we might do when we go camping.  She loves the camper, everything is within reach.  Every time she is in the back yard, she tries to get us to let her use the potty in the camper.

Speaking of that child.  She used the phrase, "in the meantime," yesterday...in context.  She regularly uses words that are multi-syllabic and way beyond what you expect three year-olds to use.  I suspect it is because her mom and dad don't hesitate to use big words in front of her, and while they do, they also supply other words that mean the same.  Or, at least, we try.  Sometimes she just picks things up without us throwing them down.  She's wicked smart that way.

Bedtime remains a thorn in our side.  Getting the kid through the routine seems to take so much time.  Time that the sun is using to create beautiful vistas and paint the clouds with that lovely twilight luminescence...still, we have to chase her into our bed, then down the hallway to one of our chairs where she feigns sleeping by snoring loudly.  Then back up the hallway again.  Then we read a story...or three.  Then we tell her a story orally without using a book, usually something about herself.  Lately, she's asked for the story of the Vill.  "The story about the VILL, Daddy!"  It took a few minutes to realize she wanted us to tell her about "Stone Soup."  which is funny because Cora and I have not corroborated our tellings.  I tell the story with three soldiers after a war and supply Russian names.  Cora's has two soldiers and lets Chloe take part by supplying ingredients for the soup.  I looked it up, and yet another telling has a single soldier.

Well, I'm going to need to get ready for work soon.  I'll leave you with a few pictures.

 One morning we got up early because Cora had to go to work early, and rather than sit around and watch another episode of "Little Bear," (one of the most annoying shows we let her watch) we decided to go to the park.  Which is where I got this shot.  It's one of my new favorites.  She looks SO grown up!

 We went to the park and there was a field full of "Daddy-lions."  so we blew dandelions for awhile while Daddy took pictures.

 Chloe got to see one of her Great Grandmothers a couple weeks ago.  There were opportunities for photos, so I took 'em!

Our Summer Begins NOW!

 We bought a camp trailer.  It folds out.

We decided to get it last weekend.  We went to pick it up Friday night, but it turned out the wiring in the Cruiser was bad.  We had to leave it there.  My wonderful Father-in-Law offered his help and we fixed that puppy and then we went in and got it.  My FIL filled me in on a few little tidbits of info about our braking system and we got the trailer.  I dropped him off and pulled in front of the house,

I showed Cora and then sat down because Chloe was sleeping.  Chloe woke up a little while later.  She came out and asked me if I'd gotten the camper.  I told her to look out side.  She went to the door and the squeals of excitement were exceptional.  She was very excited.

We went to town after we pulled it into the yard and got a few needed items.  I had planned to work on the bathroom, but those plans went up in flames.

 It is about a dozen kinds of awesome!  I cannot wait to try it out!!  

Tomorrow is Mother's Day.  I hope all you mothers out there have a great day!

Impatient Slumberer, and Long-Winded Insomniac

I like Sleep.  I don't know if I can carry off Bill Cosby's love of Sleep, but I like it.  We are good friends.  We see each other often.  Every night.  Tonight, Sleep came for awhile, but left after only a short while.

Chloe awoke with much fussing.  Exclaiming her unhappiness, when I arrived to see what was the matter, at ear shocking decibels.  I resolutely informed her that she needed to stop crying before I would administer any aid. Most successful aid comes in the presence of Mommy.  Finally we agreed that a quiet mode setting would be the best if she wanted to see Mommy, and we left thusly, tear soaked and snuffling.  Oh, that magic calm that arises with the presence of Mommy!  Would that I had such an effect.

With that I lay back down on my side of the bed and realized the bed was untenable.  I had been aware that I was tossing and turning, but now I realized nothing was right.  I beat a retreat to my chair and, after taking a half dose of a PM type pill, I tried to rest.  I tossed and turned in my chair if that is even possible.  Finally, I threw my hopes for rest and reunion with Sleep away.  I grabbed at the laptop.

I wandered over FaceBook, but soon realized others were having their relationship with Sleep renewed, while my own withered.  I decided to try to watch a TV show that I had seen parts of in the mid-1990s.  It was an artsy dark cartoon, not necessarily appropriate to young eyes, so the time was ripe, except that the site I wanted to watch it on force feeds five advertisements per five minutes of watching.  Then, after the second advertising cycle, the picture turned black and all I got was sound.  So I tried going back and forwards, only to be rewarded with another advertising cycle.  I finally gave up and decided to come here and blog.

There are several reasons for that.  More often than not, when I am tired, the words flow freely until that moment when my eyelids fall down and all consciousness slips away.  I often will start a post and wake up an hour later with my head shifted in a most undignified angle mouth wide agape.  I figure it's a sleep inducer.  Thus, here I am.

So, what's been going on with me?  That is a fine question.  I have been subbing for that music teacher.  I have been grading the papers and adding to lesson plans and trying to keep the lessons interesting AND educational.  those are not the same thing.  I was amazed at how entertained they were at the Sesame Street character I showed them the last couple days as he introduced the audience to the Conductor of the New York Philharmonic.  I don't know how much they retain AFTER class, but they seem to do alright when they are IN class.

I have been complimented by the teacher that comes in at the end of the day to no end.  She seems to appreciate what I do, which is remarkably welcome.  It, and the fact that the kids have actually learned something from this unit, is much better feedback than what I had last year from my "team."  It is so rewarding to play a short YouTube segment of an Orchestra playing and then hear the kids whisper to each other in excitement at their recognition of an instrument!  "That's a PICCOLO!"  Or "French Horn!"  It's great when they correct themselves.  When they SEE the size of a HARP!  "WOW!"  That kind of thing has been great.

Since the two music teachers got together and designed this unit around me, I hoped to find some kids with a bit of a change in how they draw.  I was a little bit disappointed at first.  Yeah, they seemed excited, but were they picking up the little nuggets of drawing info I was dropping?  Well, yeah, they were.  I keep trying to tell them that ANYONE can draw.  You just have to want it.  Like really bad.  I mention the cost to me.  I spent many an hour of class time drawing.  I often got into trouble for it.  My grades were not great.  I also point out that I am much better now than when I started teaching.  Largely because I practice every day.  I also note, mostly to myself, that I am MUCH more understanding when I see a kid doodling on their paper while I am lecturing than my teachers were.  My teachers did not seem to understand that I was INDEED listening very attentively while I drew.

A couple weeks ago I scribbled a picture using a simple Bic ballpoint.  I ended up creating a half-way decent picture of a saxophone player.  It is not perfect, but from a distance it looks like a saxophone player.

I use that to show that all you have to do is scribble to make art sometimes.  Of course, it helps if you can put the scribbles in the right place.  I have been telling them it is all about fooling the eye into thinking that those ink marks on the paper resemble something.  Fortunately it is phenomenally easy to to that.  Our minds and eyes are wired to recognize shapes and shades and colors, so you just have to know how to fool the eye.  Well, I held this up and asked them what it was.  Most would say "A man playing an instrument," which is a good answer, but then I confounded them with, "no, it's just scribbles."  Then I handed it around and was rewarded with oohs and ahhs and funny crinkled foreheads as they attempted to work out, in their minds, that there were two different images there.  One was just squiggly lines of ink on a piece of paper and yet, the other was right there overlaying it, and it was a man playing a saxophone.

Later I was rewarded when I asked what a particular drawing I had just made was.  One smart lad, who had been particularly engaged in my drawing that I had showed the week before, said, "Squiggles!"  I turned and smiled upon him.  Made me happy.  Also, I have noticed that some of the kids have improved their artwork considerably.  Of course, there are still those who would rather talk and I end up with some horrifying stick figures with extra limbs and what appear to be organs hanging in obscure places, but over all, I have seen a promising change.  One of the teachers said that my presence and my drawings seem to have sparked some creativity with her students.  I don't know if I can be held to blame for that, but it's nice to hear.  And, on more than one occasion, I have been complimented on the drawings that I have on the board for music.

I started the Unit by being rather heavy handed in how to draw and have ended with letting them figure it out for themselves.  My instruction to look for the shapes and then my step-by-step creation of a drawing seems to have stuck with a few.  I see some really good drawings.  On the other hand, I would have never guessed that you could somehow pervert a drawing of a French Horn to look like a revolver, a Bassoon to look like a bazooka, and a Trumpet to look like a particularly wicked looking assault rifle.  Turns out you can with sufficient patience and lack of attention to detail.

I have continually worried that my lack of background in music would not allow me to successfully teach music in a long term role, however, I was wrong.  I believe I have done admirably.  Google is a good friend of mine, too.  On a side note, it is fascinating that the ability to use a search engine is not innate.  I have noticed over the years, that having a large vocabulary can help when you look for inofrmation on the internet.  Being able to call up synonyms and similar subjects has often been the difference between a successful lesson and a lesson filled with misbehavior.  I continually amaze that other teacher with the little gold nuggets I find on YouTube that pertain to class.  She does not seem to be nearly as computer literate as others, which is not a bad thing, because I continually learn from her.

When the kids get all fidgety she simply has them stand and do an activity while repeating the words she is trying to impress upon them.  For instance she will tell them to touch their toes and then say, "Rhythm." or whatever happens to be the word.  Then she will repeat that by having them do the same thing except reaching high in the air, or she will have them stand on one leg and do the same.  It gets them concentrating on something else and also allows a bit of muscle memory to work it's charms.  She is a brilliant teacher.  I think we complement each other in our teaching styles.

She told me the other day that I should not sell myself short.  I guess I do that.  Publicly, in front of the kids, I am Mr. Awesome, but quietly, in the back of the room, I'm the guy who professes to know very little and does his best to get through the day.  She told me to man-up, basically.  That even though I don't play an instrument, the fact that i pay attention to it, enjoy it, and listen to it, is enough.  She even complimented me on how I draw them.  Some of the instruments she has not given much thought to, but, in drawing them, I have.  Like the tubing of a trumpet.  I never thought about trumpets until I tried drawing one.  I never imagined that there were so many tubes in the darned thing.  Likewise goes for the Tuba.  And that damned Bassoon.  Wow!  Woodwinds I thought would be hard, but that is where the fooling the eye really comes in handy.

Oh, hell.  It's 2 Am and I am still awake and have not faded off to sleep once.  Dammit!

Next we begin styles. I am looking forward to seeing how that works out.  Again, my YouTube and Google techniques may come in handy.  The teacher should be back after next week.  I'll be both happy and sad to go.

We were going to look at a camper this week, but the dealership never called and I'm not sure they will.  Apparently they are quite happy without our business.  A shame, too, since it sounded like something we'd want.

I am still daydreaming about camping, so we will definitely pursue some ends, I just don't know where or when.

I got a chance to call my Boss for the summer and it sounded to me like he will have work again this summer...which will keep me from behind the counter at the local 7/11.  Which is fine by me.  I need to work off a little of this gut that has grown on me.

Speaking of growing.  Our gardens have been growing most happily!  I planted Gutter Gardens this year.  And the Spinach is not about 2 inches tall!  Last weekend, while we did a number of things, the thing I think will last the logest is the raised gardens.  I can wait to get soil and get them planted.  This should be a great gardening year.  I doubt I will ever match my grandfathers' green thumbs, but I will certainly give it a shot.  hare are some bleeding hearts in the dawn sun.
  

  And I am still not tired.  I will, nevertheless, try again.  Good night!

Well, It's Been Awhile...

Where to begin?  It's been a while.  We have been busy.  Last weekend we bought a new vehicle.  We drove to town with the intent to buy some groceries and came home with a new (to us) car.

It all started when we saw that one of the local camp-trailer dealers was having a show at the local mall parking lot.  We have been discussing what we wanted to do to camp since our tent had issues last time we folded it up.  We have really been leaning toward some sort of RV trailer.  But we didn't have a tow rig.  My truck is a four cylinder and becomes asthmatic with a load, so it was obviously out of the question.  So we stopped in to see what the dealer recommended as a tow rig.

He said we should look for a V8.  About the time we were searching through several examples of trailers with all manner of luxuries, Chloe decided she needed to go pee.  So we left with the intention of returning and dreaming some more.  We went to lunch after she went potty and we discussed that maybe we should look for something that could tow a trailer first before we got the trailer.  Cora said it most aptly: perhaps we are putting the cart before the horse.  I giggled at that.

So we stopped by the Toyota dealership here in town.  I saw a Land Cruiser that looked pretty good.  It had a V8 and I got out to look.  That darned car salesman was crouched behind the fender of s nearby Tacoma, I swear!  I'm fairly certain he came out of nowhere.  He said want to test drive it!?  We said...ok, it was me..."sure!"  So, we all piled out.  We put the child seat in and drove away, after he had to jump start it. Well, he took a copy of my license and got my address and stuff.  Then we drove away.  I accelerated onto the freeway with no thought of whether this might actually be a car we'd buy.  It drove like a dream.

We pulled back in.  We both liked it.  We talked.  We drooled at the machine...okay, it was me again.  We discussed.  We talked.  We got numbers.  Cora's parents called.  She explained.  They were nearby, so they dropped in to offer an opinion.  My father-in-law test drove it.  On the second time driving past Costco, Chloe asked every ear in the car, "How many times are we gonna drive by Costco?  Not again!"  She was particularly entertaining.  My father-in-law parked it.  I could tell he approved.  All the figures came back and our calculations were made and we decided to go ahead and buy it.  So much for milk.

The grandparents bravely offered to take Chloe.  We accepted and they left.  We finished up all the paperwork and Cora drove away in the new vehicle.  I drove the car.  We went to Costco and got the milk we had been intending to purchase.

We took it down and showed my parents the next day.  We were itching to drive it some more, anyway.  HOLY COW!!  Talk about luxury!

So, we managed to get through the week.  Cora's Birthday saw us celebrate.

We had tickets to Sesame Street Live.  I had to get a sub...for me, the sub.  I made good plans and everything went well.  Knocked out my chances of getting long-term sub pay, but whatever.  Seeing how happy Chloe was seeing the Sesame Street Characters was worth all of that.  She got to give the Count a high five.  That made her morning.  We had a load of fun.

We then went to a memorial dinner for Cora's Ex-boss.  He was a neat guy.  His band opened for the Beatles when they were in Liverpool.  He liked photography.  He was a fascinating man.  I'd like to have known him better, but he was a private person.  It was sad, but it was good to know he had such quality friends.

Nana and Papa took Chloe to go fishing and camping with her cousin.  Cora and I had TWO WHOLE nights without interruption.  It was great, but I must admit it was difficult walking by her room and seeing it was empty.  It was hard walking by and not hearing her music going.  As much as I love having time to ourselves, I also love having our daughter with us.

Cora and I made use of the time without daughter, though.  We went RV hunting.  We think we have narrowed it down to what we want.  We also managed to go to dinner and a movie and even drove up on the hill to test out the four-wheel-drive capabilities of our new SUV.  It performed well.

We saw this fellow on the way back down the hill.

Unfortunately, the local plant population tried to kill Cora.  After a nice time, the pollen count overwhelmed Cora.  So we made our way back home.  Then back to town where we got groceries for dinner.  We got steaks and asparagus.  I grilled and it was awesome!!

Chloe came home this morning.  We are pleased to have our girl back.  And before us looms a new week.  With any luck, the end of it will see us with a new trailer.  You see, the guy at the camper place said they expect a trade-in this week and it is what we are looking for.  If they can give it to us for what we are asking we could be ready to camp in record time!  I think THAT would be cool.

Today we built some raised beds for gardens.  We bought cedar fence slats and then cobbled them together to form excellent beds.  I think we will get a load of soil brought in.  It would be cheaper than the bags we normally buy.  We picked up our shower kit, so I will be working on putting our bathroom back together.  We may get a new camper.  Chloe continues to grow and grow up.  I have a beautiful wife.  I think this is going to be an excellent summer!

May all go smooth and well!

  

A Little Photo Shoot

Cora, and Chloe, and I went on a photo shoot with a family that we have known for so long we may as well be family.  This family has a new addition and it was my pleasure to photograph their new family and their new member!  Below we see the proud older sister and little sister!

 With my new set up, I am happy to say I can take some pretty darned good photos all studio-like!

It was a good weekend!

A Spring Break Broken

 It is Tuesday and I sit here at 5am writing on the computer because my eyes have strained to remain open since three.  before that I tossed and turned.  I awoke for a glass of milk and noted that Chloe was also afflicted by movement and apparent discomfort.  I inquired whether her pull-up was full.  She said it was and we changed it.  She then asked to sleep in our room.  Since she asked nicely and I figured I wasn't going to bed soon, I figured one of us ought to be able to sleep, so we made the quiet transfer.

What happened to Spring Break, AKA Jim Week?  Well, it began with my birthday, which is among the more excellent on record.  I got some Lensbaby Lenses and my studio lighting kit...which means my lovely wife spoils me or she thinks I might have possibility...either way: SCORE!!

 Here are a few of my first studio shots...I think I might have a chance.

 Cousin Leah came by for the Easter egg hunt here in Moxee and we had a blast.  It was great seeing the two girls play together.  Both have a Doc Mcstuffins affliction, which is OK by me since I know there are worse things out there and the show usually has a very good message.

 I attempted to cajole a few smiles out of the girls, using my usual reasonable humor.  Chloe would not buy it, but Leah seemed to get a kick out of it.

 For the rest of Spring Break, I had great plans:

* get groceries and other necessary items
*get the oil changed on Cora's car
*get the car in for a visor repair
*change the snow tires
*work on the bathroom, with a view toward getting almost done by week's end

Well, the first four took up Monday and Tuesday.  Chloe and I spent nearly the whole day in town both days.  At least with the car stuff we got to go for a walk.  We visited Petco (where they have carts her size) and the toy store.  Then we visited Cabela's where I learned that because of the threat of gun laws and or gun regulation that .22 ammunition is now being rationed (one box per person per day).  Come on people, you don't seriously think they will take all of your guns away, do you?  Well, apparently some of you do...otherwise there would not be a rationing of .22 ammunition.

We finished that off (no, I declined to buy any ammo) with a walk to Yakima's famous Miner's Restaurant, in business since 1948.  We bought and shared an ice cream sundae.  Did I mention that that particular weekend and those first couple days were unseasonably warm?  in the 70s!!  It wasn't a horrible day, but nothing got done.  So, I planned to make up for that at the end of the week.

On Wednesday, I got serious and took out the bathroom sink and the toilet and tore up the vinyl floor.  I made some decent progress and planned to start sheet rock on Thursday.

Thursday dawned and we sent Cora off to work where she would be enduring an audit.  Then Chloe and I went to Lowes for supplies.

I admit I was not feeling particularly ambitious, but I was going to start nonetheless.  When, from the other room came a gagging sound.  Followed by Chloe running in to me gagging.  I offered her a garbage can to throw up into, thinking she was getting sick.  She then informed me she had swallowed money.  I asked if she could breathe, she said she could and appeared to be ok, other than trying to get it out of her throat.  I immediately called 911 and ended up speaking to their on call nurse.  She said either the emergency room or our pediatrician would be the best bet.  I called the pediatrician since Chloe seemed in no immediate danger.

The pediatrician said to go to the emergency room.  I bundled Chloe up and off we went, with a partial plan in mind...I even asked the iphone which was the best hospital in town and then promptly drove to the other one.  Of course, I may have been slightly distracted, since Chloe was not being herself.  She was quiet in the carseat drooling slightly...DROOLING!!  WHAT"S WRONG WITH MY KID!!!

She swallowed it at about 11:30AM, and by noon we were at the hospital.  By 12:30 they had us in getting X-rays.  From that point on we sat.  I had let Cora know, in the middle of her audit, what had happened.  And attempted to keep her appraised through texts...problem is, despite all the signs around me, I thought I was at the other hospital.

The doc finally came in and said they were going to send her to Seattle Children's Hospital because no one in Yakima could put her under.  "No one in Yakima?"  No one.  This was pretty interesting information since I knew for a fact that they had put her under anesthetic when she got the tube in her ear...HERE IN YAKIMA.  But, who am I to argue with a doctor, who surely has more experience with local doctory.  Still, I kept Cora and now an ever widening swath of family tuned in.

Finally, when he came back and said for sure they would be sending Chloe to Seattle, I texted Cora and told her I would deeply appreciate it if she could come home as soon as possible...if it weren't too much to ask...well, maybe not quite in those words, but close.  I tried to remain calm...at least on the outside.

Cora made it to Yakima and told me she'd be there soon(That seemed awful fast...was she speeding?)...then it dawned on me that the hospital I'd told her I was at was NOT WHERE I WAS...and then the all too finicky hospital cell phone reception turned cold and would not let me get a call out unless I was facing a certain direction next to a certain wall...the first three texts did not go through, so I called her.  She was at the doors of the other hospital.  She may have uttered some profanity.  I don't recall.  By this time Chloe had tired of all this commotion and had fallen asleep on my shoulder.

They kept coming in and telling me the Ambulance would come and take her to Seattle...I began to worry that Cora might not make it.  She walked in...record flight across town?  And all was well.  They kept saying the ambulance was coming.  I had put Chloe's lovey and bear in the wash before she had swallowed the coin.  It was a production with Chloe putting the offensive rag in the wash after hugging and kissing it.  She can live without it, but it is a miserable existence for all.  I opted to make a run for home and try to get back before the ambulance.

I opted for a creative driving tactic that may have confused and irritated other drivers, but I made it back to the hospital with time to spare.  Both of our phones were beginning to show effects of having been in use for a good part of the day.  I managed to throw a few items in just in case we spent more time in Seattle than expected.  As it turns out I am glad I did.

We finally saw the ambulance driver and his cohort and they bundled Chloe up on the gurney and Cora accompanied them to the Ambulance.  I got Chloe's princess blanket and made sure she had it for the drive.  We left Yakima about 4pm.  I drove behind.  A raw bundle of nerves hoping for a quick drive.  I was rewarded with a sedate drive across the pass...at one time attaining a speed about 5 miles an hour over the limit... I was disappointed and still brooding over my obvious unfitness as a parent.

We arrived in the general vicinity of Seattle at about 6pm.  Traffic was horrible.  The ambulance driver opted to use the carpool lane...I was not allowed to follow since I was driving solo.  They were worried I would not find my way.  I was worried I wouldn't get there until after she came out of anesthesia.

I did manage to throw in my camera...and I am glad I did.  I got some amazing photos of traffic.  the next photo is of the drive past the University District.  Children's is that large building that the crane seems to be pointing at.

 As it turns out, I arrived just ten minutes behind the ambulance.  Something about misuse of an emergency vehicle...as far as I was concerned it was an emergency, but no one really asked me much.  The good people at Children's treated us well,  They treated Chloe like a human rather than something to be worked upon.  They treated us well and explained that this was NOT uncommon and that they had seen a lot of similar things...a few of the people even sharing their own coin swallowing stories.  My favorite was that of the anesthesiologist who used a metal detector to verify that the coin was on its way through his son.

They must have explained the procedure 4 times to us.  We are not the slowest people in the room, so we caught on after the second or third explanation.

They explained what they needed Chloe to do, and as I was not allowed in, I have to go from what Cora said, apparently she walked right in and took the mask they thought they'd have to hold up to her face and she put it on her face and breathed in.  Unafraid and unconcerned.  That's my kid.

She came out of surgery quickly and we had just made it back from an interestingly convoluted walk to the car to obtain her valued Sully the Monster.  We waited another hour or so for her to wake up naturally.  We offered no complaint, as forcing Chloe to wake is not good for anyone.

She came out and we hugged her and loved her.  They gave us the coin, which turned out to be a penny, like she said.  They set me up on a computer so I could get us a room for the night, since the time was now well on to 11pm!  Good lord, we'd been at this for twelve hours!

We finally found a room...every hotel in the area was booked...across town.  Our friendly nurse or attending or whatever he was assured us it was a great place and his in-laws stayed there all the time.  He also hooked us up with a great place to have breakfast.  It was about midnight by the time we drove past the hotel a second time and I got a room.  Then we went off for a burger at Wendy's and came back.

Chloe ate more than the doctor recommended.  She and...well, all of us...had been on an involuntary fast since before noon!  We were all famished and it wasn't long until we fell into bed.

 We stayed at the Ballard Inn...a place I recommend for the friendly staff, the cozy atmosphere, and the lovely area around it.  I had about five minutes to snap some shots of the area and this is what I got.

We were going to try to go to the zoo, but the weather was too cold, and we had a limited wardrobe.  So, we went to the Science Center.

We got back home about 4 in the afternoon.  The week was a wash.

We had to order the shower kit and basically have given up on the bathroom until that comes in.  Still...we have each other.