End of Summer Fun, Ok Middle of the Summer Fun in Houston

It almost appears as if our life stopped after Disneyworld and Tate's birthday.  Those last few weeks of summer were a whirlwind;  well summer hasn't stopped here yet...we're still in temps of high 90s and feels like temps of low 100s.  There's much more summer to be had in our lives.

So, the week after we returned from Florid, I had Tate in camp, the one where he had his anaphylactic reaction at the end of the week.  I'm forever grateful that the staff reacted so quickly and with clear heads to save my little boy's life.  We will never know what triggered his reaction or if he really and truly had an anaphylactic reaction.  We saw our pediatric allergist the following Friday, and he could not ascertain anything either.  We know his allergies, we avoid them;  this is the best we can do unfortunately.  We educate everyone who takes care of him and is around him.

And I pray.

I pray that God will protect my sweet boy when I'm not with him and even when I am with him.

I pray that God will give those caring for him the sense of mind to be ever so cautious and on guard with him to watch for signs and symptoms and to act with swiftness and care if ever there is a problem.

I pray that Tate outgrows his allergies or at least we find a cure.  I pray that God guides those who are searching for clues that they may find the answers we so desperately need to keep my boy alive and everyone else.

Then we live our lives with joy!

The day after his episode in the ER I took him to his last session of summer soccer.  The docs on Friday had not been too keen on him going, but I knew what to watch for, I felt confident he was ok and I didn't want to prolong what had happened to him in his mind by altering our schedule.  So one more hot morning of soccer it was!!!

The following week he went to his first week of Zoo Camp!  My parents were awesome and would take him and pick him up for me!!  They are simply amazing!!!  I picked him up early on Friday, and we were off to his allergist appointment...all went well and he was given the all clear.  Just in time as the next day was his birthday party!!  So much fun!!! 

He had a great time putting together the many Legos he got and trying to put together his new Razor bike from my friend Kelly (and her daughter S).  The putting together and taking apart entertained him all Sunday morning giving me time to recuperate from the festivities!!

He was so proud of himself!

On Sunday late afternoon we made our way to the Health Museum!  We had come when he was really small, and it was on our bucket list.  I remembered it being a small museum, so opted to go towards the end of the day, especially since he wanted to play with all his new toys :)  We had a nice time;  it's not a very crowded museum, so you have plenty of time and opportunity to touch as much as you want!

We had to spend tons of time on the teeth of course!

This was his favorite exhibit!

Most of those pics are blurry because he was in constant motion the entire time!!!

More zoo camp came the following week.  Thursday afternoon my dad picked him up from zoo camp and took him to swim lessons.  I drove over to swim lessons after work and took Tate back to my office happy hour welcoming our newest dentist to the practice.  Yep my kid at another happy hour!!

I promise that's milk in his cup!

I picked him up early again on that Friday to take him to get his chicken pox vaccine.  The camp was winding down for the summer that week, and they gave him a popsicle to go!!

Saturday morning we made our way to the Children's Museum.  I picked up our friend Hailey for this fun!  It was a great Saturday capped off with lunch at the French Fry Place!

H told Tate he's going to be her husband when they grow up!
That was his response!

Sunday we went to the Tomball Railroad Depot with my dear friend Palmi and her son Alonzo!   This place was awesome!  There was a sweet older gentleman who gave us a tour and a brief history of the depot.  The kids got to run around and learn some history!  Of course, Palmi and I were a bit more intrigued than the boys were :)  But it was great fun.  Afterwards we let the boys play in the spray park...they had a blast!!

 

Such joy!

Afterwards, Tate and I headed to my parents' for a few days.  My dad thought Tate needed some downtime without running off to camp or daycare, so my parents offered to keep Tate for me for a few days.    The first two days Tate didn't want to go anywhere.  My dad offered to take him to the mall and play on the escalators...Tate said he needed to rest.  The next day they offered to take him to the Railroad Museum;  again he said he needed to rest.  They insisted he go out and about on Wednesday, taking him to the Railroad Museum where he had a ball.

I opted to send Tate to his old daycare for a couple last days before school started the following Monday.  It was such a bittersweet week for me.  I could not believe these were the last days we would park in the parking lot, walk across the threshold of where Tate had spent at least 4 days a week, 10 hours a day for 4 years.  Four years.  The most formative years of his life.  These women, these teachers had been his family when we were apart.  These boys and girls, his siblings.  He, Leo, Maggie and Alicen had been together since Tate was 11 months ago.  They had spent every waking day together practically.  Even the kids he hadn't been in class with for all four years, he had seen and played with on a daily basis.  The school is tiny with only 70 kids and 16 teachers.  These kids are bonded.  As was I.  As was I.

My sweet boy was done with daycare.

That evening his BFF's parents hosted a last hurrah for the kiddos!  I had to work all day, so I asked another mom to take Tate for me! Thank goodness she was willing to do so for me!  The festivities started around 4...I arrived around 630!!  The kids had an absolute blast!!!

Tate's first time playing football!!!

Running for the play! 

I will be forever grateful to this amazing place where Tate learned to read, do math, write, make friends,  and most of all to love.  I pray he never loses these memories.

Saturday we went to a birthday party at the Museum of Natural Science.  There was a great tour of the Dinosaur Exhibit and then a magic show.  Tate was the first to volunteer as the Magician's Assistant!

They let the kids  feel part of the
exhibit.  Why the kids felt the need to smell
the stuff was beyond us!

The following day was the day before kindergarten;  the day of the ice cream social.  We had a Mommy and Tate Day where we just hung out, running errands, but having no other real plans.  I had him try on his uniform...

Then we made our way to the kindergarten social of which I've written about.  Here he was playing before the little boy pushed him...playing alone, but playing.  I'm so very glad these days are behind us.

That night I took him out to start a tradition of dinner for our family the night before the first day of school.  Of course we went to French Fry Place...his choice.  Just so happens that their a/c was out.  It was 101 degrees outside.  Yes, we stayed.  And yes we ate outside.  We tried sitting inside, but I could not handle it.  We persevered in the misery of 100 degrees.

It was great fun!!  Then we came home and read lots of books about starting kindergarten.

We had our first week of school.  I took him and picked him up the first two days.  My parents picked him up the next two days, and since I was off on that Friday I was able to pick him up!  I have decided to hire a babysitter to pick him up and bring him home or take him to any of his activities.  The school does have an after care program, but it's only until 6pm.  There is alot about that that doesn't work for my family.  I would probably never get there until 6pm with traffic.  Thus Tate would be in aftercare with a group of kids a bit older than him for 3 hours after school gets out.  He needs to be in bed, preferably asleep by 730.  My picking him up at 6pm would not put us home until 6:15 at the earliest.  I'd like to not spend the minimal time I get with my son cajoling him to eat the dinner I've prepared, which I have no idea when I would have time to do so, even if I plated it the night before, hurrying him to take a bath, do his homework or at least looking at the homework he's done or the work he's done that day, getting him in his pjs and ready for bed with stories.  There is no way I could do that in at most 75 frantic minutes.  What kind of life is that for my child?  Or me?

I explained all that to my parents.  My dad was so funny;  he just couldn't wrap his mind around why I would want a 'stranger' picking up Tate.  So much so that he offered to do it for me for this first year.  

I was shocked.  And grateful.  And thrilled.

Shocked because that requires him to drive at least 30 minutes to and from his house to get Tate and actually probably taking 45 minutes to get home with rush hour.

Grateful because I would never have to worry about Tate's safety with my dad and/or my mom.

Thrilled because I so want Tate and my dad to have a fulfilling relationship.

But I also worried that my dad would not get on the floor and play with Tate.  That he would bring Tate home and turn on the tv and watch the news.  I knew he wouldn't want to go to the park and play especially when it's hot outside.  I wondered about the parties Tate might get invited to on a weekday...no way would my dad want to go hang out with a bunch of women at Pump It Up.

So I decided to have my dad get Tate one day a week and I hired a babysitter to pick him up three days a week.  I really like her so far, and Tate seems to as well.  Even better she's trained as a medical assistant and she knows CPR!  She works Tuesday-Thursday and my dad does Mondays.

I've signed Tate up for soccer after school.  I didn't do it because I think he loves soccer so much;  I did it because it's done by grade and his team is his own classmates (well, both classes were welcome to sign up, but that's only 22 kids).  I want to foster friendships for him outside the classroom, and I want him to feel like part of the group sooner.  Hence my son who hates to sweat is now playing soccer for an hour right after school one day a week :).

He went to his first birthday party the Saturday after school started.  I so didn't want to go.  I just wasn't looking forward to having to spend the morning making small talk with people I didn't know.  I'm just so very shy, and these kinds of activities are so hard for me.  But again I want Tate to feel welcome, so we went.  And it was more fun than I thought it would be.  Everyone was really nice and made me feel welcome.  

The party favors were a lego set with a tube of mini M&Ms.  There were about 15 sets of 'boy' legos...Star Wars, Ninjago etc and about 6 or 7 of the 'girl' lego sets.  Tate quickly chose the 'girl' lego set.  Of course one dad gave him a look and the host dad who was showing the two boys getting the legos at that time (one of the boys being Tate) was only pointing out the boy legos to them.  When Tate expressed such keen interest inthe purple set he quickly offered those to the boys as well.  As we were leaving the mom of the birthday boy saw Tate's choice (after giving me a hug :) ) and said "Oh no!  Were there no more boy legos left?  I'll bring him one on Monday!"  I quickly assured her Tate chose the girl legos.  

Already so interesting!!!

My birthday came and went on August 25!!  I turned 47!!  I cannot believe it!  My mom's birthday is two days after mine, so we always celebrate together.  This year was no different.  The family gathered at my parents' house for lunch on the 24th.

On the evening of my birthday I enlisted my parents to babysit and I arranged a dinner out with some of my closest girlfriends including my awesome sister!  It was a fantastic evening of girl talk, love and happiness.  I am so very blessed with the amazing people in my life!

 Forty-seven amazing years.  And goodness am I so very lucky.  I have such amazing parents.  I'm surrounded by the love of a fantastic family.  My friends, goodness, I have some of the best friends a girl could ask for, most of them have been part of my life for more than a quarter of a century.  I know I'm so very lucky to have people in my life that have been there for so long.  God has been so amazing in my life.

That amazement is never as obvious in this little boy I get to raise.  This son He blessed me with.  My sweet sweet Tate.  

My family is complete.   

My life is complete.