Summer 2009 Rock Rapids Trip

Okay, I'm going to try to write a little synopsis of the fun things we did on vacation.

Day 1 - Friday

Mom drove up to The Cities on Friday morning, and then she and I went to the airport to pick up Erin, Genevieve, and Ella. I think Erin was more than fried after traveling overnight with a plane change in Seattle with two little girls: ages 3 and 20 mo. But we were super-excited to see her!

Mom, Megan, Erin, and the girls then headed for Rock Rapids, while Sammy took a nap, and Charlie and I finished packing. We would have been done packing, but I could not find our camera case. We had the camera, but the case with the batteries, charger, and cables was missing. We looked EVERYWHERE! We couldn't find it. I even called the guys at work and had them look through my desk for it, but it wasn't there either. We finally just headed out without it.

Wouldn't you know that the next day, as I was sitting in my parents' dining room chatting with my mom, I looked on the kitchen counter and said to my mom, "Hey, is that my camera case!" I guess Melissa had found it in my dad's truck after our tubing outing last month. She knew where it was, but she was camping in Omaha that weekend, so she was the one person who didn't know I was looking for it. I was just glad to have it!

Day 2 - Saturday

We mostly lay low, but Dad took the kids fishing, which they LOVE! Megan caught 25 bluegill - her limit! She was super excited. It was in a stocked pond, and she had to throw them all back, but that's still a lot of fish to catch! :-)

Saturday night we drove to Sioux Center to see my cousin Dan's baseball game. His team was in the state semi-finals! They didn't win, but it was fun to see a high school game again. Plus, we got to see Grandma and Grandpa Muecke and Uncle Duane and Aunt Amy.

Day 3 - Sunday

We got out Dad's 4-wheelers and gave the kids rides. I still remember how to drive one - whew! It was really fun. Now I remember why I spent hours on ours when I was growing up.

In the afternoon, Grandpa and Grandma Muecke, Aunt Sherri, Cousin Steph and her daughter Riley came for a visit. Reily is almost 2, like Sammy and Ella, so they were all pretty cute together. We had tacos for supper with my mom's super awesome taco sauce that makes you sweat but tastes oh so good! I've tried making it myself, but I don't have the home grown, canned tomatoes that she uses. They make all the difference.

Day 4 - Monday

Monday was our only rainy day, so we met Grandpa and Grandma in Rock Valley to take Mom out for lunch. We went to Pizza Ranch for the buffet - yummmm! It's really no wonder how I gained 3 pounds in 10 days when you look at all the awesome food I ate. :-p

After lunch, we drove to Hospers to visit Grandpa Klein and Cousin Dean. The kids kind of terrorized the poor farmhouse where my grandpa was born, but Grandpa and Dean were genuinely glad to have the visitors. Grandpa came home early from his "coffee," and Dean came home from work to hang out with us. I'm really glad we went because the rest of the week seemed to fly by.

Day 5 - Tuesday

Tuesday was our trip to the Great Plains Zoo in Sioux Falls. The zoo has improved since I first went there in grade school, and the kids really liked it. Sammy couldn't wait to see the monkeys - he loves monkeys! I'll let all the pictures tell the story.

Day 6 - Wednesday

Wednesday was a trip to Sioux Falls to shop and attempt to get a group picture of all six grandchildren. I thought I had a fair idea of what taking a picture of six kids: ages 21 months to 9 years. I figured there'd be general chaos, but I had no idea how many tears would be shed by kids and parents alike. :-p We ended up with a couple of pictures in which most of the kids were looking at the camera and not crying... At least we tried! After the picture experience, we shopped and ate and had a good time.

Day 7 - Thursday

We planned to go to the waterpark on Thursday, but nap schedules and responsibilities at the bait shop left us with a couple trips to the Rock Rapids swimming pool instead. Fortunately, the pool in RR is awesome and the kids LOVED it. :-)

Thursday night Dad made his famous chocolate malts - awesome!

Day 8 - Friday

Friday was father/daughter fishing day - yay! Dad took Melissa, Erin, and I out on his boat at Spirit Lake and we fished for perch. Melissa, bait shop manager extraordinaire, baited her own hook and removed her own fish. Erin and I let Dad do it. He grumbled a little, but he's used to it. We caught 50 fish all together, and it was very fun. Mom watched the littlest three grandkids (brave woman), and Charlie took Megan, Shea, and Jaylen to Sioux Falls for a movie.

Day 9 - Saturday/Bunko!/BBQ

Saturday we hosted a Bunko party at Mom and Dad's and then we had a BBQ with fireworks. We got to see lots of old friends and family.

Day 10 - Sunday

The Scobbas had to head home, and Erin and the girls headed to Rapid City, SD to see Erin's in-laws. We brought Jaylen home with us to spend the week.

Shea lost his second tooth!

We knew it was coming ... that second tooth was pretty loose. Daddy pulled it yesterday, and now our boy is missing his two front teeth. I was singing the "All I Want for Christmas" song for him yesterday in honor of his new toothless grin. He thought that was pretty cool.

I got a picture of him and also one of all three kids to commemorate this occasion. Yes, Shea is trying to hold Sammy's head still because he refused to look at the camera.

I went looking for pictures from Megan's first lost tooth, and she did lose her first one the summer before she turned 6. Check out this picture; we were having a tooth celebration: eating popcorn and watching the movie Toothless. They were just babies!

Sammy's a Singer

Sammy's favorite song to sing these days is "We Will Rock You." Even this morning as I was getting ready for work, I could hear him singing to himself in his bed...

We will

We will

Rock you

-Tsh-

Rock you

-Tsh-

Even when we can't understand all the words he's singing, we know what he's singing because of the distinctive -Tsh- accompanied with a head bob for emphasis. It's pretty darned cute.

You may be thinking to yourself that "We Will Rock You" is not a very kid-like song, but he is strongly influenced by his dad and older brother and sister. They all love to watch music videos off the iPod in the minivan. I recently bought an AV cable so that we could listen to the iPod in the van, but for the most part, the kids just want to watch music videos. We have just a few videos on the iPod so far, and "We Will Rock You" happens to be one of them.

Sammy loves it. He's destined to be a mover and a shaker. If you see him, I'm sure he'll sing it for you. :o)

Shea lost his first tooth

Shea lost his first tooth last night! His top, front two teeth have been pretty loose for a while, but one is now gone. Megan was coaching him yesterday afternoon on how to pull the tooth, but Shea couldn't quite get it.

Well, leave it to Daddy. He and Shea were wrestling last night, and Charlie said, "Hey, let me try to flick that tooth out ..." So he flicked it, and the tooth came out! Shea was pretty darned excited - especially to see if the Tooth Fairy would come during the night, which she did! She left him 4 quarters and a dollar coin.

I get a little choked up thinking of my little boy having grown-up teeth , but I guess it had to happen eventually. Was Megan just 5 when she lost a tooth? I'm going to have to investigate!

ENT appointments for Sammy and Shea

I took Sammy and Shea in to see the Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor this morning, and here's a brief update on what we learned.

Sam’s tubes look great. We just need to check them again in 6 months.

Shea is going to get tubes plus get his tonsils and adenoids taken out. Dr. Johnson said that Shea has thick fluid behind both of his ears that is causing hearing loss (the ear drum can’t vibrate properly because of the pressure from the fluid). He thinks the fluid is backing up because of Shea’s large tonsils and adenoids. He took one look in Shea’s throat and asked me if he snored, which he does. He said that’s because of the tonsils and adenoids blocking his airway. They did a hearing test and said that his results show hearing loss, which we all suspected and is the reason we brought him in. He said that what Shea hears is like what you or I would hear with earplugs in (poor guy).

So, Dr. Johnson’s scheduler is going to call early next week so that we can set up a time for the surgery. The procedure takes about an hour and is normally outpatient. He said every once in a while a child will have to stay overnight if there are any complications, but hopefully we won’t have to. He’ll have to eat soft foods for 2 weeks afterward.

We’re hoping to get is scheduled here in June so that he can have the summer to heal and get ready for Kindergarten in the fall. I hate to think of his not being able to hear and am anxious to get him some relief. Keep him in your prayers, and we’ll let you know when the surgery is scheduled.

Love,
Tracy

Three Things

Three Names I go by
1. Tracy or Trace
2. Scobes, Scobie, Scobbas
3. Momma, Mommy, Mom

Three Jobs I have had in my life
1. Hog chorer
2. Hy-Vee cashier
3. Dorm Housekeeping two summers in college

Three Jobs I Would Still Like to Try
1. Full-time volunteer
2. Politician
3. I have no idea what I want to be when I grow up.

Three Places I have lived
1. Lewisville, MN
2. Rock Rapids, IA
3. Oxford, OH

Three Places I have REALLY LOVED
1. Gulf Shores, AL
2. St. Louis, MO
3. Bozeman, MT

Three TV Shows that I watch
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. Ugly Betty
3. The Big Bang Theory

Three TV Shows I would still watch if they were still on
1. Friends
2. Seinfeld
3. Friday Night Lights - I hope it's back next year!

Three places I have been
1. Ice Cream Capital of the World
2. Disney World
3. New Orleans

Three places I would go to in a heartbeat
1. Homer, Alaska
2. Disney World
3. Ireland

People that talk to me regularly
1. Charlie
2. Kerrie
3. Michelle

Three of my favorite foods
1. Mexican food - especially enchiladas
2. Ice cream
3. Tiramisu

Three foods I know I'm supposed to like, but I just don't
1. Seafood
2. Pork
3. Peaches

Three Things I dread
1. Hosting birthday parties for my kids - they're fun but I put so much pressure on myself to make them great.
2. Getting up in the morning
3. Paying unexpected expenses

Three Things I am looking forward to
1. A summer trip to Wisconsin Dells with my family
2. Summer in general
3. Charlie's birthday on Saturday

Firsts

1. Who was your FIRST prom date? Paul Krause - Well, we didn't so much go together as we just walked in together and took pictures with each other.

2. Do you still talk to your FIRST love? Yes. He's my husband.

3. What was your FIRST alcoholic drink? I had a pina colada at Pat O'Brien's in New Orleans, but I didn't like it.

4. What was your FIRST job? Other than babysitting, I was a cashier at Hy-Vee.

5. What was your FIRST car? 1980 Maroon Monte Carlo

6. Who was the FIRST person to text you today? Ah, no texts today.

7. Who is the FIRST person you thought of this morning? Sammy because he was sleeping on my arm.

8. Who was your FIRST grade teacher? Mrs. Henke (pronounced HEN-key, but most of us called her Mrs. HANKy) She was awesome.

9. Where did you go on your FIRST ride on an airplane? My very first ride was with Grandpa Muecke in Sheldon, IA. First commercial flight was to New Orleans.

10. Who was your FIRST best friend & do you still talk? My first best friend was my sister Melissa, and yeah, we still talk. :o)

11. Where was your FIRST sleep over? Oye, I'm not sure ... I think maybe at Judy (Conn) Folker's or Sarah (Aeilts) Hilderbrand's house.

12. Who was the FIRST person you talked to today? Charles P.

13. Whose wedding were you in the FIRST time? Aunt Sherri's - I was 2.5.

14. What was the FIRST thing you did this morning? Jumped out of bed to brush my teeth because I totally overslept.

15. What was the FIRST concert you ever went to? Amy Grant

16. FIRST tattoo? None

17. FIRST piercing? Ears - at 10 years old

18. FIRST foreign country you've gone to? Never been outside the US

19. FIRST movie you remember seeing? Song of the South for my cousin Jason's birthday

20. When was your FIRST detention? Me - detention - NEVER!

21. I must have deleted 21 by mistake ...

22. Who was your FIRST roommate? At home, Melissa. At college, Kerrie Masuen.

23. If you had one wish? To live closer to my parents but still have the job I have now.

24. What is something you would learn if you had the chance? How to play the piano.

25. Did you marry the FIRST person to ask for your hand in marriage? Yep.

26. What was the first sport that you were involved in? Volleyball in 7th grade

27. What were the first lessons you ever took? Swimming

28. What is the first thing you do when you get home? Drop my stuff, hug my kiddos, and kiss my husband