Roadtrip

What do a green grass skirt, soccer shin guards, a baseball cap, and soccer cleats 5 years too large (on the wrong feet) all have in common? Henry. He's a mess with his outfits. This morning I decided to let him try to wear his baseball undies instead of a diaper. Just as Robbie announced that our wonderful breakfast was ready, Henry said, "I poopied." I looked down, and it was even on his socks. Honestly, that was the most outrageous poopy pants disaster that I have ever experienced in my seven years of parenting. He's not even 2 1/2. Maybe we need to wait a good long while before we try real undies again.

Robbie was so helpful today. I'm up to my ears in paperwork for Mothers of Young Children enrollment. Our group is over 100 women strong, and I have a big job going on right now. Robbie took over with our children to allow me to work on it the entire day. God bless him. He said that Henry stood outside our back door yelling, "Mommmy!!!" When Robbie opened the door Henry was without a diaper. I put him straight into shorts and a belt to solve that problem when he did it again later in the living room.

New tricks...Olivia is reading with beautiful fluency. She had her first soccer game today. Evelyn's printing is better than Uncle Anthony's, and it is small for a 4-year-old. She said, "I don't know why they (her classmates) write so HUGE!" Today she used little letter magnets to try to spell words independently. Vivian can roll, roll, roll. She also only wants me. Not even Daddy will do. She wants me. Henry is very in tune with all of my mothering roles. Sometimes he'll ask me, "Did you nurse her on that side?" as he points to one breast. The two share a room, and he is happy when I nurse the baby in the glider while he talks to me nonstop about Lightning McQueen and Sally. He's a verbal little guy.

We stayed in the Hotel Bothwell recently, and all four children shared a room of the family suite. Henry talked and talked to his big sisters when he was supposed to be falling asleep. The next morning as I French braided Olivia's hair he jumped off the bed head first and backwards. I caught him upside down by the ankle. Later, I loaded Vivian into the sling and put all of our luggage on a cart. Robbie was at work, so the girls pushed the cart while I held onto Henry. We had to go through the hotel, down an elevator, outside, down the sidewalk, and up into a parking lot toward the van. We got stuck. I couldn't manage it all, so I was thrilled when a woman appeared and answered my call for help. Our trip to Illinois went well. The first leg was tough because Henry stated over and over and OVER and OVER that he wanted to see cows and horses. He did this for 90 straight minutes, and I almost couldn't stand it. Leg two was better. All of the children fell asleep, and Robbie and I got to enjoy grown up conversation. The purpose of our trip was my father's Vintage Times Street Rod Club car show at Lincoln Park in Springfield, IL. He put my children in the back of his 1937 Studebaker coupe. Henry sat on his cousin's pink potty chair, because my little brother posed for a similar picture in the early 80s. Anthony actually surprised all of us by flying in from Dallas the night before the car show unexpectedly. My trustworthy husband knew, and he didn't tell. Dad and I were thrilled to see Anthony, and my children attacked him with running hugs.

Vivian and Henry slept in the room with my brother's turtle. Anthony won it when he was 2 years old. Tommy is still kicking. Anthony will soon turn 30. The turtle knocks around in his aquarium, and Henry would say, "I don't want to see the turtle's eyes!!!" We often heard through the monitor, "Ka-CHOW!!" That is what the main car says in the movie Cars. Henry always makes us laugh.