Daddy Placemats

Good Wednesday morning!

NOTE TO MIKIE - Of course I would have let you back in the car if you had been in "trouble" on that dark Georgia night so many years ago. Wouldn't I? Now, I'm wondering. I guess we'll never know, will we?

I've added a couple of pics of Roxie and her friend, Ragan. After a fun evening with the "girls" at Girl's Night Out hosted by our church, she spent the night. I just love the summer schedule, don't you? I cannot believe it is already June 17. I'm determined to squeeze the most out of every day because everyone knows summer days go by a lot faster than fall, winter and spring school days, don't they?

Josh has an off day from Football Practice. Even though he has a yard or two to cut with Austin, he considers it an ultimately easier day than Football Practice. I was walking out of his room a couple of days ago (with a huge armful of laundry, of course) and above his door was the sign pictured above. The words on the sign were "Work Ethic, Determination, Consistency, Heart, Toughness, Mindset." I don't know about you, but those are pretty impressive words where I come from.

Since Josh has been sick, he has plastered the walls of his room with all kinds of pictures of athletes. Beside some of them, he writes the word that best describes the athlete or the athlete's ability he admires most (leadership, accuracy, etc.). I asked him why he had chosen the words in the sign above his door, and he grinned and told me it was what he was striving for. "Did you copy this, or did you come up with this on your own?" I again questioned him.

"Nope. I picked those words. Pretty good, huh?"

Pretty good, indeed. I wondered what six words I would put above my door to "strive for." The words I would see each day as I headed out my bedroom door to "who knows what." I came up with "Simplify, Patience, Endurance, Kindness, Empathy, Child-Like." Words to strive for! It was not as easy for me as coming up with New National Holidays. What words would you pick? You don't have to respond. It's just one of those "Hmmm" questions. Something to ponder.

Vacation Mishap #3 - Strep Throat

Our Disney trip was magical. At 40 years of age, it was the first time I had ever been to Disney. Austin was 10, Josh was 7 and Roxie was 4. Great ages for all of us.

After we got some good news about the van (it was fixed, and we didn't have to immediately go home because the repair cost had used ALL our vacation money), we relaxed and started enjoying our "adventure."

It could not have been better. The crowds were not bad since it was November (during school). The weather was warm/hot, but not sweaty hot. We saw everything we wanted to see and did everything we wanted to do, plus so much more. And then Tuesday night came.

After a busy, but fun day, we headed to the hotel to get ready for the Authentic Hawaiian Luau we were going to that evening. Like everything else we had experienced, it did not disappoint. However, something wasn't right. Tired... yes. Throat a little scratchy... yes. Feverish... nope. Achy ALL over... nope. Eyes burning out of my head... nope. Okay. So I had a little scratchy throat, and I was tired. It wasn't the end of the world. I would survive. WRONG!

We all went to bed pretty early because we wanted to get up and start the next day bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. However, around 4:00 a.m. I woke up with a golf ball sticking out the side of my neck. (I'm not kidding!) When I get strep, as I occasionally do, it starts out with a scratchy throat that turns into a golf ball... on one side of my throat. Yep. I had strep all right. A full-blown case.

I crawled into the bathroom with my Unofficial Guide to Disney book, and looked up medical emergencies in the back. Z-Pack... Z-Pack... Not listed. Okay. What do you do at Disney when you are sick? I read all my options, and then picked the one that best fit my particular situation. I NEEDED a Z-Pack. I did not need to spend a day in the emergency room off Disney property. I did not need to spend half a day in the infirmary on Disney property. I had to be at Chef Mickey at 8:15 a.m.

The answer to my problem was evident. I had to call my doctor (RIGHT AWAY) and tell them where I was and what I had and how much medicine I needed. I had to emphasize the importance of them calling the pharmacy Disney used (whose address and phone number were in the Unofficial Guide to Disney), and leaving me a prescription for a Z-Pack. I had to sound sick enough to make them follow my instructions, but not so sick they called back to tell me to get to a doctor. A very fine line.

The next step was to call the pharmacy to warn them my doctor would be calling and they would need to IMMEDIATELY deliver the drugs to my hotel by noon that same day. (Keep in mind, all of the calls were being made at 4:45 a.m. on the bathroom floor of my Disney hotel room.) The Unofficial Guide to Disney said the pharmacy was in Kissemmee, but delivered medication to Disney several times a day for a $20 charge. (I didn't care. It could have been $50. I would have still tipped the guy who brought me drugs!)

Tap. Tap. Tap. "You okay?" a sleepy Mikie whispered through the door.

"No. I'm dying. I have strep again," I whispered back and he slipped in the door.

"What are we going to do?" Isn't he sweet? This was the man a few nights earlier I would not have let back in the van if the people he had been talking to on that dark road in Georgia had attacked him. But instead of asking "What are YOU going to do?" he said "we." Good guy.

I let him read the paragraph in the book, and told him I had already made the calls. We would do everything we had planned on doing and come back to the hotel at noon so I could take my first dose of drugs. He felt my forehead. "You already have your high fever," he informed me.

"Yeah. Well, I'll just have to take a lot of Tylenol until I get the good stuff," I replied.

"You know. I'm getting a sinus infection. I think I'll call my doctor and order a Z-Pack, too. That way the pharmacy can deliver both orders by noon," he said. He was right. He was indeed getting a sinus infection. And he can get really, really sick with a sinus infection. I've seen it happen.

"ARE YOU CRAZY?" I hissed. "The pharmacy is going to think we're hooked on Z-Packs. They'll notify our doctors, and they'll cancel MY drugs."

"Okay, okay. First of all, people don't get "hooked" on Z-Packs. Second, the pharmacy doesn't care if TWO people in our family need a Z-Pack. Sometimes that happens. Sometimes more than one person in a family of five gets sick at the same time."

That was true. It took a minute or two for it to sink in, but sometimes more than one person at a time does indeed get sick.

"All right. You can call your doctor and leave a message. But this better not mess up the delivery of my drugs," I warned.

With calls made, kids up and dressed, we made our way to Chef Mickey. Boy, was I sick. We enjoyed everything though. Even through the pain and the fever, I was determined to enjoy and experience EVERYTHING Disney. We left Chef Mickey and made our way to the Indiana Jones show at MGM. When they asked for a volunteer from the audience, the kids were begging Mikie to jump up and down and get on stage. However, I knew he couldn't leave because of ME. I was fading fast. We watched the show with my head in his lap, and then it was time to go to the hotel for our medication.

Uh-oh. Josh, our character spotter, saw some characters about two miles away. Off we went. When we reached our destination, we saw a few more characters... and then a few more. We were really big into getting autographs and having our pictures made with any and ALL characters. My one prerequisite for going on this trip was seeing Pooh. I had to see Pooh, and as of that time, we had not spotted him yet.

I was sitting on the ground with my head against a building while the kids got Alice in Wonderland's autograph and picture when Josh saw Pooh... only a million miles away. "Come on, Mom," they all yelled. "It's Pooh!"

With the last bit of strength I had, I walked, stumbled, tripped over to Pooh. The picture of me and Pooh is really kind of pitiful. I have my head on his shoulder and he had both of his hot, furry arms around me... holding me up. If you couldn't see my face (and I was a three year-old), you would think it was a sweet picture. However, being a 40 year-old with a 104 degree fever, it loses something.

"Okay, guys. Let's get back to the hotel for some pizza in the room," Mike said. And then we thankfully went back to the hotel. At the front desk of the hotel were two bags of drugs. I quickly took my first dose (as did Mikie), and got into bed. Mike and the kids ate pizza, watched Disney movies and spent the rest of the early evening at the pool.

The next day, I was still sick, but better. And as I took my next four doses of my Z-Pack over the next day and half, I became better and better and better still. So much so that I was able to FULLY enjoy the remainder of our trip.

Tomorrow we leave Disney and go to yet another destination for our next Mishap. Join me, won't you?

New National Holiday #4 - This one is easy. Every June 17 from now on will be known as "National Call the First Person Who Pops In Your Head Day." That's not so hard. No big meals to prepare. No cleaning the house from top to bottom to get ready for a multitude of guests. No money to spend. Just wake up, and call the first person whose name comes to mind. It might be an old friend, a relative, a neighbor, etc. It doesn't matter. Just give them a little telephone call, and tell them you were thinking of them and just wanted to say "Hi."

What a nice, relaxing holiday. Try it. I'll bet you like it.

Daddy Placemats

Every year the week before Father's Day, find as many pictures as you can from the past year of the kids with Dad. Have all the kids crop and trim the pictures. Place the pictures on a pre-cut poster board (the size of a large placemat), and glue the pictures on the poster board (no white showing). Cover the placemat with clear contact paper front and back.

Serve Dad his Father's Day meal on his special placemat. You can use it every day during the year, or just special days (Sunday dinner, birthday, etc.), but be sure to replace it with a new one the following Father's Day.

It's a great gift he will enjoy AND look forward to receiving as part of his Father's Day celebration every year.

NOTE: If you have a lot of pictures, you can put pictures on both sides of the placemat. (You know what that's called, don't you? A twofer!)

ANOTHER NOTE: This would work as a great Mother's Day Tradition/Gift, too. Just a thought!

Have a happy Wednesday. Tomorrow I will have the usual... Weekend Family Fun, Vacation Mishap #4, New National Holiday #5 and, of course, a Father's Day Date. Come back and check in if you have a minute.

Take care, and I'll talk to you soon. Oh, and have a Happy Call the First Person Who Pops In Your Head Day!