I'm still standing...

Better than I ever did. Looking like a true survivor. Feeling like a little kid!

That title has no real relevance to anything in this post. I just have that song in my head.

So last week on Friday Cameron stayed home from school. I totally thought he was faking it and I was NOT nice about the whole thing. We got him off to school and Chase called and said, "I'm turning around and bringing him home. He doesn't feel good." When he walked in the door a few minutes later he looked FINE! I took one look and said, 'Get your bag and get in the van. You're going to school." And then he turned on the tears and started grabbing his stomach, which is what he had been doing on and off the night before and that morning. Frustrated with the fact that I was in my gym clothes and now my plans were changing I said, "Fine. You stay home. But you'll be in your bed all day. Don't think you're going to be out here watching movies or something."

By 4:30 I was calling Chase telling him to come home and take Cam to the hospital. Our pediatrician thought there was a chance he had appendicitis because he had spent the last several hours laying in bed clutching his stomach and screaming in pain. So as I shipped Cam off to the ER with daddy I was feeling like a super stellar mother. What kind of mother is mean to their sick kid?

Thankfully, after lots of prayers on my part, Cam did not have appendicitis. He had some weird, horrible stomach virus that manifested itself in nothing but violent stomach cramps. No vomiting, no fever. Just cramps that would come on suddenly and he'd be doubled over with tears streaming down his face. This went on from Thursday night until Sunday morning.

On the plus side, Cameron was really excited to explain, in detail, what an IV is and how they "stick a straw in your vein" to his friends. I'm really hoping he doesn't explain the enema he also got...

So the biggest of my littles is back to school today and feeling grand.

Miles, however, woke up with pink eye and a cold. Yet another day at the gym thwarted.

I don't really have much else to share as far as family news. My half-marathon training is going great. Jen and I completed  our 8-miler in 80 minutes on Saturday. And the first three miles were straight into a head-wind. It sucked, to say the least. But we felt great at the end. I think we've really found a good pace.

Cameron got to check out Miles at gymnastics on Friday and decided he wanted to try it again, too. Our rec center offers a class for older boys that just happens to start this Wednesday, so it seems the stars were aligned on that one. I did tell him that he had to choose between gymnastics and martial arts. I feel like my kids are too young to be involved in multiple sports/activities at the same time. And it's too expensive! Cameron really had to think about it, though. He's got great plans for being a master ninja so putting that on hold is hard. But I think watching Miles get rolled around in the foam tube erased all doubt from his mind. Ninja training will have to wait.

Miles is doing really, really well in pre-school. It's been so fun to watch him go from this insanely wild toddler to a big kid who can sit and color for hours on end. He is an information sponge, too. He comes home from school and spouts the most awesome stuff about sharks, and where apples come from, and space... He finds every little thing fascinating!

And maybe he found some scissors and cut a sweet patch out of his hair last week.

Sophia is more than meets the eye. At first glance she's all bouncy blonde hair and blue-eyed sweetness. But take a closer look and you'll see an iron will and an attitude that rivals any teenager in a 10 mile radius. She's been a time-out corner resident a lot in the last few months. She can't wait to start pre-school in the fall when Miles heads off to school. She will probably start ballet or dance at the same time because cousin Natalie has been showing her some moves and it makes me turn to jello when I watch her copy them.

Haley is a sweet ball of baby goodness. Literally. If you drew a circle and put her in it she would fill up most of the space. A few weeks ago I decided she absolutely needed to sleep through the night. This was a hard one for me because she's been such a great baby! Since we brought her home from the hospital she has been able to fall asleep on her own in the crib. She's never needed a bottle or hours of rocking/bouncing/walking to get to sleep. I just stick her in the crib with her binkie and walk out. The problem was staying asleep after she lost her binkie - some nights she would wake up two or three times needing it! So we had to do the cry-it-out weekend, and guess what? She rocked it. Two nights and done. Sleeping through the night like a champ. Of course Miles and Sophia have more than made up for her...Sigh.

Chase is doing the usual work type stuff and church type stuff. I'm just keeping all the balls in the air and providing clean clothes and regular nourishment:) It's a great job if you can get it!  

  Sophia dressed up "like a princess." Um, I'm pretty sure most princesses own brushes, babe.

Ever wonder what happens when you leave the nutella on the counter while you're out of the room?

Can't help myself...

Cameron spent a lot of time doing this over the weekend. I like how he put squares of toilet paper under his hands:) That's my boy!

That's my paper cutter, and that's Cameron's playdough. They don't make a great match, I assure you.