Friday, September 9, 2011

Shower Buddy

Due to a family emergency, we needed to take an immediate trip out to Upper Black Eddy, Pennsylvania. Yes, you read that right, Upper Black Eddy--I know, I would not have thought to put those words together either. We'll just call it what the locals do: UBE

Anyhoo, UBE is conveniently located a cool 3000 miles away from our little town of Maricopa, and with the cost of airfare, we decided to take the more economical and scenic route. Mistake #1. We also decided to bring along our camping gear and camp on our way out there. Mistake #2.

The first day we left the house at 3:00 a.m. and drove for a good 16 hours (including potty breaks and meals) and finally stopped for the night at a KOA in Oklahoma City, OK. I don't know what was up with the weather that night, but it was one very, very hot and humid night. Hmph. See, hot, humid, and Tasha go about as well together as pickles, cheese, and chocolate. UGH!

As we laid there on our air mattress (yes, I am a princess...I will not sleep on the hard floor if I don't have to) I could feel myself adhering to my bedding in a weird mixture of humidity and sweat. Even after an exhausting day, there was no way I could sleep comfortably, so I decided to take a shower in log-cabin-type structure at the entrance to the park.

Just taking the journey to the showers was an adventure, as it was pitch-black and I don't know who I scared more as I all but ran headlong into a tent nestled in the dark shadows underneath a canopy of trees--the massive dog inside the tent as well as her owner, or myself.

As I opened the door to the cabin, the still, eerie feeling of being completely alone yet not feeling completely alone raised my paranoia as well as the hairs on the back of my neck. To top things off, spooky-scary movie music sang in the back of my head as I checked all the rooms to make sure I was indeed alone.

All seemed well at first...but I couldn't shake the feeling that the cabin was completely empty, so I scurried into a shower stall, feeling safe after I locked the door behind me.

I should not have.

I went through the routine of starting the water and completely undressing as I waited for the shower to warm up. Mistake #3. Just as I opened the shower curtain to step inside I noticed a movement in the corner of the shower that would have scared the pants right off of me...if I would have had any on.

As I was standing there, in nothing but my nuthin's, this little guy stared back at me:



Fortunately I am not afraid of frogs, all the same, I didn't like the idea of the little guy landing on me without my permission. I told him if he would just stay where he was, I would only be a minute, then he could have the stall to himself again.

He didn't listen.

As I showered, I kept one eye on him the entire time. Of course, he started walking across the wall, and the closer he got to me, the more I got out of the shower...until I found myself standing in the little room infront of the shower next to the locked door.

It wasn't until he decided to come into the room that I was in that I gently told him "No." and pushed him back in the stall. One record-setting rinse off later, and he was back in his corner and I was dressed and putting as much distance between myself and my shower buddy as possible.



Still Kickin'

Hey there toys and squirels! (I totally stole that from my sister in law! She's the best!) I'm back from a chaotic month and a half and proud to say that we are still kickin'...though probably not as high as we "used t'could"...(admit it, you find my western twang charming...at least entertaining? No? Just lie and say yes.)

Anyhoo...recap on the last 30 days:

Landon started school August 8th. He attends Legacy Traditional Charter School and survives all day kindergarten. This school is a-w-e-s-o-m-e! They are so good with Landon. He has two teachers and two aids that look out for him and he has a great relationship with all of them. He is making great progress. He is able to recite the entire Pledge of Allegiance (video soon to come), count to 100, write his name (you can even tell what it says!), and yell "Mom! It's hot!" when I throw him in the shower without paying attention to the water temperature. These things may seem small, but for little Landon, they're huge.

Kaden had a REALLY hard time with Landon going to school at first; I honestly wasn't sure how I would make it through that first week. Leaving my "Little Man" (who still lives up to that name, especially compared to the 8th graders who go to that school) behind was hard enough, then to be pushing a stroller and dragging a 3-year-old little boy screaming for his brother...it nearly ripped me apart. I recall several times where I had Jim on the phone and I was just sobbing. BUT we got through it (thank heavens!) and Kaden is digging his Momma & Kaden time.

Myla is embracing her "terrible two's" with avengeance. She has this habit of getting into trouble (today it was a blue marker) and then, just as you are about to show any remote sign of frustration, she tilts her head back, smiles, and wraps her little arms around your legs. It's impossible to resist. Apparently the charm starts young.

We just got back from a fifteen-day excursion back east to Pennsylvania...I trip I will dive into more detail later this week, but I'll give you a peek: Three days driving, three kids, and almost 3000 miles. It certainly wasn't boring!

Hope this post meets you in good spirits...or at least a good survival story to tell! And don't forget, if all else fails, keep on dancin'!