Fall Break

We decided that it was time to take a break from the stress of school and play for a while. We wanted to take advantage of the nice weather and changing colors while we could. So while poor dad labored, we played.

Our break started on Sunday with a very fun day at the Arboreteum with Nana, Papa and dad. Chris and Sami enjoyed playing in the stream and trying to build a dam. We went for a nice stroll around the lake before heading for home. On Monday we went to Tekakawitha Nature Center in St. Charles. We try to go there in the fall. Mom never plans on staying to long, but even with the map we get helplessly lost. This year we didn't get as lost. We had a good time exploring a creek bed and the river. Sami had fun making animal tracks with stamps while Chris worked on a puzzle in the nature center. Sami is quite the budding scienist and decided we should make a chart of all the animals we saw on our walk. So every couple of minutes we had to stop and pull out our chart and make a tick mark, put the chart away and the pencil away.

On Tuesday, we babysat for cousin Joey while Kathleen was in a gymnastics class. After class Kathleen and Sami ran around outside for a while. After lunch we went to a playdate with some kids in the babysitting coop. The girls terrorized poor Chris and then came running to me when he fought back. The war was called on account of rain. We went to Tae Kwon Do later that day and hoped dad would join us, but his allergies wiped him out.

We went to Bible study on Wednesday morning. Chirs and Sami got to play while mom and the other ladies helped package food for Feed My Starving Children. Not my children, but God's children. That aftenoon the kids and mom joined some homeschool families in packaging the food. Sami did not have a good time. Unfortunately, we were at a station with some people who were focused on working fast and not interested in having to help a young child. So she kept getting pushed aside. She really wanted to help but wasn't able. At one point she was doing well taking the packaged sealed bags and lining them up to be boxed, that lasted most of the time we were there, but then something happened to upset her.

Thursday morning we met grandma, grandpa and the cousins at Red Oak Nature Center. We hiked to the cave and then terrorized the animals in the nature center. We came back here for lunch and castle games. The boys played castle and the girls did leaf rubbings. We taped leaves on the long classroom table, and covered it with paper. They left and the girls from the park on Tuesday came over to be babysat. Bedtime was late but everyone was happy.

Friday dad got to take the day off of work and come to Jonamac Apple Orchard with us. Good thing too, because they had a huge cornmaze that we went through. Zach, Jess, Sam Peters and there mom were there too, but dad was the only one that understood the map. We'd still be there if he hadn't come along. It was a field trip though the homeschooling group and the older boys came back to herd the stragglers out, so we would have been OK.

Sami ended the week off with a bang, literally. Mom had to be at church early to read and dad was getting the kids ready to go. As they were racing to the car, Sami ran smack into the corner of the wall and cut herself right above the eye. Poor dad couldn't get the bleeding to stop so instead of church they went to the emergancy room. She was glued back together, hopped off the table and declared "that was fun". She and Chris were spinning each other on a stool while the nurse was telling dad how to care for his fragile child. She and Abbey (Missy Smith's daughter) were running all over the restaurant for Sue's party that night. Chris, not so happy at the party. His stomach was giving him problems. Halfway home, he threw up and no more problems. Both kids went to Chruch school today. Sami tried to hang from the coat hooks and Chris ate a burger at Fuddruckers this afternoon. The traumas of yesterday have been erased from their minds.

Unfortunately, we are back in school tomorrow.