Science Class

Tropical Storm Andrea is headed towards us and has brought us already two days of rain. Our back yard is flooded; our cul-de-sac is a pond. We have been stuck inside, wishing we were some place else, or at the very least, doing something a little more productive than watching the rain fall. I remembered the science kits the boys received as Christmas gifts and suggested we curb our boredom with an experiment or two. So instead of watching the rain fall, Evan made goo.

He carefully mixed the water and goo powder. He shook it vigorously and complained that the directions needed to be more specific. I'm not sure how "shake vigorously for five minutes" needed more explanation.

After careful examination, it was time to watch the goo defy gravity and climb the test tube. I suppose we did something wrong at the shake vigorously step because we had nothing climb our test tube. There was some big disappointment and some broken goo dreams for this guy.

After his pathetic screams of "This is CRAP, Mom!" and his storming through the house mad as a hornet, I realized he had thrown the goo down the drain. This done when the very next line in the directions says, "When done playing with the goo, place excess in a trash can. Pouring goo down the drain can cause major plumbing problems."

Then it was my turn for pathetic screams and storming through the house.

I found my way to Keagan's room when I realized he had been a little too quiet for at least half an hour. I found him sitting in the middle of the carpet with his own science kit.  He had citric acid, corn starch, and water lined up in front of him. Packages ripped open. White powder all over his red shirt, which inevitably meant white powder was also all over the carpet. It was the horror of finding red cabbage powder poured all over the carpet with about two flakes having actually made it into a test tube, though, that sent me over the edge.

Science class has been canceled. The boys are now outside, playing basketball in the pond while the tropical storm barrels right over us.

Dream World

After spending an entire weekend house hunting, comparing bathroom sizes, looking at paint colors, and discussing kitchen designs, I found Keagan on the front porch of one of the houses playing a game on his Kindle. He had spent the first day fully excited about choosing the best house and rating each and every room, but by mid-day of day number two, he had checked out. At this point, he had decided any ole house would do.

A couple of hours later he was napping in the truck and talking in his sleep (something he does quite regularly). "Turn here at the H. Turn at the H." When he awoke a half hour later Evan asked him what he was dreaming about. He said, "It was a horrible dream! We were shopping at HH Gregg and looking at appliances."

Poor guy. He couldn't even escape reality in his dreams.

I'm afraid to tell him we are shopping for refrigerators tomorrow.

House Hunting

We just completed a full day of house hunting. My dream of collecting a house in every state of the union is one day closer to fruition. Bank of America is one day closer to owning me. To prepare for today's event I created a table and check list for the boys to use to rate each of the houses we toured.

The fact that I remembered a clipboard to carry around the score sheet is a sure sign that my OCD is out of control. It's even scarier to admit that both of the boys had more fun filling in the chart than I did creating it.

The good news is we found a house. The bad news is everyone else out house hunting today found the same house. I think we are about to find ourselves living that episode of House Hunters where the couple sits in the coffee shop, willing the phone to bring good news, all while declaring life will end if they don't get "THE" house. Yep, that's us except we are sitting in a hotel room, eating Dairy Queen blizzards, and watching basketball.

Tomorrow is day two of house hunting.

Summer Time!

It's officially summer vacation. We woke up and did the summer time dance and then did what anyone would do. We hit the beach!

The boys attempted to snorkel. It didn't matter that the only thing they saw was the backside of some big waves.

There was lots of running and playing chase in the water.

And lots of brotherly love.

I refuse to say this trip was another last for us. It absolutely must happen again, sooner rather than later.

Converted

My parents spent the long holiday weekend with us. They had to see one last soccer tournament, eat some fried shrimp, and convert my boys. You see, my dad has a passion for baseball. The boys do not. However, for the past five days I have found Evan in the backyard wearing my old softball glove playing catch with my dad.

Converted? I think another immersion is required for full effect, but after a full weekend of sorting toys, purging closets, and some tough yard work, my parents may think twice about visiting us again. Even if baseball is included.

Another Last

Another last...This weekend was the last soccer tournament wearing the blue Storm jersey.

It's really hard walking away from something that you have invested so much time and energy, but after our last game on Sunday, the boys didn't look back. They have become pros at this month of lasts. They are anxiously awaiting bigger and better things in Tennessee. Namely, winning.

Farewell Friends

Today was not just the last day of the school; it was also the boys' last day of school in Georgia. Although I felt the teachers were top notch and some of the hardest working teachers I have ever known, this school exposed my boys to a way of life that was so different from our own. The diversity in the student population was perhaps the most obvious difference, but there were socio-economic differences that often left Evan asking more questions that I had answers. Both boys returned home almost weekly with stories that were just down right depressing, and yet, we continued going to school each day wondering what new event would spark an even sadder story.

Keagan had a hard time saying good-bye to his best friends. Last night he wrote notes to each of them and included his email address and phone number in hopes that they might keep in touch.

Every part of me wanted to box up the little guy in white and take him with us to Tennessee. These boys have been together since kindergarten and have so many wonderful memories together. The two have absolutely nothing in common except a gentle spirit and a willingness to look beyond stereotypes.

As you may have guessed, Evan was much less sentimental about saying good-bye. He said he had one friend he wished to stay in contact with.

This school has been such an unique experience for us. I almost feel guilty for trying so hard to find a house at our next duty station in the "perfect" neighborhood.

Be good to us Tennessee. We anxiously await our next unique experience...whatever that may be...