One of those days and other happenings

I think I may be a seasonal blogger. It certainly is not that nothing has happened around here since January the 4th. Or, maybe it's just that the experience has to be so powerful that I am driven to therapeutic writing such as our day yesterday.

The day began at 4:30am with Neil wide awake and wanting to come in the den and play with Willie. For a brief few moments I tried to entice him back to sleep in my lap in the lazy boy, but he really was ready to start his day. So, I started a pot of coffee to try to keep up. 4:45 and Henry is up as well. Trying quickly to re frame how this day had started, I told myself this was good to get such an early start since we had a to see Dr. Pettit today for the five year check up. I made the lunches, drank more coffee, got breakfast started, drank more coffee and watched Henry and Neil playing very sweetly on Willie's dog bed and all over Willie.

Today Henry and Neil and I will be heading to Dr. Pettit's for their five year check up. Henry has already asked if there will be a shot and I have let him know there will be one. So, as he is dressing this morning he says, "I am going to disguise myself as a detective and keep an eye on that nurse." He proceeds with getting dressed in what he perceives to be detective clothes--corduroy pants, a plaid shirt, a bow tie, and his brown fedora. I have said several times we need to get ready and get to Dr. Pettit's early so their won't be a long wait. Neil is saying "take Parker school." So, I'm guessing he is hoping for something besides a trip to Dr. Pettit's.

Ok, we're off. Not too many in the waiting room so I choose to sit on the sick side rather than in the "well" room" even though we are there for a "well" check. The boys have a little sniffle and a little cough and I would feel real guilty if they coughed on "well" children. The wait is loooooooonnnnnggg. Now, I'm nervous that the waiting room is filling up (with really sick children) and worrying that we really are going to leave is some sort of bug. I Purell them after every toy and would not dare read any of the children's books lying around--I am certain they have a high germ count. They need urine specimens. Oh boy, this is something new. Henry manages a tiny bit that the nurse says might be enough. Neil is rather amused with the thought of tinkling in the cup, but decides not to produce a thing.

Finally, "Neil and Henry, room 2 please." Weight, height checks, ok still doing well. Finger sticks, not doing so well. Neil cooperates somewhat. Henry does NOT cooperate somewhat. Major chase by the nurse to catch Henry's finger and squeeze a drop of blood from it. Henry leaves the examining room and runs to the waiting area. I run to look for him (not sure what I did with Neil) and he has gone into the "well" room and is under a table. Somehow, I coax him our of there and back to room 2. I get a call from Dad who says he is in the area, and asks if it would help for him to come by. YES, YES, YES I say to that. Dad and Dr. Pettit arrive about the same time and we make it though the exams and updates on what a 5 year old should be doing.

We find out there are two shots each for Henry and Neil, not the one I had thought. Oh boy. A couple of minutes later, in walk two nurses, each holding two syringes. Not a welcome site. Neil goes first and only has a tiny lip poked out. Henry is on the run--this time only in room 2. Dad decides to step out with Neil and Mom gets the challenge. Long story short, two nurses and mom and Henry is vaccinated. One of the nurses remarks that no more shots are due for the next six years and I thank God for that.

A few other happenings. Our sweet Parker turned 15 in January (and I must add very calmly received a shot at his yearly check up with Dr. Pettit). Dad turned 56 in February and took a trip to his beloved Apalachicola. Mom turned 47 in March and is feeling pretty darn good.

Happy 5th Birthday!

When the twins looked out the front window about 6:30 am yesterday, they were understandably thrilled. I mean, who would have ever thought Mom and Dad could have gotten the fire department to send a truck, complete with lights flashing and sirens wailing, just for their birthday? And when a couple of minutes later the ambulance arrived, likewise flashing and screaming, well the boys were just beside themselves with joy. Their excitement was unfortunately dampened a bit later when Mom was rolled out to the ambulance on a stretcher and loaded in the back. Actually, Henry became hysterical and stood in a corner screaming over and over again, "I want my Mommy back. Now!" Neil mostly just stood in stunned silence, though he did manage a feeble wave and "Bye Mom," then stood nose pressed against the window as tears started to roll down his cheeks.

I woke up a little before 6:00 and was getting up to go to the litterbox when Irene stopped me saying Richard, there is something wrong with me, something really wrong. She said she felt very dizzy and could not open her eyes. She was nauseous and was definitely going to need a receptacle. She said she felt very hot, though to the touch there was no apparent fever.

About this time the birthday boys started to wake up and things got very busy very quickly. Irene decided to get up, thinking that might help, so I helped her to a chair and tried to distract the boys while at the same time trying to assess her condition, get her a glass of water and provide for other needs peculiar to this particular situation.

In the meantime, Henry got a bloody nose.

Realizing the boat was leaking faster than I could bail, I woke Parker to enlist his help. He made it to the den where he sat down with his Mom and brothers. I propped Irene up in a chair with a trash can for the nausea and gave Henry a paper towel for his nosebleed. Neil thank God was, as usual, entertaining himself. I could see it was going to be a day and I thought I saw an opportunity to take a quick shower, but as I was getting out Irene stumbled in to tell me that Parker did not feel well. I ran immediately - do not pass go and do not collect any clothing - to the den where Parker reported that he indeed wasn't feeling so great and in fact was starting to feel really bad and needed to get to the bathroom.

I walked with Parker toward the bathroom, but ten feet on he passed out cold - collapsed against the wall and dropped to the floor. Now we're really taking on water.

Parker said he couldn't see, and he certainly couldn't stand, but he still needed to go, so with a renewed effort I managed to get him up and situated in the bathroom. Once I felt he could sit there safely for a brief time anyway I ran back to the den to check on Irene and Henry, where I found his nosebleed improving but her nausea and dizziness not one whit better. Once Henry's nose had stopped enough that we could safely move to another room I steadied Irene long enough to relocate to the sofa in the living room. I had been asking all along if she felt the need to go to the hospital and if she wanted me to call an ambulance, though I was not getting an unequivocal response. At this point, with Parker reporting what sounded like similar symptoms and having passed completely out, I decided we must have a plague in the house and called 911.

The fire department guys took vitals and reported that everything in that sense looked normal. They did encourage Irene at least to take an ambulance ride to have someone check her out, but by this point Parker had recovered enough to say he really just wanted to get back to bed. So off they go with Irene on a stretcher, the twins crying inconsolably, and me on the phone with our neighbor who God love her was able to come over and stay with the boys so I could follow Irene to the bowels of hell - I mean the DCH emergency room.

Three hours and much frustration later Irene was discharged, having never seen a doctor but only a medical student who though a nice young fellow seemed to have only a little better understanding of medicine than I have. During Irene's stay there I fetched blankets and water and found a new nausea bag when needed. While the hospital did provide IV fluids, Reglan for nausea and Benadryl for dizziness, they offered no idea of what the problem might be and certainly nothing in the way of what one might think of as "care."

Arriving home, Irene was greeted with squeals of delight. Visiting royalty could not have had a more enthusiastic welcome. Henry's first question for his Mom was whether they had given her a Mic-key button. Mercifully, she did not require a gastric feeding tube, and in fact improved considerably over the next few hours. Henry's nose was fine and Parker felt much better. We were ultimately able to celebrate the boys fifth birthday in what for our family passes for a normal manner.

Thanks be to God and pass the ice cream.

Boys, boys, boys

On the day that you were born the angels got together,
And decided to create a dream come true,
So they sprinkled moondust in your hair
And golden starlight in your eyes of blue...
(The Carpenters)

This always makes me think of all these sweet blue-eyed boys with which I am surrounded.

The weekend has been a flurry of activities- Alabama's homecoming, Kentuck Arts Festival, tennis matches, youth group, praying mantis hunting, running the teenage taxi.

We all made it to the homecoming parade and all the Quad festivities. I was so proud that Parker wore the only Ole Miss shirt in the house and made his Mama proud. He was a navy blue and red dot in a sea of crimson. I pulled out our Ole Miss baby blankets given to Neil and Henry by Uncle Charles and draped them over the stroller. Parker met his friends and quickly disappeared from the family group. Henry and Neil loved browsing at the Chemistry (Henry got to smash a nitrogen frozen banana with a hammer) and Biology (lots of reptiles and dead preserved fish) tents.

We Rebel fans can always hope when playing the Crimson Tide, but it's not too long before those hopes are dashed. Oh well, there's always next year.

I think these pictures will say it all.

Whoa, whoa, whoa it's magic!

Just about every afternoon in the backyard is eventful. Sometimes, it's just flat magical. This evening in the fabulous cool weather Parker taught Henry how to ride a bicycle. Just amazing to see the pride they both had. What a moment when Parker realized Henry was pedaling on his own and what a moment for Henry to realize he was riding alone. And Neil, cheering them both on with "yeah." And, I must add that Neil did some pedaling of his own on his tricycle!

Last week Russian musicians came to the Rise school, a flautist and a trumpeter, both were energetic young men that absolutely captivated their audience of children, teachers, and parents. "Flight of the Bumblebee" was played by the flutist with bumblebee hand puppets (on both hands!). A couple of hours later, I was the lucky caller to Alabama Public Radio and won two free tickets for the "Celebrity Series" at UA featuring these two musicians. Henry had asked to see them again and the next night he and I attended together. He was just so excited and dressed up--complete with a black bow tie and his "nice tennis shoes." I was a bit worried when I realized our seats were way up at the front on the third row. What a perfect little sweetie pie he was--listening, taking it all in. Four college boys were behind us and Henry was amused when he turned around and one was snoozing midway through the concert. We left at intermission, mostly because I wanted to stop while we were ahead and keep the experience good. We came home to find Neil amusing Dad and Parker with "knock, knock" jokes. He can come up with some doozies! His favorite this week is: Knock, knock, who's there? Night, night. Night night who? Night, night babies. Maybe I should say this is his favorite one at bedtime.

Parker has survived the first six weeks of high school (maybe I'm projecting here, ok, I have survived it). Math (geometry) began with a jolt--a 65 question test the first day-yes, right after Summer, that COUNTED on material that they had not covered! But, he has steadily hung in and it looks darn good to his non-math minded parents. He's really grasping it and has even mentioned to Richard that he is beginning to make connections between math and life. In Biology he is working on a genetics project about Progeria (a rare genetic disorder in which one ages at an extraordinary rate). On a trip to Boston with Neil in June 2008, Parker met and got to know someone his age with this disease. Powerful to have had such an experience.

Friday night Parker will attend his first high school homecoming football game. He's going to the game with a sweet 11th grade girl named Sara.

Richard has set us up in the den with a 55 gallon aquarium that we have really enjoyed. We call it "FTV" (Fish TV). No more blood pressure medicine around here.

Magnificent Morning at the Arboretum

After Neil, Henry, and I dropped Parker off at school this morning, we headed to the Arboretum and were there for four hours! About midway through, we were joined by our dear friend/godmother Johnnie. The place is just magical. We began with breakfast in the pavilion, then a walk to the pond, and on to the children's garden. Always a surprise to see what has been added. Today, we found an "alphabet garden" and a labyrinth. Henry was so moved by the labyrinth that when he came to the center, he knelt and said a prayer. Butterflies everywhere! At one point, Neil was just standing mesmerized by the flutter of activity on the zinnias. We later found out a weasel had been spotted there today.

Here are some of those magic moments. They really, really were.

Summertime 2010

Oh my how good it has been!

Carpenter bees with white faces
Tunica
Memphis Zoo
Oobleck
Canterbury Farmer's market
Archeology camp
Cheaha
Lightening bugs
Tiny frogs
Deer
One-eyed owls
Swim lessons
Guitar lessons
June bugs
Swimming pools and movie stars
Tomatoes
Pesto
Flying stink bugs
Bald cardinals
Beautiful Zinnias
Honeybees
Daddy's visit
Parker playing the Blues...and much more!
Neil's "watch this"
Goodbyes to Dara and Nick-moving to Nashville! As Neil says, "I love Dawa."
Dad to Henry, "Henry you are just so cute I can hardly stand it." Henry: "Sometimes I can hardly stand it myself." 7-19-2010
8-2-10 We removed Neil's mic-key button after 3 years and 4 months! Henry said, " Now Neil's belly is like mine!"
Dad, how old were you when you were little?
2010 Martindale-Daughdrill Reunion in Guntersville, Alabama



Summer...to be continued...what joy!

What a day!

Dad here, with an account of what I would consider a perfect day. The weather was pleasantly cool with a fresh breeze, so I took Henry to a nearby open field for a little kite flying and we had a blast. The grass was about two feet high, so even without the kite he was amused, walking through this chest high growth looking for whatever creatures might be lurking there. I put the kite together and the wind was brisk enough that it was almost hard to hold onto. I let Henry hold the reel (though keeping my hand inside just in case), and up it went. Squeals of delight! We let line out, watching the kite get smaller and smaller and letting Henry get a good feel for just how hard the wind was pulling it. Eventually I started worrying about getting all this line back in and convinced Henry we should bring our bird a little closer to earth. Of course, once I had reeled it back to a reasonable height he wanted to let it out once again. We did this a few times, and despite his pleas that we "do this all day," the four year old's empty tummy finally got to him and we loaded up for home, where we found Mom had cooked us up a delicious breakfast - eggs, grits, sausage and even homemade biscuits. What a treat.

I had been wanting to take Parker on a baseball pilgrimage, so he and I kissed everyone goodbye and headed to Birmingham, first stop the oldest operating baseball Park in the U.S. - Rickwood Field - "the closest thing the baseball world has to a time machine." What an experience. The park is not open on Saturdays, but I knew from their website that this Saturday morning was a volunteer cleanup and I figured if we got there in time someone would let us look around. Sure enough, we got there a little after 11:00 and found a group of guys hanging around the West end gate. I asked about seeing the park and was told to pull on in, park and enjoy our visit. Parker and I toured at our leisure, walking through the stands, checking out the view from the dugout, pounding imaginary homers, and pitching imaginary strikes from the mound once occupied by Christy Mathewson, Satchell Paige and Dizzy Dean, among others. We walked up and down and in and through the entire park, taking pictures and reading the signs and generally just soaking it all in. When we finally felt we had seen everything we walked back out to where we had parked. What we found when we got there was a locked gate - really locked, with a big chain and padlock. We did not, unfortunately, find people. No one, not a soul in sight.

It took a few minutes for this to sink in, and we first walked around looking for the gate we just knew they had left open somewhere, then when that failed we walked around a bit more looking for the person we just knew was still there working on something and waiting to let us out. When that failed as well, despite a few tentative shouts of "Anyone here?," it became clear that 911 was our only recourse. "How embarrassing," says Parker. So thanking God for cell phones I called and explained to the dispatcher that my son and I were locked in Rickwood Field. There was a bit of a pause as I suppose she must have been trying to decide if this was a practical joke; then understanding that I was quite serious she told me she would get someone out to us.

We waited 15 or 20 minutes, during which time I told Parker I guess a couple of loonies locked in a ballpark wasn't a real high priority for the Birmingham police. So we looked around the park a little more, fiddled with the car, and twiddled our thumbs. I called back a few minutes later to give the police an exact address based on the street sign I could see and make sure they knew we really were locked in the park. She took the address and assured me someone had been dispatched. An officer arrived a few minutes later, which although we had never really felt in danger was comforting nonetheless. We explained what happened and I told him that since we knew he didn't have a key to every lock in Birmingham my son had suggested he just shoot the lock off like they do in the movies. We thought this would have the dual advantage of being more fun and considerably quicker than waiting for someone to come with a key, but while he seemed amused he assured us this was not an option. Rats. He contacted his dispatcher who he said would contact the Public Works Department who would try to find contact information for someone with a key.

Not expecting this to be quick, Parker and I broke out our snack bag and found a shady bench for a picnic. We munched our apples and granola bars and took an occasional brief tour around, careful not to get too far from our rescuer. Within just a few more minutes a guy pulled up in a pickup truck, spoke with the cop and unlocked the gate for us. The beauty of this was that he had not been contacted by the police or the city, who had had no luck locating anyone with a key, but had been in a meeting at his church down the street and stopped when he saw the police by the gate and the two people inside the fence. Pure serendipity - or as he indicated by a finger pointing upward, divine intervention.

We thanked the officer and the churchman, got outside the gate where we stopped for a couple of last photos, and headed toward our next stop. As we drove away, Parker asked, "Dad, why can't we just do things like normal people?"

So the next stop on our pilgrimage is the museum at Vulcan Park, where there is an exhibit on the history of baseball in Birmingham. We stop at the ticket booth and when we tell the nice lady there that we're interested in the baseball exhibit she asks if we're going to get to Rickwood field today. Parker and I look at each other and start laughing hysterically, which of course leaves the lady in the ticket booth wondering if we're OK. We recount our morning so far and we all have another good laugh. Parker and I head to the museum and enjoy the exhibit, though after our morning the museum was a bit anticlimactic.

Leaving the museum we took the stairs to the top of Vulcan (forgetting to count) and walked out onto the observation deck on what could not have been a more perfect day to see Birmingham. The air was wonderfully clear, there was a light breeze, and not a cloud in the sky. We could clearly see all of Birmingham in Jones Valley to North and Homewood in Shades Valley to the South. Just spectacular.

After a leisurely visit atop Vulcan we agreed we were hungry and set out in search of food. I detoured by our old house on Mecca Avenue and seeing a couple I assumed were the current owners stopped for a chat. They were amused to hear a description of their home from over 40 years ago, and I was a bit saddened to hear from them how much it had changed. It looked pretty much the same from the outside, but I think it would have been unrecognizable inside. Anyway, we visited for a while and resumed our search for food.

We had an unremarkable meal at Demetris BBQ and drove back downtown to Parker's favorite destination in Birmingham - Sloss Furnace. Did our usual tour there and decided to walk around downtown for a while.

We had a stroke of luck when we passed the Alabama Theater. A recital of some sort had just finished and I figured with all the people milling around no one would notice a couple of tourists or care if we looked around. What a treat. I had forgotten how glorious this old movie palace is - four stories of pure luxury, built, ironically, in 1927, just before the beginning of the Great Depression. Anyway, we looked around at our leisure, seeing every floor and every angle, and decided to call it a day.

And what a day it had been!