Makutu’s Island

August 29, 2009

On Saturday we decided to run some errands. Paint samples from Home Depot, Target for socks, Office Max for Dvd’s. That sort of thing. When we were all finished with our errands and Johnny was sufficiently fed up with ‘boring errands’ we decided to take him somewhere new to play. There are a number of options in the area and we searched for something indoors since it is August and Phoenix of course. We had passed a place called ‘Makutu’s Island’ but we weren’t exactly sure what that was. Mike did some searching on the internet and came up with this: http://www.makutusisland.com/. A multi-level indoor playground. Perfect! After looking through the site’s photo gallery and agreeing that Johnny would think this place was awesome we decided to go. We signed up for a free membership online which entitled Johnny to one free admission. Perfect for checking the place out. Of course when we arrived, the place was packed but the look on Johnny’s face was priceless.

That place had all sorts of wonderful things for the kids. It was like Discovery Zone meets Rainforest Cafe. He climbed, he slid, he swung, he climbed.

And of course, there were arcade games.

We played Skee-Ball…

Johnny practiced his skateboarding skills…

As well as his professional Nascar driving…

Overall, Johnny had a great time and is looking forward to having a birthday party at Makutu’s Island.

 

Crazy Cat Lady

August 31, 2009

As most of you know by know we became foster parents to a little gray kitten a couple of weeks ago.

One Friday night we were going out to dinner and on our way to the parking lot we saw a young guy holding a tiny kitten. Of course I had to stop and tell him how adorable it was, which was my mistake. As soon as the words left my mouth, the boy offered her to us. I immediately started shaking my head and explained that we already had 3 cats and really couldn’t take on a fourth one. The boy seemed disappointed and explained that he had 15 minutes to find her a home. Puzzled, Mike offered to find the kitten a home for the boy. He was so grateful and gave her to us. I asked why he needed to get rid of her and he explained that there had been a woman in the Target parking lot giving away free kittens. The boy, Dell who is around 16, took her home and and when his mother found out, she gave him one day to find a place for the kitten. Dell told us what kind of food she was eating, what types of toys she liked (yarn of course!) and that her name was Jasmine. He quickly handed her over and left because he was starting to tear up and was about to burst into tears. We felt very sorry for him but glad that we were able to save the kitten from a shelter. Over the past two weeks, I have tried hard to not get attached but as time goes by, it’s difficult not to.

Now honestly, who could resist a face like that? Too cute! So here we’ve been getting more and more attached to her. Last week Mike put up a flyer in the break room at work in the hopes that we can find her a home before it’s too late and we can’t say goodbye.Today we finally got a response. One of the guys at work has been keeping an eye out for a new pet for his fiance. They thought her picture was adorable and would love to give her a nice home. I’m feeling sad to say goodbye but happy that we found her a place. I had Mike respond to his inquiry right away before I changed my mind and said ‘NO! She already has a HOME!’

I’ve always felt that if I kept collecting cats I would eventually become that old lady who has a million cats running around. Fortunately, it looks like I narrowly escaped becoming ‘that crazy cat lady’.

 

Dr. St. Jacques

August 24, 2009

Today I took Johnny to a new pediatrician for his annual check up and so that he could get established with a new doctor. The doctor’s office is just around the corner from our apartment complex, so very conveniently located. When we arrived at the office the waiting room was brightly painted from floor to ceiling, with a wall-to-wall mural. Johnny sat admiring it for the longest time, which was good since we had quite a wait. Lots of paperwork to fill out with this being our first visit and all. Once the nurse called Johnny’s name we went into the back for the standard checkup. He weighs 46 lbs. and is 48 and a half inches tall. Every time we weigh him I can’t believe how skinny he is. This boy ate breakfast twice everyday of summer!! Next up, they did a quick checkup of his eyes with one of those wall eye charts. He had a little trouble getting through it with his right eye and I wondered if the doctor was going to say he may need glasses.

We went into the exam room and Johnny talked the nurse’s ear off, as he usually does while she examined him. For the first time, he got to wear one of those little gowns while he sat waiting for the doctor. It kept making him giggle because he thought it was hilarious that he was wearing a dress.

The doctor came in and after introducing himself went right over to start talking with Johnny. Johnny told him all about our apartment, moving from Missouri, the pool, school, etc. Dr. St. Jacques checked him out and even asked Johnny if it would be ok for him to examine his private parts. I thought it was very respectful of him to ask Johnny, since after all, it is his body. Afterward, the doctor said that everything looked good but that he was concerned about Johnny’s eyesight. This doesn’t surprise me at all since I had to get glasses in the second grade too. I will be setting up an appointment with an eye doctor and will keep you posted. The doctor also suggested giving Johnny the flu shot however they have no made it into a flu nose spray called flu mist. Johnny was relieved that he wouldn’t be needing any shots.

After the doctors we went to Target for some things I needed and I bought Johnny some of those window markers, like Lisette has. He LOVED them of course!

 

First Day of 2nd…yes 2nd, Grade!

Yesterday was Johnny’s first day back at school. New school, new teacher, new friends.

At the end of July I realized it was about time to get him registered at his new school since August was quickly approaching. I looked up the school online and found to my amazement that they start in this district on August 10th!!! Glad I didn’t wait any longer! The good news is that maybe because we’re in the desert with no real winter, he gets fall break! We had this back in Texas but I guess with all the snow days Missouri doesn’t partake of this awesome event. I’m already hoping to plan our vacation/honeymoon for either San Diego or a cruise leaving out of San Diego. (Keep your fingers crossed, I can afford to do it!)

Anyway I got him all signed up, took him shopping for school supplies, new shoes and a backpack (my favorite part). We went to ‘Meet the Teacher’ night and had a chance to scope out the new school. The school, Kyrene De La Colina, was just remodeled and expanded this summer so it’s looking newish. Plus, because of the remodeling all the kids were lost on the first day, not just Johnny! His teacher, Mrs. Revenew, looks to be in her 50′s with long gray hair with light purple, yes purple, streaks in it. So she appears to be easy going and was very nice.

He was so excited on Monday morning not just for school but also for his previously mentioned tooth fairy visit. In the following picture you can actually see the second little gap in the bottom of his mouth.

This morning as we were walking to the bus stop, Johnny and I were discussing the fact that there are two John’s in his class. I asked him how his teacher kept them from getting confused and he told me that they just do confuse the two of them. I suggested he go by Johnny instead of John and you know what he told me? ‘Johnny is TOO cute!’ My baby is growing up! Sniff!!

 

“Another One Bites the Dust!”

Yesterday I was paying bills when Johnny came running into the office/craft room.

“MOMMY, MOMMY, MOMMY LOOK!!!” (he talks in all caps)

I looked over and there he is energetically wiggling a tiny tooth that’s barely hanging on. I don’t know how we went from not loose at all to hanging by a thread but he’s 7 and ready for those grown up teeth I guess. After assuring him that I was just as ecstatic about the news as he was, he went back to playing. Not an hour goes by and he’s back, “IT FELL OUT, IT FELL OUT!!!!”

He immediately tries to go running to put the tiny, practically microscopic tooth under his pillow. Fearing that in the wee hours of the night, blindly stumbling around, this tooth fairy would stand no chance of ever finding that tooth I explained that it would probably be better if we placed it inside a ‘tooth storage device’ for safe keeping.

He goes running into his room and carefully conceals the tooth under his pillow, anxiously awaiting the next morning.

Around 8 o’clock that night, as I’m getting Johnny ready for bed I realize I have no cash. So there I go dragging Johnny to the CVS under the pretense of needing ummm… let me think… glue sticks! Yeah that’s it!! Glue sticks! We are in desperate need of glue sticks for school tomorrow! Perfect! As he’s scoping out the candy supply at the check out counter I stealthy ask for cash back and quickly maneuver the 5 bucks into my purse!

Johnny woke up this morning, found his 5 bucks and happily got ready for his first day of school. So now he has lost a total of 4 teeth. If we keep going at this rate, I’m going to have to start serving him oatmeal and applesauce until these grown up teeth make an appearance!

 

Welcome!

Hey everyone!

I’ve decided with so much time on my hands that it would be a good idea to create a blog to keep you all informed of our life out here in AZ. I think this will be a good way to tell you about the latest happenings, places we’ve visited, etc.. Let’s see if I can keep this up. I’m horrible at keeping a journal but maybe this will be easier. Here’s hoping…