After surviving our trip to Walgreens this afternoon, Cal on his bicycle, Ella in the wagon, me pulling Ella and giving constant direction and warnings to Cal who was consistently way ahead of us, I praised Cal for a good decision that he had made. We had bought our chocolate chips, flour and salt and then exited the store to assume our spots on our chosen modes of transportation, not to suggest I had any choice in mine. Before Cal crossed the parking lot on the path to the sidewalk he stood next to his bicycle and actually looked both ways with no reminder from me. I was behind him and saw it all and then laid it on thick:
"GOOD JOB, Baby Bear <that nickname just isn't going away and will surely be used as I sit in the stands of the high school watching him play his chosen ball sport>!!!"
"What did I do?" he asked. I suppose that's good - looking both ways should be second nature.
"You looked both ways before crossing the... the... the WHATEVER," I told him, unable to think of the term for which I was looking.
"Street!" Ella added without skipping a beat.
Yes, Ella finished my thought for me. I suppose she should. Afterall, she's the one most responsible for taking my ability to have complete thoughts from me.
Sunday, July 13, 2014
Friday, July 11, 2014
The Dells 2014 - Day Last
The morning of our last day in the Dells started much like the previous two days had. The kids woke up first (and after 7am), happy. Dan and I did some work on our computers while the kids watched episodes of Sophia and Doc (Cal more than Ella, actually, though he won't let on to that fact). We got into our suits. Instead of a run, we packed our stuff and threw it into the car. And we were off to the water slides just after 10am.
This time, we started on the other side of the park where Dan and Cal had only briefly ventured the day before. Cal wanted me to do that water slide that ended with a free-fall with him, so we did that first. I sat in the back of the two-person tube, and he sat in my lap, per his instructions. Every time we did a slide together, he knew more about it than I did; so he led the way, and I followed. This slide wasn't as scary as I had anticipated. I think if we had made it up through the last letter on the slide like he and Dan did, I'd have a different perspective. But we only made it through the first part of the last letter (higher than most that I had seen), so I figured we were okay. I did have occasional thoughts of "what if we flip backwards on our way down?" and figured no one else was doing that, so why would we? It's funny finding comfort in "well, no one else has fallen off."
This side of the park also had the Lost City of Atlantis play area for the kids. There was water falling and dripping and squirting everywhere. Stairs took kids up and down. There were three, maybe four small water slides, one which ended in a round, enclosed area that was only accessible via a spiral staircase. The draw to this area was probably the big bucket of water at the top of the entrance to this area that had a constant flow of water into it and that would tip once it was full, slamming gallons of water down to the pavement and onto any unsuspecting or brave souls standing underneath it.
Cal was terrified of this bucket and kept a constant eye on its status -- he could tell when it was going to tip over and would scurry out of the way. Eventually, he learned that he could take the tube slide down when this bucket tipped and be protected from it. I witnessed this, and Cal confirmed his tactic by proudly telling me what he was doing.
Ella's big toes were still pretty chewed up, so we told her she needed to wear water shoes if she wanted to go into the water areas. We told her we'd buy her some pink water shoes from the park. PINK, her favorite color. Slip-ons without any Velcro straps to stick up and annoy her. She didn't want to have anything to do with them. Who knows why.
Dan eventually got her into her Crocs (she had been wearing flip flops) to try this Lost City area. She went up the five stairs to the tube slide and actually slid down it without much prompting or encouragement. I was at the top, so I didn't see what happened at the base; but she emerged unhappy. Eventually, she made her way to another slide (just a straight-down quickie) and was happy and excited to go down it until the big bucket of water tipped over slamming gallons of water not on her but a little bit on the slides. Great timing. She turned around and headed back down the stairs and didn't try another attraction that day.
If we were in that area for an hour, I'd be surprised. I asked Cal if he wanted to try another slide or go down the one with the free-fall again, and he said he didn't. He wanted to do the Tidal Wave. So we headed back over to our comfort zone for the rest of our day, which was only going to last until no later than 1pm anyway. Cal did the Tidal Wave once, and then he and I headed over to Lightning and Thunder to finish out our half day there. Dan and Ella eventually made it over there, too, to watch.
I'll second Cal's declaration that this was a great vacation for us. Despite the usual dealings with Ella's obstinacy, frequently being on the receiving end of wedgies and the kids' (mis)behavior in public restaurants, I felt really relaxed and genuinely happy. And I learned a few things - let's say ten things - along the way:
1. Ella is not the daredevil or risk taker that I thought she was. The slides that we were trying to get her to go down were made for people her size, yet she was afraid. Those that she did do took some time for her to build up to and not without a lot of encouragement from me. I am now officially afraid of her first swimming lesson, which we haven't scheduled yet.
2. Cal tried new things much more quickly and boldly than I expected. Cal generally doesn't do anything new unless he knows he can do it. If he's scared to try something, he lets you know it... loudly so that you don't ask if he wants to try it again. The kid pretty much did all of the slides that he was big enough to do. If he was scared, I didn't know it. He did have a couple of "moments" in the Tidal Wave area with Dan (I'd re-cap them, but I think only Dan's impersonation of him gives it justice); but Cal went back for more and eventually learned how to enjoy it his way. He was a joy to watch throughout our vacation, really.
3. I can walk around in nothing but a bathing suit all day... comfortably. It was probably the atmosphere -- meaning, everyone was doing this -- but I really didn't think twice about what I looked like. Belly flab that my tankini can't hide, boobs that are too small for my post-pregnancy bathing suit (my new "normal" bathing suit was hanging on a hook by the door to the garage - oops), slouchy shoulders and probably something big or saggy about my butt are traits I generally try to hide when I'm venturing to a swimming pool. At the Dells, I was "out there, Jerry, and loving it."
4. Many other parents are dealing with the same shit we are. My hours sitting in the kiddie area while Ella enjoyed the little slides weren't spent just watching her. I also observed other kids and their parents. I saw what had to be a 7-year-old with a pacifier in her mouth. I saw many a parent coaxing his fearful child up and then down a slide that shouldn't be feared. I saw kids not listening to their parents who insisted they not climb up the slide. I saw overprotective parents saving their kids from the small splashes at the base of the slides. I saw tantrums and big kids big enough to walk on their own being carried by their parents. Ahhh... we really aren't alone. That's all the comfort I need.
5. The one thing we can count on Cal eating is a cheeseburger. I guess I knew this going into our Dells vacation; but it was confirmed while we were there. The only thing he ate all of were his cheeseburgers, his daily choice for lunch at the water park and for dinner Day 1. Really, I'm not sure what else sustained him - some French fries, a few nutrition bars, a couple of handfuls of animal crackers, a bite of pizza?
6. I haven't yet figured Ella out. We say she's Cybil. She has a Jekyll-and-Hyde personality. One minute she's obstinate, uncooperative and unhappy, the next minute, she's as happy as a lark as if the previous minute hadn't happened. Most of the time, she chooses me to be with, which I have no idea why because I've repeatedly told her how much I don't like being with her only because she's difficult to be with. "Carry me." "I'm thirsty." "My legs hurt." "NO!" "I don't like you, Mommy." All the while whining. I heard this regularly during our vacation. I find myself giving in all too often with her demands if only to have some peace. I know this is wrong; I just haven't figure out the "right" tactic that works.
7. I wonder how my sister ever uses the bathrooms at places like water parks. I can barely do it. I wish I could be more like Ella using them, unaffected by wetness and grodiness... wait, no I don't.
8. I need my alone time, even if it's only a half hour. My run the morning of Day 3 was excellent. I rebooted. I formulated possible plans for us without the influence of the other three. I did my own thing, had complete thoughts and saw the world my own way.
9. Looking back on our 2014 vacation, we'll wonder if Ella was there. Not really, but it was a struggle to get her to cooperate for pictures. Take this one for example (taken by Cal):
And this one was our second or third attempt and only gotten because we bribed her (I can't remember with what):
She does take pretty good pictures, though, as in this one:
10. My kids can say pretty cool things unsolicited. "Thank you for bringing me on this vacation," said Cal. And "You're the best mommy," announced Ella. Both made me smile, though I do wonder what Ella's setting me up for, particularly considering number six above.
Dan and I both concluded that our Wisconsin Dells vacation of 2014 was a success and already figure we'll go back many times. Cal's all about this; Ella, well, I'm sure she will be... maybe. Only she knows.
This time, we started on the other side of the park where Dan and Cal had only briefly ventured the day before. Cal wanted me to do that water slide that ended with a free-fall with him, so we did that first. I sat in the back of the two-person tube, and he sat in my lap, per his instructions. Every time we did a slide together, he knew more about it than I did; so he led the way, and I followed. This slide wasn't as scary as I had anticipated. I think if we had made it up through the last letter on the slide like he and Dan did, I'd have a different perspective. But we only made it through the first part of the last letter (higher than most that I had seen), so I figured we were okay. I did have occasional thoughts of "what if we flip backwards on our way down?" and figured no one else was doing that, so why would we? It's funny finding comfort in "well, no one else has fallen off."
This side of the park also had the Lost City of Atlantis play area for the kids. There was water falling and dripping and squirting everywhere. Stairs took kids up and down. There were three, maybe four small water slides, one which ended in a round, enclosed area that was only accessible via a spiral staircase. The draw to this area was probably the big bucket of water at the top of the entrance to this area that had a constant flow of water into it and that would tip once it was full, slamming gallons of water down to the pavement and onto any unsuspecting or brave souls standing underneath it.
Cal was terrified of this bucket and kept a constant eye on its status -- he could tell when it was going to tip over and would scurry out of the way. Eventually, he learned that he could take the tube slide down when this bucket tipped and be protected from it. I witnessed this, and Cal confirmed his tactic by proudly telling me what he was doing.
Ella's big toes were still pretty chewed up, so we told her she needed to wear water shoes if she wanted to go into the water areas. We told her we'd buy her some pink water shoes from the park. PINK, her favorite color. Slip-ons without any Velcro straps to stick up and annoy her. She didn't want to have anything to do with them. Who knows why.
Dan eventually got her into her Crocs (she had been wearing flip flops) to try this Lost City area. She went up the five stairs to the tube slide and actually slid down it without much prompting or encouragement. I was at the top, so I didn't see what happened at the base; but she emerged unhappy. Eventually, she made her way to another slide (just a straight-down quickie) and was happy and excited to go down it until the big bucket of water tipped over slamming gallons of water not on her but a little bit on the slides. Great timing. She turned around and headed back down the stairs and didn't try another attraction that day.
If we were in that area for an hour, I'd be surprised. I asked Cal if he wanted to try another slide or go down the one with the free-fall again, and he said he didn't. He wanted to do the Tidal Wave. So we headed back over to our comfort zone for the rest of our day, which was only going to last until no later than 1pm anyway. Cal did the Tidal Wave once, and then he and I headed over to Lightning and Thunder to finish out our half day there. Dan and Ella eventually made it over there, too, to watch.
I'll second Cal's declaration that this was a great vacation for us. Despite the usual dealings with Ella's obstinacy, frequently being on the receiving end of wedgies and the kids' (mis)behavior in public restaurants, I felt really relaxed and genuinely happy. And I learned a few things - let's say ten things - along the way:
1. Ella is not the daredevil or risk taker that I thought she was. The slides that we were trying to get her to go down were made for people her size, yet she was afraid. Those that she did do took some time for her to build up to and not without a lot of encouragement from me. I am now officially afraid of her first swimming lesson, which we haven't scheduled yet.
2. Cal tried new things much more quickly and boldly than I expected. Cal generally doesn't do anything new unless he knows he can do it. If he's scared to try something, he lets you know it... loudly so that you don't ask if he wants to try it again. The kid pretty much did all of the slides that he was big enough to do. If he was scared, I didn't know it. He did have a couple of "moments" in the Tidal Wave area with Dan (I'd re-cap them, but I think only Dan's impersonation of him gives it justice); but Cal went back for more and eventually learned how to enjoy it his way. He was a joy to watch throughout our vacation, really.
3. I can walk around in nothing but a bathing suit all day... comfortably. It was probably the atmosphere -- meaning, everyone was doing this -- but I really didn't think twice about what I looked like. Belly flab that my tankini can't hide, boobs that are too small for my post-pregnancy bathing suit (my new "normal" bathing suit was hanging on a hook by the door to the garage - oops), slouchy shoulders and probably something big or saggy about my butt are traits I generally try to hide when I'm venturing to a swimming pool. At the Dells, I was "out there, Jerry, and loving it."
4. Many other parents are dealing with the same shit we are. My hours sitting in the kiddie area while Ella enjoyed the little slides weren't spent just watching her. I also observed other kids and their parents. I saw what had to be a 7-year-old with a pacifier in her mouth. I saw many a parent coaxing his fearful child up and then down a slide that shouldn't be feared. I saw kids not listening to their parents who insisted they not climb up the slide. I saw overprotective parents saving their kids from the small splashes at the base of the slides. I saw tantrums and big kids big enough to walk on their own being carried by their parents. Ahhh... we really aren't alone. That's all the comfort I need.
5. The one thing we can count on Cal eating is a cheeseburger. I guess I knew this going into our Dells vacation; but it was confirmed while we were there. The only thing he ate all of were his cheeseburgers, his daily choice for lunch at the water park and for dinner Day 1. Really, I'm not sure what else sustained him - some French fries, a few nutrition bars, a couple of handfuls of animal crackers, a bite of pizza?
6. I haven't yet figured Ella out. We say she's Cybil. She has a Jekyll-and-Hyde personality. One minute she's obstinate, uncooperative and unhappy, the next minute, she's as happy as a lark as if the previous minute hadn't happened. Most of the time, she chooses me to be with, which I have no idea why because I've repeatedly told her how much I don't like being with her only because she's difficult to be with. "Carry me." "I'm thirsty." "My legs hurt." "NO!" "I don't like you, Mommy." All the while whining. I heard this regularly during our vacation. I find myself giving in all too often with her demands if only to have some peace. I know this is wrong; I just haven't figure out the "right" tactic that works.
7. I wonder how my sister ever uses the bathrooms at places like water parks. I can barely do it. I wish I could be more like Ella using them, unaffected by wetness and grodiness... wait, no I don't.
8. I need my alone time, even if it's only a half hour. My run the morning of Day 3 was excellent. I rebooted. I formulated possible plans for us without the influence of the other three. I did my own thing, had complete thoughts and saw the world my own way.
9. Looking back on our 2014 vacation, we'll wonder if Ella was there. Not really, but it was a struggle to get her to cooperate for pictures. Take this one for example (taken by Cal):
And this one was our second or third attempt and only gotten because we bribed her (I can't remember with what):
She does take pretty good pictures, though, as in this one:
10. My kids can say pretty cool things unsolicited. "Thank you for bringing me on this vacation," said Cal. And "You're the best mommy," announced Ella. Both made me smile, though I do wonder what Ella's setting me up for, particularly considering number six above.
Dan and I both concluded that our Wisconsin Dells vacation of 2014 was a success and already figure we'll go back many times. Cal's all about this; Ella, well, I'm sure she will be... maybe. Only she knows.
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
The Dells 2014 - Day 3
I brought some running clothes with me (two sets) and actually did go for a run before hitting the water park on Day 3. We're close to Lake Delton, and I believe there are running paths near it; but the risk of getting lost, too far away or murdered (yes, this crossed my mind as a possibility, albeit remote) was too great, so I decided to just run up and down the main drag outside of our hotel. I'd actually name the main drag, but I don't know what it is. The signage and traffic lights around here are very strange. It's a different world up here.
I ran for 33 minutes, and I figure I did 3.5 miles. It turned out to be a hilly route and one with a few distractions that took me off the path to check out the scene. It was while on my run that I decided where we'd eat dinner later that day -- this Mexican joint with seating on the lake... or maybe it was a river... with a dam in the near distance. I knew Mommy and Daddy would enjoy some margaritas, figured Cal might enjoy the wonder of the dam and Ella, well, I just didn't know.
My run finished, we got ready to head to the water park for Day 3. It was just after 10am. Day 3 at the water park was very similar to Day 2, except better in terms of logistics. We picked a more central place to put our towels and brought the sunscreen with us (instead of leaving it in the room) so reapplying wouldn't require a walk back to our room... with my slow-walking, "my legs hurt" BFF, Ella... and I really don't want to re-cap how that walk was.
Cal was great again, tackling water slide after water slide and sneaking a couple of wave pool experiences in between. He even tried this crazy two-person slide (Lost City of Atlantis, I believe) which involved a drop and slide up a wide base and then a subsequent "free fall" back down. Dan said they almost reached the end of the wide base before the free fall... whoa. I may try this with Cal today - surely we won't go THAT high.
Dan and I also took turns on the mat slides on Day 3. Holy crap were those fast and twisty... and, consequently, scary. There were four of them, and Dan and I each took a ride on each one. We had to. After my first trip down on the slide to the far left, my brain was telling me to head back to Lighting and Thunder to watch Cal - I think it thought my life was in danger. But my legs didn't get that message and took me right back up for slides 2 and 3 on my mat and slide 4 without it. The speed on the mat was great, but fearing for my life as I zipped around what I believed to be the top edge of a curve and quickly headed into a tube was not so great. I later learned that Dan thought he was airborne heading into a tube. I wonder if I would have tried it had I known that before making the trip up? I wonder if anyone has actually gotten hurt on these things? As uncool as putting my life in danger was, the trip down without the mat (the body slide) was even more uncool - I almost came to a stop halfway down the slide. I guess I was alive, so I shouldn't complain.
Ella was less excited about the water park on Day 3 but did fall back into her comfort with the kiddie play area (the one with the duck, pirate ship, pelican and dolphin... doh, whale slides). This time, she only spent chunks of time on any one slide and moved on to another. Her favorite had to be that pirate slide - I'd say most of her time was spent there and mostly on her buns (and not the signature belly down, feet first slide she was doing Day 2). Most slides involved a hair flip at the bottom and every once in awhile (maybe when she was hot?) she'd lay back down in the pool, lay her head back to wet her hair, close her eyes and smile and then pop up to slide again. I called this her "Bo Derek" move. Diva. Really.
The cool thing about Ella's play area is that it required little work from me. I could sit in a low beach chair in the water myself and just watch and observe and throw in an occasional "I did!" in response to Ella's, "Did you see me, Mommy?" That is, until I observed another mom grab her squirming child off of a slide and telling him, "I just want to see if that blood is coming from you." Doh. I knew that was my kid's blood - we had to treat her bloody big toes the day before, so I was certain they had broken open again then. So I grabbed her, confirmed my suspicions and took her over to our chairs to treat her. I, having applied my learnings from Day 1, had our first aid kit with us.
Ella's not the best patient. Really, she might almost be the worst. Blood was pouring out of her big toes, and she insisted she didn't need Band-Aids. I find this infuriating. Many times, I've been on the receiving end of her insisting she needs a Band-Aid for a non-cut on her foot... or leg... or finger; and when she really does need Band-Aids, she battles us to get them on.
It was probably sometime around 3:30pm or 4pm when this happened, so we were getting close to leaving for the day. Cal got a few more runs down Lightning and Thunder in while Ella and Dan watched. I took a ride on the lazy river at the same time. By 4:30pm we were walking to check out the other side of the park and buy something at the shops over there; and by 5pm, we were heading back to the room to shower and get read for dinner at the Mexican joint on the lake... or river, whatever it was. That dinner went exactly as we expected it - Dan and I had margaritas, and the kids didn't eat their dinners. Ella almost fell over the back of her chair. Cal asked a lot of questions about how the people got off the boats at the base of the restaurant. And I managed to get this picture, a frame-worthy one, of the kids:
I ran for 33 minutes, and I figure I did 3.5 miles. It turned out to be a hilly route and one with a few distractions that took me off the path to check out the scene. It was while on my run that I decided where we'd eat dinner later that day -- this Mexican joint with seating on the lake... or maybe it was a river... with a dam in the near distance. I knew Mommy and Daddy would enjoy some margaritas, figured Cal might enjoy the wonder of the dam and Ella, well, I just didn't know.
My run finished, we got ready to head to the water park for Day 3. It was just after 10am. Day 3 at the water park was very similar to Day 2, except better in terms of logistics. We picked a more central place to put our towels and brought the sunscreen with us (instead of leaving it in the room) so reapplying wouldn't require a walk back to our room... with my slow-walking, "my legs hurt" BFF, Ella... and I really don't want to re-cap how that walk was.
Cal was great again, tackling water slide after water slide and sneaking a couple of wave pool experiences in between. He even tried this crazy two-person slide (Lost City of Atlantis, I believe) which involved a drop and slide up a wide base and then a subsequent "free fall" back down. Dan said they almost reached the end of the wide base before the free fall... whoa. I may try this with Cal today - surely we won't go THAT high.
Dan and I also took turns on the mat slides on Day 3. Holy crap were those fast and twisty... and, consequently, scary. There were four of them, and Dan and I each took a ride on each one. We had to. After my first trip down on the slide to the far left, my brain was telling me to head back to Lighting and Thunder to watch Cal - I think it thought my life was in danger. But my legs didn't get that message and took me right back up for slides 2 and 3 on my mat and slide 4 without it. The speed on the mat was great, but fearing for my life as I zipped around what I believed to be the top edge of a curve and quickly headed into a tube was not so great. I later learned that Dan thought he was airborne heading into a tube. I wonder if I would have tried it had I known that before making the trip up? I wonder if anyone has actually gotten hurt on these things? As uncool as putting my life in danger was, the trip down without the mat (the body slide) was even more uncool - I almost came to a stop halfway down the slide. I guess I was alive, so I shouldn't complain.
Ella was less excited about the water park on Day 3 but did fall back into her comfort with the kiddie play area (the one with the duck, pirate ship, pelican and dolphin... doh, whale slides). This time, she only spent chunks of time on any one slide and moved on to another. Her favorite had to be that pirate slide - I'd say most of her time was spent there and mostly on her buns (and not the signature belly down, feet first slide she was doing Day 2). Most slides involved a hair flip at the bottom and every once in awhile (maybe when she was hot?) she'd lay back down in the pool, lay her head back to wet her hair, close her eyes and smile and then pop up to slide again. I called this her "Bo Derek" move. Diva. Really.
The cool thing about Ella's play area is that it required little work from me. I could sit in a low beach chair in the water myself and just watch and observe and throw in an occasional "I did!" in response to Ella's, "Did you see me, Mommy?" That is, until I observed another mom grab her squirming child off of a slide and telling him, "I just want to see if that blood is coming from you." Doh. I knew that was my kid's blood - we had to treat her bloody big toes the day before, so I was certain they had broken open again then. So I grabbed her, confirmed my suspicions and took her over to our chairs to treat her. I, having applied my learnings from Day 1, had our first aid kit with us.
Ella's not the best patient. Really, she might almost be the worst. Blood was pouring out of her big toes, and she insisted she didn't need Band-Aids. I find this infuriating. Many times, I've been on the receiving end of her insisting she needs a Band-Aid for a non-cut on her foot... or leg... or finger; and when she really does need Band-Aids, she battles us to get them on.
It was probably sometime around 3:30pm or 4pm when this happened, so we were getting close to leaving for the day. Cal got a few more runs down Lightning and Thunder in while Ella and Dan watched. I took a ride on the lazy river at the same time. By 4:30pm we were walking to check out the other side of the park and buy something at the shops over there; and by 5pm, we were heading back to the room to shower and get read for dinner at the Mexican joint on the lake... or river, whatever it was. That dinner went exactly as we expected it - Dan and I had margaritas, and the kids didn't eat their dinners. Ella almost fell over the back of her chair. Cal asked a lot of questions about how the people got off the boats at the base of the restaurant. And I managed to get this picture, a frame-worthy one, of the kids:
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
The Dells 2014 - Day 2
The day started with a funny from Cal. It was one of those where he didn't even know he was being funny, which I think is the best kind of funny with these Leatherkids. We were waiting for 10am to come around to head to the water park for the day. During that wait, we were naturally conversing as we Leathermans normally do. I think we were talking about the various slides at the water park and whether or not they were scary, and that's when the funny happened:
Dan: "I'm not afraid."
Cal: "Yeah, because you have kids."
Bahahahahaha! It was so subtle, random and unplanned. Okay, so this is funny because we have a magnet on our fridge at home that reads, "You can't scare me, I have children" (or something like that). Clearly, Cal has seen the magnet.
So Day 2 at the Dells started with laughter, a good foundation for a good day.
Cal spent the better part of Day 2 riding Lightning and Thunder, two medium-sized water slides that he could do on his own. Requiring no inflated tube or mat and a little nerve, Lightning and Thunder each had a couple of tight turns intermingled amongst the two slides and spit their riders out into two parallel tracks filled with a foot of two of water at their bases. Thunder was an open slide; Lightning was enclosed -- the whole way down -- and was much faster than its sister slide.
One thing I've learned about water parks is to recognize and distinguish the tube slides from the open slides. It wasn't until I rode the MRI tube that they called Lightning all the way down that I thought of this. Had it not been significantly faster than Thunder, my first ride down it would have been my last. Cal selected Lightning at least twice as many times as Thunder, so I clearly did not pass the claustrophobic gene down to him.
Cal also did the Tidal Wave (wave pool) and Anaconda (the bigger of the two indoor slides) with Dan and tried another outdoor two-person inflated tube slide with me. He also got a lot of enjoyment out of the larger of the two kiddie slides next to Ella's play area, riding it countless times.
Ella's play area had water in its base that may have reached a foot deep in its center. This area had two duck slides that were probably as long as two Ellas, a pirate ship slide that was maybe three Ellas, a pelican slide that was also three Ellas but that had a sharp slope down and then a whale slide that we sometimes confused as the dolphin slide. This one had two curvy slides coming out of two whales at the top, and I would guess they were at least five Ellas (maybe more) in length. Each slide ended in the water enough that the children going down them would get splashed but not splashed too much. Ella worked her way up to the dolphin... doh, I mean whale slide and eventually had enough nerve to slide down it on her belly and feet first. This became her signature move, which she carried back to the other slides she had already tackled to mix things up in the end.
Ella OWNED that play area and poo-pooed any suggestion that she branch out a bit and try the water slide that Cal was doing or float on a tube down the lazy river with me. Most of her time was spent on the whale slide following the same pattern each time she did the slide - slide down, splash at the bottom, stand up, do a hair flip, scurry to the steps, go up, go down again. It was fun to watch, really -- she loved every moment she was there.
Dan and I managed to squeeze in a couple of slides on our own, Dan doing the "Demon's Drop" and me doing the "Dragon's Tail" while the Leatherkids watched. As if the speed and, in Dan's case, the drop wasn't challenge to overcome enough, both slides required a serious climb up some wooden stairs giving us, well, me (I can't speak for Dan) a lot of time to reconsider the foolishness. When I was at the top of the slides (they shared a platform and were side by side), I had a hiccup in my sanity and almost went to sit at the top of "Demon's Drop" (the air was thin up there) but then realized what I'd be facing the moment my buns hit the top of that slide -- NOTHING. At least with "Dragon Tail" there was a gradual slope down at the start before the big drop.
We ended the day with a visit to a souvenir shop, the kind that Dan and I both remember going to as kids with the cheap, cheesey t-shirts and trinkets. Cal picked a "Wisconsin Dells" ceramic bank and an owl key chain; Ella picked a pink and green cord necklace and matching bracelet and a pink heart keychain with "Wisconsin Dells" written on it. From there, we headed back to our hotel room where we ordered some pizza and where Dan and I actually ate that pizza.
As the kids slept next to us, again, virtually as soon as their heads hit their pillows, Dan and I relaxed in the bed beside them and recapped our day to each other. We were both really pleasantly surprised by Cal's willingness to try new things and not approach them with tentativeness and trepidation. While they were waiting to go down Anaconda together, Cal thanked Dan for taking him on this vacation -- he's having a great time. For that reason alone, we are, too.
Dan: "I'm not afraid."
Cal: "Yeah, because you have kids."
Bahahahahaha! It was so subtle, random and unplanned. Okay, so this is funny because we have a magnet on our fridge at home that reads, "You can't scare me, I have children" (or something like that). Clearly, Cal has seen the magnet.
So Day 2 at the Dells started with laughter, a good foundation for a good day.
Cal spent the better part of Day 2 riding Lightning and Thunder, two medium-sized water slides that he could do on his own. Requiring no inflated tube or mat and a little nerve, Lightning and Thunder each had a couple of tight turns intermingled amongst the two slides and spit their riders out into two parallel tracks filled with a foot of two of water at their bases. Thunder was an open slide; Lightning was enclosed -- the whole way down -- and was much faster than its sister slide.
One thing I've learned about water parks is to recognize and distinguish the tube slides from the open slides. It wasn't until I rode the MRI tube that they called Lightning all the way down that I thought of this. Had it not been significantly faster than Thunder, my first ride down it would have been my last. Cal selected Lightning at least twice as many times as Thunder, so I clearly did not pass the claustrophobic gene down to him.
Cal also did the Tidal Wave (wave pool) and Anaconda (the bigger of the two indoor slides) with Dan and tried another outdoor two-person inflated tube slide with me. He also got a lot of enjoyment out of the larger of the two kiddie slides next to Ella's play area, riding it countless times.
Ella's play area had water in its base that may have reached a foot deep in its center. This area had two duck slides that were probably as long as two Ellas, a pirate ship slide that was maybe three Ellas, a pelican slide that was also three Ellas but that had a sharp slope down and then a whale slide that we sometimes confused as the dolphin slide. This one had two curvy slides coming out of two whales at the top, and I would guess they were at least five Ellas (maybe more) in length. Each slide ended in the water enough that the children going down them would get splashed but not splashed too much. Ella worked her way up to the dolphin... doh, I mean whale slide and eventually had enough nerve to slide down it on her belly and feet first. This became her signature move, which she carried back to the other slides she had already tackled to mix things up in the end.
Ella OWNED that play area and poo-pooed any suggestion that she branch out a bit and try the water slide that Cal was doing or float on a tube down the lazy river with me. Most of her time was spent on the whale slide following the same pattern each time she did the slide - slide down, splash at the bottom, stand up, do a hair flip, scurry to the steps, go up, go down again. It was fun to watch, really -- she loved every moment she was there.
Dan and I managed to squeeze in a couple of slides on our own, Dan doing the "Demon's Drop" and me doing the "Dragon's Tail" while the Leatherkids watched. As if the speed and, in Dan's case, the drop wasn't challenge to overcome enough, both slides required a serious climb up some wooden stairs giving us, well, me (I can't speak for Dan) a lot of time to reconsider the foolishness. When I was at the top of the slides (they shared a platform and were side by side), I had a hiccup in my sanity and almost went to sit at the top of "Demon's Drop" (the air was thin up there) but then realized what I'd be facing the moment my buns hit the top of that slide -- NOTHING. At least with "Dragon Tail" there was a gradual slope down at the start before the big drop.
We ended the day with a visit to a souvenir shop, the kind that Dan and I both remember going to as kids with the cheap, cheesey t-shirts and trinkets. Cal picked a "Wisconsin Dells" ceramic bank and an owl key chain; Ella picked a pink and green cord necklace and matching bracelet and a pink heart keychain with "Wisconsin Dells" written on it. From there, we headed back to our hotel room where we ordered some pizza and where Dan and I actually ate that pizza.
As the kids slept next to us, again, virtually as soon as their heads hit their pillows, Dan and I relaxed in the bed beside them and recapped our day to each other. We were both really pleasantly surprised by Cal's willingness to try new things and not approach them with tentativeness and trepidation. While they were waiting to go down Anaconda together, Cal thanked Dan for taking him on this vacation -- he's having a great time. For that reason alone, we are, too.
Monday, July 7, 2014
The Dells 2014 - Day 1
We arrived in Wisconsin Dells early afternoon yesterday, quickly checked in and hit the water park (or at least a couple of sections of it). It was a little chilly outside, unexpected for these parts in early July; and the water in pool area was even chillier -- my first couple of steps into it brought me back to the days of submerging my legs up to my knees in a whirlpool of ice to soothe my painful shin splints.
Despite the cold water, kids were flying off of the bottom of the 3 or 4 slides and into the foot-deep water, laughing and smiling, completely unaffected by the cold water. Call it fearless or just clueless, this trait about kids always amuses me. They really have no sense for how cold the water they're about to jump into really is.
Cal tackled the first section like a pro. Sure, the section was probably more suited for those three and under, but he didn't have an ounce of the tentativeness that he usually has when taking on anything new. It was great.
Ella, on the other hand, tried the smallest slide one time, sitting in my lap. We don't really know why she wouldn't do it a second time, but I suspect it's because she got a face full of water at the end... up her nose... Ella doesn't do well with water up her nose. But she found a lot of pleasure following the same route past a giant frog, up a climbing rope wall, over a bridge, through a tunnel, up another climbing rope wall, through another tunnel, past the top of the slide she tried once and then down the stairs next to it, getting splashed by water along the way. I followed her twice, recognized the pattern and then just sat and "watched" her predictable self again and again. Even the splashing water was pretty darn chilly.
Meanwhile, Cal and Dan were trying out the indoor water park and stumbled upon a large, green, snaking water slide that required sitting on a two-person, figure-8-shaped, giant tube. They did it a few times and came back out to the section where Ella was doing her 30th lap to tell me all about it. I'd recap it, but I really have (and had, at the time) no idea what Cal was saying. All I know is, he was excited. So I jumped on the opportunity to do it with him, leaving Dan to watch Ella do her laps. It was pretty cool. The slide is enclosed in a tube, and there's a lot of twists to it. I felt like a bob-sledder as we went down it. The best part was taking direction from my 5-year-old. "Go here, Mommy," "Get in like this, Mommy," and, at the end, "Okay, get ready, Mommy." He never did say what I was to get ready for -- but I figured it out the first time as we were thrown from the tube and into a pool of water.
And then there was the pirate ship. With a sign that reads, "Swim Diapers Required," one can imagine the excitement and challenge of this one. Ella, of course, refused to go down the slides (and I wasn't going to go with her); and Cal did the slides many times... many, many times... turns out it was fun just watching him.
We ended Day 1 with a dinner at Sprecher's, chosen in honor of the Schumachers, my relatives up here in these parts who drink that stuff. The kids were their normal, antsy selves at the restaurant. Really, it felt like we were at a restaurant back home. But those hot pretzels with beer-cheese, rootbeer and mustard sauces were legit. And I had my first quinoa-spinach wrap - yum.
Dan and I were worried (Dan more than I) the kids would have trouble falling asleep sharing a bed with each other and a room with Dan and me. Turns out, that was a waste of a thought - here they are asleep, minutes after their heads hit their pillows. No naps and a day at the water park did the trick.
Despite the cold water, kids were flying off of the bottom of the 3 or 4 slides and into the foot-deep water, laughing and smiling, completely unaffected by the cold water. Call it fearless or just clueless, this trait about kids always amuses me. They really have no sense for how cold the water they're about to jump into really is.
Cal tackled the first section like a pro. Sure, the section was probably more suited for those three and under, but he didn't have an ounce of the tentativeness that he usually has when taking on anything new. It was great.
Ella, on the other hand, tried the smallest slide one time, sitting in my lap. We don't really know why she wouldn't do it a second time, but I suspect it's because she got a face full of water at the end... up her nose... Ella doesn't do well with water up her nose. But she found a lot of pleasure following the same route past a giant frog, up a climbing rope wall, over a bridge, through a tunnel, up another climbing rope wall, through another tunnel, past the top of the slide she tried once and then down the stairs next to it, getting splashed by water along the way. I followed her twice, recognized the pattern and then just sat and "watched" her predictable self again and again. Even the splashing water was pretty darn chilly.
Meanwhile, Cal and Dan were trying out the indoor water park and stumbled upon a large, green, snaking water slide that required sitting on a two-person, figure-8-shaped, giant tube. They did it a few times and came back out to the section where Ella was doing her 30th lap to tell me all about it. I'd recap it, but I really have (and had, at the time) no idea what Cal was saying. All I know is, he was excited. So I jumped on the opportunity to do it with him, leaving Dan to watch Ella do her laps. It was pretty cool. The slide is enclosed in a tube, and there's a lot of twists to it. I felt like a bob-sledder as we went down it. The best part was taking direction from my 5-year-old. "Go here, Mommy," "Get in like this, Mommy," and, at the end, "Okay, get ready, Mommy." He never did say what I was to get ready for -- but I figured it out the first time as we were thrown from the tube and into a pool of water.
And then there was the pirate ship. With a sign that reads, "Swim Diapers Required," one can imagine the excitement and challenge of this one. Ella, of course, refused to go down the slides (and I wasn't going to go with her); and Cal did the slides many times... many, many times... turns out it was fun just watching him.
We ended Day 1 with a dinner at Sprecher's, chosen in honor of the Schumachers, my relatives up here in these parts who drink that stuff. The kids were their normal, antsy selves at the restaurant. Really, it felt like we were at a restaurant back home. But those hot pretzels with beer-cheese, rootbeer and mustard sauces were legit. And I had my first quinoa-spinach wrap - yum.
Dan and I were worried (Dan more than I) the kids would have trouble falling asleep sharing a bed with each other and a room with Dan and me. Turns out, that was a waste of a thought - here they are asleep, minutes after their heads hit their pillows. No naps and a day at the water park did the trick.
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
Cal Does Algebra (a Quickie)
Upon finishing the last of his Smarties tonight, Cal expressed a math sentence out of the blue. Here's how it went:
Cal: "4 times a equals 20."
Me: "What's a?"
Cal: "5."
Perhaps it was the Smarties that made him smarter in the moment, perhaps he's just a natural. I figure it's the latter and anticipate having to call on Uncle Perry for Math assistance sooner than we originally thought.
Cal: "4 times a equals 20."
Me: "What's a?"
Cal: "5."
Perhaps it was the Smarties that made him smarter in the moment, perhaps he's just a natural. I figure it's the latter and anticipate having to call on Uncle Perry for Math assistance sooner than we originally thought.
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Cal's Backpack
Every night after the kids are in
bed, I check their backpacks for papers or other “goodies” they brought home from
school that day. Going in to this
exercise, I hope to find keepers, true works of art produced by their own minds
and hands; usually I find half-finished or scribbled drawings or, worse, wads
of I-don’t-know-whats with a touch of color here and there. Why their teachers send these things home is
beyond me.
·
Frog and Toad Storybook Treasury
· Spectrum Math, Grade 2 workbook
· Minifigure Ultimate Sticker Collection
· Summer Bridge Activities, Grades 1-2 workbook
The first book was a gift from Grandma; the other three books were Cal’s purchases from Barnes and Noble… his choice in how he wanted to spend what we said was his spendable money. All of these were the things that he chose to bring to school yesterday to show his friends and to possibly use during his “free choice” time in the day. No toy cars. No Lego Millennium Falcon. No Ninja Turtles figurines. Books.
I say every night, but almost
every week has at least one day where they’re going back to school with the
same papers shoved in their backpacks the day before. I don’t feel too bad about this. Afterall, they’ll be coming back home along
with the current day’s worth of papers, and I can just catch up then.
Exhausted last night, I deferred
the backpack check to this morning and climbed into bed early, after 9pm but
before 10pm. To my surprise, Ella’s
backpack had only what I sent her to school with yesterday – an extra pair of
shoes and a change of clothes. No (wads
of) paper. Excellent.
Cal’s backpack was heavy when I
lifted it. Clearly, it had more than
paper in it. When I opened it, I also
found no (wads of) paper. Here’s what I
did find:
·
Frog and Toad Storybook Treasury· Spectrum Math, Grade 2 workbook
· Minifigure Ultimate Sticker Collection
· Summer Bridge Activities, Grades 1-2 workbook
The first book was a gift from Grandma; the other three books were Cal’s purchases from Barnes and Noble… his choice in how he wanted to spend what we said was his spendable money. All of these were the things that he chose to bring to school yesterday to show his friends and to possibly use during his “free choice” time in the day. No toy cars. No Lego Millennium Falcon. No Ninja Turtles figurines. Books.
While thoughts like “are we raising a geek?” pop into my head
when Cal does stuff like this, I find Cal’s choices to be reinforcement that we’re
doing something right. That Cal is
choosing books over toys and electronics (not that he really has many) pleases
his dad and me to no end. And, really,
if we are raising a geek, so be it. I
was a geek and think I turned out fairly balanced (my sister may argue otherwise).
I'm not sure exactly what he went to school with this morning. I did see him at our "library" (re-purposed bedside table with two shelves and a door) just before we left this morning. And his backpack was heavy again. I am intrigued and will definitely check his backpack for papers tonight.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)