Rainy Thursday

Cameron woke up at 6:20.  That was almost 11 hours of sleep for him.  I was up at 6:30 thanks to Todd.  There was a ton of lightening and rain over night and it continued all day.  I wish some of this would go to Illinois. 

Todd left at 8:00 to drive to Beijing because he had to go to Harbin.  Cameron was so excited to eat Lucky Charms for breakfast.  We brought them from the States.  He had 2 big bowls.  He then waited patiently until 9:00 to go get Alfredo.  It is his birthday today.  The big 11.

Cameron and Alfredo came up at 9:30 and played some Wii.  At 10:19 I asked Alfredo if all the boys for his party were coming at 10:30.  The answer was yes and at that same time Marcela was knocking on the door saying Brad was at her apartment ready for the party.  The boys went running downstairs.

The party was starting off at Carrasco's, then going to Papa John's for pizza, and ending at the bowling alley.  I was going with to help.  However, Ileana's driver, Leo, said we should not go out unless it is absolutely necessary.  OH NO.  Ileana sent me the message so I ran down to talk to her to try and figure out what to do.  We looked out Marcela's window and saw the parking garage flooded.  She decided to have Jacky's deliver lunch and luckily they agreed. 

So much water.

The boys were oblivious of the rain.

Alejandro was pushing Tobias around the apartment.

I took Ainsley and Marcela to the basement to look at the parking garage.  At the bottom we saw water already.  We opened the door to go out and there was a little water but sandbags in the door going out to the garage.  We went to the sandbags to take pictures.  It was crazy how much water was down there.  Marcela was taking pictures with her DS. 

Look at all the water.

The girls checking out the water and sandbags.

Marcela couldn't get enough pictures.

We went back up and all the boys decided they needed to see the parking garage.  Down we all went again.  The boys of course wanted to get in the water but decided not to.  Everyone back up to Carrasco's.  I said goodbye and told Ileana to call me if she needed help.

The entire party had to check out the water.

At 2:20 Ileana, Carrie, and I took all the kids to the bowling alley.  It finally stopped raining so their drivers picked us up.  Our side of town was not too bad.   Closer to the bowling alley there were a lot of streets completely flooded.  A lot of broken down cars probably from trying to drive through the water.  Carrie's ayi said in Tanggu the water was up to her knees.  I can believe it with the water we saw in TEDA.  We made our way to the alley, got 3 lanes, and the kids bowled for an hour.  They had a blast.

All the party goers.
Brad, Ryley, Cameron, Marcela, Alfredo, Andres, Eric, Ainsley, Tobias, and Alejandro.

A whole lot of kids bowling.

Cameron's turn.

Eric, Andres, Brad, Alfredo, Ryley, Ainsley, Cameron, Alejandro, Marcela, and Tobias.

We made our way back to our apartments and the kids continued the party at Carrasco's.  Ileana had the worlds longest birthday party.  At 5:00 I sent a message and told Ileana to send Cameron up when the other left.  I finally went down at 6:20 and Cameron was the only one left but he was still playing with the Carrasco's.  He was ready to go home...he was exhausted and ready for bed.  Held him off until 8:15.

Carrie's driver being careful.

This street is the back way to the grocery store.

It will be awhile before all this water is gone.

First Day Back

Up at 7:15.  Todd left for work, Cameron was watching tv so I started unpacking our bags.  By 9:00 I was ready for the day, had everything put away, laundry was done, Alfredo was up playing, and I had one happy boy.

I got a hold of Neil and Amor Britt who are in the Quad Cities for work.  They live by us in China so I asked if they would bring Cameron's USB plug to us.  Of course they said yes.  I got a hold of my parents and they ran the plug to their hotel.  Thank goodness this all worked out.  Cameron might of had a stroke. 

Cameron and Alfredo played for a couple hours and then decided to go outside.  It had quit raining.  They were outside awhile and when they came back they had Manuel with them.  All 3 boys played in the apartment and then wanted lunch.  I fed them all Kro pizza.  At 2:00 Manuel had to go home but the others continued to play.

No idea while he was playing wii in the box.

All the boys enjoying pizza for lunch.

3:00 I sent the boys to Carrasco's so I could go to the vegetable market and the grocery store.  I walked into the market and instantly remembered the grossness and the bad smell.  As I picked out my vegetables and fruits I had a bunch of people staring at me.  Yep, I was instantly reminded I am back in China.  I need to get myself retrained to live here.

After the store I called Todd to see if he was ready to be picked up.  He was so we headed to the factory.  We sat there for 20 minutes waiting for him to come out.  He was wrapping up a meeting.  Back home Todd got a much needed haircut and then we prepped dinner and cut up all the veggies and fruits. 

Todd and Cameron grilled pork chops, polish sausage, and some mystery meat.  After tasting it Todd was pretty sure it was duck.  But then Cameron through out it could be pigeon.  Luckily I had already tasted it and thought it was good before he said that. 

After dinner we settled in to watch a couple episodes of the Simpson's and skype my parents at 8:00.  However, after 5 minutes into the Simpson's Cameron was almost asleep on the couch.  Todd asked if he wanted to go to bed and he said "Yes, please".  It was 7:35.  Brushed teeth and he went to bed.  I went in 5 minutes later and he was out like a light.  I went to bed at 8:00.  Needless to say we didn't skype with my parents. 

Journey Home

I could not leave out of this blog the HUGE amount of gratitude we have to my parents for housing us, washing our clothes, feeding us, letting us drive their vehicles, cooking, shopping, etc...basically being our American ayi's (maid/drivers).  We certainly appreciate everything they have done and continue to do for us on a daily basis.  I'm not sure what we would ever do without them.  THANK YOU MOM AND DAD!!  WE LOVE YOU!!

Mom sneaking in her last few kisses and snuggles.

Dad teaching Cameron how to use his hand held solitaire game.

We went to the airport at 2:00.  We checked in and dropped our luggage off at security.  It all went through with no problem.  We then sat with Mom and Dad until 2:45 then thought we better head through security.  We said our goodbyes and of course tears started to flow.  Cameron and I made our through security with no problem, one last wave goodbye, and we went to our gate. 

Cameron playing his 3d DS.

We sat there until 3:40.  We talked about our month at home and Cameron talked about the surprise Grandpa gave him (a game) and all the fun things we did.  He then looked up at me and said "I have the nicest Grandparents ever".  I told him I agree.  It was a great month home.  We ran to the bathroom then waited to board.  Once we were on we put our bags up in the bin and grabbed our seats.  It was a short flight to Detroit.

Off the airplane in Detroit and we went to Wendy's for dinner.  Had the Son of Baconator.  Yum.  After we ate we went and found Gate A54.  We grabbed some seats and sat and waited.  I had a heck of a time getting on the Internet again.  I could not get the free Tmobile like I did the last time in Detroit.  At 8:10 I finally paid $4.95 to get an hour of Internet.  I wanted to make sure Todd and my parents knew we were getting ready to head out.  Ran to the bathroom and boarded at 9:20.  Found our seats, got our bags up, and prepared for the long ride.  The plane was no where near full but a lot of people still couldn't find spots for their luggage.  People carried on way too much stuff.  It was fun watching everyone scramble.

10:25 p.m. we pulled out of the gate.  Finally in the air.  We had a 3 seater and it was just Cameron and I.  I watched Dilemma and Cameron laid on my lap and fell asleep for 8 hours.  My legs and rear end were killing me because I needed to move.   He did wake up long enough to go to the bathroom but fell right back to sleep.  It was painful but at least he slept.

He moved to the end seat and I laid down.  I slept for 3 hours.  When I woke up we still had 2 1/2 hours left.  I watched another movie and then we landed.  We hurried off the plane but we had to get on a bus to take us to the terminal.  Once there we quickly walked to passport control passing a lot of people on the way.  We were second in line.  Sweet!  Through that and went to get our luggage.  We found our 4 bags and loaded up the luggage trolley.  Cameron pushed it out and we immediately saw Todd.  It was great to be back "home" with him.

We found the van where Mr. Xue was completely laying down and sound to sleep.  Todd loaded the van and we headed towards TEDA.  Cameron found a bag in the back seat with him and he asked what it was.  Todd told him to look in it.  There was a new Kung Fu Panda movie and the entire box set of the Simpson's...all 23 seasons.  Cameron was so excited.  There was a ton of traffic and lots of trucks.  We finally arrived in our apartment at 2:20 a.m.

We all showered and Todd went to bed.  He had to get up for work.  Cameron and I ate a piece of Kro pizza Todd got for us and Cameron unpacked his back pack.  At 3:00 a.m. he was so upset because he realized he forgot the USB plug for his Skylanders in my parents Wii.  I told him I would figure out how to fix this problem after we wake up. 

3:15 everyone was in bed.  3:30 Cameron came in our room to tell us he couldn't sleep.  We told him to get his book and read for awhile.  He said he read for about 30 minutes and then fell asleep.  Man, did my bed feel good.

Last Full Day

Last full day in the grand old USA.  Started off with pancakes made by my Dad.  Yum!  Cameron watched the Simpson movie again while the rest of us lounged around.  My brother stopped over around 11 and we were all still not dressed or showered. 

At 1:00 Cameron and I ran some errands.  We took the movies back and he picked out Season 20 of the Simpson's to watch.  He may be addicted to Homer and friends.  We then ran to Best Buy.  That turned into an expensive trip.  We went for a car charger and ended up with a DS 3d device, a case, charger, and a game.  Cameron spent all of his own money on it.  That is what he wanted so that is what he got.  He was so excited.

Next stop was Toys R Us to look at their 3d games.  He picked out one more and then all his money was gone.  We went back home and he could not wait to get everything unpacked.  Mom and Dad just laughed when they saw the packages.  One well loved kid that is for sure.  He quickly unpacked everything and went right out to the car to make sure the charger worked.  I told him he could go back inside but he wanted to sit in the car and set up his profile.  About 5 minutes later he went back inside and plugged into the wall and continued playing.

All of Cameron's treasures.

Getting his profile set up while plugged into the car.

Checking it out.  This is when he said "OH MOM..." He figured out something cool.

Mom made chicken and noodles for Cameron because that is what he requested for our last meal at home.  They were delicious.  After dinner we had to run out to McGuire's so I could dump pictures off my camera for her and say goodbye one last time.  We also had to give Brenna and Gavin their birthday presents.  They seemed excited about the Visa gift cards. 

After McGuire's we had to stop at my brothers for the same reason.  Unfortunately I couldn't dump pictures for them because their computers didn't have a slot for my memory card to go into.  We decided to leave them on my mom's computer and she would go there sometime to get them.  We said our goodbye's to the Ronnebeck's.  Next stop was Whitey's for one last ice cream shake.

We watched part of Liar Liar until I thought it was too inappropriate for Cameron and then watched some Simpson episodes but that didn't work very well either because the disk kept stopping and skipping.  Finally Cameron just decided to play some games with Grandma. 

Off for our last nights sleep in America.  All packed up and ready to go back "home".

Last Week Home

SUNDAY:

Up early for no reason really.  I was going to help bake but Mom and Dad already had that done by 7:30.  Read the newspaper then helped get out the chairs and tables for the family cook out.  We set the garage up and then I worked on the blog for awhile.

Cameron was at McGuire's so it was pretty quiet around the house.  I went out to get him at 12:45.  Stayed and chatted until 1:30.  We sat around home waiting until 4 for the guests to arrive.  My brother and his family were the first so at least Cameron had Grace and Griffin to play with.

Most of my family came to the cook out.  Dad grilled a bunch of hamburgers.  Mom and Dad had all kinds of good food and drinks.  It was nice to sit and relax and chat.  We don't get the opportunity to this very often.

I could get Kyler to smile.

Nora's a big girl.

Kyler is chillin on the table while Grace, Griffin, Nora, and Cameron smile.

Tom, Judy, Scott, Aron, Me, Laycee, Kelly, and Tim watching the Golf Classic.

Aunt Sharon hanging with the kids.

Dad, Uncle Jim, and Bill.

Griffin and Cameron were so good with Nora.

Everyone left except my brothers family.  Mom got out some poppers for them to do and some little fire cracker balls.  They lit 3 on the driveway but decided to move out to the side street because the concrete was getting black.  Of course after all of the fireworks were lit the road needed to be swept so none of the little pieces blew into the yard.  Too funny.

Griffin helping Cameron go to the bathroom.

The poppers are making a mess.

Getting ready to light things on fire.

They had a lot of adult supervision.

The clean up crew was called in.

It was a great afternoon and I'm so thankful my parents arranged the family cook out so we could see everyone one last time before we head back to China.

MONDAY:
Up for Jazzercise at 5:15 a.m.  Went to class then back home.  Dad went to work and Mom, Cameron, and I went to Sam's Club to buy a bunch of food for us to take back.  Cameron needed cereal, Pop Tarts, and Granola bars but we ended up with a few more things.  Then we went to Walmart where we bought a ton of Bacon Bits.  That would be what I needed.  After burning up the credit card we went back home.

We unloaded the car and then headed to Poopy's Bar and Grill in Savannah at 11:00.  It was an hour drive.  Once there we took some pictures outside then headed in.  My parents stop there frequently but we had never been.  We looked at the menu and decided what to eat.  Then Cameron started really reading the menu.  There was a one page introduction.  The funny part is every sentence had the word "shit" in it at least once.  Cameron was cracking up laughing.  The menu is just all in good humor but not appropriate for little kids.  Thank goodness Cameron is old enough to know its funny but not to talk like that.  With that said though we did allow him to use the word "shit" while in the 4 walls of Poopy's.  He was cracking himself up (we were laughing at him too).  At one point we were talking about karate and I asked Cameron if his Sensei said anything to him about having a different gi (clothes).  He looked right up at me without missing a beat and said "Why would he give a shit?"  I died laughing.  I know people will think I am a terrible parent for letting him do this but it was harmless and he hears kids at school say way worse things.  The best part was as soon as we stepped foot out of the 4 walls of the restaurant it was like nothing ever happened.  No one spoke about what went on  in the restaurant and no one said "shit" again.  It was a funny,  probably inappropriate, afternoon.  We learned he is definitely my kid.  I did the exact same thing when we went to Hoover Dam with my parents.  I tried to see how many times I could say Dam (of course meaning the other damn).

Finally get to see what Poopy's is all about.

Cameron getting in position.

Reading over the entire funny menu.

We had Half Pile of the Poop Pile.  Yum.

Home Wrecker description was pretty funny.

Back in the car and we drove home down the Iowa side.  We then crossed back into Illinois to stop at the Commons where they have green and yellow tractors on display.  There are a couple huge pieces of machinery to climb on.  Cameron found a lawn mower he would like to have for our house.  Dad found one and said "If you would buy that I would mow your grass for you."  I found a Gator I MUST HAVE.  All were a little on the expensive side so I'm guessing no one is going to get what they want.  We went into the store and bought a few items.

This crazy tree machine from Sweden.

Check out the size of those tires.

Cameron tried driving this out but it didn't work.

Whoa!  This thing could get some work done in the fields.

He played with every gadget.

Guess where this came from?

Yep, India.  We talked about our friend Dan who goes there a lot.

Cameron wants this to mow.

I want this to drive around the property.  It was sweet!

My dad wants us to buy this one.

Back at home I started packing.  One suitcase stuffed full and overweight.  Shoot.  Had to take some stuff out to make 50 pounds. At least one bag is done.  It was 4:10 and we were suppose to be in Geneseo to pick up Steph at 4:30.  We left at 4:20 so we were a little late.  Grabbed Steph and headed to Go Fish in Princeton, Iowa.  It is the cutest, nicest bar.  Outside and right on the Mississippi River.  Beautiful night.  Steph and I (with mom) were meeting with our favorite little P.E. teacher, Tim.  Tim's daughter, Brenna, was working too so it was an awesome night.  We ate, chatted, and had a few drinks.  It was so fun.  I miss Steph and Tim from work but really don't miss work at this moment.

Steph, Tim, and I back together.

Brenna is the cutest little waitress ever.

9:00 we left Princeton and returned Steph to Geneseo.  Mom and I got home about 10:00.  When I walked in the door Cameron came running up from the basement crying.  I asked what was wrong.  He said "Can we call dad?"  I immediately got out my phone and called Todd.  As Cameron was talking to him we asked Dad what the deal was.  Dad said he went to bed at 9 but went downstairs at 9:50 crying and asking to call Todd.  Dad wasn't sure how to do it so he was getting ready to call me when we walked in.  Cameron talked to Todd for about 10 minutes.  He felt much better after the call.  He is just really missing his Dad.  I ended up sleeping with him just to make sure he was ok.  He just needed a little extra loving.

TUESDAY:
Skyped with Todd immediately when we woke up at 7:00.  When he answered I saw Manuel in the background.  They were doing some work.  I almost had a heart attack.  In bed, jammies, messed up hair...nice.  We talked for awhile and then had breakfast. Cameron could hardly wait until 10:00 a.m. because that is when Grandma Fun Day started with 3 of his friends.

Mom and Cameron left at 9:40.  They were picking Ian up, then Caleb, and then Bryant.  My mom took all these same kids out for a fun day before we moved to China so they all wanted to do it again while Cameron was home.  Of course my mom wanted to do it again too.  She loves taking this great group of boys and Cameron (and I) are so grateful for her doing it. It's always a fun day for everyone.

At 11:00 I left to run to the bank and out to get Amy.  We went to Doc's Inn for lunch.  It was so nice to sit and visit.  I feel bad for her because she had shoulder surgery 5 weeks ago and she still can't use her arm and it hurts.  Sure hope it gets better soon.  That would stink.  We had a great lunch then I took her back home around 2:30.  It was great to spend some time with her again.

Dad and I left on the Harley at 4:45 to go to Jan and Steve's (their friends).  Joann and Nick met over there too (more of their friends).  We drove out to Coal Valley to go to Mulligan's Bar for a benefit for Nancy DeMeyer.  She died of breast cancer a few years back.  Her family had a taco dinner tonight then a Poker Run on Saturday to raise money for breast cancer research.   We ate and then rode to Yeti's Bar because they were having a car show.  Had a beer and stood around looking at some old (and new) cars while talking to a bunch of old people.  I definitely brought the age limit way down.  It was fun though.  I haven't ridden with my dad on the Harley in a long time.  Nice to spend some Daddy/Daughter time.  We met mom and the boys at home at 8:15.

BOYS DAY:
Mom picked all the boys up and they went to Happy Joe's in Davenport for lunch.  When they were there Mom showed them the picture of Cameron hanging on the wall when he was turning 3.  Todd submitted the photo for a contest but we never heard anything.  A friend of ours went to Happy Joe's a few years ago and said she saw Cameron on the wall.  We ran over to check it out and sure enough it was Cameron.  So Mom took a picture of all the boys with the picture on the wall.  The manager came over and talked to my mom about it.  She then asked if she could take a picture of Cameron with the baby picture to put on their Facebook page.  Too funny.

Going in to have some lunch.

The boys with baby Cameron.

Buffet lunch.

They all went to Michael's Fun World next.  They played laser tag, pee wee golf, games, batting cage, jousted, played trampoline basketball, and obstacle course.  They were there for 5 hours.  Parts were inside but parts were outside.  They were running around so much inside though that it didn't feel like the air conditioning was on.  The boys had a blast though.

Going in to Michael's Fun World.

Basketball.

Cameron and Ian jousting.

Ian, Cameron, Caleb, and Bryant in the bounce obstacle course.

Games.

Simulators.

Laser tag.

Pee wee golf.

Nice swing.

They then went back to my Mom's and played and ate dinner.  At 6:40 they went to Willow to swim.  There was hardly anyone at the pool so they had fun.  They took the squirt guns too.

Dinner time.

Fun in the pool.

Plotting their next move.

High dive action.

Back to my parents house at 8:00 to play a little longer and have a treat.  I played pool with Ian and Bryant.  They won.  At 8:50 we started taking everyone home.  In the car the boys were singing to every song on the radio.  At one point I had to video tape them because it was so funny.  They sure are good, funny kids.

Ian and Bryant beat me.

Pinball Wizard.

The boys watching Caleb play.

Whitey's treats before heading home.

Serenading each other.  Singing "Without You".

It was after 10:00 when we arrived home so it was off to the shower and bed.

Tired boy.

WEDNESDAY:

Cameron and Dad started the morning off with a little bike ride.  Then they did some welding in the garage. We met Kelly, the kids, her parents, and niece and nephew at the Great Escape movie theater to watch Ice Age.  It was really cute.  A lot of funny parts.  After the movie we made a quick stop at Kmart to get jammie pants for Cameron and then went home so Cameron could rest a little bit.

Little welder boy.

Dad got him the whole get up and his own helmet.

Cameron likes doing it but says he doesn't want to do it for a living...Too hot.

My family and Kelly's family waiting for the movie.

The kids...Cameron, Grace, Griffin, Garrett, and Karson.

We had a delicious dinner around 4:30.  Steak wrapped in bacon, corn on the cob, and Alfredo for Cameron.  It was so good.  At 6:00 we went to karate.  We finished watching Cameron's friend, Ethan, in the early class and then Cameron did his class from 6:15-7:00.  He had a few mistakes at first because it had been so long since he did the forms but he remembered them quickly.  He did an awesome job.  It was so hot in the gym because the air was broken.  By the time he was finished he was dripping sweat.  We went to Whitey's to get ice cream to cool him down.  Delicious I might add.

Cameron and Ethan.

Cameron working his bo.

Standing proper waiting to start.

Showered and we watched a little tv then went to bed.

THURSDAY:

Up for Jazzercise.  After class we did a drive by past Village Inn.  We saw a motorcycle in the parking lot so we stopped.  When we went inside we found my dad and Cameron sitting in a booth.  My dad surprised Cameron by taking him to breakfast on the motorcycle (he asked me if it was ok first).  This was a big thing because last summer Cameron wasn't tall enough to have his feet on the pedals which meant no main roads.  This year he can ride on main roads.  When Dad told him they were going to Village Inn Cameron asked if they could go to IHOP instead.  The answer was no because it is much further away.  It was a good try though.  Mom and I joined them.  We each ordered a piece of pie.  She had cherry and I had french silk.  We thought it was ok since we had just worked out.  Boy was it good.

Cameron riding on the back of the Haley.  Yes he thought he was cool.

Two studs.

After breakfast we went home and got ready for the day.  At 11:00 we left to meet McGuire's at Huckelberry's for lunch.  We all had calzones.  After lunch we went to Circa 21 where we watched the musical Flat Stanley.  It was an hour show.  It was not the best.  Actually, it was pretty bad.  There was a group of kids sitting next to us that were very loud.  The adult sat there and read a book on a kindle or something.  It was annoying.

Calzones are ready to be eaten.

Going old school with Pac man.

Waiting for Flat Stanley.

Cameron made little hats out of the programs.

Karen helping Cameron with "If your happy and you know it" song.

All the hats that Cameron made are on the lights.

Show is over...thank goodness.

After the play we went to the Davenport Spray Park.  The kids had a good time.  We went to the car and had some drinks and snacks before leaving.  We then went to the Rave Movie Theater.  We were meeting Kelly and the kids again to watch Madagascar 3.  It was pretty good too.

The kids getting wet.

Never figured out what Cameron was doing.

Goofy kids.

Brenna, Gavin, Cameron, and Griffin ready for the movie.

Back home and we fed Cameron.  After he ate I took him to his friend Ethan's house.  He was spending the night.  Mom and I ran over to Tim and Lynette's to check out there new patio they have been working on.  It is awesome.  It looks so good.  Mom dropped me off at home and her and Dad went over to Grace's basketball game at 8:40.  I relaxed and went to bed early.  I received a text at 9:05 saying Cameron wanted to come home.  I jumped up and drove over to Ethan's house.  They said he came down and said to Allen (the dad) "You know, I was thinking.  I might as well go home to sleep since I have to get up early anyway.  There really isn't a point to just sleeping here".  When we got in the car I asked him what the deal was.  He said "normal, every night stuff.  I miss Dad.  And I'm not really sure I feel very good. My stomach hurts."  Then came the tears.  I feel so bad for him.  I sent Todd a message and he called about 9:45.  Cameron then slept with me which did not make for a good night sleep for either of us.  He woke up at 2:30 and he had a terrible stomach ache.

He thought it was a good idea to stand in the ice from the cooler.

FRIDAY:

Up at 7:00 after a restless night sleep. I had knees in my back, an elbow on my head, and lots of groaning.  Cameron still had a stomach ache and a terrible headache.  I gave him some medicine and he just laid in bed and watched tv.  I went to get my hair cut at 8:00.

When I got home Cameron had moved to his room but still lounging.  He hadn't eaten anything yet.  He said he was feeling a little better.  At least his headache was gone.  We decided to run to Subway to get breakfast sandwiches.  Man, we forgot how yummy those are.  Mom and Dad went to Grace's cheerleading show.  We waited until 10:30 for Grandma Judy, Aunt Pam, and Allison to pick us up for the day.

Flat bread sandwiches = Delicious.

We left at 10:30 and went to see Great Papa at his new Assisted Living Home.  It was great seeing him and his place is really nice.  We went to Frank's for lunch.  Cameron started complaining about not feeling well again.  He was a trooper and hung in there though.  Next stop was Toys R Us.  Grandma Judy gave him some money to spend but he felt so bad he didn't really even feel like looking. He got one Wii game and then wanted to be done.  Very unusual for Cameron.Wasn't even interested in the Lego isle.  WHAT????

Great Papa looking good.

Next stop was Kohl's.  We all had Kohl's cash to spend.  Cameron was not thrilled to be there but he again hung in there.  Judy gave us her Kohl's cash too so we got Cameron 2 pairs of shorts for school which ended up being free so that was awesome.  Judy gave us the keys to her car so we could run to the gas station to get Cameron a drink.  We sat in the car waiting for the others while they finished shopping.  They dropped us off at home.  I knew Cameron had a fever.  He was hot and had the chills.

Once at home Cameron jumped in bed and we took his temp.  102.6.  Mom jumped in her car and drove to the drug store to get kid Tylenol.  I was laying with Cameron and I could feel the heat.  I retook his temp. and it was 103.2.  The doctors office opened at 2 so I called immediately.  They wanted to see him at 5:00.  Cameron fell asleep.

Grandma feeding Cameron ice chips.

Sicko out cold.

Mom bought tickets to the Batman movie and Cameron said he didn't even care if he didn't go to it.  That is a sure sign he doesn't feel well.  Mom left at 3:00 to take Grace and Griffin and 2 of their friends to the movie.  Cameron couldn't believe Grandma was still going but he got over it quickly.  He played some wii while in his bed.  An hour after giving Cameron Tylenol I took his temp. again.  103.  His cheeks were very red and he felt like I could cook an egg on his back.

Poor kids fever finally went down a bit and I took him to the Dr. at 5:00.  Dr. Herr asked Cameron where his head hurt and where his stomach hurt.  Cameron was confused because he thought that was a pretty obvious answer.  Dr. looked down Cameron's throat and asked him if it hurt.  He said no.  Dr. Herr said "Liar, liar pants on fire".  He immediately ordered a strep test and blood count.  They swabbed Cameron's throat but it came back negative.  Dr. Herr couldn't believe it.  So needless to say we left with no medicine and prayers he gets better on his own.

No he isn't flipping the bird he is showing his band aid.

Had a low grade fever all night but he felt much better.   Mom was with the kids at the movie still so we had dinner without her.  We ordered Chinese.  How appropriate.  Dad ran and picked it up.  It actually wasn't too bad.  I'm not a huge fan of Chinese food but it was fine.  We watched a couple movies and then off to bed.

Come to America to eat Chinese.  Hmmmm.

SATURDAY:

Cameron's throat still hurt but no fever.  He had some white puss looking spots in his throat.  He played some Wii and watched a movie.  By the afternoon he was pretty bored and begged to go see the new Batman movie.  We hurried and jumped in the car so we could make the 1:00 show.  Grabbed the tickets and found a seat.  It had the most people I had seen in a movie in a long time. Around 70 people.  I have to admit I was feeling a little weird sitting in the theater since the day before some crazy guy went into the midnight showing of Batman in Colorado and started shooting.  12 people dead and 50 hurt.  He boobie trapped his apartment trying to blow anyone up that entered.  Luckily nothing happened at the movie.  It was pretty good.  Just long.

At 3:50 we ran to the car and drove quickly to church.  It started at 4:00 and we got there at 4:02.  Not bad timing.  Sat through mass and then went home.  We had some Iowa Pork Chops for dinner and they were delicious.  We then watched the Simpson movie.  Cameron has been wanting to watch it.  It is very dumb but has some funny parts.  The best part was listening to Cameron laugh through it.  The bad part is it kept freezing in one spot so we had to fast forward.  We even tried a different VCR but still no luck.  I finally bought it on Itunes so he could watch the whole thing.

Before bed Mom had Cameron gargle with Peroxide. He had done it earlier in the day too.  He was swishing it around and then realized how foamy his mouth was.  He had it come out of his mouth and then said "Hey, I am rabid."  What a goof ball.  It seemed to make his throat feel better but gave him a bad taste in his mouth.

Helping his throat get better.

What is wrong with this kid?

Off to bed.