We took Sidney to his pre-op appointment today and his tonsils are still enlarged. I was hoping against hope that they would miraculously shrink and we would not have to have them removed.

He is scheduled for surgery on Friday, Sept. 2 - the tentative time is 8am. The time will be confirmed tomorrow. Roger dropped off the prescription for his antibiotics (a preventative measure to stave off infection) and pain killer. We have been warned that day 5 of recovery is the worst because that's when the scabs come off and his throat will be raw and painful.

We will load up on icy treats and milk so that he can eat/drink something when he's up to it.

We know we are doing the best thing for him but I am dreading the pain he will be in.

Cleo, Sidney and I did not go to NYC. Roger flew out at 11:35am on Friday. He returns tomorrow around 12:00pm. I was so sad to miss Ook and Aalea's wedding. Roger stayed with my dad and Ahnya in Brooklyn. They all did fine during the Hurricane, as did my mom.

Saturday, I took the kids food shopping at Publix. They were both very well-behaved. Cleo made sure that Sidney snapped himself into the cart - he resisted for most of the time we were in the store but in the face of Cleo's persistent, "Sidney, you need to be safe. Snap yourself in." he gave in. Cleo picked out a box of berry frosted Pop Tarts which she discovered she really likes. We got home and played a little and had an early lunch (peanut butter and jelly sandwiches). We went to Sidney's classmate's birthday party from 4-7pm. Her name is Caitlyn Wynn, no relation. The party was great - it was a Minne Mouse theme. Cleo got her face-painted, which is one of her favorite things to do. The clown facepainter also handed out ballon shapes: Cleo got a pink flower and Sidney got a blue dog which I called an elephant because that is his favorite animal right now. If Sidney sees an "e" anywhere, he announces, "'E','elephant!!!'"

Sunday, we cleaned up and organized the kids' playroom. As can be expected, Cleo and Sidney did not really help. Cleo's contribution was correcting me when I called the plastic bin a "bin" and she said I should call it a "basket." Kids. When it was all cleaned up, the kids stayed and colored a bit. That was nice. We had an early lunch and naps and then we went to the library. The kids got 5 books each. I had created a list from Amazon for Caldecott Award winning books and found a few of them. The library was crowded. There were crayons and paper set out on the 3 kiddie tables in the kids area. After selecting their books, we sat at the table and colored. Cleo's schoolmate, Payton, came over. She was there with her mom and older sister returning books. After the library, we went to McDonald's for a strawberry/banana smoothie. I have tried all 3 smoothies there and they're all really good. They ate the smoothie and the kids played in the indoor playground at McDonald's. We left around 5:15pm and went home.

At home, I made some three cheese tortellini with soy sauce and parmesan cheese and broccoli on the side. Cleo loved it and finished her dinnerl. Sidney ate some broccoli and a few bites of tortellini. Cleo had 3 Hershey's miniature candy bars for dessert. Sidney did not get dessert. We then went upstairs for baths and watched a little of "Tangled" while they got their pajamas on and brushed their teeth. I put Sidney to bed first and then Cleo. Sidney read one of his library books and his Lightening McQueen book. Cleo read two of her library books.

We are looking forward to Roger's return on Tuesday; the kids and I really miss him.

C

Here are two recent drawings by Cleo. The one on the bottom is titled, "Cleo at Play." The one on top is, "Cleo at the Bounce House." Her self-portraits always involve her having a "pony puff" (aka pony tail).

Cleo and Sidney went to the dentist this morning. Cleo's underbite is gradually going away. Her dentist said that this happens infrequently in some children; Cleo is one of the fortunate ones. Cleo did not cry at all and was very cooperative. Sidney cried at first but then realized that the cleaning did not hurt and then was relatively calm. We go back in 6 months.

We had a nice weekend. We bought Cleo some cute Uggs-type boots that light up like Sketchers sneakers. Cleo is going to look too cute this Fall. Sunday, we spent some time in the kiddie pool on our deck, blew bubbles and did some fingerpainting.

We leave for NYC on Friday, Aug. 26. We return to Atlanta on Monday.

We attended the Harden Family Reunion this past weekend in Eatonton, GA. It was held at the Lodge at Oconee Lake. It was a pleasant weekend. Roger's mom is a descendant of the Harden family. It was too hot to let the kids play outside much and the pool was too deep for them to frolic in.

Roger's mom's, Linda, birthday was yesterday. We went to PF Chang's for dinner. It was nice. Linda returns to Jacksonville, FL tomorrow. It has been a really nice visit.

After we ate but before dessert, Cleo had to use the restroom and I wanted to check Sidney's diaper. When we got to the restroom, I discovered that Sidney had gone poop. It was a monster poop the likes of which I have not seen since he was 6 months-old. It got on his underpants, pants and shirt. We did not have an extra outfit with us. Miraculously the poop did not get on his undershirt. He looked so funny in just his diaper, sneakers and undershirt. Cleo was with me in the bathroom and asked me if I still loved Sidney even though his poop got all over. I told her of course I did. Cleo also provided Sidney and me with a narrative of how you clean up such a poopy situation - she was creatively interpreting the pictures on the changing table which instructs the adult not to leave the child unattended on the table in the restroom. She's funny! Sidney took it in stride. He was not pleased when he looked in the mirror at the sink and saw that he had no shirt - "my shirt, my shirt!" I assured him we would get him pants and a shirt when we got home. Then he was fine. Linda blew out the candles on the cake and Sidney got cake and frosting on his sole article of clothing left. We didn't take off his undershirt.

Pictures forthcoming in a future post.

My aunt Joanne came to Atlanta yesterday for a training at Home Depot. She works for Home Depot in Las Vegas. She is here until Friday. After work, I am going to pick her up from the training and take her home with me for a few hours. Then, Roger or I will drive her to her hotel, which is located near Home Depot's headquarters.

We are going to NYC Aug. 26-29 for Ook's wedding. I cannot wait to see everyone.

We attended Bryce's 4th birthday party on Saturday, Aug. 6. Sidney is wearing the visor he decorated with sports balls. Cleo got her face painted. The inspiration was "princess ballerina."

Today was Cleo's and Sidney's first day of the academic calendar at daycare. I hope things went well. We went school supplies shopping on Saturday and the kids helped us label everything. We got Sidney a Thomas the Train backback and Cleo a new princess one that full size folders actually fit in.

Sidney is scheduled to get his tonsils and adenoids removed on Sept. 2. He will stay overnight in the hospital. Either Roger or I will stay with him. I am already fretting but know that it is for the best and he will be so much happier once they are removed.

I have sort of started doing P90X and am participating in a walking competition at work. I gained 6 pounds since March and need to FOCUS on losing them. I need to start P90X in earnest. It was hard last week because I was sidelined from the strep throat pain. Back on track tonight!

Friday, July 29 we went to see the Braves beat the Marlins. It was the kids' first baseball game. They enjoyed it. Sidney was ready to leave by the 5th inning but we stayed until after the 7th inning stretch. Sidney discovered a love of soda (Coke). Cleo shared her cotton candy with me. She's a huge fan of fair and stadium food; she also got a pretzel. Roger shared his French fries with me and Sidney.

I was home yesterday because I have strep throat. Yesterday morning, I went to a Walgreen's Take Care Clinic where I received my diagnosis and some antiobotics. My throat is doing much better.

We saw Sidney's ear, nose & throat doctor on Aug. 2 and he recommends that Sidney's tonsils be removed because they are so swollen. He was not pushing us to make a decision right away but Sidney is clearly suffering. His breathing is horrible. The surgery entails a 7-10 day recovery period, during which he's at home. We hope to do it in early Sept. before our Sept. 29-Oct.2 trip to Hilton Head.

We are going to our friend Keisha and Kevin Duck's son's 4th birthday party tomorrow. Bryce also has twin younger sisters. Prior to the party we are going school supplies shopping. Cleo and Sidney's daycare follow the Atlanta Public Schools' academic calendar so the first day of "school" for them is August 8.

Have a great weekend.