Michigan 2010

We were lucky enough to go on vacation with Gabe's parents again this year. We decided to head up to Michigan to find some fun. And we did! Here are some pics from the vaca:

The Bubble Man - courtesy of the Kalamazoo Public Library. Want to know how to make a perfect bubble: 10 cups water, 2 cups Dawn, 1/2 cup glycerin. You'd be amazed.
The Bubble Man was good - but it was naptime. Grandpa had to carry a tired little boy back to the car.

The next day we went to Battle Creek for a Frisbie Dog Show. It was sort of a bust. Too much talking, not enough dogs jumping. Caleb found a pinecone he was much more interested in.

Since the dog show was a bust, we decided we needed to hit Binder Park Zoo. Here we are on the tram to Africa.
The best part of the zoo was getting to pet and feed the giraffes. They come right up to you.

No, we do not know this girl...but check out the tongue! It looks like they were posing together for the photo.

Family shot!

Perhaps my favorite pic of the entire vacation. Isn't it beautiful?

Caleb caught his first fish on vacation. Grandpa said it was the biggest blue-gill they had caught that night. Doesn't he look so proud? If you ask him, he'll tell you "it was this big" with his arms as wide as possible. A true fisherman at heart.

On decidedly the hottest day of our trip we went on a 1-mile surrey ride in Portage. I wish I was two so I could ride in the basket on the front!

The following day we left Three Rivers and headed to Lansing. After a date night for Gabe and I which included jazz at a local cafe, a walk on MSU's campus and a movie, we got up the next morning and headed to their Discovery Musuem. This is a pic of Caleb inside a bubble.

That night we did glow-in-the-dark mini-golf. It was hit! I won the first 9!

Our last day was a Sunday, so we visited a couple local churches (morning and evening - some lively....some not). Grilled out at the hotel and played some basketball.

It was a great vacation! We headed back to IL on Monday. Thanks to Tom and Marilyn for making it such a great trip. We had a wonderful time and have a ton of memories (and pictures)!

We're about to embark....

...on a potty-training adventure. I gotta say, I'm both excited and terrified at the prospect of teaching my 2 year old how to use the potty. Diapers are safe. Diapers are easy. Accidents are messy. Talking about pee-pee and poopy all day is starting to wear me down.

But I suppose we've got to do it. Gabe and I agreed that we'd try and if it was a no-go, we'd put it on hold for about a month and try again. I've talked to about every friend I know who has done it, posted for suggestions on FB and have even skimmed a few books at Borders trying to find the right way to do this. But I know, there is no right way.

For now, here has been our technique. According to many books, you should get a doll that pees, takes a bottle and wears underwear. Well, the Myers have their own way of doing things sometimes....did you know that Curious George is really interested in using the potty right now too?

Yes, that's right. We've taught Curious George how to use the potty. He can pee, he can poop (little chocolate covered raisins) and he reaps all of the rewards. He even got to wear his big-boy underwear. How exciting!

And while this has piqued Caleb's interest and has caused more visits to the potty, we're still wearing diapers. We've told him that he gets one piece of candy for going pee-pee and he gets a CARS sticker for going poopy. He gets two pieces of candy if he goes pee and his diaper is dry when we get there. Both are things he LOVES and it seems to be working. He's done both on the potty, but for the life of us, we can't get him to tell us when he needs to go. That seems to be our roadblock. Sitting on the potty doesn't freak him out, I just think he gets too busy and distracted to tell us what's happening. But if we ask him too often, he gets frustrated. Ugh! I'm leaning on the fact that I know he won't go to kindergarten wearing pull-ups (or so I hope!!!)

Daddy

I'm a little early to make this a Father's Day tribute, but we've enjoyed having Gabe home a lot more. And today marks the end of the school year. We're all thrilled about that! With all of that said, Caleb has had a lot of daddy time lately and has been loving every minute.

Okay, I just threw this one in there for all my Cardinal fans out there! Gotta love the hat....Daddy doesn't....but I do!

Rett Syndrome Strollathon

Thanks to everyone who either donated, attended or did both this past weekend at the 3rd Annual IRSF Strollathon in St. Louis! It was a great day! We raised a ton of money for research, had one of the biggest crowds yet and had a wonderfully beautiful day to walk around Tilles Park.

Go TEAM SOPHIE!

Sophie knows we're there to have a great day in her honor!

Thankfully Aunt Amy brought the wagon for the boys to ride in!

The wagon also provided adequate shelter from this guy....Fredbird...there was fear in my child's eyes, trembling and crying. He is not a fan of mascots.

All of the girls and their families

Easter Updates

My mom reminded me that I haven't posted anything in awhile. So here it is in picture review:

Gabe comes in and says "hey, you want to see our son's first kill?" Something only a daddy would say (and so proudly). Yes, apparently this very large yellow jacket was causing Caleb some distress so he just killed it. He's braver than me. I probably would have been running around the neighborhood like a lunatic trying to get it away from me.

The kiddos on Palm Sunday. Aren't they cuties?

Boy, don't they just look like they're going to get in trouble together.

All dressed up for Easter. Now, where else can he wear that so it will be worth the money spent?

Caleb and Gracie having a playdate. Those cabinets are the best for hiding!

By the grace of God....

Gabe is okay. For those of you who haven't heard the story, Gabe was in a pretty bad accident late Wednesday night. He walked away from it virtually injury-free, but only because the Lord must have watching over him. Here's what happened.

Gabe went over to Josh's on Wednesday night to watch the first round of the NIT game for the Illini. After the game was over, he took Chad home and then headed to our house. He got to the intersection of College and Towanda (he was heading East on College) at about 10:30pm and came to a red light. He happened to see a police officer drive by him going west bound, and in his rearview mirror, noticed that he had flipped his lights on. In that same instant, he noticed an SUV coming up behind him and thought to himself "wow, that guys is flying". The cop had pulled a U-turn and started after the guy. The SUV apparently didn't do a good job of negotiating around Gabe's car, and going 74mph flew into the back of Gabe's idle car. Yes, you read that right...74mph. It completely smashed in the back of his car, lifted the back end of his car in the air and he landed facing the other direction.

Needless to say, they took him to the hospital, and arrested the guy driving the SUV (who didn't need to go the hospital - funny how that works out). He was charged with reckless driving, driving 40mph over the speed limit and DUI. All I have to say is that I cannot fathom the ignorance and selfishness it takes for one human being to drink and then get in their car. Wow, I sure hope he had a good time at his St. Patrick's Day party...my husband's in the hospital. Sorry, but if alcohol is that important to your social life that you would risk taking another person's life by driving, then consider me speechless. I guess that might seem dramatic, but the reality is, I could have lost my husband.

Fastforward to about 10:40pm. I'm at home and hear the phone ring. I assume that it's Gabe telling me he's on his way home. It's actually the Normal Police Department that calls and says

"Ma'am, are you the wife of Gabriel Myers?"
"Yes," I say, "why?"

"Your husband's been involved in a motor vehicle accident and they are transporting him to the hospital"

"What?! .... Are you serious?"

"Yes, ma'am, I'm very serious"

"Is he okay?"

"I don't know ma'am, you'll have to meet him at the hospital"

Possibly the worst phone call of my life. I quickly called Josh and April, and Josh came over as fast as possible to stay at the house, while I jumped in the car to get to the hospital. It was the longest drive ever. The nurse in the emergency room told me he was okay, but it wasn't until I got to see him that I finally let loose the tears. He was strapped to a board, oxygen in his nose and laying perfectly still. He was okay. His neck was hurt and they had to run some tests, but that was it. He was safe, he was okay, he was alive.

There are so many things about that night that make me thankful. Thankful that Gabe is okay. Thankful that Caleb and I were not in the car, as I know that Caleb would not have walked away okay. Thankful for a car (yes, a big grandpa car) that protected him. Thankful that no one else was at the intersection that could have been impacted. And yes, I'm even thankful that the man driving the SUV was okay. Neither one of them should be walking or talking and they are.

On a side note, the Buick is not okay. We had to tell Caleb that the Buick has some bumps and bruises and that we probably won't get to see it again. He talks about it a lot. I figured most people would want to see what became of our sad little Buick, so here are some pics:

The other guy's car:

So that's the story. We're very relieved that it is Spring Break so that Gabe can recup at home. We're also doing all of the other fun stuff that includes insurance, rental cars, doctor's appointments, replacing the car seat, searching for another vehicle (yes, probably another Buick). I guess we know how we're going to spend SB. Not that I mind...I have my husband here to do it with me.

It's that time again...

...time for Extra-Birthday March Madness!!!

The Myers family is gearing up for the annual Extra-Birthday March Madness 2010! I'm in it to win it this year. I almost tasted a victory last year, but it was stolen away from me in the last round. I know I can do it this year! If you're looking to get in on your own EBMM, here are the rules (and get started soon - first game is on Thursday!):

1. Players - I wouldn't recommend having more the 6 people playing. If you have a lot of people interested, break off into different 6 or less groups
2. How to Play - Pick a total of 8 teams based on their seeding. That seeding will determine the number of points you get per round. (Example: If you picked a #4 seed, you will get 4 points for every game they win.) So obviously there is some strategy to this. You're not necessarily picking who you think will win the tournament - if you pick a #1 seed, you're probably not going to get enough points to win against your opponents. But, if you pick a #12 seed, they may not make it past the first game.
3. The bracket - everyone playing must print out a conference bracket and have their 8 teams picked by Thursday morning. Once your teams have been picked you cannot change them. They will then be shared by all players so everyone can follow who has the most points.
4. The payoff - the winner of the Extra Birthday March Madness recieves......an extra birthday! We're talking cake and presents here people!

So come join the fun!!! It makes watching basketball so much more fun!