Summer and Serendipity ~ July PTR ~ LINK TO TRIP REPORT!!!

[tinacaplan]

Spending Max,s birthday in the er with Mark. Nearly certain its just a kidney stone, but Ism not able to bake Max his super special Cars cake. Hopefully we will all be healthy by next Thursday. Will update later tonight.

 

[tinacaplan]

Well...Mark's home and it was just a kidney stone. Apparently..they are um...painful??? Crazy, crazy day...thankfully my mom stepped in and took Max for the day. We'll be headed over there in a bit to celebrate Max's big day! Can't believe its been four years already! He is my love. I'll post some pictures tonight or tomorrow.

 

[tinacaplan]

Just found your PTR... Better late than never!!!

And I want to say "HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAX!!!

Thank you...and

We are staying at the Beach Club!!! It's our first on-site stay, we visited once 4 years ago, off-site. My kids don't know about our trip- it's a BIG SURPRISE! It's sort of a reward due to us starting a business this year, that has done really well. I opened a cupcakery in our hometown in February, and my kids have been real troopers throughout the whole process! I've gone from being a SAHM to a full-time business owner, and it has been quite a change for us all. Needless to say, this vacation is much deserved and much needed. We chose Beach Club due to the amazing pool, and the ability to just sit back and RELAX~ DD is 11, DS is 8, and DS- 5. My mom, DS, and BIL will also be joining us! I'm so excited I could BURST!

Congratulations on the new business. It must be wonderful to work for yourself, stressful and exhausting, too, no doubt. Plus...YUM...cupcakes! You will LOVE staying on-site. Worth every penny, in my opinion. We've stayed at Coronado Springs our past two trips, so we've never had the advantage of being within walking distance of a park (or had the option of any on-site transportation other than the bus), so we're really excited for that and the pool, as well. I hope you have a magical trip and perhaps we'll see eachother at Storm along Bay!

 

[pinkxray]

Oh no, what an awful way to celebrate a birthday. Poor Mark and Max.

I have heard kidney stones are very painful

Happy Birthday Max!!

 

[glennbo123]

Oh no! Poor Mark! Fingers crossed that he'll pass that puppy before the trip starts. (Oh, and I'll throw a "gently" in there too.)

Happy Birthday to Max!

 

[MEK]

Happy Birthday Max!

Kidney stones are incredibly painful and very common. I second what Glen just said. What a way to spend the day.

Love your Day 1 -3 plans. Oh, the Beach Club. I miss you!

 

[KatMark]

Happy Birthday, Max.

Hope Mark is feeling better.

 

[tinacaplan]

Oh no, what an awful way to celebrate a birthday. Poor Mark and Max.

I have heard kidney stones are very painful

Happy Birthday Max!!

Day worked out fine for Max; he got to spend the day with Grammy and Pop-pop and go swimming. And, yep, if a grown man nearly crying real tears is any indication...pretty painful.

Oh no! Poor Mark! Fingers crossed that he'll pass that puppy before the trip starts. (Oh, and I'll throw a "gently" in there too.)

Happy Birthday to Max!

Thanks, Glenn...I hope so, too. We're figuring if it isn't gone by the end of the weekend, we'll contact the the docs again and go from there, but hopefully, that won't be necessary. I'm just pretty happy it wasn't anything more serious. Then what??? Well, I suppose there's trip insurance for a reason, but still... We're pretty happy that this didn't strike next Tuesday or Wednesday!

Happy Birthday Max!

Kidney stones are incredibly painful and very common. I second what Glen just said. What a way to spend the day.

Love your Day 1 -3 plans. Oh, the Beach Club. I miss you!

Thanks...again, in light of recent events, I'm all too aware of how much worse this could have been, so a kidney stone, while really painful, not the end of the world, either.

Happy Birthday, Max.

Hope Mark is feeling better.

Thank you, Kathy...he's resting comfortably, thanks to a trip to the pharamcist.

 

[dizneeat]

Happy Birthday, sweet little Max! Hope you had a wonderful time!

Get well soon, Mark! Sorry to hear you had such a painful day on your little one's birthday!

And all the best to you, Tina! I envy you being on holiday already! Two more days to go, here! I got behind with all my threads again.
Had a lot going on ......... more later!

Hugs and kisses to the birthday boy!

 

[Disneyfreak616]

Happy Birthday Max and Get Well Soon Mark!!!

YOUR TRIP IS JUST ONE WEEK AWAY!!!

 

[PirateKate]

Happy Birthday to Max!! Did those four years go by fast for you? Four still seems like so far away to me.

I hope you get to do everything on your list. You've got a lot of fun things coming up.

 

[annmarieda]

I am so sorry I missed your updates.

First... Happy birthday to Max. 4 goes by quick... But sadly, it never slows. I swear dd was a toddler moments ago and she is almost 21 and married. Why can't they stay small forever?

Second, I hope Mark is feeling better.

Third , I love yout top tree daily wish lists

 

[eandesmom]

loving your favorite things list!!!!

I need to look at my list from May, I think I made a "top 10" list but I don't think I actually did all that well on it.

I hope Mark is better, though I've not had one I've seen others go through it and man it looks excruciating!

Happy PACKING and belated birthday to Max!!!

 

[tinacaplan]

Happy Birthday, sweet little Max! Hope you had a wonderful time!

Get well soon, Mark! Sorry to hear you had such a painful day on your little one's birthday!

And all the best to you, Tina! I envy you being on holiday already! Two more days to go, here! I got behind with all my threads again.
Had a lot going on ......... more later!

Hugs and kisses to the birthday boy!

Thanks for the birthday wishes! We had a good day, all things considered...besides, I made things smaller this year because he's in for quite the big birthday bash in a few days!

I think by now you are ON holiday! Congratulations on finishing another sucessful school year. Always sort of feel like I've climbed a mountain or something when I'm done.

We'll see if I can catch up on all that I've missed over the past few days before I leave for my trip and get hopelessly behind.

Happy Birthday Max and Get Well Soon Mark!!!

YOUR TRIP IS JUST ONE WEEK AWAY!!!

Thanks! Now we're down to a few days!

Happy Birthday to Max!! Did those four years go by fast for you? Four still seems like so far away to me.

I hope you get to do everything on your list. You've got a lot of fun things coming up.

Hi! And thanks for the birthday wishes...as for how quickly the time has gone...in some ways, its been a flash, in others...it was sloooooowwww...and I know what you mean. When Max was smaller, it felt like it was going to be forever until he was walking, talking, potty trained, etc. All I know is that its sometimes hard, when you're right in the middle of it, that whatever a kid's going through is likely just a stage that will pass sooner or later.

I am so sorry I missed your updates.

First... Happy birthday to Max. 4 goes by quick... But sadly, it never slows. I swear dd was a toddler moments ago and she is almost 21 and married. Why can't they stay small forever?

Second, I hope Mark is feeling better.

Third , I love yout top tree daily wish lists

ANN!!!!! You've been a little bit busy lately, but its great to see you over here!

Personally, I won't mind Max not being four forever. I think (hope???) one of the things that's different about boys and girls is that boys can be really tough when they're little, whereas girls are often a bit calmer, but girls can get tough as they get older. Plus, I work with middle school aged kids, so I'm used to them, and actually think they're fun. I'm just not looking forward to the day when Max can drive, has job, and can just take off!

Thanks...wonder if I'll finish that before we leave? I'm thinking...no!

loving your favorite things list!!!!

I need to look at my list from May, I think I made a "top 10" list but I don't think I actually did all that well on it.

I hope Mark is better, though I've not had one I've seen others go through it and man it looks excruciating!

Happy PACKING and belated birthday to Max!!!

Hi, Cynthia. Thanks...hope I can finish that list before we go, but I have my doubts!

Mark is feeling much better, we're still not sure that it passed yet, though. He goes back to the doc on Tuesday and if its there, they'll figure out the best option given that we fly on Thursday! Why did I think this trip would go off easily?

 

[tinacaplan]

I suppose it depends on how you count... We have four more sleeps, but since I'm already up today, as far as I'm concerned, we're down to three more days!

Just wanted to post a few pictures of a Max's birthday party and some of the other summer activities we've taken part in the past couple of weeks, starting off with a lovely Fourth of July picnic.

Max eating some chips...

Sitting by the fire pit, eating some ice cream.

The fire pit.

The fireworks...my first attempt at taking fireworks shots. Eh.

His fourth birthday party, which was not the easiest we've planned. For one thing, with my uncle's health and eventual passing, my mom and I weren't sure what to start planning for last month. The second situation is that Max swtiched preschool/daycare centers at the end of June, so we didn't want to invite friends form his previous school to avoid further confusing him and he didn't start at the new school until the day before his birthday.

Oh, and finally....WE'RE GOING TO DISNEYWORLD THURSDAY!!! What makes a better present than that?

The cake. Oh, the cake. This was going to be a high-concept depiction of a racing scene from Cars 2, but ended up with my putting four cars from Cars 2 on top of an ice cream cake, as Mark and I spent the better part of the day in the ER, thus making baking an impossibility.

Max sitting on top of his favorite present; a Lightening McQueen car. One of my (well intentioned) aunts got this for him, thinking...hey, dream present for a lover of the movie, right? Not so much. Its essentially the same thing as that plastic, foot powered car, with the huge yellow roof kids have and is, thererfore, too small for him. Now, try explaining that to a four year old. We've hidded the box away and are praying that by the time we get back from Disneyworld, he will have forgotten about it and we can return it for some more age appropriate toys.

Max and mommy...and no, I swear, I was NOT trying to choke him when this was taken.

Over the next four (three??) days, I have a whole lot of cleaning to do, need to visit my best friend's brand new daughter, and then there's the packing. Luckily, I'm spending today at the my mom's pool! I suppose most of that list can wait until tomorrow.

 

[that's nice]

Hey Tina....

I missed your whole PTR but I will be following your TR when you get back. I hope the Florida weather isn't too hot for you.

Have a wonderful trip!!!!!!

 

[pinkxray]

Too bad Max is too big for the car. You would think they would make it a bit big, who do they expected to be driving it? Hopefully he will forget all about it by the time you get back.

Only a few more days. I can't believe it is here already, it seemed like just yesterday you were planning your Feb trip. This year certainly flew by.

 

[tinacaplan]

Hey Tina....

I missed your whole PTR but I will be following your TR when you get back. I hope the Florida weather isn't too hot for you.

Have a wonderful trip!!!!!!

Not a problem, Tim. That time of year is especially busy for a LOT of us. Hope things are slowing down a bit and that you and the girls are getting a chance to relax before the new baby comes.

Too bad Max is too big for the car. You would think they would make it a bit big, who do they expected to be driving it? Hopefully he will forget all about it by the time you get back.

Only a few more days. I can't believe it is here already, it seemed like just yesterday you were planning your Feb trip. This year certainly flew by.

Unfortunately, that aunt is the type who never asks for gift input and doesn't necessarily put much thought into what's developmentally appropriate or what Max might need...rather, she thinks...hey, its Cars and its expensive, so let's buy it! I had requested just simple books and puzzles this year, as Max has so much and is getting ready for a really big trip and, in my opinion, that's a HUGE present.

I can't believe its here already, either! This also means that my summer vacation is almost over, too!

 

[Moira222]

I am so late to the party! I hope Max had a nice birthday despite not fitting into the car he wanted

I had to read backwards when I saw a note about Mark feeling better. Poor guy. Glad the stone passed for him. I've heard that kidney stones give men a glimpse into PMS & child birth....but I'm betting he didn't want to see that movie. Hope he's better now.

Are you Ready????

 

[tinacaplan]

I am so late to the party! I hope Max had a nice birthday despite not fitting into the car he wanted

Please don't apologize! We all get so busy and I know there are plenty of times when all I can muster the energy to do is read threads.

It was a silly gift..he needs to be using things with pedals at his age!

I had to read backwards when I saw a note about Mark feeling better. Poor guy. Glad the stone passed for him. I've heard that kidney stones give men a glimpse into PMS & child birth....but I'm betting he didn't want to see that movie. Hope he's better now.

Are you Ready????

Yes, the docs told him it was as painful as childbirth. Whatever that means... But he was in a serious amount of pain that morning. Thankfully, it happened when it did and not, oh, say..next week.

We're semi-ready. I find packing the actual clothes to be pretty easy. I went through my spread sheet last week and figured out my own outfits and started putting Max's together. Its a bit different than packing in February because all the clothes we're taking, we're wearing right now. Trust me, though, we will be... Luckily for us, Max's preschool agreed to let him come tomorrow, which is normally his off day, so that gives me an extra day to get things done.