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Better

Well after everyone else got well and back to school, I got sick and Cory stayed home to care for me on Tuesday. Wednesday he went to work and I slept most of the day. I was better but achy and tired. After being cooped up and sick I wanted to get outside and go somewhere and the sun had come back out for a few days. It is cold outside but bearable if the wind is not blasting you. We went to the movies Friday night to see Rise of the Guardians which was a good one we all enjoyed. Then on Saturday we went to Blenheim Palace which is the Churchill family estate near Oxford. Winston Churchill was born there when his grandfather was Duke of Marlborough. He also later proposed to his wife there. One of his relatives is the current Duke and lives there. It's called a palace but they are not royalty really, just honored like it. It's a pretty place of course and has lovely grounds, 2,000 acres. There were lots of pheasants. They also have a nice play area and a real maze which I had a hard time finding my way out of. I was starting to get a bit nervous. hee hee. Tristan and Avery visited Father Christmas in Santa's Grotto which they had set up in the stables. It was just a room with benches and cartoons showing and an elf and Mrs. Claus helping out. Father Christmas sits behind a wall so you can't see him unless it's your turn and once it's your turn you go talk to him and turn and look at your mom so she can snap a picture and then he gives you a present and you go. They do not sit on Santa's lap here. He asked the boys if they would leave him a mince pie and Tristan said that we would be leaving him cookies. The boys enjoyed their presents. Avery got a foam glider plane and Tristan a similar rocket. They probably come from the pound store and we paid four pounds each for them to do it but I believe the profits go to charity. They are big into charity here. Everyday I get a new letter from school or church or work or somewhere about an activity to raise money for a charity. They talk about it a lot on tv and such too, it's fashionable to do charity work it seems. It's rather pricey to visit Blenheim but if you go once they give you a pass to come back for a year for free so once the weather warms up a bit I'm sure we will go back. It's a nice place just to go for a walk and let the kids play on the playground and they have a butterfly house. It's not too far from base so it can be a stop on a day to visit the commissary. We did go to the base commissary after and bought some things but not as much as I planned to. They were a bit wiped out. Apparently it was pay day for the military. It was dark by the time we headed home and driving in the dark on these little dark roads really stinks. It was very stressful but I made it. Next time I will try to get home by dark.

I am watching the first presidency Christmas broadcast right now. Yes, it's late but it's nice to enjoy things live sometimes instead of delayed. I like the point of being a good receiver, that is definitely harder for me than giving. We will all watch it for family home evening tonight.

We are well and our trip is fast approaching. It should be good and very tiring. I think we all get a little homesick sometimes. Aiden was looking at Syracuse on Google maps the other day, he said he just wanted to look because he missed it. An added bonus is that it will likely be warmer there. I'm praying for on time flights. We are scheduled to get in at 9pm as it is and we hit the parks the next morning. I think we will try to do a smaller park Monday.

Home today

Lidia woke and puked on her bed this morning. Great. Now I am the last one, is it coming after me? Or will it pass by me? Just about everyone I know from church has had it this week. A friend said that eight of her coworkers were out with it this week. Unfortunately, some of the kids that came to our house for Thanksgiving got it too. It seems unavoidable though. It's soo contagious. Apparently you can only kill it with heat or bleach and it can live for up to two weeks on surfaces and such. So even if you are better you may still be passing it around. Lidia doesn't seem as sick as the boys did. She has not vomited again and she's not sleepy like they were. Avery has always puked easily so he continued to vomit a little here and there for a while after he was actually better. We stayed home from church today, trying not to spread this virus. Plus, I'd rather not be exposed to it even more at church where there are always tons of germs. Cory and I went and bought a Christmas tree yesterday and lights since I can't use my American ones here. They are expensive here! The tree was only 16 pounds but the lights were that much per strand of 150 lights. You also have to search and pay more to get the kind that connect together. Most lights do not connect here, so crazy. We bought two strands. Electricity in general here is nuts. There are like ten different types of light bulbs in our house. When one goes out we have to go searching for the right kind to replace it. We have a big tote full of bulbs the owners left yet still don't have the right kind and have to go searching at the stores to find it. Bulbs are also expensive here like everything else. The whole no outlets or switches in bathroom thing is so stupid too. You can't do your hair or shave in front of the bathroom vanity. Cory and I also checked out the Christmas Market in town yesterday. There are lots of little wooden huts set up where local craftsmen sale their goods. I just wasn't real impressed by any of it, nothing new to me. I don't pay a ton for a handmade good either. I just think that if I wanted one I could make one or by something similar elsewhere. It's gotta be awesome and something I can't get elsewhere for me to pay more like that. We did eat brautworst and fresh doughnuts though. We also saw a few holiday performers like elves on stilts but it was cold and rainy so we didn't stay long. I didn't realize that they were having the town lights ceremony that night so there were even more things going on with that in the evening that the kids may have enjoyed but we were home decorating for Christmas. Tristan likes to open the attic and climb up there so we let him go up and get out the decorations and Christmas toys and he passed them to me on the ladder then I passed to Lidia and Aiden who took them downstairs. I need to go finish the tree. The kids put all the ornaments at the bottom of the tree on the tips of the branches and don't spread them out well. Last night the watched the Santa Claus movie. I signed up for Netflix. There is not a lot on tv here and now that it's wet and chilly out we like to snuggle up in front of the tv sometimes, especially when sick. I love the sounds of happy healthy kids. When Avery was sick it was like he was missing, always asleep in his bed. When he started to get up and play and so cheerfully come show me his Lego inventions I knew he was better. I hear him in his room playing with his Playmobil toys right now. He says he loves the pyramid he got for his birthday, especially because it has booby traps. Funny story. I woke up today and looked down to see something brown all over me. I am so paranoid about vomiting that I thought, did someone vomit on me? Did I vomit on myself in my sleep and not know it? I looked at my bed and the sheet was dirty too. Then I noticed a small silver wrapper. Only then was I brave enough to smell this mess. It was chocolate. I had left a Hershey kiss in my pocket and it made a mess in my sleep. Reminds me of when I used to fall asleep with gum in my mouth as a kid but that had much worse results including hair cutting and scrubbing sheets and nightgowns.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a good Thanksgiving over here in England. Some locals even asked if we were celebrating or what it was, others probably didn't notice. I thought we were gonna get by with a healthy day but no, Tristan woke up vomiting at 4:30 am Thanksgiving day and Avery puked at lunch at school so Cory went and got him and he is still vomiting. I think the little guys get hit harder. They both slept all day. I almost forgot they were even here as Cory and I hung out downstairs and cooked. I had invited the Americans in our ward to come have thanksgiving with us and five families and one single sister confirmed and so I made food assignments and borrowed tables and chairs from the church. I was all set up to host 32 of us. Well I talked to everyone to let them know they were still welcome if they were willing to risk coming into a house with sick people and I would keep the sick kiddos in their rooms but I would totally understand if they wanted to cancel. So three families cancelled. Some cancelled because their own kids already had the flu too and they didn't want to take them anywhere and others because they just didn't want to risk getting this virus again. It seems to be going around at church. So the Nobles and the Davidsons and Heidi came. That made 17 of us and it was great. We all ate at the one long table I had set up in the playroom, well it was three church tables set up as one long table. The fourth table was used for drinks and desserts and my dining table just stayed empty in the dining room. All the food was served out of the kitchen buffet style. It was all so good, mmm mmm mmm. However, I have a ton leftover. I had planned for more so we will be having turkey and dressing for lunches for a while. I also made a huge batch of cranberry sauce but we will eat in with just about anything because it's soo good. We made two pumpkin pies, brownies and banana blueberry bread but I'm sure they will get finished off soon. I also made a Greek salad that everyone liked. I love it and you just make the salad dressing because they don't sell it at the store here and it's easy. The kids ate and then hung out in the living room just playing and listening to music and stuff while us grown ups chatted away at the table. It was real nice. Tristan was feeling better and wanted to join in on the excitement so Cory made him wash his hands and put on a mask and then let him go sit in the living room. Avery slept the entire time. Poor kid. I really hope none of our guests get sick. We are told that our family will catch every little bug that goes around our first winter here. I hope not but we don't get sick often. My kids don't even remember having a stomach flu before. We probably did get this and Avery the ear infections because we are not immune to the local germs yet. Lidia and I are still well. Maybe we will get lucky and not catch it. Cory let her and Aiden walk to school today. We were driving them because Aiden felt weak. I will feel bad if she falls ill while walking. I guess she made it since its now lunch time, hopefully she will make it back without incident this afternoon. I don't get much sleep when my kids are sick so I was really tired this morning and slept till noon. Felt good to get enough sleep and when I woke up the sun was even shining in nice and bright. It's been stormy the last couple of days, lots of rain and strong winds howling down the street and through the door. Some areas had a little flooding but we are OK. We sit up on a hill. I think I may try and check out the Christmas market in town. They are set up all over the towns in Europe and people really enjoy them. I need to see what it is. No black Friday here. I got an advent calendar and we started it last night because we are counting down until we leave on our trip instead of Christmas day. Avery was so so excited to start it and to be the first one to open a door and then he got sick and we had to take it to him in bed and help him open it. I hope he feels bettr today. Tristan seems to be feeling better, still not eating much but he's not sleeping all day. He is making Cory play games with him. So far I think they have played monopoly and upwards. They may go through all the board games by the end of the day. I met with the inclusion coordinator at the primary school this week to discuss Avery and Tristan. They are quite a bit behind their peers here. It's easy to see why. American schools have it all wrong. They do not put the kids first. It's that simple. It's not a complicated issue like they make it out to be. When I went in to meet with Mrs. Rutt she just wanted to talk to me about how they are adjusting to living here and how they were behaving in regards to school and such to see if what she saw at school was the same sort of thing I saw at home. She told me how they track all the kids to see what progress they are making and they have goals and interventions to help them and such and that kids that were really behind we're put on a special list that gets reviewed more frequently and if they needed extra resources to help that child the county would send someone else in to help that child. It's basically their version of an IEP but they do it completely based on need. They don't even need the parents permission, they are just informing you that it is needed so it is being given. They place great importance on the whole child and trying to keep things positive and trying to teach them n a way that works with their personality. They view educating the child as their job and allow parents to focus on parenting and family life instead of in America where I feel like the teachers try to push their job onto the parents which doesn't work because a kid can't come home after a long day at school and learn everything they should have learned that day at school. Tristan does seem really tired after school each day here. I think he gets mentally exhausted trying to keep up but he is already making progress. Avery has already shown improvement in his reading. I really like the schools here so far. America needs to fix their education system. It is so broken. All they need to do is look at other countries whose schools are succeeding to know why theirs are failing. They need to trash the old system and start a new one. Anyway, I am told I'll be meeting with the school about five times a year to track Tristan and Avery's progress. They actually mean what they say here and follow through. That alone will help Tristan. He can't get away with laziness at school here. It's just not possible. He and Avery don't really get homework other than reading a few minutes and spellings. It's nice. They deserve a break after school anyway I think. Lidia and Aiden have homework but not a lot. I need to have Cory get the Christmas stuff out of the attic. We may not do a tree since we are leaving but at least get out the nativity and Christmas toys. As always, this Thanksgiving I am very greatful for my family. I love them so much and no matter what annoying things may happen in life I can always be happy and greatful because I have them. I am also very thankful for the wonderful friends I have both near and far and what a support we are to each other. It will be a bit strange living here where people come and go every few years but nice to get to know so many great people. I think this was the first Thanksgiving since my mom passed away that I didn't get a little depressed about it. I am Thankful for that. It's nice to be able to remember happy times and not let the sad ones get you down. I am thankful for technology, especially Skype and FaceTime. I can be a part of the lives of my family and friends far away yet feel like I am right there. If only I could black Friday shop with them over FaceTime...not quite there yet. Hee hee And last but not least, I am so thankful for the gospel and Christ and the light and compass it is in my life. I know without a doubt that my Father in Heaven loves me and will guide me if I let him.

and the big boys...

They are sick. Aiden and Cory were up late last night puking and moaning and now it has changed from barf to upset stomach. I felt so sorry for them. There just isn't anything you can do but let it run it's course. Aiden said he had never felt so awful, worst day ever. I think they must have picked up a germ at the luncheon Sunday. I suppose it could have been church but more likely the lunch. Those type events with so many eating and sharing germs always make somebody sick I think. We are hosting Thanksgiving Thursday, or at least planning to. I hope everyone is better by then. Please let this pass the rest of us! We don't want it. Aiden made a real mess. I was up very late cleaning up the bathroom. It splattered everywhere. I told him he needs to get his face as close to the water as he can instead of just standing and letting it go all over. So so gross and the smell. Eww. I'll be spraying my house down with bleach today.

Little boys

Today was the Primary Program at church. I am first counselor in the Primary presidency. The kids all did a great job. Avery even sang! It was a miracle. His teacher was very helpful. Unfortunately he also screamed ouch in the middle of the program when he sat down and his palm was pinched between the chairs. Then he cried but at least kind of quietly and then he managed to continue on and do his part anyway. Tristan did a good job and managed not to annoy everyone around him like he tended to do during practice. It's hard for them to get through so many times practicing but now it's over and done. I sat in a tiny chair at the front by the microphone to help the kids that needed it. It was kind of fun to be up there looking at the kids instead of facing the congregation.

Tristan had a moment in math at school the other day. I'm not sure exactly what happened but I think he was not putting forth a good effort and made the excuse that he had no had any breakfast and was hungry. So when I went to pick him up from school his teacher wanted to talk to me about him not eating breakfast. I think she was prepared to lecture me but I told her he had eaten a bowl of cereal and five links of sausage that morning and he has plenty of food in his lunch sack if he needs a snack during recess. She realized he had been just making excuses. I was so mad that he was trying to blame me basically for his poor effort in math. Tristan is quick to make excuses and very slow to accept responsibility for his actions. Gotta help him work on that. The trick is to do it in a way that he doesn't know that's what we're up to. Hee hee

So on the topic of little boys eating, Avery came home Thursday starving and said he had no eaten anything all day because they never called for his lunch group. I guess either they didn't call or he didn't hear them call when it was his time to eat so he kept playing on the playground. He scarfed down his sandwich  quickly and then he had soccer practice. I felt bad for him and told his teacher the next day. She couldn't believe he didn't say anything. She promised to make sure that he ate everyday from now on. I also asked Tristan to make sure Avery eats. They have lunch and recess at the same time but they don't play together. I guess they don't think it's cool to play with your brother at school. They would likely end up fighting anyway. Poor Avery is such a rule follower he wouldn't dare eat unless it was the correct time to do so.

After church today we headed over to another local church hall for the Thanksgiving lunch with all the Americans from work. It was a nice afternoon with some yummy food. Looks like I'll be having three Thanksgiving feasts this year since we are having dinner here Thursday night with some American friends from church and I had a nice Thanksgiving lunch with friends at Whole Foods this week.

Just a few Halloween pics

As I have said, Halloween was kind of uneventful this year compared to Utah but I will share a few not so exciting pictures.

We made cupcakes Halloween day. Lidia made the ones on top, Aiden bottom row. My kids are pretty
creative coming up with ideas on their own.

Avery's cupcakes

Tristan's cupcakes

Cory and I just wore the kids' costumes because we left ours in storage. He was quidditch
 Harry Potter.

I was Willy Wonka. I also won the costume prize at church in the adult category.
I didn't even snap a photo of the kids. They wore their Star Wars costumes from
 last year except Avery wore his vampire costume.

I took Lidia and Aiden for a walk the next day.

It's nice living right by the countryside.

I made these cupcakes for the school bakesale. They sold very quickly. One mom said she knew they
were mine because of the candy corn. They don't sell it here. My idea was stolen from a friend.

Avery's birthday party

We had a birthday party for Avery after school Friday. Eight boys from his class came over for a ninja party. I had made nun chucks from foam, headbands with their name on them, and paper ninja stars for them all. I also showed them how to make a ninja hood with a tshirt. I fed them pizza, cupcakes, ice cream, chips, etc and then showed them some games to play with their weapons and such but it was so chaotic. They just went nuts hyper. After an hour had passed of that craziness I had Cory turn on the Lego ninjago cartoons and pop popcorn. They all calmed down and snacked on the popcorn in front of the tv until their parents came to fetch them. It was kind of hectic for that hour and a half but I do think it was good for Avery even if he told me to make them "pause" a couple of times. I guess his teacher must say that at school when everyone needs to clam down. One of the moms stayed at the party and told me their class was the most boisterous in the school. Likely because it has 14 boys and only 10 girls. She said no other mom would let all those boys in her house like I did. I guess they think I'm nuts. They didn't harm the house, they were just hyper boys. I can see the benefit of having it at the pool or something though. If we still were in that house in MD I could have it outside but our garden here is small. So during all this craziness I neglected to take pictures. I may have some before and after I could post. I'll have to check the camera. It was good to meet some of the moms and boys so now I have a better idea who some people are and they know us a little better and where we live and such. I need to get Avery to do thank you cards. They are big on cards here. We Americans are a bit lazy on that front but it is expected here.

A week or so before, we made the nunchuks.

The morning of Avery's actual birthday he opened his presents before school.

All of them will enjoy reading these graphic novels.
The words are so small I have to wear my glasses to see them.

The day after his birthday he had finished building his two lego sets and we put his spurs on.

Sorry it's sideways, these are the cupcakes I made for his party. I used too much food coloring.
It was messy at the party.

I forgot about this sparkler until after the party, but we enjoyed it.

Some of the games prizes were mustaches. Here my older three all model the one Aiden had.

Tristan also has red frosting on his face, hee hee.

before any children came home...

oh, Cory did snap a couple of pictures...

This game was a spin on pin the tail on the donkey.
Some of the boys got out our Star Wars Monopoly game during the party and I told them to put it away since there would not be enough time to play it. Well I went to pick up the box to put it back on the shelf and I dropped it and all the little pieces and money went all over the floor. Nice. Lidia was helpful as usual and helped put it all away for me.

Remembrance Day 11-11-12

I have really been impressed by the support of veterans here. For the past few weeks everyone has been selling these poppies and wearing them. Every year they do this and raise millions of dollars for the veterans. Just as important is the solidarity and support shown by all in support of those who have given so much for freedom. I feel that there are many in America who act like supporting the troops is warmongering. They want to cut defense and cut funds for veterans. They do not recognize the good our soldiers do and the service they give to people all over the world. We owe them so much. They are our heroes and we should recognize them and treat them as such. Tristan has been selling poppies at school so I made a donation and bought some from him. I saved them to wear to church today. We all wore them and during church on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month we took part in the national moment of silence. Everyone was actually silent the entire two minutes. I am in primary and those kids were awesome and showed such respect. It touched my heart. It's tradition, they knew just what to do and what it meant and my kids fell right in line and did it too. Last night I watched the Festival of Remembrance on tv. It is a celebration of veterans held at the Royal Albert Hall in London and the Queen and her family attend as well as the prime minister and lots of important people. It was a lovely celebration and service with such reverence and love for service men and women. I also have to say I love to watch them in all their beautiful uniforms marching and playing instruments and all the pomp and circumstance. I don't know if everyone here watches it but I did. It was on BBC1. There were also tons of fireworks last night. The school near our house does a big fireworks show every year and we could just watch from our upstairs windows instead of sitting out in the cold. A lot of our neighbors were doing big ones untill after 11 pm too. I told Cory it sounded like war outside with all the firework bombs exploding. hee hee The fireworks are technically for Guy Fawkes day but still very appropriate for remembrance day too. This is the only time of year they are sold here. Tomorrow Cory is off work tomorrow for Veteran's Day but the kids have school so I get to have him all to myself.

In Flanders Field

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. 

John McCrae

Really?!!!

I really thought Romney would pull it out. Dang. Oh well, it's over. Obama gets another four years. It seems like it's pretty dang hard to beat an incumbant. People resist change, give the guy his eight years then change when forced. Obama had a much stronger ground game than many thought, really got out the vote again. Could Romney have won if he did anything differently? Maybe, but we'll never know. Hindsight is 20/20. I follow politics a ton. I really dislike Obama, fundamentally disagree with him on just about everything. In some things he has good intentions but seems to create a bigger mess. If he would come to the center some like most presidents do he would govern much better. He could be a leader and unify and represent all Americans at least partially but he is so far left he drives me nuts. Now he has no reason to come center so he'll probably go even further left and his base will be so happy while he tries to destroy the America I love. I hope and pray he will work to accomplish some good for our nation and stop driving us further into debt. I hope he learns from this Benghazi mess and does a better job as commander in chief. I want him to be successful but the last four years do not make me think he will be. That's why I didn't vote for him. I don't wish him to fail but he seems to all on his own. Our nation has survived a lot, we can survive four more years. The president is not the end all. We have our senators and congressmen and they need to get busy and pass a budget that doesn't drive us deeper into debt. I think we need fundamental change in DC but the men we elect to hold the power don't seem to think so. We need more transparency and less corruption. We need them to live in the same world we do. How about they not get paid if the gov can't pass a budget or is in debt? Instead they vote to increase their own pay. How messed up is that?! The gov wouldn't have to raise taxes if those who owed just paid. There are a ton of gov officials that owe a ton in taxes. How is that?! Maybe it should be required that you be up to date on paying taxes before you can take a gov job. Our education system is a mess and everyone just thinks throwing money at it will work. News flash, It doesn't! The whole system is messed up. Who knows how Obama care will end up. I hope not like NHS. The care here sucks! I suppose it may be better than nothing but if you want good care you have to pay for a private doctor. I'm actually more worried about all the hidden stuff in those thousands of pages. It's a huge mess and costing doctors and businesses thousands a year just to implement all the regulation and such. It will take years to try and fix that bill and get it all worked out. Maybe states will stand up for their rights and not implement it, come up with their own solutions like they should anyway. I really believe that states should take care of most things on their own. They know the needs of their people better than the feds. They know best how to address them as well. Local gov is much more efficient. They have been issuing Obamacare waivers so maybe they will give them to those states that are addressing healthcare on their own. It's all so complicated when you really get into the details. Anyway, life goes on. Now that the distraction of the election is over maybe we can all accomplish something. As for me, I am making ninja birthday party favors and listening to Christmas music. There isn't really Thanksgiving music and they don't celebrate it here anyway but we Americans will. Halloween was less eventful here to be sure. We dressed up in costumes we already had and went to Trunk or Treat at church but it was cold and rainy. The older two didn't get candy. I guess they think they are too old to trick or treat and the younger two were not interested enough to get cold or wet. They sat in the car mostly. We had one trick or treater come to the door, my neighbor. Some kids here have parties or trick or treat all in one neighborhood where lots of young kids live. The Church of England is against Halloween. Most older people don't like it or give out candy. I did listen to my fun Halloween songs but now I will move on to Christmas and get excited for my trip to America! We are staying home for February break and just do some day outings from here during that week and then in April we get two weeks so we may go to Italy. I have to research and plan. You have to book early round here. Oh, we got a Whole Foods here. It opened today. I need to go see if they sell anything I like.

Happy Birthday Avery! Great to be 8!

Today Avery turned 8! He has been so excited for his birthday and counting down the days. Yesterday at church his teacher, Millie, gave him a card and a five pound note. He was so excited and had such a shocked look on his face. He loves money right now. He has lost a few teeth recently a gotten a pound for each tooth but those are coins. Notes start at five here. So I guess it's his first pound note and he is happy. I need to make him make her a thank you card. She is a very sweet older lady. She gives them candy every Sunday and he is nice and shares it with his siblings. Today he opened his presents before school and after school built his Lego ninjago sets and ate pizza for dinner. He didn't want to go to bed without finishing his second Lego set but it was after eight so he will have to finish tomorrow. We are having a little ninja birthday party after school Friday. Six boys from his class are coming over. He took some candy to school today and shared it with his class. He gave them air heads and laffy taffys. Kids here think the American candies are cool. Today is also Guy Fawkes day so everyone around us is shooting tons of fireworks.

Sunday Avery went right to the bishop after sacrament to get his birthday candy and have his baptism interview. It was so cute because he was so excited and rushing the bishop out of the chapel. The bishop said he was very well prepared. I am glad because you never know what Avery may say but we have made an effort at home to help him understand baptism and help him get over his nervousness about it. He is looking forward to being baptized with his cousins and family there at Christmas time.

Avery's presents were: a cowboy hat, cowboy spurs for his boots, hot wheels cars, ninjago books(graphic novels), two ninjago Lego sets, one small star wars Lego set, two ninjago mini figures, and a pac-man and ghost toy.

Avery is such a sweet loving boy. We adore him. He is so smart and funny. I am so happy he is feeling better. I need to take him back to the doctor to see if his ears look better. I don't want to let him go back to swim lessons yet, or maybe ever. I'm concerned that the pool water may have been part of the problem. I need to get good ear plugs or a swimmers ear band or something. I think I may take him to the private ENT even though I'll have to pay. The NHS doctors stink.