Sit back and get comfortable, this one is going to be long. But every word will be true. No part of this outrageous weekend was embellished for your enjoyment or mine. This past weekend was the Baton Rouge State Fair. Trey's mom, the kids call her Gran Gran, was coming to stay the weekend and go to the fair with us. I got out Friday night for a quick trip to Walmart, before she got there. I had all three kids with me, but the list was not too long, so we should have been in and out. But as I learned this weekend from several people, I am accident prone. Wild, unusual things happen to us. My life is full of "you had to be there" and "you will never believe what just happened to me" stories. I am in a hurry, and down to the end of the list. I am so ready to get home. Laiken has to use the bathroom. She probably doesn't, but has just become used to it because we would visit the bathrooms on the way in every time we came when she was potty training. So I went in with Laiken and Jack. Jack came with us b/c since Trey has been gone, Jack will most often cry when I walk away from him. So we usually use the big stall, for extra room, and this time a little girl ran in front of us. With her in the bigger stall, we chose a smaller one next to it. Jack took his usual position as flusher and Laiken pottied. I went next. Jack is pulling nonstop on the flushing handle and Laiken is trying to open the door and get out. I stood up to keep the door from opening and whipped around to Jack who is about to reach in the toilet with his free hand and one sharp move too many and my keys fell out of my back pocket and swooooooshed!!!!! Down the toilet they went like a flash of lightening! My apartment key, car key, keyless entry, and a large decorative 6 in. key chain ribbon. All disappeared (along with my dignity) in about 1 second flat. I was literally shaking when I called Trey, "Please, please, please, oh god, tell me you didn't take my spare keys with you to Wyoming!!!" He did. One minor/major detail forgotten in the hustle and bustle of him leaving. Trey also said that they are industrial strength commercial toilets designed to be able to flush a whole roll of toilet paper at once. Oh yeah, it went down with no hesitation at all. So I asked for assistance from the customer service counter and was only slightly relieved to learn that the assistant manager had done the same thing recently and his keys were not recovered. They had to rekey all of the locks in WalMart. Ok, well at least I had a two and three year old to help me. I was not alone. I also learned that I was in the only stall in all of Walmart that does not flush automatically when you stand up. You have to pull the handle. So Jack's assistance in nonstop handle pulling played a key role in the flushing of the keys. I called pop a lock to have the doors opened and a key made. They quoted an "estimate" of $250 plus tax. I then called Trey and asked him to go to the post office and send the key to me express mail. Next I called a ride to come and get me. The car stayed in the parking lot all weekend. The key arrived today and I had someone to take me back to my car to pick it up. It cost me nothing, but a small amount of humiliation. I am so proud of myself for not getting mad or letting it ruin my weekend. I was able to laugh and make jokes and not be offended when everyone called me accident prone. I remember telling someone, "I can't help it if everyone else's kids are boring. I will just have more stories to tell my kids when they are grown up." But I can't help but wonder what makes us so accident prone.
Despite the drama of Friday night, we still made it to the Baton Rouge State Fair Saturday. We had the most wonderful day together. Me, the kids, and Gran Gran. We all laughed and laughed all day. When we arrived, the petting zoo was the first attraction. We fed baby goats and sheep. And we sat on a bull to have our picture taken, minus Gran Gran. You can tell by everyone's expressions in the picture below, that this was not that great of an idea. The babies were fine until the head moved. Jack went nuts! I think he scared Laiken because she was ok until this point. Next we ate fair food. I had alligator on a stick. (just tasted like greasy chicken). The babies had ribbon fries and a funnel cake. Gran Gran had an enormous sausage dog with onion and peppers. Mmmm, it was so so good. We rode the carousal next because it was first and also Laiken's favorite ride. Right before it started she told me she loved me and kissed me. Then she said she loved the fair, she was having "much fun". It was a precious moment. We played games and rode the rides until 8:00 that night. Gran Gran rode the bumper cars and the big swings. Later on the ferris wheel alone with Dylan he told me that Gran Gran closed her eyes on the swings and he asked her what she was doing. He told me that she said she is praying. He said she must not have felt good. I laughed so hard. She didn't want to ride any rides, but later she said she was glad she did. It was fun and special to have shared that with him. On the way out of the fair we won 3 goldfish. Jack points and says "bish! bish! I see bish!" We were about to leave and I saw the cotton candy vendors. You cannot go to the fair and not have cotton candy. So I bought two. It was one of the most enjoyable days we have ever had. Fair admission...$45, Fair food...$40, Games and attractions...$50, Goldfish...$15, The memories I made that day with my children...priceless!
I began a star chart as rewards for good behaviors to encourage more positive behaviors from my children. I also made a list of rules to emphasize the important ones. Laiken receives stars for helping pick up toys, sharing, and handling stressful situations without going bananas. Dylan gets stars for good days at school, not lying, and being helpful. Jack mostly just get sympathy stars. But so far our household seems more positive and less chaotic. Laiken has really responded the most to the star chart. She tries throughout the day to earn stars and often asks what will earn her another star.
