A Week in the South

The kids had the whole week of Thanksgiving off from school, so we decided to take advantage of it! We spent the autumn break road-tripping to New Orleans, crossing off several states for the kids and even one more for Paul.

The 2,440-mile round-trip drive presented Paul with his first visit to Arkansas, and Edith also visited Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama for the first time. With some slight detours, Atticus added not only those states, but also Texas and Georgia -- two that Edith visited before he was born.

But the goal of the week wasn't just to get the kids to 40 states total and Paul to 48 (although that didn't hurt!). We did a lot of sightseeing and relaxing, although the kids will tell you their favorite part was the indoor pool.

The trip south took several hours longer than the trip home, both because we spent the extra time to cross the Texas state line, but also because we spent a couple of hours in Memphis. Edith became a convert to barbecue after lunch at Charles Vergo's Rendezvous, an old-school classic restaurant in the basement of an alley building downtown. A few blocks away was the famous Beale Street, with a surprising number of tourists for the middle of the day. No neon or bar stops, but we took some photos -- including on tin front of an Elvis statue. (Graceland will have to wait for another day.)

Texas did indeed add several extra hours to the drive, but I couldn't get so close without crossing the state off of Atticus's list. Texarkana was the destination, just across the border and back. We made a failed attempt to find a "Smokey and the Bandit" mural that may or may not have ever existed. Sadly, we didn't even pick up a case of Coors.

Next week: Spending Edith's 10th birthday in New Orleans!

Edith Turns 10!

Edith is now in the double digits. Can you believe it? I sure can't. It seems just yesterday that we found out we were going to have a baby daughter. Ten years later, she's so grown up and independent.

I'll share more next week about how we celebrated her birthday proper, but for now: Edith.

She loves to read, especially graphic novels but any book will do. Sports aren't really her thing (apple doesn't fall far from the tree), but she is very much into archery and is getting pretty good. She has a wonderful group of friends at school and another set that she plays with on our block, with only a little overlap. Her teachers tell me she is a good student, kind and a pleasure to have in class.

She's up for about any craft, but she especially likes rainbow looms right now. She also enjoys a jewelry and sewing class that she's been enrolled in for awhile, and she is learning a lot. And anyone who knows Edith even a little knows that she absolutely loves foxes. It all started more than a year ago when she had a dream about a fox ... now she's obsessed.

We can't imagine our lives without our Little E, and we can't wait to see what the future holds for her! 

Three Worrying Weeks

It's been three of the most stressful weeks of my life, but it all came out right in the end.

I found a lump in my left breast. Gave it a few days to see if it would go away on its own. It didn't, so I made the soonest appointment -- for two days later. Confirmed it was there (surprise, surprise) and was referred for a diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound, but they couldn't be scheduled for six more days. Meanwhile I'm contemplating what it would be like to have cancer, or worse.

I got the results of those tests that same day -- it was probably nothing, but since it didn't appear on my previous mammogram (and only mammogram, since I had just turned 40 the year before) a biopsy was recommended. But the soonest it could be scheduled was a week later. Commence a worrying seven days.

I was prepared for the worst in pain, and hoping for the best in results.

It wasn't so bad. Two hours in and out for a procedure that lasted all of 10 minutes. I basically felt like I had been walloped with a baseball bat, but even that feeling went away in about 12 or 15 hours. I didn't even take any pain medication.

The results came back the next day: a benign fibroadenoma.

Although the tests and procedures occupied all my thoughts for the better part of a month, I've since learned how common they all are. I wish I would have known that before I started down this path! Six days later I have a couple of small bruises, no pain and a large bill lol. But it could have been so much worse.

Edith’s Birthday Extravaganza

Edith’s birthday isn’t for a couple of more weeks, but she had a birthday extravagance weekend on Saturday and Sunday. We hosted eight of her friends for a 10th birthday tea party and crafts on Saturday, and our family gathered on Sunday for pizza and cake.

Luckily the weather was beautiful and warm all weekend, a rarity in November. Edith and her friends spent much of their time gathered around a table on the porch, decorating white paper fans (so fancy for a tea party!) and making loom and perler bead creations.

At the tea party, they enjoy mini snacks … and lots of them! Cucumber and cream cheese finger sandwiches. Cheese and crackers. Eclairs and cream puffs. And some nontraditional as well, like mac and cheese bites and flavored mini marshmallows. A good time was had by all, and especially by the birthday girl!

She was just as happy the next day, with all of the family gathered at our house and a big carrot cake to share. A cake the color of a fox, of course. And she received plenty of fox presents all weekend long. And to think she’s not even 10 yet!

Halloween 2022

My little woodland fox and skeleton had an excellent night of trick or treating on Monday — warm, with rain in the morning and evening but none at all during the collecting. Let the candy-eating commence!