August. It was good.

We started off August with two of our favorite teenagers still in town. We spent one whole morning playing with oobleck (cornstarch and water). It was all over the kitchen, running down the falls, and everywhere in between, BUT it dries out and sweeps right up and it entertained everyone for hours. 

Alex thought I made a delicious morning snack

On Friday, we went and explored the USS Hornet Museum/ship. My expectations weren't especially high, but we all thought it was awesome. It was hard to comprehend just how big it was. Matthew especially loved to lead the way through all the rooms and doors, and check out all there was to see.

While wandering around, we happened upon a kids' area with dress-ups, puzzles, coloring, and other interactive stations.

siblings foreva

After the museum, we drove past a spite house a short ways away, which made us chuckle, and then went to the beach for the rest of the day.

Looks like a sibling meeting, although Matthew just informed me it was a bed.

On Saturday, we ventured into the city. We meandered around Pier 39 and looked in some different shops until I realized my siblings had already been there. Then we started walking toward Ghiradelli Square and stopped on the way to get In-N-Out (one of the few trip requests from my siblings). While Andrew and my older kids were getting the food, the rest of us watched Alex and Michael chase birds around the courtyard. After lunch, we got some amazing Sundaes from Ghiradelli and walked down Lombard Street.

Ghiradelli sundaes are SOOO good

If only everyone had slept on the way home, the following disaster would not have unfolded.

Michael was exhausted from our busy day in the city and hitting Alex on the way home. At some point, I climbed into the back to be next to Michael and stop him from hurting Alex. He suddenly reached out to poke me and got me right in the eye. It hurt like crazy! We got home, I made dinner, and we went about the rest of our evening with my eye only hurting on and off. After dinner, Andrew found that the laundry sink was backed up so far down the line that we couldn't use any of the drains on that half of our house-so nothing in the kitchen or laundry area. I made an appointment for a plumber to come first thing Monday morning and tried a few times to wash it out because I just kept feeling like there was something stuck in my eye. At 4am I woke up in so much pain and went looking for eye drops. I woke Andrew up and asked him to put them in my eye for me because I had to use both of my hands to force my eye open. The drops stung which didn't seem odd because of how much pain I was already in. We went back to bed, and I hoped it would improve by morning. While getting ready for church, Andrew and I decided that I needed to go to Urgent care, and started figuring out how I would get there since I wasn't sure if I could see well enough to drive. I ended up calling a friend to take me so that Andrew could still take the kids and Chloe and Daniel to church.

Just as I was called back for my appointment, I got a text saying the plumber was on the way to the house and to call and reschedule if we weren't home. Huh?? I thought the appointment was Monday. I was in the middle of my appointment so I forwarded the information to Andrew and asked him to take care of it. Apparently, I made the appointment for Sunday morning because that's what happens when I can't see. Andrew had just gotten everyone to church, so we left the kids with Daniel and Chloe (thank goodness they were here!) and ran home to meet the plumber. He was able to get the drains cleaned out and back in business!

Meanwhile, at the doctor's office, the doctor was shining a black light in my eye and saying "oh wow, your son got you really good. You have two big cuts here, but I'm not sure why your eyelid is so swollen. Here's a prescription for some antibiotics. It should start to feel better in a couple days." My sweet friend took me to the pharmacy and the whole way I told her how glad I was that she was driving because my the pain and my vision continued to get worse. I spent the rest of the day lying on the couch with my eye patch, avoiding light, and blindly eating food because the pressure of opening my good eye was too much for my bad eye to handle.

The next day, Lydia stopped by to drop off some hand-me-downs. I asked her to put in my eye drop for me, and my sister ran and grabbed off my nightstand where I told her it was. It was still hard for me to do the drops myself, so I was glad she stopped by at the right time. A few hours later, Andrew was home and  it was time for another dose. I told him the drops were on the piano and he said, "where? I only see these infant earache drops."... Um what??? Aren't those the ones I gave you to put in my eye in the middle of the night? We quickly put together that that explained why my eyelid swelled and my eye was initially getting worse rather than better. The evening went on and I decided to take my siblings out for Rita's before they had to go home the next day. On the drive, through a series of many texts, we discovered that I had also handed the ear drops to Lydia when she stopped by. Two accidental doses of ear drops in about a day and a half. Seriously?? Who does that? Apparently I do. And it hurt so much. On the way home from ice cream, we stopped at Lydia's and rinsed my eye out with saline in the hopes of at least stopping further damage. The whole thing was ridiculous, but I at least put the ear drops far away in the back of the medicine cabinet that night. Woof.

The whole thing is funny now that I can see again, and the experience gave me even more proof of what amazing family and friends I have. So many people helped, and offered to help, and one dear friend who doesn't live close anymore venmo'd me money to take myself out for a treat. I really am so blessed.

On Tuesday we had to say bye to my siblings. We had such a great time with them and I'm glad they got to visit for so long. That same afternoon, Lydia brought her kids over and they played with my kids and helped me get the house back in order after all the chaos it had just been through. It was such perfect timing and the sweetest service.
The Wednesday after the "incident", I ventured out for the first and took the kids to the library. We found their picture on the wall for winning a puzzle.

We have loved having a zoo pass this year and have gone many times on our own and with friends.

Matthew decided he wanted to do a puzzle upside-down. I'm completely convinced that he'll want to be an engineer when he grows up.

I can't even handle his tiny, handsome face

Brothers hanging out at the park during dance class

Adaline's sweet friend invited her over for a tea party playdate, and of course she had to go all out with her outfit. She even requested that I curl her hair.

I really really love how much my kids love books. They can easily pass an hour in a bookstore.

Do you want to know what it's like to go out in public with 4 kids? It's pretty much like this. One kid pooping, two kids are blurry because they're sprinting back and forth across the bathroom, and one kid is pushing me away because he wants to get down and play in the toilet-or at least splash in the sinks. Every day is an adventure.

pom poms and water ended up being a thoroughly enjoyed sensory bin

Somewhere around this time, we had our annual ward pool party. I was so proud of Adaline and her improved swimming skills. The pool is 13 ft deep and she jumped off the diving board over and over and over again. She also loved doing the blow up obstacle course and could swim to the side if she fell off. It was such a fun activity for all. 

These are my favorite moments with my kiddos

At the end of August, we got hit with hand, foot, and mouth disease. I'm not sure who got it first, but Alex definitely got it the worst, and it definitely felt like it lasted forever. Alex was also teething at the same time (which is why I didn't realize he was sick at first). He had such a rough week and even conked out just sitting on the couch with the other kids.

For FHE one Sunday, Andrew got out his clarinet to accompany our opening song. I'm always so impressed by how well he can play when he only picks it up once every 4 years.

When dad builds you a giant tower and you're so excited to knock it over.

Finally starting to dry out and scab over

The kids asked if they could have cottage cheese for a snack. I said of course. The next thing I knew, the living room and kitchen were covered in cottage cheese and it was even all the way to the living room wall under the couch. Kids be crazy.

I love watching sibling meetings

On the last day of the month, we went on a family hike at Mt. Diablo in Clayton. The kids led the way and Andrew and I were happy to follow along. We found some logs to climb over, flowers to pick, rocks to throw, and hills to run down. We had a picnic together and all had such a good time.

After naps at the house, we went to a bookstore to pick up books to give to the kids' new cousin (my older sister's baby girl!) They had a blast reading books and help me choose what to get for baby Lydia. Since we were right across the street and it was already dinner time, we made the kids night by going to Lumpy's for dinner. Andrew and I both commented on what an enjoyable day it had been and how much fun we had had with our kids all day long. They were so well-behaved and so fun to hang out with.

P.S. Anna had her baby on August 22nd. I was headed out the door for a bridal shower when I got the news and when I finally got to talk to her about all the details, I definitely cried tears of joy. My big sister is a mom now! And she has the sweetest little baby girl who I love SO much. My kids are all dying to meet her-especially Adaline-and I hope it happens sooner than later.

Overall, August gets two giant thumbs up!