It's tour season. I still remember how excited we were back when Lance won his 3rd tour. Today - in fact this morning, Vivian got her three-peat on Daddy.
It started with an innocent diaper change. Jo hands her to me. She's so smelly I run to the changing table. I take her diaper off and call for backup - poop has leaked up the back of the diaper into Vivian's clothes and from there to the changing table and to me. I decide to give her a bath. We splash around and start getting cleaned up.
Then comes the second p. Vivian gurgles happily and pukes up in the bath water. Ugh. I rinse her off with fresh water and do the bath thing again. I dry her off and put some lotion on her. That's when she smiles and hits me with the final p. Pee on everything. Impeccably timed - as I reach for the diaper.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Friday, July 13, 2007
Henry Doorly
It's time to break out of the family reunion for a bit. Michelle and I take Quinn, Devyn and Kai, and my dad to Omaha for a day trip to the zoo. I want to see it because I love the name - Henry Doorly.
The zoo was recently in the news because of the confirmed virgin birth of a bonnethead shark at the zoo's aquarium. It is now believed that female sharks may reproduce in this way when they have difficulty finding a mate. It's a ray of hope to women everywhere. Also, it makes me pause and think about other well-known virgin births.
The zoo is great. There's the Desert Dome and the Kingdom of the Night. And Bear Valley and the Aquarium of the Virgin Birth. And the orangutans and gorillas.
The kids have a great time. We drive back to Falls City in time for Kai's fifth birthday party.
I missed my little girl.
The zoo was recently in the news because of the confirmed virgin birth of a bonnethead shark at the zoo's aquarium. It is now believed that female sharks may reproduce in this way when they have difficulty finding a mate. It's a ray of hope to women everywhere. Also, it makes me pause and think about other well-known virgin births.
The zoo is great. There's the Desert Dome and the Kingdom of the Night. And Bear Valley and the Aquarium of the Virgin Birth. And the orangutans and gorillas.
The kids have a great time. We drive back to Falls City in time for Kai's fifth birthday party.
I missed my little girl.
The Burns Family Reunion
It's Saturday. We are at Lake Stanton Park, Falls City, Nebraska for the Burns Family Reunion. The family starts arriving soon after breakfast (we get Anna's homemade donuts for breakfast - yumm!).
Tom takes my dad, Walter, and me for a tour of the farms. We stop at the grain elevators, a feedlot, and a field freshly planted with soy beans. Then we check out the tractors (the oldest was a 1951 Fordson Dexta), and sample some sweet corn straight off the stalk. We see the house where Carol was born. We drive past a field where they are burning winter wheat stubble, and lots of CRP fields (Conservation Reserve Program - you are paid to not farm). My dad has lots of questions. Tom has all the answers.
We get back in time for lunch. I try to remember how everyone is related. Here's the Burns family reunion by numbers: [yes - it's all from memory]
Later in the evening we play volleyball. I can see that lots of Advil is going to be consumed tomorrow. Hatch and Kim "Brown Pants" provide the entertainment.
I am glad Vivian could be a part of it.
Tom takes my dad, Walter, and me for a tour of the farms. We stop at the grain elevators, a feedlot, and a field freshly planted with soy beans. Then we check out the tractors (the oldest was a 1951 Fordson Dexta), and sample some sweet corn straight off the stalk. We see the house where Carol was born. We drive past a field where they are burning winter wheat stubble, and lots of CRP fields (Conservation Reserve Program - you are paid to not farm). My dad has lots of questions. Tom has all the answers.
We get back in time for lunch. I try to remember how everyone is related. Here's the Burns family reunion by numbers: [yes - it's all from memory]
- 7 of 11 Burns siblings were present (4 brothers - Roland, Ralph, Roy, Tom, 3 sisters - Dorothy, Francis, Carol)
- 4 sibling's spouses (Wilma, Delma, Roxanna, Anna)
- 13 of their children (Cindy, Britina, Clay, Sandy, Kim, Tracy, Brian, Amy, Marcia, Walter, Nicolle, JoEllen, Neil)
- 4 spouses of the children (Hatch, Chrissy, Michelle, me)
- 11 grandchildren (Mindy, Matthew, Mavrick, Jerad, Rhiannon, Shayla, Quinn, Devyn, Kai, Grace, Vivian)
- 1 grandchild's spouse (Mindy's husband)
- 4 great grandchildren (Dylan, Missy, Carly, their brother)
- plus Katura (still in foster care) and my dad
- and 10 dogs - honest!
Later in the evening we play volleyball. I can see that lots of Advil is going to be consumed tomorrow. Hatch and Kim "Brown Pants" provide the entertainment.
I am glad Vivian could be a part of it.
Getting There
Jo's peeps are congregating in Falls City, Nebraska for a family reunion. We load up and head out. It's a 14 hour drive (with a 2-hour detour to grab an RV in Lawrence, Kansas). On the first day, we drive to Wichita, Kansas. Vivian travels well.
After we check into the hotel, it starts raining hard but I desperately need to find a Barnes and Nobles - and this town is my last hope. I find the store using Google maps on my phone. Alas, the patriots are shut for the Fourth of July.
I decide to make do with the super-duper Walmart across the street. Big mistake. There are two aisles of books. The first is all Bible related. I should buy one and pray for a better bookstore. The second aisle is even more specific. It contains romance and soft-porn novels with pictures of scantily-clad African American women on the covers. Weird. I rescue the only three books in the store that don't fall into either category - "Son of a Witch" by Gregory Maguire, "Night" by Elie Wiesel, and "1776" by David McCullough.
Jo meanwhile uses her time much more wisely and goes down to the hotel pool with Vivian.
The next morning, we pick Karen up from Topeka, Kansas. Levi asked her to marry him the previous evening - and she said yes. Congratulations, Levi and Karen. By the way, Karen caught the bouquet at our wedding - and what a catch that was!
We then go to Lawrence and get our RV. From Lawrence, Karen, Jo and Vivian take the car, and my dad and I ride in the RV the rest of the way.
We drive through Hiawatha (pop. 3237), Kansas - where Jo and Karen went to high school. A random fact - it's the home of the "Oldest Halloween Parade in the Nation". Yep.
We reach Falls City (pop. 4186). A sign proudly announces "Falls City - New and Progressive". Another tells us that we are at the "Childhood Home of Artist John Falter". We park our rental RV at Stanton Lake Park - in front of a nice sized pond. Vivian breaks out in a heat rash. Can we go somewhere cooler, Daddy - like Texas? It is hot - 95 in the shade. My main activity for the next few days is to move my camping chair to follow the shade of the tree by the lake. Sure it sounds easy, but try that with a beer in one hand, a hot dog in the other, and Vivian on your lap.
After we check into the hotel, it starts raining hard but I desperately need to find a Barnes and Nobles - and this town is my last hope. I find the store using Google maps on my phone. Alas, the patriots are shut for the Fourth of July.
I decide to make do with the super-duper Walmart across the street. Big mistake. There are two aisles of books. The first is all Bible related. I should buy one and pray for a better bookstore. The second aisle is even more specific. It contains romance and soft-porn novels with pictures of scantily-clad African American women on the covers. Weird. I rescue the only three books in the store that don't fall into either category - "Son of a Witch" by Gregory Maguire, "Night" by Elie Wiesel, and "1776" by David McCullough.
Jo meanwhile uses her time much more wisely and goes down to the hotel pool with Vivian.
The next morning, we pick Karen up from Topeka, Kansas. Levi asked her to marry him the previous evening - and she said yes. Congratulations, Levi and Karen. By the way, Karen caught the bouquet at our wedding - and what a catch that was!
We then go to Lawrence and get our RV. From Lawrence, Karen, Jo and Vivian take the car, and my dad and I ride in the RV the rest of the way.
We drive through Hiawatha (pop. 3237), Kansas - where Jo and Karen went to high school. A random fact - it's the home of the "Oldest Halloween Parade in the Nation". Yep.
We reach Falls City (pop. 4186). A sign proudly announces "Falls City - New and Progressive". Another tells us that we are at the "Childhood Home of Artist John Falter". We park our rental RV at Stanton Lake Park - in front of a nice sized pond. Vivian breaks out in a heat rash. Can we go somewhere cooler, Daddy - like Texas? It is hot - 95 in the shade. My main activity for the next few days is to move my camping chair to follow the shade of the tree by the lake. Sure it sounds easy, but try that with a beer in one hand, a hot dog in the other, and Vivian on your lap.
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