Day 2 of summer vacation

Usually when you hear, "Mom, we need help FAST!", first thing in the morning, it's not a good sign. As I entered the kitchen I see Gage in the refrigerator with dry paper towels trying to sop up the syrup that is gushing out of the syrup bottle. The waffles are on the floor, the butter is on the floor and the handle to the syrup bottle is lying on the floor while syrup is dripping down the crisper drawers and onto the floor in front of the refrigerator as it gushes out of the holes where the handle used to be. UGH! I did really well keeping my cool and I did not yell as Gage predicted I would. I told him next time it might be a better idea to leave the plate with waffles on the counter while you use both hands to bring the syrup to the counter. He agreed that might be the better way to do things.

An hour or so later, Gage comes to me and says, "Mom, I know you're going to be really mad at me and probably yell, but I need to show you something." Apparently Gage doesn't know that you can't draw on a thin piece of paper with a black sharpie marker on the table without the marker seeping through onto the table. AAARRRRGGGHHH!! Believe it or not, I didn't yell! However, it was getting tougher and tougher as I went into the living room a few minutes later, only to find them with ANOTHER Sharpie marker and signing (in cursive) their names to the top of the antique school desk we have that Scott's Dad refinished. AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH! Gage said, "Well, Emma asked me to!" Can I please go back to bed and get up on the other side and see if things get better?

It was a LONG day, needless to say. After lunch they were allowed to invite friends over to play and that was fine for awhile. Of course they all can't get along with each other, so instead of refereeing 2, I then had 4.

After Scott got home and we ate supper, we decided to go on a bike ride. Scott loaded the bikes onto the back of the car and we drove down to the bike trails by the zoo. We did some exploring on the paths and went underneath the interstate to the Riverside Golf Course area. We have never been down that direction on the bike paths. It was nice, until Gage decided he was going to get a stomachache. After we stopped along the path to check out some baby birds in a nest, Gage said his stomach hurt. Scott and Emma were a ways in front of us so I told Gage we would need to catch up to Dad so we could turn around and go back to the car. I wasn't sure I believed him or not at first because he was complaining about going on the bike ride because he and Emma wanted to go to the zoo instead. After we caught up to Scott and Emma we got off the bikes to sit down for a few minutes. Gage was really having a rough time and I knew he was having problems because he was getting kind of clammy feeling. I sent Scott and Emma back to the car while we sat along the trail and waited for them. It seemed like a long time before they made it back. Thankfully we were right along The Pier and Southport Marina so Scott could pull the car into the gas station area and load the bikes back onto the car. I was kind of worried that he might be having some appendicitis, but after further investigation, I think it might be more of a constipation issue. We'll have to increase the fluid and fiber intake and see if that helps. I tried to check his right lower quadrant for rebound tenderness, which is the hallmark sign of appendicitis, but he said hurt more when I pushed than when I let go. Hopefully it's just constipation.

What an exciting day! I hope tomorrow is BORING!