More Bus Progress

Things are ramping up in the bus!

Overhead Storage:

Starboard cabinets seen from the front of the bus

Next thing to do is fabricate the facade and dividers

Shower:

We added an arch to our shower entrance.

We've had to put in multiple layers of wood filler to smooth out the plywood floor.
The drain is off-center because the present location is the only place
we can put the drain without disturbing other systems below.

Do you like the hot pink?!?

Don't be alarmed (nor too excited) about the hot pink corners.  It's not a final paint palette, but instead a waterproofing material that is pink when wet and turns red when it's dry.  Since we're not doing a typical shower that would have used a material called cement board that is water resistant, we've had to stop the water penetration with a liquid waterproofing membrane that dries hard.

Chaperoning is Scary!

Simone's class went on a field trip and I had volunteered to be a chaperone.  Well ... I tried to be a chaperone, but really couldn't because I had Max with me and I really couldn't be watching the kids as well as a solo mom could.  But I tried to help anyway and found out that field trips are not fun for the adults.   Wrangling just 14 kids in one classroom is tough, but multiple groups of 5- and 6-year-olds in a large, public space such as the Children's Museum is downright horrific.

from top left corner going clockwise:
Nicole, Jasmine, Kaylynn, Simone, Amonye, Emiylah, Tyler, Fredo
Aidan, Zion, Mia, Logan, Eamon, Jimmy Paul.

The energy that the kids have on a school day in which they do not have to attend school makes them pay even less attention to persons of authority. Compound this with the fear of losing a hyper child in a sea of other children and you have an experience you never want to volunteer for.

Max didn't help any because he couldn't grasp the concept yet that, on a field trip, there is limited time to spend at a limited amount of exhibits.  He is used to going wherever he wants and exploring to his and his sister's hearts' content.  He was devastated when he couldn't visit the sand area and thus started increasing his whining and tantrums.  I promised him that we would return to the museum when it wasn't a field trip.

Despite my horror, I think field trips are great for the kids!  I remember loving them and all the anticipation and excitement leading up to the trip.  The pictures below will illustrate how much fun Simone and her classmates had.  However, I am through with volunteering as a chaperone.  That is some tough work!

Rock Scissors Papers  is the latest game rage of the 1st grade.

Glazier Museum's latest exhibit is about dinosaurs!

This was a really cool exhibit!  The kids could "dig" for fossils
while dressed up as archaeologists

Oviraptors (the egg-thief dinosaurs)!  Naw, it's just Max and Simone
hiding out in a faux cave with their looted faux egg.

Lunchtime: I welcomed this break because the kids stayed in one visible spot!

The museum is very close to Michael's work so he decided to visit us all at lunchtime.  When I located Michael off in the distance, I was trying to wave to him to catch his attention.  Simone's teacher, Ms Whitley, asked me, "Girl?!  Who you waving to?  Who you know?"  I felt funny as if I was smuggling a fanboy into a VIP comic book post-convention party, but it all turned out ok.  I'm just a worry wart.  Maybe in the future I'll have chaperoned again and think of myself on this day as a such a nervous nelly.

Simone's Tooth is Loose!

Simone finally has a loose tooth and may lose it within the next few weeks!

Left: Teeth at 6.33 years old.
Right:  Teeth at 0.92 years old

She has been thinking about her first lost tooth for over a year.  (Unless you count the time 2 years ago when she argued that she didn't need to brush her teeth because they were going to fall out anyway.)  Since Kindergarten, she has come home with a report on who in her class has lost a tooth.  A couple of months ago she said her bottom teeth were wiggly, but when I touched them, I didn't detect movement.  Her latest dentist visit, however indicated that her permanent teeth were in position to take over the baby versions.

So far Simone has been concerned about only the money the tooth fairy will give her.  But tonight, after biting into a spoonful of her favorite cereal Panda Puffs, she was introduced into the physical aspect of losing a tooth, i.e. pain.  It freaked her out and she snuggled into her daddy's arms for comfort.  Michael was sympathetic but also prepped her for the sensations she was going to feel in the next couple of weeks.  She cried even more and wished that her teeth could just grow and grow and just never fall out.  We assured her that after her first tooth falls out, she'll be excited for the next ones to come out as well.

I never thought that I would think of this first fallen tooth as such a major milestone.  Simone has grown so much from her babyhood.  I know you say, "Duh!" but seeing her everyday makes mild the changes that happen before my eyes.  The loose tooth has been such a wake-up call for me that time is about to pass in blink of an eye and that if I don't stop to reflect on her developments, she'll be going off to college the next time I blink again!

The Bus Again?!?

The kids know that we work on the bus A LOT.  Especially on the weekends.  They do a good job of entertaining themselves while Michael and I work.

Oh no ... is it that time again?

Mommy and Daddy, when are you going to pay attention to us?!?!

We're going kuh-razeee!

When both Michael and I are working on the bus, it is on the weekends, the time when the kids are not allowed to watch TV.  So when they're inside the house, they luckily play with their toys.   Unlucky for me is that all the toys are taken out and played with and, by the end of the weekend, the house resembles an elves workshop with toys, pieces of games, cars, dress-up costumes, and plastic animals strewn about.  

When the kids are outside, they are drawn to dirt.  It's as if it beckons them to rub it all over their skin and hair.  Add any moisture from the previous day's rainfall and you have a mud party.  It's hard to get mad at the kids because I prefer they're outside playing rather than languishing in front of the electronic babysitter also known as "T.V."    So far they've used our wood scraps to try to erect a tepee and to successfully construct a temporary see-saw.  They've tried to make new homes for ants and have fortunately avoided being bit by them.  They do get bit by mosquitoes and no-see-ums, so we have to shoo them inside the house (the kids, no the bugs) in the late afternoon to avoid getting itchier than they already are.

I hope our ignoring them during the construction won't affect them and drive them to multiple therapists' couches.  Hopefully soon we'll be able to enjoy the fruits of our labors, go camping and relax.

Preview 2013 Halloween

I brought Max to Walmart to get his costume.  We thought for sure that he would pick Superman because he had been stating the weeks beforehand that he would be the superhero for Halloween.  But once he saw another particular costume, his forgot all about "Superwho?"  and decided he had to be Bugs Bunny instead.

We soon got Simone's costume and her pick was a surprise to me too.  She hadn't talked about Snow White in a long time, but she loves her costume!

What do you think?    

Missing in *Bus* Action

I haven't posted in a long while because we've been busy working on the bus!  Michael took a hiatus once it started getting hot.  I continued a little bit getting some plywood walls to resemble smooth gyp board, but I easily gave up when Michael suggested we work out instead of working on the bus.  It wasn't that I was eager to exercise - I wasn't too keen on exerting energy in the humidity, battling mosquitoes and no-see-ums.  

But 3 weekends ago, we installed the walls for the back bedroom which will be Michael's and mine.

As seen from the front of the bus.

As seen from the back of the bus where the master bedroom is.

Michael then took a week off work and we focused on the kids' bunk beds.

The template we've been using for the curve of the ceiling

Simone is eyeing Max's bed

The kids' drawers! 

Max is going to try out his new bunk bed.

As soon as we finished the bunk beds, we started working on the shower.  Michael had 2 days left for his vacation and he was going to be as efficient as possible.  

Step One: Drill a hole for water to escape the shower

Step Two:  Add walls

Step Three:  Pretend the plumbing is already installed

Despite our hiatus, we are now full-blast into working on the bus.  During the day, I have a variety of things to do, both on the bus and at the big box home-improvement stores.  At night, Michael comes home and we work for as long as we can bear the bug bites (there are still no-see-ums roaming about).

Presents!!

Grammy sent the kids a package full of gifts!  What was the occasion?  Just that she loves them is all!  And the kids loved the presents back.

Take the picture already, Mommy!  I want to open this box!

See how Simone chucks the packaging (the white blur on the right)
away to get to the goodies.

"Oooo!  What's this?"

Thank you, Grammy!

They both got glow in the dark Pez dispensers and Fall-themed wood placards with markers for coloring them.  Max got a pencil box in which he stored his candy and these light-up binoculars for checking out things at night!  Max was so excited that he asked to go to the jungle as soon as possible.

Simone got a Rainbow Loom!  They have been all the rage at our local Michael's stores and, if we had broadcast TV, I bet we would see them all over our screens as well.  Anyway Simone loves it.  She quickly made bracelets for everyone in the family.  One of the cool accessories that Grammy sent was glow-in-the-dark rubber bands with which we promptly made bracelets and tested them out in a dark closet.  That night, as the kids were falling asleep, they were amazed at the little light their new adornments made.

After Simone made bracelets for her cousins and her Grammy, she moved on to the other people in her life - her schoolmates!  Actually, the first recipient was Simone's teacher, Ms. Whitley.  Then a classmate asked to have the one she was wearing.  Simone is a generous girl in general and she gladly gave it away and it sparked in her an idea that she should make bracelets not only for her classmates but for their little siblings as well!

The kids made a special thank you video.