Heather's mom and step-dad asked us to join them in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee the weekend of August 20. We drove down that Friday and arrived in mid afternoon. After dinner, we went to the Comedy Barn. This was hilarious and family-friendly! We highly recommend it, if you are ever in that neck of the woods. They gave the kids a chance to come up and dance on stage and Livvi never lets those opportunities go by without taking advantage!
The next day, it rained, so we played some arcade games and indoor miniature, black light golf. That night, we had dinner and a show at the Black Bear Jamboree. Our table was dead-center in front of the stage. It was also immediately next to the stage. By 'immediately next to' I mean I could rest my arm on it! See picture below. I was on Heather's right. The show was also really good with a lot of singing and dancing and the meal was decent as well. While our time was short (we left after breakfast on Sunday), we had a good time and the car ride wasn't too bad. The only bad part was Joie needing to go to the bathroom so we stopped...only to have her refuse to go (strange bathroom). That in and of itself isn't the bad part. The fact this went on for miles, hours, and multiple stops until we arrived in Florence was the annoying part. Otherwise, a good trip!
We had quite a scare in the very early hours of Monday, September 21. The afternoon before, Heather noticed some pain starting on the left side of her chest, at bedtime, it was under her arm, and in the middle of the night, it was in her left shoulder. She woke me asking what we should do as she was having extreme pains on the left side of her chest and in her shoulder. We've seen the emails about women having heart attacks and possibly not knowing it and she wasn't sure if she was over-reacting or not. When she nearly passed out, I had her lay back down and I called 911. The paramedics came and gave her some nitroglycerin and took her to the hospital. Things never really improved in the ER so they admitted her. On top of the pain she was having, the nitroglycerin was giving her extreme headaches... to the point where she almost wanted to just give up. They kept running test after test and kept her overnight. She left with some pain medication and some acid reflux medicine, but no real diagnosis as to what the problem was (though they ruled out it was her heart).
When we got her home, she showered and noticed blotches on her chest, which I thought were from all the heart monitoring equipment that was taped to her. Heather had an idea what it might be so she grabs her laptop and does her own research and confirms her own diagnosis. She calls the doctor and after meeting with him, the diagnosis was confirmed: Heather had shingles. The rash spread down her left arm into her palm (instead of going around her body, like it usually does). Thankfully, it did not go to her face, where it could affect hearing and eyesight. She dealt with the extreme pain and itching for more than two weeks. Once the pain subsided, she then had to deal with the itching for at least another 2 weeks. She doesn't have any pain anymore, but still a little rash and occasional itching on the left side of her chest. Having discovered what it was early allowed the antiviral meds to reduce the time and severity. She's still tired some, but that might just be life. :o) Praise the Lord, she's OK now, but I told her she's not allowed to scare us like that any more!
With Joie's birthday in December (not a good time to have outdoor fun), we decided this year we'd combine the girls' birthdays into one big party. Heather came up with the idea of having a carnival in our backyard on September 18. The weather was fantastic and I think everyone had a great time! Pops (Heather's Dad) also came up from Florida and was a great help in the prep for this party. The other grandparents helped out during the party. 19 kids showed up and played carnival games, won prizes, and ate cupcakes. Livvi turned 9 on Sept 9 and Joie will be 4 on Dec 22!
Livvi started 4th grade this year. Heather continues to homeschool her in the Ohio Virtual Academy with the K12 curriculum. They both really enjoy it and Livvi continues to do really well. Joie is learning quite a bit as well. While she doesn't have any formal curriculum, yet (still in pre-school), she really knows her numbers and letters and is starting to sound out words when reading. All three go to a co-op one day a week to be with other kids doing the same curriculum. Heather helps to teach and Joie really seems to enjoy her pre-school class at the co-op as well!
There are mostly Christians in the co-op, with lots of really great kids, families, and friends. A few kids in Liv's class also have siblings in Jo's class. Heather teaches 10 preschoolers and assists in Liv's science class. While every parent has an area of responsibility, everyone helps out anywhere there is need.
Our co-op is well organized with lots of hard-working people and the highlight for all the kids that go. They really hate if they have to miss or if we have a week off from co-op. The co-op covers Composition, History, Art, and Science, and takes care of most of the year's curriculum for those subjects.
Heather leads morning devotions nearly each week. Occasionally someone will volunteer to do them for her, but she does the bulk of them (and she does great).
Like last year, Joie wouldn't get her picture taken with her class. She's not a big fan of getting her picture taken.
With Sunday school every week, American Heritage Girls two times a month, tae kwon do 2-4 times a week, co-op on Thursdays, we don't really have much to worry about whether our homeschool kids are getting enough socialization, but they do get to play with the kids in the neighborhood when those kids are done with their homework.
The first week of August, I started a new exercise program, Cage Fitness, at Livvi's martial arts club. Their site can give you a glimpse of what goes on, but let me tell you it is a lot harder than it looks. The usual class is five rounds of seven 45-second exercises in a row with a 45-second rest between each round. Occasionally, the instructor will do 5 rounds of ten 30-second exercises in a row with a 30-second rest between rounds. This is a killer! The entire exercise program is over in only 30 minutes! Just when you feel like dying, it's over! Exercises are things like punching, squats, sprawls, pushups, crunches, kicking, cardio, etc. On day one, I thought I was nearly going to die. Here I am now with more than three months under my belt (and just a little less hanging over my belt...I might have to adjust my eating as well to eliminate even more) and it still kicks my can, but I mostly enjoy it and certainly feel better about myself.
It has been quite a while since the last update and there is so much to tell! Rather than doing it all in one post, I'll do several shorter posts to update you on what's been happening in the Shaut family since early August.
Livvi went back to the doctor on August 25 and x-ray's revealed an arm that was healing up very nicely. She now had no restrictions and can resume normal activities, including every aspect of her martial arts training. Praise the Lord! It was really cool to see how our incredibly created bodies can heal so quickly. Amazing!
