Tim had Monday off and then went back to work on Tuesday. We had a relaxing day with a few errands, one being an oil change that resulted in surprise car maintenance. We were surprised at the quote and decided to get a second opinion. More on that later.
Tuesday we were back to normal with no dad. I was surprised at how well the kids transitioned back, because it is usually more difficult the day after he goes back. We stayed busy with preschool and playing.
That evening Tim needed to be picked up, and unfortunately had some car trouble. We had to wait a bit for Tim to finish, so I had some music on to try to entertain the kids. When Tim got out, I tried to turn on the car and it wouldn't start. We had someone try to jump it, but it didn't work and ended up calling a tow truck. By then the kids were hungry, so Hyrum and I walked over the the grocery store and got some lunchables. Hyrum had a blast eating them on the curb while we waited. The tow truck man got there with all his personality and general awesomeness. He really made a terrible situation more bearable. If you would like to know more about him...call Tim and ask him to describe their conversations. He was able to get the car started with a fancy gizmo and recommended that we not turn off the car until we went to a car place to get the battery checked. It was lucky that he got the car started because we hadn't been able to get a hold of anyone to come pick up the kids and myself, which would have been a whole other headache. We finally made it home a little after seven having left about two hours earlier. Tim drove the car to get the battery checked, and found it needed to be replaced. It was still under warranty, so it was just a matter of getting a new battery.
Getting a new battery isn't difficult, except when you have one car (that doesn't work) and your husband is in residency. Wednesday, I was trying to figure out who to call that might be able to help us. I was talking with a friend in the ward at our weekly play date about the situation and she offered to let us borrow her car. I am going to pause and insert a random Hyrum story that has nothing to do with cars. We walked over for the play date at the church and Hyrum realized that he needed to go to the bathroom. I told him that we would go home fast and he responded with a firm nope and dropped his pants to potty on the church grass. It happened so fast that I just check over my shoulder to make sure no one else was driving in and let him do his business happily. The kid seriously looks for opportunities to potty in nature. If I suggest that we stop playing to run home and use the bathroom, he usually says that he's okay and that he will just use a bush.
So back to the car...She offered to take Hyrum and let him play with her son who is the same age. We took them back to their house and I came back and took the battery out of the car (thanks dad). Miraculously, Tim was able to get home a little after lunch and he took the battery to exchange it and put it back in (thankfully...batteries are heavy!). Twenty-four hours later we were back in action and ready to drive to our car to the other mechanic the next day. Hyrum had a blast playing at someone else house, so everyone won.
I took the car in and happily discovered that we just needed to have the rear brakes and rotors taken care of. They also recommended that we replace a clamp for the battery terminal, which we found while changing the battery. The price was significantly cheaper and instead of having us make another appointment, they gave me a loaner car, so I could go home for a couple of hours. Hyrum loved watching all the mechanics. He was full of questions and I tried to answer them getting plenty of looks from the guys working. I also learned that it is important to make sure you leave just your car key if you get a loaner. I realized as we were pulling up to the apartment that I didn't have a house key. Again, we were able to get a key from the office quickly and it wasn't a big deal. It was a relief to have the car taken care of.
Hyrum requested soup bowls so I made some bread bowls to go with our soup on Thursday. He was very excited to eat them. I love how it doesn't feel weird to be making soup. In Houston, it would still be 80+ degrees, which is not soup weather. We have been in the high 60s with temperatures dropping at night. We haven't turned on the heater yet, but I broke out the space heater and have used it this week. I feel kind of wimpy...
Lila did well with all craziness of the week. She started waking up around six, which is very early for her. I am thinking it was a combination of her working on a few more teeth and being cold. There isn't much I can do about the teeth, but she now sleeps with socks and two sets of pajamas and stays toasty warm. She learned how to do knuckles, high fives, and will start to sing or dance if we ask her to. She also discovered that she loves backpacks. Hyrum had the instruments out playing and I just put it on her for kicks. She walked around with it and fussed every time I would try to take it off.
Saturday we went to the State Fair. Tim got a couple of free tickets from work, so we took the kids. Hyrum had a blast with the rides. The hardest part was waiting in line. It was so fun to watch him get excited. He was definitely the most excited of all the kids. He is just so full of energy and everything is a party with him.
Tim took him to get on every tractor and four wheeler that he could sit on. I took Lila and looked around the craft tents. There are some very talented individuals. They also had a woman working a loom from the 1700s which was very interesting to watch.
It was a very long day for Lila and she finally feel asleep at the 4-H cow show. We got her and Tim situated on the grass and Hyrum and I went to look at more animals. We also found the North Carolina cheese tent and went to taste test. They had some tasty cheese! We also picked up a bag of cotton candy, which he loved. Lila did too.
Tim took Hyrum to the trunk or treat put on by the city that night. He wanted to be a soccer player, so he dressed up and went to go get candy. He also played on the blow up slide and made friends with a ninja. He was all smiles when he got home, super excited about his haul of candy and that an adult dressed up as Darth Vader. Tim will most likely miss our church party, so is was fun for him to experience the magic with Hyrum. We all slept well that night. It was a little difficult to get up for church, but we made it and enjoyed our last Sunday together for at least another month.
Tim and Hyrum carved a pumpkin on Sunday. This is the second year in a row that I have told Tim to keep it simple. This is also the second year in a row that we seem to have had a communication breakdown. I think our definitions of simple are very different. Regardless, Hyrum had a blast cleaning it out and the pumpkin looks great, so what does it really matter.
Here's to a week of no car trouble and more excitement for Hyrum.
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