Movie @ 4H

Camden's 4H club got together on Sunday afternoon for a brief meeting and then a movie.  There were probably 20 kids in attendance, which is the most I have ever seen.  Last year it averaged 4!

It was a simple set up at the Waveland Fire Station, but popcorn and gummy bears made for a perfect movie and snack!

UPaint Results

We picked up Camden's mug and the family "Celebrate!" platter.  Super pleased with how they turned out!

One side says, "MEOW" and the other has fish.  You can see a cat's tail hanging on the outside of the cup.  The rest of the cat is on the inside but I couldn't get a good picture.  Adorable!

Kevin and I literally did 50/50 of the platter.  He had the great idea to paint the date and our initials on the back with a small heart.  Camden wanted to have a part on the platter so she added a larger heart in the middle. 

Physical Therapy

Camden had her first physical therapy session on Tuesday.  Her therapist was very gentle as she did an initial assessment, but Camden was very scared and weepy thinking she was going to twist and hurt her more. 

Her therapist tried to teach her a few exercises lying on the table to get the right muscles working again and get her brain talking to those muscles.  Camden had a hard time with several of them but made some advancements even in that short window of attempts.

But when the therapist took her out in the big room to work on the equipment, Camden was game for pushing herself a bit.

Practice just getting her right leg to straighten all the way.

Moving laterally to force the muscles to work while keeping her knee pointing forward.

The various bikes were a huge hit...and she got the leg stretched almost completely out straight.  Her mind is still fighting the muscles to do what she wants them to do, but this was the most natural motion and she wasn't "thinking" about it.

Stretching on the teeter-totter to stretch those leg muscles and tendons.

Final exercise was putting a ball between her ankles and flexing on her tiptoes. 

We have three exercises (including this one) that we are to do at home 3 times a day (we are lucky to get 1 or 2 in).  The therapist feels like it won't take more than about 4 sessions to get her body working back to "normal".

Indianapolis Children's Museum: MLK Day

The museum was free in honor of Dr. King.  We knew it would be packed, but forgot what that can mean at this place.  Camden's knee is still not healed, so we got a wheelchair so she could make it through the entire museum.

Some of our favorite activities.

Overtime Perk

Kevin had another day of forced 8-hour overtime.  This means he works 16 hours, drives 1 hour home, sleeps 5 hours, and drive 1 hour back to work for another 8-hour day. YUCK!  

In order for him to get a bit more sleep, I Pricelined a cheap hotel in Avon.  Camden and I enjoyed the pool that night and the next morning...and Kevin got to drive 10 minutes, sleep for 7+ and be back at work in 10 minutes the next morning.   

We won't do it every time, but sure enjoyed it for a change of pace.

Frostbite

This is a great ice cream stand in Avon.  We rarely go, but it's a fabulous summer treat.  They are, however, open year round. After our pottery experience took longer than expected, Camden and I needed some dinner on our way home.  Nothing sounded good, so I suggested Frostbite because I had heard that their tenderloins were good.

They are not the best I have ever had by a long-shot, but it is one of the biggest.

U Paint Pottery

Camden and I did our Indianapolis shopping stops on Saturday afternoon and then met Kevin after work to do something together.  It was a rainy afternoon and we wanted to do something different, so we headed to the U Paint Pottery store in Plainfield.

Camden did a mug.

Kevin and I did a "celebration" plate together.  I've wanted one of these for years and we never did it. 

 

 
Kevin and Camden have done it before on a daddy-daughter date, but I never had.  I thoroughly enjoyed it, but was surprised how long it took.  It filled our evening (3 hours) and was a nice time together.

Hamilton

My highlight of winter break was a date with my hubby to see Hamilton!  It was my Christmas gift and everything I wanted to experience.  So thankful for Kevin and our time together.  

Winter Break Fun

We had lots of down time at home, but we tried to get out of the house some too.  A few afternoons with various friends at the bowling alley/laser tag/arcade in town.

Then, when we had a covering of snow, Kevin bought a new sled and the two of them spent some fun time playing out in the field.

Ohio Caverns & New Year's Lunch

Camden and I stayed up until midnight.  Literally watched the ball drop, told each other "Happy New Year," then laid down in our hotel bed and went to sleep.  On New Year's Day, we had a last swim in the pool then headed about 50 minutes north of Dayton to the Ohio Caverns.  It was one of the few things open on this holiday, but also seemed really interesting.

It is a smaller cavern, but called the most colorful in Ohio (if not the US).  I was a little worried about claustrophobia, but it was not bad at all.

After the tour and a stop in the gift shop, we headed toward home.  The biggest problem was finding a restaurant that was open to get lunch.  We about decided we were just going to settle for a standard fast food option (we hate that on vacations!), when I found a Dayton pub that, again, had high recommendations and was open.  Bunker's Bar & Grill was listed as one of Dayton's most underrated restaurants. 

We started with the Birdies Nest which was a delicious stack of onion rings.  We each got some good sandwiches that we shared, but I made sure I got some coleslaw too.  I did this in Grammy's honor because she always made sure she had some on January 1 and I often made a quick run to KFC to get her a small dish.