O.P.P.

So funny - when I was a teen, OPP meant something totally different. I think I still know all the words to that song (how embarrassing) Last weekend the boys got their OPP = Own Personal Park. We bought the boys a huge swing set and they love it! Cole refers to it as his park. They have been spending so much time outside and Keith thought it would be a great investment to my sanity this summer. He was right.

Poor Daddy. We thought we could knock out construction in one day, no problems. As we picked up the set from Costco, the man helping load it on the trailer was not very encouraging. Online feedback ratings were saying several weekends worth of time. Uncle Garrett put one together last summer and it took him just over 4 weekends = YIKES! We only had last weekend because Keith deploys next week. Saturday morning we woke up with purpose!

Despite cordless drill malfunctions and children taking nuts, bolts, screws, and pieces of wood out of bag and piles... we got the play set built in FOURTEEN HOURS - WHOO HOOOO!!! You both love it, and I love watching you play on it. There is a picnic table underneath it and we ate dinner there Sunday night. You have to know how much your father loves you to spend this much money and work that hard on one of his last weekends home.

On the downside - illness struck the McDaniel household. Other than a cold every now and then, we've been lucky to not get sick-sick. We'll our luck ran out. On construction day, the boys were really battling a cold and snot nose. That night, Cole's eyes started looking bad. On Sunday his ears hurt. We were off to the Urgent Care Clinic. Cole had an upper respiratory infection, double ear infection and PINK EYE! Yuck!!!! Brad was displaying the EXACT same symptoms - same upper respiratory infection and pink eye. So, I've been doing all I can to keep daddy and myself from getting pink eye and getting you two better. Brad started pointing to his ears too, so back to the dr. Only his left ear is infected. Not bad I think - it's Cole's second time in his life to have an ear infection and Brad's first. I just wish you didn't have to miss your last week of school because of this pink eye. Tomorrow is the last day and I think you'll be better by then. I certainly hope so!!!