SeaWorld

It rained quite a bit during our time on the Gold Coast in Australia, but the one day that the weather cooperated happened to be on the day that we had decided to go to SeaWorld. It was really a fun day for Aden and Wiley (and Mommy and Daddy) that started off by getting to ride on public transportation. This was always one of the highlights for Aden and Wiley to ride on a big city bus. And just when you thought it couldn't get any better, the bus takes you to SeaWorld, full of dolphins, seals, sharks, polar bears, penguins and fun rides and shows. We did our best to cram it all in, and here are some of the highlights:

The Dolphin Show - Aden and Wiley loved seeing them soar out of the water an do flips, and also throw the trainers up into the air on some of the jumps. This show really made an impression.

The Shark Tank - There was an underground viewing level making it like a giant aquarium. Lots of sharks, rays, large fish and other sea creatures to look at.

The Water Ski Show - Lots of acrobatics and jumps to enjoy watching while we ate our lunch.

The Sesame Street-themed amusement park - there were rides that the boys (along with Mommy and Daddy) could enjoy. Some were trucks that went around a track that we all rode on. The boys rode in the driver's seat and pretended to drive. There were helicopters that we were all able to ride in. Aden was the pilot and loved every minute of flying us around. It went up in the air about 15 feet or so. There was another that was an airplane that Daddy rode on with Aden. And there was a carousel that was a lot of fun too.

The Viking Ship - this was similar to a 'Log Ride' where you float around through tunnels and caves relaxingly and then go up the conveyor to the top of a hill, only to come sliding down into a pool of water which of course splashes everyone in the boat. Daddy rode this one by himself the first time, but later Aden asked if he could ride it. The two of them stood in line uncertain if Aden was even tall enough. When he was measured, he was just at the line and was able to go. They had a boat all to themselves. They went all around and then came splashing down. Daddy quickly asked Aden if he liked that (not really knowing if Aden would be terrified by such a ride in the first place) and the only response that came from Aden with a stunned look on his face was, "My pants got wet!"

Other fun things were the monorail and skyrail around the park, watching Daddy on the big roller coasters (not sure this was as much of a highlight for the boys as it was for Daddy) and seeing the polar bear and penguins. All in all, it was a fun day that was of course capped off by another ride on the city bus back to our hotel. That night, there was quite a splash in the bathtub when we were able to see the Dolphin Show re-enacted.

Honesty is the Best Policy

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are about to land into Brisbane International Airport. We have a small boy in the back of the plane, however, that has a slight cough. Due to Quarantine regulations, we are going to ask that everyone remain seated with your seatbelt fastened, once we reach the gate, until a Quarantine Officer can come aboard and have a look at the young lad."
As we flew from Papua New Guinea down to Australia, we were required to fill out a Health Check form for the Australian Quarantine Officials. This was due to the "Swine Flu" scare. Australia has always been very strict with their quarantine rituals, and rightfully so. Because the form asked specifically if you have a cough, headache (although I thought this one was rather random), fever, shortness of breath or other flu-like symptoms, we felt that we should be honest. After all, here was Wiley coughing quite regularly and it would be fairly difficult to hide that from any officials. Not as easy to do with a one year old as it might be for people to hide the fact that they did have a headache, but marked NO on the form. (I still find it odd that we were the only people on the whole plane who could say YES to any of those symptoms.) Knowing the stiff penalties of Australia, we just wanted to be honest.
The plane pulled up to the gate, and we sat there. Nobody entered the plane and nobody was allowed to get up. Finally, the silence was broken once again with an announcement, "Ladies and Gentlemen, again we are just waiting on a Quarantine Officer to come and check out the little boy in the back of the plane. Shouldn't take long. In the meantime, we have begun re-fueling the aircraft and we are not allowed to have passengers with their seatbelt on while doing this. Please remove your seatbelt, but do not get out of your seats until the little boy has been checked. (People are starting to look at us at this point since we are sitting on the last row and have a little boy who happens to cough every now and then.)
Finally, we see him. A man in a "Swine Flue Mask" (as we have seen them advertised for sale in stores here in Cairns) walking down the aisle to the back of the plane. He finds us and first asks us to put one of the masks (child-size with Disney characters) on Wiley. Yeah right. That wasn't happening as Wiley refused and fought every attempt. The Officer proceeded with his routine questions of whether or not we have recently been in the US or Mexico. How long has he had the cough and if he had any other symptoms. We explained that Wiley was coming off of an ear infections (still on the antibiotics) and had no other symptoms. After several more questions, they eventually let the rest of the passengers get off the plane and we followed shortly behind. The Officer escorted us inside and we were led through an area that appeared to have video cameras set up. We were told to walk separately through this area. Apparently, it was taking our body temperature. Daddy was holding Wiley and they appeared to have borderline high temperature, but not enough to worry about. After this, we still had to be seen by additional Quarantine Officers, which included a Nurse. He asked a few questions, but was not concerned by us so let us go on through after taking a few details from us. We were finally cleared, but still got a few looks from fellow passengers as we collected our luggage.
Ironically, after hearing and seeing that the cough was perhaps just part of the ear infection, or at least was no way a symptom of "Swine Flu," the Officer told us that we should have just marked NO on the form. We could have avoided having to be seen by the Nurse. As it turned out though, being seen by the Nurse helped us avoid having to stand in the long lines of people at Immigration. Proving once again that Honesty really is the best policy.

Drooling

About 6 weeks ago, Daddy came home drooling over the possibility of owning a Labrador Retriever puppy. A nearby missionary was leaving the country and had several lab puppies for sale for 2000 kina each (roughly 600 US dollars). Daddy had already done his homework and excitedly told Mommy that this was an excellent price for a lab puppy, that labs are great dogs for kids especially, and even showed her a picture of a lab puppy that he had found online. Mommy, however, was not convinced. She thought of the Baby on the way, and all the work and expense involved in owning a dog (feeding, bathing, making a suitable home - for us this would mean improving our fence, training, finding fleas, and the list went on). We didn't make any decisions or say anything to the boys, but a month later we received word that the price had been cut in half. The missionary really wanted to find good homes for the puppies before he left. This made the offer a bit more tempting, but Mommy still had a lot of good reasons not to buy one.

Then, over the weekend, we found out that a couple of single ladies on our station were going to purchase the last black lab puppy; there were two yellow labs left, and they would be offered for free to two interested families on our station. (Daddy had written that there could still be some interest at Kudjip - referring in part, of course, to us.) Daddy read the e-mail, then pulled up the photo on his computer and showed it to the boys, not mentioning that we could possibly own such a dog. That didn't seem to matter to the boys - Aden and Wiley sat in front of the computer drooling over the picture. Wiley kept pointing and saying "Doggie! Cute!" for about 15 or 20 minutes. To help pull him away from the screen, Mommy printed the picture for him, which he carried around the rest of the morning.

Perhaps that was all it took to push Mommy over the edge; perhaps it was only a matter of time. When Daddy came home and announced that the black lab and one of the yellow labs were being "retrieved" today, he and Mommy did some quick thinking and decided to surprise the boys with the last puppy. Mommy still had reservations, so we worked out a deal with the Radcliffe family - we will share the puppy some, sharing responsibilities and caring for him together. Without further delay, we piled into a truck with the boys and the other soon-to-be-puppy-owners and headed about 15 minutes down the road. The boys didn't know where we were going, but Aden's eyes lit up when we asked if we should take one of the puppies home with us. Now the boys will not be the only ones drooling around our house . . .

He's Back!

After 6 days of fevers on and off, crying or fussing most of the time, barely eating, and 5 nights of sleeping very little, Wiley is finally back to himself. After we discovered that he had an ear infection, we added a regimen of antibiotics and changed his cold medicine, and it made a world of difference! When we woke up yesterday morning, after nearly a full night of sleep, Mommy felt like a new person. Wiley must have as well. Our first clue was when he stood up in his crib and the first word out of his mouth was "Milk!" When we went to the kitchen to get him a drink, he started naming all the foods he could think of "Jell-o!" "Cereal!" "Apple!" He ate breakfast, then promptly decided he was done. He was immediately ready for a walk, donning shoes and hat overtop of his sleeper, and standing at the door, ready for someone to help him outside. However, we have also discovered that one of his new meds seems to wake him up rather than put him to sleep. The last couple of nights he's been so much happier at bedtime that he lays in his bed for an hour or more, talking, singing, laughing, and calling out for anyone willing to be an audience. It is nice to have our little boy back to himself, even if it means he doesn't fall asleep right away!

Aden and Wiley's Big Announcement

Well, if you didn't guess from the title of this post, and haven't already heard the news, Aden and Wiley are expecting a little brother or sister in early October.

Aden in particular seems to be preparing for the many changes this will bring to our lives. He has brought his blankets to Mommy in the living room, wanting to share them with the baby; he's offered to share his room with Wiley so that the Baby can sleep in the crib in Wiley's room (a change we were already planning to make); he continually offers to help Mommy and Daddy, at dinnertime, diaper-change time for Wiley, and anytime Mommy and Daddy seem to be busy. We're hoping he will be just as eager to help after the new baby arrives. Aden has also been eager to share his preference for a baby sister.

The "official" due date is October 5; both Aden and Wiley were about a week early, so we will see. As we wait and prepare, one of the dilemmas we have encountered is what to do with the blog. It will need to include a third child, and if we follow our pattern, we won't be ready to announce the name until the baby is born. So, as you can see in the sidebar, we would like your input into the official Renaming Of The Blog. To write in your own idea, simply leave a comment on this post. Once we make a decision, we will announce what the new blog name will be, and we will also change the URL. Be sure to change the bookmark in your web browser, as we know that the boys' blog is at the top of your bookmarks list.