My First Circus - The Kelly Miller Circus

I went to the Kelly Miller Circus a few days ago on June 19th, the first circus I ever went to! It was a fundraiser for our volunteer fire company. They had the circus at Jacktown Grove.

I was able to ride a camel and an elephant at the circus. I never rode an animal before. The elephant's name was Lisa. She was 34 years old, one year old than my mommy. I rode the elephant first. The camel's name was Humpty-Dumpty and he was 10 years old, almost the same age as me.

I also ate a caramel apple, a blue raspberry sno-cone, pink cotton candy, and a bag of peanuts at the circus! 

I was able to watch the two circus clowns and every single thing there! There were trained pirate dogs, trapeze artists, tigers, camels, elephants, a zebra, jugglers, gauchos, pirate acrobats, a mermaid, and a little kid acrobat dressed as a parrot. 

The lady in the picture above was named Miss Rebecca. She was in the movie "Water for Elephants".

I even got an elephant balloon there and I got to meet the ringmaster and take a photo with him!

Summer Guest Blogger - The Big Reveal and 1st Blog Update

Greetings CSMD Readers!!! Our long hiatus has come to an end. Spawn lost some interest in the blog after the loss of his beloved Paw-paw last summer, but he says he's ready to get back on the horse now, so here we are. =D

I know you're all just DYING to know who our mystery guest blogger is for the summer. Drum roll, please.............

Our guest blogger is none other than Spawn himself! He chose our summer kick-off day trip to Knoebels to kick-off his summer of blogging. If you enjoy what you read here this summer, please take a moment to leave a comment. Feedback on his writing and adventures can only help to make writing more fun for him and less of a chore if others enjoy it as well. Thank you, CSMD Readers!

Chrissi, Cyber School Mom

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We went to Knoebels to celebrate the first day of summer vacation. We took our dog to Knoebels because we went for a day trip. 

We had Cesari’s Pizza for lunch. I had a slice of sausage pizza. Daddy had a slice of pepperoni pizza and a slice mushroom pizza. Mommy had white broccoli pizza. Me and my mommy had a Mt. Dew. 

Then we went on some rides with our friends, the Zavackys, and played on the Aquablasta game. Then the Zavackys went home. 

When it got hot, we all went down to the stream so the dog could cool off. 

I found a heart-shaped rock down at the stream.

After that we went on some more rides. 

Then me and Daddy went into Stony Gables to pick out some fudge for me and Daddy and a Whirzle for Mommy. 

Then we posed by the flood signs.

We're BAA---AACK!

The Cyber School Mom Diaries is back and hosting a guest blogger for the summer for the very first time! Check back later today. I'll be announcing the name of the mystery guest blogger when their first blog goes live. =D

Chrissi, Cyber School Mom

Spawn’s Supermegatotally Thrilladelic Not Bummer Summer: Days 12 - 18

Let me begin this update with an apology for being offline for so long. We lost our much-loved Paw-Paw Chuck recently; my husband's step-dad. From the day Paw-Paw and Grammy discovered he was sick with stage 4 small cell lung cancer until the day he passed was just one month. We barely had time to prepare ourselves or Spawn before he was already gone. Maybe I'll write more about that experience later, but it's too fresh and too raw for me to touch on it right now or share my thoughts, so I'd like to give it time. I'd like to be able to write about this man who meant so much to all of us the way that he deserves - without me sobbing and blubbering all over my keyboard while I try to sum up what he meant to us and how his life and death affected us. Give me time. =)

I'd like to move on with Spawn's awesomesauce-filled summer and share what we've been doing to try to keep things light for him. Thanks for indulging me and understanding if it's not ALWAYS light. =)

Day 12 (June 13): CSA Pick-up Day & a Visit to Klein's Dairy and Creamery.

Day 13 (June 14): Christmas in June - Polar Express to the Rescue! We got out Spawn's Christmas train. The really good one that Poppy Neil bought him two Christmasses ago that only comes out for Christmas. Christmas in June. You'd think I'd given him the keys to a toy store the way his eyes lit up when I told him we were getting his train out. =D

Day 14 (June 15): Backyard Rainbow & Crayola Colored Bubbles (in green). It's hard to see, but there really is a rainbow in this first picture!

Day 15 (June 16): Spawn went for a run with the dog after we heard Paw-Paw was rapidly declining and had maybe just a week or two left and that he was at home with hospice care. This ugly dog...how can I ever show her or tell her how grateful I am for what she did for Spawn that day?..The day we told him how sick Paw-Paw was and began preparing him for Paw-Paw's impending death. She was just what Spawn needed - an emotional lobotomy for a very sad little boy who couldn't even begin to wrap his head around losing his other best friend so soon after the first. (His godmother's pitbull, Hank, died just last November and he and Paw-Paw were Spawn's kindred spirits.) 

Day 16 (June 17): Storm-watching with Daddy. There was a lightning storm to the north of us over the mountains, but it was really still nice enough for us to stand outside watching (close to the house, just in case, though ;)).

Day 17 (June 18): We said good-bye to Paw-Paw just minutes before he died at home on this Saturday afternoon surrounded by his wife, children, and shrieking, playing grandchildren. We thought we were going to have a fun afternoon visit; that Paw-Paw was still awake and talking and it was just going to be a fun family day. We thought it could be several more weeks before we were going to lose Paw-Paw. 

When we arrived, we realized how bad things were. Chuck's eyes were closed and he was no longer speaking, though he smiled and responded with facial expressions to the things we said. His breathing was labored and he was restless. We'd bought Father's Day cards for Chuck in an effort to get Spawn to write the things he would have trouble saying to Paw-Paw when he needed to say his good-byes. Thank goodness we did. We said our good-byes almost as soon as we arrived. Spawn read his card to Paw-Paw and we each had a private moment to say our good-byes as well. I think he was just holding on until we arrived and I'm so grateful he did. But...this post is really not about Paw-Paw. It's about Spawn and his cousin and how the sound of their joyful playing with the hoops in the yard and learning to snap their fingers was the last thing Paw-Paw heard before he left us.

Day 18 (June 19): The day after Paw-Paw's passing was a sad one and we opted for a quiet family day at home. Spawn was under the weather with a tummy virus and just all around sad, so we didn't plan anything or do anything. We just enjoyed each others' company while we caught up on Top Gear episodes and snuggled on the couch together.

[No pictures for this day. Sorry. None of us were in the mood for photos.]

I realize even without a long explanation of our family's heartache, this turned out to be a sad update, but it's been a sad few weeks. It'll get better. It already has.

Chrissi, Cyber School Mom

Spawn’s Supermegatotally Thrilladelic Not Bummer Summer: Day 9, 10, and 11.

Day 9, Friday, June 10: Silly Hat and Pajama Day!

I'd planned on a jammie day for the first official calendar day of summer vacation, but Spawn came downstairs in this long spiked, mohawk hat Friday morning for breakfast and that was THAT!

Fat Nugga wanted to participate, but she doesn't have any pajamas or hats, so she tried on Daddy's sunglasses during a nap with him in the ugly chair:

Day 10, Saturday, June 11: Pixar Movie Marathon Day.

The Disney Channel was running a Pixar marathon most of the day and it was a gloomy rainy day anyway, so we took them up on it.

Day 11, Sunday, June 12: Scooby Doo! Board Game Day!

I bought these last summer at Dollar General for $5 each. I like to stock up when I see them because they make great birthday and Christmas presents at $5 a piece. And Spawn LOVES Scooby Doo AND board games! A two-fer!

I just went through the summer checklist and we are bangin' out the summer highlights here! Check back this week for more outdoor fun, crafts, and a recipe or two!

Chrissi, Cyber School Mom