Pennsylvania or Texas??

It's hard to tell...We took this picture while we were out driving this past weekend (unfortunately, you can't see the cows in the distance.) It's actually a view from LBJ's Ranch. We couldn't believe how much the country side looked like parts of PA! When Jim first visited here, he told me the area reminded him partly of San Diego county (the dry parts) and partly of PA (rolling hills and farmland), I must say I got the same feeling, however, don't be fooled....Texas has a flavor all it's own!

Lawn Boy

It wasn't so very long ago that all he pushed was a bubble mower...

He loved to help Daddy...

Now, at age ten, Jacob is on his own and he has the real thing! He is doing a great job and is able to pull start it on his own. Since he doesn't get an allowance for everyday chores (well, we feed and clothe him), he gets paid for mowing.

**Update**

Nothing like last minute changes. It was announced at 8 o'clock last night that school will resume tomorrow (Thurs., May 7). There are now four confirmed flu cases in the county, however, based on CDC recommendations for schools, the local districts have decided to reopen earlier than previously stated. Good thing we didn't leave town!

Swine Break Continues

One week down and one to go..."swine break" continues. As of Thursday, there have been only two confirmed cases of flu in Comal county. My friend Georgia's son thankfully did not have the swine flu! Which was a big relief to all. School is scheduled to open on Monday, but there haven't been any announcements about extending the school year.

We've been heeding local precautions, but have decided to keep moving forward with life. We ran errands this weekend with Jacob in tow. I kept getting out the hand sanitizer and wipes each time we entered and exited a store. At first, Jim acted like I was crazy, but he sanitized right along with us. We even ventured into a restaurant for lunch. So far, we are all healthy with the exception of allergies. By the way, it's very hard not to touch your face and eyes when both your nose and eyes are itchy from pollen! At one point, I think I may have even gotten a little hand sanitizer in my eye. We've also been allowing Jacob to play with friends...everyone is healthy and we would have all gone crazy by now if he didn't get to run and gun with the boys. All in all, the break hasn't been too bad. We are, however, looking forward to getting back to normal and getting the school year finished.

Too Close to Home?

There are 26 confirmed cases of the Swine Flu in Texas. Three more school districts have closed in the adjacent county of Guadalupe. Yesterday, the city of New Braunfels closed the public library and civics center, cancelled the Wein and Saengerfest (which we were looking forward to), closed Landa Park and postponed the opening of the Aquatics Center.


Until all the closings, I wasn't terribly concerned about changing the way we do things. We were stepping up the hand washing, using more hand sanitizer and not eating out, but other than that, we didn't plan to change much. Jacob was even allowed to play at his friend's house, since we know the parents well and know they are taking the same steps we are taking to lessen the germ spreading. However, yesterday when I went to Home Depot for paint, I found myself being very careful about what I touched, I did not get a cart and I used my hand sanitizer immediately after checking out. I also took a trip to the grocery store and for the first time I used those little wipes to sanitize my cart and I again, didn't hang around long in the store and sanitized my hands again as I was leaving. When I got home I washed with soap and water. I was even glad that Jim worked from home yesterday, because I didn't have to take Jacob on this errand running. I also wasn't so sure that letting Jacob play with friends was a good idea anymore.


Think I'm crazy? Going over board? So did I until this morning when my friend Georgia called to let me know that her son David had a headache and a 102 fever. Georgia is really protective of her boys and admittedly was a sanitizing maniac. Knowing this, if Jacob had asked to go play with John Ross and David, I would have said yes in a minute. It's scary!! I don't know how worried or how cautious I should be at this point. I've never been concerned about seasonal flu. Jacob and I have never gotten flu shots (Jim did in the Navy, but didn't get one this year.) So, why am I so concerned about the "pig" flu? Could it be because I'm in Texas and closer to the original source? Is it really that big of a deal or have I fallen victim to the media hype?

Swine Flu

Just in case anyone is wondering...Jacob's school district and the surrounding Comal county school district just announced that they will be closed starting tomorrow through May 11 due to confirmed cases of the Swine Flu. We are all healthy here and have been sanitizing and taking extra vitamin C. We don't know what this will do to the rest of the school year, since they were originally getting out on May 29. We'll keep you posted!

Sunday Surprise

This past month Jim has been working very long hours and frequently not getting home until 9 or 10 o'clock at night. This doesn't make for much family time. If I was lucky, I would see him maybe 30 minutes before he would turn into a Pez head (head back, mouth open) sleeping in his chair. More often than not, Jacob didn't see Daddy at all! I had to remind him it was better than Daddy being on deployment and to be thankful for a times he did see him. This past weekend, we thought we may be in the clear now that the plant is up and running...it broke and Jim had to work all day Saturday (this is such a familiar scenario in our lives.) So, on Sunday, Jim surprised Jacob, #1 by being here when he woke up and #2 with a trip to Sea World!

It has been years since we've been to Sea World and of course that was in San Diego and Jacob was four! Jim took such a round about drive to get there that Jacob fell asleep at one point and then didn't guess our destination until he started seeing the signs. Even then he wasn't sure since we have explored that area of San Antonio before. He was happy when we finally turned into the entry lanes and confirmed our plans.

Jacob was especially excited about Shamu and the rest of the killer whales. He sat in the "soak zone" several rows in front of us (Jim and I were one row behind the "splash zone" seats.) He loved his close-up view, but was rather disappointed that he didn't get soaked! Looked like most of the soaking for the center section was across the pool (where the big screen's camera feed is located) and our side didn't get as much water. I've taken a mental note of this for future visits!




Jacob also enjoyed feeding the dolphins.


Even though the weather was dreary, our day was sunny because we were together as a family!