That time when Jack had a steak knife in his bum...

 This morning started a bit crazy.  Well, most mornings start crazy... but this morning was especially so. I had finally mustered the strength to accept that it was time to get out of bed and followed my starving children downstairs for breakfast when before I had even stepped all the way into the kitchen, Jack was falling backwards on the open dishwasher.  

He came up with a steak knife sticking out of his bum.

I immediately yelled his name, pulled it out and yanked down his pants, praying that it had only caught on his jeans.  We weren't so lucky.  It had penetrated his little cheek and was bleeding.  It didn't seem bad, but I was worried about infection, so I called the advice nurse.  

First she suggested I wash it and keep it covered.  As I had Jack in the shower, she called me back, however, and said that considering how deep the knife seemed to have gone (about a half an inch, give or take) I should take him in to be seen. So we made our way to urgent care where we spent the next three hours washing, numbing and stitching his injury.  

Through it all, Jack was so so brave.  He never shed a tear and complained only of boredom, never of pain, which was such a blessing.  The bummer for Jack is that for at least a week, he can't play ball, take a bath or swim.  The good news is that he fell backwards and the injury is on his bum, not forward which could have injured something much more vital. 

 The lesson: Twofold.  One) The boys are to close the dishwasher if it's open when they walk into the kitchen.  And Two) A good reminder for all of us: Knives go point down in the dishwasher. #lessonlearned

 My sister pointed out that these are the first stitches in a Cunningham boy, and that I earn a Mom Badge for it.  I'll have to pull out my old Mom Scout uniform to affix it to when it arrives along with my Single Parenting Badge & my Baby #4 Badge.

Oh, and another silver lining-- this happened in Washington and not in our village in Alaska.  I have never been so grateful for close medical care as I am now that I've lived without it.  It truly is a blessing to have so many hospitals and medical clinics nearby.  We're in such good hands.

 ***

In other news, homeschool just wrapped up its third week, and we are in a good groove.  Attention spans have already grown and we're enjoying our new History book as well as our new Handwriting book.  We're just waiting on a package from Alaska that has our Saxon reading curriculum in it, as well as my printer so we can start our new math & phonics.  Meanwhile, we're finishing up some of their first grade workbooks as review, and reading lots of library books.  (There's a library here, guys! I missed the library so much when we were in rural Alaska!!!)

I also started a new Pinterest board with some recommended educational shows on Netflix that I'm excited to use to supplement my homeschooling.  (Comes in handy on those days when I don't shower before the boys are up... which has been everyday except two since Josh left...) Click here to find me on Pinterest.

Also coming in the mail is my 100 Lessons Reading book for Wyatt.  Even though he's only four, I am going to try my hand at teaching him to read.  He's always asking what things say and hates that he can't read. So we're going to give it a go! I can't wait to see how he does!

For those of you who follow my Instagram, these two pictures are repeats (sorry!) and for those of you who don't, you should! I am alaska_babyham.  Request to follow & I'll approve you! The more the merrier!

The twins are starting week 3 of baseball and it's going swimmingly.  They have the best attitudes, work really hard and are just so dang adorable! I love their coach and am so grateful my dad is volunteering as a parent helper since Josh is gone. We should get our game schedule soon and I'm praying they have at least one game after Josh gets home in October. *fingers crossed*

Earlier this week I got our pictures back from the amazing Eryn Kesler.  I seriously cannot say enough good things about how easy she was to work with, how awesome her work is, and how beautifully she captured our family.  She has a gift. 

These pictures are something I will treasure forever and I am already ordering prints to hang in my bedroom and put a smile on my face everyday.

Currently I am looking forward to reading our book club's new book.  The Winter of Our Disconnect is our fall read.  Anyone is welcome to order the book, join our Book Club on Facebook and contribute to our discussions when they start September 21st.  

Since Jack's injury, our Friday plans changed from swimming to hanging out and laying low.  So I'm off to make some macaroni and pick a show to watch on Netflix.

Happy Weekend!