Reisinger Road Trip Day 7: "All Aboard!"

This morning we drove to the Tennessee Valley Railroad. This place takes tourists on a one hour train ride, and restores old rail cars to their former glory, so the rail yard in itself is a museum. We got tickets for the 10:40 ride, and all the kids enjoyed it except Gabriel. The train made loud, abrupt noises, (the air brakes, whistle, etc.) and they would startle him. So he did cry and goldfish crackers were only a temporary reprieve. Halfway through the ride, everyone gets off and watches the entire train get turned around on the turntable (no, Gabriel wasn't in awe like the older kids were). We also took a quick tour of the repair yard where they do restoration work. I was surprised when the conductor told us it only takes about 4-6 weeks to restore a rail car, with the exception of one car they'd been working on for about 8 years (the parts were very hard to come by). Here are some pictures from our ride.

The passenger car we rode in was in use during the 1930's, when the most efficient means of travel was the railroad. Our car was still labeled "white," above the door, and the car behind us "colored." A plaque on the wall explained how Tennessee was the first state to implement the "Jim Crow" laws--meaning whites and blacks could be segregated as long as the facilities were equal. These laws were in effect in Tennessee until 1960.

We'd promised the kids one meal at McDonald's during our trip, so we went to one just down the street from the hotel for lunch. Then David dropped us me off along with the girls and Gabriel at the hotel, and the boys took the van to Midas to get the brake pads replaced. (By now, they were squealing and grinding so badly, other drivers around us must have thought all Texans drive with worn brake pads). So I hung out in the hotel lobby until Joshua and David walked back from Midas. Then I stayed with Gabriel while everyone else hit the pool. It's not as humid here at it is in Houston, but it's still in the upper 90's during the day, and the kids were glad to cool off. The pool itself is neat-- there's a bridge covered area, and waterfall, but David told me the water was pretty cold-- probably too cold for Gabriel.

Not much else planned for today. I saw a couple of cute boutiques one block from the hotel, so I hope to sneak in a little window shopping (okay, maybe some real shopping). I only buy one souvenir when I travel, and it has to be something unique to the area. I've been to so many places as an Army Brat, you'd think I'd be really sentimental in nature, but I'm not (except for Georgia :-). Just one thing is enough for me.

After Gabriel woke up, we started to make plans for dinner. David wanted to get some sandwiches and eat at Coolidge Park, which runs right next to the Tennessee River. I tried not to get upset, even when we couldn't find a sandwich shop that was open (most places in downtown areas close after the lunch crowd), and when we finally did, David drove around for 10 minutes trying to find a free place to park (at least the calipers weren't scrapping on the brakes anymore). The only place we found was a parking lot that was free if you were only there for 15 minutes. We ended up at Cheeburger Cheeburger, and it took another 25 minutes to get the food to go. David saw a free parking spot on the street, and moved the van there so he wouldn't be charged $5. Then we drove to the park, found a picnic bench and sweated away and brushed off numerous flies while we ate. It was not ideal, but the kids were hungry and didn't seem to care. Gabriel must have remembered the yellow jacket incident last Friday, because every time a fly landed on him, he'd whimper and fuss.

The good thing about going to Coolidge Park was seeing a water fountain where the kids could play and get wet, and a carousel that cost only $1 per person (kids 2 and under were 50 cents). So we're thinking about going back tomorrow afternoon so the kids will have a place to really burn off some steam, and Gabriel could play in the water (I put my hand in one of the fountains, and it was warmer than the pool at the hotel). I feel like he's been missing out, because he's only hit the pool once, since everyone else has been swimming during his nap time. Here's a pic I got off the web, since I plan to take more tomorrow.

We've also decided to visit the Tennessee Aquarium tomorrow morning. It's supposed to be awesome for kids, and when we asked them for their vote, it won out over going on a min-cruise on the Tennessee River. So check back with us tomorrow!

Reisinger Road Trip Day 6: The Blue Ridge Parkway

We headed out this morning to the Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway just outside of Asheville. This center features arts and crafts from local North Carolina artists. The kids had to buy souvenirs of course. They'd brought their own money though-- I wasn't going to let them use ours. ;-). Joshua bought a pedometer, Rebecca got a finger puppet of an owl, and Christina got a red bird that chirped when you pushed it's stomach. Gabriel didn't buy anything. ;-). A local potter had his potter's wheel all set up and was busy making jugs and bowls while people watched. The kids watched him at work for a good 15 minutes.

David bought a CD of bluegrass music, and I bought a cookbook, The Best of the Best from North Carolina. I love cookbooks (I have too many already), and I usually buy one whenever we're traveling. We put the bluegrass music on while we drove out to Chattanooga on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

I could do a entire post on just the Blue Ridge Parkway. This very scenic highway was constructed at the start of the Great Depression, and finished in 1980. There are numerous places to stop and look at the views. You can also go hiking, biking, and camping all along the route. Good thing I took my Dramamine after breakfast, because the road went up, down, around, and the drop offs were very steep. (Despite being easy on the brakes, our brake pads are starting to squeal quite a bit, and David thinks we'll need to get them replaced before we get home). The kids were impressed by the scenery, but not as much as David and I. Here are just a few of the spectacular pictures I took.

I'm sure the foliage in the fall is incredible, and the highway is probably crawling with traffic at that time of year. We stopped for lunch on Mount Pisgah, (elevation 5721 feet), and ate on the edge of a pretty meadow. This must be a migration route for butterflies-- we saw literally hundreds of them on the highway and in the meadow. Here's where we had lunch (a bonus at this rest stop was picnic tables and clean restrooms :-).

You can only drive about 45 mph on the Blue Ridge Parkway, so we got off it just north of the Georgia border, and took US route 74 to Chattanooga. We drove right next to the Ocoee River, and hordes of people were out on the water kayaking, boating, and white water rafting. CCL may very well have conventions in Asheville in the future. If so, we definitely would like to head out here again and do some hiking and rafting. The kid just aren't old enough yet.

After a long, 4 hour drive (and half a container of breath mints fed to Gabriel to keep him happy) we finally got to Chattanooga and checked into the Holiday Inn Chattanooga Choo Choo (again!). This time, we had a room in building 4, on the fourth floor, and a great view of the pool. We'll have to check it out tomorrow for sure.

David didn't want to eat on the hotel grounds so he found a local pizza joint on the internet, and we ended up at Lupi's for dinner. It was very good, and just down the street in downtown Chattanooga. Back to the hotel, bed for the kids, posting on my blog for me, and David is just messin' around on his laptop.

We plan to take a ride on a train tomorrow, so "Choo-Choo," until then!

Reisinger Road Trip Day 5: Time for R&R

I really can't say today is a "road trip" because we didn't drive anywhere. The convention ended last night, but we wanted to stay in Asheville one more day and do some sight-seeing. Today is also my sweet Christina's 4th birthday. She looks cuter today than she did yesterday :-). I brought her presents with us and she tore into them after breakfast with her cousins in attendance. Most everything she got were things to keep her busy in the car-- an art set, Dora game, phonics puzzle, etc. She also got a Crayola Color Wonder art set from Aunt Stephanie and her crews, so she was very happy.

We loaded up the car and headed to Western North Carolina Nature Center. This is an educational outdoor wildlife center with all kinds of animal exhibits-- so it was like a zoo, but featured animals and plants indigenous to this part of North Carolina. It was laid out really well, and very shady. The kids were able to touch a few animals as well-- a snake and turtle in the amphibian area, and goats at the petting zoo. Here are some pics from our walk through the wild.

One exhibit was a slide next to the otters, so the sign encouraged the kids to "slide down like an otter." My niece Mary was perplexed because the sign said to go down feet first, but, "otters slide down on their tummies, don't they?" We told her she was such a smart girl. :-). Gabriel had to try it too, so Joshua took him down. The look on his face was one of pure delight.

The last part of the walk was a butterfly house, and the girls liked it the most. Here are some pictures of them trying to "catch" a butterfly.

There was a park with a nice playgroup right next to the nature center, so we had lunch there. Peter and Stephanie had to start their drive back to Allen after lunch. They planned to stop "somewhere," spend one night, and be home by Monday. I love being around Peter and Stephanie because when we're with them, we're guaranteed some laughter. For example:

Peter: "You know, where ever we stop for the night, I'll have to stop at a few hotels and see if I can barter for a room."

Stephanie: "Peter, 'barter' means exchanging goods or services. I don't know what goods you have, and I don't think you have any services to offer anyone, at least... I hope not."

David: (snickering while trying to eat his sandwich)

Kimberly: "I'm not EVEN going to go there."

By now, we're all roaring with laughter (at Peter's expense of course), and Peter doesn't have a come back. Don't think there was anything he could say."

The kids all hugged each other and said goodbye. Rebecca was especially sad to see Mary go. But they're going to come down to Houston for Labor Day, so it'll be just 3 weeks until we see them again.

We headed to our hotel in the Biltmore East area, checked in, and put Gabriel down for a nap while David took everyone else swimming. Then we went to 5pm Mass at the Basilica of St. Laurence in downtown Asheville. I asked David why he picked another basilica for Mass, and he said we might as well go to someplace unique while we're traveling. Good point!

We had dinner at Red Lobster and used the gift card we got for our anniversary. Christina ordered an ice cream sundae and we put four pink candles in it for her. Stephanie had brought birthday candles on the road since Mary's birthday was August 3, one day after Christina's (thanks Stephanie!). After dinner, we went back to the hotel, got the kids to bed, and then I headed out to a local laundromat to do some serious laundry. I didn't finish until nearly 11pm, so I am not planning on doing any more until we get home.

Tomorrow we head back to Chattanooga Tennessee. David has planned a route along the Blue Ridge Parkway, so expect some great pics. Good night!

CCL Convention Day 3

Some interested statistics Rich Braun shared with us this morning after breakfast. At this year's convention there are:

151 Families

279 Adults

329 Kids

Notice how the kids outnumber the adults (by a lot!)

One of the presentations today was by Damon Owens. His website is:

http://www.damonowens.com/

He talked about "God's Plan for a Joy Filled Marriage." He was a great speaker, very funny and dynamic. I always like it when a speaker walks a bit instead of staying behind a podium. So here are the highlights:

* Love is truth. We are not meant to be alone (think of Adam and Eve). Marriage is so important in this aspect. The bible starts with the union of Adam and Eve, and end with the new covenant of Christ and the Church. It's no coincidence Jesus's first miracle was...at a wedding.

* There are 4 kinds of relationships.

1. Our relationship with God

2. Our relationship with ourselves (self-identity)

3. Our relationship with other persons

4. Our relationship with the material world

* Ever since the fall of Adam and Eve, God has worked to restore His love to us. We have the freedom to take it (or not).

* God is a passionate love! The Greek language actually has 3 words for love:

Eros--passion
Philio--friendship
Agape--freely, totally, faithfully, fruitful

* Marriage needs to be rooted in the agape type of love. When we have agape love, our marriage is more self-giving.

Okay, I know some of that was random, but it's just my notes, and I wanted to share.

I went to 2 mini-workshops in the afternoon, the first one was with Linda Kracht, who just finished a new book available through CCL, The Art of Breastfeeding. Many of the criteria for BF are the same, but some things are new and updated, so I want to be sure to read it on the drive home. The second workshop was with Fr. Randy Moreau (he's from Louisiana, so I know all you Cajuns would have appreciated his accent :-). He talked about Marriage Prep and NFP at the Parish Level. David and I sometimes get discouraged that our classes are so small, and yet our parish back in Spring is huge. I hope we can try and implement some of Fr. Randy's suggestions this fall.

The kids have been clamoring to play soccer, so after dinner, we drove up to the conference center's playing field. We divided up into teams (Peter and Stephanie's family against ours) and played until Gabriel got stung by a yellow jacket and we decided head back to the room so we could give him some Claritin. Poor baby-- he did scream for about 10 minutes, and his little thumb swelled pretty quickly. But he did calm down enough to get a picture. Here's a shot of the "losing team. "

We got the kids into bed, and Stephanie and went back up the mountain to the chapel for Reconciliation. The chapel is on a ridge, so you get a nice workout. My priest hailed from Canada, so I had to pay attention as his native tongue was French--but his English was excellent. I guess I was tired. I've stayed up too late since we started this trip--so I am going to bed right now!

CCL Convention Day 2:

Last night after all the kids got baths, and while I was still out doing laundry, Gabriel discovered a little hidey hole to play in. The nightstand in between our beds was a perfect little spot for him to hang out with his blankie.
This AM, Joshua and Christina woke up VERY cranky because they didn't go to sleep until after 10PM last night. Hopefully this means they will crash tonight. Breakfast was tasty-- Rebecca loves the "blue raspberry" juice (and yes, it is blue). We dropped off all the kids at their respective places and headed to our first talk.

Dr. Popcak is an expert in Catholic pastoral counseling, especially in the areas of affective disorders (anxiety and depression), marriage and family issues. He is also HILARIOUS. We visited his table during the break, and we decided to buy a couple of his books. I asked David:

"Which 2 books do you want?"

He said, "Any two would be fine."

I jokingly asked Dr. Popcak (as a marriage counselor) why men were so indecisive when their wives ask them a question. Here's what he said:

"I'll tell you which 2 books I think you should get. Any 2 of them would be fine."

(Did everyone catch that?)

So we're laughing our heads off, we buy 2 of his books, and he signs them for us too. Here's his website, you should check it out:

http://www.exceptionalmarriages.com/

*A little side note. We don't clap before, during, or after the presentations. No, we're not rude people. Instead, we use sign language (wave our hands in the air). This way, we don't wake up or startle any sleeping/nursing babies. Isn't that great?

Some of the highlights from Dr. Popcak's Talk: When NFP is Too Hard

A good marriage has 5 levels that couples connect on,

Spiritual, Social, Psychological, Emotional, and Physical

He said the physical level is really the weakest, because it depends on the strength of the other 4 levels to make a good marriage. That's one to think about, isn't it. Especially since secular society places so much emphasis on the physical (the sex has to be good or it's not worth it). He also talked how NFP is a spiritual exercise that promotes the emotional and physical bond within a married couple. NFP helps a couple:

-Facilitate communication and prayer life

-Helps a couple prayerfully discern their family size

-Helps a couple practice and learn self-control over their own urges and desires (instead of each other).

My favorite quotes from his talk--he described chastity in this way:

"Loving a person in the right time, in the right way, and in the right place."

"Periodic abstinence is painful, yet sanctifying. It's hard, and challenging, because that means it's working! Think about it...using NFP is like having growing pains, it hurts, but that's the point. And your marriage is worth it."

So that's what caught my attention the most this AM. Yes, I know it all already, but it's nice when someone tell you again and you can actually put it in your own words, ready to share with another person later on.

After lunch, and another round of dropping off kids, David and I went to different workshops. The first one was by Marilyn Shannon, and she talked about cycle irregularity and infertility, and how nutrition can improve these conditions. She is currently revising her book, Fertility, Cycles, and Nutrition. Women come to me all the time asking for help to improve their cycles, so I wanted to go and see. I came away with many good suggestions to try.

The second workshop was by Tami Kiser, "How to Live Like Martha While Doing our Martha Tasks." I know I am more of a "Martha" than a "Mary," so I was hoping to get some good ideas. I took 3 pages of notes, which is a lot for me-- I'm not a big note taker during talks. I'll give you her main points:

* Identify your own problems and solve them (if you can't find your keys on a regular basis, get a key rack.

* Cleaning and organizing is a continuous battle; you will never win, but don't get discouraged! (Make your house do the housework by staying organized.)

* Less is more! Keep everything to a minimum, toys, books, magazines, memorabilia, etc.

* The dirt will still be there tomorrow.

One other point she emphasized was dinnertime. She said dinnertime should be top priority, because this is a chance for the family to be together. Our number one means of prayer and worship is a meal- when we receive communion. This is hard for us, because we nearly always eat without David (he gets home late most nights). Tami Kiser suggested waiting until husbands get home so we can spend time together, or have the kids sit with Dad when he does get home.

I feel like I have a lot to work on when I get back home!

There is a miniature golf course behind all the buildings here, so after dinner, we all went to play 18 holes. The kids loved it, and the littlest ones just tagged along for the fun. The course is built into a hill, so it had lots of neat twists and turns. Here's a picture of all the putters.

David had driven up to the very top of the ridge earlier this week, and wanted to drive up there again to show the kids the incredible view. Wow, he was right, it wasn't just incredible. When you look out from the top of a mountain like this, you know God exists. Here's what it looked like-I'm sure you'll agree.

And here's a picture of the whole Reisinger clan at the top.

Right now, I'm going to Marilyn Shannon's "Dorm Talk. " She is really an expert on fertility and cycle health, so every night, she has an open Q&A session, and it's where you can ask her anything. This is one of my favorite parts of the Convention. Imagine a bunch of women talking about all their "female issues." (There are no husbands here, let me tell you!)

Now I'm off to bed. I did sleep better last night after I put in some earplugs. Sleep is good!

CCl Convention 2008: Day 1

We started out this morning with breakfast, which made all the kids happy since they started asking for food the minute they woke up. I was off to a slow start, because I haven't slept well since our trip started. If I wake up in the middle of the night, it's taking me 1-2 hours to get back to sleep. But thankfully, I'm not feeling really tired. Good thing too, because the conference center is located on a hill, so we are climbing some major inclines to get from one building to another. I hope this means I'm burning off all the calories I've consumed on this trip.

Joshua was assigned to what they call "day camp," the girls are classified as "preschoolers," and Gabriel was in a "baby" room. So we had to drop off kids in 4 different rooms, but the younger 3 were all in the same building, so it wasn't a big deal at all. Joshua's pavilion was at the very top of the hill, so I told David he'd be the one to go get Joshua every day. :-)

Our first presentation was by Andy Alderson, executive director of CCL. He had prerecorded his talk because his wife recently had surgery, so he was not able to be there in person. But he explained where we are with teaching the new method, plans for the future, etc. They are currently working on a program that would allow couples to register and pay for the NFP classes online--which would be a huge (and means we wouldn't have that administrative duty anymore).

Next up was Dr. Katherine Dettwyler (who taught at Texas A&M from 1987-2000). She is a biological anthropologist known for her research, writings and presentations on breastfeeding (BF) and weaning. I really liked her talk--to much detail to go into here, but here are some highlights that struck me because I didn't know that:

- There are cases of mothers who are accused of sexual abuse because they are BF,

(particularly an older child), and the fathers are fighting for custody.

- Also cases where CPS has been called in to investigate a mother whose older child is

BF. I thought this pretty sad since this shows how unfriendly we are as a society towards BF.

Dr. Dettwyler stressed that she wasn't trying to be a bully about BF. Those of you who know me well know I didn't BF Joshua for a number of reasons (I did the other 3 kids). But she did say this, and I want to quote her exactly"

"Every child deserves to be breastfed as long as he/she wants/needs to, and every breastfeeding mother deserves to be supported in breastfeeding the child as long as she wants to."

Later on, Dr. Dettwyler also gave a mini-workshop about promoting BF without promoting the guilt that is often pushed onto mothers who choose to bottlefeed. Again, too much detail to go into here, but in a nutshell, she stated that we are all responsible to give a mother as much information as possible about BF AND bottlefeeding so that whichever she chooses, the decision is an informed choice. Of course, she did emphasize the benefits of breast over bottle, the risks associated with bottlefeeding, etc. I am not here to step on any one's toes however, so I won't say exactly what she did, since it will likely offend someone. To me, whichever works best for the mother is what she should do. I only offer my opinion if someones asks me outright. As a CCL Teacher, I am responsible for promoting BF as a natural means of child spacing in addition to teaching a couple how to chart. I do like to learn more about the BF aspect because women will ask me all kinds of questions in our classes, and I always pray I have the knowledge to give the correctly/informed answer. Obviously the ladies will ask me all the questions about BF, not David :-).

We're about to head down to dinner, then I have to find the local laundromat (no, there is not one here on the conference grounds-- very disappointing), because we are running out of clean clothes to wear! I have 12 dollars in quarters, which better be enough (it wasn't- I had to use 4 more dollars to finish up the drying). But we wore our Texas A&M t-shirts today, and we got lots of compliments. Here's a picture of how awesome we looked.

David decided to have some fun at dinner with all the straws on the table. He put about 6 little straws together to make one really long one. Rebecca thinks her Daddy is so cool. Little does she know Daddy is just a big kid.

And here's a picture I just had to post of the littlest, cutest Aggie!

Don't you just want to eat him up?

More talks and workshops tomorrow. More chatting and catching up with other families. When we went to our first convention 2 years ago, I felt were a "small" family because we had "only" 3 kids. Now that we have 4 kids, we're an average family. Are we destined to be a "large" family? Honestly, I don't think so, but I'm sure not going to tell God-- I know better than that! But to see so many families with lot of kids sure gives one courage (if she can handle 6, 7, 8 kids, then surely I can handle my 4, right?)

Ann Gunlach, one of the executive staff of CCL told me today she gets web alerts when something NFP or CCL relates pops up on the Internet. Apparently, my blog is coming up on her search program. So, does that make me famous? Probably not, but I was tickled :-).

Time for bed... I am tired tonight. Please pray that I sleep better!

Reisinger Road Trip Day 4: Hanging out in North Carolina

We left Knoxville Tennessee and drove about 30 miles east of Asheville for a morning hike. We drove through beautiful green mountains and valleys of deciduous forest. I'm sure the colors in the fall are spectacular. At one point, we crossed the Eastern Continental Divide. We explained it this way to the kids: It means all the precipitation that falls to the west of this line drains into the Gulf of Mexico and to the east it drains into the Atlantic Ocean.
Joshua has a set of walkie talkies that we use when we travel. Peter and Stephanie take one and this makes communication on the road very easy. The "boys" have a great time with them; for example David will say, "Houston wagon to Allen wagon, what's the exit we're supposed to take...?" At one point, we saw a dollar store and a sign out front said "Clearance Sale." I couldn't resist calling Peter on the walkie talkie and asking why he didn't stop to check it out. :-)
Most of the hills were really steep; David was actually putting the van in third gear going downhill to avoid riding the brakes-- something you never have to do in Houston. Something else you don't see/use in Houston-- runaway truck ramps. They look like they would stop a big rig-- it would ruin the truck, but I'll bet the truck driver would be grateful because he didn't go over the edge.

There were 2 tunnels along the way, another small thrill for the kids because... that's right, there are no tunnels in Houston. Joshua had to go to the bathroom, so we ended up making a quick pit stop. Of course, everyone decided they had to use the bathroom too.

Since there are 4 adults and 8 kids between us, and the kids range in age from 17 months to 9 years, we cause a mild to moderate commotion wherever we go, especially when we've gone out to dinner. I really love it when people ask me how many of the kids are mine. If my niece Mary didn't have her pretty red hair, I just might be able to get away with saying very proudly, "Yes, they're all mine." My niece and three nephews are so cute, I'd take 'em in a heartbeat. But we'd have to get a passenger van for sure :-)

After the potty break, we turned off Interstate 40 and drove another 6 miles to where our hike started. Honestly, it was only 0.8 miles, so it was hardly a "hike," but it was all uphill because the big "ta-da" at the end was Toms Creek Falls. This time, Gabriel tolerated the backpack carrier, and didn't fuss one bit. (He has been a trooper this entire trip, a real angel baby). Peter found this hike on the web, and it was classified as "easy." I like to hike, but I have to admit our kids are wimps when it comes to walking any distance in the heat. We were dripping wet by the time we got to the waterfall. But it was totally worth it-- check out the pics below. The kids all insisted on getting their picture taken on a rock.








It's amazing what a little hike can do for the appetite-- all the kids were clamoring for lunch. So I took Christina and we went ahead a little bit so I could get a head start on making sandwiches back at the van. We took our time and saw a pretty butterfly, a dragonfly, and a few wild mushrooms. I thought it would be a good time to tell Christina you should never eat wild mushrooms because they could make you sick. Christina said, "Don't worry Mommy, I'm not going to eat them because I don't like mushrooms anyway." I really enjoyed these rare 10 minutes alone with my precious little about-to-turn-4 daughter. She is so cute and so funny, and she doesn't even know it. She is our little monkey, while Rebecca is our social diva wanna be. Pretty soon, everyone else came back, and we ate lunch in the shade on a blanket Stephanie had thoughtfully brought along. We had chocolate chip cookies and she had rice krispies treats, so we made a few trades :-).

After lunch, we drove back west and got to Ridgecrest Conference Center in Asheville around 2 o'clock. David dutifully unloaded the van, then took the kids to mass at 4:00, and I got Gabriel to take a nap (and take advantage of the quiet time to work on this post). The CCL (Couple to Couple League) Convention officially starts tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to the talks, workshops, and socializing with other families. This is the best part about the convention, we can all talk about NFP without feeling out-of-place, and everyone has hordes of kids.

The dining hall was right next door so we got dinner without any trouble. Then Stephanie and I went to a meeting about the childcare procedures while David and Peter got all the kids bathed and ready for bed. David and I sat and talked about what workshops we want to go to tomorrow and then hit the sack ourselves.

We'll tell you more tomorrow about what we've learned!