Yesterday's flight was totally awesome!
I did take-off, flew us up to ~3500 feet, we did stall recovery and I helped get us close to landing. There were storms nearby yesterday to the west of us. I could see cloud lightning ahead. I wasn't nervous about lightning strikes, I was more concerned about the turbulence after take-off and on landing approach. It was a very bumpy ride. Which made it FUN!
On approach for landing we had a downdraft push us down a bit. We weren't in danger but it was a bit nerve wracking for the instructor. He scrambled to regain control of the plane. We landed just fine without needing flaps because the wind was so high.
I saw small improvements in everything I was unsure of from the last few lessons. Pre-flight checks, I'm good at that. Take-off, give me some practice. Turns, I'm better. Ascending/descending, I'm good. Stalls, give me some practice. Landing, not there yet. And taxi-ing was not too shabby this time. :-)
Something to add to my pilot's bag: rubber bands and hair clamps for windy days.
My turns are getting better. My taxi-ing was better last time. Talking to the tower was less amusing than last time. My last flight felt like a slight improvement. There's still tons I'm not sure about, but that will all come in time.
My last flight was about slow flight. We pulled the throttle way out to 1700 RPMs, angled the nose up, and brought out the flaps. It was weird flying slow. I prefer fast to be honest.
In home news, Joshua's birthday is this week. We've got a few plans including cookies for his classroom, special dinner throughout the week and plans for his birthday party this weekend.
Also we are talking to a counselor to get ideas for Joshua's focus issues at school. It will be a family effort, not just for Mr. Joshua. This week's homework assignment: Rusty & I are to play a game among ourselves in front of the kids but not be engaged in the kids, and we are to sing to one another at random intervals in front of the kids. This evening I made up a diddly about reading bedtime books and got my Liza on. The boys were stopped in their tracks. The idea is to show the kids we can spend time together and they aren't always the center of our attention, and to disrupt the daily routine.
I got a letter from the FAA. They want more information about the fainting and dizziness. So I typed up a nice one-page letter with details.
Hopefully they'll agree that I'm fine to fly. I'll keep ya posted.
I went up yesterday and practiced turns. We did gentle turns and steep turns. I'm much better at steep turns. I practically manhandle the craft by the way the instructor kept saying to ease up and "do half of what you think you need to do."
We also practiced taxi-ing. I still suck at that but I'm getting slightly better. I was also encouraged to talk to the control tower at Addison. It went about like this:
Instructor: Tell them WXYZ
Me: OK
Instructor: Good ahead
Me: What was X?
Instructor repeats it
Me: Oh yeah ok
Instructor: Go ahead
Me: I forgot Y
Instructor repeats WXYZ
Me: WXY... what was Z again?
Instructor repeats WXYZ
Me: Ok
Instructor: Good ahead
Me: "Airpark, I mean Addison, this is 8684Gulf, uh... Airpark, uh..."
Tower: 8684Gulf repeat your call
Instructor tells the tower WXYZ
Tower: Thank you
I should read this: www.austincollins.com/aveg4.pdf
Yesterday was my first flight! I logged 1.2 hours in my pilot log book. The instructor did take-off and landing. I got to practice basic controls like turning, ascending/descending, and changing direction. My weaknesses include trimming, taxi-ing and motion sickness towards the end. I'm told the latter problem will go away in time.
My instructor said I was too controlling of the plane. I was constantly trying to adjust the wings, and rudders to get the plane "just right" where the horizon lined up on a marker drawn on the windshield. We flew near our home in Carrollton & over the NW Frisco area along the tollway and farm area to the west of the tollway.
Take-off seemed much easier than I thought it would be. Landing however seems more complicated. All in all, it was good flight despite I was woozy afterwards.
There is a lot to learn still regarding coordinating basic controls. Only 38.8 hours to go!
I read my old diary this week which spanned from 1994 to 1997. For three years of dates, the book was only half filled. It was very amusing and interesting to re-read my history. There were a few details I had forgotten. I started out writing nearly daily in 1994, or at least once every few days, then interest waned over time and then I checked in every few months or so.
Kind of like this blog!
wow some things never change
anywho... Tomorrow is a double-date for flying. Rusty is scheduled to go up 11-2 and I'm scheduled 3-5. If I don't get to fly, I may cry. (I didn't mean to be poetic) I don't foresee any stalls (a pun!) this time since weather should be clear. According to wunderground, it' s supposed to be clear, 72 and PERFECT! :-)
On Thursday, when I did 2.7 hours of ground time instead of flying, I was presented with tons of engine terminology and aerodynamic concepts. I bookmarked the Pilot's Handbook from the FAA website. Speaking of, I should study now.
We did a "discovery" flight yesterday in the C172 and got the first hour of ground time. There are several flight terms I need to learn more about, and a few concepts I had already read up on. Since it was Rusty & I together we shared the ground lessons but only one of us could pilot the first leg.
I nominated Rusty to be the first one to go. I'm already ramped up and eager to get this going.
The instructor did take-off and landing. Rusty was in control for the most part though. We did some turns, some figure 8's, went down, went up, we did a tight nearly 2G turn, and even experimented with a stall. I was in the backseat the whole time but without a headset, I missed the lesson because I couldn't hear anything. 
I took lots of pictures not only to share on my blog but also to serve as a visual aid for learning. According to Rusty, it's busy work making the airplane do stuff. There are foot pedals, knobs to pull out, and of course the yoke. 
Lessons I learned aside from pre-flight checks and some basic ground lesson concepts: don't wear a skirt because you can't check the fuel without flashing someone and wear your hair back if you have gobs of it like me. Taking a water bottle isn't a bad idea either. My first flight will be Thursday in the plane pictured below.
Today was my Aviation Medical Exam. I was expecting to walk out with a certificate that would allow me to get a license after training. But no. I disclosed that at some time in my life I had fainted. To clarify, I have fainted 2 notable times in the last three years and I am prone to the occasional head rush when going from a crouched position to suddenly rising. And who doesn't do that from time to time?
So here's the deal on fainting.
2007 - I fainted after lots of blood loss following Elliot's birth
2011 - I fainted after taking a Vicodin for muscle pain (that was a fun day)
That's it. Perfectly reasonable, right?
Anywho, the doctor who examined me today advises I go to a cardiologist to make certain that my 'history" of dizziness and fainting aren't symptoms of a heart condition. *sigh*
My appoinmtent with the cardiologist on Thursday should put an end to this roadblock.
Sitter: confirmed!
Cash: moved!
Living Trust/Will: in progress... but coming!
Time: scheduled!
Medical Exam: check!
Am I ready? Does a watched pot eventually boil?
Why must the only Airline Medical Examiner under $50 be so darn far away?
I possibly have a sitter for the weekdays and we're still on track for May. yippee!
Since I've begun reading about concepts of flying, I've been obsessed. For the first time in many, many months, I did not want to be at work. I wanted to read more of my book, go back to the school, throw money at the instructors and just start things already!
Alas, no. Patience grasshopper.
First we need a physical. And schedule someone to watch kids for a couple hours routinely. And move some money around to short-term finance this. And finish updating our will. THEN, likely in May we'll be able to officially begin.
At work today I fantasized about getting in some flight time during a lunch break. How cool would that be to leave on lunch break, fly around a bit with your instructor, log your time, then return to the office to finish the tasks and projects.
"What did you do for lunch?"
"I went to Lenny's for a sandwich. And you?"
"I flew around Tyler, TX then came back. The landing was rocky because of wind, but I was alright."
"Aren't you hungry?"
"Nope."
yeah, it was something like that.
Anyway, I am really looking forward to this. It makes me nervous as hell and excites me all the same. That sort of entertainment doesn't come easy these days. I need to enjoy it while I've got it.
No news on the home front. All is stable and with forward momentum. :-)
It's been a while since my last post. Life distracted me. I'm still happily working at FXCM. Rusty is still at Bank of America*. Elliot is at a great daycare near home. Joshua is nearing the end of Kindergarten. Our new cat Isaac gets along very well with Merlin. All is ducky.
*Rusty recently got a new job within BoA which came with a pay raise. We're taking a portion of the raise and some of our spare time to learn to fly. Below is a Cessna 172 similar to what we'll be flying:
We'll start in May and I'll keep to keep y'all posted. Oh yeah, and we still do websites. We have 2 sites in the works plus one more project on the way to spruce up this one: www.dallasairpark.com
Pardon the blog template, it's new and in need of some tweaks.
Elliot turns three on Wednesday but we celebrated today!
Rusty was able to snag a great deal on a huge inflatable bounce house. That was the highlight of the party. Elliot was very excited to have the bounce house and friends over to play. The homemade cake was delicious and darn-near devoured. We opened some present after cake per a departing Grandma, then another at the end of the party then most of the rest after bath time. His favorite gift so far: posable Wall-E!
Elliot has become such a delightful lil' dude. He's very articulate, very observant, caring and easy to be with. He has opinions he's willing to share as well as his suckers. He's now learning to test boundaries and establish his independence. Sometimes he'll get this adorable mischievous look that says "I know you don't like this but I'm doing to do it anyway with a smile". He defends against his brother yet plays well with his friends. Our charming guy is a blessing to be around and I am so glad I get to watch him grow up!
We now own a dog. As of 10am this morning. Meet Duggan:
Duggan ran away from home a few days ago and wound up on a neighbor's doorstep. She posted signs in our neighborhood advertising that this dog was found, and emails circulated. No one came forward. That neighbor had 2 dogs already and they weren't compatible so the dog was passed to another neighbor. But it turns out the wife was allergic. We then took the dog for the day to relieve the neighbor with allergies. The idea was that we'd hold him until the owners were found.
The boys liked this dog right away. Merlin wasted no time in establishing who's boss of the house (obviously the cat). We originally called him Max because that was the name used by the previous two neighbors. I was more or less on the fence and was quickly outvoted when Rusty warmed to him within minutes. Rusty lit up to have a dog who would sit on command (he sometimes does) and who would follow him around. We went on two walks which were actually vigorous runs. We also invested in chew toys and a couple bones. Then just before dinner, the inevitable happened.
Joshua opened the front door and the dog sprinted out!
He was out like a bullet! I followed him cautiously so as to not encourage a game of chase, but the dog sprinted around an alley corner then was gone from sight. I waited a minute listening and waiting to hear or see something, a clue of where the dog had gone. Just when I was about to give up, I saw him loop behind someone's house. I sprinted up to find he had been put into an oversized dog cage with two other dogs and young couple calling him"Duggan". I approached asking if this was their dog, which was a silly question because they had a name and acted like they knew him but I didn't know how else to start the conversation. Next time I'll say something more intelligent. Anyway, they said he got loose a few days ago which matched the timing of how long he has spent with our neighbors.
Turns out, he's a purebred Brittany, a type of French Spaniel. He's very quiet but very active. We haven't heard him bark at all yet. He's 8 years old and has a son. He's been on hunting trips but apparently he's the lazy one who, after an hour, waits in the truck for the others to return. He's been an outside dog but he also really likes to be inside and is generally well behaved.
Now that the owners had him back, I almost said good-bye and left it at that. But I didn't. I infomed them that he had been well cared for by three homes, and was currently very entertaining to our sons. An older woman came out (the mother of one of the young couple) and said if we wanted to adopt him that we could. I was cautious not to be trapped as it seemed almost too good to be true but this legitimately good dog was indeed in need of a home that could give him more. His current home has about 6 dogs and no one was avilable to take them on walks. He had been around kids in the past but now the kids were all grown up an moved out. So the woman said we could keep him. Just like that. I returned with the family less than hour later to thank them and ask a few more questions, like who was his vet.
And that's how we ended up with Duggan, who also goes by Max.
Joshua got five days of smileys from his teacher this past week. That was a huge improvement from 4 weeks of getting in trouble.
Elliot refuses to be potty trained. He has no interest in it all. Even with colorful character undies, he's just not interested in going to the potty. I have a feeling if he was interested he would catch on quickly. Even bribery doesn't appeal. :-/
Now that it's October I'm anxious to decorate the house.
Brief update: Joshua went to an ADHD specialist on Monday to re-evaluate her original assessment of where he is within the definition of normal and what our options where in regards to medicine. We had stepped up Intuniv by this point. She prescribed a very low dosage of Ritalin. He's taking 1/4 of the dosage available for his size. In other words, we're starting on a very small a dosage to see some improvement on focus, attention and impulsiveness.
To offer positive re-enforcement, we're giving him a new silly band everyday he comes home with a "smiley" from his teacher. If he gets remarks about bad behavior like hitting or being disruptive then he has to talk to us about it and he gets no reward.
Per Donna Bateman's advice, we are also further cutting the sugar intake and switching to gluten-free products such as breads, pasta, cereal, soup, etc. Hunt's ketchup does not have gluten as a thickening agent and they offer a corn syrup free recipe- even better!! No more juices either. It's water and milk in our house. Luckily the boys LOVE soymilk and almond milk so we mix that in with cow's milk and they like that better than juice anyway.
Today: he got a smiley from his teacher and a silly band from his dad. :-)
Joshua is in trouble at school, thus at home this weekend too. He's been in trouble twice this week for the same problems he had in preschool. He's hit, kicked, punched and now poked with a pencil. Part of the reason is his impulsiveness. Sometimes he acts without thinking, as in his body moves before his brain can filter what his actions should be. Other times, like the kick and punch incident, he's defending himself with hurtful actions instead of walking away or using his words. I feel like we're regressed to 2 years old ago: "use your words."
He's been to the principle twice now. We're stepping up our game by making some small changes in the home, small changes to routine, having a zero tolerance for some actions such as hurtful actions, not listening, whining, and back-talk. And we're going to talk to an ADHD specialist about medication to improve better blood flow to his brain so he can focus and calm down. I'm also going to look into reflexology techniques.
I already told him he would lose Halloween trick-or-treating if he got into trouble again. Unfortunately for him, I said that this morning before he went to school- before he got into trouble a second time. As it stands, he won't be dressing up nor collecting candy.
Joshua now wears glasses! He picked out his own frames several weeks ago. He hasn't gotten the idea that glasses are sort of a "always" thing. We're still talking about when to wear them and when to take the off. He had the impression he could wear then when he felt like it, like a toy item. Little does he know he may have shortsighted vision for the rest of is life until he gets them zapped by a LASIK surgeon like me. :-D
It was a busy week last week! Last week Friday we planned to leave town for Lubbock to visit my mom for the weekend. To be random, we kept Elliot at home with us for the day. I really enjoyed my lil' dude's company! He was a charm and a helper, and he was so happy to have the attention of both parents without a competing big brother.
After a good breakfast, our first order of business was a vet appointment for Samson. He was out all day Thursday which wouldn't be a big deal for a normal, even somewhat healthy cat. But this was the tipping point for Samson. He was again emaciated, dehydrated, and lethargic. I was worried we would need to put him to sleep if he didn't perk up by Friday. Alas, he was not showing signs of improving. His kidneys just weren't keeping up and previous attempts to save him with medication and liquid injections weren't having a impact. We said our teary good-byes and left him at the vet to be put to sleep.
Life had to go on for us. We packed up and cleaned up, ran errands and filled up the car. When school was out, we got Josh then hit the road. An hour later in traffic, we left the DFW metroplex on 380 towards Lubbock.
- - -
My mom is well. She's now in a rented home across from another cop. Her dog Lance is about the size of a pony. He was thrilled to have the boys around even though he's an old dog who can't fetch as much as he used to. We took the boys to a few local favorites: Maxey Park, Science Spectrum, Joyland.
Joyland is an amusement park in the north-eastern side of town. It isn't Six Flags, but it's fun enough for bored tweens and young kids. Joshua rode his first adult size roller coaster- and LOVED it! Elliot rode the huge swinging rocket and freaked out the first time but then decided to ride again and was totally cool with it the second time. Joshua's other favorite ride was the spider. Elliot loved his toddler sized roller coaster and the merry-go-round. And both were equally disappointed in the train ride. We came home to filthy boys who talked non-stop about the rides. The next evening was spent with Raymond and a couple of his friends. That was an interesting night too.
Both boys had minor medical issue on the trip: Elliot had hives, Joshua got diarrhea. Bt these setbacks didn't ruin the trip. This week both boys have requested, loudly, to go see Grandma Cindy again. I've explained that we need a fast airplane and more long weekends. I'm glad we all had a great time.
- - -
Yesterday we buried Samson's ashes in the yard behind the kids' playset. I found a sleeping lion statuette as a marker. Joshua participated in the memorial by placing the box in the ground and adding one of his cat toys on top of the box. While the dirt was being filled in, he finally cried. He hugged me and talked about how he'll miss Samson. It was closure we needed as well as practice about memorials for when loved ones die. Merlin is healthy but entering his elderly cat stage. He's now about 16 years old or so. When his time comes, he has a spot right next to his best friend Samson. Hopefully that won't be for a few more years to come.
Joshua loved his first day of kindergarten.
For Josh's first day, he woke up before the alarm, got fully dressed and wanted to go before it was even 7am. We explained that it was too early and he needed to wait. After I took Elliot to dayschool as usual, Rusty and I walked with Josh to school. The closer we got, the faster he walked until he sprinted ahead. When the doors opened, he was the very first kid to walk down the kindergarten hallway near the entrance. I was doing great until he gave me a good-bye hug and a kiss. Then I got teary and had to walk out quickly. We eventually found other parents gathered in the library chatting, eating doughnut holes, and drinking OJ and coffee. Most of the parents were neighbors. After all that, Rusty & I walked home together.
Joshua was so excited at the end of the day, he wore his backpack at home until we convinced him to take it off for dinner.
In other news, we decided that we're not ready to give up on Samson yet. Instead we're going to wait a couple of weeks to give him more time to either naturally recover, or further degrade before we put him down. He's showing signs of betterment although he's not healthy. Below is Samson enjoying some canned chicken.
Supplies- check!
Backpack- check!
Haircut- check!
New shoes- check!
Eagerness to start- double check!!
Yes, Joshua has been looking forward to starting kindergarten since May. We met his teacher and checked out the room on Friday. His best-friend Dylan will also be in his room and they will share a locker together. Luckily, thy won't be at the same table otherwise they would no-doubt be constantly distracted. His teacher is young but not fresh-out-of-college so I'm assured he'll get a good start.
So here's the morning drill: get up and dressed asap, take Elliot to dayschool as normal, rush back then walk with Josh (and Rusty) to school. Get him in the class, say our good-byes then head to the school cafeteria for coffee, donuts and commiseration with other parents. Walk home with Rusty and enjoy the rest of the day to its fullest. When school lets out we'll meet him at the playground and walk home together. Rusty intends to walk with Josh for the first couple of weeks, at least in the mornings.
I remember walking to school for kindergarten. I believe this is where my love of walking started. I remember passing the around-the-corner neighbor's house with labeled plants, the old lady's house that had a garden of flowers and cotton, the house with a ton of trees in the front yard, the shops at the intersection one block from school, and the huge trees that lined the school yard. I remember playing in front of the house before the school opened, running down a hill after school (and getting in trouble for doing it), for following a group of kids trying to friend them despite their disinterest in hooking up with a pee-wee of a kindergartner. I remember fresh cool air, racing to see if I was faster than the other day, and daring to turn one street early and cutting over on another street. I don't know what adventures Joshua will have on his walks. But I'm glad he'll have the same walking-to-school types of memories as I had. Hopefully these will shape him in some positive way.
Taken last week during a brief rain.
I was doing great today until I returned a call from the vet's office.
Three weeks ago near end of July I realized Samson was missing. He normally sleeps with us at night and follows me to the bathroom in the morning. But on July 29th I realized he had been missing. For at least a day. I didn't think too much of it. "He's probably been outside all night." I told Rusty to keep an eye out as I left for work. Later, Rusty called to say he found Samson in the house. In Rusty style, he bathed our cats (He had planned to do it anyway) and realized something was really wrong. Samson was lethargic, complacent and lanky. His kitty eyes were sunken in. He was bone thin. He was so weak he couldn't walk more than a few steps. He had found a quiet corner in the house to lie quietly and die.
Well, until Rusty found him and bathed him in the kitchen sink.
The next day we (eh, Rusty) took him to the vet. Samson's organs were shutting down. His kidney was shrunk, his pancreas smaller, body temp was cold, he was anemic, and dehydrated. He hadn't eaten or drank in probably days. He was put on pain kilers, antibiotics, electrolytes, an IV and monitored for two days. He seemed to be doing ok. We cared for him at home giving him medicine daily.
Until the second blood work reported that all the treatments- medication, electrolytes, IV- weren't showing any real improvement. His kidneys aren't responding, he's still anemic, his red blood cell count is low, and he's still not gaining weight. He's basically one illness away from death. He can't get up onto a chair, he has to be picked up. He can go up and down the stairs but not quickly.
After this prognosis, the vet and I agreed he was never going to fully recover. We don't know exactly what has caused all this. Poisoned plant? Cancer? Rather than subject him to unpleasant medication for the rest of his life and constant vet bills, rather than spending his days under daily care and close supervision, rather than have him in pain and limited in his abilities, it's better to just say good-bye.
So on Tuesday morning, we'll take him to the vet one last time.
What to do with the remains is undecided. Part of me wants to let the kids bury him as a rite of passage in facing death. But then again, maybe that will be more complicated than I'm prepared to take on.
Slices of Life
Josh: I can jump-rope. Watch this. -he tries a few times getting his rope caught on his feet-
Girl (about 8 years old): Can I try it? -girl jump-ropes fast, then on one foot, then cross arm, then skipping, then dancing, then backwards, then 2 rotations with one jump-
Josh: Wow. I can run really fast. Watch this. -runs off to playground-
Elliot: Mom! Mom! Mom! I can turn off the bathroom light!
Me: Really?? Show me how you do this. (I'm genuinely baffled)
Elliot: Ok! -stands on toilet seat then reaches over to switch off the light- See?
Me: You are so smart to figure that out!
Elliot: Yeah!
Josh: ELLIOT YOU'RE NOT LISTENING TO ME!!!
Elliot: -ignores brother-
Josh: FINE! THEN I WON'T TALK TO YOU!
Elliot: -ignores brother-
Josh: Mom! Elliot won't do what I tell him to do!
Me: Work it out. Better yet, do something without your brother.
Elliot: I want to be with Josh.
Me: Are you my big boy?
grumpy Elliot: No. Yes I am!