A Day In The Life

Been a few days since our last post/update.  There have been some ups and downs and in-betweens, and finding the time/energy/oomph to blog has been a bit difficult.  But we're back and still raising money, and with only 66 days left until the Relay and a lot more to raise to reach our goal, we're back with a vengeance.


In the last week, Savannah has turned 4 (going on 16), joined karate, and has changed her outfit approximately 1,200 times.  Nathanael has added yet another occupation to his long list of things he'd like to do when he grows up (pharmacist, astronaut, animal rescuer, karate teacher, and now a robotic engineer), has taken a keen interest in entomology and ornithology, has mastered Jim Carrey-ish faces, and succeeded in getting the rest of us sick with some nasty virus.  We've had the sewer back up into our basement, a raccoon on our back deck, and a power outage.


Our last fundraiser at Nola's BBQ featuring the Skycoasters was a small success.  Somewhere on this ancient laptop I have the names of people to thank for their donations for raffle items.  We do have another fundraiser coming up in just a couple of weeks at local family restaurant Cheeburger Cheeburger.  We have items to raffle, and the restaurant will be donating 15% of their sales to our team for the American Cancer Society.  We're still so far from our goal, but we're all hopeful that we'll get there.  


Keeping the hope alive has been a bit of a roller coaster ride as of late.  We're still listening to Don't Stop Believin' and Jump to keep the message present in our daily lives.  It's harder for me than it is for the kids, but their youthful innocence and naivete can be infectious.


The kids are busy preparing something that they'd like posted on the blog which will get on here by the end of the week.  In the meantime, I thought some of the dialogue that has occurred in the time since the last post might put a smile on your faces, dear readers.  Thank you for your continued loyalty to our blog.  


There is still time to donate to our team, and if you'd like to do so on behalf on Nathanael and Savannah or in honor/celebration/memory of someone you love, please visit our team page here.  If you'd like to mail a check, you may do so by writing it out to The American Cancer Society and mailing it to:
Nathanael and Savannah Haskell
P.O. Box 506
Buffalo, NY 14226


And now, may I present "Overheard In The Haskell Household" or "A Typical Day In My House"


Mom: I'm nauseated.
Nathanael: Me too.
Savannah:  I'm lazy-eyed.

Savannah:  Make it a double!  (referring to the amount of fruit snacks she was getting, but still)

Savannah:  Hey Mama, take a whiff!
Mom:  Excuse me?
Savannah:  Oh, did you toot, too?

Nathanael, attempting to speak French: Clooka dooka f*cka troolay
*when asked what he was trying to say, he told me he was asking what the time was

Savannah: Do spiders have private parts?

Nathanael:  Girls are better than boys.  Oh...wait a minute.  That's not what I meant.

Nathanael:   Mama is WAY more fun than Daddy!

Savannah:  Mama, I've got an itchy spot right here.
Mom:  You do?  Where'd it come from?
Savannah: 'Cause I've been scratching at it.

Savannah, hitting their little table and in a creepy voice:  I give up, you scary table!

Nathanael:  Auntie C. texts you a lot.  I hope I get to text when *I'm* a pharmacist.
*for the record, Auntie C. does not text a lot, nor do I receive a lot of text messages.

Savannah: I need help wiping!

Nathanael:  I'm over homeschooling for today.
Mom: Now what do you think would happen if you went to regular school and you told the teacher you were over school for the day?
Nathanael: She'd throw me in the dumpster.
*again, for the record, we spend about an hour and a half total homeschooling at this age.  Not long enough for him to be "over" anything.  Little turkey.

Savannah: Do we still have lemonade?
*she asks this every day.  We haven't had lemonade since our lemonade stand in MARCH.

Nathanael: I need some tape for my microphone.
Mom:  Why do you need tape for it?
Nathanael:  Uhh....so I can tape it, of course.

Nathanael: I just put deodorant on.
Savannah: Regular?
Mom, knowing all he did was slap water under his armpits: Why did you put deodorant on?
Nathanael: Because my elbows smelled like sweat.

Most of this is probably "Guess you had to be there" funny, but trust me.  In the moment, the hilarity was too much.

On pride

I believe the children are our future

Teach them well and let them lead the way

Show them all the beauty they possess inside

Give them a sense of pride to make it easier

Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be.

I realize how cliche this may be, given the recent passing of Whitney Houston, but this particular verse from Greatest Love of All has been going through my head for the last few days.  When we last checked our P.O. Box, someone included a note to me that said "It's children like yours that give me hope for our future."  As a mom, that is perhaps that greatest compliment I have ever received.  

My husband and I don't feel as though we have done anything differently than any other parents.  We love our kids.  We teach them right from wrong.  We teach them that love, honesty, and kindness and the most important virtues one can possess. These children of ours, ages 5 and almost 4, have taken what we have taught them thus far and run with it.  Every word on this blog is truly from them.  Every expression of love is unprompted.  Every expression of desire to fix the world and rid the world of "the kind of sickness Gran has" is genuinely theirs.  We feel incredibly blessed to have these two.  They're good kids.  They're not without their days, as all young children have, but the sense of pride we have for them is overwhelming, especially since the planning for the Relay has begun. They have become an inspiration to others, and have been invited to participate in other local Relays.  They have a following of celebrities, athletes, top-level professionals, musicians, and regular people like ourselves.  People are inspired by them, and I hope that, one day, they realize just how amazing that is and how amazing Daddy and I think they are.

I think I had a good teacher growing up.  My mom taught me well.  My mom taught me the importance of inner beauty and what made me unique from others.  To this day she reminds me.  She told me, and still tells me, to be proud of who I am.  I hope that I can do the same for Nathanael and Savannah, and that they grow up knowing how special they are, no matter what they do, no matter what they become.  We'll always be proud of you, kiddos.  We love you more than all the stars in the sky.   

Jackpot!

This is what Nathanael exclaimed as we opened the door to P.O. Box 506 this morning.  We found it overflowing with responses to his Knock Out Cancer Challenge, and many were addressed to Savannah as well.  All of the envelopes, with the exception of two, were left with no return addresses.  Thank you, dear readers, if you are among those who sent the anonymous dollars.  They are wholeheartedly appreciated by not only the children, but by me and by our Relay For Life team as a whole.  Your kindness humbles me.  


The kids wanted to thank you all in their own way.  I apologize for my loud voice; I didn't realize I was holding the camera with the mic right near my mouth until we played it back.  

Up Close and Personal

Not with Robert Redford, unfortunately.  
I wanted the kids to have a little running dialogue on here, so while we were waiting for karate class to start, we sat in the car and played interviewer and interviewee.  Interviewees, to be precise.


Mom:  Who would like to talk about their favorite part of the blog?
Nathanael, making sure he was the first to answer: Me!
Savannah:  That's not fair!  Natty answered first!
Mom, who has a little bit had it with the week: It's fair because Natty answered first, Sav.  You can have a turn after him.
Savannah:  It's still not fair.
Mom, really REALLY wanting to go into a lecture about how life isn't fair but realizing it would be lost on a 3 year old: Natty will answer first, and then you can answer.  Enough said.
Okay, Natty.  You're up.  What's your favorite part about our blog?
Nathanael:  That's easy.  My Knock Out Cancer Challenge.
Mom:  Why?
Nathanael:  Because I've gotten some responses to it, and because I can see it anytime I want to on the blog.  And our blog makes us kind of famous. (at least he's honest)
Mom: Well that sounds like a good answer to me.  How about you, Savannah?  What's your favorite part about having a blog?
Savannah:  Making videos.
Mom:  Do you have a favorite video?
Savannah: The princess one.
Mom, realizing this is going to be like pulling teeth now:  Why do you like the princess one so much?
Savannah:  Because I did it myself (forget the fact that I had to feed her the lines for some of it) and it's MY challenge and not Natty's.
Mom:  It's fun to have something of your own, isn't it?
Savannah: Yes.  Like a horse I could ride all by myself.

I wasn't about to get into the horse discussion again.


Mom:  So guys, we've raised a lot of money so far.  Between what we have gotten donated directly to our team, and the fundraisers you two are coming up with, we've raised the most of all the teams who are walking in Geneva, and we still have 3 months to go until the walk!  How important do you think that money is?
Nathanael:  Well, the different fundraisers are fun, and counting the money we make from them is fun, but I know the real reason we're doing it.
Mom:  Why, buddy?
Nathanael:  Well, we're trying to help people who have the sickness like Gran (he doesn't like saying the word cancer very much), and I hope that some of the money goes to the hospital where Gran gets her medicine so that we're helping her get better.
Savannah: I hope ALL the money goes to Gran.
Mom:  Well, the money that we're raising will go to an organization that gives support to people with cancer and their families.  They also help people understand ways they can prevent different kinds of cancer by being healthy, and they do research to find ways to treat different cancers.  
Nathanael:  That's cool.  So we're helping them do all that?
Mom:  Yes sir.  That's where the money you're helping to raise will go to.


Mom: Okay, I have one more question for each of you.  Savannah first this time.
Savannah:  Good.
Mom:  Savvy, what does the word hope mean to you?
Savannah:  I hope Gran feels better.  I love her and I want her to  be able to visit us again and play with us!
Mom:  I think that's a great answer, kiddo.  How about you, Natty?  What does the word hope mean to you?
Nathanael:  It means wishing.  I wish Gran would feel better.  And I remember that we learned how daffodils represent hope, and we have lots of daffodils growing in our garden, so it's like our whole house is surrounded by hope.
Mom: It certainly is.  Okay, it's just about time to go into karate.  Is there anything you'd like to say to our readers?
Savannah:  Hi Gran!  Love, Savannah.   I love you!
Nathanael:  I don't know what to say.  Can I say "could you please donate?"
Mom:  Sure, if you want to.
Nathanael: Could you please think about donating?  We love our Gran!  I love you, Gran!  Knuckles!

Mom:  Know what?  I'm very proud of the both of you.
Nathanael:  For what?
Mom:  Because you're good kids with big hearts, and you're doing a good thing.
Nathanael:  Thanks, mama.  I'm proud of you, too.
Savannah:  Me too.
Mom:  Thanks, kiddos.  I love you.

They'll never really understand why I'm proud, but I have a feeling they'll never forget the good that they're doing.  I think this will stick with them for always.

Just For You

Through all of the fundraising, through all of the ideas on how to bring in the green for the American Cancer Society and our Relay For Life team, never once have we lost sight of why we're really doing any of this.  


Gran.  My mom.  


This was my idea, as I was feeling very sentimental this afternoon and I asked Nathanael if he would be willing to do something for the blog that would mean something to me and to Gran, but not related to raising money.  He happily obliged, and Savannah was more than happy to sit by, be cute, and listen.


When I was around Nathanael's age, my mom used to read me the Mercer Mayer Little Critter books.  I remember many of them, but our together favorite was Just For You.  The copy was so tattered and loved because it was read so often.  


On my first Christmas as a new mom, back in 2006, my mom gave me a special present for me to share with Nathanael.  It was a bound collection of Mercer Mayer books, the first being Just For You.  Hormonal and postpartum, I remember being moved to tears a) that she remembered, and b) that I would be able to share this story with my own child as she and I had shared, enjoyed, and loved it.  We have, and Savannah, too.


I wish I could do a million and one special things for my mom right now.  This comes to mind, and it's so trivial, but if she sees this, she'll understand.  


Mom, I wanted to do something special, just for you....








...and I did.

Easter

The Easter Bunny made an appearance a few days before Easter to hide some eggs in our yard.  Nathanael decided to put his magic hat on to help him find more eggs.

Savannah let out a squeal every time she spotted an egg.  If I could bottle up their joy from that morning and sell it I'd be a millionaire.

Every year, the Easter Bunny hides two golden eggs, one for each, and places a special surprise in each.  This year EB left $5 in quarters - the kids' favorite coin, naturally - and immediately upon opening his, Nathanael said he wanted to put them in our loose change donation jar.  Savannah  followed up with an enthusiastic "Me too!"  We have a quart-sized Mason jar that we're keeping our loose change in until about a week before the walk.  At that time we'll donate it to our team.  The fact that my kids were so selfless as to want to donate their money from the bunny to their fundraising efforts melted my heart faster than a Cadbury Egg left in the sun.

Yankees Fans and Mermaids

Two new hairdos for a special event coming up.  Stay tuned!

Mom:  Natty, I have some exciting Yankees news about the blog.

Nathanael:  What?

Mom: Well, some of the writers and researchers from the YES Network have checked it out.  A writer for ESPN has, too.

Nathanael: What's ESPN?

Mom:  It's a tv channel for a bunch of different sports.  It's the channel that Salsarita's usually has playing when we go there.

Nathanael:  WOW!  I wonder if any of the real Yankees have looked at it?

Mom:  Well, a former Yankee named Chuck Knoblauch has looked at it.  All of these guys have found out about the blog through my Twitter account.

Savannah:  What's a Twittter?

Mom:  It's something on the internet where you can write what you're doing or about things you want people to know.  Daddy and I spend a lot of time on Twitter after you two go to bed, letting people know about your blog and why you're trying to raise money.

Savannah: Well, why can't you just call them on the phone?

Mom:  Because I don't know their phone numbers.

Savannah:  So look them up.

Mom:  *speechless*

Nathanael:  I hope Derek Jeter reads it!

Mom:  We'll see who we can get there, bud.  We have lots of readers and we're trying to get people to spread the word so we'll have more.  We want everyone to know what awesome kids you are.

Savannah:  Well, I want Ariel to read it.

Mom:  Sav, Ariel isn't real.  You know that.  She's just a cartoon character on a movie.  She can't really read.

Savannah:  Yes, mama, actually she can.

Mom:  Nope.  Sorry, kiddo.

Savannah:  Okay, well then how did she read Ursula's agreement before she signed it?

Mom:  *speechless*

Nathanael's Knock Out Cancer Challenge - Update 1

Mom here.  Nathanael issued his challenge on Monday of this week.  We decided that we would check the P.O. Box once a week, and chose Saturdays because it would be on our way home from karate.

The entire family went to the post office, almost as if it were a Griswold Family Vacation.  The kids knew right where the box is, and I couldn't unlock it quickly enough.  We were getting lots of stares for taking pictures in the post office, but we didn't care.  We were all surprised to find 3 envelopes in the box!  One was sent to both Nathanael and Savannah, one to just Nathanael, and one to just Savannah.  I knew who one of the envelopes was from, and R., I thank you from the bottom of my heart.  You know what this is like, and the fact that you thought of my family has touched my heart.  Sender of the other two envelopes, you chose to stay anonymous, you sneaky devil, but you made the kids' day including a note to each of them.  They were so excited to receive your dollars, and *I* appreciate it with my whole heart.


In the end, on our first day of checking the box, a total of $14 was received as part of the challenge.


So the challenge has been officially accepted.  I think we're all looking forward to next Saturday!


For those of you who haven't read the challenge yet, take a look at Nathanael's Knock Out Cancer Challenge.  He's challenging all of our readers to send just $1 to the post office box listed below because, in his words, "One dollar is a small amount of money...but imagine how much it could help in our fight against cancer."  Are *you* up for a challenge?


Thank you again to those of you who have sent donations so far.  You have a special place in my heart.


If you'd like to accept Nathanael's challenge, please send your donation to:


Nathanael and Savannah Haskell
P.O. Box 506
Buffalo, NY 14226


We will be logging all donations onto the team website once a week.

Fundraiser #3

Fundraiser #1 - Lemonade and Brownie Stand - successful!

Fundraiser #2 - Nathanael's Knock Out Cancer Challenge - ongoing!

Fundraiser # 3 - Kick Cancer In The Can and Seal Up The Can Bottle and Can Drive - started tonight and ongoing.

Mom here.  So glad that my husband introduced the kids to the phrase "the can" as another way of describing one's behind.  It came in handy for when the kids picked the name for their latest fundraiser.  They dictated some information and I typed, adding a little addendum to the end of a flier that we copied and distributed together throughout our neighborhood.  

Thanks to the suggestion of a neighbor, the kids kicked off their bottle and can drive this evening.  We were originally going to invite people to donate their extra cans and bottles, dropping them off at our house this weekend, but we decided to extend the invitation through mid-July.  We're all anxious to see how many cans and bottles are donated!

Nathanael:  Please feel free to drop your bottles and cans off at our house! Wait, how are people going to know where to send their bottles and cans to?

Mom:  Our address is on the flier, bud.  It's just for our neighbors and local friends, remember?

Nathanael:  Ohhhhhh yeah!  I think "kick cancer in the can" is funny.  "The can."  Heeeeehehehehe!

Savannah:  "The can" means coolie!  *insert silly snicker*  I don't want to touch the bottles if they're yucky.

Mom:  Me either!  I'll probably wear gloves when it comes time to return bottles.  But we'll be pretty grateful for any that we get, won't we?

Nathanael:  Yeah we are!  I'll be so grateful that I'm going to throw a party and make a humongous sign telling the whole world how many bottles we got.  So if we get 100, I'll make a huge "100" sign!

Savannah: Natty, will you touch the bottles if they're yucky?

Nathanael:  Yes.  But how would they be yucky?

Mom:  Well, it would depend on where people keep them, but some of them could be old and have spiders in them.

Savannah:  Or poop.

**If anyone else in New York State would like to participate, please feel free to send your bottle deposit slips to:

Nathanael and Savannah Haskell

P.O. Box 506

Buffalo, NY 14226

As always, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for helping to fight cancer!

Welcome to our readers, from near and far!

Mom:  You know, guys, we have A LOT of different countries visiting your blog.  We've marked them all on our map, but we have two more to add today.

Nathanael:  Do you know how to speak all of the languages from those different countries?

Mom:  I know a few, but most of them, no.  Do you have a message for our readers all over the world?

Nathanael:  Did I already tell them thank you for reading our blog?

Mom:  I think so.  

Nathanael:  Then can I just say hello to them?

Savannah:  Can I tell them I like ponies?

Mom:  Natty, we can say hello or we can welcome them to our blog.  Which one?

Savannah:  I WANT to say that I like ponies!

Mom:  Sav, next time.  Let's do something to show that we appreciate the fact that all of these people have taken the time to visit our blog.

Savannah: *tsk*  Okayyyy.

Nathanael: I think I want to say "welcome."  That sounds more polite than "hi."

Mom:  Okay then.  I can find a website that will translate the American way of saying "welcome" to the different languages of the people who have visited.  Sound good?

Nathanael:  YES!!

Savannah:  What does "translate" mean?

Mom:  It means that I can find a way to say "welcome" in langauges that people from other countries can understand.

Savannah:  Oh.  Well, find the word for "pony," too.

So, ladies and gentlemen all around the world, from my family to yours, we say:

Welcome!

欢迎!

Welkom!

Bienvenue!

Willkommen!

Καλώς ήρθατε!

Benvenuto!

歓迎!

환영!

Boa vinda!

 

Добро

пожаловать!

¡Recepción!

Welkom!

ترحيب

ברוך הבא

स्वागत 

Selamat datang!

 

Fáilte roimh chách!

 

elkommen!

 

באַגריסן

Välkommen!

Nathanael's Knock Out Cancer Challenge

Nathanael is challenging all readers of the blog (who have not already donated) to give just $1 (or more) to our family's Relay For Life team. Nathanael is just 5 years old, with a heart of gold and a strong desire to raise funds in honor of his Gran who is battling stage 4 lung cancer.

To accept his challenge,  please send any donation, big or small, to:
Nathanael and Savannah Haskell
P.O. Box 506
Buffalo, NY 14226

All donations received will be immediately logged on our team's website with your name unless you prefer to remain anonymous.

You may also visit our Relay For Life team page at The Cave Crashers.

Our first fundraiser

Nathanael:
We had a lemonade and brownie stand yesterday. We started at 10 a.m. and ended at 4:30 p.m. We hung signs at the end of our street. We charged 25 cents for a cup of lemonade and 25 cents for each brownie. It took a while for our first customer to show up, but when she did she told us to keep the change!

Pretty soon more people came. Some neighbors, some strangers, and Daddy even came home on his lunch and ordered one cup of lemonade and one brownie. A few people even came and said they wanted to donate to the walk but didn't want a brownie or lemonade! Everyone who came either told us to keep the change or gave us a tip.

Mom here. Normally, at this time of year where we live, it's still snowing and we're all wearing our woolies. However, the last week has been in the high 70s and 80s. Yesterday was 81 degrees and full sun. Six and a half hours in the sun. Six and a half hours. The dedication these kids showed (they DID NOT want to quit) and the high spirits they maintained was so admirable, and I am incredibly proud of them. Their manners were impeccable, and it was obvious that they were truly grateful for every customer who came, for every cent they earned.

Nathanael: By the end of our sale we earned $40! Mom added it to our team's website and we got to see the purple line go up just a little bit.

Mom: Hey guys, do you think we'll reach our goal of $1000?

Nathanael: Yes! We will! I know it!
Savannah: Yes! Yes!

Our Team Logo and Relay For Life Information

Nathanael: This is logo for our team. Our team name is The Cave Crashers. Mom said she might want to tweak it but I don't want her to because I helped to design it. The only thing she can change is the ribbon because the ribbon for Gran's sickness is white, not black. The yellow in the back in supposed to look like a big CRASH!

Mom here. This is where I'll include a link to our team's Relay page where you can obtain more information about the event.

The Cave Crashers Relay For Life Team

Meet Savannah

Hi! I'm Savannah. I'm 3 years old but I'm going to be 4 in May.

I like to play with my stuffed animals. I LOVE my ballet class, and I've even been to a real ballet before. I can do good ballet leaps and I'm also good at plies.

I love Disney princesses, and my favorite princess is Ariel. I like to pretend to be all of the princesses, and I have a few dresses just like the real princesses. My favorite princess dress is the Rapunzel dress.

Mom: Why do you want to help raise money for our team?

Savannah: Because I love Gran.

Mom: Is there anything else you want to tell the readers about yourself?

Savannah: I'm learning how to read. I just got a new bike with kittens on it and I like to ride it up and down the sidewalk. I like ponies and I would really like to have one in our backyard. My favorite books to read are Disney princess books, Pinkalicious books, and Berenstain Bear books. I always ask mom and dad to read The Berenstain Bears and the Slumber Party book because I think it's funny.

I like to watch movies on family movie night. My favorite movie is The Little Mermaid. Mom, can we watch a movie right now?

Mom: Maybe in a little while.

Savannah: Okay.

Mom: Is there anything else you want to tell the readers?

Savannah: I like to do math with Natty. I like to find pictures of bush babies to scare mama because she gets creeped out by their big eyes. I like bush babies. Mom likes bush babies.

Mom: No way. They scare me almost as much as clowns do. Are you done for now?

Savannah: Mom loves clowns. Now I'm done.

Meet Nathanael

Hi! I'm Nathanael. I'm 5 years old. We are going to do a walk for our Gran in July. Our team name is The Cave Crashers and I helped design the logo for our team.

Mom: Can you tell the readers a little bit about why you want to raise money?

Nathanael: Because I love Gran and I want to send the money somewhere so that people can stop getting the kind of sickness that Gran has.

Mom: Why don't you tell the readers a little bit about yourself.

Nathanael: I like starfish and snakes. I have a yellow belt in karate. The type of karate I take is called Kempo. I like to play with my stuffed guys. I LOVE to build with Legos. The thing I love the most is my family. I'm homeschooled and I love it. Right now I'm in kindergarten. My favorite thing to learn is math. I'm really good at reading already! I think I'm even ready for a level 3 reader! I just got a new bike that says "RATTLESNAKE" on it. It's green, which is one of my favorite colors. I also like the color blue. I love riding my new bike.

That's all I want to say for now.