Stomach bug and other things

The stomach bug has hit our family hard this week, and is still bothering Caroline today.  Everyone else is gradually on the mend and we won't be sad to see this bugger be gone.  Between Great Dane sitting for my sister last week and the sickness this week, it has been an exhausting time for us.
Thankfully we had a brief reprieve Thursday morning to take Rylan to his preschool for his teacher meet-n-greet. I had attended parent orientation the previous week, so I was really excited for finally get to meet his teachers and see his classroom.  He was shy at first, and very glad to sit on my lap for a picture.  During our circle time, he was a bit clingy, but gradually started raising his hands and answering questions.  Rylan commented both his teachers, Mrs. S and Mrs. R, were "really nice."  There are 16 kids in his class and although I didn't get an exact count, at least half were boys. We had a scavenger hunt to find some special and important things in the classroom and around the preschool and Rylan and I worked together to find them all.  Rylan almost immediately found the dress-up bin and latched on to a space-looking helmet.  He would not be parted with this helmet the rest of the morning and completed the entire scavenger hunt wearing it.  Occasionally, he would stick his head out and proclaim, "we can't breathe the air in here" and then quickly pull the hat back down.  I think the reason he is most excited about school starting next week is getting to wear the beloved helmet again.
I have been emotional off and on thinking about him going to pre-school, but these orientations have been as helpful for me as for Rylan, I think.  It is reassuring to see him so excited and looking forward to it.  My worst fear was him having severe separation anxiety and having to leave him in the midst of tears.  Now, he is asking us how many days until school starts, so I am thrilled to see that positive outlook. They have so many neat things planned for the kids and I think he is just going to have a blast!
Rylan has been doing really well with his karate lately.  He has been eager about attending class and training hard each session.  If he continues on track, he will be getting his yellow belt at the end of he month. I have also been very proud of the way he is stopping sucking this thumb.  He has been very brave and cooperative with the whole process and I think we can say he has successfully conquered his night-time habit.  I think he still sneaks and sucks his thumb during nap times, but I haven't been really strict about that, because we all really need nap times!
Caroline's potty-training is also going much, much better. We still have occasional accidents, but she is more cooperative about telling me when she has to go, and we are almost done wearing pull-ups when we go out. I can see the light at the end of this long, long tunnel. Now, I am working with Caroline on stopping her thumb-sucking. When we saw the dentist this past week, she said Rylan's cross-bite was pretty severe and could even be changing the shape of his palate, affecting the alignment of his permanent teeth.  It is probably too late to make many changes for Rylan, but I am determined to see if we can prevent some of the problems with Caroline by starting earlier. I think is it less emotional trauma for her also, since she is younger.
I have been busy also with MOPS starting in a week. This year I am the creative activities/outreach director and have a lot of prep work to do on my own at the beginning of the semester.  Right now I am designing and making kits for almost 200 NICU memento cards.   On one of our craft days, the MOPS women will actually be assembling them, and then I will add footprints of each one of our babies to a card.  This makes a wonderful keepsake for the parents at holiday times. They are turning out very cute and will definitely be worth it, but it has been a ton of extra work right now.
So we have a busy Tuesday coming, practice first day for MOPS, Rylan's first day of preschool, and my new nephew will be born by C-section. He has some health complications and will need surgery right after birth, so we are praying for his family and the excellent medical staff who will be caring for him. Have a great Labor Day weekend. I will be sure to post pictures of Rylan's first day soon.