Day 50 of summer was my little guy's 2nd birthday. I just can't believe it. I. and I sang him Happy Birthday while he was still in the crib and though he didn't completely understand, he knew we were singing to him and that made him happy. Melissa and Caroline came over for a playdate and after I. came home from VBS, we had a little party with cupcakes that Melissa had brought over and D. opened the two presents they had gotten him. This year, he definitely understands how to open a present up and when he saw that it was an airplane with people and a door that opened and closed, he was in love and spent the rest of the time inspecting its wheels and opening and closing the door. Plus it plays music so it really can't get any better than that. He was so jazzed about it that I let him take it in the crib with him during afternoon rest time. Sunday will be our family party and the girls will be coming down by train Saturday night so that will be exciting for everyone. It will be a full house!
Yesterday was I.'s last day of VBS. I also had to run to Home Depot this morning to get some items we will need in order to pass house inspection which was supposed to have happened next Monday. I. and I played pretend restaurant and served up 21 of her stuffed animals with various menu items which was fun.
This morning my realtor let me know that our buyer backed out due to a family emergency. I don't know that I buy that. Last night I spent hours getting all these financial statements together for the lender so that he can provide our realtor with a preapproval document to make us more attractive buyers. Being contingent makes us unattractive. On top of that, in this market you have to include with your bid/offer a biography of your family introducing yourselves and telling why they should accept your bid. It also makes you "more attractive". This whole process could give you a complex I swear. Anyways, now we're back to square one with showings and a need to keep everything perfect while having 2 little ones underfoot. That part really sucks. The only good I can see of this is that the inventory has dropped significantly the last week so I was starting to feel stressed that now our house was in escrow and now there were no homes coming on the market. Guess we'll see what happens.
The rest of the day was good except of course bedtime when the kids were tired and bouncing off the walls and my patience was running out. The last 2 weeks since we got home V. has worked all 5 weekdays in Arizona so it's been a little rough on me. Today though I had planned a short adventure for the 3 of us and it turned out really well. We caught the trolley just east of Qualcomm and then rode it about 4 stops to Mission Valley where it dropped us off right in front of Sammy's Wood Fired Pizza. We had lunch there, walked around for 20 minutes or so and caught the trolley back to our car. Both kiddos were so excited and for the rest of the day, D. kept making the sign for train because he was so thrilled by the whole thing. I got the idea when V. and I took the trolley to the game on Sunday and I was looking out the window at the stops. So glad we did it and both kids were really well mannered. A good day with good memories made!
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Day 38
This morning after D. got up from his nap, we went over to the pool for awhile to extend our trip and we all had a good time. D. and I roughhoused and loved each other up in the pool and then we went and visited I. and V. in the big pool. Headed out after lunch to my parents' house to drop off the kiddos and then we grabbed dinner by our home before we went home to pack and get ready for the New York trip. As we ate, I was missing the kids a lot. V. was wondering how I was going to cope with being so far away from them but to be honest, being around our house without them with me makes me miss them more. These are the places I'm with them. When we're away, of course I miss them but I don't expect them there. It won't feel weird with them not there in New York because I've never been there with them.
Have to get up around 3:45 tomorrow morning to make it to our New York flight in the morning. Egads! It's going to be brutal. I have ear plugs and my Bose earphones to try and be able to nod off at the beginning of the flight. Just hoping that I will not have my usual first day insomnia when we get there....Lunesta samples take me away!
Have to get up around 3:45 tomorrow morning to make it to our New York flight in the morning. Egads! It's going to be brutal. I have ear plugs and my Bose earphones to try and be able to nod off at the beginning of the flight. Just hoping that I will not have my usual first day insomnia when we get there....Lunesta samples take me away!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Trip Tribulations
Here's my theory - if I get the angst(s) of our trip out of the way in this post then the next post about our trip can be about the fun. I think it'll work. Plus, I really don't feel well enough to write about the fun we had and when I do write about it, I want to truly feel it. Okay?
As you can tell by now, I'm still waiting for that vacation/trip where at least 70% of the trip is positive and good and the other 30% is the stuff that happens when you have kids with you and you're not in your normal "routine" of things. See? I'm not greedy when it comes to my expectations. I'm not asking for a 90% perfect trip - just one where the good solidly outweighes the bad. Really, is it too much to ask? I guess lately it has been.
So here's what happened. The night before the trip, one day after I got my weekly chiropractor adjustment, my lower back went out badly. Add lugging heavy suitcases, plane rides, stress, and lots and lots of walking up the hills of San Francisco, and saggy couches and it became a perfect storm. Now I've had back pain since I was 14 and the worst of it is sciata pain that shoots down your leg and makes it almost impossible to walk. This pain didn't shoot down my leg (so that was good) but instead it had the same level, if not a little worse, shooting across my lower back directly out of my tailbone. It became so bad that I was mentally making contingency plans on the fly. For instance, as we were walking up the hills of Chinatown: "What would I do if my back went completely out right here?" and then I would figure out where I would stop, who I would call, etc. That lasted the entire duration of the trip though it simmered down a little the last 2 days of our trip. Just in time for.....
A horrible bout with the stomach flu. Oh My Gosh. I went to bed on Saturday night at 9pm because I was exhausted. We did alot of walking every day in the pouring rain and with a wind chill around 32 degrees so it was completely understandable that I was really tired. Oh, did I forget to mention (since I seemed to forget it myself last week) that I'm also pregnant. Hmm, maybe that made me a little tired too. Anyways, I went to bed at 9pm. and woke up at 11:30 with really bad stomach pains. I was up and down for the rest of the night alternating evacuations between orifices. I thought maybe it was food poisoning but I was sick all day Sunday and Monday too so it had to be the stomach flu. I was so weak and nauseous. The additional rub was that V. was too tired on Saturday to do anything so Sunday was our only day to do something in San Francisco as a family and it also was the only day that it wasn't pouring rain.
I decided it was going to have to be that time as an adult and a mother when you just have to suck it up and that's what I did. We went to Fisherman's Wharf, got some lunch, went to the Aquarium, and took an hour long boat cruise. It truly was mind over matter with my strategy being that as long as I didn't put anything into my stomach and concentrated on the cold air in my face, I may have a fighting chance at staying upright and not throwing up. It worked but came with the price afterwards of collapsing in bed when we got home and the next day's travelling home via taxi, subway, airplane, and car almost pushed things over the edge. Even today (Wednesday), my stomach is not keen on food but it's able to tolerate liquids which helps lessen my worries for the baby. I've been so dehydrated the last 4 days that the Braxton-Hicks contractions started up and that is never a good sign at this point. So I'm on the road to recovery but it's a slow one and it's hard to run around doing what needs to be done (grocery shopping, taking I. to school, etc.) when my energy is so low.
So the next post when I get the energy will be full of the good details and some of the pictures, though I didn't take all that many on account if the buckets of rain that were falling on our heads 4 out of the 5 days.
As you can tell by now, I'm still waiting for that vacation/trip where at least 70% of the trip is positive and good and the other 30% is the stuff that happens when you have kids with you and you're not in your normal "routine" of things. See? I'm not greedy when it comes to my expectations. I'm not asking for a 90% perfect trip - just one where the good solidly outweighes the bad. Really, is it too much to ask? I guess lately it has been.
So here's what happened. The night before the trip, one day after I got my weekly chiropractor adjustment, my lower back went out badly. Add lugging heavy suitcases, plane rides, stress, and lots and lots of walking up the hills of San Francisco, and saggy couches and it became a perfect storm. Now I've had back pain since I was 14 and the worst of it is sciata pain that shoots down your leg and makes it almost impossible to walk. This pain didn't shoot down my leg (so that was good) but instead it had the same level, if not a little worse, shooting across my lower back directly out of my tailbone. It became so bad that I was mentally making contingency plans on the fly. For instance, as we were walking up the hills of Chinatown: "What would I do if my back went completely out right here?" and then I would figure out where I would stop, who I would call, etc. That lasted the entire duration of the trip though it simmered down a little the last 2 days of our trip. Just in time for.....
A horrible bout with the stomach flu. Oh My Gosh. I went to bed on Saturday night at 9pm because I was exhausted. We did alot of walking every day in the pouring rain and with a wind chill around 32 degrees so it was completely understandable that I was really tired. Oh, did I forget to mention (since I seemed to forget it myself last week) that I'm also pregnant. Hmm, maybe that made me a little tired too. Anyways, I went to bed at 9pm. and woke up at 11:30 with really bad stomach pains. I was up and down for the rest of the night alternating evacuations between orifices. I thought maybe it was food poisoning but I was sick all day Sunday and Monday too so it had to be the stomach flu. I was so weak and nauseous. The additional rub was that V. was too tired on Saturday to do anything so Sunday was our only day to do something in San Francisco as a family and it also was the only day that it wasn't pouring rain.
I decided it was going to have to be that time as an adult and a mother when you just have to suck it up and that's what I did. We went to Fisherman's Wharf, got some lunch, went to the Aquarium, and took an hour long boat cruise. It truly was mind over matter with my strategy being that as long as I didn't put anything into my stomach and concentrated on the cold air in my face, I may have a fighting chance at staying upright and not throwing up. It worked but came with the price afterwards of collapsing in bed when we got home and the next day's travelling home via taxi, subway, airplane, and car almost pushed things over the edge. Even today (Wednesday), my stomach is not keen on food but it's able to tolerate liquids which helps lessen my worries for the baby. I've been so dehydrated the last 4 days that the Braxton-Hicks contractions started up and that is never a good sign at this point. So I'm on the road to recovery but it's a slow one and it's hard to run around doing what needs to be done (grocery shopping, taking I. to school, etc.) when my energy is so low.
So the next post when I get the energy will be full of the good details and some of the pictures, though I didn't take all that many on account if the buckets of rain that were falling on our heads 4 out of the 5 days.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Valentine's Day Survival
The survival of Valentine's Day. It was a day of angst for so long that it's hard to not feel that way about it still to this day. I felt myself getting irritated when several people asked I. or I what we were doing for Valentine's Day. Uh, I don't know, waking up and living?! I wasn't sure what the right answer was so I just shrugged and said "Hanging out." as though that wasn't something out of the ordinary. Not that I don't appreciate hanging out with I., 'cause I do but it's not like a special Valentine's Day event or anything.
I. and I snuck our cards into V.'s suitcase on Sunday before he left so he'd have them for the actual day. There was a "miscommunication" of sorts. Actually it was less of a miscommunication than just a little bit of wishful thinking and a whole lot of not listening on V.'s part. No, it didn't turn into a huge, pouting deal like it would have been 15 years ago or even 5 years ago but still, ya know it was Valentine's Day. I specifically told V. he was off the hook for flowers this year since we are leaving tomorrow for San Fran but that he was still on the hook for a card at least. That's where the selective hearing came in and what he heard was "You're off the hook for Valentine's Day this year." So there was no card from him AND he didn't take I. to get a card or have her make me a card either. So this baby mama got nada. This all came to light at the end of last night's phone call when I asked, "Did you find our cards?" and he said, "Yes, I thought we weren't getting cards for each other." That's when I clarified exactly what I said since he didn't bother listening to the entire 8 word sentence. So he was sputtering that he figure out something and I felt like saying, "Dude, the day is OVER." but I just let him sputter because I felt like he at the very least deserved that. It also didn't help that I went to the grocery store to get myself something special for dinner (i.e. an artichoke) and as I stood there in the long lines (why did I go to the grocery store on Valentine's Day!), I was surrounded by men with floweres, balloons, cards, steaks and lobster tails trying to make sure they were sufficiently covered for the day.
Next topic is packing for San Fran which must take place today. I.'s shouldn't be bad at all. It's mine that is going to be filled with angst I think. Why? Because my midsection is changing daily, actually hourly. Pants that "fit" yesterday may fit this morning and they might not. Pants that fit on Wednesday may not fit by our last day, Monday. On top of that, I have a very limited selection, I mean, very limited. It's going to be raining up there and cold for at least the first three days so it would be nice to be able to choose among pants that will give me the most protection from the rain. At this point, it's looking like I'll be lucky to even have a pair of pants in the suitcase let alone on my body. It's just that awkward time of too big for normal pants (for the most part) and too small for maternity pants. So this will make for a fun time packing.
Packing aside, I'm excited for our adventure beginning tomorrow morning. The apartment in Nob Hill is lined up and tonight I'm going to finish researching public transportation to the places we want to see. Then it's just a matter of enjoying ourselves. I am confident that we can do that.
I. and I snuck our cards into V.'s suitcase on Sunday before he left so he'd have them for the actual day. There was a "miscommunication" of sorts. Actually it was less of a miscommunication than just a little bit of wishful thinking and a whole lot of not listening on V.'s part. No, it didn't turn into a huge, pouting deal like it would have been 15 years ago or even 5 years ago but still, ya know it was Valentine's Day. I specifically told V. he was off the hook for flowers this year since we are leaving tomorrow for San Fran but that he was still on the hook for a card at least. That's where the selective hearing came in and what he heard was "You're off the hook for Valentine's Day this year." So there was no card from him AND he didn't take I. to get a card or have her make me a card either. So this baby mama got nada. This all came to light at the end of last night's phone call when I asked, "Did you find our cards?" and he said, "Yes, I thought we weren't getting cards for each other." That's when I clarified exactly what I said since he didn't bother listening to the entire 8 word sentence. So he was sputtering that he figure out something and I felt like saying, "Dude, the day is OVER." but I just let him sputter because I felt like he at the very least deserved that. It also didn't help that I went to the grocery store to get myself something special for dinner (i.e. an artichoke) and as I stood there in the long lines (why did I go to the grocery store on Valentine's Day!), I was surrounded by men with floweres, balloons, cards, steaks and lobster tails trying to make sure they were sufficiently covered for the day.
Next topic is packing for San Fran which must take place today. I.'s shouldn't be bad at all. It's mine that is going to be filled with angst I think. Why? Because my midsection is changing daily, actually hourly. Pants that "fit" yesterday may fit this morning and they might not. Pants that fit on Wednesday may not fit by our last day, Monday. On top of that, I have a very limited selection, I mean, very limited. It's going to be raining up there and cold for at least the first three days so it would be nice to be able to choose among pants that will give me the most protection from the rain. At this point, it's looking like I'll be lucky to even have a pair of pants in the suitcase let alone on my body. It's just that awkward time of too big for normal pants (for the most part) and too small for maternity pants. So this will make for a fun time packing.
Packing aside, I'm excited for our adventure beginning tomorrow morning. The apartment in Nob Hill is lined up and tonight I'm going to finish researching public transportation to the places we want to see. Then it's just a matter of enjoying ourselves. I am confident that we can do that.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
"Normal" Family Morning
This morning was an odd morning in that we almost appeared like a normal family. V. got home after midnight last night and actually was still asleep when we tottered downstairs at 7. As I. watched her show and I read the papers, he got ready for his workday and then he and I. ate breakfast together as she talked his ear off. As I cooked my breakfast nearby in the kitchen, I thought, "This is what many families do every morning." I bet they don't even realize how lucky they are but maybe after reading this, they will appreciate it more.
I brought up our upcoming San Francisco adventure because I've been waking up in the middle of the night worrying about the hotel arrangements. Because V. will be up there for work, his hotel arrangements are made by an executive assistant up there and I know she has not been told that we are going to need adjoining rooms ,and for when. Being that that weekend is Chinese New Year, I'm concerned. So I mention all of this to V. and he says that he saw the flight arrangements that I made and "you guys are coming up on a Wed. and leaving on a Mon? You didn't think that through very well." I asked him when he thought we were flying up and back but he wouldn't elaborate. I said that I, in fact, had been thinking this trip through every night for about a month so I definitely thought things through. He forgets (how after 5 years he doesn't remember) that I. goes to bed at 4pm which means we aren't going to be able to fit in a whole bunch of things every day, which is fine with me. I don't want a hectic pace to things. Wednesday and Monday are travel days and I figured a couple of days of her and I doing things V. wouldn't particularly want to do and two days to do things together. Sounds reasonable, right? If anyone didn't think things through very well, it was V., which I think he realized.
I think it came down for him to a money thing. Maybe I need to start spending more money or something because I think he's gotten too used to me not spending money so when I do, he reacts with fear and trepidation. He said, "I thought the point of the trip was to take advantage of frequent flyer miles and free hotel nights." Well, we are using the free hotel nights, that is if he actually communicates with the secretary and gets it taken care of. The frequent flyer miles? Well, we talked about it and the cost was so low that he said to go ahead and buy instead of using the miles. So I did.
I reminded him that the point of the trip which I stated well ahead of time, was to fit in one last adventure of just I. and I and then I. and V. and I. We have the free week in Palm Desert but that's not an "adventure". I reminded him that on a normal basis, we don't buy her clothes, shoes, toys, DVDs, etc. We save those purchases for her birthday and Christmas, knowing that my mom will fill in the clothing blanks in between. I would rather save that money and give I. experiences that she will enjoy and more importantly will remember. Like the Disney on Ice, a movie here and there, a trip to San Francisco - stuff like that. I'm aware of the ticking down of the time when it's just I. and I during the day. Even when the baby isn't here but is common knowledge, it'll change things. For now, I want to just savor and enjoy these last weeks.
This morning, after I drop off I. at school, I'm picking V. up at work so that we can head to the OB/GYN for my 3 month appointment. We'll find out results from the blood tests last week and hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. I just pray everything is going well with our little whats-it, the littlest of all Valdezes and that the pitter patter sound of its heartbeat stirs the well of warmth and love in both of our hearts.
I brought up our upcoming San Francisco adventure because I've been waking up in the middle of the night worrying about the hotel arrangements. Because V. will be up there for work, his hotel arrangements are made by an executive assistant up there and I know she has not been told that we are going to need adjoining rooms ,and for when. Being that that weekend is Chinese New Year, I'm concerned. So I mention all of this to V. and he says that he saw the flight arrangements that I made and "you guys are coming up on a Wed. and leaving on a Mon? You didn't think that through very well." I asked him when he thought we were flying up and back but he wouldn't elaborate. I said that I, in fact, had been thinking this trip through every night for about a month so I definitely thought things through. He forgets (how after 5 years he doesn't remember) that I. goes to bed at 4pm which means we aren't going to be able to fit in a whole bunch of things every day, which is fine with me. I don't want a hectic pace to things. Wednesday and Monday are travel days and I figured a couple of days of her and I doing things V. wouldn't particularly want to do and two days to do things together. Sounds reasonable, right? If anyone didn't think things through very well, it was V., which I think he realized.
I think it came down for him to a money thing. Maybe I need to start spending more money or something because I think he's gotten too used to me not spending money so when I do, he reacts with fear and trepidation. He said, "I thought the point of the trip was to take advantage of frequent flyer miles and free hotel nights." Well, we are using the free hotel nights, that is if he actually communicates with the secretary and gets it taken care of. The frequent flyer miles? Well, we talked about it and the cost was so low that he said to go ahead and buy instead of using the miles. So I did.
I reminded him that the point of the trip which I stated well ahead of time, was to fit in one last adventure of just I. and I and then I. and V. and I. We have the free week in Palm Desert but that's not an "adventure". I reminded him that on a normal basis, we don't buy her clothes, shoes, toys, DVDs, etc. We save those purchases for her birthday and Christmas, knowing that my mom will fill in the clothing blanks in between. I would rather save that money and give I. experiences that she will enjoy and more importantly will remember. Like the Disney on Ice, a movie here and there, a trip to San Francisco - stuff like that. I'm aware of the ticking down of the time when it's just I. and I during the day. Even when the baby isn't here but is common knowledge, it'll change things. For now, I want to just savor and enjoy these last weeks.
This morning, after I drop off I. at school, I'm picking V. up at work so that we can head to the OB/GYN for my 3 month appointment. We'll find out results from the blood tests last week and hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. I just pray everything is going well with our little whats-it, the littlest of all Valdezes and that the pitter patter sound of its heartbeat stirs the well of warmth and love in both of our hearts.
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