Being thankful

I'm going to rely on an email forward for today's post... and then I'm going to go and try to quick clean the house while the girls finish napping! =)

Adam and I have really been blessed with so much. While we sometimes probably take it for granted, we really try not to. Reminders are, of course, always good too though!


Even though I clutch my blanket and growl when the alarm rings. Thank you, Lord, that I can hear. There are many who are deaf.

Even though I keep my eyes closed against the morning light as long as possible. Thank you, Lord, that I can see. Many are blind.

Even though I huddle in my bed and put off rising. Thank you, Lord, that I have the strength to rise. There are many who are bedridden.

Even though the first hour of my day is hectic, when socks are lost, toast is burned, tempers are short, and my children are so loud. Thank you, Lord, for my family. There are many who are lonely.

Even though our breakfast table never looks like the picture in magazines and the menu is at times unbalanced.Thank you, Lord, for the food we have. There are many who are hungry.

Even though I grumble and bemoan my fate from day to day and wish my circumstances were not so modest.Thank you, Lord, for life.

A night out

Two weeks ago, Adam and I went out on a date – dinner and a movie – just the two of us. I should mention that up to this point, in Addy’s 22.5 months, we had been childless for a total of 13 hours (2.5 of which were the hours in the hospital before Kennedy was born). So, this was a pretty big thing.

The kids stayed at home with the sitter and watched The Little Mermaid. We had dinner at Outback Steakhouse, where we actually managed to keep our conversation relatively kid-free (oh, there was some kid conversation… but it wasn’t all), and then we went to see The Mysterious Case of Benjamin Button. Weird movie. A little long and not the best thing to see the first night without the kids, I’d say – but a movie nonetheless. We got some coffee (hot chocolate for me) on the way home (gotta love those 24 hour Starbucks drive-throughs) and were home 15 minutes early.

It was a fun night. And it’s something that we need to do more often. Once a month would probably be better than once every two years. But we both missed the girls. I can’t speak for Adam, but I missed them more than I thought that I would. I was so excited to get home to see their beautiful sleeping faces.

Kennedy was out – oblivious to the changes in the evening I think. Addy had woken up just as we pulled into the garage, but was back in dreamland by the time that we checked on her a few minutes later. However, as we were getting ready to turn in for the evening Addy roused again. After we each went into her separately and snuggled a little, she still seemed a little uneasy. Just a little unsettled.

So, in quite a departure from the norm, I took her into our room and the three of us snuggled on our bed and read a few books. Addy, more settled after that, went back to her room for the rest of her night of beauty sleep.

It was the best 20 minutes though and a good ending to the evening. Adam, as he saw me bring her into our room, said to Addy “this is for us too.” He was right. It did us all some good I think.

We’re planning on some more nights out in the near future and I'm excited about them, but I think that it would be ok if they all ended like that one did - just our little family of four (or four minus one if Kennedy is out like she was this first time) reading in the big bed past bedtime. =)

Stuff

“A place for everything and everything in its place.” Yep – that’s how I used to live my life.

And then we had kids.

Kids come with a lot of stuff. The amount of stuff that we have in our house doubled when Addy came into our lives and tripled with Kennedy. Ok, maybe I’m exaggerating a little. But just a little. (And here I was so super excited that having a second girl meant that we wouldn’t need anything more than what we already had.)

I’m not really sure why it’s this way. I’ve been assured that my favorite toys were measuring cups out of the kitchen drawers. My Mom tells me that the day before my parents brought me home from the hospital, my Dad went to the store to buy diapers, blankets and a couple outfits for me – that’s all. I have friends who slept in dresser drawers as babies because their parents didn’t have cribs. Hardly ‘stuff magnets’ there.

But that doesn't seem to be the way it is anymore – we’re not alone with our piles of stuff. Though we’re far far far from the most kid-accessory-stuffed houses (believe me, I know).

So anyway, the days of places for everything in our house are probably gone (at least for a little while) – and even if there were places for everything, Addy might very well see to move things right after they had been placed. So it goes.

We’ve been in a state of upheaval the past week as we move a couple rooms around in our house and along with that we’ve been finding things that we don’t really have homes for and even more so, we’re finding things that we don’t need. (We’re even finding some things that we had forgotten we had – gulp!). So we’re taking this opportunity to de-stuff our house. Salvation Army made a large pick up this morning and the trash at the curb is overflowing as well. That was already a goal for this year – clean up and clean out. So I guess it’s all fitting in with our grand plan.

The things that we’re cleaning out now are all pre-kid. And though we’re getting close to being able to move some of the larger baby things out of our house (the swing, the activity center), we’re not really quite there yet. We moved some of the baby toys out of our storage closet last night for the last time though, because once Kennedy is done with them, they will be going to another home where they will be loved space-taker-uppers for another kid and another family. Yes it’s exciting for Kennedy to get to use them. But I’d be lying if I said that (on some level at least) I’m not excited about getting rid of them too. (And yes, I realize I say all this with a wish list on amazon.com for the girls that has many many more items on it than they will ever need. The brain is not always a rational thing.) =)

Anyway, with the ‘clean up, clean out’ thought in mind, I headed to the playroom last night after the house was quiet thinking that there might be some smaller things that I could add to the Goodwill pile. Things that Addy doesn’t play with – things that Kennedy would never miss. I walked into the playroom that had just recently been picked up (there are things without places though) and it was then that I realized that, it’s full of stuff, but it’s also full of laughter, smiles and squeals of delight. The toys will, of course, come and go and they’re definitely not what make the memories, but right now – they’re the flotsam and jetsam of childhood. Of our little baby girls, who, though may always be our baby girls in our hearts, won’t be babies once we blink.

I’m not a Mom who wants to keep our kids babies. I’m a cheerleader when Addison and Kennedy do things that show that they are growing and learning – I love those moments. Of course, I will always cherish their baby moments and will always remember the way that they felt in my arms as they came into this world, but I’m also very excited to see them come into their own and leave their imprints on the world.

But they don’t have to grow up too quickly either. So the play room stayed as it was last night. Awaiting more laughs, smiles and squeals.

We’ll leave cleaning out for another day.

That was back then...

Once upon a time, I said that I wasn't going to make this a 'Mommy-blog' - only full of things about my, then only, child. I've since changed my mind a bit. One of my New Years Resolutions was/is to keep a more detailed history of the events of Addison and Kennedy... and I think that using my blog might be a great way to do that.

So anyway, I'm just offering this a fair warning - this may become kiddo central, full of the goings-on of the two little amazing girls that have completely stolen my heart. =)

Nighttime worries

Though my car radio, for the most part, has been taken over by Edward the Tap-Dancing Elephant and Winnie the Pooh songs, I did actually manage to listen to a little NPR the other night. And the weirdist thing happened - Adam and I were on the radio (you can hear it here - it's about 9:17 in). Ok, it wasn't really us, but it might as well have been.

M: "I can't hear Addy and Kennedy."
A: "They're sleeping."
M: "Do you think they're ok?"
A: "Yes."
M: "Are you sure?"
A: "Yes."
M: "How can you know?"
A: "Didn't you just check on them 15 minutes ago?"
M: "Yes."
A: "Were they ok then?"
M: "Yes."
A: "Well then they're ok."
M: "Ok..."
A: (rolling over and turing off the light) "Goodnight."
M: "You know, I think I'm going to go check once more..." (leaving bed)

So, this isn't a conversation that we have every night, but we probably have some varation of it once a week or so. Are they too warm? Too cold? Sleeping too long? Not long enough? Eating enough? Too much? I'm good at worrying when it comes to the girls. Try as I might to keep it from happening, it happens. Thank goodness Adam is more common sensical about these situations (not to mention patient enough to put up with me!).

Maybe some day, I'll get over the worrying part of motherhood...

or maybe not. But it's nice to know that I'm not alone.

Resolutions

So, I guess I'm kind of late to the ballgame here, but I have finally made my New Years' Resolutions. Yep - plural. Adam jokingly told me that I'm the only person he knows with a sub-bulleted list of resolutions. Whatever. =) It's really not that bad.

But I'm struck at how many of my resolutions (which I really prefer to call goals) are about Addison and Kennedy. I never really realized how much better I would try to make my life because of having kids. Setting a good example, being the change - and all that.

Politics, changing weather patterns, crime rates, car safety ratings, medical advances... all of these things have become more important to me since February 2007. It's crazy really.

It's safe to say that I always knew having kids would change our lives in many ways, but I wasn't aware of just how absolutely everything would be changed...

You know, because of the two little girls who are, as I type this, sleeping across the hall from me, I now even eat my veggies (that was on last year's resolution list).

Patience

According to dictionary.com, the definiton of patience is:
an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay

My definition is:
singing songs, talking about chocolate chips (rewards), doing finger puppet theater, reading books and looking at pictures while your toddler is on the potty, only to have her stand up after an hour and declare that she would like a diaper (which she then promptly uses).

Ah well - it's a work in progress. =)

Back to normal...

...whatever that is! =)

Between Kennedy's birth, visiting houseguests, traveling for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, and Adam being home quite a bit since October (which is super wonderful - but far from typical), I'm not sure that we really know what 'normal' life with two kids is like yet... even three months after Kennedy's birthday.

I really don't have much more to say than that. I just found it to be interesting. We're getting there now - to normal, I mean. If there really is a 'normal' with kids. It seems to be ever changing. Of course that's a lot of the fun too though.

Anyway, if you've got kids and a handle on normal, please let me know. Maybe I'm expecting the impossible! =)

Marin Morrison

Some readers will remember Marin - one of the Wish Kids that I was so fortunate to meet a couple years ago. She passed away on Friday morning...

I didn't know her well, but I felt (and feel) very touched by her, her family and her story. (See the video below for a great introduction).

I have written a letter to her parents, Matt and Nancy. It doesn't really begin to scratch the surface of my feelings, but it's something I guess.

Dear Family of Marin –

I’m sure that this will be one letter of hundreds (or possibly thousands) that you receive but I thought it still necessary to send.

I know that we didn’t know each other well, and I hope that it’s ok that I contact you now… Make A Wish volunteers are strongly encouraged to ‘fade away’ after a wish is complete for a Wish Kid. But after getting to know Marin and your family in person and through Marin’s site, I just felt I had to let you know how much your sweet daughter, and indeed your entire family, touched my life.

I have kept up-to-date with your family since Marin’s wish though marinlove.com. (And while you were on your Wish Trip, I read all of the back entries on it too.) It was, and continues to be, an amazing testament to Marin’s life, and also to your family as well.

Your strength, your resilience, your optimism, and your love poured through your posts. It’s easy to see where Marin got her outlook on life and on cancer too. You talk about Marin’s strength. Please know that she had to have gotten it from you.

I have been blessed with two beautiful daughters since working on Marin’s wish and I hope that my husband and I are raising them to be like your Marin – graceful, strong and determined. It is through my kids (and so so many others) that Marin’s spirit can live on. I know that her spirit is with you, but I just wanted you to know that her spirit is in many other places too.

Thank you for allowing me to have a chance, however so brief, to know Marin and know your beautiful family. And as your Angel walks the streets of Heaven, please know that Marin will always live on in my heart. My deepest sympathies and condolences to you.

Sincerely,
Melanie Smith
Make-A-Wish Volunteer

Marin Morrison

Hug your kids just a little longer and tighter tonight (and every night). I know that I will.

Driver's licence expiration of six days after due date equals...

...five more years of fat face. Ick.

(Yes - I know that it's worth it. But at 38 weeks along, I feel I'm within my rights to complain a little about it!) =)

It all started with a few shelves…

...well, actually it probably started before that, with the news that we were expecting a second child. I went into full nesting mode… and then three or four weeks ago, it got even worse…

We had been talking about the new nursery and decided to get started on setting it up. We had a crib and a changing table/dresser – still in the boxes and a green room that needed to be turned pink. The room currently still contained an old desk and a closet full of photo albums and other miscellaneous stuff that needed to find new homes. It seemed a rather daunting task, so we started trying to figure out what to tackle first. Off to Lowe’s we went – with fabric swatches to be paint matched (which was the fun part) and with measurements for shelves for four rooms (after all, if we were going to get one room organized, we might as well go ‘whole hog’). Of course, the shelves weren’t really the fun part – being artistic is way more fun than finding studs, measuring, and then moving and re-organizing. But, it all had to be done.

So, after a very fruitful Lowe’s run, we pulled in the driveway with shelves for four rooms (I think that we had 17 shelves plus another shelving unit), 2.5 gallons of paint, organizational stuff for Addy’s and Newbie’s rooms, anchors for attaching furniture to walls, hooks, and things that I’m forgetting, I’m sure. The car was full!

And then, we started to work too. Adam started putting shelves in our closet for all of our pictures and I started putting shelves in Addy’s room. Adam’s shelves worked like a dream (they were the white wire closet shelving) and we were excited about them (yes, actually excited). However, the shelves that I started were a little less exciting. Though they were prettier, they had an incredibly bad design flaw – they didn’t actually work as shelves. Using all of the anchors and screws provided, they leaned away from the wall. But, convincing myself that they were supposed to look the way that they did, I put some books on the shelves (less than the 15 pound weight limit) and went about my business. I wasn’t completely sold on the shelves, but decided to try them out for a couple days before I made a final call. I put Addy down for a nap and continued on nesting.

BANG, BOOM, BANG, BANG. I looked in on Addy – nothing was stirring in her room. I checked the door, thinking that maybe someone was knocking. I couldn’t figure out what it was. Not being able to figure out what the noise was, but convinced that everything was ok, I went back to other things. Then, BANG, BOOM, BOOM, BANG. I repeated everything from before… and still couldn’t figure it all out. Then, Addy woke up… crying and a little startled. When I went into her room, I saw what all of the commotion had been. The shelves had failed. Never mind the four anchors for each shelf – each holding only 10 pounds.

Frustrated at the need to not only redo it all, but also at the need to figure out something else for the books, I stopped worrying about the shelves for that day.

The next day, though, I was thinking about it again. We had seven shelves that we had to set up the same way – and I was less and less convinced that they would actually hold weight. But, I was determined to make it work. Off to Home Depot, Addy and I went – we bought L-brackets – really intended for framing, but I was determined to get these shelves to work. Four anchors in each L-bracket, and two L-brackets to each shelf – these shelves were not going to fall again.

We got home and I set to work - only to find that because of the way that the shelves were designed, the L-brackets were pretty much useless. The shelves leaned further away from the wall, and while I was sure that the books wouldn’t fall, it all looked rather precarious.

Frustrated with shelves in general, I gave up for another day. And went to Target the next. At this point, I was sure that the remaining shelves (that were yet to be hung) and the ones in Addy’s room were going back to Lowes. Not knowing what I was looking for and not knowing how Target’s shelves would be different, I went in looking the solution to leap into my cart.

Enter in the wondrous invention of the ottoman.

Yep – you read that right.

I stood there in the aisle looking at the ottoman that was $20 off, knowing that it was a sign. Yes – that could go in the playroom for books. Oh and the two smaller ones – those could go in the girls’ rooms, also for books. Oh and then there were two little knick-knack shelves for other random things – in the two different woods that are in Addy’s and Newbie’s rooms. Oh and then there small chairs – perfect to make two reading corners in the two rooms and pillows for the playroom reading corner. AND all of these things were just a few more dollars than the shelves themselves. But we were gaining so much more than just shelves on a few walls. AND, the ottomans, being at ground level made it possible for Addy (and eventually Newbie) get books on their own and put them away on their own too.

So began another adventure. Finding a way to make all of this fit in the Target cart (yes, I know that I could have made more than one trip, but where’s the fun in that?). So I loaded the big ottoman into the big part of the cart, put a smaller one on top of it, put the other small ottoman not on, but across Addy in the riding part of the cart, put the chairs on the bottom and pushed the other items in around the ottomans. We must have looked quite a site – the 17 month old Addy and 6.5 month pregnant me – going through the store to the checkout. And then we probably made even more of a spectacle as I stopped outside the car (the refuge after navigating a cart that I couldn’t see to push), and took some pictures of Addy – buried in furniture. But oh well. It’s a fun story – and it all took place at Target. It also made me a happy Mommy with a way to continue nesting…

And I’m pretty sure that it makes me a wacky individual to be so excited about this. But I am.

Our cart!

We're back

After a week away, we're 'back home againnn in Washingtonnn'. (I guess that probably makes more sense if you know the "Back Home Again in Indiana" song... of course, it also might make more sense if we actually lived in Indiana too.) =)

Anyway, Adam had a conference in Florida last week, so Addy and I decided to go and see Grandpa and Grandma Johnston in Pueblo during that time. This actually worked perfectly, as Jackie (one of my best friends from childhood) had just had a baby the week before, so we got to love on little Baby Brandon too while we were home. We also got to see quite a bit of family as some members of the Johnston side were in town for a get-together as well. We had so much fun!

With only minor scrapes at the airport (and really nothing to complain about at all), we all arrived at our destinations and then, back home again complete. Adam had been able to go through security with us in Seattle, as our planes departed at about the same time (which was super cool), but in Denver, Addy and I learned how to go through security with each just other, a car seat, a stroller that had to be folded and put through the X-ray , a diaper bag, shoes and belt (that both had to be taken off), gels and liquids (in their plastic bag), etc. Addy even charmed the gate agent into letting us use her car seat (in an empty seat on the plane) on the ride home - which made the trip better for both of us. Adam made his 30 minute connection in Houston on the way to his conference and then found out that it is possible to fly without a photo id on the way home after losing his wallet somewhere in Orlando. Then he had to wait for Addy and me an extra couple hours at the airport, as our plane was delayed by that much. However, we were just thankful that after the United decision to cancel several flights while we were away, we still had a plane to get on! We arrived home with an excited-to-see-Dad Addy and of course an-excited-to-see-each-other hubby and wife too. After some good sleep on all our parts, we're now officially home and back into the swing of things. So, all-in-all, I'd say it was a successful trip for all of us. We all had fun while we were away! And now we're home. =)

I'll post more pictures of our adventures in the coming days on Addy's blog. (Oh, and something super exciting that came from the comfort of home - Addy's pacifier is no more! We had heard that taking it away after a trip was a good time to do it, so we did - and (fingers crossed that this continues) with only a little crying the first couple naps and the first night. I never knew how exciting something like this could be... but I'm sure that there are other Moms out there that understand!).

Anyway, now that the computer is back to normal and we're back to normal, I hope that blog posts will be back on a normal schedule too. We'll see. =) So, until next time...

We're back up and running!

Can you hear the angels sing? I can!!!

Our night, last night:
6:22pm - computer arrival at Smith House via DHL
7:04pm - Adam's arrival home from work
7:09pm - computer taken out of box and 're-construction' started
7:14pm - files start copying from old defunct computer to new and shiny machine
9:35pm - essential functions of computer up and running

Adam is amazing! =)

Final guesses!

So, today we have our 20 week ultrasound!! If you have a guess as to if we'll be buying pink or blue, please post it in the comments! I'll, of course, report back later tonight! =)

UPDATE:
More pink for the Smith household - it's a girl!! We're super excited and can't wait to meet our second amazing daughter!

Life and death

It's such a weird phenomenon - going from something to nothing in an instant. I've spent the last couple days thinking about someone that I didn't know extremely well... asking questions about a Grander Plan and freak occurrences in this thing that we call life.

I went to high school with Kim - we weren't friends, but we were more than acquaintances. Though we weren't related, we actually had a couple family members in common and sometimes we would talk about those people that we knew. We were in the same choir and during the time that I was on the diving team, she was on the swimming team. But there was nothing really out of the ordinary about us - we walked the same halls and we shared some of the same experiences that you share with anyone that goes to the same school at the same time, but that was about it.

Because of our familial relationship, I had the chance to keep up on her life after graduation a little more than I did with some people. Just recently, I had started reading her blog (blogs being one of those things that keep people who normally wouldn't have kept in touch in each other's lives - if even just in a voyeuristic way). She had made some enormous changes in her life since high school. She had recently lost quite a bit of weight, gotten married, and was starting her own business. It sounded as if she were somewhat unsettled in her 'role in life', as many of us twenty-somethings are at times and it was interesting to read about her daily thoughts, struggles and accomplishments. I never posted on her blog - I doubt that she knew that I read it. But I still kept up with her from post to post.

On Friday night, she and her husband - on their way to meet family in Kansas - were killed by a tornado. From the articles that I've read, they stopped along the side of the road to wait out some hard rain that they had encountered a little before 11pm. They stopped in the wrong spot. A few minutes later, a powerful tornado swept up their car and threw it 150 yards from the road. You can read about the story here, here and here.

When something like this happens, I think that it's pretty natural to evaluate your own life. I've been struck by the thought that they (both close to my own age) were too young to die. Of course, this is a dumb thought - as there's no 'coming of age' for death. Still though, the whole thing seems unfair.

We live in an uncertain world - full of risks and dangers, which are sometimes completely unknown. A higher power, destiny, fate - (whatever your beliefs and whatever you call it) controls the things that we can't. I've mentioned before that I do try to put faith in a Grander Plan... and though it's impossible to do at times, it can bring comfort at others.

My thoughts and prayers are with Kim's and Gary's families and friends. I can't imagine how I would react to something like that happening to a close loved one of mine. I'm pretty sure that I would be inconsolable. I hope that they can find peace in their minds and hearts - someway. I take comfort in the fact that Kim and Gary were together when it happened... and I hope, for their sakes, that the ordeal was quick, painless, and fear-free. I choose to think that it was.

As for the questions that I've been pondering the past couple days, I'm nowhere closer to answers. But, I do know that I'm taking time to hug more often and a little more tightly. It's a small thing to take from something so tragic, but it's something.

Our computer died...

...and while we wait for another one, we've gone a little incommunicado. So, I thought that I would post to let all know that things are well here (we've been asked by a couple of people if everything is ok). Yes, we're fine, we're just without our main computer...

It's amazing how much we do sitting there in front of that screen. Anyway, we should be back up and fully functional sometime next week - we're just waiting on DHL now.

In the meantime, I've posted some pictures of Addy here. Happy Friday!!

Procrastination

I have a 'to-do list' of things to do before the baby comes that is a mile long. I've had this list since Addy was about 3 months old. Everytime I sit down at the computer, this list stares me in the face. I always think: "I need to get started on that", but once I get up from the computer, out of sight becomes out of mind. Every night after Addy goes to bed for the night, I think about my list again - and then think: "Oh, I'll start tomorrow". Tomorrow never comes - at least for the things on that list.

So, as of today, I'm making a schedule. I'm going to put my list into a calendar - and the things on it are going to start getting checked off. I think that this should work - I did the same thing when I was pregnant with Addy and things really got accomplished. I painted (with doctor approval), I cleaned, I painted, I spruced up, I painted, I re-touched, I organized... oh, did I mention, I painted? =) (I should mention that Adam did things on this list too, though I really did try to keep the list as 'my burden'.)

So, today's the day. I'm going to get started. Hopefully I'll have progress to report every once in a while too. =) So now, I guess I need to stop procrastinating by writing about getting started, and actually get started. Off I go...

One of those weeks...

Have you ever had one of those weeks where you simply start out behind? I'm having one of those this week. I've tried catching up... and it's just not working, so I'm just going to accept it. That's so much easier said than done. But ah well. It's fine, I guess.

I'll just count my blessings, enjoy the kiddo and the sunshine, and keep on keepin' on. It's usually these weeks that put life into perspective a little too.

I guess they're not all bad.

The things you learn

We were in Disney World this past week. It was a ton of fun and Addy got to see Mickey for the first time.

But we learned some things along the way, as you do anytime that you do something new, I suppose, so I thought that I would share the Top 5 things that we learned when traveling with an infant/toddler.

1. You can never have too many grapes, raisins, pretzels, strawberries, Goldfish, fruit snacks, Cheerios, fruit cups, water, etc... Here we did ok. I thought that we were taking way too much food for Addy (though I still did pack it all), but we actually ended up running out on the last day of the trip. She ate like a champ while we were there (eating all of the above and eating well at meals too) - something that we attribute to the fact that she didn't really ever want to sleep. Because there was always something going on (even in our quiet hotel room, I guess), she fought to keep her eyes open. (Which is another thing to know too - being away is much more exciting than being at home - and kids (at least our kid) didn't want to miss any of the excitement). So anyway - if it seems like too much food, it's probably not.

2. A pacifier strip that attaches the pacifier to the child's clothing is a necessity. We learned this one the hard way. Addy only uses her pacifier at nap times and at bedtime, but we wanted it available to her on the plane (one, because we hoped that she would sleep for some of the 6+ hour ride, and two because we wanted her to be able to alleviate ear pressure problems by sucking on it), but she decided that she really didn't want it some of the time and because of that we had to ask the man behind us to retrieve it more than once. We really did try to make sure that she didn't fling it, but those quick little hands are simply too quick at times!

3. It's wise to put the "I won't allow..." in your back pocket. Though Addy was really well behaved for the trip - even as tired as she had to have been - we had a couple rough patches on the plane coming home. Adam and I don't give into Addy's crying when she's crying just because she wants something that she can't have. However, when you're 34,000 feet above the earth in a cramped and tiny space that you're sharing with 165 other cramped quiet people and holding a loudly crying baby, you begin to rethink some things pretty quickly. Addy, a couple times, got to continue playing with something (i.e. Mom's keys) even after putting them in her mouth numerous times - (which doesn't happen on solid earth). But I think that that one leniency was worth it - for all involved in the situation.

4. If you would like to arrive at your destination without a black eye, a fat lip and missing hair, you might consider buying your child a seat on the plane. Until age two, children can travel without a seat. At about age one, the saved money may not be worth it. We've traveled with Addy as a 'lap infant' on three other trips (which means six other flights) before with relatively little hassle. But now she wants to explore and squiggle and touch things. These are all skills that we're happy that she's developing, but on a plane it doesn't always work so well. For three hours on the way home, we all struggled. Adam had half a seat because Addy and I were trying to get settled in a place where she couldn't grab things that she shouldn't have and didn't kick the seat in front of us. It was an on-going battle. Toys were no longer interesting and everything on the plane was. She wanted to flail and play with (read: pull as hard as possible) my hair, take my glasses off my face and stick her fingers in my mouth. Even though we had kept her awake before the flight and had let her loose in the airport to burn energy, she was still something of a Wild Child on the plane. You wouldn't think that someone so little could cause pain, but there's quite a bit of punch in those little fingers and hands.

5. And the last thing that we learned is those first 10 (maybe even 20) minutes of a child's sleep are super deep - and almost nothing can cause awake-ness. Addy did finally fall asleep about 3.5 hours after take off. All was well, we were flying along and then BANG, DROP, RATTLE etc., we hit terrible and very unexpected turbulence. We rocked and rolled for about 5 minutes in the worst turbulence that I've ever been in. The flight attendants told people that were up (like I said, it was very unexpected) to sit in any seat that they could find and told people who couldn't find seats to sit on the floor and hold on to the seat next to them. I was panicked - and even though Adam was trying to calm me, I thought that our numbers may have been called. I squeezed Addy tightly as my seatbelt caught me and held me to the seat numerous times. But through all of the jostling and even my squeezing (I was sure that some of her organs had to have been moved around as tightly as I held her), Addy slept. She awoke only after it was over when I responded to someone's question about Addy sleeping through it all - and even then, she quickly drifted back to sleep.

We learned a lot more about traveling with a kid, but these were the top things. I'm sure that our learning is just beginning. It was a great trip and Addy proved what a good, adaptable and interested kid she is. We enjoyed spending so much fun time with her, and I think that she enjoyed the fun time with us too. It was a worthwhile trip for all of us, I think, and, I can say with the knowledge gained on this trip, we'll be even better prepared for the next one (trip, that is - I'm sure that Newbie will teach us a whole new set of rules to traveling with kids).

Random thoughts...

...in picture form this week.

I love Photostory! This video is a little long, but I had a ton of fun making it for Adam and Addy - what a trip down memory lane. It's just a bunch of pictures (but with a cool soundtrack too!), so if you like that sort of thing, play on! =)