Watch Out Target .... Here We Come!!

It is official! The United States will never be the same again ... or should I say the states of District of Columbia and Virginia. That's right folks, our little family has purchased our flight tickets. I am in the process of getting together our passport information to get those expedited now that I know my exact travel dates (if you can show proof of airline ticket purchase, for an extra $10 per passport, you can have them expedited within five weeks instead of the projected 10 week wait).

And have you seen the exchange rate on our dollar? How exciting is that? I can remember the days that we would go shopping in Spokane and our dollar was worth .95 cents .... ahem ... perhaps I am dating myself here. Yes folks, those times were the late 70's and early 80's. I am off to the bank today to exchange some moola seeing as it is par for if I waited until closer to our travel date, then you know that we will fall back down to the .64 cent range. I haven't had the chance for about five years to do some shopping in the United States so I am super excited. And my first stop will be Target. Yes, many people may be groaning out loud at that but it is truly one of my favourite places to shop on earth. Hubby has already been forewarned and it was definitely a negotiated point on the trip itinerary; he goes to a NBA game and I get to shop at Target. It is a deal made from heaven really.

I am also looking for some suggestions for places that we must go and see. So far, we have the sporting outlets covered: NFL, NHL and NBA. Those are all a done deal. I want to do some sight seeing so the Smithsonian and Monument are on the top of my list. Where should I go??? And, I am thinking because we are heading down there for the beginning of December, everywhere will likely be decorated beautifully for Christmas; my favourite time of year.

Lastly, how far are some of you from DC? I have a girlfriend driving up from NC for a day and my hubby is really encouraging me to take an overnight trip somewhere to have some girly time for myself. How far is NYC? Any suggestions??

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

It's a Bird! ..... It's a Plane! ....

It's .... Super Kaelen!

A New Perspective

Fortified with two cups of coffee and armed with five consecutive hours of sleep, making it a total of six hours of sleep; I feel like a new Mommy today. It is amazing the wonders of sleep and what it can do for one's piece of mind.

Thank you for all of the tremendous support for my whining rant yesterday. You know, it is funny; I have never met about 90% of you yet there are days that I feel so close to you all. Knowing that you too are all mommies and can all relate is truly so very comforting. I am truly grateful for you all.

So how are the kiddies today? Well Kaelen is fine - just dealing with the tail end of a snotty cold. Masyn on the other hand isn't getting much better. The fever is still there and is starting to be accompanied by a lot of pulling of her left ear. As a precaution, I was able to get her into my family doctor this morning. I don't want to find out that I ignored an ear infection that was the root cause of all of this. Deep down I am pretty sure that it is just a nasty cold but I can never be too cautious when it comes to my children. So, signing off for now but will be back later on today to visit all of your sites and to post again on how my little girl is doing.

Help. Need. Sleep. Badly.

Feeling like death warmed over, this Mommy is waving the white flag. I surrender. I need help.

These past two days have been really difficult. It started out first with Kaelen getting sick and it has now transferred to Masyn. Masyn slept all of three hours last night. The remaining nine of those hours she cried; not a whimper cry but a full blown tantrum cry. The back arching, puke inducing, get your throat raw kind of cry. And, absolutely NOTHING I did was able to console her into a relaxed state. Meanwhile, luckily, Kaelen slept like the dead for he was the one performing the night before.

So, my tank is getting darned close to running on fumes. I have been trying to figure out a way to get caffeine injected into my veins to help keep me going as I have had a total of five hours of sleep in the last 48+ hours. To add to my pity party, I am tired of the newest fragrance that can be scented on me: Eau de Barf, or the luminescent marks on my clothes and upper body of snot and wait: yes, I am pretty sure that I am now coming down with the Plague. My chest feels like there is at least a 100 pound weight on it and my throat is starting to get raw. Nice. Did I mention the copious amounts of laundry that come with all of that barf and snot?

Wait, I am sure that all of you know as you have all been through this many times before. I honestly don't know how you all do it; dealing with one sick child is tough but more than one at the same time is just plain draining. How do you manage to comfort both kids when they need and want you? Kudos to you all: you have my heartfelt admiration. I just plain suck really. I am ashamed to say that I almost broke last night. At one point of Masyn's ongoing cry fest, I caught myself getting mad at her. Why, I kept asking myself. Why get mad at her when all of this isn't her fault. She is the one that feels like crap and yet there I was feeling sorry for myself because I was tired and irritated. I can't imagine how difficult it is for parents who have a colic baby. I honestly can't imagine. These past two days have been a HUGE wake up call for me. I have so much yet to learn about myself and MANY MANY things to work on with patience being number one on the list.

So, today (so far) has been about me fighting back the tears, hugging my children in hopes that they know just how much I love them and what they mean to me. I can't tell you how many times that I have apologized to Masyn for getting mad in her time of need. It is not like I did anything bad - I just told her to settle down and quit being a drama queen in my stern mean Mommy voice. For some reason and I am trying to convince myself (to make myself feel better), that I am just over emotional about this all because I too am tired and not feeling well.
This is the one time that I wish my mom would impart those words that I have learned to dislike: Allison, quit being so over dramatic about this.

Anyone? Please tell me that I am overreacting about this ......

Uh Oh ... The Plague Has Arrived

Yep. That's right, it has arrived. We are on Day 3 and both kids have been felled so the next day or so should prove to be interesting if not long. This is Masyn's first cold and I just hate to see babies get colds as you feel so very helpless at times to help alleviate their discomfort. Aside from children's Tylenol, fluids, the nasal aspirator and possibly a humidifier, what else can I do? Any suggestions? She is a cuddler and even more so now, so she has been attached to me since yesterday afternoon. We slept together last night and well now I am finding it difficult. Difficult because Kaelen wants Mommy too. He is being a trooper, but has periods of the day where he just wants to be held and comforted by Mommy's heartbeat and warm body wrapped around his. I try to accommodate this by putting Masyn beside me when she is sleeping and then hold the little man but it doesn't always work. Sigh ....

The most concerning of this whole thing is that my girlfriend's little boy has just been diagnosed with the measles. And as Murphy's Law would dictate, my children were playing with him right at his contagious stage. I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed that this doesn't develop into the measles for either one although, her son's illness started out with the runny nose and fever. Crap. That is what my kids have right now. I check their bellies and backs almost on an hourly basis in hopes that I don't see "the rash" developing and am convincing myself that their illnesses is just the seasonal fall cold. Please oh please be that .........