Momma's Night Out

Last night I had a wonderful reprieve from 24/7 mothering. I love my kiddos to death but a girl just has to get out from time to time. Richard agreed to arrive at work by 6:00 am and come home by 2:00 pm so that I could have a wild night on the town (hahahah). My step sister Ashlee, who lives about 90 minutes away, drove over to stay for a few days and we hit the road at 3:00 to go shopping at Tyson's Corner. It was raining and foggy but the weather didn't dampen my spirits. The last time I was in a mall without the kids was in January.

It was so great to just pop into a store here and there and try on some new things without wondering which clothing rack Kaley was hiding under or trying to predict the number of minutes left until Connor's tolerance for the stroller would hit zero. I could relax in the fitting room instead of racing to make a decision. What a breeze of fresh air.

We ate at California Pizza Kitchen, one of my favorite restaurants, and gabbed as only girls can. We took our time with the food and not once during the meal did I have to pick food out of someone's hair, search for lost crayons under the table or try to save flatware from certain destruction. After dinner we watched Sunshine Cleaning at the theater...a Shelly speed movie with zero scenes of frenetic violence.

I had a blast just hanging out with Ashlee. She kept me laughing the whole evening. A pair of stonewashed jeans with tapered leg and zippers at the bottom had us reminiscing about the 80's and questioning who on earth would want to bring that back.

As we walked back to her car I was surprised to realize that I was missing my babies. I knew that Richard would be giving them their bath. Kaley would be begging for once last sip of juice and Connor fighting his exit from the tub. I realized that though I needed time away I would always need to come back more.

Sibling Rivalry

Lately I've been thinking a lot about what it means to be a big sister. I grew up with a younger sister, and I'm sure she would tell you that I was a bit bossy at times. However, watching Kaley and Connor has really opened my eyes to how this kind of behavior develops.

When Kaley first met her new baby brother all she could say was "tiny baby, tiny baby". After a couple weeks at home she would greet him in the morning with "Wake up tiny! It's morning!" Since then Connor has been included in many of Kaley's daily narratives. Only recently has she begun truly bossing her brother around. This most likely has something to do with Connor learning to crawl.

Once the passive onlooker, he finally has the ability to impact Kaley's orderly world. Apparently all of Kaley's toys, strewn across the living room floor, have a purpose and are part of a grand scheme. Each doll or stuffed animal is given a bed or a snack. Other miscellaneous toys are labeled as dirty laundry, trash or dirty dishes that she must "wash". Items are stashed in purses and bags to become a "sack lunch" for her "trip to the zoo" or presents to be "mailed".

Enter Connor Stephen. He's been rocking back and forth for weeks, revving up his engine and getting his crawl in gear. Finally he's off to the races. No item is left unscathed. Drool drips from all the toys he touches, beds are overturned, "snacks" stolen, train track demolished, towers of blocks come crashing down. What she has he wants and what he has she wants. It seems they are never content with what they each have in hand. "Nooooooo Connor!" Is what I hear shrieked from the living room. Recently she has added "Get him! Get him! Pick him up" as a plea for little brother containment. I've seen her rake her most precious toys into a pile and sit on them, trying to shield them from the onslaught.

Well, this is my lot. I am being inducted into the league of referees. I need wisdom and patience from heaven. In the end I still conclude that these are the best years of my life and being at home with my kids is a grand adventure, one that I would not trade.

Dad in Town

Just wanted to write a quick note about the fun day yesterday. Dad happened to be in town on a flight for Suntrust Bank. So I went down to his hotel by the Dulles airport and picked him up before meeting Richard at Sila Thai restaurant. Richard had a doctor appointment that morning, so he was able to take a leisurely lunch with us.

After lunch, dad and I embarked on a search for an office chair for me. (It was my Christmas gift.) Fortunately, dad suggested I look for deals online...found a $269 chair for $121 on clearance at Staples. Got to the store and the price was still marked $269, but when we had them scan it, it rang up $121. They even accepted my expired $20 Office Depot coupon. So we were happy. Dad joked that I "stole" the chair.

(Continued...)

On the way home we stopped by the Northrop Grumman office where I'll be working. Snapped a couple shots, then headed on home to show him the house and assemble my new chair.

Poor Cara-Lea had a 13 hour day in the OR, so she didn't get home until about 8:30pm. Dad and I had already given up hope and headed to eat Mexican. We were ordering our nachos when Cara-Lea called, with her request for Olive Garden. So we finished our unusual Olive Garden appetizer of nachos and drove the 2 miles home to pick up Cara-Lea before heading back out.

Had fun visiting and hearing about the craziness of Cara-Lea's day which included having a patient wake up on the table. After supper, dropped Dad off at his hotel and headed home quickly as Cara-Lea had to be at work again at 8 am.

**********

Today is a momentous day... finally get "fast" Internet installed at the house (Verizon FIOS). For the past 3 weeks, I've been using my cell phone as a modem. It's just in time as I start work on Monday...and for the first week I'll be doing an intro/orientation in Philadelphia of all places! So now Cara-Lea won't be left without Internet. You don't realize how much you rely on something until it is gone.

I'll be sure to try and write a blog post this next week to let everyone know how the first few days of work go. Overall, I'm feeling pretty "pampered" by the new job as they are buying me a new laptop for work and putting me up in the Hyatt for the week. Of course I was deflated I little bit when I talked to Richard who works for the federal government and heard he gets 26 days/year of leave plus 10 federal holidays and a bunch (13?) of sick days. Ah well, the grass is always greener, right?