I’m going to stop making excuses for why it’s been so long since I posted. I mean, do you really care WHY it’s been so long? You really just want a post, right? So on with it.
What’s happened over the last two weeks? It’s going to be a bit long (Arthur) so grab some popcorn or something.
- Running with Katherine continues, albeit, slowly.
- We took Katherine to her first Air Show (and I do use that term VERY loosely)
- We celebrated my first Mother’s Day.
- We took Katherine to Myrtle Beach for the first time. Ok, it was our first time there too. We were all first timers!
- Katherine and I have officially signed up for our first class together: Mommy & Me Class at the gym pool.
I’ll start with running. I realized that while Katherine really enjoys the wind in her hair, the waving to “her people” and giving of the finger that I’m not really going to be ready for a triathlon (6 weeks away) if I only continue to run pushing a stroller. You’d think that just by nature you’d go faster, farther, etc by not pushing a stroller. Well, yes and no. Faster, yes. Further, not so much so. And I really need a bit of a boost on both so alas, I started working out at the gym during my lunch breaks. 30 minutes of running just about every day. (Occasionally, Stephen’s powers of persuasion work their magic and I go eat a lunch that makes me think I should have run for 60 minutes!! Hehe) Katherine and I however are still doing our Saturday runs and sometimes in the evenings, while Stephen does some house tinkering. She’s now starting to get the idea that when there’s a hill she should “help” Mommy. I’m not quite sure how this all started, but I know I do say as I climb what I fondly call “the mountain” that I say OK Katherine, time to help Mommy get UP this hill… It’s at that precise moment that more often than not she begins POUNDING her whole body back and forth in the stroller. So what you see coming up the hill is a bit of PUSH THUNK PUSH THUNK PUSH THUNK. The THUNK is combined with an UG from Mommy and a hehehehe from Katherine. Yes, yes, we make quite a scene. And no, as one of my friends asked, you may NOT follow us with a video camera. I don’t care how funny you think it would be.
Next up, the air show! Alright, so I knew it wouldn’t be the Blue Angels. Really. I did. I’ve seen that show and it doesn’t happen at the local county airport. I did think there’d be more planes taking off/landing and just… well… more planes! Apparently, there had been more planes earlier in the day but by around 2pm when we arrived they’d all “gone home”. I’m not sure where “home” exactly IS, since we were AT the airport, but okay.
The air “show” itself, while weak, did provide a great learning opportunity for both Stephen and I. You see, Katherine is like a flower. She wilts in heat. Honest to goodness it’s the only way to describe it. Our daughter was fine when the wind from the tractor ride was blowing her hair. All smiles, giggles & waves. As soon as she was put into her stroller and we started walking around the tarmat… she wilted. Flat out wilted. Her head went down and she just sat there. Eyes open, looking ahead, occasionally grabbing her sippy cup for a much needed slurp of water. When we pushed her into the air-conditioned “terminal” she sat right up and started waving and chatting to people. We walked back outside again. Wilted. Back inside, Flower Power. Outside… yep, you guessed it, wilted. We now officially know she is her mother’s daughter. (Sleeping is a favored past-time, the heat is not her friend, she dislikes peas, and loves green beans and French toast.) The highlight of her trip to the air show? The tractor ride to and from the parking lot to the actual airport. Just think country song… “She thinks my tractor’s sexy…” Hehaw, folks. Hehaw.
My first Mother’s Day I didn’t spend much time “mothering”. Katherine was so tuckered out that I think she was awake for about 4-5 hours all day. So I decided it would be a perfect time to practice making her birthday cake. So I did. Sort of. See the picture link for photos of my masterpiece. It was my first foray with fondant. Katherine will have a ladybug birthday cake for her party in FL. For the party in NC she’ll have a Winnie the Pooh cake. The Pooh cake I will not be making, but the ladybug I am going to take a stab at. The one question I do have is – Who eats fondant?? It looks so pretty and you can do such neat things with it, but does anyone really EAT it?? I can tell ya, this girl doesn’t!!
For Mother’s Day Katherine & Stephen gave me a dozen chocolate covered strawberries (of which I tried very hard to be a good sport and eat as many as possible… I mean they were a gift. And from Edible Arrangements… That means they removed the calories for Mother’s Day!) And Katherine made me an oh so pretty pillow at school. I’m not sure (again) how they gain such cooperation with the paint on the hands/feet as I tried a similar craft and it did not create such remarkable results. Do you think the used another kid’s feet?? Hm. Curious. Stephen and Katherine also made me dinner. Honey Baked Ham. Yum. I’d never had it before, other than the little sample at the mall just before Easter, and it was SO delicious.
Next up – our trip to Myrtle Beach. Stephen received an email two weeks ago with a super deal on hotel rooms in Myrtle Beach. By the time we booked all of the rooms were sold out. So did we just say oh well and move on? Come on, you know us. No! Stephen searched and searched and found a hotel with a “manager’s special” which was $90 per night. Woohoo… Room reserved, let’s take a weekend trip to the beach. (Note, in NC it is NOT called the shore. Also note, our Jersey based family/friends, there are no “boardwalks, promenades or amusement parks” on said beaches. I know. Shocking, right? There are also no French Canadians. Just in case you were wondering.)
We headed to the Beach on Friday evening. We arrived around 9:30pm. Katherine was sleeping peacefully in the backseat. I figured we’d get her into the room, into the pack and play and bing, bang, boom, she’d be back in slumber land. This was the first mistake of the trip. Bing, Bang, Boom, turned into AAAHHH, WWAAAAHHHH, MOMOMOMOMOMOM. The neighbors were NOT pleased. The only way to stop the racket? All lights had to be turned out and we ALL had to go to bed. I know. But I took one for the team. I mean, Katherine NEEDED the lights out. What’s a mother to do?
Saturday we headed to the beach. Katherine didn’t quite understand why the sand kept sticking to her chubby little hands. She’d squeeze her little fist SOOO tight thinking it would pop out the sides, only to open her hand and look in shock that it was stick there. She’d then take her other hand and poke at it, as if to say, maybe it isn’t really there. She later resorted to trying to eat it. The sand was filled with little shells and rocks so eating the sand wasn’t such a great plan. Eventually Katherine got the idea when she just started picking pieces up and handing them to me as if to say, “don’t even bother saying it Mom. Here. Just take it from me.
After the beach Katherine also had her first dip in the pool. She liked that much more than the Ocean. She isn’t a fan of waves that crash into her (and I say crash as in we were in 2 inches of water) and she doesn’t like the taste of salt water. No shock there. Who does?
Sunday was shopping at the outlets. We had a fruitful trip. I didn’t even have to get Katherine to lick the Coach bag that I liked. Stephen offered to buy it sans licking. Alas, we save that weapon for another time/place. It is good to know however that it’s part of the arsenal. Hehe
So things I learned on our trip to Myrtle Beach:
- The volume of things you pack has a direct correlation to the size of the person. The smaller you are, the more you need. (Katherine & Jacki are examples of this. Hehehe)
- Do not have an expectation that just because your child’s first time of sleeping through the night occurred at a hotel, that all nights spent in a hotel will have such success.
- You should not laugh at the sight of your daughter’s hand sneaking up over the top of the pack and play. Apparently they CAN hear you even if your head is turned.
- Even if you’re not tired you will turn off the lights in an effort to stop your child from crying and the hotel neighbors from pounding on the floor/ceiling in an effort to tell you to get your child to stop crying. (Because apparently it’s not obvious to the parents sitting in the room… You must bang your feet, shoes, etc. on the floor to tell them you’re displeased at the sound. That clearly helps the situation.)
- We need a hotel room with two rooms. One for sleepy darkness for Katherine and one so the grown-ups can stay up past 8:00pm.
- Sand can be crunchy.
- Ocean water apparently does not taste like bathtub water. (Or so I gather from the face Katherine made.)
- Lemons are still a favorite fruit. (And who doesn’t laugh at the sight of a little girl eating a lemon and pooping at the same time… I mean THAT’S funny.)
- Trying to keep an 11month old off of the floor of a hotel room is VERY difficult.
- Trying to keep an 11month old ON the bed versus nose-diving OFF the bed… Also very difficult. (She’s a quick little bugger.)
And finally – Mommy & Me class!! Katherine and I will be taking “lessons” on Saturday mornings at the gym. I signed up for my own swim classes so in the triathlon I can do better than a modified flail (it’s a new stroke… you might not have seen it before). I’m not quite sure what we’re going to do in Mommy & Me pool classes but whatever it is, I think it’ll be fun.
Till next time!! (Whenever that is!)
Pictures: http://picasaweb.google.com/daleksza/IsItMyrtleMother#
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