back--and sick
Dec. 28th, 2005 10:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
likethebeerFortunately, I did not get a full-blown version of the flu currently invading California (as did my two sisters) but I certainly got something. I little bit of nausea and a fever in the middle of the night.
Oh, hello everyone, how are you?
I'm back. Drove home from the airport yesterday. I have this to say: Midway airport ain't worth it from any stretch of the imagination. The flights might be cheaper, but the only way to get there is to drive (which took me 4+ hours) or take the bus (which adds about 3 more hours to the travel time). I think I'll go Madison or Milwaukee next time.
Got home exhausted, mda gave me my presents (I only have 1 for him so far), then I went to bed at a little after 9 pm and didn't get out until 9 am (including when I woke up w/a fever).
Anyway, I'm just sitting here slowly trying to absorb the last week. I've got a great SIL, I tell ya. She's so sweet in how much she can put up with. Not that I was a huge pain in the ass, but it would slowly drive me insane to have people in my house for a week. Plus, she was born the same year as me and liked some of the same '80s music, so that's always funny. My oldest sister E was a Led Zeppelin fan on the other hand.
The highlight of course were the kids.
As a person who's not a mom, it totally knocks my socks off to be sitting there, talking to a kid and have them stop and stare right into my eyes. Or when Q would place her hand on my cheek.
I wrote down some of what we did throughout the week so I'll remember it. Here are some of the things I remember off-hand.
Q got a big-kids bike for x-mas from my mom, with brakes and a horn (and training wheels). Me & aunt Moe took it out to ride and she started to get it pretty well even in the beginning. Riding around there is scary b/c there are hills and no sidewalks. She also got a kids tent complete w/backpack, flashlight, whistle & compass. I walked past her room after they had set up the tent and I heard her say, "Flashlight--check." Cutest thing, man.
Q. also got the DVD of Iron Giant, her favorite movie; and an actual Iron Giant robot. The video of her opening up that box was priceless--her voice went into the upper octaves screaming "Iron Giant! Iron Giant!!"
I was also introduced to the game of Candyland. It's a weird thing being an adult and having intense conversations about Gramma Nutt, Gloppy and Princess Frostine. At one time, I took out the narration of Candyland for Q. and read it to her. It's on a piece of cardboard & the illustration for it looks like an open book. Q. wanted to know where the rest of the book was and I told her that it's not a real book but that she could make up her own stories about Candyland just like a book--that maybe Princess Frostine gets mad at Gramma Nutt, but she wants to visit the Peppermint Forest so she has to figure out a way to get there. Q. thought she could dig under ground, and we talked about that.
Aunt Moe & Q. took me to a little store that they go to on their walk to the park where they play. They usually get soda & a cookie. Q. wanted a cookie, but Moe said, "We're making cookies tonight--hey, why don't we give a cookie to the guy at the store, since he always gives people cookies but I bet he never gets one." We finally got back there on x-mas day and Q. gave the man 2 cookies. He was really sweet, and his wife let Q. take 2 lollipops for free. It's got to be such a treat to have a 3 1/2 yo come up to you in her little pink pants and say, "I've got a cookie for you!"
I met my nephew, M, when I was picked up at the airport. I sat between Q. (who was so excited to see me, but really shy at first) and M, who completely freaked out at this stranger sitting next to him in the dark. So much so that they had to pull over so my SIL could sit between the two of them and I could get into the front seat (which is pretty much what happened soon after I first met Q). As soon as we got to their house, though, he was fine and came up to me almost immediately. He's getting close to walking and grabs your hands when he wants to go anywhere. He's a real charmer. He looks at you and then this grin slowly spreads across his face. He loves to be near his sister, who oscillates between amusing him & yelling at him to get away from her. Real surprising, huh? He's 10 mos old and I think his x-mas gifts could have been: a piece of rope that he could wave around w/his arms; wrapping paper that he could wave around; and of course the omnipresent cardboard box. I tried to get a photo of him on x-msa eve playing w/wrapping paper & plastic (which he loves to scrunch w/his hands), but I didn't get the camera out quickly enough. We'll see once I get the photos developed.
M is also the 1st baby to fall asleep in my arms. His routine got screwed up w/all these people around so he stayed up late a few nights; the day after 1 of these nights I was bouncing him on my knee when all the sudden I could tell he was falling asleep, so I just let him fall back against my chest.
That was a total high.
x-mas night I had him on my knee while my sister E talked to my mom. I was bouncing him and he was drooling copiously--I had huge droplets of drool on my pants. So much so that, at 1 point, both my mom & sister were like, "What's that?!" "Drool," I answered. He's learned how to make bubble out of his mouth so he did that a lot. I bounced him really slow for awhile and he got into this meditative state.
My dad seemed quite taken with him, which is wild. Well I said that M is a charmer. Dad's convinced that M is almost about to walk and says that M has really great rhythym. And, actually, M stood on his own for about 30 seconds on x-mas day while he was absorbed in something that aunt Moe was doing.
M was a little freaked by my mom but they slowly warmed up to each other. He would get near her & smile but always back into the nearest person for protection (my sister says that little kids are kind of freaked out by old people if they haven't been around them much--the gray hair & wrinkles are just different than what they're used to).
Q. was also v.charming when it came to dad. He scares her a little, but she was fine after awhile, even though the old man really doesn't play w/her at all. He's kind of awkward around the kids--he will barely talk to them, won't play w/them except when he's asked (and then for a short period), but then expects them to hug him extemporaneously. I was told several times by my sister E & my SIL that he was actually better this time. He usually comes in and immediately goes to the tv in the bedroom & watches golf. Instead he was totally out w/everyone the whole time (when he wasn't playing golf). Moe says that he's probably manic right now. I figure that my mom told him, "We are going to go to their house and you will not watch tv, you will sit and talk to these people, all right?"
Q & dad did play a few times, including a t-ball game our last night there. Moe went out w/Q to the driveway to play, then Moe told Q to ask dad to come out. They had a great time in part b/c one of the dogs kept chasing after the balls. When they went back inside, I stayed out to have a cig. I was trying to figure out whether to let the dog back in so I opened the door into the house and there was just this nice moment when I looked inside at the door to all these people talking and felt the warmth from the house. Kind of classic x-mas cheer & all that.
Oh, hello everyone, how are you?
I'm back. Drove home from the airport yesterday. I have this to say: Midway airport ain't worth it from any stretch of the imagination. The flights might be cheaper, but the only way to get there is to drive (which took me 4+ hours) or take the bus (which adds about 3 more hours to the travel time). I think I'll go Madison or Milwaukee next time.
Got home exhausted, mda gave me my presents (I only have 1 for him so far), then I went to bed at a little after 9 pm and didn't get out until 9 am (including when I woke up w/a fever).
Anyway, I'm just sitting here slowly trying to absorb the last week. I've got a great SIL, I tell ya. She's so sweet in how much she can put up with. Not that I was a huge pain in the ass, but it would slowly drive me insane to have people in my house for a week. Plus, she was born the same year as me and liked some of the same '80s music, so that's always funny. My oldest sister E was a Led Zeppelin fan on the other hand.
The highlight of course were the kids.
As a person who's not a mom, it totally knocks my socks off to be sitting there, talking to a kid and have them stop and stare right into my eyes. Or when Q would place her hand on my cheek.
I wrote down some of what we did throughout the week so I'll remember it. Here are some of the things I remember off-hand.
Q got a big-kids bike for x-mas from my mom, with brakes and a horn (and training wheels). Me & aunt Moe took it out to ride and she started to get it pretty well even in the beginning. Riding around there is scary b/c there are hills and no sidewalks. She also got a kids tent complete w/backpack, flashlight, whistle & compass. I walked past her room after they had set up the tent and I heard her say, "Flashlight--check." Cutest thing, man.
Q. also got the DVD of Iron Giant, her favorite movie; and an actual Iron Giant robot. The video of her opening up that box was priceless--her voice went into the upper octaves screaming "Iron Giant! Iron Giant!!"
I was also introduced to the game of Candyland. It's a weird thing being an adult and having intense conversations about Gramma Nutt, Gloppy and Princess Frostine. At one time, I took out the narration of Candyland for Q. and read it to her. It's on a piece of cardboard & the illustration for it looks like an open book. Q. wanted to know where the rest of the book was and I told her that it's not a real book but that she could make up her own stories about Candyland just like a book--that maybe Princess Frostine gets mad at Gramma Nutt, but she wants to visit the Peppermint Forest so she has to figure out a way to get there. Q. thought she could dig under ground, and we talked about that.
Aunt Moe & Q. took me to a little store that they go to on their walk to the park where they play. They usually get soda & a cookie. Q. wanted a cookie, but Moe said, "We're making cookies tonight--hey, why don't we give a cookie to the guy at the store, since he always gives people cookies but I bet he never gets one." We finally got back there on x-mas day and Q. gave the man 2 cookies. He was really sweet, and his wife let Q. take 2 lollipops for free. It's got to be such a treat to have a 3 1/2 yo come up to you in her little pink pants and say, "I've got a cookie for you!"
I met my nephew, M, when I was picked up at the airport. I sat between Q. (who was so excited to see me, but really shy at first) and M, who completely freaked out at this stranger sitting next to him in the dark. So much so that they had to pull over so my SIL could sit between the two of them and I could get into the front seat (which is pretty much what happened soon after I first met Q). As soon as we got to their house, though, he was fine and came up to me almost immediately. He's getting close to walking and grabs your hands when he wants to go anywhere. He's a real charmer. He looks at you and then this grin slowly spreads across his face. He loves to be near his sister, who oscillates between amusing him & yelling at him to get away from her. Real surprising, huh? He's 10 mos old and I think his x-mas gifts could have been: a piece of rope that he could wave around w/his arms; wrapping paper that he could wave around; and of course the omnipresent cardboard box. I tried to get a photo of him on x-msa eve playing w/wrapping paper & plastic (which he loves to scrunch w/his hands), but I didn't get the camera out quickly enough. We'll see once I get the photos developed.
M is also the 1st baby to fall asleep in my arms. His routine got screwed up w/all these people around so he stayed up late a few nights; the day after 1 of these nights I was bouncing him on my knee when all the sudden I could tell he was falling asleep, so I just let him fall back against my chest.
That was a total high.
x-mas night I had him on my knee while my sister E talked to my mom. I was bouncing him and he was drooling copiously--I had huge droplets of drool on my pants. So much so that, at 1 point, both my mom & sister were like, "What's that?!" "Drool," I answered. He's learned how to make bubble out of his mouth so he did that a lot. I bounced him really slow for awhile and he got into this meditative state.
My dad seemed quite taken with him, which is wild. Well I said that M is a charmer. Dad's convinced that M is almost about to walk and says that M has really great rhythym. And, actually, M stood on his own for about 30 seconds on x-mas day while he was absorbed in something that aunt Moe was doing.
M was a little freaked by my mom but they slowly warmed up to each other. He would get near her & smile but always back into the nearest person for protection (my sister says that little kids are kind of freaked out by old people if they haven't been around them much--the gray hair & wrinkles are just different than what they're used to).
Q. was also v.charming when it came to dad. He scares her a little, but she was fine after awhile, even though the old man really doesn't play w/her at all. He's kind of awkward around the kids--he will barely talk to them, won't play w/them except when he's asked (and then for a short period), but then expects them to hug him extemporaneously. I was told several times by my sister E & my SIL that he was actually better this time. He usually comes in and immediately goes to the tv in the bedroom & watches golf. Instead he was totally out w/everyone the whole time (when he wasn't playing golf). Moe says that he's probably manic right now. I figure that my mom told him, "We are going to go to their house and you will not watch tv, you will sit and talk to these people, all right?"
Q & dad did play a few times, including a t-ball game our last night there. Moe went out w/Q to the driveway to play, then Moe told Q to ask dad to come out. They had a great time in part b/c one of the dogs kept chasing after the balls. When they went back inside, I stayed out to have a cig. I was trying to figure out whether to let the dog back in so I opened the door into the house and there was just this nice moment when I looked inside at the door to all these people talking and felt the warmth from the house. Kind of classic x-mas cheer & all that.
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no subject
Date: 2005-12-28 06:18 pm (UTC)We'll have to give you a fancy nickname like Typhoid Mary.
no subject
Date: 2005-12-28 06:21 pm (UTC)The Oakland newspaper was saying, "This flu has yet to appear outside of the West Coast." Sure. Just wait for all those people who visited relatives on the West Coast to go back home. And, oh shit, I was sitting next to a woman from Providence RI yesterday.
no subject
Date: 2005-12-28 07:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-12-28 07:45 pm (UTC)