Back in the saddle

Rebecca and I arrived safely back in California around lunchtime on Sunday. We had such a wonderful trip to Tennessee and enjoyed spending so much time with my mom and seeing so many family and friends. We tried to make the parting as low-key as possible, because Rebecca had already started getting sad the night before when I'd explained to her that we were leaving. After we'd gone through security and were eating something, Rebecca asked about Grammy. I told her that Grammy had gone back to her house to stay with Daisy, Shakespeare, and Sugar. Rebecca clapped her hand on her forehead and exclaimed loudly, "OH NO!" Because she was looking quite distraught, I quickly told her that we were going to get on the airplane and go to California to be with Daddy, Sydney, and Paddington. That satisfied her. She was awake for the first couple of hours on the flight and then slept the last couple of hours. When we landed, she started chanting, "Daddy, Daddy, I want Daddy!" What a joyful reunion Rebecca had with Daddy! There was squealing and dancing and hugging...and Rebecca was excited too. After a few minutes, Ramy even remembered to kiss me and tell me he was glad I was home!

I still have more pictures and stories from the trip that I'll be posting this week, but I haven't had a chance yet. I spent most of today cleaning out closets, culling out things to be donated, and changing out cold weather things for warm weather things. Whew! I still haven't unpacked, but at least I have clean closets to put the clothes into.

Rebecca's allergies started acting up on Saturday night and were in full force by yesterday, so I started her back on her Zyrtec. By today, her nose had cleared up and no more sneezing. She fell asleep yesterday evening at 5:00 and slept and slept until we woke her up to try to give her dinner at 8:00. She was too sleepy to eat, so we put her to bed and she slept through until 6:00 this morning. However, she didn't take even a minute's nap today. I hope that won't become a regular habit! She's down for the count tonight though, so she'll probably sleep well again.

Please say a prayer for our Nanny Rebecca's husband Steve. He was taken to the emergency room this morning because he had a racing heart and was feeling weak and lightheaded. His heartrate was very high and erratic (they mentioned atrial fibrillation to Rebecca but didn't actually diagnose him with it) and his blood pressure was low. Of course, Rebecca is completely panicked, as anyone would be. Amazingly, they sent him home with just beta blockers and have him seeing his regular doctor tomorrow and a cardiologist on Thursday. He's only 30 and a fireman and in great shape, with no health problems or anything that would explain this. Of course, Nanny Rebecca won't be with us tomorrow (and likely the rest of the week), but we're just hoping that nothing serious is going on with her husband. So please say prayers for Steve (and Rebecca, who self-proclaimed that she melts into tears at the medical terminology and of course won't be sleeping a wink because she'll be watching to be sure he is still breathing).

Girls' Day

Yesterday, Rebecca and I drove up to Franklin, Tennessee to meet up with my good friends Shannon and Melissa and their daughters. Shannon and I became friends when we were in the 6th grade, and Melissa and I became friends in the 10th grade. We managed to all live through the teenage awkwardness and the pathos associated with being a high school girl, and we made it to the other side with most of our self-esteem still intact. Miraculous! Shannon, Melissa, and I all have little girls now and it's so much fun to see my childhood pals as mommies. Melissa's daughter Emmaline is almost 5 and her daughter Laura Lee will be 3 in October. Shannon's daughter Brooke turned 2 this month. It was so much fun getting together with them for lunch, play, and shopping. The girls had a good time running around in front of the restaurant (and lying down on the sidewalk), and we enjoyed chatting and catching up on each other's lives. Rebecca was infatuated with Emmaline and wanted to hold her hand, pat her arm, and generally stick to her like glue. When we got ready to leave, Rebecca wanted to hug the other girls and was saying, "Hug, friend!"



Multiple attempts at pictures resulted in the below outcomes. It is apparently impossible to get four little ones to all look at the camera at the same time and to keep them all looking happy and not inflicted by some facial malady. Even better, the passerby we begged to take a picture of all of us together didn't give us much warning as he snapped the picture, so we all look less than our best. Rebecca was also not interested in the group picture, as she was enjoying rocking in the rocking chair by herself, so she was throwing a fit in the group pic. Ah, the joys of two year olds! Nonetheless, it was a great day! We're planning to get together again when we're here in June, probably at Melissa's house.

Spring Pictures

The second attempt at pictures went better than last week's venture, because we did at least get pictures this time. However, it was certainly not our best session. Rebecca was in a grouchy mood. She didn't want to sit in their little wicker chair when they wanted her to, and then she wouldn't do anything but sit in the chair when they wanted her to stand up. Arghh! Two year olds! Regardless, we did get a few shots we loved, so all's well that ends well, I suppose.

Pretty girl

I'm enjoying the nice springtime weather here in Tennessee! I love getting to put Rebecca's spring clothes on her finally!

Today we went back to Nashville so that I could go to my regular doctor. Apparently his nurse can't take blood pressure very well, because she got a totally different reading than the doctor got (in opposite directions) on both me and my mom. Fortunately for me, mine is actually fine, as was all my bloodwork from yesterday. We stopped by the Little Cottage children's store and of course didn't come out empty handed. They always frustrate me with their shoes, because they never seem to have Rebecca's size in whatever size that might be, and then they try to convince me that the next size up might work. Nonetheless, I still got her a cute pair of white sandals. Tonight we had dinner with Tim and Shana, and now we're at home relaxing.

Tomorrow, we're doing Take 2 of Rebecca's spring pictures. Hopefully it will go better than the attempt last Friday!

Springtime in Tennessee

Strawberry Face!

Rebecca and I are enjoying our spring vacation here in Tennessee. The weather has been really lovely - about the same temps as in California but it's so nice to see all the blooming trees and flowers. Rebecca's sleep schedule is all messed up, and as such, she tends to want to stay up until midnight and then enjoys sleeping as late as possible. I fell asleep the other night at midnight and Rebecca was sitting on the pillow next to me, watching reruns of the Cosby Show.

On Sunday, we went to church at my mom's church. Rebecca got to see her good friend Jack. Then we met up with my cousin Lynn and his family at the Cracker Barrel for lunch. Rebecca enjoyed eating fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, and ice cream. We just chilled at home in the evening, and Rebecca had a blast playing her new keyboard and drawing and coloring. She ate a bunch of strawberries, and we stripped her naked to eat them because the strawberry juice was plentiful (see pic above). Grammy's house is a great place, because you can make all kinds of messes and never get in trouble! You also get to try all kinds of new things.

Yesterday seemed like we were on the road a lot. In the morning, we had to leave Fayetteville bright and early to drive to Nashville. I had an ob/gyn appointment at 9:15, so we did that and then I got my bloodwork done before my regular dr appt today. We had lunch at Bread and Co. and shopped in Green Hills. Then Grammy had her violin lesson in Madison, so we drove there and then had dinner at Carrabas. Rebecca slept the whole way from Nashville to Huntsville and through almost all of Grammy's lesson.

So, all is well. We're enjoying our visit here, although we certainly miss Ramy. Rebecca talks to him on the phone at night before we go to sleep. During the day, she will mention that "Daddy at work."

It's after 9:00 a.m. here on Tuesday morning, and Rebecca is still sound asleep! Time to get her up for some breakfast so we can be on our way.

Hangin' with Grammy

Rebecca and I arrived safely in Tennessee after a completely uneventful flight (the best kind!). Rebecca fell asleep about 30 minutes after takeoff and slept a couple of hours. Then she drew on her Doodle Pro and looked at a book with me and had some goldfish. Then we landed and went to find Grammy. Grammy and Aunt Margaret were waiting for us, and Rebecca was delighted to be reunited with them. We enjoyed dinner at the Cracker Barrel and then finally made our way to Fayetteville. Rebecca had little interest in going to sleep that night (after all, it felt two hours earlier to her!). She was much more interested in playing with her keyboard, dancing, and talking to and petting the dogs.

On Friday, we were going to get Rebecca's pictures done. We arrived at the studio a bit early and they told us that it would be "at least" our appointment time. Suspecting that meant longer, I asked them a few minutes before our appointment about whether we should get her dressed. They said it would be 30 minutes. So we went next door and got ice cream. When we came back, they told me it would be another hour. Since Rebecca was then past naptime, I knew the pictures wouldn't go well, so I rescheduled for nexr week. ANNOYING! We met up with the Girl Posse (minus Terry and Lisa) for dinner at La Fuente (which, in Tennessee, is pronounced "La Foo-en-tay"). It was good to see my peeps again. I miss them!

This morning, we had to rouse Rebecca from a deep sleep so that we could go to the Cracker Barrel for breakfast. We finally got there at 10! Then we did some shopping in Huntsville and met "Aunt Mimi" (my mom's friend Marilyn - doing much better after recent back surgery - thanks for your prayers) for dinner at the Olive Garden. We have been chilling at home tonight, and Rebecca has been watching Noggin' and noshing on apples and blackberries.

Rebecca asks about Daddy frequently but thinks he is "at work." She sounds sad when she talks to him on the phone! So pitiful! He called yesterday and when I answered, I said, "Hi honey." Rebecca said to my mom, "My daddy is a honey!" We miss you and love you, Daddy!!! Enjoy all the Chinese food you are eating while we are gone!

Haircut

On Sunday, we got Rebecca's hair trimmed. She climbed right up into the chair and sat on the little booster seat. She was just perfect, never moving or squirming in the least. She kind of liked looking at herself in the mirror, I think! Although she's been getting regular haircuts since she was 10 months old, she has always sat in my lap for them before (she wasn't ever tall enough, even on the booster seat for her head to come up past the back of the chair until now).

Afterwards, she kept fluffing her hair and tell us that she'd had a haircut. What a girly girl!

"Goin' on airpane to Gammy in Tiss-see"

"Goin' on airpane to Gammy in Tiss-see"

That's what Rebecca and I are doing tomorrow. If you don't believe me, just ask Rebecca, and that's what she'll tell you. While we are there, we will also be seeing "Aunt Margent" (Aunt Margaret), "Dissy" (Daisy), "dog" (Shakespeare), Aunts "Bra" (Brenda), "Eesa" (Lisa), "Tay-ee" (Terry), "Oosy" (Lucy), "Sah-ee" (Sandy), "Mahi" (Molly), "Jack" (we got that one loud and clear), and "mmm-hmm" (this is any name she feels that she cannot say and thus refuses to attempt).

My stars, it's been a busy week. Today was my mother-in-law's birthday, so we went over there to wish her a happy birthday this evening. Rebecca availed herself of the Filipino crackers (no idea what makes them so wonderful, but Rebecca usually comes home with her purse full of "cachers"). Ramy's had contractors in and out of the house the last couple of days giving us estimates to replace the tile in the master bathroom and move the shower head up to a normal height. I've had some really interesting and bizarre and incredibly involved cases at work and I've been working at night to get those reports done before I go on vacation.

So it's after 11:00 p.m., and I am taking a break after I started throwing clothes into suitcases. I need to get up from here and take out half of the outfits I have packed for Rebecca and then round up her accessories, charge my cell phone and the camera batteries, figure out where I left my Zyrtec, pack my carry-on with snacks, a dozen diapers, the "A-B-C-D" book (Dr. Seuss' ABC book) and Rebecca's travel Magnadoodle, and make a list of the things I need to do before leaving for the airport in the morning.

See all y'all Tennessee folks tomorrow (or soon thereafter)!

Long weekend update

I had such a nice long weekend. I really don't want to have to go to Casa Colina tomorrow, especially because I just got my schedule and see that I have three patients to see, one of whom is a repeat and I don't look forward to seeing him again! But, only two days of work this week, and then Rebecca and I are off to Tennessee on Thursday.

On Friday, Rebecca and I did a lot of hanging out and snuggling in bed while we watched television. That evening, we went to see Nanny Rebecca in The Sound of Music. She was wonderful! It made me very reminiscent of my theater days with Carriage House Players! I hope that one of these days I will be back doing things with them again and that Rebecca will enjoy it too. Anyway, it was a very nice evening out, and Rebecca also enjoyed the show. She sat perfectly contented in our laps through the first act, enjoyed a cookie at intermission, and then was a bit fidgety during the second act but was still very, very good. I think she was a little mystified why Nanny Rebecca was running around on the stage with those other little kids.

Saturday morning, we all slept until 9:00! Holy cow, it was awesome! We went to eat breakfast at Carrows, and as soon as we got home, I realized that I had committed to going to a ladies lunch for the wives of the Knights of Columbus. Since we'd awoken so late, we'd gone to breakfast without even showering, and then I had to jump in the car and go eat lunch just after having eaten breakfast! Oh well, it was still a very nice lunch, and I met a lot of nice ladies. On Saturday evening, we met up with our friends Madeline and her little girls (Paul was at home, writing a brief!) and Vincent for dinner in Monrovia. Vincent's birthday is this week, and Maddy told the waiter so that they'd bring him some cake and sing to him (very loudly, in Italian). All the while, Vince was pretending that it was actually Ramy's birthday. You'll notice the lovely gentleman singing to Vincent while Vincent is looking at Ramy.





It was a fun night, and Rebecca had a blast playing with Ashley ("Ash-ee") and Rachel. Even after Rebecca had eaten quite a bit of bread dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar, salad, steak, fettucine alfredo, and ice cream, she was more than willing to run around with them in the yard like a crazy girl. She had so much fun with them and was so sweet and enjoyed giving them hugs before we left.



On Sunday morning, we got up and made it to the 7:30 mass and then went to Panera Bread for breakfast. After breakfast, we went to Target, then got Rebecca's hair cut, and then went to Costco. In the afternoon, I went out to look for a pair of khaki pants after my favorite pair got ruined by a mysterious black stain. In the evening, we took Rebecca to the park to slide.

Today, Rebecca and I slept in again (Lord, how am I going to work five days a week like normal people come July ). Then we met Julie and Addie at Panera Bread for lunch, and then they hung out with us at the house for a little while. Rebecca was in kind of a cranky mood and did not want to share any of her toys and had 2 minutes of time out while they were there. Sometimes she is fine with sharing and other times she is definitely not. I'm going to miss Julie and Adelaide (and Derek too, I just don't get to hang with him as much as with his ladies) so much when they move! Our shopping/lunching/playing dates have become such a routine occurrence that I'm not sure what I'll do without them. Oh yeah, I guess I'll be working!

I'll post more pics later - I took a lot this weekend!

Gasses

Most people who know Rebecca know that she is fond of all sorts of accessories. Her preference is for purses, of course, but she also likes bracelets, necklaces, and sunglasses. Lately, every time we go outside during the day or get into the car to go somewhere, Rebecca thinks she needs sunglasses. She also puts them on herself, although she often puts them on upside down. Heaven help if we're driving and the sunlight is getting in her eyes and she doesn't have her "gasses." Yesterday, I had to get off the freeway at the first available exit when we were driving into the sunlight so that I could retrieve her "gasses" from the floorboard.

Ah, it's Friday. It's so nice to have the weekend stretching before us. So far, all Rebecca and I have accomplished is opening the box of her shoes that came day before yesterday. She's been trying on various shoes and sandals, and she refuses assistance until she has completely exhausted herself trying to get them on. Then she'll say, "Mama, HOLP!"

It's been a pretty ordinary week. On Tuesday, I saw a couple of funny patients on the inpatient unit. A 90 year old woman told me that although her niece writes her checks for her, when it comes to her money, no one knows all the details except for her, because no one was going to get their hands on her money. She was a card! Wednesday, I was at TLC and had to take over the lower-level team's Brain Injury Education group for my supervisor, so we talked about seizures. I had several reports that I needed to finish up at both TLC and inpatient.

I submitted my rankings for the clinics/forensic sites I prefer, and the Training Director from DBH called me on Tuesday to ask me some questions about my preferences. I'm anxious to find out where I'll be going and when, although I'll be happy with any of my preferences. It'll just be nice to know for sure so that we can make specific arrangements with Nanny Rebecca. Nanny Rebecca is starring as Maria in The Sound of Music this weekend and her show opened last night. So I gave her some time off, and Rebecca and I met up with Julie and Adelaide for some lunch, shopping, and coffee. I'm realizing how tragic it is going to be next year when I have to actually work a full week! YIKES! I have done that in years! It's really going to cramp my style!

Tonight, we're going to see Nanny Rebecca's performance. I think Rebecca likely knows many of the songs by heart, as she has "helped" Nanny Rebecca rehearse. I think Rebecca will enjoy it though. So far, I've been good at remembering to not eat meat today. Usually, during Lent, I forget about not eating meat until dinner and then I realize that I ate meat at lunch. So far, so good though. I had thought that I would clean out my closet today while Rebecca was napping, but so far no nap, and now I'm not so sure that I'm in the mood for it!

Rebecca and her daddy

Slidin'

Yesterday evening, we decided to celebrate the extra hour of sunlight by taking a late afternoon trip to the park near our house. Rebecca wanted to slide, slide, and slide some more. She wasn't interested in any of the other things to play on at the park. I asked her what she was doing and she'd say (over her shoulder, as she headed up the stairs), "I slidin'"!