September 2005 Archives
We're back from our WONDERFUL week in Myrtle Beach, and though I thoroughly enjoyed every day in the sand and sun, I'm glad to be back home with our little girls. Our week included everything Bill and I have been missing out on in the past year or so: sleep, full meals, relaxation, reading books, long walks, holding hands(!), more sleep, drinking, odd moments of karaoke (another story for another time), 50s music impersonators, sun, sand, waves, sharks, and s'mores. Aaaaah.
The girls stayed with my mom, sister, and Ralph for the week (thank you again!), and did amazingly well. Bill and I were so nervous leaving them that my mom had to practically push us out the door when we left. Luckily for us, instead of any crying or long goodbyes, Maddie yelled, "Bye, Mommy and Daddy!" and went back to playing with her toys. Josie gave us a quick smile before scooting across the floor to steal Maddie's toys.
I fully expected to be completely heartbroken the first few days, but it was the exact opposite. Bill and I were so caught up in everything happening that we almost didn't have time to miss the girls. It finally got to me about the 3rd or 4th day of the week. I kept looking around the beach and seeing parents with their little kids Maddie's and Josie's ages, and it broke my heart that they weren't with us. They would have loved the water and sand and it would have been nice to introduce them to that, but maybe another time. Bill and I discussed taking them to the beach on our own sometime soon.
It also helped that the girls didn't miss us ONE BIT. Seriously. We called them every day and each phone conversation with Maddie went like this:
M: Hi, Mommy and Daddy!
Us: Hi, Maddie! What did you do today?
M: I go see chickens and cows and ducks! And baby chickens, and mommy chickens, and daddy chickens.
Us: Oh wow, that's great. Are you having fun? Mommy and Daddy miss you very much.
M: Okay, bye!
And then she would run off to play with Nana or Poppa or Aunt Mic or Heath or her cousins, Brandon and Cheyenne. Apparently the baby chicks that she saw were such a big hit that they replaced the affections of Mommy and Daddy. (And no, Nana, we are NOT bringing any baby chicks home to live with us right now. Maddie's 2 dogs and cat will have to suffice.) Despite a few temper tantrums that are normally an everyday part of our life at home, Maddie had a great week.
Josie did well too, for the most part. Apparently the new environment didn't help her sleep very well and my mom and Mic got to experience waking up with her every few hours. Also, Josie had just started cutting her 2nd tooth when we left so she was very cranky for a few days. Maddie never even got more than a little uncomfortable when she was teething (we never knew there was a new tooth until we happened to spot it days later) but Josie had a harder time with it, including running a small temp and crying incessantly. Poor baby. But she did love seeing her Poppa (despite the fact that she didn't recognize him at first without his hat and screamed whenever she looked at him) and got even closer to crawling (she's now rocking back and forth on her hands and knees -- you should see the kid move when she sees a toy she wants! she knows she had better get there before Maddie).
I nearly cried when we got to my mom's place on Saturday night. Maddie looked so small, yet more like a little girl, and I almost didn't recognize Josie. Bill said the same thing. It's as if Josie grew twice as much while we were gone. Her face had changed a little as well. Sounds weird, but it's so true. Of course Maddie met us with, "Mommy and Daddy! I missed you!" and a big hug. (That's her favorite saying now, even if we've just been in the next room.) Josie gave us a big smile, followed by a moan that sounded so painful it nearly broke my heart. Her gums were hurting her so much that she would smile intermittently with grimacing and grunting. But I think she was glad to be back with Mommy and Daddy as her mood improved dramatically over the rest of the evening.
The past couple of nights at home have been wonderful. I'm not going to say that we didn't NEED this vacation, but it's good to be home again. I feel like I've returned with a renewed sense of what I'm doing and what I want to do with the girls. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I also think it --in small doses--makes a better parent as well.
***I can't seem to get enough of the smell of Maddie and Josie either. No, I'm not talking about their poopy diapers, or milk-crusted faces. I mean the smell of them and even their breath. If you've ever seen the movie "Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her" then you'll understand the scene where Kathy Baker goes in to smell her son's breath while he sleeps. Sounds creepy, but any parent will understand.
I don't have time to post now, seeing as how I've been behind the eightball from the moment I arrived this morning. But I did want to let people know that the McLochlin family is back in their Atlanta home, safe and sound, after a great week of vacation.
We'll tell you all about it later (or today, if Alecia miraculously finds the time). In the meantime, check out our photos on Flickr. They're all unlabeled and out of order, but they tell part of the story.
On a more serious note, our condolences go out to Stefan and Jean Boehme. Stefan, my friend and soccer teammate since my first year in Atlanta, lost his father to a blood disease recently. Stefan, Jean and baby Liam have just returned from the funeral in Belgium, and we hope to talk to them soon. Please keep their family in your prayers this week.
After hearing a lot about how Hurricane Ophelia was tearing up North Carolina, I checked the weather forecast for our upcoming trip to South Carolina.
Apparently, the bad weather isn't traveling that far South.
And looking ahead at the extended forecast, it's all just more of the same...
Alecia and I had a packed weekend, once I returned from my company outing. And now, we're just as busy during the week getting ready for our upcoming trip to Myrtle Beach. So if this site gets neglected for a few days, blame it on the others in our family for whom I created logins. :)
If I had more time to write, though, I'd probably rave about Notre Dame football, the Colts defense (although it was only Baltimore), or even the awesome ribs I ate yesterday at Todd's and Carolyn's. Seriously, best I've had in years, and much better than any I'd had at a restaurant, of late.
Instead of going on about all of that stuff, though, I thought I'd share a comment that we just received on this site that most of you probably didn't see. Occasionally, someone will wander in through a bizarre google search and will leave a totally unsolicited and random comment. Sometimes, they're nice. Other times, not so much.
The one I found today was left on the post I wrote last year about Astrid (our cat) getting injured. It was the post with the gross pics, but you had to click to see the pictures--and there were ample warnings about them being gross.
The commenter, writing under the name "Miss Piggy" (though registering with a real email address if anyone wants to reply to her) wrote:
"get a life people - how can u have the time to do this with 2 kids in the house and obviously it shows bcoz your cat is totally neglected - will it be the kids next"
To answer your burning question, Miss Piggy: No. It won't be the kids next. It will be the dogs. They've been asking for it for quite some time, and Alecia's just about fed up with them.
Sheesh, some people.
Did a little cleaning this weekend, and changed the site up. Mostly, I was trying to fix some weird formatting issues that were causing people to only be able to see half of the page. This new template should work in all browsers, without errors. You may still see some weird stuff when you post comments--I haven't checked out all of that stuff yet.
Let me know if you find some bugs. :)
Remember when we told you Josie would need glasses? She got her new prescription today.
Please don't laugh, she's very sensitive about them.
You know what is a real bummer? When you go to teach your kids something, and they already know it. It's very anti-climatic. In our house learning to ride a two wheeler has always been a big deal. We take pictures, we video tape, and Randy and I usually spend hours alternating between nursing our sore backs and laughing at each other. Then to celebrate success, we all go out for icecream and only the proud new two wheel driver gets TWO scoops of icecream. So, imagine our surprise when this summer we take the training wheels off of our baby's bike, my last baby mind you, my little four year old, and he already knows how to ride. There's no running along side (I couldn't keep up) there was no bandaging boo boos (he even know how to use the brakes and stop). So, check out the new pictures of my very athletic baby-who isn't a baby anymore. And yes, we did still give him icecream.
