More On Camping

We were supposed to go camping for longer but our colds kept us back a couple days. It was good that we stayed home. I think we were all feeling much better by Saturday and when we got there our rental camper was already there waiting for us. We rented a really nice trailer that was a perfect fit for our two pack n' plays.

The weather wasn't very good while we were there. It rained 2 of the days and was really windy the other 2. It made things a bit hard for the kids since I couldn't really put Jamie down much. The wind made it hard for the guys to go fishing. And the last day was freezing! It felt like an early fall day. So, overall the weather could have been better for us but it also could have been worse.

Camping with the kids was pretty tough. The hardest part was the napping/going to bed part. The first day/night they didn't want to nap or sleep. Jamie only slept well one night making us all very tired by the end of the 4 days. We would put Jamie down around 8pm and she would wake up multiple times crying and not able to put herself back down. Pete was usually so wound up that he had a hard time going to sleep and would wake his sister up or keep us up. And when we would go to bed we would wake one or both of them up. It makes me tired just talking about it again. But again, they could have done worse so I have to be thankful for that.

The best part of the trip was all the family we got to see and spend time with. I love seeing P.'s cousin's and aunts and uncles. We had a birthday party for his Aunt Edna on Sunday and even more family came into town to join us at the campground. Pete really got to know more of his extended family and when we look at pictures of our trip he can name most of the people he met and spent time with. That makes me happy. Omi and Opa (P.'s parents) always feed us and take great care of us while we are camping. It's very helpful and we appreciate it very much. One night we had a fish fry with the whole family from the catches of the day.

Pete went out fishing with his dad, Opa and cousin one morning. He did great. He was out on the boat for 3 hours and had a great time. He will be a good buddy for his dad. Here are some more pictures because I have to get going and these pictures again tell the story well.

Next time we will bring her a bigger pool to play in.Jamie in our camper. Just like at home she always wanted to play in the bathroom or head out the front door.
Pete having a blast running all over the place.
Pete and his Opa.
Watching the campfire while eating a Twizzler.
Me and my girl.
The birthday party. It poured all day! All day.
My little man standing in the rain.
Jamie slept through a lot of the party but woke up in time for us to show her off a little bit. They are with Uncle Bob here.
Omi feeding her cake again. Omi likes to feed her all the sweet stuff.
On the boat. It rained on us and we had to come right back in.
With his Aunt Edna.
The fish fry. Jamie ate a little bit of everything. Pete ate a little bit of nothing.

Dusk the last night we were there. Jamie stays close to mom at all times.


At the playground. It's a sad excuse for a playground.
Me and my husband. We are a great team.
All of us.
Now, I am off to Colorado to see my friend Erin. No kids for 3 whole days! I know P. and Pete will be fine. It's Jamie I am worried about. And I am worried about how much I am going to miss her too. Everyone will live and to tell you the truth, I really need the break right now. Later.

Camping

We went camping last weekend. It was fun, but it was hard. If I get a chance tomorrow I will write more about it. For now, here are some pictures. They tell a good story themselves.

Our Week of Nothing Much

We didn't do much this week because we are all still sick. Maybe a trip to the store here, trip to the library to drop off books, trip to McDonald's for mom to get lunch and trip to the mall for mom to get out of the house. We spent a little bit of time outside if it wasn't raining or too ridiculously humid.

I went to the doctors today and she said to take 4 Sudafeds at a time instead of 1. Yikes. Really? I took two tonight. Two worked wonders, wonder how 4 is going to feel tomorrow!

The kids are doing well. Both have runny noses but they are drying up nicely now. Pete is getting "hyper". Maybe it's because we haven't done much this week. If we are in the house it seems like he is bouncing off the walls....and me....and his sister. Jamie is getting fussy. Mostly about getting her diaper changed. She hates it. She sees the changing table and she starts flipping all over like a fish then fights you from start to end. It's fun. But the kids are so smart. Pete talks all day. P. asked me the other day, remember when you wished Pete would talk. Ha. Funny to look back on that now. And Jamie I swear is talking. She sees Abby and she says Da. She claps, and she dances and she fake coughs. I can say, "Where is daddy?" And she will look for him. Where is Pete, where is doggy, where is mommy? Same. When you leave a room she puts her arm up and watches you leave, grunting at you.

I kind of had a hard week. A feel like I dealt with a lot of hard things. I felt beat down, stepped on and just really discouraged. And I felt very alone. But I have my kids, and I have my husband and I have all of these great memories to look at at the end of the day.

The kids playing together. Remember I told you Pete likes to tickle Jamie?Mom trying butt cream on her mosquito bites to see if it will help. It didn't. Just got all over the place. Jamie didn't like it.But she didn't mind after I gave her a graham cracker.
And she didn't mind in the tunnel.
Jamie found the toilet paper. And she found out how much fun it is. Yikes.
My cutie pie looking all cutie pie-ish.With mommy. And with her brother when he finally decided to wake up and join us this morning. Jamie sleeps from 8pm-6am. Pete sleeps from 10pm-8am. Mom sleeps from 11pm-6am. Jamie is ready to go back to sleep by the time Pete wakes up in the morning. It's all off.

And yes, I got a haircut yesterday. Nothing major. Shorter by a couple inches. Some new layers. Face framing. Healthier. And I got some bangs cut. I like them a lot. They do kind of bug me though and fall in my eyes. The kids both noticed. They pulled on them all day. Pete took this picture of me.
And the boys just a few minutes ago playing a fish game on the computer. It's weird seeing my 2 year old figure out the computer and a game.Thanks for looking. Goodnight and love to all.

Watermelon

Jamie likes watermelon almost as much as I do. We have had some of the best watermelon lately.

Dancing

My dancing fool(s). That annoying music is on my cell phone. I messed up my ringer somehow and was trying to find my tone again when I came across this totally ridiculous music. Jamie seemed to enjoy it. It's the first time I have ever seen her dance, or clap. So cute, yes?

Storm

The storm the other night that kept me up for hours. I have never seen anything like it.

Yes

Yes, that is a big, huge mosquito bite between Jamie's eyebrows. Not only is it huge and red but it's swollen up like a giant welt. Have I mentioned I hate mosquitoes? What is their point on this planet? Besides to drive me absolutely nuts!

She has more scattered here and there, and all over. Lovely. Oh and yes, that is a runny nose too.

Not Better

Not much better. Now I am sick, and Pete is sick. And Jamie is cutting teeth or something. I don't know. I just don't know. It's a fussy, needy house. Not a good time for this but when is a good time right? But it really isn't a good time at all.

These days I feel lost. I don't know what is wrong with Pete. All I know is he has a temp that started at 101.2 this morning and when I put him down for a nap it was 102.3. He is burning up. His whole body feels like it is on fire. I gave him Tylenol and we will see how he feels when he wakes up. He is also fussy, whiny and needy. He wants to be held and he doesn't want to eat anything. Not even his favorites. No fries, no apples, no ice cream, no juice. Nothing. Not sure what is wrong. Any ideas?

And Jamie started with a temp and runny nose this week. Today she doesn't have a temp but is sneezing and has a runny nose. She is also very fussy, needy and wants to be held. Don't try to put her down, change her diaper or deny her anything. Cutting teeth? Cold? Cold's don't have fevers right? Could be yeast infection and cold....just not sure.

Me, probably the beginnings of a cold. Maybe we are all just fighting colds. But the fevers bother me. Anyway, it's just really not a good time. Going to take this quiet opportunity to shower, and pray.

My Day

This was a Monday I could have done without. I am venting so be prepared....Everything was hard today. Everything went wrong. Pete forgot how to pee in the potty. He was fussy and needy most of the day. Jamie woke up with a runny nose, mosquito bites all over her, a yeast infection and diarrhea. She took a horrible morning nap and woke up crying. Pete wouldn't eat anything I gave him. He kept asking to go outside but we can't go outside because he gets eaten alive by mosquitoes. All day was like this. It seemed like it was one thing after another. And the weather, oh the crappy weather here. I think it has rained like 10 out of the last 14 days. I went to the gym to get a break, was late for my class, Pete was screaming crying when I dropped him off the the childcare area and I had no energy to exercise once I got started. I should have just stayed home. Traffic was horrible and the construction around here is driving me crazy. There are mosquitoes in my house and I cannot protect my kids from them when they are in our living space. I cleaned up three pees on the floor, 2 diarrhea diapers and the granola bar Pete took apart bit by bit and threw on the kitchen floor. Today was frustrating, trying and emotionally and physically draining. At one point I just walked away and laid down on my bed. Pete followed me, "Mommy, up! Mommy up!" Later I went into the bathroom, closed the door, shed a few tears and rejoined my kids before they could get into trouble. These days are few and far between but when they happen they take everything out of me. I was a terrible mom today. It was a terrible day and I was a terrible mom. So, I am going to bed and tomorrow will be better.

Here are a couple of pics I took today. As hard as today was, Jamie was still really cute. :)

She is not quite as helpful as Pete when it comes to unloading the dishwasher. She picks up the silverware and drops them on the ground.