Update on Crazy Life - Installment 2

Mini Me missed Motor Mouth the week he was in Tulsa

with Grandma DonnaMomma and Grandpa FlyGuy.

We picked upMotor Mouth in Branson last weekend.

On the road, we pulled up the map on our iPhones.

8 hours 27 minutes!!

We thought it was a 5 or 6 hour drive. Ooopsy!!

Traffic was so bad leaving Chicago on a rainy Friday,

it took us almost 2 hours to get out of city limits!

The morning we left, our roof sprung a leak!!

They HAD to come into our unit and of course,

the bedrooms were a MESS!! I got a ride home from work

to tidy up for 20 minutes. Adrenaline rush!!

We pulled into a great condo in Branson around 2:30 am.

We chilled and had a nice, relaxing weekend
until after lunch on Sunday, when we drove back home.

4/5 weekends we've been on the road, traveling.

Our 2 month old car hit 5,000 miles!

It had 15 miles when we drove it off the lot...

On Monday, I got to see my dear friend, MAM.
MAM had their 2nd baby and I hadn't met him.
He is so adorable and wonderful.
It was amazing to see MAM again. I missed her!
(this is a pic of MAM with Baby #1,
they look so much alike, I figured it's like meeting #2)

Tuesday, I attended the Cultivate09 Conference.

It was for people who do church marketing.

I do Christian school marketing so, close enough.

Great conference. Lots of info.

That night, J flew out to teach a class on set design

at WFX Charlotte, in North Carolina.

While J was out of town,
I had to have my stitches removed.

I took the kids with me. They were troopers!!

...And THAT, is why I haven't blogged lately...

Overnight

A few weeks ago, we drove to Tulsa with our 2 kids. At 8:00 PM, J decided we should leave at 10:00 PM and drive ALL NIGHT!! 

I thought he was insane. However, my husband was right. It was an amazing experience!! 

We didn't stop for potty breaks, breakfast, lunch, dinner, or walks around Wal-Mart. We didn't have to referee fights, divvy out snacks, replace game batteries, or bring a gazillion toys. J and I took turns driving and had a great stash of Red Bull and stay awake snacks. The only time we stopped was to gas up and for our own potty breaks.  The trip was the closest thing to Nirvana (not the band).

On the way home, we messed up. The kids had played extremely hard that day. Motor Mouth had night terrors. Mini Me was overtired and restless in her seat and whimpering most of the night. We left close to 11:30 PM. WE were over tired. 

At one point, J pulled over so we could all sleep. Then he started snoring which ticked me off so bad!! I ended up driving the majority of the night. It felt like we were never going to get home. To top it off, Motor Mouth's face started swelling (happens EVERY time we go back to Tulsa). We had to take him to the doctor as soon as we got back into town.

Would we do it again?

YES!!

Would we change anything?

Leave no later than 10 PM

Would we recommend it?

YES!!!!!!!

Road Trip Rumblings

There were a few things that got me rumbling on my trip home from Canada.

The biggest one was the 60 minute wait at the border to enter the USA.

Speed limit is.....

Don't think I'm in danger of getting a ticket!!

Braille and Picture Menus Available

That's great, but the sign is not in braille 

and it is in ALL words. 

How is a blind or illiterate person supposed to know that?

Really? I was already doing 15 in a 70 mph zone. 

How much slower did they need me to be going?

Motor Mouth's Allergy Update #2

This is Michael, the uber friendly receptionist 

at the Allergy & Immunology Clinic

This is Motor Mouth on August 19th

This is Motor Mouth on August 9th in the ER

This is Moor Mouth having a skin test.

Motor Mouth is allergic to oak trees, dust, cats.

Sorry, no pictures of me dancing around and singing "What's up pussy cat" and "Leaving on a Jet Plane" and "Rehab" in the exam room for 15 minutes in a desperate attempt to keep Motor Mouth from scratching his itching, itching arm!!

(intentionally left blank)

This is Motor Mouth getting blood drawn for the 1st time.

This is how much more we know about what caused his severe allergic reaction.

(intentionally left blank)

Doc says they won't know what happened to cause his face to swell to unrecognizable proportions unless it happens - again.

We'll keep you posted.

Motor Mouth Allergy Update #1

As you may recall from my blog on Saturday, Motor Mouth had a severe allergic reaction, requiring him to go to the ER. 

There was a birthday party for Grandma Grandma at Widney Manor Saturday evening. Motor Mouth was so self-conscious about his appearance, he didn't want Skaterboy, his friend, to see his face. Motor Mouth went to the costume store and picked up a Batman mask and cape. 

Motor Mouth LOVES Batman!! 

He also picked up eye masks and animal noses (elephant tusk, mouse nose, etc.) for the other children so Motor Mouth didn't stand out and didn't have to worry about how he looked. It worked!!

I am happy to report Motor Mouth's face and hand swelling (yeah, his hands and arms were a bit swollen as well) has gone done. My beautiful boy is back!! He has a couple of scratches on his face from when he was rubbing it on the way back from the lake Friday.

The kiddos and I decided to take BUS by OURSELVES to the doctor's new office. 

Motor Mouth would have me to tell you we took the #8 Halsted bus.

Feed Mini Me and she is good to go!

The doctor prescribed an EpiPen Jr and a referral to an allergist. I called the allergist on the way out the door of the doctor's office. Good thing!! Initially, I was told Motor Mouth would not be able to get in for "MONTHS". Then, she found an opening for Tuesday morning. I don't know what I am doing with Mini Me yet, but Motor Mouth and I will be there!!

Wedgewood and Luggage

We are HOME!!!!!

While we were gone, our home was being taken very good care of by our house guests from England. I think they left the place cleaner than they found it! And, on top of that, they brought this beautiful Wedgewood tea cup set from merry ol' England.

Now, here is a first...

We have been back just a few hours and all the beds have fresh sheets, all the clothes have been unpacked and all the toiletries have been put away.  The last time the kids and I returned from Canada, it was 2 weeks before everything from the suitcases were put away. 

I must be growing up!

Chi-Town to T-Town Installment #6

DAY FIVE

This day started with the ending of yesterday. We went to visit our BFF Starr, and kept her company until her husband and son came home...at about 4 am.

In the evening, it was a rockin' party for Grandma Grandma's birthday

Grandma Grandma

We remember the days when Grandma Grandma would wistfully look at her married grandchildren and say, "All of my friends have great-grandbabies and I don't have any." Grandma Grandma is so sweet, we were all putting in extra effort to make her dream a reality.

Now, she is called Grandma Grandma by her 14 great-grandchildren (all 5 & under), with 2 more on the way!

Baby Sis, one of 3 pregos in the fam.

Oh, and she now has more great-children than most of her friends!

Huggy and PJ

These are my favorite of Grandma Grandma's friends. They are so special to me, like an aunt and uncle. I refer to her hubby as 'Huggy' because he gives the best hugs! PJ is so sweet and kind, I just love her.

Some of our friends came to the party. 

Mickey & Minnie

Neon & Starr

Skater Boy - Motor Mouth's friend

JBW & KeiKei (J's aunt & cousin)

Train Boy & Baby Sis (Baby Y is the 'bump')

T.A.S.T.E. was there, but I forgot to get pictures!

Sun Allergy

We went boating yesterday afternoon. Motor Mouth started having itchy arms and his face was burning/itching.  He kept putting water on to soothe it. At 11 pm when he went to bed, he seemed fine. A little coughing, but fine for the most part.

By 5 am, Motor Mouth looked like this.  

J and his dad took Motor Mouth to the ER. They gave him a steroid and we are giving him allergy meds. I'm happy to report Motor Mouth can now see out of his right eye. His eye is about 1/3 open and his face is still too swollen to recognize him. But we believe the swelling to be coming down.

I went online and typed in 'sun allergy'. From the sounds of it, Motor Mouth has this (technically, it is an immune system thing). I just thought Motor Mouth was allergic to Oklahoma!

When we return to Chicago, I will take Motor Mouth to be tested to confirm my net diagnosis and to rule out other things.  But it sounds like there really is such a thing as being allergic to the sun. 

Chi-Town to T-Town Installment #5

DAY FOUR

We ran errands most of Friday without Motor Mouth because he was with his favorite person in the world - Grandpa FlyGuy.

Playing to an audience at the bank

A surprise visit to the best childcare provider in the world - Missy Me.

Missy Me cared for both Motor Mouth and Mini Me but there was a special bond with Mini Me.

Missy Me's girls LOVE Mini Me and she loves them. Can you tell?

We went to the airport to meet J's parents to go out to the lake.

But they weren't there. After finally meeting up, we went boating. 

My beautiful mother-in-law, DonnaMomma

Mini Me loved tubing with Daddy but...

Motor Mouth wanted to spend the night in the cabin.

MUCH LATER THAT EVENING...

J and I visited our BFF Starr at her new house which is wonderful and has a great pool.

I don't covet my friends' things but I DO covet this chair, and have for many years. I've asked Starr to put it in her will for me to have if she goes first. That's about the only way she will part with this piece.