My Whirlwind in an Epistle

I have been missing from real life, and it feels like a whirlwind.  My vacation with the boys was awesome.  Almost three weeks of fun which utterly exhausted my boys.  Here is a rundown of our last three weeks:

Flying with two kids:
Not as bad as I had feared.  They were great!  I cannot emphasize the awesomeness of my kids enough on those traveling days.  They amazed me, and I'm so grateful.  We were prepared for every event.  They each had their own little backpack filled with provisions.  They were really just super excited to be in an airport and see all those Big Planes!  An airport is like a dream land for little boys!  We rode every escalator and watched the planes from the windows.  Going through security kind of freaked them out.  They weren't all that willing to give up their jackets, backpacks and shoes (although kids under 12 don't have to take off their shoes anymore).  I payed out the nose for airport food, but keeping the kids happy was worth every penny.  I handed out snacks like a vending machine.

My favorite moments:
#1. We put Hobbes on a leash, which turned out to be a brilliant idea.  We just attached a strap to his backpack so that he had a bit of freedom, but he could never be more than three feet away from me.  He actually really liked it.  He could hold me hand if he wanted to, but he didn't have to.  And I loved knowing exactly where he was at all times.  There was one time that he didn't want to be on a leash, and his reaction surprised me.  Instead of throwing a fit (like Gunner would have done), he just lay down on the floor and refused to move.

#2. Hobbes was getting very tired of sitting still and being quiet near the end of the second flight on our way to UT.  He took off his seat belt and informed me that he was done.  Knowing that the Fasten Seatbelt Sign was on and that we still had a good 30 minutes of flying left, I said to him (with enthusiasm), "I'll give you a lollipop if you sit down!"  It worked.  He sat down.  Child Bribery is a parentin technique I can really get behind.  I'm such a good mom.

The Vacation:
We stayed with my sister for a week and my parents for week.  Gunner was reunited with his cousins, and he played and played and played with them.  And the boys loved being with their grandparents.  They were so happy to be with them.  It actually makes me feel incredibly guilty for living so far away from them.  They just love them so much.  And I love that.

While we were there, we saw some good friends from our medical school days, my former neighbor Kalie and her brand new gorgeous baby, my favorite cousin, some high school friends I haven't seen for ten years, and a couple of college friends, one of whom I haven't seen for 12 years (So great to see you all!!!).  It was so fun, although I have to admit that with facebook and blogs, it didn't feel like it had been that long, which is nice.  I hung out with my family, hugged and hugged my nieces and nephew, and had an great time.

The Trip Home...
Was exciting because our neck of the woods was experiencing a blizzard!!! (13 inches of snow on May 2.  What?!), and we couldn't actually get home.  The highway was closed for part of the day due to whiteout conditions, so Spiff couldn't drive up to the city to pick us up from the airport.  We made some calls and ended up staying with some good friends, who then drove us home the next morning because Spiff was on call and unavailable to help.  I'm so grateful because at that point we really just wanted to be home.

And then...
both of my boy were horribly sick all weekend.  Gunner complained of a headache and developed a fever.  Hobbes had/has a double ear infection and was hitting high temperatures for three days.    Basically, I spent Friday, Sat. and Sunday sitting on the couch holding sick kids during the day, while Spiff was on call again, and while no one in the family slept at night.  My poor Hobbes was so miserable.  He would sit by me, and his head hurt so bad that he would take my hand and put it on his face...on his cheek, or on his hear, or covering his eyes.  We got him to the doctor on Monday morning, got some meds, and he is thankfully feeling much better.

So now I'm digging out.  I feel like Spiff who dug our driveway out of 13 inches of wet, heavy, slushy snow the other day.  I finally unpacked today.  I did some laundry.  I can move freely since I don't have children plastered to me at all times, so I can start thinking about catching up on paperwork and bills, making our friend's birthday cake, and putting in some miles for our family's IronMay challenge.

Also, did I mention that it is finally Spring?!  Well, it is.  The snow melted and the grass underneath it was green!  We have new plants growing in our yard.  There is yard work to do!  We went to the park today and played.  For hours.  It was warm and wonderful and the boys wore themselves out.  The sun feels so sweet.