Friday, I mentioned to the school secretary that my science classes would be spending the day in 'the Habitat', which is two acres on the school grounds, containing an enclosed desert habitat, as well as a pond containing endangered fish that that some how has become my responsibilty...my boss overheard and asked if she could do my professional observation and eval during my class out there - no pressure... but it all went well, and my eval was great.
We had dinner at my in-laws, and got a chance to visit with the Daddy's aunt and cousin (and her family) in from Colorado. The Girl got to play with her second cousins? cousins once removed? I don't know - Daddy's cousin's children. We got home in time for me to hard boil some eggs to dye, and read story and crash into bed.
Update: Because I am anal about these things... I looked it up: The children were the Daddy's First Cousins, Once Removed, (because they are one generation "removed" from first cousins - the children of his first cousin) but that makes them the Girls' Second Cousins (share great-grandparents, but not grandparents). That may make them my First-Cousins-Once-Removed-In-Law, but we may be on the edge of ridiculous... Don't you feel better now?
Saturday, we had a landscape delivery, so my hubs has some BIG holes to dig today in the backyard so we can get our trees in the ground. I took the Girl to an Easter-egg hunt at church, then dropped her off at home, ran to the store for birthday presents (in my rush, got the wrong size shorts and didn't notice until she tried to put them on this morning!).
Home in time to dye easter eggs, change my clothes and comb my hair, then off to the Daddy's other cousin's wedding. It was lovely! The Girl caught the bouquet, effectively earning me a glare from the Daddy. (She is not to do that again until she is 13, he says). She ran around afterward singing "I'm a Single Lady" by Beyonce. I won a centerpiece of lucky bamboo, but most important, Daddy's cousin and friend married his best friend and they looked so happy! The Grandpa teared up watching the little cousins all play like Daddy and his cousins did when they were little, and everyone got a bit emotional thinking of the Twin. Got home in time to put the girl to bed at a reasonable time (sort of), fell asleep, and woke up in a panic with the Daddy shaking me to remind me the Easter bunny would need to come soon, and we had gifts to wrap. By the way, these types of responsibilities invariably fall on me.
7AM Sunday morning, and the Girl was up 30 minutes earlier than she was allowed to wake us, but it was an emergency! So I made her close her eyes and walked her to the bathroom, while I made sure that the Easter bunny had left everything ready-to-go, and started the coffee. She woke Daddy, camera was ready, and so was she. Easter-eggs hunts are a hoot. This is the first year she got to find real eggs instead of waiting for her cousin to arrive and hunting for plastic ones, and she did need a few hints... I taught her how to peel a boiled egg, and she liked it, except the yucky yellow. Oh well. :)
Daddy was a little aggravated that the Easter bunny brought his favorite candy for him too, but he couldn't get left out! We shared some quiet reflection on the meaning(s) of the day - Daddy cannot handle the large crowds and pure volume of Easter Sunday church service - last year he had to walk out and sit outside until the service was over, so we decided to forego in deference to his anxiety this year.
The girl opened some gifts - it was her birthday, too!- and we went out to lunch at Steakhouse - her choice, every year! We came home in time to feel the earthquake - my first one - I thought I was just pregnant-dizzy! (Neither Daddy nor I realized what was going on until we compared notes this morning after I watched the news.) We both decided to lay down - and we both think we had mild food-poisoning from the steak. :( After a quick nap, we cleaned the house, and finished just in time to greet the in-laws and cousins for a birthday party/Easter gathering for dessert - chocolate eggs, jelly beans, and ice cream cake. Life is good...
Can it really be that my baby is actually 6 years old? My little girl, who wore my socks this morning because she couldn't find her own - and they fit!!!
Can it really be that 6 years ago today I was in complete panic mode as I learned I would have to be completely sedated while they removed my ruptured gall-bladder? That I had to acknowledge that sometimes, albeit rarely, people do not wake up from anesthesia? That I had to agree to take that chance - leaving my brand new baby to head down to the OR - because otherwise I would likely die of infection eventually? That I wept from joy as I realized I was awake and could hold her in my arms? That afterward, I painfully pumped the milk from my breasts that would contained enough anesthesia that it would have poisoned my baby, and watched her daddy feed her formula from a bottle as they threw my milk away (in a hazardous waste container!).
We stayed in the maternity ward until it was safe for me to go home, and the day we were to go, we - the Girl and I - had to wait while the Daddy drove around with our friend looking for a fireman to approve his installation of the car seat (I may need to do that early this time!).
Other Random thoughts on her birth:
1. I remember very little detail, and have to ask the Daddy most details - time, weight, etc.
2. My labor was 40 hours.
3. I wore a 38 D going in, and a 44 DDD leaving. I actually needed a larger cup, but it was the biggest my mom could find.
4. I was assigned to the backseat for the ride home, as the Daddy was so nervous about her.
5. Truth is, I was assigned to the backseat until we turned her seat around, anytime we were all in the car. Again the nervous Daddy. Nevermind that I eventually drove her by myself sometimes...
6. We drove 15 miles per hour all the way home from the hospital. Literally. Nervous Daddy again.
7. I was literally one push away from a C-section - the doc was scrubbing in - when the nurse came in to say, "After 40 hours, are you really going to surgery now? You can do it!" And I did.
8. They stuck the pink bow to her head with KY jelly. Seriously.
No. It isn't possible that she is 6 years old. I don't care what the calendar says...
ReplyDeleteAnd I love birth memories. I think I will reminisce them every year. I don't care how disgusting my kids think they are someday. It's my God given right as the one who carried you in my womb and...well you know the rest ;)