First Family Camping Trip

This Mother's Day was a little different than the past few years.  We usually go to the beach with some of my other mother friends.  This time we decided to give camping a try.  We haven't gone since before Aiden was born.  This trip was a little different from past experiences since it focused more on the kids than ourselves.  We didn't want to go far in case there was an emergency with the kids, so we went to Huntsville State Park just north of Houston.  We reserved two campsites and shared with two of my co-workers' families.  One family has a boy the same age as Aiden, the other a 5-year-old girl.

Saturday morning we packed up the truck and headed to the park.  We set up camp and then all went canoeing on the lake.

Canoeing is difficult with a baby.

 

Mila fell down in the canoe, so I immediately scooped her to make sure all was well.  When I set her down and looked around I could no longer locate my paddle.  The good news?  I got to enjoy the rest of the trip and let Travis do all the work.  He didn't seem to mind though.

We stopped for slushies on our way back to the site.  By the time we made it back, Mila was ready for a bottle and a nap.  She proceeded to sleep for the reminder of the night (though I woke her up momentarily for dinner).

 I forgot how amazing camping is.  It's so nice to be out in nature, away from the sounds of cars and stereos. 

The eventful hill:

Aiden wanted to try out one of the kid's bikes, that's a bit bigger than his.  I showed him how he could use the pedals to brake just like on his bike and also the hand brake.  The two kids walked next to him while he rode.  He started to speed up and made it around the corner before I could get him to stop.  He made it around the bend and picked up even more speed going down a hill.  Instead of using any of the brakes, he tried to drag his feet on the ground.  Since it was a bigger bike, he was unable to reach the ground.  He turned around and looked at me with a face full of fear.  It was horrible.  I was looking at his t-shirt and shorts and imagining the road rash we'd be dealing with.  He dove off the bike (or fell?  not sure...) and the bike continued down the hill and t-boned the red car you can see in the photo above.

I ran up to Aiden and scooped him up.  He was crying so hard.  I checked him over and he didn't have a scratch on him.  He was wearing a helmet (THANK GOODNESS) so his head was fine.  It wouldn't have been fine with as hard as it hit the pavement.  Ugh.  Horrible.  The couple who owned the car ran up with the bike to make sure he was okay.  They said they weren't even worried about their car as long as Aiden was okay.  The guy told Aiden he couldn't believe there wasn't a dent in the road with as hard as he hit it.  Seriously.  Me too.  I thought for sure Aiden would be covered in bruises in a few hours, but he only had one fingertip-sized bruise on his shoulder blade where he probably landed on a rock.  MAKE YOUR KID WEAR A HELMET!!!

For dinner we cooked hot dogs over the fire.  After dinner we roasted marshmallows and made S'mores.  I bought bug houses for the kids, so we ran around catching bugs.  When it got dark, we broke out the glow stick necklaces and poured a special powder on the fire to make it change colors.  The kids stayed up until 10 pm.  I wish that meant they slept in, but no.

The next day we sat by the fire and drank camp coffee while one of the other dads cooked breakfast.  Afterward we all split up.  One family went home, one went paddle boating and we opted for a hike in the woods.  I wanted to see if we could find anymore wildlife.  We'd  already seen tons of blue jays, cardinals and woodpeckers.  A squirrel practically climbed up Travis' leg.  We found a ton of white, fuzzy caterpillars around the campsite - perfect for the bug houses.

On the hike, we saw a black widow spider.  No joke.  I'm so glad we saw this at the END of the camping trip.  I would have been an anxious mess otherwise.  Ignorance is bliss.  The spider was hiding in the middle of it's messy web just inside a hole in a log.  When I saw the shiny black with the red spot, I knew instantly.  EESH.  On a lighter note, we also saw dragon flies, butterflies and two rabbits. 

We already had the truck packed up, but decided to eat lunch at the camp site.  Eating at a picnic bench in the middle of a beautiful park is way more fun that strapped to a chair in a moving vehicle. 

Camping with a baby was a little hard.  Mila can't walk quite yet and I didn't want her crawling around in the dirt eating pine needles.  I brought enough bottles that I only had to wash them once so we had enough to get us home on Sunday.  This trip was probably easier than it would have been if it were just us because one of the other families bought and prepared all the food.  One less thing for me to worry about!  I would love to go camping again soon, but preferably after Mila can walk and is off formula.  Though that might not be very far away...

 Happy Mother's Day!

My Mother's Day gift.

Ups and Downs

Working out is tough.  I've never had an injury related to exercise, but I think I might have one.  I'm not exactly sure what's going on, but my ankles hurt.  I've had to stop doing some of the jumping moves.  Instead I do something similar without having to land hard on my ankles.  I need to go buy ankle wraps to see if that helps at all.  Travis doesn't do some of the jump moves either, but for a different reason.  It hurts his lower back.  He's thrown his back out twice, so he's trying to avoid that again.  

I have never been a scale watcher, but ever since I had Mila I've been unable to avoid it.  I lost a pound per week the first two weeks doing Insanity.  But this last week I gained 3 lbs!  I don't know if it's fat converting to muscle, or if I ate too much due to Valentine's Day.  I really hope its the muscle thing.  I feel like my pants are a little looser, but I can't help but feel some disappointment.

I have a work trip next week, which means I'll have to take a week off of exercising PLUS I'll be eating all the horrible food they'll be feeding us.  I'd like to say I will find time to get in some cardio, but I've never been good about that.  The only reason I'm sticking with it at home is because Travis does it with me.  The best I can do is avoid all the sweets (my weakness). 

On the upside, we had our second fit test last week and I saw HUGE improvement.  I kept meaning to post my numbers (because I know you all care so much), but it always slips my mind.  I know the workouts are easier because I can make it through an entire round without having to stop like I used to.  Now the thing that holds me back is muscle weakness by the end.  I can only do so many push-ups and planks before my arms turn to Jello mush.  Overall I feel good about it.  I just need to remember the positives!!

Too Much

Ugh.  Travis and I are both sick now.  Thankfully neither of us have a fever.  Just pressure filled sinus cavities that require a box of Kleenex per day. 

I feel horrible that my mom's visit has been filled with so much chaos.  She came two weeks ago and stayed with my sister for the first week.  It rained that entire week.  She came over here last Thursday and we went to the hospital Friday.  Now we're sick.  Not the best visit, that's for sure.

Sunday night I hurt my neck in my sleep.  I have no idea what I did.  I'm not sure if it was a muscle spasm/cramp or if something went out when I rolled over.  Either way, the pain woke me up.  I fell back to sleep as soon as it went away.  When I woke Monday morning, I couldn't turn my head to the right at all and there was some pain when I looked to the left.  Thankfully I was able to make it to the chiropractor last night.  I haven't been in over three years.  He thought I'd moved away.  HA.  I said, "No.  I just have kids."  I'm a little sore today from the adjustment, but I feel SO much better.

Today was Mila's 2-month Well Baby visit. The appointment was in the middle of the day so I had to pick her up from daycare and bring her back.  It was also considered her post-hospital-stay check up.  The doctor was pleased with her. 

• She is in the 75th percentile and she has gained sufficient weight (she lost a few ounces since her stay in the hospital - she's at 11 lbs, 14 oz, 23.5 in. long) that the doctor is okay with her feeding on demand throughout the night.  At the moment, we wake her up between 2 and 3 to feed her.  I'm really excited about the prospect of being able to sleep through the night, or at least most of the night.  I'm hoping if we feed her close to 10, before we go to sleep, then she will sleep all the way until my alarm goes off in the morning.  Fingers crossed.
• She received 4 vaccinations, 1 oral and 3 intramuscular.  One of which is for two types of meningitis.  That means if she ever goes into the hospital again, they will be MUCH less likely to do a lumbar puncture like they threatened to do.
• The doctor hypothesized that Mila is sensitive to fevers.  When she was 7 days old, she had an elevated body temperature of 99.6.  That's not considered a fever, but the doctor wanted to see her at the time anyway.  We were told to monitor her and bring her to the ER if it went over 100.4.  Thankfully it never did.  It's so strange because Travis, Aiden and I rarely get fevers.  I get a cold once a year, but that's about the extent of it.  Hopefully it's all just a fluke.
• I got the doctor's approval to take her outside with baby sunscreen on.  Not that we spend much time out in this humid heat, but it's good to know!

When I signed in at the front desk for her appointment, the receptionist said Mila was not listed on my insurance.  I about shit a brick.  She said perhaps the paperwork hadn't gone through yet.  But when we were in the hospital, the nurse said the same thing and I totally forgot about it.  I got really caught up in what they were doing with Mila and it slipped my mind.  I called human resources immediately to see what is up.  They said they never received my paperwork (I sent it via email).  Holy crap I should have checked on that!

Meh.  After some back and forth with HR, I found that they will add her to my insurance immediately and since I already have family insurance, she will be covered from birth.  THANK. GAWD.  Hospital stays are expensive WITH insurance.  I don't even want to think what it would be without it.  The receptionist was hopeful that my insurance would come through, so she did not make me pay for Mila's appointment this morning. 

I'm so exhausted.  Still figuring out how to live life with two kids.  Mila spent the weekend in the hospital.  She still has a stuffed up nose, so she's not sleeping well.  Travis and I are both sick.  Travis is on-call this week (he had to go out on a job last night).  I hurt my neck.  Trouble with insurance.  Aiden fights anything we ask him to do.  On top of it all, we're approaching the end of the fiscal year which means its our one annual chance to make changes to our benefits at work.  I'm working to create a more lucrative retirement plan to my account and a flexible spending account for daycare.  Both will take a chunk out of my paycheck, so I want to make sure I'm doing it right.

I wonder if anyone would notice if I curled up under my desk for a nap...

Scattered Thoughts

I had a hair makeover this weekend. It was probably a month overdue for a trim, so I went in for that. Unfortunately the lady did the opposite that I asked for - I wanted my hair tapered around towards my face, but she angled it away instead - but I cannot complain. I get the $13 hair cut at whichever chain store is closest when I think of it.

I also dyed my hair. I do this from time to time to help hide the greys that started to take over my head when I was 25. They are actually a startling white, but calling them 'whites' just doesn't sound right. The brand I had been using before was fading too quickly for my preference, so I talked it over with a few of my friends and family who dye their hair regularly. Since I was buying a new brand, I didn't know exactly which shade to get. I ended up going a little darker than I had wanted. But! I guess it's getting into the colder months and a darker 'do couldn't hurt.

---

I cut my finger this weekend on the tamper-evidence foil of sour cream. I didn't realize it until there was blood everywhere and Travis was questioning the blood in the sour cream. Oh. Guess I cut myself?

It's super annoying though because it's on the tip of the index finger on my right hand. I'm right-handed. Now, every time I write, or try to open a bottle or vial, or anything that puts pressure on the pad of my finger, the wound opens up and starts to bleed again. Gross. And annoying.

---

New found morning struggle: Putting a jacket on Aiden. He HATES them. As Alexa puts it, you'd think it was burning his skin off. He literally throws himself on the ground immediately after getting the jacket on. I'm hoping he gets used to this soon. It may only be chilly in the mornings at this point, but that will change as the winter progresses!

---

Travis forced me to buy some things for myself this weekend with some extra money he earned. He didn't have to force me into it, but I sure felt guilty afterwards. I don't know why, but ever since I had Aiden, it feels horrible to spend money on myself. One of my favorite items from all the shopping I did is the Mr. Coffee Electric Coffee Grinder.

Why did no one ever tell me what heavenly goodness comes from grinding your own bean?! I know that coffee usually tastes like it smells when it's in the bag, but the level of intensity that comes from freshly ground coffee beans is insane. I now fully understand why coffeehouse coffee always tastes so much better than what I make at home. BECAUSE IT DOESN'T COME FROM WEEKS OLD PREPACKAGED COFFEE GRINDS.

Seriously. Yum.

---

Can't wait for tonight! We're going to meet Skylar!!