Need a New Nightmare

Well, well, well! A lot has happened in the last month or so. And by "a lot" I could mean a lot of dirty diapers, snotty noses, play dates, morning (and afternoon) coffee breaks, laundry, sleepless nights, grilled cheese sandwiches and mac and cheese. But hey, this is an exciting blog. Those of you who got on here thinking this was going to be a catalogue of "what-my-kid-did-that-was-cute-today" can just keep lookin'.

OK. I guess I'll drop the act. Wish it was true sometimes, though.

Still, there has been SOME excitement that was out of the ordinary this past month.

Tessa turned 4. Her birthday party was a blast and still talked about by Tessa as if it were yesterday. Well, that's mainly because in her world, anything happening before right now is yesterday (or sometimes "last night").

Jack learned a few new words:

kee-kee (kitty, kitty)

ba (ball)

papa (papa--he's so proud)

wow (wow)

whoa (whoa)

And, last but not least, the highlight of all highlights: I drove by myself to TEXAS with the kids. And that is why I need a new nightmare. Because once you've driven 14.5 hours with two kids, you realize that, while nightmarish, the experience is no longer a figment of a warped imagination. It is a REALITY. Which is less scary--usually. The trip was supposed to be a grand time of family fun. And while some of it was just that--the virus that attacked Tessa and I stole 4 of the 6 days we spent there. It was--in a word--miserable. The trip home was like driving through my very own personal--

But we made it through somehow. On the wings of prayers, actually. When we finally drug our bodies into the house, I crawled into bed and closed my eyes and I could still feel the highway rolling beneath me. And all I could think was : NEVER AGAIN. Or at least not while I have to play goalie with all the toilets in the restrooms because Jack's hands are as fast and as determined as hockey pucks to splash a home team point. And not while Tessa is young enough to wake up in the middle of the night merely to sit up and throw up all over me and the bed. NEVER AGAIN.