A Quick Backtrack

Quickly, before I continue with the Christmas festivities, I give you some highlights of our Thanksgiving week.
Here is Isabelle's 3rd grade class play, "The Ugly Turkey," about a different-looking turkey who taught all the other turkeys that you judge a turkey by her character and not by her appearance. Notice that Isabelle is a head taller than most of her classmates. Do you think the other turkeys will be judgemental to the tall turkey?

On Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving, we road-tripped to Idaho Falls for a feast hosted by Sky & Heidi--my brother & his wife--whom we just blend into "Skeidi." [Mike remained home to work. I allowed his mom to have custody for Thanksgiving.]

The above photo is the baby pestering Max on our 4-hour drive. It was hilarious! He spent a half hour stretching his foot wa-a-a-a-y over, as far as he could reach, to tap on Max's leg. Max didn't even notice the antics, immersed as he was in making a BB gun from a pen (don't ask). I happened to glance back and saw this little blue jammie foot stretched out so it could bother Max. We spent the next half hour laughing at the baby-pestering.

We arrived safe & sound Wednesday evening, and by 10pm that night it was clear that I had a very sick baby. A screaming, in-pain, inconsolable baby. I walked the floor with him that night from 1-5am. Every night thereafter, for the entire holiday, was spent in a similar manner.

It was a delirious Thanksgiving.

Thank GOODNESS for a mom & dad who helped out when it became too much--like when Baby woke up for the morning at 7am, after being up crying ALL NIGHT. My mom & dad took over so I could squeeze in a few hours of survival sleep.

Or like when, another morning, he decided to get up from 4am-7am after--yes--crying off and on from 1-3am. On that morning, I just started to cry along with him. My dad got up at 4am that day and played with Jack, allowing me to zonk for a few hours.

Thanksgiving recap: The food and company were great. The rest of it was nightmarish.

The baby did sleep quite well each night from 9pm-midnight. Foolishly, I spent that time socializing and playing games. Then I'd fall into bed, only to be awakened an hour later by a screaming baby in pain. (He ended up having two ear infections, the poor brave sweetie.)

I had big plans to document the fun and the food. Didn't happen. A sick, non-sleeping baby by night and a hyper, mischievous baby by day meant no photos. None. I did take a second to snap a photo of their amazing bar stools, which came with their new house.

And on the way home, we saw this beauty. A bubblegum-pink truck. We stared. We laughed. Don't you think my minivan would look great in this color?

(please tell me you caught the tongue-in-cheek tone there.)