Christmas With The Family

We're back from our long weekend in the Chicago suburbs, a thoroughly enjoyable Christmas visit to the old homestead. Unfortunately all three of us got sick to differing degrees, and we're still dealing with that days later.

Zosia spiked a 102-degree fever the night before our flight. Joy. Luckily that fever came down before we left, so we were still able to go. The drive down to Washington National was uneventful, though the GPS in the car routed us through the surface streets of DC. Luckily we had left an extra hour early (fear of lack of parking), so we got to the airport in plenty of time. It may be far away, but National turns out to be a nice airport -- small, easy to navigate, and very little traffic even on the Friday before Christmas.

The flight was uneventful -- it took off about a half-hour late, but thankfully we had no connections so that wasn't a big deal. Zosia was kept occupied thanks to the Rip Roar portable video recorder I picked up last week. I haven't even begun to explore what it can do -- apparently it can be set up to automatically record shows off the TV, but I have Tivos for that. I just dumped a couple of episodes of Blue's Clues and Backyardigans onto it and that's all she needed.

We stayed at my mom's house, and my brother and his girlfriend came as well. We basically sat around playing the bowling game on Graham's Wii, talking about his new record label, and trying to think up ways to keep Zo occupied that didn't involve going out into the Midwestern winter too much. We walked to the playground one day, and drove around in search of an apparently non-existent Gymboree another day, but she spent too much time cooped up and by the end of the trip she started losing it pretty regularly. I can't say I blame her, being stuck in an unfamiliar house without much to do, and still not feeling 100%. If it hadn't been for the heroics of Grandpa Jim, who can apparently read the same book 15 times without growing bored, I don't know what we would have done.

All in all it was a good trip, if fraught. For a lot of the time I felt like Zo was one move away from a tantrum, and since her tantrums had recently begun to include the occasional hit, kick, or headbutt, I spent a lot of time on edge and I know D-Jo did too. Of course, it didn't help that she hadn't shaken the cold/bronchitis she picked up just before we left, either. We both got it, but because she's pregnant her immune system can't fight it off as well, plus she can't take the good drugs that would allow her a full night's sleep. So she spent a lot of time sleeping and trying to get well, to little avail.

By the time we flew home, Zo was pretty much a wreck. Now I recognize that we've been extremely lucky, and my definition of "a wreck" is very similar to other parents' definition of "a normal day," but still it's no fun to have to shepherd a squirming, unhappy, about-to-lose-her-shit kid through an airport and on to a plane. Incredibly, she stayed tantrum-free during the flight, even when she had to pee before the Fasten Seat Belts sign turned off (and thanks to the flight attendant who let us take her to the bathroom a few minutes early). More judicious application of the portable TV assuaged her, though she was not happy when, upon descent, we had to turn it off. She stewed over that until we landed and celebrated hitting the jetway with a full-fledged tantrum.

But, she was asleep within five minutes of us hitting the road, slept the rest of the two-hour drive, and slept through the night. After a couple of days back at the YMCA she was her normal wonderful self again.

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like D-Jo is -- her cold seems to have morphed into a sinus infection, with all of the head-throbbing, tooth-aching joy that comes with that. Her face hurts, and believe me it's killing me, too.

So here it is, New Year's Day. Zo is down for a nap (After a minor freakout that included her screaming at the top of her lungs for me to Rub! Her! Back!), Daryl's upstairs eating a sandwich and watching Law & Order, and I'm posting before I head downstairs to do some more cleaning up and maybe watch the end of the Penn State game.

And I couldn't be happier, or more looking forward to a fantastic 2007. Here's to another great year!