Sleep = Happy Chalna!

Thankfully, the third night on the road was the charm! Colin finally slept a little more normally last night and we both got more sleep. He only ate once during the night and I was able to quiet him down with the pacifier alone during his other wakings. MUCH better! He also napped normally today and went to sleep tonight at his normal time. I took a nap when he did today, so that helped me to feel a thousand times better.

Today was a beautiful day and we all packed up and went on one of our famous family scoots. A really nerdy tidbit of info about my family...we love to find places to eat in really small towns in East Texas. If it is on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere, we have probably been there. We have a whole list of favorite places to eat around here and we call it "going on a scoot" when we head out. In all fairness, that practice of calling it that started when I was about 10 years old, but I know it is still nerdy none the less. ;-) Today we went to one of our all time favorites...The Shed in Edom. I had chicken fried steak with gravy, mac and cheese, corn nuggets and peach cobbler! SO BAD! That did not help with how fat I am, but it was fantastic!! Colin had a blast...all the girls were kissing on him and he loved it as usual. The weather was great and the scenic drive in the country was just what I needed. I love where I am from. I really do believe that East Texas soothes the soul.

My little hometown is very unique. It has a population of about 180,000 people and is not a suburb of a major city. It just exists out here all by itself. It is surrounded by all the tiny country towns that we "scoot" to...but the closest big city is about a two hour drive away. I was thinking about that last night when I went to pick up dinner...I know every single street here and every building. I can tell you a story about every corner of this town. I have so much history here. When I was a kid, I could not wait to get away. I spent so much time thinking about being grown up in the big city, but now as I drive around, I can't help but thinking about how peaceful it was to grow up here. From going to dance class and being a cheerleader for our little elementary school to dancing on the Drill Team and cheering for the Red Raiders every Friday night. I think I probably embodied every small town cliche there is, but I had the best time in the world.

Oh, and for those of you keeping count...I have had several Mama Sandwiches this week! ;-)

Dreaming of a beach somewhere....

My sweet little boy is having a rough week and if I am being honest, so am I. He has really regressed this week...his sleep patterns are all over the place again and he is waking up almost every two hours all night long. He drank two bottles in the middle of the night last night...he has not done that in months. I am thinking possibly growth spurt...or teething...I just don't know. He was awake for the day at 4:00am this morning, much to my chagrin. I am running on empty in a big way. Colin and I sleep in the same room here and that makes it even tougher...I know he can sense that I am there. I wish I could help him more!!

I have a few friends here in Tyler that I had every intention of calling and getting together with during this trip. I was so excited to show off Colin and say hello, but I don't think it is going to happen. I am so tired that I can barely see straight and I have not been able to pull it together at all!! Oh well...at least I am with my family and not home all alone. That makes me very happy. My mom kicked me out of the house this afternoon and watched Colin so that I could go pick up some new jeans. That was so sweet of her...it was the first time that I have been shopping without Colin since he was born. It certainly makes it easier to get stuff done when you have a couple of hours of help!

Hopefully my little man will have a better night...he and I took a long hot bath together before I put him down. We played with his ducky and splashed around and he had a blast. We were prunes when we got out! He is sleeping soundly for now...wish me luck! :-)

Odds and Ends from T-town

I thought I should check in here before turning in for the night...I am exhausted. Colin was pretty fussy all the way around today. I am not sure if it is the time change, being in a new place, or teething. Possibly a combo of all three. Tomorrow should be better since he will have had more time to adapt to the change in scenery. I can tell you that I am a huge fan of sleeping in my own bed and Colin just may have gotten that from me. :-)

Tomorrow I am going to hopefully get out of the house. I need to run a few errands and pick up some odds and ends. I also need to eat at some of my favorite hometown places while I have the chance! If Colin is feeling better it should work out just fine. The weather is supposed to perk up tomorrow also, so I am hanging in there!

Things I have learned on this trip so far: a) I miss Jeremy a lot. b) I really love the dog door at my house. Taking Enzo outside in the middle of the night sucks. c) Colin thinks his Aunts are hysterical. :-)

Colin + Travel = Tired Chalna

My poor little man is still working on this whole traveling thing. I broke down and put his old car seat back in the Pilot. I just did not want to risk a problem while on the road by myself with a 7 month old and a crazy little dog. We have really been working on the new seat, but Colin is not a fan yet. If I don't sit with him in the back seat, he freaks out. He just can't fall asleep in it yet. I know I set us back by switching seats today, but oh well. To quote Scarlett, "I won't worry about that today, I'll worry about that tomorrow!". ;-)

He slept the entire way here, but still had lots and lots of trouble going to bed tonight. I think the time change messed with him also. Finally after a hot bath and lots of food, he passed out. Hopefully he will let me sleep some tonight, but the first night on the road is always the worst. I wonder when they grow out of this? I think the key is probably to travel with him more often. That is hard work with such a young child!

It does feel really good to be home. I will always consider this house to be "home base"....even though I love where Jer and I live now and would not change it. I think that comes from the fact that my parents still live in the same house that I grew up in from age three. I have just never known any different! It feels like walking into a special haven, where everything is safe and good. I know that probably sounds silly to most, but it is the way I feel. My mom and I went to the grocery store when I arrived. The exact same grocery store that I shopped with her in back when I could ride in the cart! I was thinking as I was walking around that it sure does seem strange that I was there as a 30 year old buying formula for my own child...walking around the same aisles that I did as a toddler. hmmm...I am being sappy, huh? I told you I was tired!! ;-)

Sore Throat Saturday. See a pattern? :-)

This has got to be the most boring Saturday on record. My stupid sore throat is no better, so today was blah. Jer has a work trip this week, so he spent most of today preparing for that. Colin and I are going to take the opportunity to spend the week with my parents, so that will be fun. As you can see...boring Saturday!

I was thinking today about how much I have changed since I had Colin. I remember a time when this sore throat would have grounded me. I would have spent the whole weekend in bed with magazines and juice and Jer would have catered to me by bringing me medicine and food. Sickness does not even slow me down now that I am responsible for my little man. That is probably why I am still sick...not enough rest. HOWEVER, I have learned that mothers don't rest that often. And Colin is worth it for sure. Have I told you that he thinks it is hysterical when I pretend to eat his food while I am feeding him? He literally rolls with laughter when I do it. So there I am tonight...throat on fire, blowing my nose with my left hand, feeding him with my right hand and making silly faces pretending to eat his food just so he will smile at me. This is the best time of my life...sick or not!

Sore Throat Friday

My throat is killing me! I was supposed to have lunch with Ellen today...it has been forever and I was really excited about it, but instead I ended up in bed during Colin's morning nap instead of getting ready to hit the road. BLAH! I am wondering how many Tylenol equals overdose...because I am keeping them in business this week! AGH!

I went back for my second visit with my new rehab doctor and he helped with my back yet again. It feels even better now! I don't love the hour of exercises they make me do afterwards...they HURT! However, doing those exercises is going to keep my back from going downhill again, so I am keeping them up! This doctor has really saved me...I was so scared to be left alone with Colin for fear that I would collapse again. Now I don't worry at all!! I have to go back again in a few days. It is just too bad he could not write me a prescription for my damn throat! :-)

The picture above is Enzo this morning. I moved Colin's chair to the couch while I cleaned up a spill and Enzo decided I did it for him. Crazy dog.

Colin's First Snow Day!!!

Well, today is the day! Colin got to feel snow on his face for the very first time! We just took these pictures in the front yard...Colin thought it was pretty neat! However, when the wind blew the snow in his face...that was not cool. ;-) We stayed out just long enough to snap these quick shots. The kids in the neighborhood are literally beside themselves. Ah, the memories. It rarely snows in our part of Texas, so this is a little kids dream! And by the way...it will be in the 60's tomorrow, so enjoy these pics. There won't be more for awhile. Ha ha!