We went home for the weekend. We hadn't been there since Christmas and I had today off for President's Day so it was the perfect opportunity. Plus, I needed to put money down on our Disney trip which was booked through a local agent there, I needed to drop my taxes off at CPA's office, and I wanted to get my car in for service at the dealership where I bought it. I managed to accomplish two out of three; we had to cancel the car appointment this morning due to yet another round of extremely shitty weather.
In some respects, it was a rough weekend. Many things didn't go exactly according to plan. My nephew wasn't feeling well so Punky wasn't able to play with him the way they usually play: running, jumping, screaming, and giggling. He spent most of the weekend on the couch with Punky jumping around in front of him. She was a bit disappointed, I think. She loves her cousin and he usually makes her giggle like there's no tomorrow. Hopefully they will both be healthy next time so they can resume their usual antics. We had planned to take the kids roller skating for the first time on Sunday, but those plans fell through for obvious reasons.
I enjoyed seeing my niece; she is getting so big and I'm missing out living so far away. She's nine months old already and an absolute cutie-pie. My sister was living across the country when my nephew was born but she moved back home when he was almost ten months old. I saw him almost every day until I moved away a month after he turned two, but it gave us the opportunity to get close. It makes me sad knowing I won't have the same opportunity with my niece. I'm sure she and Punky will be the best of friends though. After all, they are only seventeen months apart and, with the current age requirements for admittance, they will only be one grade apart in school.
My parents watched all three kids Sunday night so we could go out to dinner with my sister for my birthday. We went to a Japanese restaurant...a first for me. Based on the math in my head, a Japanese restaurant equals sushi, which equals raw fish, which equals I'd rather get poked in the eye with a fork than even look at the stuff, but I finally caved and took a chance. A new restaurant there has been creating quite a buzz and I was curious. And I was far from disappointed.
We sat at the hibachi and watched our chef cook our meals in front of us. He threw knives around, cracked jokes, tossed food at us, and squirted sake in our mouths every chance he had. Apparently their motto is "more sake...more happy." And I have to say, I left there pretty damn happy. Between the sake and the lone beer my sister guilted me into having for my birthday, I was quite giggly. I am such a light-weight with alcohol; I have no tolerance whatsoever.
I wish I could say the same for everyone in our party. I don't want to get into it now, but our delicious meal ended on a bit of a sour note...which subsequently triggered a full family crisis. It's complicated. It's sad. It's life, I suppose. My only hope is that everyone emerges stronger, happier, and healthier when the ordeal is done. Enough said for now.
So, we waited for the roads to clear a bit before heading back home today. The long drive wasn't as bad as I expected given all the ice and snow mother nature sent our way. However, once we arrived safely in our driveway, it was clear that our area drew the short end of the stick this storm. My all wheel drive Milan had no trouble making it in, but when I opened the car door snow actually fell inside. My guess is we got at least fourteen inches. Punky's dad stomped through it to get to the porch and then shoveled his way back to the car so Punky and I could get out without getting soaked.
Once we got everything unloaded and unpacked, we had the perfect opportunity to get Punky outside to play in the snow...for the first time. I mean, she's messed around a bit on the way to and from the car, but we never had the chance to dress her up like an Eskimo and let her roll around in it. Either we didn't have enough snow, or we had sub-zero wind chills, or she was already sick. Today we finally had lots of snow, relatively mild temperatures, and a healthy child...post her latest two-week round of antibiotics.
I think it took longer to dress her than she actually spent outside, but she loved it. She was a bit hesitant when her dad picked her up and put her on top of a nice mound of snow. She wasn't quite sure what to do but she quickly caught on to jumping in it, rolling around in it, throwing it, and eating it. Yeah, she just had to taste it. Typical kid. I'm sure I'll be spending more time outside than I care to over the next few weeks, freezing my ass off no doubt. If I ever meet that little groundhog, I'll choke him. He got my hopes up with his "early spring" bullshit. Stupid little rodent.
No comments:
Post a Comment