Trip to Mary's - Friday

Day 1 of our trip last weekend was hectic - to say the least. Since I wasn't sure until the last minute that we actually were going to go, I hadn't packed anything. And I had a lengthy project I was working on at work as well so even though I had the afternoon off, it sure didn't feel like it stress-wise. I ran a couple of errands on the way home and then frantically began packing. Ron was home with Becca and the two of them were conked out on our bed when I got home - I just closed the door so I wouldn't disturb them while I raced around to get things ready. Thankfully I've done these trips enough times that I can usually pack without having to think about it much. This trip was especially hard to prepare for though since the weather has been so iffy that I basically had to pack clothes for every eventuality.

I finally got everything loaded and headed out to pick Hannah and Becca up at daycare. Becca was feeling much better, thankfully. We drove to school and picked up Abby and then hit the road.

The drive down - wasn't as peaceful as I'd hoped. The girls were excited and I realized that having recently switched Abby's and Hannah's seats in the van probably wasn't a good idea since the new seating arrangement put Abby next to Becca. So much for Becca getting more of a nap on the way down - Abby kept her pretty wound up the whole time.

The girls were thrilled when we arrived and promptly disappeared with Mary's kids to play. Emma is only 3 months younger than Hannah and those two are 'double trouble' as Mary calls them. Abby was thrilled to be able to play video games with Matthew (he's 10) since we don't have any at home.

Hannah and Emma - two peas in a pod...

Being goofy...


Even with having gotten there with plenty of time for the kids to play before bedtime, it was difficult getting everyone to sleep that night. Hannah slept in Emma's bed and Becca slept in the same room, in our pack-n-play. Abby slept on a cot in Matthew's room and I slept on an air mattress in Emma's room with Hannah and Becca.

The biggest problem was between Matthew (who has ADHD) and Abby (who we suspect may have something similar). Although they generally play together well, there are times when they clash - like Friday night. Matthew insisted on sleeping with the bedroom door open and Abby wanted it closed. As his room is directly adjacent to the living room (it's the doorway with the safety gate in the photo above), sound tends to carry, so I knew the door really should be shut. We went back and forth with me shutting the door most of the way and Matthew jumping out of bed to open it. By the time they were finally asleep, Matthew had lost his video game and computer privileges for the next day.

But finally, all of the kids were asleep. Which meant... brownies! Chocolate delight - yum....

Mary and I have a track record of staying up way too late and talking when we visit each other. Probably left over from our college days, back when we were younger and well, much better able to survive on little sleep. Right now we're sleep-deprived mamas who find ourselves falling asleep sitting on the couch, mid-conversation. And Mary's pregnant too, so even more tired.

I climbed into bed at an actually halfway decent hour (well, kinda) and Becca almost immediately woke up. She was still coughing pretty badly so I just reached over and brought her onto the air mattress with me. Other than a few crying/coughing fits, she slept fine until morning.

Speaking of bedtime... I'll post more about the rest of the weekend tomorrow so stay tuned!