Sydney's July POTD

Could not, would not, absolutely refused to be soothed.

Brigitta's first order of the day is to come screaming into the room, "Syyyyyyydneyyyyyyy!!!"

So You Think You Can Dance was on and she was particularly enjoying the routine. Wow, I look horrid!

Good morning sunshine! Always a happy face first thing.

At the store in the ginormous cart.

Wind!

Baby play area. Perfect for one who is perfecting sitting up, rolling around and creeping.

She couldn't quite finish the bottle before nodding off so she saved it for a nightcap.

Nauvoo

Growing up in Iowa City, we went to Nauvoo a lot. Whenever friends or relatives came into town, it was the nearest tourist attraction (for Mormons anyway). Over time, I felt kind of Nauvoo-ed out. I had my brick. I had my horseshoe nail ring. I'd heard the tours. I'd seen the depressed lawn where the temple once stood. I could quote the entire Nauvoo pageant by heart. 

Jim and Vanessa stopped by on their way back from the City Beautiful and regaled us with tales of all the new things to do in Nauvoo. With our time in Iowa City rapidly running out, I took a Saturday to introduce Liesel and Ireland to a bit of my childhood. 

Of course we stopped by the Visitor's Center and saw the Monument to Women garden.

If memory serves, there are only two surviving sunstones form the original Nauvoo temple. One is in Nauvoo and the other is in the Smithsonian. I've seen both but now I need to get the girls to DC. The sister missionaries were rather charmed by Liesel and Ireland.

From there on out, I have to say Nauvoo has changed quite a bit since I was a kid. There are many more tours. Even the ones I'd been to have been updated. They have wagon rides and activities. The restaurant offerings are still slim to none, but all in all Nauvoo was well worth visiting again. Not to mention there is an added sentimentality in visiting the temple where Brent and I were sealed for time and all eternity. 

The "pioneer games" before the pageant were a huge hit with the kids! The girls earned a bead for each activity they completed so they rushed around trying to get in as many as possibly. They colored pictures, braided cloth, tried walking on stilts, made dolls, got a wooden toy to climb a rope, etc.            It was a lovely way to get there early, save our seats, and then kill time until the pageant started. My phone died so I wasn't able to catch everything but I was crazy proud of little Ireland. They could learn a Scottish reel and just as a crowd left, Ireland went right up to the performer and asked her to teach it to her. Another crowd gathered as Ireland did it alone. There was also a band and dancing (no bead to earn from that one) and Ireland asked one of the performers to dance with her there as well. Liesel was pretty shy but she didn't mind cuddling with me and watching Ireland. She was so tiny with all of these teenagers dancing around her. I was so impressed she had the guts to do it... I know I wouldn't have! 

I loved seeing the girls run around on the lawn below the temple. It reminded me of the opening credits of Little House on the Prairie.

When the pageant started at sunset, we slipped into long pants and hoodies and then sprayed any exposed skin with bug repellent. We sat back to enjoy the singing and dancing spectacular against the backdrop of a sun setting on the gorgeous Nauvoo temple. The girls are still a little young to sit through a lengthy live performance but they held on to the end. Both of them were fast asleep before we even crossed the Mississippi River.

I'm really grateful to Jim and Vanessa for inspiring me to go. Since Nauvoo is so close, perhaps we will make it a tradition! Well, at least until the girls tell me they're Nauvoo-ed out...

The Lemon and the Lyme

Over the 4th of July weekend, we all came down with a bug. It seemed to hit Liesel the worst and for about 36 hours she was unable to keep anything down-- even water or just Pepto Bismol. It's actually pretty unusual for Liesel to get very sick. She and Brent seem to have the hardiest constitution and I credit her early years in daycare, where she caught every bug imaginable. 

Liesel was terrified of the blood draw so they put numbing cream on the site to help. See how she's balancing on her left leg? 

Before Liesel was sick, she complained her body ached. I figured it was the early signs of that nasty bug making its way through her system. Then the aches didn't get better even after she'd been feeling fine otherwise. Finally, the pain seemed to localize in her right knee. Liesel began mentioning it more and more until she was limping, and crying constantly. She woke up everyday in tears and Liesel... well... she just doesn't do that. She's not the type of girl to make a big deal out of physical maladies for attention. Furthermore, I noticed red patches of skin on her torso and limbs flaring up and then disappearing only to flare up in another area. Children's Tylenol didn't help at all and my gut instinct was telling me something was really wrong. I phoned her pediatrician's office back in Illinois and the nurse on call advised me to have her seen as soon as possible. 

What is it about my child getting x-rays that makes me want to bawl my eyes out? Is it the juxtaposition of the super technological equipment and my delicate little girl, trustingly laying on the table? Is it the apron they have to spread over her vital organs to keep from destroying something important? Is it the fact I have to step out of the room and smile encouragingly through a small, mesh, glass window? I dunno, but it gets me every time.

I ran through the symptoms with a local pediatrician who ordered blood tests and x-rays to really get to the bottom of things. Some of the tests came back immediately and they were all inconclusive. No JRA (her cousin has that), no signs of cancer, nothing off the charts really anywhere. As a precaution, the good doctor ordered a prescription for Amoxicillin as her symptoms seemed typical of Lyme disease which is on the rise in Iowa. I recalled Liesel's Kindergarten class going to Lake McBride on a field trip so it was a distinct possibility.

A proud Liesel who survived getting 6 vials of blood taken. The phlebotomist pointed out her body would regenerate it all back within 30 minutes. I hate needles so this part of the visit earned us both a cupcake afterwards. 

 Throughout the week, more tests came back and we still didn't have any answers. Finally the Lyme results came in and she was positive for the first test but negative for the second, more sensitive test. However, the pediatrician said her symptoms were so typical of Lyme, she was pretty sure that's what was going on. Liesel was probably bit by a nymph which is why there was no obvious bite mark. Aside from Liesel's palest of pale skin, I also bathe her almost every night and I definitely would have noticed an adult bite.

The picture Liesel drew while I talked (and talked and talked) with the pediatrician. It's both of us at a birthday party with a dolphin balloon. She was so happy with it, she asked me to take a picture. 

After 4 weeks on Amoxicillin, Liesel is back to her old self. A follow up with the pediatrician tells us this one is unlikely to rear it's ugly head again. Honestly I would have felt much better with a definite diagnosis and a complete assurance Liesel is in the clear.  My dear friend Natalie once told me that the whole medical profession is a guessing game and for now I'm going to have to square with that. 

Sydney's June POTD

Sweetly sleeping

I love this age when my babies are always happy to see me!

Footsies

I adore this swimsuit! The ruffles, the bows, the girly pink color...fat rolls never looked so cute! Brent's about to take her to the hotel pool for some swimming.

Sydney's cousin Harley was so cute with her!

Right now I'm obsessed with Sydney's legs and feet. Her thighs are nice and chubby with a couple of rolls that taper down to her tiny little baby feet. She's at the age where she uses them to express herself almost more than her face or voice. When she sees I'm about to get her out of her Pack N Play, she kicks her legs out excitedly. When she's sick of being strapped in her car seat, she stretches them out straight and rubs her heels together. When she's examining something, her feet will flex and turn and her toes will either spread out or curl under. She hasn't yet lost her natural instincts to try and grip things with her toes and when I hold her by her torso to stand on my lap, her little toes ever so slightly dig into my things. I love kissing her little toes! When she's just hanging out and she catches me watching her, she'll grab one of her feet and bring it to her mouth (sometimes sucking on her own toes) as if she's suddenly so very shy and her feet will protect her. It seems like once babies become toddlers, all that expression is drained from the feet as they undergo the hammering we give them (especially toddlers!). Feet are never the same.

As odd as it may sound, I'm determined to enjoy Sydney's feet as much as I can before she starts walking!

Coming Home

Did I mention my flight home was a red eye in first class? I got to stretch out in a nice, big seat with nothing in front of me but bulkhead. I had a flight attendant filling my drink as soon as it was half-empty, offering me warm nuts, and letting me know when the cookies would finish baking. I love to travel, but I really love to travel first class! As we descended into Chicago and were in-between layers of clouds, it suddenly occurred to me what a privilege it is to experience flight. For thousands of years the vast majority of people on this planet have been stuck to the earth. Even now, most people will live their lives without ever being on an airplane.

Maybe it was a bit of exhaustion, but the thought humbled me and I became incredibly grateful for the beautiful scenes passing by my window.

Chicago came into view and I was spoiled for another view (although it's a horrible picture). Within minutes we were again on the ground.

Seriously though, it's a miracle, isn't it?

Kerry Park and the Space Needle

After church, we went to Kerry Park which isn't really a park so much as an overlook. I loved the plaque that explained it was given to the city of Seattle "So that all who stop here may enjoy this view." What a lovely thought! 

And what a lovely view!

 Whitney really loved showing off Seattle to me.

I know I've already mentioned it, but she and Tim are such an adorable couple!

Before leaving town, I had to see the Space Needle.

Can you believe this is the size of one of the motors that spins the restaurant on the top? Doesn't it seem a tad... small?

I loved the view of Mt. Rainier from the top. It's been a while since I've seen any mountains!

This is an overhead view of the nearby Experience Music Project building. Frank Gehry designed it to look like a smashed guitar in honor of Jimi Hendrix.

Mom has a thing about wearing sunglasses in pictures- she thinks it looks totally inappropriate and covers up the face too much. Seattle is actually incredibly bright, even when it's cloudy! I don't know if it's the high latitude or what, but I was pretty much living in my sunglasses the whole time I was there. In honor of Mom, Whitney and I had Tim take a picture of us sans sunglasses.

We stopped by Cafe Rio and aside from my own dinner, I got a burrito for Brent. They'd had more than one request like that and packaged it up specially for the plane ride. I packed my suitcase and we played bananagrams before heading to the airport. As I sat on the plane I started tearing up, then I started crying and before I knew it, I was sobbing. Whitney and Tim were so wonderful to me and saying goodbye was just hard. I'm so grateful they sacrificed their time and money to show me a good time and of course I'm so grateful to Brent for being so eager to make this trip happen for me.

It was just what I needed.

OooohKAY

Whitney and Tim have been into CrossFit for a couple of years and even though I'm slowly getting my post-baby body back into shape, I wanted to try a class. I knew I'd be horrible at it, but if I was ever going to try it, I wanted Whitney to be there. I survived! I wasn't even the worst one in the class! This is a picture of Whitney and Tim with the instructor Jordan:

Whitney has considered getting her certification and becoming a trainer which I wholeheartedly support! She was fantastic as she worked with me through the class. She was tough but encouraging and made me feel like I was amazing at CrossFit. We stopped by a CrossFit competition afterwards and wow, those people are insane! I had flashbacks of the worst parts of high school phys ed as I watched them do burpees.

Initially we'd planned to do the underground tour but there was a marathon backing up traffic for miles. I was totally fine scratching that plan. After cleaning up, we went to the park near their apartment and ran into the Fremont Summer Solstice Parade.

What started years ago as a lone streaker on a bike, has morphed into a tradition of people covering themselves in body paint and biking the parade route nude. Because of the body paint, it's considered "art" and not indecent exposure. Here we were, at the top of a hill with a lovely view of Puget Sound when these guys just rode up on their bikes. Totally nude. The parents teaching their little girl to fly a kite didn't even blink. A little later, I saw families who actually brought little kids to watch the parade!

You know that story about the emperor not having any clothes? Now I know why no one wanted to say anything... everyone acted like it was completely normal. Many of the cyclists shouted, "It's summer! Take off your clothes" to the spectators. Whitney and Tim just shook their heads and said, "This is sooo Seattle." I have to admit I saw a lot of interesting body art. I saw a lot... of... stuff... Clothes are SUCH a great idea people!!! Weather-wise, it was truly a lovely day.

The CrossFit class had definitely drained me of energy, so we wound our way through the crowd to Blue Moon Burger. Seattle doesn't just have recycling, they have obsessive-compulsive recycling:

I went to bed early while Whitney and Tim went out to toast the sun. They seemed to completely understand that this tired mama just wanted to sleep.

And oh how I slept!

Pike Place Market

 This was at the tippy top of my must-see list while I was in town and Whitney and Tim were happy to oblige. Tim scored an amazing parking space right next to the market. Yes it's crowded and yes it's touristy but there's a reason it's a draw. As you can see, I was super happy to be there:

Now with attitude:

The original Starbucks had a line out the door. Ironically, there's another Starbucks a block away with absolutely no line. This is the only chain store I really saw in Seattle. Whitney explained they are very into buying local and supporting the Mom and Pop Shops. No fast food chains, no Walmart, not even a CVS in sight!

This made me nostalgic for my last mission companion, Laney, who introduced me to crumpets. Her mother had sent her a package of 6 and when I told her I'd never tried one, she toasted it up for me, slathered it in butter and insisted I have it all to myself. Not only did I love the taste, but I was touched by her generosity. She'd been saving that little package of crumpets, only eating one on a special occasion and she happily gave one to me. I can't remember exactly what kind of crumpet I ordered at this shop, but it was delicious and I insisted Whitney and Tim have some since they had never tried one.

I tried to catch some video of the famous tossing of the fish but I was always at the wrong angle or wasn't fast enough. These guys definitely make the atmosphere at Pike Place Market.

Across from this was a donut place. When Tim offered them to me, he warned me they might be too hot. They had picked them out of the oil, dusted them with sugar and put them right in the sack. He was right. The hot oil was too much for my delicate fingers and I had to wait a bit. It was well worth the wait though!

I wanted to see the gum wall. It looks so pretty in pictures with all those colors. For some reason I didn't consider how it would gross me out once I was there. Still, I had to make my contribution:

Aren't the pictures pretty with all those colors?

Whitney added an "icicle" of her own:

Seeing all the gum that didn't quite stick piled at the bottom of the wall gave me the heebie jeebies. Still, I'm glad I went!

When Reagan heard I was at Pike Place Market, she insisted I get a peach from Sosio's. Whitney pointed out the cute name...

...which the shopkeeper overheard. With a sly smile, he flipped the sign around:

One bite and I knew how they got their name. It was sweet and juicy and I actually got completely full... off of a PEACH! If I'm ever in Seattle again, I'm getting a crate of these.

The panoply of produce along with the clever signs was one of my favorite parts of the market. Like these "lil' bitty fingerling" potatoes and the "teenie weenie red potatoes". 

These pictures are making me hungry again... As fabulous as the produce was, by far the most stunning sight was the flowers. Oh the flowers! Now I know how Dorothy felt stepping out of her sepia-colored world into the land of Oz. The brilliant shades and variety were simply stunning.

 I mean they were gorgeous! And a huge bouquet would set you back all of $5.

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!!!

 I've never even seen these bell-shaped flowers before!

 Not far from the market is this windblown umbrella which Whitney tells me spins when it rains.

 We stopped at World Market where I was able to pick up some little treats for the girls... okay and for myself. I think World Market is the last place on earth selling coconut-filled Ritter Sport. Then while Tim retrieved the car, Whitney took me to an overlook to enjoy a view of Puget Sound.

Oh how I love that little sister of mine!