Well it was only a matter of time. Eden has been a little monkey since before she was born. When I was pregnant with her, the week before I gave birth, I was told she was facing the right way and ready for delivery. Then two days before she was born I was told that she was breech and that I would have to go for a procedure to turn her the right way. On the day she was born, I went to the hospital to have the procedure and was told that she had turned herself the right way. The doctors learned their lesson and decided to induce me before she had a chance to turn herself around again.
Anyway, since that time almost exactly two years ago, Eden has been quite the monkey. She can often be found crawling down the steps head first, climbing up and over the couches, jumping from the ottoman to the couch and other equally dangerous stunts. Anyway, last night she decided it was time to try to climb out of her crib. Unfortunately, she was unsuccesful in her endeavor and she ended up falling out of the crib. Anyway, after much screaming and a few hours, we figured out that she wasn't moving her left arm.
We took her to GBMC at around 1:30 AM and at around 4:30 we found out that she broke her arm in two places. Her arm is now splinted and she will get a cast tommorow. She really looks pretty pathetic. Right now she is crying and trying to get me to take the splint off. This next 6-8 weeks should be fun...
I am happy to say that we are finally home. We landed in Dulles at around 5:15 pm today. There was horrible traffic getting on 495 from the Dulles Toll Road and we stopped at Siena's for dinner. But now we are home. The kids are in their own beds. I am happily not unpacking yet.
I have a laundry list of things to complain about as that is much more fun than saying what was good about our trip, but I guess I will say a few good things. It was good that we got to visit Greg's grandparents and aunt and uncle and see where his grandparents live. It was nice spending time with Greg's Russian cousin's and his cousin Julie and her husband Josh. It was nice seeing new places like Monterey. It was nice spending time with my mother away from Baltimore. It is nice to be home.
OK, here is my number one gripe of my trip. I hate the liberal agenda. I was in the supermarket in Palo Alto and I went into the express check out lane. In most normal places what does it say at the express lane? 10 or 15 or even 20 items or less. But no, not here. There was a sign over the lane that read "ABOUT 12 ITEMS.". About 12 items! About 12 items! We don't want you to feel bad if you have more than 12 items. We don't want to label you by saying 15 items (or less)! We don't want to characterize you or label you as something you aren't by limiting your number. So, please put about 12 items on this belt!
Also, the HOV lanes are slower than the regular lanes in Northern CA. Why is that? Well, because you don't only have to be a HOV car to go in the HOV lanes. Hybrid cars that apply for a sticker (for a one time fee of $8) can go in the HOV lanes as well! I am all for saving the environment, but COME ON! It isn't enough that you get to be smug about the car you drive? Now, you have to come into the HOV lane and slow traffic down there?!?
I am sure I have a bunch more gripes, but I will limit it to two. I don't want to sound like a bitter east coast, gas guzzling, unfeeling, cruel to animals, not completely anti-war, pro-Israel, meat eating, heterosexual, conservative.
Oh wait, I do.
As you can tell by the title of this post, 1. I am in San Francisco (actually Palo Alto right now, but really, who is to know the difference?) 2. I am totally jetlagged and exhausted.
Anyway, to recap the trip so far. First, here is a little message to the man sitting in front of me on the plane. I hate you. I don't mean to be judgemental, but I really hate you. Do you think it wasn't difficult enough for us to travel with three kids (including a VERY active and demanding almost two year old who only slept for the last 10 minutes of the flight) across the country? No, every time my kids made a sound or by mistake kicked your chair, you sanctimoniously turned around and gave me a rude look. I truly hate you and I hope in your next life you have twin two year olds and are forced to take them on a VERY, VERY long trip.
By the way, this is going to be a very stream of conciousness recap. You don't want to hear all the intricate details of this trip, and I don't want to have to remember them.
We are staying in Palo Alto in a cute little inn/motel. It is actually a lot nicer than I thought it would be. That is always good.
Ezra loves pointing out punch buggies on the street. There are a ton of punch buggies here, so he is in punch buggy heaven. Not surprisingly, there are even more hybrid cars here. Greg and I have started to yell out "smug-buggy" every time we see a Prius. Needless to say, we have been using that term a lot since we arrived here.
It is pretty amazing. In the past month, my children have made the bracha on seeing the Atlantic Ocean, as well the Pacific Ocean. In the middle of all t hat, they went to the Statue of Liberty. Gee, this summer sure beats last summer when we took them on vacation to my in-laws house in Gaithersburg.
Tommorow, we are going with Greg's aunt and uncle, his grandparents, and the Russian cousins from R.I. to Monterey. We plan on going to the aquarium there and walking around the city. Should be fun.
I am done for tonight. Will write more when I am not falling aslee...........*snore*.
OK. New airline restrictions. I am usually the first to agree that even though we travelers may feel inconvenienced by stricter security measures, in the end it is better to be safe than sorry. This is especially true in light of today's news about the foiled terrorist plots. I still agree with these security measures.
I only have one question. Why did this have to come to light a week before Greg and I fly across the country with our three kids in tow? I am worried that by next Sunday, we won't be able to bring snacks on the plane. Some are speculating that passengers won't be able to bring any carry-on items. G-d help me if one passenger gives me a rude look if my kids are acting up because I couldn't bring snacks or toys on the plane.