A (mostly) happy anniversary
Today is our 18th wedding anniversary! I can't believe how close we are to 20 years already. Where did the time go? (R&K hit their silver anniversary next year - I thought only old people reached those milestones. :P)
For the most part, it was a good day. I ran 3 miles on the treadmill for the first time in, like, a month, we went to church (MiniPlu was altar serving), we opened the cards from friends and family and each other (Will also gave me some roses :) ), got laundry started, grabbed a bite, then Will and I went off to enjoy a few hours at the annual local Celtic festival. Note I said: Will and I. That's right - we were entirely kid-free. Neither of our kids is that crazy about it - it's not their chosen form of music, it's often crowded, and depending on where you're seated in the music tents, it can be REALLY loud. They like browsing the vendor stalls, but that's about it. So, anyway - Two elected to go play at his constant-companion-neighbor-friend's house (with her mom's permission - although the kids are old enough to not need much in the way of supervision or assistance), and MiniPlu elected to stay home by herself and do some studying for upcoming tests. I'm not going to kid myself and think she spent ALL that time studying, but she did say it went well. So, anyway, all told, we had almost 3 hours to ourselves, although between driving to the shuttle stop, taking the shuttle (this year they've cheaped out enough to use school buses instead of tour-type buses), and reversing the process afterwards, we really only spent about 2 hours at the festival, itself. Still, it was nice not to have to listen to complaining for those 2 hours.
Will had the misfortune to pick a wheel-well seat on the inbound trip. School bus seats are already cramped, in terms of leg room, so with the addition of the wheel well, he was literally folded up like a pretzel. I was seriously tempted to take a photo, but I didn't have enough room to maneuver.
As for the festival, I had looked up today's performances and the brief descriptions of each group, and noted a half dozen that sounded interesting. In the end, we heard three of them: McPeake (I thought all the performers onstage were McPeakes, and am mildly disappointed to learn this wasn't the case; still, they were VERY good); Poor Man's Gambit (The woman said both her parents are/were in Blackwater, but it's not listed in her bio, which I find odd) - Corey Purcell did some hardshoe Irish dancing at one point, and did a very nice job of it - I love hardshoe; and The Gothard Sisters - who also did a stint at hardshoe; first all three, then two while the fiddler played accompaniament - in addition to the usual music. Am debating getting some CDs for them. Burning Bridget Cleary was on hand, but their performances weren't during the window we were there, alas.
We did peruse all the vendors, as usual, although it's rather predictable at this point. There's always stuff we drool over but pass on due to price, Celtic knot jewelry we admire but (usually) abstain from since we don't need more (although MiniPlu and Two each have a ring from there - MiniPlu's is Celtic knot with a central green stone, and Two's is a dragon), baked goods we DO buy (the other three members of our family all adore Imperial shortbread tart/cookies, as well as shortbread fudge tartlets, and usually some bread of some kind. Yes, I can bake, but it's the novelty of the thing. Anyway, I passed up on a pair of REALLY soft and supposedly "sweat free" boot socks that I wish now that I'd bought, but otherwise, we behaved ourselves (not counting the aforementioned baked items, but we knew we'd come home with those). The weather was GORGEOUS - sunny and pleasant, neither too hot nor too cool for jeans and long-sleeve tshirts that we sometimes rolled up at the sleeves, and sometimes didn't.
Oh, and for amusement: we ran into the elementary music teacher and her husband on the inbound bus, and when we were listening to McPeake, we sat one table over from my neighbor's brother - who also used to be our longtime state rep, until he was gerrymandered into a different district. So, we made a point to say hi to him, too. :)
Anyway, we came home tired but happy after that. I felt like I needed a really short nap before I tackled the grocery store, and Will debated mowing the lawn, but in the end he came up to nap, too. Alas, my phone (which I had with me as the alarm clock) kept paging, then Two called to ask if he could bring Friend over to play at our house for a little bit (yes) even though they'd already spent all afternoon together, and the puppy whined in her crate, and ... yeah, it was a lost cause. And then I fell asleep for a short period after turning the clock alarm off, so I missed the window for grocery shopping before we were headed out to dinner. And my mom, having not heard from me in half an hour as to whether it was a good time to call or not, went ahead and called. :P I did, at least, get the 2nd load into the laundry, finally.
Will had a brief scare when he couldn't find his cell phone, and calling it yielded zero results. He was panicked that he'd left it on the bus coming back, but a second, more thorough search of our car revealed that it had fallen alongside the passenger seat, between the seat and the hand brake, and so all was well. Phew! We had chosen our usual favorite Italian place about 10 mins away near the mall - they have a GF menu, plus their food is always awesome, the service is great - the works. So, anyway, we went over, ordered (Two ordered something that isn't technically on the kids' menu, but he'd asked for the closest kids-menu item to be adapted the last time he'd been there, and they'd obliged; there was a small upcharge, but it was still cheaper than the adult version, and nearly as much food, so we didn't mind. This time, the sou-chef herself came over, assured us that it could be done and that she remembered his previous order, and that there would be NO upcharge this time.
They'd temporarily run out of bread and the next batch was still in the oven. The waiter kept coming by to apologize for the delay, and, in the meantime, offered the kids something that's either new, or they seemed younger, or ... something. They each got a small piece of pizza dough to shape however they wanted, then they could come up to the kitchen counter (it's an open-kitchen concept) and see it go into the wood-burning oven, then bring their prizes back afterwards. It's a clever way to keep antsy and hungry kids occupied while they're waiting, and even though our kids were doing ok, they enjoyed it as something different to try. (In the meantime, our bread finally arrived.)
Unfortunately, while we were waiting, I started feeling a little ... off. Just some mild intestinal rumblings, and I didn't think too much of it. But then I started feeling a little light-headed and sweaty, so I excused myself to go to the bathroom. And here it gets a little TMI. At first, it was sort of like the "week's worth of poop" thing that's happened to me occasionally in the past, except I had not only broken out in a cold sweat, it was literally POURING off me. MiniPlu came in to wash her hands (I'm guessing the flour-y pizza dough had gotten to her) and asked if I was ok, since I'd been gone a little while already. I said I was ok, but that it might be a while still, and that I'd text Will. I gave a brief update on the poop and cold sweat and asked if I could have a cup of ice, because while it was a cold sweat, I also was stiflingly hot in my jeans and since I was feeling yucky, cold ice on my face and neck often helps. MiniPlu brought the cup of ice a few mins later, then left. And although the poop was pretty much over by then, the sweat didn't stop, and I just felt miserable. Then, to add to the misery, I started feeling like I was getting the worst menstrual cramps, even though that's a week away and there was no sign of that yet. But it was RIGHT in that area, not in the area I normally associate with intestinal discomfort.Mostly end of TMI
I hated to admit it, but I really wanted to go home, since this didn't seem to be passing anytime soon. The others had started eating (which was fine), but when Will asked if he should have everything boxed up for takeout, I reluctantly said yes. So, he took care of that, and of paying (our waiter got a SUPER tip, for being so good about the bread and pizza dough and refilling water because we were all parched, etc), and then they waited for me outside the bathroom. I said I could get up on my own, which I could, but I was definitely feeling woozy and in pain, so it was good that Will helped me along once we were out the door and walking to the car. He drove like a maniac, but, thankfully, JUST as he was about to leave the area, I realized I'd left my cell phone in the bathroom, so, ZOOOM, he careened around and went back to the restaurant. MiniPlu offered to get it, as the lone functioning female, but she didn't have to go past the reception area - they had it waiting, so she was back in about 17 seconds. Will was absolutely terrified and was thinking I should go to the ER. (I wasn't doing much at first but just lying back in my seat with my eyes closed, and he thought I was losing consciousness, which, now that I was in the car, I wasn't in any danger of.) The pain was doing this weird receding-intensifying thing, but in a steady cycle, not like I would imagine contractions would go and, besides, why would I have any of those? I was just baffled.
First, though, we decided to briefly swing by the house so the food could be thrown into the fridge and MiniPlu could put on comfier clothes. And ... as we drove the last mile or so to the house, I realized I was feeling better. Pain was ebbing significantly. I didn't feel great, but it was definitely better. So I said I would just hang out at home first, and if the pain came back, we could re-evaluate the ER thing. Will helped me out of my disgustingly sweaty clothes and into PJs and I flopped into bed. But I was alert and, now that I was pain free, feeling half-decent. And in the aftermath of all that sweating, I was suddenly freezing. Will brought me some (GF) bread and peppermint tea to warm me back up again, and I relaxed while other people took care of laundry, taking the garbage out, letting the dogs out, etc. (If only I could accomplish this solicitousness WITHOUT enduring that sort of experience first!) And when Will was ready to crash, I took myself downstairs, made some pasta, read to Two on the sofa, tucked him in (MiniPlu graciously said I didn't have to come upstairs to tuck her in), called my dad as usual and folded laundry from the sofa. I should have gone to bed early after all that, but I wanted to post here, first.
Anyway: if you look at the first 18.5 hours, it was a very nice anniversary. Could have done without the 45 mins or so of misery but ... hopefully it's all done now and all will be well?
Other things to say another time: escaped bunny, card-shopping, consignment sale, bikes
For the most part, it was a good day. I ran 3 miles on the treadmill for the first time in, like, a month, we went to church (MiniPlu was altar serving), we opened the cards from friends and family and each other (Will also gave me some roses :) ), got laundry started, grabbed a bite, then Will and I went off to enjoy a few hours at the annual local Celtic festival. Note I said: Will and I. That's right - we were entirely kid-free. Neither of our kids is that crazy about it - it's not their chosen form of music, it's often crowded, and depending on where you're seated in the music tents, it can be REALLY loud. They like browsing the vendor stalls, but that's about it. So, anyway - Two elected to go play at his constant-companion-neighbor-friend's house (with her mom's permission - although the kids are old enough to not need much in the way of supervision or assistance), and MiniPlu elected to stay home by herself and do some studying for upcoming tests. I'm not going to kid myself and think she spent ALL that time studying, but she did say it went well. So, anyway, all told, we had almost 3 hours to ourselves, although between driving to the shuttle stop, taking the shuttle (this year they've cheaped out enough to use school buses instead of tour-type buses), and reversing the process afterwards, we really only spent about 2 hours at the festival, itself. Still, it was nice not to have to listen to complaining for those 2 hours.
Will had the misfortune to pick a wheel-well seat on the inbound trip. School bus seats are already cramped, in terms of leg room, so with the addition of the wheel well, he was literally folded up like a pretzel. I was seriously tempted to take a photo, but I didn't have enough room to maneuver.
As for the festival, I had looked up today's performances and the brief descriptions of each group, and noted a half dozen that sounded interesting. In the end, we heard three of them: McPeake (I thought all the performers onstage were McPeakes, and am mildly disappointed to learn this wasn't the case; still, they were VERY good); Poor Man's Gambit (The woman said both her parents are/were in Blackwater, but it's not listed in her bio, which I find odd) - Corey Purcell did some hardshoe Irish dancing at one point, and did a very nice job of it - I love hardshoe; and The Gothard Sisters - who also did a stint at hardshoe; first all three, then two while the fiddler played accompaniament - in addition to the usual music. Am debating getting some CDs for them. Burning Bridget Cleary was on hand, but their performances weren't during the window we were there, alas.
We did peruse all the vendors, as usual, although it's rather predictable at this point. There's always stuff we drool over but pass on due to price, Celtic knot jewelry we admire but (usually) abstain from since we don't need more (although MiniPlu and Two each have a ring from there - MiniPlu's is Celtic knot with a central green stone, and Two's is a dragon), baked goods we DO buy (the other three members of our family all adore Imperial shortbread tart/cookies, as well as shortbread fudge tartlets, and usually some bread of some kind. Yes, I can bake, but it's the novelty of the thing. Anyway, I passed up on a pair of REALLY soft and supposedly "sweat free" boot socks that I wish now that I'd bought, but otherwise, we behaved ourselves (not counting the aforementioned baked items, but we knew we'd come home with those). The weather was GORGEOUS - sunny and pleasant, neither too hot nor too cool for jeans and long-sleeve tshirts that we sometimes rolled up at the sleeves, and sometimes didn't.
Oh, and for amusement: we ran into the elementary music teacher and her husband on the inbound bus, and when we were listening to McPeake, we sat one table over from my neighbor's brother - who also used to be our longtime state rep, until he was gerrymandered into a different district. So, we made a point to say hi to him, too. :)
Anyway, we came home tired but happy after that. I felt like I needed a really short nap before I tackled the grocery store, and Will debated mowing the lawn, but in the end he came up to nap, too. Alas, my phone (which I had with me as the alarm clock) kept paging, then Two called to ask if he could bring Friend over to play at our house for a little bit (yes) even though they'd already spent all afternoon together, and the puppy whined in her crate, and ... yeah, it was a lost cause. And then I fell asleep for a short period after turning the clock alarm off, so I missed the window for grocery shopping before we were headed out to dinner. And my mom, having not heard from me in half an hour as to whether it was a good time to call or not, went ahead and called. :P I did, at least, get the 2nd load into the laundry, finally.
Will had a brief scare when he couldn't find his cell phone, and calling it yielded zero results. He was panicked that he'd left it on the bus coming back, but a second, more thorough search of our car revealed that it had fallen alongside the passenger seat, between the seat and the hand brake, and so all was well. Phew! We had chosen our usual favorite Italian place about 10 mins away near the mall - they have a GF menu, plus their food is always awesome, the service is great - the works. So, anyway, we went over, ordered (Two ordered something that isn't technically on the kids' menu, but he'd asked for the closest kids-menu item to be adapted the last time he'd been there, and they'd obliged; there was a small upcharge, but it was still cheaper than the adult version, and nearly as much food, so we didn't mind. This time, the sou-chef herself came over, assured us that it could be done and that she remembered his previous order, and that there would be NO upcharge this time.
They'd temporarily run out of bread and the next batch was still in the oven. The waiter kept coming by to apologize for the delay, and, in the meantime, offered the kids something that's either new, or they seemed younger, or ... something. They each got a small piece of pizza dough to shape however they wanted, then they could come up to the kitchen counter (it's an open-kitchen concept) and see it go into the wood-burning oven, then bring their prizes back afterwards. It's a clever way to keep antsy and hungry kids occupied while they're waiting, and even though our kids were doing ok, they enjoyed it as something different to try. (In the meantime, our bread finally arrived.)
Unfortunately, while we were waiting, I started feeling a little ... off. Just some mild intestinal rumblings, and I didn't think too much of it. But then I started feeling a little light-headed and sweaty, so I excused myself to go to the bathroom. And here it gets a little TMI. At first, it was sort of like the "week's worth of poop" thing that's happened to me occasionally in the past, except I had not only broken out in a cold sweat, it was literally POURING off me. MiniPlu came in to wash her hands (I'm guessing the flour-y pizza dough had gotten to her) and asked if I was ok, since I'd been gone a little while already. I said I was ok, but that it might be a while still, and that I'd text Will. I gave a brief update on the poop and cold sweat and asked if I could have a cup of ice, because while it was a cold sweat, I also was stiflingly hot in my jeans and since I was feeling yucky, cold ice on my face and neck often helps. MiniPlu brought the cup of ice a few mins later, then left. And although the poop was pretty much over by then, the sweat didn't stop, and I just felt miserable. Then, to add to the misery, I started feeling like I was getting the worst menstrual cramps, even though that's a week away and there was no sign of that yet. But it was RIGHT in that area, not in the area I normally associate with intestinal discomfort.Mostly end of TMI
I hated to admit it, but I really wanted to go home, since this didn't seem to be passing anytime soon. The others had started eating (which was fine), but when Will asked if he should have everything boxed up for takeout, I reluctantly said yes. So, he took care of that, and of paying (our waiter got a SUPER tip, for being so good about the bread and pizza dough and refilling water because we were all parched, etc), and then they waited for me outside the bathroom. I said I could get up on my own, which I could, but I was definitely feeling woozy and in pain, so it was good that Will helped me along once we were out the door and walking to the car. He drove like a maniac, but, thankfully, JUST as he was about to leave the area, I realized I'd left my cell phone in the bathroom, so, ZOOOM, he careened around and went back to the restaurant. MiniPlu offered to get it, as the lone functioning female, but she didn't have to go past the reception area - they had it waiting, so she was back in about 17 seconds. Will was absolutely terrified and was thinking I should go to the ER. (I wasn't doing much at first but just lying back in my seat with my eyes closed, and he thought I was losing consciousness, which, now that I was in the car, I wasn't in any danger of.) The pain was doing this weird receding-intensifying thing, but in a steady cycle, not like I would imagine contractions would go and, besides, why would I have any of those? I was just baffled.
First, though, we decided to briefly swing by the house so the food could be thrown into the fridge and MiniPlu could put on comfier clothes. And ... as we drove the last mile or so to the house, I realized I was feeling better. Pain was ebbing significantly. I didn't feel great, but it was definitely better. So I said I would just hang out at home first, and if the pain came back, we could re-evaluate the ER thing. Will helped me out of my disgustingly sweaty clothes and into PJs and I flopped into bed. But I was alert and, now that I was pain free, feeling half-decent. And in the aftermath of all that sweating, I was suddenly freezing. Will brought me some (GF) bread and peppermint tea to warm me back up again, and I relaxed while other people took care of laundry, taking the garbage out, letting the dogs out, etc. (If only I could accomplish this solicitousness WITHOUT enduring that sort of experience first!) And when Will was ready to crash, I took myself downstairs, made some pasta, read to Two on the sofa, tucked him in (MiniPlu graciously said I didn't have to come upstairs to tuck her in), called my dad as usual and folded laundry from the sofa. I should have gone to bed early after all that, but I wanted to post here, first.
Anyway: if you look at the first 18.5 hours, it was a very nice anniversary. Could have done without the 45 mins or so of misery but ... hopefully it's all done now and all will be well?
Other things to say another time: escaped bunny, card-shopping, consignment sale, bikes