The morning of December 23rd dawned cold and bright. The car was packed the night before with the plan being to leave by 7 the next morning. No problem, right? The kids are usually up by 6 or 6:30 anyway, so we figured we'd get up, eat breakfast, and go. What we weren't counting on was this:
5:50 AM -- Grace came stumbling into our bedroom saying her stomach hurt. Two minutes later she was bent over the toilet dry-heaving. Not a very promising start for the day.
Here's how the next 3 hours played out:
7 AM -- The kids were finally loaded up and ready to go after being sidetracked briefly by a fight over which DVD to watch first.
7:30 AM -- After a quick pit stop to pick up some Graeter's ice cream, we were finally on our way with the sounds of a Backyardigans DVD mesmerizing the kids in the backseat.
8:40 AM -- I officially started to get carsick, most likely from having to turn around so often to deal with the children.
8:46 AM -- The first of MANY "Are we in New Orleans yet?" asked by Grace, followed rapidly by Ethan's declaration, "I just can't be in the car anymore!"
9:05 AM -- Grace threw up in a Ziploc bag, and I nearly threw up when trying to dispose of it.
And that's when my note-taking stopped. I had grand plans to document the entire 12 hour adventure, but they quickly evaporated. And besides, I think you get the picture. Suffice it to say, that it was a LONG drive. Possibly made longer by the fact that 5 days before we left we got an early Christmas surprise:
I must subconsciously thrive on chaos, because yes. That is what you're thinking it is. Proof positive that Baby #4 will be arriving sometime at the end of August. So, couple THAT with my proclivity towards carsickness ANYWAY, then combine it all with 3 children who cannot handle being cooped up in a car for very long (the YOUNGEST of which being the absolute worst of all), and you're getting a nice little snapshot of what the drive was really like. Don't you wish you could have come along for the ride?
For the rest of our vacation in New Orleans I'll simply refer you to The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
The Good:* Being with the whole family.
All 7 of us Hansen siblings were home for Christmas. Although all of our visits were slightly overlapping. Here is the first night we were all there.
This was Sarah and Andrew's first full day, and Emily and Jeremy's last full day. We all went to the French Quarter to get beignets at Cafe du Monde. And I guess I didn't get the memo that we would be taking our family shot for the year, because there I am in all my unshowered glory.* Planning Operation Dream Big 2009.
Well, I guess I don't have a visual for this, but let me just give a quick promo for a fabulously inspiring and motivating book called The Dream Manager by Matthew Kelly. Get it, read it, and start to dream!
* Going to Thibodaux for Christmas Day.
The kids LOVED playing in the Space Walk (aka "Bounce House, " or "Jumping Castle"), and it was fun to see all of my mom's family again since its been about 3 years since we've been there.
* Hanging out with family.
* Seeing Twilight not once but twice.
Perhaps it was because I had such low expectations going into the show, or perhaps because it is always more fun to go and see movies with a big group, but I ended up really loving this movie! Color me surprised. Of course, it made it infinitely more entertaining the FIRST time we saw it due to a very interactive audience. The girls behind us kept us laughing by saying things about Edward like "ooh, he so sexy, " and "oh, he FINE," and "I wanna touch him." Not to mention hilarious lines from the movie like "You better hold on tight you little spider monkey." Pure comic gold, there.
* The Christmas Miracle of the fish and the loaves.
So, this is a bit of an analogy, but hear me out. While we were in New Orleans we stayed with my mom. In her two bedroom apartment. And by we, I mean we ALL stayed there. As in 7 children, 3 spouses, and 4 grandchildren. Now, as I mentioned before, there was some overlap, and a couple of nights with various family members staying at a nearby hotel, but at any given time, there were at least 10-12 people staying in that apartment and sleeping there. Some of you may be thinking, what the bunnysauce? And I know exactly what you mean. It sounds nuts. BUT, we experienced what I think was a true Christmas Miracle in that there was ALWAYS enough space for everyone. Hence the loaves and the fish. It doesn't seem possible, but its true, and I wasn't the only one who felt that way.
* Benjamin Franklin 10 year High School Reunion.
Our trip to New Orleans neatly coincided with my 10 Year Reunion. Scott felt only too privileged to accompany me to this reunion of a graduating class from the #16 High School in the nation. It was far more enjoyable than I thought possible, and I fully enjoyed catching up with old friends and classmates, and only felt SLIGHTLY inferior upon realizing how many of my former classmates are now doctors, as well as many other really important sounding things.
* Audubon Park with the kids.
These pictures were taken our first morning there. I figured I owed it to the rest of the family to get them out of the house as soon as possible after waking everyone up so early.
* Eating King Cake!
The Bad:
* The kids waking everyone up the first morning we were there at 5:30 in the morning.
Okay, who are we kidding here. The kids waking everyone up EVERY morning much earlier than they would really like to wake up.
* My hair frizzing out like a maniac the first time I went outside. It took at least 3 days before things settled down a bit.
* Not being able to enjoy as much good food as I would have liked thanks to le bebe.
* Having to leave too soon :(
The Ugly:* Grace's stomach bug attacked again. And again. And again.
First Grace, then Scott, then me, then Ethan. If it wasn't coming out one end, it was coming out the other. And it didn't stop there. Oh no, no, no. We managed to spread the love to almost everyone. In the end it took down mom, Freddie, Laura and Jacob as well. Like I said it was UGLY.
Minutes before throwing up at Cafe du Monde in the French Quarter.So there you have it. The highlights. As you can see, the Good far outweighed the Bad, and the Ugly, and even the drive home was not nearly as bad as it was going. All in all it was a Christmas we will NEVER forget.
Since we've been back, all kinds of fun and exciting things have been happening! Morning sickness has hit with full force. The honeymoon of the kids being really sympathetic and helpful has ended. And we've been knocked flat for the last week with another round of illness! This time at least there's been no throwing up (well, at least for the non-pregnant ones), but let me tell you sinus infections are no fun either. So there you have it folks. The holidays in a nutshell.
To conclude I'll make one final observation. My track record has shown that the type of pregnancy I have (e.g. easy or hard, problem-free or problematic) is indicative of what is to come once the baby is born. In other words, difficult pregnancy equals difficult baby. So let's just say that I'm a little concerned about what is in store come August considering the fact that I've been regular sick on top of being pregnant sick for 3 out of the 4 weeks I've known I'm pregnant. Surely I won't get 2 Sophies in a row. Right???
I'll end with a happy picture:
Oh and P.S. In case you didn't recognize me in any of the pictures from this post, it is because I am now a brunette. Kind of. The color has faded quite a bit since I first got my hair done, but it is still definitely not blonde. Will I keep it this dark? No, probably not. But for now (with it being all wintry and cold outside) I really like it. I leave you with a parting shot of it.
(Oh wait, perhaps I should've posted this one under "The Ugly." Hahahahahaha.)
(Oh wait, perhaps I should've posted this one under "The Ugly." Hahahahahaha.)