Sleepless in Lafayette...

Kelby has threatened to rename this site.  Something about she’s doing all the blogging…I haven’t written since Thanksgiving…blah, blah.  The problem is, I haven’t felt like I’ve had anything going on worth writing about.  Then I see that Kelby writes about her new “running skirt” (can those two words even go together and be taken seriously?).  I have another friend who wrote about her new sunglasses.  And yet another blogger friend who has written about what her dog eats.   And I enjoy reading these!  I love hearing about what’s going on in my friends’ lives, no matter how small or big it seems.  (Because who’s to judge?)  So, I really HAVE been trying to get past my excuses and post something.  And every time I think of something, I don’t have time to put it in writing.  BUT, tonight you are graced with a blog from the other half of “HicksGirls” because I can’t sleep.  It’s only 11:00pm, so it’s not that big of a deal, but I have a lot on my mind and I SHOULD be sleeping because I have to get up pretty darn early in the morning, on a Saturday, to begin the process of finishing packing, getting myself dressed, packing Wyatt, getting Wyatt dressed, getting Wyatt breakfast, (Adam’s involved here too!), getting out the door  and driving one hour to the west side of Indy, handing Wyatt off to my mom, Adam and I getting to the airport the standard two-hours early, and taking off for our first week-long getaway together since before I was pregnant, three years ago.  Part of me is just plain, night-before-Christmas, excited.  I am tagging along with Adam to a conference in Scottsdale, Arizona.  This is my ideal vacation…Adam will have some classes he’ll need to go to, so I can lounge by the pool.  They have seminars for the wives (Tim Gunn, anyone?!?), there’s a dinner every night of the conference, and it’s capped off with a black-tie-optional gala (for which I bought a brand new dress! ).  I get to see my friend Michelle while I’m out there.  We’re hoping to go to an MLB Spring Training Game, and we’re going to spend our last few days in Sedona.  We really are pumped about this vacay!

HOWEVER…I have never left Wyatt for this long.  He’s done a few other overnights at G.G.’s, but nothing for a week.  He’s spending the first half of the week at my mom’s, and the second half of the week at my mother-in-law’s.  In my head, I know he’ll be fine…probably better than fine.  He’ll have a ball.  But he’s at this great age where he is just darn fun to be around, he says and does new things every day, and I am just going to miss him.  A LOT.  And, I have this horrible way of playing out worst-case-scenarios in my head.  So I’ve been praying constantly that we (Adam, Wyatt and I) are successfully reunited at the end of this trip.  

To make all of this anxiety worse, though, and I think the real reason I can’t sleep…Wyatt fell down the stairs tonight.  Not just one or two, but all 10-12 of our stairs from the main floor to the basement.  He’s fine, but talk about scary.  The thing I hate about this house is that the garage is out the basement level.  So, every time I come and go I am loaded down with my purse (which is tote-bag-size), Wyatt’s diaper bag, usually his blanket, and whatever else is involved in the errands we’re running (library books, notebook for a meeting, dry cleaning, etc…).  Plus, Wyatt can’t walk down the stairs.  He can crawl UP them, but he can’t get down them.  So, I’m always loaded down like the above-described pack mule, PLUS, I’m carrying my 22-month old son.  So, tonight we were getting ready to leave the house to take our dog to my in-law’s house while we’re gone, and Wyatt was standing at the top of the stairs.  I had him standing on the top step, between me and the gate that I was trying to close at the top of the stairs.  But when I turned to grab his hand to go down the stairs, he tried to take a step down too, and went tumbling to the bottom.  It seemed like it happened in slow-motion but lightening-fast at the same time.  I have no idea how I emptied my arms of the stuff I was carrying and scooped Wyatt up at the bottom, screaming.  He actually calmed down after just a few minutes.  There was no bleeding, and I have yet to see any bruises.  (I think the saving grace is that the stairs are carpeted!)  I handed him off to Adam to put him in the car, and went back inside to retrieve my stuff.  It was then that I lost it.  My legs felt like they were going to give way and I kept replaying my little boy falling down the stairs in my head.  And the “What Ifs…”!   But I’ve just been so anxious about leaving him, that this episode just put me over the edge.  

So, I’m awake.  Because every time I close my eyes, I picture the worst.  I’m counting my blessings, literally.  And maybe I should have a glass of wine…

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Dressed to Impress?

I'm planning on running the Marine Corps Marathon in October (if I can get entry in April). I'm super excited about it, but also super nervous at the thought of running 26.2 miles. At least the MCM has a decent course--it starts in Arlington National Cemetary, runs through Georgetown, over into the District, through Memorial Mall, and ends at Iwo Jima. Mom and Dad are already planning on make the trip out and we're trying to figure out they best places for them to be so that can see me run, give me goo/bananas if I need them (goo is a technical running term, I promise!), etc. So, while walking through Nordstrom (my mecca) over the weekend, I got the most PERFECT running ensemble for the MCM! I'll be wearing this skirt with a turquoise running top and I'm so excited! I was literally jumping up and down in it in the dressing room!!

Maybe I'll pick me up some hottie Marine in my awesome running outfit! (Or at least my parents will know its me when I pass out at the finish line!)

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Was there life before Wyatt?

(P.S. I think I'm going to rename this blog, because apparently my sister is a good-for-nothing blogger!)

So Saturday was my Dad's birthday. I went home for the first time since New Year's, which I think might be a new record for me. I love going home. There's just something so calming about driving through New Pal, turning onto Mom and Dad's street, pulling into the driveway. I know this sounds cheesy, but it just feels like everything is where it should be when I'm cruising down 52. Weird, I know.

The fam went out for Dad's birthday to The Weber Grill in Indy. Yum. That place is absolutely fantastic! And I thought it was fitting that we went there for Dad's day...growing up, I loved it when Dad would grill hamburgers and hotdogs for dinner. I love the smell that charcoal grills give off. I just love it! But here's my observation from lunch yesterday....our whole family life now revolves around Wyatt! And I think we are all perfectly OK with that! And it got me thinking...what was life like before Wyatt?

He's so stinking funny. He's growing so quickly...I can't believe he's almost two! Where did the time go? I hate that I haven't seen him since New Years...but I love to see how much he's changed in those six weeks. And since I love talking about my awesome nephew, I'm going to make a list for your reading enjoyment.

1. Six weeks ago, I was "Aunt Tel" because Wyatt couldn't say Kelby. Now, I'm "Aunt Kelby" (or something very, very close to that). It makes me slightly sad, because I LOVED being called Aunt Tel. I thought there was something so sweet about it. But I'll deal with Aunt Kelby. I also love that my sister points me out in pictures to him....because he knows who I am when he sees me, and that makes me happy! My biggest fear about living far away from him was that he would not know me, but I love that I don't have to worry about that.

1 1/2. Not only is Wyatt getting so good at saying "Kelby", but he's saying so many multiple-syllabal words and phrases. For example, Oscar the Grouch, "Andad" (short for Grandaddy), train tracks, Coyote (he can make the sound too which is AWESOME!)....he's so smart. Basically, he may just be a genius.

2. Wyatt can eat with utensils. I know this sounds so small, but he's so darn cute trying!

Well, honestly this list could get really long, so I may as well just quit while I'm ahead. But isn't my nephew the cutest???

He is. I know it. His momma knows it. I think even he knows it.

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