Sit Back, Fatback

This year we decided to take our summer vacation in Washington, DC.  Its something we've always told JJ we would do, and now seemed like the right time.

The thought of trying to keep up with Abby on a beach just seemed exhausting, and we beached earlier this year and thought we were beached out.

Day one of DC vacation, I was second guessing my reasons.  But, I made the best of it and had a great time despite the lack of relaxation.

We saw as many things as one could see in a week, hitting all the major spots.  And, Abby hung in there like a champ.  She did not get one formal nap for a week.  She often napped in the stroller, only after finally succumbing to exhaustion.  It was usually on a transition from one place to another and the scenery wasn't much to look at. 

She pleasantly slept through the nights while sharing our room. (Only because JJ refused to share the living room space with her).  She also slept in every day, allowing for us to catch up on our exhaustion.

She playfully enjoyed all the exhibits in the museums, but her favorite was riding the carousel outside of the Smithsonian Castle.  The minute we got our tickets and stood in line, she was in awe.  She gladly sat on a horse, got strapped on, and held on.  Once it started moving, I thought she would panic, but she didn't.  Her face lit up.  She smiled bigger and bigger, the more it went round and round.  And then it started to slow, and I could anticipate what was going to happen.  Finally the ride stopped and we had to get off. 

And she cried.

And she cried.

And she cried.

Oh my, it broke my heart.  She did not understand we couldn't ride it forever.  But the video we have of her riding it will always be a good back up.

I was anxious about how well she would travel.  She's done distance before, but nothing of this magnitude in a while.  She doesn't sleep as much in the car as she use to.  Heading up, we split the trip in half so it wasn't too bad on anyone.  But coming home, it was a straight 9 hours.  She did really well.  She slept a lot.  And looked out the window a lot.  She liked riding in Gene's truck because she can see out better.  She would wake when we stopped for gas or lunch.  She got a little fussy asking to play the ipad. 

She only likes to press the home button on the ipad, so its not very fun for anyone else who has to keep taking it from her in order to keep her from messing it up.  I tried using Guided Access, but it managed to get locked on a barney movie, and then not work at all.

Overall, it turned out much better than I thought it would.  Everyone had fun, everyone learned something.  It certainly wasn't just rest and relaxation, but there are plenty of other days for that.

Blow Out

It's been a tough few days.  The stomach bug has gotten Abby.

It started Wednesday.  I got a text that she threw up during nap time and needed to get picked up.  Gene went and got her and took her home.  She seemed fine and dandy.  She played outside, we went to dinner. All was good.

Thursday they came to visit me (since she couldn't go back to daycare).  Again, feeling fine and dandy.

Friday, she has an epic blowout in the night.  Both sets of sheets on the bed are a mess.  She didn't make a peep about it.  I found it when I went to check on her in the morning. 

The rest of the day she was fine.  She played.  We went to a cookout.  I closely monitored her. But she had fun with all the other kids.

Saturday morning I was alarmed that her overnight diaper wasn't wet.  And I couldn't recall a lot of wet ones on Friday.  As I was waiting for the pediatricians office to open, I heard it.  I heard Abby's poor bottom fall out. 

She looked so pitiful.  I peeked in her diaper and it was a soupy mess.  I took her outside and stripped her down. Got her cleaned up.  30 minutes later, she did it again.  30 minutes later, she did it again.  Then things quieted down.  But the out of now where, she threw up. 

Argh!

I got her cleaned up.  And we settled down on the couch.  She eventually took a nap.  She didn't feel like eating anything, but she would drink pedialite.  She continued through the afternoon with diarrhea and vomiting.

Sunday she was lethargic.  We both sat in the chair and watched TV for most of the day.  Then somewhere around 2:00, she perked up.  She went over to her high chair and asked to eat.  So we had some toast.  Then she wanted to get down and play.  She seemed to be pepping back up.  But the explosions were still coming.

So, she stayed home Monday from daycare.  The events were now not as frequent, but she was still having loose stools.  She was more and more interested in eating and drinking.  She cried for milk.  I tried to resist, but she begged, so I gave her some.  It seemed like the vomiting had stopped, so maybe dairy was ok.

Then, in the middle of the night Monday, she woke up crying.  I went down to comfort her and noticed she had pooped.  Finally, it was firming up.  It was still messy, but firming!  I've never been so happy to see poop!  But she was still out of daycare for the day.

It turns out that she has passed the bug on to her MaeMae.  I feel really bad that she has it.  And I can hope it passes quickly.  Poppie thought he had it yesterday, so I took him some Gatorade and Pepto.  Hopefully he has shared those with her. 

I'm just trying to keep the rest of us from getting it.  The house cleaner comes today, so everything will get a good disinfecting.  I think Abby is over it, so its good to get it all clean.  We leave for vacation on Friday and I would hate to be stuck in the car for hours with an upset stomach!