Zoo Moments and Flu Moments

Zoo Moment 1: Two weeks ago, Em and I went to the Jacksonville Zoo with one of my teacher friends, his wife, and son. KPB turned 5 in May. Em turned 5 in September. The two played together wonderfully...


On the Panda sculptures.


Walking along one of the zoo pathways. (Too cute!)


Counting the Koi fish in the pond.


Posing on a carousel zebra. (The morning attire, before it warmed up enough that the kiddos could wear short sleeves.)

Travel Moments: Em and I left Florida on Saturday 11/21 at around 7:30 a.m. We drove all day until we arrived at my parents' home in Ohio. Em was a SUPER traveler. I was very pleased with her behavior. And though I was grateful for the L.eapster2 we had purchased, she actually kept busy with drawing and "arts and crafts" projects just as much as she played with the L2.

Sunday 11/22 was a take-it-easy day. Since DH was unable to travel with us, Em and I shared the guest bed. I thought I would dislike this, as Em tends to be a squirm-worm when she sleeps. However, sleeping with Em was a treat...I enjoyed our cuddle time in the mornings, and our end of the day conversations in the evenings. And she didn't move around nearly as much as she used to.

Sunday night we were able to go to the Colu.mbus Z.oo with my parents. Each December they display lights there in the evening time. I hadn't attended the light show event since my freshman year of college. It's come a long way! From just white lights in the front part of the zoo to colored lights and animal lights throughout the entire zoo. We had a super time!

Zoo Moment 2:


Grandma and Emma inside the zoo entrance


Pretty light display


The pond near the main entrance of the zoo. So pretty to view the lights and their reflections in the water.


Cool giraffe lights


I LOVED this baby monkey. Super cute!



Em petting a sea urchin inside the zoo's aquarium.


Emma and Grandpa


Paying homage to our friends and family who were in Florida for the Thanksgiving holiday.


Unfortunately, my pics of the reindeer didn't turn out.
Em was thrilled: "Oooh! Look! REAL reindeer! Their antlers are sooooo long! Hey, where's Rudolph? I don't see a reindeer with a red nose? Huh."


Em was able to hug Santa and tell him what she'd like for Christmas ("A big kitchen for my Barbies.")


Em and Santa converse.

I have a SUPER cute pic of Em and Santa I'm saving for later....it will be our Christmas card pic this year. :)


Em was tickled to be able to decorate her own sugar cookie with Mrs. Claus.

Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday: We were able to hang out and have family time with my parents and sister, Laurel.

Monday night Laurel and I went to see the New Moon movie. LOVED it! This book is my least favorite of the 4 in the Twilight saga, but I thought the film was super. (I'm longing to see it again however, as the couple we sat in front of "whispered" loudly the entire movie. And the girl in front of us kept texting and the light from her phone was shining right at me. SOOO annoying!)

Wednesday night Laurel and I were able to attend the "In the Heights" musical production showing in the lovely Ohio Theater in downtown Columbus. We had a fun girls night out. The musical was really well done---they incorporated rap and Latin music into the storyline. It was very unique. And though not my favorite type of music, I enjoyed the show. Our tickets were an early Christmas present from our parents who also kindly babysat Emma while we attended the show. (Thanks, Mom and Dad!)

Thursday Brought: Board games, cookie decorating, family time, the aroma of Thanksgiving dinner, and Emma's first meal in my parents' formal dining room. (My mom reminded me that Emma has asked every summer if we could "eat in there sometime" while pointing to the dining room.)


Some of the crazy turkey/pilgrim/candy hodgepodge cookies that we decorated.


Em's cookie "Don't eat this one. It's for me, cuz' I already licked it." LOL!


3 of my favorite ladies on the planet---My mom, daughter, and younger sister.

Flu Moments: I woke up around 2 a.m. Emma was hot to the touch. She had stripped down to just her underwear, but was still extremely hot. (Meanwhile, I was in pants/longsleeve shirt PJs with socks and was "just right" temperature wise.) I re-covered Em with a sheet and light blanket, which she promptly kicked off.

I woke my Mom to ask if they had a thermometer. They didn't. However, Mom felt Em and agreed she definitely had a high fever. My Mom then woke my Dad who quickly dressed and went to find a 24-hour store to purchase T.ylenol for Em. (Windy, rainy weather of course---Thanks, Dad for trooping through it for us!)

While my Dad was gone, Emma woke up, ran to the toilet, and vomited. I held her hair and rubbed her back as she whimpered. We found a "barf bucket" to place by our bed, and headed back to bed. Em fell asleep in my arms. A few minutes later, Emma woke up, jumped out of bed, threw up, got a sip of water, and groggily climbed back into bed. She repeated this process SIX times before my Dad got home with medicine. Wow. That's a lot of vomit for her little stomach. (And NO, she didn't eat her chocolate covered cookie...this definitely wasn't over indulgence.)

Dad got home around 3 a.m. He had also purchased a thermometer. Em's temp was 102.8. Poor baby! We coaxed her as best we could to take the T.ylenol. (Dad couldn't find any chewables and Em hates the liquid kind.) After she finally took some medicine, we returned to bed. Em slept for 2 hours before waking and vomiting again.

When we woke in the morning on Friday, Em was listless and still not feeling well. Though her temp was down to 99.3, I was concerned. First and foremost I was worried about Em's illness. Secondly, I was freaking out---we were scheduled to drive all day on Saturday to return to Florida. What if she was still sick?

We ended up taking Em to an Urgent Care center. (Thank goodness we took the "barf bucket" with us, as Em threw up again in the car on the way to the doctor.) We quickly learned that both urgent care centers in my hometown were closed due to the holiday. Dad drove us to an urgent care center in a neighboring town. Meanwhile, Em was dozing on and off against my arm.

They tried to complete a strep throat culture, but Em wouldn't cooperate. She kept closing her mouth and refusing to open wide. (Little booger!) The doctor ended up prescribing an antibiotic.
By Friday evening, Em was starting to perk up again. Whew!

Saturday we were able to leave as scheduled. Em was fabulous in the car again! (Thank God we've had NO vomiting since we were on the way to the doctor on Friday.) We drove all day again and arrived home in Jacksonville last night at around 10:30 p.m.

Em finished her antibiotic today. She seems to be back to normal....so it's back to school and work for all tomorrow.

Thanks: What I'm thankful for this year...

--A DH who cleaned the house while Em and I were away.
--A DH who has stuck to his guns with his writing project...I hope you get published, my Sweet! And either way, I'm proud of you for finishing your first novel!
--A daughter who travels loooong distances without excessive whining or complaining.
--A daughter who has a great musical ear. I love hearing her sing from the backseat. "Hit me with your best shot...fire away!"
--Parents who are so loving and caring towards Emma. I love watching you interact with my girl!
--A sister who is fun to hang out with...wish you lived closer, Lal!
--A job I care about. Though at times overwhelming, I am glad to have a job that I enjoy.
--Blog buddies. Since I began this blog, it has been an emotional outlet. However, I never anticipated the love and encouragement I've encountered from others...from people whom I've never met in real life, yet feel close to. Thank you, dear readers!

Happy (belated) Thanksgiving to all. Two and a half weeks until winter break....I can't wait! I am looking forward to catching up with all my blog friends. I feel like work has been kicking my butt this quarter, so I've been negligent about blogging as much as I'd like to.