Day 69/365 - March 10

Finally - time to come home and check on my baby girl!!! 

Let me tell ya, I couldn't get out of Decatur fast enough! My boss asked what I wanted for lunch and I said anything we could eat quick. Nothing sit down for me! We saw a Wendy's sign and agreed that sounded good. Imagine our surprise when we pulled in and realized it was combined with a gas station! I've seen Subway and Taco Bell with gas stations, but never a Wendy's. So of course I had to snap a photo of it!

Traffic and rain were horrible and we ended up not getting back to Montgomery until 4:00. It was too late for me to go by school and pick up Avery's work. So, I headed on home to see everyone. Avery has really perked up - that Tamiflu has obviously worked well for her. She still has a low grade fever in the low 100's, but you wouldn't know it. I'm sure she will be bouncing off the walls at home with me for the next two days!

Anyway, this is the suprise I got from Wes tonight.

He typically shaves everyday, but I guess having a sick child at home and not sleeping a lot kinda zap you. I think it's killing him and have no doubt it will be long gone in a matter of hours!

Day 68/365 - March 9

Avery had a better day today - no more throwing up since late last night and fever in the low 100's with Tylenol/Motrin. She's still pretty puny and has even taken naps both yesterday and today - that's a sure sign that she doesn't feel good!

I still feel terrible for not being there to take care of Avery, but know she's in perfectly capable and loving hands with Wes. I think it is probably good for both of them, but still hard for me.

On a side/funny note, take a look at this photo of Princess

She LOVES to play and hide in anything. Today she found Avery's backpack left open in the kitchen. She had the best time crouching in there and pouncing when you walked by. Avery actually found her asleep in there at one point today!

Day 67/365 March 8 - Worst.Mom.EVER!!!

It's official. In case there has ever been any doubt. Any prior awards given to me for the Worst Mom Ever have been trumped today.

I've had an out of town trip with work (and my boss) planned for two months now. Avery woke up this morning with this

I couldn't cancel my trip and not going wasn't an option.

So, I left my sick baby at home in tears because she couldn't believe that I would not stay there with her.

After two hours in the doctor's office, it's official. She has the flu AND strep throat.

I thought Wes was handling it all pretty well. And he was. Until Avery started throwing up and throwing up and throwing up (eight times so far). Did I mention that she threw up in our bed?

Yeah, he's not handling it so well now. And where am I? Stuck in a hotel room in Decatur. Am I enjoying my "evening of no responsibilities" any? Nope, I am wallowing in misery over the fact that there's not a single thing I can do to make either one of them feel better.

Like I said - Worst.Mom.EVER.

Day 66/365 - March 7

After a fun filled sleepover with cousins Paige and Caitlin, Zach brought all the girls (including Macy) over to Grandmama's house for the day. They had such a blast playing outside and just spending time together. There were only a few times that I had to remind them to slow down and be sure to include Macy.

Aunt Jane even surprised us all with an impromptu crochet lesson.

It started with Paige, Avery, and Caitlin and ended with Avery and me. I think we both got the hang of the first step - a chain or snake. Aunt Jane felt I was ready for the next step, but it was getting late in the day and I didn't want to rush into learning something new. Hopefully this will give me time to perfect what I learned until we get a chance to sit down together again.

After a great day together, we ended up leaving a good bit later than planned (around 3:00). We dropped Paige, Caitlin, and Macy off at home as we were heading out of town. As we were leaving, Avery mentioned that she wasn't feeling good. I figured it was just due to the fact that she was up really late last night and then slept over with her cousins and probably didn't actually sleep much. She dozed for a little bit on the way home, but then watched a movie on her iPod.

I looked down when we pulled in the driveway and noticed this

My baby turned 111,111 miles on our drive back home from Skipperville today! I know I didn't get a photo of the actual mileage on the odometer, but I know what it means!

When I walked in the house, this is what greeted me on the kitchen table.

These are the hot dog buns I bought at WalMart yesterday morning that I didn't put away. Princess can get on the table by jumping into the chair and she obviously had a lot of fun playing with this pack of buns. Oh well, at least they were the $1.00 Great Value brand!

Once we got in and settled, Avery said she still wasn't feeling good and had started coughing. I took her temperature and she had a 100 fever - really hoping she just played hard and is worn out. We'll see what tomorrow brings, but I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed since I have to head out of town to Decatur for three days of work!

Day 65/365 - March 6

I got up early this morning and headed to Wal Mart for my grocery shopping since I knew I would be gone most of the weeknd. Let me tell ya, WM is not so bad at 7:30 a.m. on a Saturday!

The girls had a great practice today and Wes seemed to be really impressed with each of their skill levels.  After practice, I brought Avery home and she showered and we got our bags packed for Skipperville.

We were a little later leaving than I planned (2:00), but it worked out fine. I stopped in Troy and got some dinner for everyone that would be there and also picked Caitlin up some flowers for the pageant tonight.

We arrived around 4:00 at my Grandmother's house and were glad to see that my Mom and George were already there.  We all visited a bit and then ate an early dinner. My Aunt Jane stopped by and helped my arrange Caitlin's flowers and then Mom, George, Avery, and I headed to the school for the pageant. My Grandmother couldn't attend due to the noise level - it would have just been way to much for her.

The pageant started at 6:30 with the little girls (K/1st) and then moved up by age all the way to high school. Luckily for us, Caitlin was in the 3rd grouping since she is in 3rd grade. However, it still took FOREVER!!! All of the age groups performed and did all of their "stuff" and they didn't announce the winners until the very end. After announcing the winners in Caitlin's age group (she didn't win, but did AWESOME), we snuck backstage to tell her how great she did, and left. It was 9:45 at this point and the pageant still wasn't fully over!!

Avery was estatic that she was going to spend the night with her cousins, Paige and Caitlin. She has never spent the night with them before and couldn't wait. I am so appreciative to Zach and Christy for inviting her over!!

Day 64/365 - March 5

Wow, finally Friday! Nothing too exciting around our house though. Avery decided she wanted to paint her fingernails tonight.

In honor of Easter and St.Patrick's Day, she alternated them yellow and lime green. Not that the color will last that long, but.... :) She also had to top them with her fave silver glitter polish!

Avery has ball practice in the morning at 10:00 and after that Wes is playing golf. Avery and I are packing up and heading down to visit my family in Skipperville. We found out earlier in the week that my niece, Caitlin, is in a beauty pageant down there Saturday night. Since it doesn't start until 6:30, we decided to just spend the night. It should be a lot of fun to visit and catch up with everyone that I haven't seen since Christmas.

Day 63/365 - March 4

When we got home this afternoon, Avery had the best time playing with Princess. Here she is playing with her toy, Mr. Feather Stick (as named by Avery).

That cat was up and down the sides and arms of the couch - so funny!

Tonight was also our first softball practice. It was great to see the full team and put names and faces together. It looks like we're going to have a great group of girls this year!

I was a bit late for practice due a hair appointment that had been previously scheduled. Everyone knows that you can't cancel those at the last minute!! Plus, I was REALLY of need of some color and a trim :)