Thursday, July 31, 2008
A Quick One
I know I've been slack about Alaska pictures. So here is one. It's not terribly representative of Alaska or our trip at all, but let's face it, this is why most of my readers come here. (Yes, Dad, I'm talking to you.) (Both of you.)
To All My Dear Friends
Who had their lives altered yesterday...you know who you are...we love you and are thinking about you. Please call or write if we can help at all.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Quick Weekend Update
I need to be working this morning, and I'm battling the worst morning sickness I've had so far, so this will have to be quick.
Saturday we went to the Chattahoochee Nature Center (the link to its website isn't working right now, but it normally is here) to attend a ranger-led baby nature walk (it's supposed to discuss which plants are safe to touch and other things possibly encountered at two feet tall) and to see the butterfly release. Apparently, the Nature Center typically releases all butterflies on one day each July, making a big festival out of it. However, this year, because construction is underway for a new wildlife center, they spread it over several weekends this month, and this past weekend was the last release.
The infant walk was canceled, so we just walked through the gardens for an hour. It was hot as Hades, and Caetlin really wanted to run around but she kept picking the flowers, so she spent a good chunk of time on Bruce's shoulders. We did get to see a sleeping beaver (verdict: much larger than I thought it would be) and a number of birds in the aviary. However, when it came to the butterfly release, we bailed. Turns out you have to get there early to get a good seat, and early did not work for Caetlin. You can't expect a 2 year old to just sit and wait for 20 minutes, when nothing is happening to keep her attention. It was also a madhouse. Completely packed, with people just barrelling through the doors, getting snippy that we were blocking their way by trying to get in the door the other direction. We've been there a couple of times before and it was never so crowded.
So, no baby nature walk and no butterfly release. The Nature Center was a big bust this time, though we did get bird seed for our hopefully more squirrel resistant bird feeder (they have destroyed two feeders in the last couple of months). The rest of the day was errands and miscellaneous. It was a miscellaneous kind of day.
Sunday was awesome- Six Flags! We had a blast, despite it being about 1000 degrees outside. We actually bought a pass for 6 more visits by November 2, because I think we'll be going back when it is cooler. Caetlin had a great time, especially in Thomas Town (dedicated to the characters of Thomas the Tank Engine) where there is a little kid train ride that we stayed on three times and a playground. She also liked looking at all the people and things- she was just blown away by it all. Also loved the roller coasters (looking at them, of course), saying, "Hello choo choo train!" and "Bye bye train!" when the cars whooshed around overhead. No pictures, unfortunately- I forgot my camera. Next time.
We also saw The Dark Knight, and oh my, was it good. Wonderful performances from Heath Ledger and Aaron Eckhardt, a thought-provoking story and great visuals. More on that later, if I get time.
Sunday was also the day of cooking, as I made two different dishes for the week. We're going to start eating dinner with Caetlin- previously her nanny has fed her dinner before we get home in the evenings- and I want her to start eating what I eat. Wish us luck in broadening the child's palate.
Anyway, that was about it for the weekend. I know I owe Alaska pictures. Soon, I promise.
Saturday we went to the Chattahoochee Nature Center (the link to its website isn't working right now, but it normally is here) to attend a ranger-led baby nature walk (it's supposed to discuss which plants are safe to touch and other things possibly encountered at two feet tall) and to see the butterfly release. Apparently, the Nature Center typically releases all butterflies on one day each July, making a big festival out of it. However, this year, because construction is underway for a new wildlife center, they spread it over several weekends this month, and this past weekend was the last release.
The infant walk was canceled, so we just walked through the gardens for an hour. It was hot as Hades, and Caetlin really wanted to run around but she kept picking the flowers, so she spent a good chunk of time on Bruce's shoulders. We did get to see a sleeping beaver (verdict: much larger than I thought it would be) and a number of birds in the aviary. However, when it came to the butterfly release, we bailed. Turns out you have to get there early to get a good seat, and early did not work for Caetlin. You can't expect a 2 year old to just sit and wait for 20 minutes, when nothing is happening to keep her attention. It was also a madhouse. Completely packed, with people just barrelling through the doors, getting snippy that we were blocking their way by trying to get in the door the other direction. We've been there a couple of times before and it was never so crowded.
So, no baby nature walk and no butterfly release. The Nature Center was a big bust this time, though we did get bird seed for our hopefully more squirrel resistant bird feeder (they have destroyed two feeders in the last couple of months). The rest of the day was errands and miscellaneous. It was a miscellaneous kind of day.
Sunday was awesome- Six Flags! We had a blast, despite it being about 1000 degrees outside. We actually bought a pass for 6 more visits by November 2, because I think we'll be going back when it is cooler. Caetlin had a great time, especially in Thomas Town (dedicated to the characters of Thomas the Tank Engine) where there is a little kid train ride that we stayed on three times and a playground. She also liked looking at all the people and things- she was just blown away by it all. Also loved the roller coasters (looking at them, of course), saying, "Hello choo choo train!" and "Bye bye train!" when the cars whooshed around overhead. No pictures, unfortunately- I forgot my camera. Next time.
We also saw The Dark Knight, and oh my, was it good. Wonderful performances from Heath Ledger and Aaron Eckhardt, a thought-provoking story and great visuals. More on that later, if I get time.
Sunday was also the day of cooking, as I made two different dishes for the week. We're going to start eating dinner with Caetlin- previously her nanny has fed her dinner before we get home in the evenings- and I want her to start eating what I eat. Wish us luck in broadening the child's palate.
Anyway, that was about it for the weekend. I know I owe Alaska pictures. Soon, I promise.
Friday, July 18, 2008
I Fear For The Future
While on our way out of the mall where we saw the movie, I saw this ad, and I actually had to go back to take a picture of it. The picture was taken with the phone on my camera, so it wasn't a great pic, but I think you can see the relevant bits here.
Can you read the copy? Here, let me post a close(r) up:
And then contemplate the age of the model.
I hate this. As the mom of a daughter, I hate this and fear for her self-image. How obsessesed are we as a culture with youth, that we would encourage such a thing? I realize there are only economics underlying the ad- Botox can capture customers for life if it can get women in their twenties hooked on its product. But the fact that it will exploit the culture that is consumed with never aging, the fact that the culture is so consumed, the fact that there is such a market opening, worries me about my daughter.
How can I convey to her that she is beautiful on the inside as well as the outside? How can I present to her the idea that makeup is okay but plastic surgery usually isn't? The dichotomy between needing and wanting to look one's best, and valuing one's own personality and character without regard for the physical is one that I struggle with myself, though I think I'm pretty grounded. How can I give Caetlin the same grounding? How can I fight the overwhelming flow of images that are going to tell her she needs to be thin to the point of emaciation, have perfect hair and white teeth and a perpetual tan, and remain 20 for her entire life? Also, have big boobs, and no pubic hair beyond a small short strip, and know the Makeup Tips That Will Make Him Yours!
It just feels like advertising comes at me more and more quickly, in greater volume than ever, and it's all designed to make me feel bad about myself, so that I can go buy something to make myself feel better. I presume that advertising will only continue to grow and invade everyone's space, as we become more and more media saturated. How can I guide my girl, when as she grows I fear I will have less and less influence?
And then contemplate the age of the model.
I hate this. As the mom of a daughter, I hate this and fear for her self-image. How obsessesed are we as a culture with youth, that we would encourage such a thing? I realize there are only economics underlying the ad- Botox can capture customers for life if it can get women in their twenties hooked on its product. But the fact that it will exploit the culture that is consumed with never aging, the fact that the culture is so consumed, the fact that there is such a market opening, worries me about my daughter.
How can I convey to her that she is beautiful on the inside as well as the outside? How can I present to her the idea that makeup is okay but plastic surgery usually isn't? The dichotomy between needing and wanting to look one's best, and valuing one's own personality and character without regard for the physical is one that I struggle with myself, though I think I'm pretty grounded. How can I give Caetlin the same grounding? How can I fight the overwhelming flow of images that are going to tell her she needs to be thin to the point of emaciation, have perfect hair and white teeth and a perpetual tan, and remain 20 for her entire life? Also, have big boobs, and no pubic hair beyond a small short strip, and know the Makeup Tips That Will Make Him Yours!
It just feels like advertising comes at me more and more quickly, in greater volume than ever, and it's all designed to make me feel bad about myself, so that I can go buy something to make myself feel better. I presume that advertising will only continue to grow and invade everyone's space, as we become more and more media saturated. How can I guide my girl, when as she grows I fear I will have less and less influence?
Movie: Wall-E
I don't really have the energy to write a full review of Wall-E, which we snuck out a little early today to go see (shh, don't tell anybody). Suffice to say: love.
A couple of highlights: Sigourney Weaver voices a ship's computer on self-destruct. The scenes with the cockroach are funny and adorable. The ships in the dry harbor are frightening and sad and Eve's frustration is palpable. How is it possible that a robot's emotions are palpable? The animators didn't cheat, that I could see; the robots didn't smile, or get themselves out of a jam with suddenly opposable thumbs, or otherwise become implausibly people-ish. Yet they had personality to spare, especially Wall-E. The end brought tears to my eyes. Stupid robots.
Another fun note: one of the robots is rebooted, and the sound it makes when it turns on is the sound a Mac makes when it turns on. Funny.
And the closing credits were awesome. Lovely imagery telling the coda to the story.
My biggest complaint had to do with the audience surrounding us. In front of us, we had a pair of women with their obviously handicapped young woman companion. In back of us, we had a family of indeterminate size with a couple of relatively young children; I'd guess 5-7. Three guesses which party annoyed me more. Yes, it was the family, but again, not for the reason you might think. The adult (or adults) in the party would not shut up. The children were speaking conversationally, asking questions as kids are apt to do, and that didn't bother me. What bothered me was the fact that about 7 times out of 10, the adult (or adults) answered them conversationally. Meaning that Bruce and I got to hear the explanation of how there was so much trash on the world as if they were speaking to us at a dinner party. Every so often there would be a "Shhhh!" or a response in a whisper, but far more often it was as if these people thought the movie theater was their own living room.
I'm embarrassed at myself to report, however, that the young handicapped woman made nary a peep. When I realized she was handicapped, in a way that may make her prone to loud involuntary outbursts, shamefully, my first thought was "Oh great." Then in my head, I was all, "Wait, she has every right to be here, and I would want people to give us the same courtesy if we had Caetlin with us." I remain embarrassed to admit that she was far better of a movie watching companion than the family behind us.
Anyway, good movie. Way way worth seeing. Just don't talk to your kids as if you were in your own home, m'kay? Thanks!
A couple of highlights: Sigourney Weaver voices a ship's computer on self-destruct. The scenes with the cockroach are funny and adorable. The ships in the dry harbor are frightening and sad and Eve's frustration is palpable. How is it possible that a robot's emotions are palpable? The animators didn't cheat, that I could see; the robots didn't smile, or get themselves out of a jam with suddenly opposable thumbs, or otherwise become implausibly people-ish. Yet they had personality to spare, especially Wall-E. The end brought tears to my eyes. Stupid robots.
Another fun note: one of the robots is rebooted, and the sound it makes when it turns on is the sound a Mac makes when it turns on. Funny.
And the closing credits were awesome. Lovely imagery telling the coda to the story.
My biggest complaint had to do with the audience surrounding us. In front of us, we had a pair of women with their obviously handicapped young woman companion. In back of us, we had a family of indeterminate size with a couple of relatively young children; I'd guess 5-7. Three guesses which party annoyed me more. Yes, it was the family, but again, not for the reason you might think. The adult (or adults) in the party would not shut up. The children were speaking conversationally, asking questions as kids are apt to do, and that didn't bother me. What bothered me was the fact that about 7 times out of 10, the adult (or adults) answered them conversationally. Meaning that Bruce and I got to hear the explanation of how there was so much trash on the world as if they were speaking to us at a dinner party. Every so often there would be a "Shhhh!" or a response in a whisper, but far more often it was as if these people thought the movie theater was their own living room.
I'm embarrassed at myself to report, however, that the young handicapped woman made nary a peep. When I realized she was handicapped, in a way that may make her prone to loud involuntary outbursts, shamefully, my first thought was "Oh great." Then in my head, I was all, "Wait, she has every right to be here, and I would want people to give us the same courtesy if we had Caetlin with us." I remain embarrassed to admit that she was far better of a movie watching companion than the family behind us.
Anyway, good movie. Way way worth seeing. Just don't talk to your kids as if you were in your own home, m'kay? Thanks!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Garden Update: Because I Know You Want It
While going through the Alaska pics and putting together one or more appropriate narrative posts might take awhile, I thought I would include a few pics of the garden, to whose crazy thick growth I returned.
The tomatoes are going crazy, and one of the what look like Roma tomatoes is starting to get some orange color.
Here is the freaky watermelon, that is growing so ridiculously fast. I added this little border to try to encourage it to grow away from the rest of the garden. Can I just say that I find it a little creepy how its little tendrils wind around everything, including the wire border fence (that I cleared away from the watermelon this evening), the grass outside the bed, etc.
Here are the way overgrown herbs. I need to find a pair of scissors and go harvest them back a bit.
Even the mint that was believed lost has made a nice recovery.
All is not totally well in the tomato's world, however. Bruce is always worrying about "varmints" (his word) taking the tomatoes before they get ripe. Well, this evening, his worries were well-founded- a varmint grabbed one of the green tomatoes.
"Wait, you mean I wasn't supposed to pick this?"
"You'll forgive me because I'm adorable, though."
The tomatoes are going crazy, and one of the what look like Roma tomatoes is starting to get some orange color.
Here is the freaky watermelon, that is growing so ridiculously fast. I added this little border to try to encourage it to grow away from the rest of the garden. Can I just say that I find it a little creepy how its little tendrils wind around everything, including the wire border fence (that I cleared away from the watermelon this evening), the grass outside the bed, etc.
Here are the way overgrown herbs. I need to find a pair of scissors and go harvest them back a bit.
Even the mint that was believed lost has made a nice recovery.
All is not totally well in the tomato's world, however. Bruce is always worrying about "varmints" (his word) taking the tomatoes before they get ripe. Well, this evening, his worries were well-founded- a varmint grabbed one of the green tomatoes.
"Wait, you mean I wasn't supposed to pick this?"
"You'll forgive me because I'm adorable, though."
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Back on the East Coast
And the jetlag is simply awful. We took the redeye last night (delayed a day because of awful weather in Atlanta on Sunday night, so our vacation stretched an extra day. It turns out it is less of an adventure than it is a hassle to have to extend by a day when your mind had already been turned to taking the flight and going home and returning to work), and arrived as the sun was rising over the city this morning. Neither Bruce nor I got even a few minutes of sleep on the plane, though Caetlin managed to grab about three hours. We were all wiped out when we got home, and Caetlin went right back to sleep until about 2 p.m. Bruce and I catnapped for a couple of hours and then went in to spend an utterly useless day at work, with both of us struggling to stay awake and not accomplishing much in the way of anything. We came home to crash hard, which we did around 7:30, falling into a deep sleep.
...And we're both awake now at 11:30, which according to our bodies is 7:30 in the evening. Thanks to her still taking an afternoon nap and the fact that she was completely sleep deprived, Caetlin managed to go down at 8:00 or so (4:00-late but still doable naptime- according to her body) and has so far slept through the night. Our hope is that she will sleep all the way through and then be most of the way adjusted to the new time zone. The night time in her room probably has to help with that.
As for us, I am hopeful that we can sleep again before it gets too late, as the work marches apace and I truly need to be less out of it tomorrow than I was today.
We just ordered a pizza (yeah, our respective diets have gone kaplooie while on vacation. We're getting back to them tomorrow, for while I am not trying to lose weight any more, for El Segundo related reasons, I am trying not to gain too much weight with this baby), so we'll be up for awhile. Wish us luck on getting at least some sleep.
More on our Alaska adventures, as well as the inevitable photo montages, later, probably this weekend, as we settle back into our normal lives.
...And we're both awake now at 11:30, which according to our bodies is 7:30 in the evening. Thanks to her still taking an afternoon nap and the fact that she was completely sleep deprived, Caetlin managed to go down at 8:00 or so (4:00-late but still doable naptime- according to her body) and has so far slept through the night. Our hope is that she will sleep all the way through and then be most of the way adjusted to the new time zone. The night time in her room probably has to help with that.
As for us, I am hopeful that we can sleep again before it gets too late, as the work marches apace and I truly need to be less out of it tomorrow than I was today.
We just ordered a pizza (yeah, our respective diets have gone kaplooie while on vacation. We're getting back to them tomorrow, for while I am not trying to lose weight any more, for El Segundo related reasons, I am trying not to gain too much weight with this baby), so we'll be up for awhile. Wish us luck on getting at least some sleep.
More on our Alaska adventures, as well as the inevitable photo montages, later, probably this weekend, as we settle back into our normal lives.
Friday, July 4, 2008
Happy 4th of July
PHILADELPHIA. JULY 3, 1776. EVENING. TO ABIGAIL:
[T]he delay of this declaration to this time has many great advantages attending it. The hopes of reconciliation which were fondly entertained by multitudes of honest and well meaning, though weak and mistaken people, have been gradually, and at last totally, extinguished. Time has been given for the whole people maturely to consider the great question of independence, and to ripen their judgment, dissipate their fears, and allure their hopes, by discussing it in newspapers and pamphlets – by debating it in assemblies, conventions, committees of safety and inspection – in town and county meetings, as well as in private conversations; so that the whole people, in every colony, have now adopted it as their own act. This will cement the union, and avoid those heats, and perhaps convulsions, which might have been occasioned by such a declaration six months ago.
But the day is past. The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epocha in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great Anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade with shews, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of the continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.
You will think me transported with enthusiasm; but I am not. I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure, that it will cost us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these states. Yet through all the gloom I can see the rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the end is more than worth all the means, and that posterity will triumph in that day's transaction, even although we should rue it, which I trust in God we shall not.
John Adams
Hat tip: A List of Things Thrown Five Minutes Ago, from whom I shamelessly stole the link and the same excerpt.
[T]he delay of this declaration to this time has many great advantages attending it. The hopes of reconciliation which were fondly entertained by multitudes of honest and well meaning, though weak and mistaken people, have been gradually, and at last totally, extinguished. Time has been given for the whole people maturely to consider the great question of independence, and to ripen their judgment, dissipate their fears, and allure their hopes, by discussing it in newspapers and pamphlets – by debating it in assemblies, conventions, committees of safety and inspection – in town and county meetings, as well as in private conversations; so that the whole people, in every colony, have now adopted it as their own act. This will cement the union, and avoid those heats, and perhaps convulsions, which might have been occasioned by such a declaration six months ago.
But the day is past. The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epocha in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great Anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade with shews, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations from one end of the continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.
You will think me transported with enthusiasm; but I am not. I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure, that it will cost us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these states. Yet through all the gloom I can see the rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the end is more than worth all the means, and that posterity will triumph in that day's transaction, even although we should rue it, which I trust in God we shall not.
John Adams
Hat tip: A List of Things Thrown Five Minutes Ago, from whom I shamelessly stole the link and the same excerpt.
From the Frozen North
We're coming to you on location from Anchorage, in the great northern state of Alaska, and I'm pleased to note that there is nothing frozen about the place. Cool and overcast and a little sprinkly, yes, but "Cool Overcast Sprinkly North" just doesn't have the same ring.
We departed Atlanta at about 2:30 yesterday afternoon for a direct 7-hour flight to Anchorage, and can I say that Caetlin had a grand total of about 25 minutes of sleep the whole day? That, friends, makes for a very long flight. Everyone around us said she did very well- those few who were willing to talk to us or look at us, that is. In all honesty, she had a few high pitched shrieks that she's so fond of right now that probably disturbed some people, and one serious screaming metldown right after she woke up from her abbreviated nap. She was not happy about being awake, and we compounded the problem by trying to shift her onto the seat to make her more comfortable. Instead of her settling back into sleep as we hoped, she woke up and started really working herself up. Bruce walked her around- I tried to take her to the bathroom but the bathrooms in my immediate vicinity were all blocked by people in the aisles. She smashed into my face with her head about then, and left my cheek sore and swollen-feeling.
After Bruce took her, that's when I started crying. I admit, it was a low point for me. It was physical pain- my face hurt!- combined with sadness that I couldn't make Caetlin feel better, plus stress over getting the evil eye from those around us, plus hormones and exhaustion. She kind of calmed down when Bruce brought her back, but she didn't go back to sleep. She didn't sleep until we got her to the hotel and into the crib, by which point she looked nearly comatose and had little bags under her eyes. It was nearly midnight, east coast time, before she had any meaningful sleep.
Otherwise the flight wasn't bad. It was stressful working so hard to keep her happy, and as expected, some of the new stuff we brought for her went over big and some of the stuff tanked. I would like to take a minute and note that I wish there weren't such a stigma against children on airplanes. I understand why there is- I've been on planes where the child near me shrieked non-stop, and it's not fun. I just wish it weren't quite so culturally ingrained, where we feel like we have to put on a three-ring circus for our children just so they will stay quiet, or we as parents are the bad guys. When reading for ideas on how to entertain toddlers on long flights, I read a number of people's comments who were like, "Umm, yeah, Benadryl." This is so insulting on a number of levels. You seriously think I should drug my kid for your comfort? The loud amped-up teenagers next to you or the lady behind you who doesn't have headphones for her DVD player, or the salesman who is laughing too loudly in your ear- they are okay, but if my kid cries, well, I better take care of that right away, shouldn't I?
Sorry, I just hated that it was so incredibly stressful for us to fly, when Caetlin was, except for that 10 minute stretch, no more annoying than any of those kinds of people I named above.
ANYWAY, we made it (the descent into Anchorage was a little bumpy and I immediately realized I was pregnant by getting very airsick, not the needing-the-bag kind, fortunately, but as prone as I am to carsickness, I never get airsick, unless, apparently, I am pregnant), lugging our ridiculous amounts of baggage, and got to the hotel, where we put Caetlin down, ordered food, discovered that the TV in the living room part of our suite is broken and would not let us watch So You Think You Can Dance, and basically went to bed. I was so tired that I stopped eating not because I was full, but because I physically didn't want to expend the effort to continue to manipulate the utensils to continue eating. Let me say that I could have, if I had been hungrier- I don't want to mislead anyone into thinking I was truly utterly exhausted, as opposed to just hyperbolically utterly exhausted. But I really was utterly exhausted. (The second kind.)
I woke up at about 2:30 local time and noticed that outside seemed to have taken on an odd orange cast, during the brief Anchorage "night."
We all awoke at about 5:30 for good, though we just kind of laid around until 7. Then we met our friends whom we are visiting for breakfast. More on our Alaskan 4th of July later.
We departed Atlanta at about 2:30 yesterday afternoon for a direct 7-hour flight to Anchorage, and can I say that Caetlin had a grand total of about 25 minutes of sleep the whole day? That, friends, makes for a very long flight. Everyone around us said she did very well- those few who were willing to talk to us or look at us, that is. In all honesty, she had a few high pitched shrieks that she's so fond of right now that probably disturbed some people, and one serious screaming metldown right after she woke up from her abbreviated nap. She was not happy about being awake, and we compounded the problem by trying to shift her onto the seat to make her more comfortable. Instead of her settling back into sleep as we hoped, she woke up and started really working herself up. Bruce walked her around- I tried to take her to the bathroom but the bathrooms in my immediate vicinity were all blocked by people in the aisles. She smashed into my face with her head about then, and left my cheek sore and swollen-feeling.
After Bruce took her, that's when I started crying. I admit, it was a low point for me. It was physical pain- my face hurt!- combined with sadness that I couldn't make Caetlin feel better, plus stress over getting the evil eye from those around us, plus hormones and exhaustion. She kind of calmed down when Bruce brought her back, but she didn't go back to sleep. She didn't sleep until we got her to the hotel and into the crib, by which point she looked nearly comatose and had little bags under her eyes. It was nearly midnight, east coast time, before she had any meaningful sleep.
Otherwise the flight wasn't bad. It was stressful working so hard to keep her happy, and as expected, some of the new stuff we brought for her went over big and some of the stuff tanked. I would like to take a minute and note that I wish there weren't such a stigma against children on airplanes. I understand why there is- I've been on planes where the child near me shrieked non-stop, and it's not fun. I just wish it weren't quite so culturally ingrained, where we feel like we have to put on a three-ring circus for our children just so they will stay quiet, or we as parents are the bad guys. When reading for ideas on how to entertain toddlers on long flights, I read a number of people's comments who were like, "Umm, yeah, Benadryl." This is so insulting on a number of levels. You seriously think I should drug my kid for your comfort? The loud amped-up teenagers next to you or the lady behind you who doesn't have headphones for her DVD player, or the salesman who is laughing too loudly in your ear- they are okay, but if my kid cries, well, I better take care of that right away, shouldn't I?
Sorry, I just hated that it was so incredibly stressful for us to fly, when Caetlin was, except for that 10 minute stretch, no more annoying than any of those kinds of people I named above.
ANYWAY, we made it (the descent into Anchorage was a little bumpy and I immediately realized I was pregnant by getting very airsick, not the needing-the-bag kind, fortunately, but as prone as I am to carsickness, I never get airsick, unless, apparently, I am pregnant), lugging our ridiculous amounts of baggage, and got to the hotel, where we put Caetlin down, ordered food, discovered that the TV in the living room part of our suite is broken and would not let us watch So You Think You Can Dance, and basically went to bed. I was so tired that I stopped eating not because I was full, but because I physically didn't want to expend the effort to continue to manipulate the utensils to continue eating. Let me say that I could have, if I had been hungrier- I don't want to mislead anyone into thinking I was truly utterly exhausted, as opposed to just hyperbolically utterly exhausted. But I really was utterly exhausted. (The second kind.)
I woke up at about 2:30 local time and noticed that outside seemed to have taken on an odd orange cast, during the brief Anchorage "night."
We all awoke at about 5:30 for good, though we just kind of laid around until 7. Then we met our friends whom we are visiting for breakfast. More on our Alaskan 4th of July later.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
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