So here is what we did in Maryland: Arrived on Friday afternoon, played in the pool, visited with my parents, uncle and cousin. Uncle Tony was my favorite uncle when I was growing up, because he's so silly. He acts just like a big kid. It was neat to have Hannah playing with him too. My dad make a really nice steak dinner as a thank-you to my uncle for fixing an electric problem in the basement.
On Saturday, my parents invited about 25 people over for lunch. Another big pool party. My relatives from DC ended up staying for the weekend. They had visitors from France who had never been to the Atlantic Ocean, so we thought it would be fun to show them around. We planned to drive over to the Eastern Shore for the day, maybe even spend the night there on Sunday. So, on Sunday morning we packed up the cars and started driving.... but didnt get very far. We weren't expecting traffic, and I didn't think to listen to the news at 8 or 9am on a Sunday. But, in hindsight, we should have. Traffic was backed-up for EIGHT MILES. The eastbound lanes were completely closed. It was horrible. We salvaged all that driving by spending the afternoon in Annapolis, one of my favorite towns to visit. It was my teenaged hang-out spot in high school. After we got home, we learned what had happened on the Bay Bridge.
On Monday, we spent the day with my grandparents. They live about a mile from the Bay, so Hannah still got to play in the sand, splash in the water, and collect seashells. I got some adorable pictures... but they aren't uploaded yet.
Overall, I was very impressed by how well my youngest brother played with Hannah. They interacted so well together! He's going off to his freshman year of college next week. He won't be far from my parents (Baltimore is only about an hour away from home), but I think it will be a really positive change for him.
We are still trying to convince my other brother to grow up, get out of the house, and get a job. We'll see how that goes. For the past 2 years he's been doing nothing, and I don't predict that will change anytime soon.
My newly married sister also started a new job this week, teaching history at a school that is exclusively for teenaged moms, in Baltimore. We've been playing phone tag with each other all week.
And now, we are back home in North Carolina.
Due to Mike's pay schedule, we had to pay our mortgage a week later than usual this month, and it has really messed up our finiancial situation. I spent ZERO money while I was in Maryland. (My mom filled up my gas tank. She felt bad that I sat in traffic for two hours on Sunday, because of the Bay Bridge accident). And still, he lectured me about going to visit my family! Then when I got home, he said "hey, you don't have to work this week, why didn't you stay for a few more days?". Ahhhh, men!
Hannah and I drove home last night without incident... although she did have a hard time saying goodbye to her daddy when he left for work at 6pm. He's working the night shift this week, and he slept from 8:3-am-5:30pm today! We haven't spent any time with him since we came home. At least he has this upcoming weekend off.
Today, I felt really weak and achy and nauseous all morning, so we didn't go out or do much of anything. Plus it was rainy, so I had to keep Hannah inside anyways. We did quiet things, like playdough and crafts and reading books and coloring. Things that allowed me to sit on the couch all afternoon. Heck, I'll admite it: I didnt even change out of my pjs today! By dinnertime, I wasn't feeling so sick and nauseous, but I'm still trying to take it easy.
That was our week.
Here's to the next one...
Nicole
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