4th of July Highs and Lows

I have been trying to figure out how to properly express what our 4th of July holiday was like with toddler twins - 'the tods.' I have decided the best method will be to highlight the Highs and Lows. I hope you get a sense of the various emotions involved, and the history is properly captured for Marly & Dean.

HIGH POINT - At 1 AM on the 4th I got a phone call I had been expecting for hours. Jenny was at the hosptial and checked in to deliver her baby. I was in my car in minutes and on my way to join her and Jeremy at Methodist for the labor and delivery of their first child. I am so honored they were willing to have me there to support them at this life changing event. I did a LOT of counting to ten slowly as Jenny pushed and Vivian Lyons entered the world at 9:02 AM.

LOW POINT - After Mark returned at noon on Friday from working at Caribou, we piled into the already packed Pacifica to head to Barb and Charlie's beautiful cabin on Kandi three hours west. I think Dean started pitching a fit about an hour into the ride. By the time we got to the small town of Kandiyohi, Mark and I were ready to leave Dean by the side of the road in his ultra safe, cushy Britax car seat. Mark was thinking he could use a shot. Mark doesn't drink a whole lot anymore. Applesauce pacified Dean and Marly in the last few miles.

HIGH POINT - I have the greatest relatives and family ever! Seriously! Barb and Charlie open up their cabin to us. Their own grown children give up their rooms for us at the lake. Relatives young and old help Mark and I with Marly & Dean. Auntie Rachel always graciously and eloquently steps in with out a word to help me with every aspect of Marly and Dean's care. My cousins help to keep Marly and Dean out of harms way, fed, and entertained. THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU!

HIGH POINT - Those rice crispy bars with carmel that Laura made.

HIGH POINT - Watching the next generation of 5 Melberg boys play (Matt & Brad's kids). I am being VERY serious when I say I fear for their parents when they reach their teen years. Good God almighty...there's a new 'Cousins Crew' in town.

HIGH POINT - Brad puts on an awesome fire works display from the end of the dock. I am sure he is a hero in the eyes of his children. I am impressed. I bet the neighbors were too! I check on the 'tods' in their Pack n' Plays upstairs. They sleep through all the noise. Yippy!

LOW, LOW POINT - Dean begins to cry around 1 AM. He cries off and on for hours and hours and hours. He and Daddy watch the dawn move across the lake from the hammock at 5 AM. Dean may never be invited back! The 'tods' did NOT take an afternoon nap, and I let them eat all the junk food they wanted. At home we eat very healthy, so I let them indulge in all the holiday treats when we are out. This was a bad move. I do not think the cheese puffs set well with Dean's digestive system.

LOW POINT - Saturday morning I am NOT a happy camper. I am mentally and physically exhausted. Two nights with no sleep have passed. Honestly, I have had 4th of July HANG OVERS more pleasant then this. Generally, I felt more spent then if I had been out with the Cousin's Crew, drank too much vodka at Little Melvin's, and then been out too late trying to wrangle Mike back into the car after Spicer closes down for the night! Dean was about as enjoyable as Mike was at 3 AM in years gone by on the 4th of July! Hmmm....

HIGH POINT - Saturday morning Marly, Dean and Daddy took a nap. Jessie, Bobby and Sophie Hawkinson stroll up to visit. Seeing parents of infants and toddlers is a delight and a highlight for everyone (even if you have some of your own). I could see the joy on their faces as they chatted about their beautiful one year old daughter who was blissfully asleep in her stroller. Hopefully the same joy was on my face as I talked about Marly & Dean, while Dean played with a ball, and I urged him NOT to wake little Sophie.

Mark and I knew a trip to the cabin would be an undertaking. I knew we would not have "fun" by the technical definition of the word like our younger years. We are realistc. We are lucky too. Our relatives have a GREAT cabin... and we know (3rd person here) Andrea simply cannot stand to be away from her family when she knows they are gathering. She might cry....really! To be a part of traditions (like the lake), to be a part in the play of the known is a chosen way to live life. (That being said, next year we may choose a Thompson tradition to pursue, who knows...)

But seriously folks - Babies and toddlers grow up too fast. We can't push 'pause' on our kids. If you've got one (or two) it is fun to share them, their innocence, their triumphs, and tears with others (especially at holidays). Actually, I think it almost a duty to share them. It is their looks, their expressions, their unsteady movements in those first two years of life as they discover each thing new. It is so precious and miraculous...and then gone before you know it.

Mid-afternoon on Saturday, Mark and I have had enough though, and it showed. We slowly begin to pack up all the gear, clean up Marly & Dean, and dress them in fresh coordinating attire. It is time to head home. We are gracious of the WONDERFUL hospitality given to us, but it is time... (THANK YOU BARB!)

HIGH POINT - We load Marly & Dean into the air conditioned car and stop at the other Melberg Cabin to greet that crew and say good-bye to Grandpa David and Nana Chris. The 'tods' quickly fall asleep in the car as we pull away. Mark and I stop at the DQ in Cokato for a treat. We don't even have to share with Marly & Dean. They are still sound asleep.

LOW POINT - We get Marly & Dean home in the early evening Saturday, unload the car, feed the kids, etc. Dean screams through the duration of his bath.

HIGH POINT - At 8 PM, Marly & Dean have already been in bed for a while. Mark suggests we leave the house in its completely disasterous state, and I actually agree. We lay in bed and pop in the movie "The Kite Runner." I am too tired to read the subtitles. I think I am asleep by 8:17 PM!

So there you have it - Our holiday with the 'tods' in a nutshell. I am not sure if there were more Highs or Lows.... Best not to count. Best to end with saying we are BLESSED! (okay - I counted... More Highs then Lows!)

Pictures to follow in a post later this week.