Today is Primary Day here in Illinois. Usually, due to the timing of the Illinois primary being so late in the political year, it is a non-issue, because one candidate has wrapped up the national nomination. Not the case this year. Though, based on the ads, you’d think only one presidential candidate is running. For the past week, I’ve seen dozens of Romney ads. I’ve seen a total of ZERO ads from the other candidates. I know Romney is loaded, but don’t the other candidates have to at least get their name out there in order to garner more votes?

Then again, based on what Santorum said about Puerto Rico last week and statehood and the Federal law requiring  them to adopt English as their primary language and the fact that no such law exists and given Chicago (in particular) has a very high Hispanic population, maybe it is best he saves his advertising dollars and opts to visit Republican friendly gathering spots instead (though, certainly not his alma mater high school). Furthermore, we want this super sensitive guy representing us across the world? Good grief!

Even though I’m a registered Democrat (I know, huge surprise to those of you who regularly read my blog read the first couple paragraphs of this post), I will still be participating in the primary. There are a number of vacated judge spots that are open. And thanks to a legal friend of mine, I’ve been reminded that not every judge who is nominated is worthy of serving their time on the bench. I’m going to have my say in it.

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Gavin is 16 months old and we haven’t yet cut his hair. It’s not because I’m the mama who will cry when she has to cut her son’s hair. Quite the contrary. I like my guys to be clean-cut. But, Gavin has been sparse in the hair department and hasn’t yet demanded a proper cut. As you can sort of see from the photo above (taken a few days ago), he has some hair on the top, but it’s wispy at best. He has hints of hair on the sides, but let’s face it, there’s still very little. I don’t have a problem with the frontal hemisphere of his head.

At issues is the back of his head, where his hair has grown into a little bushel of baby fine hair. On a good day, it’ll curl and look as cute as can be. On most days, though, part of it curls and part of it just lies flat and lifeless. Not sure if you can see in this photo, but if you look closely, some of this not-very-fun hair is peeking behind his ear.

Ever since Gavin turned a year, Sweets has been advocating to shave his head, arguing it’ll grow back thicker and more “normal,” whatever that means. I put my foot down to shaving (never) and cutting (not until the time is right). But, I did agree that when the time is right, Sweets can take Gavin to his barber. Just the other night, I got the itch to cut it myself. I asked Sweets if I could and he firmly said no. Not because it would be me and not the barber, but because he’s now growing to like it. WTH?!

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Our summer plans are coming together. We will spend two weeks on the East Coast visiting my brother in Asbury Park, New Jersey and my parents on Cape Cod. We are also going to head to Door County (Wisconsin) to go camping with friends (we’ve taken this trip before, twice actually) and will take a few days off for that trip. It’s looking like I’m going to work a total of 11 days in the month of August. More importantly, I will be taking 12 days of vacation (not counting weekends!). Why am I talking about it now if it’s only March? Because it also means I’m going to take a total of near zero vacation days between now and then. Wah!

We skipped work/daycare on Friday, dropped the dog off with the grandparents and drove to Galena. After checking into our condo, we went into town for lunch and walking around – the weather was gorgeous and we wanted to take advantage! Gavin was excited to show us his expertise in using (and not eating) crayons!

That afternoon, we were well on our way to earning Parents of the Year award. Gavin had been very patient about being in a car seat, high chair and stroller all day, so we decided to let him walk out some extra energy. The scene takes place on a large lawn in front of the information center. I’m getting things organized in Gavin’s stroller while Sweets puts Gavin down on the lawn. Next thing I know, I see Sweets walking to the right and Gavin (who is behind him) veering towards the left, where there is a curb separating the lawn and a cobblestone sidewalk. You know where this is going. Apparently, Sweets was distracted by a dog. And Gavin didn’t see the step before he took a tumble and face-planted on the sidewalk. You see those bruises in the photo above? After that fall, there was another bruise and a fat scrape added to the mix. I’m telling ya, we’re winners over here!

Despite the spill, Gavin was a good sport as we walked in and out of stores. Bought a beautiful, handmade Christmas ornament. And checked out the wonderful architecture around town.

 Also, check out this red box. If you look closely, you’ll see that it’s a collection box for tickets. Only in a small town do they let you pay by red box. hahaha.

I think Sweets was surprised how beautiful it is in Galena. You see, here in the Midwest, we expect a lot of flat scenery. When we think rural, we think farms and corn and wheat fields. We don’t necessarily think rolling hills and bluffs, which is exactly what it’s like in Galena. They even have a ski resort … it’s no Colorado, but it’s definitely pretty.

We spent Friday night at the condo we rented, which worked out perfectly. The kitchen and living space and one bathroom were on the first floor and the bedroom and a second bathroom were on the second floor. It was small, but very open, tall ceilings, great natural light. We brought a whole bin of toys for Gavin to play with, but his favorite activity was looking out the window. At home, our windows aren’t low enough for him to look out. He’d spend all his time looking out the windows if we let him!

Saturday, the weather was in the crapper. It was cold and rained all day. So, we had a lazy morning at the condo. After Gavin’s nap, we packed up the car and headed across the Mississippi River to Dubuque, Iowa, which was only about 30 minutes from where we were staying. For a small city (100,000 population), it has some wonderful, old architecture. We drove around to get a feel for the city and then picked a cute spot to have lunch.

After lunch, we made our way to the Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium. The museum and aquarium are split into two different buildings, situated next to one another, and cover national rivers / salt water fish and the Mississippi River / fresh water fish. The museums were practically empty – it was the perfect indoor playground for Gavin. Unlike the last time we went to an aquarium, this time Gavin loved looking at all the displays. He was fascinated and kept pointing to the fish. He also got to see an alligator and beaver!

As we were leaving the aquarium around 5pm, it was almost dark out. We noticed, way up in the bluffs a huge display of lights. This was no ordinary display of lights. We had to find out what it was! So, we went driving in search of lights. What we found was a park completely decked out with holiday lights. The festival of lights was raising money for a local charity. Local businesses sponsored every light display. We were instructed to turn our radio to a station playing all holiday tunes as we drove through the fully lit park. It was such a fun surprise ending to our trip to Dubuque!

Trip out to Cape. Feverish Gavin means wet wash cloth on head for much of the trip.

When baby sleeps during the day, it generally means he’s gonna be active at night. Sigh.

Fever still raging means heavy naps.

Baby geared up for his first trip to the beach.

Gavin’s first encounter with sand.

Gavin and SoMi worked on their friendship during this trip. It was good for both!

This was not the only time Gavin was airborne during this trip!

My two favorite boys!

Oiy, my eye! And this wasn’t even at its worst!

Gavin cools off in an outdoor cold bath.

Sweets holds up the temporary shade while Gavin plays!

Gavin turned 9 months old while we were gone!

Midday naps became the norm for me, too.

We tried to stop in parks during our drive to and from the Cape, especially so
Gavin could practice getting ready to crawl.

S I G H ! ! !

Thank you, I needed that. You see, I haven’t been around these parts for a couple weeks now, because I was supposed to be on vacation. Sweets, Gavin and I, along with SoMi, were going to drive to Cape Cod. We were going to spend quality time with my family. Even Sweets’ folks were going to fly in to spend some time with all of us. There were to be mornings at the ponds and afternoons on the beaches. Shopping in Provincetown and art gallery hopping in Wellfleet. Running along the bay and biking along the Rail Trail. We were to reunion with Sweets’ family and celebrate at an open house with my parents’ friends. It was supposed to be two weeks of rest and relaxation.

And while there was definitely some of that (I mean, how can you not relax when you’re a thousand miles away from work and home responsibilities?!) … it was a really hard trip for me. It felt like one thing after another kept happening (sorry for the broken record, for those of you who followed my antics on Facebook). I’m sure you’re thinking it couldn’t be that bad … and I’ll admit, there are plenty of things that could’ve made it worse … but, check out my laundry list of follies and tell me I don’t have reason to whine:

• With two full days of driving ahead of us, Gavin decided to give us the present of two nights of not so good sleep before we even left, which means Sweets and I didn’t get much sleep.
• Gavin was feverish the two days of our drive. It was also really hot out. So, the poor guy was achy, intolerant, not eating well, not sleeping well and crying during a lot of our roadside hours.
• Once we got to Cape Cod, we were gifted with ridiculously hot and humid weather. I know – it has been like that across most of the country. Only we were on vacation and had no A/C. There was no retreat from the heat.
• Gavin’s fever continued for two more days. In hot and sticky weather. Without A/C. Sleep deprivation all around.
• Just as Gavin’s fever finally broke, I got an eye infection. Since I just had an eye infection a couple months ago, I thought I knew what I’d need to do to make it go away. But, each day, my eye continued to get more and more red and more and more swollen.
• During the height of the heat, we had a family portrait taken … Sweets, Gavin, me, plus both sets of grandparents. Lots of beaded upper lips were wiped during that photo shoot.
• A quick weekend jaunt back to Boston, where my parents’ A/C was on the rocks. Thankfully, they have zoned A/C, so we could situate ourselves in one of the zones where the A/C was working … and where the cold water was not. Seriously, their shower had tons of hot water, but no cold water. Scalding hot shower? I think not!
• I got a wee bit of a sunburn on my back, because I was more focused on lathering up Gavin with suntan lotion and forgot myself in the process.
• By the following week, when we were back at the beach and my eye still wasn’t better (in fact, it was worse), I went to a local health center, where the doctor prescribed me with an antibiotic ointment. Ever put ointment in your eye? FOUR TIMES A DAY? It’s gross and not sexy and didn’t make me feel instantly better.
• And I certainly didn’t feel better when I got a fever of 103.7 one night and another one the next night.
• In fact, by the time one of my besties who is an emergency medicine doctor arrived, she said if I walked in her ER, she wouldn’t have prescribed me that antibiotic ointment and would’ve chosen a different one that would’ve focused on the area around the eye, not just the eye itself. Time to start yet another round of 4-a-day medicinal attention, thankfully oral this time.
• Did I mention the flying squirrels that found their way into the chimney? The ones I heard while feeding Gavin? Yeah, there’s that and the ensuing entrapment, too.

You’d think all this nonsense would end at some point, right? And it did, it certainly did. For beautiful moments in time. Gavin got to spend tons of time with both sets of grandparents, which made the trip totally worth it. Grandparents were soooooo excited we were he was there and it showed. For all the many moments where I felt like ass, I could hand off Gavin and know he was having fun. We ate brilliant fish and fried seafood and meals that were grilled to perfection. Sweets got to play golf and go on some great long cycling rides. I got to meet a bunch of Sweets extended family and introduce Gavin to them as well as to a bunch of our family friends in Boston. The two-day drive home was mostly hassle-free.

But …

Right? A but … yes, there’s actually more.

We got home on Saturday night and on Sunday morning, SoMi did something awful to her leg. We hemmed and hawed over what to do, but Sweets eventually took her to the emergency vet. Three hours and $120 later, they came home with some muscle relaxers and instructions for a few days of strict rest.

And then … seriously, there’s still more.

Gavin gave us another night of awful sleep. Up every couple hours. (At one point, Sweets looked at me and said he couldn’t sleep, so he was going to shave – we were delirious.) And Monday morning? He felt super warm. All reminiscent signs of his teething a couple weeks ago. I took him to daycare, only to be told to take him home. Babies have to be fever free for 24 hours before they can return, regardless of reason for fever. So, yesterday? I stayed home from work (after two weeks of not being at work) to take care of a clingy, crying baby.

Needless to say, I’m tired. And I feel like mama needs a vacation. Maybe it’s time to cash in on a massage.

(BTW, for inquiring minds, I actually did take some photos. I took out my camera a whopping two times over two weeks. Photos to come in another post where I’m not so cranky.)

My first shopping excursion started when my gal pal and I visited this great little shack on the wharf in Provincetown, Blueberry Lane Pottery. There, we met Paul, the owner/artist and saw some of his lovely creations. I bought a thank-you gift for my aunt + uncle (ice cream bowls!), a spoon rest as a gift for our neighbors who took in our mail while we were gone (plus one for us plus one for the baby’s mamas), and this great olive oil dispenser (see photo below) that I would be proud if it was accidentally left on the counter instead of being put away.

We then went to a few touristy stores in Provincetown (also known as P-town), where I purchased salt water taffy (so reminiscent of Cape Cod) for our neighbors and a few shirts for my niece (and niece-to-be). I think the Mom’s shirt will either be loved or hated by the moms (wish me luck when I give it to them this Friday), but the others will be a big hit!

A few days later, Sweets, my mom and I headed into Wellfleet to do some more shopping. My mom was very insistent on buying a little something for Grasshopper. She showed me three options, but the one she wound up purchasing was far and away the winner. Also pictured here is a little something I bought for Grasshopper. Every baby needs a library of books and what better way to start it than with a Cape Cod version of a classic?!

My mom and I headed on to a couple galleries, leaving Sweets behind in this seemingly kids-only store. When we caught up with him later, I realized he got lost in music. And wound up purchasing, oh, five or six CDs for our ride home. It was perfect, though. We always talk about listening to more world music. And Putumayo has a series of really amazing CDs. The six or so he purchased only touches the surface and certainly made our 19-hour ride home much more relaxing!

And while I’m on the subject of purchases, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a couple of extraordinarily generous bloggers. The lady behind Life According to Mel Heth sent us this adorable Grasshopper onsie. And the lady behind Skrinkering Hearts gave us a pair of running shoes for the little one (never too early to start, right?!). I cannot thank these women enough. I only wish they didn’t live in LA and Boston, respectively. Though, I won’t hesitate to say that we should definitely meet in the middle (i.e., Chicago!!!!) from time to time. heheheh.

So, there you have it. We bought a few fun things on our vacation. Now it’s your turn to tell me about your shopping habits when you’re away on vacation. Do you tend to buy keepsakes at all? Are they specific reminders of where you traveled or do they fall into another category, such as things you need, clothing, etc???