Fairyland

For the past seven years, I have heard over and over again how amazing Germany is. My husband lived there from the time he was 8 to the time he was 16 and talks about it all the time. During our daily conversations, it's not uncommon for him (or his brother) to interject a statement about Germany. I often get to hear exaggerated creative comments such as...

• "The trains in Germany are NEVER late. You could set your watch by them."
• "Oh Biltmore Estate is nothing, you should see the castles in Germany"
• "Wow. I can't wait to go back to Germany so that I can eat their bread. It's the best bread I have ever had in my entire life"
• "Even the cows in Germany are better. I mean look at how pretty those spots are. You don't see spots on cows like that in the United States..."

My sister-in-law and I heard so much praise for Germany that we decided the entire country needed a special code name in order to describe it obviously magical qualities. We soon dubbed it "Fairyland" and have been teasing our husbands about it ever since.

For the past five years, the Wells family has been trying to plan a big trip to Fairyland, but have never been able to coordinate a good time in our schedules. About a year ago (long before we had a clue we would be moving to Boston) we decided the magical date would be June of 2011.

It was a huge undertaking to plan such a long European vacation before our big move...but we gladly accepted the challenge and had a fabulous time. I hope to be able to write more about our adventures soon - but I will start with a few highlights to summarize the trip.

First of all, I will say that Germany really is a gorgeous country. I can see why my husband and brother-in-law talk about it so much and I hope we are able to go back one day.

however

It really turned out to be a lot more "normal" than I had imagined (although I have to admit, the cows were gorgeous). And I will have to say, even in Fairyland...

Husbands still have allergies...

Babies still don't like taking baths...

I was still dead tired...

and Addison was still teething.

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Can Babies Teeth for 11 Months?

Addison is teething.

Right?

That's been the common question around our house for almost eleven months now. I mean, what else could explain the high pitched squeals and screams that often make your brain hurt?

When Addison would fuss as a newborn, the common advice was that it was nothing more than the cries of a newborn and nothing to be concerned with. When she grew to be four months old and the fussing did not stop, everyone was confident that "she must be teething".

But she has no teeth.

Is it possible for a baby to act like they are teething but never actually get any teeth? Addison is eleven months old now and I continue to believe that the fussiness will stop just as soon as she gets that tooth she has been working on.

Is that just my imagination? Josh has started to call it Addison's fake tooth and I am starting to feel like the boy who cried wolf in that fable I was taught years ago.

This was Addison when she was fake teething around Christmastime. Even though she must not have been teething back then, I am pretty certain she is really teething this time. Maybe.

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Thank God for the Little Dove Chocolates...

Last week I did one of the dumbest things I have ever done.

Ok maybe that's a little exaggeration...but after reading this – you too will admit I did a pretty stupid thing. And it’s ok to say that too. I already know “I am a good mom” and “moms do plenty of stupid things” so it will not hurt my feelings when you laugh and just say “Really? What was she thinking”?

As I said in my last post, we have been super busy trying to get things done for the move. We have been rearranging furniture, sorting through items, and getting ready for some home improvement projects. One of the first things we had to accomplish was to find a renter for our house. We posted an ad on Craigslist, held our breath, and hoped we would get some responses. Well much to our surprise we had several people write us within 24 hours wanting to see the house right away. Although this was super exciting news, it also put a lot of pressure on us to finish things fast so we could get the house cleaned and ready to be shown.

On Thursday I was especially out of sorts. The cleaners were supposed to arrive in the afternoon and I had to do dishes, put away toys, and hide the laundry. Addison was being pretty fussy and I knew I was going to have to find something to do so we could stay out of the cleaner's way.

We left the house in a hurry and headed towards the neighborhood park. Addison was crying her brains out and I was running out of ideas as to what could be the cause. When we arrived, I took a deep breath to relax and realized I had left something very important at the house.

Chocolate.

On a day like today, why was the chocolate at the house?

I wasn't sure what to do. We were finally out the door and Addison was much calmer now that we were playing in the swing.  Was it worth it? Should I put her back in the car seat just to go get my chocolates?

Yes.
I had to go back.

[It was the Extra Creamy Dove Milk Chocolates. You know, the kind with the sweet messages about life and love printed inside each wrapper? Who can resist?]

Fortunately, the cleaners weren't there yet and I knew it would only take a minute to grab the chocolates. I felt a little silly making such a big deal over chocolate, but this was a really hard day...and this was some really good chocolate.

As I was jumping out of the car, I noticed the keys in my hand. Addison LOVES to play with keys. What better way for me to buy a minute or two than to let her play with them while I was gone? I opened her door and tossed them in. She was thrilled.

I was in the house about 2 minutes when I heard it. The sound was familiar, but not one that registered with me right away.

I soon froze. I knew that sound all too well. It was the sound of the car being locked with the keyless remote. I couldn’t have been that big of an idiot, right?

I ran outside to find Addison happily playing with the keys in her mouth. She was chewing on them and had pressed her lips on the lock button. Of course she had.

I didn't panic right away. Actually, I started to laugh at the wacky situation and knew it was no big deal since I had a second set of keys in the house. Or at least I thought I did. For some reason a spare key was no where to be found. My nervous laughter quickly turned to tears. Lots of tears.

Addison didn't think it was funny anymore either. She was stuck and I wasn't sure how long she would be in there (car off...windows rolled up...hot afternoon).

So there she was inside the car with the keys while I was outside with my chocolates. There was no option left but to call roadside assistance so they could come break into the car.

By the time our adventure was over Addison had only been in the car 30 minutes. Although she was screaming bloody murder by the time it was all over, she really was a trooper through it all. I can't wait to tell her the story of the time I left her in the car with the keys...so that I could get my chocolates. 

You gotta love the "silky smooth promises" when your baby is locked in the car...

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