Dancing the night away.

SS danced the night away like the party animal that she is. The reception began at 5:00 p.m. and we had been hanging out at the casino (walking around inside) since 4:00 p.m. CB and CH had been napping since shortly after leaving the church. SS had been awake since early in the morning without a nap. At around 6:00 p.m. SS began to cry and I took her out of the dining area. By the time we reached the hall SS cries had intensified and sounded awfully close to her Wednesday cries. I was so worried that somehow this trip had caught up with SS and we were in for a messy meltdown. SS calmed down after lots of hugs and kisses, then requested to return to our table and to her Baba. P held her and by 6:10 p.m. SS was out cold. Nana noted that it was the first time that she had heard SS cry. She cries, not with the same intensity but she cries.

One thing we are thankful from our experience in China is forced adaptability. Last night I held SS and P pretty much fed me and tonight I returned the favor. Gee, people are going to think that we are not capable of feeding ourselves. SS slept 90 minutes and we do not know how she managed that with all the noise surrounding her. There is a short video at the bottom of the page, and the noise level increased significantly during the last hour of her nap. Once awake, SS only had two bites of her dinner. We had pizza at the hotel but she did not want any before going to sleep.

P, Aunt C, Uncle M and I discovered Blue Margaritas and slammed down quite a few. Copious amounts of alcohol do level off social anxiety. P liked that they are so much less acidic than the original. SS had a blast and danced with anyone (OK, we only allowed family) that would dance with her. She looked so cute dancing with cousin K, the tallest of the cousins. I was a bit embarrassed at SS's volume last night during dinner. Tonight she was equally loud but the overall volume was so over the top that I hope no one noticed my very loud child.

Cousin M and R had THE BEST entrance of the bridal party.

The groom's proud parents, Uncle J (Baby J is his namesake) and Aunt M. They gifted SS, CB and CH each an outfit. We were surprised that with all the wedding preparations they had the forethought to pick something for the little ones.

P really likes this picture because no one is crying and CH looks like he has an inside joke.

SS (36 inches) and Cousin K (6' 7"), they were the shortest and tallest on the dance floor.

Aunt C took this picture and it is so cute that SS is in the foreground. We are sure that she was thinking "WTF, is that what those two call dancing?"

SS's first wedding.

I was very concerned about the ceremony, mainly about SS screaming like a banshee during the long mass. Come to think of it, SS had never been in a church before. I steer clear of churches because I am afraid one will be struck with lighting when the bad seed that is me steps in. I am happy to inform that the church is still standing. Uncle M is a man with a plan, he sat by the aisle, ready to exit when needed. I was initially nervous when Cousin M sat us on the fourth pew, but at least we were by the aisle, and I quickly began to formulate a hasty exit plan with as much dignity as I could muster with a screaming, writhing toddler in my arms. When Uncle M made his exit with CB and CH I thought we would be next. But SS is a master at messing with our feeble minds, and proceeded to be an angel during the one hour plus ceremony. She entertained herself by alternating between my lap and P's, scrutinizing P's face and reading her Toy Story book. Her only truly SS moment came during a hymn, SS felt that it needed spicing up and began to play the air guitar. It took a lot of effort for P and I to hold in our laughter. We were also grateful that SS refrained from belting out the rock and roll version of the hymn at top volume. After the ceremony and during the reception P and I were approached many times with comments about how well SS behaved at church. We have given up is trying to let people know that this is not the same child who is known as Mount SS and Hurricane SS.

Another dollar well spent, we heart the dollar store.

Cousin K, the best man.

Cousin K and husband J (Baby J's parents)

Cousin M and wife R.

Cousin K's wife L.

Grand Min, SS, P, Nana and Aunt C. Nana's dress had lots of glitter and we all ended up glittered up.

Getting her bubble fix.

Swimming play date with the cousins.

Insomnia is a B*TCH, and its cumulative effect slapped me hard this morning. I began to doze off at 4:00 a.m. which is not unusual for me. I am having a really difficult time now because although I am used to the lack of sleep I am more tired than usual, stressed to the max and not home. I really needed to sleep and recharge my batteries but my legs were unusually restless and twitchy, making sleep impossible. Like SS on Wednesday, I hit a wall, and it wasn't pretty. I spent 40 minutes dozing off and then something would make me open my eyes. P is used to my twitching legs, but this time I was muttering something, but it was incoherent. P said that I was almost in tears and I believe him because I remember feeling so freaking desperate. P then draped his arm around my waist and held me tight. I fought him for a while but eventually fell asleep. The down side is that I only slept for three hours and woke up in bad need of more sleep. I am tired of spending my nights awake and in such discomfort.

On a more positive note, the cousins came to our hotel for a swim play date. SS had a blast in and outside the water. Plus she got to show her water skills to Aunt C and Uncle M. It was great to spend time with the G family and it is sad that they live in Missouri. We are sure that SS is going to talk about her cousins for a long time. It was also a pleasure to meet Uncle M, he is a very nice guy and P really enjoyed talking to him (Aunt Court and I spent our time running after the girls).

SS meets her cousins.

****Friday's post.*****

After our long day yesterday it was good to wake up knowing that our only goal was to be at the rehearsal dinner by 7:00 p.m. P's cousin P is getting married tomorrow, the reason why we are here. The wedding is in Clinton, Iowa, and we are staying just across the river in Illinois. P chose this hotel because it has an indoor swimming pool. The out of town guests are staying at the casino hotel in Iowa. We are OK driving 15 minutes to make sure that SS gets her water fix.

SS was very excited about meeting her cousins.

First time using the DVD player this trip.

SS, Uncle M and Baby H, who weights about one pound less than our daughter.

Cousin B, SS and Grand Min. I spent the night trying to get them to look at the camera at the same time without success.

Aunt C (P's younger sister), CB, SS and P.

They have the same smile.

Cousin H showing lazy 11 month olds how it's done. He is not only handsome and strong but also such an easy going baby.

CG, the beautiful bride to be and Cousin P, the handsome groom to be.

The girls meet Baby J, Cousin P's nephew.

The C cousins and three of their children (minus Baby J and Baby E).

SS picked this cool PJs and could not wait to wear them.

SS with one of the gifts from Nana and Grand Min.

SS gets such a kick out of helping, and here she is ready to move on to the next state and the next hotel.



This is pretty much what SS and Cousin B did during the rehearsal dinner. I don't think either one ate much and whatever they ate they burned immediately.