I was carried to Ohio in a swarm of bees

We got off to a rough start, as it usually goes when trying to get all four of us out of the house.  It was made a little more challenging when you factor in packing for overnight stays and the fact that Adele was up all night.  I think my husband and I averaged about three hours of sleep apiece.  I told Chris it was because she knew we were going somewhere and wanted to punish us, but in reality it was those teeth.  Those damn teeth.  It seems to be never ending.  Sebastian wasn’t bothered all that much by his teeth, or at least not to this extent.  There were moments, but it wasn’t like the full-on onslaught from poor Adele. 

Almost there.

So we were later than we both wanted to be when we left the house, but it wasn’t too big of a deal.  We weren’t on a tight schedule.  Once we got the kids dropped off, I was hoping to let down my guard a little, but I couldn’t stop worrying about the baby.  I hate to leave her when she’s fussy, and I hate to force someone else to handle her when she’s like that, even though it was my mom, who’s awesome with Adele.  Of course, Adele was wonderful for my mom, not fussy at all, so it was really a waste for me to be so worried and to take so long to un-tense my shoulders and shake off being Mama for a bit. 

Mecca for all all of your Scandinavian needs.

Wine.  Good stuff.

But I did relax and Chris and I had a good time on the drive talking and listening to music we're not allowed to listen to when the kids are in the car (Amy Winehouse, I'm looking at you). Once we got to Ikea I was ready to go.  We ate some lunch in the cafeteria, then hit it hard.  Christopher’s not quite the marathon shopper I am, but we got through it, and we were both pretty much dead on our feet by the end of the 4 hour trip in the store.  (It’s HUGE!)

We went to Jungle Jim's, an international food store close by, but by the time we made it through the door we weren’t really into it.  We got a bunch of wine and some sushi and olives to hold us over until dinner, then went to the hotel. 

We hardly ever look this nice.

We made 9 p.m. reservations at Nada, a Mexican restaurant within walking distance of the hotel.  Oh man, you guys.  It was an awesome place.  It was low-lit and I told Chris when we walked in that we weren’t nearly hip enough to be there.  He said I was probably right, but we thought we’d stay anyway.  It was super crowded, which was the only downside, but not too awful.  The food was AMAZING!  I ordered chicken, corn and black bean enchiladas and Chris got these three little pots of different types of stews – lamb and chicken and pork.

The bottle of wine we ordered was kicking in by the time we got our food, so I was feeling pretty good.  The waiter was exceptionally friendly, and when he found out it was our anniversary he brought us champagne on the house.  I thought that was a nice touch.

We went out to explore the city a little the next morning, which was nothing like what I thought it was.  It was such a sweet, clean place.  It was big enough, but not too big, and everyone, everyone we encountered was super nice.  We walked to a butcher’s and bought some meat to take home, then went back and packed up for the drive. 

It was such a nice break, and nice to shake off ‘Mama Mode’ for once.  It’s so hard for me to shut it off, because it’s such a huge part of who I am now, but so nice to do it sometimes, to be like who I was before the babes were born.

And I even kind of missed the little terrors. 

Chris told me not to take a picture of this guy but really, how could I not?

 

Hope you're not thirsty.

Don't know if you can see it, but this place has both girls and racers.  Excellent deal.