If you think I look rough, you should see what I did to the other kid!!!

Well, we have had our first ever trip to the Emergency Room. Thank goodness Peter got us some insurance for foreign countries in case of emergencies while we were here. All I have to say is that he couldn’t have been in more caring hands when this occurred. We have been borrowing the most cool looking retro high chair so far. By retro, I mean this is the high chair that my sister in law, April, and her brother and sister used when they were little, so it is over 30 years old. It is still a great high chair, but lacks one new safety feature – a belt. And while some kids may not need this, Cooper definitely does. He has learned the phrase “sit down” while using this high chair because he loves to turn all around, stand up, and wiggle all around in this chair. He also loves to push with his feet against the tray, which does lock into place. Either Cooper is really strong or I didn’t have it locked in good enough, cause he kicked it right off and took a face dive to the floor. OUCH!!!

When I came in, Ms. Daisy was trying to stop the bleeding over Cooper’s left eye and calm his screams. In those situations all it takes is to be in mommy’s arms and the world is right again (motherhood is a powerful thing). After that Cooper was smiling and playing again, but he just wouldn’t let me clean off the cut. I waited a couple of hours, but it was still bleeding and after having my brother Alan who is a Physician Assistant take a look we decided to head to the ER in case stitches were needed. I’m glad we did, because that is exactly what was required. Cooper did great, and only screamed when we had to hold him down. Alan had the head, I took the arms and chest, April had a leg, and a med student had the other leg. It is really strange to watch a needle pierce your child’s face and see them sew up a cut. He got 3 stitches which I call his “blue bow ties”. Cooper looked 100% better after that, and when we got back home he was all smiles with Ms. Daisy. He went immediately to sleep when I laid him down, and I headed to Wal-Mart for a new portable high chair. (How much do I enjoy a 24 hour superstore? Immensely!)

Cooper gets mad at me when I have to clean the wound, but other than that he doesn’t even know it is there. But you can imagine the looks we get around town with his “blue bow ties” on his head. I think I have now told the story about 75 times.

Maybe this was Cooper’s way of letting me know that he wants to be Frankenstein for Halloween, what do you think?

Adventures in Augusta

We’ve been in Augusta now for three full weeks and I can’t believe how fast the time is flying by. I guess I’ll start from the top beginning with our flight over.

The flight was very, very L-O-N-G. I was really wishing that Peter had come with me. We had to go through 2 full security checks to get to the gate, which was new for me. I just love how airport employees stand around and stare at a sweating mom with a carseat strapped to her back trying to unload everything onto the x-ray belt and keep a toddler from running in every direction. You know how Cooper likes to wander. Out of the 5 airport employees standing around doing nothing at each security checkpoint, you would think that one of them could at least lift a stroller or a bag onto the belt, but apparently they are simply paid to stand there and stare. Does that come with benefits? Once we got to the gate, Cooper was really thirsty and whiny (and of course you can't take any liquids in). There were no vending machines and there was no way that I could make it into the bathrooms with a large stroller, carseat on the back, carry on suitcase, and diaper bag (plus child). So, we went to the ONE place available to buy something to drink. The lady behind the counter refused to give us tap water so I was forced to buy apple juice. 0,3 liters for nearly 5 euros (for you Americans, that is a really small cup for nearly $10)!! I snapped and pretty much went off on her, which wasn't the most Christian thing to do, but it really was ridiculous. Boarding the flight was an absolute nightmare. Imagine carrying all that stuff and Cooper (since I had to leave the stroller at the door) down a very narrow aisle bumping and scraping everything and everyone on the way. There were literally 4 stewardesses standing there watching me with horrified faces and not a single one offered to take a bag. Finally a man behind me gave me a hand. Cooper was pretty good on the flight, but DID NOT SLEEP. In spite of his usual 4 hour naps during the day and early bedtime, which was while we were still in the air with a few hours to go, he only took a small 1 hour nap. The rest of the time he wanted to stand up in his carseat (he would start whining and turning into a scream when I would try to buckle him in). I had to keep him from pulling the lady's hair in front of us (who had already indicated to her husband in German her displeasure at being seated in front of a child). Once seated, before taxi and take-off, the couple immediately reclined all the way back and Cooper started kicking her seat. She called the stewardess over and told the stewardess that she would not be able to sleep with her seat moving like that. The stewardess asked her to put her seat in the upright position for the time being anyways. Cooper really enjoyed trotting down the aisles during the flight and wouldn't eat any of the food. So he basically just snacked all day on cheese, crackers, PB&J, etc. Somewhere in the 6th hour a migraine creeped in and by the last hour it was so bad I thought I was going to puke. I was literally looking for the barf bags on the plane (they weren't there which sent me into a slight panic).

But we did make it and I am so glad that is all behind me and that Peter will be on the return flight. However, I have a sneaking suspicion that Cooper will sleep the entire length of the return flight. You know how that goes.

We are having a great time seeing friends and family. Being here makes me see what I am missing out on with everyone and makes me miss it all the more. We are having play dates with lots of friends every week, went to a pumpkin patch, spent some quality time with my Grandmother Rogers and other family, we’ve been spoiled rotten by our beloved Ms. Daisy (and I have a rounded waistline thanks to her delicious cooking), and Cooper is even attending Kindermusik again which is so great for him! But I think that by December I will be ready to get back to our house and normal routine.

I am not ready for a Bavarian winter yet, though. Peter says it might snow this week. Well, the sun is shining here and the fall weather this week has pushed us into wearing pants and long sleeves, however I still get to enjoy wearing flip flops during the day. How I hate to part with those! We still have a lot of people to see and several more weeks to enjoy. Stay tuned!