The Small Family   

All is well once again in the Small household! Theo’s case of the flu was over by Tuesday, and ever since he has been eating like a horse! We think he’s making up for lost time for the three days he didn’t eat while he was sick. Nowadays he just eats…and eats…and eats. And when you think he can’t possibly be hungry, he eats some more!

Truth be told, this was a pretty quiet week in the Small household. I’ve been crazy-busy with work, and Chris had a super-busy workweek too. So Monday through Friday were pretty much spent juggling Theo and lots of work. (I’m working on a 52-author book, among others, that is giving me grief. I’ve never worked on a book with so many authors before¾it’s nuts!)

In addition to all the work, we were also pretty housebound because it rained all week. Five storms in a row added up to cold, wet, sloppy weather that really didn’t lend itself to leaving the house any more than necessary. We’re in for several more days of rain, it seems…and I will be truly glad when it’s over!

We did, however, have a very fun weekend. Friday night we went to our local Turkish restaurant for dinner…yum! In addition to having great food, the proprietors and wait staff at the restaurant are extremely nice and always act happy to have us come in with Theo. (Can’t say all restaurateurs look particularly thrilled when a toddler comes in, so it’s nice to feel welcome!) Theo was a little prince throughout the meal as long as we kept him stuffed full of their homemade bread and hummus, and we really enjoyed the two new dishes we tried.

Saturday was a big day: We went over to the mall in the morning so Theo could visit the play area and burn off some energy. And on Saturday afternoon, we had a visit from Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Tom, which delighted Theo. Grandma Kathy, ever a glutton for punishment, read Theo lots of books, and Theo enjoyed showing both Papa and Grandma his new kitchen and other various Christmas toys.

Saturday evening we had plans, so Grandma and Grandpa decided to have a date at the casino in Lincoln (about 20 minutes north of where we live). Grandma Kathy reportedly came out $100 ahead…which made up for what she describes as the Worst Meal Ever. (I could’ve told her that…they went to the casino food court and ate at Panda Express. I got sick from a Panda Express pork dish when I was about 16 years old, and I haven’t eaten there since!)

As for our plans, we went to our friend Sylvia’s house for a gathering of our Sac State pals. This was mostly the same group as came to our chili party back in December, although Chris turned out to be the only male (other than Theo) this time. We had a great time chatting, playing trivia games, and eating pizza in the very place where we met five years ago…ah, the nostalgia! And Theo had a grand time playing with the other TATer Tots: Belen (age 3), Lizzy (age 2), and Benson (age 10 1/2 months). Unfortunately, his gal pal from the chili party, Ella (age 14 months), wasn’t there this time--she stayed home with a cold. Theo consoled himself by flirting with Sylvia every time she’d show him her belly. (He’s big into bellies these days.) And, we were reminded that our little boy is now tall enough to reach the tops of kitchen counters, as he reached up in Sylvia’s kitchen, grabbed a handful (no kidding!) of cheesecake, and shoved it in his mouth. Guess we’ll be testing out how that dairy allergy is going, eh?

Sunday morning, Chris made his outstanding French toast for Grandma Kathy and Grandpa Tom (and him and me, of course). Oooooh, it was so good! It’s soaked in milk and cream, so obviously Theo couldn’t share it, but he did wheedle a lot of bites of bacon out of us, which he thoroughly enjoyed. We visited all day long, and then Chris made his fabulous chicken tortilla soup for dinner. Mmmm! I was a well-fed wife, for sure. Theo heartily approved of the beans in the soup, which he devoured.

Wheee!!! Our other great excitement for the week was the arrival of our Wii! My Mom gave Chris and me some money for Christmas and me some money for my birthday, and we decided to put it toward a Wii. Chris hasn’t hooked up the Wii Fit portion yet (so I can exercise at home when the weather is too icky to jog), but we did play the golf game, the baseball game, the bowling game, and the boxing game. What fun! Most of you probably know what a Wii is, but for anyone who doesn’t, it’s an interactive videogame system where you actually perform the motions of the action in the game. So, for baseball, for example, I would pitch the ball while Chris would bat, which required me to make an overhand throwing motion while holding the controller and Chris to hold the controller like a bat and swing at the ball I pitched. Lots of fun…the interaction makes it a lot more fun than a regular videogame, in my personal opinion. I can’t wait to try the Wii Fit portion. My theory (and I hope this works) is that Theo will think it’s fun to watch the workout portion on the TV and “work out” (i.e. play) with me while I do it. We shall see. He generally likes to “help” with anything I do, so hopefully he will want to “help” with this…and I can entertain him while getting some exercise for myself.

So that’s it from our household this week. Now that we are finally well, Theo and I will be venturing down to see Auntie Lynnie this week, with Grandma Diane in tow. We’re due for a belated birthday lunch, as my sister’s birthday is just four days after mine, so we always do a birthday lunch together. Fingers crossed that Theo stays well so we can go!