Desert by moonlight - A great anniversary

You know, with two little babies around 24/7 these days, it was pretty easy not to have given any thought at all to our 3-year anniversary. But, as luck would have it, the idea for a special night dropped in my lap, and I jumped on it.

Our recent trip to Mesa, Arizona was a study in orchestration (more on that in another blog post), and meant that for a good chunk of the trip, my husband was back in Ottawa.  However, on the evening of his return to Mesa for the last few days of the trip, a special phenomena was taking place; what they called the 'super moon'. I discovered that a nearby county park (one of the amazing benefits of my parents' location is their proximity to the nearby desert mountains for hiking) Usary Mountain Regional Park was putting on a park ranger-led moonlight hike that night, and it was free.

Now, I don't think there has been a single trip I have taken to Mesa yet that hasn't included a nice, sunny hike, but this time? No go. I was hoping to go with the girls in carriers on an easy hike, but, uh...you'll hate me for saying this but the temperature was too hot for hiking while we were down there!  So...enter moonlight hiking!

It was great, and so very romantic.  Just the two of us...and about 400 others. But really, it WAS great. Very cool to see the Saguaro cacti rising up against the night sky, and see all the funkier cacti, like the jumping cactus, lit up along the path. The iPhone even managed to capture the scene with the lights of Mesa and Phoenix in the background.

The hike was admittedly short (there were a lot of kidlets and seniors along for the ride), but I really enjoyed the evening, which started off wonderfully at a nearby restaurant which came highly recommended to us, El Rancho Tia Rosas. 

YUMMY.

I started with a margarita (of course) and we had the tomales for our appetizer. For the main course, Art chose the traditional fajitas, and I had the seafood enchiladas.  Sooo good.  Some pix:

And of course, we couldn't stop there. We ordered desserts, and those might have been the best part. We shared the churros (that had custard piped in them and were drizzled with caramel -OMG) and tried Sopapillas for the first time.  Soooo goood!

It was a great night. So lovely. So unplanned. Such a treat, with honey on top (of the sopapillas).

Have babies, will travel

It's on, baby.  We will be heading down to Arizona to visit grandma and grandpa this spring.  Multiple planes with multiple babies. Hubby flying down with the three of us, then flying back home, then flying down again for a few days, then flying back again with the three of us.  Are we nuts? Am I crazy?  I think I may be, but I also think the trade-off (sunshine, swimming, hiking, seeing my parents) will ultimately be worth it.

Worth what?  Well, time will tell, but for starters, getting these two little goobers passports!  Not easy when your babies don't even sit up yet!  It was so funny dragging them to the mall after a recent outing to a friend's baby baptism. They were tired and getting hungry.  Not a great combo for plunking them into a bumbo, holding them in place and expecting them to look with rapt attention at the camera!  I only hope the shots won't be rejected, which, by some accounts, happens fairly often with infant photos???  Egad, I don't want to do that again, and frankly, we won't have time, so cross your fingers for us.  How did the shots turn out, you may wonder?  Hilarious!  So funny!  And yes, almost identical.  But ya know...Mommy can spot the difference!

Other issues we need to work out:
What to bring, and what Grandma and Grandpa can scrounge up for us. Things like: cribs/playpens, pump rentals (still on the fence about how much longer I want to get up throughout the night to pump and supply extra breastmilk...just how long do I want to do this, I keep asking myself?), strollers, bouncy chairs, etc.  I think they have scrounged a few items already, but more to work out.  Trying to avoid taking any large items save for the car seats.

What we can/can't take with us without another charge - i.e. how many bags will they allow, what extras will they charge for, should/can we check out car seats safely or bring them to the gate with us (and then, correspondingly, what the heck do we do with all the carry on luggage plus car seats when we have to change planes and get to another terminal etc. as well as carry both babes)

What I can/cannot take onto the plane in terms of bottles, formula, breastmilk, water and food for Mommy etc. We currently use concentrated liquid formula and I always mix it with breastmilk...what is going to be allowed without delaying us or causing all sorts of issues?  Can I take some icewater to stay properly hydrated (I hate warm water)? Can I bring proper snacks instead of being forced to buy fast food (although frankly?  I'm all over fast foods and sugery goodness at any time these days, but it's not the best choice, even if I AM burning more calories each day with breastfeeding).

Am I going to get grief from the flight attendants for breastfeeding or bottle feeding the babies on takeoff and landing to ease the pressure transition issues?  I heard there is a real contradiction in terms of the position you have to hold them in vs. how hard it is on their ears if they aren't swallowing something...

What to pack for the time of year down there (but then, that's the ongoing issue for Arizona) because it can be really warm during the day and cold at night, but also because we have to pack for the four of us now, and Mommy's body is insane right now, so clothes don't fit her...(yeah, I'm refering to myself in the third person. Doing that far too often these days, I've noticed.)

What did you other Mommies do?  What tips do you have for me? Any recent experience out there?

Luckily there are fantastic people on Twitter like @hvbabywilltrvl and their amazing site with great advice on traveling with babies and toddlers. So many great articles and travel lists to help us get organized.  It's a start, anyways!

Ah.....on a day that started with strong biting wind and ended with heavy snowfall, I think we're crazy not to go. Sunshine and tumbleweeds (and pools, tennis, golf and mountain hiking) here we come!!!

Trippy Dippy Times

Day trips, date nights, and even intercontinental travel - it's all beginning to happen!

Aside from the fact that I try, as much as possible, to get the three of us out of the house regularly, it has to be said that it's an energy draining exercise!  Take today's expedition, for example.  A first trip out to the office. So proud to introduce my girls to my coworkers and that of my husband.  Such a proud poppa.  Such a proud momma. Such a peaceful, sedate and special time...

Yah, it was special alright!  Let's see.  Poop bombs, monumental spit-ups, leaky boobs (yes, really, I forgot the breast pads, and ended up with a very dark, wet circle over my right boob) and a special - there's that word again - trip to the store by my coworkers to buy (yes, buy) a new outfit for the second twin, since the first had soiled her original outfit so bad that she already took the backup clothes and left nothing for the Spitup Queen. And that was just at MY former office...

What have I learned?  That my diaper bag, although great, will not house all the supplies I need for a day trip.  Also...I need to take a look at myself before I leave the house and make sure, you know, that I won't have obvious and strange side-effects visibly prevalent to all around me at awkward times. Aaand...perhaps it was ambitious to try hit two offices on the same day when I still have issues with breastfeeding and satisfying my little sweethearts.

I also infered - quite correctly I'm sure - that travel of a more elaborate nature will require some HEAVY planning.  Such as the trip down to Arizona to visit Grandma and Grandpa this spring.  I'm going to start thinking about how to coordinate and plan for it all now! Got tips?  Know of websites that help? I know they exist...

Also of note...and speaking of getting out...tomorrow night is the first night I will be without either or both of my babies for any time - it's DATE NIGHT and we have a friend and her daughter coming over to babysit. A big moment.  Wonder what that will feel like? What did it feel like the first time you left your baby home with a sitter/family member?

Trippy, I bet!

One helluva trip...

One year ago today my new husband and I were on a plane headed for Spain for a honeymoon a few months after our wedding. It was a lovely trip and a wonderful time. And never ever to take anything away from that time, but it also marked the launch of our first forays into family planning.

It has been the hardest year of my life, when I thought it was going to be one of the best....

But. That year is now behind us, and we are about to embark on the next, with enough hope leftover for many more attempts, if necessary. I've put time and effort into both my mental and physical health once again, and hopefully that will have set me up nicely for the right environment.

And really? This stage IS awfully fun...

Here's to a great 2010...

I wanna be the Thirsty Traveler

What a job. I was just wondering aloud to my hubby just how often the host of this show gets laid. But seriously. How fabulous to be paid to travel around the world and ask the following question "What kind of alcohol d'ya got around here?" wherever you go...and with all that booze flowing, I'm just thinking that 'things' just happen. A blonde chick in Sweden, and sultry black-haired minx in Morocco, a buxom babe in Northern Ireland.

But I digress.

I've thought more about it, and really, I don't think I want to be him. No, thanks. He's forced, or asked politely, to drink and eat some pretty wacky stuff. And what if he doesn't FEEL like drinking? I'm fine just to crack a good bottle of wine if and when I want a sip or two or ten.

But none tonight, because I have a big day of beach volleyball tomorrow, and need to be ready to go. Can't wait!

Summoning Spring

Each year, I consider the day that I drag my greenhouse and garden seeds out to be the uplifting first sign that spring is on the way. Because I love to plant sweet and hot peppers, I have to get started especially early in order to be sure that the peppers mature before the frosts of September/October (and that isn't a guarantee at all).

But is it an incredibly good day when I can enjoy the prospect of sunshine, warmth, and juicy, ripe veggies and lovely aromatic herbs from my summer garden...

I know that true warmth is still quite a ways away...but one can dream, right? And early forecasts for our weekend getaway to Prince Edward County next weekend indicate that things will be warming up, so that's great also.

So. Do a little raindance or whatever you feel you need to do to summon the sunshine and warm temperatures so that we can wash away what is left of what has been a long winter!

Hanging on by my fingernails

I am just........barely........holding......on.

If I can get to bed early, sleep soundly, and just get through 1.5 more days of the rat race I have been facing at work the world will once again be a friendly place and the sun will be mine.

Bring. It. ON.

Wine and sunshine (or dreams thereof)

Well, the wine is going nicely down the hatch (a lovely Lucky Country Shiraz), but the sunshine and heat is still a few weeks away. But I cannot wait for the Arizona desert to heat my tender pale winterworn skin. I have to say that I really do enjoy the fact that my parents are living large (and happy) in Mesa, AZ just outside Phoenix. They are happy, and we are happy to join them once in a while! So we have a week plus two weekends booked to fly down, then enjoy the 4 pools, 10 tennis courts and 27 hole golf course right within their "trailor park" (I always have to qualify this term, as these complexes are far from what you'd imagine in, say, the Ozark mountains of Arkansas, for instance...) for the duration. A lovely little reprieve in the middle of February - yippee!

So as I sit here, sipping wine, the house smells like a wonderful hungarian goulash recipe that my husband has been making in the kitchen for the past hour, and he himself is busy doing dishes and cleaning up after himself. I am a lucky lucky woman.

I am IN lucky country.