04-10-2009 - Weekend visit with the In-laws

My mood while writing this blog: kinda tired.

We went to the aquarium, we fed the ducks at the park, she was a TREMENDOUS help with all the party planning/cooking/set up AND clean up....none of which my own mother helped out at all! (I'm so not impressed with her right now for various reasons....another post for another time.) But I'm shocked. I even suggested to DH that we should go visit them in NV after Christmas this year and he looked at me like I had lost my mind, haha, and I told them just before they left that we'll have to plan a trip up there before the new year and my MIL was actually giddy. Like I just told her she won the lottery. (She has been trying to get us or DH's bro's family to visit them FOREVER! And no one has because they are usally pretty hard to be around.) And she was already planning on asking her friends to borrow a crib and high chair and said that she would buy our plane tickets there! I don't know what is wrong with me, haha. I think I'm just in a happier place right now after the move back home closer to family, we have a great little house now, I'm surrounded by all my childhood friends and we get together all the time. And my old best friend from elm school has a daughter a month older than Summer and they are little best buddies. (All thanks to FB for the reconnections!) I've been getting babysitting help from my parents, I love my new minivan-and have fully embraced the fact that I am now a minivan driving mom! Ha!) I'm getting treatments on my back that are actually...working...? How can that be??? haha. And I think we're at a good spot with Summer being 18 months old. I'm no longer the sole provider of her every need like I was in visits past with a nursing infant who couldn't do much but sit there and coo and solicit unwanted advise from in-laws with totally outdated opinions and wacky suggestions. She's a very happy, walking and playing toddler. She eats people food now (a big leap in my MIL's world-because that means she can help!) and DD laughs and says words and interacts and is happy and makes people laugh and smile and gives hugs and kisses and plays games and will sit on your lap while you read a book....and she's just all around fun and sweet. My MIL said probably a million times to me as well as various people she was on the phone with about what a "really good baby (Summer) is!" My nieces-her other grandchildren-are kind of wild monkeys- but it's still nice to hear how good people think your baby is, even if she IS the grandma.

And...the biggie.... I don't feel the need to try to control the entire environment anymore....(for some reason)....which you know, everyone loves people trying to control them, haha. I told DH (about my thoughts on why I thought this visit was different from previous visits), "you know, I think a big part of it is that I'm no longer a b!tch anymore!" haha! (With his parents) He laughed but totally didn't dispute it, haha! (I love him for that!) I think a HUGE part of it though is that we live in Ca again and they can drive here and take their time getting here and stop and see other things and only stay a few days and then continue on with their road trip. Where as when we lived in Hi it's a bigger production because you have to fly several hours to get there, it's very expensive to get there and even more $$$ after you are there and they would stay anywhere from 10 to 14 days...but NEVER less than 10 days. Well, 10 days is a REALLY long time to be with anyone, even friends, let alone your in-laws! haha! But it works out well because at our new house it's too small to have a guest room and we no longer have a blow up bed-so they bring their own and they have to sleep in the living room. Where as in Hi we had a separate guest room with their own bathroom and an empty closet for all their crap. We made it too comfortable for them there, haha. They never wanted to leave! But here...it's not as comfortable to be in someone's living room. So that works in our favor!

DH and I have even started talking about "baby #2" and in a good way. No longer in the "holy crap...when are you EVER ready for baby #2?" way. I feel like 18 months has been a real turning point for us and me.

I'm going soft ladies. I don't know what I'm gonna write about anymore, haha! If I am actually having pleasant dealing with my MIL.....? I won't have anymore blogging material! haha!

Oh well, it's a good thing! I don't think it will last, but at least we had a really nice visit for a change!