Yay Vacation!...Sorta

We got back from Orlando this afternoon. My parents have a timeshare, so we make the trip with them every year around this time. It's usually a blast and we enjoy getting away from it all and relaxing. This time last year, I had a 3 month old who was still nursing and pretty content sitting in her car seat or stroller anywhere we went, and was ok with the pool, but not in love with it. This year, we had a very different experience.

It's an 8 hour drive to Florida from where we live. Last year, Penelope handled it pretty well, but it took us longer than 8 hours because we had to stop every 2-3 because she needed a break from the car seat. This year, she did great, although got pretty bored because she was by herself in the backseat with no one to talk to. Once mommy stopped driving, she hopped in the back seat and proceeded to entertain Penelope for 4 hours with silly games, books, and Cheerios because she refused to nap any longer than an hour the WHOLE DAY!

Mmmm! Cheerios!

We arrived Saturday night around 6:30p and let Penelope explore until 7:30p before we put her to bed. Sunday, we went and spent the day with my cousins. That meant, back in the car for Penelope. It was an hour and 15 minute drive to my cousins and she slept for most of it. Penny had a blast playing with her cousins, and we had fun hanging out, playing games, and going to the flea market.

"I <3 Scott and Tyler!"

Penny hadn't eaten much on Sunday and was pretty grumpy. We thought it was probably because of the long drive the day before, the weird nap schedule from the day before, and the fact that all 4 of her molars are wreaking havoc on the poor kid. We were pretty sure that was the problem...until 5:30pm...when she threw up her supper. We thought it was just a one time thing, but decided to skip dinner with the family and head home for Penelope's sake. Boy, are we glad we did! She fell asleep in the car and slept for an hour before waking up and proceeding to empty out the entire contents of her stomach...all over herself, her car seat, my mom, and Travis. Needless to say, she got a bath, mom and Travis took showers, and I called her doctor. The doctor told me to start her on water and Pedialyte for 12 hours, then slowly add bland foods (Bananas Rice Applesauce Toast - BRAT diet) until she's back on her regular diet.

She woke up Monday looking ok, but you could tell she still wasn't herself. She was wobbly and just wanted to cuddle all day long. I felt her teeth, and realized that on top of being sick, her gums were all swollen again. I gave her some Tylenol Monday night to help her sleep because of her gums, and she woke up quite a bit that night. Tuesday, I gave her more Tylenol for her teeth, and she seemed to be worse plus she was pulling on her ears (we have a long history with ear infections), so we decided to take her to an urgent care clinic.

Miserable sick baby :-(

The doctor at the urgent care clinic was awesome and told us that one of her ears was a little pink but nothing to really worry about because Penelope had been screaming from the second the doctor walked in. We explained that she had just had shots on Thursday and the doctor said that this could be part of it. She also did a strep test since Penelope's throat was a little red (also probably from screaming) and it was negative. The doctor said it was probably a virus and if she wasn't better in 2-3 days to bring her back. Enter massive headache for mommy. The last time Penelope was sick, I worried so much that I got shingles and it all started with a massive headache (NOT FUN!). I realized that maybe the Tylenol was contributing to Penny's lethargy, so I stopped giving it to her. After her Tuesday afternoon nap, she was feeling much better and decided to introduce herself to the cranes that hung out on our back porch.

By Tuesday night, she was feeling well enough that we decided to take a walk over the clubhouse for their "Sunset Celebration" - loud music, with DJs trying to get people to dance or play games. We realized that Penelope was going to be fine when we got to the pool area (where the "celebration" was) and Penelope made a beeline for the pool, crying and trying to fight daddy off because she wanted to go "neee neee"!!! She then proceeded to limbo with Memere, which was just really cute.

Careful Penny! You might hit your head!! :-)

On top of having a sick baby, Travis, myself and my mom both got a touch of what she had (and now my dad has it). It comes on very quickly. One moment, you're totally fine. The next moment, you want to puke and you have no appetite. Travis only had it for a day or 2. It lasted for 3 days for me and my mom. So by Wednesday, Penelope's back to her old self, but me and mom are still sick. So much for vacation.

By Thursday, everyone had kicked whatever nastiness we were feeling so we hit the pool...and Penelope LOVED it. The kiddie pool at River Island had a zero entry point and she spent nearly 2 hours walking in and out of the water, and trying to sit in the deep end...which she can't do because she's just too little (despite what she thinks!) We did the same thing on Friday before coming back to the condo and packing. We left at 6:30 this morning and arrived home just after 2pm.

All in all, it was a good vacation, although we mostly stayed in the condo because of sickness. Needless to say, mommy didn't get any mommy time and is now totally burned out. Thankfully, daddy gave mommy the evening off and gave Penelope a bath, and put her to bed. Now, if I can make this headache go away...