Yes, Matt had pneumonia over Thanksgiving, and I left him home alone. It sounds worse than it was...I hope! He had a really bad cold for about a week and a half, during which time I may have rolled my eyes a few times. But, it wasn't getting any better. He had a fever, chills and a terrible cough that racked his whole body, and none of it was improving. I finally took him to the ER to be seen on the Sunday before Thanksgiving. He had a chest x-ray done, and they found pneumonia. We were happy to have a reason that he was feeling so terribly, and happier still to have a round of antibiotics started. But, those antibiotics didn't begin to help his symptoms for a few days. With a big Thanksgiving trip to Arnold (in Calaveras County) planned with my family, we knew Matt wasn't going to be able to make it. So, we reluctantly decided that I should go with the girls and Matt should stay home to get some rest and peace and quiet. (Not that I wished pneumonia upon myself, but I was a teensy bit jealous of his time alone in the house for four days!). It really seemed like the best decision, but felt very wrong at the same time.
The road trip to Arnold started with tears and sad faces wishing Daddy was with us. I answered the "What does Daddy have again?" question about 25 times, each time slowly pronouncing "Ne Moan Ya." After they all had that word down pat, and after I explained over and over again that Daddy would be all better when we got home, I tried to set the mood a little by turning on some Christmas music. Wouldn't you know -- the first song that came on was Baby, It's Cold Outside. I love that song, and the girls did too, until all ears were wide open for this line: "Think of my life long sorrow if you caught pneumonia and died." Eeeeep! That nearly derailed our trip right there. And what are the chances of that song playing then?? Seriously! Back to explaining 25 times that "Ne Moan Ya" is no big deal and Daddy won't die. I mean, I was 99% sure of that, and feeling 100% sure I was a horrible wife for leaving him on his deathbed. But, the rational voice in my head was telling me that he would surely not survive those four days if five little girls were jumping on the bed around him, fighting for his iPad and thundering up and down the hall above his head (not to mention me still rolling my eyes -- it turns out I can't help it...I tried!)
Thankfully (yeah, I'm totally overusing that word in this post!), we made it to Arnold, where Mop and Pop had rented a cabin big enough for all of us and more. It was so spacious! There were two kid rooms with multiple sets of bunk beds, including one room that slept 8! All of the kids could have slept in there if we had felt especially brave. We didn't. We split them up, different rooms each night to maximize cousin time. Bridget and Clara have surfaced as the two sleeper-inners. They make a good pair!
When they weren't sleeping, they were loving the Biggest Bean Bag Ever and the huge big screen TV,
the porch swing,
and many meal times at a big, long table that was perfect for everyone!
Megan and Joey were introduced to a new game that soared straight to the top of the list of favorites for Megan. It's Ticket to Ride, and it was so so cute to play with them. They were an adorable team with some good strategy, and they kept their chins up even when their mommies blocked their moves a few times. Admittedly, we're new to playing "big kid" games with them, so we may need some more practice in letting them win in a game that we desperately want to win ourselves :) It's hard being a parent!
The kids were also pretty busy with coloring and crafts. The cabin we stayed in was huge, and one whole room was dedicated to play space and "crafty" space for the kids. At any given time, there were foam turkey feathers, googly eyeballs, paper scraps and pen caps littered on the floor in there. On Thanksgiving day, we took advantage of their busy work mode and gave them some Thanksgiving related workbooks.
Megan's first page made me laugh.
And Megan (left) and Bridget's (right) thankful lists were pretty cute, too. I think Megan was running out of ideas by #10, and Bridget might have sneaked a peek at her sister's page before turning hers in!
Not everyone was busy with coloring, though. Mary kept herself busy sorting the cupboards and being cute,
and trying to buddy up to Molly, who is definitely more interested in Tessa and Annie these days!
Uncle Kyle was there for about 24 hours, too! His popularity among the little ones will never fade! He wrestled with kids while Mop and Pop finished carving the turkey...
for these turkeys!
I'm so grateful for these five (mostly happy) little faces!
Annie was still upset at dinnertime because she was missing Daddy, hence the sad face from her :( But, Mary made up for it with some big smiles post-dinner, once she had access to her belly button!
There was sure a lot to be thankful for around the table.
We were so lucky to have everyone there together, but we sure missed Matt!
When all was said, done and eaten, we had a little wishbone to deal with. Megan and Joey duked it out last year for the winning break, so it was time for Bridget and Clara to have at it this year.
I thought Clara had it in the bag, especially with her cute new glasses helping her out,
but Bridget surprised us with a win! She is not to be underestimated.
Not that I'm keeping score or anything, but that brings us to 2-0 record, with Stechers on the winning side! We make good wishbone breakers :)
Of course, no family get-together is complete without some kind of drama. That weekend, my wedding ring fell down the bathroom sink drain when I was getting ready for bed! The irony of this is not lost on me! This was a first for me, and even Pop's full tool chest was no match for the oddly assembled sink drain at the cabin. A plumber needed to come out the next morning, and much to all of the kids' delight, he fished my wedding band out in no time. Now, Tessa and Annie love to hear the story of how Mommy lost her wedding ring down the drain, which is intertwined with the story of Daddy home alone for Thanksgiving. Very appropriate!
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