Michigan Trip - Independence Day!

This is the 4th post in my Michigan trip report! To start from the beginning, click here!

After sleeping in, we plied into my in-laws's truck because it was big enough to hold us all. We had Todd, Emily and I, my mother in law and father in law, plus Todd's brother, Scott, and his son, Austin.

Our first stop was an ice cream shop. Now, the thumb of Michigan is a strange place. There can be nothing but farms and wind machines for miles. Every once in a while, you'll come across a place like this ice cream shop which has nothing around it.

But when we got there, it was packed. This place specialized giant scoops of ice cream. I made the mistake of getting two scoops (like I usually do at our local ice cream shop) and I couldn't finish it. Emily couldn't finish her one scoop. But it was yummy!

After we finished our ice cream we got back in the truck and headed off to Caseville.  Emily and Austin had a couple of activities to choose from, and they picked mini golf. We all got balls and clubs and started playing.

We kept score for a while, but because there was so many of  us we just stopped. Emily and Austin

had a blast and Emily even got one hole in one. After we were done, we let the kids play a little in the arcade.

At this point, I was starting to not feel so well. I had been drinking a ton of caffeine in the form of Coke all week and it hit me like a ton of bricks. By the time we got back to my in-laws house, I had a raging migraine. I went directly into the guest room and took a long nap.

By the time I woke up, it was dinner time. Todd's brother had made steaks on the grill. I was feeling a little better and was able to eat dinner. Afterwards, Todd and I got our things mostly packed up and Emily's stuff into her suitcase since she was staying for another week.

I headed to bed because my head was still hurting and I needed to drive some on the way home the next day.

Up Next - The Long Journey Home

Holding Hands and Growing Up

Image: www.acclaimclipart.com

Tomorrow is the 4th of July and I have a lot of memories of spending this holiday with family. Growing up my uncle was the head of the FOP in my parent's hometown and he was in charge of the fireworks show every year.

Quite a few years, we'd get to sit in the special "police and families only" area which was the best seat in the house. The fireworks were very popular so downtown was always extremely crowded. And even though we had a place to watch the fireworks, finding parking was always hard to do.

One 4th of July we had a long walk back to our car. It was very crowded and I happened to be holding my mom's hand. I was probably at least 14 years old, maybe a little older. And the sight of two females holding hands caused some drunken guys to start catcalling and making fun of us.

My mom shut them down pretty quickly - she didn't take crap from anyway. But I was very embarrassed and I refused to hold her hand again. I don't think I ever held her hand while walking for the rest of her life which is something that now that I'm older makes me profoundly sad.

Kids hold hands all the time. They hold hands with each other, with their teachers and their parents. There is nothing wrong with it. But as we age, seemingly holding hands becomes something more. Something only to do with your boyfriend / girlfriend. Something sort of sexual which thinking about in a logical way seems a bit crazy.

I asked my own daughter what she would do if someone made fun of the two of us holding hands. She looked at me like I had two heads and said she'd yell at them and still hold my hand. I think she has more than a little of my mother in her.

Since my mom is no longer here, I'd encourage everyone to hold hands with those they love before they are gone. I shouldn't have been embarrassed that day long ago. She was my mom! And even if she hadn't been, there is nothing wrong with two girls holding hands for comfort, for love and for safety.

Be Considerate With Fireworks!

My fellow Americans love to celebrate our nation's birth by blowing stuff up. I don't mind fireworks at all. I love watching them, especially the ones at Disney World. But most firework displays only last an hour so even if you don't like the bangs it's only a limited time.

At least it is if you don't have neighbors who are dicks. Sad to say, I have some neighbors who were real dicks last year. 

As long time readers of my blog know, I suffer from chronic migraines. Logically big bangs and migraines don't really mix. Some firework noises don't bother me too much, but I have my limits.

Last year, my neighbors shot off fireworks that I'm sure were illegal. It sounded like bombs were going off outside my bedroom window for hours at a time. And they did it on both July 3rd and July 4th. I was in so much pain and really twitchy for probably close to a week afterwards.

My poor Willow cat was really upset too. She hates loud noises a lot so she spent the holiday cowering in fear in our bathroom. It was very unpleasant for us. While I was in pain, I thought about any veterans who might live in our neighborhood. PTSD is a real concern for a lot of people.

I was a little afraid that my neighbors would be shooting off fireworks last night but I'm super thankful that they didn't since I'm working today. I have tomorrow and Monday off so I can hibernate with earbuds if need be.

But if you, kind person, decide to shoot off some fireworks remember that the noise might not be welcome by your neighbors. So try to keep it short and use legal fireworks. I, for one, will be not shooting off fireworks but we are going to do sparklers in our back yard.

Fireworks

As a kid, I always loved fireworks. I didn't like the noise so much when I was younger, but when we went to Disney World I got over my fear of the noise. My mom had told me that if I didn't put my hands over my ears, we could stay to watch some cartoons at the Main Street Cinema.

Since then, I always loved watching fireworks. Generally I'd see them at Tulip Time and at the 4th of July. My uncle was the head of the FOP in Bay City for many years when I was a teenager, so we'd get to sit really close for the fireworks every 4th.

I never really thought anything about the booms I'd hear at night around the 4th. I actually like hearing the sounds through my open windows as a kid. And then I had a baby of my own.

The moment I had a tiny being that didn't sleep very well, I hated the booms I'd hear at night. I'd curse the people setting them off, especially the ones who would do it really late at night.

Thankfully, Emily is a pretty sound sleeper now. But every time I hear fireworks at night, I cringe. I don't want her to wake up because my neighbors are shooting off fireworks at all hours of the night.

Being a parent really changed my view lots of things, including fireworks.

The Headbutt of Doom

My beautiful, pain-causing child

I have a four year old daughter who tends to be a little rambunctious. This is pretty normal for kids her age, but I'm not a normal mommy.

Last night, I was laying in bed and reading a book. Todd and Emily came in to check on me because my pain levels had been a little high because of the thunderstorms we'd been having. Emily climbed into the bed, launched herself at me and her hard, little head collided with mine.

The pain level jumped up to migraine levels. When I have a migraine, it's not just about the pain it's about the auras and my brain feeling fuzzy. I feel much stupider when I have a migraine because my brain just doesn't work as well.

Emily knew what she had done right away and started crying. I snuggled her and told her it was okay. And while my pain levels were through the roof, it was just an accident.We stayed in the bedroom and played some video games until I was time for her to go to bed. Thankfully, Todd did most of the bedtime routine so I could stay seated.

Just before bed, Emily gave me her Captain America doll. She wanted to make sure I had someone else to

snuggle with. I already have two stuffed animals that are mine. My Pooh Bear from when I was a child and Chronic Pain Bear, who was another gift from Emily.

I spent the rest of the evening in bed, reading on my Kindle. Todd would check on me every once in a while. I'm feeling a little better this morning but the pain is still pretty high. I'm muddling my way through my work shift and feeling very thankful that I work from home.

Happy 4th of July!

Summer Fun!

Happy Independence Day to all my American readers!

We generally don’t do a lot for the 4th of July. Todd has off from work but I’m working a normal shift today. And honestly there is something I’m more excited about today.

99 days from today we will be heading to Disney World. We haven’t been since our honeymoon and I've been looking forward to taking Emily to my favorite place since I found out I was pregnant.

I’ll be posting more about Disney later. I hope everyone has a great holiday today!