Cousin M

I'm really behind in posting about our visit with C, J and M but you'll forgive me since I've spent nearly every day since they left with a feverish, whiny, clingy boy draped across my body. D was hardest hit though J certainly didn't get by unscathed. However, when J gets sick, he can still manage a smile. He isn't so needy. But D, who T has referred to as "Keanu" for his melodramatic flair, is so miserable when he's sick. One evening he woke up around 10pm and started crying so T brought him out to the living room. He moaned and kicked and screamed that he wanted his mommy so T gleefully handed him to me. He proceeded to moan and kick at me and when I asked him what was wrong he angrily whined, "I'm tiiiiiiiiired". To which I said - ok, what do you want to do? Him: Iiiiiii waaaaant toooooo gooooooo toooooooo beeeeeeeed. Me: ok, my bed or your bed? Him: MY BED!!!!!!! Me: off you go, can't get you there fast enough, why the heck did you get out of your bed in the first place???? - ok, I didn't say any of that but that's what was floating through my mind. So, you understand, right?
Well, here it is. We had a fanfreakintastic time with C, J and M. First of all, M is the most easygoing kid; very few meltdowns, goes to bed easily, naps easily - I'm so jealous. Plus, he absolutely fell in love with D and walked around saying "D?" whenever D wasn't in sight. J got a little jealous that M wasn't as enamored with him. I think his feelings were a little hurt but we didn't make a big deal of it. I was especially impressed with the way C and J handle M. I've never seen my brother be a DAD and it was really cool to see how instinctive he seemed to be. The first day we all had together we went to Travel Town to ride the train. Then we went into Griffith Park to have a picnic lunch and let the kids run around. Next, to get them to take a decent nap, we took a long drive through Hollywood, West Hollywood, West LA and Santa Monica until we got to Venice. There we walked the boardwalk to look at all the crazies and then went out onto the beach to gaze at the hazy ocean. Then we went to Marina Del Rey for dinner at C&O Trattoria for the yummiest Italian food. The next day was Super Bowl Sunday and we had Fish, Brooke and Eddie over for dinner. They left the next day and the fevers started the day after that! I'm so grateful that J and D didn't get sick until after they left. Especially since the last time C and J were supposed to visit (before M was born) D was hospitalized for pneumonia. The time before that was when I was pregnant and they were going to come out for the babies shower and I was hospitalized with preterm labor so they didn't come out. They did visit after the boys came home from the hospital but I was so sleep deprived and was just trying to keep it all together so I don't remember much. So, you see we haven't had much luck when trying to get together! Maybe that's what made this visit especially sweet. I will post pictures as soon as I get them loaded.