A mostly uneventful day, unless you count the power outages (2), the wild indian that is my oldest niece, and her whirling dervish of a sister.
I was awakened this morning by a wee voice saying "Wake up, Manna!" I woke up (I was already awake, since I'd been hearing the stirring of little bodies since earlier in the morning), and we started out right away reading books. It's good that they were just in Indiana for a visit a couple of weeks ago, because Olivia remembered me right away. We got up and at 'em at 7:00, and about 20 minutes later the transformer on the pole outside my brother's house popped and crackled and went out. A small tree limb had apparently fallen on the line. Georgia Power & Light was obviously in no hurry to get here, so we left the house and went to find breakfast at the local Cracker Barrel.
Side note: Those that know me (which, since my readership consists of 1, is everyone) know that I don't leave the house without showering, so don't fall over when I tell you that I did indeed venture out this morning after just washing my face and brushing my teeth. I put my greasy hair in a ponytail, covered it with a hat, put clean clothes on my dirty body, and went. It was so cute... when I brushed my teeth, Olivia was in the bathroom with me, and she said "Wia brush, too." It's obvious that she wants to do whatever the adults are doing, and she's so smart.
Anyway, we came home from Cracker Barrel to find that the lights were still out, but power was restored a short time later. We watched some TV, and the girls went down for much needed naps. Olivia is coming down with a cold -- her runny nose made it so hard for her to sleep lastnight or today, so she's not getting very good rest right now. Tonight she got some Benadryl, so we'll see how tomorrow goes.
Emilia got up from her nap as happy as a lark... her little bottom lip came out a bit when she was left alone with me for a while, but she did okay. Hey, she's only 8 months old and she doesn't know me as well as Olivia does. Olivia slept fitfully, so she and RC laid down on the couch in Emilia's room. Michelle, Emilia, and I were in the living room, when we heard a buzzing sound -- it really sounded like someone sawing something. Next thing I know, a tree branch at the house next door is on fire, then some sparks are falling from the power line, and then the transformer blows again! This time there was a very bright light... the branch was actually en flambe twice, and something blew up. RC, being the firefighter that he is, called 911, telling them there was an arcing power line (which it wasn't), and then he called GP&L again... in order to get them out more quickly, he told them the power line was down, and that it was arcing. I hope he doesn't get fined for that little white lie. It only took about 20 minutes for the power to come back on, but we're a little leery to go outside after all of that.
Olivia is so fun... 22 months is such a cute age. She's scary smart... she may not talk in complete sentences, but she understands so much, and communicates in long strings of real words. Nothing is garbled; the only word we couldn't immediately understand today was "ticka", which RC explained was obviously "sticker". Duh... I gave her the label off a banana today... thus, sticker. Michelle and I both felt pretty stupid. Olivia and I sat in the dining room after supper tonight and had a lengthy conversation... we smelled one of Michelle's nice candles that had been lit earlier today; we talked about dinner; we sang "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Row, Row, Row Your Boat", and "Twinkle, Twinkle"; she told me about her trip to Indiana and who she saw; and in general she just floored me. She's full of hugs and kisses and she wants nothing more than to sit in your lap and read book after book after book. I tell you, I don't know if I could be more enchanted and in love with my own child.
More tomorrow... I'm wiped out for today. I'm hoping to get outside to take some pictures tomorrow.
PS - We did get to see a turtle today. I don't know what kind it was, but it was crossing the front yard, so RC went and picked it up so Olivia could see it. "Hi, Mr. Turtle", she said, and then RC put him back where he found him. I pretty much melted.
I was awakened this morning by a wee voice saying "Wake up, Manna!" I woke up (I was already awake, since I'd been hearing the stirring of little bodies since earlier in the morning), and we started out right away reading books. It's good that they were just in Indiana for a visit a couple of weeks ago, because Olivia remembered me right away. We got up and at 'em at 7:00, and about 20 minutes later the transformer on the pole outside my brother's house popped and crackled and went out. A small tree limb had apparently fallen on the line. Georgia Power & Light was obviously in no hurry to get here, so we left the house and went to find breakfast at the local Cracker Barrel.
Side note: Those that know me (which, since my readership consists of 1, is everyone) know that I don't leave the house without showering, so don't fall over when I tell you that I did indeed venture out this morning after just washing my face and brushing my teeth. I put my greasy hair in a ponytail, covered it with a hat, put clean clothes on my dirty body, and went. It was so cute... when I brushed my teeth, Olivia was in the bathroom with me, and she said "Wia brush, too." It's obvious that she wants to do whatever the adults are doing, and she's so smart.
Anyway, we came home from Cracker Barrel to find that the lights were still out, but power was restored a short time later. We watched some TV, and the girls went down for much needed naps. Olivia is coming down with a cold -- her runny nose made it so hard for her to sleep lastnight or today, so she's not getting very good rest right now. Tonight she got some Benadryl, so we'll see how tomorrow goes.
Emilia got up from her nap as happy as a lark... her little bottom lip came out a bit when she was left alone with me for a while, but she did okay. Hey, she's only 8 months old and she doesn't know me as well as Olivia does. Olivia slept fitfully, so she and RC laid down on the couch in Emilia's room. Michelle, Emilia, and I were in the living room, when we heard a buzzing sound -- it really sounded like someone sawing something. Next thing I know, a tree branch at the house next door is on fire, then some sparks are falling from the power line, and then the transformer blows again! This time there was a very bright light... the branch was actually en flambe twice, and something blew up. RC, being the firefighter that he is, called 911, telling them there was an arcing power line (which it wasn't), and then he called GP&L again... in order to get them out more quickly, he told them the power line was down, and that it was arcing. I hope he doesn't get fined for that little white lie. It only took about 20 minutes for the power to come back on, but we're a little leery to go outside after all of that.
Olivia is so fun... 22 months is such a cute age. She's scary smart... she may not talk in complete sentences, but she understands so much, and communicates in long strings of real words. Nothing is garbled; the only word we couldn't immediately understand today was "ticka", which RC explained was obviously "sticker". Duh... I gave her the label off a banana today... thus, sticker. Michelle and I both felt pretty stupid. Olivia and I sat in the dining room after supper tonight and had a lengthy conversation... we smelled one of Michelle's nice candles that had been lit earlier today; we talked about dinner; we sang "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Row, Row, Row Your Boat", and "Twinkle, Twinkle"; she told me about her trip to Indiana and who she saw; and in general she just floored me. She's full of hugs and kisses and she wants nothing more than to sit in your lap and read book after book after book. I tell you, I don't know if I could be more enchanted and in love with my own child.
More tomorrow... I'm wiped out for today. I'm hoping to get outside to take some pictures tomorrow.
PS - We did get to see a turtle today. I don't know what kind it was, but it was crossing the front yard, so RC went and picked it up so Olivia could see it. "Hi, Mr. Turtle", she said, and then RC put him back where he found him. I pretty much melted.
