Lots of Firsts, . . . and Forgot the Camera

Today was complete pandemonium in so many ways. It's no wonder that I forgot the camera today, but it made me sad to miss some of the firsts: first time Annie rode in a shopping cart, first time Annie sucked on a lollipop, and first time Leia pushed Annie in the stroller.

I often feel like I am floundering these days, . . . I've taken on too many things (many of which need to be done anyway). Still, the day went like this. After breakfast, I had to sit down and order food from Lowes. In the process, I saw so many things I could save a dollar + at Wal-Mart that I decided to attempt the trip. I rushed upstairs to let Annie watch a show while I showered and trimmed my hair. Then it got too close to nap time, so I read to Annie and put her down. While she was down I completed work on Leia's thank-you notes and put many of them in the mail. Then I began uploading last months' pictures to photoworks (because it takes hours at high resolution). So as those were uploading, Annie woke up and had lunch. Then we rushed off. While driving, I had to call Chatham Crossing to make an appointment for Leia Rose, who now we know definitely has a hernia. (Had to write that phone number on my hand.) Suddenly we were at Wal-Mart where I ran around like a maniac trying to get everything I needed within a half an hour. I put the floppy seat on the grocery cart and Annie took her very first ride. (Most notably, I needed to get the Wal-Mart "little fruits" as a dried fruit snack for Annie. I save almost two dollars on each of those. Didn't quite make it on time (mostly because I totally forgot to get diapers) so I had to leave my entire cart with Customer Service while we went to get Leia Rose. Picked Leia up from school, went back to Wal-Mart, payed for our items, . . . and realized I was out of gas. Got gas at a close gas station and called Brian to get the number for Lowes Foods. Called Lowes Foods to tell our personal shopper, Angela, that I wasn't going to be there until closer to 4:30. (Angela had something special for Leia's birthday, so she wanted to make sure to give it to her.) Then we rushed over to the Ambulatory Care Center to go to the Dermatologist for Leia's eczema. We waited there for over an hour. (Poor Annie was at her wits end, which was when I gave her the lollipop, . . . which she sucked down to a tiny nub while getting it all over herself, of course.) : ) It was on the way back to the car that Leia Rose pushed Annie in the stroller, . . . and the nurse from Chatham Crossing finally decided to call me back and tell me they were going to work us in tomorrow. From there we rushed to Lowes Foods and made it there right before Angela had to leave. (And what a present Angela had for Leia Rose!) Then we went to CVS to pick up the prescription the dermatologist was supposed to have called in. He didn't. *sigh* Then it was off to Subway, . . . because there was no way I was cooking after this crazy day (plus Brian was off to a hockey game with his Catechist). . . . and the sad thing is that getting the kids to bed was just the beginning of all the stuff I had to do. So, yeah, I'm feeling quite overwhelmed these days.

Luckily, though, I did catch a neat photo of Annie doing one of her newest pastimes: trying/pretending to put clothes on. She's always very proud of doing this! : )
And look at this amazing gift that our personal shopper, Angela, (and her two cousins) made for Leia's birthday! (Plus two plush toys, stickers, a balloon, and a special cookie!) Each letter is needlework!!! Angela has been working on this for months, . . . and I just couldn't believe the extent of this present. I know Leia Rose always makes an impression on people, . . . but goodness sakes!!! : )