Back to the Fourth

I never posted about the Fourth of July!

We visited David's grandma over the weekend. Her name is Peggy, Zuzu calls her Peppa. I've told Gma Peggy that Peppa is a cute cartoon character; I have not mentioned that she is a pig.

Anyway, we stayed at Peppa's house, which is on Table Rock Lake and my parents actually stayed nearby in a condo so we got to see them, too. David's dad and his wife also came down for one afternoon, so Zuzu had grandparent overload with Peppa, Grammy (still pronounced "Mammy"), Bop, Pepaw, and Memaw (she manages to keep all those names straight, so I guess the Who Loves Zuzu? book really was a good investment).

I wasn't feeling the greatest over the weekend--indigestion, discomfort, and a lack of sleep. Mostly pregnancy symptoms, but our little Zuzu is so good about sleeping at home (in the crib without a fuss, 11 hours a night, consistently, plus 2-3 hour naps) and is TERRIBLE about sleeping while we travel. She climbs out of pack & plays and travel cribs, so we brought a travel crib mattress to put on the floor, calling it her "cot" like she sleeps on during naptime at school. Well and good in theory, but in reality it meant that she didn't go to bed until 10:30-11pm each night, and was still getting up at 7am (until our last morning, when we ALL slept until 9:30--that literally has not happened in two years). Yet naptime was still a fight, and never went longer than an hour and a half, two hours at the most. So we were all pretty exhausted.

But we managed to have a good time. Zuzu was not a fan of fireworks and my stomach was especially bothering me on the 4th (I opted to have cereal for dinner), so we didn't drive out to see any of the big shows around the lake. We could see some of the fireworks from Peppa's deck, but Zuzu wasn't impressed. The first one she saw (on the night of the 3rd) really freaked her out: "Loud! Hot! HOT!" (We all know how she feels about hot things like birthday candles.)

On the night of the 4th, she sat on Peppa's lap with one ear pressed up against Peppa's chest and Peppa's hand over her other ear. When a firework would go off, we'd say, "Happy Birthday, America!" to try to get her excited, and Zuzu would say, "No, Mama. Fireworks make me sad."

I finally decided that she was so pitiful that we had nothing to gain from watching more fireworks, so she and I went inside early--much to Cooper's relief.

Firework sadness aside, we also spent a lot of time swimming, playing at the park, and even did a little bit of shopping on Sunday while an exhausted Zuzu actually stroller-napped for two hours (that's what three days of not sleeping will get you).

There was one horrifying incident that involved poop in a swim diaper at the pool after ingesting what was evidently a significant amount of sand and lake water earlier in the day. I'll spare you all the gory the details, but suffice it to say that it involved Zuzu throwing a temper-tantrum after pooping in her swim diaper, me dry-heaving, and my dad having to transfer runny poop with identifiable amounts of sand and grapes from a bathtub to a toilet. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMERICA!

Overall, we did manage to relax and enjoy ourselves, even though I had to come back to one more week of teaching. When we got home and pulled into the carport, Zuzu started fussing and said, "NO! Peppa's house!" so she obviously enjoyed herself and was not excited about being home.

I didn't take many pictures--mostly because I wasn't feeling so great. So if you've been on instagram, these will mostly be repeats, but they are my favorites--and check out David's sweet baby picture.

Hanging around with Bop

Apology hug after near-biting incident

Some intense kissing action. I love how she's holding my face.

This is what three days of no sleep looks like.

Is Zuzu my mini-me? Or does she look a little bit like this cutie-guy?

On her way to the playground on the 4th

Sitting with Peppa

Splashing with Grammy and Bop

laughing with Daddy

Aloha! Back at home, sporting a birthday gift and Hawaiian souvenir from her great-aunt Peggy