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Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Happy Halloween!!!

I may have gotten a little snap-happy with Bimmer in her Halloween costume. But c'mon, she's totally the cutest baby ever, right? So... just a photo dump of our little cutie!




Sunday, October 28, 2012

The King & I

(I wrote this months ago and just found it! Woops!)
 
Before I had Bimmer, I thought people were exaggerating when they said they spent a lot of time talking about their baby's bowel movements.
 
 
They were not.
 
At the start of July, Puff and I loaded Bimmer into the car and set out toward Florida. We had a long way to go (since my mom is down near Sarasota, which might as well be in frickin' Jamaica) so we split the trip into two parts. Our first night, our aim was to get a few hours past Atlanta. Bimmer did awesome on the drive, especially as we sat through rush hour downtown traffic in the ATL. She finally woke up, right on schedule, when it was time for her to eat.
 
Thankfully, there was an exit a few miles up and we were able to stop at a Burger King to get her out to feed her. I sat in a booth and fed her a bottle while Puff ordered our meal. We rotated who held her while the other adult ate, and when it was time for Puff to feed her, the baby pooped. No big deal. Restaurants have baby changing tables in their bathrooms, right?
 
Wrong. Not in fast food joints!
 
No problem. We can just change her on the back seat of the car. I'd read about other bloggers preferring that actually. It can't be that hard, right?
 
Wrong.
 
Were you aware that seats slope? And 5 week old babies who are super wiggly and have a very runny poopy diaper don't mix well with sloping seats?
 
So... I must point out that this entire disaster was of no fault of Bimmer's. The poor girl didn't know what hit her. One second she was just needing a diaper change and the next minute, she was being held up butt-ass naked in the middle of the Burger King parking lot.
 
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
 
I put down her changing pad on the seat and was doing my best to hold her in place with one hand, to keep from sliding, and changing the diaper with the other. Except somewhere in that scenario, I managed to get some poop up farther on her back than I realized, and it subsequently got on her onesie, which got it on the changing pad, which got it on my hand. And lead to me trying to hold my baby from slipping and getting even dirtier and trying to fight to pull wipes out of the damn container. What was Puff doing? Laughing hysterically and trying to take pictures with his phone.
 
Needless to say, I was not amused.
 
(I have no idea why this is sideways and I am too lazy to try to fix it)
 
 
Eventually, the scene was a dirty diaper and lots of dirty wipes on the ground in the parking lot with me holding the baby totally naked in the air trying to wipe off her back and the changing pad, with Puff still trying to take more photos. (And for all of that effort, he still only ended up with one picture!) Thankfully, I had the foresight to pack a spare outfit in the back seat of the car, so we didn't have to go digging through our suitcase to find her something. And we had plastic bags in her diaper bag, so the poopy outfit was able to go into the trunk, so we didn't have to smell it for another 2 hours. (I had to wash it in the hotel sink with Dawn dish detergent later that night!)
 
Lesson learned? You bet! The next morning when we got her out of the car seat at Wendy's and she had a dirty diaper, I figured I would try the front seat instead. When I noticed that would clearly not work, the baby got changed on the floor of the front passenger side of the car. I'm sure the people in the drive-thru line thought I was nuts. But hey, it was the best I could come up with at the time. If you have any better baby-changing-in-the-car suggestions, please let me know.
 
If nothing else, we got a good chuckle of the entire thing. Bimmer didn't seem to be scarred for life because of it. And I'm sure the family eating in the window at Burger King enjoyed their dinner entertainment.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Project 52 - Week 22

 
Puff and I have both noticed something about Bimmer recently... how expressive she has become.

She gives serious looks and funny ones. She laughs and giggles. She pouts and frowns. She looks inquisitively at everything. She gets frustrated.

One morning, when it was still dark outside, I sat her in her Bumbo on the kitchen table (since that's where it was) and I turned into the kitchen, just out of view. And she shrieked. And she cried like I had never heard her before, nor since. She was scared.

A new emotion.

She has also started to reach more for things, which includes laying down and stretching and rolling over if necessary to grab something. She has actually reached for Mommy a few times too. And the nanny says sometimes Bimmer will reach to be let out of her exersaucer.

When Puff holds her, she'll stroke his shoulder sometimes and hold on tighter to him. She has started to sometimes reach up and put her hands on my cheeks, which is too adorable for words. And on a few occasions, when I've been trying to calm her down during teething by laying next to her and singing softly, she'll hear me start to sing "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and if I'm not doing the hand motions (which include me crawling my fingers up her to represent the spider's ascent) then she has reached over and run her fingers up my cheek. Now, I'm not saying she knows what she's doing, but I'm not dismissing the possibility either.

We all know she's a bit of an overachiever!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Caught Red Handed

It has been a long while since I did a "Top Ten" list. And honestly, I wrote this back in January while I was racking my brain and stockpiling lots of blog topics for future use. And now that I'm back to work and don't get to indulge as often, join me in admitting my (somewhat embarassing) faults.
 
My Top 10 Guilty Pleasures...
 
1) Baby Names... which you already knew about if you're an avid reader.
 
2) Reality Shows... not all of them, but "Top Chef" and "Project Runway" are high on the list. As are "Khloe & Lamar" and "19 Kids & Counting."
 
3) Brownies... ever since my birthday, I've been craving them. Probably because I got red velvet cupcakes and a cake instead. Go figure.
 
4) Pop Music... ya know, like cheesy boy band pop music. Just don't tell anyone. I don't want to lose all my street cred.
 
5) Scrapbooking... it doesn't fit my persona, but I love it and wish I had time to do more of it.
 
6) DIY blogs... I will probably never DIY anything at The Bungalow, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy reading about other people's conquests.
 
7) E! News... because if it wasn't there, I'd never get any news at all.
 
8) Real Estate... I am obsessed at looking at other people's houses. And criticizing their decor.
 
9) Romantic comedies... I rarely watch movies anyway, but the older I get, the more I like them. Don't worry, I still prefer movies with serial killers. I doubt that will ever change.
 
10) Cute boys... on TV, in person, it doesn't matter. I like me some man candy. But I lucked out, since I've got the sexiest of man candy in Puff and he comes home to me every single night!

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Pumpkintown USA

Our seemingly never-ending epic saga of fall festivals in South Carolina continues!

I had heard through the grapevine a few years back that the Pumpkintown Pumpkin Festival was well worth the trip to the rural mountains. Yes, there's actually a town called Pumpkintown. Puff and I had driven through "town" several times before, and I was at a loss at where it would be since I only remembered a church, maybe a gas station, and a general store that would scare me to enter.
 


We headed out late morning, since we didn't have much interest in their parade. But a few miles from where we thought it would be, the two-lane road came to a complete and dead stop. Yup... a traffic jam in the middle of no where! It took us about a half hour (and one crying baby, whom Puff ended up feeding in her car seat) to get to the parking lot. Let's just say, I was less than impressed with the organizers of the festival.

Not only was the traffic a ridiculous, unorganized mess, but we also had an impossible time finding any information on the festival. We never could find a good schedule or list of vendors. Oh yeah, and a serious lack of pumpkins. I imagined a huge display and sale, but nope... there were probably 30 pumpkins in front of the community center building and that was it. (Although, Bimmer looks pretty darn cute there, doesn't she???)
 

The vendor selection was good, except the only thing we ended up buying were a few hair bows for Bimmer, since we didn't want to lug around anything big through a festival that was literally set amongst the trees on a hill behind a random building. Not to mention the half mile we probably walked to the parking. But Bimmer did awesome in her Bjorn and was checking everything out. And we ran into an old friend from college as well, with her adorable little boy. So random!
 
Since you all come here for recommendations, I would recommend it, at least once. I *think* it's always the second Saturday in October. Just be prepared for a bit of a chaotic mess in the parking situation, but after you get past that, you'll have a good time. The music was good and the vendors were varied. I don't think we'll be rushing back though... not when there are much better festivals in the fall! Stay tuned for the European Auto Show and the State Fair!!!

Friday, October 19, 2012

Project 52 - Week 21



Bimmer continues her quest to grow up on us way too fast.

Too fast as in last Sunday night, she randomly got ahold of one of my fingers and chomped down on it (like she's been known to do before) and wowza... what was that? Um... yeah... it was a TOOTH.

By Tuesday morning, I was able to say... Make that TEETH.

Yes, my not-quite-five-month-old baby is now sitting on her own, eating cereal, and sprouting teeth. They are her bottom two center teeth and they are just popped through the gum enough that you can feel the sharpness. No more toothless grin for Bimmer. Not ever. Oh, that breaks a Mommy's heart!

She continues to chatter. (And chatter and chatter and squeal.) She's been doing great on outings, both in her stroller and Bjorn. It's about time to upgrade to the umbrella stroller. She rode in the seat of a shopping cart (or "buggy") for the first time too at Home Depot. I did bust out the cart cover, since I figured she was apt to lick everything, and she did great! It was a whole new perspective for our busy baby, and she loved it. She held on and we were even able to get an adorable photo of her in front of a mum display with a big ol' smile! (One of the last pre-teeth!)

Here's hoping this little one slows down here for awhile. She's been able to spin herself around on her stomach for a few weeks, but the other day, she actually managed to move herself a foot or two backward. We are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO not ready for her to be mobile!!! Certainly not at 5 months!

Thursday, October 18, 2012

We're So International

As you surely just read a few entries back, Puff and I are all about some fall festivals. Yup... October in good ol' South Carolina is the prime time to be here!

So... on one recent warm Saturday, Puff and I headed to the Spartanburg International Festival.
 

 

I had first heard about the festival back in 2008, but somehow or another, Puff and the MIL ended up going without inviting me. Yeah, needless to say, I held that over Puff's head for, oh, the past 4 years. I was excited to go and check out the booths of countries and learn more about Latvia and Rwanda and Costa Rica. I imagined stocking up on travel brochures and planning future adventures.

Yeah... it didn't turn out that way. Two thumbs way down for this festival.

People were too concerned about getting their fake passports stamped that those of us who wanted to get real info, couldn't even bust past the crowd into the booths to see anything relevant. And those travel brochures I hoped to pick up? Nope. Not a one.

One bright thing? Reasonably priced food, which included a chocolate croissant.
 
 

But the brightest part? Bimmer decided she could sit up by herself for the longest length of time yet! At just 19 weeks and 2 days, she decided she wanted to do it on her own.

::sigh:: She's growing up too damn fast! Next thing you know, she's going to want to be getting a real passport and hop on an airplane! I wonder where she would get that from. ::insert wink::

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

How Do You Do It?

I love to write.

I even pre-write these entries in my head most of the time.

I prep them and edit them. I put shapes over faces on photos and save them in a special "Blog Photos" library.

Yet, I just don't have the time anymore. Not to write and post the way I want. And I feel the need to apologize.

But I'm not sure why.

I don't get paid to write. I just do it because I would do it anyway. I do it because there are a handful of you that are loyal followers who enjoy my posts and the sneak peak into our lives.

While blogging full-time to make money would never be an option for me, this entry over on one of my fave blogs (http://www.bowerpowerblog.com/2012/10/my-girls-of-the-past-year/) today made some good points. Some points that I need to remember.

Things like the fact that not blogging all the damn time means I'm spending that time with Bimmer. And she needs me more than you do.

I'm not abandoning ship. I will still post at least twice a week. It's just maybe not with the regimented schedule regularity that I am used to. And the topics may not always be insanely thought out or insightful. And Hell, I might not even know how to spell insightful.

I know a lot of you who read are moms. And so therefore, I know you understand.

I'd rather sleep than blog. I'd rather eat than blog. I'd rather curl up on the couch to catch a TV show with Puff than blog. And, always, I would rather be loving on Bimmer than blogging.

I'm pretty sure that's the way the universe should be.

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Make Me Up


There are lots of things that people are into that just perplex me. Like people who argue politics, eat tuna, and like the Green Bay Packers.

On the flip side, I probably do things that others think are strange. Like singing along with One Direction on the radio and watching "Toddlers & Tiaras."

But the one thing that I find myself pressured toward on a regular basis that just makes my head spin in utter confusion?

Make-up sex.

In all the years I have been sexually active, this concept has just baffled me. If I am mad at you, I don't want to touch you. I don't want you to touch me. If my head is fuming in anger over something you've done or said, I am not fantasizing about ripping your clothes off. Nope... I'm most likely fantasizing about ripping your face off. And not in a good way.
 
Puff likes to point out that he and Slutasian (his ex) used to fight a lot, but it was OK because they would always make up afterwards. Then he started dating me. And instead of wanting to make up right away by jumping in bed, I would slam a few doors, throw around a few choice words, and drive off in a huff. That makes much more logical sense to me. Puff says my actions made it a lot harder to love me again after the fight.

In my defense, I tend to think make-up sex is a cop-out. It definitely doesn't solve anything. So... yeah... that's what I'm sticking with. Trust me, I think our marriage will last much longer once we get everything off our chests and then talk through it. He can fantasize about his crazy make-up sex. And I can fantasize about Jason Statham.
 
All's fair in love and war, right?

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Project 52 - Week 20

 
 
Twenty weeks ago, my world got flip turned upside down. In the best way possible.
 
I always knew I wanted to be a mother. And I kinda figured I would be decent at it. But I just had no way of preparing for the overwhelming rush of emotions and love that just hit like a semi-truck the second Bimmer was born.
 
My little bitty baby continues to grow up way too fast on me. This week, we gave her cereal for the first time. Which also meant she got to sit in a highchair for the first time. She wasn't too keen on that, since she is restrained and can't wiggle. But she laughed and giggled through the entire two attempts at baby cereal. By the second time, she had caught on to the whole ordeal and was reaching for the bowl and was putting her hands on the spoon when I put it in her mouth. I have a feeling she's going to want to try some "Baby Led Weaning" in a month or so. I can just see her having a ball with a banana!
 
Then she decided, officially, that she was going to become super proficient at sitting up by herself. Sure, there are times she still falls over, especially if she gets really excited or reaching for things. But we were able to go pick pumpkins and she sat, unassisted, for all of her photos. She was the only baby at the pumpkin patch that wasn't crying. She was enthralled by everything and kept watching the cars that were going past. She's definitely Puff's daughter... having an ADD moment to look at cars!
 
Her Mamaw and Papaw were supposed to visit this week, but had to cancel due to my grandma being in the hospital back in The Fort. We are definitely sad that they weren't able to come see our growing girl (they haven't seen her since she was 8 weeks old!) but they are in the right place. They can visit soon. Plus, we are excited that we were able to make plans to travel back up north for Thanksgiving. It will be the first time I have spent that holiday with my family since 2003. Now we just gotta take this little tot shopping to find her a cute outfit for Turkey Day! It'll be here before we know it.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Office Space

I've been at my job for about a month now.
 
And I still like it.
 
Cause daaaaaamn would that suck if I already hated it!
 
Anyhoo... it's the first job I've ever had that is downtown in a city. (Granted our city isn't all that big!) But there's something I like about the commute into the "tall" buildings and having to park in a parking garage. Really the highlight is that I can take my lunch break to stroll Main Street and pop into cute shops (which means lots of goodies for Bimmer that we didn't need) and grab a coffee with the girls or a red velvet cupcake. Yeah, that "Frequent Customer Card" is getting filled up pretty quickly!
 
After having an office with a door at my last two real jobs, I am still getting used to this...
 
 
But all told, it hasn't been that horrific. Minus the one lady who likes to drone on and on about her cat and how it predicted a flood in her apartment. For realz?!? The only thing that keeps me from stabbing her with a highlighter is that she's leaving at the end of the month to move to Florida. Good riddance. They'll accept you much better there.
 
All the other girls are great and I feel like I'm fitting in pretty well. There's lots of yelling down the hallway and joking with each other and sharing photos and stories of our babies. (All but 3 of us have kids 5 years old or younger, and those other 3 are all set to be married within the next 6 months.) Did I mention the morning our boss poured us all mimosas in a meeting because we met a goal? Um... I can just picture my last job's "Story Time Meeting" with our uber-conservative bosses who made us sign a form that said we would never drink ever again in our lives. (Or something like that.)
 
Plus there was a morning where he played us clips from old SNL skits of Chris Farley. Or the live feed on the conference room TV of the giraffe at the zoo waiting to give birth. Or the morning he yelled down the hall, "Quit looking at my crotch!"
 
And the constant emails of "thank you" from my boss and GM and others in the building for even the smallest thing. I was lucky if I got a pat on the back once a year at my last job. And I usually had to work a 70 hour week and manage to not kill anyone for that to happen.
 
It's not perfect, nor do I expect it to ever be. But it's nice to like to go to work every day. It's nice to know I'll be greeted with smiles and hellos and that on long afternoons, we can all pow-wow and talk about makeup and husbands. I still hate that I don't have any good prospects of guys to become my outlet when there's too much estrogen. My best candidate is in HR. So... that's not gonna work! (Although I did want to try to hook him up with Kimhead. But again, that whole being in HR thing sorta put a stop to that.) But I'm sure, over time, I'll figure out my place here. I can't expect that to happen overnight.
 
As for Bimmer? I think the ideal situation for me would be a 4-day work week. But that'll never happen in my industry, so I've got to take what I can get. I love that for the entire month of October, I only have to work late two nights and there are no weekends. The. Entire. Month. At my old job? I'd have probably had to work two Saturdays and at least 5 late nights. This is definitely a step in the right direction for the good of my family. I absolutely love going home and seeing Bimmer's big ol' toothless grin when she sees me.
 
Any concerns about her forgetting about me were thrown out the window pretty quickly. I love the time I get to spend with her, and I now don't take any of it for granted. I love the morning snuggles and the evening baths. I cannot wait for weekends so I can soak up as much of her as I can. Sure, I miss all those extra hours of watching her cuteness, but she's thriving just fine (and will even more so, I think, once she's in daycare) so I can take it easy through the day and not panic or worry.
 
Who am I kidding? I'm a mom. I still miss her. I still worry. I still panic if she didn't sleep well the night before or woke up with a little cough. But she's a strong, independent little lady. And she is proving to her Mommy that she is doing just fine adjusting. She just reminds me every night, as I have to lay next to her for her to fall asleep, that she still needs me. And I hope she always does.

Monday, October 8, 2012

Slimy Green Veggies

As I have mentioned several times before, Puff and I (and Bimmer too... not that she has any choice) like to hit up as many festivals as possible. Remember Bele Chere and Coon Dog Days?
 
So when Puff heard about the Irmo Okra Strut, we were sold. Even after living in the Columbia area for 7 years, I had never been before. And the promise of a parade and fried goodness? Pfft... Puff was all over that!
 
Having a 4 month old skews our ability to be places exactly on time anymore, so when we got to the end of the parade route right after 9am, we were worried we wouldn't be able to find parking or a good spot for viewing. However, a wrong turn into a bank parking lot got us a primo parking space and we ended up getting a great spot to watch that wasn't over-crowded.
 
 
 
Bimmer slept for the first part of the parade, but when she woke up, she put her hands over her ears as a loud group went by. She's such a smarty-pants!
 
 
 
 
After the parade, we walked a few blocks to the festival and gladly paid a $1.00 donation to be able to get our family photo taken with the giant inflatable Okra Man!
 
 
 
 
The most memorable part of the day was when Kimhead was feeding Bimmer on a nice bench in a nice shady spot in the park... and a giant acorn fell at warp-speed from the giant tree over us and landed smack dab in the middle of Bimmer's forehead. Needless to say, there was some forgetting-to-breathe crying happening. Poor baby!!!
 
 
 
Kimhead and Puff shared a nice big ol' order of fried okra (which they dubbed some of the best they had ever had) but I was skeptical. I'm not much for veggies to begin with, but I figured I might as well try it.
 
I spit it out.
 
In the bushes.
 
It wasn't one of my prouder moments.
 
But hey... at least I tried it! I can officially give a thumbs up to the Okra Strut, but a definitely double thumbs down to okra itself!

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Project 52 - Week 19

I don't understand why her hair photographs red. Hmm...
 
 
I swear my little baby has grown up over night this week!
 

All of a sudden, she is so interested in her exersaucer! We had tried her in it occasionally the past few weeks, but just this week has she gotten excited and really stood up and reached for everything and spun things around, etc. She's also gotten to the point where she knows to push her bottle away when she's not hungry anymore or doesn't want it. Instead of just spitting it out, she now uses her hands to push it away. She's way too young to learn to be doing that, right?
 

One of the biggest changes I've noticed is how anxious she is to sit up on her own. Whenever I sit cross-legged with her on my lap, she sits up really really well unassisted. And then if we're holding her (like a baby) to give her a bottle and she's done, she uses her own strength and muscles to pull herself up to a seated position. And she can sit for a few seconds on her own, if she's on a hard surface like the ground. She does still lean forward and use her hands to prop herself up, but it's just so crazy. She's not even 4 1/2 months old yet! One time she even was sitting up on the couch for a few seconds and then fell over. And she was able to figure out how to get from that awkward position and roll herself on to her stomach. Sitting her with the Boppy behind her has also become a favorite activity. That way if she gets really excited and leans backward, she can catch herself and sit back up straight. My big girl!!!
 

She also has become even more inquisitive. She was sitting in her Bumbo on the counter and there were two new boxes of bottles to be opened. She kept reaching for them and then would lick it and knock it over. And then try to figure out how to pick it back up and move it. And when she couldn't figure out how to get the first box up, she would just turn around and scoot the other box closer. The scary thing though was the time she noticed the electrical socket that was behind her and reached for that. Looks like it's time to start thinking about some baby proofing at The Bungalow!!!
 
This was also the week I went to work with baby poop under my fingernail and didn't realize it until after 10am, which followed a meeting where I shook several people's hands. Sorry 'bout that! Whoopsies!

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Black Water

If someone were to ask me what the most insane thing I have ever done in my life, I wouldn't hesitate to answer. Getting knocked up and not thinking about HOW the baby was going to get OUT. Except, that's probably not really what they were looking for.
 
So, I've definitely got the next best answer: White Water Cave Tubing.
 
AKA: Black Water Rafting.
 
 
 
I've mentioned time and time again that The Ex and I went to New Zealand way back in 2005. It took some twisting and turning of his arm to get him to agree to go, but I like to think that at least he's now had that one awesome experience in his life. Even if he did sorta piss it away. I digress... the second day full day we were in the most amazing country on this planet, we found ourselves not far outside Auckland in a town called Waitomo. We were there for their "world-renowned" glow-worms that live in caves and basically light it up like the night's sky.
 
I had visited caves before, like Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. I pictured a leisurely stroll along wooden boardwalks, maybe with a flash light and a guide. Except, somehow or another, we got peer pressured into one of the stupidest (yet, most badass) things I have ever done. We were outfited with wet suits and helmets with lights on them. They took us to an unassuming, slow-moving creek and had us sit in our inner tubes on the gravel to create a "monster" where we grabbed on to the tubes in front and behind us. Then, they had us walk to the end of a dock, put the tube against our ass, and jump backwards into the creek. I was pretty sure they were just fucking with us at that point. This was going to be a leisurely float through a cave to look up at some sticky, weird bugs. Right?
 
WRONG.
 
Their website calmly mentions you have to be at least 12 years old, of moderate fitness level, and mentions the words, "float serenely."
 
I distinctly remember about 5 to 10 minutes of serenity during that entire three hour adventure. That was after we had to basically rock climb inside a cave carrying a tube. Oh yeah, and that whole part where sometimes the water wasn't deep enough to actually be floating, so your butt was scraping the bottom of the cave floor and you'd have to stand up and walk the last few feet, only to have your ankle roll out from under you into some dark cave monster crevice that you couldn't see in the pitch blackness. Or the part where the water was too deep so you had to lay on your back, as flat as you could, in your tube, and walk your hands along the bottom of a giant rock-o-doom that was barely 4 inches from your nose.
 
And remember that backward jumping exercise from earlier? Apparently there was some validity to that. Because at one point, you came to a waterfall about 10 to 15 feet tall, where if you just went over it, you'd get sucked under at the bottom and beaten mercilessly against the rocks at the bottom. So... you have to stand at the edge, tube clenched to your buttcheeks, and jump backward as far as you can (but not too far, so you don't hit the cave wall on the far side) into total.complete.darkness. And just hope that you land successfully in deep enough water at the bottom. They conveniently don't tell you about any of this when you sign up to take this tour. Nor do they make you sign anything... because apparently in New Zealand, you can't sue anyone for your own stupidity. Ya know... like being stupid enough to white water raft in an inner tube through a cave.
 
Yet, just when you think you've had enough and are going to succumb to some cave fever and curl up and die in the cold water, your guide tells you to assume "the monster" and then tells you to flick off your helmet lights. And above you lies the most spectacular sight you are ever bound to see. Tons and tons of little glow worms and their sticky drippiness putting on an awe-inspiring show. There was silence. Our aching and battered bodies were just floating leisurely along in solitude and contentment. Supposedly, it's the only place in the world you can see this phenomenon. And I was right underneath it.
 
 
 
 
Would I ever do it again? Hell to the fuck NO! My body ached for days, The Ex got ringworm from it somehow, and I ended up having to throw away my favorite bathing suit because cave water scent does not wash out. But am I glad I had the guts to do it? For sure! I just know I never would have gone through with it, however, had I known what was ahead of me. It was a giant leap of faith I am happy I took. Just one I don't need to take ever again.
 
Now Puff will just have to convince me that white water rafting on a river in Tennessee won't be nearly as terrifying. And that, in fact, I might like it. He's been trying for 4 years. Maybe he'll win that battle in 2013. We shall just have to wait and see.