Leaving Las Vegas

In our continuing efforts to make a seasoned traveler of our little one, we took Penny on a road trip to Las Vegas over Valentine's Weekend to visit some friends. It was wonderful to meet up, enjoy delicious food, go shopping, and relax. I love my girls. We've been friends for so long that getting together is one of my favorite things to do.

The weather in LV was so nice, it felt like early summer, and the consumption of mojitos added to that summer feeling. We also ate waffles with bacon IN THEM, at Hash House A Go Go. The portions there are larger than your head.


Behold, the Bacon Waffle. Served with powdered sugar.

Naturally, we were on vacation schedule, and Penny got to stay up pretty late, but by the end of the trip we noticed she wasn't eating much and she seemed a bit crabby. Well, she's probably worn out from all of the excitement, I thought.

When we were getting ready to leave, Penny said, "Sick," and pointed at her forehead, in an attempt to sign "sick" to me. I asked, "Are you sick?" and she didn't say yes or no, although she probably wasn't sure how to answer. So again, I thought she was just tired.


In her Valentine's finery, accompanied by a new friend.

Off we went, reluctant to leave, but ready to go home. As we drove, Penny became increasingly fussy, which we chalked up to being stuck in the carseat for another long drive. Britt stopped in Mesquite for a milkshake, so we ordered some french fries, thinking we could bribe Penny with them in the car. But she didn't want them, and she was adamant. That should have been another red flag, because the events that unfolded were a lesson in WHY YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO YOUR CHILD.

We were only a few miles out of Mesquite, when Penny's fussing turned to crying, and suddenly there was a horrible sound, followed by what I can only describe as a waterfall of vomit.

Poor baby. You know how when you get sick, you can pretty much identify the culprit, that item that didn't settle? Well, in this case, it was bananas.

Poor daddy.

Have I mentioned how much Britt hates bananas? He hates them with furious anger. Therefore, True Love is your husband mucking the banana sick out of the carseat on the side of the road, while you sit on the tailgate, trying to clean banana sick off your toddler (and yourself).

Poor mommy.

We were still at least 4 hours from home. I won't describe the way the car smelled, but I was actually grateful she threw up something fruity and not something else, something savory, like chili. However, Britt's hatred of bananas has increased exponentially.

Penny felt so relieved, she slept for a while, and we managed to get home, as the warm weather turned to cold rain mixed with snow. Penny was sick for the rest of the week. She was lethargic and seemed depressed, and didn't want to do anything. She didn't throw up again, but she had diarrhea for three days, and I started to worry about dehydration, which prompted a call to the doctor.

Then, as quickly as it came on, Penny was back to her old self, running and playing and laughing and TALKING. We've had a language explosion around here. Gee, I'll take streams of words over banana sick any day, thanks. And in a way, it seems like the whole experience made for a more authentic road trip, because it wouldn't be a family trip without someone getting sick, right? Or was that just my childhood?