It Has Been a Really Rough Migraine Week

As evidenced by the bao. Seriously, I don’t think I’ve ever made a bao-cano before. Of course, I don’t usually attempt meals with higher degrees of difficulty on migraine days, but I have a missionary leaving next week and I promised him bao one more time before he leaves. So, it was not optional. And despite the multitude of explosions, they still tasted delightful. And I managed to position the parchment paper carefully enough that the steamer baskets didn’t even need to be scrubbed after the eruption. I definitely deserve extra points for that one!

The Grid System: Brother Brigham Knew What He Was Doing

As the mother of three boys, I’ve learned more about planes, trains and automobiles than I ever wanted to know. In the early years, it started with Thomas the Tank Engine, moved on to Bob the Builder and was rounded out by Lightning McQueen. Over the ensuing years, those passions have become more real world and less cartoon focused. Daniel’s interest has pretty much become laser focused on airplanes and spacecraft while Matthew loves planes and has a healthy interest in cars as well. It helps that Kevin is also very interested in these types of vehicles as it gives them a common interest and some built-in hobby buddies. Nathan is the only one who kind of broke the mold and finds airplanes interesting but not fascinating. 

Having said all that, I don’t think we could actually ever plan a vacation without some or most of my boys searching out any airplane or space related museums or tours that are within a reasonable distance of our vacation destination. This trip was no exception and today’s entertainment was a stop at the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon. As we started our second day of driving, the anticipation in the car was high. We had a few hours’ drive to get there, but unlike the highway driving we have done on many trips, the whole second half was through rural areas. And unlike our own lovely little valley, Oregon’s roads were clearly not planned in advance in a sensible and orderly manner. This would definitely be an area where roads were created out of a need to get from one place to another regardless of how short, long, curvy, or confusing they might be. I know the surrounding landscape is a large determining factor in the paths that develop, but seriously, I think some of these paths might have been simply the way the cows chose to wander as they moseyed around the farm. As we began today’s trek, Google maps and the incredibly convenient Apple CarPlay feature in our new vehicle became our navigators. I’ve navigated via paper map before (yes, I know that dates me, but it was a necessary skill for the directionally impaired), but newer technologies make things a whole lot easier. Honestly, without a map of some sort, there is no way we would have ever gotten from point A to point B. But we did make it there in good time and for our airplane enthusiasts, it was a great way to start our vacation.

I always learn stuff when we make these stops and while it doesn’t make me giddy with excitement, at times I do actually find it interesting. The big ticket item at today’s stop was a viewing of the Spruce Goose, the biggest wooden airplane ever built. I had never even heard of it before planning for this adventure began, but now I can tell you quite a bit about its history. And while it was fairly interesting, if you really want to learn about it, ask one of my menfolk. They can give you all the details. In fact, there was an opportunity for the four of them to take a tour of the cockpit and they jumped at the chance. It was an additional charge and Malia and I really didn’t care, so we opted to wait while they took the tour. And that actually ended up being a good choice because the lighting in the museum was wacky, the kind of wacky that triggers migraines for me. It’s not something I can describe, but when I walk into a building with troublesome lighting, I can actually see it. It's not really a flicker and it’s not always a discernable color, but I can always tell. I slipped on my sunglasses right away, but by the time I’d been in the museum for thirty or forty minutes, I was definitely in migraine mode and had to step outside. Strong smells can trigger my migraines as well, and I suspect the smell of old airplane fuel and oil contributed to my descent into headache. Malia came with me because she was thoroughly bored, and we wandered around the parking lot while the boys did their thing. 

When the boys finally made their way back to us, they were all terribly happy with their time spent. They saw lots of cool stuff and honestly, I think they could have spent a great deal more time there. They just cruised through the entire space exhibit due to timing, but I think they would have lingered more if we had not needed to make our way to our vacation rental and dinner. So for the boys, the museum lived up to all their expectations. My meds helped ease my headache and Malia and I are looking forward to the activities the next few days hold.

It Was Big

This afternoon Kev took all the kids on a spur of the moment trip to see a train that is passing through the area on its way to be restored in Denver. I opted not to go as there were other things I needed to do and since I ended up developing a big old migraine, I was glad I had decided to stay home. But Kev and the kids had a grand time seeing one of the few remaining “Big Boys.”

The train you can see is all engine, no additional cars. That's one big engine!

I've Said It Before And I'll Say It Again...

...I'd happily be chubby and near-sighted for eternity if it meant I never had to have another headache.  Especially the migraines that are so bad that I have to call Kev and have him come home from work because I cannot get out of bed without falling down.  Yesterday it was so bad that I couldn't even move my eyes without the making the room spin and my stomach roll.  Good times...not.

Please Pass the Advil!!!!!

I woke up on Saturday morning with a headache. Not a My-head-is-a-bit-achey-I-think-I'll-take-a-couple-Tylenol headache. A Holy-cow-when-I-move-anything-the-whole- world-spins headache. For those of you who are lucky enough not to be afflicted with migraines or other such heinous types of headaches, let me describe what it is like. First, take a railroad spike (the bigger and rustier the better) and shove it through your head. Location doesn't matter much, although my personal favorites are the temples and right behind my ears. Now, tune your radio to whatever kind of music you absolutely abhor. Whether it is country or hip hop, rap or hard rock, make it really loathsome. And then turn it up as loud as you can. Loud enough that your teeth vibrate. Next, look directly into the sun. Then add in some dizziness, nausea, and vomiting and you've got a pretty good idea of what a really gruesome headache feels like. I know that people look forward to being resurrected and being restored to their perfect bodies for a variety of reasons, everything from anxiously awaiting the return of the thin, svelte pre-baby body to welcoming a full, lush landscape of hair. But me, the things I look forward to the most are not having to endure any more skull crushing headaches and being able to see farther than three inches without my glasses. Seriously, I would happily be fat for eternity if it meant I never had to spend another day vomiting due to the enormously sharp pain in my temporal lobe.

As a result of this mind numbing experience, I missed the opera and dinner with my mom and my sisters. I was totally bummed. It was PF Chang's and Don Giovanni for heaven's sake! Mozart! So to make myself feel better (a little bit anyway), I used the money I had set aside for dinner and bought a pair of shoes. They are red. And cute. And they were on sale. And the 6 1/2 actually fit even though I usually can't cram my short, fat little feet into a regular width shoe. And I was lucky enough to get the last pair in my size in the store. And there was a teeny tiny ding on one shoe so they gave me an additional 10% off. And when my change came out as 98 cents, the guy just gave me $1. So I missed dinner and the opera (dang it!), but I got a really cute pair of shoes at 56% off the regular price. And they are red. My favorite color.