Weekend Getaway

We took a short vacation to Gatlinburg last weekend.  Alex did a great job picking out an awesome chalet that had a gorgeous view and the timing could not have been more perfect.  The leaves were in peak color transition and everything was breathtaking.The boys had lots of fun playing with leaves and going on a couple of short hikes and I think they had the most fun just hanging out with their family.  The got to play with their cousin, Samantha, and hang out with MamaLinda and Pop and Aunt Janie and Uncle Brian.

I was kind of a buzzkill the whole weekend because I've been really sick.  I did manage to make it on 2 short hikes, but I mostly just sat on the deck or in the hot tub looking at the trees.

 Here's a little tip: don't go to the mountains with a sinus infection.  I ended up with 2 ruptured eardrums.  My left eardrum ruptured the first night we were there and the right one followed the next day.  I'm on my second antibiotic now and will have to see an ENT if my hearing doesn't return to normal in the next few days.

I feel pretty crappy still, but the muffled, distorted hearing is the worst of any of my symptoms.  It's really hard to mother when you can't hear.  I can't hear the boys if they wake up at night (and let's face it, Alex isn't very easy to wake up) and I can't hear them getting into mischief if I leave the room.  I know Alex is tired of repeating himself and definitely doesn't want to watch TV with me because I either constantly ask him to recap things or just kind of sit there and don't get any of the jokes.

I also have lots of trouble cooking.  I can't hear, smell or taste, so I can't hear things sizzling or getting to hot if I walk away from the stove and I can't tell if anything is seasoned correctly.  

Poor Alex.