Are You There Normal? It's Me, Willian.

Well, I think we started making a turn towards normal yesterday. Bailey woke up at midnight, expecting it to be party time and I spent the next two and a half hours threatening her with a trip back to her own bed if she didn't go to sleep. It took a long time, but it worked. John ended up in bed with Audrey again (she woke up with bad dreams) and I got to catch another three hours of sleep after Bailey finally zonked out. Working with twice as much sleep as we've been getting lately isn't necessarily ideal, but I'll take it.

We were planning on riding back out to the VIC with John in the morning for his first day of work--I was also going to try to take the girls to a park called The Prater on the way back, but Audrey slept in until 8:30 and it was pretty cold and yucky out this morning, so we stayed in and got some stuff done around the apartment. 

After a full day without grocery shopping *gasp*, we seriously needed some provisions and I took the opportunity to pop over to an organic market that I've had my eye on. I loved it; I carried Bailey in the ergo while Audrey pushed her own kid-sized cart. The isles were roomy, the store wasn't crowded, the staff was friendly. It was a nice break from the usual supermarket scene. Now, the flip side of that is that everything is more expensive; until I find something better, I'll take it. 

Now, I know I implied we were taking it easy... Because I was on my own with the girls for the first time here, but that's not really the Willian way. I tend to start things as I mean to go on and adjust accordingly to my inevitable mistakes. I see it as a pleasant combination of independence and a humbling learning experiences. 

Since it was raining and we're staying in an apartment that is comfortable, but claustrophobic for kids, I decided to find somewhere we could go that was out of the elements. There are plenty of options in Vienna as far as that wide-open criteria goes, but I find myself hesitant to go to any of the many excellent museums and exhibits until I know I'm well rested enough to enjoy them. Wow, that wheedled down my list significantly, so after we dropped off our groceries at home, we headed right back out the door to explore a mall I had heard of and also figured this would be good practice changing lines on the U-Bahn, as this particular journey required riding on three lines. It was also an experiment in carrying all my gear alone, so you can see how I suspected I would have precious little energy to enjoy whatever lay at the end of our route; I have my bag, full of provisions and changes of clothing, an umbrella stroller for when Audrey's tired and the ergo for The Bear. And let's not forget two umbrellas.  It is quite a load. Now imagine pushing through crowds with it. Luckily, I've always been something of a bully when it comes to keeping my place in line or making sure people understand that "I'm walkin' here!". I actually enjoyed the challenge of finding my route and traversing the public transportation scene with my girls. I even got a little cocky once we got off our final U-Bhan stop and headed a few blocks in the pouring rain to the mall; Audrey was in the stroller with a death grip on her umbrella and I actually figured out a way to attach my umbrella through the tie on my jacket and the chest clip of the ergo so I could push the stroller with both hands free, thus essentially wearing a giant umbrella hat. I got quite a few baffled stares, but inside I was laughing maniacally: I got this! Willian:1 crap weather: 0! 

All that pink is burning my retinas!

Coming off of that high, imagine the steady deflation of my ego as I realized I got just what I asked for in our final destination; it was nothing to write home about. Because I didn't have the energy to be appreciating anything of worth, that's what I got. The girls had a good time though; they got to run around and I even let them ride a cheesy mini carousel. Audrey almost died of happiness when she found a Claire's and I let her get some hello kitty flip flops since she doesn't have any yet for the summer...and with all these overcast skies, God knows I need a little hope for summer. 

The girls were starting to wilt as we made our way home and since we're still not doing naps, the rest of the afternoon was quite a battle to keep them conscious. If I get a good night's sleep out of it, it'll be worth it. 

Watching yet another movie in an effort to keep these two conscious

John came home overwhelmed with information and with the news that the girls and I will be going in to get some stuff squared away at the VIC tomorrow. I'm excited to check it out and hopefully get the ball rolling on our more permanent life here. The new normal is certainly starting to show it's face.