Suckiness Trifecta*

(Thank you, MamaDaisy, for the superbly apropos title)

After at least five generous hours devoted to saving my teeth, Dentist Brother has managed to give me, among other things like a crown here and there, the most pain free root canal even known to any human. No, I can't give you his number here. But if you live in a remote northwestern corner of a state than begins with P, and you do need a pain-free root canal, email me.
Bubbles is having the most spectacular time with his cousins, as four of them are boys who have been willing to have him bounce off of their knees, or chase him incessantly. The weather here has been unseasonably warm (I am told that the oldtimers call it the 'January Thaw'), so we have been able to walk all over this small (home)town (of mine). My brand new loveliniece and her parents (my little brother and his wife, my 'other sister') live just three blocks from DB (where I am bunking), so the walking has been a refreshing change from my usual winter visits. (I hate cold and I hate being cold and no thank you, I do NOT want to go outside)
I am missing my Supergirl so much it hurts. I have never been away from her like this before. There was the six weeks hospitalization when I was pregnant with Elijah, but I saw her every evening, except for the one or two times that the winter storms were too intense for dh to drive them 'over the hill' to Los Gatos, 45 minutes away. This is so hard. We have talked each day, but still. Ouch.
Tomorrow evening we will head to Philadelphia, a six hour drive. WOOHOO! Go, us! Bubbles and I have snagged a ride with Little Bro, Other Sis, and Loveliniece. We are all hoping that the babies will sleep, leaving us to debaucherous jokes, gobs of gummy candies, and flashlight-assisted book reading for the majority of the trip. Shit, now I surely have cursed us all by mentioning it.

Anyway, hoping that my mom can take Bubbles for the three nights we will stay. I say this for a number of legitimate reasons:

1. We are all dealing with The Funeral on Saturday, and this is sad and stressful.
2. My mom has not seen Bubbles in one year. Last year he was learning how to walk. This year, he resembles the tasmanian devil.
3. Little Bro reported that she has said, "She calls him a monster! Can you believe that?"
4. It has been a very long time since she had a two year old.

So, while I am very much looking forward to my share of Philly cheesesteaks, I am not looking forward to facing the reality of the deaths of both my aunt and cousin.

And I am also hoping that my mom can handle the little monster Bubbles and not drop us off too early at the counter of doom (aka, Northwest Airlines).

Oh yes, and my mom has no internet service. So I am hoping that there is a cafe with free wi-fi within walking distance I can handle that.

(*travel hell + root canal + funeral = suckiness trifecta)