So. A New Year.

New Year’s was pretty exciting. It was meant to be low-key, but: that didn’t pan out.

LA and I spent New Year’s Eve drinking Prosseco in our tiny hotel room. We started early, thinking that would  be a good idea. Instead: we finished the bottle long before the transition into the New Year. Result: we were very, very sleepy. Thankfully, we had some snacks.

New Year’s Day we got up and wandered over to the resort, where we had booked a private pool for a couple of hours. After about half an hour in the pool, we were bored. Now we know: pools of hot water, though certainly relaxing, are kind of boring. It was, however, beautiful. Here’s what the view looked like from our pool:

Later that afternoon, LA started having some pain. The pain got progressively worse. There was a lot of writhing and wailing. I started to worry. Finally, I drove her to the ER in Espanola, which is about half an hour away. Turns out: she had a kidney stone. Also turns out: kidney stones can be more painful than childbirth. So: OUCH.

This is what someone with a kidney stone looks like:

They doped her up a bit, and things got pretty goofy. I won’t get into the details here, but suffice it to say: there was a Wilson Phillips song involved. You know the one. You know you do.

The stone wasn’t big enough for them to do anything about it, so they sent us away with a couple of prescriptions and told her that at some point, she would pass the stone. There is no 24-hour pharmacy anywhere near Espanola or Ojo Caliente, so they gave her a couple of pain killers for the road. What they didn’t give her: any anti-nausea meds. As soon as we got back to our hotel, the painkillers they’d given her at the hospital had worn off and the nausea had set in. Lots of things happened: lots.

Finally: I drove back to the ER in Espanola a little before 2 a.m. to get some anti-nausea meds. They helped.

The next morning I once again drove to Espanola to get her prescriptions filled, as there is no pharmacy in Ojo Caliente. We had planned to drive home that day, but decided to stay an extra day, as she was still in pain. We just lounged around the hotel room all day, and I kept her doped up on painkillers. This is what it all looked like from her perspective:

Later, she told me that based on how well I took care of her, she thinks I’ll make a really great mother some day. It is simultaneously the nicest and most terrifying thing anyone has ever said to me.

We drove home the next day. Roads in New Mexico are not always appropriately labeled so: it took awhile.

Isobel and Yoshimi were super stoked to see us.

We’re finally getting back into the swing of things. I went back to work late last week and LA is back at work on a new dance piece.

Today: while I was at work, Yoshimi learned a lot about experimental dance.

Meanwhile: I am way behind with a lot of things, including finishing my best of 2012 playlist. But don’t you worry, little one: it’s coming.