On Putting Aside my "Best Laid Plans"...

I heard little steps on the stairs at 7:00. This is not a good sign on Sunday morning. The bathroom door opening before my door was also not a good sign. Little One walked over to th e bed with tears in her eyes. "I think I have the stomach flu. I didn't make it to the bathroom." Oh my. These are not the words any mother likes to hear. What makes it worse is that Little One always makes it in time. This could not be good. I jumped out of bed and followed her to the bathroom. There was work to be done. She laid down on the couch while I cleaned. I ran through my mind what she had eaten the previous night, hopeful that it was something she ate and not a virus. High school basketball game, two hot dogs...a grill cheese when she got home....uh oh...nothing to indicate a bad food reaction. I took her back to bed and tucked her in, hoping it was just a freak thing. 2o minutes later, she came in again, again not making her mark, and this time, feeling even worse. Ok, well, at least I knew what was coming...



Fast forward a couple of hours. 4 trips to the bathroom. 2 long crying jags (hers, not mine) and a full load of laundry...all before 9:00. My heart goes out to Little One. I guess everyone has a predilaction to some kind of illness...something that they tend to get. The Boy gets a cold....The Husband gets upper respiratory something or other....but Little One gets a stomach virus. This is hard to watch as a mom. Lots of patting and ponytail holding....and lots of trying to discreetly chlorox everything in sight. Then there is this...



The first hour, I find myself wondering if I have it too, or is it just my reaction to her? Ok, I think I am ok. Then there is the mental review and tweak of the day, knowing that church is out...and so are any hopes of finishing the painting and the french novel. The Husband and Boy have a busy day planned, so they will be fine. Neither have risen from bed yet...and when they hear about Little One, they will make a quick exit...There was the aborted attempt to do a yoga tape in between bathroom trips, in some sort of pitiful effort to feel productive....but that failed when Little One ran through yelling "Grab my ponytail...it'c coming again!!'...



So today, I will give up all thought of any of my "best laid plans', and just try and comfort Little One. Is there anything worse than being 10 years old with a stomach virus on a Sunday? Not in her eyes.



Until tomorrow, when the 24 hour rule probably dictates that Little One will miss school...which means more rearranging and adjusting of plans.....but she is calling again....

The Yearly Gift Exchange

Saturday evening, we had our yearly Christmas celebration with our BFFs. This includes dinner and gift exchange, followed by some sort of activity. The Boy has been very sick since Friday, so he made a brief appearance, and then excused himself and headed back to bed (with his wonderful football signed by all of the Atlanta Falcons in hand...what a cool gift). Little One was thrilled by her jewelry-making bead set, and she set to work immediately designing some lovely necklaces. The Husband received an assortment of 'man stuff'... but he was drawn to the flashlight that goes on the forehead. He immediately took the sick Boy outside with him to try it out in the dark. These are the things that men do. I did, however, understand how that could be useful. Little One and I will enjoy wearing it at night while we search for crabs at the beach...

I received a beautiful tray that looked like a vintage french postcard...the kind of gift that just thrills you because it is given by someone who has to really know you well...Many thanks...

After all of the gift-giving, we settled down to watch the movie 'Julie and Julia'. Now as I have discussed before, we generally alternate back and forth between guy and girl picks for movies in this foursome. Last time, we watched 'Star Trek"...which though it was a "guy pick", was actually very good. So this time was the girls' turn...Another friend of mine had suggested "Julia" to me, saying that it would be right up my alley. And it was. But I have to admit to feeling a little guilty and embarrassed after the movie. It took place in Paris, and it dealt with French, writing...specifically blogging. It was as if I had invited people over to watch me do what I like. Though the guys were gracious enough to say that it wasn't the "worst they'd ever seen"....I will definitely be taking myself out of the equation on movie picks for awhile...

The Boy and I spent the day in our respective beds yesterday...he with a high fever, and me feeling sick, but not taking my temperature for 2 reasons....I figured if I didn't know, I didn't have it......and secondly, no matter how many times I sterilized the thermometer...germs would be spread. So this morning, we are headed to the doctor. He seems to be on the mend....but 3 days of high fever has him looking really worn.

Little One is fine...except for remembering that she forgot to do some homework...oh well

So until tomorrow...let's hope for good news at the doctor.....

Monday is an Awful Way to Spend 1/7 of your Life. Steven Wright

Friday afternoon was such a relief. Little One was finished with all of her tests for the week, and had ended them on a high note with an A on her Wordly Wise test. Bouyed by her achievement, she was ready to ride the coat tails of this accomplishment all weekend. To everything she asked for, she added, "Cause you know , I made an A on my test". Now I let that ride for extra dessert and late bedtime, but eventually, I had to draw the line. After having The Boy home sick all week with the flu, I was just not in the mood for the requisite Friday night sleepover...not even the "A on my test" could change my mind...



The Boy seemed so much better Friday. He had even convinced The Husband that he would be fine for playing in a travel baseball game on Saturday morning. I had my doubts about his, but I kept my over-protective-mom-mouth shut. Until Friday came and I happened to feel his forehead for the 876th time this week. Uh oh. Warm. He looked at me with pleading eyes, but I reached for the thermometer. 101. I knew what was coming. I announced to The Husband that he had a fever. The Boy exclaimed that it was "hardly anything" and he was fine. The Husband looked from his face to my face...and he made the following cowardly statement. "Listen to mom. We'll do whatever she says." ...Now, do not be fooled into thinking this was supportive. This was The Husband not being the "bad guy". This is the role he likes to play. The Boy stomped upstairs, angry at mom and the world...and not feeling so great either. I just stared at The Husband. "What???" he said. "So you think he should play tomorrow...after being sick a week and still with fever?" ....."I didn't say that."........Here is the thing. I do not reward sickness. Really, I don't. In our house, if you don't have fever or vomiting, you are pretty much going to school. In fact, Big Sister and The Senior will swear that I occasionally sent them on their deathbeds. But that isn't true either. They just didn't like the rule that stated "If you stay home, there is no phone time and you must stay in bed"......But back to the point. The Boy had no business doing anything except resting over the weekend. And that was that. I climbed the stairs and went to tell him that I was sorry...and being The Boy, he said "I guess that means I don't have to go to church on Sunday either, huh?".....even with fever, he is the great negotiator.



Saturday morning it was pouring down rain...we all slept late, and The Boy got up fever-free. Now they will never admit it, but Boy and Husband were both happy to be in the bed instead of on the ball field that morning.



Sunday morning, I got up to get ready for church, and I decided that The Boy should probably stay in one more day. I told The Husband that I would take Little One and go alone...and he grunted in agreement. The funny thing about The Husband is that he is somehow always able to make me feel like he is doing me a favor by sleeping late. It is an amazing gift he has....



So that's it for today. Everyone is back in school today. The house seems very quiet without The Boy here. But I'll trade a quiet house for a healthy Boy any day....until tomorrow....

"If You Treat a Sick Child Like and Adult, and a Sick Adult Like a Child, Everything Turns Out Pretty Well."

The Boy woke up this morning fever-free for the first time this week. I went up to check on him and found him sitting on the stairs outside his bedroom. "You ok?" I asked. "Yeah. Making my way to the shower." He's a little on the weak side. Not that he ever lost his appetite. The Boy NEVER loses the appetite. Yesterday morning, he woke up briefly after I had taken Little One to school. He immediately threw up, and went back to bed. Around noon, I checked in on him, and he was lying still in his bed. "What time is it?" he asked. "Noon" I replied. "What's for lunch?" he asked. "I figured you wouldn't be hungry". He sat up quickly in bed. "Mom, I'm never not hungry. I was thinking of the new barbecue chicken sandwich from Zaxby's". This was comforting for me. I can't sleep when the kids are sick, and this week has been a double whammy. In addition to The Boy, The Senior is sick too. I can't get to her to help, so my answer is to worry about her doubley as much. I'm hopeful that everyone is on the mend...and saying a little prayer that the normal chain of events don't happen...that would be Little One getting sick this weekend and then me on Monday....

Little One brought home "great news" yesterday. Every time there is a field trip, she puts my name in the basket as a chapperone. I've been to the science museum, the dairy....wherever they go. This time it was for an overnight trip to the zoo. Can I be honest here? I might have been hoping to be overlooked on this one. The zoo part is fine....but the overnight part, sleeping in the same room with 45 kids and 10 other parents and the principal...not so much. Little One informed me that I will have a lovely blow-up mattress to sleep on. I may not sleep in pajamas, but sweatpants are fine. There will be no showers for anyone. Goody. Can't wait. And this is the reason I gave up the glamorous job and trips to Paris...Just kidding.

One last TV item. Those 2 new shows, 'Modern Family' and 'Cougartown' are so funny that they make me laugh all week. At first I though the 'Cougartown' was going to be too crude or silly, but it isn't. Courtney Cox's character is so honest that besides being hilarious, it is touching. The show I was looking so much forward to...The Good Wife...is ok. The Husband says I don't like it as much because it turns our that Mr. Big (Chris Noth) isn't in it very much, and this could be true. But the story lines are kind of predictable too. I'm going to give it a few more weeks...

So until next week, with hopes that everyone will be well...and with much anticipation for the zoo trip...

"Joy and Temperance and Repose, Slam the Door on the Doctor's Nose" Longfellow

Is it Friday yet? I usually try to avoid that kind of thinking, but everyone in our house has been feeling "on the verge" of being sick. Somehow it seems like a weekend of sleep and relaxation will solve it all, but The Boy has 5 ballgames this coming weekend, so this vision of r & r may not materialize.

Little One woke up yesterday morning in an unusually bad mood. She is normally robotic in her morning routine, pausing only to ask how her hair looks or hide her hearing aids. But a sore throat and little cough had her feeling down. As I woke her up for school, she cried a little and declared she felt "weird". I took this as a sign and told her to just stay in bed. But as I was unpacking her lunch box, I heard her yell from upstairs, "I'm going!". The thing about Little One is that she is a mover. She doesn't like the thought of hanging in bed all day (wait till she grows up, right?). Our rule is, if you stay home, you stay in. No friends or activities or practices...and this is painful for Little One. So she stumbled down the stairs and sat down to eat, tears rolling down her face. I gently explained to her that maybe it would be best to stay home and sleep, but she said she would stick it out. But the longer she sat, the harder she cried...so I finally had to exercise my mom-authority and tell her to go back to bed. She nodded slowly, took off her tennis shoes, and headed back up the stairs, mumbling "I hope you let me play outside later if I feel better".

The funny thing is, under the same circumstances, The Boy would be just as careful in deciding to stay home, because he cannot stand the thought of getting behind...but once he decides to stay home, don't even try to pry him out of bed...

A little while later, The Senior called on her way to class. She, too, was feeling under the weather, but was experiencing what all mothers experience...and that is, when you are a mom, how you feel doesn't matter very much. She had woken up early to take the Tyke to daycare so she could get to school and study, but she was wishing she could just go back home and sleep. I had a flash-back to a few years earlier when she would bow out of class due to rainy days and late nights...but things change and people grow up...and responsibility is the toughest teacher of all. And suddenly she remembered that her professor was showing a movie in class, so that only left that pesky weight-lifting class to get through...and all of a sudden things didn't seem so dire..and so "thanks for chatting mom, but I have stuff to do"...

The Husband doesn't believe in missing work for illness. He is extremely disciplined and refuses to give into that sort of thing...and besides, if you're home in bed, you don't get to be in control....

So until tomorrow...Friday....which seems like the goal-line this week....