On the mend

We started out our day in the tub because that's what you do when the diaper fails to hold all of that baby delight (by the way, it was not delightful.  It was pretty grody; my sinuses are still pretty stuffed, though, so I didn't really smell anything and Finn enjoyed a few minutes of splashing).

I've been holed up in my yoga pants for the past week, nursing first the baby and then myself through quite possibly the worst cold EVER, but I think we're all almost healthy .  Well, except Uriah, who's sinuses strarted to bother him yesterday.  But I've been plying him liberally with Sudafed and orange juice in an effort to circumvent the worst of it (for the record, I realize that I make a really bad sick person, especially when it lasts longer than 14 seconds, and especially, especially when I loose my ability to taste; I get snappy and unreasonab le.  However, I'm a damn fine nurse!). 

It always amazed me how families talked about passing the flu or a cold around their house; how every single person somehow managed to be stricken with the plauge of the moment.  "Have you not heard of Lysol Disinfectant spray?" I'd think. "Wash your hands, for crying out loud!"  Honestly, I had no idea that you can Lysol the crap out of your house 24 hours a day, boil everything including the bed sheets and the kitchen sink, and wash your hands constantly, and still end up passing that virus around. 

So, I guess we're looking at another week at least before we can claim to be 100% healthy.   In the meantime, it's teetering on the brink of March which means, among other things, St. Patty's Day and Uriah's birthday, two of my most favorite holidays, and hopefully some nice spring weather will be here to stay, too.

We started out our day in the tub because that's what you do when the diaper fails to hold all of that baby delight (by the way, it was not delightful.  It was pretty grody; my sinuses are still pretty stuffed, though, so I didn't really smell anything and Finn enjoyed a few minutes of splashing).

I've been holed up in my yoga pants for the past week, nursing first the baby and then myself through quite possibly the worst cold EVER, but I think we're all almost healthy .  Well, except Uriah, who's sinuses strarted to bother him yesterday.  But I've been plying him liberally with Sudafed and orange juice in an effort to circumvent the worst of it (for the record, I realize that I make a really bad sick person, especially when it lasts longer than 14 seconds, and especially, especially when I loose my ability to taste; I get snappy and unreasonab le.  However, I'm a damn fine nurse!). 

It always amazed me how families talked about passing the flu or a cold around their house; how every single person somehow managed to be stricken with the plauge of the moment.  "Have you not heard of Lysol Disinfectant spray?" I'd think. "Wash your hands, for crying out loud!"  Honestly, I had no idea that you can Lysol the crap out of your house 24 hours a day, boil everything including the bed sheets and the kitchen sink, and wash your hands constantly, and still end up passing that virus around. 

So, I guess we're looking at another week at least before we can claim to be 100% healthy.   In the meantime, it's teetering on the brink of March which means, among other things, St. Patty's Day and Uriah's birthday, two of my most favorite holidays, and hopefully some nice spring weather will be here to stay, too.

You know that feeling...

...where if you put your head down you're pretty sure your face will explode through your sinuses due to the obscene amount of pressure?

That's how I feel.

Finn and I wore pj's all day yesterday and took two naps on the couch and played a little and read some books.  Mostly, though, we were just lazy, working our collective way through the first season of Grey's Anatomy (sidebar: I'd forgotten how good the writing was in the first couple of seasons.  The story lines were crisp, the dialogue was witty and I miss George).   I thought that all that it would take was one lazy, uneventful day and I would wake up today, miraculously cured of this demon sinus pain.  After all, Uriah only felt sick for about a day and a half...logic dictates that I should be better in the same amount of time.

Not so much.

Abby had play practice at the butt-crack of dawn this morning and Uriah, thankfully, took her.  He snuggled Finn into bed with me; I scratched his little back until he settled down and together we slept for another 2 hours (Uriah took a quick snooze on the couch when he got back from taking Abby; there was no room in the big bed!).

Finn, thankfully, is looking and feeling so much better this morning (the extra sleep he got this morning was necessary).  I think his top teeth are working their way in because his cheeks were really red yesterday and he was more drooly than usual, but this morning his eyes were bright and alert, his little arms and legs were wiggling, he was giggling and best of all...his nose wasn't overly stuffy!  All good signs toward being healthy, I'd say.

Fingers crossed that I'm next to topple into the healthy category...and soon!

...where if you put your head down you're pretty sure your face will explode through your sinuses due to the obscene amount of pressure?

That's how I feel.

Finn and I wore pj's all day yesterday and took two naps on the couch and played a little and read some books.  Mostly, though, we were just lazy, working our collective way through the first season of Grey's Anatomy (sidebar: I'd forgotten how good the writing was in the first couple of seasons.  The story lines were crisp, the dialogue was witty and I miss George).   I thought that all that it would take was one lazy, uneventful day and I would wake up today, miraculously cured of this demon sinus pain.  After all, Uriah only felt sick for about a day and a half...logic dictates that I should be better in the same amount of time.

Not so much.

Abby had play practice at the butt-crack of dawn this morning and Uriah, thankfully, took her.  He snuggled Finn into bed with me; I scratched his little back until he settled down and together we slept for another 2 hours (Uriah took a quick snooze on the couch when he got back from taking Abby; there was no room in the big bed!).

Finn, thankfully, is looking and feeling so much better this morning (the extra sleep he got this morning was necessary).  I think his top teeth are working their way in because his cheeks were really red yesterday and he was more drooly than usual, but this morning his eyes were bright and alert, his little arms and legs were wiggling, he was giggling and best of all...his nose wasn't overly stuffy!  All good signs toward being healthy, I'd say.

Fingers crossed that I'm next to topple into the healthy category...and soon!

Sick Baby

Finn is sick and it is yucky (I'm trying really hard not to use the words sucks and stupid...try it sometime, it's really hard!).

I was telling his daycare teacher on Wednesday morning when I dropped him off that he seemed to have a bit of a cough and could she please keep an eye on it for me.  She pulled out a bright yellow letter and proceeded to tell me that one of the kiddos in Finn's class went home sick on Monday and ended up with RSV (read: really grody viral infection that causes cold-like symptoms such as coughing and snotty noses and can, in some cases, lead to pneumonia).

Awesome.

When I got home from work on Wednesday night, Uriah was a little frazzled.  Finn's cough had gotten deeper and his little baby eyes looked tired (probably because he didn't really nap much during the day).  I gave him a warm bath and a bedtime bottle and put him to bed.  He slept pretty well, only waking up once because he couldn't roll over (he's a lazy sleeper and prefers to have someone move him.  We will be addressing this soon.).  Thursday morning he still had a cough and his nose was runny, but he didn'thave a temperature, (no temp, baby's going to school and mama's going to make some money) so off to school we went.   


{Thursday | 2.17.11}

That lasted until his teacher called me at 11:30 to tell me he didn't have a fever, but that he just wasn't himself (and I definetly trust the woman who snuggles my baby for the 8 hours a day that I can't to know when my son isn't acting like himself!).  By the time I got to school to pick him up, he looked worn out, even though he'd just taken a little nap; he was coughing and sounding like a pug and clearly miserable.  I picked him up and I am telling you what...there is nothing, nothing, like being someone's hero.  Baby Boy was so sad and so stuffed up; he wrapped his little arms around my neck and I had to peel him off to get his jacket and hat on so we could go home.
I put in a call to his doctor, but she said there was really nothing they could do and to just watch him but come in if he was having a hard time breathing.  So I watched him all afternoon.  I watched him as he napped with me on the couch and I kept my hand on his chest to make sure he was breathing easy.  I watched him while I made dinner, sucking snot out of his nose and rubbing his back.  I watched him after I laid him down in his crib and turned the monitor up extra high so we'd hear him if he woke up during the night.  And then Uriah watched him all day Friday, looking for any signs of difficutly breathing and sucking snot out of his tiny nose.  And then we both watched him yesterday, taking turns playing with him when he felt good and snuggling with him we he felt yucky.


{Saturday | 2.19.11}

We are doing the same thing today becasue he's still snotty and coughing and just not well.  And after 5 days of being coughed on and sneezed on and used as a human kleenex, both Uriah and I are starting to feel like Finn...yucky. 

Actually, it's worse than that...it's the word that rhymes with yucky.

Finn is sick and it is yucky (I'm trying really hard not to use the words sucks and stupid...try it sometime, it's really hard!).

I was telling his daycare teacher on Wednesday morning when I dropped him off that he seemed to have a bit of a cough and could she please keep an eye on it for me.  She pulled out a bright yellow letter and proceeded to tell me that one of the kiddos in Finn's class went home sick on Monday and ended up with RSV (read: really grody viral infection that causes cold-like symptoms such as coughing and snotty noses and can, in some cases, lead to pneumonia).

Awesome.

When I got home from work on Wednesday night, Uriah was a little frazzled.  Finn's cough had gotten deeper and his little baby eyes looked tired (probably because he didn't really nap much during the day).  I gave him a warm bath and a bedtime bottle and put him to bed.  He slept pretty well, only waking up once because he couldn't roll over (he's a lazy sleeper and prefers to have someone move him.  We will be addressing this soon.).  Thursday morning he still had a cough and his nose was runny, but he didn'thave a temperature, (no temp, baby's going to school and mama's going to make some money) so off to school we went.   


{Thursday | 2.17.11}

That lasted until his teacher called me at 11:30 to tell me he didn't have a fever, but that he just wasn't himself (and I definetly trust the woman who snuggles my baby for the 8 hours a day that I can't to know when my son isn't acting like himself!).  By the time I got to school to pick him up, he looked worn out, even though he'd just taken a little nap; he was coughing and sounding like a pug and clearly miserable.  I picked him up and I am telling you what...there is nothing, nothing, like being someone's hero.  Baby Boy was so sad and so stuffed up; he wrapped his little arms around my neck and I had to peel him off to get his jacket and hat on so we could go home.
I put in a call to his doctor, but she said there was really nothing they could do and to just watch him but come in if he was having a hard time breathing.  So I watched him all afternoon.  I watched him as he napped with me on the couch and I kept my hand on his chest to make sure he was breathing easy.  I watched him while I made dinner, sucking snot out of his nose and rubbing his back.  I watched him after I laid him down in his crib and turned the monitor up extra high so we'd hear him if he woke up during the night.  And then Uriah watched him all day Friday, looking for any signs of difficutly breathing and sucking snot out of his tiny nose.  And then we both watched him yesterday, taking turns playing with him when he felt good and snuggling with him we he felt yucky.


{Saturday | 2.19.11}

We are doing the same thing today becasue he's still snotty and coughing and just not well.  And after 5 days of being coughed on and sneezed on and used as a human kleenex, both Uriah and I are starting to feel like Finn...yucky. 

Actually, it's worse than that...it's the word that rhymes with yucky.

And here we all are.

Finn is sick (more on that later).

Uriah is sick of his job (wishing we were independently wealthy).

And, Abby...well, Abby got a role in her school play.  She has the most lines (She counted.  She counted everyone's lines.  She has the most.  She tells us daily.).

This is going to be an interesting experience.

Play practice is at 7:00 Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday...IN THE MORNING!  What happened to practicing after school, people?  I am not very agreeable to the morning-times and I am less so when I have to drive the girl that is BFF with the AM to school and listen to her run her lines...AT 7:00 IN THE MORNING!

Lord help me.

I also found a list in the bottom of her backpack yesterday.  It was titled: Things I need for school and it included such items as: hair ties, brush, deo (I guess that's shorthand for deodorant? At least she's conscious of body odor, so, bonus.), toothbrush and mouthwash (um...what?  I have to remind her to brush her teeth at night, but she wants to do it in school?!  I'm not complaining; brush away!  But don't try to tell me it's for dental hygiene.  I'm sure the real reason is a boy.), and...mascara.

Mascara?  Seriously?  Mascara?!  The rule in our house is that she has to wait at least until she's 13 to start wearing make-up in public.  We've had issues with her school uniform in the past and I know that she's aching to have her own style and that's really hard to do when you have to wear a uniform to school, so probably the only way those girls can establish some sort of identity is to wear make-up.  And I have seen the make-up job on some of those girls at her school.  I don't believe that any visit to the cosmetics counter would result in the application technique I've seen applied in the school hallways.  But, based on the money that I spend for prescription face cream, I want to keep her face as clean and clear as possible for as long as I can.

I think I'm fighting an uphill battle here, people.

Finn is sick (more on that later).

Uriah is sick of his job (wishing we were independently wealthy).

And, Abby...well, Abby got a role in her school play.  She has the most lines (She counted.  She counted everyone's lines.  She has the most.  She tells us daily.).

This is going to be an interesting experience.

Play practice is at 7:00 Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday...IN THE MORNING!  What happened to practicing after school, people?  I am not very agreeable to the morning-times and I am less so when I have to drive the girl that is BFF with the AM to school and listen to her run her lines...AT 7:00 IN THE MORNING!

Lord help me.

I also found a list in the bottom of her backpack yesterday.  It was titled: Things I need for school and it included such items as: hair ties, brush, deo (I guess that's shorthand for deodorant? At least she's conscious of body odor, so, bonus.), toothbrush and mouthwash (um...what?  I have to remind her to brush her teeth at night, but she wants to do it in school?!  I'm not complaining; brush away!  But don't try to tell me it's for dental hygiene.  I'm sure the real reason is a boy.), and...mascara.

Mascara?  Seriously?  Mascara?!  The rule in our house is that she has to wait at least until she's 13 to start wearing make-up in public.  We've had issues with her school uniform in the past and I know that she's aching to have her own style and that's really hard to do when you have to wear a uniform to school, so probably the only way those girls can establish some sort of identity is to wear make-up.  And I have seen the make-up job on some of those girls at her school.  I don't believe that any visit to the cosmetics counter would result in the application technique I've seen applied in the school hallways.  But, based on the money that I spend for prescription face cream, I want to keep her face as clean and clear as possible for as long as I can.

I think I'm fighting an uphill battle here, people.

Love

Do you know what I love most about this picture?  (Besides the fact that Abby is looking at Finn's tooth and Finn is looking at Abby like she is WonderWoman, I mean).  I love Finn's little hand on Abby's shoulder.  Before I was ever even pregnant, Abby asked me what she was supposed to call her future siblings.  I was confused and asked her to clarify.  She said: half brother or sister...step brother or sister?  I said how about just brother or sister.  Because really, the term "half" doesn't apply to these two.  They love each other wholly and completely and know only that one will be there for the other - all of the time, not just half of the time - that's what brothers and sisters do.  I couldn't ask for anything more for these two. 

Six months ago, I was a hot mess.  I had no idea what to do with this squirming, squalling baby boy whom I was suddenly entrusted with to keep alive.  Over the days and weeks and months, he has become my best boy, my morning sunshine and my evening prayer.  Never in my life did I think that my heart could feel like this.

They say that love is unconditional, but ours most definitely has conditions.  We are required to put the toilet seat down - at. all. times.  There is no going to bed angry.  We cannot both be in a funk at the same time - one must always be the cheerleader for the other based on who is the funkiest.  We are required to make each other laugh daily.  If we are stopped at a red light, we have to kiss.  We must constantly dream big dreams for our littles.  Most importantly, though, we are required to grow old together. 

I hope your day is as full of love as mine is...

Do you know what I love most about this picture?  (Besides the fact that Abby is looking at Finn's tooth and Finn is looking at Abby like she is WonderWoman, I mean).  I love Finn's little hand on Abby's shoulder.  Before I was ever even pregnant, Abby asked me what she was supposed to call her future siblings.  I was confused and asked her to clarify.  She said: half brother or sister...step brother or sister?  I said how about just brother or sister.  Because really, the term "half" doesn't apply to these two.  They love each other wholly and completely and know only that one will be there for the other - all of the time, not just half of the time - that's what brothers and sisters do.  I couldn't ask for anything more for these two. 

Six months ago, I was a hot mess.  I had no idea what to do with this squirming, squalling baby boy whom I was suddenly entrusted with to keep alive.  Over the days and weeks and months, he has become my best boy, my morning sunshine and my evening prayer.  Never in my life did I think that my heart could feel like this.

They say that love is unconditional, but ours most definitely has conditions.  We are required to put the toilet seat down - at. all. times.  There is no going to bed angry.  We cannot both be in a funk at the same time - one must always be the cheerleader for the other based on who is the funkiest.  We are required to make each other laugh daily.  If we are stopped at a red light, we have to kiss.  We must constantly dream big dreams for our littles.  Most importantly, though, we are required to grow old together. 

I hope your day is as full of love as mine is...