sueeeus

There is seldom a time when there is daylight, snow, the lot of us home, and a sled on hand. Seizing the opportunity, we ventured out into the cold for a few minutes of fun. Look at that red nose! Yes, we all have the sniffles.

Noh! (Snow!) Words are flowing. Dooh! (Stool!) Doh! (Door!) Bab-bab! (Backpack!) Myeeoon! (Moon!) It’s a delight. He runs from room to room pointing at things and announcing them with great pride. He is so pleased with himself, my sweet little one.

Poor little Boo. The sniffles started on Thursday or Friday and there was a little bit of fever here and there, accompanied by some tearing eyes with swollen eyelids, but he seemed to be feeling better on Saturday.

There was a bit of a croupy sounding cough which alarmed me, though, and then he started drooling. At that point it was Saturday night and I called the doctor, after having read that with that laundry list of symptoms, one should call the doctor immediately. She recommended Ibuprofen over Acetaminaphen, and plenty of fluids. Sometimes I think those books on children’s health, although trying to be helpful, introduce too much stress on the parents’ part. They seem to put forth the worst case scenario. I don’t want to be the one to freak out over every little thing and thus turn my child into a quivering quaking neurotic mess with little to no self-confidence. On the other hand, I don’t want to ignore or overlook things for which I ought to seek assistance. Sunday he had much more energy and the cough was less croupy. Monday he seemed energetic and boisterous. I gave him some Ibuprofen when we got home that night, just for good measure and not long after he got whiny and drowsy. I took his temperature and it was around 100. I held him and he fell asleep, but he felt very warm, so half an hour later I took his temp and it was 103.5 in one ear and 105.5 in the other. This freaked me out, so I stripped him down immediately and got in the bathtub with him, in lukewarm water. He screamed while I dabbed cool water on him. I held him close but kept gently wetting him, trying to cool him down. When his temp dropped to around 101 I put him on my lap out of the water but his temp rose immediately again, so back in the water we went. Meanwhile, we tried to reach the doctor. Finally, she called back and recommended alternating the Tylenol with the Motrin, every 2 hours, and also giving him some Sudafed. She asked that we bring him to the office in the morning, but if his fever spiked again so high before then, to take him to the ER. The Tylenol brought his fever down nicely, and we made it through an uneventful night. I’ve had the humidifier running with eucalyptus oil since Thursday, which has been somewhat of a help. Meanwhile, the full frontal onslaught of toddler coughs and sneezes has finally taken it’s toll, and today I find myself battling the bug as well.

The doctor confirmed that my 37 lb almost 2 year old has an ear infection, and possibly a throat infection as well, so prescribed antibiotics. His 2 year well child physical is next week. It’s uncanny how he manages to get sick enough to require a doctor visit one week before his regularly scheduled checkup. This has happened for the last four checkups (12, 15, 18, and 24 months). Weird. The nice part is that means he hasn’t been sick for six months.

We went to fill his prescription, but Costco wasn’t yet open, so we went to Target to kill 45 minutes. My poor little guy was whining and crying the whole time. I felt so bad for him, but look what I found! I’ve been hoping to find dishes like these for several years now. They’re never quite right, the dishes I encounter, but these plates! Oh, these plates I adore! They remind me of the Hubble nebulae photographs, which I LOVE! The bowls and cups are a bit off. I love the glaze, but not the shape. I ought to be a designer. It’s perfectly fine to mix round with square. Just because one has square plates does not mean the bowls must also be square. Sigh. Alas, Target didn’t ask me. I bought the set anyway, on the plate merit alone. What a find. They are stunning.

Back at Costco, we arrived 15 minutes after opening time, and it was completely packed. It’s insane. It must be senior citizen prescription filling day, because the wait at the pharmacy was two hours. TWO HOURS!! My sweet little boy fell asleep and I made a nest for him in the cart. Being the prepared mother that I am, I keep a comforter, pillow, and blanket in the car, so I can make a nest for him when he falls asleep shopping. This leaves only the space under the basket for items, which one might think would allow somebody to make it out of Costco without spending a small fortune, but somehow I managed to spend a fortune anyway. I had to kill two hours, after all. No, I didn’t need any more Method soap, but I like it, and it comes in nicely shaped bottles. I also didn’t need the 52 pack of disposable razors that I bought, even though Mr. Gadget assured me that he was getting low. Apparently he didn’t look in his cabinet where I put the 52 pack I got him the last time they had a coupon special. No more razors for at least a year. Diapers cost a fortune, but we consider them a necessity. Wipes as well, and those new Huggies wipes with aloe vera and cucumber smell so nice. Then there were the hand made thank you note cards. 30 for $10. I couldn’t pass that up. It’s easy to spend a fortune in that store, and because I’m one of those brainwashed tried and true dedicated Costco shoppers, I don’t mind. It’s Costco.

Although it was nice to have nearly two weeks off from work (even though some of that time was not nice at all), it is with a sigh of relief that I return to the office and my mundane life.  The skies are cloudy and grey, the decorations are put away.  No more garland, no twinkling lights, no ribbons and bows.  All is back to normal, and life in the suburbs goes on.  There is no more holiday chaos and suppressed or unsuppressed anxiety over expectations for idyllic picture book lives where all is merry and of good cheer.

A little someone continues to seek his mother around 2:30 every morning, and again around 6:00 a.m.  Five hours of continuous sleep is a prize!  Note to self:  Don’t allow the little one beverages after 6:00 p.m.  (Right.  Well then.  We’ll see about that.) 

We bathe, sometimes in the morning, sometimes in the evening, we dress, we play, we make messes, we tidy up, we wash clothes, we put them away, we prepare meals, we dine, we wash dishes, we buy groceries, we drive from here to there and back again.  We go to work or we go to daycare.  We spend our days and live a mostly comfortable routine, day in and day out.  It is very soothing, and I am grateful for this life we live.  It’s a good life.

I’m not big on formal resolutions (right, who am I kidding, what with all my various lists and journals), but I hope to make positive strides towards better health and harmonioius living.  Of course I’m hoping for a baby as well, but I’m a bit too timid to put too much hope there at this point.  I can only take so much heartbreak at a time.

All said, I am relieved to be through with 2006.  Hello 2007.  I’m ready for you.