Sick of being Sick!

I think it is time to fumigate our house and rid of all germs. January has been nothing but one long revolving cold for our family.

Sophia came home from school on January 6 with a runny nose and a cough. She seemed a little better Saturday morning so we proceeded with our plans for the day. We even went to our neighbors for dinner (gee I hope they didn't get the bug!) I knew she was going down hill when she didn't want to play and went to lay down on the couch. I think we skipped church on Sunday because by this time both Sophia and Emma were snuffly and just not feeling great.

And so the week went. Both stayed home sick on Monday, Emma came home early on Tuesday because of fever, not eating, not eliminating.  Thursday Emma was home. Sophia just suffered through the rest of the week. I went out of town on Friday. My husband called when I landed to let  me know he was going to have to leave work and get Emma again.

That weekend landed Emma at the doctor's office at 6:15pm on a Friday night and a trip to the ER on Sunday. All while I was out of town. Helpless. My husband dealing with two sick kids - solo. I ended up having to take two more days off the next week because Emma was consistently running fevers.She returned to daycare on Wednesday but still had a low grade fever. At least by this time we figured out the cause of the fevers and finickiness- TEETH. Finally at 10 months she was getting her first tooth. But apparently this kid goes big or goes home-she has two coming in simultaneously on the top and I think two on the bottom as well. As of today they have finally broken through the surface of the gumline.

Meanwhile Sophia's runny nose has stopped but she has been running low grade fevers still and has now developed a cough. We went to the doctor Tuesday evening. She definitely has some rasp in her lungs and was prescribed something to dry it up. I recall the doctor saying if it wasn't better by today or Monday to call back. Well guess what-it hasn't gone away, may be worse, and now Emma is coughing. Are you kidding me? I can't wait to get the batch of EOBs from the insurance company. I'm sure we have been to the doctor at least 6 times in the month of January.

This doesn't include that the original cold has cycled through both Phillip and I too. And I am now dealing with some sinus pain and headaches, lots of sneezing and crap running around the back of my throat.

21 days of unhealthiness. 21 days of cranky. 21 days of Kleenex. 21 days of doctors and feeling like my hands are tied because I don't know how to make my kiddos feel better. 21 days.

"Princess Sofia"

My sister-in-law sent me this story the other day. Having a daughter named Sophia, I had to read it.

Ugh.

I have a love hate relationship with the Princesses. I grew up watching them. Love Cinderella. My middle name is Aurora (as is Sophia's) and I married a Phillip thus we are a living Sleeping Beauty (Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip-minus the sleeping thing and white horse and fairies following me around...) But as I have grown older and studied Media Literacy and the damaging effects of the Princesses....I cringe.

I am reluctant to overly encourage and share Princess stuff with Sophia. I prefer her to watch the more neutral movies and TV programs like Winnie the Pooh, Cat in the Hat, Fireman Sam, etc. and if we are going to watch a movie I'm glad she will pick Cars over a princess.

But Princess Sofia? It's over the top for me. She is targeted for girls age 2-7. She is "the purple-gowned kiddie princess. She becomes a princess when her mom marries the king of her storybook world." Disney assures us "That the inner character of kindness, generosity, loyalty, honesty and grace make you special, not the dress you wear." But when you have a 'kiddie princess' in a sparkly purple gown and tiara leaving in a castle and being a part of her MOM's STORYBOOK WORLD??? you are not going to be teaching my daughter much to relate to.

This Mom's Storybook world includes a husband who works very hard and carries the weight of his family's little world on his shoulders.

Two 'princesses' who cry, still have potty accidents, have tantrums, and hug you so fiercely you fall over.

While our 'castle' keeps us warm and dry the girls share a room and a dresser and a closet. We all share one small bathroom.

The have matching fuzzy footie pajamas that I bought on sale and to boot it was buy one get one free! I spent $8.80 total on their Christmas jammies.

There aren't a lot of sparkly new dresses and "bling" to wear. Our storybook includes making the food in the pantry and freezer stretch until pay day and having to say No to a box of band-aids because I literally didn't have the $1.99 to buy the fancy box of boo-boo fixers.

I hope Princess Sofia doesn't infiltrate my Princess Sophia's little world. 

9 months - Emma and Company

I can't believe Emma turned 9 months on Saturday. She is as old as I carried her. She is becoming a little person and not just a rolly polly blob. She is eating solids, although we need to continue to expand her palette. She is still toothless although I swear she was getting teeth at 4 months. They still haven't broken through the gum line. She has not figured out the crawling thing. She flops around from belly to back and can get her legs under her as if to crawl but can't seem to figure out what to do next. There are many things she has yet to learn but she has become so much more interactive as of late.

Sophia and Emma have started to "play" together. And by play I mean Sophia tries to pick her up or pull her close so they can do things together. Sophie is just strong enough to pick Emma up under her arms and place Emma where she wants her. But she hasn't heeded my advice when I tell her to put Emma down because she is pulling on her more than picking her up. With play also comes fights. Sophia does not yet understand that Emma has no concept of "mine" and "yours." So things are often grabbed out of each others hands.

So far now they are two sisters who love each other and learning to navigate each others world's. Each getting older and melting our hearts more and more each day. 

It's not all bad

Sophia is 3 1/2. Tantrums and strong will is part of her repertoire right now. But it's not all bad.

Her general fits for nothing have simmered since she started preschool. She seems to thrive with the daily routine and knows what is coming next. She really likes school. My fears about this transition have subsided. She looks forward to school each day, loves getting to drive to work with "my Papa", likes having a lunch packed each day, and loves to tell me about what she does and her classmates.

I love writing her notes for her lunch each day. It is a challenge sometimes to come up with what to write but it's a little bit of me that gets to go with her each day. Special things that are love notes just between us.

I LOVE getting her folder of notes, papers, permission slips, and artwork. But my favorite thing is the Scholastic Book order. I was transported to my elementary school days when she brought her first book order and had to keep my pocket book in check as I thumbed through the pages deciding what to order for her. I settled on a three pack of Berenstain Bears books. They are as much for me as they are for her.

A non-school related thing that is wonderful about Sophia? She thanks Phillip and I for making her dinner nearly every night. This was unprompted and started many months ago. After we say grace she will address whomever made dinner and say "Thank you for making dinner Papa/Mama." I don't know where she picked this jem up but I hope she says it forever because it makes me melt and I think she truly appreciates the work we put into providing a meal for her!