Daddy left at 5AM on Sunday for a conference in Seattle, while I stayed home with both kids - my first time, without having Grandma or Grandpa Ruane around for backup.
After he got to his conference, Daddy came down with strep throat. He started antibiotics to treat it on Wednesday, but was not responding to it and getting much worse by the time he returned home at about 5pm on Friday. Fortunately, I talked to my mom (Nana) on Friday, who told us that amoxicillin does not always work, and if it doesn't, he should be on a different antibiotic (we both thought it was just taking longer than it should to kick in!). So, Saturday, he went in to see a doctor. The doctor agreed, and started him on a different kind of antibiotic (azithromycin). However, by this time, Alex was more miserable than I have ever seen him. He spent the rest of the weekend as a lump on the couch, just trying to get through it. Then, Sunday, he seemed to pick up a stomach bug that Aidan and I had had on Thursday and Friday, so he had to endure intermittent vomiting as well. Fortunately, the second kind of antibiotic seemed to start having some effect, so I am hoping that we will wake up tomorrow to a better day.
In the meanwhile, I was home with both kids.
There were some definite upsides. First, Aidan's daycare let me leave him there till 4pm each day, which really helped. Second, since it was just me, I was able to do whatever I wanted to: so, we had dinner at 5:30pm every night, and, amazingly enough, the kids were asleep between 7 and 8pm every night until Daddy got home. I used the week to change Kiana's clock over to New York from California time, and my determination paid off: I walked her to sleep in my Ergo (carrier) while talking on the phone (thanks for helping, Aunt Frances, Uncle Jon-Michael, Mom, and Dad!) or went to bed with her, so she spent the whole week sleeping after 7 or 8PM, which *has* to have turned her internal clock somewhat! I also figured out how to get two kids to go to sleep at the same time (I walked Kiana around in the Ergo in Aidan's room, scratched his back for a few minutes, and sang). This was exciting, as I wasn't sure how we were going to do it! (Aidan asked me last week how I was going to put him and Kiana to sleep, and I told him that I didn't know, but that it was going to be an adventure and we were going to figure it out!). So, those were all good.
But there were also downsides. Nights were marathons, with both kids being wakeful and only me being there to get up with both of them. (Alex usually gets Aidan and I get Kiana.) Thursday afternoon, I came down with a stomach bug - I managed to puke in a trash can while Kiana played happily on the floor nearby, which was better than having her scream - but that was not fun. Then, Friday night, Aidan got the same bug and threw up at 2am (in my hair) and then again when he woke up. So far, Kiana seems to have been immune, and I am washing my hands like mad, but our whole house is a sick ward, so she doesn't have good odds to beat! :(
To complicate things, another blizzard came through on Wednesday night. Street cleaning got canceled all week. This was really good, because it meant no moving the car, and Tuesday the car didn't start (it was an 18 degree high, so hopefully it was just too cold?), so that could have been another headache. Kiana helped me me sweep the foot and a half of snow off the car on Sunday, while Aidan watched from the stroller (Alex was immobile at home). I'm grateful that I was at least able to postpone that!
So, this week has been tough. I guess the old saying is right that, "when it rains, it pours" (or when it snows, it dumps?). Things are rough right now, but I know it can't stay like this forever. The sun is always brighter after the rain - even if the rain is a flood! I'm holding on with my teeth and waiting for the rainbow.
CUTENESS NOTES:
- AIDAN: "Sometimes, at school, my fingers taste like hot dogs!"
- KIANA: Kiana has started a shaking head game: she shakes her head (like she's saying "no") and waits for you to mimic her, and then does it again, while waving her hands. :)
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