Two weeks ago, I rearranged my 2 days off to be Thursday and Friday, so Zak and I could go spend a long weekend with my brothers and our niece, Maya, in St. Paul. Kuba met us there Friday after work. We had a great time going to the pool, the Zoo, biking around, and even 2x to the Minnesota State Fair. Jude and Chad kept us busy!
It was very nice to spend time there, but on the way back we must have caught some kind of bug.
We started our week back as normal, but by the end of the first day, I was called to get Zak because he had a fever, and it went down hill from there. That is one challenge of working part time, the impact on work seems magnified when one thing goes awry. Kuba and I split the days the best we could...but then on Thursday, we both woke up with 101 fevers as well...there was no way for us to get to the office, we felt so bad. The whole family spent the day in their pajamas with whoever felt the hungriest slothing out of bed to make some food ( get some crackers or some such)...whatever it was, it was pretty powerful for the day. Kuba and I recovered pretty well within 24 hours...but some symptoms still lingered for a week. Zak didn't recover so quickly, but at least by mid this week he was without a fever, so we could take him back to daycare. Thank goodness our jobs are flexible! Anyway, last week's chaos, caused this week to also be off schedule. Monday was a holiday, which meant I couldn't take Zak to daycare. Kuba and I both got a couple hours of work in just to try and catch up. Then I put Zak in school for Tues, Wed and Thurs because I just needed some solid hours in the office. By Friday I was feeling better, although I still think I need another week to fully feel in control again (and probably then Zak will catch something else at school :-) )
Anyway, we still managed some fun, but not enough given the beautiful weather we've been having :-) I tried to take some notes as we were going through it. One cute thing Zak did this week was I told him I was so happy to have him as my son. He said NO MOMMY! I'm not your son! I'm your boy! Okie dokie.
While we were in St. Paul, Uncle Chad was reading him a book, and in the book, one of the characters was very sad. Zak pointed to the picture of the sad bumble bee and said, "He's so sad. He misses his Mommy." It makes my heart tingle. This week when I picked him up from daycare one day, he said "Mommy! I was missing you all day!" I think this is a special age for him and I.
While we were sick, Zak insisted on taking my temperature every day. First he would feel my forehead and either say "Better" or "Hot again." Then he'd put the thermometer on my arm or between my toes (I don't know where he got that idea).
Here's a picture from our last day of being bums in bed...we were feeling better, but not ready to run around yet.
Oh, and here's a new one...he continues to try everything to prolong his bed time. I need to go pee pee, I need a drink, I need to kiss Tato. For his drinks, he's always trying to negotiate with me. He knows after brushing his teeth, it's water only. So he starts by asking for yogurt. "No, Zak. It's after you've brushed, you can have water." "Ok, milk." "No, not after brushing your teeth." "Ok, juice." "Zak..." Finally he settles on water...but here is his latest thing...he tries to convince me that since all the tooth paste is in his tummy, not on his teeth, that he should get yogurt anyway. He keeps saying "No! Mommy! The toothpaste is in my tummy! Not on my teeth!" His logic is interesting.
This morning as we had our first leisurely morning together, I was cleaning up a bit in the bathroom, and he was playing in my closet. He started running through my clothes saying "I'm going through the car wash!" So cool how they put things together.
Anyway, this week is going well. I've enjoyed my day so far with Zak. I can't believe he's in a swim class now without me. I just sit behind a window and watch, and realize what a big boy he's becoming.
Someone asked me this week how work was going with this part time...and I still have to say it's going very well. I always feel my calendar is a little chaotic. People try to squeeze into every 5 minutes when I'm there. But I feel very much in control of my destiny, and my time. I don't feel anything has slowed down for me in terms of career or good assignments, and it has helped me appreciate even more how life is a journey that you can control (to some extent of course.) I continue to feel very lucky!
Great work, April. You keep succeeding beyond work. That's a place not many can have, but you set a good example and guidance for others to dare. Life is short... we must embrace that fact and love every minute with beloved others. I'm very happy for you, Zak and Kuba.
ReplyDeleteStill looking forward to meet your famous patio! :)