Case in point.

So this has been a long and tiring week. I have been stressed to the max because I am going to NYC for work tomorrow thru Sunday. I thought I would have Monday and Tuesday to get everything ready at the office, home and to get myself ready as well. No such luck. Aubrey has been sick, vomiting and with an ear infection since Sunday night. I have zero sick leave left but Ryan is working double shifts these two days so he can take her to and from daycare when I am gone. So I have missed two days of work, unpaid because she has been sick.

Normally this would not piss me off. I mean kids get sick, right? Except that this could have been totally avoided if certain parents cared as much about other kids’ health as they do their own. I took Aubrey to a birthday party on Saturday, and that is where she caught the stomach virus. Come to find out that one of the mom’s there adheres to the “no vaccinations, no medicine” policy of parenting. Like I have said before, to each his own. Only, I must have left out the part that says HEY IDIOT IF YOUR KID IS SICK AND YOU REFUSE TO MEDICATE THEM FOR “HEALTHY LIVING” REASONS DON’T BRING THEM TO A BIRTHDAY PARTY WITH 10 OTHER INNOCENT CHILDREN YOU FREAKING HIPPIE MORON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GRR. I am so mad. Do what you want in your own house when it comes to your kids’ health but leave mine out of it. I have been puked on over ten times in the last 48 hours. I have missed 2 days of pay. Aubrey has felt like crap and has lost over half a pound because she can’t keep anything down (and the kid is underweight as it is). I finally had to go get her a shot today bc she kept throwing up the medicine. I have spent $60 on medicine and doctor visits. I haven’t slept in two days and neither has she. And now, tomorrow I have to leave town for 4 days and she won’t know what’s going on.

For the love of God, people, protect your kids against disease and if they are sick give them medicine and oh yeah, keep them away from my kid!

So pissed.

Props to the single parent

It’s been quite the week for me, and not necessarily in a good way. I feel as though my week was going as Angie’s (as told by her husband Jeremy) did after her vacation- everything was against me. I say this lightly because comparatively, my life is so easy and happy. But I wasn’t thinking that last week when I woke up last Monday morning and felt the razor blades in my throat. I had gone to Tulsa for the weekend with my sister-which was great- but somewhere between here and there I inhaled some dust or something because I woke up feeling awful.

 

I was not happy about the throat infection and migraines that resulted in a trip to the doctor, a huge needle in my hip (OW) and a note instructing me not to go back to work until Monday. Normally I would have been really excited about having a week off, but since I was so sick that Aubrey still had to go to daycare (Ryan took her every morning), I just laid in bed praying for my head to just go ahead and explode already. I haven’t been that sick in a long time so I was glad when, 3 days of antibiotics later, I was able to shower and eat and do things that normal human beings do. I have also missed a lot of church, where most of my close relationships are so I can’t wait til Wednesday when I get to see everyone and hear what’s going on in their lives.

 

As soon as I got better, Ryan left for a fishing trip that he has been planning (and talking about) all summer. My mom was coming to town for the weekend so I didn’t throw the normal fit that I do when he dumps me for 4 days of not showering in search of a striper the size of a Labrador. I had a good weekend but was still a little weak so I was glad my mom was there to help me with the baby and everything else to do with weekend cleaning.

 

 After she left, however, I started to feel the weight of being the only adult around. Ryan and I are equal partners when it comes to most things in our lives, especially Aubrey. I know this and appreciate it but I don’t tell him enough. I know there are a lot of dads out there who don’t change diapers or delight in getting puréed bananas sneezed into their face, but Ryan is one of those guys who does. We have our routine, we have worked it out to the point that we don’t even have to play rock paper scissors anymore on who gets up in the middle of the night for a bad dream.

 

He comes home today and needless to say, I am excited. Aubrey is a remarkably good child, but she’s cutting two teeth and misses her daddy so I am ready to see her smiles when we pick her up from daycare and I am definitely ready for some help! Instead of holding her on my hip as I vacuum while defrosting chicken for dinner, he can take her outside to watch the birds (its their thing- outdoorsy people) while I scramble around my house in an attempt to put it in order so I can sleep at night. I know, I know, that’s a whole other issue, one I am sure Aubrey will remedy as she gets older. J

 

This whole thing got me thinking though, about how many single parent families are out there. I know I am spoiled, but I just don’t know how they do it all and stay calm through it all. I suppose you just do what you have to do, but I have a lot of respect for people who do it, and do it well, without the day to day support from a spouse. So props to the single parents out there- your job is tough but I know your families appreciate the sacrifices you make out of love for them.

 

As for Ryan, I missed him being around too, not just because he helps with the baby or mows the lawn (hmm… that actually needs to be done after all this rain we’ve had…) but I’m ready to hear all about his big fish, feel safe at night, tell him how Aubrey took a step yesterday (!) and to hear him laugh. This week is going to be sooo much better than last week!

Why is my head ringing?

So I have been sick since oh, last Tuesday. I haven’t been to work since Thursday so I am catching up on everything, feeling very productive until I just now looked at the clock and I have only been here an hour. I started feeling really really bad on Thursday so I went to the doctor, who told me I might have strep or allergies, then kind of looked at me as if to say, what do you think it is? So, I get antibiotics, the antibiotic of all antibiotics, the Z-pack. It didn’t really work, so I went back yesterday bc I was really dizzy and felt like my head was a tunnel. She then decided to look into my ears, and lo and behold, it was a “raging” ear infection.

2 pills of amoxicillan later (thank God Aubrey is the only freak in the family who is allergic to this miracle drug- just kidding! she’s not a freak, she’s just special) I feel much better. Only, why is the phone always ringing???