Better

After several long and tense nights, last night Timmy finally slept soundly through the night. Although I woke several times to check his fever, I was able to rest. Life feels so much better after a good night sleep!

This morning Scott is feeling well enough to resume his Zoom teaching from his basement office. Because he will be downstairs and not running around a large school building, his body should be able to rest more than it would on a pre-Covid school day. Hopefully he won't overdo it and he will continue to feel better over the coming days. 

Timmy's fever is now significantly diminished with his Tylenol and he is showing more energy and interest in eating. I think he is on the mend, although he will probably be a couple of days behind Scott's recovery. 

 Whatever the two of them came down with, I don't think it was Covid. This is a huge relief!  Hopefully they can continue to heal and rest of the weekend, and next week we can return to normal.

Laundry

 I wish I had something exciting or even fun to share. Instead, all I did yesterday was nurse Timmy and Scott, tackle mountains of vomit infested laundry and work. With two people down for the count, it was both busy and tense for Robby and me.

Both boys continue to have fevers and aches. Although the vomiting seems to have passed, neither have an appetite. At this point, I am continuing to push fluids over food in an attempt to keep them all hydrated and more comfortable. I'm hoping that they improve today, but time will tell.

Ill

Yesterday afternoon Scott came up from his basement office and went straight to bed. His color was ashen and his movements were slow. He quickly developed a fever, extreme chills which were followed by intense periods of sweating. I did my best to keep him comfortable while maintaining as much of a distance as possible. 

Unfortunately, Timmy started to vomit in the middle of the night. I stripped his bed, cleaned him up and tucked him into the air mattress I was using. I slept (or tried to sleep) on a blanket on the floor next to him. He is feverish and not feeling well this morning.

In the era of Covid, fevers become terrifying with possibility. Fingers crossed that everybody turns the corner quickly and that trips to the doctor are not necessary.

Itchy

 Even though I spent much of Sunday prepping and working, Monday morning I quickly became frazzled and discombobulated. Scott went to work (he has to go into the school one day a week for socially distanced meetings etc.), leaving me to wrangle the boys into the beginning of the school week on my own. It feels like, no matter how much I try to plan and organize, time is in short supply on Monday morning.

By the time I was logging Timmy into his first Circle Time class I was in desperate need of another cup of coffee. I was looking forward to 35 minutes of relative quiet and caffeine while he was busy with his classmates and teacher. Scrolling through my calendar and taking mental stock of my meetings and tasks for the day, I knew that I needed to regroup while I had the opportunity.

Of course, with my little Hamlet, my plans rarely unfold as anticipated. He was excited about his class and eager to interact with his teacher and classmates. He was serious and attentive as his teacher greeted each student. Finally, it was his turn.  "Good morning Timmy. How are you today?" 

He straightened up, looked directly into the camera and very sweetly replied, "Good morning. My butt hole is itchy." 

I chocked and almost spit my coffee across the kitchen table. Somehow, I underestimated the embarrassment that could be incurred through Zoom.

 

Haunted!

 We had a spooktacularly wonderful weekend. With the weather cooling, our house is quickly beginning to transform into a haunted house. Both Timmy and Robby adore all things Halloween. The brothers have been having a blast decorating and planning our haunted space for this year.

Friday afternoon we kicked off our weekend with a trip to our local pumpkin patch. Our CSA included 100 pounds of pumpkins, which were available for picking before the farm opened to the public. It was so much fun to return to a pre-Covid seasonal activity. Even though we were socially distanced and wearing masks, the familiarity of the outing was surprisingly comforting. 

Saturday was spent decorating both inside and out. We managed to unpack and place the contents of three boxes of Halloween decorations. With at least five more boxes to go, I was overwhelmed with the sheer amount that we have acquired. At this point, I suspect our haunted decorations significantly outnumber our Christmas decorations. From skeletons and ghosts to monsters and witches, our haunted house will have a lot of everything spooky!

Sunday was laid back and quiet. I was able to work for several hours through the afternoon, allowing me to get ahead on some projects. It is always nice to kick off a new work week ahead of the game. 

Pumpkins

I'm so glad that we were able to spend time earlier this week outside playing and riding our bikes. The weather was so gorgeous and it felt fantastic being in the fresh cool air. I love autumn! There is something invigorating about chillier temperatures and colorful falling leaves.

Unfortunately our good weather was short lived. Yesterday the remnants of the hurricane flew into our area, leaving us with torrential downpours and windy conditions. Rain, leaves and nuts were all falling at impressive rates. The rest of the weekend weather is forecast to be equally as miserable. It looks like we'll be camping out and playing inside (again) this weekend.

Hopefully the rain will break long enough for us to go to the pumpkin patch tonight. I joined the strawberry and pumpkin CSA last Spring through our local farm. Each week we received 10 pounds of strawberries when they were in season. Our plan also includes 100 pounds of pumpkins, which are ready for harvesting.

In order to comply with social distancing, the farm has opened appointment slots for pumpkin picking. Because we are in the CSA, we were provided the first slots. Rain or shine, we are heading to the pumpkin patch to claim our 100 pounds of pumpkins. 

I'm really looking forward to a quasi-traditional outing during these unconventional times!

Missing Our Places

 Much like the movie Groundhog Day, my life is becoming predictable and rather mundane. Social distancing, school and work obligations are keeping us at home. My goodness I miss our adventures! 

Yesterday was our first cool day of the season. I wish that I could have piled the kids into the car for an impromptu trip to our Animal Park. Instead, I knew I had to create something fun to do at home. Even though we are all busy, I knew that everybody would benefit from unplugging for a few hours.

In the end, we opted for a long bike ride through the neighborhood and a cake picnic by our swing set. It was nice to be in the fresh, cool air and sunshine. The kids seemed just as happy as they would have been at the Animal Park, so maybe I'm the only one who is missing our usual romps.