The Hamilton Family: Sick Day(s)

Sometimes all I want is a sick day. I don't mean a day to play hooky or take a vacation. I mean a day to just be sick. And rest. And not chase kids. But alas, I am an adult and full-time parent, so sick days are nonexistent.

This week was a sick week. We all had colds ranging from runny nose (Jude) to knockdown flu-like symptoms (me). Even poor Eleanor has had a cough and runny nose. Despite his runny nose, Jude hasn't missed a beat. He's still his usual crazy self. Ellie's been pretty normal too, although she does look a little miserable when she first wakes up. Even Peter has been pretty good at sticking it out. I, however, am not doing so hot. Every day I keep thinking I will get better, but so far no such luck. Actually, today I feel worse than I did yesterday. Maybe it's the lack of sleep?

The week started rough because I decided to wean Eleanor. I was barely producing anything and we had to supplement with more and more formula. Plus, she was cranky and hungry almost constantly and waking up frequently at night. I know I made the right decision, but I still do kinda wish I had kept going till she is 6 months. But oh well, gotta do what you gotta do, and fight the silly mom guilt. Anyways, weaning made me feel some, uh, pain and engorgement, which made the first part of the week pretty miserable for me. Then, we were hit with this monster cold.

I feel like everyday I've just been in "survival mode." Which for me means lots of movies and not so balanced meals (toast with nutella counts as dinner, right?). I keep telling myself tomorrow will be better and I won't just watch movies with the kids, but the next morning I still feel miserable and we hunker down for the day inside once again. At least I've able to let Jude run around outside in the courtyard in the afternoons.

In other news, we've been working on putting the kids to sleep in the same room. I seriously can't wait to not have a sleeping baby always in our room. I feel like I haven't had the chance to actually clean it in weeks; the room looks like a giant pile of clothes and papers quickly thrown in between naps. Some days were really successful and the both took naps and slept through the night together. Other days have been battles of both waking each other up all night. Not so fun when you're sick! I'm confident they'll be able to do it soon, it's just taking longer than I had hoped. On a funny note, though, it's pretty entertaining to hear Jude yell from his bed "uh oh! baby! uh oh baby!" if she starts crying when he's still awake. Or when I asked him where Ellie should sleep and he immediately said "mama! mama!" (as in, my room). Or when Jude says "shhhhhh, baby jeep!" to me during her naps (shhh, baby's sleeping), right before he decides to barrel into the room and wake her up.

But, enough of me complaining. Life really is great, and it's a blessing to have such beautiful, funny little kids.

Jude's really interested in "playing" with Ellie lately. We're working on sharing.

Yesterday we took a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium with the kids. We promised Jude last week we'd go, and he kept talking about it all week. He'd say, "mama! fshhh! go! car!" and point to the door. I'd explain to him that we can't go until Saturday when dad's not working. "daddy! ah din! go!" (daddy's all done at work!). So even though we're sick, I knew we couldn't really get out of it. But we took some drugs and made it through the day just fine. It was actually really nice to go out as a family and just have fun. Wholesome recreational activities, am I right? As usual, Jude LOVED the fish, and the penguins, and splashing in the tide pools. He was really nervous about the large deep ocean fish tank and wouldn't go near it. I don't blame him; those fish are HUGE, the room is dark, and the tank is huge. And big fish are just plain terrifying in my opinion. Eleanor liked the baby play area and getting close up to the tanks to see the bright lights. And we got to enjoy my favorite part, the cinnamon rolls on Cannery Row! Yum! I'm glad we have passes there so we can go so frequently and not feel pressure to see everything. It's nice to just go and check out our favorite spots and leave at naptime.

Also, Jude got a new Thomas the Train backpack because I'm tired of carrying all his snacks and trains in my purse. Needless to say, he adores it.