Special Days

The sickness descended upon the boy Sunday evening. How hard it was to sit by, watch his fever climb, and see the boy, who is usually so full of energy, be so lethargic. One doesn’t fully appreciate how difficult it can be to be so helpless until a child is ill. After a call to the doctor, and his diagnosis over the phone, I did have a bit of peace. Our doctor is so soothing, and very much a non-alarmist, so I have always appreciated his consults. After a full day of high fever and much rest, our son had some spurts of energy, which I took to be a great sign. Although his temperature was back to normal during the day, it has found him every night, so again he is home. As much as I would rather have him perfectly healthy, I can’t deny that both his sister and I have enjoyed having him home. Yesterday at nap time, she sat in her bed and cried, “I want my brudder!” After convincing her that she would be able to see him after she woke, she settled in and both proceeded to take almost a 4 hour nap.

Today is our daughter’s 4th birthday. As our son slept on the couch last night to help alleviate his cough, I had the distinct privilege of sleeping with a squirmy, jumpy little girl. I awoke this morning to her singing which was so much nicer than the incessant beeping of an alarm clock. After being serenaded, I was bombarded with her excitement! She went on for 10 minutes about her birthday, and party, and how she was now 4 years old. Even remembering brings a smile to my face. As our son is not quite 100%, we have opted to move the extended family birthday party to next week. She was quite disappointed at first, until we explained that she would actually end up having three parties. One celebration was held last weekend, we would have one tonight with the four of us, and another one next week with more family. After hearing this, our son immediately pointed out that she wouldn’t be 6 even though she was having three parties. She would still only be 4. As he will be 6 next month, I could see the wheels turning, and he wanted to clarify that he would always be the older brother. What kids we have!

We are all looking forward to our family party tonight. The menu will remain the same as our daughter had picked out her favorite food - “panacakes”. She has been looking forward to wearing her crown and her Strawberry Shortcake hats, and can’t wait to put up the decorations. I’m reveling in having both my children home with me, the sickness behind us, and excitement in the air. It’s going to be a great party!

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