the benefits are lacking

I am sick today. I've actually been sick for a couple days now but this morning was the worst I have felt in a long time. If I worked outside the house I would call in sick but I don't so I can't. The boys have no sick day policy to speak of and seem to think that I should play even more when I'm sick. I am holding out for 2 o'clock when all three go down for a nap and I can take a nap too.

taking a crazy day

The blond one had a tough day today with ear problems and some other issues that had him half crying half screaming for good portion of the morning. The red head being the sensitive little man that he is joined in the course with his own sympathy cry driving Beautiful to the brink. I came home early from work and took over so that could go to an appointment and try to reboot after a tough tough morning. The thing is though that the storm had been weathered. The kids I inherited were not the same ones that had driven Beautiful crazy. I think she was happy for the break but also secretly bummed that they were not as hard on me as they were on her. I got home in time to give them naps after dosing the blond one up with some medicine and then listening to music down in the basement. After naps the sun broke through and we got out and about returning books and movies. The Blond one wanted me to drop him off at the corner so he could play with his friends. The Red head and I stayed on porch and played. He tried to walk down the stairs again and again took a nice tumble. It was one twist and one flip, a 6.3 degree of difficulty and when he stuck the landing it was only the Russian judge that stood in his way of a perfect score. He cried for a minute and then just laid on my shoulder for another ten minutes while I made sure that he was still awake. He's got a nice purple bump on his head and a scratch on his ear. The next time he came to the stairs he turned around and backed his way down from about three feet out. I'm glad that he's learning a bit from all these falls. Hopefully he can get the lesson before he deforms his head so bad he won't be able to wear t-shirts cause he couldn't get them over his giant noggin. Hopefully the time away will help tomorrow for Beautiful.

one more again to the doctor

Yesterday we went to the Dr. again because Finn was complaining that his ear hurt. He would hold on to it and cry laying on Kate all day so she made the appointment. They had toys in the waiting room so his initial fear was distracted by new trucks to name but when we got called in it was back. He flat refuses to be weighed. He flips out like the scale is some mid evil torture device, or soul sucking instrument. When I tried to place him on the scale he would curl his feet in and writhe screaming. I asked for a young priest and old priest but the nurse didn't laugh. We finally got his weight by weighing me with him in my arms and then weighing me with him on the ground. He's 35 pounds by the way, a number I came to in my head and the nurse came to by writing the equations down and carrying the one. Finn didn't trust her and fought getting his temp taken in the good ear but for the Dr. he was easy like Sunday morning. She checked both ears twice, listened to his heart and felt his glands. She asked if hit hurt when he ate and he laughed and said"That's silly, eating doesn't hurt" His ears looked fine but he was a little sore under the ear. She thought it might be part of a sinus issue where the pressure was building up under the ear instead of above the nose. She looked at me and said your having sinus issues too, and you dehydrated. She said she could tell by looking at my teeth. Good times, Finn seems fine but my teeth are giving me away. Finn wanted a sticker and walked to the front desk to get it with his shoulders scrunched up around his ears. This is how he eases what ever pain he is in, or at least that is what we think. He looks like igor or the hunchback. He makes me laugh and that might explain why he still does it as much as anything else. He asks "Are you funny daddy?" I tell him I hope so but he is really funny. "Yeah I am daddy, i'm real funny, but not mommy"

Lazy Sunday with the boys

The boys slept in until 8 but they woke up with issues. Henry was on antibiotics for an ear infection and Finn for an eye infection but now they have traded infirmities. Henry woke up with his eyes crusted shut and Finn was holding his ear and complaining. There is another trip to the DR in our future for another batch of antibiotics but for now we will play trucks.

We are getting better all of us

We have a household of sickness her at casa de ritroh. All three kids have had to go to the Dr. to get on antiboitics for various infections in ears, eyes and throats. I have been sick for what feels like 3 weeks straight with the latest iteration being an incredibly sore throat and cough. I felt terrible in traing today at work and I am affraid that my suffering came off as aloofness again. Finn has had the eye infection and we have had to put some medicine right into his eye which is quite a champ about. Henry takes his milky medicine with a dinner through a big dropper. Ian is off the sauce for his throat and is a very happy little guy again. Kate has so far managed to stay out of the sickness cloud but it seems when it does hit her it might be hard.

We are on Obama Watch

You may have already heard that Obama is in Hawaii for a vacation with the family but did you know he is our neighbor. Well kinda kitty-corner to us. He is staying at this 10 room mansion on the beach next to the mansion at the end of our street. That one is full of secret service and local police. Our street is crawling with fuzz and Finn couldn't be happier. "That's a Police Cruiser Daddy!" "And that's another one!" "AND ANOTHER ONE!!!!" Yes Finn, there are lots of police cruisers, I see them. THis past weekend I mostly bed bound with a nasty little flu like issue so I haven't been to the beach much but today Finn and I went down there to "Build Sand Castles" and by that I mean try and see and talk to Barack Obama. I was thinking of inviting him over to watch the US men's team playing China since I know he loves the basketball but I chickened out. THe picture above is Finn playing on the beach and the house where the man is staying. You can see the police presence by the trees but no Obama. Maybe tomorrow!

It's like getting waxed, only not at all

We have had two sick kids for the last couple of days but that sounds a lot tougher then it actually was. Finn seems to be fairly cheerful when he is sick and Henry just wants to breath. Kate and I were up late last night trying to make sense of our future, silly I know, and Henry was up early. I got up with him and went downstairs to hold him and try to get hi back to sleep. The problem was he was all stuffed up and he hasn't learned to breath through he mouth at all it seems. I had him on my chest face down and he was moving his head back and forth like mad. He really has great neck muscles for kid his age, like a young Arnold Schwarzenegger. After a couple minutes of his thrashing we got up and looked for the great nose plunger to help him out. The thing was, during all his back and forth over my chest he had coated me and his face in baby snot. It was sad and gross and funny and sad but mostly gross. I got a towel and wiped my chest off and then cleaned up Henry's face. I then got the infant sized turkey baster and cleaned out his nose which he took great exception to. He was super angry but breathing well and I wrapped him back up and placed him in the swing, a little snot shy from our last snuggle, and he was asleep in no time at all. I went back to sleep as well and dreamed of snot, I wonder what Henry dreamt of?

A rough day

Yesterday was a rough day. I woke up feeling nauseous but still went into work at 6 AM to get some overtime in before our baby boy joins us. I struggled through a couple of hours feeling like if I could just throw up I would feel much better. usually these morning are preceded by a night of gin and tonics and some inappropriate jokes on the Beeler's porch. Without such late night revelry I could not explain this morning sickness. Around 9:30 in the morning in the middle or a phone shift I had to run to the bathroom as that nauseous feeling was fully realized. I called Kate to come get me on her way to taking Finn to my mom's. I felt great after throwing up but then I would start to feel sick again. This pattern went in 45 minute shifts making for a terrible day. Kate went to work but was soon back home seeing my 45 minute cycle and raising it 20 minutes. We were quite a pair laying in bed whimpering like babies. Around 2 in the afternoon I stopped getting sick but felt chills and body aches all over. Kate on the other hand continued throwing up for another 2 hours until we took her to the hospital. She was very dehydrated and couldn't keep anything down so they gave her an IV and some medicine to stop the puking. She was also hooked up to some baby monitoring and we saw she was having pretty regular contractions. every two minute there were significant readings leading the nurse to check how far along Kate was. She was 1 cm dilated and 80% effaced and could give birth anytime between now and her due date. That seems like a pretty inexact science, I mean we pretty much knew that before we came into the hospital right. Anyway after 3 IV bags and some much needed non-vomiting rest we were able to go back home. We both woke up this morning feelin much better, still with flu like symptoms but infinitely better then the day before.