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Bizarre Day

2:05pm: I post on Facebook that we're having a bizarre day. Can't just let that go without some explanation, if only to remember myself!

But first, a token picture:

Silas's post-bath cartoon-baby hair.

5am: Silas wakes up, but I fall asleep again almost immediately before getting up to nurse him. Oops.

6am: Silas wakes up again, or louder, or something. I nurse him and go back to bed, but he won't go back to sleep, so we hang out in Mommy's bed for a while.

6:30am: Isaac gets back into bed, having opted not to exercise this morning. It appears our family stomach flu has made its way to him, though not with the voracity with which it claimed the rest of us. I get up and get ready for the day. Meanwhile, Levi cries out for a drink, which Isaac provides, and then he (Levi) promptly goes back to sleep.

7:30am: Silas and I eat breakfast, leftover pumpkin pancakes from yesterday. The big boys are usually up by now, but since the time change they've been sleeping till nearly 8, so I'm not concerned. Isaac goes to work, banana in hand.

8:30am: Silas goes down for a nap. Still no sound from the big boys. I take advantage of the unheard-of morning quiet and finish my Bible study lesson.

9:15am: I decide to rouse the big boys, since Silas has a well-check at 10:10am. When I open their door, Owen's eyes open, but he doesn't get up, and Levi doesn't move at all. I decide to carry Owen into my room to get him dressed.

9:30am: Owen drinks a tiny bit of milk, has one bite of pancake, then sits staring into space. With our stomach flu fresh in my mind, I don't insist on him finishing his food. He asks to be picked up and stays slumped over my shoulder for some time.

9:40am: I really need to wake Levi up if we're going to make it to the doctor on time. I jiggle his shoulder, his eyes pop open, and he asks, quite disgruntled, "what are we going to do? Are we going to eat breakfast? I'm hungry." I get him dressed, he eats Owen's unfinished pancake, downs two cups of milk. Meanwhile, Silas wakes up from his nap. I get everyone shoed and into the car with 5 minutes to spare.

10:05am: We arrive at the pediatrician's office. I unbuckle the big boys, get Levi's coat on, set him down in the parking lot, and turn back to see Owen throw up into Levi's car seat. And then onto the floor. And then into his own car seat. Pause for a minute, consider my options . . . turn the car back on, crack the windows, throw Silas's thick blanket over the mess on the floor, grab Silas out of his car seat, and march everyone inside.

10:10am: I only have time to remove Owen's shoes and use my last baby wipe on his (not very messy) pants before we get called back to the office. I rinse his shoes off in the sink, the nurse provides a plastic bag for transporting them home. Levi reads Owen a story while I tend to Silas's visit, intermittently sending text messages to Isaac, who offers to meet me in the parking lot with towels.

Sometime thereafter, we all make it home. Isaac takes the car seats and the van's floor mat out back to hose off, I change Owen's clothes and feed Silas. Owen is begging for food but I won't let him eat.

11:15am: Isaac goes back to work. I allow the big boys half a banana and a bowl of applesauce, then settle them in the living room with VeggieTales on Netflix.

12:30pm: I run upstairs with Silas to change a diaper. When I come back down, Owen is slumped on the stairs, half-crying, "I'm tired! I'm tired!" It's early for his nap -- ridiculously early, considering the extra two hours of sleep this morning -- but I'm not going to argue with him. He protests wildly while I change his diaper and put him down, but falls asleep almost immediately.

12:45pm: Levi requests Chutes & Ladders, as he does nearly every day after Owen goes down for his nap. I interrupt him at 1pm to put Silas down for a nap. I actually win a few games today!

1:30pm: Levi and I head upstairs for his nap. While he's going potty, Owen wakes up screaming (which he never does during nap), and I fear he's thrown up again. He's good, though, so I let him cry for a bit, and he's asleep again before I'm done reading a story to Levi. I can't hardly imagine that Levi will nap, having slept so long this morning, but he's yawning and doesn't protest and I haven't heard from him since.

Goodness only knows what the evening will hold. I keep expecting to feel overwhelmed, or angry that the bug is back (when I thought we were all done with it on Sunday), but God is providing way more grace than that. Yay.

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