Toddler Tales Week 50: Expect the Unexpected

This week started off like every other.  After the weekend, Eric woke early Monday not feeling very well.  Despite my advice to stay home and rest, he went in and suffered through a day of work.

Monday morning, Asher was so tired he was still sound asleep when it was time to get ready to leave, even though he is usually up and wanting out of his crib MUCH earlier!

Video: Hi Uncle Rob

That evening, Eric still wasn't feeling well and had some stomach pain, although not severe.  Then at 4am on Tuesday morning, I awoke to find him shivering like crazy and burning up.  Neither of us wanted to get the whole family up during the wee hours of the morning, but we both agreed that it would be best for Eric to head to the ER.  Contrary to my worries, Eric insisted on taking himself there so that we didn't have to wake up Asher.  I waited in bed to get a text of his arrival.  Once I did, and he was checked in, I could have gone back to sleep...but really who could sleep when their husband is in the ER?

Instead, I just stayed in bed until it was time to get up and then tackled the morning routine with Asher all by myself.  Although our routine is always a bit crazy and hectic, doing it alone is much worse.  I did get through it though and successfully got Asher to daycare and myself to work, only being a few minutes late.  Just before I arrived to my office building, however, I got a call from Eric saying that his tests had come back and that it was his appendix, which they would be removing later that morning.  I quickly told my boss what was going on (who was leaving as I was arriving) and then turned around to head home, change, get some supplies for Eric's hospital stay and then head to the hospital.  When I got there, he was still in the ER, but soon after they wheeled him upstairs to prepare for surgery.

My sickie "resting" in his hospital room

Once he was situated in a room, we had a little time to try and relax before the nurses and surgeon came to talk to and prep him.  Then, off we went to surgery (well Eric to surgery and me to the surgery waiting room).  For about an hour, I busied myself in the waiting room with my phone and some magazines.  Then the surgeon came out to talk to me, telling me that the surgery was a success, although Eric's appendix was much more irritated than anyone expected and it had had a small rupture.  He also gave me some pictures of it and explained what everything was.  When I went to give it back, he said it was for me to keep (lucky me!?).  I was happy to hear that all had gone well though and then needed to find my way back to Eric's room.

Once I got back to the room (it took some work as I had no idea where we were in the hospital), I called his parents to give them the news.  Then, not long after, the nurses arrived with the patient.  Eric was obviously very tired and a bit out of it.  They had him sit up and transfer himself from one bed to the other and when he did his face went completely pale/greenish.  I thought he might pass out or throw up, but the nurses spotted it, got him into bed and then his color returned.  I talked to him briefly and then left so that he could get some much needed rest.  When leaving, I realized that I was two floors directly below the Birthing Inn, so I decided to take a quick detour to see if our friends Britni and Fabien were still residents after the birth of their sweet baby girl, Lilou.  I was thrilled to find that although they were getting ready to head home, they were still there and I got to meet the little cutie (she is perfect and arrived right on her due date...so we can hope she will be more punctual than her parents typically are!  JK-Brit & Fab if you read this)  :)

Fabien, Britni and Lilou

From there, I left the hospital grabbed some lunch at Panera and then headed home to get some rest myself.  Emma and I enjoyed a good afternoon snuggle on the couch.  In the meantime, Eric, who had been starving and painfully thirsty prior to surgery was allowed water and some Jello, which he had to share with me via iMessage! :)

Yum!?

When I awoke from my nap, it was already late afternoon, so I grabbed a "dinner" for Asher and headed to daycare to pick him up so we could go see Daddy.  That morning, he had been quite concerned that Daddy wasn't there and asked me over and over again for him.  Before we left, I thought we could Facetime Daddy, so that Asher could see him and relieve some of his anxieties.  What I thought would be a good idea turned out terribly.  Although Asher is used to Facetiming/ Skyping his grandparents, he is not used to doing so with Daddy.  Talking to Eric via video phone really confused and upset Asher.  He didn't seem to understand why he couldn't touch him and started to cry.  I felt terrible as my little guy just wanted his daddy.  So, that night we headed to the hospital for a visit.  Before doing so, though I dealt with a (temporary) "single-parent panic/anxiety attack".  As I was leaving daycare with Asher, he started going down the stairs by himself.  I was watching him, but not right at his side as I typically am.  He made it down the first few successfully, but then fell and rolled down the remaining three steps, landing with his face on the concrete sidewalk.  I was already so beat with shot nerves for the day that I screamed as he fell and then rushed to his aid.  He was screaming and crying and I did not know what to do.  I was thankful to have his daycare provider, Christina there, who has more experience with first aid and hurt children.  Thankfully he was fine, other than a good scuff on his forehead, a cut knuckle and a shaken-up Mommy.  Once he calmed down, we were able to leave (with an ice-pack in head) and head to the hospital.  Asher was very happy to see his daddy, but was also very distracted by all of the buttons and gadgets in the hospital room...adding to the stress of his momma.

Asher enjoying his "dinner"

We stayed at the hospital for an hour or so visiting with Eric (which was about all I could handle after working hard to keep Asher from breaking anything or disrupting the others down the hall) and then it was time to make a trip to Target for some supplies and get Asher home to bed.

Eric, feeling much better

Again, I went through our routine all by myself and successfully got Asher ready and in bed by 8pm (ish).  Then it was finally time for me to have some dinner:

Can you blame me?

I enjoyed my "dinner" and then headed upstairs.  I never really enjoy being home by myself at night time.  In the almost 12 years that Eric and I have been married we have only spent a handful of nights apart.  Since I am so used to having his company, I find the house a bit creepy at night when alone.  Just before heading to bed, I heard what sounded like a knock on the back door.  Confused, I couldn't figure out who would visit so late, but thought it might be someone wanting to see how Eric was doing.  Emma heard the noise too and started barking like crazy, but when I went to check the door there was no one there...definitely didn't help the creepy feeling!  Emma and I quickly locked down the house and headed upstairs, where she was allowed to spend the night in bed with me...our own personal guard dog!

The next day, was hectic.  Eric and I both thought that he would be released from the hospital later that morning, but he was told over and over again that he had to wait for the surgeon to check in on him.  The surgeon finally arrived at about 9pm only to tell him that he wanted him to stay one more night to get more antibiotics and make sure that they had properly attacked the infection in him.  In the meantime, I ran around like a crazy person getting Asher ready again by myself in the morning, dropping him off at daycare, working for the day, picking him up from daycare, making dinner and getting him ready for bed and tucked in.  Honestly, I do not have any idea how single parents survive.  It was an exhausting day.  I felt terrible that I we didn't go visit Eric again, but I thought he was coming home and had no energy left for another outing.

Finally, later on Thursday morning, I got a message that Eric was heading home.  I finished my day at work, picked Asher up from daycare again and then headed home to greet our appendix-less daddy/hubby.  Eric and I both thought that Asher would be through-the-roof to see him, but were surprised to find that he had become very attached/clingy to me and was a bit confused by all the week's events.  He was happy to see Eric, but didn't understand why Daddy couldn't pick him up or wrestle like normal...only adding to the confusion.  That night, Eric wanted to read to Asher before bed, so we agreed that they could have story time and then I would come in and put Asher into his crib.  As they got settled down to read though, it quickly became apparent that Asher wasn't going to go with our plans.  He insisted on Mommy (I believe hurting Daddy's feelings a bit in the process), so back I came and out Eric went.  On top of everything else, Asher had a 102.5 fever that night, which seemed to be aiding his grumpiness.

The next day (FINALLY!) was Friday.  I had been excited all week to have Eric home, but forgot that even with his presence, I would still lack his assistance (mostly) in caring for Asher.  Thus, I went through the entire daily routine one more time on my own.  When work was done on Friday night, I was completely beat.  Since neither of us had it in us to go out or cook, and Eric was allowed to eat whatever he wanted again, we ordered a pizza, ate and then headed to bed.  That night, after a day of Asher being fever free, I discovered that the fever had returned and was now 103.  We couldn't figure out what was going on, but gave him some tylenol and then sent him to bed.  Later that evening, I woke to him crying and then spent a while in his room snuggling him.  At that point the fever had broken, but he still needed some Mommy time.  As we rocked in his chair, I could tell that he was getting to the point of wanting to go back to sleep, but could not get comfortable.  I asked him if he wanted to go back in his crib.  He said "crib" and in he went, never to be heard from again until morning.

The next morning was Saturday and the end of our week full of unexpected (chaotic) events.  Eric was feeling quite a bit better, although still a bit sore and tired.  I was happy to have a day to get some much needed errands off my list.  We enjoyed a lazy morning at home and then Asher and I headed out to get some groceries and party supplies for his up-coming 2nd birthday.  We enjoyed some time browsing at the Dollar Store, where I experienced a motherly moment like nothing I've experienced before.  The entire time that we were in the store, Asher was really good, but by the end he was getting antsy in the shopping cart and wanted out.  I told him that we just needed to check out and he was trying to be patient.  As the cashier scanned my items, I realized that I had left my wallet at home and needed her to put my items aside while I waited for Eric to deliver it.  While I called Eric, the cashier canceled my purchase and then I realized that I had my check book.  I asked if they would accept a check without my ID and was told that they would.  However, rather than just checking me out at the same register the cashier was leaving for the day and told me I'd need to check out at the next register.  I had waited for about 7 people in front of me the first time, and realized that I would be doing so again.

At the point, Asher insisted on getting out of the shopping cart, so I told him he could get out if he stayed by me.  He (mostly) did so and eventually we were checked out.  Then, when it was time to go, I was fumbling with our purchases (a few small bags, and several rolls of wrapping paper).  Asher refused to go back into the cart or leave the store.  He went into full toddler mode, converting to a limp noodle and crying.  I put the items back in the cart and then had to pick him up, kicking and screaming. I threw him over my shoulder, attempting to push the cart and keep him from falling.  I tried unsuccessfully to get the door open as we made a big scene in the store.  After a few attempts, a lady finally offered to hold the door for me.  As she went to open it another lady entering the store, opened it and held it open.  I assumed it was for me (& it might of been, but I'm still not sure).  As I gratefully started to head through the door, a man came from behind the lady and walked right through the door in front of me!  I couldn't believe how rude he was.  It is not like he could have possibly missed the 6 month pregnant lady pushing a cart with one hand and holding a screaming toddler with the other.  As these thoughts went through my mind and the guy made his way behind me, I thought "ok, now I can go".  Again, I started to move forward, when the lady holding the door proceeded to go through it, shutting the door behind her...SERIOUSLY??!!  Finally, she made her way behind me, the original lady opened the door for me and then I was able to make my way out of the door.  Unbelievable!

After Asher and I made it back from our morning errands, we enjoyed some lunch and then much-needed nap time.  Then, he and Eric enjoyed a Daddy-Son snacktime consisting of frozen blueberries, milk and sugar (one of Eric's favorites).  Asher seemed to think it was pretty great and since then has asked for milk every time I've given him "burries" (blueberries).

After snack time, we rounded out the week with some play time outside and then I made a special (requested) early-Father's Day dinner for Eric...shisk-ka-bobs!  Yum!  We had survived the week and I prayed that the new week would bring more predictable events with it.  After this week, I know that the unexpected is way easier to deal with when my husband is by my side.  This parenting thing was always meant to be a two-person job!