Hail Mary

The best part of this is what you can't see: He's resting on a little kneeler he made for himself out of his step stool and he's placed the Marys ("Crown Mary" and "Bathrobe Mary," as you might remember) on his Learning Tower so they'd be at eye level, like in church.

She's back!

Redhead

It was WARM out today!

Bonding

Cody and I just had one of the most precious nights ever. Cordelia sacked out around 6:30, but Cody had had a long nap, and wasn't nearly ready for bed. So after we got her down, I asked him if he'd like to have some special time, just the two of us. And if so, what he would like to do together. I was betting on Play-Doh, but his answer was immediate and unequivocal: "Vacuum. Because the kitchen is pretty disgusting." Quite true.

So we vacuumed, and then I decided to make eggs for my dinner. He asked if he could join me and have a banana. So we settled in at the coffee table. He was thrilled -- such a novelty to be up late, by himself, snacking in his pajamas. (And for me, such a novelty to have him asking to eat anything at all.) He said sweetly, "Are we having a bedtime snack together? Just us? No Cordelia? No Daddy? I love this banana." After he finished, he clearly didn't want the moment to end, and said hopefully, "Can I have another banana?" We were out, so he settled for half an apple. Then we read a couple of stories on the couch, after which I said it was getting late and about time to go up. He looked appraisingly at me and said, "What if I am still hungry? Could I have another snack?"

Stunned, I said sure. Granola bar? Done. He ate the whole thing. I had one too. As I was brushing the crumbs off his face, he said, "Is it bedtime yet?" When I answered yes, just about, he said thoughtfully, "But...my tummy would really, really like some toast. With butter. Please may I have just one piece of toast with butter please? Or two? It would be my pleasure to share my toast with you." I nearly fell off the couch laughing, and made the toast. When I gave it to him, he said, "Thank you so much for toasting this toast for me. It is delicious. I love it!" I gave him a squeeze, and then this followed:

CJP: Are my manners excellent?

Me: Yes.

CJP: Are they gorgeous?

Me: Yes, I suppose they are.

CJP: Mom? When I get bigger -- maybe when I am three -- can we go to Rome together?

Me: Rome? Yes. Yes, I will take you to Rome.

CJP: And will we see the huge enormous church? Like on Mr. Rogers? And will there be fountains?

Me: Yes. So many fountains! Way more than we will be able to count.

CJP: And will I put my hands in them and splash?

Me: Probably.

CJP: Also when I am three, can I get a surfboard?

Me: Don't push it.

CJP: I will not push it. I would never push my surfboard. It is rude to push.

After awhile, he settled his head against my chest, and said, "Mom? What is this called?" I was confused. He said, "What is this called that we are doing? Is it a bedtime visit? With no Cordelia, and no Daddy? Am I up so late? Is it past my bedtime?" I said yes, it was just special time just for the two of us, called bonding.

He was quiet for a few minutes, then put his little arms around me, kissed my face, and said, "Mom? I love you. All the way to the moon and back. And I really love bonding."

I couldn't ask for a better end to the day.

Superbabies

I'm happy to report both my superbabies are on the mend. It turns out that having 2 sick children makes you 85 times as busy (and tired) as having 2 unsick children, hence the light blogging. Cody is nearly all the way better, and Cordelia is getting there, too. She wound up with an ear infection on top of everything else, and we had to buy a nebulizer to treat her at home. It was just as awful as it looks:

She refused to drink milk for over a week, but we are slowly getting there. She has a few more days of antibiotics and goes for a follow-up tomorrow -- the best birthday present of all for me would be for her to get a clean bill of health!

Cody is back to his boundary-testing, but the shared sickness seems to have had a sweetening effect on him with regard to his baby sister. He now calls her "my sweet babe" all the time, and tells her -- often, and unbidden -- "Little baby, I really like you now! I love you! I love you all the way to the moon and back! You are my favorite friend!"

Now THIS is more like it!

Cody Communications

The other day in the car, Cody launched into a long imaginary story that went something like this:

CJP: Yesterday, Bidi and Patches and Tigger and Tippy and I went to the pool! We had a great time. We took all our water toys and towels and sunglasses and we all got really wet.

Me: That sounds amazing! Especially since it's been so cold! Did you say "Cowabunga" when you got water all over your faces?

CJP, with great seriousness: Mom! Bidi does not have a face.

Me: Oh. Well, that's true.

CJP: Patches does have a face. But it is tiny. He has a little tiny puppy mouth so he cannot eat Five Guys. He can only eat puppy food. And yesterday when we all went to Dunkin' Donuts (we didn't) I shared my munchkins with him but his mouth was too little so he could only eat the crumbs.

Me: That was very kind of you.

CJP: Bidi could not have any munchkins. She does not have a mouth, Mommy. But she can still talk to me and sing to me and help me calm down, Mommy. Bidi does not have a mouth but she can still COMMUNICATE WITH ME!

Me: I don't doubt it for a second, babe.

Cordelia-bird, down for the count

Cody took us up on our entreaties to do a better job of sharing with his sister, and graciously passed on his virus to Cordelia. Unfortunately it hit her much, much harder (which I would have thought hard to imagine). She's had diarrhea, fever, congestion, lots of vomit, which she has been sweet enough to reserve mostly for me, and of course, she can't blow her nose, or talk to us, so it's really been rough on her.

After about 36 hours of no sleep -- she couldn't stop coughing and crying or get comfortable -- we took her to the doctor, where they tested her for several things and determined she has RSV. It's a fairly common respiratory virus, but is extremely rough on babies. She's been absolutely miserable, and has had to undergo nebulizer treatments every 4 hours to help with wheezing, at the hands of Evil Mommy, whose job it is to hold her down and press a mask against her little face for 10 minutes while medicine poofs into her lungs. You can imagine how well that's going, and how much she enjoys it. This is on top of me coming at her every so often with the Nose Bulb of Doom, to which she reacts like I'm attacking her with an ice pick. She had to go back Saturday morning, and will go again tomorrow, so they can check her breathing and hydration (she doesn't really want to eat or drink). Anyway, she's pretty inconsolable unless she's in my arms (especially at night; she likes to sleep sitting straight up on me in her rocker, which seems to help the horrible congestion). I didn't think it was fair to post sick pics of Cody and not of her.

Obviously, she disagrees. Keep them in your prayers! Hopefully week 2 of February will go a little better.

When You're Feeling Crappy...

...It helps to dress like a superhero.

My Little Snot Factory

JVL and I had company in our bed for the first time ever last night. At 9:15, after listening to 3 hours of moaning and whimpering, we finally brought him in. He didn't really sleep much, but being near us seemed to at least soothe him. Also, it turns out he really likes my pillow, so it may no longer be my pillow. Oh well. We're hoping tonight is better, but here's your status update...