My Sick Girl

Emma is not the luckiest person when it comes to sickness. I wouldn't necessarily say that she is more sick than the average kid, but sometimes it sure seems that way. After battling with being sick since just before Halloween until almost new year's, we finally had a break. Well, that break ended last Friday. Emma started coughing a little, and it just kept getting worse. Saturday night she was up most of the night coughing so hard she was throwing up. Not. Fun. Of course, any time Emma coughs she's likely to end up leaning over the toilet or her throw up bucket. You know your kid is sick when she carries her throw up bucket around like it's her best friend or favorite toy. And as all you parents know, the worst part about your child getting sick is how limited you are with what you can do the help them feel better. We've been trying to have Emma eat foods that might help and drink lots of fluid, but that'll only do so much.

Finally yesterday Eric took her to the doctor. Just as we suspected, it is viral, so there's not much we can do. The one silver lining is that she's now old enough to take a little codeine before she goes to bed. This enables her to sleep through the night without much coughing, and definitely without coughing so hard she throws up. While on the one hand I love the relief she gets when she can take some kind of medicine, I really don't like giving her drugs. I would rather skip that part. I will, of course, do what is needed to help her get better though. Her weak stomach has always been a problem for Emma. So this time, the medicine wins. It is the greatest thing to see your child finally get a good night sleep for the first time in 5 days. Now maybe her body will be able to fight off this illness.

A Cute Valentine's Picture

I can't believe Valentine's Day has already come and gone. I've been so busy the past month and a half that time seems to have just flown by! We did manage to celebrate though. And Emma just LOVED this holiday. She's been really into wearing pink lately, so a holiday all about pink (and red) had her name written all over it. At preschool she wanted to wear a different Valentine's shirt each day last week. She wanted to wear her pink pants everyday too. She loved their party and giving Valentine's to everyone. She loved all the pink candy she received too. I went through a pink phase when I was younger too, but I don't think I was this young. But no matter how girly she'll want to dress lately, her own cute personality keeps shining through. She'll dress up all princessy, and then play with her dinosaurs. I love her.

Here's a cute picture we took on Valentine's Day after church. I don't know what the pose is she's doing, but I thought it was cute.

Tonight's Thoughts

Being a mom and having a blog, for me, means mentioning Emma a lot. If you've read this blog often, or even just occasionally, you've probably noticed this. I can't help it. I love her. And not just love, but quite frankly, I think she is the perfect child. I'm entitled to think that. But tonight I'm thinking about her and how much I love her even more than usual. Today she was an absolute angel (like she usually is), but I'm sitting here still thinking about it. She was awesome at church (her teachers even told Eric she is the "model child"), let me have time to talk with my sister-in-law from out of town who visited briefly, and she was very sweet and kind to her. She helped clear the table after dinner (oh, and she ate what we asked her to - bonus!), and was very polite while playing games and playing by herself. She got ready for bed and went down without a single pause, delay, or stalling act. Just an angel. And I love her and just wanted to share that little factoid. Just because.

A New Year

I've never been one to set lofty goals and resolutions as a new year rolls around. And it's not because I think I have nothing to improve on. Trust me, I do. I know, you're all shocked right? I think I've mostly stayed away from the resolutions etc. because I don't want to fall short of my own expectations. I set the bar pretty high, and having an actual written down goal of some sort would just make it that much more obvious that I don't always hit the mark. It doesn't sound like I have great faith in my own abilities. In some things yes, but in others not so much. And just because I don't officially set goals doesn't mean I don't still work to better myself. I do. And it's hard sometimes, but always worth it. Even if I don't "make it" it's still a worthwhile pursuit. I think that's really the key, that we keep trying to move forward. I don't think it's possible to stand still. You're either moving forwards or backwards. I hope to move forwards, even if it's only a little bit. So here's to continuing the journey, and to progress of any kind. Wish me luck! And I wish the best for all of you.