On Sunday night I had a revelation. My nephew, David, is 14-years old and he is homeschooled. What if he could come spend a week with me so that I could go to all of my doctor's appointments without having to worry about the kids? And so I called my sister-in-law and suddenly plans were set in motion. Like usual, I make big decisions on a whim with little or no notice. It's become a recurring theme in my life.
Monday morning I found myself in the van with 6 children, on the highway headed north. Yes, I drove to pick him up. Yes, I'm crazy.
It was one of the longest days of driving that we've done (longest being the 21 hour drive back from Rhode Island last year) clocking in at just over 16 hours. We left the house early and Jessie was kind enough to meet us in North Carolina. We stopped and had lunch, kidnapped David, and hit the road again. On the way home I had decided to stop for dinner in Charlotte, NC because we wanted to visit a friend and because there's a Pei Wei there. And on our trip to AZ last summer, my friend Beth got me hooked on Pei Wei. (Best crab wontons EVER!)
I made it to Charlotte after several potty stops (because David drank a 2-liter bottle of soda in the van) and we had dinner. Then we spent almost an hour with our friends while the kids jumped on the trampoline and played in the backyard. By the time I left Charlotte it was dark and all 6 kids were sound asleep.
I had deemed the trip a success and was relieved when I pulled into the driveway late Monday night. But on Tuesday things got ugly again. I had my first appointment of the week and when I returned home I noticed that Sarah wasn't feeling well. Then she had a fever. Then she started throwing up. Yesterday I quarantined Sarah from the other kids and prayed that whatever she had was the same pukoughing virus that we've had in our house for the last few weeks. I don't know how she could have picked up a stomach bug because we have been so sick that we didn't leave the house until Monday. I should probably mention that I can handle a lot of things that many people are disgusted by, such as snakes, mice, and of course poop. But I don't do spiders or vomit.
Last night David informed me (after I had cleaned up vomit and was ready to lock myself in the closet and hide) that he had seen 3 large spiders in the hallway. At this point I tossed up my hands and sighed. Yeah, I know it's not a big deal. Some barf and some creepy spiders. Who cares? But for me, right now, I suddenly felt like my world was caving in on me. Like I just can't catch a break. My life is one mess after another.
I'm feeling better about things today, but if I stop to think too much, I am still overwhelmed. It's June now and we have not had any offers on our house. Jason will be home in a few short months and I don't even know if I'll be able to go out and live with him. Life just feels so complicated at the moment. It's icky. I don't like feeling icky.
I'm hopeful that tomorrow will be a much better day. It has to be, right? (Don't answer that.)
If things keep going like they're going now, I'll be certifiably insane. Maybe I already am? (Don't answer that either.)
