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Adventures in the Land of Puke and Crank


This week has been kinda hard.

I’m not used to this- having a cranky, clingy kid. Maggie has always been independent and happy and rarely gives us trouble (unless it’s bedtime, and then all bets are off.) But this week, oh Lordy.

It started on Sunday morning when she puked up her breakfast. But immediately after, she was fine and playing and giggling so we figured it was just some freak thing. Then Monday morning- same thing. Right after breakfast, we were getting our coats on, ready to head out the door to MyGym and then the library and then the grocery store. Scratch those plans- now it’s time to clean up the 3-foot-by-4-foot puddle of yogurt puke all over my living room floor (oh yes, it smelled JUST as lovely as it sounds.)

So we stayed home. I wasn’t about to take a ticking-time-bomb in the form of a Pukey Kid to the grocery store and have her puke in the cereal aisle. No thank you. And of course, she was fine for the rest of the day. A little sleepy, so I figured it was just a minor stomach bug and would pass. And Tuesday she was fine all day- NO PUKE, yay! BUT SHE WAS SO FREAKING CRANKY. Like, EPIC Cranky. And she only took a 1 hour nap, which for her is not very long (usually 2-3 hours, bless her.)

Nothing I did was right. I played with the markers wrong. She didn’t want ANIMAL CRACKERS, she wanted GOLDFISH CRACKERS. No, no- NO FISHIES! WAAAA! She wanted me to sit there. No, THERE. No, over here! She wanted to watch the ‘Gemmins’ (translation: Happy Feet, the penguin movie). She didn’t want to watch the ‘Gemmins’. She didn’t even want to watch ELMO. That’s when I knew I was in trouble. By the time Dan got home, I was at the end of my rope. That has only happened a few times in the 21 months of her life, and most of them were when she was a newborn and I had no freaking clue what I was doing and I was hormonal and fat and in shock at the enormity of how our life had changed and OH LORD WHAT DID WE DO??!?

But Wednesday was a new day. I took her to daycare like I normally do and settled in at home for a day of quiet and catching up on some work. And I had my day, until 4pm when the daycare called. She puked again. Like the third kid that day. And she had some ‘diaper issues’ as well. Awesome. I love daycare. She was out of daycare for 2 weeks at Christmas and was 100% perfectly healthy. She went back on Friday and BOOM. Sick. BAH.

Last night, thankfully, she was in much better spirits. Even though she wasn’t feeling well, she was mellow and not nearly as irritated as she was on Tuesday, which was good for all of us. A good night’s sleep (Sidenote: SO THANKFUL that at least she’s been sleeping well at night all week. And now that I said that, I need to prepare myself for multiple wakings tonight. Way to go, Jen.) and no puke today. I’ve kept her away from All Things Dairy (except for cheese, the girl LOVES her cheese) and boy that was not a popular decision- no ‘yo-yurt’ and she’s cranky. But I need to make sure she’s done with the puking before I let her drink any milk- I am not throwing away another rug, thankyouverymuch. By bedtime tonight, she was back to her normal self- including her usual 45 minutes of Fighting Bedtime By Screaming and Throwing Pacifiers and Books, so we’re right back on schedule. AHEM.

I’m not sure why this week was so tough on me. I don’t know if it was all really as bad as it seemed, or if I was just tired myself and not mentally equipped to handle it. I know things could always be a thousand times worse, and we tell ourselves that every night when we climb into bed: She’s healthy (overall, with serious stuff, obviously) and happy and smart and adorable and we love her to death. But sometimes, she makes me want to go hide in a closet. Or send her to Alaska. Or the moon. Just for a visit- you know, until she’s like 18 or something.

Tomorrow is Friday. Daycare again. And tomorrow night, my mom is coming to babysit while we go out to dinner with Dan’s family for his aunt’s 50th birthday. To say I am looking forward to it is an understatement. I love you so much, Maggie, but I’m pretty sure you melted part of my brain this week. Mommy and Daddy need a break.

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10 Comments


  1. Laura

    Jan 8 at 9:53 pm

    I’m kinda jealous that you can go out to dinner with your family without the kid. My ILs kinda act like we HATE THEM if we presume to ever suggest going to dinner or doing ANYTHING with them without Andrew in tow. :P

    Lauras last blog post: recipe: Bean-Rice-Tortilla Bake



  2. Jen

    Jan 8 at 9:57 pm

    @Laura: heh well normally they would be a little hurt we didn’t bring her- but dinner isn’t until 7 and it’s about 45 minutes away, so there is NO way we’d take her with us. And it’s at a bar-type restaurant, not Applebees or somewhere more kid-friendly ;)



  3. sparkyd

    Jan 9 at 8:46 am

    I’m jealous that you have in laws that are willing, able, and trustworthy to look after Maggie. We’re a little lacking in that department. However, we don’t take advantage of the other people in our lives that are more than willing to babysit (mostly because we’d rather they come to us but we live outside the city a little so we feel like we’re imposing), so we have to take some of the blame for our lack of no-kid alone time.

    But you know, that is not why I wanted to comment. Sidetracked by the PPs jealously comment. What I really wanted to say was enjoy your kid-free day and evening today. Definitely a requirement for sanity, even when they aren’t puking. You probably weren’t in the best mode to deal with the crankiness because you just came out of 2 weeks of no day care and therefore no down time. Plus crazy holiday stuff on top of it.

    We are expecting #2 in July and I pray that our financial situation stays as-is so that we can keep our son in daycare while I’m home dealing with #2. I can’t imagine keeping him sufficiently entertained at home all the time even without another baby to deal with. The thought of having them both at home all the time makes me want to go somewhere and hide. Supermom, I am not.



  4. Jen

    Jan 9 at 9:36 am

    @sparkyd: We are very blessed in that aspect- we have our in-laws, my parents, and my sister and her husband who are always fighting over who gets to watch Maggie :) I think that comes from the fact that she’s the ONLY kid on either side, so she’s quite popular, ha. In a few years when there are more kids around, I don’t think it will be quite as easy to find a sitter!

    And I don’t think any of us are SuperMom. I look forward to my work days very much! Not that I don’t love being home with Maggie, but I like the balance I have of Mommying and then Working. It’s perfect for me. Good luck with your #2!! I’m still trying to wrap my head around the concept of #2 myself- balancing work and 2 of them at home, gah. Definitely tricky!!



  5. ella

    Jan 9 at 12:47 pm

    i love being a mom but i sure don’t miss days like this! at 5 and 10 years old, mine have their own special brand of crank but at least they can be reasoned with – to some degree.

    ellas last blog post: Friday 5: The Lucky Ones & Monster Spray



  6. Melissa

    Jan 9 at 10:10 pm

    Hope Maggie is feeling better. Sometimes it seems to put kids (as well as Mom & Dad :) ) in a better mood, too, to hang out with grandparents.

    Hopefully next week will be much better! Enjoy your night out!

    Melissas last blog post: Protected: most of the time / somtimes



  7. Francesca

    Jan 10 at 9:12 am

    I hope Maggie recovers quickly. I’m not a mom, but I have been an aupair. I’ve had to clean up a mess of puke and/or poo several times…so I DO feel your pain!

    Have fun!!

    Francescas last blog post: A baby is born



  8. Steph

    Jan 10 at 7:47 pm

    Sounds like a tough week. Glad you got through it though..

    Did you ever find out what was wrong with her?

    Stephs last blog post: Illustration Friday: Resolve



  9. red pen mama

    Jan 12 at 9:15 pm

    Are you sure Bun and Maggie are not related somehow? Aside from the puking, that description about not being able to please Maggie sounded exactly like Bun lately. Want mommy, don’t want mommy; want book, don’t want book; want drink, don’t want drink. ARGH!

    She’s snapping out of it. I think. Of course, she just turned 2, so there is that. And after 2? THREE.

    Go hide.

    ciao!
    rpm

    red pen mamas last blog post: Surviving the Game



  10. Jen

    Jan 13 at 7:11 am

    @red pen mama: well, they are pretty close in age! Maggie won’t be 2 until the end of March, but I’ve been referring to her as ‘two’ for a few weeks now, because THAT’S HOW SHE’S ACTING. Terrible Twos are in full force for sure. And it was made 9,278 times worse by her being sick. It’s dialed back a bit now, thankfully, but it’s definitely still there.