Wow

Do you remember when you were pregnant and looked at a friend who already had children and uttered these words, "I am so tired! It is so hard to be pregnant!"? Maybe the statement sounded different, but I am certain that at some point we all felt that way. I remember saying something similar to a good friend who, at the time of my pregnancy, had a small child. She looked at me (in a glazed over sort of way) and nodded her head-but I noticed that there was something in that smile that was preparing me for what was to come.

Yesterday I woke up at 4am to the sounds of coughing-our 4 year old and our 6 year old had joined us once again (need I even mention that they ALWAYS come to my side of the bed to announce that they will be joining us?? At like 2 and 3am?). The dog came up to my side of the bed when he heard me move and decided that he needed to go potty. By 7:40 a.m. I had 4 kids dressed, fed, coats on, shoes tied, backpacks on, jackets ready, lunches ready, snacks packed, assignment notebook signed, shoes retied.....and then Ella looked at me and announced that she didn't feel good. Unfortunately this is Ella's Featured Friend week at school and since she wasn't running a fever we let her go to school. Probably not the smartest parenting move! At 8:25 the school nurse called to inform me that Ella was running a 102.3 fever-could I please come and get her? Sure, I responded...just as soon as Emmy's breathing treatment is over. Our day progressed uneventfully until I remembered that I had a doctors appointment scheduled....for an internal sonogram...and a pelvic exam...and I now have Ella! Well ladies, we went and survived that appointment-which left us short of time so we cruised to Walmart for a new thermometer/bread for dinner/childrens motrin/and I dropped off my own prescription all in 20 minutes....before we picked up Michael. After the Prairland pickup we proceed to the next school for Emmy and Fiona, get home, Ella's temp is back up, we eat snack, play outside..and I remember that Peris needs a ride home from circus. We get back in the van to head back to school and then I'm not sure what happened.
In the span of the next 2 hours, Ella continues to have a high fever, the dog PEE'S all over 3 backpacks, I make dinner, give 4 showers, make one lunch, help Michael with his inhaler, do a breathing treatment, clean up so Derek doesn't realize that we really do live in a disaster zone during the day, and finally put the kids to bed.
Why am I sharing this? Because I realize what that Mom was saying in that smile that she gave me all those years ago...."You have no idea what tired really is"-and now I know!
P.S.-I've been up since 3am when Ella yelled down to me "Mom, I puked and it didn't hit the toilet".