We neglect this poor little blog and in the last couple weeks we haven't even taken many pictures for me to upload now. Things have just been so incredibly busy and between that and us all being slightly under the weather, I feel like I've just been hanging on for dear life. After a couple weeks of being off, culminating in being REALLY off Weds-Fri last week, Elizabeth has settled back down. Maria commented when Joe picked Elizabeth up yesterday that it was like she was a different baby. Looking at her sheet, it was like she was back to the baby she used to be. She hasn't gotten her nighttime sleep patterns back, but her naps and eating are back on track. And last night she would have slept better if she hadn't woken up every time I coughed. (Yeah, that was fun.)
Joe has been out of town again the last couple days and it has actually been fine but anticipating it this weekend in the midst of already being overbooked and overtired and sick led me to completely melt down. What pushed me over the edge was when we realized that I had a Monday evening meeting that I couldn't get out of and that he would have already left and so couldn't watch the kids. And Maria had a commitment so couldn't keep Elizabeth late and I had to teach until half an hour before my meeting so couldn't drive up to get Elizabeth even if I could find a student I trusted with an infant. (Nicholas was easy, we have a bunch of former students studying to be preschool teachers who are happy to take him to dinner in the cafeteria and make some easy money.) And I just felt so overwhelmed and alone and hopeless.
But the thing is, I'm not alone. I ended up trying two friends to see if they could help and left voice messages for both. And both called back saying they could take Elizabeth, acting as though it was no big deal, even though they each have two young kids and a full life of their own. And today the one who didn't watch Elizabeth yesterday met me at daycare pickup with a casserole of baked ziti ready to be popped in the oven and a loaf of garlic bread! On Saturday I was crying overwhelmed tears but today I feel ready to cry again but this time tears of gratitude. It is in part the actual help they both provided in making it possible to get through the week but it is more the fact that they jumped to help.
As my friend said last night when I was thanking her effusively as I picked up Elizabeth, we have to make family when we don't have family around. It is so true. You need someone who you can impose on. And I mean that in the nicest possible way. Someone you can call with needs that are actually an imposition. Someone you don't keep score with, but just help each other out whenever the need arises. Someone you don't clean for or even shower for. I feel so lucky to have two such friends here. I'd still prefer to have my mom around the corner, but this week has made me realize that I'm not as alone as I thought.
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