A Sick Day

The sun is shining. It is a beautiful day.

There is only one more day of term after today with the promise of a relaxing Easter break tantalisingly close.

But I cannot enjoy any of this.

My poor little boy is sick.

It started last night when he got into bed with me then vomited explosively.

I have not felt rested for some time because the whole family have been plagued with persistent coughs that always decide to be their most irritating during the hours when the comfort of sleep is so desperately needed. Every night I optimistically hope that this will be the night I manage a good uninterrupted night of blissful slumber. Last night certainly was NOT the night.

Stripping beds, turning mattresses and cleaning  vomit off walls, carpets and furniture are not activities of choice for the early hours. My husband took care of a slightly dazed 5 year old while I put sick drenched bed linen and pyjamas into the washing machine and tried to keep myself from falling apart.

The trusty sick bucket is at hand now. I have a little more work to do to get the house back to where we were before the whole sorry incident began. I have even managed to get a some sleep so I don't feel quite so broken.

I am so sorry that my little man will miss these last two days of term. I know there are lots of fun activities planned for the children that he would have been so excited by. All that really matters though is taking care of my brave boy and getting him back to his happy, healthy self.

He is sleeping now... an angelic face at peace. The sick bucket at his bedside reminds me that the peace can be shattered in an instant.

The sick bucket is ready. I am ready. The sun is still shining.

Colour Fun

I had my first Cadbury's Creme Egg of the year today.

This particular creme egg was included in the goodie bag for a Colour Run organised by one of the sixth formers at my children's school to raise money for the charity Sarcoma UK. I waited until after I completed the run before indulging in the sweet chocolatey goodness and I did enjoy it - everything tastes better when you feel that you have earned it.

The race was two laps of a course through the school grounds (about 5K in total) and included colour stations with teenagers pelting runners with a range of colourful powders as well as a wet, soapy, long sheet of plastic for sliding on.

I was running with two of my grown up daughters, my future son in law and my little ones: Addy (7 years) and Dylan (5 years).

I fully expected to have to stop after one lap because 5K is a long way for little legs. However, such was the excitement about turning clean white T shirts into a multicoloured mess (not to mention skin and hair) that they both happily opted to complete both laps. Dylan, who is a big fan of the TV show Power Rangers, declared himself to be a "Rainbow Ranger".

One of my daughters took a rather unfortunate hit of bright red powder right to the face. It was in her eyes and mouth and and did require a good rinsing with a water bottle I had taken with me to stay hydrated. I'd had quite a lot of wine the previous evening and thought it wise to have some water to hand. I'm glad that I did.

We did our best with the slide but I don't think any one of us quite had the technique despite some sterling efforts.

We had a wonderful time.

Mother's Day Massage

I received the most lovely Mothers Day gift from my seven year old daughter yesterday. She gave me a little handwritten voucher to be redeemed for a massage.

She has been learning the art of massage at school as an initiative to promote positive touch by a teacher passionate about the benefits of both giving and receiving massage - benefits that include reducing anxiety, helping with focus and building relationships on trust and respect. 

When I was ready to redeem my massage voucher, I put on some mellow music (a Michael Buble CD did the job) and lit a candle that had been part of a thoughtful gift from my grown up girls that made feel, with every tear that ran down my cheeks, how blessed I am to be their mother.

Scene set, I sat comfortably on a bean bag and let my little girl work her magic on my back, arms, hands, head and shoulders.

The massage was wonderful. I am an absolute believer in the healing power of touch. It was without a doubt restorative but the connectedness with this little human being that I brought into the world (and love with all that I am) was indescribably good. 

As a family, we are no strangers to touch. We hold hands and we cuddle...  a lot. However, I do think that making time for massage could have enormous benefits.

At the end of the session, she thanked me for allowing her to give me a massage as she has been taught to do. Learning to give and being grateful for the opportunity to give is so important and I was glad to be reminded of it.

It really was a very special Mothers Day gift.