Up at 5
AM after hearing daughter moaning. Stomach flu. Gah. This simple fact triggers the following cascade of events:
- Call to her school to report her sick
- Call to job to report I need to stay home (see above)
- Quarantine daughter ASAP and wipe down things she might have toughed yesterday, when she was the picture of health
- Prep to make morning drop as quick as possible, being ready for a dismaying array of possible actions/consequences
- Turn classical music on louder than usual, to drown out the sounds of pain -- it triggers extreme anxiety in her brother, which sets him up for a bad day at school
- Make 4 stops in 30 minutes to accomplish direst of errands for the day; demolish planned list of activities and reassess for new, confined status
- Take deep breaths and try to not yell; she did not plan or want to get sick
- Try to not keep thinking "My day is ruined and once again I cannot do what I want/need. Brilliant. Not."
- Notify respite care and CATS Student of current situation and let them pick whether or not to come over this afternoon; I need a break, but don't want to recklessly spread the bug
- Swear under my breath, flashing back to That Scene in The King's Speech
My plan for the day is to break things down even further, into 10-15-minute chunks. Periodically check on daughter. Keep that music on. Go out back and take a break for me at least twice before my son gets home. Breathe.
PS: I finally got to sleep at 1 this morning. Yeah -- ow.
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