#Microblog Mondays 18: Sick Child Edition

I'm posting super late because I was home with a sick AJ all day.  Both he and MJ have had an upper respiratory virus that seems to have hit AJ harder.  MJ got sick first, coughing at night starting two nights before Chr.istm.as, and continuing to have an occasional cough and nasal congestion through yesterday.  MJ is pretty much over whatever this is now.

AJ started getting ill a couple of days ago, and in addition to those symptoms, he has run a near-constant fever for over two days (despite regular dosing with alternating Tylenol and Motrin), and his cough has been more severe than MJ's.  He has had very low energy, and his day care doesn't permit children with a fever to attend.

Because work is not particularly busy for me at the moment, and because the prospect of staying home from day care today with either MM or my mother brought him to tears, I spent the day at home with him.  He was cranky, restless and clingy, poor lamb.

And that pretty much sums up my Monday.

#Microblog Mondays 17

• One thing I decidedly do NOT miss about having a nanny: having to figure out the nanny's taxes each year.  So thankful that this year is the last one I will have to worry about this chore!  (Yes, I know there are services that would've done this for me; I'm too cheap to pay for them.)
• Our house will be spic-and-span by tomorrow evening because there is a handyman there today completing several small tasks that have gone uncompleted for months, either due to lack of time or lack of necessary skills/equipment, and a cleaning crew is coming tomorrow to clean.  G-d bless my mother for being willing to hang out at my house to let them in/supervise!
• Speaking of my mother. . . the boys have been very happy to have their "Bubbe" (her chosen moniker) back visiting for the winter.  And in addition to my own personal enjoyment in having her around, it's always great to have another adult to keep the boys in line/entertained.  :-)

Holiday Cheer

I thought I would share some good news here. . . 

• I have gone from being overwhelmingly busy at work to having just a few loose ends to tie up. Apparently things really slow down at this firm over the holidays.  Nice!
• At our holiday party on Wednesday, my boss told us all that he hopes that we will take some time off over the holidays these next two weeks.  I took that to mean that, in addition to the four days that the office will be closed, it is probably OK not to be at the office the usual 8-9 hours a day on the other days, too.  Yea!
• I received a wholly unexpected year-end bonus, as well as a salary increase starting next month!  Obviously I never received a bonus at my most recent job in government, and during the almost-three years at my previous firm, I never once received a bonus or a raise because both were primarily based on hours billed.  The extra money is nice, but the better part is feeling appreciated for being a valued member of a team. . . a feeling I haven't felt at work in a very long time.
• Through some online shopping, I managed to get gifts off to my out-of-state relatives earlier this week.  They will arrive in time for the holiday--whew!
• I also managed to (finally!) get my holiday cards in the mail.  I usually aim to get them sent out the Saturday after Than.ksgiv.ing, so I am really late this year for me.
• My mom is now in town, and I will be seeing her tomorrow for the first time since April.
• My dad called last night to let me know that things have improved for him health-wise to the point where he *is* going to be permitted to travel here for Ch.ris.tmas.  I am looking forward to seeing him, and I think he will really enjoy being with the boys for the holiday.
• We have actually been having "sweater weather" here this week--daytime highs in the low 60s, the coldest weather we get during the year--which has helped to make things feel a little more festive.
• I have a plan in place to knock out the remainder of my Ch.ris.tmas shopping tomorrow.  Hallelujah!

Have a great weekend!

#Microblog Mondays 16

• It is now only 10 days until Chr.ist.mas, and apart from the boys' gifts--which have all been purchased--I have yet to buy a single gift.  This is an unusual, and not a good, situation, particularly because I have to ship a number of my gifts.  I will have to jump on this on Saturday.
• My dad and stepmom were supposed to come for Chr.ist.mas but now probably won't be able to because of some health issues my dad is dealing with.  I'm disappointed, and they are, too, as this would've been the first time I've spent the holiday with them since I've been married (long story).
• The boys actually sat in Santa's lap for a photo this year!
• I am feeling unmotivated at work today; nevertheless, I have quite a bit to do, so I'd better get to it.

#Microblog Mondays 15

Random brain dump of my thoughts from my weekend. . .

• The boys LOVE holiday lights and decorations.  They would go out and look at them every evening if we let them.  We went to see some last Friday and have plans to see more this Thursday night at the railroad park and over the weekend at a local home that is decorated in a Disney Pixar Cars theme (they love that movie, esp. AJ).
• Why are Santa and his reindeer more interesting to my sons than the story of the baby Jes.us?  Should I be concerned?  (MM and I were both raised in different Christian sects--Lutheran for him, Roman Catholic for me--but neither of us actively practices our religion.)
• How is that I spent nearly three solid hours cleaning my house on Saturday while MM took the boys to his mother's house, and there are still many things around the house that need to be done?  I guess it had just gotten THAT bad.  At least now we have clean clothes and certain standards of hygiene are being maintained, even if it isn't as neat and tidy as I'd like.
• I was down with a bad migraine most of Friday (although I couldn't take the day off because I had a mediation I had to attend), and as a result, I am now even more behind at work.  I am beginning to get the feeling that this job is one at which I may never be caught up.  I leave here every day feeling like I could spend another 3-4 hours at the office.  Ugh.
• I found out this morning that there is a chance that one of the partners may leave the firm before year's end when he finds out his bonus won't be what he had hoped and that our managing partner asked the associate attorney on a big-damages personal injury case he is handling if she thought I'd be willing to take over trying that case if/when he leaves.  I'd have a few hesitations in doing so--it's a case in another jurisdiction in which I've not practiced; the case has problems and is the subject of scrutiny from the higher-ups at the insurer that is paying our bills; and the trial starts the first week of February, meaning that my workload would increase exponentially starting in just a few weeks--but I am very flattered that my boss would consider me qualified to step in and do this.

Gotta get to work!

#Microblog Mondays 14

Random, disjointed thoughts. . .

• I hate tasks that require getting input from others.  Unfortunately, these tasks have compromised roughly half my to-do list at work of late.
• I have pretty much convinced MJ that whether or not Santa brings him presents for Chr.ist.mas is contingent on his behavior.  Not sure whether AJ has bought into this notion, as he tends to keep his own counsel more than his brother.
• I enjoyed my four-day weekend (and should write more about some of it when I have more time), but it was also a reminder of some of the reasons I am not a SAHM.
• I can hardly believe it's already December 1st!
• I have so much stuff to do in the next thirty days that it seems impossible that it will all get done.