Book club and barfing...

Last night I hosted book club at my house. I really enjoy book club I have to say, and was looking forward to the evening. However, book club in itself, is really nothing to blog about. But I do have a rather interesting story. Unfortunately, as you know if you have been following my blog, my children have all been battling illness. Bridger finally got on antibiotics for a sinus infection and upper respiratory infection and is feeling much better. Bailey, who had been fine since the "marble incident", started with a high fever Wednesday afternoon. I kept her home from school on Thursday and debated canceling book club. Levi assured me that he would quarantine the children in the basement and to go forward with it. I cleaned my house (which is no small task!) made refreshments that coordinated with the book (a book club tradition that I love!) and was ready to go! We where having a good time discussing the book, when suddenly Bridger ran upstairs and as he ran by shouted, "Bailey threw up!" Interestingly, only about two other people besides myself, seemed to recognize what was happening. Everyone else just continued on. I admit, I felt something like a deer in the headlights. I wasn't sure what to do, so I just sat there smiling stupidly. A few minutes later, my sainted husband came up with a grim look on his face and collected some cleaning supplies and disappeared back downstairs. A few minutes later I heard the shop vac come to life. Yet the book group continued on...seemingly unaware of the dull roar of the vacuum sucking up vomit downstairs. I was reminded of an incident when I was a little girl in church. The Morgan family with all eight of their children where sitting in the last row when one of them spewed up their breakfast. Tom Morgan, a janitor by trade, went and found the carpet shampooer and began cleaning the mess right in the middle of the church meeting. I remember the speaker trying to shout over the roar of the machinery. I thought that incident was funny. I did not think the situation I found myself in last night equally amusing. A few minutes later, the vibrant smell of vomit wafted up from downstairs, I discretely tried to get the air freshener out and send it downstairs with Kes. Maybe it was the smell, but finally the meeting wrapped up. It was a bizarre evening--not the best book club night ever. I went downstairs to find the mess totally clean and Levi looking a little sicker than Bailey. Poor boy, he has never had to single handedly clean regurgitate up by himself before! He said the worst part was the chunks of noodles from her soup she had for dinner. Loving my husband all the more for finishing this odious task for me, I took Bailey's temperature which was now 104.5! I felt that I couldn't give her more medicine, because that was what promoted her first vomit! After a blessing, and a cool rag on her forehead she settled down for the night. What an evening!

swallowing medicine...and marbles...

Well after a relatively healthy winter, two out of my three kids are sick. Bridger has been feverish and listless--and has a hoarse voice. Kes has a cold--so we took a sick day from church. But that isn't what I was worried about. Bailey was wreathing in pain on Saturday. I thought she had appendicitis. She told me, "mom, I didn't want to tell you this, but I swallowed a marble a couple days ago, and I think it is coming out of my skin." I thought--fabulous--there goes our tax return--spent getting a marble removed from Bailey's intestine where it has apparently lodged itself. Fortunately, she did "pass" the marble so now I can focus on runny noses and fevers!

I am once again a licensed driver...

For all who where wondering....I passed my tests so I am once again a licensed driver. We woke up to snow this morning so that only added to my anxiety. I went to spin class first (where I am supposed to keep my heart rate between 120- 130 while working out because I am pregnant) but because I was so worried my resting heart rate was 103 (normally it is 75) so that didn't go to well. The people that do the driver's licensing have to drive over from Miles City (about an hour away) and they where a half hour late just getting there. By this point, I have worked my self up to a slight dither. Ironically, the enclimate weather worked in my favor. The place (which I understand is usually packed) was not busy at all--resulting in unusual good moods for the DMV people. I passed my written test, and then had to go out for the driving one. But because the roads where so yucky, I literally had to drive about three blocks before we went back. I did have to do the dreaded parallel parking but lets face it, we don't have a lot of opportunities for that in Colstrip--so I just had to pull up next to a car and "pretend" there was a car behind me. Whew! That took a lot of pressure off. I am a nervous giggler, so I was giggling a little bit to my self, and then had to explain how I was not a very good parallel parker--and how I had never really had to practice it. The lady said, oh you did fine--weather or not I did, I don't really care because I PASSED! (And bonus, I actually got a good driver's license picture--so all in all the stars must have been aligned!). The moral of this story is NEVER let my license expire again...can anyone suggest a way that I could remind myself in eight years?

driving test...

I was writing the check for my registration and I happened to look at the expiration date on my drivers license--turns out I have been driving with an expired license since last April! Oh my gosh! I about had a heart attack. So I have to take the written and driving test on Thursday in order to get a new license! I am totally freaking out--mostly because I can't parallel park. Also, everyone I talk to says the driver license guy is a real grouch. I am so scared!

Valentines Idea

So I got this idea out of the Children's Friend magazine, but we started a new Valentines family tradition. It is called the Love Basket. Everyone in the family gets the love basket for one day (We started this on Monday night for Family Home Evening). Now, in the friend it says to decorate or create on yourselves--but because I am pretty lazy, I just grabbed a cheap pink Easter basket we had hanging around the house. The first day Levi had the love basket, so everyone drew pictures or wrote nice notes about things they liked about him or how much they loved him and filled up the basket. The next day was Bridger...then Bailey..and so on. (You get the idea) I was surprised at how excited the kids where to do this for each other--and how much they loved it when it was there day! I think it will be a new Sloan Family tradition.

Bridger is allergic to me!

Bridger has come down with a case of the sniffles. Something he likes to get as much leverage out of as he can. Yesterday, we where getting ready for church. He would be laughing and playing with the girls and then I would walk into the room and he would instantly start groaning and whining about how sick he was. Finally, Levi made the observation that Bridger must be allergic to me, as that is the only time he feels unwell (when he is near me!) We convinced him to go to Sacrament by telling him, if he was still "miserable" that we would take him home after that. He of course was too "sick" with his occasional runny nose to go to all three hours of church--so Levi brought him home. He had to lay in bed (as is our rule with Bridger staying home sick) By early evening he was sick of being sick and informed all of us that he was "all better now and could he please play a computer game?" I asked him if he was going to be sick tomorrow morning when it was time for school. He thought about it and replied, "probably!"

One for the team....

We had our sonogram yesterday. We took Bailey and Bridger out of school and so the who family got to go. It was really fun to see the kid's reactions. Kes kept saying, "oh the baby is so cute!" I personally thought it looked like a little alien....especially in the 3-d images. Bridger got worried about me and came over and started stroking my hair and said, "mom are you okay?" When I answered yes, he then said, "Well, what is all that nasty stuff all over your stomach?" Anyways, everything went well...the baby is healthy and growing fine. So for the moment you've all been waiting for. We are having....drum roll please....a little baby boy! Bridger was so excited, he said, "Yes! Now the boy and girl teams are going to be even!"