Luke's Mummy

Friday, January 18, 2008

Ill

Yes, had to happen didn't it, after spending all that time at the doctors and chemist with Luke and Richard, I am now officially NOT VERY WELL!!! Been battling feeling crappy for a few weeks now, and as soon as Luke and Richard are back to rude health I am dealt a huge whammy by Mr Virus and wind up with an extremely yuck worthy chest infection. So, am now wandering around the house clutching endless mugs of tea (to try and lubricate the tubes), inhaling copious amount of menthol, sucking so many cough lozenges I have probably now lost all my taste buds and waiting for my next antibiotic (will this be the one that finally renders me able to stand without the dizzy sweats?).

I can proudly state that I definitely inherited my gorgeous, much missed father's ability to be the world's worst patient.

Monday, January 14, 2008

The Receptionist, The Teacher, and The Toe

Luke has been off school since last Tuesday, really not very well at all, wheezy chest, congested head, temperature, oh yes the dreaded lurgy had been caught off daddy. I have discovered that I have a real problem with ringing in sick for him, seriously as the days went on I was feeling more and more stressed at having to call the receptionist, it was akin to calling in work sick, you know the scenario no matter how crappy you feel you still feel like they don't quite believe you.

Me: "So sorry, Luke is really not feeling good today so he won't be coming in"

Receptionist: (Dramatic Pause for Effect) "So he isn't well then?"

Me: "No he is full of a bad cold virus, really not good at all"

Receptionist: "Oh Okaaaaay then, I'll let them know"

Me: "Hopefully he will be better tomorrow" (Why the hell I say that when I know fully well he will not have picked up enought to go in beats me)

Then, I have to call in the next morning feeling again very guilty, and convinced that they think I am overprotective and should really be sending him in snotty nose and wheezing chest or not. The final day I couldn't face it and got Richard to do it. "What's the problem?" he asked, "I can't believe you are nervous about calling the school, come here give me the phone." He reappeared about 5 minutes later looking very distressed, "I'm convinced she didn't believe me" he said, "really?" I replied, "why", "So he's just got a cold then?" she said to him, "Is it really bad then?." "hmmmmm, ok, I'll let them know." So it's not just me then? Of course it doesn't help matters that the receptionist and teachers walk past the front living room window every morning, whereby they can witness Luke sat at his table snarfing cheerios down in front of the telly looking sometimes, admittedly not very ill at all. It doesn't matter if he isn't eating during the day somehow he can usually manage a bit of sugar coated cereal and it's always just as the said people are walking past looking in. (must draw the blinds).

So, he spent the time watching DVD's, snoozing, not eating very much at all (the stress of it!!), and when he was feeling a bit better playing in his room. Usually when we are at home together at weekends or on holiday from school we go out every day for a good old round round the park (even when it's raining much to a lot of my friend's disbelief), so being cooped up has been a bit difficult for us both. So, come last Friday when he was perking up considerably I suggested a walk into town (only about 3/4 mile).

Me: Now Luke, if we meet any of your teachers, be sure to not tell them that you are perfectly well, remember you are off sick, so it is ok to tell them you have been ill, ok?"

Luke: "Why? I feel alright now mummy"

Me: "Yes, I know you are feeling better now Luke, but you have been ill"

Luke: (reluctantly) "Oh ok"

So off we went, having a lovely stroll, on the way back we bumped into one of his teachers just as we were crossing the canal footbridge (Bloody knew we would)

Teacher: " Oh hello Luke, how are you feeling, how have you been?"

Luke: (Looks at me triumphantly) "I'm great, feeling really well, thank you for asking, why?"

Teacher: (Looking at me very suspiciously) "But you have been ill haven't you?"

Luke: "Oh I'm fine"

See, knew it would happen!!

So he went back in today, not that he wanted to of course, after a week of snuggling mummy, eating when and pretty much what he wanted (I was at breaking point and just gave in to him in the end, just eat damn it), playing in his room etc., school was not an option he wanted to consider. He came into the bedroom at 6.30 this morning waving his foot at me, "Mummy, I can't go into school, I've got a poorly foot" I squinted at it, and noticed a bit of red fluff hanging off his big toe, "There's nothing there Luke", his dismay when he saw the fluff drop off down to the carpet was huge. "But it was all red and itchy, honest", not anymore Luke, get dressed. And he did, very slowly, so slowly it was almost in reverse.

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Croissant and Clutter

Luke finally went back to school today after what felt like a huge festive break, was a bit "iffy" about sending him really as he had picked up a really horrible cold virus which left him housebound for a couple of days, still he didn't have a temperature this morning and seemed ok about going in (eventually), but he was reluctant to eat much brekky and when I picked him up he hadn't eaten much lunch (just his raw peppers and cucumber). This really freaks me out, I am rubbish at handling him not eating. Now commonsense tells me that when you have a head cold you don't always want to eat, but if Luke turns down a few meals I hate it. I sit there for 30 minutes trying to coax him into eating as if missing a couple of days worth of food is going turn him into an undernourished waif. This boy has plenty of meat on his bones and usually is a good eater so really I should just calm it down a bit. But still, after him picking at his pasta and fish at tea time and turning down a couple of jaffa cakes I was waving a croissant at him come bedtime which I am sure he only ate just to shut me up.

I was just pondering as I was unloading the drier for what felt like the tenth time today why I am such a cluttered person. I have always since childhood wanted to be the kind of person who has perfectly kept drawers/cupboards/handbags but I have never ever achieved it. Oh yes, I tend to have a clear out a few times a year where I can quite happily fill a few bin liners worth of crap, you know, odd socks/shoes/playing cards/biros/shoe boxes full of tissue/broken toys (and that's just one drawer!). It all gets chucked away to reveal a perfectly lovely spacious place, then the remaining stuff gets all put away neatly and I can relish opening the drawer/cupboard/handbag/desk for a few days and marvel at the neatness until about a month later by which time it has become a crap trap again.

It doesn't help that my mum has become irritatingly tidy since she retired, all her things are folded neatly in drawers (even her plastic bags in the kitchen are stashed in one tidy place, unlike mine that tend to attack you when you open my kitchen base unit). My mother in law also regularly puts me to shame, she actually smoothes out and folds paper bags and has them all in a little pile in her cubby hole in the kitchen. You open any drawer in my mum's flat or MIL's house and it is all lovely and neat, everything is placed in with care unlike in my house where it looks as though things have been chucked in from a great distance.

Still, I suppose being neat and tidy can be quite boring at times, I mean where oh where is the excitment factor, for instance, Luke's cupboards under his bed were a complete mess, he went rummaging yesterday for a piece of his train set and was soooooo overwhelmed with happiness when he discovered his long lost light saber!!! See makes it all right doesn't it!

Thursday, January 03, 2008

Bitz

I have been a bit frazzled the last week or so as Richard has been really very sick with a horrible chest infection/virus that has given him a very high temperature and left him bed ridden for the past few days, so I have been alternating taking care of him with trying to keep Luke occupied as he doesn't go back to school until the 8th (what the heck, am sure we didn't have such a long Xmas holiday).

I was doing the dishes this morning, trying to plan the day ahead, you know usual mum stuff i.e. should I hoover next, maybe dust, wipe out the congealed beetroot juice from the fridge shelf (it always ends up staining, even when I don't actually have beetroot in the fridge) when Luke beetles in and announces ...

Luke:"Mummy, I really love the colour of your bits"

Now, Luke calls the private part of the female anatomy her "Bits" and am trying to discourage him from constantly going on about them which he does tend to do I am sure to wind me up.

Me: "What?"

Luke: "I really love the colour of your Bits"

Me: "Luke, I am not very happy about you talking about this" (now am very hot and bothered, wondering what the heck he has been peeping at while I am showering)

Luke: (Now very indignant and tearful sounding) "Your bits mummy, your bits, look!"

Me: (At this point I actually bother to turn around and look at him) "Whaaat!!"

In his hand was a packet of my wholewheat french toast that he calls Bix that he had nabbed from the cupboard earlier on.

Luke: "I really love the colour of the packet, it's really nice, what's the problem mummy?"

Me: "Nothing Luke, nothing at all."

Note to self: In future, turn around when your son is talking to you rather than carry on scrubbing the pots and make sure you always lock the bathroom door (just to be certain).

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

New Year!

So Happy New Year to Everybody .... there that's me done for another 5 months!!!

No really, I've decided to blog more often even if it's to tell you what the cats have been up to in the absence of the Peavoy's doing something that I would consider interesting.

Luke is now settled into his full time school, he eventually ended up across the yard (literally) at our local school, have learnt a valuable lesson here. Must not ever send child to a school just 'cos his mates are going there and also never listen to rumours that they are going to demolish local school of first choice that is a very beautiful historic bit of Runcorn. Reason ...

The school next to his preschool where he ended up initially going to was to put it mildy a tad "boisterous" and not in a good way. I should have been hearing warning bells when after his first month we had a meeting with his teachers who then asked me to be on the PTA, come and assist the children with their reading and also to be a school Governor. Of course I was flattered at first and then I realised (as I mentioned to Emily on the phone) that after looking at the disinterested (again being very polite here) other parents it was somewhat akin to being offered a really good job only to realise you were the only applicant. So not to want to inflict the other gory details on you but it did involve Luke telling me some really awful stuff about guns, cutting Santa's head off and then not having time to eat his lunch as he was kicked out of the canteen to go play after 10 minutes, he was pulled out and placed in his new school. We felt really guily about him having start all over again in a new place where he didn't know any of the kids but it is so true what other parents had told me, they do make new friends very quickly. Thing is, I must stop hanging my head out of the bathroom window and watching him in the playground.

Must get a job ....