In the past month or so, I've been in and out of the hospital a whopping 7 times with kidney issues, and I have the mounting bills on the kitchen table to prove it. The kids all have their individual issues (impending school change, ongoing occupational therapy for SPI, and poor sleep patterns, respectively). And hubby has been suffering through intense scrutiny at work while simultaneously ripping his hair out so the upcoming men's conference will run smoothly.
On top of it all, hubby took a much-needed retreat to Steubenville this past weekend, leaving me to wrangle los tres hijos on my own. Mommy. I wasn't jealous. Really. Just a bit put out at having to hold down the fort on my own while he had a fantastic time basking in the presence of God a couple thousand miles away. Without me.
Retreating to my folks' place is usually a welcome remedy for occasional single parenthood, so, naturally, I jetted down the I-5 corridor for back-up. Had everything transpired the way I thought it would, there'd be nothing to write. As it was, here's the highlight reel, in no particular order:
- Arrived an hour later than expected due to: 1) having to turn around to rescue the kindergartener's favorite blanket from school; and 2) potty breaks.
- Baby threw up on me and his eldest sister within two hours of arriving at folks' house.
- Baby woke up three times the first night, then proceded to hit his chin on the old fashioned wooden crib my mom provided, and bled from the mouth for the next 15 minutes on himself and me. Did I mention this happened at 5 a.m., when no one else was awake?
- My younger sister's yard was getting some long-awaited TLC from my dad and brother-in-law while she was working, so Mom and I watched 6 kids ages 6 and under for most of Saturday. At least I talked Mom out of taking them all to a parade (!).
- Baby wouldn't nap without me either day. Weird, strange, not normal. But at least I got a little nap out of it (although my arm fell asleep and I couldn't move it for fear of waking him).
- Night #2 was better, but youngest daughter decided to pee under the bed during play time Saturday, then in the bed at naptime the same day. Did I mention she is over 4 years old?
- Mass on Sunday was a fiasco for me. I wasn't feeling so hot -- tummy trouble with sweating and some nausea. Why did all the kids (with 4 other adults readily available) have to gravitate to me? Sorry, I just can't hold 50+ pounds worth of wriggling baby and child, no matter how much I love them, and feel engaged in the Mass ... especially when I feel like I am going to throw up at any given moment.
- Couldn't enjoy our post-Mass brunch because I kept having to use the facilities.
Anyway, I had hopes to have some rest balanced with productivity this weekend, but it just wasn't meant to be. I didn't get any of my summer organizing projects or thank you notes from my time in the hospital finished, either. I was trying to be patient, loving, kind, and Christ-like. But instead, I was cranky with my Mom. I was grumpy with the kids. I felt resentful toward my brother-in-law for dumping his kids on me and stealing my dad. I ate too much Kirkland trail mix. And ice cream sandwiches. And steak. Did I mention there is always good food at my parents' place?
But you know what? Overall, it was a successful trip. Despite the less-than-ideal circumstances, I was able to eventually tweak my attitude to recognize the positive aspects of it all (we had gas money to get to my parents' place; baby had food to eat even though he threw it up; we had a working washer and dryer and running water to clean up all the soiled laundry; my sister and her family actually attended Mass with us - hello!; I realized how much my parents love me and my kids in spite of ourselves, etc.) I even remembered to offer up my suffering (read: minor inconveniences) for others and certain intentions.
To top it all off, I had the presence of mind (can you say, "Thank you, Holy Spirit"?) to ask my parents, who are apt to oblige such requests, to please pray over me before we left. With everything that's been going on these last couple of months, I have been feeling more and more like I've been swimming upstream and not making any headway with anything.
Of course, it took .5 seconds after they annointed my head and hands for me to start blubbering like a baby. I did feel the presence of the Holy Spirit, and felt much better afterward, and, eventually, profoundly grateful to God for providing me with parents who believe in the power of prayer. They not only pray for me, they will pray with me and over me. That's pretty dang awesome.
BTW, hubby had a phenomenal retreat. He beat us home by about half an hour. And he brought me flowers.
Thanks, God, for all Your good gifts.
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