No more pencils, no more books

Today was Jen's last day at school. Yay! We both put together thank you notes for her teacher. Even though I'm still sick, I went over there and said goodbye to everyone. Gave lots of hugs and wished everybody a great summer. Jen was hugging lots of her friends, too.

One thing I told the teacher was that I was really impressed with how well Jennifer has progressed in her reading and math. She's coming out of first grade with a memorable educational experience! Her teacher tried to avoid the praise by saying that Jennifer is smart, but I wanted her to know that I thought she did a fabulous job teaching Jennifer and the other children. The teachers who try to be good teachers really do make a difference. Jennifer was very lucky to have such a smart, caring and helpful teacher this year!

You can tell how much the children love her. One child hugged her goodbye and didn't want to let go!

So I did the interview last night, for one of my books. And it went well. Yay! The interview lasted for over an hour! Anyway, I was able to stay focused, type without a bazillion typos, and even think up extra questions to ask during the conversation. I was also able to ask for more information that I needed for that part of the book. The interview was with a restaurant owner who has paranormal activity in his business. (Not giving away the details -- you will have to wait for the book to read these stories and see the spooky photo!) I was very happy to finally interview this person. He is a wonderful person and has lived a very rich and fulfilling life. His success story of growing a successful business after coming here from Ireland just really blew me away. So I'm very happy that interview finally happened. Up until then, we'd been playing email tag and having trouble getting the interview underway.

I saw the doctor yesterday. Got an ear infection in addition to this flu. Bleh! The baby has been sick and yesterday he woke up from his nap crying really bad and putting his finger into his ear. I'd spoken with the nurse at the doctor's office the previous day and she said to call back if he was doing that. (Up until then, he had a fever and a suspected sore throat.) So I took him to the doctor and he has an ear infection too. It's just me and him being a couple of sickies! I was up late with him last night because he kept waking up crying. He was just miserable. Both of us have antibiotics, though. I still have to give him Infant Ibuprofen for pain, when needed.

I really shouldn't be driving. Even though I had to yesterday and today. The thing is, I almost drove right into oncoming traffic when driving myself to the doctor. It took a huge amount of effort to stay focused and aware. I'm going to try to avoid driving as much as possible, until I am recovered. This morning, I could barely get out of bed. I was really weak.

Also this morning: When the alarm woke me up, I saw someone standing next to my bed. I reached over to turn off the alarm then when I looked back, no one was there. No one was anywhere. That happens sometimes. I've seen people in my room and they disappear. Or, I will see them, turn away, then when I look back, they are gone.

Jennifer missed her game yesterday. She lost her mitt. I came home from the doctor to find her crying because she wanted to go play baseball, but couldn't find her mitt. I helped her look for it. Practically turned her room upside-down looking for it. It wasn't in there or anywhere else, either. Neither of us were happy about her missing her game. The fourth one she's missed! And she missed today's game, too. So that makes it five games missed. We once again tried to find the mitt but had no luck. I guess we'll have to get her a new one.

I am having good and bad moments. Sometimes I can sit up okay and be aware. Sometimes, not so much. Today I was able to read TWO magazine articles in Poets & Writers Magazine, and didn't have trouble focusing on the words or thinking about the subject. Woot! Hopefully, I can get back to reading grown-up books real soon. Hopefully, this sickness will pass soon enough. I am hoping so; got a virtual meeting to participate in on Friday.

And soon I'll get back to the writing again.

I feel useless not being able to do any housework, not being able to go out, do all the things required to care for the children and write. And I don't like not being able to do my daily Bible study, either. (Can't think straight enough!) Maybe some women would LOVE this kind of "down time," but not me. I am happiest when I am productively contributing to my family, my home and my writing career. I just want things to go back to normal. Soon.