Episode n: The Soap Opera Continues

[ailbhe]

So last night wasn't great. Linnea woke us at about 3 am, and I was drenched in sweat, and so confused I couldn't work out how to get out of bed. In hindsight, I suspect I was ill, since I woke this morning with far less in the way of swollen glands and sore throat than I have for over a week. She forced Rob to play with her for about an hour and eventually they went to sleep in the library. They came back to bed at about 6 and Rob got me a dry nightie. Rob got up and went to work, and Linnea and I were woken by the postman.

He was very nice; I reached the door as he was putting the "you weren't in" slip through the letterbox, and he saw my purple dressing-gown looming at him so he waited. I asked him what the package was, and what time it was, and why the baby wasn't asleep, and he wished me good luck in a very sympathetic way.

Linnea and I had breakfast and I put dinner on and tried to get us both dressed. I kept shaking and dropping things, which made things awkward, and she refuesd to have her pyjama top removed, which didn't help. Things got simpler once I decided to skip going to the library for Rhyme Time and move straight to snacks and playing.

She did a pee in the potty; she was sitting on it, as she does, because she loves her potty very much, and she started to pee. She looked shocked, and stopped the flow, and began to look distressed, so I cheered enthusiastically and she started again. She looked much happier second time around, and tried to investigate.

I wiped her off, and her hands, and took the potty into the bathroom to empty and rinse. While I was rinsing it the phone rang, so I washed my hands quickly and answered it. Rob asked "How are you?" and I said "Fine! Linnea did a weewee in the potty!" and he was... unenthusiastic.

There's a shortlist for redundancies and he's on it, basically. No clear timescales, no clear financial details, we're waiting for information.

So that was that. I gave Linnea her lunch and tried to give her some Medised to help her sleep, as she has a milder version of the cold I'm recovering from and her nose is like a leaky tap. But I couldn't get the childproof cap off. I tried until my wrist swelled up enough to necessitate watch removal, then gave up. I fed her and changed her and played with her and put her in front of the TV and read her books and and and.

I made a phonecall to the central heating people to clarify details of the quote; we might as well keep going on that until Monday anyway, when we find out what the situation is. Linnea came and screamed at me for the phone. I gave her another handset. She kept screaming. The woman at the other end of the phone was Being. Very. Patient. Madam. but I could tell she was annoyed. Linnea stopped screaming. I looked around.

mess n. what you get when you have a baby, a meringue, and a blunt object in close proximity to one another.

While on the phone discussing fake gas fires and coal-effect insets, I swept up the meringue, put it in the bin, and dusted Linnea down. I also quieted her down, but I cannot, at this distance in time and space, remember how.

She went fo rher nap at about 15:00, when she ought to be waking up. But I didn't complain. I showered.

I even washed my hair.

Oh, man.

And then the groceries were delivered and I sold a few more books and Linnea woke up and Rob came home and we had dinner and watched The Incredibles and it was fabulous except that twice there are scenes of a baby in danger and I don't like that at all.

And soon we shall go to bed, and get up in the morning and go to London, where Rob will work with all the will and devotion of someone who is working on a Saturday for a company that is probably going to vanish his job. Except that he's Rob, so he'll do a good job, because he doesn't really know how to do it any other way. He might stop short of excellent, I suppose.

And Linnea and I will spend the day with friends and playing games and it will be marvellous.

Comments

[tammylc.livejournal.com]

So exciting about the pee in the potty! We got a potty for Liam in the hopes that when he poops in the bathtub (which he was doing regularly) we could quickly move him to the potty and have him finish there. So far, no luck.

He gets to run around naked for a while after his bath, and a couple time he's peed while doing so. He looks so shocked!

[pir-anha.livejournal.com]

she peed in the pot! OMG! yes! my impulse would have been to cheer her on too; that's bound to encourage her.

sorry about all the stuff that's not as good. :/

[sashajwolf.livejournal.com]

Sorry to hear about Rob's job. Great news about the potty, though!

[tiggsybabes.livejournal.com]

I can never open medised bottles either without a great deal of grunting & muttering.

Sorry about Rob's job :/

[k425.livejournal.com]

Sorry to hear about Rob's job.

Does Medised come in sachets, to make life easier for your wrists? As a Dreadful Mother(tm) I don't tighten the lid all the way, but the cupboard the medicines are in is in the kitchen well out of Jack's reach (at the moment).

Sounds like last night was your body finally getting the better of the virus you've had - I hope the next few days see you recovering fully.

[phantom_wolfboy]

I don't know about the Britsoaps, but here in North Am if your life was a Soap, Linnea would be 16 by now and planning her first marriage. :)