Well, Jack has croup.  That barking, seal-like cough that works itself up whenever he begins to cry.  Which, unfortunately, is a bit on the frequent side since he’s also cutting his first tooth.

Bother.

We were supposed to have his 9 month vaccinations this morning.  Instead, we’ll be seeing the NP for a sick-baby visit as well as to get some advice on his occluded lacrimal duct (blocked tear duct).  It’s been around since he was a wee thing and keeps acting up.  I’m rubbing it several times a day to get the gunk out, and it’s still not resolving itself.  Time to try Plan B, which will most likely be a steroid cream of some sort.

Double bother.

Yesterday was one of those days where I felt like all sorts of things were going the wrong way.  For starters, Jack was acting a bit puny (which I later learned was because he was coming down with croup).  For seconds, I had an appointment that I wanted to attend, but also didn’t want to attend.  Getting both boys and me put together and out of the house is a chore, but doing it when one child is fussy and I have to cut his morning nap-time in two is even more work.

Thankfully, Joe was able to go to a “Mom’s Morning Out” program.  For $10, he got to play with toys and be babysat for 2 hours while it was just me and Jack.  I say that was $10 well spent.

I went to my appointment (I met with the chaplain at a local hospice support house – I’m looking to volunteer there in some capacity, likely answering phones 2 shifts per month and bringing in meals/baked goods to put in the kitchen for family visitors to the house).  Jack did well.  The appointment went well.  I even had time to do a quick return at Bed Bath and Beyond (the “gray” bathmat that I purchased looked suspiciously lavender-like when it was in our bathroom) before having to pick up Joe.

Then, we got home and Jack started his barking cough.  Tylenol and humidifiers and naps and cuddles and tears.  Joe watched a bit of a movie while I comforted Jack.  Jack eventually perked up and, thankfully, both boys napped simultaneously for about an hour.  I made the most of it by doing some more priming and even got some cutting in done in the main room.  The “free” piano that I’ve been awaiting since November is finally set to be delivered on Wednesday.  Wouldn’t you know it, I’ve procrastinated in painting the wall that it will be set up against.

Actually, I haven’t.  Well, I sort of have.  I painted the wall and trim that I originally wanted it to go against.  Then, I changed my mind and didn’t get around to painting the new location.  So now I’m in a mad dash to get it painted before the piano arrives.  I don’t want to have it delivered and then have to move it just so I can finish painting trim.  I’ve got one coat of paint on the wall and just need to apply a second coat, then apply 2 coats of paint to the trim.  Fingers (and brushes!) crossed that I get it done in time.  And fingers (and brushes!) double-crossed that what happened last time doesn’t happen again this time, where the movers arrived to pick it up only to discover that the handle on the back of the piano was missing.  The owner assures me that it’s been sorted, but I won’t be holding my breath… too much.

What else?  I strained and froze 14 C of chicken broth yesterday morning.  I had cooked and de-boned 4 organic, free-range (read: rather small) chickens over the weekend and had been saving the carcasses.  I tossed them in 2 crock-pots along with celery, carrots, onion, bay leaf, some apple cider vinegar, peppercorns, and water (and maybe parsley?  I can’t remember) then let it simmer on low for awhile.  When I got up in the morning it had turned into rich, beautiful, caramel-colored broth.  I strained it through a cheesecloth and put up the jars in the freezer after they’d cooled.  This was actually the second round of broth that I’d made from these birds – I always use the chicken carcasses twice (I can’t believe I’m using the word “carcass” so much in this blog post… “chicken bones” sounds more sanitary).

I also made some baked buffalo chicken pasta.  Healthy?  Well, it was healthier than a restaurant version, I’m sure.  And certainly healthier than plain old buffalo chicken wings.  But it had butter and cheese and pasta in it, so what do you expect?  It was certainly along the lines of comfort food, something that was sorely needed in light of everything else going on.  And, this is no surprise after the last post, I made a double batch and put one casserole in the freezer for a rainy day.  Perish the thought that I have an empty freezer.  Whenever one of the boys gets sick, my mind rushes forward to being in the hospital and Chris at home with no food.  This usually means that in the midst of dealing with sickness, I’m cooking.  What would the poor man do if I was with one of the boys in the hospital and he couldn’t pull something out of the deep freeze and toss it in the oven?  I suppose that’s what takeaway is for, and it’s not like he can’t make himself a pot of spaghetti, but that’s how my brain works.

Ugh.  Enough of that.  My brain needed some emptying out.  Hopefully Jack’s appointment goes well and his croup clears up soon.