Heat Lamps and Monsters and Braids, Oh My!

While I realize that we're past Thanksgiving, I'll take this opportunity to still give thanks for something that I've been very grateful for of late. This would be the ceiling heat lamp in our bathroom which keeps me oh-so-very-warm when I get out of the shower. It has gotten cold here in Texas. Not Michigan cold, grant you, but a I-didn't-bring-warm-enough-clothes-for-this-cold-weather cold, which has led to me layering several items of mismatched clothing on Bryony and me (yeah, I didn't bring enough winter clothes for her, either), making us look like characters from a Dr. Seuss book. But back to the heat lamp...Oh how I love you so as you heat my just-showered body. If it were possible, heat lamp, I'd take you out to dinner.

I've been battling a cold for the last couple days. Yesterday seemed to be the worst of it, as "Terrible Monster Mommy" attacked the household. Poor Bryony just couldn't do anything right, including standing precariously on the arm of the couch, picking up the kitten by little handfuls of fur, throwing food, playing with glass bowls in the kitchen, and joyfully tearing pages in books. Yes, because on a normal day, all of those things would be just fine. But I just couldn't deal with it yesterday, and Adam, who had promised to leave work early that afternoon, still wasn't home by 7pm. I had to call him and tell him to come home, STAT. I was on the verge of locking my congested self in my bedroom and allowing bedlam free reign over the rest of the apartment. Poor Husband asked if I needed anything from the store and I specifically asked for Benadryl, which I know I can take while breastfeeding. Poor Husband came home with Advil which is not...even...close. I steadied my voice and said, "Hon, this isn't going to work for me...I asked for Benadryl, not Advil. I need a decongestant not a pain reliever, and besides I don't know if I can take ibuprofen while nursing." Poor Husband ran back out to the store and got the proper drug and a can of ginger ale. Terrible Monster Mommy didn't give him the thanks he deserved as she slurped down the pills with her ale. Instead, she just threw her hands in the air and declared she had nothing more to give to anybody that evening, and Poor Husband put baby to bed. Not even an hour later, with congestant symtoms showing no signs of clearing up, Terrible Monster Mommy popped two MORE pills and had a very fitful, non-congested night of sleep (and no, I am most certainly NOT advocating for overdosing on Benadryl, folks).

This morning began with Awful Mommy Being (scaled down version of Terrible Monster Mommy) lying in bed while Poor Husband got ready for work and watched baby zoom around the apartment. Awful Mommy Being sat bolt upright at the sound of glass breaking, which turned out to be a coffee mug baby had picked up and dropped out on the patio. Awful Mommy Being needed more sleep and decided not to care about said coffee mug until later.

But, I'm feeling much better this afternoon and moving into Sniffling Zen Mama as I am much more introspective now about things. While yesterday I vegged on the couch watching cheesy-but--fun movies from the 90s, today I've already cleaned the apartment, showered and now I am blogging. Oh, and I'm also pleased with my new sick-girl hair style: a braid down my neck. Nothing says sick-stay-at-home-mama like a sloppy little braid. Sad thing is, that sloppy little braid is even more effort than I would have gone to if I'd been well.