I Freakin' Hate Being Sick

After a fun day of feeling like I have the Bubonic Plague, my baby throws up all over me. So then, sick and all, I had to clean the mess on the floor, strip him and me out of the puke-covered clothes (was that T.M.I.? Sorry.), and bathe us both, get him in his PJs, and get him down for the night, all the while hoping that I could crash as soon as he fell asleep.

Wrong.

Now I'm laying in bed and I'm so achy that I cannot sleep, but I'm afraid to take Nyquil because what if he gets up in the middle of the night and I sleep through his crying? Vicks has a new "Less Drowsy" Nyquil formula, and I have it here, but I'm so afraid that feeling as exhausted as I do if I take it I will fall into a semi-vegetative state. That simply won't do.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, the only times I ever hate being a single mama is when I'm sick or when there's a mouse in my apartment. Wait, let me shut up - all I need is to be sick AND have a mouse in my apartment. That would so suck.

At least I have my trusty BlackBerry with me so I can post while curled up in the fetal position in my bed. ...sigh...

You guys know I don't like to do the whole "woe is me" thing; even when I get really down I always try to end things here on a positive note. But this just bites.

Bites, I say.

When Someone You Love Loses Someone They Love

One of my best friends lost a loved one last week, and being there to support her reminded me of all the ways in which we are truly social beings. I'm a bit of a loner, I always have been, and have never been one to have a huge group of friends. I may have had many acquaintances in my life, but 3 or 4 really close friends is usually all I need. My closest friends will tell you that when I am going through something heavy I usually retreat into myself and need lots of alone time to process and heal. Yet when I come out of my little cave it is so very important to have true friends there to welcome me back, without judgment, and with lots of love.

Please, if you have friends, even just 1, who have been there for you when you needed them, take this time to tell them that you love them and appreciate them. I don't think any of us, even the most independent among us, can go this journey alone. Having someone to hug you and say, "I know this hurts right now, but I'm here. You're not alone.", can make all the difference in the world. And if someone you love loses someone they love, you might not know what to say. You might think you aren't qualified or capable to be supportive during that time. Trust me when I tell you that you don't have to say a thing. Sit there, silently, and just be their rock. Being there and saying nothing at all is better than not showing up because you don't quite know what to say. You never truly know how powerfully you can impact another, but you can always start by just saying I love you.

Haiti

With such an influx of information on the painful tragedy that has happened in Haiti it's hard to sort it all out, but here is a brief list of ways you can help real people in real need:

Clinton has set up a line that people can use to send $ to Haiti relief. Text "haiti" to 90999 and $10 will go to relief efforts in Haiti. The $10 will show up on your phone bill "US DEPARTMENT OF STATE".

To donate $5 to Wyclef Jean's Haitian Yele charity, text Yele to 501501. The money will be added to your next phone bill.

Donate to DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS USA/MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES (MSF)
333 7th Avenue, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10001,
(888) 392-0392, http://www.blogger.com/www.doctorswithoutborders.org

Donate to FOOD FOR THE POOR: http://www.blogger.com/www.foodforthepoor.orgg

Donate to CONCERN WORLDWIDE: Phone # 800 59-CONCERN
http://www.concern-worldwide.org/

AMERICAN AIRLINES is taking doctors and nurses to Haiti for free. Please call 212-697-9767.

RED CROSS needs Haitian Creole speakers for a 24hr phone bank. If you can help call 305-776-6900.

Also, the State Department has set up a toll-free number to call for info about family members in Haiti: 1-888-407-4747.

Please, anything you can do to help will keep human beings from dying of starvation and no (or unsafe) drinking water, as well as bring much needed medical care to the area. THANK YOU!!!

Flipping For Phonics

I had the good fortune of getting a preview of a wonderful new reading tool for children ages 2 and up. It's called Flipping For Phonics and it teaches reading through a flip book, a reading book, and a CD of songs that reinforce the sounds and words that are being learned. The flip book has several columns that allows you to teach the individual sounds of letters, and in slowly adding columns of letters, making larger and larger words for them to read. For example, you start with the column all the way to the right, teaching them the sound of each letter. To create a word comprised of two words, you could leave the last column on the letter p, then go one column over and add the letter u. Suddenly, they are reading the word "up" all by themselves!

I bought Your Baby Can Read for Theo a while ago, and while it does seem to teach children how to read, they aren't really reading, they are memorizing words. Big difference. And the Your Baby Can Read system is over $200, while Flipping For Phonics is only $24.95. That's also a big difference!

So if your child is having reading issues, or you simply want to get a head start on teaching your child how to read, I think Flipping For Phonics is definitely the way to go. If you'd like to see for yourself, please click here.

Happy reading!!!

I Promised You Pictures

Despite my living in a cave for the last several weeks, I had actually gotten some things accomplished before I decided to give myself a time out. I'm going to be telling you all about the 2 things I'm most excited about during the next few days, but first, I promised you pics of Theo the Great, the mutant 2 year old whose size 3T clothes are starting to fit juuuust a bit small . . .









I've saved the best one for last...



Yes, yes, I know, I'm evil. But c'mon, would you look at that!?! How absolutely hysterical is that? He just decided, completely on his own, to get into Mama's heels and walk around. And let me tell you, that boy can really walk in heels! Now, while I know that at some point in the future I will have to take it off this site because it will just be fodder for bullies at his school and I don't want my child to hate my freakin' guts, I can't help thinking that if he grows up and he's gay there will be proof that he was ALWAYS a styling little diva. Go Theo! LOL!!!

Single Mom Burnout, Part 953

Where the HECK have I been, you ask? Well, the truth is, I put myself on a "time out". Remember my post about Single Mom Burnout? Yeah, I wasn't kidding. I literally just shut down. I had been running myself ragged for so long that I felt as if I needed to scale back on anything that was not an imperative for me and just get back to basics, i.e., taking care of Theo. Seriously, all I've done these past 7 weeks is be a Mom. It was all I had the mental, emotional, and physical strength for (and some days even that was a challenge). I didn't blog, I didn't go to any blogger events, I didn't write any articles, I didn't do a darn thing but be Theo's Mama. And boy-oh-boy did I need that.

I have a friend who said that I needed to learn how to balance myself better so I wouldn't go around in life giving 150% all the time only to crash and not be able to muster up even 10%. I agree. When I find out how to do that, especially as a single mom, I'll let you all know.

Suffice it to say that I am, very slowly, creeping out of my little cave. I want to usher in the New Year with enthusiasm, so I am going to "fake it 'til I make it" like the saying goes. A little at a time. I missed you all, so I am happy to be back with you. I'll post pictures soon of the giant child that is my son. Xoxo.