14 days

Oh the changes that can happen over the course of just fourteen days. On March 1, I was going about my regular old life, readings stories to children, vacuuming old carpets, checking fifth grade math homework that stymies me more often than I'd like to admit. When the calendar flipped to March 2, the roller coaster ride officially began.

First came the call that my grandfather had been found unconscious on the bathroom floor by my grandmother, who called for an ambulance. While I'd been receiving calls that my Pepe (that's French for grandfather, even if we don't spell it the right way) had been in and out of the hospital for over a year now, the tone was markedly different this time, with the ominous "We don't think he's coming home from this one" statement being made more than once. A couple calls and online communications with relatives occurred throughout the day, and five of his seven children eventually made it to his bedside. (Over there is a pic of Pepe and my grandma from the summertime when I saw him last.)


I saw March 3 arrive much earlier than I usually greet a day, for the just-before-1 am phone call awoke me with the sad news that Pepe had indeed passed away. What an odd feeling for someone like me who does not subscribe to any religious beliefs about the "afterlife," to acknowledge that my Pepe simply was no more. The normal day hours were spent in mostly abnormal ways-- making last minute travel arrangements to Connecticut, more communication with extended family members who I don't speak regularly with, prepping the kids for a Mommy-free four days, cleaning and doing laundry (okay, those are normal, for sure), and packing a bag for just one.

March 4 came with a train to meet and big hugs and kisses to give to the children. With arrangements in place for hubby to be home with the kids, I wasn't worried about that aspect, and I have to admit that I was selfishly looking forward to six hours alone on a train. Upon arrival in CT, I was greeted by my dad who was my companion for the next couple days. Since my mom was staying with my grandmother a little over an hour away from my parents' house, I had lots of time to just hang out with him, which is not something that's happened in years and years. We traveled back and forth to my grandparents' area over the few days, and while it was a sad occasion certainly, it was as it always is when my large extended family gets together- laughter, food and more laughs. (See my beautiful parents- I miss them a lot after spending those few short days with them.)

March 6 brought the solemnity of Pepe's memorial service, which was lightened by my grandmother, my parents and all my aunts and uncles, along with my cousins and I all wearing Boston Red Sox hats in his honor... yup, formal "funeral attire" and baseball hats- Pepe would have loved it. As he would have loved the big buffet dinner at a local restaurant afterward that brought together many faces I remembered from my long ago childhood of great-aunts and great-uncles and friends of my grandfather's.

Back on the train on March 7, I imagined returning home to my regular daily grind. Hubby was fabulous about keeping things in order at home, but laundry and other stay-at-home-mom jobs awaited me. I looked forward to getting back to normal.

Normal was short-lived, for the sore throat of March 8 turned into the full-blown flu by the afternoon of March 9. I felt like I'd been hit by a truck, and I balked at the response I got from 3 year old Pudge when I tried to explain to the kids why I had collapsed under a heap of blankets on the couch by saying, "Mommy's really sick." "Are you going to be dead, too, Mommy?" Oh dear.

March 10 had been circled on my calendar with big happy circles for I was to participate in a conference call with Jeff Kinney and a group of other bloggers. Oh, there was no backing out for me, and I was VERY thankful for the fact that we were muted when it wasn't our turn for my hacking would not have been a pleasant background. (More info about that upcoming post next week!!) Other than that highlight, most of March 10-13 is a blur of DayQuil and NyQuil, blankets and water bottles, shivers and aches, and cursing whoever it was that gave me this damn virus. (Was it the woman I overheard at the buffet dinner saying that she had pneumonia? Or maybe that woman that hacked a dry cough on the train all the way from CT to Baltimore? Screw you both.)

Oh wait, there was a memorable bit that I skipped over there. While my fever raged on the evening of March 9, I was lying on the couch playing around online trying to distract myself from the signature aches and pains that the dastardly flu brings. I got an email from Jennifer, my 5 Minutes for Books editor, that at first made me question if I had overdosed on meds or was in a fever-induced hallucination. An email that used words not in my usual vernacular: junket, celebrity interviews, Los Angeles, Four Seasons Hotel. An email that prompted its own squealing blog post that was most likely irritating in its "OH MY GAWD!"ness.

So back to the flu-filled days that saw me a hot, sick mess. Well, they were overlapped with and followed by several more days of the flu ravaging the children, in order of youngest to oldest. Thankfully, my kids have this odd tendency to just get cuter and more snuggly as they get sick, so while I didn't feel great either, at least I had partners to huddle with under a blanket. I believe we watched approximately 30,000 hours of DVR'd shows and DVD movies. All bets were off, and when naps weren't being had, most likely the TV was on. Sue me. Also thankfully, the flu seemed to be losing strength as it went from person to person, with me and Pudge getting the worst of it, Red getting a milder case, and JAM only getting knocked out of commission for a couple days. Of course, those couple days just happened to be during the once-a-year (the-I-couldn't-give-a-crap-but-the-school-lives-and-dies-by-their-scores) Maryland State Assessments. Yay, now he'll have to make those up. Fun, fun.


Now it's March 16 and I'm neck deep in lists- to do lists, schedules for friends who are helping watch the kids when I'm gone, schedules for my whirlwind 40-hour trip to LA, packing lists and keep-me-sane-lists. Of course, all those lists needed to be changed and reprinted when my first flight had to be changed, almost making my brain explode all over my tiny living room. Too freaking early on Friday morning, I'll be leaving the house by my lonesome, off on a trip that will be like nothing I've ever experienced. My mind is still whirling from the events of the last 14 days, and I can't help but wonder when life will return to what passes for normal around here.




Overwhelmed and overexcited,