Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Sick days

My older two boys came down with a flu-ey virus on Tuesday (not too surprising after our very social weekend). No tummy issues, thankfully, but chills, fevers and body aches were enough to keep them stuck to the sofa the last two days.

We read more "HP and the Prisoner of Azkaban," and some selections for Littlest, and watched "Narnia" and "The Never-Ending Story." Have I mentioned these boys like fantasy? Maybe someday they'll let me read "Farmer Boy" to them...

Middlest was content just to lay on the couch all afternoon looking at the butterflies who'd just hatched in our Butterfly house.


We have a new neighbor next door who happens to work at Insectlore. Lucky us!! She came by with a container of ladybug larvae and another of butterfly pupa a few days ago. We got caterpillars last spring and watched the whole process, which was very cool.

We've never hatched lady bugs before, and I'm not sure these are doing well. But four of the butterflies hatched yesterday. After a few hours of observing them explore the lavender, Eldest took them outside to set them free.

Littlest was feeling perfectly fine yesterday, which was a huge blessing. It could have been one of those days.

I've been obsessing a little about collecting preschool activity ideas for him, since he seems to be needing a new level of stimulation lately. He was disappointed when his brothers weren't interested in their daily game of Cow Wrangling on my bed, but after that he managed to entertain himself pretty well.

My almost-3-year-old is a puzzle fanatic like his oldest brother, so lately he's been pulling everything out of the puzzle cupboard in the playroom and dragging it to wherever he can find space.


On the phone with my neighbor yesterday, she suggested Tangrams. I said, "That's a good idea. We have them, but I don't think he can get the lid off."

Guess who found the pattern blocks yesterday without my help or suggestion? I think this kid knows he's an unschooler.


So, what was I doing while my youngest was destroying the house playing? Well, organizing something, of course!

The boys' clothes have been overflowing two dressers, and they only wear half of what's in there. Middlest's legs are growing faster than his hair, plus he has sensitive skin and he's picky about what he'll wear. So, the other day I had him pull out everything he likes and actually fits him. Then I did my own sorting.

I managed to fit both boys' summer and winter clothes into one dresser, leaving the second for pajamas and for Littlest to move into. The top drawers are for socks, undies and kung fu uniforms. I filled three trash bags with clothes to pass down or repurpose. They don't have a lot left. But at least they fit!


Last night Littlest and I both slept 11 1/2 hours.

Today we're lazing around some more. We were supposed to blueberry picking with our homeschool group this morning. I set up the field trip a month ago, and then had to let everyone we'd be quarantined.

Eldest Boy fights things off hard and fast, so he's already back to himself for the most part. But Middlest is slower to get over illness, and is still hugging the sofa. Funny how their recovery time reflects their personalities!

(And, in case you're wondering, we do have a few cases of the swine flu in town, but that's not what my boys have.)

7 comments:

Angelina said...

Good Afternoon! I must tell you- I hatched ladybugs last year that I ordered form a gardening catalogue- it was amazing! I didnt see much going on either- until one day I realized they were all ESCAPING!!!! Trus ladybugs ae amazing- and they reproduce very fast- they are very good for your garden and not to mention fun to watch! Keep watching- they will "hatch" - they just are elusive.!!

mandi said...

how fun for you to live next to an insectlore lady!

but how NOT fun to have the flu in the house. especially during this crazy time. buddy has a cough and people are heading for the hills when he starts coughing. diving for masks and what not...

glad eldest is feeling better. hope you guys are whole by the weekend.

Lift Up Your Hearts said...

I'm sorry that the boys have been ill, but it sure sounds like you've made the best of it! And you didn't miss out on blueberry picking - there weren't any blueberries! Some picked strawberries and others just wandered around looking at everything. It was a beautiful day and we missed you. GREAT job on the boys' clothes. I need to clothing-purge myself.

Heather said...

Oh my son STILL loves tangrams! We have a magnetic set as well which is really fun if you watch for them (ours came frm a yard sale or some such.) My son is the same way about clothes--finally gave away most and just left the few things he will actually wear.

Ali said...

I am glad its not the Swine Flu! Hopefully everyone will be all back to normal very soon. I need to do some organizing too...I have slowly been putting toys into baskets to rotate them, now I need to go through some baby clothes and get them put away. Any suggested resources for activities for a 15-month old? We are kinda in a rut right now and I am not sure what I should be teaching him. The first year was so easy... ;-)

Ali said...

I just saw where you want to make bread from scratch, have you heard of the book "Artisan Bread in Five minutes a Day"? I recently got it out of the library and just mixed up my first batch of dough today. It was very quick and easy. Then you just leave it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, cutting off a chunk as you need to make fresh bread. Worth looking into if you haven't already!

ChristyACB said...

Glad to hear your boys are getting over their bug fairly quickly and have some wonderful and enjoyable projects to watch unfold while they do so.

Stay healthy yourself!

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