Getting Our Bearings

I took this photo of Sam about two weeks ago, since I was amused at the position that he assumed while reading his books from the library. But now, as I'm looking at this photo tonight, I think that it is a pretty good summation of what our lives have been like this past month. We are been functioning alright and getting things done, albeit in uncomfortable and less-than-ideal conditions. (Although I think Sam would counter that he thinks this splayed position on the loveseat is really comfortable.)

It's been hard for us to get into a good routine since school started up again after the new year began. Lucy had a mild cough at the beginning of the month, which disrupted our attempt at sleep training her. (She still is waking up in the night, but she is getting better.) Then, just as Lucy's cough was starting to improve, J had appendicitis and had to go into the hospital for an emergency appendectomy! We are grateful that his parents were able to help us through that ordeal and over the following few days, but that unexpected surgery took us for a turn. I felt pretty exhausted after that week, since J couldn't help me as much with the kids or daily chores.

And since J has returned to work, Lucy and I have come down with horrible colds. I haven't felt myself for almost a week, and Lucy has been miserable for probably four days. We both have a stubborn, hacking cough that wakes us up at night. My voice threatened to go out on Friday, but luckily I made it through my class. Anyhow, as a result from J's surgery and these various coughs/colds, we have spent a lot of time this month just sitting around the house. This is a typical scene for me to see:

Despite all of the discomforts and adjustments, we have had some fun, too. Last week Fictionist came up here to play, and it was fun to see the band play and catch up with them after the show. We haven't been the best at keeping in close touch with the band (and their wives) since we moved up here, and I'm a little bit sad about that, especially since we all look older every time we do get together. So for me, seeing the band now is somewhat semi-sweet: I have these melancholic notions of the passage of time and loss of close friendship (especially for J with the guys) but also a remembrance of our happy times and then fun that we had in being part of that tight unit.