Worn-Out

This was an unusually rough week. In addition to preschool (I have one child going on every day), we had Doug's DT appointment, his first speech therapy appointment and Jeremy's appointment with his therapist. Somewhere in all of that, I had to find time to get to the doctor as well. I ran out of a prescription last week (my antidepressant). I am not good at planning ahead and so it became a sort-of crisis.

I didn't want to have the kids miss out on their activities. I also didn't want to drag Doug out too far past his nap time. The poor kid's schedule is already driven by whatever Bekah and Jeremy have going on. (It's funny how that changes by child #3; when it was just Jeremy, his nap schedule was sacrosanct.) My doctor is out Wednesday afternoons and Thursday mornings and so I was left with Friday.

The only appointment I could get was for 1:30. My doctor is very punctual, so I knew we wouldn't be sitting forever, waiting for him to get through previous patients. 1:30, however, is a tricky time. Technically, Doug is ready for a nap by this point in the day. He never really had a chance to have a morning nap so he takes a long afternoon nap. This stunts the possibilities for afternoon activities, but really after running the kids hither and thither all morning, I'm happy staying home.

The other problem was we were out of milk. This is not something the natives would stand for long-term. So here's how the day went. 8:45, took Jeremy to school. Came home, changed clothes, worked out. 11:15, scrambled to dress Doug and carry him to the van with shaky legs and arms (after doing 100 squats and 50+ push-ups), 11:35 get Jeremy, head home, cook lunch (two separate lunches, as Bekah refused to eat the eggs I cooked). 12:00-12:45 explain about 100 times that we weren't going to be able to do naps until after we went to see Dr. Malecki. No, it wasn't quite time to go see him but we would be leaving pretty soon. Tried to relax and catch my breath but the kids wouldn't let me.

12:45, buckle everyone up (for the third time that day), head to the doctor's. Unbuckle everyone, get out the umbrella stroller designed for midgets, let Bekah clumsily navigate Doug toward the building. Fight over who would get to push the buttons for the elevator, fight over who is going to open the door to the doctor's office, fight over which books we will read in the waiting room. 1:15 get called back to the doctor's office, stop to weigh myself while keeping mental tabs on Doug (who is not in the correct exam room). Hurriedly get off the scale, retrieve Doug, try to remember dates and other important things to tell nurse.

1:30 leave doctor's office--repeat previous sequence of Bekah pushing Doug and subsequent arguments over button-pushing. Re-buckle everyone, drive 4 minutes to nearby Target.

1:45 arrive at Target, find shopping cart, argue over who is going to ride and who is going to walk. Unbuckle everyone, try to get milk and get out without spending a fortune. (Luckily, my kids are not ones who want everything they see.)

2:00 re-buckle everyone into their seats, leave for the donut store (reward for good behavior at doctor's office).

2:30 arrive at home--by this time Doug has fallen asleep in his car seat. We all exit the van as quietly as possible and allow him to take his nap, undisturbed, in the van.

By 3:00 I was also taking a nap. I have been fighting the urge to nap because it messes with my nighttime sleep. The problem is, (as I am sure you can see by now), the process of caring for 3 small people is exhausting. I am happy to report that I took a brief nap, got up, prepared stuffed chicken breasts (with spinach, greek yogurt and feta cheese) and rice for dinner, made chocolate chip cookies and collapsed in bed by midnight, ready to do it all over again today.

I am still waiting for my prescription--it has to be sent in by mail order--but I assure you, I will not let it lapse again. I'm exhausted just at the prospect of that happening again.