Spring break: or rather, What happens with skin infections, colds, potential pinkeye, etc.

Viggo is having spring break this week. We kicked it off by having the kids spread the common cold amongst themselves.

But we had plenty of fun finding free books on amazon.com and downloading them onto the kindle I won. Never underestimate the joy of getting a FREE Bobbsey Twins book. (Or getting a free Kindle, for that matter.)

So Elin has a callous on her thumb as a result of her daily thumb-sucking routine. Yesterday Nate and I both independently noticed that the callous had a small white head on it, but didn't think much of it. But as I was wiping Elin's hands off after lunch today, I noticed that the callous had turned an angry red and had a large, bright green head. It looked like something out of a creepy medical textbook. I called the doctor.

We went to the doctor's.

Then I heard the doctor say words I've never heard before in relation to my children: "We'll have to lance it. It will just require a small scalpel." I figured that was coming. But rare is a visit to the doctor when something outside of a shot happens right there in the office. If there's dirty work, we go to the lab. But for a procedure to happen right then and there, with the doctor doing it and not the nurses, that was something new.

While waiting for the doctor to return with the scalpel I sat there with Elin and pondered how we are so blessed with health it's practically embarrassing. I mean, this was really not a big deal at all.

The doctor reemerged with the scalpel. I held Elin's hand and the doctor washed it with brown liquid and then did what was necessary. It wasn't a pretty sight. Just imagine a repulsive mess and an unhappy baby. Poor Elin was a little stunned. Viggo and Svea watched with apprehensive, disgusted fascination.

Then cream and a bandaid. Then all the instructions:

1) Bathe hand twice a day for several minutes to allow for drainage. Apply bactroban and a bandaid. Do this for ten days.

2) Oral antibiotics, twice a day for ten days. (Because the skin infection was present over a joint, the doctor wanted Elin to take antibiotics as well. I don't know what it means when a skin infection is over a joint. I'm an English major, not a doctor.)

3) Elin has to bathe alone for ten days. No tub buddies.

4) After she is bathed I have to disinfect the tub.

5) She needs a follow-up appointment at the end of the week.

6) Curious George bandaids are a must.

7) After disinfecting the tub and when the moon is full we have to turn counter-clockwise and recite the Pledge of Allegiance backwards.

8) I might be making up that last part.

In addition, I also had to make a Wal-Mart run at 7 this morning to get pinkeye drops. I woke up with a red, yucky eye. I don't think it's officially pinkeye, but there's no doubt that something is not going well. But I wanted to get some Similisan Pinkeye drops right away (they are AMAZING) and just get that taken care of.

So really, when we went to the doctor's today, we were a coughing, sneezing, runny-nosed, runny-eyed, skin infected mess.

Welcome to spring break!

The pants story.

The other day the phone rang and Nate answered it. I could hear him laughing. After hanging up he came over to Viggo and said, "Well, Viggo, Ryan's mom called to let you know she has your pants; she washed them and they're all clean. You can pick them up the next time you go over to play."

I asked the obvious question: "Viggo, why does Ryan's mom have your pants?"

Viggo said, "I don't know."

Huh.

So then Nate asked, "Did she wash them because they were dirty?"

"Oh - yeah! We were playing in the slush and stuff in the field and they got all muddy."

I asked the other obvious question: "Well honey, if she kept your pants at their house, what did you wear when you walked home?"

"Uhh . . . . I don't know."

"Did you wear some other pants or did you just walk down the street in your winter coat and your skivvies?"

"I don't know."

"You have no idea if you walked home pantsless in 30 degree weather."

"I don't know what I was wearing."

"Well at any rate, just remember to get your pants back."

"Okay."

"And be sure to thank Ryan's mom for washing your pants."

"Okay."

The next day while I was doing laundry I found a pair of jeans in his size, but they definitely weren't his jeans. After breathing a sigh of relief that Viggo did not walk down the street partially naked, but wore some borrowed clothing, I was still amazed that he couldn't seem to remember if he was or was not wearing pants in freezing weather, out in public. I mean that just strikes me as something that could be recalled with perfect clarity: you are either wearing pants in freezing weather, or you're not.

You can decide for yourself what makes sense.

Photos of the week

Elin helps with making a casserole for dinner.

The girls watch as Viggo and then Daddy leave for school and work. Their morning ritual.

Elin, extremely pleased that Nate came back inside after snowblowing the driveway very early one morning last week.

Nate and Viggo, working on a project in the (blessedly heated) garage.

Earlier this week I took this picture of Svea, then took her temperature minutes later and it was high. I think this was the only time she smiled all day that day.

Grocery shopping today

Today the girls and I were breakfasted, dressed and out the door by 8:08 this morning. Almost beat our record of 7:57.

I promise that Elin wasn't as grumpy as she appears to be in this photo. But when I opened the minivan door in the parking lot, I don't think she found the cold air all that enjoyable.

Oh, Cashwise. How I love thee!

When we found out we were moving back to Minnesota, one of the first things Viggo said was, "Now we can shop at the grocery store that gives out free cookies to kids!" Obviously he remembered the really important things about living here.

AND there are car carts.

This is Svea's favorite shirt. It really does get washed on an almost-daily basis.

Whoever thought to put two steering wheels in these things - genius. Thank you.

Early on in our shopping, Svea managed to pinch her finger, I have no idea on what. Helpful hint to immediately stop tears: give the kid a camera.

So these are Svea's pictures now.

This is what the store looks like to a 3-year-old. The length of the aisle looks a little daunting.

Visiting the lobsters is always a big highlight - nearly as exciting as the free cookie. It was rare to find a lobster tank in grocery stores out east because there wasn't a need - there were seafood markets. (Reminder for the geographically challenged: Delaware is next to the Atlantic ocean. Many Delawarians are a seafood-eating people.)

One of the meat guys was putting fish into the display so the glass lid was lifted. Svea took a picture of these little clams, which she thought were cute. At a few of the grocery stores we frequented in Delaware, the fish (not lobsters, though) were laid out on ice with nothing over them; the customer could help themself. However, I did tell Viggo once that the fish would jump out of the display and walk around on their tailfins at night when all the customers and workers were gone and they would have little fish parties. But I don't think he believed me.

Where else but Minnesota can you find a cake in a bakery department that has an icehouse and a largemouth bass on it?

Or a snowmobile cake?

We live in the best state ever.

After check-out, we bagged the groceries ourselves. Svea is always an eager helper.

I love shopping early because the only people in the store are us and a handful of grandpas, most of whom talk to me and the girls and tell me about their grandchildren. Today, for example, we met a very kind retired fireman and a nice gentleman whose daughter-in-law has a blog so that he can see what his granddaughters, ages 1 and 3, are up to. I said that was so nice!

Svea is usually terrified of these nice, well-intentioned people, but Elin tried to give her cookie away to somebody today :)

Videorama

Time for some movies!

1) Viggo got a Lego train for Christmas.

2) Elin gets some mealtime help.

3) Elin loves riding her wheely bug. This could have been filmed for a much longer time but you get the general idea of what she's up to.

4) Elin gets more help with her dinner, and then everybody gets silly.

The end!