Well to be fair, it all started yesterday......... (Friday)
Tomato's fancy expensive private school decided that the school should be closed for the teachers to become enriched (while we become impoverished I'm assuming?) So Tomato did not go to school yesterday, putting pressure on me to have a jam-packed-fun-filled day planned for her. Well, as luck would have it, my good friend arrived for breakfast with her latest attempt at Red Velvet Cake. I was raised very well (thanks Mom!) so I couldn't be impolite and refuse her breakfast offering, so we each had a large chunk for breakfast. I could see the cogs turning in Tomato's head thinking "wow so THIS is what mommy does all day while I'm at school."
After that we headed to the local casino (yes she is 5 but could easily pass as 18 ;-). She requested to go there because she had been banned on a previous occasion for bad behaviour (meltdown/ vloermoer) so it had been about 6 months since she'd been there. I decided that I wouldn't say no for the whole morning. Whatever she asked for I said "of course" and she was delighted as I have been accused on numerous occasions of either always saying no or "there is always something" (her way of saying are always strings attached). So the morning went as follows:
- Play on the iPad for 30 minutes (ok nearly an hour, I'm a shocking mother but I wanted to sleep more! Don't judge me!!!!)
- Red Velvet Cake for breakfast
- Purple candyfloss on arrival at casino
- Half an hour of kiddy arcade games and riding toys
- Ice cream
- Visit to the library (the cool bookstore there)
- A huge sweet dummy that you keep around your neck (stickiness of note)
Needless to say we were on a sugar-high when we collected Bacon from school.
Anyway after such an awesome morning Tomato and Bacon played nicely for the rest of the afternoon and I then went to a friend's 45th birthday bash which promised champagne and canapes and boy did they deliver on that promise - wowee what an evening. This was my first invitation since I was about 6 that stated a finish time 4pm - 8pm (i.e. don't freakin' stay late!!) but I was keen because the start time conveniently removed me from my usual daily responsibility of "suicide 3 hours". On arrival I was introduced to Archie the bartender and we soon became bosom buddies. Each glass of champagne had a marochino cherry in it and it is apparently rude to stick your fingers into Moet to dig out the cherry so I had to drink down to the cherry. I know, it''s difficult to consume a whole bunch of cherries but I believe cherries have antioxidants and I was determined to get in my weekly quota of antioxidants even if I had to drink champagne to get them in. It's winter, there are loads of bugs going around and I have 3 children to protect - don't judge me!!!
Anyway there was the biggest martini glass filled with the most divine dip on the table with fresh bread, so that was pure evil and the canapes kept coming, each one more divine than the first. Once my RDA of antioxidants had been reached from my cherry festival, I moved onto a different strain of antioxidant - that of red wine. Yes a few good glasses of red keeps the doctor right away. We then finished off with creme brulee of which I am not a fan but this was AWESOME so I had about 4. They were very small - don't judge me!!!!
Luckily this friend lives in my complex so I could get home without breaking any laws. The hypocritical part of this evening was that I had told hubby to do a little detox move and not drink coffee for a few days and consume a lot more water in order for us to look a little more alive at our upcoming family photo shoot which was happening, wait for it......... yes, at 9am today!
TODAY
Le Shoot
Today started veeeery early with a very dry throat and eyes that even though they were open, the pupils were barely visible. I looked like Garfield on a Monday. I gradually rolled out of bed to stop my cell phone alarm. The phone had been carefully situated at the furthest point of the room in order for me not to be able to hit "snooze" 5 times. I did try to bribe one of my small people to bring it to me but they were fighting about the ownership of a pair of shoes so my pleading fell on deaf ears.
I even impressed myself that we were all ready, showered, dressed, made up and most of us fed by the time the photographer arrived. Hubby wrote an awesome story which is being published in a magazine and therefore the shoot. It went very well, I forgot to put lipstick on but the fact that I was dressed with clean hair and a bit of make-up I thought I really couldn't complain. Then came the dreaded words "shall we take a few shots in Lettuce's bedroom?" Third child guilt rushed through me as I had to admit that it was still very pink (the girls had had very pink rooms). The photographer reassured me that that wasn't a problem but I think the candy-striped bedlinen threw her a bit - oops! In my defence he had puked on the first 3 covers and instead of reverting to using a towel like I did with the girls, he got Egyptian cotton pink candy stripes. Don't judge me!!!!! Anyway the photographer was great and she kindly took photos of the girls on their own and the children on their own (in order of BLT so I may make that my background). She said she would put all the photos on a disc for me, how kind was that?
Le Bunny
During the week a friend on Facebook asked if anyone wanted Fluffy the bunny as she was a bunny of divorce and needed a new home. It was love at first sight. Both Tomato and Bacon are having their birthdays shortly and they have begged for a pet for over a year. I had kinda promised them each a fish but when I saw this most beautiful white bunny, who looked like she'd overdone the black eye-liner, needing a home, I thought it was a sign that maybe the girls should get something a bit more warm and cuddly than a fish. So hubby and I sneaked out to eyeball Fluffy the bunny while the girls stayed at home with sleeping Lettuce and Dot-the-domestic and all was well in the world.
The lady who had Fluffy was really wonderful and gave us a lot of tips on what to do, where to buy a bunny house, what to feed her, all the low-down details that new bunny-owners require. Fluffy was so soft and warm and when we got home, the girls were wild with excitement when they saw what I was holding. Tomato ran towards the road shouting to nobody in particular "I've got a pet!! It's a bunny!!" She then ran back to see Fluffy and was starting to cry she was so happy. We got it all on film it was precious.
Le Temperature
Well luckily the photo shoot was at 9am because when Lettuce woke up an hour later, he was grumpy with a raging temperature - damn, that meant medicine. So I dutifully measured out the medicine and put it into the bottle that he was about to drink. Well try as I might, he didn't drink a drop. So this left me no choice but to do the medicine in the mouth trick, of which I'm not a fan as this usually induces vomiting. Long story short it worked like a charm and he went to sleep again. We needed to get Fluffy a home and some food so we took the girls and Dot-the-domestic said she was home anyway, she'd listen for Lettuce. So off we went, bought a beautiful little home and all the necessary stuff for Fluffy whose name had changed to Rosie, Snowball and Sparkle before going back to Fluffy by the time we reached home. Everyone was having fun. The girls ran off to check on Fluffy, hubby unpacked the car and took our part-time painter to the taxi while I went in to check on Lettuce. Dot-the-domestic said he was fine and me being the detail queen asked for every detail since we'd been gone, had he woken up, how long, was he hungry...... Being used to my anal-self, Dot-the-domestic went through the past hour not leaving out any details. Lettuce had woken up shortly after we left and she had given him a bottle and he was sleeping peacefully again........... As she said the word "bottle" I felt a cold feeling rush right through me. "Which bottle did you give him?"
Le Panic
Yes, within the space of 1 hour my 7 month old baby had been given a double dose of medicine. I tried to remain calm but I was battling to breathe. Thankfully, working in the pharmaceutical industry I have made some AWESOME friends so I grabbed my phone and frantically phoned my friend who is a pharmacist as well as a mom. Most moms are as paranoid as me so she knew I was completely freaked out. I hadn't spoken to her for a while so she was was about to give me a hard time when she saw who was phoning her on a Saturday afternoon but what I LOVE about her is that she can switch from fun to business in 1 second flat and she doesn't beat around the bush. She said "honestly, I don't know but wait I'll find out." I knew she didn't work with this type of thing everyday but I knew if she didn't know she'd know someone who did. Her husband, also in the industry was with her and was able to confirm that it was not a major problem because of the tiny dosage but I should just watch him. I was in tears convinced that he was going to die and it was all my fault. I thanked her profusely, cried some more and then went to watch him like a hawk. My friend then texted me to tell me that she had also contacted her brother-in-law who is a doctor and he said the advice was spot-on. Didn't I tell you she was awesome? Isn't that what a mom wants to hear, more reassurance? I felt a bit of relief but mostly a lot of guilt. How could I have been in such a rush that I left the medicine-filled bottle in his room? It did enter my mind that I should throw it away but I got distracted with one of the girls and left the room without it. Lettuce woke up about 5 minutes after all the commotion smiling and gurgling like his normal self. I just held him and cried and cried and cried, so grateful that it didn't turn out to be anything serious but realising just how serious it could have been.
OK now you can judge me :'(
I even impressed myself that we were all ready, showered, dressed, made up and most of us fed by the time the photographer arrived. Hubby wrote an awesome story which is being published in a magazine and therefore the shoot. It went very well, I forgot to put lipstick on but the fact that I was dressed with clean hair and a bit of make-up I thought I really couldn't complain. Then came the dreaded words "shall we take a few shots in Lettuce's bedroom?" Third child guilt rushed through me as I had to admit that it was still very pink (the girls had had very pink rooms). The photographer reassured me that that wasn't a problem but I think the candy-striped bedlinen threw her a bit - oops! In my defence he had puked on the first 3 covers and instead of reverting to using a towel like I did with the girls, he got Egyptian cotton pink candy stripes. Don't judge me!!!!! Anyway the photographer was great and she kindly took photos of the girls on their own and the children on their own (in order of BLT so I may make that my background). She said she would put all the photos on a disc for me, how kind was that?
Le Bunny
During the week a friend on Facebook asked if anyone wanted Fluffy the bunny as she was a bunny of divorce and needed a new home. It was love at first sight. Both Tomato and Bacon are having their birthdays shortly and they have begged for a pet for over a year. I had kinda promised them each a fish but when I saw this most beautiful white bunny, who looked like she'd overdone the black eye-liner, needing a home, I thought it was a sign that maybe the girls should get something a bit more warm and cuddly than a fish. So hubby and I sneaked out to eyeball Fluffy the bunny while the girls stayed at home with sleeping Lettuce and Dot-the-domestic and all was well in the world.
The lady who had Fluffy was really wonderful and gave us a lot of tips on what to do, where to buy a bunny house, what to feed her, all the low-down details that new bunny-owners require. Fluffy was so soft and warm and when we got home, the girls were wild with excitement when they saw what I was holding. Tomato ran towards the road shouting to nobody in particular "I've got a pet!! It's a bunny!!" She then ran back to see Fluffy and was starting to cry she was so happy. We got it all on film it was precious.
Well luckily the photo shoot was at 9am because when Lettuce woke up an hour later, he was grumpy with a raging temperature - damn, that meant medicine. So I dutifully measured out the medicine and put it into the bottle that he was about to drink. Well try as I might, he didn't drink a drop. So this left me no choice but to do the medicine in the mouth trick, of which I'm not a fan as this usually induces vomiting. Long story short it worked like a charm and he went to sleep again. We needed to get Fluffy a home and some food so we took the girls and Dot-the-domestic said she was home anyway, she'd listen for Lettuce. So off we went, bought a beautiful little home and all the necessary stuff for Fluffy whose name had changed to Rosie, Snowball and Sparkle before going back to Fluffy by the time we reached home. Everyone was having fun. The girls ran off to check on Fluffy, hubby unpacked the car and took our part-time painter to the taxi while I went in to check on Lettuce. Dot-the-domestic said he was fine and me being the detail queen asked for every detail since we'd been gone, had he woken up, how long, was he hungry...... Being used to my anal-self, Dot-the-domestic went through the past hour not leaving out any details. Lettuce had woken up shortly after we left and she had given him a bottle and he was sleeping peacefully again........... As she said the word "bottle" I felt a cold feeling rush right through me. "Which bottle did you give him?"
Le Panic
Yes, within the space of 1 hour my 7 month old baby had been given a double dose of medicine. I tried to remain calm but I was battling to breathe. Thankfully, working in the pharmaceutical industry I have made some AWESOME friends so I grabbed my phone and frantically phoned my friend who is a pharmacist as well as a mom. Most moms are as paranoid as me so she knew I was completely freaked out. I hadn't spoken to her for a while so she was was about to give me a hard time when she saw who was phoning her on a Saturday afternoon but what I LOVE about her is that she can switch from fun to business in 1 second flat and she doesn't beat around the bush. She said "honestly, I don't know but wait I'll find out." I knew she didn't work with this type of thing everyday but I knew if she didn't know she'd know someone who did. Her husband, also in the industry was with her and was able to confirm that it was not a major problem because of the tiny dosage but I should just watch him. I was in tears convinced that he was going to die and it was all my fault. I thanked her profusely, cried some more and then went to watch him like a hawk. My friend then texted me to tell me that she had also contacted her brother-in-law who is a doctor and he said the advice was spot-on. Didn't I tell you she was awesome? Isn't that what a mom wants to hear, more reassurance? I felt a bit of relief but mostly a lot of guilt. How could I have been in such a rush that I left the medicine-filled bottle in his room? It did enter my mind that I should throw it away but I got distracted with one of the girls and left the room without it. Lettuce woke up about 5 minutes after all the commotion smiling and gurgling like his normal self. I just held him and cried and cried and cried, so grateful that it didn't turn out to be anything serious but realising just how serious it could have been.
OK now you can judge me :'(
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| My gorgeous little boy |
