Better, Or No Longer a Pain in the Neck

Bud is in a neck brace, feeling much better than he did before, because his neck doesn't hurt as much, because he's on ibuprofen and because he's distracted by his marble run. I'm so glad he ended the day on a high note, as it was tough going earlier. Ever time he moved in the wrong direction and began to cry, I literally could feel the pain in my own neck (having experienced the same as a kid, plus all those back strains). It was really hard. But he calmed down in the neck brace and felt more secure with it on, to the point that we could leave for a bit (it was the babysitter's day and she does wonders with distracting him, which I don't sometimes--he was milking me like a cow, as far as pity goes), to pick up lunch for me (I sat in the car with him sleeping while Mama and Sis got lunch) and more marble run sets for him. I've never seen him so thoroughly engrossed for a toy for so long--trains, tinker toys, lincoln logs, even drums are great until the gets frustrated or distracted, but he can watch those marbles go down different paths for hours. And he's getting better at building complex towers. Let's just hope it wasn't all that bending over marble runs that caused the strain in the first place!

Sis did really well today, in part because Mama stayed home (I couldn't carry Bud, fully supported, into the doctor's appointment by myself) and in part because she got a lot of indpendent parent time--at the library while Bud and Mama were at the doctor's, at lunch with Mama, at home with me while Mama and Bud went to fetch more marble run pieces (they had been out when we had stopped by after lunch). And she is really empathetic and compassionate. She searched the library shelves for DVDs for Bud to watch, choosing penguins, sharks, insects, and instruments of the orchestra. But my favorite part was watching her play in the tub--we were playing diner, with her serving me bean soup and lemonade, then ice cream, then tea--and at one point she started to swish back and forth, practically swimming in the tub, with the water swirling--and again I could just feel all that splashing and swirling, having been quite a tub swimmer in my day (now I just like to sit in the tub, instead of splash). And trust me, I'd much rather experience that joy vicariously than the pain in the neck.