A Little Bit Better

My sweet friends, I just wanted to jump on the computer, to thank you for your kind comments and prayers, and to let you know that I'm doing a bit better. My biggest complaint is that I'm still having difficulty breathing at times, especially when overcome by coughing fits. I've been diligently using the nebulizer every 4 hours, and it makes a big difference, though a temporary one.

My doctor also has me on azithromycin and a low dose of prednisone, to calm the inflammation in my lungs. I believe that all of these things are helping, just not as quickly as I'd hoped. I was supposed to meet with my midwife at her house on Friday, but she said that she'll come here instead, because she doesn't want me to go out in the cold and exhaust myself. Right now, just getting to the bathroom and back to the couch feels like a major feat.

My wonderful husband has been caring for me, and he doesn't allow me to lift a finger. He knew that the state of the house was a discouragement to me, so yesterday he gave the kitchen the most thorough cleaning it's had all year. He even took the knobs off the stove and cleaned them! It looks great, and it does my heart good. Today he plans to tackle the living room, and he's also been taking care of all the meals and laundry. What a great blessing he is!

I've been trying to make good use of my couch time by working on paperwork in between my numerous naps. Yesterday my husband brought in the huge basket of papers from the kitchen counter, and my portable file box, and put them on the coffee table. I got all of my filing done, paid some bills, and balanced all of our accounts. I find that if I don't feel useful, I end up getting depressed, so it's good for me to keep myself occupied. One of the big highlights of each day is when my husband brings in the mail, and I get to open all of your Christmas cards. I'm so enjoying reading all of your letters, seeing your faces, and admiring your adorable children.

My children worry when I'm sick, so they've been unusually sweet and helpful. Cakes insists on rubbing lotion on my feet and legs, because I complained that they felt itchy and dry. The problem is, she uses very little restraint with the lotion, so I usually feel like a greased pig afterwards. But she's so sweet and earnest that I let her do it anyway. The kids insisted that I open two of my Christmas presents early, because they thought they might help me feel better. Bee gave me the Looney Tunes Golden Collection on DVD so I would have entertainment (I loved the Looney Tunes cartoons as a kid, and still do. They crack me up!), and Cakes gave me 2 pairs of pink fleece socks, to keep my feet warm. She was incredibly proud of them, and as soon as she handed the package to me, she said, "Here's your present Mommy. It's socks! They're so cozy."

Cakes doesn't understand the surprise element of gift-giving.

Yesterday afternoon, I was sitting on the couch, wearing long underwear and a huge t-shirt (I can't get any of my pajamas to fit anymore), with my somewhat oily hair half up and half down, wheezing my way through a nebulizer treatment, and my husband came in and got down on one knee in front of me.

He looked me right in the eye and said, "Hi gorgeous." I snorted in response, as if to say "Yeah right, I look sooooo good right now." He replied, "Well, I think you're a knock-out."

So you see, it's true that love is blind.