I was sort-of wondering that last week. While being sick is no fun, it’s even worse when it’s one of your loved ones who is sick. Roxanne was sick last week, and while it’s a completely normal childhood cold virus, it also gives you fever and mouth sores. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen her that miserable in all of her life – well, at least all of her life when she had the mental capacity to say how miserable she is.
Actually, after Wednesday, she didn’t talk much since her mouth hurt. Unfortunately for me she also didn’t eat anything or even drink much, even her favorite things. A quick visit to the pediatrician – and a follow-up call at the end of the day – alleviated my fears about dehydration in theory but not completely in fact. Not only wouldn’t she eat, for most of Thursday she just looked plain miserable.
But it was on Wednesday night I felt my role of being a father slipping into a stereotype. For a variety of reasons Amy ended up spending part of the day taking care of her while I was at work. When I got home, Amy stayed to take care of her while I got sent right back out to go shopping. In this case it worked perfectly for our roles of how and when each of us are best at taking care of Roxanne, but it also felt like the cheap stereotype of the mom staying in the cave with the kid and the dad going out to hunt the yaks.
Luckily, not only did I find a small plastic dinosaur toy for her – the one thing she asked for when I went grocery shopping (not food or drink, but a toy) – I also found our favorite cookie bakery Lakota actually had dinosaur shaped cookies that day! I was briefly a hero when I returned, which lasted until we tried to get her to drink something again. We carefully wrapped the cookie up for her for Friday when her mouth was finally feeling up to eating.
In any case, I would still (or would now) hunt her a yak for her supper.
I think someone saw a yak once in the Medford fells. It’s not that far away…
Wow – really? I really thought yaks were typically found in Boreala or Mongolia or places like that these days. And, of course, in children’s books.
I happen to know that you hunt and gather very well.
What I really want to know is how I read this post and within 24 hours had a fever and a cold sore on my tongue…
ok so I also have an ear infection, sore throat, and all the other things that go with whatever is being passed around the office this week….so really it is Ton’y fault, but I think I’ll blame you anyway… since you are too far away to hunt and gather for me (and I’m not a small and cute as R)
sigh.