Poor Maya is sick today, as in she has a fever that is ranging from 100-102. Not fun. I can't even remember thelast time she had a fever like this. Maybe never. The girl is perpetually healthy with the exception of being prone to skin ailments.
We went to one of her closest friend's birthday parties today, and Maya spent practically the whole time lying in the yard watching to other kids play. She said she wasn't feeling great but wanted to stay until the birthday cake was served. At birthday cake time, she felt hot. She said she wanted to go home and have a rest.
When we got her home, her temperature was about 100. We gave her baby Tylenol. A couple hours later her fever was 102. We gave more tylenol. She slept all afternoon in my arms. She was totally miserable. Wouldn't eat. A friend (who is also a nurse) suggested motrin or ibuprofin to alternate with the tylenol.
In the evening, we woke her up (still hot and miserable) and gave her motrin. We tried and failed to persuade her to take a bath, compromised with a wet washcloth on her head and put her to bed. About half an hour later though she got up out of bed completely wired, her fever gone, wanting to eat and play. Wow! That motrin really worked.
Friday, 20 February 2009
Thursday, 19 February 2009
Shoe frustration
So I was trying to order sneakers online for Mike's parents to bring to Maya for her to grow into. I already ordered a pair of kind of expensive athletic, waterproof, durable sandals for the summer, which was justified because she will probably wear them every day for 6-9 months as I got them slightly big so they should last a long time.
I wanted some inexpensive, durable closed-top sneakers that were either slip-ons or velcro, preferably not in white or pink. I just want to say that it is HARD to find sneakers that are not lace-ups in Maya's size (10.5). And I just want to ask, why? Seriously, are most parents of 3-year-olds honestly buying their kids lace-up sneakers? Because I for one do not want to have to tie Maya's shoes 5 million times a day. And I don't think my independent-minded daughter really wants to have to have her mommy/nanny/teacher tie her shoes. So who ARE these people buying lace-up shoes for 3-year-olds? Are their 3-year-olds honestly able to tie their shoes??
Also, what is with the white shoes? Even if they are cute to begin with, they are going to get dirty so fast. I didn't want pink either since I let Maya pick the color of her sandals and she chose purply pink. But seriously, white and pink are almost all that is on offer.
Eventually, I found a pair of white/grey/blue adidas with a velcro top, after like 2 days of searching the web. And for $18 with free 2-day shipping. I'm very proud of myself!
I wanted some inexpensive, durable closed-top sneakers that were either slip-ons or velcro, preferably not in white or pink. I just want to say that it is HARD to find sneakers that are not lace-ups in Maya's size (10.5). And I just want to ask, why? Seriously, are most parents of 3-year-olds honestly buying their kids lace-up sneakers? Because I for one do not want to have to tie Maya's shoes 5 million times a day. And I don't think my independent-minded daughter really wants to have to have her mommy/nanny/teacher tie her shoes. So who ARE these people buying lace-up shoes for 3-year-olds? Are their 3-year-olds honestly able to tie their shoes??
Also, what is with the white shoes? Even if they are cute to begin with, they are going to get dirty so fast. I didn't want pink either since I let Maya pick the color of her sandals and she chose purply pink. But seriously, white and pink are almost all that is on offer.
Eventually, I found a pair of white/grey/blue adidas with a velcro top, after like 2 days of searching the web. And for $18 with free 2-day shipping. I'm very proud of myself!
Wednesday, 18 February 2009
Fire! Fire! no Fire!
This morning at about 11 a.m., our landlord called Mike to tell him that the bowab (aka the doorman) smelled smoke coming under the door of our apartment. Nobody in the building had a key to our flat, so nobody could get in to check on the apartment. Yikes!
Since our work is normally 30 minutes away from our house, and it was at a time when the traffic would make the drive longer, we were panicked. Our house was potentially on fire and we could not get there to open the door to get the fire out.
We tried to call Tibby to get her to go to the house, because she lives pretty close by. (Maya was in school). But we couldn't reach her. Both Mike and the landlord tried to call the bowab back to find out exactly what was happening and ask him to cut the power to the apartment. But we couldn't reach him either.
Mike finally reached Tibby, who set off immediately for the house, but said it would take her 15 minutes. Meanwhile, images of our apartment burning and us losing everything flickered through my head. Mike took a cab back to the apartment.
Tibby finally arrived at the apartment. She went inside. No smoke. No fire. Nothing amiss at all. And no sign of the bowab so far this evening.
Since our work is normally 30 minutes away from our house, and it was at a time when the traffic would make the drive longer, we were panicked. Our house was potentially on fire and we could not get there to open the door to get the fire out.
We tried to call Tibby to get her to go to the house, because she lives pretty close by. (Maya was in school). But we couldn't reach her. Both Mike and the landlord tried to call the bowab back to find out exactly what was happening and ask him to cut the power to the apartment. But we couldn't reach him either.
Mike finally reached Tibby, who set off immediately for the house, but said it would take her 15 minutes. Meanwhile, images of our apartment burning and us losing everything flickered through my head. Mike took a cab back to the apartment.
Tibby finally arrived at the apartment. She went inside. No smoke. No fire. Nothing amiss at all. And no sign of the bowab so far this evening.
Sunday, 15 February 2009
Mommy Maya Meetings
When Mike is working late teaching evening classes -- which is two nights a week minimum this semester (groan) -- Maya and I get to have a special night together on those nights when I am on the early shift and get off work early. She has dubbed these evenings 'Mommy Maya Meetings'.
During Mommy Maya Meetings, all the normal rules about dinner and bedtime go out the window. It is special time for us, so we don't have to follow the rules. We order dinner from a restaurant that delivers and eat it while watching kid videos on TV, and sometimes Maya falls asleep on the sofa and I carry her to bed. She thinks it's super special, and sometimes we do special activities too. During one Mommy Maya meeting, we made playdough. During another, we made banana bread with pink sprinkles on top. But normally, we just hang out together and Maya gets to pick what we order for dinner.
Last semester Mike only worked one evening a week and evening classes were cancelled for the entire month of Ramadan, and of course occasionally I had to work late, so we didn't have too many special nights. And last semester Maya was allowed to choose McDonald's delivery for pretty much every Maya Mommy Meeting. But this semester, with Mike working a minimum of two nights a week, that is totally not possible. No way am I going to feed Maya that much McDonalds. Yet is has been very hard to persuade her to choose something different. I mean, she is even turning down pizza saying she wants McDonalds instead. I guess I can't blame her since happy meals come with a toy.
Tonight, however, I was finally successful in persuading her to choose something else for her Mommy Maya meeting. We had chinese food -- tofu with vegetables, sweet and sour chicken, and spring rolls -- on the sofa while watching Sesame Street DVDs. Maya, however, chose to forsake the tofu and chicken in favor of steamed rice and a spring roll. It was a nice evening ... until she decided to force herself to stay awake until her daddy got home...
During Mommy Maya Meetings, all the normal rules about dinner and bedtime go out the window. It is special time for us, so we don't have to follow the rules. We order dinner from a restaurant that delivers and eat it while watching kid videos on TV, and sometimes Maya falls asleep on the sofa and I carry her to bed. She thinks it's super special, and sometimes we do special activities too. During one Mommy Maya meeting, we made playdough. During another, we made banana bread with pink sprinkles on top. But normally, we just hang out together and Maya gets to pick what we order for dinner.
Last semester Mike only worked one evening a week and evening classes were cancelled for the entire month of Ramadan, and of course occasionally I had to work late, so we didn't have too many special nights. And last semester Maya was allowed to choose McDonald's delivery for pretty much every Maya Mommy Meeting. But this semester, with Mike working a minimum of two nights a week, that is totally not possible. No way am I going to feed Maya that much McDonalds. Yet is has been very hard to persuade her to choose something different. I mean, she is even turning down pizza saying she wants McDonalds instead. I guess I can't blame her since happy meals come with a toy.
Tonight, however, I was finally successful in persuading her to choose something else for her Mommy Maya meeting. We had chinese food -- tofu with vegetables, sweet and sour chicken, and spring rolls -- on the sofa while watching Sesame Street DVDs. Maya, however, chose to forsake the tofu and chicken in favor of steamed rice and a spring roll. It was a nice evening ... until she decided to force herself to stay awake until her daddy got home...
Thursday, 12 February 2009
Furry friend
We had a little visitor in our apartment the other day. I won't say what kind to avoid freaking out anyone coming to visit us soon. Let's just say it was not a welcome visitor and appeared to have come into the house from the roof when the balcony door was left open for a long period of time.
The furry friend made its way into the living room and then scampered into Maya's toy area, where it settled in her block drawer, and we could hear it moving around and knocking the blocks. Yikes!! We put Maya to bed and came back out and it was still making noises in the drawer. Yikes again!
I got Maya's orange plastic baseball bat and Mike got a plastic hanger from the bedroom. After a quick strategy session, we re-opened the balcony door and Mike jiggled the block drawer. The furry friend ran out into the open living room floor toward me. Mike yelled at me to get it. I yelled back. Then the furry friend changed directions and scrambled back out the balcony door, which we promptly shut tight. Thank God.
Mike emptied the block drawer, sprayed the blocks with disinfectant, and scrubbed out the drawer. Our furry friend has not returned. And he better stay away!!!
The furry friend made its way into the living room and then scampered into Maya's toy area, where it settled in her block drawer, and we could hear it moving around and knocking the blocks. Yikes!! We put Maya to bed and came back out and it was still making noises in the drawer. Yikes again!
I got Maya's orange plastic baseball bat and Mike got a plastic hanger from the bedroom. After a quick strategy session, we re-opened the balcony door and Mike jiggled the block drawer. The furry friend ran out into the open living room floor toward me. Mike yelled at me to get it. I yelled back. Then the furry friend changed directions and scrambled back out the balcony door, which we promptly shut tight. Thank God.
Mike emptied the block drawer, sprayed the blocks with disinfectant, and scrubbed out the drawer. Our furry friend has not returned. And he better stay away!!!
Flu
So I think I actually had the flu -- for the first time in my life that I am aware of. And maybe a chest infection or something on top of it. It has been like 10 days since I first got sick and I am still pretty weak. I am doing better though and have been back at work for three days. The first day was rough but now I am better. I just can't wait until I'm 100 percent again.
For a while I was actually looking up the human symptoms of bird flu -- since it is endemic now in Egypt and all. I definitely don't have bird flu. But I can't believe I was sick enough to consider it!
For a while I was actually looking up the human symptoms of bird flu -- since it is endemic now in Egypt and all. I definitely don't have bird flu. But I can't believe I was sick enough to consider it!
Sunday, 8 February 2009
Maya's preschool is moving!
That's right! Maya's preschool is getting some new digs. They are moving from a crowded garden apartment to a small villa across the street. We just got a note about it today. I am really happy about it, as the space the school is in now is so small, and the kids will have a lot more space after the move. I can't wait to see the new place!
I'm also happy now that we decided to keep her at Small World. The main concern I had about the school was that the facilities were a bit cramped, especially compared to several other trendy preschools that have their own buildings. The other preschools are nice, but their classes are arranged by age, so Maya would have been up to a full year older than other kids in her class based on when her birthday is, which wouldn't have been much fun for her. Or we could have bumped her up to the older class, but then she would have had the opposite problem and been the youngest in her class.
I know I have raved about Maya's school before, but it is just so nice that she can play with kids of lots of different ages and doesn't have to be grouped with only her same-age peers, and also that she is in a school that focuses on learning through play. I think almost all of the kids Maya plays with regularly are a bit older than her. But she also gets to learn how to be nice and play gentle with the younger kids. So it is a really good social experience for her. And now it is going to be in better facilities too!
I'm also happy now that we decided to keep her at Small World. The main concern I had about the school was that the facilities were a bit cramped, especially compared to several other trendy preschools that have their own buildings. The other preschools are nice, but their classes are arranged by age, so Maya would have been up to a full year older than other kids in her class based on when her birthday is, which wouldn't have been much fun for her. Or we could have bumped her up to the older class, but then she would have had the opposite problem and been the youngest in her class.
I know I have raved about Maya's school before, but it is just so nice that she can play with kids of lots of different ages and doesn't have to be grouped with only her same-age peers, and also that she is in a school that focuses on learning through play. I think almost all of the kids Maya plays with regularly are a bit older than her. But she also gets to learn how to be nice and play gentle with the younger kids. So it is a really good social experience for her. And now it is going to be in better facilities too!
Veg Box
A while back, some readers asked me to post pictures of the Veg Box, which we get every week. I am still really happy with it. We pay 125 pounds (about $20) for a huge crate of assorted fruits and veggies, which works out to way less than what we would pay for the same amount of veggies at our local expat supermarket, and it saves us a lot of shopping time. We can sort of customize the box, and we always get certain staples like bananas, tomatoes, lettuce and potatoes. But there are usually a few surprises each week too.
For some reason, the Veg Box guy brings us a lot of cauliflower and broccoli. I think Mike might have asked for it one week and now we just get it all the time. That used to happen with cabbage too until we finally had to tell them to stop bringing cabbage, because we're really not big cabbage fans. But sometimes we also get fresh shelled peas, and fresh spinach, which is really nice. Lately we have been getting fresh strawberries.
The Veg Box guy will also deliver fresh meat, and it is really good quality. So far, we have gotten chicken breasts, beef cubes, and ground beef from him. And it is way better than what we can get in the grocery store. We heard he will also deliver fresh juice, so we are going to try that too.
Health update
I'm still sick today, but feeling way better than yesterday. I think the antibiotics are kicking in. I actually was able to sleep all night long. From 9 p.m. to 5 a.m., and then again until 6:30 a.m. when I took my next dose of meds. I still barely have the energy to walk around the house, but now I can at least breathe through my mouth without sparking a huge coughing fit. And I am starting to be able to breathe through my nose again a little. I doubt I will be going to work tomorrow still, but maybe on Tuesday. I am dying for some human contact.
Maya has been very nice and cuddly with me since I have been sick. She fell asleep in my arms last night watching Happy Feet. (Mike bought her Happy Feet at Carrefour and a set of cheap plastic bowling pins over the weekend, which made me raise my eyebrows a little -- until he told me he was just trying to divert her attention from the Barbie doll she asked for... Yikes!)
Maya has been very nice and cuddly with me since I have been sick. She fell asleep in my arms last night watching Happy Feet. (Mike bought her Happy Feet at Carrefour and a set of cheap plastic bowling pins over the weekend, which made me raise my eyebrows a little -- until he told me he was just trying to divert her attention from the Barbie doll she asked for... Yikes!)
Saturday, 7 February 2009
SOS
Did I mention that the telephone at my parents' house has an SOS button?? That means a button that calls 911 automatically when pressed. Did I mention that nobody knew about this button until we were visiting??
That's because Maya picked up the phone and started playing with it. She managed to call 911 twice before we realized she was talking to another human being. We took the phone away. Then a few seconds later we got a call back. From 911. Saying we had called 911 twice. My brother assured them it was just a 3-year-old playing with the phone and apologized profusely. Within 5 minutes, a sheriff's deputy arrived at the house and rang the doorbell to make sure everyone was ok. Maya was a bit freaked out by the experience. So were we.
Then we put the phone WAYYYYY out of reach. OK. That's my confession for the day.
That's because Maya picked up the phone and started playing with it. She managed to call 911 twice before we realized she was talking to another human being. We took the phone away. Then a few seconds later we got a call back. From 911. Saying we had called 911 twice. My brother assured them it was just a 3-year-old playing with the phone and apologized profusely. Within 5 minutes, a sheriff's deputy arrived at the house and rang the doorbell to make sure everyone was ok. Maya was a bit freaked out by the experience. So were we.
Then we put the phone WAYYYYY out of reach. OK. That's my confession for the day.
Family get-together
When we were getting to know Baby G, we also got to meet up with a couple other relatives. Cousin Jess and Auntie Michelle. Here are some pics.
Meeting her baby cousin
Maya, who had managed to steal the spotlight for three long years as the first grandchild on both sides of the family, got to meet her new baby cousin while we were on home leave. And she couldn't be more excited to have a new baby in the family!! We had to remind her several times that the baby was in fact not her baby sister and we could not take her home with us.
Hope you enjoy the pictures of Maya and her new cousin Baby G.
Better late than never Christmas pictures
Here are my better late than never Christmas morning pictures. As you can see, Maya changed her clothes about a million times. Her favorite gift by far was the electric mixer.
Sick and self-medicating
Aaah! I have been sick, sick, sick over the past few days. Actually, everyone in the family has been sick with colds, but everyone else recovered. I started feeling down last Friday but then I thought I was getting better. (Maya and Mike both got better). But then on Tuesday I started feeling bad again, and I stayed home from work on Wednesday and Thursday. I was barely conscious all day those days, and totally drugged up on pseudoepinephrine and tylenol.
Then yesterday I still felt bad. Well, my brain felt like I could think clearly again but I was still really sick. And this morning I still felt really, really bad. So we tried to make an appointment with the doctor's office, thinking that I either have a sinus infection or bronchitis or pneumonia. Only for some reason he wasn't answering the phone.
So I decided to just self-medicate. Mainly because the last time I tried to go to a random Egyptian doctor (I was desperate because I was due to fly to Sudan the next day), I told him what I thought I had (a sinus infection), what drug I needed, and he just gave it to me without any real examination or anything. So I'm a bit reluctant to drag myself out of bed for that again. So now I am on antibiotics (amoxiclav) and hopefully I will get better. I took the first dose this morning. I think I feel a slight bit of energy coming back. It could be a placebo effect. But heck, I'll take that over nothing. And it's very convenient to just be able to call up a pharmacy and have antibiotics delivered to your door within the hour...
Then yesterday I still felt bad. Well, my brain felt like I could think clearly again but I was still really sick. And this morning I still felt really, really bad. So we tried to make an appointment with the doctor's office, thinking that I either have a sinus infection or bronchitis or pneumonia. Only for some reason he wasn't answering the phone.
So I decided to just self-medicate. Mainly because the last time I tried to go to a random Egyptian doctor (I was desperate because I was due to fly to Sudan the next day), I told him what I thought I had (a sinus infection), what drug I needed, and he just gave it to me without any real examination or anything. So I'm a bit reluctant to drag myself out of bed for that again. So now I am on antibiotics (amoxiclav) and hopefully I will get better. I took the first dose this morning. I think I feel a slight bit of energy coming back. It could be a placebo effect. But heck, I'll take that over nothing. And it's very convenient to just be able to call up a pharmacy and have antibiotics delivered to your door within the hour...
Monday, 2 February 2009
Writers block
Sorry for my hiatus from blogging. Life has been insane. Work has been insane. Work managed to intrude on my vacation and then has been intruding on my personal life since then. Then we all caught a bad cold that I am still recovering from. And Mike went to South Africa for a conference, so it was just me and Maya for a while. But now everyone is home and we are getting back to normal in Cairo.
I do have some pictures I still need to post from our vacation. But my slow internet connection is not encouraging me to do that, as I have to add one picture at a time, and it just goes so slowly.
Maya has been enjoying herself lately. While Mike was gone we made banana bread for the first time. She really enjoyed it. The bread was a little burned on the sides, but otherwise yummy. It's hard to translate 350 degrees to an Egyptian gas oven. We were supposed to cook it for 60-65 minutes, but it was burned at 40 minutes. Whoops! It'll be better next time.
And yesterday when Mike was teaching his class at the university in the evening (why do they insist on evening classes??), Maya and I made pink playdough. Maya actually thought it would be red, because we used red food coloring. She was very surprised when it turned out pink, and has been telling everyone who will listen about how she dyed her playdough with red coloring but that produced pink playdough. Now Maya wants to make green playdough. But I'm not really sure I want multiple colors floating around, especially ones that don't mix well.
I do have some pictures I still need to post from our vacation. But my slow internet connection is not encouraging me to do that, as I have to add one picture at a time, and it just goes so slowly.
Maya has been enjoying herself lately. While Mike was gone we made banana bread for the first time. She really enjoyed it. The bread was a little burned on the sides, but otherwise yummy. It's hard to translate 350 degrees to an Egyptian gas oven. We were supposed to cook it for 60-65 minutes, but it was burned at 40 minutes. Whoops! It'll be better next time.
And yesterday when Mike was teaching his class at the university in the evening (why do they insist on evening classes??), Maya and I made pink playdough. Maya actually thought it would be red, because we used red food coloring. She was very surprised when it turned out pink, and has been telling everyone who will listen about how she dyed her playdough with red coloring but that produced pink playdough. Now Maya wants to make green playdough. But I'm not really sure I want multiple colors floating around, especially ones that don't mix well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
