Mixing Polka Dots and Florals… Again.

Yesterday morning, Asa woke up hysterically crying and clingy.

This is really unusual for him (I’ve heard some kids just always wake up on the wrong side of the bed, but he usually wakes up chirping “hi! hi! hi!”), so I knew right away that he was sick and expected a day full of runny poops and barfing. All day, though, he just remained lethargic, barely ate, drank lots of water, and only wanted to sleep and cuddle. Throughout the day his temperature stayed around 98 degrees, so I wasn’t too worried. But last night, before my husband and I clocked out for the night, we went in for one more check on him as is our custom, and discovered he was so feverish that he was actually red all over, and the thermometer informed us frantically that he was pushing a 103 fever. Now, we only have a thermometer that takes underarm or under tongue temperatures, and since it’s pretty impossible to get a crying toddler to keep a thermometer under his tongue, we were only able to take underarm, which is the least accurate of the bunch. After sponging him down and giving him water and generally just calming him from the hysteria that erupted when we picked him up (he had just been laying there looking at the ceiling, making not a peep until we touched him with our comparatively cold hands), we re-took his temperature and it was a slightly less alarming (but still very worrying) 102.

So, for the first time in his life, Asa slept with us in our bed. It was past midnight by the time we had him all settled down, and after a failed attempt by my husband to take him back to his own bed (Asa kept handing over his blankie and wanting up, which is usually a sign that he wants his crib), little boy fell into a fitful sleep on my husband’s chest, and we were able to gently deposit him into the middle of the bed. It’s amazing how such a little body can hog so much space; my husband and I both assumed the other had lots of room because we both slept on the very edge — Asa’s head was at my husband’s chest, and his feet were somewhere around my stomach. He knows how to get the most space for himself, I tell ya. We spent most of the night alternatively checking his head and underarms for temperature changes, knowing that if his fever didn’t subside he’d need a doctor’s visit in the morning, and by 6am when my husband’s alarm went off, Asa’s fever was down to 100. He promptly sat up as soon as the alarm went off, said “hi”, tapped my back (I can’t stay in one position too long right now, so had my back turned), dropped his pacifier, said “uh oh!” (his current favorite phrase), and, after a little bit of “talking”, handed my husband his blankie, reached out his arms to be picked up, and waved goodbye to me.

This time, he did want to be taken to his own bed, where he slept sporadically until 9:30am. I wish I could say that I slept too, but I’ve discovered recently that if I attempt to go back to sleep after having woken up past 6, I get up feeling groggy and queasy and more miserable than when I just do without sleep.

Thankfully, when Asa finally woke up for good (well, temporarily; he was only up for two hours before he asked for a nap), his fever was completely gone and he was merely a toned down version of his usual silly self — staying put on the carpet where I deposited him to change a diaper for nearly 15 minutes after I’d finished and gone to grab a few things, only truly waking up after he ate a banana, halfheartedly piping up “uh oh” whenever he dropped a toy or a binkie — and I’m pretty sure he’s on the mend. Whatever bug got him yesterday was short lived, and now I’m just hoping my husband and I don’t get it, too.

Shirt, Target | skirt and belt, thrifted | shoes, Modcloth

So today, you get pictures that are nearly a week old now, from a day when I threw on this shirt and skirt and said “why not?” once again — my outfit mantra now when I try on things that are perhaps more bold than I was thinking that day, or more outlandish than I normally wear. I seem to pair this shirt with florals (or patterns in general) much more often than I realized, and it is definitely one of my staple closet basics.

I’m becoming very glad that I’ve shot a few double outfits in the last few weeks, on days when I had extra time and had a few things I wanted to style, because on days like these, when there’s very little chance I’ll get dressed, it’s nice to have a backup plan.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

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