The Mechanicsville Miler is an annual event held by the mini-brat’s school each October where members of the community, faculty, and students can enter to run the 3 mile run/walk, a 1 mile fun run, and a 100 yard dash for the little ones. This year there were 100 entrants for the 3 mile run/walk. Tre was adamant that he wanted to do the one mile fun run, so we signed him up by the deadline and got his registration packet and he was ready to go.
And then he got sick.
My mini-man came down with one of his horrible fall season colds where he coughs like a ninety-year-old man on his last leg the Tuesday before the race (which was this past Saturday, October 28th) so we broke out the Nyquil and started pumping it in him. By Saturday morning, he was mentally ready to go but physically – not so well. It was pouring down rain, and the temperatures were only 41 degrees. We bundled up and off we went for the race at 10:30 a.m.
We huddled under the overhang outside the playground where the race was to start, trying to stay as dry as possible until the actual race time. I bundled my little guy up inside my coat and held him close to keep him warm, but the coughing started anyway. In short order, it was race time and off he ran to the start line. When they yelled, “Go!” he took off like a shot and did really good at keeping up with all the other kids…till about the quarter mile mark. He had his back to us where his dad and I were standing, and I saw that he started to walk and wasn’t running any longer. When he came around the bend and I could see his face my heart just fell. He had tears streaming down his little face and he was holding his arms across his chest. We both rushed over to him and asked him if he was okay and he tearfully replied, “I just can’t do it mom, it hurts.”
So race day was over. I bustled him under the umbrella with me and we hustled off to the car and headed home. Put him in the shower and got him all nice and warm again, then slipped him into his warm sweats right out the dryer, gave him another dose of Nyquil and made him some hot cocoa. When he was done sipping on that, we cuddled on the couch together and we both promptly fell sound asleep.
Mom was sick too, you see.
I felt it coming on Thursday, but it didn’t hit me full force till Saturday (and I’m sure being out in the rain and the cold temperatures just hurried it along) but I couldn’t get any rest at all Saturday save that little nap I had with Tre. The Man Thing didn’t think I was “really” sick and kept waking me up … until I’d finally had enough Saturday night and cussed him out and told him to leave me the hell alone. He finally got the hint when I woke up Sunday and looked like death warmed over and finally let me spend the day sleeping like I needed to.
All Hallow’s Eve / Halloween / Blessed Samhain
So Monday came, All Hallow’s Eve, and I woke up feeling so much better. I was so glad to be feeling better because I seriously did not want to traipse around the neighborhood with the kids all night feeling the way that I was feeling this past weekend.
This was an um – interesting – year for Halloween. Costume requests ran in a variety of directions for a month or more in advance. They just could not seem to make up their mind as to what they wanted to *be* this Halloween until the very last minute – as usual.
The head brat decided he wanted to be Andy Sixx from Black Veil Brides and the mini-brat decided he wanted to be Jason Vorhees from Halloween or Friday the 13th (I can’t keep them all straight anymore) so that’s what we worked with.
So home from school they came and headed to their rooms to costume up. Here are the pictures of each of them.
Yes dear readers, that is PERMANENT MARKER that my son used on his neck and both arms. Sigh. He did have the forethought, however, to purchase some eyeliner to do his face drawings – thank heavens!
I, however, nearly had a coronary when I saw that PERMANENT MARKER all over his neck and from his wrists up to his forearms!!! I told him that even if I had to use Comet and a brillo pad to get it off – that marker was coming off of him tonight – come hell or high water!
He didn’t care.
His brother, on the other hand, was feeling bad again and was less than thrilled about going out and about. Yes he wanted to, but I do believe if he could have hired someone to do his trick or treating for him, he most certainly would have!
So finally my brood was ready to hit the streets (after I was so “mean” as to make them wait till it was actually DARK at 6:30 p.m. before letting them leave) so Jonathan called up his friend, T., and we were ready to go.
Mollyanna, however, couldn’t figure out just what the heck those two “things” were in her house and stood watch over her domain (our bedroom).
So before we headed out, I had to snap a picture of the motley crew I was escorting that night:
And as soon as we turned around to leave…it started pouring down rain. Not to be daunted, as the weatherman had promised it wouldn’t rain “heavy” till after 8 p.m., I grabbed the umbrella and off we went.
Within 45 minutes we were ALL soaked to the skin and the BOYS were the ones asking me to call Dad to come pick us up. They were D-O-N-E.
So the world is safe from my little maniacal ghouls another year…
