Weekend From Hell

Trust me, this photo doesn't even begin to describe our weekend from hell (a week ago).  

As you might guess from the deer head soaking in a pot of water on our stove, it was deer hunting opener. Joe got a deer.

I was home with the kids and got thrown up on, pooped on and cried on.  Over and over and over again.  

Last year I was really nervous for Joe to go hunting.  Wren was only a couple weeks old and it was my first time with all three kids by myself.  It went well, though.  And so this year I was optimistic and looking forward to a little one mommy/three kids time together.  My chance to shower them with sugar cereal for breakfast, order pizza delivery for dinner, and do fun "mommy" things with them during the day (decorate their room for Christmas, like I did last deer opener weekend).

But last weekend it was excruciating hard work to keep up with Wren, who had such a stomach/flu bug she was going through about 40 diapers a day.  I literally kept hosing her down in the tub, putting on a new diaper, just to have to take it off immediately and hose her down again.  Add in the occasional throw up by her, as well as Max & Otto - and then myself Saturday night - and I was broken down.  

I had been looking forward to doing some fun things with the kids by myself.  We do almost everything as a family and once in awhile (about one weekend a year:), it's fun to have the challenge and the fun of doing it all by myself.  Quickly that expectation of mine had to be thrown out the window.  I couldn't handle all of them ill together without some help.

Friday morning Joe had headed to work with the plan to leave right from his office that afternoon and head North to his buddy's cabin.  I called him before Noon saying I needed him to come home.  That I thought I'd be fine by myself for the rest of the weekend, but only if he could just come home first and clean my car. I needed him to clean it because as we were pulling into the Dr's office parking lot (for Wren's sick-kid visit), Otto throw up so immensely A.L.L. O.V.E.R. that I seriously thought it'd be easier to buy a new car.  Joe worked for a couple hours to scrub and clean and remove air vent covers and clean up in the air tubes themselves it was so bad. I manned the house while Wren pooped and Otto threw up.  

And then I called my sister to see if she'd be so incredibly kind to come help me with the kids so Joe could go hunting.  As always, she was.  She helped me out Friday and all day Saturday.  She had been planning to watch all three kids Saturday night because I had been invited to the Madonna concert.  But I wouldn't leave her with the kids when they were this sick. And then I too got sick Saturday night.  And my sister had to be at work early Sunday morning.  Sunday was a very hard, long day until Joe got home in the late afternoon.  

And yet a small part of me wants a re-do. A chance to actually enjoy a weekend solo with the kids. Small part. Maybe even itty bitty.