I am on a train to Chicago. Part of me wants to sleep. Part of me has a headache. All of me misses Gavin even though he is asleep right now and even if I was home, too, I would not see him.
Well, not ordinarily, anyway. Though last night was a horrible exception. Gavin woke up at about 10 p.m. After throwing up in his crib. He then puked seven more times until he finally went to sleep at 3 a.m. Because Stacy is a saint, I was allowed to go to bed about 1 a.m. while she and Gavin stayed up and watched the entire Cars movie plus two episodes of Minnie's Boutique. This is defnitely the most TV he's ever watched in one sitting, which I am sure he liked, though the price was very high.
I've seen Gavin puke before, but this was the worst. Poor little dude. He was, as you might imagine, not super happy about the way his evening was going. Neither were we, of course. The first couple of times he puked were the worst. Sadly we had eaten Pad Thai for dinner, which was one of my favorites. Emphasis on was. Did I ever mention that the night Stacy went into labor she and I, along with our friend Amber, ate at a Lebanese restaurant? At the hospital Stacy threw all of it up. Now every time we drive by the restaurant I feel queasy. Did I mention how I am not in love with vomit? This is something that you need to know about me if we're going to be friends.
But I was a champ, stripping Gavin's sheets and blankets and poor stuffed bunny and stuffing them into the washing machine on HOT. Many puked on towels followed. Gavin became quite adept at vomiting without freaking out and the last four or so times he did it he barely took his eyes off of the video screen. Although he was in denial about the fact, based on all available evidence, that he would puke a subsequent time. "I don't need another towel," he would say. But he did. At least up until three in the morning, but I was very much asleep by then.
In my defense, I should point out that I wasn't sent to bed because I was of no help, but Stacy pointed out that one of us should be well rested the next day in case he wasn't feeling better (he was). Or in case one of us got it.
Terrifyingly the jury is still out on that one. Stacy said that last week a bunch of kids in the infant room at daycare got sick and then all of the infant room caretakers got it, too. And since stomach bugs are hella contagious, I admit I am riding the rails in mild terror that I will end up holed up in the train bathroom, on the floor drenched in sweat and wanting to die. But so far so good.
Gavin and Stacy saw me off. He was very excited to see the train again (the last time being when Amanda Carver came to visit us) though not as excited about the fact that he would not also be boarding the train. While we were waiting at the stop a guy put four pennies, one quarter, and three dimes on the tracks. Stacy pointed them out to Gavin and explained that they would be flattened by the train. He was very interested in this idea. When I called Stacy later from the train she said that they had, in fact, seen the flattened results and that Stacy asked the guy if they could see one and he let Gavin have a penny. He was too shy to actually take it so Stacy had to, but she said he held it the entire drive back and then when he got home he put it in his wallet.
The woman across the aisle from me is eating something that smells bad and watching the Richard Gere remake of Shall We Dance, which should not exist. I am very partial to the original Japanese film and not just because it was one of the first dates I went on with Stacy. The woman watching the bastardized movie is now laughing out loud. I do not support this.
Gavin got his haircut on Monday and was very good. Bobby at the Chop Shop said it was like cutting a statue's hair. I presume he is referring to the fact that Gavin sat very still and was not comparing Gavin's hair to, like, cement or something. This is Gavin's second hair cut in his life. Just like last time, we just had a trim. We are in love with his hair. Or at least I am. I guess I shouldn't speak for Stacy, but I suspect her feelings are similar. His curls are pretty dreamy. They may some day grow out, but I choose to remain in denial about this. Denial never fails.
UPDATE: I am happy to report that I did not get sick. And when I returned home Gavin and Stacy were waiting for me at the station and Gavin and I ran toward each other in slow motion. Violins were playing. It was excellent.
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