If This Is Sick, Who Needs To Be Well?

Avery's had quite a week, mostly because of the croup that turned into a cold. On Monday she laid around all day, and didn't even want to go outside to play. On Tuesday we skipped Melba's, and she started to perk up, but the nose faucet started to gush. On Wednesday, Heather & Katie cancelled a morning playdate with us in an effort to avoid the illness, and Kelly & Kate cancelled their trip to the Clark County Fair with us for the afternoon, also scared of getting sick. Daddy insisted he had to work on his report (I think he was just trying to weasel out of the event), and Jordan was crabby, so Nana Noma spent the afternoon with her.

It's not a fair without the ol' time fiddlers
Getting cozy in the wagon & Silver, the blind, white horse?! Good thing he was tied to the merry-go-round!

That left mommy and Avery free to do the fair all by ourselves. We skipped a nap, took the bus, and had a great time! The bus ride was just as important as the fair to Avery, and the driver was nice enough to let us bring the red wagon with us.

It's funny what kids like and don't like. Avery's usually pretty cautious (she doesn't get that from me), but she had to ride the ponies twice, and jump on the bungee trampoline, but was terrified of and scared for the people on the ferris wheel, and didn't want to go on the toddler train. Hmmm. She didn't mind petting the dairy cows, but wouldn't have anything to do with the beef cows. She wouldn't touch the sheep (even the babies) or the goats (until the very end, just barely), but loved the horses. No llama touching or face painting either, but I practically had to drag her out of the pig petting area -- she was enthralled (maybe she gets that from aunt Jessie). It was no surprise she was bouncing off the walls by the time we got home, even though she didn't get a nap (a dangerous combination), after ice cream, chocolate milk, a milkshake (all from the dairy women's stand, yum) and a bag of cotton candy.

I have to say, it was a little bit sad for me to see all the other families with 2 healthy, interactive kids, no matter what the age. I miss watching Jordan meet new milestones, and I'm sad to think that she and Avery will not be able to play together the way sisters 2 years apart "normally" do. This is not to say we don't love her for who she is, but it feels somewhat like we're in mourning, not just for her health, but for but for our family as well. We had a vision of what life would be like with our children, and now we're having to let go of that vision and adapt to what our life will really be. It's like that story about packing your bags to go to Rome, but the plane lands in Holland. Not bad, just different, and it takes awhile to adapt, to appreciate the beauty that is Holland, because you were really only prepared to go to Rome. So, although we already see the beauty in our Jordan, we're still adapting to the differentness of our lives, plans, dreams, and goals.