Sara the cat

I have no pictures...I have nothing to report really.  We have a new computer and all my pictures are loaded on a ginourmous external hard drive.  Thanks Earl.
Well I guess I could report that the stomach flu came back...with a vengence.  So it was good that the "puke fairy" left lots of supplies and it was also good that in a brief stroke of genious, I set some of those supplies back, you know, just. in. case.  Well...folks...we have reached "just in case"...and it is not pretty.
I had no idea how much a two year old's stomach could hold.  It's facinating really. 
The final diagnosis?
Mommy had the stomach bug.  Mommy did not save up her "sick days" and her "employers" made come into "work" regardless of her condition.  Well there was that brief 20 minutes on the couch where the eldest "employer" brushed Mommy's hair and let her close her eyes and pretend to be asleep.  But I'm not sure if that counts. 
Sam had the stomach bug AND an upper respiratory infection resulting in a double ear infection and a super high fever.  Did you know that when a person pukes, the force reguired to puke can force snot into the ear canal...resulting in-->yup, you got it...an ear infection.  Lovely.  The things I learn everyday.  Amazing really.
What a  lovely mix of snot and vomit.
Earl is still successfully avoiding the Farris 2011 vomit fest.  Pray for him. 
Have I mentioned bleach is a wonderful thing? 
But...
this post is titled "Sara...the cat"
She is a funny creature.  She really demands a post of her own every now and again.
So, for your reading pleasure...some tales of Sara the cat.

She sleeps on the floor vents all. day. long. I don't blame her.  It hasn't been above freezing in a horribly long time, and we have inches and inches of snow on the ground.  If I wasn't cleaning up vomit didn't have anything else to do, I'd sleep on the heater vents too.  Sometime she gets so warm and cozy and in such a deep state of sleep that she rolls over on her back, paws drooping to one side, mouth hanging open.  In my next life?  I'm coming back as a cat.

We cleaned out Sam's room recently.  Took out the rocking chair.  Brought in a toy cubbie.  He's a kinda big boy now with big boy toys.  It was only fair that they be nicely organized and accessible.  Now he can play Thomas the Train vs. Buzz Lightyear and not have to ask me to dig them out of the bowels of his closet.  While going through his things, I found some chou-chou's (this is what our family calls a "binky").  Sam hasn't used them in months.  But you might remember that when he did use them, Sara liked to steal them...and play with them...and hide them...and bite holes in them.  You can read about that here.  I tossed all but one of the chou-chou's into a trash sack.  I don't know why I kept one...I just did.  Maybe I'll dig it out when Sam is 16...just to remember that one time, not so long ago, he was little.  So I tossed the rest and went about my organizing and cleaning.  Soon I heard a rustling in the trash sack.  It was Sara the cat.  She was pulling the discarded chou-chou's out of the sack one by one and taking them downstairs to her "lair" to hide them away.  Treasure!!!  Oh I laughed and laughed at that cat!  She was so quiet...so sneaky...so thrilled with her find.  I didn't stop her.  How could I?  Later, I went downstairs to see where exactly she "hid" her treasures.  And, there they were, neatly placed in her food bowl.  Occasionally she will bring one upstairs and toss it around for a bit.  But she always returns it to her bowl...for safe-keeping....you know, just in case Sam decides he wants them back.

Last one...

Last night, after Sam puked his final puke, he curled up in the recliner with me...he was quite a mess.  Sour tummy...high fever...  He just twisted and turned in my lap...half asleep, half awake.  No position was a comfortable position.  But the only place in the world he wanted to be was in my lap.  So I rocked and patted and offered ice and rocked some more.  About 10 minutes into his restless slumber, Sara jumped up in my lap.  Right in the middle of the chaos.  She loves chaos.  It is her favorite place to be.  She perched in my lap...pushed up against Sam....and looked at me as if to say "Here...can I try for a bit?"  Sam reached his little chubby two year old hand toward Sara and began to pet her.  She began to lick him.  He relaxed.  She purred.  He rubbed her fur.  She got very still.  He got very still.  She fell asleep.  He continued to twist her fur with his little fingers.  If it bothered her, she gave no sign.  Soon Sam relaxed and he fell asleep.  Sara's work was finished.  And she hopped off my lap.

I am completely convinced that Sara the cat chose us...and she has a very important job to do.