All last week Cathy was on antibiotics for a possible case of walking pneumonia. By Friday she had aaaaaalmost shaken it, but she didn't want to go to WIT (Grace music department monthly songwriters' meeting) because she didn't know if she was done being contagious or not, so I left her at home with Hannah and Mikey and went by myself. I hadn't been there too terribly long when I got a call on a friend's cell phone: Cathy had been trying to pick up Hannah, and apparently because her body was so tired from being sick for several weeks, she felt something weird happen in her back and suddenly was in terrible pain. She had managed somehow to get into the glide rocker and get Hannah into her lap, but she wanted me to come home. In the WIT meeting we were talking about music we had written that could be used in the upcoming Grace production of an original play called The Christmas Prodigal which we will be staging this December, and I've written almost a dozen songs for consideration, but family is more important so I left my lyrics with Cheray and came on home to take care of Hannah. So the immediate plan was to let Cathy's back rest as much as possible.
This wasn't going to be easy: Saturday was Lowe's Build and Grow day, and Mikey wanted to go make the fire truck. My dad took him so I could stay home with Cathy and Hannah, but later in the day Mikey had a soccer game to play in and I didn't want to miss it. I wound up taking Mikey to the game while Hannah hung out with Meme and Papaw for a little bit.
It was a late game (3pm scheduled start time); when the game was over we were the last two teams to leave the fields. It was pretty warm, approaching hot... my car thermometer said it was 88 degrees. We started late, but the kids on Mikey's team played really well... the ball only came to Mikey in his defensive position once, but I was so proud to see it pop back up out of the pack and head back the way it had come from! But the other team had a tall, crack goalie, and at the end of the game the score was tied, 1-1. Time for a shootout!
What is a shootout, you ask? The only reason I knew what was going to happen in the shootout was because one of the kids on our team was explaining it to Mikey and I overheard. yes, I am pathetic.
In this shootout, each team chose five players to kick one goal apiece against the opposing team's goalie from about ten feet or so away from the goal. Each scored goal would count as 2 points instead of the usual 1 point during the game. When each team had taken five shots, the scores would be final.The other team kicked one goal. Mikey's team kicked two! For the first time, Mikey was on the team who won a soccer game!!!
We picked up Hannah and came on home, after I dropped off a DVD at the library. The game had lasted almost until 5pm (it was supposed to be 3-4 but they're chronically late in that league). The DVD was due that day, which meant that if I didn't get it in by 5 it was overdue, and they charge pretty stiff fines on DVDs. Fortunately, I put it in the night slot and the next day they checked it in without fine and without comment. Yay for the Tulsa Libraries!!
I contemplated whether to stay with Cathy at home Sunday, or go to church. I had volunteered to play a bit part in a little skit Sunday morning, but I could have gotten someone to fill in; it was a pretty easy part! But I decided that it made better sense to bring Mikey and Hannah to church, sing in the choir and be in my skit, let someone else take care of Hannah for a few hours and let Cathy really get some rest. So that's what we did. It was the first time I'd been involved in drama at Grace (the skit was pretty funny, BTW, and went over well with the congregation!) and it was a lot of fun. I'm glad I liked it... I'm scheduled to play the Agitated Innkeeper in The Christmas Prodigal!
Sunday night I stayed up really late (kind of like tonight!) recording a CD of me singing all of those songs I wrote for the play to give to Cheray and Elizabeth. The CD turned out kind of stream-of-consciousness and a little wacky... I mean, this is me we're talking about, singing songs at 10pm. I don't know if Cheray has listened to it yet; I feel certain it will crack her totally up. Elizabeth too. Those two seem to find me endlessly entertaining. What could be causing that? As you know, I'm a very serious person.
Cathy was feeling better and better as her back got rest, but she certainly wasn't ready for me to go in to the office and leave her alone with Hannah; Mikey can only lift her so far (she's 25+ pounds) and Cathy was still in a bad state. So I called my boss Matt to get permission to work from home, and set up our old computer so I could work while Mikey did school on the family computer. As it turns out, working from home went pretty well; I simply remote-controlled my work computer from my kitchen table and saw on my screen exactly what I would be seeing if I were sitting there at work. It was a little tricky to block out the family sounds, though, and a few times I felt like all I was doing was getting up to help Hannah, sitting back down, and repeating steps 1 and 2. But it worked out. I did that Monday and Tuesday.
Monday night a big question was looming. For months and months we had known that Newsboys were going to play at the Tulsa State Fair, and none of us, including Cathy, wanted to miss it! Those guys always put on an awesome show. At first Cathy was going to go hang out at Robert & Sandra's house with Hannah while Mikey and I went, but Cathy wanted to go so badly that eventually we decided to rent her a wheelchair to ride around in at the fair so she wouldn't overexert herself. Which ultimately didn't make much of a difference, because the stage was right next to where we came in, and she stood up for most of the concert anyway! Her back was fatigued afterward, but she actually did fairly well. (Ha! Ha! That was like a pun, wasn't it??
)Newsboys have done this double drum solo thing for years and years, and at the end they have a drum platform that actually rises into the air, turns vertical, and then rotates while the drummer continues to play. I had told Mikey that the drums were going to go up into the air, but I hadn't told him they were going to turn on their side. You should have seen his mouth hanging open! hehe!
We actually had to miss Mikey's first pack meeting with his new Cub Scout pack, but he and I discussed it beforehand and he decided it would be worth it. Newsboys don't come to town very often!
Tuesday I stayed home again, but Wednesday I went back into the office. Cathy was still in a little bit of pain, but she could handle lifting the baby, and working from home is very difficult when you don't have a separate work space. Wednesday night Cathy went back to church for the first time in two weeks, what with the pneumonia and the back ache. She was hurting all during the service and all through choir practice. We were just about to go out into the auditorium for our run-throughs with the band, and we had a prayer time. Several people laid hands on Cathy and prayed for her, and instantly all pain left her back! She could bend at the waist pain-free for the first time since Friday! Thursday she could feel a little bit of stiffness back there, but nothing like the pain she had been feeling before we prayed. Praise God!
I guess I could go ahead and mention some stuff today... Mikey had a great soccer practice. I had a very fulfilling day at work, accomplishing some big things that I've been anticipating for some time. Tonight we went over to Cathy's dad's house and watched the V.P. debates. We came home and everybody went to bed but me. I stupidly stayed up blogging! And unfortunately, my poor wife just got up to see what I was doing... I may be keeping her awake. I'd better go to bed!
But Mikey was crying because he thought it was my favorite glass in the world! And probably because I had shouted at him, too... he must have immediately thought I was furious. But he hadn't done anything at all wrong... he was just getting the crackers for his Mama. I couldn't believe how hard he was taking it!
