The plague, I have it

The last entry I wrote about was a fun filled Saturday running around Boston like a college kid, and then I got the plague Tuesday night and that's all she wrote for a week. So I apologize.

When I took my temperature Tuesday night and found it was 102, I wanted somebody to blame. I mean, I went all winter with only one relatively mild bout of sickness and then, during the nicest week of the year, the warmest week of the year, I was going to be freezing anyway? But who to blame? My daughter's preschool? Her teacher was out and three and four year olds are veritable petri dishes. My husband's students? Come on, they're teenagers. And then only eight people showed up to rehearsal on Thursday (and I was not among them).

Folks, we've found Patient Zero.

Lily, Mary and a bonus family friend, Meg

Kudos to my kids, who bore the fact that they were stuck inside on the two nicest days of 2012 in relative good spirits. (I will smile fondly on this memory as, at the moment, my four year old is screaming bloody murder in the other room because her father is daring to tell her to put on a pair of pajamas. It's going to be open windows season for good soon - neighbors, please don't call the cops, I'm probably not actually beating her to death.)

On Thursday morning my fever was gone and my cough was a mere shadow of the death rattle it was the day before (which returned after lunch, sorry about that), so we attempted a play date with the kids down the road. Bella is just a couple of weeks younger than Anna and Savannah was born just eight days before Lily, so they've got some built in playmates a half a mile away and I love it. When I was growing up, my neighborhood had a bunch of kids in it and I was concerned when we moved in, because there didn't seem to be any young families in the area. I'm glad to say I was wrong about that and my girls will have the benefit of proximity when "there's nothing to dooooo!" and I push them outdoors.

Lily (left) and Savannah, built-in buddies

It's especially good for Anna, because she is still pretty shy and slow to warm up to people and I am trying to both build her friend base (so she has more people she instantly recognizes and will have fun with) and teach her important social skills. Yeah, she has her sister, but lately, they seem to be practicing diplomacy with small iron fists and that's not really the example I want to have her retain.

For instance, the other day, I was getting them dressed. It was 70 degrees at 9 a.m. and I was putting Anna into a cute, twirly dress that was turquoise with yellow polka dots. It was Mary's, it was a tent on Anna last summer and this summer it fits like a glove. Even Mary couldn't resist commenting.

"Anna, that dress is beautiful!"

Anna remained silent as I zipped her up, so I prompted her toddler self.

"Anna, what do we say when someone says something nice like that?"

"Never touch my dwess."

Yeah. We need to work on that. Play date, anyone?

Anna in a less highly prized dress, probably because her sister has an identical one.