4 years 1 month 9 days

Day 1500. Yesterday we all left the house together at 8:15, which made Sammy happy. When he got off the subway after two stops and we stayed on, he got really upset and stayed upset for a while. I went to the final stop with the other two, which is downtown, then we had some walking to do to get to my GP's office.

I had an appointment with her as I had gone there last week because I couldn't get over this virus and was still in a lot of pain. I was doing a lot better yesterday, but told her my ears and throat were still hurting. So she took my blood and checked it for inflammation. The number was only slightly elevated, so she gave me some medications and sent me home. The kids had stayed in the waiting room by themselves the three times I had gone into a room, playing on their tablets.

We left, stopped by the pharmacy to pick up my medications, then continued walking to the subway that we then took home. However, we took two additional stops to go to the grocery store, which they enjoyed, and only then went home. It was nearly 11 am, as we got off the subway and started walking to our building. Tammy had seen Randy and Sammy in the distance, and so we were all calling their names, and they heard us. Sammy was really happy to see us.

Back home I went to work cooking. The rest of the day was uneventful, with me teaching at 4 pm as well as 9:30 pm.

This morning Sammy was up at 6:45 again, half an hour earlier than necessary, and Emmy was up right away as well. As Sammy was crying, I lay down next to him, which he really enjoyed, and stayed with him until the alarm went off. Then I gave the kids some American cereal for breakfast, and got Sammy's snack for kindergarten ready. Before it was even 8:15 I was the one leaving the house with Sammy to take him to kindergarten, which made him very happy.

Today there were only 2 other children there, when they are normally 10 children in the group. And Sammy was unusually clingy from the get-go, wanting to be with me all the time, which made it look like it was not gonna be a good day. But then the opposite turned out to be true. He started playing with one lady who's trying to build a relationship with him, and he was having lots of fun. He had his back to me the whole time  and never even looked for me. Then the physiotherapist took some time with me, and again he was alright and didn't look or ask for me. At 10:30 they started exercise time and asked me to leave the room, so I did. Only once before Randy had left the room for half an hour, and it was a disaster. Today there were no issues! He did his exercises and was fine. I was outside the room in the hallway. Then the group leader came out and said they wanted to take Sammy outside to their little playground, where there were already lots of other kids and see how it goes. It was already 11 am, so the latest he's ever stayed. They had a little walker with a seat that they used to take him outside. He sat in it , surrounded by children, and now he did ask for Mommy. We had already said that we'd go home around this time, so the group leader pointed at me through the glass and then took Sammy to me. He was happy to see me, and at 11:15 we left the building to go home. He'd really had a good day and had had fun.

We took the subway home, where he went downstairs to be with Daddy and his siblings. I went straight to the kitchen to make lunch. At noon we sat down to eat, then they were playing. And I realized that I had left my purse at the kindergarten, so it took me half an hour to go there, get it, and return home. I was really tired. Just before 1:30 I put all the kids to bed, and they were soon asleep. I also lay down and fell asleep.

The alarm woke me up at 2:45, and I got up to get everything and everyone ready to leave just after 3 pm. The kids had their weekly exercise class. We said good-bye to Sammy who was not happy at all to not leave with us, and started walking to the subway. We ran into the Mobile Support lady who was coming to play with Sammy for 90 minutes, which is why he couldn't come with us. It was her first time since our US trip. We talked briefly, then we continued on and took the 3:20 pm train.

After we got off, we got some chestnuts, as they were eager to have some, and continued walking to the school where their exercise class was taking place. I put their sports shoes on and went with them to the teacher who had to tick them off the list. They were shy, so I had to say their names for them. Then they went inside the gym, and I had to leave. No parents allowed. I had brought a package with me that I had to mail, so I started walking and walking to get to a post office. Then I walked back and went to the grocery store, and then I STILL had 20 minutes before their class ended. I stood outside the school for a few minutes, then went inside.

Even though parents were not supposed to be in there, there were quite a few sitting there and waiting. The door to the gym was closed so that we couldn't see what the kids were doing. We waited until the doors opened, and I had their cards ready to give them for their stickers. However, the teacher let everyone know that she had forgotten the stickers today. And so the kids took their shoes off and put their sandals back on, while I was asking them how the class had been. They had obviously had fun.

We walked back to the subway and took the 5 pm train home, where we arrived around 5:15 pm. Sammy was really happy to see us. They then all went downstairs, while I turned my computer on for the first time today to work. I didn't have a student, which was a welcome change.

By 6 pm they were all back upstairs, and at 6:30 pm I went to the kitchen to start making their dinner. They ate, then continued eating in the bathtub. Then we got them ready for bed. I read them a bedtime story, then prayed for them. It wasn't much after 8 pm, when they were in bed. Randy sat down by them, while I got something to eat and then sat down by the computer to work. My bedtime has been midnight most days, and it looks like that's what it's gonna be again tonight.