So this is a pretty big news day--the ALSC awards were announced this morning! And it looks like readers across the country were right--When You Reach Me was indeed the Newbery winner! Now I really do have to read it--despite my best intentions, it just didn't get done this weekend. I was also excited to see that Flash Burnout got the Morris award--that I did finish, and I thought it was great. It's always interesting to see authors who are probably my age giving props to all the music of our youth. Jerry Pinkney's The Lion and the Mouse was certainly spectacular as well (Caldecott winner) so in my opinion justice has been done. I do need to get my hands on Going Bovine (Printz winner) now as well--it was on my list all summer and then all of a sudden it wasn't. Ah well, now it's back. I need to watch Libba Bray in a cow costume on youtube to remind me. I started reading How do you Spell G-E-E-K? on Saturday, but it's short, and then I play catch up. I spent this last year in a post-partum fog, at least for the first 6 months. Well, the whole thing, really. And, as a result, I haven't read a fraction of what I should have. But, new year, fresh start, right?

As I said, this was indeed a big news day. For about a month now we have suspected that my daughter has celiac disease, and today we got confirmation that she does indeed. On the one hand, I'm kind of relieved, because once it became apparent that she had something, better celiac disease than any of the other possible diagnoses. And once it's under control she'll feel better, she'll grow, her quality of life will definitely improve. The down side is, this makes her susceptible to all sorts of other way worse diseases if she can't control it (I'm thinking rebellious teenage years here, wanting to drink beer because everyone else is and who brings wine to a keg party??), and it's hard to explain to a child who turned 5 two weeks ago that she can't have any of the foods she likes. She's smart, but she's stubborn--we have a long road ahead of us here.

I am going to have to make a conscious effort here, to go against my own personal inclinations and be positive for her. In that vein, we were totally gluten-free today. It wasn't the most exciting day, menu-wise, but we did it. So tomorrow we'll do it again. And if anyone has any gluten-free recipes for a picky child addicted to ravioli that aren't prohibitively expensive, then shoot them my way!

And now, a little venting

I've decided to blog today, because no one I know really wants to listen to me complain. I officially returned to work from maternity leave right after the new year, on a Saturday no less, and the fates seem to be conspiring to make me wish I was still at home. Or at least that I had a live-in nanny.
Going to work Saturday was a breeze, as my husband was home and I didn't need to get anyone out of the house but myself. Monday was a bit more of a challenge, as I had to drop the two kids at two different places before getting myself to the train station by 7:30 am. But I did it, both Monday and Tuesday, without too much trauma. Wednesday we had a mini ice storm, not too bad really, but enough so the town delayed school. Until they changed their minds and straight-out canceled school, which I didn't know because once I saw there was a delay I just focused on getting out at the new time and figuring out a different train to take, etc. Plus the temperature seemed to be getting warmer so imagine my surprise when, after dropping the baby off at his babysitter I arrive at the preschool to see that the place is dark and empty. The school is in the town Y, which was open and the staff was kind of snooty, like why didn't I keep tracking the school closings after I already saw there was a delay? Why would I?? Grr.
So. Back home to regroup, call my son's babysitter to see if she'll take my daughter (she will), change my daughter out of her bathing suit because she was supposed to have swimming at school today, and then back out for now the 8th time into the rain to drop off at the babysitter's house. Of course, now it's after 9 am and the trains are running far less frequently, so I bite the bullet and drive, which ironically is the only part of this day that was a pleasant surprise. Ordinarily I wouldn't be so annoyed at getting part of the morning off, but I just spent the last three months using up ALL of my sick time and vacation time, so time off means I don't get paid. Anyway, once I finally get to work the day is pretty much fine, good even, and when I get back on the road at almost 4:45 there's not even any traffic. But things soon take a turn when I call my husband to tell him I'm on the road and he tells me that my daughter has PINKEYE and that the baby probably does too. Stop at the pharmacy, pick up my daughter's medicine that the pediatrician called in, go home, take a look at the baby's eyes and decide that he needs to go in and see the doc--they won't just call in a prescription for him. And, they're both considered contagious until they've been on the medicine for 24 hours, so now my husband and I argue over who has to stay home until my mom can make it in the morning (she meanwhile, had to cancel a dr. appointment of her own just to do us this favor). And don't forget about the laundry--all the sheets and towels for everyone need to be switched out. By this time I'm twitching, imagining my eyes feel sticky, extra teary, you name it; I am not normally a germ-phobe but I really do not want pinkeye and feel like my house should have a giant "quarantined" sign on it. As a children's librarian I thought I had been exposed to practically everything, and that my kids were reaping the benefits by building up their own immunities, but I was clearly wrong about that.
I actually feel better now that I've gotten this all off my chest--here's hoping that this is the worst 2009 can throw at us!

Art Linkletter was right!

It's been a while since I have really had a funny conversation with one of the kids, but on Saturday one of our regulars came in, someone I haven't seen all summer, and we were talking about what he'd been doing for the last couple of months. I don't remember how the subject changed (maybe he just changed it), but he wanted to guess how old I was (occupational hazard when working with kids). He made a guess, a pretty close guess, but then proceeded to tell me WHY he knew I wasn't "old." Peering very closely, really taking his time, he said that number one, I don't wear earrings like old ladies wear. Also, my hair isn't gray and it's very bouncy. So there you have it--the secrets of eternal youth. Forget botox, peels--the earrings don't lie.