Banana Angels

A few weeks ago, I told you about my difficulty in quickly preparing myself for Scarlett to go to school full-day, instead of half-day, as we had expected.  I believed it was very important for Scarlett to be in a structured classroom environment with other kids, but a big part of me still wanted her home with me, at least for part of the day.

Then Scarlett got sick.  It started with the croup and likely turned into some other kind of virus.  She had a terrible cough and a fever that went on.  And on.  And on.  It only got scarily high a couple times, but it was persistent.  We had sent her to school for half a day the first week, thinking she was better, but when we got her at lunchtime, she had a fever again.  So we started realizing she would miss most of her first week of school.  We never anticipated she'd miss her entire second week of school as well.  Her fever just wouldn't let up, so she got to know the Nickelodeon and Disney Channels' line-ups really well.  She played lots of games on the computer.  We read oodles of books.  We played many games.  We made bread and jello, just for fun. 

And I suppose, in an ironic Murphy's Law sort of way, I got what I wished for.  I had Scarlett home with me, for 2 whole weeks.  Erik and I took turns staying home with her, with some help from friends.  But each day, I wondered what she was missing and whether the kids in her class would even care when she came back.  I had mini-meltdowns about her not being able to go to school, just like I'd had mini-meltdowns about her going to school a few weeks earlier.  Be careful what you wish for, right?

The doctor was pretty concerned about how long this supposed virus was lasting, so she ordered some tests last week.  I'll spare you the details of the experience of holding a 4-year-old during nasal flu tests and blood tests.  In the end, everything seemed normal.  And finally, 3 days later, Scarlett's temperature had gone back to normal, and she started to look like her normal perky self again.

I think I knew Scarlett was all better the other day when she was eating a banana for breakfast.  She had peeled down the sides and was shaking the whole thing up and down.  I asked what she was doing.  She said, "Look!  It's an angel!" as the flapped the banana peel wings.  I asked, "What do angels do?" to which she replied matter-of-factly, "They fly around.  And they watch over me."  I smiled at my imaginative daughter and her fantastic banana angel, and thanked God that she's finally well again and able to go to school. 

I'll handle it just fine, because when I start missing her, there's a whole bunch of bananas I can peel to watch over me too.