Sisterchicks Go Brit

Molly is finally getting better today, thank the Lord! Her fever was over 103 on Sunday night, so first thing Monday morning I ran her to the doctor. Her UTI had traveled all the way up to her kidneys, and that's why she was so miserable. The doctor sent her home with antibiotics and a warning that if she wasn't better in 48 hours, she would have to be admitted to the hospital. Well, we're officially past 48 hours, and the fever is staying down, and she's acting more like her normal self. Yesterday she spent most of the day snuggled in bed next to me shivering and shaking with the fever and pain. But today she and Mia are fighting over their bedroom, so I can tell that the healing has begun. Doogie's especially thrilled; it means he won't have to do her chore of laundry any more!

Sisterchicks Go Brit by Robin Jones Gunn is the latest book in the fabulous Sisterchicks series. Liz has dreamed of going to England and meeting Big Ben since she was 15 years old. Kellie has long dreamed of opening her own interior design business. These two best friends have both of their dreams fulfilled through Opal, an elderly woman's, machinations. Opal wants to return to her native England to visit her twin sister Rose and after being thrilled with Kellie and Liz's renovation on her apartment, gifts them tickets to go along with her. Gunn's Sisterchick books are wonderful travelogues with lessons on faith and friendship on the way. This book didn't have the kind of depth I've become accustomed to in previous books in the series, but Gunn's description of England makes me want to book my flight out today!

I got the first flyer in the mail today advertising school supplies. It seems like school just got out, but summer is already half over. But Molly's yelling that I have to take her shopping; yeah, she's feeling better.

Sisters, Ink

I used to take my children's health for granted. I prayed about it and thanked God occasionally, but Doogie and Molly were so healthy, it wasn't a common worry. Mia, on the other hand, regularly has me petitioning the gates of Heaven. Before she turned five, she had already had two hospital overnight stays. (Doogie had one at five for cryptosporidium; Molly's never had one) She's still in remission from Juvenile Idiopathic Rheumatoid Arthritis (thank you Jesus!), but she's missed quite a few days of school this year due to frequent fevers. Last night we were laying in bed watching American Idol when I noticed she felt a little warm. Her temp was 102.6, so Jess and I gave her tylenol and ibuprofen and let her sleep with us. Her temp was 101.6 this morning, so I called her in to school and settled in for a day of cuddling (Mia calls it Mamma Mia time). At eleven, she was lethargic and not her chatty self, so I took her temp. Result: 105.4. I immediately panicked and literally spun in circles a few times before returning to earth. Then I stripped her down to T-shirt and underwear, placed a cold rag on her head, and gave her tylenol and ibuprofen again. Half an hour later it was down to 104.8, so I called the doctor and made an appointment for early afternoon. The doc isn't sure if Mia has (another) UTI or if the ecoli she had back in October ever really went away. So she's on antibiotics with lots of rest and fluids until we get the results back from the lab.

Sisters, Ink by Rebeca Seitz is the first book about the Sinclair sisters. Tandy is a successful business attorney in Orlando when she's given a leave of absence for insulting a client. She returns home to Stars Hill, Tenn to lick her wounds in the warmth of her family's love. Sister Meg has three children and is a homeschooling maven. Joy is a gourmet chef and newly married. Kendra is single and still trying to find her place in life through her artwork. Their father is a pastor, and they all still ache for the loss of their mother. It's this loss that has fueled Tandy's need to succeed and kept her from returning to the small town life she loves. Her life is further turned upside down by the reappearance of her high school love Clay, who has opened a diner in downtown Stars Hill. Because this is chick lit, the ending is never in doubt, but the route Seitz takes to get there is full of sweet sisterly dialogue, humorous small town characters (without being characters that populate so many novels about small towns), faith, and lessons about love. The Sinclairs adopted all of their girls, so they each come with baggage and heartache. Tandy feels the weight of her mother's expectations. All of the storylines are woven around the sisters' love of scrapbooking. I love to scrapbook, even though I'm all thumbs at it, and this book is inspiration for both your faith and your scrapbook jones.

Current temp: 101.6, time for more medicine!