Raging Dad

Photo: CDC/Dr. Heinz F. Eichenwald

First the bad news: Connie has caught strep throat from Raging Mom. I am writing this post with masticated grape children’s Motrin all over my shirt. It is kind of amazing, the level of craziness that a child can employ when they are delirious with fever. She went completely Linda Blair on me. I was sure the priests were coming to shout, “The power of Christ compels you!” She finally choked the medicine down (with the exception of that which I was wearing), and slipped into a restless sleep.

Raging Mom has only begun to feel better, and the whole cycle begins again. I am really hoping that Michael and Sonny don’t wake up with it too. I am nervous, though, because as I write this I hear Sonny tossing and turning, and feverish breathing. Wait, is that the neighbors? No such luck. Oh yeah, and I hope I escape the illness myself. So, our plans to drive up to the northern part of Minnesota are in peril. We shall see what tomorrow brings.

Sonny, Connie, Raging Dad, Michael

Today my Raging Sista and I took the kids to Minnehaha Park. This is a wonderful park in south Minneapolis with a gorgeous waterfall. It is said to be the place where Longfellow wrote “Song of Hiawatha.” Raging Sista and I grabbed sandwiches from Manny’s Tortas and McD’s for the kids (shame, I know), and ate our bounty on picnic tables of wood and stone. The peace was broken only by the terrible blaring of the toy-of-the-day from the boys’ kids meals. Here is a video that may illustrate the complete ridiculousness of this toy. Why they stopped giving out Decepticons and Autobots in favor of this shite, I do not know.

The mosquitoes are terrible here, in this savage land. One of the best parts of the Pacific Northwest is the complete absence of the bloodsucking little bastards. I forgot how badly my kids react to their bites, and was harshly reminded when the swelling of their faces and legs began to alarm those around us. Time to buy stock in Ruligel.

These last couple days I have been pretty unimpressed by my parenting skills. I just get frustrated too quickly, and find myself being unfairly short with the kids. Especially the boys. I need to be better at not holding them to a different standard than I do for Connie. It is hard, and I do love them so much. To close this post, I thought I’d share what Raging Sista wrote about her day with us:

It is hard to not enjoy this park!

“For those of us who don’t get to see these guys much any more, we are getting the best of them; it is great to see how different they have become, how smart & talkative they are, & how much happiness they have inside of them. Even though the world may have been crashing a second ago when there was a riff about a shared toy or what activity to do next, it can be blown over and forgotten with a trip to the sandbox, or by learning a new game (Uno!) & that no matter what, their love for each other and their family is undeniable.”

Thanks, Raging Sista. Our love for you is undeniable as well. Thanks for the great day!

Snoozing in the car, post falls.