A Child Who Throws Up in Church is a Get Out of Mass Free Card

Well, we decided that we would go to Burlington on Saturday ostensibly to allow me to get the girls' Halloween costume material since we no longer have a JoAnn Fabrics store here, but we decided to make a full day of it. It was rainy although not freezing cold out. We ended up catching the ferry about 11:20 a.m. and it was busy. Could it be that everyone in Plattsburgh decided to go to JoAnn Fabrics this day? It seemed that way to me, because not only was the ferry packed, the highways in Vermont were busy, too. On Friday, Jack and I talked about the possibility of going to see "Ratatouille" at one of two screens still showing the Pixar movie in Burlington. One show started at 1:10 p.m. and the other at 1:30, but I couldn't remember which. I took a chance and picked the Majestic in Williston because even if it was the 1:10 show, there were plenty of places to choose to go to lunch beforehand. Well, we got to Williston at 12:25, so we went to Ponderosa to feed the kids off the salad bar, which isn't too bad, and it was quick. I said we got to Williston at 12:25. The traffic in Williston was outrageous. It was pouring out, Jack was driving and we had the strong possibility of being very late (not a good combination). We made some bad choices -- like getting out of the left-hand turn lane thinking we could turn around and approach it from the opposite direction. That only threw us in even more traffic. But we got there in time to wolf down some salad bar stuff, and we got there at the right time because as we were leaving the restaurant, the line was going out the door. I got vague directions to the Majestic, which was somewhere across the street in the new Maple Tree Place shopping complex, and we headed out. We would be just in time for the 1:10 movie if I could find the place. We had decided it would be in everyone's best interest if I were to drop Margaret, Patricia and Dad off for the movie and take Brigid with me to JoAnn's because she was a) in need of a nap; b) would not sit through the movie; and c) I didn't want to subject Jack to JoAnn Fabrics shopping. I found the theater by sheer luck and then, by very sheer luck it turned out that "Ratatouille" was the 1:30 show, so they had plenty of time.

Brigid and I then made our way down to JoAnn's in South Burlington, which wasn't hard once we got through the melee of Williston. It was remarkably easy traffic until we got to JoAnn's. The parking lot of the plaza was crazy, and the fabric store was even worse. I said before I thought the whole of Plattsburgh was shopping there, and I did, indeed, see a few people from Plattsburgh in the store! Brigid was being very well behaved considering she was drop-dead tired and, unbeknownst to me, had soaked through her diaper and I had left the diaper bag in the car. I found some appropriate fabrics for the costumes and found the cutting table only to discover a line of 40 people long waiting to have fabric cut. I got in line but didn't know if I'd have to abandon my quest because of a screaming baby -- and I'm talking about myself. Brigid was great. We pointed out things in the store, she asked about all the figures on bolts of fabric nearby, and the line moved its way toward the cutting counter. When it was our turn, she decided to cry and scream. But we were out of there quickly once the fabric was cut. I got her back in her car seat where she started to really cry -- sure sign of her need for a nap -- and I headed back to Williston even though the movie wouldn't be out for another hour. She fell asleep moments later, so I just parked in the parking lot by the Christmas Tree Shop, which is in front of the movie theater. I dozed a little myself while we both listed to Lullaby Magic. She woke up in time for me to get her out into the rain and into the Christmas Tree Shop just to find the bathroom where I needed to change her very soggy diaper. We made it to the theater not long after Dad and the girls had emerged, full of enthusiasm for the movie. Jack and I decided earlier in the day that we would extend the fun-filled afternoon to include a trip to the girls' favorite indoor amusement spot, Pizza Putt, for some fun and then dinner. They didn't know where we were going until we pulled into the parking lot and Patricia and Margaret let out a collective whoop. Once again, timing is everything, and Pizza Putt on a rainy Saturday afternoon is the place to go. The place was crammed with screaming, running kids. The two older girls took off for the play place and Daddy, Brigid and I found the kiddie ball pit, which Brigid loved on and off between climbing out and making a mad dash for the play place. The girls played for about 45 minutes (long enough) and we headed over to the restaurant for dinner. Brigid wasn't too interested in eating; she showed her true Downs' girl form by wanting merely to dip her cukecumber in ranch dressing over and over again, sucking it off the vegetable. After dinner, we let the girls play a round of mini-putt before calling it a day and heading home. Both Patricia and Margaret gave us enthusiastic thanks for a very fun day.

Brigid was down for the count by 9 p.m. but woke up about 11:30 or so crying. I went in to find her half asleep but very full of poop. I changed her and cleaned her up and got her back to sleep in her crib. She joined us in our bed about 5 a.m. and seemed very warm to me, but I thought it might just be because she had been snuggling under the blankets with us. I checked her a few times in the morning but couldn't tell if it was me or her. We got to church -- the girls were altar servers -- and she was in a wonderful mood, even after throwing up on Jack during the homily -- no reflection on "Uncle John," her godfather and homilist, Fr. John. We whisked her out and cleaned her up then Daddy took her home and I went back for the rest of the mass. When we got home, she was lying listless in Dad's arms watching TV. She took an hour-long nap afterwhich she spent an hour sleeping on me. I had some grocery shopping to do, so Patricia sat with her in the living room watching Buzz and Woody. When I returned, she had fallen back to sleep in Patricia's arms, where she stayed probably another hour. When she woke up crying the cry of a feverish sick baby, I gave her some Advil and she perked up almost immediately. She hadn't eaten anything to speak of so she had a few crackers and some sips of water and didn't throw up again. She had a little dinner with us, and then just hung out watching some of her favorite programs, like Blues Clues.

Margaret was immersed in her science project -- collecting 25 sets of leaves, identifying them and writing interesting information about each specimen. She then had to go to religious education class, so she took her bike (big responsibility because she'd be returning in the dark). She returned unscathed and somewhat excited about the privilege she had been given. She did some more work on her leaves, the project is due Oct. 30, and then she and Patricia went to bed, leaving me with Brigid who was not ready to fall asleep. I finally got her to bed about 9:15, but she sat in her crib babbling away -- not really crying, but talking and calling out. She fell asleep just before 10. She did wake up again about 2 a.m. and came into bed with us. We were concerned because of the fever. She slept until 8 a.m. and woke up with a fever, which we treated with Tylenol. She's home with Daddy right now, so we'll see how she does this morning. If the fever doesn't go away by this afternoon, I'll call the doctor's office to see if they want to see her. In the meantime, I have three Halloween costumes to make, all before Wednesday. Is anyone surprised?