'Tis the season for effluvia

We have been laid up for more than a week now with lots of snot and sickness and general malaise. Clara came down with a virus last Monday, which developed into a secondary ear infection, which led to an epic battle over the drinking of amoxicillin, which led to a new prescription of chewable antibiotics, which was followed by a ruptured ear drum, which means we can't get any water in her ear for two weeks, which means her hair is looking a tad greasy. And now we're going through the same thing with poor Jonathan--minus the ear infection and the medicine and the greasy hair (knock on wood). It's been a long week.

But, in times like these, it always pays to keep one's good humor intact. Clara helps out with this, since she always has something interesting and amusing to say. The other day, for example, she got out her halloween pumpkin bag and told us she was going to the store. "Good-bye, Friends!" she proclaimed before waltzing off to the laundry room closing the door. When she returned a few moments later, we asked her what she'd bought at the store. "Meat," she answered. Of course.

Also, she was looking at a wedding picture of Jeremy and me. She pointed to my dress and veil and said, "Kess gets married, too" (it's important to note here that she calls herself "Kess" if she uses her name at the beginning of a sentence; otherwise, it's Care-la). I told her she could get married when she was a very big girl like mommy, and she looked at the picture, touched the veil, and said, "Kess wears a purple dress and wings!!" So I guess it looks like I'm wearing fairy wings with my evidently purple dress. Go figure.

And finally, we recently bought a copy of the classic Little Golden Book The Tawny Scrawny Lion at the Goodwill. Several times the words say that the lion wants to be "as fat as butter." After many, many readings, Clara turned to me, poked my lumpy tummy, and said, "Mommy's fat as butter." Bless her heart.