5 years 8 months 10 days

Day 2079. Yesterday I would have like to sleep in but that's always hard when the kids don't go downstairs or to the park. At some point it did get quiet, and at 11 am I went to the kitchen to start cooking lunch. I made the national Malian dish that the kids had never eaten before and that I hadn't cooked in a long time - rice with peanut sauce. They were a little skeptical but liked it. It's sure very filling.

After lunch, Randy left to pick up a free car seat that we'll take to the US with us and then leave with the rental car there, when we leave. I had some office work for Mali to do, and then I decided it was a good time to treat everyone's hair with the lice shampoo again. That took some time. By the time I was done, Randy had returned home. I then made their dinner-to-go boxes, and at 4:15 pm we all left the house.

I really wasn't feeling so well and would have preferred to stay home, but for the kids' sakes we took two subways and got to church at 5 pm, when the service started.

We found seats in the last row. Tammy and Emmy went to the front to draw, while Sammy stayed with us at first. He later also went to the front to draw. At 5:30 pm they went to kids' church. It was Randy's turn to go with them, so I got to stay in the sanctuary. I wasn't feeling too well besides being tired and had to run to the bathroom every few minutes. I really didn't want to be there. When Randy texted me at 6:45 about going home, I was glad and we soon left after having looked for Anna who wasn't there.

By 7:30 pm we were back home which was earlier than usual. With all the busy-ness during the day, I had forgotten about piano practice and so we went downstairs to do it. Then they got ready for bed, and I even still read them some stories. After they were in bed, I went to the kitchen to get something to eat. I felt terrible and figured I had a bladder infection. I decided to go to the doctor the next day. And I did something highly unusual - I went to bed at 11 pm.

This morning the kids kept coming to me and waking me up several times before they were finally out the door to go to kindergarten. My alarm then woke me up at 9:30, and I could definitely have slept longer. I got up and got ready for my 10 am student. I felt better than last night. I taught until 11 am, then went to the kitchen to make lunch that I ate earlier as it was my first food of the day. The doctor's office opened at 1 pm, but I decided not to go after all. And so Randy went to pick up Sammy  - a little later than usual.

While Sammy and I were at home, he was watching videos and playing with the door, as usual, while I was trying to work. And I was feeling worse again and made the decision to go see the doctor after all, even though it was not convenient. When Randy returned home with Tammy and Emmy, I left the house. Randy then had to take all three kids to the Robbo club, where Tammy and Emmy had their programming class from 4:30 to 6 pm. Today they actually made their robots move.

I took the subway downtown and walked all the way to the doctor's office where I arrived around 3 pm. When I registered, they gave me a cup to pee into that I then deposited there. I sat down in the waiting room and waited, reading today's paper. It took a while, but then I was called in by the assistant doctor. He confirmed that I had a bladder infection and gave me a prescription, and after 1 minute, I already left his office again. I walked back to the subway, picking up the prescription on the way, and rode it home.

By 4:25 pm I was back home, and at 4:30 pm I had a student, which was a rush. I taught until 5:20 pm. After I was done, Randy left to go pick up Tammy and Emmy, but first I quickly made their dinner sandwiches for him to take with him. Sammy and I then were at home together again and having a good time.

A student had asked for a lesson on short notice, and I agreed to do it at 6:40 pm. That meant I had to do some scanning in preparation. I also had to cut up fruit for the kids so they could eat while I'd teach. It was quite a rush, but I got it done and started teaching at 6:40 pm. I asked Sammy to wait by the door and greet Daddy, and thankfully he arrived just minutes later.

They ate and went into the bathtub, while I was teaching. At 7:30 pm I was done, and I took them downstairs for piano practice. Back upstairs, we sat down for story time, then I prayed for them, and they went to bed. It was going on 8:30 pm already. I soon went to the kitchen to get something to eat and relaxed while eating. Then I started working on the pictures and this report. Now it's midnight, and I hope to make it to bed soon, as I have to get up "early" again.