It’s been 5 days but feels more like 120 hours. Woke up after a cold night out at Disneyland to a sore throat, achy body, and major congestion–seriously felt like my head was going to explode! So naturally, I told my 18 month old daughter that mama needed a few sick days. I promised her I would check in with her throughout the days, but if she needed anything, I’d be in my room with the shades drawn, sunken into a mound of pillows, and hiding under the comfy blankets. Any idea how well that went over? Ha not so great. Being sick and a mama is no joke because to my surprise, there are no sick days off. Who knew?

Nope. In fact, not much of your day-to-day changes at all. A mama is still up as soon as her little(s) wakes, off to the kitchen she goes to whip up breakfast while multi-tasking to prepare herself a pot of tea or cup of coffee to get her through the morning. Maybe (just maybe) be able to consume the coffee or tea while it’s still hot, but it’s actually more realistic to drink it lukewarm or cold. Clean up the mess that was made from breakfast, rush to the shower, get everyone dressed for the day, and entertain the little(s) until it’s time for that glorious morning nap. By the way, nap time is aka mama’s time to rest. Ha that’s funny. No, it’s now time to catch up on emails, follow up with clients, and hope after that is done, there is some time to catch a few z’s myself. My daughter is still asleep, sweet! Now it’s time to crawl into bed, and just as I shut my eyes…I’m quickly awoken to the sound of Giuliana moving around. Waking up from her morning nap! She’s well rested and full of energy to play for the next few hours. We’re up.

Heading to the kitchen to fix up some lunch, play games, read some books, take the dogs out for a walk, and she begins rubbing her eyes. She’s tired and ready for her afternoon nap. She slowly goes to sleep and I yet again jump on my laptop, check-in with clients, reply to emails, and return some phone calls. Before you know it, she’s up again and ready to take over the world!

Time for dinner, evening bath, and then (and only then), is it time for mama to rest and relax–which is what I used to think one was supposed to do when sick, right? But here is the funny thing. Each time I hear that sweet voice say “mama, let’s go,” I want nothing more than to play with her, make her smile, and keep her laughing. I am certain there were a few moments when I forgot how much my throat hurt, body ached, or how my head was throbbing. It’s amazing how a mama has this crazy intense will to push through just about anything. EXCEPT for when the hubby walks through the door, then I pass the torch and do all the things I mentioned earlier. Drink hot tea, climb into bed, and sink deep deep deep under the covers (wink).