I'm sneaking in a blog mid-week...

Today is day 3 of Mercer’s diarrhea. (I finally looked up the spelling – but I really don’t want to say the word.) Todd’s been in Asheville for the past 2 days but is about to come home. I'm tired of the look of the D word, the smell of it, getting it on me occasionally, getting spit up on, etc. I should stop - shouldn't I?! It just seems like everything is bothering me more than normal. I’ve been feeling pretty crummy for most of the day and starting to get really blah quite frankly. There have been a couple things today, however, that have been highlights.

Early in the day – after Mercer’s medicine and feeding – I tried to put him down for a nap. He has been getting irritable and cranky when tired for the past month or so (I guess that's his "norm" now). Usually we can get him to go right to sleep, but not today... it took me close to an hour. By the end of that hour, I was starting to get tired myself, so I took Mercer to our bed and laid down with him in my arms. I stared at him. He stared at me. Then he broke out giggling. It was adorable. I was SO tired and a little frustrated, but how could I be upset at that amazing giggle?! It completely lifted me.

This afternoon, I was scanning tv for something to watch. I don't normally watch Oprah, but ended up catching most of the episode on today. She had a guest on who was nearing death from pancreatic cancer. He was so upbeat and good natured. Yes - his situation stunk, but why dwell in the negative / make the best of his final days. He's a professor at Carnegie Mellon U and delivered his "last lecture." You can watch the whole one on YouTube or the "abridged" version on Oprah (on YouTube too): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9ya9BXClRw

There were so many things that I thought were interesting throughout the interview:
- People want to know that they made a difference in this world.
- He told a story about how he had a brand new car and how he was taking his niece & nephew somewhere -- his sister was begging the children not to mess up his car at the same time he was pouring a soda in the back seat. He was trying to explain that it's just an object & didn't matter. One of the kids ended up throwing up in the back seat by the end of the trip and the guy said it was so nice knowing that he didn't make his nephew feel bad for having the flu and messing up his car. That was so much more important.
- They interviewed him & he wanted to play catch, so he brought a football signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The interviewer didn't want to throw it b/c it was a collector's item. The guy said -- what am I saving it for? He may as well enjoy it now.
- If you’re hopeful & optimistic – people flock to help you. If you’re down in the dump – people will still help you, but they won’t be running over to do it. You have the choice to be a person that people WANT to be around or a person that they don't want to be around.
- And my favorite story he told was about how his parents let him paint the walls in his room. They thought it was more important for him to express himself than to have a pristine kid's room. (He painted a submarine on the wall and an elevator door because he always wanted an elevator in their house.) His parents were definitely kids at heart. He showed them on their 70th and 80th birthdays. One was racing bumper cars and the other was riding a roller coaster to ring in the milestone. Fantastic!
- This guy had a great life and yes it was going to be cut too short but he was grateful for what he had been able to do and experience. He talked a lot about his 3 children and how he's loved being a father to them.

SO -- that put things in perspective for me. So far, the past 3 1/2 months have been the best yet (and that includes the sleepless nights early on... the spit-up... and the poo-related issues too. but it includes the toothless smiles, the giggles, and the snuggling.) A friend told us that she was glad we get to experience all of these things. Another told me that life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful.

It's true.