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11/22/05

7:30 PM: Elisabeth seems to be feeling better today, although she had to stay home from school while we wait for the antibiotics to take effect. This morning, unfortunately, Sophie said her throat hurt too. I called UNC, and they said to have her tested, so I took her to urgent care this morning. We were the second person there, so we didn't have to wait as long as Randall and Elisabeth did yesterday, but it still took over an hour. The doctor was really pleased to see her again. She was quite unhappy about having a swab put in her mouth, but he eventually got a sample, which turned out to be negative for strep (plus her throat showed no signs of irritation).

After we were done, she decided she didn't want to go to Countryside, but I insisted (we thought it was important for her to reduce her exposure to Elisabeth). She cried her little eyes out when we got there, but I took her to her "new" classroom and hung out for a little while. Before long, she seemed pretty comfortable, so I left (and her teachers said she had a wonderful day--she spent the whole day in the upper 3-4 classroom). She reported that the best thing for today at school was "cooking" in the pretend kitchen. She was putting all the food and pans away when I got there.

After all that, it was hard to get back into the mood to work once I got home, but eventually I got motivated. One nice piece of news is that a manuscript I submitted to a journal a few months ago (with the help of a co-author) was provisionally accepted (I have to make a few revisions to be reviewed by the editor). The editor said it was one of the best written submissions they've ever had, which was wonderful to hear! This will be my first peer-reviewed article, and it's looking like two more manuscripts I worked on will also be accepted this month (although I wasn't the lead on those). The three articles will be a nice resume booster.

Elisabeth went to class with Randall this afternoon (two of his classes were cancelled, and she went with him to the one class that wasn't cancelled). He called a little while ago and said she did great. I picked Sophie up from Countryside, and the two of us went to dinner before her dance class. There was an elderly gentleman eating by himself at the Cracker Barrel who came over to our table and complimented Sophie on how well she "handles herself." He was amazed at how young she is, given the way she talks and interacts with her surroundings, and asked if I knew how special she is. That's nice to hear. She is a special girl. I think a lot of it has to do with being around (and copying) Elisabeth, who is also very special.

Today when Sophie and I were in the car, she saw a huge buzzard in the road, and it flew off as we went by. She said, "I wish I could fly." I had noticed the bird, so I asked her about it and whether she wanted to fly in an airplane. She said she did. I asked her where she wanted to fly in an airplane. She said (without even really pausing), "New York." I asked her what she wanted to do in New York, and she said, "Play. They have lots of toys in New York." I'm not sure where that all came from (possibly Madagascar, which we watched recently and begins in New York), but I certainly did think it was interesting. Randall and I had just recently been talking about looking into the Make-a-Wish foundation and how we thought she might need some guidance on selecting a wish. I thought the best she could do is wish for a bowl of cheese grits, but I had no idea New York would enter her mind. We were leaning more toward Disney World, so we'll see what happens!