Even though Sam's still not eating much, and this evening he threw up what he did eat today, signs are pointing to the fact that he may be on an upswing. I had to lie in the bed with him for an hour and a half tonight before he would consent to go to sleep. This is in stark contrast to the past couple of days, when he was asleep out of sheer sick exhaustion almost before his head hit the pillow. Orneriness equals coming health in this child; hopefully, he'll wake up tomorrow with a much less runny nose and a vanishing cough. The nose, especially, would be nice; the skin underneath is raw and beginning to bleed from all the rubbing, even with the tissues with lotion in them and the fact that I've been putting Neosporin on it nightly.

For my part, I have to recommend Zicam decongestant. I used it for the first time with this illness and, other than the fact that after using it, a weird taste lingers in the back of the throat, it does indeed clear up congestion like nothing I've ever tried. (Mind you, I'm talking about the green box that says "Extreme Congestion Relief." I can't yet vouch for any of the other products; we're trying the kids' nasal swabs, but Sam can't tell me how they're working for him.)

Even Eric, who's just using Robitussin, is starting to feel and sound much better. I'm so glad; if we had gotten what Alysia's son had, we'd have been in for a much longer ride. Either we got some other bug, or else we just managed to throw it off a lot quicker. This bodes well for not exposing Rita to any dangerous illnesses at Christmas.

Speaking of Christmas, I'm getting close to ready. The living room is currently full of gift wrap and presents; I'm taking a break from wrapping, as my knees were beginning to ache. I think we're all done shopping for Sam; we may get a few more things for his stocking, but the bulk of his gifts are in our hands.

(Just got interrupted by a little boy, wailing away upstairs. He hadn't thrown up, but he must have coughed himself awake and was standing in the middle of the floor, gagging and wringing his hands. Back in bed, he grew even more upset and hit me a few times until I told him to stop. Then he burst into tears and sobbed, "Sorry, Mamaaaaaaaa!" Poor little guy.)

Anyway, we have most of Sammy's gifts, and I'm getting there on everybody else's. Eric's are almost ready; I still have one more thing I'd like to make for him, but that shouldn't take long. I bought a couple of Strawberry Shortcake dolls for my niece, and I'd like to try my hand at knitting matching hats for her and the dolls. As for the rest of Eric's family, I drew his aunt's name, and I'm almost finished making her a Latifa scarf. I mailed out the presents for the two online gift exchanges in which I'm involved, though I still need to mail out the ornament for the third exchange. My parents are getting a Family Tree, and I still need to get the little pictures for the ornaments that go on it. My brother is still up in the air; he's always being difficult.

Christmas cards are also running a bit behind schedule. I made and ordered the portrait Christmas cards today; hopefully, they'll arrive when they're supposed to, right before we have to leave for West Virginia. They'll go out later than I wanted them to, but they should get to most everybody before Christmas. The regular cards, I got today, along with the smaller pictures of just Sam that will go in them. I can send those out starting tomorrow.

Of course, as I type this, I think of people I've forgotten. My grandparents! Alysia! (That one's not my fault; I've been trying to get her to the yarn store to choose her own yarn for months now.) Are we buying for my Uncle Tim this year? What about Aunt Carol? Does Eric need to pick up gag gifts for the guys back in West Virginia this year, or will they even be there?

Christmas always leaves me tense, wondering who I've neglected. Someday, I'm just going to declare it a no-present year. But I like giving gifts! Maybe I should just make a whole pile of identical gifts, just to have enough to give everybody I happen to meet. That might work better.

Tomorrow I need to write the final exam for my piano "class," which involves only one person at this point. I wonder if anybody else will surprise me and show up? That would be a hoot; nobody else has come to class in months.

Anyway, his final will be easy, I think. He knows the three pieces I want to hear, and, as he's a musician already (he just plays another instrument), the written part will be a piece of cake for him. I don't know why I'm bothering, except that it's on the syllabus. I'd rather make the written part an oral exam, which would be much easier for me to do. Opening up my notation software, writing examples for him to explain and decode - that's a lot of work for one student.

Whine, whine, whine. Get, over it, Carrie; nobody wants to hear the teacher complain about the tests.

(And now the sad little boy is on my lap, whimpering and shaking. I need to take him back to bed, where I think I'll stay with him. He obviously needs some extra comfort tonight. Good night all!)