Smoke Signals

It's a lovely Friday morning, already 90 and humid at 7am and I wake up with a low-grade fever. No big deal, just slightly annoying. I'm trying to pull it together for the babies, but they're having none of it. Instead they're focusing all of their little baby energy on being cute then irritating in turn. On the play mat in the nursery they maniacally shift from whimsically amused at the colorful toys I offer to royally pissed at the exact same toys mere seconds later.

Going back to bed is my heart's deepest desire at the moment, but in my slightly feverish state all I can do is look at the clock and hope. It will be here soon, oh so soon. I can almost taste those two magic words on my tongue, tantalizing, like a cold Mike's Hard Mango Punch..."nap time." Right on time I see the cues; eye rubbing, yawning, losing interest in playing. We are ready to rock. Nolan easily goes to sleep but Nora needs a little convincing, so I rock her for a while.

Finally...blissful nap time. They should be good for about an hour and a half. I decide that I'm going to try to get a little rest, too, and maybe sleep off this fever. I lay my head down on the pillow, close my eyes and

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

The earsplitting sound from the hallway echoed and bounced off of the wood floors. With a racing heart, my first thought is not "Fire!" Rather it's "Oh my God, did it wake the babies up?!" I check the monitor. Miraculously they're still asleep!

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

There is clearly no smoke in the house, so it must the the battery. I yank the step stool out of the hall closet as quietly as possible, hop on, and open up the casing to check the battery type.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Like a cat, I jump off the stool and land silently on my feet, setting off at a sprint for the kitchen. "Dear Jesus, please let us have a 9 volt battery!" I whisper to myself.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Rummaging through the drawer, I find one. Triumph! I race back to the hallway and try to put the new battery in, BUT IT WON'T ATTACH TO THE CONNECTORS!!!

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

I frantically try to jam the damn thing in, growing more desperate by the second. Finally, it clicks into place. No more beeps; the smoke detector once again hangs above our heads, a silent guardian. Check the monitor again; amazing. They're still asleep! I slog back to the bedroom and flop down on the bed, so grateful that the ordeal is over. I lie down for my well-deserved nap and

Nolan wakes up. Awesome.

Happy Friday!