On the mend

I don't have any pictures to post this time; you probably would not want to see pictures of what we have been through anyways. It all started a week and a half ago when Cole got off the school bus on a Wednesday afternoon with a very pale face and a low grade fever.  The first thing that he said to me was, "I feel awful."  He then explained that multiple kids from his class had been to the nurse's office during the day and all of them had been sent home running a fever.  He said that he did not want to get sent home because he wanted to take the social studies test.  Ugh.   I appreciate that he worries about his grades, but there is a time that you just need to go home.  So, Cole ran a fever all the next day and the next day.  I just thought that it was virus because the fever was low and he had a cough, headache, runny nose, and sore throat to go along with it.  Over half of his class was out with the same symptoms.  We kept Cole in his room watching movies on the portable DVD player so that he would stay away from Alex and Anna Grace.  Finally, on Saturday evening, Alex and Anna Grace developed the same symptoms.  I was supposed to substitute in Anna Grace's Sunday School class the next morning, but we planned a trip to a walk-in doctor's office instead.  On Sunday morning, we found out that Cole and Alex had strep and Anna Grace had a sinus infection but was going to be treated for strep.  After forking out over $300, we got antibiotics and a steriod for the coughs for all 3 kids.

I stayed home from work on Monday to be sure that the antibiotics would kick in, but by mid-afternoon, Mike came home also running a fever.  The kids were still coughing like crazy and Mike's fever was high.  Mike went to the doctor's office 2 times over the next few days and was finally diagnosed with the flu.  The kids were well enough to go to school, but we did not want to have Anna Grace's nanny in the house taking care of Anna Grace with flu germs floating around.  Thankfully, they were able to go to Megan's apartment for the week, but it meant that I had to get Anna Grace ready each morning on top of getting myself and the boys ready for school.  This is a really busy time of the year for me at work because I have meetings and paperwork due on all of my special education students.  I always work extra hours during this time of year.  So, on top of doing all of the cooking, driving kids to nightly afterschool activities, homework, and housework, I was working either at home or in my classroom late into the night.  I slept on the sofa and tried to keep Mike comfortable in the bedroom so that he would not spred flu germs throughout the rest of the house. He would laugh at me from the bed as I would reach my arm into the room wiping down the door frame and knob with Clorox wipes. I Cloroxed the whole kitchen each evening because he had to go in there to get food during the day when I was at work. 

Finally, on Friday night, I was exhausted, but Mike seemed to be getting better.  I had been sleeping on the sofa for 5 days and ached all over.  I was having sinus problems from the pollen and had lost my voice several times during the week and was more than ready for everyone to get well.   I was looking forward to a hair appointment Saturday morning.  Mike thought he would be well enough to take all 3 kids to Alex's soccer practice and I was finally going to get some "Mommy-time."  That was when Anna Grace woke me up at midnight sitting her bed covered in vomit.  I stripped her pjs off her and put her on the potty because she was also having diarrhea.  All that I could think of while I was Cloroxing her bed and walls was that we had made it through strep, sinus infection, cough, laryngitis, and the flu and now we were starting in with a stomach virus.  I wanted to cry.  After I got her cleaned up and back into clean sheets, I moved my blankets and pillow into the extra bed in her room and prepared for a night of battling vomit.  Thankfully, she slept and was fine for rest of the night, but I woke up every time she moved thinking that she was going to be sick again. 

The next morning, I was heartbroken when I had to call and cancel my hair appointment.  All I could think of while I at least tried to shave my legs for the first time in a week was my disappointment over not getting to go to the salon. Then, I started to feel guilty.  I don't know how families function when they are dealing with a long-term illness.  That could have been us when we made the decision to adopt a child with a heart defect.  I was feeling disappointed over not going to get my hair done and exhausted from just a week and a half of illness, but a lot of people are dealing with a lot worse.  Just this week, one of the moms in my neighborhood lost her fight with a long-term illness and her precious children had to watch their mother lose all of her body functions.  We could be dealing with a lot worse and I should feel grateful that everyone is finally on the mend in our family.

Now, it is Sunday night and all of the sheets are freshly washed, bath mats have been laundered, and the house is scrubbed.  The week ahead will be incredibly busy with activities for the kids each night, but it will seem like a breeze compared to last week when I did not have Mike by my side to make decisions about the kids and deal with dinner.  I am truly grateful to have healthy kids and a wonderful husband back by my side to tackle the week ahead.