We’ve had some unwelcomed house-guests the last 4 weeks. They go by lots of names: germs, bugs, viruses, flu, infection, pain, fever, tears, orneriness, vomit, sadness. I’m ready for them to go.
Here are some of the unpleasant details of this House of Illness.
Four Weeks ago: Billy got a fever that lasted for 5 days. On day 5, I called for a doctor’s appointment which was scheduled for the next day. His fever broke during the night and he seemed fine that morning, so we took Rusty instead. Rusty had woken up with a fever and his barky cough.
Three Weeks ago: Rusty was diagnosed with croup and spent 5 days with 3-4 Albuterol treatments with his nebulizer each day. This same time Tommy exhibited typical cold symptoms – runny nose, congestion, crankiness. Both boys seemed to get better about the same time. Kevin and I were starting to feel run down but nothing too bad.
Two Weeks ago: Ricky came home from school really mellow and curled up on the couch with a blanket. His temperature spiked to 103* that night. Mine reached 102*. We were miserable. Kevin still felt blah. Rusty and Billy were left to mutilate the house as they saw fit while I laid near death on one couch and Ricky on the other. I returned to the land of the living after 4 days. Ricky was slower at coming around.
One Week ago: Ricky had missed 5 days of school and shouldn’t have gone the one day he went (he needed to remember that school was a good place, so I made him go for his short day). That morning he finally said the magic words, “Momma, my ear feels kind of funny.” I was on the phone and had him to the doctor that evening. Kevin took him and Tommy who had become feverish and lethargic as the day wore on. Ricky tested positive for Influenza B and had two whopper ear infections. Tommy was negative for RSV and we were told to just watch him closely. Ricky started antibiotics and seemed to improve almost overnight. That same night, Rusty became congested and Billy’s temperature spiked up to the 102* area. The black rain cloud of sadness descended on our house again.
One Day ago: Rusty and Tommy had their Well-Baby check-ups scheduled for yesterday morning. Neither one is really well, but away we went. I had Kevin come to help with cranky babies and Billy had no where else to go, so he came too. Rusty needs to go back on the nebulizer, but he isn’t nearly as bad as the RSV patients the doctor has been seeing (I think that was meant to comfort us). Tommy is not gaining weight like the doctor wants (think 5th percentile when 50th is average) and while his lungs sound clear, he has an eye infection. Then, on a fluke, I asked the doctor to just look in Billy’s ears to rule out an ear infection. Um, yeah, Billy has BAD double ear infections. The kid has never mentioned his ears hurting. Even right after the doctor looked in them, he told us they didn’t hurt.
So we have antibiotics, essential oils, vitamins, and fluids flowing at our home in an effort to clear this mess out. The windows get cracked at the warmest part of the day and lots of prayers are issued in hopes to get our family healthy again. Despite the sleepless nights and the pathetic whining and whimpering, the boys have handled all of it very well. They haven’t fought with each other. When they’ve had the energy, they’ve played well together. On Rusty’s birthday, Ricky even mentioned that we’d been too sick for him to get Rusty a present!
We might have been a House of Illness this last month, but it has been a House of Love and that is what’s gotten us through. Barely.